When I was young (9-10 years), I wanted to be a boy. My best friend and I cut our hair short and asked people to call us by boy names (Mark and…David, if I remember correctly). I can’t exactly remember why we wanted to be boys so badly. We also called ourselves “grils” or maybe we were called that by others, rather than “girls.”
Having a girl brings back funny memories and makes me wonder — what kind of a kid Amelia is going to be? Will she be “girly” and only want to wear dresses and play with makeup? Or will she be a tomboy like I was? And what is the best way to let her be whatever she wants?
A friend sent this link to a powerful video about why girls matter. I thought I would share it. It’s pretty slick, and although there is not too much info on the project, the site does mention that Nike is involved.
Packing with a baby is not that easy! I am just trying to get as much done as we can before the movers come on Thursday. Even though Amelia is very happy and well behaved, I can only leave her to play by herself for so long.
The dog had a tough time on Sunday night and Monday morning as the temperature heated up and snow and ice fell from the roof and trees, making scary noises. Luckily, last night Amelia went back to her 8-hour sleep schedule so both Ian and I got plenty of sleep.
Here are a few pics of Amelia this morning, playing with daddy. She was practicing sticking out her tongue.
I posted some more photos to picasa. Some are from the Iphone so the resolution is not great. Others were taken with the real camera without a flash, so the light isn’t perfect. In any event, there are some silly & cute ones. Enjoy!
Once your child settles into a routine, it throws you off when they change the pattern. Usually Amelia gets a bath and then feeds, and by the time she finishes she’s half asleep and falls asleep right after being burped. This isn’t necessarily true for daytime naps but has been the case for some time now at night.
Last night, however, she was awake after her last feeding and didn’t seem to want to sleep and even though her eyes were closed, when you put her down she would wake up.
Anyway, when changes like this happen you wonder what triggered it and whether you did something different this time compared with the last 20 times. She eventually went to sleep, and I know you can’t count on too much consistency from little ones…it is just interesting to observe.
A few of the things I’ve read about sleep and babies suggest that dads should also practice being able to get a a baby to sleep because then the baby learns different ways to fall asleep and does not get too used to thinking that feeding or mommy is always associated with sleeping.
Here are Ian, Amelia (and Emma) after Ian got Amelia to sleep early yesterday evening:
It has been pretty cold here recently so we have mostly been inside (although we do go out for a little each day to get fresh air!) I am glad we had 2 months of warmish weather after Amelia was born so I could get out and not go stircrazy. Even if I just do one errand a day it is nice to have a task to accomplish that doesn’t involve feeding, burping, or changing diapers.
In the last day, Amelia has gained enough control over her limbs to be able to purposely put her hand in her mouth. It’s amazing to watch how from one day to the next they master a skill. We have also been practicing sitting up (holding onto her arms, of course) and she is getting better at it each time we do it. I will try to get a video of it soon before she can do it on her own!
I sucked my finger and Ian sucked his thumb. Which do you think Amelia will choose, if she chooses one over the other? Right now she hasn’t shown any preference for either finger or thumb, just whatever happens to make it into her mouth.
Everyone in my family is having a snooze - dog, cat, Amelia and Ian are all fast asleep in the living room. There are a few inches of snow on the ground and before it starts to rain and the snow starts melting and the noise of it falling from the roof makes the dog freak out, it is very peaceful here.
Here’s hoping the rain comes with high winds that blows the snow away before it can make scary noises.
Amelia has just started to show an interest in the pictures of picture books. So far Click Clack Moo, Cows that Type isher favourite. Here’s a video of us reading the last half of the book:
Next year I want to start growing some of our own veggies. We have a porch that should be able to house some plants. I haven’t started thinking about baby food yet, but I know the time will be here before I know it. It will be great if I can just go choose something from our garden and make it for Amelia for lunch.
Any and all suggestions about what is easy to grow in our climate would be appreciated. I realise winter has just started but spring will come soon enough.
Also, recommendations of books / cookbooks about baby food would be awesome. I promise to post my thoughts on any books I read on the topic.
