The pacifier is gone for good!!

Natali has always been quite fond of her pacifier.  However, we are not those parents that let their toddler run around all the time with a pacifier in their mouth.  I can't remember when we made the pacifier only at bedtime rule, but I'm pretty sure it has been over a year at least.  There were exceptions of course.  She always had one on an airplane and we let her have it a lot when we were in Germany.  It helped make her comfortable in those different situations.  For daily life though she was only allowed to have it for naps and at night.  Recently however, Natali had started to wake up in the morning saying her mouth hurt.  Of course the obvious culprit was the pacifier, so I decided it was time to get rid of it for good.  We went to New York to visit my brother and his family early last week, so I let her have it during the trip, but when we got back I decided that was it.  Darren wasn't totally on board with the idea yet, so I waited until he was gone.  Then I hid all of the pacifiers in the house.  That first night Natali was in her normal routine of brush teeth, get pacifier, go to bed, so there was obvious crying at first when I told her the pacifiers were all gone.  That only lasted for a minute or two though and then she went right to sleep.  I was pleasantly surprised.  I thought it would be a much bigger battle than that.  Of course, she sleeps at daycare without a pacifier, so that might have helped a bit too.  I thought we might also have a problem with her waking up in the middle of the night asking for it, but that didn't happen.  She slept right through the night.  The next night she asked for a pacifier again, but didn't protest at all when I told her they were all gone.  Since then she hasn't asked again.  It has been a whole week now.  My little baby is growing up!

On another note, we are going to try potty training again this weekend.  It has been since Thanksgiving when we tried previously.  Recently Natali has started announcing every time she pees.  Of course, then she asks to go potty after she has already gone in her diaper, so it really isn't helpful.  I'm hoping this is a sign that she is really ready this time.  We'll see how it goes.

Behind the camera

I am a photographer....I even have a degree that proves that fact. I like being behind the camera, not infront of it.

Natali has known was a camera is for a while. She even knows when we are using our Ipads as a camera. She quickly wants to get behind it and look at the picture.

Yesterday Kelli and Natali went to our dog park as it was a fairly warm Texas winter day. Kelli shot a video of Natali, and Natali couldn't wait to see the screen.

httpv://youtu.be/whw2yQXsmQQ

Sleeping on the plane...without the car seat

We took a quick trip to Atlanta, Georgia this weekend.

Natali has flown around 50 times. For at least 46 of them she was in her car seat.

We bought the CARES harness a while ago but only used it once on a short flight down to Houston. We were worried Natali wouldn't be able to sleep in a regular seat on a longer flight while being strapped into the harness. We were wrong.




On the flight to Atlanta Natali was fine in her seat with her Ipad and pacifier (it's only for bedtime and airplanes).



On the flight back Natali fell asleep before we took off while strapped into the harness. She slept the entire two hours. We did make a makeshift pillow with a blanket.



It's nice to know next time we fly (which will likely be to New York) Natali can sleep just fine in a regular seat. Things will get even easier when she can use a booster seat instead of a car seat.



The Georgia Aquarium was fun. It's definitely not stroller friendly which is why we left ours at home. The dolphin show was also not toddler friendly. It had a lot of dark scenes and strobe lights that didn't really help the really unnecessary story.

 

Lactose Intolerant?

Natali has had this odd quirk for a while.

Whenever she sits at her table she will often tense up, strain and squirm....almost like she's full of gas or trying to shoot out a #2. She does this for minutes at a time. It's not comfortable to watch her do this.  No gas comes out....and she doesn't make a dirty diaper.

We have tried different chairs...and putting her on the ground...she does the same thing.

I (Darren) finally thought, maybe it's her diet.

Milk products and I don't get along very well. I get cramping, gas or both. Natali is ,at my guesstimation , 45% Black. Lactose intolerance is huge for people who are classified as black. The rates are as high as 75% of people classified as black are also lactose intolerant.

So on Saturday we tried replacing her milk with Soy milk. She drank it at first....but has since shunned all milk (likely due to taste).

Sunday she squirmed a little. Today (Monday)....no squirming, straining or tensing up. Not even once. This has been a common occurrence every morning (when she has the most milk) for a long time.

I feel bad that she has shunned all milk. Time to do some research and taste testing of lactose free milk. Also not good as she likes cheese. She eats A LOT of cheese via slices and sticks.

This is an ongoing study as Kelli is high skeptical of Natali being lactose intolerant. From what I've seen over the last 36 hours....I'm thinking I'm right.

Growing

Natali is 2 feet 11 inches tall. She grew 6 inches last year. Kelli is only 5 foot 3 inches tall. Yep Natali is more than half as tall as Kelli. I am pretty sure Natali will be taller than Kelli.

When I was younger my mom told me I would be 6 foot 4 inches tall. My brother was to be 6 foot 5 inches tall. She had our wrist tested/measured.

My brother really is 6 foot 5. I am just 5 foot 11...with the hands and feet of a 6 foot 4 inch frame. I can easily palm a basketball...and wear size 14 shoes. I had some health issues in my teenage years that stunted my growth. My genes still say I should be 6 foot 4.

Beyond her height Natali is growing on the inside as well. Her speech in very developed. I remember my niece Haley being very intelligent at 2 1/2 years old.

For Christmas Natali made out like a bandit. She got her first play kitchen, a shopping cart (she loves shopping carts!), Doc Mc'Stuffins light up shoes, Doc Mc'Stuffins doctor kit and more. She really likes her kitchen.

Our friends Eric and Angela recently had their second child. We've been over to visit a few times. Kelli heled the new baby....but not I. I have zero desire for another child. Cute....and neat....but not for us.

This is a good thing as the new house we are buying has one less bedroom than our current house (3 vs 4). Since we will maintain a guest bedroom, we have no room for another child. It won't be fair to make Natali share her room.

Finally a few photos.

White flag

We've raised the white flag on potty training....for now.

Natali was frustrated as were we. Gonna hold off and try again in a few weeks. She knows when she needs to go #2...but not #1.

I still can't get over how fast her speech is developing. Everyday she says new and longer sentences.  Two years ago this month she wasn't even crawling. Now she walking, conversing, climbing, making decisions.....yep.....no longer a baby. I still hold her like a baby sometimes....but it's getting awkward.

Speaking of time going by, this will be our last December in our current house. The Byrds are flying south.....about 3 miles south.

We are moving into a new house in the new Viridian community in north Arlington. We are going from 1960 square feet to 2700 square feet. New house will be 3 bedrooms plus a game room, study and a media room. Should be interesting. Should move in next May....which by then.....Natali better be potty trained.

Conversations with my daughter

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.

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