5K #2

Race for Autism at Crockett Park in Brentwood, TN - good cause, great weather

Susie, Joel & I woke at 5:30am, got to the race site by 6:30 to collect our bib number & pre-registered T-shirt & also got our sibling photo taken before we assembled with the other runners. There was a slight snafu with Susie's bib - someone else named Suzanne J. apparently showed up before us & got her number. NIGHTMARE! Eventually it got worked out, Susie got a new bib number, but it was annoying to deal with it as we prepared to run. It delayed us getting our pre-race photo of the 3 of us; Susie doesn't have a bib on in it.

Bonnie & Buddy arrived just as the race started so we waved quickly as we ran off with the crowd. Less people than July 3, but it was a congested course initially so a slow & frustrating start for all of us. This time I didn't have any panic/anxious feelings, felt good most of the run. I still had my slow points somewhere between miles 1&2, then again around 2.5 miles as I saw runners ending their race & I still had to finish.

Lots of people were walking earlier than I expected, but I forget that not everyone is running the event. Thankfully no people with strollers passed me like on July 3rd. I think they started in front of me! : ) I hoped the firefighter in FULL gear didn't pass me. If that had happened, I would have stopped running & walked. I mean really if I person in that heavy jacket, pants, helmet, face mask, oxygen tank runs faster than me, what is the point??!! I saw him cross the finish line, only about a minute slower - yikes!

I pushed it the last 0.10 to finish, trying to catch my previous time, but I was a second slower. However, the 3 of us discussed the start & really believe that the congestion contributed to all of us having a slower time. Joel was really annoyed at his time! Thankfully at one of the downhill parts, I ran really fast (I don't usually do that); I suspect that helped me have a similar time.

We saw B&B on the course once & then again at the finish. It was nice to have cheerleaders; hopefully Jai & Julia can come to a race in the future. It's so early for both of them & really who wants to wake a sleeping child - no one exactly! Bonnie said something about inspiring Julia to see all of the runners, especially me, Susie & Joel, being healthy & active. It's true; luckily Julia seems like a natural athlete, she has a great tennis ball throwing arm & football/soccer kicking legs! : )

The weather was great - overcast (not sure about rain which might have been nice), decent humidity (it's all relative), lots of shady parts of the course.

Overall it was a great day to run!

Joel & I are discussing our future runs, probably not going to do one in August, too hot, though there is the Tomato Fest 5K run/walk which benefits our local East Nashville YMCA (soon to be just referred to as the Y which we say now). We looked at the race calendar, there are a few possibilities for Sept. & Oct. The one at Centennial Park on Sept. 11 seems like a good day for something positive & the cause is for prostrate cancer which Jai's dad had. There's another local race at Shelby Bottoms on Oct. 2 as well as the Germantown 5K on Oct. 9. Joel really is excited for the Rudolph one in December. At least it will be cooler, actually I think that race is in the evening on a Friday so Julia & Jai might be able to be there.

Jade is the New Black

I don't have much to say (I think!) other than this is a clever name for a new OPI nail polish color. My friend, Anne Marie, used to get together once a month for a pedicure at Magnolia Spa in East Nashville, but we'd taken a break in the winter months. Last month we got together for one of our summer childless Friday date (Sam goes to a Parent Day Out program) & that is the color AM got on her toes. She encouraged me to get something different too - I chose a lime green kind of color from OPI's new "Shrek" line. It looked good; it definitely caught people's attention. I received many comments & compliments.

I wish I'd taken a photo as today we got new colors as we met for another pedicure. It's summer so we wear our flip flops a lot more than in winter. This time we went to Empire Beauty School in Cool Springs. The cost is much cheaper as students provide the service - it's a great deal. We both got awesome colors again - bright coral/red color for me, a matte purple for AM. This will be it for awhile probably as I return to work in a week. Ah, the summer ends so quickly these days - 7 weeks flies by when you're busy traveling around the city & country.

When is Labor Day? : )

Playdates

Play dates can be a parent's salvation. The child gets to play with other children her or his age hopefully (not always necessary) & the parent gets to interact with other adults his or her age (maybe this is true, not always necessary). : ) I participated in a few of these encounters while on maternity leave, then again last summer & this summer, too. We met friends at the zoo, the pool at the Y, someone's house, downtown library for story time, the park - you name it, it felt like I did it this summer. It was fun, Julia had a good time, I had a good time.

But there's a but ... I don't know, busyness, too full calendar, not enough down time. Yet I remember feeling so alone & bored sometimes as a new parent, especially when Julia was really little. I had to get out - I hated being stuck at home despite the fact that I love being home. It's such an ironic paradox, you know. What is that about? Where is the peace, satisfaction, solace of being at home, my safe place? Why do I feel the need to fill up my time with appointments & stuff?

Sometimes I feel like I'm never alone in my house. I'm alone when I leave to go to work, but that's it. Jai rarely participates in play dates. They go to the library or park often. Julia interacts with children at the Y and church nursery. However, this summer there were only a handful of times I was at my house with NO ONE ELSE there. It's rare - the last time was many days ago. Jai & I joke about him going to get a pedicure (I like to do that) & have lunch with his invisible friends (again I've done that a bit this summer with VISIBLE friends). However, Jai isn't alone during those activities, he watched Julia so I could enjoy myself.

However, I have to ask Jai to leave with Julia in order to be alone at the house. It's different & yet it's not. Before Julia was born, even while pregnant, I was a busy person; my appointments usually were all out of the house, after work, in the evening, on the weekends. Yet I didn't notice the lack of alone time in my house. Usually I was home before Jai got off work so I had that time.

I realize that being alone is a relative experience. Getting up at 6am when no one else is awake (to exercise or write a blog post or read a book) is an opportunity for solitude. Having a child changes your life - I have less time for me. I'm selfish - I want more ME time.

July 3 Firecracker 5K Race

Joel, Susie and I used to run in high school. Joel is a much more talented runner in my opinion, he's a natural athlete, especially for running; he has the body shape and of course LONG legs since he's 6'4", almost a foot and 1/2 taller than me. Joel ran on the cross country team at Overton HS also. I ran with Susie for her to get in shape for soccer and for me to fit into my band uniform. It worked. : )

I didn't run in college - aerobics was the popular exercise in the 80s & 90s. When I lived in Thailand, it was a great way to keep in shape and also see the sights of the city I lived in. I ran EARLY in the morning because of the heat; I loved seeing the citizens prepare and then feed the monks in their bright orange robes. It was a wonderful way to start the day.

However, I stopped running when I returned to the USA in 1995 - something about my knees ... haha. That excuse actually kept me from running for 15 years. I even tried to run on the treadmill at the gym, but I heard it's bad for your knees so I stopped doing that (plus I'm afraid I'm going to fall off).

Recently I tried again to get on the weight loss band wagon (ugh, it's a constant evil part of my life!) and I struggle because I want to eat what I want to eat. Even though I usually eat healthy most of the time. I participated in the "Biggest Loser" competition at work, lost about 8 pounds in 2 1/2 months, not great, and toyed with the idea of running. However, after not losing much weight, I decided to do it. Joel is my trainer and we started gradually, walking around the block a few days a week, then starting running it. This was around mid-April.

Eventually we got up to running the loop around the block 3 times, thinking that was almost 3 miles, which we thought was perfect as we planned to run a 5K in June or July. We registered for the Firecracker race at Maryland Farms on July 3 and ran it yesterday morning at 7am. Usually we run around 6am when it's slightly cooler. It was sunny and warm at MF and this was my first road race, first race period!

It was exciting and exhilarating and exhausting! All of the anticipation and anxiety - lots of emotions. I had a slight panic attack (I don't know how else to describe it) as the race started and I was running amongst all of these people, hoping I could keep up, not knowing exactly what the course was like. Of course Joel was GONE as he runs faster than me anyway (those long legs). Also he's competitive and wants to get a good time and running at my pace isn't going to get it.

We both struggled in the last mile, especially because it was ALL up hill basically, and we were hot and tired. We were dying! However, we discovered later that we'd been running less than 3 miles for the past 2 1/2 months, a lot less, about 2.4! We mistakenly listened to what someone said the distance around the block is instead of clocking it ourselves.

We had a great time though and have 2 weeks to train for the next 5K on July 17 in Brentwood with Susie, too. We'll increase our distance and endurance so we don't die out there in the sun! : )

Fresh Farm Food

Julia's meal the other day was all local food from either the East Nashville Farmer's Market (every Wed. from 3:30-6:30pm, located near Turnip Truck) or CSA share from Avalon Acres Farm.

YUMMY!

She had spelt pasta noodles, cucumber & tomatoes with basil & roast chicken.
Julia ate a whole plate all by herself too.
Mostly with her fingers, but sometimes using the small fork she has.

I love that Julia eats fresh, whole food, made here in Tennessee. I feel good about Julia living a healthy life; it starts with a positive relationship to food.

Note: today Julia ate beets from our CSA and loved them! Of course her fingers and bib and shirt are PINK! : )

My name is Julia's Mom

I've known this for awhile. Lots of time I'm greeted AFTER the person says hello to Julia - if I'm remembered! : ) Then I'm referred to as "Julia's mom."

I was buying groceries at the Turnip Truck today and I greeted an employee I hadn't seen in awhile. After saying hello, she asked "do you have a twin sister?" That's not always a surprising question. I thought Susie had been to TT before so not that unusual. I replied "yes" and the employee starts to say something, but then says "she's Julia's mom, right?" and then she says my name (I'm amazed she remembers it!).

I smile and chuckle - I should never expect to be surprised any more. Then I say "actually I'm Julia's mom" and laugh again. The employee responds with my favorite part: "Oh, you've lost so much weight!" To which I say "well, I was pregnant and then had a baby. Finally I've lost some of that weight!"

Good save! : ) HILARIOUS! : ) I love it!

The jars

I think we've mentioned Julia's obsession with glass jars.
We didn't buy baby food in jars very often, more than some might expect (my mom was really surprised), but less than most people who have babies. Somehow Julia fell in love with jars, in particular the baby food size. She likes other sizes, but we think she can carry the smaller ones easily in her hands. Julia likes to carry 3 as Jai previously referenced.

While traveling in New England, we brought a few jars of baby food as surplus in case we didn't have anything for her to eat. We also bought some jars once there, again for emergency situations. By the end of the trip I wanted to make sure she ate all of them because I was tired of carrying them. We had 2 with us when we went through security and I had to open them to be "checked." WHY?? They are sealed containers of baby food! UGH - I hate airport security.

I digress from this story of Julia being OCD about jars.

We really realized it when we were in a fish market in NH getting take out for lunch. While we waited for our food to be prepared, we walked around the market and looked at various items on the shelves. I noticed the Desert Essence brand of salsa which surprised me. I've never seen it in stores other than Turnip Truck or Whole Foods. Julia was walking with my cousin's daughter, she turns, sees the jar and SCREAMS ... so loud & perfect for a role in a horror movie. She ran up to me to get to the jar; we realized later that she thought it was the Desert Essence bean dip we used to buy and feed her. Now we make our own as it was killing our budget! Julia loves bean dip - made from pinto, garbanzo or black beans. She probably would like white bean dip too, but we never make that - maybe we will.

Once we got home, we recycled the glass jars and have not bought any more baby food. It was getting out of hand how obsessed Julia was with the jars. Actually it's not necessary anymore to have the baby food as Julia has progressed a lot feeding herself with the spoon and fork. She got some good practice when we stayed with my cousins Rick & Lori; I realized that we (I) need to encourage Julia to feed herself even when it's messy. : )

18 month Dr. visit

All of my stats increased.
weight - 11%tile (up 1 %)
length - 61%tile (up 0.5 %)
head - 61%tile (up 36 %)
I'm a lean, big headed tall kid. : )

I have about 25 words in my vocabulary.
Even some 2 syllable & double compound ones. I'm brilliant!
I have this slight obsession with jars - small ones, tall ones, fat ones, doesn't matter. They just have to be a jar!
I organize & stack them which apparently is what I'm supposed to be doing.

As always I am IMPRESSIVE!

BTW - I hope you all know that I'm not this conceited even though my head grew a lot! It's my parents. My mother is uber-competitive, you know!

New England Whirlwind!

I survived a LONG trip on the plane and driving all around RI, MA and NH from June 11-22 ... my parents are crazy!
Really it was my mother. She's the planner & she wants to fit in as much as possible when we're in the Northeast.
Basically we saw Mommy's Wellesley friends & their families (SO many kids!), lots of cousins and the fun people at Amherst College tennis camp.

It is GREAT to be home - I really missed my bed.

Next trip is short - only 3 days and 3 hours away. We're going to family reunion in Atlanta in July. ROAD TRIP! : )

June Holidays

Happy Anniversary!
On June 18 Jai & I celebrated 5 years of marriage!
It seems like we always are traveling on or around our anniversary.
This year we were in MA staying with my cousin Jeff & his family.
That afternoon we left Julia with Susie, Jeff, his wife, Leslie, & their 2 school-age children.
They had a great time playing in the pool, jumping on the trampoline, & riding the kid cars.
Jai & I drove to nearby Fitchburg and stayed at a lovely B&B.

The B&B is on a gorgeous piece of property with a pool, woods, green lawn & a friendly big dog.
I took a nap while Jai showered & watched some World Cup football.
Then we ate dinner at a local Indian restaurant.
The review states the food is delicious, but ambiance is lacking. We concur!
The next morning we breakfasted on the porch.
We ate fresh local strawberries picked by the owner, Greek yogurt (our new favorite food), oatmeal and omelets.

We returned to the family rested & full! : )

Gift: I got Jai a colorful hammock and for us as a couple/family an ice cream attachment for our Kitchen Aid mixer. YUM! : )
Jai gave me bookshelves for the dining room - to be built within a month's time. YEAH!

Father's Day on June 20, 2010
World Cup soccer (or as the rest of the world calls it "football") is from June 1-July 11.
Jai was a good sport (haha) since we left Nashville to travel to New England on June 11 & basically missed MANY games. Then we're traveling back from Jai's family reunion in Atlanta on July 11 during the FINAL World Cup match. Therefore I decided to give Jai some time alone at Jeff & Leslie's house while the rest of us went to church. It was a nice old church, nice short service, friendly people. They really enjoyed cute Julia. They seemed really disappointed when we told them where we lived. Jeff said they asked if we were his neighbors. : )

Jai had a little break & watched some football alone. Later we traveled to New Hampshire to stay with my aunt & uncle Carol & Ray and cousin Julie, her husband, Evan and their 2 tween/teenage children. Carol is my uncle Bob's ex-wife (my mom's oldest brother), but she is Julie & her brothers' mom too & will always be my aunt. Ray is a great person too & we consider him an uncle.

Thanks for being a great dad to Julia. She is a lucky daughter to have you for a father.

We had lots of time spent with family - seems appropriate to spend these holidays with family too.

Gift: I got Jai a NICE camping French press so he can have delicious coffee in the great outdoors. He really likes it!

Fever # 2

Julia had a fever again which happens so rarely so we're always concerned.
Usually is full of energy & happy, Julia is listless & cranky when she has a cold.
We are not quick to take medicine or call the doctor.
We're not likely to give Julia medicine without attempting other interventions.
Cool baths to decrease the fever is one method we use.
Lots of liquids, Julia's comfort foods like applesauce & toast, also rest & relaxation as much as possible to keep her comfortable, hydrated and rested.

Uncle Joel gave some suggestions that are more traditional than we like. They involved Children's Tylenol & calling her doctor. I know he doesn't understand us - thinks we stress ourselves out more with our "longer" health care solutions. I remember having a conversation with someone about the recent recall of Tylenol which I didn't know anything about. The person looked surprised & said "what do you do for a fever or cold?" I gave my homo pathetic answers.

Thankfully Julia's fever decreased as she rested that night & next day. Quickly her behavior & overall demeanor returned to happy, smiley, pleasant Julia!

Practice Makes Perfect

Julia usually takes an afternoon nap but sometimes we do quiet time in the morning...half-hour or so where she sits in her bed with a book, lays down, reads, talks whatever.

Over the past couple of days she's been a little sick and her schedule is a screwy. She's taken morning naps and quiet-time/nap in the afternoon. Today, I listened while she did her typical singing and humming and, of course, babbling and I heard her say "mommy", "daddy", "daddy", "mommy" over and over. She was practicing.

I've heard her repeat things but its usually while she is reading or talking near us or imitating us. This is the first time I have heard her do what sounds like practice repetition.

Kinda cool, huh?

Being a Toddler is for the Birds

I am in love with birds. They are the most fun animal to watch. I think that's because they are everywhere I go and they make all those fun tweets and chirps.

I remember a couple of weeks ago I surprised my dad. We were outside - the best place in the world - and I looked over his shoulder, pointed and said "bird!?". He didn't know what I was talking about because he didn't know I knew the word and he didn't see the bird I was pointing at for a few seconds.

**It is amazing how long it takes tall people to see or understand what I'm pointing at.***

Anyway, the other thing is that I've been sick more times since I started walking and talking than I was the whole year before and THAT is definitely for the birds!! A couple of weeks ago my stomach was bothering me soooo much. Everything I ate came out watery and a lot at once. It was gross. Mommy and Daddy held there nose a lot when they changed my diapers and we had to wash a lot of sheets and clothes. NOW, after all that I got a huge fever yesterday. Mommy and Daddy came into my room every couple of hours all night long. I got to eat a lot of mango popsicle and frozen banana and I took a bunch of cold baths. I feel better today but not great - of course, that doesn't stop me from wanting to go outside.

I'm not so hungry but I think I'll ask Daddy if I can go upstairs for a 2nd nap. Hopefully by the time Mommy comes home I will feel better she looked very worried about me.

It looks like we have a busy summer and I can't wait! World Cup!! Massachusetts!! Atlanta!! Swimming Pool!!

Always a Concerned Mother

Again I don't remember all my insightful words from weeks ago ... I think I realize that there is always something to be concerned about as a parent. Julia doesn't get sick often which is wonderful. She's rarely fussy, usually she's cranky when hungry or tired. Julia gets hurt most of the time when she's playing and running and bumping into things. But there's always concern about how's she's doing - physically, emotionally, mentally. How is she developing? How does she compare to other young children? I know she's an individual and will do it her way, that I definitely know! We know she's developing on pace, regardless of when she walks, talks, runs, stacks things, feeds herself, picks up her toys, not matter how she relates to other kids. Julia is happy - that is the most important quality. She is doing fine.

G.I. Julia

Once again I'm writing a post many weeks after I titled it so I wouldn't forget.
I think that the title will help me remember ... it does, but only so much information. All of the great words & thoughts I had at the time are GONE!

Anyway, what I remember is that Julia starting crawling again and it reminded me of the commando crawl she did early on. Since she's been walking for 7-8 months it seemed funny that she was crawling. I wondered if she would regress and stop walking. Now she runs all the time so that seems like a wonderful regression. : )

However, she continues to walk; occasionally she crawls, but usually it is when she's looking for toys that have gotten under the table or couch.

"G.I. Julia" seemed like a clever play on words since she looks like a solider doing the commando crawl. I think I'm so clever ! : )

Toddler Diarrhea

I'm not going to write much about this topic; it's not a pleasant subject.
Julia had this predicament from May 5-13 and thankfully it is over!

OMG!

It is the most foul, literally, experience of having a child. So disgusting!
Julia was not a happy camper either. We were constantly changing her diaper and she hated it, too. Her room smelled awful! We had the fan going, the windows open, using essential oils to disfuse the stench.

No one talks about it, for good reason I suppose.
We weren't sure what was going on initially.
Then we referred to the trusty Internet for information.
We relied on the BART (banana, applesauce, rice, toast) system to minimize any gastro-intestinal related issues to Julia's food. That really helped settle her stomach and also to make sure she was getting some nourishment.

We are so glad Julia feels better.

Risen Waters in Nashville

11-13-11
I found this old email to a friend & realized it might make an interesting post since it's taken me so long to complete what I started from 1 1/2 years ago!
 Sent: Saturday, May 8, 2010 10:46:01 AM
Subject: Flood Relief 

Dear 

How did the volunteer work go yesterday?

It’s strange how someone right near you could have damage and then the neighbor didn’t.

I’ve heard that about tornados and stuff, but nothing this close – since the tornado in ’98!

Some friends live near Sutton Hill Road, but I don’t think they had any damage.  Strange!

I am glad you & your dog are OK.  

Bonnie & Buddy are well too!  They didn’t have electricity on Sunday.

I got your voicemail message, but I was at work and we had stuff ALL day.

Schools were closed all week, not sure about next week.

I think it depends on when the 2^nd water plant gets restored.

They don’t want 76,000 students flushing the toilets! : )

Also we hear there is some damage to buildings as well as roads so not sure about bus routes, etc.

I haven’t heard from Mike & Chad. I heard Donelson was hit hard.

One of my co-workers who lives there relayed some scary stuff!

Luckily we’re OK, nothing major happened to us or our property.

Our basement flooded – about 8 inches deep – which is a pain for my brother.

He was in Atlanta for the weekend so I had to tell him over the phone. : (

However, the good thing is once the rain stopped, the water drained and all of it was gone the next day.

We’re glad for that as we anticipated emptying many buckets of water! : )

Some of our appliances are OK – the washer works, but not the dryer.

Good excuse for a clothesline! : )

We didn’t have hot water or heat/air for a few days because that stuff is in the basement.

We unplugged everything when we discovered the water.

With Joel in Atlanta and not going up & down to the basement, we didn’t think to check!

You know Jai likes AC so he was a little uncomfortable.

I went to the Y to take showers – Jai & Joel took cold showers!  : (

FUN! FUN!

Julia is a trooper – good spirits always – and her laughter makes up for everything.

I actually left to go to church on Sunday morning WITH Julia, turned around quickly & returned home.

I got so scared when I saw how high the water was on Gallatin Road, imagined the car floating & trying to get Julia out.

WHEW! Really scary! : (

We watched TV for hours on Sunday – thankfully we had electricity.

The scenes were frightening as I recognized SO many places around the city submerged in water!

We were definitely going stir crazy stuck in the house.

The weather was beautiful, sunny, blue skies on Monday – strange contrast to the constant rain for 2 days!

Johnders & I walked the neighborhood Monday morning to survey the situation.

Slow morning traffic, not much damage on these streets.

Take care.

Love, Tara, Jai, Julia, Johnders & Joel

Mother's Day 2010

I would like to wish my fabulous wife Tara a wonderful Mother's Day!

There are no amount of words I can use to express how impressed I am with you, how fortunate I am to know you, and how glad I am that YOU are the mother of our child. Julia and I are better people for know you.

Today is also Julia's 17 months birthday - she's almost 1 1/2 years old!

Said with nothing but love,
Jai

Three is a magic number.

I can't tell you why but it appears even at Julia's 16 months three is a magic number. Since she was a small crawling baby she has needed things in her hands when she moved. We've seen anywhere from 1 to 4 items in her hands while she motors around the house. Sometimes, and maybe even most often, it is a bulky item...gallon jug, large book, giant stuffed frog.

Two seems obvious but not for her. Three is what she likes. When she has some finger food, pretzels or cookie chunks, she wants one in each hand and one in her mouth. When she plays with her rings or we go outside and play with Johnders' tennis balls she has to have three. No matter how awkward, she must have three. She will let you hold an item while she readjusts the other two but she will manage to get three as quickly as possible.

The ancients were on to something and it is verified by the randomness of my daughter.

Julia, You Cannot Sit on Daddy's Head

That alone is a funny title!

However, many times Julia tries to sit on Jai's head.
She thinks it is OK to do and of course we laugh, then tell her not to do it.
Confusing! : )

We think it is part of her large motor development.
Julia's trying to figure out how her body works and moves and what she can do with each part.
It's pretty funny to see though I don't think Jai really enjoys it! : )

Pam the Yarn Doll

My aunt Pam is a great knitter.
She made the purple hooded sweater for Julia.
It has the zipper in the back which is AWESOME!
She knitted some slippers, too - still too big for Julia.

Pam also knitted a doll.
With brown skin and a purple pants and black "wavy" hair ... just like Julia!
Julia loves it!

We kept referring to it as "the doll" this and that, "go get it" or "let's pick it up."
That got tedious quickly and soon we realized that the doll needs a name.
As creatively as when Tara was 4 & named our family's cat "Kitty" I came up with "Pam" for the doll's name.

However, it works. Julia likes it too.
Hopefully she'll remember that her great-aunt Pam made it for her.

I hope my aunt Pam doesn't mind being the name of a doll. : )

First Ice Cream

vegan chocolate ice cream at Pied Piper Creamery - yummy!

Aunt Niki scoops this great cold stuff at PPC on the weekends.
She convinced Mommy to let me try it even though I'm not supposed to have chocolate for awhile. At least it was vegan so Mommy was OK with me having a taste.

I really liked it and hope I get to try it again soon.
Mommy and Daddy talk about getting an ice cream attachment for the Kitchenaid mixer.
That would be AWESOME - ice cream all the time!

Fathers are key to toddler development | DIYFather.com - It's great to be a dad!

I read this somewhere a while ago but its nice to see it in print again. Yea Me (and men like me)!

Fathers are key to toddler development | DIYFather.com - It's great to be a dad!:

"As part of the investigations, kids aged 12 to 18 months (accompanied by a parent) were placed in three different risky situations: social risk (a strange adult entered his or her environment), physical risk (toys were placed at the top of a stairway), and a forbidden activity (parents were forbidden to climb the stairs after the child succeeded the first time). "We found fathers are more inclined than mothers to activate exploratory behavior by being less protective," says Paquette. "

"Paquette is convinced that mothers and fathers intervene differently in the education of a child and these complementarities benefit a child. 'Even if both parents change diapers and give the bottle, they don't do it the same way,' says Paquette. 'By stimulating exploration, controlled risk-taking and competition, fathers provide something different to the child who will benefit greatly from this singular contribution.'"

While Julia Was Sleeping ... EVERYWHERE?!?!

First of all, I love the movie "While You Were Sleeping" which stars recent Oscar winner Sandra Bullock. YEAH, Sandra!!! : )

That is partly why I was excited to create this post title to describe Julia's busy sleeping behavior. This girl is busy day AND night! Compared to where we put her down for her daytime naps and to bed in the evening, she is in completely different positions and places in the crib. It's a MINI crib, also - there's only so much room to move around!

Some people are pro-family bed - that's cool for them. I can not do it. Sometimes I move a lot during my sleep, too. Julia & I would knock into each other constantly!

She is SO cute when she's asleep - she's cute awake, too! : )

15 Months & Pushing the Envelope

Julia is 15 months old. What does that mean? She's growing and getting smarter. She's fine tuning her skills and becoming more aware of the world and herself.

You always hear stories about parents having eyes in the back of their heads. I think Julia has eyes in the back of her head b/c she doesn't seem to miss ANYthing. Part of it is the completeness of her senses. Neither Tara nor I hear or see as well as we used to, Julia is still new and incredibly sharp. She sees things out of the corners of her eyes, she hears the slightest noise from across the house. Its a little frustrating when you are trying to get her food ready before she realizes its time to eat and she hears the refrigerator open.

She's been doing so much that its hard to talk about what's different this month. She's getting better at climbing the stairs but she doesn't understand the going backwards down the stairs. Her babbling has gone to a new level with more word-like sounds, a stronger repertoire of sounds, and, of course, more words. She has recently figured out how to climb onto things and into cabinets. She likes to be chased by people and Johnders.

BREAKING NEWS: The day before yesterday she grabbed my finger and walked me to the refrigerator for a snack.

She is a master mimic. She loves imitating her Uncle Joel as well as dogs. It really is an onslaught of activity with her.

On the bad side: She is teething again and thus quite fussy. She is more specific about her wants and gets that much more agitated when we don't get it right. Mealtime can be a CUSS (if you saw "Fantastic Mr. Fox" you know what I mean)!

It continues to be a wonder and a joy to watch her grow and develop. I think I sound like a broken record about that but she continually amazes.