Talking!

So I have been a little concerned with how many words my 1 year old son can say. I know you're not supposed to compare kids and they all develop at their own rate but what can I say...he's my first and I want to make sure everything is going well. I work with preschoolers so I know relatively where they should be with speaking but for a baby....I'm not completly sure when it all starts to come together. My husband and I have been making sure we talk to him all the time and let him be part of conversations. We ask him questions and label everything around him to help him get a better idea of how language is used. He can say "dada", "mama" and "baba"....but not always accurately. I was starting to worry after seeing another baby right around his age who seemed to understand more and was able to say more words. Like I said....I know I'm not supposed to compare them but.....it's hard not to when they are so close in age. Well, today I felt so much better. He handed something to his cousin and actually said "here"! I was so excited! It's starting to click...I hope! I just can't wait to hear more and more out of my little man as he learns to express himself.

New Semester

Well today was the first day of my class in my last semester before I get my masters degree. I can't believe how much work I have to do in the next few weeks. As the professor kept talking throughout the class I just got more and more overwhelmed with all the work he was assigning. This is not my only class and I was hoping that my assignments for the other class would be basically done before the ones for this class were due. I just keep telling myself...."just get through the next couple weeks and it will be smooth sailing til May." But I still find myself stressed and nervous.
My husband has the possibility of getting a second job (fingers, toes, etc. crossed) and was just asked to help his parents remodel a bathroom for the next couple weekends. Which is great cause we can really use the money but.....I have all this work to do and a 1 year old to take care of. With nights and weekends being my only time with my baby and trying to get my work done (without my husband around to help with the little guy) its gonna be rough. I know I'll get through it....it's just all a little overwhelming at the moment. Gotta look at the positives! I'll be done with my degree (finally), we'll have more money (hopefully), and I can breathe/sleep/eat later, lol!

Speaking without Thinking

Why is it that people don't think before they speak. I know I've done it before too but at least I realize it and feel sorry if something I have said upset someone (even if it was unintentional). Today at work a few of my colleagues and I were having lunch and everyone was talking about how beneficial it is to stay home with your children when they are young. Someone we all used to work with had 2 kids in a couple years and is now home with her young children everday. They were discussing how much she must enjoy it and how great it is for her kids. They will really benefit...blah, blah, blah. Don't get me wrong, the person they are referring to is one of my closest friends and I am so glad that she has the opportunity to be with her kids. But it seemed to go right over everyone's head that I have a young child that I would love to be with but I have to work. They go on and on about how great it is and how they all stayed home and so on.....well not all of us can afford that luxury and like I don't feel guilty enough, I have to hear about it at work too! Needless to say that was just the topper to a wonderful day!

A Book?

So lately I have been revisiting my idea/desire to write a book. I have thought that writing a children's book would be a lot of fun and exciting. I have a background in Early Childhood Education and currently teach in a preschool. Based on these facts I figured it would be a fun and easy endevour. While I deeply want to write an exciting, funny, well written book, I keep getting stuck on what to write about. I used to have all these ideas and such an imagination but it seems like I just can't figure out or remember what I had envisioned before. On one hand I wonder if I'm just trying too hard but on the other I wonder if it's just not something I'm meant to do. It has been something I have dreamed of doing for a long time so it would be really sad if it never happened. Can I really have writer's block before I've even begun? Any ideas on what topics are lacking when you go to look for books for your children? I had once thought I would develop a character (an elephant of course....I love elephants) and create a series around him/her....but every time I think about what the first book should be about I question as to whether or not that's even a good idea....am I crazy to keep pursuing this? I mean, I work full-time, I am currently in my last semester to finish my master's degree, and I have a one year old and a husband who I want to spend time with as well.....Am I spreading myself too thin?

Back to Reality

Well after our whirlwind of a holiday season and a wonderful week in beautiful Punta Cana we're back home and back to our normal schedule....kinda. Before we left we had Cam's 1st birthday. The past year has gone by so quickly I can't even believe hes 1. When he was born he had some trouble at first with digestion and reflux. We finally found a formula he could tolerate and got him on Zantac for the reflux. After that he was like a different baby. He was happy and social and wonderful. While I was thrilled to have found the right combination of formula and meds to help him...it was very expensive. He ended up on Alimentum which is like double the cost of all the other formulas out there. My pediatrician told me we would probably be able to transition him back to something else in a few months once his system matured a little....ya right. Here we are a year later and no matter how many different kinds we tried or how long we waited, there was no transistion back. I was also told that I could get a prescription for the formula (which would have been a lifesaver due to the cost) but my insurance wounldn't cover it cause the doctor said he wasn't really allergic to the other formuals...it was just an intolerance. Well intolerant still means he can't have the other kinds so what was the big deal?
I knew at a year we would switch to milk and couldn't wait to stop buying the formula. I am glad there was something out there to help him and let him be his happy self but after a year....I was glad to not need it. I didn't want to risk switching to milk and giving up bottles while on vacation, in another country, and when we had fly. I did give the whole milk a try once before we left though, and guess what...back to digestive issues...of course! I was afraid this might be the case, but we were leaving in a couple days, I was bringing bottles and formula with us, so I decided not to think about it until we got home...we had his 1 year check up two days after we got back anyway and I could ask the doctor all about it then.
While the vacation was amazing, Cam got a little off schedule as far as sleeping was concerned. We were in a hotel room across from the airport the night before we were leaving cause our flight was so early the next morning. Well, Cam couldn't really fall asleep that night and was up til like midnight. Then we had to get up around 2-230 am to get to the airport for our flight. By the time we got on the plane he was exhausted. He slept the whole time...it was great. We had a stop over in NY and I had to wake him up to get off the plane. We got him some food and I just hoped the little nap on the first flight wasn't enough to keep him awake for the next part as it was a longer flight. As you can imagine I was completely calm and happy all day long...ya right!
I had nothing to worry about though, because he slept through the whole next flight too! My little guy is a great traveler! I was so psyched! But, he had slept basically all day....what would the night bring? Well he did a pretty good job considering the previous day but was up in the middle of the night. The hotel provided a crib which was nice but not really what he was used to. The mattress was a little on the thin side and he was right next to our bed and could see us if he was awake. Being that I was still basically in a coma from the previous day's activities, I brought him into our king size, gorgeous, extremely comfortable bed for the rest of the night. He slept very well then! (Honestly, that is the first time he has been in bed with us. From the day we came home from the hospital he has spent every night in his own room in his crib.) I should have known he would expect it from now on. During the day he would nap in the crib and at night he would start there but inevitably he would end up in our bed. Coming home was going to be ugly.
We got home at midnight on Sunday the 3rd. Cam once again was amazing all day and basically slept at least 3/4 of the way home. My husband and I both had to go to work the next day and my mom would be coming over to stay with the baby. Back to normal. He was so tired the first few days that he had no trouble sleeping in his own bed and going all night but I just knew it was coming. Sure enough, Wednesday night he was up for almost 2 hrs screaming in the middle of the night. Thursday night he was up for only about an hour and a half screaming. There was no way this was the week for me to take the bottles away!
We have just about gotten him back on schedule so this weekend we did away with the bottles. I had tried whole milk again with the same results so I figured we needed some soy milk. I got some on Friday and Saturday morning he had some with breakfast and did not get a bottle. He did pretty well....little extra fussy but overall he did a great job yesterday. I just gave him a snack in between meals instead of a bottle and he was pretty content. I can't imagine going through this with a baby who doesn't like to eat. Cam is a good eater so I can just give him a snack and he'll be ok. He didn't even seem to notice the lack of bottles. He did a good job with the milk and even better today. I was nervous at first because he didn't seem to care for the taste but today was better. Just took some getting used to.
Hopefully everything continues this way. I'm just wondering how it will be when he sees someone else with a bottle. He's with his younger cousin twice a week who is still using bottles. I guess we just have to wait and see!