Posting
It’s been a couple of weeks since I posted. I don’t seem to post as much as I used to, and I think that’s because the boys are only sleeping once a day now. I seem to use that time to do chores or cook food or occasionally watch some TV or play games.
There have been a few interesting events in the last couple of weeks which I’ll talk about. About 10 days ago, I went in to check on the boys at about 9pm (after they’d been asleep since 7pm) and instantly smelled that something was off. A quick search revealed that Dan had been sick in his bed, and was sleeping (well, head rocking) in the mess. The spew was a bit dried and he was quite cold so we figured that he had been lying in it for a little while. He handled the clean up quite well, and was more excited by the shower than upset by being woken. After another bottle he went straight back to sleep without any complaints.
Last week, in another shameless attention seeking attempt (that failed) Dan also decided to have a blood nose in the middle of one night. Richard, who discovered it in the morning, informed me that it wasn’t anything to worry about. (I had already left for work, so I missed it.) Dan, clever boy that he is, had removed his blood filled nose prongs himself, and wasn’t worried about the blood all over his face, pjs, sleeping bag and sheets. It just meant another load of washing for me.
Lachlan has been having a wonderful time recently, because the door to our bedroom will only latch on occasion. He’s learnt how to climb onto our bed and has a fantastic time jumping and rolling around and throwing himself on the doonas and pillows. I really enjoy it too, and chase him across the bed tickling him and tossing him around. He’s such a rough and tumble kid. We’ve only had one accident when he was crawling across the doona and didn’t realise that the doona went over the edge of the bed. Before I could grab him he went head over heels onto the floor. Actually, it was more heels over head , and I think he landed on his bottom as there were no tears. The last couple of days, I’ve encouraged Dan to join us on the bed, and he’s had a wonderful time too. I have to watch that he doesn’t fall off, because he’s got no idea about the correct way to get down (Lachlan does) and I don’t throw him around the way I do Lachlan, but he squeals in delight when I roll him around and tickle him too. I think he gets a real kick out of the fact that he’s playing like Lachlan.
The other game that Daniel is obsessed with at the moment is “Where’s Daniel?”. We play it by hiding behind a wall and calling, “Where’s Daniel?”, then we pop out from behind the door and shout “There he is.” He thinks it’s hilarious and will sit on the floor kicking his feet in excitement while he waits for you to appear, at which point he will giggle himself stupid. It’s at the point now where you just have to say, “Where’s Daniel?” and he’ll stop whatever he’s doing, sit on the floor and start kicking his feet. He’s so cute.
On to more serious matters, we had another doctor’s appointment with the Infant Development Team at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital. This is a team that includes a physiotherapist (for gross motor development), occupational therapist (for fine motor development, play and socialisation) and a speech therapist (for communication). The session started as usual with Daniel in tears, but this time Lachlan decided to join him. It only took a few minutes for them to calm down, however, and after that the session went pretty well. Daniel was on fire, showing off all his new skills and interacting with the doctors. Both boys had a fantastic time exploring the room and toys, climbing and playing. (Daniel had never tried to climb before the appointment, but decided once we were there that he needed to climb on everything!) To summarise the appointment, the physiotherapist was quite impressed with how well Daniel is going with his walking; the occupational therapist was a bit confused at how both boys seem to be advanced in some ways and behind in others; and the speech therapist said that they needed to come a long way in their communication before they were up to par, but we are doing everything right to help them. We’ll be seeing them again in February, and they want us to get a referral for Lachlan as well, so that he’s being seen on the books.
I don’t remember what the last news was as far as nannies go, but it wasn’t looking good for a while. The new nanny that we hired didn’t show for the first three weeks of her employment, so Nanny SA decided that we’d be better off finding somebody different. I feel bad that we had to let the nanny go, because it wasn’t really her fault that she couldn’t make it – she was sick and then had family issues – but we really need somebody we can rely on. (It’s now been seven weeks since we had somebody.) I think what sealed it for her,was that she refused to talk to us about what was going on so we couldn’t come to any sort of arrangement with her. Plus she kept saying she’d be there and then reneging at the last minute. Anyway, Richard put a rocket up Nanny SA about our situation, and we’re now going to be interviewing four potential nannies this weekend. Hopefully, one will be suitable.
Lessons
I was thinking the other day about how much the boys have to learn and what a steep learning curve they’re on. I guess it’s the most intensive learning experience they’re ever going to experience in their lives. Then it dawned on me that Richard and I have been on a pretty steep learning curve over the last two years as well – and we haven’t done too badly. The most recent thing we’re learning is about how to discipline the boys and try to get some obedience. The challenge of the moment is trying to get Lachlan to adhere to the “Thou Must Not Stand On The Couch” rule. We’re getting there slowly, having tried a number of different techniques including yelling at him and physically removing him from the couch. My personal belief is that the removal from the couch is having the most effect – he doesn’t seem to be bothered by yelling much at all. At least, not my yelling. It’s quite interesting to watch him, because I know that he knows that it’s not allowed. Now when he does stand on the couch, it’s usually when I haven’t been paying him much attention or am focussed on Daniel. He’ll climb on and watch me closely for my reaction. Sometimes it’s out and out defiance and sometimes he’s just being cheeky. I’ll tell him to sit down and he’ll ignore me, then when I start moving towards him, he’ll either run from me (to the other end of the couch) or quickly sit down. So he knows. Mostly though, he climbs onto the couch and sits and watches TV or reads a book. The standing up is mostly for my benefit.
Another thought I had about Lachlan the other day (more so than Daniel) was during our trip to the doctor for his conjunctivitis. When we went into the doctor’s office, Lachlan immediately started crying (surprisingly, not Daniel) and the doctor asked if he was hungry or if it was the so-called witching hour. It made me realise that Lachlan doesn’t really have a witching hour. Daniel might get a bit (more) whingy towards the end of the day but Lachlan generally remains pretty even tempered through the whole day.
Speaking of doctors, I think Lachlan is heading back to see one in the next couple of days. He seems to have a bit of a stomach bug and it doesn’t seem to be getting better. It’s not really effecting his mood, but changing his nappies is an even more unpleasant experience than usual. On a positive note, his fourth molar has finally come through and his conjunctivitis has pretty much cleared up.
So what’s happening with Daniel? Well, I was a bit worried over the last week or so that his walking was going backwards, figuratively speaking. When I posted the big announcement the other day, I mentioned that the walking wasn’t voluntary and that he only did it when we forced him to let go. He was okay at first, but then he decided that it was too scary and he started to panic and try to find the nearest support as quickly as possible, whinging all the way. Of course, this meant that he wasn’t well balanced, or he’d trip over his feet in his panic and fall over. Naturally, this was making him even more scared. Anyway, I was beginning to think that we’d pushed him too quickly and now it was going to take even longer for him to build his confidence. But then, in the last couple of days, he started going short distances on his own and is taking those steps slowly and surely. He’s also started to practice standing on his own, which I’ve heard is even harder than walking. So positive things for Daniel. On a negative note, however, the last couple of days have seen him take some awful tumbles that are unrelated to his independent walking. The poor kid is covered in scrapes and bruises and has banged his head too often. He’s having some real bad luck with that.
Finally, the latest update in the nanny saga – is that it’s still ongoing. We’re yet to see our new nanny after her first orientation day (apart from a cameo appearance to let us know she was really sick). We don’t know when she’s going to come back to work. At the moment we’re getting daily notifications of her continued absence via SMS at 10:30pm – an hour or so after we’ve gone to bed. I don’t know what we’re going to do.
Diseased
I spent most of the afternoon yesterday at the doctor for a five minute consultation for Lachlan. Yesterday morning when he woke his right eye was very crusty, but I didn’t think much of it until the afternoon when he woke from his day sleep. Then his eye was swollen, red and quite weepy. As I suspected, he’s developed a case of conjunctivitis and we now have to put this gel in his eyes until it clears up. (Yesterday it was just one eye, today it’s both.) Now I’m just waiting for Daniel to get it.
By the way, how come we get a health care card for Daniel and it’s always Lachlan who gets sick. Now, even if Dan contracts it, we’ll just use the full priced prescription we got for Lachlan. <Sigh.>
Poor Lachlan is a little bit miserable at the moment. He didn’t sleep well today – I think because he was feeling unwell – but so far he’s handling it okay. Hopefully he’ll just crash tonight with few histrionics.
Sippy Cups
We have a very large collection of sippy cups which we have purchased over the last year or so and they all have their flaws. The lids on the cheap ones never stay on very well and the valves/nipples of the expensive ones have either worn out, or they’re extremely difficult to get any liquid out of. Lachlan isn’t terribly fussy about what he uses as long as it makes a good noise when he throws it on the floor. Daniel on the other hand has been extremely picky about what he’ll drink from and has pretty much refused everything. I was despairing for a while that he would never drink any liquid other than formula and only that from a bottle, but we’ve finally found a few solutions – none of them perfect.
Our first success was with an open cup which he actually drinks very well from. The problem, of course, is that he needs our assistance to hold the cup, and it is still generally very messy. Our second success was with an actual sippy cup – the Avent ones that attach to the normal bottles. However, he’ll only use it if the valve has been removed so the liquid just pours into his mouth. Here’s a picture…
Again, the problem with him using this without the valve in place is that it spills everywhere when he turns it upside down. And half the time he’s more interested in chewing the teat than drinking.
Our final success is the one we’re most happy about. It’s not perfect and he makes a bloody mess with it, but it’s cheap, common and he loves it. It’s the common poptop. I think we’re most happy because we’re never going to need to change his mind about it – and that seems to be one of the hardest things to do with Daniel. Once he decides how to do something it’s nearly impossible to convince him there’s another, maybe better, way to do it.
Picnic in the Park
Yesterday we went out for a picnic lunch in a nearby park with my mother’s group. We were three hours late, because the boys sleep during lunch time, but we managed to catch up with a few of the other mothers before they left. We had a really lovely afternoon and the boys had a ball. Lachlan didn’t stop running around all afternoon, and Dan was only deterred from walking by a story or bubbles. It made it a bit difficult to sit and chat, but what can you do? We might do it again pretty soon.
I can’t believe that I forgot to mention our biggest bit of news in my last post. We have employed a new nanny – she was the only one who applied for the job and we’re yet to decide whether she’s better or worse than the last nanny. Nominally, she started last Monday, but she’s only worked one day. I honestly don’t know what we did to deserve such bad luck, but she’s been sick all week with gastro and bronchitis. It’s so frustrating, but it’s obviously genuine because nobody would call in sick during their first week at a new job. We’re just hoping that it’s not a sign of things to come – but then, beggars can’t be choosers. Anyway, on a positive note, the boys reacted really well to her with no tears or distress. They were quite happy to have her hold them, and feed them and change their nappies on the first day, so hopefully that will continue when she comes back to work.
Dan’s walking is getting better every day. He’s yet to launch himself independently, but he’s becoming much better balanced and a little more confident every time we force him to walk unaided. He’s so funny though, because the expression on his face is a real combination of fear and excitement. His eyes and mouth are open so wide (I’ll have to get another video), but when he reaches his destination – usually me – his smile is so big.
Lachlan is still teething with his fourth molar coming through. By the looks of it, the next couple of days will probably be a bit hard for him. I think it’s okay when the corners come though, but it must really hurt when the middle bit cuts the gum. Anyway, hopefully he’ll get through it without us all losing too much sleep. Speaking of which, they’ve both been really good recently, except last night Dan woke us at 4:30am really distressed. He cried for a good half hour/forty-five minutes and seemed to be quite scared at times. I took him to the spare room and told him stories, but I think he only slept for another 45 minutes at 6:00am. I know I didn’t get much more sleep.
Last Friday, I was on a work retreat and poor old Richard had a hell of a day with Daniel. Apparently, he started crying at lunch time, and only stopped for an hour and a half when he went down for a second sleep. Then he pretty much didn’t stop again until we put him to bed at about 6:30. We were neally ready to take him down to the emergency room, but we were hoping he was just really, really tired. We were proved right when he passed out and then was his normal happy self the next day. We haven’t seen him that way for months and we don’t really know why Friday was so different. It certainly wasn’t a pleasant experience for Richard.
Daniel’s Walking!!!!
I never thought I’d see the day! It isn’t exactly voluntary yet, but if you let go of his hands at the right time he’s able to keep himself going by himself. Here’s a little video (which I wish I could embed.) I’m so excited and proud of him.
There’s been a few things happen since I last posted, which I have to write about. Firstly, we had another Occupational Therapist and Paediatrician appointment last Monday, both of which went quite well. At the OT, it only took Dan about 5 minutes to calm down, which is a big improvement from last time. He was then quite happy for the rest of the appointment – babbling away and playing nicely. (Lachlan spent most of the appointment sitting in the pram watching, despite the fact that he was invited to come and play.) The paediatrician’s appointment was quite uneventful. Most of the problems we were facing at the previous appointment have pretty much cleared up. Dan’s moving well, he’s sleeping better and he’s hardly vomiting at all now. The only big thing that’s hanging over our head at the moment is Dan’s oxygen. I complained to the doctor that I was finding it impossible to get any information about when his next respiratory examination was going to be, so hopefully he’ll have more luck chasing it up for us. The other issues we have are their eating (the meat and veg that they eat still have to be pureed, and they don’t really like pasta) and their speech – or lack thereof. We’re seeing a speech therapist next month, so hopefully that will help. Unfortunately, the doctor wasn’t really able to help with the final issue we have – Dan’s hysteria whenever he’s faced with something new and stressful – like kindergym. He said it was up to us whether or not we keep pushing him, or give up for everybody’s peace of mind.
Lachlan has been moving from strength to strength over the last couple of months. He’s almost running now, which is a bit scary – especially since he’s so reluctant to respond when you call his name! The last week or so he’s been a bit of a handful really. His molars are causing him a lot of grief and he’s been really cranky. He’s also waking early from his day sleeps and wakes occasionally at night. He’s also learning how to push our buttons, which is interesting and frustrating. We don’t have a lot of rules for him to follow, but as he’s getting more adventurous we’re having to set some boundaries. For example, he loves to climb onto the couch – which is okay – but we’ve decided that he’s not allowed to stand on the couch, because if he trips (like he often does when walking on the floor) he could fall and really hurt himself. He knows he’s not allowed, and we tell him “no” all the time and if he disobeys he gets removed from the couch. But after he has his little tantrum, he then climbs back on the couch and carefully stands up – watching us for our reaction the whole time. Cheeky little bugger.
Here are anothe couple of pictures of the boys in their new outfits all the way from Singapore.
Ninja Lachlan
Karate Dan
