Tulips and Mother's Day

Ma-Ma took me to see tulips at the Public Gardens

The park ranger busted me for trampling the grass!

Of all the flowers, I liked the dandelions the most!

Sleep Miracle

OK--I admit it--Joshua's pediatrician is way better than me. He has totally transformed Joshua's sleep routine (and our lives). On Monday, it took 25 minutes, Tuesday 15 minutes, Wednesday 7 minutes, Thursday 5 minutes, and tonite--no joking--5 seconds for him to protest and wail a good 2 or 3 cries, and then he just lay down on his pillow. I came out to the kitchen and Annette, wondering if something was wrong, asked "What happened?"
I said, "He's asleep!"
Annette: "No way!"
Me: "Yes way!"
High fives all around.

We had been fooling ourselves all this time that Joshua needed us and the whole lying-on-the-floor-together in order to sleep. And I was beginning to be convinced he had a phobia of his crib. What psychological harm I would be inflicting on him by forcing him to face the harsh cruel nite alone in the crib! Rubbish. We had actually been preventing him from falling asleep by being with him!

Joshua has definitely given me a good story to tell my patients.

Sleeping in the Crib

Today at Joshua's 18 month old visit, our pediatrician basically told us that our bedtime routine stunk--our lying down with him to help him fall asleep was doing more harm than good. Ever since Joshua had that bronchiolitis and lost all the weight when he was barfing around the clock--we had started babying him and gotten away from his routine of putting him to bed in his crib. I actually enjoyed dozing off with him on his bedroom floor mats--but I also saw how he had lost his ability to self soothe and fall asleep in his crib. In fact, he pretty much screamed and wailed bloody murder anytime he set foot in the crib while conscious.

So tonite, I read to him some books, and then announced it was bedtime, pulled up a chair next to his crib, and listened to my IPod and Joshua screaming for 25 minutes, until he abruptly curled up on his pillow and fell asleep. I was really having doubts about this technique--because I've watched Joshua go crazy crying and screaming in the crib before--and with my sitting right next to him--I thought that would just infuriate him even more. But I guess our pediatrician was right. The goal is to slowly move the chair further and further away from the crib, until we are out the door.

BTW, Joshua is 18 months, 26lb 12 oz (60%), and 33 inches (75%) tall.

Seeing Joshua Again

Joshua gave me a big smile and said "Dada!" as soon as I opened the car door, when Annette and Joshua came to pick me up at the airport after a 2 day trip to Toronto. Even though it was only 2 days, it seemed like he was bigger, smarter, different. I don't know how Annette will do it--she has 2, possibly 3 trips this month: to Florida, Washington DC, and maybe Vietnam. I was dreaming about Joshua and reminded of Joshua the whole trip because the conference was about preliteracy and reading aloud with infants-toddlers. Every time I saw a book, I pictured what Joshua would say or do with it--I couldn't help it. I was really missing him!

Tonite at dinner, I heard him say "wheel" for the first time, and he really enjoyed eating raspberries by sticking his finger into the hole and picking it up and turning it into a lollipop.

A couple of weeks ago, Annette and I tried to count all the words Joshua knew:
up, down, bus, book, rice, cheese, water, "O", no, umbrella, go, ball, balloon, dog, hole, bath, back, mum mum, apple, all done, star, that, trees, bye bye. It's incredible to think his vocabulary will balloon out to 200-300 words in 6 months!

He turned 18 months yesterday. He's a big boy now!

"Wawa Preece!"

Joshua's first 2 words he put together. He's getting good at saying "please" Sometimes when he whines and whines asking for something that we don't want him to have, and when he realizes that he's not having any success, he'll suddenly change his tune and say, "Please?" hoping we will relent. It makes me smile and laugh--and sometimes I do change my mind.

Thank You

The other morning, I heard Joshua repeatedly crying out "Momma" in the morning. When I entered his room, he stopped and said, "Dadda!" And then I gave him his milk cup, and he said, "Thank you." Joshua also says "Peeze" whenever he wants something--more Easter eggs to find, to go outside, to be held--but mostly for food. We don't have to worry about him going hungry silently.

Children's Museum

The new Children's Museum reopened this week and Joshua went to visit twice. He loves to look at the windmill spinning on the first floor, and is attracted to any exhibit where he can pretend to drive a car. It has been interesting to watch him slowly learn how to play with the train set in the PlaySpace, where he initially just grabbed the cars and banged them together--now he knows to push the trains along the tracks, let them go at the top of the hills, and watch them zoom down and crash! Lots of kids play at the train set, and Joshua is not afraid to assert himself!

At the Dana playground yesterday, he started going up the play structure and coming down the slide all by himself with lots of glee. He sits on the top of the slide, and flahes me a big smile before he comes giggling down the slide. He's a big boy now! We also get a lot of exercise on the swings--Joshua likes to be pushed for a few seconds and then wants to get on the neighboring swing--again and again and again....