Valentines Babies, 2013!

[SierraJourney]

Kellen---I've tried that recipe for teething biscuits---Camden LOVES them! They aren't so messy, so I can just give one to him and let him play while he eats it! That makes things a LOT easier for me! YAY! Thanks for sharing!

 

[DragonflyWing]

Do any of your LOs laugh in their sleep? Gunnar does this pretty often, usually just prior to waking up. He'll be sleeping soundly, and all of a sudden a giggle comes from his crib. We peek in at him, but he's still asleep.

We thought it was weird and funny, and figured it was just a baby thing. HOWEVER, I recently downloaded an app that tracks my sleep cycles and records any snoring episodes. Twice in the past few days, there are sound recordings of me laughing in my sleep! I had no idea I did that, and DH said he's never heard it, but he only sleeps in the bedroom with me about 20% of the time. Anyway, maybe it's genetic!

 

[wamommy]

LOL Dragonfly, that's so cute!! Max will kind of chuckle once in a while, but not full-on laugh. I'll bet there is some genetic component! My kids all sleep with their eyes partly open. When I was in college my roommate pointed out to me that I do it too and it used to really freak her out. You can see a pretty big slit of eyeball when we're all asleep! It is a bit creepy, lol... What weird things we pass along.

Now I want to try those teething biscuits! I need to go buy some applesauce.

 

[helena]

How old are we all?.....36 here. I am a fan of hair dye. But I agree - be wary of red tones, also leaves my hair orangey. I use one with no red in it now. It lasts about six weeks. I do it at home. Think it might be a Nice N Easy one. One of the big brands anyway. Afterwards my hair is always so shiny and smooth. Maybe I will dye it this week . Cover the greys..

 

[SierraJourney]

I'm 28----and yes, getting white hairs! I might have to try a hair-dye---especially if it makes your hair shiny and smooth! My hair is so dreadfully dull. . .didn't use to be, but again, this year has aged me a ton.

No laughing in his sleep here, but we can see him on the video monitor, raising his legs up and down in his sleep!

 

[wamommy]

I'm 34, but will be 35 next month. I never really think of myself as "old," but lately I certainly look it! Argh, it seems like yesterday I was 22 and the world was stretched out before me. Time really does fly, doesn't it??

I haven't tried a store-bought hair dye in a long time. I don't even know where to begin! Can you go lighter that way, or only darker or about the same? I'd be happy with the same color, as long as it covered the white hair. I'd honestly LOVE to have lighter hair again, since being pregnant with Max darkened my hair a TON. I went from dark blonde/light brown to medium brown. I feel like it makes me look so drab and mousy.

 

[Kellen]

Looks like I'm the baby of the group at 25. I've had tons of white hair in my bangs since I was 16 though. Now they have moved around to above my ears as well... Just following the same pattern as my mom and grandmother. When I'm about 70 I'll have beautiful crown of silver hair.

Sierra - I am glad Camden likes the teething biscuits. I love the fact that Teagen can walk around with one and I don't have to worry about a huge mess. I tried putting cinnamon on one and she threw it away. Silly girl.

This past week has been insane. Long story short we are going to Texas for Teagen's first birthday if I don't kill DH before then. A family friend of DH's died due to a ruptured intestine and his memorial service is the Saturday after Teagen's birthday. MIL loves to pull DH's heartstrings. DRAMA! I am not even going to get into it.

But in happier news! We (meaning me) are hosting a play date at our house next Wednesday. One of the mommies we give milk to has a 14 month old little girl who she adopted. So they are going to come out and play with us for a few hours next week. I told her to invite other mommies and babies to come play too. I am very excited for Teagen to get to interact with little people her own age.

I applied for a job last night. It is a job I have done in the past; it wasn't my favorite mainly because of the people I had to work with. If I get it I hope the environment will be a lot nicer. I also submitted 6 job applications for DH.

And the last time I dyed my hair was in college. I went for red highlights. The hairdresser had to do it twice because my hair was so healthy that the dye washed out. Then my hair is so naturally dark they barely showed up. After that I took musical theatre and learned how to wig myself and make it look natural.

 

[helena]

25!!!! Oh our baby Kellen x. Seems I am the granny of the group then...I will be 37 in he the summer....aargh!

With dye you can only go darker. You can get home bleach kits or highlighter kits that enable you to go lighter though. But they scare me more, they are permenant.
I use a colour very similar to my natural colour and it just covers greys and makes it so much healthier looking. A friend of mine was advised by her hairdresser that home temporary / semi permenant dyes are better for your hair than permenant ones done in the salon. Go for an ammonia and peroxide free one xx

Am just off to a playgroup. We only go once a month or so, but you are right Kellen it is so fun watching them interact with other small ones! Xx

 

[helena]

Can't believe my baby will be 1 next weekend! Looking forward to making a very pink cake

 

[DragonflyWing]

30 years old here! Right in the middle of the group, I think.

Good luck with the job applications and the trip, Kellen!

 

[wamommy]

What a great mix of ages we all are! No wonder we balance out so well.

Kellen, I love the way you look at grey hair as a "beautiful crown of silver hair." That's a lovely way to view it! My grandma dyed her hair until right before she died, and I remember being shocked when I saw her in the hospital, thinking her hair had been naturally blonde (at 83 ). Once I have this baby I'll figure it all out, but for now I'll try to embrace my new white hairs, which I shall call "experience" or perhaps "wisdom." That sounds much better than "sleepless nights."

Kellen, I'm sorry to hear about DH's friend. It sounds like more is going on with the trip, but I hope it's fun! Has it been a long time since DH's family saw Teagen?

I've never done a playgroup with Max but would love to! He loves pictures of babies and his own reflection, so I can only imagine another baby would be totally fascinating! I'm a bit concerned, though. Years ago I had a good friend who I met in a prenatal class at the hospital. We walked together a couple of times a week and then continued on once our babies were born. The weather changed and we took a couple of months off and when we met up again my daughter pushed her daughter down and grabbed the toy she was holding. My friend never called me again and I haven't seen her since. It was so sad! I guess I'm afraid Max will do something similar...lol. Babies will be babies though, right?

Helena, I can't believe we'll be doing baby birthdays so soon! It seems like yesterday the twins were in the hospital, you were scheduled for a c-section and the others of us were looking for signs of labor. Wow, does time fly!? What is everyone doing for birthdays? We'll probably make a little cake for Max to play in and destroy, and then a nicer one for the adults to share. I'm not sure what gift to give him, though. He has so many hand-me-down toys.

 

[DragonflyWing]

The time really has flown! I can't believe how fast all the babies are growing up. It's a little bittersweet

I learned the other day that I have to start watching my language...I tripped over a toy and stubbed my toe, and for the next 10 minutes Lily was cruising around going "Fuh! Fuh! Fuh!"

DH started taking the babies to Baby Story Time at the library every Friday, and the twins really seem to enjoy it! They read a story, play games and sing songs, and then have free play with the other kids. It ends just in time for their mid-day nap, and they're usually in great moods for a long time afterward.

Speaking of the library, there's an event coming up that I'm really excited about! They have a monthly program called Booked for Dinner which is a combination potluck and book discussion. They're discussing the book "Gone Girl" for February, which I read recently and LOVED. I think it will be a great opportunity to meet people in my town and get involved in something. It's February 8th, and I can't wait!

 

[Kellen]

Helena - Too funny being the granny of our group, but you're still younger than DH and all my sisters. I can't believe that Kiara is going to be 1 so soon! But then again Teagen will be 1 as well in less than a month. I guess we will all officially have "toddlers" by the middle of February.

Wamommy - Babies are babies and toddlers are notoriously selfish. If Emma (our playdate buddy who is 14 months) pushes Teagen over I suspect her mommy will gently correct her and we'll go from there. At least Max has siblings. Teagen has a cat, sheep and chickens as her playmates.

Dragon - The library group sounds like fun. I'm an avid reader and would love to get involved in something like that. DH and I used to Tango together and there are a couple of groups around here. We've been thinking of going back and starting up lessons again so we can go dancing.

The Texas Trip: So the man who died has been a friend of DH's family for 34 years (since DH was 5). Four weeks ago he began to complain of stomach pain and blood in his stool. Over those four weeks he lost 40lbs. Then - last Saturday - his wife finally decided to take him to the ER when he couldn't keep down any food. Turns out his intestines had ruptured in three different places. Why the heck didn't he go see a doctor sooner? None of his symptoms were in the normal range. He died on Monday.

The Texas relatives have not seen Teagen since she was 3 months when we stopped over during our move. This is not for lack of trying on our part, simply lack of funds. We have invited them out and I have tried to connect via Skype, but they just don't have the time. But I am looking forward to showing Teagen off. I will be taking my own baking supplies and food for Teagen's party and the visit in general. I will also not be allowing ANYONE to give my daughter Dr. Pepper or Sweet Tea. Teagen will be following her normal nap schedule and if anyone messes it up they will pay...

On a funnier note: my mom and dad decided to let Teagen eat dinner with them while I put together a toy box. My mom kindly cut up some chicken into bite size pieces for Teagen to grab while she was sitting on my dad's lap. All of a sudden I hear Teagen screaming. She didn't want the bites, she wanted a hunk of chicken so she could do it herself. She also refused the cut up banana and wouldn't eat the strawberries unless they were served whole. I think I have a self taught BLWer.

 

[helena]

Booked for Dinner sounds fun dragon
So funny your cruising daughter was nearly a cruising cursing daughter.

 

[wamommy]

Dragon, that library group sounds amazing! I would LOVE to do something like that! I should look up my local library and see what they offer. The tough part is getting DH to watch the kids while I go...

I need to watch my language, too. Max hasn't copied me yet, thank goodness, but my 4-year-old has said a couple of things lately that concerned me! We were driving in the car and we had to slam on the brakes when someone cut us off. She mumbled, "f-ing moron." I almost died! (It's DH who says that, btw, not me...lol)

Kellen, I'm so sorry about DH's friend. My best friend from college/high school has Crohn's disease, and before they diagnosed her the ER sent her away TWICE with ulcer medication and laxatives. Finally her intestine ruptured in the middle of the night but an emergency surgery saved her. The scar goes all the way from above her belly button to her bikini line. It's amazing it got that far! I wish they had caught it sooner for your friend.

I'm off to prepare for the Seahawks game! If we lose we're out, but if we win we go to the Superbowl. DH is nervous and I hate to know how moody he'll be for DAYS if we lose. Go Hawks!

 

[Kellen]

All I want is an hour of uninterrupted sleep. We were up every 20-40 minutes last night. Tried co-sleeping. Tried white noise. Tried Daddy rocking. Tried nursing. Tried music. Tried silence. Tried everything. Why is she awake and chipper at this time of the morning?

 

[wamommy]

Oh Kellen, that sounds so tough!! I hope it gets better. Are molars coming in or something? Maybe she's getting sick? I know how incredibly tough lack of sleep can be, and really hope it improves.

 

[helena]

Growth spurt I say Kellen!

Kiara just today learnt to kiss. Well, to put her mouth to ours and then grin, when we pucker our lips. She did it first to her 5 year old brother who is so very proud. It's amazingly cute. Lots of kissing going on here today

 

[helena]

Oh, and to add - I went running twice this week and am off to a Zumba class tonight. I decided it really is time I made an effort to lose these 7 kilos. I am not a natural runner, I don't love to run, in fact it hurts so I don't enjoy it..but I feel happy when it's over. And I can't diet very well..I just love food. So I will try and keep up the excercising. One time I ran with Kiara in the stroller. She was happy and dozed off

 

[SierraJourney]

What are the symptoms of molars coming in? Camden has been super clingy this week. . .I can't even put him down without him crying or whining. He was playing so good by himself and now all of the sudden never wants to be by himself. My only guess is that he is teething. .. He also is having trouble napping---- maybe we're both going through some teething, Kellen? I'm so sorry it's been so rough for you. I hope it gets better!

Way to go for exercising helena! I've been trying to do some crunches and things every day. . .but not very much. . . I thought about taking up running once the weather turns nice. I, too, love food. . .can't give it up.

Camden kisses us, but every time it turns into a bite! lol . . .I have to pull away really quickly to avoid those teeth!