Extended Rear-Facing (PSA!)

Now that Mason is approaching his first birthday, I've been asked a lot if and when we will be turning his carseat around.  The answer is "Not Yet!"  I've done some research and reading on this topic, and the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) now recommends that children stay rear facing as long as possible - at least until 2 years and 40 pounds.  The law currently states that babies must stay rear facing until 1 year and 20 pounds. 

I'm definitely no expert, and you know I don't typically try to make my blog "educational", but here's some information I've found helpful.  This message board has some excellent info and links on the importance of rear facing.  One portion in particular says:

"The AAP recommends leaving the car seat in the rear facing position until the maximum weight limit for RF’ing is reached: “It is best for children to ride rear-facing as long as possible to the highest weight and height allowed by the manufacturer of their convertible seat.”

Here's a link directly from the AAP about the importance of keeping children rear facing as long as possible.

He's gotten a little fussy in the car lately, so I very briefly entertained the idea of turning him around, but his safety is most important, and I believe this is definitely the safest choice!  I've been asked about his comfort and where he'll put those long legs of his.  I'm not too worried about this yet, but we'll cross that bridge when/if he seems uncomfortable!  Until then, it's rear-facing for us! 

Brat?

Disclaimer:  Before even putting this "on paper" I must say that it makes me feel bad.  However, this blog has become therapeutic for me, and right now, I need some therapy.

If I said my kid was a brat, would it change the way you think of me as a parent?

I hope you know by now that I think the world of my kid.  He is the light of my life and I would do anything for him. 

But some days, my son is a brat. 

Let's take today, for instance.

He woke up at 8:30 (which is really 7:30. Stupid time change) this morning screaming his head off.  And I mean it was one of those screams where I couldn't even go to the bathroom first.  I went in to love on him some, but he would have none of it.  Mason is too cool for me. (Wow, I feel like I'm in high school again.)  He immediately wiggles his way down and proceeds to play with all the things in the room that he is NOT supposed to play with.  Bottles of Tylenol and Vicks, the clock, the ceramic heart hanging on his dresser.  At what point did he get tall enough to reach these things?!?  I must have missed something. 

So, I decided to do the good mom thing and distract him.  We took his clothes and clean diaper into the living room where we wrestled for 15 minutes trying to get his diaper changed and his clothes on.  May I just mention that he doesn't do this for ANYone else.  Literally, just me.

Next, it was time for breakfast.  He has a thing for breakfast (I wonder where he gets that from?) so I stirred up his oatmeal, toasted his waffle (that sounds mean!  "I'm gonna toast your waffle kid!"), and got out the yogurt and milk.  Now, keep in mind that this is the exact same meal that he had for dinner last night and devoured (except he had toast instead of a waffle, but the principle is the same.)  So he ate like a champ, right?

WRONG.  I can't even tell you how many times he knocked the spoon out of my hand or spit his food out in disgust.  I really don't get it...he was all over that stuff last night.

I finally decided we were going to Wal-mart because I forgot a few things yesterday.  He was an angel at the store of course, because he only shows these true colors for me and his Daddy.  Everyone else will think I'm making this up.

When we got home, we had some playtime before his nap.  Mason has a thousand toys covering my living room floor, but he has no interest in those.  All he wants...is the Wii (or you could insert other things he's not supposed to have: remote controls, cell phones, power cords, Molly the dog).  We keep it on the entertainment center, which USED to be out of his reach. (Seriously, when did this kid get so tall?)  Now, he can crawl over all of the barriers we put in that corner and reach it.  So I said very sweetly "Mason, that's not for you."  (I swear it was sweet, Terry heard it!)  He looks right at me, and reaches for it again.  "Mason." I said in a slightly more stern voice.  "That is not for you."  I picked him up and moved him to his toys to try to distract him, but this kid has a one track mind.  He goes straight back to the Wii.  "MASON!" (still sweet...ish.)  "No.  That is still not for you!"  And of course he grabs it anyway.

So I decided he needed a few minutes of crib time.  I put him in his crib with a toy and walked out of the room.  Yeah, that was the noise you heard this morning.  He screamed at the top of his lungs.  I swear if you were walking past my house, you would have probably called the cops because it sounded like someone was hurting him.  He did this until I gave myself  a minute to cool off and went back in the room. 

At this point, I decided it was naptime.  I fed him and changed him, and thank Heaven, he's out like a lightbulb as we speak.

So, yeah.  We're not having the best day.

I am grateful for the time we have together.  I don't expect every moment to be perfect.  I know that sometimes, kids are just brats.  But as we approach toddler-hood, these moments seem to occur far more often...if it's like this now, how will the "terrible twos" be?  I may need to be put away if it gets much worse than this!

I've griped on for like 12 paragraphs.  So what am I thankful for today?

Well at this moment, I'm thankful that my strong-willed little darling is sound asleep.

I'm thankful that the weather is absolutely gorgeous today.

I'm thankful that tomorrow, I will get to see some of my favorite girls and spend some quality time with them.

I'm thankful that I will be sleeping on clean sheets tonight, because I'm washing them right now.

And, I'm thankful that this is the worst thing I have to complain about.  Sure my kid may be a brat, but he's healthy (mostly) and happy (ish) and we have a lot to be thankful for!

Sick

Illness has invaded the Timberlake household!  It all started last Sunday, when we noticed that Mason's nose was running just a bit.  By Monday, he was back to the cold he had just gotten rid of two weeks before - congestion, runny nose, coughing, sneezing...  =(

By Wednesday Mamma, Terry and I all started feeling it too.  I *had* to take two half days to stay with him to keep Alisha and her kiddos from getting the crud. (And you know I was so disappointed to have to miss that time at work!) 

Used to, when we got sick, Terry and I would spend lots of time lying around, watching movies, and waiting for it to pass. 

Boy, how times have changed!

Even feeling bad, Mason is a machine!  He still moves around and plays non-stop, and keeps us busy!

So, we use lots and lots of this...

to keep us going.  Unfortunately for Mason, all he gets to use is this:

But he doesn't mind so much, as long as we're fast, so he can get back to this:

And this...

And almost walking by himself...

And gazing out the window at the beautiful day...

And look how disciplined he is...he already stands in the corner when he's done something wrong.  (Totally kidding FYI)  =) 

Hopefully we are on our way to conquering this unwelcomed guest known as the common cold!

First Conversation

Mason and I had our first real two-way conversation yesterday.  It went like this.

Me:  "Uh oh Mason, are you poopy?!?"

Mason:  "Uh-oh!"  (which sounds more like uh-oooh, TOO cute!)

Me:  "Did you go poopy??"

Mason:  "I did."  (Okay, he probably didn't actually say this, but I swear that's what it sounded like.)

Me:  "Oh no!"

Mason:  "Ow wow wow wow."

Me:  "Aww, does it hurt?"

Mason:  "Uh oh!"

Now is that a conversation for the blog or what?!? 

He has lots of favorite words now.

Uh-oh (or as previously described, uh-oooh)

Ow and or Wow

Dadadada

Mama (on occasion)

Baba (I don't know what this one is.)

Bye-bye

Hello (he said it once to my dad, it was more like "He-wo!"

And sometimes when he says "Mama" it sounds like he actually says "Mamma".

He's quite the conversationalist!

Letter to Mason re: Sleeping

Dear Mason,

We need to talk.

First, you know I love you right? Because I do. You are my favorite little guy in the whole world and I think you are precious.

But seriously. You are almost a year old. I really need you to go ahead and start sleeping through the night.

Last night, you decided to wake up at 2:00. I left you alone for a while since you were just talking to yourself and kind of whining. I figured you’d put yourself to sleep – I wasn’t trying to be mean or ignore you. But then you started screaming. So I patted your back and told you I loved you. I thought for a second that you were going to go to sleep, but as soon as I left the room, you started crying again. So at 3:00 in the morning (3:08 to be exact) I changed your diaper and fed you.

(Remember Dr. Riser? You love her. She’s a smart lady. And she told you that you don’t need to eat during the night anymore. You are a big, healthy boy, and she told you to start sleeping through the night. I figured you would listen to her, since you listen to everyone better than me, but you haven’t.)

Anyway, so I fed you at 3:08 even though Dr. Riser said I shouldn’t. Because you were acting like you were starving and I was desperate for sleep. So as you were eating, you fell asleep and you were sleeping hard. But of course, as soon as I laid you down, you woke up again and started wailing.

At this point, I did something I kinda feel bad about. We can go ahead and add this to my list of bad mommy moments. I’m not proud of it, but I went back to bed and turned off the monitor. Of course that really makes no sense because then I’m just straining my ears to listen for your cry, but I was desperate kid!

Finally I couldn’t take it anymore and I went to pat your back again. In the process I dropped my flashlight and it rolled across the wood floor and hit the wall…I’m sure that helps with the sleeping process. (And for those that don’t know, I use a flashlight instead of turning on lights at night.) Anyway, I rubbed your back for a minute until you calmed down and then I went back to bed. You fussed for a few more minutes, and then finally went back to sleep, around 4:00.

So here’s the deal kid. Your mom is tired. Your mom has gotten up with you every single night for 11 months, and while I love you more than life itself, I’m tired. I need sleep. I have to get up so early for work. My students give me funny looks when I’m running on 4-5 hours of sleep and I can’t form coherent sentences. I’m afraid my principal is going to get rid of me because I can’t find the enthusiasm to be excited about being at work because I’m just so tired.

So I have developed a plan.

1. At dinnertime, your job is to go ahead and EAT the food I have made for you. This will keep your belly full.

2. At bedtime, you will still take a full bottle.

3. You will sleep through the night.

I know, it’s a weak plan, but it’s all I can come up with after 5 hours of sleep.

I love you and I hope you decide to follow my plan. I’ll still love you even if you don’t, but I bet I’m a whole lot more fun to be around after a good night’s sleep.

Thanks for listening.

Love,

Mom

Another busy Saturday

We were on the go non-stop this weekend!  Friday night, we went to dinner with the Scotts - Casa Ole!  Yummy!  We haven't been out together in a while, so it was nice to catch up!  It turns out that Mason prefers the red sauce...

while Lewis prefers the green sauce.

On Saturday, we hung out at Grammy and Grandpa's house.  Mason watched some TV...

...played some piano with Uncle Steven...

...and just looked darn adorable in his new Old Navy shirt!

After a nice long nap, we went to Mamma's for Cailey's birthday party.  We didn't get any pictures with Cailey, but we did get to see cousin Tennie, looking very stylish in her pretty purple top!

After the party, we made a quick trip to the park because it was SO gorgeous outside!  Mason liked the swing much better this time, and he cracked me up when he flung himself forward in the seat.

Look how gorgeous it is outside!  Love it!  And of course, we have to get the shot with mom.  You can even see my arm in my sunglasses!  =)

What a lovely weekend!  There's another one coming up in T - 5 days!

SNOW DAY!

Today, something very unexpected happened!  The weathermen have been saying it for a few days, but no one believes the weathermen around here anymore, at least not when it comes to. . .

SNOW!

Now some of my friends who live in or have visited other parts of the country probably think we're all silly down here...we get a couple inches of snow, and we all freak out!  But when you grow up and never see it like this, it's amazing.  It's beautiful.  And fortunately, we don't experience it enough for it to become a nuisance. 

It started this morning while I was doing car duty at school.  That's right...I had duty. Outside.  While it was sleeting and snowing and oh-so-cold.  I thought it would be awful, but it was actually really fun to watch the kids faces as they got out of their cars, seeing something that many of them have never seen before.  At least not like this!

My fourth graders were out of their minds all day.  My classroom doesn't have windows, which turned out to be a blessing today, but any time they got a peek outside, they lost it!  Finally, around 10:30, I took them outside.  They loved it. 

They dismissed school early because, well, Central Texans don't really know how to drive in snow, and I'm sure everyone figured the snow would be more enjoyable from the safety of their own yard. 

I am one of the few that will admit that driving in this kind of weather scares me.  My wonderful husband knew I was worried, and he came to my school, cleaned off and started my car, and waited almost an hour for me to dismiss my kids.

(Side note, Parents:  PLEASE pick up your kids on time.  Especially on a SNOW day when I can't wait to get home to my boys!)

We went and picked Mason up from Alisha's and came home for a nice long nap.  Then we got all bundled up

And we ventured outside for some snow fun!

Mason wasn't sure what to think of the snowflakes falling on his face...

He may have been wondering why we got him all bundled up just for this...

But I'm certain

that if he has the opportunity...

he will grow to love snow days...

just like his Daddy.