A month has passed...
Wow, I can't believe how much changes in a month. Katelyn gained both her front top teeth a few days after the last post. Also, the first week of October she started trying to pull herself up onto two feet while hanging onto the coffee table, security gates, crib bars, etc. She's been doing it for two weeks and is totally consistent now. Unfortunately, it's a little early for this (I think) and her poor little legs wobble back and forth after a few minutes, but she doesn't know how to get herself down! Also, about a week ago, she learned to go from crawling to a sitting position. Physically, she is improving by leaps and bounds every week!
Emotionally, she switches from a happy smile to a devastated cry in seconds. Sometimes, I put her down and she immediately starts to cry, then spots a toy and abruptly stops in mid-cry, forgetting for the moment how utterly upset she was over me putting her down litterally two seconds earlier. I can't believe how quickly she is willing to voice her dismay at everything. It is really hard during the day to keep up with both of the kids' demands all day long. I can hardly get a chance to hop onto the computer to update everything that is going on.
She also went through a really weird sleeping spurt where she was waking up 3+ times a night, and also was very hard to put back down in the crib once either of us could get her to sleep. We sometimes had to try 3 or 4 times because she would just wake up as soon as we tried to lean over to place her back in the crib. I finally gave up about a week ago and just told Jeff that the first time she woke up in the night I was bringing her to the bed, feeding her there and letting her sleep with us. I swore I'd never have the kids in bed with us, but I was just getting way, way too little sleep and couldn't function during the day. Surprisingly enough, after two nights of bringing her into the bed with us, she now sleeps from when we put her down, around 9pm 'til about 3pm. So whatever it is, it's working and I'm sticking with it for a while 'til I catch up on my sleep (hah, 7 months worth, right!). The hours in bed with us aren't great for me but at least I'm lying down and half sleeping instead of being up for hours trying to put her back in the crib.
Kyle is going through a weird emotional stage, too. I hardly know what to do with him anymore. I feel like I spend most of the day telling him no to requests (No, Kyle you can't have anymore candy, watch more TV, play the computer, etc.) or trying to work on unacceptable behavior (talking back, rudeness, constant whining). The whining and sort of fakey tantrums is getting to both Jeff and I the most. I remember him doing similar things just before he turned two. Didn't we deal with this already? Why didn't it stick? Aaaaarrrggghh!
I have to really watch him now, since he's starting to get a little meaner with Katelyn. He can't stand it when she plays with any of his toys so he grabs at them. Which I really do understand, after all, he's only three. But he's starting to grab them in such a nasty way and sometimes in unsafe ways which is really not okay. He just can't seem to understand that he can hurt her. I'm worried that his sleep schedule is too inconsistent, since sometimes he gets a nap and sometimes he doesn't and that might be making him grumpy. Or, I know I was so irritable and grumpy myself for a few weeks when Katelyn was having trouble sleeping that maybe he watched and learned, unfortunately. Or maybe it's just a phase he has to go through, who knows? I sure don't!
On the other hand, he can still be very loveable, and does try to convince us of things in very loving ways. Although he is sometimes nasty to Katelyn, I have to rmember that most of the time he is nice, and can't wait to see her and play with her first thing every morning and every time she finishes eating or is away from him longer than an hour or so. He does little things for her and so proudly announces, "Look, Mom, I'm helping her!" He is incredibly excited about being a Care Bear for Halloween this year, so you must check the site for pics because he really is totally adorable in his costume, and asks every day if he can wear it.
A final note to all of the parents out there in both our families --
After a particularly hard day, I just want to say Thank You to everyone who helps me and visits with the kids. Although some days are easy and wonderful and I feel like my heart will burst with the joy of experiencing our kids, other days are so hard, both physically and mentally, and so emotionally wrenching that I stop and wonder if it was like this for anyone before us. Naturally, of course it was sometimes, and I forget how nice it is to hold on to all the wonderful memories and how easy it is to let go of all the hard stuff. I already forget some of the really hard phases we went through with Kyle until Jeff reminds me, and it's only been 3 1/2 years! Anyway, you are all amazing - especially those of you with 3 or more (my heavens, how did you do it?). And most especially, thanks to both Jeff's and my Mom and Dad for bringing us up so well and loving us so thoroughly. We can certainly appreciate it more now that we experience your side of this first hand! :o)
Emotionally, she switches from a happy smile to a devastated cry in seconds. Sometimes, I put her down and she immediately starts to cry, then spots a toy and abruptly stops in mid-cry, forgetting for the moment how utterly upset she was over me putting her down litterally two seconds earlier. I can't believe how quickly she is willing to voice her dismay at everything. It is really hard during the day to keep up with both of the kids' demands all day long. I can hardly get a chance to hop onto the computer to update everything that is going on.
She also went through a really weird sleeping spurt where she was waking up 3+ times a night, and also was very hard to put back down in the crib once either of us could get her to sleep. We sometimes had to try 3 or 4 times because she would just wake up as soon as we tried to lean over to place her back in the crib. I finally gave up about a week ago and just told Jeff that the first time she woke up in the night I was bringing her to the bed, feeding her there and letting her sleep with us. I swore I'd never have the kids in bed with us, but I was just getting way, way too little sleep and couldn't function during the day. Surprisingly enough, after two nights of bringing her into the bed with us, she now sleeps from when we put her down, around 9pm 'til about 3pm. So whatever it is, it's working and I'm sticking with it for a while 'til I catch up on my sleep (hah, 7 months worth, right!). The hours in bed with us aren't great for me but at least I'm lying down and half sleeping instead of being up for hours trying to put her back in the crib.
Kyle is going through a weird emotional stage, too. I hardly know what to do with him anymore. I feel like I spend most of the day telling him no to requests (No, Kyle you can't have anymore candy, watch more TV, play the computer, etc.) or trying to work on unacceptable behavior (talking back, rudeness, constant whining). The whining and sort of fakey tantrums is getting to both Jeff and I the most. I remember him doing similar things just before he turned two. Didn't we deal with this already? Why didn't it stick? Aaaaarrrggghh!
I have to really watch him now, since he's starting to get a little meaner with Katelyn. He can't stand it when she plays with any of his toys so he grabs at them. Which I really do understand, after all, he's only three. But he's starting to grab them in such a nasty way and sometimes in unsafe ways which is really not okay. He just can't seem to understand that he can hurt her. I'm worried that his sleep schedule is too inconsistent, since sometimes he gets a nap and sometimes he doesn't and that might be making him grumpy. Or, I know I was so irritable and grumpy myself for a few weeks when Katelyn was having trouble sleeping that maybe he watched and learned, unfortunately. Or maybe it's just a phase he has to go through, who knows? I sure don't!
On the other hand, he can still be very loveable, and does try to convince us of things in very loving ways. Although he is sometimes nasty to Katelyn, I have to rmember that most of the time he is nice, and can't wait to see her and play with her first thing every morning and every time she finishes eating or is away from him longer than an hour or so. He does little things for her and so proudly announces, "Look, Mom, I'm helping her!" He is incredibly excited about being a Care Bear for Halloween this year, so you must check the site for pics because he really is totally adorable in his costume, and asks every day if he can wear it.
A final note to all of the parents out there in both our families --
After a particularly hard day, I just want to say Thank You to everyone who helps me and visits with the kids. Although some days are easy and wonderful and I feel like my heart will burst with the joy of experiencing our kids, other days are so hard, both physically and mentally, and so emotionally wrenching that I stop and wonder if it was like this for anyone before us. Naturally, of course it was sometimes, and I forget how nice it is to hold on to all the wonderful memories and how easy it is to let go of all the hard stuff. I already forget some of the really hard phases we went through with Kyle until Jeff reminds me, and it's only been 3 1/2 years! Anyway, you are all amazing - especially those of you with 3 or more (my heavens, how did you do it?). And most especially, thanks to both Jeff's and my Mom and Dad for bringing us up so well and loving us so thoroughly. We can certainly appreciate it more now that we experience your side of this first hand! :o)
posted by tamicatt @ 9:36 PM
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