Food for Thought

I have to admit that feeding babies is not my specialty.  I don't have much patience for the whole process of baby trying new foods (or pushing them around and squashing things), and never really eating much except the few things that have passed the test.  The third time around is no better (and I realize that I'm the common factor here and must accept some responsibility for the situation).  Eliana is very opinionated about what goes into her mouth.  She is extremely suspicious of anything new.  She will put some things in to try and they immediately come out with a deadpan look on her face that says,"Nope, not a chance." Fortunately, she does like her yogurt.  I have been feeding her plain, whole-milk yogurt since she was 6 months old, and she has loved it since the first bite.   She has been feeding herself her yogurt these last few days and actually getting some in her mouth.  I still do most of it but she insists on having her own spoon and wants the bowl on her tray too.  It is a messy affair, which I understand is the nature of the thing.  I do look forward to less food on the face (and hair and arms). She does enjoy it though. I keep thinking that when she's older there will be a little less food on the outside and a lot more food on the inside. Then again, maybe not.

More Than Unusual

In the middle of August we began the process of helping Eliana sleep through the night without the comfort of being attached to Mommy all night long.  No one involved in that scenario (the sleeping attached one) was getting much quality sleep!  And as many people know, getting used to a new way of doing things can be very tough, especially when it comes to how a baby gets to sleep.  There were many tears, and for the first couple of nights I actually stayed in the room with her talking quietly to her, shushing her, and trying to make it a little less sad.  She has done very well and most of the time will now go down at night with a little fussing, but no more than the time it takes for me to leave the bedroom and get to the living room.  And she stays asleep for a very long time, until 5 or 6 a.m. on a good night, and maybe 3 a.m. on a rough one.  But even that is a huge improvement from waking up an hour after I put her down and refusing to go back in her bed! One thing that made me sad about the whole thing is how upset she was even on the way to the bedroom.  Walking down the hall made her fuss, and cling to me with her head buried into my neck.  She knew what was going on, and did not want to go in that room, much less in the bed.  I thought to myself,"She'll never be one of those kids who leans toward the bed and really wants to dive in and go right to sleep." Tonight I brushed her teeth (trying to make that part of the "bedtime routine") and started my walk down the hall.  She laid her head on my shoulder and hugged on me; we went over to her bed and I said my usual good night stuff and gave her one last squeeze.  I set her down in her bed, turned around and walked out of the door, shutting it behind me and NEVER HEARD A PEEP. I said to myself as I shut the door,"Are you serious?"  And the quietness behind me said loudly enough,"I am serious."  Even if it doesn't happen again for weeks or months, I am so glad and grateful to be able to put her down and leave her not crying!  Ironically, I have tears in my eyes!

Reflections

Well, this blog could look like many different things.  It is a family blog, so we will share what's going on with the five of us, the milestones reached, the new experiences we're having, soccer pics.  But being me and all, I can't help but share the good, the bad, and the ugly.  Oh, don't worry, I won't put too many pictures of myself up.  Just kidding.  Seriously, for me, struggling through a day (or a week or whatever) is something that affects every part of my life, every relationship, decision, thought.  This week our family had some great days, as far as getting along, getting schoolwork done, having a good time.  There were also a couple of major meltdowns.  Well, what family doesn't experience those?  I know that's true.  This morning would fit into the "ugly" category.     Christian and I got off to a rough start, and that is actually quite an understatement.  I'm still processing the whole thing.  There are times when patience comes from a supernatural source and it's undeniable.  Then there are "this mornings".  What happens at times like that?  I think that the amount of sleep one gets is surely a factor, but the more important thing is one's spiritual maturity.  And I know that right now I feel as wobbly as Eliana is on her feet.  Oh sure, she can get herself up and take lots of steps, but she sways all over the place.  She's not so stable and sooner or later gravity pulls her plump little bottom smack down on the floor.  She always lands in such a cute way, with her legs crossed in front of her.  Too bad the gravity pulling me down is the seriousness of my own flaws-lack of self-control and patience in particular.  And the landing is not nearly as cute.  But maybe it is where I should be, flat on my face.  Eliana is not going to walk well until she has gone many miles on those tiny feet.  And the lesson for me in that is that I, too, will not walk well until I have put in the miles.  I think I'll go get my running shoes on...

Christian

Christian has started Kindergarten at the Highland Park Presbyterian Day School.  He is really enjoying his time there, staying very busy throughout his day, meeting new people, and seeing people that he has known for a while.  One of the things I love about Christian is how friendly he is.  He'll say hello to just about anyone, and often he'll give them some extra information just in case they wanted to know, for example, what Eliana's name means, or how old he is, or we just went to the grocery store, or how he can float.  He has friends everywhere we go, or at least acquaintances.  Today I ran into the Director of College Ministries at our church, Keith, and he said,"I saw Christian earlier today with his class.  He was sitting on a bench being quiet 'cause, you know, he's with his class and all.  I went like this [thumbs up sign, accompanied by a grin] and he goes like this [thumbs up sign and a slight grin to the side].  Then when I walked away I heard him say,'I know that guy'."  Did that make anyone else laugh?  I could just see him.  He casts a sideways look at his buddy next to him, nods in Keith's direction, and knowingly says,"I know that guy."  That kid cracks me up.  He's a funny little man.  And he looks handsome in his uniform!  I sure love that boy.

Two peas in a pod

Eliana has lots of toys.  And she plays with them, for about two seconds.  Most of the time what she is much more interested in is whatever the big kids are doing.  She is able to climb up into their seats at the school table by herself, and she even tries to do it when someone, particularly Michaela, is sitting there.  You can imagine how productive an environment that is sometimes for getting any schoolwork done.  Michaela is quite the doting mommy sister though.  And so very tolerant and sweet.   Today we were trying to get through grammar ( a dictation) and Eliana was, indeed, trying to get into Michaela's chair.  The morning had not been going well, because of her determination to be in the middle of everything as well as her determination not to take a nap in her bed.  So I finally just stuck her in the chair alongside Michaela and gave her a pencil and paper.   And that made her happy. Eliana loves to be wherever Michaela is.  And she really looks up to her big sister. Sometimes she takes it one step further and really tries to do exactly what Michaela is doing.  And Michaela loves every minute of it.