How to eat a pomegranate....

Yes, that's really what this post is about. Well, how to open one and get those little pieces of goodness out, to be more specific. I've had several people ask me how I do it recently...mainly because I have said that it's easy to do and doesn't take but a minute. But most places that tell you how to open them say to soak them and then pull out the seeds...blah, blah. NO! That takes way too long. And I would rather spend more time eating than opening. And with the fact that these babies go FAST in our house, the method needs to be super-quick.

A few years ago, before I had ever even eaten pomegranate, I saw Marth Stewart show how to do this. If you have ever spend time doing it the long route...you will be kicking yourself. For all of you that have done that, that avoid eating pomegranates because you don't want to go the long route, or for those of you that don't eat them just because you don't know how to open them...here you go!

Click HERE.

Sorry...I can only post the link, not the video. I'm fairly certain you don't have to have facebook to see it, but if not... You score the pomegranate - cutting around the fruit as if cutting in half one way, and then again as if quartering it (don't cut through!! Just cut through the edge. You don't want to waste any of those morsels inside!). Then pull apart the four pieces. You might have to use the knife to pry a bit. Next, you take one quarter, hold it over a bowl (might want to be a bowl with good, high sides, and you might want to put it in the sink...just in case some juice makes its way out. That stuff stains.) - with the skin facing up and the fruit facing down into your palm. Take a big wooden spoon or something similar...and you basically whack the seeds out of the thing!

Not only do you get the fruit out quickly...but you take your frustrations out at the same time. Who knew pomegranates were good for your emotional health, too?! ;)

I know these things are SO good for you and there are tons of ways to use them in recipes, etc. We just eat them straight. They don't last long enough to do anything else with them! And they're the perfect size for little Aiden, no cutting necessary.

I'm falling way behind on my posts lately, and I have a bunch that I am intending to get up...one of these days. We've been sick with colds lately, for one thing. Aiden got a nasty cold while we were visiting family not long ago. He was well for, I'm not kidding, two days when he caught another cold! This one was courtesy of big brother, bringing germs home from school, I suppose. He has a hard time taking seriously warnings such as "stay out of Aiden's face," "don't touch his food!" (hello?!), etc, etc. I think seeing how quickly Aiden got sick and how bad this cold was helped. And then I caught it, of course. When Aiden is sick, he tends to sleep as close to me as possible...as in, he hugs my neck and puts his nose and mouth right up next to mine! How could I NOT get sick?! But it's impossible to stay away because having me so close helps him, which is too important to me, especially when it helps him get to sleep...and we both need that badly! I'm currently trying to keep it from turning into a sinus infection...not sure how successful I am quite yet. It's questionable.

And we recently had a death in the family. My grandmother (my stepdad's mother), Grandma Strode, just passed away last weekend. We knew it was going to be soon, but it was sooner than expected. We're currently in Kentucky. We made it in time to go to the funeral. Ever notice how that is such a good way to see extended family that you haven't seen in a while. Sad circumstances, yes. But it's always great that everyone shows up (which is how it should be) and comes together to be there. We got to meet a couple new family members - my step-brother's new baby boy, Loxley, and my step-sister's even newer baby girl, Ella. Plus, we didn't make it to Christmas at with my step-dad's family last year because we needed to be with Ryan's grandmother who was in the hospital and close to passing away, so it was nice to see everyone and let them meet Mr. Aiden. Aiden and Grandma Strode had actually been able to meet. We stopped and visited this summer when we were coming to Kentucky. We wanted to spend some time with Grandma while we had the chance - and we really wanted her and Aiden to meet. I'm so glad we made that happen! You can't wait on that kind of stuff because you don't always have "next time."

Aiden trying to share a toy with Grandma Strode

So, we came to Kentucky for the funeral and to be with family, but we're also staying for Halloween since we're already here and Ryan won't miss any extra work because of it. He already had to take off through Friday for all the traveling - a full day on the road each way - so we figured why not stay and relax a bit instead of rushing back. I'm taking advantage and trying to rest up a little to get well. I don't really feel like sleeping until 10am counts as "sleeping in" if I don't get to sleep until 1 or 2am because I am sick and then am up every hour or two with a sick or hungry baby.

And we're not really getting to relax too much with the boys underfoot. Aiden, who remembered he could manuever steps last time we visited family, has decided he can now go down all on his own, too. So he tries to practice that as much as he can. I think he's more comfortable practicing at both my mom's and Ryan's mom's because they each have some areas that just have one or two steps separating rooms. That means we have to stay right with him, esp when every now and then he sits down to slide down the step...and he's not quite in the right position. He gets it right most of the time, but...

So, we'll get back into our regular routine sometime. Surely. We've also been having some naptime struggles with Aiden, and I'm really hoping to kick into gear and get him back on track - or on some kind of track! - once we get back home and things calm down. I think all the traveling and all the colds this past month haven't helped with things. And sometimes he needs one nap a day and sometimes two... It's been fairly frustrating and time-consuming. We'll figure something out. Hopefully. (And hopefully soon!)

Anyway, that's the story with us lately. A very busy time, and blogging has just had to take a backseat, whether I wanted it to or not.

Allergy Confirmation and Update

We took Aiden to the allergist on Tuesday and got some definite answers. We already knew what we would find out, but confirmation is a great thing.

First of all, we were very impressed with the doctor. We went to Duke Allergy, Asthma, and Airway Center (which is beautiful with a huge pond that goes right up to the walkway around part of the building...almost level with it...and a fountain that Aiden would watch from the huge window in our exam room), and when the doctor came in to see us, he had clearly read through Aiden's entire history very thoroughly. He knew all about his IP diagnosis and discussed that with us some - usually we have to tell doctors about this, and they often have not heard about it. He really impressed us with that and then with his knowledge of up-to-date things concerning allergies and research. This guy was really on top of his game. And he was great at what he did and answered all of our questions thoroughly and patiently. (In case you didn't expect this, I am one of those that goes into appointments with a list of questions and things to discuss... Surprised?! Probably not.)

Anyway, moving on... First we did the skin test. We had some concerns because while we've heard stories from people with NO problems at all, we've also heard from people that have had all sorts of issues on the other extreme. But the doctor reassured us, and he was right. Aiden never even flinched while the test was being administered. I actually had to ask the nurse if she even pricked his skin! They tested only for egg this time, for various reasons, and did a control for histamine reaction and a control with saline. These tested for possible false positives or false negatives - and Aiden reacted just as you would want, so we were confident with the results from the egg test. He walked all around the hallways shirtless during the test. He obviously was not irritated in the slightest. BUT he also immediately showed a reaction to the eggs.

We talked with the doctor about what all this means, and we also did a blood test and should get those results back next week. He explained to us that with an allergy like this, you go all out with restriction. It's an all-or-nothing approach. That means that even if a food is labeled as being free of eggs but "processed in a factory that also uses eggs"...that food is a big no-no and should be treated as if it has egg in it. Why? Well, you never know if they really do keep things separate. Even if they make a good effort, you never know when you will get a product that just happened to be exposed to the allergen. OR you don't know if Aiden has some tolerance level and will slowly build up to that and then have a bad reaction. This all makes sense. It also cuts out a LOT of foods we thought were ok. (Even if he's had them in the past and has not reacted...keep in mind the reasons I just listed to understand why he can no longer have them.)

Another issue is the flu shot. Now, we've been on the fence about the flu shot(s) for a while now. I won't go into all of that right now b/c that's not what this post is about. BUT the flu shot is cultured in eggs. That doesn't mean he couldn't get the shot. It does mean there is a lot more to deal with to get it. He would have to go to Duke Hospital and get a skin test with part of the vaccine. If that shows that he is ok to get the shot, he then gets 10% of the shot. Wait another half an hour or so...and then he gets the rest. Keep in mind this would be his first time getting the shot, which means two doses. We would have to go through that again. And if we were to give him the seasonal and the H1N1 vaccines...that means 4 visits to do this. And at least two skin tests and 6-8 shots. At the hospital, which is about 40 minutes away. With lots of time waiting while there. That's easy with a toddler, right? And he's not in a high-risk category, especially being at home with me and still being breastfed on demand. You can probably see why we're debating whether to go through all of this with him. Besides, they're out of the vaccine at this moment anyway. Guess we have time to think. Honestly, we're leaning more towards not doing it, though.

As I said, we also did a blood test. After being at the office for over an hour, Aiden was starting to meltdown...getting tired, wanting out of there, wanting to nurse...and then he gets to have blood drawn on top of that. He was PERFECT for the visit for the first two hours, but you can see why he would have a problem with that last part. Why the blood test when we already did the skin test and know the results? They might be able to find out if he is also allergic to cooked egg (which we kind of already know after the test with the cooked muffin on his cheek, but still...). Also, they test his blood level. If a certain result is found, we could do a food challenge (also at the hospital) in 6 months or so. If it does not come out below a certain level, that means we need to wait another year and do the testing over - no food challenge before then.

When we got home, I went through our pantry, separating the foods with eggs (or labeled as being processed by a place that also uses eggs) and foods without. We have a few places to call b/c they don't label well and are in question. But I had a visual showing me that this actually does cut out a lot of foods...a lot we thought would be ok for him. We'll deal. The hardest part will be traveling (maybe more people should just come to us...make it a heck of a lot easier on us!), parties, going out to eat... I've seen what a challenge this can be with my mom and all her food allergies, BUT because of that, I've also seen it is quite possible! So, I know we can do this. We've already tried some egg replacements. Some have worked just great, some ok but not as great...that's how it goes. Some foods just won't be the same but might just have to work! Luckily, Aiden is starting with these restrictions so young that he won't know any better. ;) And odds are good that he will outgrow the allergy by the time he is five years old.

I think I covered it all... If there is more to share after the blood results come back, I'll share then.

I have a few pictures from the visit, but something's up with blogger, so it's taking forever. And it's late - too late already. So, I'll try to post them tomorrow night or Monday. We're off to the zoo tomorrow, so we'll see. If you want to see them now, along with a cute video taken with the camera, click HERE and view the last pictures in the album. The video is of Aiden finding a way to keep entertained while waiting in the exam room. He was so well-behaved! (Up until that last half-hour, of course, but who could blame him at that point?!)

Proving me wrong

Do you ever feel that children are just out to prove their parents wrong? I constantly feel that way...

Yesterday I said in my post that Aiden won't even work with me on going down steps on his bottom or crawling backwards. I've even tried showing him he can scoot off the bed. But he just doesn't pay attention and wants to do things his way.

Well, just this morning, he is lying there next to me on the bed (bright and early, of course). He was on his back and starts kicking his feet like crazy. I'm thinking what is this kid doing??? He was right next to the edge, but we have this thing that goes in between the sheet and the mattress to keep him from rolling off, so he was kicking that but going nowhere because he couldn't get over it. He managed to scoot down enough to get past that and was sliding right off the bed. I grabbed him just in time to help keep him from falling on his face as his feet hit the floor. But he would have been fine without me - I was just surprised!

Then...he did it all over again to show Daddy!

Out of curiosity, I put him on the steps earlier to see if he could come down some of them. He kind of did... He made it down a couple. He would kind of sit and kind of scoot his foot over the edge. Once he gets near the bottom, he just reaches out for the top of the gate and walks down the last couple. I tried again later, and he was just mad, wanting me to hold him, and walked right out - into my arms, of course, since I was there to catch him. But boy he didn't care that he was on the stairs!

Anyway. Totally proving me wrong. As usual. It seems as soon as you say something is a certain way, they up and change it on you.

Catching up...

I've been MIA on the blog for a while, I know... We've been very busy traveling to visit family, dealing with colds and teething (together they are quite fun, let me tell you), pumpkin farms, soccer games, allergy testing, dentist appointments, dead cars... You get the point. Busy!

We spent a week with Ryan's family last week. It was nice to have a little downtime, as much as you can have with a toddler that is into every little thing at a different place with much to explore. ;) My favorite part...with others around to entertain Aiden, I actually got to shower, dry my hair, AND fix my hair every day. Nice. It was also great seeing Aiden interact with all the granparents. He really had a blast! Least favorite...Aiden was up more than once an hour just about every night. We were going to have him sleep in the pack & play while we were in the full size bed. That didn't work, so we were all snuggled close in the bed instead. Aiden was teething with his fourth molar and then he caught a cold...so he also discovered that he loved using half of my pillow to lie on. (He is continuing to love that, as well.) That was all fine. Just meant no sleep for mom. He also was quite clingy at night from the teething, so he practiced sharing...his cold...with me. We did get to have some fun visiting with the grandparents, going to the park, seeing some of Ryan's close friends, and just not having to watch the clock as closely as usual. Plus, we got Camden back! :) He had been to visit his dad for a couple weeks and then was visiting my dad for a few days. It's always great to have him back with us again. AND when picking him up in Kentucky, we spent a couple hours at my mom's to work on Aiden's costume. Yes, that's right, she was able to help make his Bunny costume after all!

While visiting, Aiden decided he would have everyone read books to him over and over - but not sit still for many of them. At home, he'll just sit through entire books, no matter how long. While there, he would sit through a page or two at a time! He also decided he would once again go up stairs. He hasn't even attempted that in quite a while, even with encouragement! And he learned how to go down stairs, too...small ones. He will hold onto the wall and slide his foot over the edge of the step down the front of it, to the floor. When on the big stairs, he forgets to do that and just attempts to walk down! I don't know how others teach their babies to scoot down on their bottoms or bellies...I've tried and he just won't go for that at all.

Once back home, we were thrown back into it all. No easing into it. But we had a fun weekend full of soccer games and a visit to a local pumpkin farm. The farm was a HIT. Lots of fun stuff for the kids - both Camden and Aiden's age. And the tractors were all running on vegetable oil - how cool is that?! We really had a great time and will definitely be going back there again. Anyone local looking for a good place - it's Philip's Farm in Cary. Some info here, and get a coupon here (print up more than one, too!).

Then Ryan's car decided to die. It's finally back on the road again, but it spent a couple days in the driveway first, which complicated life a little bit for a while.

We also had Aiden's big appointment with the allergist. That's for another post so I can focus on that. Not for this smorgasborg...

And today I took both boys to the dentist. Aiden's first dentist visit ever and Camden's first time to this one since we moved. Good news and bad news... Bad news is Camden might need braces soon because the last dentist messed up. We have such bad luck with dentists. Long story, but when he was younger and we were sent to a ped dentist for a cavity (one of those that didn't let the parents back with the kids - I was not comfortable with it from the start and have since NEVER left him alone)...they did a root canal instead (b/c of insurance and money - you can't imagine how furious I was when I found out). Couple years later, that tooth had to be pulled. A space maintainer was put in; it popped out this past spring, and the last dentist said we didn't need another because the next tooth was close to coming in and the other teeth wouldn't move into the space. Apparently that wasn't true, and the teeth are already moving. Sooooo...we get to go to the orthodontist to see what they say. Joy. Good news was Aiden did a FABULOUS job, which wasn't too much of a surprise. The kid loves brushing his teeth! When they laid him back to check his teeth, he just let them...twice. He did get mad and fuss after the dentist pushed on the gums where the molar is coming through. You can't blame him for that!

Sorry if this sounds all jumbled and thrown together. It kind of is.

Instead of posting some pics, here is the album of our pics online. Everything's there. :)

2009 October

Enjoy!

Blogging for Change - Blog Action Day '09: Climate Change

Today I am blogging for Blog Action Day 2009: Climate Change. What does that mean? Thousands of bloggers everywhere are blogging about the same issue on the same day, writing based on our individual interests/knowledge/experiences/etc. Learn more about it all here.



My take isn't going to be an in depth discussion about something complicated. No, I think in order for many of us to get involved, things need to be simple, easy. So....in light of that, I want to post on the many different EASY ways to get involved. Lots of little things that can add up to make a big difference. That's how I started...with one little change here and there. Before I realized, we had made MANY changes. I thought I would share some of those little changes for those interested. Please comment with your own to add. I'll try to keep it short and sweet by listing the things we do.

First of all, cleaners are easy to start with... Keep those toxic, bad-for-the-environment as well as bad-for-your home/children/etc. out of your home. It's easy to get non-toxic, biodegradable cleaners that work and work well. I'll share some things we do/use. Some of the things listed might make you wonder what they have to do with the climate...but think in terms of packaging, transportation, waste, etc...

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Homemade green cleaner. This is our go-to cleaner. It is so easy and quick to make; you probably have the ingredients in your home already; and it works so well. Many have told me how much they love this after passing on the recipe. Recipe here.

Biokleen Bac Out. This is the best stain remover I have ever used. I've used it on carpet stains in our old aparment -stains that were there before we moved in and remained there after being professionally cleaned. I put this stuff on and followed the directions, which said to let sit for 5 minutes and blot out. I didn't think it would work, but thought this was a good test. Ummm...totally came out. I've gotten out berries, tomatoes rubbed into clothes by a baby, and so much that otherwise would have never came out. You can even use this with cloth diapers. This stuff works - without scrubbing. You can get it at Kroger's, Whole Foods, many other places.

Dr. Bronner's Soap. What a cleaner this stuff is!!! You can do so much with this stuff - from washing hands, cleaning clothes, household cleaning, body wash, even use it as a toothpaste. Now - I have not personally used it for anything other than cleaning in my house, but I have heard of others who have used it for all of these things. It cuts through it all. We use it to clean the tub by mixing it with a little baking soda to make a paste. You don't ever have to scrub - rub it all over, wait a while, then wipe it off...sparkling clean. You can get this in all sorts of scents. I like citrus. We get ours at Whole Foods. I've heard it's at Target near the makeup aisles.

Baking Soda & Vinegar. These two cleaners can take care of most of your household needs. Really, they can. You can even unclog drains with these two and some boiling water. Try it. No need for those highly toxic cleaners to do that. There is so much you can do with these, I won't even bother going into detail. Try a simple google search - you'll find more than you need to know!

You'd be surprised at what you can use to naturally get rid of pests, too. Any time a single ant has come around, we've used my homemade cleaner to keep the area super, super clean. It works well because it has borax in it. We also sprinkle borax around the area they are coming in - and they stop! They hate that stuff. Here in NC, we can get some really huge spiders in our home. Spiders scare the crap out of me. A friend suggested this to get them out, and it works. Plus, it's fun for the older kids - Camden immediately wanted to use it outside to see spiders and other bugs. No need for a spray in the home, which I wouldn't want around the kiddos.

Green Clean. This is a great book, taking on each room in the house and telling easy ways you can clean your home using green methods. The book itself is waterproof and stain-resistant. Throw it in with all your cleaning products and always have it on hand.

Laundry - We use Country Save, a great biodegradable laundry detergent. Works great, doesn't have ingredients that might irritate those with sensitive skin (e.g. someone with eczema, like some in our family). It's even a top one recommended for cloth diapers. Instead of fabric softener in the dryer, we use dryer balls. Do you know about all the stuff that is found in laundry detergent and softeners...stuff that stays on your clothes. Read up on it sometime. You might want to switch, too. If you really don't want to give up fabric softener, I've heard Ecover is great and can even be used with cloth diapers.

Dishes - We recently made the switch to ecofriendly dish detergent for both handwashing and in the diswasher. We use Ecover. I looked into this a lot before settling on a brand to try, after hearing negative reviews about many brands (from what I've heard, Seventh Generation is not a great one...just fyi). Ecover consistently had wonderful reviews. Even skeptical Ryan admitted - after the very first use in the dishwasher - that the dishes came out CLEANER than they ever had before, even with something like Cascade. We also use the Ecover soap for handwashing dishes, and they both work really well.

Get some of these for your liquid hand soap. Foamers make the soap last longer, which is nice for you and your pocket book, but they also help keep extra plastic bottles from being used, keeping more of them out of the landfills. They also keep the kiddos from using too much - and the foam makes washing hands a bit more fun and easy (and less messy). You can actually put other kinds of soaps in them, as well - for the shower or other areas in the home. And get those big bags to refill soap bottles...and these will save even more money, plastic bottles, and last quite a long time.

If your neighborhood collects recycling, then there you go. No reason not to join in. It's been made easy for you - simply put the reyclable items in the garbage can for those items instead of the other can. If your neighborhood doesn't collect recycling, like our old apartment complex, you can get containers to collect them and then take them to the recycling center once a week. Sound like tough work? It's not. Really. This is what we used to separate our recycling when we lived in the apartment. There are three different bins that stack and open easily to toss things in. To take them, simply put each container in the car, and drive it on over to the center. Easy peasy. (I can't stand that phrase, but it's true.)

Biodegradable garbage bags?? Yes, there is such a thing. These are great! Order them with the amazon.com's subscribe and save to get free shipping and a discount. When you recycle, you end up with lots less garbage to toss, so the tiny extra cost for these bags aren't even noticeable.

Speaking of bags, get some of those reusable ones for your groceries. Everywhere sells them, usually for 99 cents or so. I like the ones from Whole Foods that are made from other recycled plastic bags. And in case you always forget them, put one of these in your car/purse/diaper bag (that's where my extra is). We put the bags in a location we will see when on our way out the door - and a couple left in the car, too. After a while, it becomes second nature. And keep in mind, this doesn't just go for groceries...but any kind of shopping!

Ok, getting kind of personal here... But for the ladies, try using the Diva Cup instead of tampons/pads. Why? None of the chemicals/bleaching agents (yes, those are in tampons/pads...which go where?! Exactly...), they're reusable (not gross - you clean them, duh), and save a TON of money and keep a TON of tampons/pads from landfills (which IS totally gross...think about it!). Find out more info here. Please try it. You'll never look back.

In line with that, check this facial cleansing method out, too. I've been doing this since I first became pregnant with Aiden. Save $$, do good for your face, improve your skin quality, quit using harsh cleansers that aren't good for you anyway, and reduce waste (get rid of many other items you use with this one method). Try it for a month and then see what you think. Don't knock it till you've tried it.

Groceries... Buy local and organic when you can. Why? Save the earth from some of that fuel. Support local sources. And help keep some of those pesticides from being used - from the earth and from the food that goes into your mouth. When you can't do both...try to decide which is more important. Check out this site to see what the Dirty Dozen are (the top foods to buy organic b/c they are most affected by those nasty pesticides) and the Clean 15, those lowest in pesticides. Try to buy the Dirty Dozen foods organic when possible. Have a local farmer's market - visit it!! You'll get fresher items at a great price. (But not always organic, so decide which is more important.)

Diapers - go cloth. It's easier than you probably think. And there are so many styles and types available! I assure you, these are not the cloth diapers your mama (or grandmother or greatgrandmother...) used. Not ready for that kind of leap? Try gdiapers. Biodegradable insert, non-plastic liners, no chemicals or bleaching agents (yes, those are in disposable diapers...the part that goes against babies bum)...better for baby and the earth. Can't lose there. We actually use cloth liners in our gdiapers. It's a great method b/c we can switch to the flushable inserts if we need to for some reason, which doesn't happen often but it a nice option to have. Another thing you can do...use cloth wipes. We add our own soap solution to help clean baby's bum, but you can just use water. Disposable wipes include fragrances and other ingredients that can actually irritate, while we choose what we use with the cloth. And cloth is super cheap.

Outside, we use recycled rubber mulch in our flower bed. Sure, it may cost a bit more upfront than other store bought mulches, but it doesn't need to be replaced as often, so it lasts much longer. The color doesn't fade. It's ecofriendly and looks great!

Paper towels. We still use them some but barely. We reuse washcloths and towels. Easy.

Food - buy in bulk instead of smaller packaging. Instead of getting individually packaged items, like snack pouches, juice boxes, small yogurts, water bottles...buy those in larger quantities and divide them up in reusable containers, especially when packing a lunch, like both Camden and Ryan do each day. Not only will that save money, but it keeps the extra packaging from the landfills. Also...cook! Buying less premade foods, prepackaged, and processed foods is less costly, better for you, and better for the environment.

Baby food - make your own! Not only is it very healthy, and you get to have complete control over what you feed your little one, but there are many benefits. You can use all organic foods and still pay less than buying already made baby foods. You have fresher food. Many think babies that eat homemade baby food eat a better variety and aren't as picky, as well. That's been true for us (and I have my first child that was fed baby food to compare, too). You don't have to deal with all those little jars/plastic containers, as well. Your baby, your pocketbook, and the earth will thank you. You don't need those books with fancy "recipes." Just steam and puree or mash. Some foods..you just mash. ;) Here is a great website for tips; we used this site a lot.

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I know there are more things we do. Some of it has become second nature at this point. Little things here and there easily become habit. Now it's your turn.... Please share some things you do, little or big! And then be sure to head on over to these sites to check out more about climate change.

EPA - http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/

We Add Up - enter the huge giveaway that includes tons of awesome prizes... http://www.weaddup.com/climategiveaway

Blog Action Day - find other blog posts and learn what BAD '09 is all about http://www.blogactionday.org/

Looking forward to seeing your comments and tips!

Mean, mean eggs

I've been baking up a storm lately. Seriously. Quite the storm. And I feel so, so bad not being able to share all the goodies with Aiden. (Yes, I am strict about what kinds of foods we buy and how much sugar is in them, but I'm a little different when they are homemade goodies...where I get to choose what is in them and how much. I'm the mom. I get to do that.) Since we know he's allergic to eggs but not to what extent...NO eggs until we go back to the allergist and do some testing or find out more. The appointment with the pediatric allergist isn't for another couple weeks. I'm always wondering...will it be ok for him to have eggs that are in baked goods? Or other dishes? What's the real extent of this problem??

So, today...I took matters into my own hands. Nooooo - I did not feed the boy anything. I recently made some pumpkin muffins. I wiped some of a muffin on my fingertip, swiped that onto his cheek, and then even wiped his cheek a bit with a cloth to get off any crumbs. Even then...(that's like minimal food actually getting onto his face!)...he still immediately broke out in hives on the spot the muffin touched. It looked just like it did with the raw egg white test. Not milder at all. I then washed his face with soap. The hives stayed for well over an hour, though. (Thank God he doesn't seem to get irritated from them.)

This is not good news. Not what we wanted to see. This makes things even more difficult. Booooo. That's what I have to say about that. Boooooo.

Oh, and we found out why he broke out when he had a taste of the chicken in (the world's most awesome) chicken salad from Whole Foods some time ago (before we knew about the egg allergy). Mayonnaise! Guess what's in mayonnaise, folks...eggs, that's what. So, while eggs are not listed as an ingredient...there they are. (On a side note, while Whole Food's Sonoma Chicken Salad seriously is probably the best ever, it's also not cheap. After buying some the other day, I found the recipe on their website. I'm definitely making this stuff. Yum-O. Just none for Aiden. Unless I find some egg-free Mayo.)

Guess I'll need to research egg substitutes more. And actually learn how to use them.

Now I'll go finish some other muffins I'm making. Ones that happen to be egg free!

Fourteen Months

This has, of course, been another big month for Aiden. Don't I always say that? But this month has been a month full of development with communication, for one thing. It seems like Aiden is learning so much and wanting to learn so much more.

Favorite things:

• Cars. And how do they suddenly know to make the car sound? It was like the very first time he decided to pick up a car and roll it...he also knew that the car went "vrrrr." Crazy.
• Reading. Aiden has always loved books, but over the past few months, he's been too busy to sit long enough to do anything other than quickly flip through a couple pages. Now, he brings a book to me, and then sits down on the floor - regardless of where we are - to listen to the whole thing. And he does this over. And over. And over. All day long. (He doesn't understand...wait - Mommy's cooking. Wait - Mommy's doing laundry. Wait - Mommy's cleaning the food you threw on the floor. He expects it now.)
• Flowers. He loves stopping to smell flowers outside. Anytime he sees a flower, he goes over to it, leans over, and makes a loud sniffing noise. I have a hard time getting him away from the porches because he wants to stop and play with the flowers.
  
• Music. He has now discovered other sources of music in the house, such as the radio in our bedroom. As soon as he wakes up in the morning, he starts signing for music. Anytime he is in my bedroom, he asks for it. And he asks for music downstairs all the time, too. Loves music...and dancing to it, as well!
• His toothbrush! I wouldn't be surprised if this child grew up to be a dentist. This is another thing he asks for ALL THE TIME. For one, it will reach back to where those molars are, so he can teeth on the toothbrush some. But he also just likes to brush his teeth. We actually do not leave the house without a toothbrush these days. He really likes it that much. He also likes teeth. He's been sticking (forcing is more like it) his fingers in my mouth to touch my teeth - fun times. (And he says "teeth" while he does it. He also says "toothbrush," though it sounds more like "oosh-uosh.")

Aiden with his "play" toothbrush (the one for cleaning is not for playing!)
He is showing where his teeth are.

• Baby Signing Time. He doesn't actually sit through a whole video at a time, which is fine by us, but he asks for it all the time (though he only gets it about once a day - twice if it's been a long day!), and he will stop what he's doing for certain songs.
• Grabbing at things from the table or computer desk. This means we have to watch how close things are to the edge. He doesn't see what he's getting...he just knows he wants to find out what he CAN grab.
• Strolling. We go for walks around the neighborhood most days after taking Camden to school. Aiden likes it because I point out all the things we see and sign them and sing about them. There is a song on one of the Signing Time videos called Strollin' - and it's about the trees, grass, flowers, etc that you see while out in the stroller. There are also songs about the weather, so we sing the ones that have to do with what we see and what the weather is like that day. The funny thing is I can ask Aiden if he wants to go for a walk, and he doesn't do much. But if I ask if he wants to go "strolling"...he gets all kinds of excited. He makes the connection with the song in the video.
• Being outside! He's constantly going to the back door and looking out - then signing "outside" because that's where he wants to be!

How I LOVE this kid...

Least favorite things:

• Being taken away from Mommy when he wants to nurse. You want to see him get MAD...do that.
• Certain textures of food. It's not that he throws a fit or anything, but his new thing is not wanting to eat certain things (that he loved before, of course). Mostly meats and things that are harder to chew - I wonder if it has something to do with his molars being in and the food feels differently in his mouth now that there is less room...? Anyway, he will put the food in his mouth, make this whispery "bleh" sound (that is HILARIOUS, by the way - so hard not to laugh, but we don't!), and take it back out and set it on his tray. It's funny how foods he has always loved are suddenly no good anymore. Kids are silly. And finicky. He discovered he loved pomegranate, then one day, he spit it out and wouldn't touch it; the next day he loved it again...
• Having something he wants taken away. (Ummm...duh.) Kid's got a tight grip! (I'm having a hard time coming up with the things he doesn't like...can you tell?)
  

Aiden showing where his toes are.

New developments this month:
This month has seen an explosion of new developments!!

• Talking. Let me try to list all the words he now says (I might miss a couple)... Hi, bye, dada, mama (doesn't happen nearly as much as dada, but he does call me that sometimes - usually when he really wants to nurse!), cheese, juice, tries to say teeth/toothbrush (both sound similar, but I can tell the difference), trees, he's said please a couple times... That might be it. He also calls socks "shoes." In fact, he insists they are called shoes when I try to tell him they are socks.
  
• Animal sounds. He's been saying "quack, quack" for duck for a while. We went to a small farm with animals over the weekend, and he was also saying "baa baa" for the sheep and goats. I also have this magnet with two tigers; he loves it and I told him ONE time that the tigers go "roar"...and now whenever he has the magnet, he makes this cute, whispery "rehr" sound. Back to the ducks, though...he LOVES ducks. I'm not sure where that came from, but he loves them.
• Signing. Seriously - this is just awesome. If you have considered signing even just a few words with your baby...do it! In fact, do more of it. They pick it up so easily; it's crazy. I'm going to post soon about the signing just on its own, but Aiden is now signing more than 25 words. There are also 5 additional new ones that he is trying and partly has. And then there are even more he understands but doesn't sign yet. There are probably more than he can do that I don't even know about. Today, when reading, he suddenly showed me banana, cat, and boat when he saw the pictures - I had no clue he could do those! I do them, but he just hadn't done them back yet.
• He's learning how to manipulate things and control his movements. For example, he can stack a couple blocks on top of each other. He gets a little frustrated when it doesn't work and the tower falls. (The blocks we have are actually really smooth and kind of slippery, in all fairness.) But when he gets it, you can tell he is very proud of his accomplishment, and he claps along with us, grinning!
• Running. This child not only walks...he RUNS.
• Not sure where this fits in, but today, I showed him once how to do a high five. Since then, whenever we say "high five!" - he does it! And thinks it is so much fun and is so proud of himself for doing it.
• Naps...we're working on transitioning from two naps to one a day. Basically, he just takes the one, but if it happens to be in the morning...he doesn't take an afternoon one, and then evenings are not too much fun. If we don't have much going on, I can usually keep him up to take one afternoon nap, but if we're out and about...he might fall asleep in the car, and that is never what I want. The other problem with going to just one nap is that he doesn't combine the two! He was sleeping for about an hour and 15 minutes in the morning and an hour in the afternoon. On a one-nap day...it's still just about an hour or so regardless of whether he falls asleep by 10:30am or 1:30pm! We're working on it. (Well, I'M working on it. One hour a day is NOT enough for him.)
• I've already mentioned the reading...but I think it says a lot that he is suddenly sitting down for entire stories. And then asking you to read it again. And again. And these aren't just baby board books. No. Some are longer books meant for five-year-olds! His favorite is Big Words for Little People by Jamie Lee Curtis (LOVE her books!). And the funny thing is...this literally just changed overnight one night!
  

Aiden flipping through his Big Words for Little People book. I love how intense his expression is.

• Aiden is also working on feeding himself with a spoon or fork. I put the food on the utensil, and he'll feed himself. If I let him put the spoon back into the food...he ends up putting it in and out, in and out because that's fun to do on its own. Some foods are becoming impossible to use because they're too thin for him to feed to himself, and he usually wants to try and might not let me feed him if he can't do some, too. (We usually have two spoons...one for him and one for mama.)
• We have successfully taught Aiden to "say" please when he wants something. I wondered at what age this would really be fair to expect, but went with it anyway. After just a couple days of guiding him through the sign and explaining "you sign please and mommy will give it to you"...he got it! He now signs please when he wants something. He signs it over and over if he really wants it! If he's reaching for something and hasn't signed it on his own, we can simply ask "what do you say?" - and he signs please! If he wants a toy turned on, he'll come to me, stick the toy out to me, and will sign please, all the while making cute puppy-dog eyes that I wouldn't be able to resist anyway. (Seriously, don't wait until your kids can talk to teach them these things! They can get it now.) He's even trying to say it now, as well. And yes, he sometimes is told "no." He doesn't always get what he wants just because he signs please. We're working on "thank you," but that one seems to be taking longer. I think it is a little more difficult to grasp because with please, we could wait for him to sign before giving him what he wanted. With "thank you," it's after the fact...but he'll get it.

Aiden being silly. He will say "dadadadada" very quickly and loudly, while squinting
and making a funny face. It is hilarious!

More Yogurt Stuff, etc.

After posting about baby yogurt last night, I wondered if anyone might feel offended by what I was saying about me not wanting to feed Aiden the yogurts that are made for babies. I haven't been told by anyone that I offended them or that they disagreed with me, BUT I just wanted to be sure that I commented on the possibility. In no way do I mean to offend or say that there is anything wrong with feeding your child the baby yogurts. No way. At all. In fact, if you do use baby yogurts or ANY yogurt, for that matter, I think that's great. Healthy stuff.

My post was merely to say why we don't want to use it just yet and why we prefer to make Aiden's yogurt with plain yogurt and our own fruits, etc. We're trying to steer clear of added sugar for as long as possible. Heck, I scrutinize everything I give Camden, as well, and he's ten. I'm not one of those mommies that allows fruit roll-ups in the house or gives juice that's not 100%. That's just how we roll in our home. I was raised that way - to read the labels and pay attention to the sugar, especially. Camden is even becoming quite the label reader, too. And if Aiden loves the way we fix yogurt now, there's just no reason to change it and give him something with more sugar. So, I wanted to share what we DO do. I'm fortunate enough to be able to stay at home with him and have a little more time to spend on those types of things, too.

It's funny...I've always been somewhat health conscious when it comes to what I eat, and I've always preferred to make things homemade over buying processed foods. But there is something about this child being born at this time that has really shaken up how we do things and how we think about food. We're so much more aware of what we are eating, what is in it, where it comes from, how we fix it...everything. We're doing a lot of things differently. Some of it is stuff I have been wanting to change, but having a baby makes you more proactive (and gets Daddy to agree a little more, too, especially with buying more organic...which can SOMETIMES mean more expensive - wink, wink). Some things changed when I became pregnant, but since Aiden has been eating table foods more and more has changed, and we are getting more into this whole natural, organic, local movement.

But please don't take offense and think that I think you're doing anything wrong if you are not. Because I don't feel that way or mean to come across in a way that would show that. What I think about anyone else's parenting really isn't that important anyway, but even so...I don't mean any offense. :) Just wanted to get that out there.

They make Baby Yogurt, you know?

Recently, Ryan made a run into the grocery store to grab some yogurt because we had coupons that would make them free. And you don't pass up free stuff, you know.

He came back with what he was supposed to get, plus a little extra (which is ironic because the whole reason he went was because I will usually come out with the extras...). The first thing he said was, "you know, they make baby yogurt." Yeah. "Oh, I just didn't know if you knew."

Why did he tell me this, you might be wondering. Because we "make" Aiden's yogurt each morning. Meaning, we buy organic, plain, whole fat yogurt and blend it with extras. Every day. I thought I would share how we make his yogurt (which is actually soooo yummy), why we bother, and why we don't give him the "baby yogurt" (that Ryan clearly did not even know existed).

What we do...
Like I said, we buy organic, plain, whole fat yogurt. A big container of it. Lasts a long time, and if it is lasting too long, we can use the extras in a smoothie or even freeze some of it. No worry about wasting it around here. In our freezer, we always have a stash of frozen fruits - just about every kind you can imagine. So, I take some yogurt, some organic frozen fruit (or fresh - whatever we have on hand), half a banana, and some ground flaxseed - pop it in one of the magic bullet containers and blend it up. We make all sorts of fruit blends - a popular one is blueberries, strawberries, and banana. But Aiden will eat and love just about anything we put in there - including but not limited to raspberries, mango, cranberries, blackberries, peaches, mixed tropical fruits, etc, etc...I mean, ANYthing we can get. We always have a ton because we make this and we make a lot of smoothies - I'll have to share that recipe sometime. Simple but so yummy! Anyway, banana always goes in because sweetens it up just enough. Without the banana in either his oatmeal or yogurt, Aiden is so-so about it. Add the banana, and he is bananas for the stuff.

Now, if you don't know what flaxseed is all about, it might be time to check it out. It's got great stuff in it (omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, lignans). It's good for fighting/preventing all sorts of health issues and diseases. It's EASY to use. We use it in our oatmeal, smoothies, yogurt, cereal...all sorts of things. You can even bake with it - and use it to replace other ingredients like eggs, flour, etc....(I usually have intentions of baking with it and remember as soon as I put something in the oven.) We keep ours in the freezer. You can buy it at any grocery store. Just get ground, not the whole seeds. More info below...

Mayo Clinic on Flaxseed/Flaxseed Oil
Mayo Clinic on Whole vs Ground Flaxseed
WebMD on Benefits of Flaxseed
Of course there is plenty more. Any google search will bring up tons, but these are pretty decent to start out...

Anyway, back to the main topic. I blend all this up in the good 'ol Magic Bullet, and then Aiden can't get enough of it. Any of us will eat it, too. It really is quite good. I only make enough for one serving at a time. I could make more if I left out the banana, but if you put the banana in there, it doesn't keep well for long.

So..why don't we just buy him the baby yogurt? It would be quicker in the mornings. Not that our typical routine takes longer than two minutes, but peeling off the top of a yogurt container would be somewhat easier. Those of you that have looked at, bought, or regularly use baby yogurts....have you noticed what is added to the yogurt? Sugar. That's fine if anyone else wants to use that. I mean, I buy regular yogurt that has sugar added. No biggie. But I'm still very picky about what Aiden eats, and I try to avoid added sugar. Besides, there is a LOT of sugar in the baby yogurts!! And I can EASILY whip up some plain yogurt that has no added sugar, is full of fruits, and has lots of great stuff for Aiden - and he LOVES it. So, to me, it's totally worth it. Especially since he eats it once each day.

That said.... I'm also picky about what we eat, and we've been trying to eat the "healthier" yogurts, too. This means organic, without quite so much sugar, with natural ingredients. I'm surprised (well, not so much really...) at how many "healthy" yogurts have High Fructose Corn Syrup in them. These do not count as being healthy at all, as far as I'm concerned. I do NOT buy any of those containing HFCS, even if they're free with a great coupon and a good sale. And actually, the yogurt we make for Aiden is very yummy. With all of this in mind, we actually just bought a yogurt maker. So, we'll see how this goes. I'll let you know. I'm excited to see. Ryan was hesitant - until he learned how cheap the yogurt maker actually was. ;)

Maybe not something you care too much about...but I thought I would share. Surely someone out there was curious. I've actually had some people ask, so... There it is.

Today We Celebrate

This time last year, we were all in a state of concern. Worry over the unknown. Scared of something our youngest, new child could have wrong with him and what it meant for his future. Multiple doctor visits and genetic tests later...the word "normal" never sounded sweeter. There are still possibilities and unknowns...but, the way we see things, we have a healthy baby boy.

Details? Click here.

Today we went to the geneticist at Duke for our one-year follow up. We basically revisited the results from last time. Aiden either has one of two forms of IP (if you have no idea what I'm talking about, just visit the link above for details) - a very mild, "diluted" form OR a mosaic form. The mild would mean that he could pass this on, as it would be genetic. This would be something located in all of his genes, just in a very mild form. While testing showed negative for this type of IP, testing only covers 80% of the positive cases. This might mean a future daughter of Aiden's could end up a carrier for the condition. Aiden might never have any other symptoms than what happened when he was just a couple days old or a repeat in the same area but not in other places on his body. He might develop some minor issues, but they would be things that happen to people that don't have this condition, as well. The mosaic form...hard to say what that could mean. It could mean that he wouldn't pass it on, he might pass it on, he might or might not be infertile. It all depends on where during fetal development the mosaicism occurred. In case you're not picking up the vibe here...we still are dealing with a lot of unknowns - and some big unknowns.

Aiden playing with some cars and trucks in the waiting area at the hospital. They were attached so you could slide them but not take them off. As soon as he tried to pick one up, he looked at us and signed "please" because he wanted us to give them to him. He didn't understand they wouldn't come off and kept repeating the sign! He finally just started to push them around. You might be able to see in the first picture - he makes the "shhhhh" noise as he pushes them. (We made sure to wash hands well. Remember, cold and flu season is upon us!)

So, what does this mean? For Aiden? For us? What do we do?

Well, we don't know entirely what all it means. We know what we can know at this point. We have done all the testing that is available to us. In Germany, other testing is being created - testing that could one day possibly pick up IP whether it is in the known gene or another or even if it is a weaker version of the condition. This currently is not happening in the United States, but perhaps it will in a few years or so... Our doctor told us of one other person with this same issue as Aiden who is an adult at this time and at the age where he is wondering how this could affect possible children. He just spent a week with the NIH undergoing tons of testing. Hmmm... And there are clinical trials in Tiawan right now, too. Who knows what will be happening as Aiden gets older. For now, as Aiden's birthday approaches each year, we will simply email the geneticist to see if there is anything new we should know about. As an old teacher of mine used to say, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." And if we do.

For us...especially when it comes to future children, we're mostly in the "green." If Aiden has a milder version of the genetic form of IP, then we can be safe assuming that any other children might not get it or would also have a mild version. Why does this matter? Girls are affected much more severely than boys, so it matters if we were to have a girl. It isn't an issue at this point as much as if this was a genetic form that was more severe with Aiden. Also, boys usually are not even born with this because they miscarry (more of this information is in the link I provided above, so I'm not going into detail here). That does mean there could be a small chance of miscarriage with other boys we conceive. This also means that Aiden is a miracle baby to us. :) We feel very blessed to have him with us.

Other than contacting the doctor each year for possible updates, there really isn't anything else for us to do. If other trials, testing, etc are available, great. Otherwise, there is no need for us to go doing any more research (most of the information online can be kind of scary and is more focused on the severe cases). Our job is mostly to enjoy our child. That, of course, is a fairly easy job.

This is one of those Kohl's for Kids toys. One of the assistants gave it to Aiden when we had to wait for so long. I'm not sure which story it goes along with...or what it actually is. Anyone know? Either way, he loves it. He kept hugging it, then holding it out for me to hug, then hugging it again...

I wasn't able to take notes today. Our visits with the geneticist are quite information-heavy. When we had to wait for the longest time because she was with someone else, I couldn't help but remember how much time she spent with us the last couple times we saw her. I would say most people that come in to see her aren't in and out quickly. It's just not that kind of place. Anyway, I usually take detailed notes. Harder to do with a toddler in the room... So, I'm basing all this information on recall alone. When we get the notes they send us in the mail, I'll update anything if needed.

The Best Dressing EVER

Maybe not everyone will agree, but we think so.

I haven't posted a lot of recipes lately, and I have a bunch to share, so... Here goes one that I've been meaning to post for a while. I have a couple favorite recipes that I got from my friend Mark's mom, and I just have to share this one. This salad dressing is so delicious! It's hard to explain what it tastes like; when having it with our salad the other night, I asked the guys how they would describe it. Camden said a number of words...sweet, tangy, a little salty (?), vinegary, among others. I wish I could describe it better because you may not have all the ingredients - and might not want to run out to get them just for this one recipe. But, if you're adventurous, you might. Or if you cook a lot of different things...you might just have it all in your kitchen! I say go for it if you don't have it already. Camden is not big on salad at all and will only eat it with two dressings - raspberry vinaigrette or this vinaigrette. He will always choose this one if it's available. So will I.

I have no idea what this is called. I call it Susan's dressing because I got the recipe from Susan. No clue where it's really from... Some of the ingredients might make you say what??, but just trust me on this. It IS so good.

Here are the ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1tsp garlic powder
1Tbsp dry mustard
1tsp salt
1 1/2 Tbsp celery seed
1/2 cup minced onion (if using dried, find conversion)
1Tbsp + 1/2tsp basil
1/2tsp celery salt
1/2tsp pepper
2 cups salad/veg oil
2/3 cups vinegar (apple cider)
1/4 cup lemon juice

Shake together ingredients in jar. Shake before each use. Makes 1 quart. Pretty easy. The hardest part is measuring. Yeah, that's rough.

I put all dry ingredients in and shake them first. Then I add the vinegar and lemon juice to help dissolve the sugar. I add the oil last. I always use the dried onion just because it allows the dressing to keep longer.

My fancy "jar"...

Oil - I typically use Enova oil. I love that stuff. And it works really well with this dressing. The last time I went to get it, the store was out, so I got the Smart Balance Omega oil instead... Tasted just fine, but it separates even more between each use of the dressing. Enova is thicker, I suppose. I'll be sure to only use it from here on out.

Yum! Pour over some lettuce, apples, cranberries, and walnuts for a delicious dish. (We usually use feta cheese. We were just out when I took the pic and used cheddar.) In the winter, we use clementines instead of the cranberries (or sometimes with...).

Winners are...

#172 Holly at Daytime Sunshine
#77 Becky over at The Berry's Blog

Winners selected using random.org.

Enjoy your new (free!) gdiapers courtesy of Sharni at the Nappy Shoppe!! Winners have already been contacted, so they know what to do from here. :)

Thanks to everyone that entered. There was a pretty good turn-out!

And check back soon because there might just be a gflapper giveaway in the works... Think Christmas gifts (for you, someone else, you....)

Congrats to our winners!!

Caved...

We finally caved and joined the world of twitter.... For one, a common way to enter many giveaways is to follow other bloggers, etc on there. (Umm...kind of like the gdiaper giveaway on this blog - follow The Nappy Shoppe as a way to enter - see previous post. If I had our twitter acct set up when the giveaway started, that would have been another way...) I'm not sure how active we'll be on it just yet, but we'll post updates here and there (I'm sorry..we'll tweet...geez.). Feel free to follow Our Growing Family.

gDiaper GIVEAWAY Reminder!! Ending soon...

The gdiaper giveaway ends soon - this Sunday night. Spread the word and be sure to enter yourself. Two winners will be selected; winners each get a free gdiaper in their choice of size/color, courtesy of The Nappy Shoppe. Here are the details. Be sure to comment on THAT post to enter; not on this one. :)

Hurry up!! Remember, there are TEN ways to enter.

Bunny

Aiden wants to introduce you to Bunny. Aiden LOVES his Bunny. He hugs Bunny. He kisses Bunny. Heck, he sometimes tries to bite off parts of Bunny's face and ears and hands...but it's all out of love for Bunny.

Mommy and Daddy have been trying and trying to decide what on earth Aiden would be for Halloween this year. Then it hit us - a bunny! Think about it...Aiden loves Bunny, he loves the book Guess How Much I Love You (which is about two bunnies - Big and Little Nutbrown Hare), and this is the last year we can get away with something as cutesy as a fuzzy bunny costume. After this, he will be too big to dress up like that - and he'll be able to voice what he wants to be. (He'll have opinions!!! And a voice!)

The problem is, we can't find a bunny outfit! Well, there are pink bunnies and maybe a white one here or there online. And then, of course, the bunny outfits for...(ahem)...women. None of those are what we are looking for. (Especially that last one.) We want one that looks like Bunny, who happens to look a lot like Little Nutbrown Hare in Aiden's favorite book. Is that too much to ask?? We don't think so, but perhaps it is because we're not finding it.

Does anyone out there know of a place that just might have the cute little bunny outfit we want for our cute little baby boy? We would be very grateful if you would share your knowledge!

Crock-Pot Recipe Request!

Usually, my hubby and I sit down each week and plan out our weekly meals. This makes things so much easier when we do it, but lately we've been slacking a bit. That makes things difficult for me come 4:30pm and I haven't even had a free moment to considered dinner....(which is why I need that weekly plan!). In light of that, I've been wanting to find some really good and really easy Crock-Pot meal ideas. I have a couple Crock-Pot cookbooks - one is a six-ingredient one, which is always great for me because I love simple. The other is full of more complicated meals, which is not so great for me. Either way, what I really love is getting recipes from other people; I like to collect all kinds of recipes from others. So.....readers......please comment with your favorite Crock-Pot recipe(s). You could email me, but if you comment instead, we can all benefit and get a few new recipes! (For those of you reading in facebook, please click on the note title and comment in blogger.)

I'll share one of our favorite ones, too. This is a favorite not only because it is good but also because it is SUPER easy. I would much rather use more natural ingredients over processed (and this isn't that bad when considering some of the processed foods out there)...but this is such an easy go-to meal when you're really in a pinch. The first time I made this, Camden emphatically said that it was one of the best things ever. The second and third time, he let me know it wasn't THE best thing ever but was still very good. Ha. That's still a compliment, in my opinion.

Cranberry Chicken

4 chicken breast halves
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup barbecue sauce (whatever flavor you like - I like the sweeter ones for this)
1 can (16oz) whole berry cranberry sauce

Place chicken in sprayed slow cooker. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over the chicken. Cover and cook on low 3 1/2 to 4 hours or until chicken is tender and cooked through. Makes 4 servings.

How much easier can it get?! And if you don't have an onion on hand, you can go without just fine. We've had it both ways, and it's great either way. Also, I actually just dump all the ingredients in the Crock-Pot and stir it around. Why bother dirtying another dish unnecessarily??

If you have a good recipe for a side dish or a dessert, share that, too. Hey - I have a large and a small cooker, so.... ;) I could have a main course and more going on at the same time. Wouldn't that make me look like housewife of the year? Ha. (Ryan doesn't need to know how easy it is...right?!)

Looking forward to seeing what you all have to share!

13 Months Take 2

Few things I forgot to include in the 13 Months post...

• Aiden loves to stick his foot through the posts on his crib when I'm putting him to sleep at naptime. If I move him, he moves right back and puts his whole foot through it again.
• He will sometimes go around making a wheezing noise, you know, like the way you sound when you can just barely breathe. We don't encourage this one much. I would rather him not make those kind of noises for fun so that I know it's real if it happens (when it is real...)
• He also likes sticking out his tongue and smacking his lips at the same time. I guess he is just discovering what all he can do with his mouth and the noises he can make. He's really enjoying doing all sorts of things!
• When he eats something he really likes, he makes a yummy noise, like "mhm, mmmm" - going up higher with the first "mhm." So hard to put into print, but it is so funny.
• He also started a whine that we do not find to be so cute or funny. It's very distinct. He will go "aahhaa aaaaaa" - again, you just can't explain it with words... Kind of like the yummy noise where he goes up at the first part and then a long, flatter aaahhh at the end. When he does it, we ignore it. If he wants something (usually more of whatever he's eating), he has to sign "more" before he'll get it. The whine won't cut it. (And towards the end of the month, he is decreasing it a lot.)
• Another noise - he "blows" his nose. Not really, but it sounds like it, so that's what we call it (maybe it will help him learn how to blow his nose?). He scrunches up his nose and blows in and out, in and out.
  
• WORDS!! Just after turning one, Aiden said "bye" and waved. One week later, he added "hi" and waved when he saw Daddy walking past his room while we were inside. He's also been saying "dada" quite a lot lately. Sometimes it seems as if he really is saying it to mean "DaDa" and calling for Ryan; many other times, he's just making the sound. He is quite proud that he can do it intentionally, and just grins as if to say "I did that!" With "hi" and "bye" - he says them occasionally and only when he wants to. There is no making this kid do anything. He does things on his terms. (Some say this is one of the things he gets from me..... I can't really argue that.)

Ok, I think that's it.... I thought they were worth posting, even though I forgot them the other day. (Been out of town or would have done it sooner.) In case you're wondering why...part of the reason is because, as much as I slack in getting these posts done on time, I am REALLY a slacker when it comes to filling out the baby calendar and baby book. This gives me something to go back to when I finally get to the other two things to fill them out, so I have it written down somewhere. Plus - who doesn't like to hear what our baby is doing?? ;) (Well, I'm sure the grandparents - all of which read this - do!)

Thirteen Months

When I posted the twelve month post, Ryan said something about not having to do the monthly posts anymore. He was wrong that I would stop there. But I have no idea how long it will go on. For now, he's still growing and changing and learning so much each month that I feel I need to document it. It's just as much for my own records as it is for sharing with loved ones. I'll continue to do them as long as I feel it's worth it, I suppose. Funny thing - my friend, Becky, does monthly posts for her little guy, Colin, who is just about a month older than Aiden. Shortly after Ryan and I talked about this, she posted a similar statement about doing Colin's monthly posts. Great minds and all, right? ;)

So....here goes Aiden's thirteen months post (almost a week late - seems to be the trend, so why change that, right?)

Favorite Things:

• His little farmer guy. Someone gave Aiden a megabloks tractor that has a little farmer to go with it. He LOVES that thing. He'll walk around with it, "talking" to it. The funniest part is how he talks to it. He does this "sssshhhhsshhhssssshh" sound that sounds kind of like he's whispering (and almost kind of spitting b/c you can hear where saliva is on his tongue while he makes the noise). It's really hard to explain. He has never made this noise before and only does it when he has this little farmer toy! (Actually, recently he had one of Camden's lego people and was doing the same noise, so...I guess it's his noise for talking with those types of toys. Very cute and humorous!)

Aiden with his little farmer toy

• Bunny. The attachment to Bunny only grows. Now, when he wakes up from a nap and I pick him up, he turns to indicate he wants Bunny... Where before he would want him and then put him back, he now wants to take him with us. He will carry him all over the place. Anytime we leave to go out, I am sure to bring Bunny along. Some people might not like a child getting so attached to a lovey like this, but it's actually a great thing! Very healthy for kids, so we are encouraging it. (And hoping to maybe find a second one to have in case we need to wash this one or it gets lost...)

Aiden loving on Bunny

• Signing. He knows he can tell us what he wants and doesn't want. It's a great thing!
• The refrigerator or pantry door opening. He can be on the other side of the house, and if you open either of those, he is there in an instant! And he gets himself right in there so you can't shut the door...while he attempts to get the small bottles and jars out of the fridge door or anything he can reach from the pantry.
• Trying to stand as much as possible when in the bath tub. Dropping toys over the side of the tub.
• Toilet paper. If you visit our house, you might discover an empty roll of toilet paper on the holder - and the actual roll of tp behind the seat. This is because Aiden will unroll it if given the chance...and then tear the paper into the tiniest pieces possible. So we leave the empty one on the roll and the one we're using out of reach. That way if he gets the roll off the holder, he's just as happy to play with it, sans mess.
• Nursing. When he is teething, he wants that pretty much around the clock!
• His red wagon.
• Balls.
• Music. He is constantly signing to have music! He'll go stand by the tv set (because we use the dvd player to play the cds) and sign for it and just wait for me to put the music in, grinning the whole time.
• Camden's room, and specifically, Camden's legos. If you set him down in his own room, he toddles as quickly as he can right into big brother's room, heading straight to the legos on the shelf. He's actually really gentle with them and just likes to pick up the little lego people.
• Undoing the velcro tabs on his gdiapers.
  
• Putting on (and taking off, and putting on, and taking off...) his hats.
• Laughing at himself or at nothing - completely out of the blue! He'll just laugh to hear himself sometimes, I think. And they're big, belly laughs, too. He'll make the funniest face when doing them.
• The dishwasher. This ranks right up there with the open refrigerator. He goes right for the utensils in the basket - and puts them on the floor one by one. His way of helping, I suppose.

Least Favorite Things:

• Finger prick to check for iron. They call this a finger "prick," but it's so much more than that.. They squeeze the crap out of their fingers to get the blood out. Meanwhile, the baby is fighting to get that finger back and is screaming at the top of his lungs. Not fun.
• Eggs. Now that we know that's what caused the allergic reaction. (Surprise, surprise. Really - it was.)
• Rice milk. We were told to wait on cow's milk b/c of the egg allergy, and rice milk was suggested instead. (Soy is another big allergen, so we're not going that route.) A couple times he's drank it ok, but usually he turns his nose up at it. Good thing I'm still nursing.
• Mommy leaving the room, even for just a second. Not always a big fan.
• Molars. Those suckers are MEAN. Just mean. When Aiden teethes with these molars, he gets no sleep and has diaper rashes. It seems to come in spurts. A couple weeks ago we had a rough week, and then this week, it all came up again. Luckily, we only had one really rough night with no sleep, but the rash lasted a few days. He never gets rashes, but these things cause a bad one, for some reason. We had to go from our cloth inserts in the gdiapers to using the flushable inserts so we could use the good ointment to clear him up. Poor thing. :( Good news is that one molar came through on the day he turned 13 months. It's all the way through now, and one other molar has barely broken through. Things have been much better the last few days because of that! (But we still have the top two to go.....)
• Having something forced from his tight little grip. This kid is strong!
• Soap bubbles. I'm not sure why they suddenly bother him, but they do. He sits in the front of the tub when I shower, and when the bubbles from my soap run down to where he is, he tries to push them off and looks at them with disgust. Then he does the same thing when he is being washed. I try to act excited and show him he can play with them. He just wants them OFF. He does seem to be getting better about them but still isn't crazy about it.

I just think this picture is funny.
He was standing up, stiff as he could be,
leaning back against the chair.
Just looked funny.
I don't think he was really in the mood for pictures...

New developments this month:

• Walking!!! He started walking almost right after his birthday. He's almost running now! Crazy how quickly they master a skill. He didn't actually WANT to walk when he did. He had the ability, but just wasn't interested. We knew he would be motivated to come after his sunscreen bottle, though. He loves any kind of lotion/shampoo/soap bottle, and this is his favorite. So, he managed those steps to get the bottle, protesting all the way. After a couple times, he realized he could move just fine on his own. And he hasn't stopped since.

See him going after that small orange bottle?
THAT was his motivation for walking!

• Kicking off his pants. When I'm undressing him or taking his pants off for a diaper change, I'll pull the pants down off his waist, hold him up, and say "kick, kick, kick" - and he kicks until his pants fall all the way off. He thinks it's so funny and is quite proud of his accomplishment.
• Signing!! Man, babies are incredibly smart. He already knows so many more signs. He received Baby Signing Time videos/cds for his birthday. They arrived on Thursday, and by Sunday (when he turned 13 months old), he had already learned a handful of new signs! (And we had only watched a few times. But the songs are incredibly addictive, so Mommy sings them all the time...)

My cutie pie

The Lawn Dog

Now that we own a house instead of living in an apartment...we have our OWN yard, which means that other people letting their dogs go #2 on our lawn is even MORE annoying than it was when we "shared" the lawn area outside our apartment door. Our yard is where our kids play, and I would much prefer not to have to worry about them falling in dog poop...or getting it in someone's mouth (remember...one of those children just turned one and still puts everything in his mouth!). We actually see dog poop IN our yard, not just on the edge. Seriously, do people just let their dogs run off without a leash - or do they have them on a leash that is really that long and let them go into the middle of other people's yards?? We are not very happy about this, as you could imagine. And it seems like so many people around us has dogs... That's fine. I just don't want to have to deal with the poop.

The other day, Aiden and I were taking our morning stroll and saw this in a neighbor's yard.

It's a small stand that goes into the ground. Flat, small (12x12), gets the point across in a tactful way (especially compared to some other signs I've seen...).

What do you think? Any dog owners out there? If you saw this posted next to a tree on the edge of our yard, would you be more or less likely to let your dog do its business on our lawn? Would you be offended?

I certainly don't want to make matters worse. But I would love to make them better! Do share your thoughts...

The Great Thing About Parenting... REAR-FACING CAR SEATS

Ok - back to the car seat discussion... Last week, I posted about booster seats - the law (in NC), when to know your child really can fit in the car with just a seat belt and no booster, lots-o-links to check out, etc, etc. Here's the link for that discussion, if you missed it. This time, I'm addressing the whole rear-facing versus forward-facing issue. This has come up a lot more lately, and I am so glad it has! This is a huge safety issue, making it very important in my mind. This post is especially important if you have a child that is under three years of age (or possibly even older!), if you are pregnant, or if you will be pregnant in the future, or if you know someone that falls into one of those categories....I would say that is a good number of you, right?

So, if you have had a baby turn one recently (or just about anytime ever), you might have been told by your pediatrician that it's safe to turn that baby around and put the car seat forward-facing. You can more easily see your baby, he/she can see you and everything else around, blah, blah. If you're doctor has RECENTLY said this, your doctor is not up-to-date on the latest and safest. My advice is to read around, study the information that is available, and make a decision that is best for your family and your child. I would think most would agree that keeping a child rear-facing as long as possible is the safest way to go, especially after seeing what research shows us. Did you know that children in Sweden often sit rear-facing until they are much older, sometimes up to six years of age? In fact, rear-facing is not just the safest way for small children to ride in vehicles; it is the safest way for ANYONE to ride. It's just not feasible for some of us...I think you can see why. But it IS feasible for younger children.

But don't just take my word for it....

What does the AAP say about this topic? Here is an exerpt directly from the AAP website:
See last line of #1 in the AAP Recommendations.
Children should face the rear of the vehicle until they are at least 1 year of age and weigh at least 20 lb to decrease the risk of cervical spine injury in the event of a crash. Infants who weigh 20 lb before 1 year of age should ride rear facing in a convertible seat or infant seat approved for higher weights until at least 1 year of age.^3,4 If a car safety seat accommodates children rear facing to higher weights, for optimal protection, the child should remain rear facing until reaching the maximum weight for the car safety seat, as long as the top of the head is below the top of the seat back.³

Did you catch that? The MINIMUM for turning your child around is 1 year and 20lbs (not one OR the other - BOTH), but what SHOULD happen, according to the AAP, is leaving a child rear-facing until reaching the MAXIMUM WEIGHT FOR THE CAR SEAT, also following directions for fit based on height. Check your child's convertible seat...I would bet that it will hold your child rear-facing past whatever they weigh at one year. In fact, most would hold a child up to two years, and many are now using much higher limits, up to 35-40lbs. One will be coming out this month and will hold a child up to 45lbs rear-facing! That should be well past two years, even up to three or more.

Here is a video that I really urge you to see. I am a highly visual person. I need to SEE things in action. What I want you to do here is to visualize YOUR child in the place of the crash test dummy in each clip.


If you have already turned your child around to be forward-facing and the seat will still hold them REAR-facing - you CAN turn them back around. :) Many people have done this once learning how much safer it is. If you don't have a seat that holds them rear-facing at a higher weight, I can give some recommendations, too.

Ok, I know some of you are thinking...but my child's legs/feet will hit the seat. They can't be comfortable or safe like that? How will they sit? Where will their legs go?? Well, that's not too difficult to answer. Notice how young children naturally sit. They cross their legs, they bend them. They are quite flexible, much more than us adults!! It does not cause them discomfort to sit like this. AND there are no documented accounts of children breaking their legs because they sat rear-facing in a car seat and were in an accident. Most accidents actually push the seat towards the front of the car, which would take the feet away from the back, not push them into the seat. BUT if my child were to be faced with this situation, I would much rather have to deal with a broken leg than any of the possible consequences from being forward-facing in that accident: broken neck, brain damage, the head actually separating from the spine (yes, it can and has happened), or death. Broken legs heal.

Someone actually sent me a handful of links based on the type of reader you are, so...check this out. There's something for everyone (or read them all!):

For the newspaper-style readers:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9916868//
For the research-based readers that want the statistics and facts laid out in writing, charts and graphs:
http://fcs.tamu.edu/safety/passenger_safety/certified-tech/rear-facing2.pdf
Three links for the people that like to gather info from medical associations:
http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics%3b109/3/550
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/121/3/619
http://aapnews.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/30/4/12-a
Two safety organizations explain why extended RFCSs are safest:
http://www.carseatsite.com/rear-face_article.htm
http://www.car-safety.org/rearface.html

Even More Links:
AAP Policy Recommendations: Selecting and Using the Most Appropriate Car Safety Seats for Growing Children: Guidelines for Counseling Parents (See last line of #1 in the AAP Recommendations)
CPSafety.com - Why RFing is safest, crash test footage, information on different types of crashes (frontal, side, etc)
CPSafety.com - RFing Basics checklist; How to be sure the seat fits the car properly, your child fits in the seat properly, and when to move to a different seat or forward-facing
Car-Seat.org - A forum with tons of information on car seats, safety, and just about anything related
Car-Seat.org - New information on the new seat that will fit up to 45lbs rear-facing. (We have the current model of this seat, which goes up to 40lbs, and love it! Highly recommend this seat; I'm only bummed it's coming out with a higher weight limit AFTER we bought and used ours.)
CarSafety4Kids.com - Rear-facing facts, including myths and misconceptions
Car-Safety.org - Lots of great facts about rear-facing car seats, use, and safety

Have other great ones? I can't get them all, I'm sure, so feel free to comment with links, and I'll add them!

Ultimately, you have to decide for yourself what is best for your child. My hope is that you will take the topic seriously and will read up on it for yourself. Don't just take my word for it. I'm not an expert, just someone who is passionate about this topic. Do your own research. I trust that all of us (well, most, at least) put our child's best interest as a top priority. It is up to you to determine what that means for your child and your family.

Comment away. Remember to be polite. This is not a debate; we're simply sharing information and how we do things. If you're reading this in facebook or via email subscription, please comment in blogger so all responses are in one place. If you have done the research and have opposing thoughts with this topic, I would love to hear them. All opinions welcome, as long as there is tact involved. :)

I will put up a post soon sharing what car seat we use with Aiden and why. We put a lot of thought and research into it, and some people have shown interest in wanting to know more, so we will get to that next time.

gDIAPERS Giveaway!!

Giveaway time is here!

The giveaway item is.....gdiapers! (In case you didn't notice what the title of this post was., you know.) Wait, what? Didn't gflappers (just barely) win, based on the poll? Well, technically, yes, though gdiapers was ahead for most of the time. BUT there was recently a giveaway on another blog with gflappers, and with some thinking and taking the poll into consideration, we decided to go with gdiapers THIS TIME around. (We're working on getting a giveaway for the gflapper inserts sometime soon...so stick around!) So, if you're new to the idea of something other than typical disposables or want to use something more environmentally friendly and baby friendly on your little one's tush, this is the way to go. Or if you use other cloth diapers - try this out, too! You can use cloth inserts in them; we do! Or if you know of someone that might be interested or is a user already, and you need a great gift for them... OR if you just love gdiapers and can't get enough... OR you have just started out and want to grow your stash - for free!.......you get the point. Enter this giveaway!

Never heard of gdiapers? I have other posts about them. Check those out HERE. In short, they're a whole other way of diapering. There is an outer gpant that is cloth, into which a waterproof, snap-in liner attaches. Inside that, you can use the gdiaper flushable inserts (yes, flushable! or compostable. or throw them away...they break down in a mere couple months. Disposables?? Take over 500 years!). They are plastic-, chlorine-, and chemical-free. And they are CUTE! You can take it one step farther and use cloth inserts in them, as well. gDiapers makes them, and so does Sharni (the lady doing the giveaway!). Hers are called gflappers, and that is where we get ALL of our cloth inserts. (They're fabulous.)

You have two weeks before the giveaway closes. Winner will be chosen by random (using random.org). If you want to up your odds, though...there are TEN ways to enter! Do them all at once or spread them out. Whatever floats your boat. Just be sure to do it before time is up. TWO winners will be selected, each receiving one gdiaper - size and color of your choice.

Ways to win... You need to leave a SEPARATE comment on this post for EACH way; the comment is your *ticket* into the giveaway! Winners comments (did you follow/tweet/subscribe/fan/etc?) will be verified before announced. :)

• Visit The Nappy Shoppe website - comment and share what your favorite item is, if you have ordered anything there in the past, or what you would want to get if you had your choice

• Subscribe to Sharni's blog - here (click on "rss feed" in the left corner; leave a comment saying you did so)

• Fan The Nappy Shoppe on Facebook - here (leave a comment saying you did so)

• Follow The Nappy Shoppe on Twitter - here (leave a comment saying you did so)

• Tweet the giveaway (leave a comment saying you did so)

• Link the giveaway on facebook (leave a comment saying you did so)

• Blog about this giveaway on your own blog and link back to this post in your own (leave a comment and link to your blog on here)

• Email about this giveaway to your friends, linking to this post in your email (cc me in the email - daisyryan.adkins(at)gmail(dot)com and leave a comment here, as well)

• Subscribe to my blog via email or reader (leave a comment saying you did so)

• Follow my blog (see column on right to click to follow)
  

Count that...TEN ways to enter the giveaway!! Remember to leave a separate comment for each way to enter. Also, be sure to leave your email address in the comment so we can reach you.

Contest ends Sunday, Sept 20th. Winners announced shortly after that (once verified).

Spread the word!!

Giveaway Poll...

If you haven't voted on the giveaway poll (to the right, in blogger), then do it now! The poll closes on Friday, and the giveaway will begin soon after that. Right now it is extremely close!! There are five votes each for the gflappers and wet bags and six votes for gdiapers. Vote and enter the giveaway even if you don't cloth diaper or don't use gdiapers...it's a great opportunity to try something for free!

You can try the gdiapers if you have been wondering what they're all about. You can try the gflapper in just about any pocket cloth diaper or the gdiapers... And wet bags are handy whether you use them for diapers or anything else that could get wet (and you want to keep separate from other dry things...).

Just vote soon. Like now.

Another Allergy Update

I realize I haven't posted the latest on Aiden's newly discovered food allergy, so here it is.

Apparently there is a wide range of egg allergies and reactions. We still don't know what Aiden's is but hope to find out before long. He has eaten baked goods with eggs in them and seemed to be fine. If you think about it, you eat very little egg when consuming baked goods... For example, my banana bread (that he recently ate) is made with two eggs; the recipe makes two loaves. Aiden eats half of a slice (and I do not slice thickly). So...it's very minimal.

Now, he has had scrambled eggs, but only a couple times because we just don't eat that very often. We never noticed a reaction before (but we also weren't looking for it), BUT...looking back at the last time he ate them, we now know he DID have a reaction. He was eating other breakfast foods, including fruit, and he got red around his lips and on his chin. We just assumed it was from the fruit juice irritating his sensitive skin and brushed off any serious concern. This has happened a couple times, too, and it seemed minimal enough to not worry - so we don't even remember what foods he was eating at the time, and it's likely we attributed it to something else that seemed to make sense (and could have been wrong). In this case, we know he was also eating eggs at the same time. And he's since eaten this same fruit - a lot - without any reaction. Had to be the eggs then.

We also found out that the egg whites in Aiden's birthday cake icing were cooked - at 200 degrees. The egg whites that caused the nasty hives that let us know he was clearly allergic. So, they weren't raw, but we're not sure at what point he may be ok to eat eggs...if they're cooked to a certain point, etc.

We went back to the other doctor (the ENT/allergist) on Monday and were expecting to do blood work to find out more. That's what the nurse had told us, at least. But the doctor did not plan on that... I think it has more to do with his specialty and that he is not a pediatric allergist. He does not do skin pricks on children this young, and the blood test he can do takes a good amount of blood, which requires a child to sit still for a while (which is pretty hard with a one-year-old). He kept saying he took 5ccs...but I don't know what that means (EDITED - My friend, Corley, let me know that 5ccs is a teaspoon. Thanks!). He actually asked at one point if either of us were in a field with biology or chemistry because we followed everything he said so well and understood it all. Ha. We explained we do a lot of research on our own. I think sometimes he was just assuming we knew everything he could tell us; good and bad with that because he told us a lot, most of which we actually did understand.

Anyway, his advice was to eliminate the eggs from Aiden's and return in 6-8 months for the testing OR to go to a pediatric allergist and have testing done now. We actually had an appointment with a pediatric allergist at Duke (in case you're wondering why we didn't do that first!), BUT our family doctor's office couldn't get us in until the end of October. So, we were given this appointment with the ENT/allergist because it was much sooner.

We did, however, KEEP that other appointment, just in case. We have spoken with a nurse there, and they will do the skin prick and a blood test. Different people have offered their opinion on whether or not we should go on with the skin prick with Aiden being so young - because a number of allergens will be introduced to his system. We feel that this is the best course of action. Based on what we have been told, the blood test will only tell us that, yes, he is allergic to eggs, but with the skin prick, we can find out more about his reactions (and maybe to the different ways he could be exposed to egg - ?). We will be in an environment that can deal with anything that could come up, though we don't expect problems. This is one reason the first doctor doesn't do these tests with babies, aside from the fact that it's hard to keep them still for so long - the possible reactions, including anaphylaxis. We have been told by others that have had the skin prick that it isn't actually painful, just itchy. Who knows how Aiden will do being still or doing what they need while the test is done, but we'll work through it. We have been put on a list to change our appointment in case some others are canceled, but we're not sure if that will get us in sooner or not. As of now, we will not be there until late October, and I'm not sure if they will do the tests on our first visit or not.

We were still advised to remove cow's milk from Aiden's diet and give him rice milk, which he will drink sometimes but sometimes wants nothing to do with. (He is still nursing fairly often, so we aren't at the point where we rely on other forms of milk completely.) Milk allergies are closely linked with egg allergies, and so this is more of a preventative measure. We'll keep doing this for now and see what the pediatric allergist says after we do further testing.

Thanks for keeping us (especially Aiden!) in your thoughts. We appreciate it! :)

The Great Thing About Parenting... CAR SEATS (BOOSTERS)

I'm a rebel. I break North Carolina's child passenger safety law....

Well, kind of. Maybe not-so-much. According to this law, a child can stop using a booster seat and sit in the car with a seat belt when they are 8 years old or 80 pounds. I say that is wrong and ridiculous. My ten-year-old still uses a booster seat, and I will NOT apologize or be convinced that I am wrong.

So, let's get this discussion going. If you are new to the blog, here is the intro to the "The Great Thing About Parenting..." series. The rules are easy - this is a discussion, not a debate; be nice. This is not about who is right or wrong (I'll try to keep it that way myself with this topic...); this is about sharing what we do, why, etc. Simple enough. If you disagree, I still want you to join in! All opinions welcome. Let's all just remember to show respect.

This is going to be a multi-post topic. I'll be discussing booster seats more in this one, as that's one area we have to consider with our older child. Many people move their children out of booster seats WAY too soon, and some do it because they think they're doing the right thing - following the law. But if you look farther into the matter, I hope you'll see why the laws can be flawed...

If you look beyond this law into why a child needs a car seat or booster, you will quickly learn when it really is appropriate for them to go without and rely only on a seat belt. I wish more people would do this. Or that laws would be changed to instruct people when a child really can safely sit without a booster. If this were the case, my ten-year-old would not be a minority in this case. I know of very few children his age that sit in boosters. In fact, I know of too many children that are way younger and get to sit in the *FRONT SEAT* of a car with only a seat belt. Please don't tell me if you let your young child do this. I don't want to know. Well, I kind of do because I would want to smack you and tell you that you are CRAZY and putting your child in danger. But you probably don't want that, so it might be best to keep it to yourself. (I wouldn't actually do it...just want to.)

Actually, while this is probably one of the parenting topics I am MOST passionate about, it is one that I do not lecture people on. I try not to lecture in general. I have friends that disagree about this topic. We know how each other feels (you know who you are...), and we have simply agreed to disagree. I will say what I think is right and best, but I don't push and lecture and refuse to be friends with someone who feels differently. We each do what we think is right/best for our children; I truly believe that most people base their decisions/actions on doing what they think is best for their children/family. When faced with the information, it all comes down to each parent deciding what is best for their own child. I can't make those decisions for you, just as you can't do that for me.

Here is an excerpt from North Carolina's child passenger safety law:

Restraint Required:
» A properly used child restraint device (CRD) is required if the child is less than 8 years old AND weighs less than 80 pounds. Most parents and other care givers will be able to comply by using belt-positioning booster seats for children between 40 and 80 pounds. The child must be within the weight range for the child restraint/booster seat and it must meet Federal standards in effect at time of manufacture.

» Children may be secured in a properly fitted seat belt at age 8 (regardless of weight) OR at 80 pounds (regardless of age) - whichever comes first. Placing the shoulder belt under a child’s (or adult’s) arm or behind the back is both dangerous and illegal.

» If no seating position equipped with a lap and shoulder belt to properly secure a belt positioning booster seat is available, a child who weighs at least 40 pounds may be restrained by a properly fitted lap belt only. WARNING: Belt-positioning booster seats can only be used with lap and shoulder combination safety belts. Belt-positioning booster seats must NEVER be used with just a lap belt.

(To find the law for your state, simply do a search on "child passenger law" and your state. It should be fairly easy to find.)

So...In my mind, a lot of this is wrong. Age and weight are not the ways to determine if a child fits properly in the seatbelt. It is all about FIT; how do certain points on a child fall on the seat/seat belt? If they do not properly line up, the child needs a booster seat. It's fairly simple. If a child does not fit properly with just a seat belt, that child is not protected as they should be.

I know oftentimes parents are excited when their child(ren) can move to the next level, going from infant carrier to a convertible seat to a booster to just the seat belt. In my opinion, this is NOT something to celebrate. Each move puts your child in a less protected environment. Each time, they are more in danger of being seriously hurt in an accident. And regardless of how safe of a driver YOU are (or think you are), you are one driver out of all the others out there sharing the road with you and your family. Don't think you are safe from an accident.

Want to know WHEN your child IS ready to move to just the seat belt, without a booster? It's an easy test. You simply put them in the seat, buckle the belt, and know what to look for...

This information was taken from the Safe Kids website:

The Safety Belt Fit Test

Use a booster seat with the vehicle lap and shoulder safety belts until your child passes the Safety Belt Fit Test.

Vehicle safety belts are designed to fit an average-sized adult. Children usually need a booster until they are about 4 feet 9 inches tall and weigh between 80 and 100 pounds to get the best protection from a safety belt.

Take the next step to the safety belt when you answer “yes” to these questions:

• Does your child exceed the booster seat’s height or weight limits?

Does your child pass the Safety Belt Fit Test?

1. Have your child sit in a back seat with their bottom and back against the vehicle’s seat back. Do the child’s knees bend at the seat’s edge? If yes, go on. If not, the child must stay in a booster seat.

2. Buckle the seat belt. Does the lap belt stay low on the hips? If yes, go on. If it rests on the stomach, the child must stay in a booster seat.

3. Look at the shoulder belt. Does it lay on the collarbone and shoulder? If yes, go on. If it’s on the face or neck, the child must remain in a booster seat.

• Never put the shoulder belt under the child’s arm or behind the child’s back. Do not allow children to play with the shoulder portion of a seat belt. Treat it like any cord.

4. Can the child maintain the correct seating position with the shoulder belt on the shoulder and the lap belt low across the hips? If yes, the child has passed the Safety Belt Fit Test. If no, the child should return to a booster seat and re-test in a month.

We just did the test on Camden this week. He actually is not even 80lbs - not even 75... His legs are fine (quite long enough), but the seat belt does NOT lay on the shoulder. It pushes into his neck and face, meaning he needs to grow in the torso area before he is ready to go without a booster. He does not argue the fact or tell us it is unfair. He knows many children his age are no longer using booster seats, and he doesn't try to hide the fact that he DOES from any of his friends. He knows the reasoning behind our decision. He knows we are keeping him as safe as we can. I have always explained to him that safety comes before feelings or comfort. In this case, it's not an issue; but if he were to complain or disagree, he would know that since this is a matter of safety, we would not budge.

I really do hope you look into this matter further, even if your child isn't yet ready to move to a booster seat. (Keep them in a convertible with a five-point harness as long as possible!!) It is still worth it to educate yourselves so that you are more aware.

Here are some links that discuss this topic (booster seat safety and moving to a seat belt only). If you have others to share, please do so, and I will add them to the list.

AAP Policy - Selecting and Using the Most Appropriate Car Safety Seats for Growing Children: Guidelines for Counseling Parents (See AAP Recommendations #5)
BuckleUpNC.org - NC Child Passenger Safety Law - G.S. 20-137.1
Safe Kids
CP Safety - Booster seats
CP Safety - Choosing the best booster seat (a comment they make - safety before popularity)
Car-Seat.org
CarSafety4Kids.com - Booster Seat Information
CP Safety - Information on Lap Belts, including a series of pictures showing course of movement during an impact - with a shoulder belt vs lap belt only

Please feel free to share your thoughts and knowledge on this matter. I am by no means an expert. I have read into this, but I know there is a lot of information that I have not covered here on this post. I am simply sharing what I do know and what I do with my older child. Keep in mind the rules for the parenting discussion - be nice and keep it clean. If you're reading via email or facebook, comment on blogger so all comments/discussions will be in one place. Thanks for reading and joining in!

My Love/Hate Relationship with Babies R Us

We've gotten so many things from Babies R Us - it's THE baby place, right? Right. But lately I have found myself not liking the place so much. And then liking them again. Back and forth. But more of the not liking, I think...

The last couple things we have ordered have been on promotion for free shipping, and then we had a coupon code for a discount off. One would think, hey, great! Free shipping and a discount. But if you pay close attention, once you put that coupon code in....your free shipping goes bye-bye. And if you call and ask about it, you're told that they only honor one discount at a time. So, why put the promotion on there for free shipping and then send out coupons for the same item?? How on earth does that make sense?! This has happened a couple times lately, and we have called each time.

And each time...our shipment arrived damaged! The first time, with Aiden's new car seat, it was due to shipping, I am certain. I call to report it, BRU ships out a new one and gives us the same discount, an extra 10% off, and free shipping. We have to deal with returning the first item (at their cost, of course), which is annoying. But hey - we get extra discounts, so it's not so bad. Then we order a new jogging stroller (yes, another stroller). This time the damage is not BRU's fault. The cover on the handle bar is torn in two places - and once that stuff tears, it just keeps going. With the amount we paid for that baby, we had BETTER get one in perfect shape. So....same deal - we get the same discount, an extra 10% off, and free shipping (expedited shipping this time) on the new stroller, and we send back the first one. This time the exchange was a little more annoying because it took an hour (yes, an hour!) to put the stroller together. I didn't notice the tears until I was completely finished because I left the plastic on that part since I had to have the thing upside down for a lot of the putting-together. This meant, we had to take it apart and then put the new one together. But...we got the extra discount, right?

The thing is, while I'm glad for the great service when we had something WRONG with our items and the good discounts then, what is up with BRU putting out two promotions on items and not honoring them both? Why bother? Or do they expect people to not notice when the free shipping is removed right before payment is requested? You really do have to pay attention to realize this, so I can't help but wonder. Now, perhaps I seem like I am expecting a lot here. I am, after all, getting some sort of discount either way. And we do end up buying the item regardless of the rip-off (because with these items in particular, we have not found them at better prices elsewhere, they weren't carried elsewhere, or our store happened to be out of the item at the time). So, do I have the right to complain? In my opinion, I most certainly do. They are putting a free shipping promotion out and then sending me coupons or putting those same items on sale. I just think it is wrong to give out both and then take one away once the item is in your cart. I think it reflects rather poorly against their store. Anyone else agree?

It's definitely making me look at other vendors more closely. As in...where else can I buy this item? I may look at the reviews at BRU, but I'm starting to look to other places to purchase many other items.

Just a bit of venting. And a warning to pay attention to your cart before checking out at BRU online.

And here's a cutie in his new stroller... We got this stroller so Daddy could go running early on weekends...and Mommy could sleep in. I might eventually join in, but for now, my priority is sleep!

Aiden is checking out the super-large window in the super-large canopy. This stroller really is great. It had the best reviews we could find and all the features we wanted, with some nice bells and whistles, too. Definitely one to look into if you're in the market for a great jogging stroller!

Giveaway coming soon!!

I'm so excited about this giveaway that I get to do soon! Actually, just a few days until I post it! BUT...we're trying to figure out what some of you would like to win the most. My friend, Sharni, makes gflappers - the cloth inserts I use in my gdiapers. I've mentioned them on here a number of times. I also have gotten a custom made blankie for Aiden, some of the softest wipes/cloths you could ever find, and a very cute diaper bag from her website (mine is the very first one you'll see - the one that's sold out because I bought it!). I want to post about some of those items soon because they are wonderful. The blankie is made from organic bamboo velour and is extremely soft. If I lay it in the floor, Aiden will roll all over it, lie his face on it, wrap it around him...you can tell he likes the feel of it! And I like knowing that it is a safe material for him to be rubbing on himself. The diaper bag is the cutest thing ever, and Sharni makes all kinds of diaper bags, custom ordered. You can even pick out the fabric from swatches she has picked out to go together or from websites she can order from.

Anyway, I digress... We want to know if you would rather win one of five all bamboo gflappers (my personal favorite), one of two medium size Nappy Shoppe brand wet bags (great for carrying cloth diapers but also anything else that could get wet, if you don't use cloth diapers - to keep the inside of your diaper bag dry), or one of two gdiaper gpants (that's my baby boy you'll see if you click the link!). Please indicate your choice on the survey on the right-hand side of the blog page. You only have a couple days to vote, so do it now!!

Home Allergy Test Results

So....we put the dye on Aiden last night and left it on for 24 hours (since we were putting it on his back, which is less sensitive - but out of his reach). Tonight, we take off the bandaid, and this is what we see:

The purple is where the dye was. It will take a couple days for all of it to come off. (Looks like some terrible bruise, doesn't it?) But it was very clear to see that he was more red from the bandaid than the dye! He had no reaction to the dye. After that, we ended up putting some on the inside of his elbow because that is more sensitive. No reaction. Even put a dot on his face. No reaction.

The doctor had this crazy idea to also check for egg whites, so we thought we would do that, too. Why was it a crazy idea? Because Aiden has eaten eggs with no problem. So...doesn't make sense that he would have an allergy to them. Right?

Here...his face after a tiny swipe of egg white was applied and wiped off shortly after:

Yep, it's the EGGS, folks. (Imagine this all over his face and much more intense. That would give you an idea what happened from the icing that sat on his face for about five minutes.) Really didn't expect this.

Now, can anyone explain this to us? We're a bit confused. Can you be allergic to egg whites and still be ok eating them? Or has he had some reaction that we're not aware of?? We'll be calling the doctor tomorrow to see what he says. But...confused over here!! It's hard to really know this at this point, but I'm kind of thinking it might have been simpler to be allergic to the dye.

Teething Oil & Other teething solutions

After my post about Aiden's rough week teething last week, a couple people have asked to know more about the teething oil we use with Aiden. We do not use Orajel. Among other things, it has artificial colorings, flavorings, and sweeteners in it. We try to stay away from as much of that stuff as we can. We have been using an herbal oil with Aiden since he started teething - Gum-omile Oil by Herbs for Kids.

Now, you really shouldn't rely on these type of numbing agents much at all - orajels or oils. It is possible to numb the child's tongue or throat (hopefully they do not get enough to swallow it!!) because they could bite their tongue, and other problems have come from the numbing of children's throats due to these types of things. This is not the first thing we reach for. Plus, Aiden isn't crazy about the taste, though I've read reviews where people said their children loved it. It is good for those times when there is a lot of pain and you need something immediate. We used it with the molars a tiny bit last week, mostly when trying to get Aiden down for a nap and the other things we were using hadn't kicked in yet - and he just needed something to help calm him down for a moment to help get to sleep. The last couple times we used this with Aiden, he did not seem to mind the taste at all. Not sure if he is just ok with it now or if he realized that it helped his pain (and therefore the taste didn't factor in).

When you do use it, be sure to shake it well. The first couple times I used it, I didn't and was wondering why it didn't seem to work. (I tried it on myself first - I always do that before giving something to Aiden.) But (thanks to my mom for having common sense and asking...did you shake it?) if you shake it, that stuff does work! Just use a tiny bit on the area that is sore. And remember, it doesn't last long and you shouldn't be using it repeatedly. That's not what it's for.

For the locals, I got a jar of this from the Women's Birth and Wellness Boutique in Chapel Hill. It cost $9.99 for a 1 oz bottle - but baby this stuff goes a long way!

Most of the time, we use Hyland's teething tablets for teething. For those REALLY bad times, we do Motrin (dye-free, of course). I have heard that Hyland's makes a teething gel, but I haven't tried that.

We have a hard time relying on some of the other non-medical methods for teething...though we don't use any of these things unless Aiden really needs it. Of course, the child teeths on everything. But he doesn't like cold things, so (even though we keep trying) giving a frozen piece of fruit, wet/cold or frozen cloth, or something like that is not something he goes for. He doesn't pay any attention to his actual teethers anymore. What he does go for is nursing, though, so we do rely on that some. If he's in pain and that helps, why not?! :) And no, he doesn't bite.

Any of you have some tricks that always work?

Update on Aiden's possible food allergies...

If you haven't read/heard about what happened with Aiden's reaction to his birthday cake icing, check THIS out first.

We went to the ENT today to have Aiden tested. While there, we ran into no needles, were instructed on doing some "testing" at home, and learned lot of other information.

First of all, the allergy part. The dr is pretty sure it was the dye, which would be more of a contact dermatitis issue versus an actual food allergy (I'm still not too sure what the difference would be in this situation, and regardless, if this is it, Aiden is to not eat things with dye in them). That kind of test is more expensive and typically not covered by insurance - and an at home test gives you the same (but immediate and cheap) results, so he recommended just that. Ryan picked up some of the dye from the bakery, and Aiden now has a drop of it on his back, covered by a bandaid (fittingly, a Curious George bandaid). We'll see what it shows tomorrow! (We could have found out sooner, but we would need to put the dye on his face or the inside of his elbow - difficult for a baby to keep a bandaid there for a small amount of time without grabbing at it. So, the other option is to have it on his back - where he can't grab at it - and keep it there longer.) If he has a reaction, the culprit is the dye. What to do then?? Avoid dyes for a full year...and then do the same test over to see if he has outgrown it or not. What if there is no reaction? We go back to the doctor for some blood work. (They do not do the skin pricks for babies this young - just skip to the blood work.)

We'll see tomorrow what his skin shows us...

We also got the chance to chat with our doctor for quite a while! He was very thorough and took the time to explain...well, more than we even needed to know (which I happen to like). One thing we learned is that since Aiden's blood type is A, Ryan and I both have OA blood types (they just usually say O). I know I am O+, but Ryan doesn't know what he is (which I have repeatedly insisted he find out...) - according to this doctor, he HAS to be this other type if Aiden is type A. We KNOW Aiden is type A because we had to have him retested when he was born. (The hospital had two different types written in his hospital paperwork - good thing we read through the whole thing! So, we had to test again to find out which it was.) Interesting... Something else about type A people...they have more digestive issues than others. The doctor said they make up about 15% of the population but over 70% of his patients. Did not know.

Then the doctor talked with me a bit about my own possible food allergies...that I keep saying I need to get tested for but haven't. Long story short, I may have a wheat allergy/intolerance. My symptoms are quite different than what you would expect - joint problems. I always expect people to kind of give me a strange look when they hear that; that is not what you would think would happen because of a food allergy. I've been to so many doctors that never considered food when dealing with my joint problems. Over years, the problems spread from my knees to include my wrists - and I've been diagnosed with so many things and forced to wear wrist guards and do all kinds of exercises... When it spread to my ankles, as well, and I was in excruciating pain just sitting (forget trying to drive long distances or type for more than a minute), I knew it had to be something else. My mom (who has lots of food allergies) suggested food...try taking wheat out and see what happens. The pain went AWAY! The rheumatologist I had been seeing tested me for Celiac, which was negative (both types of tests), but he said...maybe we're onto something here. Anyway, back to today - this doctor went right along with me. Never skipped a beat. He said it's very likely that is the type of reaction I have to an allergy. Has to do with the type of allergy I have and...while I understood all he said, I don't remember all the names/acronyms...something settles into the joints, and after they build up...pain. When you stop consuming the food, the pain will go away fairly quickly. And it will take time for it to build up again once you start eating the foods again. This is quite different than other types of reactions that can take years to stop (or to be able to eat the foods - after which one might have an immediate reaction). Ok - maybe that wasn't quite so short... This doctor had a similar type of reaction to other foods, so he said once it builds back up and my pain is back - come in for the testing. :) I went off wheat right before getting pregnant. Since then I've eaten some, but I had a bread aversion during the pregnancy, so I didn't eat much at all! I eat it now and have been for the past year or more. Thing is...recently I've noticed pain in my wrists and knees more often. Hmmm... I'll wait until it's back more than this, though, because he said there needs to be a good amount built up in order for it to show up in the tests. Might be seeing him again sometime in the next year - and not for Aiden.

So, back to Aiden...we have the dye on there now but won't be looking at it until tomorrow evening. He said to keep it on the back for 24 hours. More news then, I suppose. We'll either be avoiding food dyes or going back for more tests.

The doctor did sing my praises for breastfeeding Aiden (and told me to keep doing it as long as possible - love hearing that!!). Breastfeeding helps to prevent possible allergies. He gave me a detailed explanation (that I have actually read about)...briefly, it has to do with how the digestive system matures, which isn't until the child is older (about 3 or so). And then we've been making Aiden's food and giving him whole, organic foods and avoiding processed/artificial foods, all of which help. Throughout the whole time we met, he would keep coming back to how wonderful it was that I breastfed and how we did the foods. Very validating! And it feels great to know that we did what was best for Aiden, especially considering the problems that can (and kind of are) arising and his possible predisposition to many allergy and digestive-type problems (family history, eczema issues, the blood type thing - which I had no idea about..., etc). We've also been told to go easy on the dairy, even though he's had some without problems. The dr suggested rice milk. And even though he's eaten eggs with no problem, we're to do the skin test with egg whites, as well.

We do have an appointment with a pediatric allergist at Duke... We're still debating on whether or not to keep that appointment. We'll see.

We'll post more updates later. Thank you all for your concern, thoughts, prayers - all of it! We really appreciate it.

Rough Week

Last week. Was rough. Hoping for a bit better this week. So far it seems to be better...

It's those stinking baby molars! You know, when Aiden got his first two teeth in and they were soooo easy and didn't cause any problems other than the massive amount of drool, I knew not to say "he's an easy teether" when people asked how he did with them. I knew it could get worse. We've had some trouble with some of the other teeth, but nothing major. Mostly Aiden might get a little clingy (but still play well for the most part) and he has a rough time going to sleep. But the molars...oh those are a different story. Kind of.

He still doesn't really get fussy when awake, though he was a bit clingy with me some last week. Not enough to call him "fussy," though. But sleep...what's that?? Night one...we got NO sleep. I mean, none. Ok, maybe 10-15 minutes here and there a couple times, but we were up for hour-long (sometimes two or more) stretches at a time. At one point, I was on my back and he was lying across my belly, with his legs dangling off one side and his head dangling off the other...and he FELL ASLEEP! No way was I going to chance waking him up by moving him. We'd been up for more than two hours at that point. He slept a solid 15-20 minutes! Not sure why that position worked, but...I'll take it. During all of this, Aiden wasn't playing or even crying a lot; he was TRYING to go to sleep. You could tell he wanted to be sleeping. I felt so badly for him. He just tossed and turned. And nursed ALL NIGHT LONG. Sometimes he fussed because there was no more milk (maybe because he had been nursing for almost two hours straight?).

Night two...we got about two hours of sleep. Night three...maybe up to 4 or 5 total.

Now before you ask if I tried this or that - YES! We did. We tried teething tablets, his teething oil (we don't do orajel - we use this other stuff that is the same thing but has natural ingredients...and yes, it does work), motrin. We pulled out all the tricks we knew. Naps weren't much better. He usually will sleep about an hour and a half. This week, naps were no longer than an hour, and that was with him waking up between 3-5 times!

Yes, it was a rough week. By day three, the sleep deprivation was getting to both of us. We were both quite cranky and clearly exhausted. I felt like crap, and I'm sure he did, as well. Funny thing is, he's back to his normal sleep schedule by now - but the teeth have still not come through!! We actually went through some tough teething days with these same molars more than a month ago (though not this bad!). They are taking their sweet time. His gums are so swollen right now, and forget trying to touch them to see if anything is poking through. I just hope they do come through soon - for his sake and a little bit for mine, too.

The next two nights...teeth were ok, but for some reason Aiden had really bad gas that kept him up. This hasn't happened in the longest time. Could it be related to the teething somehow?? (I'm serious!) He also got a really bad diaper rash - and that never happens! Bad enough that we put him in flushies so we could use the really good stuff on his bum (can't use ointments with cloth) - and I trapped him in the kitchen/dining area so he could run around with no diaper for an hour or so a few times to help clear it all up. I can't help but think all of this has to be teething-related because it's not like him.

Another funny thing...CAMDEN is also getting molars in! Actually, he says they are already in. And they hurt. But he barely complains; just mentioned it as a fact. They're his twelve-year molars - a little early.

Ok - just an update on what a terrible week some of us had last week. Feel free to sympathize with both boys (and me, if you want....). :) At least we're doing better now! I just hope we don't go through a similar routine when the baby molars finally do cut through... How long do they really have to take! You can tell they are very close with how swollen and soft his gums are (when I can force my finger in there to feel).

Anyone want to share your experiences, so we can all feel sorry for one another?

First Words

Aiden said his first real words today.

First, let me say he has been "talking" in his own way for quite a while. It's a little pet peeve of mine to hear other people say their little baby (5, 6, 9 month or however old) "talked" when they said "mama" or "dada" but they were really just making the sounds and didn't understand the meaning behind it. Yeah, I'm sure some babies get it really young, but I seriously doubt most 6-month-olds know what they're "saying" when they do that. They're just babbling, people. I know you want them to talk, but...they're not.

I don't count it as being a word Aiden speaks until he knows what he is saying and says it in the correct context. That said....

Today, Camden was talking to his friend (named Ryan) on the phone. He said "goodbye" and hung up. And Aiden said "bye." Ryan (my Ryan) and I look at each other..."did he just say that??" He wouldn't repeat it for us, of course, but would just wave as WE said the word.

Then tonight, we were talking on the webcam to Pop & Lisey (my dad and stepmom). When we were saying our goodbyes, Aiden kept repeating over and over "bye bye bye" and waving at the same time. He clearly knew what he was saying. How exciting!!

He's also been trying to say "more." When he wants more to eat, he'll sign more and make the sound "meh." Of course, when we try to get him to repeat it and ask, "more?" - he just keeps signing. And gets frustrated because we're not giving him more, of course! I guess in a way we could have counted "more" as his first word because he did it before today - and it's a harder word to get ALL of it correct. But we'll with "bye" because he said the whole word correctly for all of us to hear. :)

TWELVE Months!!

ONE YEAR. One Whole Year Old!!!

As every month, Aiden has learned so much and has grown so much this past month. It is CRAZY to think he is already a year old. I feel like he just joined our family, though at the same time, it feels like he's been with us for so much longer.

I know that Aiden has been twelve months old for a couple weeks now. This post and everything in it is based only on things up to twelve months old, so it does not include more recent happenings.

Weight - 21 lbs, 9 oz (30th %tile)
Length - 30 inches long (50th %tile)
Head Circum. - 47 cm (70th %tile)
I feel like Aiden is so tiny! Compared to Camden who was always in the 99th %tile for everything. I know he's not tiny, but he's always felt like it to me!

Crazy...a picture where he looks like Mommy (it's because the mouth is covered, so you see the eyes really stand out - the one thing he gets from me!)

Favorite Things

• Peaches - When we are at the grocery store and walk by the table of peaches, Aiden will get really loud and reach for them. He LOVES peaches! I used to think we would "share" a peach - that I could dice up half for him and eat the rest myself. No. He eats it so fast that I don't get a chance! He'll eat the whole thing and want more.
• Tomatoes - Another thing he will see and beg to have. He will eat them until we stop giving him more!
• Making funny sounds. He makes this throaty sound that is hard to explain - you breathe in and make this groaning noise in your throat. He and Camden will do it back and forth. Then one day in the grocery store, we passed a kid in a cart who did it - and Aiden did it back to him as we walked passed. The mother and I each whipped around, surprised, and could only laugh about it. Aiden also makes this wheezing sound (on purpose) - just because it sounds funny, I guess. He does it sporadically, usually when he's playing on his own, but it's hilarious to hear. He also makes this fake laugh that will make you crack up! He'll do it out of nowhere - just because he thinks of it or something - and it is obviously fake and loud.
  
• Peek-a-boo. He discovered he could play this game on his own. You can say "Where's Aiden?" and he'll cover his face with his hat, blanket, toy, whatever he has and then he'll pull it down and grin. He won't do it to anyone else and gets kind of bored if you do it, but he loves to do it to himself!
• Camden's room. If we put him down in his room, he makes a beeline for the door and straight into Camden's room. I don't think we even need the gate on the stairs (which is right next to his door) because he's clueless to the stairs since Camden's room is the other direction! He always goes right to the bookshelf for Camden's legos that are out... He doesn't hit at them or try to eat them; he just picks up the small pieces and looks at them. It is definitely the place he wants to be.
• Guess How Much I Love You. If we put him down in his room (anytime he doesn't go towards Camden's room...), he will go right for this book. He will pass up any toys or other books just for this one thing. And he'll sit there and flip through it over and over. This is the book we often read to him before bedtime, but he likes it even if it's not time for bed. He really does seem to be crazy about it! The copy is a hardcover with paper pages...and it was Camden's when he was a baby. Not wanting to risk it getting ripped, we bought Aiden a cardboard version that he could play with when we're not reading to him. At the book store, we put it in his hands and his face lit up and he grinned and grinned!
• Bunny. Aiden has this soft, floppy bunny that he's been napping and going to sleep with since he was a few months old, but he never seemed to pay it too much attention. He's not a very cuddly baby, but this past month, he's really taken to hugging and kissing on his Bunny. He'll grab it and shove it into his face and just bury his face into it. We'll ask, "Where's Bunny?" and he'll look all around and grab it. Sometimes when he gets up from his nap, he'll reach back in for Bunny - which he'll hug and then throw back into the crib. He'll flop Bunny all around while going to sleep. Sometimes he'll throw him down (like when he doesn't want it to be naptime - b/c Bunny's presence also indicates it's sleepytime...) but then he might cry after it after throwing it (sometimes). He's become very affectionate with Bunny, though, and it's adorable (not so much when he hugs and then quickly throws it...)
  
• Music! Wow does he love music. I really just have cds that I had when Camden was younger, so we're not on top of the new stuff. We play the cds in our dvd player and have to turn the tv on to have the sound - so a blue screen shows. When I ask if he wants to hear music, he gets very excited and goes over to the tv and stands by it; that's what he thinks the tv is for (because we still do not have him watch tv). When the music is on, he will just dance and dance.
• Snack cups... You know, the ones that hold in the puffs/cheerios but they can stick their hands into to get the food, but if they're turned upside down, nothing spills out (one brand is the snack trap). They're fairly new, I think. He loves being able to get his snacks out of there on his own. He usually grabs a whole handful and spills half of them before he reaches his mouth, so we still get a mess, but they're still great!
• Grabbing things from bags or the grocery cart while out grocery shopping - and throwing them. It doesn't matter how many of his favorite things I bring for him to play with/drink/eat. I have to watch where I put things in the cart because they might end up flung out and onto the floor if I'm not careful!
• Nesting/stacking - Bowls, toys inside objects that open - he loves to put things into other things, and out again, and back in.
  

Least Favorite Things
There really aren't any different, new least favorites from last month... Lots of the same (diaper changes, having things he wants taken away, not getting milk immediately when he really wants it...)

• He will often stand now when he's not thinking about it - if he has something in his hand and forgets that the thing is not attached to something else. But when he realizes it, he will sit down and might get mad about it. Still doesn't like us trying to walk him by holding his hands, either.
• Riding in the car for really long periods of time... We took a number of trips (to KY, to Hilton Head Island for a wedding, etc), and he is not a fan of long car rides. Or sleeping in the car. He might take one nap that lasts less than an hour, but even if we are on the road for 12 hours - that's all you get, folks! And for the next few days, he will fuss whenever you get him near that car seat. He will protest.
• We found that, while Aiden likes frosting somewhat, it does not like him back. Therefore, I think it's safe to say this is not a favorite thing... If you recall, he had a very allergic reaction to the icing on his birthday cake, and we found ourselves in the Emergency Room instead of opening gifts and playing with friends. We go for testing this coming week.
  

12 month pics this month were harder because he is so much more mobile! We pulled out all the stops...books, snacks, a drink, toys... This is a picture of Aiden with his snack cup - and a handful of puffs being shoved into his mouth.


I think he found a few puffs he spilled onto the chair...

New developments this past month:

• Climbing stairs. He showed no interest in working hard to get up the stairs for a while. Now that we have some, he would go to them and act as if he were trying to think it through, but then he would just give up without really trying. But while at Mammaw Melly and Pappaw Gene's, he got it in no time. They have a room that is just two steps down from the rest of the house, and he would go up them without skipping a beat! Time for gates at home now! When we got home, he actually went up the entire set of stairs (with someone behind him, of course!) - and quickly.
• Not sure where this fits in...it's not something he LIKES to do, but not necessarily a developmental thing, either... But Aiden constantly gags himself with his hands! (Sounds gross, I know, but it's really not.) He just plays with his fingers or hands or anything and will get it in his mouth to where he kind of gags himself. Nothing big, he just makes a sound. I don't think he's even aware of it because he never changes his behavior based on it. We just ignore it (and sometimes laugh quietly). It is kind of funny, actually.
  
• Showing he understands more of what we say... For example, when putting him to bed, if he keeps getting up, we can say "lie down, Aiden," and he'll do it. Even if he grins and then jumps right back up... He does understand what we told him to do. We've been noticing more and more of that sort of behavior that shows he really does comprehend a lot.
• We're not sure what this means, but whenever he's in his high chair and I tell him "no" about something, he'll turn and look at Daddy. We're not sure if he's just trying to read him to see if he agrees with Mommy or what, but it means something.
• Still picking up those signs! He can now sign: milk, more, eat, drink, all done, and music. We're about to get some videos to teach us all some more. (Yes, this means he'll actually watch a little tv...but this is educational, and it's also for ME - b/c I need to learn more words and want to make sure I'm doing it right, and I'm a visual learner. Otherwise, I would just do it and teach him that way.)
• Standing more on his own. Like I said before, he usually does this when he isn't too aware that he's actually not holding onto something, but he clearly can stand alone and for quite a long time, too. (He totally could walk if he wanted to; he has the balance down - just needs the desire/motivation.)

Aiden standing while I'm trying to take pictures...

Mommy's eyes and Daddy's mouth (and just about everything else!).
The resemblance to Daddy is much easier to see!

A Year in Review

Since I took Aiden's picture each month in the same chair, I thought it would be fun to show a picture from each month in order. See how much he changes!

One month old

Two months old


Three months old


Four months old


Five months old


Six months old


Seven months old


Eight months old


Nine months old


Ten months old


Eleven months old


Twelve months old

Twelve months post to come soon. I know this stuff is really late...remember I warned about this, though. August is a super busy month this year! Lots of family in town and other things going on. But I'll get it all up soon! :)

No more gardening today!!

I was outside during Aiden's nap trying to neaten up this area in the back - since we've focused mainly on the front flower beds so far. After a few minutes, I look up to see this spider less than a foot from my hands... I said a few choice words and got my rear back inside rather quickly (well, and came back out to snap some pics and then got back inside - thank goodness for zoom lenses!). This thing is at least three inches or more across, including the legs, of course. HUGE, even by North Carolina standards. For someone who is TERRIFIED of the tiniest spider (that would be me!!), this was beyond frightening.

Anyone know what this thing is? Poisonous?? I'm rather grateful our neighbor is an exterminator - we'll see if he knows what it is! Either way, I'm not sure I'll be back out there anytime soon. Maybe the back yard flower beds can just become overgrown....

A little closer (zooming - not me moving closer!)

That spider next to the big one is a normal sized spider, not a teeny-tiny one.

Keep in mind those little white flowers really are little. This sucker was huge.
Tell me that's not scary.

Go on - try!