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September 22, 2004
She sits, she gives kisses, she screams! LOL (9-22-04)
Egads, why can I not remember what my password for this diary is? I think iParenting really needs to let you change the password to something you'll remember, because somehow after 2 years that randomly assigned number still escapes me every time! Translation: I have lost my password again, and found it again, and now I can finally write a new entry. And yes, I finally had the sense to write the password on a big sticky note right by the computer! Why didn't I think of that before??? (scratching head)
So, what is new with us? Well, Aden is still driving me crazy. As this seems to be common with every mom of a three-year-old, I will move on.
My birthday is this week, and Derek has outdone himself so far! He has put a *lot* of thought into it this year. I have gotten one present so far, and there are four (!!) more teasing me from the top of the entertainment center. That is way more than we usually get for each other, so either he's finally seen the light and realized how truly wonderful I am (LOL) or they are all empty. Ha!
But anyway, what he got me so far was a pair of LilyPadz, which are these very interesting alternatives to regular nursing pads. I am not very fond of wearing a nursing bra and pads to bed at night, but I don't really like waking up soaked either, so he found these for me. They are these reusable clear breathable silicone things that stick to your nipples/areolas and utilize the theory that applying pressure will stop let-down and leaking. So they don't absorb the milk, they stop it from leaking altogether. Very hard to describe, and I was certainly skeptical at first, but after several days I have to say they are very cool! And I can't believe he found a nursing product that I'd never heard of... *huge* props to him for that! If anyone else is curious I will post the link on my board.
The weather here is getting cooler and my favorite season is beginning. I love fall! And I love that it always cools down just in time for my birthday, so I can get my beloved jeans and long sleeve shirts out again and forget about all that exposed skin that summer requires. :) We are also starting to get ready for Halloween, but unfortunately something happened that really upset me. My mom was here on Saturday and did a little shopping. Too much shopping... First she came back from running errands during afternoon naptime and had a Halloween costume for Lily. Now, there is nothing wrong with the costume (it's actually pretty cute, a fleecy pink leopard suit with lavendar spots, cute ears on the hood, a tail sewn onto the little bum...) but I was a little upset that she went to get my daughter's first Halloween costume without me. It was something I was really looking forward to, but I had to admit that it was cuter than anything I'd found so far so I didn't say anything. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, right? Well, then later that evening she took Aden so he could pick out a birthday present for me. They disappeared for a few hours and I had to leave to meet some friends. When I got home late that night, I saw it... she had taken Aden shopping and bought him a costume too! Without me! And I don't even like it! My feelings were (and are) so incredibly hurt.
Maybe I am being a little oversensitive abou this, but I couldn't wait to take Aden shopping and let him pick and see how excited he was... and she ruined it. He loves the costume, so there's no way we can take it back and pick a new one together. The moment is gone. And I think I am mostly upset because it is symbolic of a bigger issue, which is this: we don't have much money, so almost everything that either of my kids has was bought for them by someone else--mainly my mom. I don't get a chance to pick out their clothes, their toys, their books, anything. Mostly I am just very appreciative that my mom is so generous. But sometimes it is just too much! The kids end up with so much stuff, some of it I don't even like, and because they have so much they don't need more so Derek and I rarely buy anything. Besides the fact that we just don't think kids need so much stuff, be it toys or clothes or anything. And then when there is a special occasion when we do want to buy something (like this, or Christmas or birthday) we get overshadowed. I'm just not sure what to do.
When Mom called the next day and asked whether I liked the costume, I was honest and told her it was okay but my feelings were hurt that she bought it instead of letting us do it. She replied that it was one of those situations where Aden saw it and loved it and there was only one so she couldn't wait and let me get it... I was obviously not sold on this answer so then she said, well, I guess I shouldn't have even taken him to look at them at all. And I replied, no, I wish you hadn't. So then she kind of apologized and said she wouldn't do it next year. Yeah, that makes me feel so much better. I dunno, I still feel hurt. Any thoughts?
On to happier things. Let's talk about my sweet Lilybug! She is the most amazing little thing, which is why my title is devoted to her this time. And I guess she is not so little, since she weighed 16 1/2 pounds at her 4 month check-up and measured 26 (?) inches long. Anyway...
Lily can sit, I mean really sit, completely unassisted and for minutes at a time, while she busily uses both hands to pick up toys and drool on them. This happened last week, when she was only 4 months and 1 week old! It was a little eerie, I looked in Aden's baby book and had written that he also sat for the first time at 4 months and 1 week. Whoa! But then on further inspection I realized that I meant he could sit propped with his hands, and it wasn't until about 5 1/2 months that he could sit without using his hands. Then I was even more impressed at my little girl. :)
Another fun little "party trick" that Lily is picking up is giving kisses. I love to play a game with my babes where I say "Kiss!" and give a big exaggerated "mwah!" kind of kiss, and repeat it over and over. They have both found this to be absolutely hysterical. So earlier this week I asked Lily for a kiss, and she turned to me and dipped her head in and gave me her first big drooly baby kiss. :) Oh, what a sweet mama moment! Ahhhh...... I remember exactly when Aden gave me his first kiss, too... it just gives me warm fuzzies inside.
But, on the downside with all this precociousness (LOL) is the appearance of separation anxiety already. Is this even possible? I suppose since Aden had none, I am getting a double dose this time. Lily freaks out whenever I leave the room! Derek will be holding her, and she'll be perfectly happy and content, and then the second I leave the room she is inconsolable. As soon as I'm back in her sight, the tears dry up. She won't let Derek put her back to sleep at all if she wakes up after nursing, either--mama has to be doing the walking and bouncing or she gets more and more distraught and cranes her head to find me. I can't decide if this is frustrating or endearing (or both). What I'm wondering is, if she's showing signs of separation anxiety so early will it be over earlier too, or will we just be dealing with it for a longer time? Hmm...
We are still using cloth diapers, actually have not used a disposable in so long I don't remember, and it is so great! I absolutely love it! I am way too obsessed with all of these cute little diapers though. I have a few more on the way and then I may actually have enough cute ones to take pictures of my (I mean Lily's) stash. So I will post it on the board at a later date, and spare you the endless minutiae of my obsession right now. :)
Okay, now I feel rather guilty for not talking about Aden before. After all, I haven't done an update in ages and I'll feel bad later that I didn't write anything down about him. Sure, he never listens to us, tests every limit and rule, whines about things being unfair, will never give me a moment's peace and quiet, and tries to wheedle his way out of (or into) everything. But he also has his good moments, where he's "reading" Lily a book and making up a cute little story and I can't believe his creativeness. He can read the words "zoo," "Aden," and "Lily" and he can write them on the fridge with his magnetic letters too. He can't actually write any letters on paper yet, but I think if I could find a few moments each day to show him he's probably pick it up quickly. However, I spend so much of my time at odds with him that I honestly don't feel too inclined to do that... even though I'm sure the extra attention is exactly what he needs. Who is being childish here? LOL. I've just been finding the last few months to be very tough.
So, that is us right now. We're trying to put the finishing touches on our kitchen (finally) in the next two weeks because we are having a ton of people over on October 3rd for a family cook-out. Nothing like a huge social event to end that procrastinating! LOL. I am already envisioning the next project... the bathroom! Ooh, I can't wait. Maybe it will be done by, oh, say, May of 2006? :)
Happy fall, everyone!
Tara
PS--Did I post at some point and tell everyone that our insurance did reimburse us for 50% of our midwife's fee like they promised when I was pregnant? Well, they did, and we are so happy! Yay for finally having a good insurance experience!
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