"C" is for Cloth Diapers

I hopped on the cloth diapering bandwagon for several reasons, mostly to save money and decrease waste.  We spent approximately $700 for disposable diapers for Tully in one year.  I stopped tracking diapers after his first year, but I can guess we spent about that much for his second year as well.  He used fewer diapers, but the price per diaper increased with size.  In September, Tulsa changed the trash service, and we seriously selected twice a week trash pickup instead of once a week because of the number of diapers I was expecting between both Tully and Clare.  Now that we're cloth diapering and Tully is potty trained, I'm hoping to reduce our service back to once a week.

I started with four gDiapers I purchased on Craigslist from a new mom who didn't want them after only a few uses.  Four diapers wasn't nearly enough for a newborn, since we were constantly washing the same diapers over and over.  They also weren't absorbent enough.  First attempt = fail.  I did some more online research to decide what type of diaper I wanted to use: All-In-Ones (AIO), All-In-Twos, pockets, or hybrids--just to name a few.  I liked the idea that I could adjust the absorbency in pocket diapers, and they were the closest thing to AIOs, as far as ease of use.  Some of the most popular pocket diapers are fully adjustable one-size diapers that fit almost from birth to potty training.  The one-size pockets fit best starting at about 12 lbs.  Once Clare hit 12 lbs I bought a stash of 10 pocket diapers from my friend, Callie, at Oui Oui Cloth Diapers.  Ten diapers is enough for about one day for us, so it was a decent start.   I bought a few other brands to see what types and styles fit best: BumGenius, Fuzzibunz, Bumkins, and Thirsties Duos.  We experienced some leaks and had some diapers that still smelled even after washing.  First I thought the diapers were repelling, so I tweaked our washing routine.  We now rinse/wash/rinse and use Charlie's Soap or Rockin' Green Hard Rock for the wash.  The rinses are really full wash cycles on warm with no soap.  The actual wash cycle is done on heavy duty with hot water and an extra rinse.  The diapers are definitely clean each time now, and we're actually saving money on laundry soap because Charlie's and Rockin' Green are both cheaper than Tide from Sam's.  Since we can't use laundry softener (causes repelling), I bought some wool dryer balls.  They help with softening, and I noticed everything definitely dries faster.  I'll be happy when we can use our chemical-laden laundry softener again though so our laundry will smell delicious.

I figured out some of the leaks were leg leaks from loose elastic, so we fixed that too by replacing those diapers.  The last piece was figuring out the right inserts.  Pocket diapers typically come with microfiber inserts.  These just did not work for us.  They weren't absorbent enough.  They can't be placed directly against baby's skin, if needed, and it was difficult to get them clean in the wash.  Callie brought over some old-school cotton prefold diapers like the ones my mom used on me 30 years ago, and I put those in place of the microfiber inserts.  Boom--no leaks!  There are lots of options for cotton prefolds, so I've ordered several brands to see what will work best for us.  They also make hemp prefolds.  They are more expensive, but reviewers say they are trim and more absorbent.  I can't wait to try them.

So far I've spent about $500 on cloth diapers, wet bags, dryer balls, diaper pail liners, and a sprayer.  The initial investment is nearly what it cost to diaper Tully for a year, but I can use everything until Clare is potty trained.  Also, I've been able to resell the first four gDiapers I purchased and recover my cost for those.   I still use some microfiber and gDiaper inserts to double up with prefolds at night, so I want to keep some on hand, but I don't need over half of what I own.  If the cotton and hemp prefolds work as I expect, I'll unload most of the microfiber inserts and the rest of my gDiaper inserts, and my costs should come down to $400.   Also, when Clare is potty trained, I can resell my entire stash, so hopefully it doesn't cost much of anything in the end to diaper her.

It's been a learning process for sure, but I like the cloth diapers.  Now that we have a wash routine and no leaks, it's easy, and there are tons of prints and colors to choose from.  I think my little bunny likes them too.

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"C" is for Clare (2 mo)

Clare really likes blowing bubbles.  She also has pretty good head control now, and she loves to sleep on her tummy just like her brother did.  Back to sleep...blah, blah...I know, I know.  I also know my kids... Anywho, baby girl wakes up once a night around 3 am to nurse and goes right back to sleep.  This is new territory for me, as Tully was a terrible sleeper.  We've also ventured into new territory with cloth diapering.  I'm saving that for a whole new post.  Stay tuned.

Clare is still exclusively breast fed, and we've successfully battled through oversupply and thrush.  Ever seen gentian violet (GV)?  It's an all natural thrush treatment.  This is Clare after nursing.

It stains everything.  Tully found the bottle and opened it.  This was fun to explain to his teachers.

We tried other natural and prescription treatments, but nothing was getting rid of the thrush, so we tried GV.  It made a huge mess, but it provided immediate relief and eventually got rid of the thrush completely.  It will be our go-to remedy, if thrush comes back.
  
Clare is still tracking great for height and weight.  Here are her stats:

weight 13 lbs 1 oz (68%)
height 23.5 in (67%)
head 40 cm (78%)

Tully brought home a nasty cold/virus from school that he shared with the entire family.  This was the first day he was sick.  The kid doesn't sleep anywhere but in his bed.  He has NEVER fallen asleep on the couch.

Every single one of us, including my mom, got ear infections.  The kids took antibiotics, but since I already had thrush, they were off limits for me.  I ended up with a ruptured ear drum, which wasn't fun since I had partial hearing loss when it happened.  Even with antibiotics, Clare had to go in for a second sick appointment to start nebulizer treatments.  I snapped this pic of John taking care of her.

Once everyone recovered, we got out to enjoy the few inches of snow Tulsa got.  Tully loved his sled from Mamay, and Clare slept the entire time all bundled up under my jacket.  She could breathe.  I promise.

The weather warmed up some in March, so I took Clare out in the stroller on a nice day.  Tully was never a fan of being strapped in, so I wondered what Clare would think.  She enjoyed it!

After she spit up on that outfit, I changed her into a onesie her Aunt Lisa made.  I think Clare makes a pretty cute Raggedy Baby model.

I am definitely Clare's favorite person right now.  I think it has something to do with milk, so she gives me lots of smiles and laughs.  As she gets older and depends on me less, I know she will enjoy spending more time with her daddy.  Until then, I'm going hog all of her kisses and snuggles!

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"C" is for Clare (1 mo)

My baby girl is already a month old.

1 month

Time is going by much more quickly with #2.  She has battled through most of flu season with only some chest congestion, and I think we caught the reflux early, so overall she's a pretty happy girl.  Daddy is convinced we have a conspiracy against him because she cries nearly every time he holds her, but I have assured him, this is not the case.  It turns out that anytime she doesn't nurse to sleep, and I'm tired, I hand her off.  When she decides she is sleepy, she wants Mommy, so Daddy starts bouncing and shushing until she falls asleep.  He's bounced her to sleep on more than one occasion while the heater runs for white noise in the bathroom.  Clare, you owe your Daddy big time.

The good news is when Clare does go to sleep, she stays asleep.  Her brother, on the other hand, liked to take 45 minute cat naps.  Clare likes her beauty sleep.  We do too.

Clare and I don't have anything that resembles a schedule, but that's to be expected at this point.  My schedule is wake up when she wakes up, feed her, diaper change/interact/do something around the house, if it's daytime, and then sleep, sometimes nursing again before sleeping.  She eats every 2-3 hours, but sometimes I get some 4 or 5 hour stretches at night.  I'll be glad when she masters nursing while laying down.  She likes to get a lazy latch on me when we try, so I'm stuck sitting up and sleeping at 3am.

In other news, she lost all of the dark hair on top of her head.  (You like the bow toupée?)  My poor kiddo is balding.  There is some bright blonde hair coming in in its place though.  Until then...bows!

Tully has been very sweet with his baby sister, who he now calls "Baby Care" or "Baby CiCi".  He likes to give her "bisses" and share all of his boy germs with her.  She's going to have a stellar immune system.  He had a nasty virus and 103 fever for several days, but he wanted to get in on the photo action though.  Please excuse his sweaty, crazy hair.

Tully 22 months; Clare 1 month

Tully's sickness really came out of nowhere.  John took him to the grocery store, and when they got back Tully was a bright red, sweaty, snotty mess.  John walked in and said he had to pull over to try to calm Tully down on the 2 mile drive home from the grocery store.  John NEVER pulls over for that kind of stuff.  About the time John is telling me this, I show him my poop covered hand from Clare's explosive diaper change, and casually mention that our dog Zach just vomited all over the patio.  Trifecta!  If there was ever any doubt that we would stop at two kids, it was confirmed in that moment.  Enough with the pee, poop, and puke.  We've been able to keep Tully's fever under control with ibuprofen and acetaminophen, and thankfully he tested negative for flu and RSV.

We switched pediatricians (again!).   We were spending waaaaay too much time waiting during appointments at Dr. Ross' office, so we changed to Dr. Brian Raley at Avalon Park Pediatrics (www.BrianRaleyMD.com).  Dr. Raley has really impressed me.  He did Clare's newborn check during a home visit--like a real old-school home visit.  The guy showed up to my house with his nurse, Katie, and they did everything they needed to do here in my living room.  Katie also gave Tully a flu shot.  It was nice because both kids were perfectly healthy, so we didn't have to visit a doctor's office with other sick kids.  Clare's next 2 month visit will be a home visit as well.  As if the home visits weren't enough, Dr. Raley has weekend hours during cold and flu season.  He posts on his Facebook page that he will have hours, and when you call the office, he gives instructions to text his cell phone to coordinate an appointment time.  I have my pediatrician's cell phone number.  What?!  The icing on the cake is that you can message him via the web portal, and he'll respond.  He is so accessible, and it's been great, especially with Tully in school during the cold and flu season.  I also like Dr. Raley's bedside manner, and I appreciate that he requires his patients to follow the vaccination schedule recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).  With all of the hooplah and misinformation on the internet about risks associated with vaccinations, I'm happy we found a pediatrician whose views are in line with ours.

Overall it's been a great first month.  I can't wait for Clare and Tully to start interacting more over the next few months.  Clare is getting more and more alert each day.

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"C" is for Clare

Marian Clare Cockerham

December 29, 2012

10:26 AM

7 pounds 13 ounces

20.5 inches

Our sweet Clare was born a few days after Christmas!  I woke up at 10:00 AM on Friday, December 28 knowing that she would arrive soon, so I spent the day relaxing around the house through irregular contractions.  Sometime after 8:00 PM things picked up, which was perfect because Tully was already in bed for the night.  My parents stayed the night, so we could leave for the hospital any time we needed.  I labored at home until contractions were two minutes apart, and we left for the hospital around 3:30 AM.  I was feeling intense pain, and we had already modified the birth plan since I would be requesting an epidural as soon as we arrived.  On our way to the hospital, some idiot was driving their untagged maroon SUV 10 miles under the speed limit through our neighborhood, and John knew to go around them without me even saying anything.  He might have ran a red light on the way too, but maybe I was just imagining things during contractions ;)  We pulled up to the main door of the hospital, but the doors were locked.  Grrrr.  As we walked around the building towards the emergency entrance, I noticed the same untagged maroon SUV pulling through the parking lot.  When they saw me and my huge belly waddling to the ER, I guess they decided they didn't need to call the cops on us. Thanks, citizen patrol, for keeping our streets safe.  Move along.

My midwife was still on vacation, so Dr. Whitham was the doctor on-call attending my birth.  Once I got settled in the hospital with my epidural, I quickly dilated from 4 cm to 10 cm in under two hours.  I'm thinking to myself, "This is going fast.  I can totally do this!"  They went ahead and broke my water, and I began pushing shortly after.   I pushed for a couple hours and didn't have much to show for it.  I thought second births were supposed to be faster/easier??  Lucky for me Dr. Whitham had to attend another birth at the hospital across the street, so they continued to let me push for another two hours.  What fun.  At this point I needed to get off my back, so I convinced the nurse that I should be pushing on my hands and knees or in a squat.  She and the other nurse who brought in the squat bar were both shocked I was moving around with my epidural.  In my mind, I just needed to get in a different position no matter what it took, so I could get Clare going in the right direction.  Turns out Clare didn't actually move, but I sure felt better.  Four hours into pushing, Dr. Whitham came back from the other hospital, and he figured out that Clare was sunny side up (posterior).  That explained why I was getting NOWHERE with the pushing.  He worked to manually turn her face-down between contractions, and boy was I glad I had an epidural.  Instead of getting to relax and breathe for a minute between contractions, it was non-stop pain and pressure.  As soon as he got her turned, it only took six pushes (two contractions), and Clare came flying out.  Dr. Whitham didn't even have time to get gloves on!  She latched within 30 minutes, and with the exception of a few bumps in the road when my milk came in, she's been nursing like a champ. 

John and Clare sleeping in hospital

John, Tully, Clare

Tully has adjusted well to the new baby.  He doesn't call her by name, even though we tried to give her a nickname, CiCi (for Clare Cockerham), that would be easy for him to say.  He just says baby.  He likes to touch her nose, eyes, ears, neck, etc., but he also knows "nice", so most touching is done gently.  He likes to bring me burp cloths and blankets to cover her up, and he also pats her and says things like, "It's okay, baby," and "Baby sleep."  Overall, he's pretty sweet with her, and he hasn't sought attention negatively or acted up any more than usual.  I noticed almost immediately that he was having a hard time going to sleep and staying asleep though.  There was just too much going on in the house, and he could totally work my mom into coming into his room.  We gave him his pacifier back, and he's been content ever since. 

My mom was here for about three weeks after Clare was born, so Tully spent a lot of time with her.  He hasn't been able to say Grammy, and while she was here, he officially renamed her Mamay, which sometimes sounds like mom-aye or ma'am-aye, depending on his mood.  It's your world, kid, so the history books have officially been rewritten to note that my mom is Mamay.  Clare was lucky that Mamay was here to help so much.  My house would have been an absolute disaster, and John and I would have likely starved.  Thanks, Mamay!

I think John and I have adjusted well to life with two kids.  We have lots of help from family and the nanny, but Clare is nothing like Tully, so that's made the change easier for sure.  She's more laid back, and I have a better clue about what I'm doing, so the combo of those two things makes for less stress around the house and a happier husband.  John is still a champ at diaper changes, baths, endless hours of bouncing/shushing/rocking, and keeping Tully fed and busy.  Once we get through the new baby/limited sleep phase, I think we'll have it made.  Neither one of us does well without sleep.  Ugh.  Clare has been a sweet, sweet baby though, and I'm actually enjoying my maternity leave.  With Tully I was itching to get back to work after a few weeks, but this time I'm reading books, getting manicures, and I plan to start working out or running again soon.  My recovery has been a breeze compared to last time.

Here is the first photo in the Watch Clare Grow Series.  This was supposed to be her newborn shot, but it's more like a 2 week photo.  Oh well...I love you, Marian Clare.

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"C" is for Child #2 (cont.)

I'm hoping this is the last in the series of bump pics; although, I'm not feeling like Clare is coming anytime soon.  My official due date is December 23.  I have a gut feeling she's going for a Christmas week arrival...possibly even January.  Not ideal, but totally out of my control.  My midwife will be gone on vacation the week of Christmas, so think I'm going to put myself on voluntary bed rest Dec 23-29 until she returns.  I'm partially kidding, but I really don't want to have to deal with an on-call doctor who wants nothing more than to schedule a quick c-section, so he/she can get back to his/her family over the holidays.

Clare gave me a little bit of a scare around 37 weeks.  She was in a sort of transverse position with her head up (See red arrow in diagram below for a visual).  By 37 weeks there's not a lot of room to move around, so baby should be getting into a head down position and staying there.  Clare was nearly breech.  Breech almost always means an automatic c-section.  No bueno.

Luckily, I found a chiropractor here in Tulsa, Dr. Sonda Powell, who is certified in the Webster Technique.  I visited her for several adjustments, and I spent a lot of time sitting on an exercise ball.  Those things apparently worked because Clare managed to get her head down in about a week's time, and she and has stayed there.  Whew!  C-section crisis averted for now.

In other news, I started filling out Clare's baby book with some basic info, including family tree stuff.  We called John's parents to find out their parents' full names and discovered Clare has a great grandmother named Moureen Claris.  Clare's full name will be Marian Clare Cockerham.  Marian came from my paternal grandmother Mary Ann, and we just liked the name Clare.  John mentioned it, and I thought the short, one-syllable name went well with Marian.  We had no idea the name, Claris, was in the family, but I think it's neat now that she is named after her two paternal great grandmothers from each side of the family.

We've been talking to Tully about how baby Clare will be his little sister, but he still seems pretty clueless.  I even bought him a baby doll a few weeks ago, so he could practice holding her and show her nice.  Unfortunately, baby ends up face down on the floor a lot.  Poor baby.  One evening we asked Tully where Clare was tried to explain for the millionth time that she is in mommy's belly.  He walked in a circle, looked out the window at my mom's car, and said, "beep beep."  The kid has his own priorities, that's for sure.  I guess he'll figure it out when Clare arrives!

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"C" is for Child #2 (cont.)

I'm hoping to only take one more photo in this series.  Baby Clare is doing a number on this momma.  I feel HUGE, and Braxton Hicks contractions are in full effect, especially in the afternoons.  I'm also craving Hostess mini chocolate donuts and lemon water.  Related to the pregnancy?  Probably not.  I can down a bag of those donuts in one sitting with or without a baby in my belly.

I was getting ready for bed last night, and John asked me if I was OK.  I was totally fine, so I asked him why he asked me that.  He said I was huffing and puffing a lot and could hear me from the other room.  It's tough work hauling around this baby.  I even had to move a bar stool from our kitchen to the bathroom, so I could sit down while I got my pretty on.  (Notice the lack of toddler proofing on the cabinets?! Tully is finally staying out of them!)

I ordered Clare's crib sheets and picked up some newborn size diapers earlier this week, so I guess we're technically ready for her arrival.  Once the sheets are here and I get the furniture shuffled around how I want it, I can take pictures of the nursery.  It looks a lot like Tully's...but different...and pink! 

My Christmas shopping is 90% done too, so hopefully December goes smoothly and quickly.

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"C" is for Conference

We frequently get Incident Reports from Tully's school.  They usually read something like "Tully tripped on another child's foot on the playground and scratched his arm" or "Tully fell out of his chair and bumped his head."  Last week I was at the Junior League Holiday Market helping my mom with a trade show when I got this in a text message from John.  (Click to enlarge)

He "hit, scratched, pinched, kicked and threw work at his friends and teachers" (UNPROVOKED?!) almost constantly for TWO HOURS!!!! What?  Proud mommy moment for sure.  Not.

He started napping at school last week, and it's been hit or miss (mostly miss).  His poor behavior was in the morning though, so it's not likely he was tired.  The only thing I can think is that I was gone Wednesday night and all day Thursday and Friday, so he was acting out.  He's been scratching the couch a lot recently, but his new scratching faces thing is getting out of hand.  I can only imagine what the scratching, pinching, and kicking combo looked like.  We are disciplining him for the scratching part very consistently at home with firm no's and timeouts.  A friend recently suggested making a "good boy" or "nice" book where he gets to put stickers on a page each time he does something good.  Sometimes he will fill Zach's dog bowl with food without us asking or help wipe up messes on the floor, so I could give him a sticker for that in hopes that he will seek out more positive attention from us.

We have a parent teacher conference scheduled for Thursday.  Here's to hoping they don't kick him out of school!

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"C" is for Cut

I've been wanting to get Tully's hair cut for several months now.  He had these precious curls in the back though, so my mom and John always vetoed.  I thought the curls were cute too, but the rat's nest above them was more than I could handle.  Even when the area was brushed, it still looked like a fuzzy mess.  Tully doesn't exactly like it when we comb his hair...he'd rather do it himself, so I had a gut feeling he was going to HATE his first hair cut.  No amount of explaining or bribing was going to work, which meant we couldn't just pop in to Super Cuts.  I didn't want to be apologizing for his toddler tantrum.  A quick Google search led me to Kuts for Kids by Mr. Will at 81st & Lewis.  I found several reviews and blog posts that said there were tons of toys, if you had to wait, and that Mr. Will was fast and good at what he did.  Bonus? Three miles from our house.

Here was the starting point.  Taken last weekend.

We stopped by Kuts for Kids about 11:00 am today, and there were eight kids waiting.  Tully naps around noon.  Not happening.  So we went back around 4:00 pm, and not a single person was there.  Perfect.  We let Tully play while I snapped some "before" photos, and then Mr. Will strapped him in the tractor chair.  Tully screamed, turned red, kicked, and cried--snot and tears everywhere.  I have no idea how Mr. Will didn't cut his own fingers off with the thrashing around Tully was doing.  John jokingly said, "So I bet he's the first one that's acted like this..."  Mr. Will assured us he enjoyed what he did, and I was thankful I didn't feel guilty for having him cut my kid's hair.  Once the scissor cut was done, I got Tully to watch his favorite Supercats video on YouTube, and John stuffed his face with goldfish.  Cats + goldfish = happy Tully.  Mr. Will finished up with the trimmers while Tully sat quietly.  After a little touch of gel and a total of about five minutes in the chair, we were done.  Tully ran around the salon and happily played while I got some "after" shots.

And here's the tantrum in all it's glory in case you missed it.  Future wedding slide show worthy for sure.

 
 Hopefully Tully's next haircut won't be this traumatic, but at least he played before/after, sat quietly for part of it, and most importantly I wasn't that mom with that kid that everyone stared at in a public place.  Baby's first haircuts are $10, and the next ones will be $17.  Worth every dime.  We'll be back for sure.

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"C" is for Child (cont.)

October has been a big month for Tully.  In September he got his adenoids taken out and tubes put in.  I'm happy to report his sleep, appetite and mood are all greatly improved.  He is a much happier and well-rested kiddo.  Unfortunately mommy got the brilliant idea to take away the binky since sleep is going so well.  We decided to have him stay at school until 3:00 instead of 12:00 starting in November too, so he'll be taking his nap there.  I know he could have his binky at school, but I thought my big boy would be ready to sleep without it.  He starts napping at school next week, so we cut the binky this week.  He did pretty well the first night.  It took him about an hour to fall asleep on his own, and he only woke up once.  He immediately went back to sleep with some comforting (no binky though!).  Night two was a different story.  We had a party from 2:30 am to 5:30 am.  I'm hoping he's half as exhausted as I am and sleeps all night tonight.

Tully's 18 month checkup went really well.  He weighed 24 lbs 6 oz (54%) fully clothed and is 33 inches tall (70%).  His little bean head is growing too: 19 in (74%).  We'll have to go back in November for his flu shot, so I'll be curious to see if there's a big jump in his weight or height, since he is eating and feeling better following surgery.

We visited a local pumpkin patch/carnival area, and Tully really enjoyed all of the free activities (climbing on pumpkins and wagons, playing in toy houses, watching the lawn mower "train", etc.).  Lucky for us he had no idea he was missing out on the blow up slides and horse rides that cost money.

In those last two photos, he's trying to pick up the pumpkin and then signing for help.  John reached down to help pick up the pumpkin and jacked Tully in the face with it.  He thought it was going to be really heavy based on the effort Tully was putting into it, but the pumpkin was actually very light.  It was a funny/sad moment.

We've had some beautiful weather, so Tully and I ventured to the neighborhood pond last week.  He is obsessed with poop right now, especially our dog, Zach's poop.  He doesn't understand the difference between poop and dirt so everything on the ground that is brown and clumped is poop.  Here he found some dirt on the sidewalk and is pointing out the "poop" to me.  He kept squatting over the area and saying, "poop!"  I tried to tell him it was just dirt over and over, but he was convinced he was making that mess.  A little later he climbed up on the bench by the pond and sat there for several minutes to watch the ducks.  The kid never sits still.  I was amazed.

Words (26): dad/dada/daddy/aDa, Mama/aMa, Zach (our dog), boots, poo poo/poop, hi, bye, help, bug, hat, hot, ball, up, eat, bite, no, cat, doggy, sleep, bus, blue, leaves, balloons, bubbles, baba/baaboo (binky...now gone!), banana
Signs (24): eat, sleep, milk, thank you, all done, mower, ball, tree, fish, dog, shoes, socks, book, help, train, bus, hot, hat, cat, airplane, more, please, where is it? (palms up, questioning look on face), thank you
Sounds (6): moo, quack, vroom (truck), woof, hoo hoo (owl), neigh, woooOooooo (siren)
Phrases (6): where is it?, where is daddy?, where is mommy?, where did it go?, can I have a bite?, aye-yi-ye (i'm thirsty/water...thanks to our nanny for the translation)

Basically he's adding new words and phrases every day and continuing to sign and make the same sounds as he did a couple months ago.  For anyone wondering whether or not to teach their infant/toddler to sign, I HIGHLY recommend it.  We used the first two Baby Signing Time DVDs. Tully's language development has been right on track, but signing has enabled him to communicate with us better and show us he knows many, many more words than he could actually say.  The words are definitely catching up with the signs, as expected, now, so I don't think signing has delayed his speech in any way.

We had parent teacher conferences last week, and we found out Tully enjoys playing with water at the sink, so they are creating a pouring "work" for him there.  I love the Montessori-style of teaching where they keyed in on his strengths and interests and are using those for him to learn.  He just isn't ready or interested in sitting down at a table to focus on pouring dry objects.  He also likes music time/dancing and is a good example to other kids for signing.  I think he pretty much runs around like a maniac most of the time, but he's little, and they are very patient with him.  I'm really happy with our choice to put him in the school.

I think the next big milestone will be potty training, and we've decided to wait for more signs of readiness before pushing it.  Ideally we'd have all major transitions (toddler bed, binky, diapers, etc.) done before Clare gets here, but my gut instinct says it's best to wait on the potty training.  He will still sign for potty or ask to go on the big toilet sometimes, but it's not consistent.  In any case, my baby is quickly growing into a independent little  human.

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"C" is for Child #2 (cont.)

While we were babymooning in Jamaica we met the sweetest couple, J&S, from Oklahoma.  They were on their honeymoon, and we decided to meet for dinner one evening.  During dinner J told us she was an ultrasound technician and offered for us to visit the school she graduated from for a 4D sonogram.  We barely made it back to Oklahoma in time to catch the 20-30 week window, but here is Clare in all her glory at 7.5 months gestation.

Sweet Clare has a nose that looks just like Tully and little narrow lips too.  We were able to see some hair around the sides of her head, so I'm expecting she'll come out with a "horseshoe" of barely-there-hair just like her brother.

When we were leaving the ultrasound room John saw his boss' wife talking to some students.  We had no idea she was the director at the school.  She was excited to see us when we said hello.  Small world.

Next time we see Clare's face, it will be the real deal in December.

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"C" is for Child #2 (cont.)

Another month down and only a few more to go.  I'm not sure if it's possible, but it looks like Clare is actually bigger at 6 months than 7.  Maybe it's the time of day, or my shirt, or...who knows.  All I do know is this girl better come out weighing like 10 lbs because momma is getting huge.  My stupid belly button popped, which totally grosses me out.  That didn't happen with Tully.  It stayed nice and flat.  So now in addition to worrying about finding a shirt and pants that fit, I have to find something that doesn't show the huge elastic maternity band AND my belly button.  I should invest in muumuus. 

And here I am with Clare vs Tully at 7 months.  Major difference.

Have you seen those Halloween shirts for pregnant moms? Or pictures of painted pumpkin pregnant bellies?

Not going to happen.

We got all of Tully's clothes moved to his new closet and dresser, so Clare's room is ready for her stuff.  As soon as we buy a mattress this weekend, I'm going to put the bedding together, arrange the furniture and figure out what I'm going to do about a rocker.  The rocker from the nursery is currently in Tully's room, and although he doesn't require rocking to sleep, we do sit in that chair to read to him, and I really enjoy rocking him sometimes before bed.  He's pretty busy and has never been a snuggly baby.  Sometimes when I rock him, it's the only time I can get some snuggles in.  We are planning for Clare to be downstairs with us in the master bedroom, so I really need a rocking chair there for nursing while she's little.  Then I'll need the chair in her room when she transitions upstairs.  So that makes three rooms with three rocking chairs.  Seems a little absurd and not budget friendly.

Other than finding a baby book for Clare and picking up some newborn diapers, I think we have everything.  We'll be ready to meet her in December for sure!

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"C" is for Child #2 (cont.)

Clare's bump pics have been severely lacking, but I am committed to taking more photos over the next few months.  Here she is compared to Tully at about the same time.  Actually, Clare is almost 3 weeks younger here, so either momma has extra padding, or she is a big, healthy girl.  I'm telling myself it's option B.

It's funny looking back on Tully's bump photos.  I took the time to make the bed.  Made sure photos were taken with the good camera and in natural light.  I even picked up clothes off the floor and had a recent pedicure.  Although there aren't any clothes laying around in Clare's photo, I'm lucky I managed a shower just before I snapped the pic, and I found my yoga pants clean in the drawer.  The paint on my toes is more than 3 weeks old, but I'll still call it a good day.

Clare is taking her first trip to DC with me for work next week, so my co-workers get to see me in all of my pregnant glory.  I was 16 weeks when I went to DC pregnant with Tully, so I got by with non-maternity clothes, and people barely noticed I had a bump.  I think they'll see it for sure this time.  [Honk, honk, here I come!]  I had to buy one pair of black maternity slacks, but I'm getting by with changing tops and suit jackets three days, and I have two maternity dresses for the others.  Thank goodness I'm not any bigger and didn't have to buy a bunch of maternity suits to wear for one week.  I won't go back to DC until April, so Clare will be 4 months old, and I'll be back in regular clothes.

Overall, this pregnancy has been pretty easy.  Actually I just don't have time to think about it, so it feels easier.  I don't get up in the middle of the night to pee, and I guess I'm used to all of the other aches and pains that come along with each phase.  I was craving chocolate mixes with Oreos from Braums, but they messed up my order the last two times I was there, so I gave them up for a while.  This pregnant lady doesn't have time to wait for you to make it twice!

Tully has officially moved rooms and is happily sleeping in his big boy bed, so the next task to tackle is to move his clothes to his new closet and dresser and set up the nursery for Clare.  The crib and other large furniture pieces are already in place, so I just need a mattress, curtains, rocker/glider, and artwork on the walls.  I'm excited to put the bedding in and see how it coordinates with Tully's room.  I have a feeling all of the nursery work isn't going to happen until November or December though.  It's definitely different with #2.  It'll get done when it gets done!

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"C" is for Comparison

Similar, no?  John showed me this photo not too long ago and mentioned the kid kinda looked like Tully.  At least Tully has the ear piece in the right place.

Update: that little stinker took the black rubber-y part off one of the ear pieces.  I discovered this when I put the cold, hard metal in my ear on the plane ride to DC for work.  I bet that soft, little, black piece is laying on the floor of the doctor's office where he was playing with them!

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"C" is for Child (cont.)

I have so many updates for Tully for the past couple months.

Toddler Bed Transition
1st night - success/fail
2nd night - fail.  Fell out of bed.
3rd night - success.  Slept all night!
4th night - fail.  Fell out of bed.
(Install bumper along front of bed.)
Success!!!!  No more falling out, and he doesn't crawl out of bed either.  He even sits there in the morning until we come get him.  Whose kid is this?

Potty Training
Tully came home from school asking to go potty.  He would point to the toilet and give the sign (shake fist in the ASL sign "T" for toilet.)  He has now gone on the big potty many times, but it's not consistent.  We still don't even own regular underwear.  We do ask him often, and sometimes he will go.  This isn't something we were planning right now, so I didn't read any books, do a crash potty-training weekend, or start giving him candy.  I've heard those things can work, but the kid doesn't even know what an M&M looks like.  I'm going to keep it that way.  Hopefully he'll continue to see the big kids at school use the big potty and continue on his path, but we're not pushing it right now.  I'm happy he at least knows what's going on though!

Ears
Tully's ears and nose are giving him fits.  The pain makes him (and me) whiny and miserable, and it disrupts his (and my) sleep.  Every time we go to the pediatrician they say, "No ear infection, but they are red."  Well red isn't normal either, so we saw an ENT.  Unfortunately that ENT visit was near the end of a round of antibiotics that I had Tully take preventatively because my mom was keeping him for three days.  I figured it would be pretty mean to drop off a cranky toddler who might be getting an ear infection with no meds.  We finished the antibiotics a week or so ago, and now we're right back where we started.  We've got two ENT appointments this week, and one of those two is going to give me a better answer than "They look red.  Here are some antibiotics."  I think we're ready for tubes.  I had like 10 sets when I was little.  Tully has allergies, so I'm guessing I've doomed him for the same path.

Post doc visit ears update:

Our first appointment was with a new ENT because our original one couldn't see us for 3 days.  Tully's snot turned green in under 24 hours, so my mommy instincts were spot on getting him in ASAP.  There's no way we could have waited 3 days.  So the new ENT looks at Tully's ears and says, "No ear infection, but they are starting to look red."  I wanted to walk out.  How many times have I been told this?  There's something wrong.  I need answers!  Then he says, there is an infection starting, but it's not in his ears--it's his sinuses.  The dr recommended taking Tully's adenoids out, which could decrease our chance of infection and painful ear pressure Tully might be feeling.  Finally...an answer!!  No wonder his ears seem clear every time we went to the pediatrician and to the first ENT.  The first ENT did hearing tests, and he had passed all of those with flying colors too.

So we have surgery scheduled to remove Tully's adenoids on Sept 26.  The risks associated with tubes being put in are low, and if there is or might be a drainage problem with his ears, we could avoid a second surgery for the next 6-12 months, if we have tubes put in when the adenoids come out.  I really hope this helps Tully feel better, improves his sleep and mood, decreases whining, and prevents us from having take any more antibiotics.  The poor kid SCREAMED when we tried to change his diaper and give him a bath tonight.  His little bottom looks like hamburger meat from taking the current round of antibiotics.  I'm probably going to have a naked kid running around my house tomorrow so he doesn't have to wear a diaper and be in pain.  Good thing he is staying the weekend with Grammy and PawPaw because I know Grammy will let him run all around the yard naked as a jail bird.

Language Development
Tully is signing a TON and starting to use new words daily.  I'm so glad we let him watch Baby Signing Time DVDs and have urged him to use sign language.  It's working!!  "Daddy" and "boots" are currently his two favorite words to say.  He has three pairs of boots for the winter in sizes 5, 6, and 7.  He's obsessed with wearing all of them regardless of whether or not he can actually walk in them, so he's been rocking the boots with shorts for the past few weeks.  PS.  If you have a toddler and don't own one of these snack cups, you need one: it's one of the best gifts we ever received (Thanks, Jen!)

Words (12): dad/dada/daddy/aDa, Mama/aMa, Zach (our dog), boots, poo poo, hi, bye bye, help, bug, hat, hot, ball
Signs (23): eat, sleep, milk, thank you, all done, mower, ball, tree, fish, dog, shoes, socks, book, help, train, bus, hot, hat, cat, airplane, more, please, where is it? (palms up, questioning look on face)
Sounds (6): moo, quack, vroom, woof, hoo hoo (owl), neigh, woooOooooo (siren)

Here are some clips I put together from when he was about 16 months old.

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"C" is for Child #2 (cont.)

John and I shared in June that we were expecting our second child (see "C" is for Child #2), and now we're happy to announce that the new little one is a girl!   
Marian Clare Cockerham should be here in time for Christmas.  She is named after her late paternal great grandmother, Mary Ann, and we both just liked the name Clare.  I didn't feel like there were a ton of names that went well with a three syllable first name, but Clare worked out perfectly for us.  She is doomed like her brother, John Tully, to be called a first name that she doesn't really go by at doctor's offices and schools for the rest of her life.  Sorry, Clare...mommy and daddy still love you.

I've already started on Clare's nursery, and although it is NOTHING like I originally planned, I'm still excited.  At first I wanted yellow/gray/cream, but I found bedding that is exactly like Tully's from the same local baby boutique, except it's pink, so I couldn't resist custom bedding that was also coordinated.  Here is a sneak peak of Clare bedding from the JBF consignment sale, along with all of Tully's clothes for the winter.  Her stuff is in the sack on the bottom of the rack.  We were almost half way done shopping at this point.  We had to move all of Tully's stuff to a bin and use the hanging rack to start all over for Clare.  Shopping for the two kids took my mom and me over 12 hours, but they're set for the next 6 months!!!

Finding Clare's bedding while consignment shopping also convinced me to reuse Tully's bedding and accessories in his big boy room instead of buying new things.  We moved Tully to his new room over the weekend, but I haven't done the finishing touches yet.  It's smaller than his old room, so I'm still shuffling furniture around and trying to hang things on the wall.  If I get really motivated I'll take pictures of everything to document on the blog.  I have a feeling that might go as well as my plans to start taking baby bump pics at 5 months too.  I think the bump pics are going to start at 6 months instead.  Better late than never, Miss Clare!

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"C" is for Crib

Last night marked the first night of Tully sleeping in his big boy bed.  He got booted out of the iron crib to make room for his future sibling.  Here is a summary (to the best of my foggy recollection) of our successes and failures.

Success - 8:00 PM  mommy rocked Tully to sleep and put Tully in big boy bed
Fail - 9:45 PM - Tully awake
Success - 9:46 PM Tully back to sleep without crawling out of bed
Fail - 12:00 AM Tully crawled/fell(?) out of bed
Success? - 1:00 AM Tully slept on floor until daddy brought in meds (T currently gets a dose of ibuprofen in the middle of the night for ear pain)
Fail - 1:30 AM Tully, mommy, and daddy awake.  Daddy goes to bed.  Mommy stays up with Tully.
Success - 2:45 AM mommy rocked Tully to sleep and put Tully in big boy bed.
Fail - 2:48 AM Tully awake/crying/walking around room/losing blankies and binkies/mommy can't see what's going on with stationary camera monitor/total chaos.
Success - 3:15 AM Tully finds a binky and blanket, puts them in bed, and lays down with them. 
Success - 3:30 AM Tully and mommy go to sleep in their own beds.
Fail - 6:00 AM Tully and mommy awake.  Mommy watches on monitor.
Success - 6:?? AM Tully and mommy go to sleep in their own beds.
Fail - 7:30 AM Mommy and daddy oversleep.  Tully kinda awake but still in bed.
Success - 8:30 AM Daddy makes it to morning meeting on time.  Mommy takes Tully to school on time, and there are no tears!

Dear Sleep Gods: Please, please, please let nap time go well and tonight be better.

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"C" is for Child (cont.)

Time for another Tully update.  He is 16 months old and has 16 teeth.  All four eye teeth have pushed through and are on their way in.  Next up?  Two-year molars!

Words: hot, hat, ball
Signs: hot, hat, cat, airplane, more, please, where is it? (palm up, questioning look on face, usually in reference to the ball)
Sounds: vroom (car/truck), moo

Signing/saying duck and mama have pretty much stopped.   He still gets really, really excited about the puppy, but sometimes he just points, yells, and smiles instead of signing.

He has learned to fake laugh.  He knows when the time to laugh is, but he makes it really loud and obnoxious.   Like he knows what he is doing is funny, so he repeats the action and fake laughs at himself.

He knows where his nose is and will sometimes point to ears, if asked, too.

He is following simple commands (put the ball in the basket, bring your shoes to mommy).  I'm hoping this continues and he is helpful when the new baby comes!

When I tell him it's time to go, he follows me out the door to the garage and goes to the car door where his car seat is located.  For the longest time I always had to carry him to the car, and I was starting to wonder how I would possibly get both kids, my stuff, and their stuff loaded in a reasonable amount of time.  Life is much easier with him walking and following simple commands, since it gives me two free hands.

The baby gate was secured to the staircase on one end with zip ties (classy, I know...), and they popped off.  We didn't get the gate put back up right away, so it has stayed down.  It's awesome because we don't have to open and close it every time we go up and down the stairs, and Tully really only goes upstairs or downstairs when we do.  He's always been a good, steady climber too, so I've never really worried about him falling.  I think we'll leave it down for a while.

He is on a fantastic sleep schedule.  Also, we're able to put him in his crib before bedtime, and he goes to sleep on his own without a peep.  We never really "sleep trained", but we did slowly move away from nursing to sleep or rocking to sleep, so he could go to bed on his own.  He transitioned from two naps to one (12-15 months), so here's how our day looks now.

7:15 - 7:30 awake,  he "reads" small board books in crib, sits and talks quietly to himself
7:30 start day
11:35 read book to him, wind down
11:45 in crib
11:45 - 12:00 he falls asleep
1:30 - 2:30 awake, he "reads" small board books in crib, sits and talks quietly to himself
7:15 give him a bath
7:35 read book, wind down
7:45 in crib
7:45 - 8:00 he falls asleep

Tully weaned sometime after 15 months.  I could write an entire post on what an emotional roller coaster that has been for me, but after having him squirm out of my lap and vigorously shake his head "no" a million times, it's safe to say he is finished.  I've dealt with nursing strikes before, but this time was definitely different.  Although I'm sad (understatement of the year), weaning has provided some freedom.  We have multiple trips to Texas planned, along with my work trip to DC, so Tully will be spending quality time at Grammy's pool this summer.  We're stacking on all of the Tully-free trips we can before the next baby comes!

Tully started half-day school this fall.  Here he is at 16 months ready for his first day.  (Good job hiding mommy's almost 5-month bump with your knee, T.)  Grammy was here to share in the excitement and take some pictures.

Pick-up was scheduled for noon, but they called me just after 11 to let me know he was melting down.  He had a fantastic morning playing, but it was getting close to lunch and nap time, so I got him early.  After a quick diaper change and lunch in the car, he went to sleep at his normal time as soon as we got home.  I'll probably have to pick him up at 11 for a few weeks until he adjusts to the new school schedule.  He is definitely the youngest in the pre-primary class (2-3 year olds), but I think he is fine, developmentally.  He just needs to catch up to the big kid schedule of taking a nap at 12:30 or 1, and I'm sure school will be less overwhelming and tiring as the year progresses.  Today was a big, big day!

Below is the picture the teacher, or guide, as they call it, sent me today of Tully doing "work".  Part of the way they teach at the Montessori school is for the kids to choose their own "work" from a shelf.  They take it to a table or the floor to practice a skill (moving objects, counting, matching, etc.) and then clean up that project before picking another.  Tully runs around like a mad man at the house from one toy to the next most of the time, so it's always good to see him sit down and focus on one thing.  Way to go, little guy!

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"C" is for Class (Swim) Part II

Last month I posted about swim classes Tully took earlier this summer.  (See "C' is for Class (Swim))  Today Tully and another swim student, Ben, were featured in a story about Infant Swimming Resource's Self-Rescue classes on our local news station!  It was great to watch Tully show his rolling and floating skills in the pool. 

Check out the clip below.



NewsOn6.com - Tulsa, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports - KOTV.com | 

Obviously I DVR'd this momentous occasion, and since my parents are in Europe, I showed my mom the clip on my TV via Skype right after the story aired.  We didn't have the greatest connection, so I'm sure she's happy the video is posted online where she can watch it directly now.  Either way, we were happy to share our excitement this evening.  A little later my Papa Jim called me to say he saw his great grandson on TV.  I hadn't even had time to tell him it would be on, so I was really happy to hear he just happened to be watching the news!  Another fun part for me was that I knew the reporter, Lacie Lowry.  She used to play on the same kickball team with me and John.  Small world!

If you have a child 6 months to 6 years of age, and you are interested in self-rescue swimming lessons for your little one, be sure to visit www.infantswim.com to find an instructor near you.  If you live in the Tulsa area, you can find out more about lessons at www.isroftulsa.com.

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"C" is for Class (School)

My baby is growing up!  Tully is officially enrolled in pre-primary (toddler class) at Lake Hills Montessori for Fall 2012.  This was a super easy decision and a really hard one at the same time.  The easy part was that John and I agree Tully needs more stimulation and challenge than what we can provide at home.  His little brain goes non-stop, and I think he gets bored easily.  Boredom = whining = crazy mommy.  The hard part is that he's so little.  He'll be 16 months when he starts with the 2-3 year olds.  And what is Nanna going to do all morning while he is gone?  Lastly, private school is not something we were planning for financially.  We've decided he'll attend for pre-primary (2-3 years) for sure and possibly for primary (pre-K & K: 3-6 years) as well.  He can enroll in the public elementary school in 2015, so there's hope that we won't be paying for private schooling forever.

Another good thing about Tully starting school this fall is that he will get into a routine before the new baby arrives.  I didn't want to have the baby in December and then Tully feel like he was being shipped off to school for the first time in January.  I hope he's excited to return to school for the second semester, and it will give me some quiet morning time with the new little one.

In my head this all works out perfectly.  In reality, I bet we're in the middle of potty training, binky withdrawals, full-out tantrums, and chaos in general.  My kid will be biting everyone at school and smearing poop all over the walls.  Oh well, at least I can say I tried to plan for life with two babies!

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"C" is for Class (Swim)

Tully took swim lessons this spring through Infant Swimming Resource (ISR). The lessons were a little different, but they came highly recommended by another mom who had two kids that successfully completed the program.    The goal of ISR is to provide children 6 months to 6 years with the skills needed to survive should they fall in the water unattended.  This was definitely not a fun mommy-and-me swim class.  I had to listen to frustrated cries for nearly 5 weeks, but now that Tully has graduated, I can say that it was worth it.

The lessons were one-on-one up to 10 minutes/day, 5 days/week.  Tully couldn't eat or drink 2 hours before the lesson, so we tried to time it where he was just waking up from sleeping all night or from a nap.  I saw several kids totally lose their (milky!) lunch, and it was not pleasant.  ISR is serious about waiting 2 hours to swim after eating.

The ISR site says that kids take 4 to 6 weeks to learn the necessary skills, but Tully ended up taking 10 weeks of classes.  We had several three day weeks due to holidays, a fever, and the instructor being out of town, so I think that really stretched things out.  Either that or Tully was just really, really stubborn.  Most of the other kids that had lessons before and after Tully were still taking classes when he graduated too, so I'm not totally sure what was going on.

Here are the skills Tully learned:

• Hold his breath underwater
• Roll onto his back in the water
• Float unassisted, rest and breathe until help arrives
• Perform the above skills first in a swim diaper, then in a regular diaper while fully clothed (summer and winter outfits, including shoes)

Not happy but floating

My parents have tanning ledges in their pool where Tully can walk around with the water about chest high.  It's hard for him to see where they end, and they drop off directly into the deep end.  He has hopped off the ledges several times.  When we were at my parents' house Memorial Weekend (after 8 weeks of lessons), it was hit or miss or whether or not Tully popped into his float.  We talked to the instructor and described how the ledges and steps worked in my parents pool.  Their setup was very different than the lap pool where we were taking lessons, but the reality is that he's going to be around my parents pool, not a lap pool.

The last two weeks of class Tully really made progress.  He started flipping over more quickly, and his float was outstanding.  He tested in summer clothes and shoes and winter clothes and shoes all with a regular diaper.  (BTW have you ever seen a completely soaked Pampers Swaddlers diaper?  UNREAL how much those things can hold, and the gel is kinda creepy.)  With the exception of the two days of clothing, Tully wore a swim diaper with swim shorts and sometimes a rash guard (swim shirt).

Here are a few videos of Tully's progress.

Week 1 - floating but frustrated

Week 5ish - learning to roll, no longer frustrated

Week 10 - winter clothes, floating like a champ

Week 10 final day - mastered the roll and float

Next year Tully will learn the swim-float-swim sequence, so instead of floating in the water until someone rescues him, he can swim to the edge and rescue himself.  ISR teaches children to roll to their back to catch a breath, so that's different than regular swim lessons where I'm assuming they would teach lifting the head.  I talked to the other moms who have had older siblings take the classes, and most of them said their 2 and 3 year olds LOVED swimming after they learned the swim-float-swim sequence.  It will be so fun for Tully to swim in Grammy and PawPaw's pool and at the lake with Gigi and Pops.  I'm really looking forward to next summer!

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