Monday, February 28, 2011

RoomMates for Kids: Peel & Stick Wall Decals

When Henry was a baby we put a tree decal on his wall from Etsy.com.  It was slightly tedious to apply and although advertised as reusable, we tossed it when we moved.

Recently, Henry and I decorated his new room with individual decals - cars, trucks, trains, etc.  I let him choose which ones should go where - sort of - and he had a ball.  He loves to show off his stickers to visitors.  These decals - RoomMates RMK1132SCS Transportation Peel & Stick Wall Decals - are actually reusable too, which can be seen as a positive and/or a negative.  This morning Henry told me his train was on the floor, and I found the train decal next to his bed balled up on the floor.  I carefully unstuck it and got it back on the wall, but it isn't as good as new.  

RoomMates RMK1132SCS Transportation Peel & Stick Wall DecalsRoomMates RMK1132SCS Transportation Peel & Stick Wall Decals

Friday, February 25, 2011

Breastmilk Ice Cream Anyone?

Shocking that cheese made from breast milk didn't make it to the mainstream here in the U.S.  Why is it that "Baby Gaga" ice cream flavor is selling out in London?

Personally, it sounds nasty to me, but maybe I'm just an uptight American?  

See article below for story:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfmoms/detail?entry_id=83829&tsp=1

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Moving from Crib to Toddler Bed!

A couple weeks ago our friend offered to lend us her son's car toddler bed.  Chris said, "it's always been a dream of mine to have one of those car beds," so we jumped on her offer.  Before we picked up the bed, we talked to Henry about him moving upstairs to a new bedroom with a big boy bed.  I was really nervous about the transition - how would he deal with it?  Would he miss his crib?  Most of all, it would mean he's not a baby any longer.  Henry didn't show any anxiety.  Instead he immediately jumped on board and pleaded to sleep in a "big boy bed."  But we didn't have the bed yet!  

Once we got the car bed, he was smitten.  He wanted to stay up in his new bed all day long and didn't want to leave the house.  He said to every visitor old and new, "show big boy bed."  The first 3 days and nights he napped and slept per usual.  On day 4, I could hear him walking around in his room, playing with cars and reading books.  On day 5, I heard him shut the door and come down the stairs.  He had a devilish grin as he stood on the landing.  Each time, I brought him back to bed without much discussion and told him he has to stay in bed until Mommy comes to get him.  We went through this routine for 2 days - putting him back into bed. 

For the past 2 weeks, he has stayed in bed until I've come to get him.  He sits in bed calling "Mom, Mommy, Momma, Mom."  There was one hiccup, where I found him IN the bathtub playing with cars.  I immediately put a safety knob apparatus on the door, and nipped that in the bud.  Generally, his sleep habits have changed little regarding crib vs. toddler bed, however, I have noticed it takes him longer to fall asleep - but that might be an age thing.

It's been an amazingly easy transition.  The baby's room is all ready to go, and Henry hasn't asked once to go back to his crib.  HOORAY!!

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Book of the Week: "the sleepy little alphabet"

I'm hoping to post a new favorite book every week.  Henry and I spend HOURS every day sitting around reading - it's no wonder my butt and thighs are ballooning - hence my repeated attempts to take Henry to the gym daycare.

Our first "book of the week" came from a book exchange we recently joined.  We sent 1 book and have so far received 4!  It's been so much fun getting new books in the mail - especially when they are books we've never before seen.

The Sleepy Little Alphabet: A Bedtime Story from Alphabet TownThe Sleepy Little Alphabet: A Bedtime Story from Alphabet Town

Henry is attempting to learn letters, and he finds this book hilarious.  The lower case (baby) letters are all getting ready for bed.  The illustrations are very cute and makes learning letters funny!

See Our Other Book Recommendations

Sunday, February 13, 2011

A GREAT Nasal Aspirator for Large and/or Rounded Nostrils

Baby Nasal Aspirator Vacuum Suction Pigeon (Made in Japan)Baby Nasal Aspirator Vacuum Suction Pigeon (Made in Japan)

The regular bulb syringe failed us BULB SYRINGE 2 OZBULB SYRINGE 2 OZ - it is straight and narrow at the tip and wasn't effective on Henry's rounded nostrils.   I started looking for other options.  Although Henry seems to have inherited many of Chris' genes (blonde highlights and green eyes), it's starting to look like he's inherited some of my characteristics too - crooked teeth and rounded nostrils.

We found the above Baby Nasal Aspirator at our Japanese supermarket, and now you can get it on Amazon!  The head of the apparatus has a bulb on the end, which creates an airtight seal against the nasal passage allowing for maximum suction.  Although it doesn't work as well as putting your actual mouth over the baby's entire nose, it is the next best thing - and a lot less revolting.

Here's to happy suctioning!

Monday, February 7, 2011

Leaving Henry at Daycare for the First Time

This morning I finally bit the bullet and left Henry at the complimentary gym daycare center.  I've been saying I would do it for months, but kept putting it off out of fear - fear that he would get terrorized by other kids or just feel abandoned.  I nervously prepped him all morning saying he would go play with new toys and make new friends while I went to exercise.  And I promised I would come back to get him.

As we drove to the gym I found myself driving unusually slowly.  Cars passed me left and right.  I was dreading the trauma he might experience being abandoned at an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people.  Upon arriving at the gym, Henry obediently walked holding my hand toward the daycare.  His initial reaction was:  "Go in there!" he urged.  He smashed his face against the glass gate ogling the toys.  He shouted, "lawnmower!"  The check-in lady swiped my gym card, and smacked a sticker on his back with his name and a barcode.  She instructed me that they would page me only if he needed a new diaper or if he cried for 15 minutes.  He walked in through the gate and never looked back.  I called out, "Bye bye Henry."  He didn't turn around.

I tearfully fled to the elliptical hoping he wouldn't see my stress.  He didn't.  I'm not even sure he knew I was gone.  For the first 5 minutes on the machine I perked up my ears waiting to hear my name paged.  During my 40 minute workout, 3 names were paged, none of them mine.  I thought, "Wow!  We did it."  As I collected my things from the locker room feeling a sense of accomplishment (for working out and for strapping on a pair re: the daycare), I heard another page.  This time, it was for me.  I walked briskly to the daycare.  Henry was in the arms of a sweet looking girl, who said he was playing fine and started crying for an unknown reason.

Henry immediately stopped crying upon seeing me, and said, "go home.  go home."  I asked him if he had fun at the daycare and he said, "uh huh."  But then when I asked if he wanted to go back he so, "No. No.  Go home!"  I suspect he was hungry, congested, or after 30 minutes realized I was gone and got nervous.  I hope it was the first or second suspicions.  Later today I asked him what he did this morning and he responded, "Crying."  Ugh.  Regardless, I won't give up on the daycare just yet!