Jan/Feb 05 chat - Thread #3

[HeatherC]

Well, we've suffered our first major injury.  Kelsey fell face first into a toy and split her lip, requiring 3 stiches.  Bless her heart, she was so good at the ER considering she had been up since noon (didn't take her afternoon nap), and we were there until 11:30 pm.  Oh, Branwen, I was thinking of you and what you went through with Eirwen hitting her face.  It was such a terrible experience.  I just wanted to erase the day and start over.  It just goes to show us what can happen even with both parents right at her side.  We were putting together a new toy table and she was right in the mix with us, eager to play.
Luckily, she's doing well today.  Her cold bothers her more I think.  But just how am I supposed to keep stiches on the mouth dry?  The doc had a since of "I know, I know, impossible," but said to do the best I can.
Everyone stay safe!

[Daniel's mummy]

Oh you poor thing.  I am so sorry to hear about Kelsey's accident.  Glad that she's doing ok though.  Lets hope the cold goes very soon.  And all the best on trying to keep her lip dry :? .

Take care.

[julieb]

Deb, hope your family is feeling better by now.  How's Liv?

JulieG, hope you're hanging in there!

Tammy, I keep hearing about these super-viruses we have now and that colds now last longer than they have in years past!  :shock:

Heather,   :shock:  :shock:  how scarey!  What a long day!  How long do the stitches need to stay in??

Hazel, the seminar was by an author, Tim Kimmel.  He's a born-again christian.  I'm reading one of his books, Grace-Based Parenting, in my bible study right now (such a good book, I SO wish my parents had read it).  The seminar was great, though it was largely focused on christian parenting, here's one non-religious nugget that made an impression on me that I'll share here: He was talking about our hurried lives and kids growing up so fast (cites teens are often rebellious because they didn't have a proper childhood).  Mentioned the whole pre-school phenomenon and pressure our society places on education.  He said the brain releases an enzyme that gives it the ability to learn to read and do math, but this doesn't happen until 5-7 years old.  It's possible to learn these things early, but not without placing stress on the brain.  And studies show that by 4th grade, all these kids are even again (both those who learned early and those who learned later).  He said these first 5 years we should be concentrating on building a strong foundation and bond with them (both emotional and spiritual), stressing imagination and play, letting kids be kids and not have to worry about the grown up stuff yet.  I've always thought this myself (never understood the point of preschool except when needed as daycare for working parents), but never had anyone validate it before.  Very interesting to me.

Me, DH is back and we talked, which is good.  Not so sure how to go about the weight loss just yet.   :roll:

[Deb_in_oz]

Heather I am glad Kelsey is allright - how scary!! shows that they can be "troopers" when necessary and can get through a hard time.

Julieb - thanks for sharing that info.  everyone here has asked me a million times what schools i have alex down for and to be honest i have not doen it yet.  partly - i cannot belive how much preschool costs and when i am not adding any income it looks like it will be a bit of a financial burden so not sure if shoudl do it at 3 or wait til 4 years old.  also, we don't know wheere we will be in a year and a bit so i could put her name down here and then we move  :roll:  I have said that if it comes down to it i will homeschool for preschool as i can do activities for alex that Liv can benefit from but without any stress... we will see - still not sure.  i see the social benefits though as alex loves when she goes to care 1-2 mornings a week (the structire, other kids, activities, etc excite her)

us - Dh is now succumbing to the illness. i am in the achey muscles and joints phase, Dh and Alex have low fever and Dh has aches and pains and upset stomach.  Liv is taking bottles but whenever we try to reintroduce solids (some toast/banana/apple BRAT diet) she ends up with diarreah or small vomit  :cry:  she is at least sleeping ok. we are just chilling out with DVDs and resting and trying to get everyone to drink water when we remember.

[HeatherC]

Sounds like a lot of rough times on this thread.
I'd like to jump in on the preschool/home foundation conversation.  I liked what you shared, Julie.  I might check out that book.  I've always thought preschool would be good, but not necessarily necessary.  I do feel, though, that some sort of structured child care or educational center will benefit Kelsey in preparing for the socialization skills needed when she enters school.  I worry that by me being a SAHM, and her world revolving around me, that she won't get the benefit of playing with children/sharing/finding independence outside of mom.  It's just a factor of our situation, neither good nor bad.  Therefore, I will probably look into a Mother's Day Out program as it is called her, when she's around 2-3 yrs old.  Yet I totally agree that a good moral and social foundation comes from home, and I don't want to push my child past her childhood either.  She's got a whole life ahead of her to learn and work, so I'll let my child be a child while she can.

Get well wishes to all that are ill.

[Schae]

Tarri: I hope you find something for Emily's ecxema. Poor baby.

Tissue salts - Dr Schuessler identified 12 vital mineral - or tissue - salts essential for normal body function at a cellular level. He determined that imbalance in one or more of these salts led to specific health problems and diseases, but that balance could be restored by taking the necessary mineral element. http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/healthy_living/complementary_medicine/remedies_tissue.shtml
I use them whenever I feel a cold or cough coming on and I've been sick once this entire year. Also safe for use on babies.

Deb: I hope that today you are all feeling better. How did the doctor's appointment go?

Heather: I'm sorry! Poor Kelsey! It must've been very scary.

JulieG: How long do they think you'll be out of power? I can't imagine how hard it must be to be in that kind of a situation. And I hope that you can have a belated Halloween party, then please share pics of Matty in his costume.

[Leah's Mom]

So being a teacher of 5-8 year olds I guess I better put in my few words about early learning. There are children that benefit from preschool, but these are usually children who don't get the strong foundation and bond (both emotional and spiritual) at home. In the United States there has been a HUGE change in what Kindergarteners (5-6 year olds) are suppose to know when they get to school. We used to learn our letters and sounds in Kindergarten and now when a child comes to school they are expected to know these things and it isn't that odd if the child knows how to read. If they don't, they receive special services in reading (me!). I'm not saying I agree with this, becuase I don't. I think society is putting too much pressure on young children.

OK, OK I could go on and on, but who wants to listen!?!?! 

Heather - SO SORRY about Kelsey. How scary!?!?!! I hope she is doing better.

Will post more later!

[Leah's Mom]

I almost forgot! We had Leah's nine month check up last night. She is 21.3 pounds and 31 inches long.  :shock: She is in the 90th percentile for weight and off the charts for height.  :shock:

[Daniel's mummy]

Daniel slept until 6.45 this morning   :shock:   It was the first night that we put him in a vest first underneath his pyjamas.  So now I'm convinced that that is what made him sleep in :lol: I'm sure it's just coincidence but I can assure I'll definitely put him in a vest again tonight!

Juieb - thanks for sharing that little nugget from the seminar. Sounds like it was useful.  I may well buy that book on amazon.  I recently read a parenting book by a Christian author called Rob Parsons.  The book is called 'The sixty minute mother' and is a short book (did take me slightly longer than 60 mins though!).  Is well worth a read though.  Made me cry in places and also inspired me in manyways.  He's also written a number of other parenting books (60 minute father is one of them - also good).

I started my diet on Sunday.  It's still going ok.  I'm somehow finding the ability to be quite self controlled so far :shock:  Not sure how long it'll last but here's hoping!

Debra - you poor things      Get well soon.

Christine - wow- 31 inches?!?  Another supermodel in the making, along with Eirwen!  Makes Daniel seem like a short dumpy thing :lol:

[branwen]

Hi everyone!

Tarri- Poor Emily.  Here's my thoughts because of Eirwen:

Have you tried any of the Gentle Naturals products for Eczema.  AFter trying Mustela, California Baby, Aquafor (so allergic to this stuff), Johnson's, Aveeno, etc it seems the Gentle Naturals work for Eirwen.  They have Calendula in them but also other ingredients.

Have you tried a humidifier?  That is getting hooked up probably next week for Eirwen.  Last Jan it really helped with Eirwen's problems.

I have read bad bad things about the coritzone thinning the skin so I've stopped using it on Eirwen.  I know you might have no choice if it is so bad.  Do you bathe everyday?  Cutting down might be good.  Eirwen gets a bath every day but its only every other day that we use soaps on her.

The other thing is dairy.  Does Emily eat any dairy yet?

Deb- oh that bug you all have sounds like a nightmare!  Truly sorry...I hope you all get better...hang in there!

Christine- our tall girls! So cute!  Everyone thinks Eirwen is 18 months...it's starting to embarrass me slightly but then I get happy- she is healthy!!!

Preschool Topic- I am struggling with this.  I have read that kids who do not attend preschool are behind going into kindergarten- socially and academically.  But I COMPLETELY AGREE with the amount of pressure put on kids these days and how insane it is.  I heard something that the amount of homework has doubled since I was in school for elementary.  years ago I think I also saw some Dateline special about the backpacks...and the heavy books they have to carry around destroying those little vertebre :cry:  It is so sad...  I just don't know how I can "compromise".  One thought was to join a preschool homeschooling group or mommy group so Eirwen gets the social stuff and learning stuff, learns to share and play with other children but not have to be in the preschool environment.  I don't know...AHHHH!!!

Weight Topic- I am in the opposite position as my doc is concerned that I can't stop loosing.  He says there's not much we can do unless I quit breastfeeding.    More of this guys odd advice.  Anyway, my SIL had a lot of success with LA Weightloss and also joined Ediets.com.  You guys should check it out! When I was larger in the past I switched to eating small meals all day long instead of 3 main meals.  That seemed to help me loose it.

Hazel- Eirwen does the bum rocking thing too while sitting.  It is really cute- and she does it esp to music.

Heather- Poor Kelsey!  Oh my gosh! I so know how that is!  They just go and you can't stop them! She sounds like a trooper though!  You too! I'd be such a wreck. 

US- We're doing pretty good.  I can see the white spot for her upper tooth :shock: We're off to Colorado here pretty soon. We found a place there.  We're just going for it...the house in under contract but it is an odd situation.  It's just I'm honestly too depressed.  I'm in freindship hell...and I just want to breathe the clean CO air in time for Christmas!
 

[julieb]

Tim Kimmel's website is http://www.familymatters.net if you're interested.  Grace-Based Parenting is just one of his many parenting books.  The seminar skimmed over all of them.  But Grace-Based focuses on building the strong foundation, moral values as well as a trusting relationship.  On his website, he has a "daycare calculator" in which you can input your financial information to determine if it's really cost effective for your family.  He mentioned how we actually work for free Jan-May because all of that money goes to the governement (taxes, etc).  Very eye-opening to me.  I realize many moms work by choice and like the intellectual and social stimulation, but for me, it was validating.
On the preschool thing, he cited some books by David Elkind that I may also check out (The Hurried Child, Miseducation, All Grown Up & No Place to Go).  He talked about the money poured into the early education industry and pressure placed on parents, making them feel they are doing a dis-service to their children if they don't buy into all these things.  He showed a preschool center ad from Texas called Creme de la Creme that advertised your child would be the Creme de la Creme for attending there, as they noted all of their award-winning educational programs.  Everyone one places a huge importance on getting into the right school (with wating lists years long) so they can get into a prestegious college so they can get a successful job that pays a lot of money.  But there are plenty of successful people that went to the community college making lots of money.  And there are wonderful, noble professions that do not make a lot of money, like social workers, police, and teachers.  Parents want their children to be successful but define that by money, beauty, power and fame.  (Warning: religious comments to follow) As Christians, none of these goals are Biblical, yet we still pursue them.  Instead, true greatness should be defined by humility, gratefulness, generosity, and a servant's spirit, according to the Bible.  I felt like he hit it right on the head!

Anyway, many of you noted concerns about the social aspects of preschool and I'm right there with you.  But I figure we have other avenues available (and I will make sure we do) for Asher such as family friends, church, and playgroups.  I plan to homeschool someday, so I'll have to have alternatives in place for him anyway.

On the weight loss front, I ordered a bunch of supplements last night that are supposed to help with cravings and emotional eating.  I got it out of a book of alternative cures from my Mom.  It cited a lot of this stuff comes from our bodies lacking essential amino and fatty acids, hence the cravings of sugar and carbs.  Made a lot of sense.  This is my first step to get my eating habits under control again since that's half my battle.

Asher slept well this morning.  Woke at 4:30 crying but I resettled him quickly.  I heard him start singing at the usual 5 AM, but then he went back to sleep till 7:00!     But now he's awake after just a 45 min morning nap!  :shock:

[Leah's Mom]

Christine- our tall girls! So cute!  Everyone thinks Eirwen is 18 months...it's starting to embarrass me slightly but then I get happy- she is healthy!!!

Oh yes, Leah is now wearing 18 month pants!  :lol: Glad I didn't buy many winter clothes last winter because I was buying 12 month clothes. [/quote]

[thitz]

Heather, you're poor baby !  Thank goodness your dh was there to help.  And 3 stitches...in a little tiny baby lip?  I hope she's managing okay.  Does it interfere with drinking her bottle?

Branwen, thanks for the tip, I haven't tried gentle naturals, but I'll look for it next time.  Also, I've only been bathing Emily once a week :oops: because the whole time she's in the water she just scratches and scratches her tummy and legs.  Although she does still LOVE bath time.

Schae, thanks for the link on tissue salts.  It sounds interesting.  Just one question, are all those different compounds in one pill?

Christine, I think you mentioned awhile ago that you got an elliptical bike?  All this weight talk has inspired me and dh to use ours again.  I'm forcing myself to do one 5mins program if I have a bad snack (like buttery popcorn) after dinner.

Us, has everyone given their lo's meat?  I haven't yet, and was wondering if I should get moving on this or not.  It seems like a lot of work to prepare.

[HeatherC]

Thank you for all your thoughts and concern.  The stiches will come out on Thursday.  I don't think she even knows they are there as they haven't interfered with eating, and she hasn't touched them.  I'm trying so hard to keep them clean, and keep neosporin on them.  Luckily, the doc said the first 24 hours were the most vital for the wound to heal, so we've passed that.
I'm enjoying the discussion on early education.  And I agree with Julieb, there are many opportunities for child involvement outside of pre-school is it is not an avenue for your family to take.  Who knows what the future will hold, though.

Meats:  Kelsey loves apples and ham and apples and chicken and sweet potatos and turkey.  I don't make my own, though. 

Good news:  She finally ate the yobaby yogurt today.  I don't know if her cold has hampered her taste buds because she hated it before, but I've just kept trying and today she ate about 2 oz before I stopped her to have the bottle.  I was concerned about getting enough calcium in her once we're off the formula, but now I know she'll take yogurt if she doesn't like milk. 

 :?: Are any of you bottle feeders offering the formula in the sippy cup yet?  Kelsey's ped said to keep trying so that I can wean from the bottle as soon after a year as possible.  I've read in BW though that some babies take a morning and night bottle up to 18 months.  Does this mean that they take the sippy during the day, but real milk in the bottle in the am and pm?  She won't drink the formula from the sippy.

Also, what are your kiddos eating these days?  Kelsey is still on pureed foods.  I considered moving to stage 3 which has more lumps and textures, but I doubt she'll eat "lasagna" or "chicken and dumplings", for example, and that's what seems to be offered in stage 3.  I realize that I just have to try, try, try again, but I don't want her taking baby food jars to kindergarten if you KWIM!

And yet another question:  Is anyone down to 3 liquid feeds?  I think Daniel is if I remember correctly, but any others?  How much are they taking?  I thought I needed to be moving that way as we approach 12 months, so should we start now?

Sorry for the long post, just a lot on my mind.

[dkjokisch]

Well, if you're still welcoming newbies, I'm Deborah.  My daughter, Maya, will be ten months old on Saturday.  I have been trying to follow along since the thread started, but things have been crazy for us, and I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed.  However, there have been many times when I have felt like I had something to add, just not the time to type it out, so here goes...

Meat - Not that we are vegetarian, but there are many good sources of protein other than meat.  Lentils are an excellent choice to branch out from cereals and fruit/veg puree.  Simmer them in water until super soft, and puree them.  Maya loves them mixed with carrots.  That said, we started meats at 9mos per the rec of our pediatrician.  We have offered pureed poached chicken and food-mill ground (it has a little more texture) baked chicken, both plain and mixed with veg.  She didn't really like either one.  She does, however, like little (very little) bits of cut up chicken and pork.

Branwen - Have you had a complete physical recently?  I don't think your weight loss should be simply chalked up to nursing.  It would be worthwhile to get some basic bloodwork done to rule out thyroid problems, etc.