1 Mother 2 Another

Boppy use number sixty two:

Sitting-practice bumper!

Madeleine’s so eager to be upright.  Give her your thumbs while she’s lying down, and she’ll pull herself up to standing, stiff-legging it so she hinges up like a mummy.  On the advice of our pediatrician and a physical therapist who’s an expert in a child’s physical development, we’re trying to avoid having her take her own weight on her legs for a while, so we support her while she “stands.”  But you can see in her face: why lie when she can sit, and why sit when she can stand with all the big people?

Boppy use number sixty two:

Madeleine’s been eating rice cereal for almost a week now, and she’s on a vitamin supplement with iron.  We just had a diaper insufficiency incident, and I never thought I’d say this, but –

I miss the yellow seedy stool.

Are you looking to cut to the chase? Need advice on a product or area NOW? Jump here directly to our convient TOP 5'S PAGE where we tell you our opinion (and yours) on the top five items/sites in different categories.

My girlfriend Abby is often fond of saying, “Every decision you make as a parent comes down to this:  Do I want to pay now, or pay later?  Do I enforce a rule now, or do I let it slide and deal with it when it’s a bigger mess later?  Do I lose sleep tonight when I sleep-train my baby, or do I lose sleep for the next three years as I get up to soothe him back to sleep every night?”

I’m starting to really understand what she means.

When I was a ballet dancer, I had the biggest dance bag in the company.  A very large weekend tote bag, my dance bag was stuffed with – aside from the basics like pointe shoes and warmers - everything from a big roll of duct tape to a full-sized hammer.  Everyone teased me, but they all came to me to borrow band-aids or sew on ribbons or – yes – hammer something.

We’ve done it – we’ve successfully navigated our first Holiday Travel Day.  I’m having to start mentally gearing up for the return trip already.

Our living room looks as if a Target exploded.

And on the dining room table (seats eight,) baby gear.

There’s a topic I’ve been avoiding in these postings because I know it’s controversial.  But I know that every parent struggles with this issue and because I’m trying to be open and honest about where I am in this parenting thing, I need to bring it up here and be ready for the email onslaught.

Every once in a while, I read something by another mom and think, “Yeah.  She gets it.”  Today was one of those days.

No, I’m not talking about that spot on her neck which always smells divine and calls to me like a siren, “Come nibble on me!”

Though that is pretty sweet. 

Rather, I’m speaking of the point I’m at in my relationship with my daughter.

Today’s entry won’t captivate the entire country; I want to share my favorite mommy stuff that’s specific to New York.  Not trying to be exclusionary, it’s simply where I live and what I know.  While researching babyhood, I came across some great places and it’d be a shame if I didn’t pass them on. 

We’ve experienced another first in Madeleine Land; the Extended Nap.