PS Mommy thread with toddlers 12-36 months

[lliang_chi]

NEL, Good luck on the drive tomorrow. We drove from Chicago to Toronto in May, which should have been a 8-9 hr drive. It was 12. Ethan was pretty good in the car though he would hit a wall and just be DONE. But I suppose even grownups are that way too. New toys and books would be great. I also got Ethan M&D reusable sticker books http://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Habit...d=1379098029&sr=1-1&keywords=reusable+sticker for our 4+ hr flight to CA and he *loved* them. But you need to supervise its use since they can put it in their mouth. We also stopped in a Staples just to let him run around indoors (it was hot outside).

AMC, good to hear that B's eating is going well. So funny that he's still all about remotes. Ethan was last year when J was watching football and was always flipping through channels. Once NFL was over, J stopped watching TV as much and Ethan lost interest in remotes. Still loves phones though. I've also made it a conscious effort to put my computer away when I'm with him so he doesn't develop that same attraction to my laptop.

Monnie, look at your beautiful A! Look at her, learning her colors and stuff. Ethan still says everything's blue. He sorta said Rrrey for red the other day, but pretty much is not interested in colors at all. J is worried/joking that he's color blind. Ethan's Johnny on the spot with animal noises though,LOL.

Skippy, thanks. Love seeing your guys too I can't believe their birthday is coming up (isn't it?)

 

[mayerling]

Hi everyone, . Sorry I've been MIA lately. I read along every day but somehow never get a chance to post.

N is 14 months now and has been walking for just over a month. He spontaneously says 6 words but understands a whole lot more since when we name things he points them out in his book (and he understands in both languages!). He's very sweet and loves cuddles. He's also very good at sharing. He never gets upset if other children play with his toys. He still only STTN about 70% of the time (and his STTN is only about 10 hours), and he's still on 2 naps. He's been a very good eater for about 1.5 months and has been eating only table food. He still has bottles at wake-up and bedtime and I'd like advice on how to get rid of them before they ruin his teeth). We don't have many tantrums (or hardly any) but I would love advice on how to set boundaries as he tends to take things off people's tables and counters, and he also never picks up after himself.

 

[lliang_chi]

Mayer, great job N for good eats And I'm jealous that he's still on 2 naps. Ethan dropped his PM nap pretty early on, like 10 months or so. Ethan only sleeps 10 or 10+ hrs too. The only time(s) he got 11ish hours was when we were in California, which was 2 hrs behind Chicago, so I would put him in bed with us for "grown up snoozes" (my DH's nickname for it). Sis also had grown up snoozes with Ethan and LOVED it when he rolled over to snuggle with her. For like 2 secs.
Picking up after himself, you'll just have to ask and PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE when he does it. Also set VERY LOW expectations that he won't do it. I ask Ethan to take his bowl/plate to the sink after meals. And put his dirty clothes in the hamper when we takes a bath. I'm not that consistent about having him clean up his toys/books. I really need to do a better job with that.
Boundaries, still working on that. Right now, we just have no food throwing, and no hits/kicks. Food throwing we just take everything away. No hits/kicks we hold his hand and tell him firmly, "No hit." He doesn't like that.

 

[Kunzite]

Skippy, sorry it took me so long to reply to you, friend! I have no idea whether we'll keep the twins in the same room long term. They are so different (opposites, really) that instinctually I want to separate them when they're older. However, we're pretty well researched on the area we're looking to buy a house in about 2-3 years and a 4 bedroom isn't that common. So I think we'll have to see where fate takes us!

LC and Monnie, adorable pictures

Pupp, if you're still out there I want to hear about N's birthday!! (And see some pictures )

AFU, we moved O into a toddler bed about 2 weeks ago. He was fine in his crib (never tried to get out) but we figured he was getting a little old. We were just waiting to get M out of our room in case O came barging in at night. It's been mostly a success and he really likes it. I was hesitant to spend the money on a dedicated toddler bed, but in the end I'm glad we did because it is sooooooo low to the ground. He's fallen out twice now and just continued sleeping on the floor. I'll attach pictures below... I call them Adventures in a Big Boy Bed! (Can you tell I LOVE having a video monitor )

 

[mayerling]

LC, no need to envy me. As of yesterday, N is on one nap. I transitioned him, because for the two days prior to that he would give me a really hard time falling asleep for his morning nap. I figured he was ready. I do miss the two breaks in the day, though. I don't really relax now because I don't know how long he'll sleep for. Before, I knew he'd nap for around 1.5 hours. The good news is that I no longer rock him to nap. Since he's on one nap I figured I'd let him fall asleep on his own. Yesterday, it took half an hour (no crying, just a lot of tossing and turning); today, 22 mins.

Kunzite, I can't get over the cuteness that is O sleeping on the floor!

 

[amc80]

B takes one nap (2-2.5 hours) at daycare, but still does two naps on weekends (1-2.5 hours each). He's been sleeping really well. At night and only occasionally wakes up for a bottle. It is so nice getting some sleep once again, it's been way too long.

Do your kiddos eat meat? We can't get b to even try it. He throws it on the floor.

 

[Skippy123]

Kunzite, they are so cute!!!!

AMC, my boys didn't eat meat for awhile; Evan eats meat more than Miles. Miles started to recently eat meat. I did give my boys vitamins with iron to help.

Monnie, Alex is a doll!!

hugs to all you fabulous lady and beautiful LO's!

 

[lliang_chi]

Kunzite, O is such a monkey! I love the pictures you capture on your video monitor. I still remember the changing table one. LOL. Your boys are beautiful! When did you switch O to a toddler bed?

Mayer, Hooray for N going to sleep on his own for naps. Aw, too bad he's moved to 1 nap. But is it a long nap? Ethan never napped long with 2 naps, only 45-60 mins at a time. When he moved to 1 nap, I'd get 1.5 hrs, daycare can get 2hrs. These past few days he's been sick so he's fallen asleep on me and would sleep for like 2+ hrs. I should discourage him falling asleep on me, but I miss snuggling him. He's so big now he's constantly on the move and pushing me away "Nooo" when I give him too many kisses.

AMC, Ethan is not a meat enthusiast. J is like, "Dude, who's kid are you?" I have to cut up meat very small, or have ground meat for him to eat some. He does like deli meat so if I'm really fighting to get protein in him, I'll give him a slice or two.

 

[monkeyprincess]

My little guy will be 1 in about 2.5 weeks, so I figured you all might have some advice for me. Someone from Ev's daycare called today to let me know that he had only had one ounce of formula all day. Apparently, he ate his cereal and lunch just fine, but every time they give him a bottle, he is just pushing it away and crawling off to play. I've noticed he's been less enthusiastic about the bottle lately, and I'm thinking it is about time to make the transition anyway. When did you switch over from formula/breastmilk to whole milk? How much milk and water should a one year old be drinking a day? I plan to put a call in with the pediatrician if his formula strike continues, but just curious if any of you had advice in the meantime. Thanks!

 

[amc80]

My little guy will be 1 in about 2.5 weeks, so I figured you all might have some advice for me. Someone from Ev's daycare called today to let me know that he had only had one ounce of formula all day. Apparently, he ate his cereal and lunch just fine, but every time they give him a bottle, he is just pushing it away and crawling off to play. I've noticed he's been less enthusiastic about the bottle lately, and I'm thinking it is about time to make the transition anyway. When did you switch over from formula/breastmilk to whole milk? How much milk and water should a one year old be drinking a day? I plan to put a call in with the pediatrician if his formula strike continues, but just curious if any of you had advice in the meantime. Thanks!

I just went through this so I can answer. We switched at one year, exactly. His 12m appointment was on his bday, the doctor said we could switch, so we did that day. The only thing B isn't picky about is what he drinks. We full on switched (rather than doing 1/2 formula 1/2 milk) and he was totally fine. One thing you might do is put it in a sippy cup. Some babies associate formula with a bottle and won't drink anything else out of one. But a sippy of milk is completely different, so it might be easier.

From what I've read, they should get no more than 24oz of milk a day. I try to always have a sippy of juice/water available for B throughout the day so he can drink that if he gets thirsty.

 

[lliang_chi]

We had to step Ethan down by cutting the milk with formula. Eventually we did a full switch. He took to the sippy cup quickly. But keep in mind you might need to try a few of them before you find one he likes. Your choice between spout and straw. We had Ethan on spout cups until he got the hang of drinking out of a regular cup. Now he has a straw water bottle and these Oxo cups: http://www.amazon.com/OXO-Tot-Training-Green-Ounce/dp/B0038JDUDE.. I like having the "grate" that keeps him from putting his hands and fingers into his cup.

 

[Kunzite]

LC, that cup is ADORABLE! We bought O a training cup like that and he refused to use it! I think we need to start trying with the twins now so we don't have the same struggle

amc, my kids are split exactly on the subject of meat. One will eat just about anything, one eats meat 50/50, and the third might as well be a vegetarian. Sigh. At least they normally finish up each other's food so we don't waste a lot.

MP, we started whole milk a little bit before one because I was D-O-N-E with washing all of those bottles. All of my kids are milk fiends though so it was an easy switch. Honestly, if he's eating fine I wouldn't stress about his intake too much. He might just start out slow and start guzzling it later, that's what O did. As long as he's meeting his nutritional needs and you're offering liquids he'll be fine. Usually the problem is from too much milk. Happy almost birthday to Ev!

 

[pancake]

My little guy will be 1 in about 2.5 weeks, so I figured you all might have some advice for me. Someone from Ev's daycare called today to let me know that he had only had one ounce of formula all day. Apparently, he ate his cereal and lunch just fine, but every time they give him a bottle, he is just pushing it away and crawling off to play. I've noticed he's been less enthusiastic about the bottle lately, and I'm thinking it is about time to make the transition anyway. When did you switch over from formula/breastmilk to whole milk? How much milk and water should a one year old be drinking a day? I plan to put a call in with the pediatrician if his formula strike continues, but just curious if any of you had advice in the meantime. Thanks!

Wow, MP, that year went quickly!

To answer your questions:

1. S is still breastfed, but only smallish feeds in the morning and before bed. She hasn't ever had formula and doesn't like drinking cow's milk (she probably gets about 100ml/day on her cereal and in the "coffee" she has with me in the mornings!).

However, now would be fine to switch Ev over to cow's milk. I'd also consider switching him to a cup.

2. Toddlers don't need milk, they need calcium, roughly 500mg a day. It doesn't matter whether that comes from milk, cheese, yoghurt, or other sources, as long as they get enough (and have adequate vitamin D stores). In general I find that it is more frequently necessary to impose a limit on how much milk some toddlers drink each day, because a) some "picky eaters" are picky because they're full of milk, and b) too much cow's milk causes iron deficiency. As a rule of thumb, I usually say 500ml/day (as a guide - slightly more is ok but you get guzzlers who drink a litre PLUS each day and then surprise surprise, they become profoundly anaemic!).

3. Water - you can just make this freely available. No juice or other sweetened drinks. Just milk and water is all they should be offered.

 

[monkeyprincess]

Pancake, it certainly did go quickly. Too quickly, but I'm really loving this age and all of the learning and discovering he's doing. Thanks for the advice. That was really helpful. I'm glad to hear the only thing he needs from the milk is calcium. He likes drinking water from a sippy cup, but he's far too clumsy and reckless to drink from an actual cup. We'll have to practice that a bit in a controlled setting He hasn't had a sip of juice, and I'm hoping to keep it that way as much as possible. I know a few kids who are juice fiends, and their waistlines show it!

 

[NewEnglandLady]

MP, it's so exciting to see you over here! K also went on a milk strike when I switched her over to whole milk at a year. I think it lasted about 2 months? I was worried, so I talked with her pediatrician about it and he told me the same thing Pancake did--that as long as she was eating cheese, yogurt, etc., then she was getting enough calcium. I'm sure that's the case with Ev. And it sounds like he's getting plenty of water, so dehydration isn't an issue. All you can do is keep offering it to him, I have a feeling he'll start drinking more soon.

 

[lliang_chi]

Hey ladies, just bumping this thread. Seems like our kiddos are all keeping us super busy.

We've been having a fun past few weekends with Ethan. Yesterday we went to the zoo, and he almost lost Snuggle Duck (his duck puppet that he *loves*). Unfortuantely we haven't been able to find where MIL got it from (well, she told us, but we cannot find it on their website), so we just went on Amazon and ordered 3 stuffed ducks with the closest resemblance. In the past week he's gotten VERY attached to Snuggle Duck.

 

[amc80]

Well, Hand, Foot, & Mouth has been going around B's day care since last week. Sure enough, 9:15 this morning the phone rings. I took him to the doc for confirmation and he has it It's pretty mild right now and the doc didn't know if it is a mild case or if it's because it is just starting. The real bummer is we've been planning a trip to San Francisco for this upcoming weekend to visit my BFF and her DH. They have a 7 month old son so it looks like we will have to cancel our trip. Such a bummer!

 

[monkeyprincess]

amc, a few babies in Ev's room had HFM awhile back, but they fortunately caught in time before it spread to too many of the kids, and we avoided it. I hope B is feeling okay and only gets a mild case. Bummer about your trip. I swear everytime we are planning to go out of town or have out of town guests coming to stay, somebody at our house gets sick.

So, I officially have a one year old, which is completely crazy to me, but I thought I would jump in to post a couple pics from his birthday party this weekend. The kid really enjoyed being the center of attention, maybe a little too much, and had us all laughing hysterically at his cake antics. (Ignore the surgical tape on his head, he had surgery a few weeks ago and is supposed to wear the tape for the next several weeks.) Anyway, I can't wait to see what the next year brings!

 

[lliang_chi]

MP, look at your BEAUTIFUL little man!!! I didn't realize how blonde his hair turned He's SO ADORABLE! Welcome to the toddler thread

AMC, oof HFM! That's a dirty word in my vocabulary. I've contracted it THREE times now! Fortunately Ethan's symptoms have been very mild (fever and general sluggishness). Unfortunately I have never been as lucky. Sending dust that you guys don't catch it. Lots of hand washing.

~LC

 

[amc80]

AMC, oof HFM! That's a dirty word in my vocabulary. I've contracted it THREE times now! Fortunately Ethan's symptoms have been very mild (fever and general sluggishness). Unfortunately I have never been as lucky. Sending dust that you guys don't catch it. Lots of hand washing.

Yeah no fun! I think DH and I are in the clear. B's case was really mild. He only had one blister that really looked like a blister...the rest look more like a rash. As of yesterday there was basically nothing there at all. This morning he still had that one blister on his thumb but the fluid was gone from it, so he was safe to return to day care. He hasn't had a fever since Friday, though, so I think we got lucky.

We have been planning a trip to SF for months for this weekend. I talked to my friend and she is going to ask her pediatrician if it's safe for us to come. Everything I've read says you are most contagious the first week. And my pedi said after two days of blisters you're pretty much good, so I think we are in the clear, but I am letting my friend make the decision.

Hope everyone else is doing well. Oh, B weighed in at 29lbs14oz

 

[PilsnPinkysMom]

Hi, Mamas! So great to read updates about your babes!

MP, can't believe he's one! Goodness! Time has flown by.

Kunzite- Loved those photos of O sleeping OFF the toddler bed! Where did you find his bed? Ikea has a lot, I'm not sure where else to purchase them. Are you glad you transitioned to a 'big boy bed' when you did?

Eloise is 14 months, and woowee is she a spirited child. Sometimes she's a total blast and such a happy, content child, but the girl throws a mad tantrum. They usually happen in stores when she wants to walk around and tear things off of shelves, but we won't let her. Generally speaking she's a good eater, though a bit fickle. Loves veggies and meat! It's interesting to read about other kids' eating habits and schedules. A few months ago we cut out all snacky foods- crackers, puffs, bars, etc. I'm not inherently opposed to feeding them to Eloise, but she developed an insanely strong preference for that stuff and was opting out at meal times. It drove me crazy. Like, "No, I will not try that piece of corn, but I WILL eat a graham cracker!" Our Nanny still gives her those things (or she steals it from the nanny's daughters), and on days where she's at child care, she all but refuses to eat dinner. It's bananas. So if meal times are inherently frustrating, it might be worth trying out. If Eloise signs that she wants to eat, we offer water and fruit or leftovers from her previous meal, so I'm not concerned about her going hungry. Eloise pretty much eats what we do + a little baby puree here and there. It's laziness on my part- making three meals a day is tiring enough, I'm not going to make her something unique! Admittedly, our nightly dinners are a little less adventurous now that she partakes in meal time. She's still nursing and has a few ounces of cow milk a day, otherwise it's H20 in a sippy. She has about 15 words and signs right now, and I can't wait till she's more communicative so we can avoid her tantrums. Sleep is improving... We've STTN a handful of times, but usually has one early morning wake-up to nurse.

 

[amc80]

PPM, that's amazing she knows so many signs! B knows about 3, ha.

Question for other mamas- what have you found to be the difference between 2T and 24m sizes? I buy both of them and can't notice a huge difference between the two. B is exclusively in 2T/24m shirts (and even some 3T) and wears 18m in jeans....but all of the jeans I've been buying lately have been 2T so that he can wear them all winter. I always hesitate as to which size to buy.

 

[Kunzite]

amc, 2T is supposed to be for 2-3 and 24m is 18-24m, so it's technically the next size up although I've found they're very close. The main difference is in length for most brands. O is tall so we mostly skipped 2T and had to go to 3T. How tall is B now? I seem to remember he was a pretty tall guy. O just grew ANOTHER inch this month (to 40") so all of the 3T winter clothes I bought him are looking short already

PPM, look at your beautiful little blondie!! She looks like a Scandinavian princess I'm so impressed by all of her words. I'm soooooo glad we waited until he was older to transition to a toddler bed. You need to be able to reason with him, you know? I'm very afraid that E is going to start climbing out of his bed quite young and it's going to be horrible!! This is the bed we have: http://www.diapers.com/p/kidkraft-modern-toddler-bed-natural-587714 The other reason (besides being low to the ground) that I wanted a toddler bed is because I could use his crib mattress. I love his mattress and didn't want to put in the effort to find another one just yet.

MP, happy birthday Ev!! Those pictures are ADORABLE Love his little outfit!

LC, NEL, Skippy,

AFU, the boys just had an appointment last week and weighed in at 26 & 27.5lbs and 33" and 33.5". So even though M looks and feels huge compared to E, they're still pretty close to each other. M's head is still 99% which makes him look so much bigger!

 

[amc80]

amc, 2T is supposed to be for 2-3 and 24m is 18-24m, so it's technically the next size up although I've found they're very close. The main difference is in length for most brands. O is tall so we mostly skipped 2T and had to go to 3T. How tall is B now? I seem to remember he was a pretty tall guy. O just grew ANOTHER inch this month (to 40") so all of the 3T winter clothes I bought him are looking short already

Wow, look at their eyes! Gorgeous! They are quite the lady killers

Yes B is pretty darn tall. He was 33" at his 12m appointment so I'm guessing he is around 34" now. I know the 24m shirts are too short and we generally go with 2T for shirts.

 

[monkeyprincess]

Kunzite, I agree, the boys are darling! And I love their little sweaters and how they bring out their eyes. I also have a tall and skinny little one. He just had his 12 month appointment, and he weighs 21 pounds and is almost 32 inches.

amc, thanks for asking about the 24 month and 2T thing. We're not quite there yet with clothes, so I had no idea. B is huge for a 14 monther!

PPM, E is as cute as can be. What a little blondie!

LC, E did turn out pretty fair. I thought for sure he'd have black hair like his daddy, but I think he takes after my dark blond/light blond hair.

Hi to everyone else!
.

 

[amc80]

Kunzite, I agree, the boys are darling! And I love their little sweaters and how they bring out their eyes. I also have a tall and skinny little one. He just had his 12 month appointment, and he weighs 21 pounds and is almost 32 inches.

amc, thanks for asking about the 24 month and 2T thing. We're not quite there yet with clothes, so I had no idea. B is huge for a 14 monther!

Yo do have a tall one as well! Lots of tall babies on this thread. B is just shy of 30lbs but the kid is solid. He has very little baby fat and everyone is always shocked when they pick him up. Apparently average growth for a baby the first year is around 9-10"...B grew 11" and was 22" when he was born, so he had a head start

Sidenote- how did all of our babies suddenly become toddlers?

 

[lliang_chi]

Kunzite, I love the pictures of your boys! Beautiful eyes, just like O! Did you take those or have pro pics? They look amazing

AMC, I think I heard someone in a baby store saying 24M pants have more diaper space. But that could have been just me imagining things. Ethan is pretty average height and build. He's pretty much wearing the size clothes for his age (e.g. 18M) The 2T and 24M is just a touch too big for him.

PPM, look at your sweet blonde bunny there Adorable

AFM, we hit the Childrens' museum here since Ethan was getting over pink eye. Here's some pics. He *loves* riding hte bus and playing with water.

 

[monarch64]

Gorgeous little loves you all have! Your pictures are unbelievably beautiful!

Difference between 24m and 2T...I've found that 2T is longer than 24m, as far as sleeves and inseams. Not sure about diaper room. A is wearing 18m, 24m and 2T bottoms and 24m and 2T tops right now. Every label seems to be cut differently...welcome to our world, right? (Every brand of denim for ladies goes by their own idea of measurements, aka nothing is universal! So frustrating!)

Alex is 26 lbs at 16.5 months but is 35.5 inches tall. She's taller than my inseam! She's basically 3 feet tall!!! Wth?!?! My little 7 lb, 9 oz baby morphed into a freaking giant child seemingly overnight. Her personality is at least keeping up with her physical growth--she's hilarious and is already asking questions in the form of "this?" constantly. I thought that didn't happen until they can say "why?" Adorable yet simultaneously annoying. And forget about accomplishing a task from start to finish now. She is all up in my business every single minute. I live for naptime and bedtime! As soon as she is in her crib, though, I miss her. I ran a few errands while my mom watched her for a couple hours this week and felt so strange being out without her, so much so that I had a conversation with a long time SA at Macy's (like 30 years "long time") about being a SAHM and some of the issues that go along with that title. She said the same thing, remembering back to when she stayed home with her kids for a bit--that she longed for moments to get things done but once she was alone for a few minutes started missing them! It was nice to relate. When I get together with other moms my age there is never much chance to have much discussion about the topic. We're all too focused on making sure our kiddos don't wreck themselves or their buddies!

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Love the pictures! PSers just have the cutest kids and I can't believe how much like "kids" these toddlers are looking!

Monnie, I could have written your post exactly. K is a little older, but is now over 36" (100th percentile for height) and is lean. And she's been doing the "this?" thing for months. And she takes 100% of my energy when she's awake and I find myself counting the minutes until bedtime, but then when she goes to bed, I miss her. I find this stage to be demanding, but so much fun. I'm loving it.

As for 24 months vs. 2T, I have noticed that I think 2T is a little bigger, but I figured that was because I was comparing 2 brands (have some 24M clothes from Target, but most of my 2T clothes are from Gap/Old Navy). Since K is long and lean, she wears 2T and the pants are a tiny bit long, but I want them to last through the winter if possible.

 

[pancake]

I find in general that clothing that's sized for babies (eg. 24m) rather than for children (eg. 2, 2T), is a little shorter and wider with a longer crotch. S is >99th %ile for height but is just under 50th for weight so she has been in children's sizing from as early as possible (here a lot of labels make both a size 12-18m and a size 1). She's now wearing size 2 which is largely long enough, but some of those are still too wide around the midsection. Ah well. My beanpole child!