Toddlers

Merry Christmas, from our family to yours!!!--read more

If your young child has been receiving Merck's ProQuad vaccine sequence--a four-in-one covering measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (chicken pox)--she may need to move to the separate shots. Merck is having manufacturing troubles:

Merck said Thursday that its ProQuad vaccine, which protects against measles, mumps and rubella as well as chickenpox, won't be available from about July until at least year's end.

"It's too early to say at this point whether new (ProQuad) supplies will be available in 2008," said Mary Elizabeth Blake, spokeswoman for Merck's vaccines division.

However, the drugmaker expects to have plenty of two separate vaccines that cover the same diseases: Varivax, for chickenpox, and M-M-R II, for measles, mumps and rubella.

The federal government recommends children get each of those shots twice, once at age 12 months to 15 months and again between ages four and six years old, or — when available — they can receive the ProQuad vaccine twice.

Last year, the government recommended the second chickenpox shot because of outbreaks among schoolchildren, apparently due to waning potency of the vaccine.

...which is why we didn't bother with chicken pox vaccination in the first place, but hey.

The main take-away from this is, instead of two ProQuad shots, your child will now have to get two MMR shots and two Varivax shots.

We're moving to Edinburgh after Christmas, and it's going to be a pretty big upheaval for DD2.5. We're leaving the only home she really remembers, but also leaving her beloved grandmother, who we've lived with for this past year and a bit.--read more

After nearly two years of good service, DD's nappies are starting to 'go'. I always fold them in the same way, and they're getting really thin, and sometimes frayed, in the top layer of cotton which has seen all the action. They're Bambino Mio, the flat type with lots of layers all sewn together.--read more

My sister, who lives in another state, was talking to me this morning and made an awful noise. She left her husband to watch 2 of the children over the weekend and is just now finding HONEY UNDER THE DINING ROOM TABLE.--read more

I am sorry to write in with something so elementary, but I have no one with whom to discuss such things: My 16 month old son will not allow me to do anything! I have a total of fifteen minutes to finish my household tasks-washing dishes, cooking, cleaning, etc.-because within that time my son will beg for my attention. Washing the dishes is the worst because my son always wants to play in the sink. He pulls on my dress and cries. My ability to distract him may afford me an extra few minutes but at a certain point I just give up. And, if I put him off for too long it seems as though his feelings get hurt and then he really starts crying wholeheartedly, just wanting my attention and not the original object of his desire-like the sink or broom, for instance. Of course, if I am feeling a bit lazy I will use his behavior as a reason to procrastinate. I usually end up tidying when my husband can watch him-not very often-, or when my son sleeps.--read more

DD2 has started to really enjoy having a bit more of a grown-up book for her bed-time story. So far she's had Winnie-the-Pooh and Dylan Thomas's Child's Christmas in Wales.

Have you got any recommendations for illustrated, gentle stories that might be suitable for bedtime stories? We tried Paddington, but there weren't enough pictures. She can cope fine with quite a lot of story, but she does need a picture or two on each page to look at.--read more

So, my baby boy (OK, he's 2.5) had been diagnosed by an optometrist to have severe cross-eyed problems last May. He prescribed glasses, and said if they didn't work, we'd need to have him operated on.--read more

Toddlers are great. Mine sat in a church meeting with me today, and was crying at the song "A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief", and couldn't explain why when I asked him what was wrong. I tried to expla--read more

We all like to think we're pretty funny in this family. DH and I are always first to break the tension in a group, or deflect compliments, or otherwise cope with adversity, with a joke. But as I see our genetic material in action I am wondering if I have been deluded about the quality of my sense of humor.--read more

We're going on holiday in a week (no, in 5 days ), driving down to Cornwall. Now, I know that a 5 or 6 hour drive is nothing to you long-distance-travelling Americans, but to me this seems a LONG time for a 16-month-old to be in the car. --read more

I can across this article and boy did it make me wish I had a toddler at home again LOL

One mom decided that as mother we so often say the words "Don't" and "No" when our children are young and at play that she decided to have a party in which the words were not part of the itinerary...it was a messy party.--read more

New Mommy
New Mommy
Ha - Fa ma lee
Wi big hug
mm mm tiss me to you
wo say new mommy too

Can you guess what this is?

This is Iris's (22 mos) version of the Barney song! Maybe I should let her watch the show more often.--read more

I have a pair of kacky jeans, a darker item bleed on to them. How do I get the color of the item that faded on it out?

New photos posted in the galley of the fair, the first day, and more. Very charming young ladies if I do say so myself!

School is going great. Sophie has decided that she is too big to walk in with Mom.--read more

Last night we watched the last night of fireworks at the fairgrounds. They mark the last day of our 12-day State Fair (a fair all good Minnesotans feel a personal stake in), the start of our third year in our (still new seeming) house, the end of summer, and the start of our career as the parents of a school age child. It was a heady occasion.--read more

Help! I think Danika is going to kill me with whys. I don't mind answering her questions, but it's the asking me questions I can't answer or asking the same question over and over again that makes me bonkers.--read more

I wondered what other parents think of the Arthur Books by Marc Brown. I have seen the Arthur TV show a few times, and I don't like it because I think the kids on it are mean to one another. I decided that I wouldn't let Danika watch it (actually, she doens't watch any TV). But she has some hand-me-down Arthur PJs, so she knows who he is. She has been asking recently to get Arthur books at the library. We have read three of them, and I don't like them at all. The kids say mean things to one another, and I don't always agree with the lessons that the books teach. I could give several examples, but I guess my main thing is that the kids in the books act a lot like the kids I know ... they are mouthy and obnoxious to each other, but in the end everything supposedly works out just fine. The thing is, I don't want Danika to read books about kids who behave badly. I figure she'll see enough of that in real life; I don't need to enforce it with books. I don't want her to pick up certain words or phrases from a book.--read more

MY 3yo DS broke his leg today. He fell off the &@#%!^ barstool while playing a computer game, he was on his knees with his foot sticking out the space in the back. Barstool came down with him. I was nursing my 2month old DD and talking to my husband on the phone about how I caved in and let him play a video game again so I could get a moment's peace. I feel like God was punishing me for being an inattentive parent. I don't like his behaviour while he's playing on the computer, he would be on it all day long if I let him (and I have) but sometimes that's the only way I get a quiet moment. I feel like a rotten mom today.--read more

During the initial "training period", do you put diapers on your child when going to town or visiting friends? Or do you just take a few extra outfits? Is putting diapers on the child during outings going to confuse him/her?--read more

Why is it that when Aunt Flo is getting ready to visit everyone loses their common sense? I know, I know, it's me but still, can't people just stop stressing out? I mean I go to the grocery store and it seems like everyone is in a bad mood and/or being rude. I personally am happy when I go to the store because it's one of the few times I get to get out without my kids. --read more

Have you seen the latest show from the creators of the Teletubbies? We've been sick around here lately, so yesterday morning we indulged.

It is the weirdest dang thing I have ever seen! Not that I have ever done hallucinogenic drugs (I tried once, but the tab was blank, thankfully!), but I think they would be a good match for the show!--read more

Louisa is doing some potty training today, all on her own.--read more

Undergoing a paradigm shift in regards to reward & punishment, praise v.s. acknowledgment with children. Read an article by a person named Alfie Kohn that is making me really, really think.--read more

A cloud hangs over our house today. Last night, Louisa figured out how to open the security gates. No Christmas tree is safe.

Danika weaned herself on November 30th! We had spent several days with Frank's parents for the holiday, and Danika was quite busy being the center of attention and playing with her cousin. Several times she wanted a cup of milk in lieu of nursing when it was nap or bedtime (the only times she still nursed), but then at the last moment she would still ask to nurse. But the night we got home, after Frank had gotten her into her jammies, when I went up to nurse and rock she pushed me away and said "No! Daddy!" She went to bed without nursing. The next day, when I said, "Time for nap!" she started to cry and said, "No snackies, Momma." I said, "You don't have to have snackies if you don't want to. I'll just rock you." The was it. She never asked again. A few days ago, she told me that I have snackies and I said, "Yes, I do." She then said, "See em?" So I showed her and she looked for a minute and then she said, "All done." She's 21 months old.--read more

I am the mother of a terrific 17month daughter - and am rapidly being thrown into life with a toddler. I feel like this is too soon for me - what happened to me easy, loving all smiles baby? Now she is saying "no" to everything, never lets me hold her hand or help her with anything, and is getting into trouble every time I turn around! I love it all - but I just am realizing that there is so much for me to learn about mothering a toddler.

We are having sleep troubles... she used to go right down for naps and at bedtime with no fights - but these days it takes 45 minutes of screaming before she gives in. And she is waking up in the middle of the night. She has always woken up in the middle of the night - but usually I can just bring her into bed with us and she is happy to go right back to sleep. Last night it was not until 5am (thank you!) but she refused to go back to sleep - refused the bottle and everything. --read more