Tag Archives: kid

Picky Picky About His Sippy

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It wasn’t hard to wean either of my boys off the bottle to a sippy cup. However, my younger toddler is EXTREMELY picky when it comes to his sippy cup for drinking milk! When it came time for him to give up his bottle, it took less than a week for him to realize the bottle wasn’t coming back, and I bought him his own set of sippy cups so he wouldn’t have to share or use the same ones as his big bro…

At first, before I made all his bottles disappear, I would put water in his sippy cups to get him used to a cup and then finally started putting milk in them when I took away his bottles. Well, I also discovered he had a resistance to “hard spout” cups vs. “soft spout.”

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And, since then I have realized that soft spout sippy cups are much more difficult to find in stores. They also cost more to maintain because when toddlers bite and chew on the spout, they rip and they need to be replaced! But, while he’ll drink water and juice out of the other cups, he is very particular about the container for his milk. I’ve even tried a bait and switch approach at night or when I think he’s too tired to notice….but every time he recognizes the difference and you should see the looks I get for using he “wrong” sippy cups!

So if you have a transitioning toddler, maybe this is an issue for you too?? For us, he likes the NUK Active Cups with a silicone spout or Munchkin brand sippy cups with the soft spouts. Soft spout are key here!! Now if I could just get him to start drinking out of a regular cup….

 

 

Teaching Your Child to Pray

I’ve always known I would want to raise my children to be faithful and love Jesus. I was raised Catholic and attended Catholic school for a few years growing up, received the sacraments of baptism, communion, reconciliation and confirmation, while my children’s father also received the sacraments and attended Catholic school. As an adult, there were times I strayed from attending mass regularly on Sundays, but I would always come back to it.

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So, it just felt right to bring my kids up the same way. I had both of my sons baptized as infants, in the Catholic church, and while I’ve attempted for us all to attend church or even taking one every other week with me, while the other stayed home with Daddy…it’s quite a challenge. For me, it’s not even about them being Catholic, I just want them to have faith and learn about religion…so I do feel it’s my duty to introduce them to it, so they are exposed and can decide the spiritual/religious path they want to follow in the years to come.

51lcJWo-1eL._SY355_I have a cross hanging up in their room as a reminder of faith and I have a few “religious” children’s books with prayers and bible stories to read to them. I am by far not an extremely religious person and I don’t openly refer to God or Jesus that much in my everyday life, but I pray daily and maintain my private relationship with Him, and I strive to keep myself focused and centered in my faith.

Now that my boys are getting older and starting to comprehend a little more, I am trying to teach them how to pray. About a year ago, I started showing my older toddler, Raef, how to do the “sign of the cross.” I’d say he picked it up pretty easily, but I can’t say he’s retained it or truly understands what it signifies…but I’m sure that will come later. What I am so proud of though (hence why I decided to do this post), is that part of our routine before going to sleep, is saying our prayers.

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I let the boys know it’s time to say our prayers and I sort of take the lead. We speak to Jesus and tell Him all we are thankful for and we ask that He continue to watch over us, protect us and guide us on a path to success. Well, the past couple nights after I took the lead and did the prayers for me and the boys, Raef followed it up by saying his own. I think he was attempting to recite some of the things I said, but other than being so darn cute, I was moved and really felt good about my efforts to teach them to pray.

His prayer went something like this…

“Thank you for my Mama, Daddy, Sayah (Isaiah). Thank you for eat. Thank you for friends. Thank you ‘E-SUS’ (he pronounced Jesus without a J). AMEN!”

And — it was a BIG AMEN! All I can say to that is my own AMEN, such a proud moment for me as a Mommy, and no matter how big he gets, I will always remember that little voice and how he said “Thank you E-SUS.” You know, the one thing we can all do is pray, and I am so overjoyed that I can be the one to instill it in my children.

Please share your experience with prayer and your children, I’d love to hear about it.

Brought to you by the Letter “P”

My older toddler has an obsession with the letter “P.” I’m not sure why the 16th letter of the alphabet has become his favorite. His first name doesn’t start with it, nor do his middle or last names…but he has a clear affection for the letter “P.”

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When we’re driving around town – and we live near a downtown area, so you know, the “P” sign are everywhere because “P” is for parking. He is also quick to point out the P’s and the number of them in any given sign when we are out and about. But perhaps the most amusing instance of his use for a P is when we’re at home watching Wheel of Fortune and he keeps shouting the letter at the television, so that the contestants can hear him! It’s even better when a P is actually called, because he gets uber excited and says, “Look Mommy…P!!!!!!!!!!!!!” I mean seriously, the letter P gets this kid giddy with his legs swinging anxiously off his car seat when we’re driving and he sees the P’s, and you can hear his voice filled with excitement.

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I guess it doesn’t really matter why he likes “P,” if anything it’s a testament to him being able to read letters and now associate them with real life and words, as well as when we watch game shows and he realizes it’s a letter you can call out. Following up the “P” are “R” and “A”… For whatever reason, when he is excited, he’ll say “P-R-A.”

Now if he could only apply and use his favorite letter “P” for the things that really matter…you know,  PLEASE and POTTY. 🙂

Bottled Up, It’s a Sippy Situation

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My younger son just turned 16 months and finally has more than 2 teeth! Just like any dutiful parent, we’ve been attempting to slowly wean him off the bottle and to a sippy cup since he turned 1. He’ll do it sometimes… I mean I have no problems getting him to drink his water out of a sippy cup or a straw cup…but when it comes to his leche (MILK) forget about it!!! I’m not sure if it’s a comfort thing like before he’s going to sleep or if he just has to have a bottle instead of a sippy cup with the “good stuff!”

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I’ve been trying to recognize any potential patterns for when he’ll take his leche in a sippy cup, but I think it’s only been when he REALLY wants it, or maybe we were out and running errands or in the car. I guess it’s his “bedtime” routine. And I’ll admit, even though I try to offer it in a sippy cup first, if he needs to go down and is going to do the whole fussy song and dance, I’ll cave and just let him have the bottle because I know it’ll calm him down.

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And, it’s not like he doesn’t have a full array of sippy cups available to him. I have not only bought him his own to differentiate from big brother’s…but I have bought him ones similar to his brother’s because you know, they’re always more interested in what’s not theirs! Ay yi yi… I have tried different styles and colors, shapes and sizes…I’ve had most success with the one with a more nipple-like spout..but still, he won’t drink leche from it consistently.

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The first time around with Baby #1, it was cold turkey, a done deal…one day we stopped giving him a bottle and he had no issue with his sippy cup. I know every baby is different and some never take a sippy cup, or always rejected the bottle… but seriously!!?? haha! In my mind I think well, if he wants it bad enough he’ll just have to accept what he’s given…but yeah like I said earlier I’ll bend and just give him what he wants – so I can have some peace and quiet! I know as they get teeth it’s really it’s really best for their gums and dental development to ditch the bottle, and since Isaiah only had 2 teeth up to this point, I wasn’t really trippin…but now it’s time to give it up!! My goal is to have him transitioned by the new year…wish me luck!

And — please if you’ve had this issue…tell me what worked (or didn’t) for you!!!

We Got a “Puppy”

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Okay, so the title of this post may be a little misleading, but where my toddler is concerned…he got a “puppy!” His puppy is actually a Skip Hop Zoo rolling luggage… We recently set off on a family adventure to Chicago to visit family and when planning the trip and thinking on how best to orchestrate packing everything we needed for the trip, I decided my 2 year old could “hold his own.” I have an very independent little guy who want to be so helpful, it’s to the point he will have a meltdown if he can’t assist or help with almost every task. So, why not give him a bit of ownership?!? I love the Skip Hop’s adorable “Zoo” characters and we already had a pair of backpacks for each of our little guys, and since they are priced pretty reasonably and well-made, I added the puppy to our collection!

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It worked like a charm! I put small necessities in each of the boys backpacks – like toys, snacks, water bottles (Skip Hop makes those too – if you care to coordinate) and their respective security blankets. Raef was able to pull along his rolling luggage, just like all the grown ups, as we navigated through the airport. I put all his clothes in there, so it wasn’t too heavy. He walked with purpose and was really good about looking after “puppy.” He was complimented at every turn with passersby admiring this little dude taking charge and carrying his own stuff. One of the cutest things, that he observed and picked up on, was other travelers would stack their briefcase or smaller laptop bag above the rolling luggage…so naturally he took off his dinosaur backpack and stacked it on the puppy too! LOL!

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It’s never too young to teach a child some responsibility and give them some “control” over their possessions and belongings. Sure, there were moments when they tired of the luggage, but it wasn’t a big deal when we had to pick up the slack and overall, it worked like a charm…otherwise he would’ve been insisting to “help” with Mommy’s luggage!

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Traveling with tots can certainly be a challenge, but it’s something I’ve had to tackle and will continue to do, because how else are we gonna get anywhere! I’ve written some other posts on traveling with the babes, and you can check those out through the links below. Happy travels!

Child Seats…On The Plane!

Air Travel with Baby…By Yourself

 

 

First Haircuts…Snip, Snip

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A baby’s first haircut is supposed to be a BIG deal, right? I mean all their “firsts” are something to be celebrated because you know what…they are only going to happen ONCE! Well, I’ve missed out, not once, but TWICE on witnessing either of my boys get their very FIRST haircut. Yes, you could say I’m a little salty about it, because I really do feel some kind of way about missing out on this “first” milestone.

I guess I should hold back on the particulars of why I wasn’t “able” to be part of the event… However, I do need to talk about why it makes me sad that I missed out on this rite of passage, AND why it is a BIG deal!!! Mamas, are you with me? Your baby will only have that baby hair ONE TIME, and that’s the span of time pre-haircuts! There’s something about baby hair that is so fresh, new and snuggly soft. It has a certain scent and feel. My boys had that wispy, fine, fly-away hair… I loved seeing the creative ways it would self style every time they woke up from a sweet slumber. I loved to stroke my boys baby hair and watch how it would spread out over their heads during bath time. *sniff sniff*

Then, when they get that  first cut… it’s a total transformation to “big boy” or girl, but I think it’s so much more a face altering event for a little boy since it really takes away that “baby” look. Call me sentimental or “too much,” but as a Mommy, I view this as such an important event. I’m all about taking photos, saving a lock of hair and cherishing every moment of a first. I know one of my favorite things when I was a young girl growing up, was looking through my baby book and seeing my lock of hair from the baby days. I love that kind of stuff and I want my kids to have that kind of stuff to look back on too. I don’t want to miss a moment and I did..I missed this one. 🙁 I thought I’d get my chance to see my second son get his haircut, but that was taken from me too.

Sure it’s hair, it’ll grow back, but it’ll never be baby hair again…and once they get that first “snip, snip,”  there will never be another FIRST hair cut.

SMASH Cake

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I’ve tried it twice now…with little enthusiasm shown by the “smashers.” I love this idea, this new innovation if you will – I say that because some 30 years ago when I turned one I did get my stab at cake, but nowadays, it’s becoming even more popularized, by giving a 1 year old their very own little cake to “smash” to mark their first birthday. I know many people go all out with a full photo shoot, revolving around capturing the moment when a rising toddler gets their first crack at a cake. Many bakeries even advertise specific “smash cake” and several grocery chains will give your child a FREE (yes F-R-E-E) smash cake for the big ONE!

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I was super excited to serve Raef his first taste of cake in July 2013 when he hit the inaugural birthday milestone, but the honest truth is he didn’t show much interest. I had him all suited up too, with a cute little tie and custom bday hat, just picture perfect. Then, when “game time: arrived, he looked at it, more impressed by the flame on his candle… However when I stood by with a camera, just knowing he would attack the sweet treat I set in front of him…and NOTHING! I gave him a spoon and he sort of tapped and jabbed at the cake, but he didn’t want any part of it.

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Fast forward to July 2014. Now surely Isaiah would be all in when I set the cake down in front of him. There was little doubt in my mind that he would have no issue getting his hands dirty. So, I suited him up in the same red, white and blue tie and custom birthday hat I had dressed his brother in the year before and was ready for him to have at it… except, he didn’t seem to care to smash…the cake! To his credit, when I served him a slice, he happily found a way to eat it with his hands, but Between my 2 boys and their first birthdays, I never got that super messy, crazy cake chaos!

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It’s okay though, no big deal…it’s not like I want my kids to be too familiar with sugar or crave cake, but I did think I’d get a little more action. So Moms (and Dads), I’m wondering if you had an experience similar to mine or if your babes went all in and for the big SMASH!?!? Not that I’ve thought about it too much, but is it because I’ve been serving them bite size pieces of food, so when they see an entire cake placed in front of them they don’t know how to attack it? Or maybe it’s too intimidating to see Mommy, Daddy and/or whoever else might be present staring them down to see what will become of the cake?

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In the end, I guess my non-cake smashers was a good thing…no cake crumbs to clean up off the floor or smeared icing everywhere. No, sugar-high children and it really meant more cake for me! 😉

Mommy 101: Time Management

Written by Jaclyn D. for 53 Weeks.

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As a young, independent woman, time was all I had. I worked part-time at a news station and attended the university as a full-time student. I dedicated my free time to writing stories for class assignments or relaxing on the beach like a washed up coconut. I could sleep in if I wanted to, heck, I could get up and just go. I could literally jump in my car, bad breath and all, and just go. Time? Who needed that? Time brought change (good and bad), and I wasn’t ready to be all ‘grown-up’ just yet. Fast forward, and three years later, I’m a married grad student, and proud mommy to my 20-month-old son.

Throughout this entire process, time management has been my biggest endeavor; it is crucial and the key to surviving my role as a new mom/wife. As much as I dread routines, and chosen career path that wasn’t 9-5, I now live a life revolved around routines. If I want to go anywhere or do anything, I need to plan ahead and accordingly.

Keeping a solid routine is not only healthy for your baby, but very beneficial for you. If you’re a first time Mom, this may be quite a challenge in the beginning, but don’t worry, it all gets much easier once you’ve established a routine that works best for you and your baby. Here are some of my suggestions that have helped me survive motherhood thus far:

  • Make a plan, or plan to fail – this is my husband’s mantra, and something I can vouch for. If you don’t plan ahead, there’s a chance the following day won’t go as planned. Think about how long it takes to gather all the necessities needed; factor in how long it takes you to dress yourself and your baby, and feed him or her. If you have pets (I have two dachshunds), consider the time it will take to feed and walk them as well. Lay out both your clothing outfits the night before. The idea of the plan is utilize and manage your time efficiently, so it’s just easy and simple. The key is simplifying by planning. I usually need an hour and a half before I can go anywhere.
  • Food/diaper prep the night before – I highly recommend every parent to do this. Not only is it going to save you time, but it’ll be one less thing you will have to worry about in the morning. I prefer to pack all the food, snacks, and drinks I will need the night before. I also make sure that I have sufficient diapers, extra clothes and wipes. There have been a hand-full of times I’ve walked out of my house without any diapers and had no back-up clothes when an ‘accident’ has occurred. Trust me when I say it’s a ‘shitty’ situation to be in, and it’s not fun. My advice is have ‘back up clothes” packed in a gym bag for you and your little one. Leave it in the trunk, in “case of emergencies.” It’s better to have something, than nothing.
    Tip – Pack a large zip lock bag so you can store the dirty clothes in to prevent the bad odors.
  •  Stick to the routine – I am really adamant about sticking to the sleeping routine. It is the most important next to meal routines. If your baby naps between noon and 2 p.m., make sure baby is napping between noon and 2 p.m. Not only will he or she be grumpy and whiny if they don’t nap, but they will stay awake later than their usual bedtime, and if you’re anything like me, bedtime is the end of his day and the start of your ‘me’ time. Besides, you don’t want your baby staying up past bedtime. A well-rested baby is a happy baby. Happy baby, happy mom.
  • Make sure Mom gets sleep too – I know it may be tempting to stay up an extra half hour to run through your social media newsfeed or catch up on a new episode of your favorite show, but if you don’t get your sleep, chances are you’re going to wake up restless, edgy and what I consider useless the following morning. Being a mom is a full-time job and you need all the rest you can get.