Sixteen Months!

A Letter to a Dear Friend: Welcome to Club Mommy

I wrote this letter to my dear friend, who presently lives 3000 miles away, much to my dismay. I planned to send it to her in time to arrive for her baby shower, while she was yet pregnant, but she delivered 10 weeks early the other day. So instead I decided to type what I had written (in cursive) so that she can just read it now.

Both she and her new addition are doing well, he was born 3 lb 6 oz and 16 1/2". His name is Oliver and he's the definition of fantastic. I cannot wait to meet him. Even more, I can't wait for Jude to meet him. That will be incredibly precious. First things first though, get stronger so that you can go home, Oliver!


"Dear Lena,
Good afternoon, I hope you are feeling well today. I know being pregnant has been a lot more uncomfortable than you thought it would be. You're in the final stretch now though! Before long you'll trade in all this misery for a joy the likes of which you've never known.

I read something interesting the other day. Did you know that cursive is a dying art? They no longer teach it in many schools and more are jumping off boat. The cursive boat. Your child may not be able to decipher this letter unless you teach them to. Cursive will be a secret code language among adults. Bwah haha!

Anyway, I put together a little box of some essentials I had on hand**. Some of it is brand new, never used. Other things were gently worn by the Little Duck before he out grew them. Everything has already been washed with Dreft though, so it's ready-to-wear. You don't have to do any work. Most of it is gender neutral since you bravely decided not to find out, but there is also some blue because we're both pretty sure it'll be a little man*. It is a soft blue though, easy enough to make girly if you have to: just add a bow.

The days ahead of you are long and arduous but also amazing and ultimately empowering. There will be days that you forgot what it feels like to sleep, smell like a hobo, and feel like a crazy person, but they will pass. You will also discover a god-like patience, a strength the likes of legend, and a love so pure and unconditional words cannot do it justice. I am so happy and excited for you, Lena. You will be great at this.

If you need anything, at any time, just contact me. I might be far away but I am here.

Fighting evil by moonlight,
Inari"

*We were right, ha!
**Shipping this out soon!

Knowing Orange

He chooses the orange crayon and carries it around proudly all morning.
He accidentally breaks it in half by noon.
So he now carries one half and I hold on to the other for him.
No matter what else he plays with, in the heart of his right hand remains that small half-cylinder of colored wax.
I take it from him when he gets sleepy, for nap time, and return it to him when he wakes up.
It sits on display front and center on his high chair tray as he eats.
He, the orange crayon, and I dance after dinner.
As I get his crib ready for bed time, he continues to play.
So attached to this crayon has the boy become, he doesn't want to part with it.
He wishes to hold the beauty and power of this small half-cylinder of colored wax for all time.
Upon my return there is no child with a crayon, there is simply the child with a bright orange smile.
Joy and pride embodied.
In my brief absence he and the crayon have become one.
He has absorbed its power.

Fifteen Months!

Alternatives to The Sippy Cup

I know a lot of fellow parents with children much older than Jude who're still using bottles. Let me preface with: that's okay, you aren't doing anything wrong! The important thing is that your little one is keeping hydrated. That said, a lot of you have come to me asking on several occasions how I got Jude to go from bottle to sippy. I've even written about this once before. Thing is is this...

In order to properly use a sippy cup a child must first understand how to drink from a regular cup. Like, the mechanism behind swallowing. Obviously this is messy and something you can, at this point, only offer under close supervision. But this is the step most parents don't realize is key to everything else or simply don't even know about. No one told me. The pediatrician starts saying she wanted to see Jude bottle free at like, 8 months of age but never once offered any insight into how you should properly go about it. I ended up doing a lot of research on my own (thanks Google).

Even if you do everything right though your child may simply not care for sippy cups. It may be less about the bottle as a comfort than you think. This was basically the case with Jude. Even though he's been using a sippy since about 8 months, he will rarely pick it up to have a drink on his own. Meaning if I don't follow him around offering it to him, he'll get dehydrated from not drinking. No matter how thirsty he is, he won't seek it out even if I leave it in plain sight with his favorite beverage inside.

They say using a straw is harder than using a spout cup, and technically the 'next' step, but Jude has been taking small drinks from a straw since he was really little. So I figured, you know, maybe I should just get him a sippy cup with a straw instead of a spout and see how that goes. I did and honestly it's one of the best investments I've ever made. He now not only drinks on his own but will happily take his cup with him (pardon the post holiday mess) from room to room so it's always on hand -- without any encouragement from me.

Which got me thinking, if your child seems opposed to the sippy, why not give a straw cup a shot? You may just finally be able to say goodbye to the bottle! His pediatrician was thrilled he was not only bottle free but also skipped the spout cup altogether.

Starry Night

As part of Jude's Christmas gift I plastered glow-in-the-dark stars of varying sizes all over the ceiling in the nursery. Ladies and Gents, if you are looking for a way to make bed time a time of absolute wonder -- do this.

Jude's eyes were like saucers looking around himself after I turned off the light. He loves it so, so much. Then when I turned the light back on he was even more amazed, "Where did they go?!" I imagine it'd be extra handy if your little one is afraid of the dark. They give a young mind something to look forward to once the lights are off, rather than just feeling anxious about the darkness.

It's also gives him something to focus on if he wakes during the night. No need to fuss, just fall back to sleep star gazing.

Merry Christmas!

Compare to last year!