Time for Mommy to Brag...(and some bargain books)

With the "sign language explosion" that's been happening in our house lately, the speech therapist advised that we pick 2-3 new signs to work on with the kids each week. So, we are working on "cookie" (swirl fingertips on upside palm of other hand) and our version of "stinky" (wave hand in front of nose and say "ewww, stinky") - in hopes that the kids could start to notice when they're diapers were wet.

Yesterday, my nanny says to me "So, what do you think about getting the potty out? If they don't like it, you can always put it away and try again next month."

I have a co-worker whose wife is from Peru and he told me that, because diapers are so expensive, most of the kids are potty trained by 9 months. His son was fully trained at about 13 months - early by US starndards, but late compared to most of the kids in Peru.

Thinking back to this story, I responded, "Sure, what have I got to lose?"

So, yesterday, both kids sat on the potty for awhile. Other than looking adorable...and actually being somewhat amenable to it...nothing.

This morning, after breakfast, we tried again and - sure enough, my son poo'ed right in the potty! I am sure it was purely a timing thing - we know he typically "goes" during or shortly after breakfast. Still, you should have seen the happy dance I did to praise him! I was so proud!

I am not expecting potty training to happen overmight - but it's one small step toward the end of diaper changes - a tough time for both kids.

G is taking to the potty too. I will give her a toy (especially anything with buttons) or a magazine to read (and tear to shreads) and she will just sit  and play.

The other day, I received the following link to an amazing sale Amazon is having - 50 Books for $5 each! I ordered six - two about kitty cats, one about trucks, one about a dinosaur and one about monsters going to bed - and they arrived today. Hardcover books with beautiful illustrations. Perfect for reading at bedtime!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000846861

Hope you can find some that you enjoy too!

Enjoy!

What I Say and What G Hears...

Over the last three weeks, G has gone through a language explosion! She's picked up about five new signs, can now consistently identify many of her body parts and is starting to communicate verbally too. She clearly says "hi" and "dog", speaks "ba" for ball and tries to repeat other sounds she hears us say over-and-over, like our dog's name.

When we put her to bed and ask her "Can you turn on your music?" she'll cruise along the handrail over to her mobile and push one of the four buttons to make it start. If we say "give teddy a hug" she will find her pink stuffed bear and cuddle it up between her arm and her neck and say "ugggghhhh".

On the physical front, she LOVES her orthotics (we call them her "daisy shoes" because they have daisies printed on them) and will raise her feet to meet our hands as we are putting them on. She still isnt' brave enough to stand letting go, but she has made major strides in taking steps while we hold both of our hands.

Another thing we've been working on is to remind her that when she comes out of crawling position, she shouln't sit between her heels with her feet splayed. We'll say "no 'W' sitting - feet front." and about 50% of the time, she'll swing one or both of them around.

This weekend, she had just swung her feet front and started patting her knees, so I said "knees, knees, knees!" She looked at me, smiled and rubbed her hand across her heart (the sign-language sign for "please"). She was so proud of herself (and I was too)!

Engineers are Born, Not Made

Last night, we had to take a trip to the mall to visit the Apple store. While my husband worked with the tech to fix his phone, I took F to the "kids table" to let him wander around. You should have seen him...he was walking more than he was crawling! I was so proud!

After about a minute of playing with the apps and games on an iPad, F kept tapping his fingers on the screen, pressing the home button, and flipping it over and over and over. Over his head, I could almost see a little cartoon bubble that said "I can't wait to crack this sucker open to figure out how this amazing thing works!"

16 Months - An Update

February was a fun month for us because we took the kids to Florida to visit my Dad. We left the day before the snow started falling back home and had beautiful weather the entire week - 80's and sunny every day!

Yogurt! Mmmmmm!

Reading with Grandpa M

Playing Trains at the Children's Museum

Feeding Cows Ping Pong Balls with Grandpa M

Gimme Money, Money, Money

Baby in the Water Pump Pail

At the Pool

Swimming

Wheeeee!

I love to swim!

Meeting my Grand Aunt C!

My Grand Aunt C!

Not too big, not too small, just right!

I think our travel days may be nearing an end. For 15-month-olds, the kids did great on the plane. They didn't fuss going through security and sat in their stroller patiently between the time we arrived at the airport and when we were ready to take off (over two hours).

Since we knew it would be a long flight (over 3 hours), we did purchase a seat for G, but not for F. On the way home, the plane was full, and within the first five minutes, it was clear I had made a mistake. We switched them in-and-out of the car seat, but whichever child was on my lap was a total wiggle worm. We sat three-across, but I felt bad for the people sitting in front and behind us. I am sure two hours of peek-a-boo and being kicked wasn't part of their flight plans. Fortunately, they were all very gracious.

The twins are growing at an astounding rate...

They both have six teeth on the top (the four in front and the one behind their canine) and six teeth on the botton (the four in front and the one behind their incisor). And, starting late last week, their incisors are coming in. How do I know? Well, in addition to seeing them, both twins' noses are running (AGAIN, ugghhhh),they've been fussy and they're chewing at their fingers. As a mommy, even though you know that teething is just one of those rites-of-passage that every kid must go through, it hurts knowing that they are in pain.

F&G have both started to talk. G now says "hi" and "bye" clearly and we've started to hear some new sounds in her babling. This week, I even heard her sound out the letter "p" (but I think it was a complete accident, because I haven't heard it since).

F hasn't been saying "hi" lately, but he does like to point and say "da,da", "dog" and "duck."

They've learned the sign for "please" (but they aren't consistent yet) and we are starting to work on "stinky" so they can start to tell us when they need to be changed.

If you ask "Where's your heart?" they will take both fingers and point at their chest, and if you ask "Where's your belly button?" they will point at their tummy. They've also become more consistent when we ask "Where's your head? Nose? Toes? Cheeks? and sometimes Eyes?

Lately, G has become more bold with her balance. She will cruise around furniture holding on with only one hand, or lean on something and take both hands off. She has also found a new passion for climbing on things. In the nursery, we have two step stools back-to-back beside a bookshelf and in front of a window and she will climb up on those. She will climb into her car seat, out of the bathtub and try to climb on furniture. Last night, she climbed on an ottoman whe keep behind our living room couch and I look over to see her peeking over the back of the sofa. Before I could get to her, she sidestepped right off the ottoman and fell. Good thing the dog bed was nearby and softened her fall...it could have been a nasty one! We are really going to have to be extra dilligent about watching her.

Standing on the Stool in Our Room

I climbed into my seat myself - why aren't I going anywhere? Oh yeah, forgot to grab the keys first!

F is quickly becoming a walking fiend. Around February 20, he would take one step without holding on. By the following Friday, March 1, he was up to two steps. This weekend, he is letting go more-and-more. The difference between just Friday and Sunday is astounding. He's letting go on his own more and more, and is about to REALLY take off:

F taking steps on Friday, March 8

F taking steps on Sunday, March 10

Hope you have a good March. Looking forward to our second spring!

Our Little Baby Girl Isn't a Little Baby Anymore

Since last September, G has been working with a physical therapist because she was diagnosed with "low muscle tone." In other words, the way her body is built, it is just going to take her a little longer to train her muscles to do what they should.This is why she didn't start rolling over until after 9 months, did splits when she learned to sit up, usually preferred to keep her tounge sticking out, and sits in a "W" position and stands with her feet pronated today.

These "quirks" aren't anything anyone is worried about - in fact, it's quite normal for babies and infants to show these traits - but it is something we need to keep on top of and remind her about so that her muscles and tendons will develop "properly" over time.

Part of the solution recommended to us was to put her in orthotics for 6 months to a year. This will encourage G to hold her feet straight, help support her ankles, and aide her in learning to walk - which she's been so desparate to do these past several weeks.

Up to this point, she's run around barefoot or in soft-sole shoes like Robeez. With the orthotics, she needed  more substantial shoes. So, yesterday she wore sneakers for the very first time.

I know she's started to look different these last couple weeks, but with the sneakers on, it was like pushing a fast-forward button. All of the sudden our baby girl doesn't look like a baby anymore!

F has been making progress too. Over the last two weeks, he will stand up all by himself in the middle of the room and not hold onto anything. He is still gun-shy to take steps. This is probably because most of our house has stone, wood or tile floors - so he's learned that when he falls, it hurts. Last Friday, he was taking 1 or 2 steps by himself, by Sunday night he was up to 3 or 4, then we regressed to where he'd just stand and whine and lower his butt back down and crawl, and last night he started to take a few steps on his own again. I haven't had a chance to shoot any video or take a picture of him standing alone, but here is a picture of G and him standing on the stool by the window in the nursery.