So it begins...

Before baby J was even born, we were told that someday soon he would know more than we do, or at least think he does. Well, it is beginning.

Yesterday we went to Legoland. If you haven't been, I encourage you to go at least once (but buy your tickets online beforehand). There is nothing that can't be done with a Lego. If you have a child with you who doesn't already own every Lego set known to mankind, plan to buy one on your way out the door several hours later. We did. We bought baby J his very first Duplo. It is a 62 piece set, which sounds like a lot more than it is, with a person, the makings for a house, alphabet blocks, 2 flowers, a cat, and a car base. I set them all out for hik so that he could play with them when he woke today. I even left out the single Duplo firetruck bought for him by a friend long ago.

I looked at all the pieces and wondered what he would create. His first task, of course, involved the car. He loaded the flowers on the base like a flat bed. I thought, "Wouldn't have been my first move, but okay." Then he took the person, put her in the firetruck. He put the cat on the back and attached it to the car base using the trailer hitch. You see, I hadn't noticed the hitch but he had formulated a creative plan in the split second that I set him at the table.

So it befan today. He is learning at a much greater level than I am. At this rate, he will know everything by the time he is twelve.

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What a hectic week we have ahead of us! There are so many things happening work-wise, which makes me appreciate the guests we had this past weekend. Meemaw, Peepaw, and cousin L came to visit. It was very refreshing to just hang out and play games. I always look forward to their weekends here.

The only thing that I don't like is... when they leave. Usually baby J gets so upset! He will ask for them every hour on the hour for days. Thankfully, he is beginning to grasp simple concepts. We explained to him that they had to go home and that we would see them again very soon. He adapted quickly!

Besides that, we are enjoying a quiet morning. Then we will be taking the car to the dealer. Then home again for naptime (him, not me... Well, maybe I will join him for a few minutes.) After that, sorry, but you may not see me again for a few days.

Since September

Since September, baby J...
... has turned 2. Gone through 2 growth spurts. Learned to count to 15. Pretends to spell words. Invents his own Brown Bear books ("red car, red car, what do you see? I see a yellow car looking at me. yellow car, yellow car, what do you see? I see a blue truck looking at me.) Picks up his toys. Asks to go to bed when he's sleepy. Puts his own shirt on. Went # 2 in the "froggy potty"... once.

Since September, I...
... have started a cloth diaper service. Learned that I get to choose what time work happens. Written an editorial for a well-known Chicago publication. Forgotten to blog.

Sorry!

My baby isn't anymore.

A few weeks ago, baby J made the connection that he is identified in a particular manner. He has called others by their names for awhile now. He knows his meemaw and peepaw. He knows his mommie and papa. He even knows his uncles and uncles by friendship. But when we would ask his name, he would reply with a confident "baby". I'm not sure how he adopted this name for himself, as he is never called baby. I call him "bugs" (not sure why) and papa calls him "little man". Other people call him by the shortened version of his name. I began to pay more attention to how other people identified him. Nope. Nobody calls him baby. I was fine with this reference for himself, because he is my baby and the nickname won't be fitting for much longer.

And he has already begun to outgrow it.

 A few days ago, while playing the "who's that?" name game, he called himself by his name.

In fact, I overheard he and his papa having a conversation yesterday. Papa reprimanded him for having his tongue out while climbing on the bed (he was getting the duvet wet) and asked if he was a little doggie. He replied, "I no doggie. I boy."

My baby J is redefining himself as a boy now. He is almost 2. He is a boy. And too rapidly in my opinion.

I'm baaa-ack...

Life is eventful and as a mommie, I feel pretty uncertain of every choice I make. But, usually, at the end of the day, I get a silent reassurance that we are doing just fine. When I look at my little guy slowly drifting into sleep while cuddling his "bwown bearw" book, I know that we are all going to be okay.

But yesterday, we had a long day. After looking forward for months to the visit of a traveling overseer to our congregation, we had to leave early. My poor baby J was having an issue again. The issue is one that we thought had been resolved over a month ago.

Go back 2 1/2 months...
We had tried nearly all natural methods, a few traditional ones, and finally had to mutually agree with our doctor that antibiotics seemed the best route to get this under control rapidly (as it had gone on for several weeks without improvement). He took a regimen of antibiotics and probiotics.We were ecstatic when it worked. The problem cleared up. And he had only a day of nasty antibiotic side effects.

Now to the present...
After napping peacefully as we listened to the well-prepared discourse by the traveling overseer, he woke rather pleasantly. I left the auditorium to change him and found that *sigh* it was back. We took our things, quietly left the auditorium, and proceeded to the emergency room. There, the physician's assistant recommended a straight catheter to retrieve a sterile urine sample for urinalysis and culture. I was happy that she was being so proactive, but secretly in terror that my boy would have to go through that. I quickly asked if I could breastfeed him while they placed the cath. The nurses looked at me like I was crazy. Here I am with a nearly 2 year old about to have a straight cath placed and I ask about nursing him during?!? They were apprehensive, but I stood out of the way, contorted myself as one nurse prepared to place the cath, the other held him down with my husband's assistance. It seemed like forever, but he nursed and occasionally let out a gasp of discomfort. Afterwards, the nurses said that went "surprisingly well". I'm sure they attributed none of it to the many positive results that breastfeeding a child in distress produces. But I do.

And so, while I get strange looks when I mention that I still breastfeed my 23 month old, I'm confident that I have made the right choice for my family. Had I not, he would've been a lot more traumatized and in more pain. I owe this one to our Grand Creator who knows what he is doing!

Learn more about the long-term benefits of breastfeeding.

Kissy Face (The Sequel)

In a previous post, I described baby J's "kiss" routine with all of his bath toys. Tonight, while bathing, he began handing me his toys. First, his rubber duck. "Kiss kiss". I gave his ducky a peck on the bill. Then his tug boat. "Kiss kiss". This time I gave a big smooch only to hear poppy warn, "He just peed in the tub."

No more "kiss kiss" with the bath toys.

Dairy-Free Day!!

It is so difficult to know what is dairy-free and what isn't. I've been wondering if baby J's restless nights are linked with somehting that I've been missing (or something that isn't missing) in his diet. Reaffirmed. Walking into Wendy's today, I noted a large chart, about the size of 3 posters, hanging as I entered the front door. It is a new feature and I am glad they have added it. It has a list of the 7 most common food allergens and their presence (or potential presence) in foods offered by the franchise. They are broken into 3 categories, distinguishable by different colored dots. Red means that the allergen is present, blue means that the food is cooked on the same surface or in the same oil as that allergen (and may be cross-contaminated), and green (?? the colors are on the chart, but I don't recall this one) means that the food is prepared or manufactured on the same line as the allergen (and may be cross-contaminated). Wow! What a concept! Just put it out there for everyone to see. So dairy-free at Wendy's is even more limited than I had believed. There were a lot of red dots. But now I know.

This encouraged me to venture into the land of the unknown regarding other fast food restaurants and allergen information. Here is what I've found so far. I will continue to update the list as I learn more. And remember that just like all processed foods, the ingredients continually change and so the facts today may not be the facts tomorrow.



McDonald's (note that the bottom section lists actual allergens- like milk- and what products they are in)

Arby's lists the allergens in red next to the name of the food item.

Burger King

Chipotle makes it easy by only using dairy in their cheese and sour cream. That's why we love you, Chipotle!

Panda Express says milk in the Orange Chicken and mixed veggies, so no more for baby J, but at least the Mandarin Chicken is still okay!

KFC says go for the Original or Grilled with Dairy allergies, but avoid anything breaded or extra crispy.

Popeye's makes you work for any info. They list all ingredients, but only a few allergens that are contained in each. For example, they list "wheat" as an allergen, but not "milk", although the ingredients clearly state that they contain milk. Sigh. Virtually everything has an allergen. Buh-bye.

You've got to love Subway for just putting it all out there. Usually good old non-processed ingredients.

Taco Bell lists the allergens in a great, easy to use chart; but it is only accessible online. It isn't possible to print it.

Wendy's who gave me this idea.

White Castle for those with iron stomachs.

Have fun eating out with the help of my list! These are just places local to me, but if you'd like to review other options, a great resource is the Go Dairy Free dining out guide and the shopping lists.