Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Days go by
Mr. Potato Head
Jackson is playing with Miller('s toys)
Baby push ups!
Jackson playing on the train at the park down the street
The paci theif strikes again!
Sunday, October 26, 2008
The Food Revolution
As Jackson approached 2 it became apparent that we needed to take control of the situation. So I fazed out purees and fazed in canned cubed fruits and veggies. He took to he fruits, not veggies, though! Hmmm, he outsmarted me on that one.
Several weeks ago I was watching John and Kate Plus 8 and she says that all her kids eat most all food. She encouraged viewers to keep putting healthy foods on their kids' plates and one day they might pick them up and eat the healthy things. "Ok, sure," I thought.
That got me thinking. When I worked with disadvantaged kids they would eat everything that was put in front of them. Literally, they put food in their pockets to take it home to eat later. Those kids were hungry and they didn't care if it was nasty cafeteria food. That revelation made me realize that I had created a picky eater. This is just as much my doing as his. At his two year check up he was almost 30 pounds, which puts him into the 50th percentile. He is an average sized child...thanks to graham crackers!
In addition to this I was tired of having food thrown. Am I crazy to allow a toddler to throw food and then beg him to eat more? YES! I am an Early Childhood professional and there ain't no way I would ever allow someone else's child to do this.
All of this brought me to The Food Revolution. I decided that I am going to feed Jackson several healthy foods at each meal and he can eat it or not. I always include something he likes. If he throws a piece of food, he gets a warning, the next piece that gets thrown means the meal is over. Period!
The first few days were great. I must have timed it at a growth spurt. He ate most of what was given to him and only a little food got thrown. Obviously, I thought, this is easy. Now I have realized that true revolutions take time. And revolutions are hard! Sometimes you unknowingly lose ground.
As an educator I know that doing the right thing for kids is often a struggle but it doesn't make it any less worthwhile. As a mom I hate seeing my child go "HUNGWEEEEEEEEEEEEEE" because he threw the food that was placed in front of him. As a frugal mom I hate throwing away food that is perfectly good. But you can only reheat food so many times before it lose what little alure it had before. I know that this is the right thing to do.
My hope is that one day Jackson eats like a normal child. I'm prepared to hold my ground. I have to!
I have lots of cute pictures of Jackson eating food. It makes it look like he is a good healthy eater. This is just an illusion. I hope you enjoy them!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
That's How I Roll!
Jackson continues to amaze us with his observations. Apparently all the talking and reading with him is paying off. Who knew that he would know the difference between a cell phone and a regular phone? Not me. He has picked up some letters on his own. Rather he sees a letter and says something that begins with that letter. So when he sees an M he says Miller, and a J is a Jackson. He is soaking up so much, so fast!
And for the big news....Miller has slept over 8 hours for 2 nights in a row (please don't let me jinx myself by saying this)!!! I am overjoyed. If you know me well, you know that my initiation into motherhood was not easy. This little guy has been giving us pleasant surprises since he was born (literally)! He eats, sleeps and smiles. He cries too, but if you pick him up, he will usually stop. Now I am working on getting his naps more regular. Thank You God for giving me this angel!
Here are a few recent pics! Why are the bottom 2 sideways Kelly? They were uploaded hortizontally???UGH I need a tutorial!
Jackson sees Miller has a paci...
and says, "I'll take that for you little brother!"
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Piggy Baby
Let's Try a Video
Jackson, Miller and I went to the park near our house. As we were leaving, I noticed a cicada and pointed it out to Jackson. He wanted to touch it, and to my surprise it let me pick it up and put it on Jackson's leg. It rode on his knee the whole way home. I ran inside, got the camera and took this video. I love how it is a snapshot of how Jackson speaks at this stage in his life. I also love how after every question he says "um" before answering. My little boy continues to amaze me!
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Big Boy Bedding
So, now we will begin earnestly looking for a bed for when the time comes. I hope not too soon. After all he is still just a baby, right?
Pumpkin Patch
Yesterday was a beutiful fall day so we decided to capitalize on it and make a trip to the Pumpking Patch. Even though I have been on a few field trips to Pumpkin Patches I was not sure what to expect. After all every time I had been to a pumpkin Patch, I was on a big yellow bus and they were waiting for our arrival.
We got to the pumpkin patch, parked beside a corn field, then picked up our very sturdy wheelbarrow and off we went. Miller hung out in the Baby Bjorn most of the time and Jackson rode and roamed the field.
There were so many pumpkins and all sizes and shapes were represented. The pictures came out precious! We ended up picking a big orange one with lots of bumps because it was interesting. Last night we decided it was pretty ugly. I think it needs a ribbon to bring out it's true beauty!
I'm going to try to upload pictures on a regular basis, so at least you can see what we are up to. Here's to goals!