Natali is chugging along great.
We've started potty training again. It's going decently. Her day care teacher thinks we will have her trained by the end of the year.
In preparation we picked up the carpet in the living room to avoid any stains and bought a 10 pack of toddler underwear.
We're in it for the long haul. We used the "Potty Boot Camp" book.
She let's us know when she needs to go while wearing a diaper. While wearing underwear.....not to much.
On a more positive note Natali is speaking in fairly complex sentences. When in the car she often says the following:
" Let's go home."
"I want to go home and see doggies."
"I want to go home and see mommy."
"I want to go home and see daddy."
"I want to go home and eat dinner."
"I want to go home and each lunchable."
"I want hot dogs and carrots for lunch."
Not bad for barely a 2 year old.
She has other sayings. We are almost to the point of having real conversations with Natali.
Beyond that she has adjusted well to her new bed. She hasn't fallen out once and really enjoys having steps.
With the new bed came a new camera. The old camera was wired. Worked fine for a crib. Not for the bed. The new one is wireless. I bought a Foscam 8910W from Amazon. Great Infrared performance. Easy to watch via an app on our Ipads.
Finally we stopped by the Dallas Zoo today. It was a bit cold. I forgot to bring her jacket so I had to dress her in two shirts. She had a great time with the goats....she hugged a particular white goat several times.
[nggallery id=62]
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Big Girl Bed...part duex
So tonight is Natali's first night in her real big girl bed.
Previously we converted her crib into a mini big girl bed.
In that bed she did pretty good. She rarely got out...even during naps.
In her real big girl bed....well she has to get used to it.
During her attempted nap she balanced on the railing. As you can see...it's a very high railing. Nap cancelled.
Now it's night...she's walking around a bit. Looking out the window she could never look out before a bit. Not sleeping.
Hoping the night goes well.
Previously we converted her crib into a mini big girl bed.
In that bed she did pretty good. She rarely got out...even during naps.
In her real big girl bed....well she has to get used to it.
During her attempted nap she balanced on the railing. As you can see...it's a very high railing. Nap cancelled.
Now it's night...she's walking around a bit. Looking out the window she could never look out before a bit. Not sleeping.
Hoping the night goes well.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Getting older....but regressing
Natali is getting older. Yeah I know it's part of life.
A few months ago she was apparently the "prime time" for potty training.
Natali was all into her Elmo potty training video, she was able to identify when she needed to go and she would TELL us when she needed to go.
Not any more.
Her new thing is to go number 2....and not say a word. This has resulted in diaper rashes at daycare. She came home with a pretty bad one on Friday.
I know we just need to do it. I've read "The Potty Boot Camp"
I'm waiting for Kelli to read it so we are on the same page. Pun intended.
Daycare is potty training, but since she's only part time it only helps it we do it here as well.
Still waiting on her new bed. She is doing quite well in her current bed though.
This weekend we went to The Little Gym for a birthday party for two of her daycare mates.
Natali went to The Little Gym earlier this year and it did not go well .
For the first 10 minutes she clung to our legs. Then she walked around a little...not really playing.
This time she was shy for about 3 minutes. For the rest of the time she ran around and played. She didn't play with other kids much. She tried to by mostly following the other kids and mimicking them. Progress!
During the pizza and cake part of the party they had water and juice for kids. Natali used to really like apple juice (we used Simply Juice half water and half juice). Not much lately. All she wants is milk or water. Never ask for juice to the point where we haven't purchased juice in months.
A few months ago she was apparently the "prime time" for potty training.
Natali was all into her Elmo potty training video, she was able to identify when she needed to go and she would TELL us when she needed to go.
Not any more.
Her new thing is to go number 2....and not say a word. This has resulted in diaper rashes at daycare. She came home with a pretty bad one on Friday.
I know we just need to do it. I've read "The Potty Boot Camp"
I'm waiting for Kelli to read it so we are on the same page. Pun intended.
Daycare is potty training, but since she's only part time it only helps it we do it here as well.
Still waiting on her new bed. She is doing quite well in her current bed though.
This weekend we went to The Little Gym for a birthday party for two of her daycare mates.
Natali went to The Little Gym earlier this year and it did not go well .
For the first 10 minutes she clung to our legs. Then she walked around a little...not really playing.
This time she was shy for about 3 minutes. For the rest of the time she ran around and played. She didn't play with other kids much. She tried to by mostly following the other kids and mimicking them. Progress!
During the pizza and cake part of the party they had water and juice for kids. Natali used to really like apple juice (we used Simply Juice half water and half juice). Not much lately. All she wants is milk or water. Never ask for juice to the point where we haven't purchased juice in months.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Our funny daughter
Natali has been climbing out of her crib for a while. Her new big girl bed is on order. In the mean time Kelli converted her crib to a toddler bed. Natali has adjusted well...but still climbs out...instead of GOING OUT OF THE HUGE OPENING...kids....they make ya laugh!
httpv://youtu.be/DHDZwCQDRSo
httpv://youtu.be/DHDZwCQDRSo
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Screaming rewarded with a balloon and a sucker?
Natali had her second dentist visit on Monday. Just like last time I took her instead of Kelli. I have weekdays off while Kelli works weekdays. The dentist is closed weekends. Bleh.
I prepped for the visit by letting Natali sleep in. She woke up on her own around 7:05AM instead of her normal 6:00AM.
Breakfast and Ipad. We left the house at 10AM. Appointment was for 11AM.
Stopped by an electronics store first. The store is on ground level on the east side of an elevated highway. This would come into play later.
In the same parking lot at this store is a frozen yogurt place we visit about once a month. As I pulled into the parking lot Natali said, "Ice Cream please".
I told her maybe later after the dentist.
After the electronics store we headed to the dentist.
Arrived early. Natali went into shy mode.
Dentist saw us early. I had Natali in my lap. The dentist sat facing me. I then placed Natalis head in the dentist lap. Screaming ensued.
The Dentist brushed, counted then placed a flouride goo on Natalis' teeth.
Natali was screaming and squirming the entire time.
Once done she got a balloon (she LOVEs balloons!) and a sugar free lollipop.
[singlepic id=420 w=320 h=240 float=]
On the way home we had just passed the ice cream parking lot which is NOT visible from her or even my seat. Natali said ,"I want ice cream,"
"How about a Lunchable instead?" I offered.
"I want ice cream." she replied.
Fine....I exited and made a u turn.
The frozen yogurt place was closed as it was just 11:30AM.
There was another place open...so Natali got her Ice Cream.
[singlepic id=421 w=320 h=240 float=]
[singlepic id=422 w=320 h=240 float=]
Natali really is an intelligent child. I remember talking with my then 3 year old niece Haley and how we could have complete conversations Natali is rapidly approaching this level. I know every parent thinks their child is a genius....but Natali really is pretty smart.
I prepped for the visit by letting Natali sleep in. She woke up on her own around 7:05AM instead of her normal 6:00AM.
Breakfast and Ipad. We left the house at 10AM. Appointment was for 11AM.
Stopped by an electronics store first. The store is on ground level on the east side of an elevated highway. This would come into play later.
In the same parking lot at this store is a frozen yogurt place we visit about once a month. As I pulled into the parking lot Natali said, "Ice Cream please".
I told her maybe later after the dentist.
After the electronics store we headed to the dentist.
Arrived early. Natali went into shy mode.
Dentist saw us early. I had Natali in my lap. The dentist sat facing me. I then placed Natalis head in the dentist lap. Screaming ensued.
The Dentist brushed, counted then placed a flouride goo on Natalis' teeth.
Natali was screaming and squirming the entire time.
Once done she got a balloon (she LOVEs balloons!) and a sugar free lollipop.
[singlepic id=420 w=320 h=240 float=]
On the way home we had just passed the ice cream parking lot which is NOT visible from her or even my seat. Natali said ,"I want ice cream,"
"How about a Lunchable instead?" I offered.
"I want ice cream." she replied.
Fine....I exited and made a u turn.
The frozen yogurt place was closed as it was just 11:30AM.
There was another place open...so Natali got her Ice Cream.
[singlepic id=421 w=320 h=240 float=]
[singlepic id=422 w=320 h=240 float=]
Natali really is an intelligent child. I remember talking with my then 3 year old niece Haley and how we could have complete conversations Natali is rapidly approaching this level. I know every parent thinks their child is a genius....but Natali really is pretty smart.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
A 2 year old with 21K Airline Miles
It's been a while since we've posted. Busy month.
Natali has 21,000 "real" American Airlines Advantage miles. She's just 4000 miles away from Gold status. We have no more trips planned...but it would be funny for a year old to have Frequent Flier status eh?
Natali has a lot more "non rev" miles. Not sure how many.
Our most recent trip was to Frankfurt, Germany. Long flight. Almost 10 hours there....and 11 hours back. A long time on an airplane for an adult...an eternity for a 2 year old.
We are travel experts though.
Natali's previous longest flight was to Hawaii at 8 hours.
She did ok on the way to Frankfurt. A little fussy but not bad.
For the 8 days we were there we gave in on the pacifier usage. She was in a strange place...it comforted her. The time change was rough on us but it seemed to bother her the least . Frankfurt is 7 hours ahead of Dallas.
Natali did great all week. Minimal fussiness even though we were out and about all day long. We used the stroller some places and the backpack other places where strollers didn't work. We toured castles, a cocentration camp, car museums and more.
During the night she slept in our bed most nights. At one hotel she had her own bed. We are happy to say she did VERY well.
I thought she would be a little uneasy...nope. She loved it. We will be buying her a real "big girl" bed soon.
For the flight back...it was rough.
Natali slept the first hour or so. That was it.
About 8 hours in she turned to me and said ,"I want to go outside please." She was done being in the plane.
Her Ipad helped a bit...she walked around a bit. The last 15 minutes when the Ipad went away was rough.
She slept when we got home. The next two days were rough on her...and us....jet lag.
Before our trip I penciled in a trip to Japan next year. It's off the table now. The flight is almost 14 hours long to Tokyo. To long.
The trip to Frankfurt was likely her last flight in her car seat. Next time we will use the C.A.R.E.S harness. It's the only FAA approved child harness. The car seat will be checked.
More soon.
For now some photos from our trip.
[nggallery id=58]
Natali has 21,000 "real" American Airlines Advantage miles. She's just 4000 miles away from Gold status. We have no more trips planned...but it would be funny for a year old to have Frequent Flier status eh?
Natali has a lot more "non rev" miles. Not sure how many.
Our most recent trip was to Frankfurt, Germany. Long flight. Almost 10 hours there....and 11 hours back. A long time on an airplane for an adult...an eternity for a 2 year old.
We are travel experts though.
Natali's previous longest flight was to Hawaii at 8 hours.
She did ok on the way to Frankfurt. A little fussy but not bad.
For the 8 days we were there we gave in on the pacifier usage. She was in a strange place...it comforted her. The time change was rough on us but it seemed to bother her the least . Frankfurt is 7 hours ahead of Dallas.
Natali did great all week. Minimal fussiness even though we were out and about all day long. We used the stroller some places and the backpack other places where strollers didn't work. We toured castles, a cocentration camp, car museums and more.
During the night she slept in our bed most nights. At one hotel she had her own bed. We are happy to say she did VERY well.
I thought she would be a little uneasy...nope. She loved it. We will be buying her a real "big girl" bed soon.
For the flight back...it was rough.
Natali slept the first hour or so. That was it.
About 8 hours in she turned to me and said ,"I want to go outside please." She was done being in the plane.
Her Ipad helped a bit...she walked around a bit. The last 15 minutes when the Ipad went away was rough.
She slept when we got home. The next two days were rough on her...and us....jet lag.
Before our trip I penciled in a trip to Japan next year. It's off the table now. The flight is almost 14 hours long to Tokyo. To long.
The trip to Frankfurt was likely her last flight in her car seat. Next time we will use the C.A.R.E.S harness. It's the only FAA approved child harness. The car seat will be checked.
More soon.
For now some photos from our trip.
[nggallery id=58]
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Swimming Lessons
Natali has been taking swimming lessons once a week for the last three months. I take her to a place called Emler Swim School. They have several locations throughout the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. They are more expensive than the city lessons, but the pool is indoor, which was very important to me for several reasons. We can do lessons year-round at an indoor facility and I don't have to worry about the weather. Our first lesson was back in early June. We did a free trial lesson and Natali cried the entire time. It was pretty awful, but I signed her up anyway. Darren came to that first lesson and he was ready to pull her out of the pool in the first 5 minutes. He hasn't been back since. He didn't quite understand my need to get her in lessons at such a young age, but I think it's extremely important for her to have an appreciation for water and to know how to not drown. While we don't have a pool at home, we do travel a lot near water and 2 of my siblings have pools in their backyards. I want Natali to be able to enjoy herself in and around the water. So, after that first lesson I was more determined than ever that she would do those lessons.
Natali was in a class called "waterbabies" and the kids could be as young as 6 months old. Her class was mostly kids in the 1 to 2 age range though. The parents are all in the water with the kids and we did a lot of songs. The goals of the class were to just get the kids comfortable in the water and to be able to start moving through the water on their own, mostly by kicking, and to be able to hold on to the wall and move along the wall and even pull themselves out of the water. All of these things together would hopefully allow the kids to be more comfortable and not drown if they ever somehow fell in. Theoretically Natali could move to the wall if she fell in and at least know how to grab it and hold on so she wouldn't drown. This is something that every child should learn. By the end of the 12 week class she was supposed to be able to hold her breath underwater for 10 seconds. I was really skeptical about that last part. Our first "official" class was the next week after the trial lesson. Natali did not want to go at all and she cried for the first 5 minutes. She finally calmed down though, I think when she figured out we weren't going to leave. Of course she didn't really want to do anything during the lesson and she clung to me like it was a life or death situation, but I was just happy to have the crying stop. Progress was made!
As the lessons continued each week got a little better. Natali started to get comfortable and enjoy herself. She really liked the songs and even started singing them throughout the week when we were just around the house. The underwater part was difficult though. We started off just having her jump to me without putting her head under. Then it progressed to just putting her mouth under, and then the next week she went fully underwater for the first time for 1 second. That really shocked her, but she did it and then kept progressing from there. I didn't think it would happen, but by our last lesson on Friday she actually did go underwater for 10 full seconds and she came up smiling! I was extremely proud of the progress she had made. I have of course signed her up for the next session. I was expecting to just put her in another session of the waterbabies class, but after a lengthy discussion with her teacher we decided we will try moving her up to super waterbabies. I am very nervous about this transition because I will not be in the water with her anymore. I did get the opportunity to watch a little bit of another super waterbabies class and it made me a bit more comfortable about it. I decided to go for it. I signed her up with the same teacher so the transition will be easier. She has an excellent teacher so I'm glad she will get to stay with him. Of course, if it doesn't work out in the new class we can always step back and do the first class again, but I think it will be fine. I'm excited to see how it goes.
While I wasn't sure at the beginning of this whole thing, I am extremely happy we stuck with the lessons. It has been a fun and valuable experience and Natali is better off for having gone through it. I think the first week or two in her new class might be a bit rough, but we will get through that too and she should be able to do a whole lot more in the water by the end of it.
Natali was in a class called "waterbabies" and the kids could be as young as 6 months old. Her class was mostly kids in the 1 to 2 age range though. The parents are all in the water with the kids and we did a lot of songs. The goals of the class were to just get the kids comfortable in the water and to be able to start moving through the water on their own, mostly by kicking, and to be able to hold on to the wall and move along the wall and even pull themselves out of the water. All of these things together would hopefully allow the kids to be more comfortable and not drown if they ever somehow fell in. Theoretically Natali could move to the wall if she fell in and at least know how to grab it and hold on so she wouldn't drown. This is something that every child should learn. By the end of the 12 week class she was supposed to be able to hold her breath underwater for 10 seconds. I was really skeptical about that last part. Our first "official" class was the next week after the trial lesson. Natali did not want to go at all and she cried for the first 5 minutes. She finally calmed down though, I think when she figured out we weren't going to leave. Of course she didn't really want to do anything during the lesson and she clung to me like it was a life or death situation, but I was just happy to have the crying stop. Progress was made!
As the lessons continued each week got a little better. Natali started to get comfortable and enjoy herself. She really liked the songs and even started singing them throughout the week when we were just around the house. The underwater part was difficult though. We started off just having her jump to me without putting her head under. Then it progressed to just putting her mouth under, and then the next week she went fully underwater for the first time for 1 second. That really shocked her, but she did it and then kept progressing from there. I didn't think it would happen, but by our last lesson on Friday she actually did go underwater for 10 full seconds and she came up smiling! I was extremely proud of the progress she had made. I have of course signed her up for the next session. I was expecting to just put her in another session of the waterbabies class, but after a lengthy discussion with her teacher we decided we will try moving her up to super waterbabies. I am very nervous about this transition because I will not be in the water with her anymore. I did get the opportunity to watch a little bit of another super waterbabies class and it made me a bit more comfortable about it. I decided to go for it. I signed her up with the same teacher so the transition will be easier. She has an excellent teacher so I'm glad she will get to stay with him. Of course, if it doesn't work out in the new class we can always step back and do the first class again, but I think it will be fine. I'm excited to see how it goes.
While I wasn't sure at the beginning of this whole thing, I am extremely happy we stuck with the lessons. It has been a fun and valuable experience and Natali is better off for having gone through it. I think the first week or two in her new class might be a bit rough, but we will get through that too and she should be able to do a whole lot more in the water by the end of it.
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