judecorp: (punk play house)
Punk had her first official dental cleaning this morning at 9am. I actually had to wake her at 7:45, which is kind of like being in Bizarro World. She woke up once at 6 and I snuggled her back to sleep and then she just kept sleeping. Score!

Anyway, the dental excursion was a success. I'd been talking it up for about a week - how she was going to go to the dentist, would have to open her mouth wide and say, "Aaah," how they would be touching her teeth and brushing with a special spinning toothbrush that tickles, etc. I really wanted it all out there so she wouldn't wig out. Usually she's pretty excited about everything but you just never know.

So we get to the waiting room and they weren't ready for her yet and she was super duper antsy, all, "Is it time for my appointment yet?" Finally they called her in and the hygienist put on gloves and Punk opened her mouth and said, "Aaaah!" which was amusing because the hygienist wasn't even doing anything. Finally the dentist came who was very sweet, asked me if I had any concerns, and I let her know that I took Punk to a different dentist (that I wasn't jazzed about) at around 18 months because she has these white spots on her front teeth, but that they haven't gotten any worse. She said she would check.

First she looked at all of Punk's teeth and then she used the pick thing and told Punk she was just counting the teeth, which I thought was genius. She did a little scaling really quickly and then Punk had some buildup on the back of her bottom front teeth so she actually had to dig it out and Punk was pretty chill about it. Then they got to the tooth polishing part and Punk actually didn't like that, saying several times, "I don't like this, Mama!" but the dentist worked quickly and the hygienist and I helped hold her hands. They flossed quickly. Then they painted flouride on her teeth and did a quick rinse. And that was it! She got a toothbrush, 2 stickers, and got to pick a prize from the prize drawer (she of course picked a "fancy" ring).

The dentist said she didn't see any signs of cavities, and that the white spots looked like an enamel difference (rather than a problem) that might be genetic because I have some, too. She said she saw the tiniest overbite that is likely from pacifier use and I let her know that Punk is giving her pacifiers to her pediatrician on Wednesday at her 3-year check up. So that was a non-issue.

We have an appointment in six months and I can't believe my kid is old enough to go to the dentist! One thing that I thought was interesting was that there were three dental chairs all in one big room and three kids got their teeth done at the same time! It was good for peer pressure for Punk (they were bigger kids) but I imagine it could be complicated when there is a freaked-out kid freaking everyone out.

I am super proud of my big girl who sat in the dental chair for her first big girl cleaning!!
judecorp: (crucified baby)
Did I mention that my kid has been sleeping in a toddler bed for two weeks now?

Easiest freaking transition we've ever done.

Perhaps potty training can miraculously be that easy.

Babysitter

Aug. 22nd, 2009 10:40 am
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)
Punk is having her first ever real babysitter, apart from child care. There have been a couple of instances where someone (like Luka or Clara) has hung out with Punk for an hour or so when Jen was working that night job and I hadn't gotten home from work yet, but she has never had an honest-to-goodness "we're going out so someone else is taking care of you for several hours and putting you to bed" babysitter. I think it will be fine but of course I am a little nervous that she is going to be a train wreck. (Oh wait, once she was watched by my lovely friend [livejournal.com profile] lorac who held her in the chair for like 3 hours, I forgot that [livejournal.com profile] lorac is going to be sainted for that.)

My lovely friend Myra volunteered to have Punk over to her house to play with her 3-year-old daughter for a while, and then she will bring her back to our house to put Punk to bed. No one besides Jen and me has ever put Punk to bed. Ever. Well, outside of day care. But Myra wins the AWESOME FRIEND award for agreeing to entertain my kid all evening, feed her dinner, and then shlep her back to my house. And she is pregnant! She is amazing.

So for the past several days, I have been telling Punk that she is going to go play at Milana's house. She asked once if I was going to stay and play and I said, "No, Mama is going to leave and Mommy is going to leave and you are going to stay and play and then Milana's Mommy is going to bring you home to bed." Now when I say, "Do you want to go play at Milana's?" she says, "Yes and Mama is leaving and Mommy is leaving." :) I keep bribing her with all of the pink, princessy toys at Milana's house. She has princess and Dora everything and whenever we go there, Punk doesn't want to leave...

Jen and I are going to a wedding in Harvard, MA. It's quite a hike and I'm sure we will be quite tired when we get back. But it should be fun to go to a grown-up event, that hasn't really ever happened!

~//~

In the meantime, I am trying to desperately clean my house while Jen and Punk are out playing so 1) Myra doesn't think we are a bunch of dirty slobs (her house is always spotless) and 2) everything is clean for when Auntie Gretchen and Nana come visit on Thursday!
judecorp: (i'm special)
1. My grandfather is really declining. He sleeps most of the day and night. As far as I know he isn't in any pain, but everything wipes him out. It's really sad because he has always been so lively. Lots of people have been coming to visit him (friends and relatives), and he recently had a priest visit him for confession and Anointing of the Sick. The fact that he asked for these things pretty much sums it up. I'm going to have Punk make him a picture and bring it to him this weekend.

2. Speaking of Punk pictures, I recently mailed some of Punk's artwork to my mother. It was one of my good deeds and it really made her day, so that's good. I am not terribly close with my mother but heck, we don't have a lot of family. And Punk's her only grandkid so she deserves a little fridge art.

3. The weather this past weekend was positively brilliant and we spent a lot of time outside. I can't wait for actual spring and summer so we can fill Punk's days with lots of outings. On Saturday, I took her to a local cemetery just to walk around and step in puddles. It was her first time and she is definitely hooked. On Sunday, we went for a little walk with some friends over on the Hampshire College campus. We took a nice, long walk and then went to visit the cows on the campus farm and also stopped at the campus sugar shack. Within about 1 minute of our Sunday walk, Punk tripped and totally bit it on the pavement. She has road rash on her cheek and lip. Poor little clumsy thing. :(

4. She knows my name. Tonight, she was hollering through the monitor when she was supposed to be sleeping: Mama! Mama! Mama Jude! Mama Jude! Jude!

Ridiculous bragging. )
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)
I took Punk to the pediatric dentist today for the first time to check out a white spot on one of her front teeth. I had Jen ask the pediatrician about it at her most recent well-baby, and he basically said that it was probably nothing but to check with a dentist since teeth aren't his thing. There are a ton of pedi dentists in the area and most of them will do a "teeth count and check" for kids under two for free, so why the heck not, right?

Except that it was a disaster. ;) Punk is definitely not feeling the medical establishment these days and is starting to freak out at the pediatrician when they come near her with any equipment (thermometer, needle, you name it), so I was leery but basically just hoped she didn't bite anyone. (She is strong. She has bitten me a couple of times when I was trying to feel for her back molars.) I am pleased to say that she did NOT bite anyone, but she had to be held down and she screamed bloody murder. It was horrible.

The hygienist was kind of a robot and seemed to be operating on a script. She told me that the spot was demineralization (which I kind of figured) and to watch out because it could turn into decay, blah blah. Fine. She asked if Punk nurses or uses a bottle to sleep (no), if she goes to sleep with or walks around all day with a sippy cup (no), if she drinks a lot of juice or eats a lot of sweets (no), and then proceeded to remind me at least four times that I shouldn't let her walk around with a sippy cup all day and take little sips because it keeps her mouth full of sugar. Even though I already told her that she only drinks at meal and snack times.

She kept reassuring me it was "very early" and "not a big deal" and that I was such a good Mom for noticing but all the while reprimanding me for the sippy cup thing. And so I would say something like, "So how did she get decay if she doesn't do these things?" and she was all "it's not decay, it's no big deal," and then read me the sippy cup riot act again. Weird.

She had the dentist come in and check it out. By this point, *I* was sitting in the dentist chair with Punk and was hugging her and rubbing her back (her back was to everyone). He was really awesome and just peeked in her mouth around my shoulder and said, "It's nothing. It's fine." And he was really freaking hot.

They didn't really have anything to recommend for the demineralization because Punk is too young for flouride treatments, but she did say I could swab a little flouride rinse on the spot before bed sometimes, and I might do that. They also re-recommended the flouride drops (pedi recommended them at 6 months but we didn't do it), and I called the pediatrician to call it in. I might do every other day or something.

But umm, taking my screaming crazy child to the dentist really made me feel like a mama! And aside from the murderous screaming, the hygienists commented on how beautiful she is (which of course she is) and remarked on her impressive vocabulary. (More like, "Wow, she sure does talk a lot for a one year old!" and "She knows her letters already? That's crazy!" But I will take what I can get.)
judecorp: (baby feet)
Last night we drove out to Shutesbury to hang out with some good friends.

Pros:
Good friends!
Pizza!
Conversation!
Toddlers playing!
Cuteness!

Cons:
Oh Em Gee, the roads out there!
Getting stuck trying to get out of their driveway!
Punk going to sleep at 9pm!
Did I mention the roads?

I feel kind of bad because I can see them comparing their son to my daughter. I mean, that's natural - parents compare. But Punk has two months on him, and she is exceedingly verbal (way more than "normal") and not a good comparison. Also, their son is very physically gifted and is much more sure-footed and coordinated than Punk is, and is able to climb up on stuff which Punk most certainly can not. Sigh. But I still feel bad because I hear them saying things like, "Oh my god, did you just hear her count to 10?" or "Dude, she knows the ABCs!" or whatever and I feel bad. Like, really bad. Because their kid is so awesome and I don't want them to think he should be doing stuff just like I don't think I should get myself bent because Punk can't climb onto the couch yet. (Damned muscle tone.)

But the worst was getting stuck in that freaking snow bank! ARGH!!!
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)
Long list. Probably missed some. )

Mama Pride

Dec. 19th, 2008 01:17 pm
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)
Skip if you don't want to read mama brag. )

That's probably enough bragging for one post.
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)
A list for my own record. )

She is amazing and awesome. Also, she is getting really freaking tall:

retro baby
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)
+ This morning she built a six-block tower. Holy crap!

- This afternoon, she tried to push a 10-week-old baby out of my arms. Holy crap!

She's so feisty. I don't even know what to do about the jealousy. Woah.
judecorp: (me and gus)
I love seeing her little mind working. It is such an amazing thing. I enjoy watching clients learn new things, but since I only see them week to week (or less), I don't get the full effect. Watching Punk, I see that things just happen - suddenly, randomly - or that they've happened somehow under my nose.

I find it so awesome that a little person who has a couple of handfuls of words can understand everything. And I do mean everything. She understands things I didn't even know she knew! Case in point, I often ask her to go and get a particular book. Usually I do this when she has made me read the latest issue of Babybug so many times that I'm ready to kick Kim and Carrots right out the window, but sometimes for fun. I first tried it with Hey, Wake Up! because that is a particular fave of hers, but I have been adding to the list of books I ask for.

This evening, as we were winding down, I told her to "get the underwear book." Now the book in question is actually called Underwear Do's and Don'ts but I don't know that I've ever said that to her - I typically just jump right in. ("Do have lots of different kinds of underwear. Don't wear them all at once.") I fully expected her to look at me, confused. But no, she flipped through the books on the shelf and emerged with the underwear book in hand.

I am fascinated by this little creature and watching her mind expand with every waking (and sleeping) moment. She used to be a tiny baby content to blink and coo. Today she is an active little person who can "throw the diaper in the trash," "go to the bath," "pick up that book off the floor," "put the toys away," and find 'the underwear book' in a bin of at least 30 books.

Today she is 16 months old.
judecorp: (Default)
climbing in the block table

first piggies!!

She's such a... KID. I can't even believe it but it totally makes me misty.

~//~

Words she has added lately:
all done
airplane
yeah
toy
cheese
keys
ah ah (monkey sound)

~//~

This kid is frickin' amazing. It was really hard when she wasn't walking because I would do evaluations on kids her age (or younger) and they would be walking and it was all I could think about. Lately I have been doing evaluations on kids her age and it really shows how even though she does not have the balance and gross motor skills of some of these kids, she really is ridiculously smart. She is incredibly talkative but her biggest strength is that she is SO socially engaging. She really 'gets' people and figures out how to work a room.

(I credit that to all of my AP parenting, of course. ;) )
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)


And a little cute to round it up:

yay! punkins!

She is so awesome.

Genius baby

Oct. 6th, 2008 07:14 pm
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)
Punk now says "thank you" (tih tooooooo).
It seriously is the cutest thing ever.

Other new words on the list:
bath (bah)
baa

It always freaks me out when she learns something at child care. I love it, but it catches me off guard. We've been pushing the farm toys lately (little people farm, melissa and doug farm puzzle, melissa and doug magnet animals) because they're cute as heck and out of nowhere today, she picked up the sheep magnets and said, "baa."

A genius, I tell you.
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)
Body parts Punk can point to or show:
Hair
Eye
Nose
Mouth
Tongue
Hands
Belly
Feet

(Not too shabby!)

Current words:
Bye-Bye
Uh oh
Up
Cat
Duck
Ball
Mama
Baby
That

(And a few potential others that could be freak occurrences or coincidences like 'book' and 'dog')

Current signs/gestures:
Eat
More
Milk
All done
No (shakes head)
Bye-bye
Blow kisses
Up

She is getting so freaking big!
judecorp: (punk banana sticker)


And a little cute:

happy girl

New shoes!

Sep. 26th, 2008 08:54 pm
judecorp: (top of the world)
We were going to go to the Big E today but of course it is raining. And cold. And raining. We had to get Punk some new shoes at some point because the shoelaces broke on her current ones and they were seriously beat up, so we figured we would run down to the mall this evening real quick-like and get her some new shoes.

The dude at the shoe store was a horse's ass and kept making really crappy statements like, "Wow, she's really behind," and "I don't really like her gait, it's really immature," and stuff like that. I was like, "Dude, she started taking steps YESTERDAY." He kept saying ridiculous statements like, "She shouldn't walk with those walker toys, they mess with her balance," which is umm, untrue. But whatever.

Punk didn't like him either, so after she got her shoes, I was amusing her by letting her lean against the glass wall (second floor) so she could look down on the first floor. She was kind of cruising along the glass wall and I turned for a minute and she was WALKING AWAY. She walked through the mall several times, usually 10-20 feet at a time.

Crazy kid, went from a couple of steps yesterday to full-on toddling through the mall. I guess she was just holding out for snazzy new shoes! ;)
judecorp: (baby feet)
Someone took a couple of steps several times today. Just a couple here, a couple there, but hey, it's a start.

Just sayin'. It's about time.

Mama poo

Sep. 14th, 2008 10:14 pm
judecorp: (secret)
I'm on this online board that was originally for mamas of July '07 babies but now has expanded and is mostly summer '07 babies with some outliers. Well, today someone posted a video of her baby walking. Her baby was born on October 18th.

I try not to harp on the whole "Punk is not walking" thing but umm, this baby is 3.5 months YOUNGER than mine. Yes, she's an early walker, and yes, Punk is still not "abnormal" yet (next month, baby, next month!), but it still makes me feel like a great big pile of mama poo.

Time for bed.

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