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PS Mommy thread with toddlers 12-36 months

NEL, I've mentioned Leapfrog Letter Factory before. I'm not sure if it's just my kid or what, but he LOVES it. Your DH is right to be concerned about TV. Everything I read says to avoid screen time before 2 years, so I have broken that rule, but I do think we have at least been very limited in how much and what we let EV watch. Anyway, in my limited experience, parenting is about survival sometimes, and in the grand scheme of things, a few videos for Katie to allow you to do what you need to do to get by as a new mom of two, is not a big deal. And I'm sure you will be able to find some educational videos that interest her, so hopefully that will make you and DH more comfortable that you aren't just putting her in front of mindless cartoons. I'm sure there are many others out there. Ev had Baby Bethoven and Baby Mozart, and they really grabbed his attention, but they are not exactly educational because all they are is a bunch of images of different toys and puppets set to classical music. I'm not sure how well they'd hold the attention of a two year-old. Probably depends on the kid.

And did Katie and Ethan just start having temper tantrums? My kid is already having them at 16 months and having a hard time accepting no as an answer. We were visiting family this weekend, and when he would get frustrated, he seemed to take it out on me and would swat at me. I would just grab his hand or make him sit down and say no firmly, but he he kept smirking thinking it was a game. And when he realized I was serious and not laughing, he would just lay down and cry. He's a stubborn one. I'm going to have to look into 1-2-3 magic.
 
Yeah, DH is firmly in the no-screen camp. No TV, no iPad, no phone. He'll use the music channels on TV, but if I put it on oldies and leave the room, he changes it to classical. I get it and don't want to put K in front of the TV for a movie, but wouldn't mind using it as an educational tool if possible. I'll check out the letter factory, thank you!

K definitely had meltdowns at 16 months. 15 - 18 months was a challenge for us, but it got easier as she understood more. 18 - 23 months was a lot of fun. Now her meltdowns are like the 16 month ones on steroids. Maybe E is just getting the terrible twos out of his system early!
 
MP, Ethan definitely had tantrums between 15-18 months, but these 2YO tantrums are definitely a step up from there. I feel like he's more aware and is definitely pushing boundaries etc. My friend who's son is a little older than Ethan has been complaining about the same thing. Ugh! I want my sweet little boy back.

NEL, J is pretty lax about screen time. I'm a little more stringent than he is. But Ethan watches sports (football, and now the Olympics, hockey specifically) with Daddy. And he'll get our phones if we're out somewhere and need him to be entertained, or if one of us (ahem, Daddy) falls asleep and Ethan gets phone time. In our house, Ethan doesn't even watch any TV shows or any DVDs. Granted sports isn't exactly educational, but it's mostly on the weekends.
 
NEL, at that age any of the PBS shows were a hit with O, mostly Cat in the Hat, Curious George, or Daniel Tiger. If you want to get an app I highly recommend Endless Alphabet. I swear it's the reason O knew all of his letters at such a young age. E can play it already at 18 months (and he claps for himself when he finishes the word :love: ) We've gotten so much use out of that app.
 
Hah! When I first screwed up my knee, and was home alone with A for entire days, and incapable of moving much, I would sometimes stick her in her playpen and put on Sesame Street. She was 9 months at the time. Guilty as charged. iphones have been known to come out when we are in public, and ipads are amazing for long trips. She knows how to use the ipad in certain ways that my husband and I have no idea about.

Now that she's two and change, I let her watch certain shows - Caillou, Sesame Street, Angelina Ballerina, Super Why are her favorites. She has actually learned a lot about letters, numbers and social situations through them. I've learned a lot about her preferences and things she likes by watching her watch shows - we plan to put her into dance class as soon as possible because she ADORES Angelina and tries to copy everything she does. Caillou has taught her a lot about certain situations, like trying new things or stuff that she wouldn't be exposed to otherwise, for example, snow, swimming, school, buses, cats, etc. On weekends, she tends to get up with Daddy, and they watch cartoons together. Often it's silly stuff like "Super Hero Squad". Hey, if it gets me more sleep, they are welcome to it!

Sometimes you need a break. I go nuts if I have to do what she wants me to all day. I can only deal with coloring, reading, playing, running around etc for so many hours a day, and sometimes tv shows are the only way I can get her to stay in one area of the house and eat something resembling a meal. And often its the only way I can actually go to the kitchen and cook anything!

Survival is paramount!

ETA: The Olympics has been interesting and has broadened her vocabulary with words and concepts like: jumping, spinning, flying, lifting, etc. She has also become adept at the usage of "Oh no!" and gets worried when people fall, asking us if they are ok.

I spend a lot of time watching her learn - it's amazing how fast they pick stuff up at this age!
 
Whine post:
The universe is giving me the finger right now. Yesterday morning, I thought I'd be super sweet to Ethan and be in his room when he woke up (I woke up to pee @ 5:30 and DH was in our bathroom so I used Ethan's. Then figured I'll just stay in his room when he woke up). He was super sweet yesterday morning so I was happy I decided that. But I snoozed on his rocking chair until he woke up, as a result, I got a wicked kink in my neck. Oh well. But then Ethan had a EPIC FAIL night yesterday! He was a PitA to put down, and being a total jerk to me. I tapped myself out and DH put him down. Then he woke up twice overnight, 10:30PM and 1AM. So I decided I'd just stay in his room overnight (on the futon this time), so if he wakes up, hopefully he'd be sweet again. NOPE! Someone woke up Mr. CrankyPants and was a total jerk again this morning, "Walk away, Mama, walk away! No, Mama." AND on top of all that, lucky lucky me, I'm getting a cold sore on my bottom lip. Awesome; just in time for my interview tomorrow afternoon. Getting a scrip called in that can hopefully zap it for my interview and so I don't give it to Ethan. But after his recent antics, I doubt I want to give him any kisses. (Feel like a horrible mom for saying that)

Freke, hey parenthood is all about survival at times. You do what you can.

Kunzite, thanks for the rec on the app. I downloaded it. While I try to limit Ethan's screen time, there are times where I just give in to keep the peace.

~LC
 
LC, ugh, sorry you had a rough few nights. Hoping you had a restful night last night. The "walk away" stuff must suck, but you know he loves you and is just asserting a bit of his independence. Hope your cold sore goes away fast too. If it makes you feel any better my kid turned my husband's monster drink upside down this morning and poured the whole thing all over himself shortly after I got him dressed for the day (all the while saying "uh oh" repeatedly), so we both ended up having to change clothes, and then he grabbed my phone off the counter causing it to hit the floor, and now the touchscreen won't work, so I need a new phone!
 
Aww, hate hearing that kiddos aren't STTN and are being a PITA! Happens to us all, though! We're not alone, which is why we post and share here, right?
Alex has been much better about sleeping but still off and on. One day at a time. Like, she did really well napping and sleeping until we had this huge weather change today--30 degrees one day, and 62 degrees today! She refused a nap today. I've had a horrific head cold this week and really needed to nap with her today, but of course she didn't go to sleep and when I FINALLY fell asleep she decided to start yelling ABC's and songs from her crib two doors down, less than 45 minutes later. Wow. Tired mommy.

Food strikes daily. Things she once loved, no mas. Very tiring. And very wasteful. Seems like all she'll eat right now is fruit. Even Mac n cheese (gross) she hates. Pb &j requires me rolling bread flat and cutting into stars or just a burrito.

Toddlers. Tiring. Bed....
 
Monnie, sorry to hear about A's food strikes. K seems to be a fruititarian sometimes - she primarily eats blueberries, pears, avocados, and tomatoes. She also will eat yogurt which has fruit in it! And, she's a big bean person too so I guess not only fruits! But, primarily! Good luck to you. Hope the weather stays nice for you.

LC, sounds like you will need J to step up a bit during pregnancy to help you deal with the toddler mood swings! I've heard that's what happens after you have 2 kids - the dad has to be the go to person for the older one. I guess I never thought about pregnancy also, but it makes sense. You should get your rest and take care of yourself. Everything is a phase, right? Keep repeating that! Hugs to you.

Freke, that's great that A is really expanding her vocabulary with the Olympcs. She sounds like a smart cookie. I let K watch Sprout on the weekends in the AM when I'm tired, and she seems to like Caillou and Super Why. She also likes that chicken with the Happy Happy Birthday song - I think it's Chica. I'm sure she has no idea what is going on though as far as learning any lessons like A.

Kunzite, how are you and the boys handling the transition to pre-school and work?

MP, K doesn't seem to understand "No" either. Now, that she is really mobile she is exploring the house and getting into EVERYTHING! She keeps disappearing and I find her usually in random rooms in the house. We only have a couple locks on cabinets, and we need to expand that as she has thrown coke cans on the floor, gotten into the bbq tools including the long meat fork, took trash out of the trash can which is in a drawer like your house. My DH thinks we can just tell her she's only allowed to play in one cabinet and she will do that because that's apparently what his nephew did. I told him I don't think that's going to be the case with our K. I'm sure temper tantrums are not far off - she has been rolling over on the changing table and refusing to allow me to change her diaper so I have had to do it with her standing up on the changing table a few times. Good luck keeping your cool. Too funny on your brother and swearing in the car. I laughed when I read that!

NEL, Cora is gorgeous! I hope you are getting some sleep and taking it as easy as you can with a 2-year old and a newborn.

Jfo, looks like L is a little taller and skinner than K now! I think at 12 months they were about the same size! K is 31 inches and almost 24 lbs. What is your super verbal, adorable daughter up to these days? Post some pics!

AFU, K is super mobile all of a sudden. She's getting faster and more confident. She finally learned how to get up in the middle of the room without having to pull up on furniture or people! So, now she's on the go. And, she loves saying Go! Go! Go! I finally got her to brush her teeth this week by putting toothpaste on 2 toothbrushes. I start out by giving her one, and I use the other one and then she will start brushing hers and eventually she will have both toothbrushes in her hands and not want to let them go! Still only 5 teeth, but she won't let me inspect her mouth so there could be some new teeth coming in that I can't see yet. She also loves getting into our cabinets and putting her treasures inside things. I found some toys in my slippers the other day. We are up to 27 nights in a row of sleep also!!! Life is good - see attached picture that sums it up for me!

k_innocent.jpg

snoopy.jpg
 
JGator, sounds like K is thriving these days and really changing fast. She's so pretty too! I cannot even imagine how much better you must feel after a month of sleep after all you went through. So happy for you! Sounds like K and Ev would be peas in a pod with all of the things they are up to these days, and they are nearly the same size too, although Ev is slightly taller. I hope you are able to avoid the tantrums a little longer because they are so annoying! Fortunately, he is easily distracted and gives up on his fits pretty quickly, but I can tell he has a stubborn streak in him. We are going to do our second phase of baby proofing this week as we are learning of more and more things he likes to get into. I cannot even imagine what goes on their little heads all day!
 
Oh, and one more thing, I know we have talked about this on here before, but what do you all do you about leaking overnight diapers? Ev wears Huggies Overnites, which have always worked great, but lately, he's been sleeping 11-12 hours at night, and he regularly wakes up in the morning wet and cold, and I have had to change his sheets a lot lately. He wears size 4 now, but maybe moving up to size 5 would help? Or do you guys use diaper covers or something? So thankful the better sleep lately. I think moving to one nap has maybe helped him sleep better at night.
 
MP, yes, I think Ev and K would have fun together! We are back to using the Bum Genius diaper cover as she started leaking several weeks ago at night. I have heard to try going up a diaper size too, though.
 
monkeyprincess|1393003359|3620171 said:
Oh, and one more thing, I know we have talked about this on here before, but what do you all do you about leaking overnight diapers? Ev wears Huggies Overnites, which have always worked great, but lately, he's been sleeping 11-12 hours at night, and he regularly wakes up in the morning wet and cold, and I have had to change his sheets a lot lately. He wears size 4 now, but maybe moving up to size 5 would help? Or do you guys use diaper covers or something? So thankful the better sleep lately. I think moving to one nap has maybe helped him sleep better at night.
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Try going up a size, it helped us. B has been leaking from his diapers a lot more lately, but I think the next size is 35+ and he isn't quite there.

B has suddenly been much better about trying foods (you know, rather than shaking his head and saying no). I got him to try a carrot and cheese...he hated both, but at least he tried. He is now eating oranges- before he would chew on them and then spit out the pulp :rolleyes: We just got back from a long road trip to see some family (8 hours each way). B was on his best behavior and everyone kept saying how he's such a good boy. If only he would be like that all the time! This morning he woke up at 5am, wide away. Needless to say it's 9:47 here and I'm falling asleep at my desk. Yawn.

Hope all is well with everyone else!
 
Thanks JGator and amc. Size 5 fits starts at 27 pounds, and Ev is only 23-24 pounds with a pretty narrow waist, so I'm not sure if they'll be too big and counterproductive, but I'll try that first and then try a cloth diaper cover I guess. I just ordered another box of size 4s that I haven't opened yet too right before this whole wetting through the diaper thing started. Dumb! We were staying at my sister's house this past weekend, and he woke up SO wet, you could see the wet spot on the baby monitor. It went down his leg into his footed pajamas, and his foot was freezing cold. I have no idea how he kept sleeping like that. I went in to check on him when I saw the wet spot, otherwise, he would have kept sleeping I think.

amc, that's nice B's broadening his food horizons. I wonder if my kid is ever going to start being picky about food. He will pretty much eat anything we give him except lettuce, which makes him gag. I think that's why he's starting to get a bit chubbier these days. Oh, and Ev always turns on the charm around other people as well and at daycare, and they can never believe how good he is and how happy he is. I think he feels much more comfortable letting it all out around mom and dad, so we get the full spectrum rather than just the happy stuff :)
 
Jgator, oh my WOW your daughter is beautiful!!! Those eyes!

Diaper leaks for us didn't end until I gradually got Alex to stop drinking anything an hour before bedtime, and weaning her off having bottles in her crib, period.

Aside from my previous complaints, she is in a really sweet and loving stage right now. Always coming up to me and hugging me, leaning her head on whatever body part of mine is closest and saying "Awwww, MomMom." Melts my (tired) heart!
 
I'd cut down what he drinks before bed. A would probably overfill a diaper a week when she still took a bottle of milk at night. We switched to a cup of water, and she probably drinks about 3-4oz then. We also went up a diaper size (we ran out of 4s, and Costco only had 5s, so it was an easy decision) and she hasn't had a bed wetting incident since then.

I have to convince my kid to wear any other color but green. It's definitely her favorite.

Me: What do you want to wear?
A: Green, Mommy!
Me: What about pink or blue? Yellow?
A: GREEN. Mommy, no lellow, GREEN."
Me: We don't have anymore green clothes. You'll have to pick something else.

So she goes into her closet and finds a blue/white/pink outfit with teal on it. Lol. Whatevz.
 
MP, we went through a phase like that when N was E's age. He outgrew it.
 
Freke, LOL Ethan is the same way with his shirts except he's not color specific but THING specific. "Dump truck!" "Yeah, sweetie, your dump truck shirt is dirty" "DUMP! TRUCK!!!!!" " Look, you can pick out whatever shirt you want from the pile, but the dump truck shirt is dirty." What does he pick? His truck footie PJs... :rolleyes:

Monnie, I love how sweet A is. Ethan definitely has his sweetie pie moments and then he has his bang-my-head-against-the-wall moments too. Life with a 2yo.... I hope the food strikes are just a phase. I have to believe they are. When Ethan does that, he's on more than one occasion had a dinner consisting of just fruit and applesauce. But whatever. I just let him go to bed without eating if he doesn't want to eat. I figure being hungry one night won't kill him, and (hopefully) he'll learn to eat his dinner so he won't be starving in the morning. One of my friend's parents had a policy: whatever you don't eat for dinner, you're going to eat for breakfast the next morning. Once Ethan gets old enough, I'm TOTALLY going to institute that.

AMC, Yay, B on doing well with foods. I hope it is the beginning of a new trend. And I hear to just keep offering. If it's refused then it's refused, but toddlers' tastes can change from week to week, so what might be "NOOOOOOO BROCCOLI!" might not be so vehemently refused the next time.

MP, we have Ethan in cloth, so can't really help you. I hope the going up in size helps with the overnight leaks. As our guys get older, they pee SO MUCH MORE (bigger bladder). I had to sew hemp stuffers into Ethan's cloth diapers to keep him from leaking through. DH wonders why I'm so particular about what diapers Ethan wears at night, it's because I haven't made enough hemp inserts for all his diapers, so I always check what's inside. I'm sorry to hear that Ev wrecked your phone. If it makes you feel better, Ethan wrecked my laptop. Or well, just the screen. Still havne't had time to get it serviced so I read PS by moving my window left/right so I can read the whole page. Kids.... can never have anything nice around them.

JGator, I have to say I'm SO PROUD of K for sleeping so well and so happy for you that you're getting some decent sleep! I hope it doesn't sound weird that a stranger is super proud of your daughter, but I totally am. And wow, K's just beautiful!!!

Kunzite, I've been thinking about M and hoping he got a chance to see the EI Pedi. How are the boys doing in daycare?

NEL, I'm sure you've got your hands full with C and K now, but I'm thinking about you. Would love to know how K's adjusting to life as a big sis.

AFU: Writng it really small because I don't want to jinx it but I think Ethan's turned the corner on his God awful sleep. But this weekend I didn't have much sleep for a variety of reasons, two of the nights from stomach issues. My hypothesis is the medication I'm using for the cold sores. Phase1-Round2 of the interview went pretty well, with one of the interviewers telling me the hiring manager REALLY likes me. I think Phase2-Round2 might happen sometime this week or maybe next.

Ethan had an awesome weekend. DH took him swimming on Saturday and said E had a BLAST! I was feeling stomach sick, so I stayed home. Then on Sunday we ran some errands with him, E rocked an AWESOME nap, then we went to see my friends/his favorite playmate, J, who's 10 months older than him. The two boys kept giving each other hugs, it was the sweetest thing ever. E fell asleep in the car ride home, but woke when the dog barked when I walked into the door. The first thing E said to DH when he woke up was J's name. Aw!
 
LC, congrats on your interview. I must have missed it before, but are you interviewing for an internal position or a position with a different employer? Good luck either way! Glad to hear E is sleeping better, but that sucks that you aren't. Hope your stomach issues resolve. And yes, I was annoyed about the phone, but they sent a replacement on Friday, and I must say, it's nice having a new blemish-free phone (for now). My old one was starting to look pretty beat up with a few tiny cracks and dented corners because I'm clumsy and drop it all the time, so I can't really blame Ev for doing the same thing.
 
lliang_chi|1393267288|3622008 said:
AMC, Yay, B on doing well with foods. I hope it is the beginning of a new trend. And I hear to just keep offering. If it's refused then it's refused, but toddlers' tastes can change from week to week, so what might be "NOOOOOOO BROCCOLI!" might not be so vehemently refused the next time.
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Even more progress! I offered him a bite of my bagel with cream cheese. It took a few times offering it to him before he went for it. He first just got the cream cheese, which he didn't like. Then, I tore off a piece of bagel which he actually ate. This is huge because he really doesn't like bread. Later on, I was eating popcorn and gave him a piece, which he immediately gave to the dog. But I gave him a second piece and he loved it. I'm guess popcorn is probably a choking hazard...oops.

We went to the park yesterday and he had a great time. The park has two different play areas- one for little kids and another for big kids. The big kid structure has two slides from the second level and then a third twirly slide from the top level. B went on everything by himself, even the big slide. I usually have to climb up the structure with him but he did it all on his own. As soon as he'd get down the slide he would immediately run to climb up again. He is turning into such a little boy, it's really fun to watch.
 
MP, the interview is for another group within my company, so internal transfer. Since we were planning on trying for #2, I decided to just stick to internals and not even tempt myself by looking out of the company. I told my DH that now is the time for him to gear up his career because 2-3-x years from now, I want to ramp up mine. Men have it so easy not having to worry about having babies and careers. Like when I spoke to DH about his career I could see this expression of confusion/slow revelation re: being pregnant having wee babies and how I cannot transfer/move companies right now.
And I hope this doesn't sound like the start of a working mom debate or even US maternity policy debate, but I'm just trying to express how men can/are oblivious on HOW MUCH having a baby affects careers/career goals. Yes it can work, but it ain't easy. And for folks who say "Father's lives/careers are affected just the same," no it's not. Fathers are not growing a baby in their body, a blatantly visible sign of an impending life change. That causes most ppl to immediately think/formulate their own judgement/ideas. Also, in *most* cases mothers are primary care givers, and post-baby primary care for babies require so much effort etc, it's very very difficult to go back to 100% pre-baby work ethic/commitment without *something* giving in the process. Namely because for a very long time, newborns are so dependent on parent(s) to survive. Whlie I, personally, will NEVER regret having my kid(s), it's just so frustrating that it is and always will be so heavily one sided. Until men can have babies too, women will ALWAYS face this.
 
MP, we tried size 5 Pampers swaddlers with K last night without the diaper cover, and she did not leak. She weighs almost 24 lbs and the diaper wasn't too loose. Sorry to hear about your phone. I feel like that's going to happen with my phone since K is always grabbing it and walking around the house with it.

AMC, that's great that B likes bagels! I hope K starts to expand her food horizons soon too. She has been pretty picky lately. I call her a fruititarian.

LC, thanks for being proud of K. She actually slept 12 hours last night!! Can you believe it? It was likely partially due to basically not napping at all yesterday though! Good luck with round 2 interviewing. That's great that you did so well so far. I'm so glad E had a great weekend too.

Freke, sounds like you will need to buy more Green clothing for A!

Monnie, thanks for the compliments on K's eyes! Happy to hear A has been so sweet to you lately.

AFU, we had a great warm weekend with sunshine. We were able to take K to our local playground for the first time in months. She was so thrilled to be on the baby swing. She also seemed to come out of her shell at the kiddie gym class this weekend. She was walking up ramps/slides and more interested in things other than just the ball pit! I was so proud of her -she even participated in the stretching and circle time activities! She refused both her morning and afternoon naps and only had a 35 minute nap in the car yesterday so she ended up going to bed an hour early after falling and having meltdowns in the evening - she slept for 12 hours without crying once! Not that I plan to repeat the no nap day again, but I was happy she slept a full 12 hours for the first time ever!
 
JGator|1393273494|3622087 said:
AMC, that's great that B likes bagels! I hope K starts to expand her food horizons soon too. She has been pretty picky lately. I call her a fruititarian.
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That is totally B. He loves fruit. Veggies, not so much.
 
LC, so far K is adjusting to baby Cora better than I imagined. I thought she'd like the baby for a couple of days, then start to feel jealous and act out. So far, that hasn't happened. When K comes home from daycare or doing something with D, she always runs to find Cora. She is really gentle with her and loves to give her kisses. I do think she's adjusting in her own way, though. When Cora isn't in my arms, K wants me to hold her. And I'm happy to do that because I miss my one on one Katie time, too. Also, I bought K a doll that looks very similar to Cora and K loves to take care of her doll like I'm taking care of C. Anyway, so far it's going really well and that makes this transition easier for me. If K was having a really tough time with it, I think it would kill me a little.

And I totally understand the frustration with work/life balance and the balance of child care between you and your spouse. D and I have had (and continue to have) several tense discussions about it, especially now that Cora is here and the childcare factor has increased. Basically, my career took the back seat and D wants to have his cake and eat it, too. He wants me to be able to pick up the slack when his hours are crazy, but also misses my old salary (before I took the pay cut and reduced hours). But if I were to ramp up my own career, he would have the pick up the slack and I don't know how he would do that with his current schedule. And now that C is here, it's even tougher since for the first time, I actually NEED help.

Anyway, just telling you I understand. Good luck with the interviewing!
 
NEL- how far apart are your kiddos? B and #2 will be 26 months apart.

B had his 18m appointment today. It's getting harder and harder to keep him in a little room, grrr. He did not enjoy his shots but apparently that's the last set until age 4? Score. He was 35.25" and 32lbs. I can't believe he is almost 3 feet tall. Definitely got his dad's genes.
 
I just put B on the potty after bath and he went pee and poop! So cool. I guess I should start actual potty training pretty soon.
 
AMC, so great that B got the pee and poop. Re: potty training, we decided to hold off until he was in the two's room so school can continue to be as consistent while he was there. But now that he's in the two's he's SO CLOSE to being totally pee-trained. Poop will still take a while I think.

NEL, I'm glad to hear K is still in love with Cora. What a really good idea to give her a doll that looks like C. What a great idea. I was just sure K would be an awesome big sister so I'm glad the transition is "easy" for you guys. And I can totally hear you on missing the one on one time. This is SUCH a fun age that, I'd totally miss it if I had to divide my attention. It's good to hear it's not just me/us that feel this way about the whole child-rearing and career thing. Fortunately James seems to understand well enough the challenges, but sometimes he can be very oblivious. It's funny because he can have such ad ouble statndard. Like when I talk to him about how being pregnant/maternity leave will affect my job, he's like, "It shouldn't and you have nothing to worry about." E.g. getting a lower raise because I'm on maternity leave. Yeah I know, because legally mgmt cannot discriminate. But then he talks about someone coming back from maternity leave, and the phrase "She's wasn't even there for 3 months" comes up (usually by other 'old boys' club' managers). Anyway, I know there's nothing to do about it, but it's just frustrating that again it's so one-sided. But there's no solution to it, so it is what it is.
 
amc, Cora was born a week before Katie's 2nd birthday, so they're almost exactly 2 years apart. I would have loved to transition K out of diapers before C's arrival, but K is a late talker and I think it's leading to other developmental delays. I think it's fantastic that B is already doing so well with the potty!

Oh, and the 15 and18 month appts. were the toughest for us. We had our 2 year last week and it was much easier. Plus not having any shots helps!

LC, I agree that this is a fun stage and actually makes me look forward to When Cora is a little older and can interact with Katie. K is still throwing multiple fits per day...again, I feel it would be better if she could Communicate more effectively. I have two early intervention appts. setup over the next 2 weeks.
 
Hi mamas, I've fallen behind again, but trying to catch up.

I apologize that I am late in saying, CONGRATS to NEL!! Cora is gorgeous (and I love her name) and I'm thrilled that things are going well and Katie is adjusting so well too. I think it's so adorable that she loves to give her baby sister kisses and that you have a doll for her to help take care of too. I hope you are feeling good yourself and getting enough sleep and help that you need as you adjust to your expanded family.

LC, I'm sorry that E has his moments of not wanting Mommy. I feel a tiny bit hurt when I ask L for a hug or kiss and she's not into it and tells me "no" and pushes me away so I can only imagine how I'll feel as she grows older and can articulate even more about how she doesn't want/need me at the moment. Of course you can see it as training for DH when you have #2 since he will have to help anyway! In general, I am not looking forward to the tantrums. At this point, L whines when she doesn't get what she wants, which is not great either, but fortunately I'm still able to distract or she just gets over it pretty quickly. I'll need to look into 1-2-3 Magic.

Re: screentime, I hate to admit it, but we're not terribly inconsistent about it. DH is one of those people that likes just having the tv on, whether he's actively watching it or not. I try not to turn on the tv unless there is something specific that I want to watch. I don't feel too bad about having it on here and there over the weekends, since I know that L is not getting any screentime during the weekdays at daycare, but I get a pang of guilt every time she seems like she's bored with her toys/books, and she picks up the remote and points at the tv and says, "this?". Or when she sees my iPad and screams "iPad!!!" and gets so excited about it and upset when I don't let her use it at.that.very.moment. My mom has a tendency to let L watch (child-appropriate) videos on her iPad, and she is obsessed. Plus the iPad is what is used when we Facetime with her and remote family members, or with me when I'm traveling for work, so I do think there's a time and place for technology. I just don't want to get the point where it's so commonplace like with one of my nephews or some other kids I know who can't seem to eat out quietly at a restaurant without having an iPad stuck in front of their faces...

Monnie, so cute that A is being super lovey right now. More photos of her please! I hear you on the food strike. Just when L was getting better about eating a variety of healthy foods, she caught a virus, lost her appetite and, while she's well again, she's back to being super picky. What's funny is that she now won't touch a blueberry (her fave fruit for many months), and is all about strawberries and raspberries now. If nothing else, L will eat some form of fruit--seems to be common among our LO's.

amc, that's awesome that B being more open to new foods. Hopefully this is just the beginning of a good eating phase. High five to B for putting 2 and 2 together about pee and poop in the potty! I just ordered a toilet seat and stool, so we're planning to start getting L familiar soon. It also sounds like B is really strong and agile. The last time I took L to the park (granted this was a couple months ago since it's been so extremely cold), I tried to get L to go down the baby slide, and she just looked at me like I was crazy. ETA: oh wow, congrats on your BFP! Wow, so many PS'ers are gearing up for #2. We're still not there yet.

Freke, your stories about A really bring to life her awesome and funny personality! It really sounds like she is a sharp cookie that is learning things fast.

JGator, love the new photo of K. She is looking just as gorgeous as ever. It really sounds like things are going well for you all. I am SO THRILLED for you that K has remained a good little sleeper and it really sounds like she's found her confidence in her gross motor capabilities! I'm glad that the gym class is working out well too.

MP, hope that going up a size will take care Ev's overnight leaking issue. Poor guy, I can't imagine trying to sleep in cold pee! How else have things been going? Is he fully adjusted to the young toddler room and schedule? How has getting Ev accustomed to the potty going? We just ordered a toilet seat and step stool for her and I plan to get her used to sitting on it. We did have one time recently where she told me "poo poo" and when I checked her, she had not pooped yet. Then a short time later, she did--so she actually told me before it happened! That's when I said to DH, we need to get a potty.

LC and NEL, regarding career choices and balancing parenthood... I think about this a lot. I'm even reading Sheryl Sandberg's "Lean In" right now just to get one person's perspective on things--I'm sure there are lots of books out there on this topic. Long story short, it's clear that none of it is easy. As women, we are in a tough position and we sacrifice a lot either way--whether we work at home full-time, work outside the home full-time or even part-time. What really helps is having a partner that is 100% supportive of whatever it is you want to do. I know, for me, that I have been fortunate that so far, my career has been going at a pace that I'm comfortable with, and my company has been quite flexible with me in terms of toning down my overall traveling schedule and letting me work from home as needed, which has done a lot to help me balance work/life stuff. That said, I really do get concerned when I think about #2... We currently wouldn't be able to afford having two kids in daycare, so something will have to give. Currently, DH and I are about 50/50 in terms of income, so there's not a simple answer there.

Hi to everyone else and hope all is well!

AFU, L will be 16 months old tomorrow. Since my last check-in, L came down with Roseola. I wasn't sure at first because she spiked a fever a day after her 15 month old shots, so I thought it was a reaction to that, but she ran a fever for the next 3 days, and then when fever ended, she broke out in a pink, slightly raised rash all over the trunk of her body, neck and top of her thights. The rash faded after a couple days, but she also had puffy red eyes, and even the whites of her eyes were tinged red, and she had a runny nose. The red eyes lasted for about 5 days and she had a really poor appetite for about 10 days all in all and is still being picky. I was traveling all of last week, and since she was unwell, she stayed with my parents all week instead of going to daycare. When I first saw her again this past Saturday, her eyes were finally better, but she still had the runny nose and I noticed crusty gross discharge in her ears... double ear infection! First one since getting the ear tubes. Fortunately, we have antibiotic ear drops so I started treating her ear infection right away, and we're on day 5 of the ear drops and I can tell that she is already a lot better. Other than that, L has been doing well and she continues to learn and use more words on a daily basis. Her current favorite words are "butterfly" "avocado" and "owl". She has not started to make phrases though other than trying to say "I did it" and "Hi [insert name here]". She's really been into DH lately and wants "Da Da" to sit next to her or she wants to go into the bathroom when he's taking a shower, etc. It's really sweet because she's really been very much a mama's girl so far.
 
jfo, L sounds very verbal for her age. How fun! Sorry to hear she's been sick again. I hope the ear infections were isolated and don't start plaguing the poor little thing again. Ev's transition went seamlessly, thanks for asking. I think he likes having a routine and getting to go to a different room for meals, etc. Bonus for him, he is able to look through the window into both the infant and toddler room, so he gets 3 Spanish classes and 3 music classes a day :) Apparently, he sits and watches and even participates in all three rooms classes. What a little nerd! I sometimes have him sit on the potty and sing him a stupid little song (Pee in the potty, pee in the potty, Evie's gonna go pee in the potty). He thinks it is hysterical and slaps his knees, but no pee has been had in the potty, and I suspect it will be awhile before we get to that point because he appears to have no awareness of when he's wet or dirty.

Ah NEL, so sweet about your girls. I so hope we are able to have a baby somehow someday because I just melt at the thought of seeing Ev with a little sibling, even though I'm sure I'm romanticizing the idea. I hope the EI stuff goes well and Katie enjoys it.

LC, hope your interview process is going well and that you and E are both getting good sleep these days. I am sorry you are feeling frustrated about your career and work/life balance stuff right now. Hopefully, you will be able to find the right balance. I've mentioned before that I'm not really career-driven, so I don't really worry too much about advancing or having a prestigious job. DH and I have both let our careers take a bit of a backseat to parenting, and I feel very fortunate that DH really does carry his weight around the house and with the parenting responsibilities. I think I would be singing a much different tune if that were not the case.

JGator, yay for 12 hours. It kind of freaks me out when Ev does that because I'm so used to him being a bad sleeper. We have had to let him cry a few times this week in his crib because he keeps waking up around 12 or 1, but fortunately, the longest stretch of crying was less than 10 minutes. He just sounds so devastated and terrified that it is really hard on both of us to let him cry, but we know he needs to learn to put himself back to sleep.

amc, thinking about you and your family. Sounds like B is such a busy little guy and so coordinated for his age. He is definitely going to be a tall one!

AFU, things are going well. Ev all of a sudden wants to help with everything. He likes to hang up his coat on his hook in our drop-off zone, insists on throwing his diaper into the diaper genie (which is kind of gross, but what are you going to do?), and he also likes to help sort mail and clean up after meals. It's just so fascinating opening the garbage drawer! He learned to say "up" when he wants to be picked up, and now that is all I hear. When we pick him up from daycare, he literally shouts "bye bye" to everyone we pass, and he has started doing that at restaurants too. Really thinks he's important I guess and that everyone needs to know he is leaving :)
 
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