Visit to the Naturopath

We had a great visit with the naturopath this week. What a difference from seeing the regular pediatrician. She wanted to know so much about Pookies background, including her birth. She observed her while we chatted and did a bit of a physical exam (more than the ped). She said she would do the rest at our next visit in 6 months for a check up.

It was nice to be able to ask questions about brushing her teeth, the bump on her head etc. and get a thorough answer. I asked her about vaccines which we stopped at 6 months and I really liked her balanced answer.

She said Pookie obivously has a strong vitality and a very strong neurological system. She commented on how healthy I feed her and how all the cuddles and love I am giving her are making her brain grow strong. It felt good to get that kind of feedback. She also mentioned that I might be interested in reading up on Waldorf eduction, which was pretty neat since I have just started doing exactly that. Apparently there is a conference in the spring at the local Waldorf school with lots of speakers on natural parenting.

She presciped a homeopathic remedy of Sulpher 6CH for Pookies rash on her face, and my homeopathic friend also agreed that sounded like a good remedy.

I am really looking forward to my own appointment on Tuesday. :)

Nursing a Toddler in public

I have been thinking about how odd it is that it feels OK to nurse a baby in public but not a toddler.  It isn't like you are showing any more skin with an older baby but the feeling is definitely different.  I do feel more self-conscious now, which I don't like but can't help.  For the most part Pookie doesn't need to or want to nurse when we are out and about.  She often does want to when we are at the Early Years Centre (free play centre) and I nurse her there.   I have had a few other mom's ask me how old she is and give me a look like I am weird for nursing her.  I have made a conscious decision not to let any looks deter me.  I often feel that maybe if another woman sees me she might feel more comfortable doing it one day or might realize that babies can and do nurse past the infant stage.

Trying to Stop Nursing to Sleep

I absolutely have no intentions of leading Pookie to wean, but what has been making me lose my mind is the ENDLESS nursing she does while trying to fall asleep.  She actually started rolling over to fall asleep several months ago.  It seems that she can't fall asleep with the breast in her mouth, but often she doesn't want to stop. 

Anyways I have really had enough.  I don't mind nursing her before bed but I really want her to start falling asleep on her own.  So my rather unthought out plan & definitely not researched plan is to explain to her that "Booba's go to sleep after books", and give it about 10 minutes (I can do anything but nurse her for those 10 mins).   If she is still upset after that and there is no hope of her falling asleep I will just nurse her.  So last night it didn't go so well... although during the process there were some hopefully moments but then she would set herself off.  Tonight... it was MAGIC!  When we said night night to the booba's she just said no a million times and basically fell asleep immediately.  Granted she must of been tired.  She was with her Grandmother today who said she had an early nap.

I am really hopeful this might work and might help make bedtime less stressful for me.  I have just been so unhappy lying there for so long nursing her.  

For her naps she basically just quickly nurses and passes right out.  I think this is because she has gotten used to napping without nursing through my mom and husband.

I am hoping tomorrow night goes OK.

My Little Ballerina

I danced for many years, up until I was 26. I trained for a while at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet school. (Got my Advanced RAD, did the Solo Seal and bombed, and did up to Intermediate in Cecchetti - for any of you that know what that all means) I went to University for dance and got my RAD teaching certificate.

Anyways all that dancing didn't do too much for my body image, which was why I wasn't gung ho for Pooks to follow in my footsteps. However she LOVES ballet! She loves dancing, she loves her ballet books, she loves watching ballet on youtub, she loves watching me teach.

I taught her how to do a plie, develope (stick your leg in the air), some arm positions, galoping, "tippy toes", skipping (which for her is marching on her tip toes) and jumping. She loves doing these things. She even taught herself how to do a backbend from looking at a picture of a ballet dancer doing one.

Once a week she comes and teaches with me for 15-30 minutes while I wait for her Dad to pick her up. She sits in her hotsling and quietly watches, occasionally signing more or pointing at something she likes.

It is pretty neat to see how interested she is in it without me pushing it on her.  Her Dad is a musician too so I think music & dance are just in her.

Christmas Dress

So that is her Christmas dress. Usually dress Pooks in comfy practical clothes.  Stretch pants, jogging pants, cotton tops and hoodies.  However for Christmas I like to go all out!  It is my one chance a year to dress her in something totally impractical.  My mom used to always get us a really nice dress for Christmas and I always loved that so I am carrying on the tradition.  I am not really keen on the flowers on this dress, but the price was right and aside from the flowers it was almost exactly like a dress at Gymboree I liked (which was $50).  Pookie really liked it actually and did a couple spins in it.  

Drawing Corner

Pookie loves to draw and I can often do a couple of emails or tidy up while she does a picture so I thought our home office would be a great place to set up a little drawing centre.  It was just a spontaneous decision, so I pulled out an old end table and just used that.  It is perfect and Pookie really likes it so far.  I got her the Melissa & Doug crayons this weekend and they are great. They are triangular so they don't roll off the table and are harder so they don't break.  They don't have any annoying paper on them either.

We put up some this little poster that came with a set of her Rosemary Wells books which she loves.  

Baby Carriers

Before Pooks was born I started buying baby carriers.  I have a Mei Tai which has been the handsdown favourite.  It is an Angel Pack and I just LOVE it.  I used it from the time she was about 3 weeks until present.  It is really comfy and easy to wear.  Even Daddy can get it on by himself.  It is reversible so it can be just brown on the outside for Daddy.  

I also have a hotsling, which I only started liking once I could do the hip carry.  I still put Pooks in it if she is feeling needy and I am trying to get stuff done.  I wear it when I am teaching ballet and she is with me.  She sits happily in it.

I have a unpadded ring sling, which I also like but didn't use as much because it was a bit more involved to put on and off.  I didn't get it until Pooks was about 5 months and I think it would of been great when she was newborn.  I am lending it to a friend. 

Finally I bought an organic cotton Cuddly Wrap (also on lend).  I got this with a gift certificate when Pookie was about 10 months.  I wish I had had it when she was newborn.  She  could still probably go in it but I thought my friend would enjoy it more with her new baby.

I love baby wearing.  We hardly used a stroller in the first year and once she started walking we just let her walk when we go out.  We bring a carrier as back up.  We do use a jogging stroller for when we run.  

I find strollers seem so over used.  I am not saying they don't have their place, but it just seems wrong when you see these newborns going from stroller, to car seat, to bouncy chair to exersaucer.   Then they end up with really bad flat head...  

Here is an article on CNN on stroller use.

Science Centre

Yesterday was Daddy's work children's Christmas party.  This year they held it at the Science Centre, which meant once it was over we could have a visit for free.

Pookie had SO much fun!  They have created a new kids area for kids under 8, and it was amazing.  I think that next year I will get a pass so we can go on a regular basis.  If I were able to homeschool Pooks it is somewhere I would want to go all the time.  I couldn't help but think how much you could learn going there on your own.  As a kid I really only went with school groups and I never got to spend time on the things that interested me.

 Pooks had the most fun in these peg-like board things where you push your body in and make an impression.  It was fun watching her play with all these older kids and hold her own.  She also enjoyed an electric keyboard they had set up with body sounds on it.  She even loved looking at the organs of the human body - she was pretty sure the liver was a hat!  We were there for about 2 hours and I am sure we could of stayed much longer.  There was a big area with all sorts of water activities.  We decided against letting her see that because then we really would of been there forever!

PS - I have to thank my Aunt K for the super cute outfit Pooks is wearing in these pictures.  The tights are from The Gap and have a bear on the bum "Bear Bottom" tights!  

Phthalate PCV Free Animals

I was at Mastermind last week - my favourite place to get Pooks toys, as they try their best to sell quality toys. I found these mini animals that are phthalate and pcv free.  I couldn't resist because Pooks seems to love anything that is tiny!  They have been a bit hit.  There are a few duplicate animals so I will often ask her to find "the other dog" or cow etc.  Her favourites are the dogs and horses.  She likes to make the horse and donkey kiss.  Mastermind also sells jungle animals and some other ones, so I might get her another pack for Christmas.

Finding a Rhythm

I loved reading Artistmama's blog about finding a rhythm to the day and also using verses.  We started doing a bedtime routine about 2 months ago when Pookie showed signs of needing it.  It has made bedtime much smoother, and we really enjoy it.  Now our mornings show signs of needing better flow.  Usually I would bring my breakfast down the basement, watch a TV show while Pooks played, and then I was more awake and we would start our day.  This isn't working anymore.  Pooks wants to watch TV - which I don't want her too, and she just seems crabby.  

Today we tried something new and it worked well.  We went to the main level and sang some morning songs - I need to find some better ones!  She did lots of drawing, and I did a bit of cleaning.  We made breakfast and then we tidied up and went up to the Montessori room and briefly did some activities.  After that Daddy woke up so we were there to give him kisses.  Finally we did lots of dancing/ ballet.  This made our morning so much more enjoyable.  I would like to add some morning yoga before breakfast, but I just couldn't get motivated today.  

My plan is to use songs/ verses for the morning, meals, bedtime and also for when we go in the car.  I think it will help let her know what is going to happen next and maybe eventually she will join in!

If you have any verses/ songs please share them or share your links!

More Water Play

Pookie is still obsessed with playing in the sink with water.... above you can see I also enjoyed it as a toddler!  The problem now is that she wants more and more and more containers to play with.  It is getting out of hand.  She also insists on having the tap run and my green-guilt kicks in like you wouldn't believe.  I try to put it on to as close to a drip as she will let me.  With all this water play she is getting really good and pouring and out of drinking out of a regular cup.  I got her some stainless steel "cups" (they are actually for dipping sauces).  They are the perfect size and so far she hasn't had any spills.

Busy Days - Naturopath

The top picture is Pookie last spring at my parents and the picture below it is me.  I am working a project which involves scanning lots of old pictures so I have had fun finding ones of Pooks and I that are similar.

Pooks still has that rash around her mouth.  It is not very bad at all but her Daddy is so worried and has threatened to do horrible stuff to me (joke) if I don't take her to the doctor.  I was resistant to that because all the doctor will do is prescribe some cream, rather than look into what is causing it.  So I decided to make an appointment to see a naturopath.  This ND works out of the midwives clinic I will use for my next pregnancy.  She specializes in children and women, and she is also a doula.  She is very AP and even pro alternative schooling.  I decided to make an appointment for myself as well and she said she could even see Pookie's Dad.   

I will be really relieved to have someone I can trust to go to when Pookie isn't well.  Since she was born I was scared into giving her antibiotics twice and honestly it is one of my biggest regrets.  It isn't that I am against them but I do think they are over prescribed, and the co-relation between their use and asthma scares me.

Both Pookie's dad and her cousin from Daddy's side have asthma (Dad not anymore).  It is actually one of the reasons I got interested in extended-nursing.  I did a lot of research on how to prevent it.

The ND has a pre-pregnancy detox program.  I am really excited to get some input on that.  Before we started TTC I really cleaned up me eating habits in order for my body to be as healthy as possible. 

Good Intentions don't always = a good day

Today I had all these wonderful intentions.  Pookie would have a dry day, we would spend lots of time outside happily enjoying nature, and we would do some fun activities together.  Unfortunately Pookie and I were not on the same page.  For some reason she decided to pee in some weird spots today.  These weren't accidents - she intentionally peed on top of her slide and then in the dog bed.  It is frustrating, but she is only 18 months and I just keep reminding myself it is normal and she is ahead of lots of children who are older than her.

Next... I have decided we need to go outside to play even when it is chilly.  I took her out and it was a disaster!  Everything was frustrating her.  She loves to hold the dog's leash and she had zero patience when the dog wasn't cooperating.  There were quite a few tears so we came inside. 

Then I thought she might like to do some of her Montessori activities... nope she wasn't interested... until she found a M&M's container and decided she would like to put water in that.  I got her set up and she poured water from various containers for almost 30 minutes.  Then she got bored and went to her Montessori shelf and brought the chickpeas over and poured them into the water.  She really liked that and it kept her busy for another 20 minutes.

Sometimes you just need to take a step back and forget about your own agenda and see what your child wants to do.   She often does enjoy it when I initiate an activity, but there are lots of days were I just need to be a passive observer, keep her safe and let her do her own things.

Great EC Weekend

We had a surprisingly good weekend on the EC front.  On Saturday I had a choreograph a ballet dance so Pookie and Daddy were on their own.  Daddy took Pookie to the mall in her undies and she did a poop at the mall.  Then yesterday she was commando the whole time we were at her cousins.  She did a pee before we went to leave and wouldn't put a diaper on for the the drive home.  I decided to chance it and let her go diaper free for the hour long drive home.  About 10 minutes into our drive along the highway she signed to go potty.  We pulled into a McDonalds and she pooped!  

She is really enjoying pulling her own pants down and up.  I am really looking forward to her "graduation".  I hopeful it will be before she turns 2.  

I really love these Ikea potties.  They are only $2.99 canadian.  Before I found them I bought the Baby Bjorn Little Potty but it is 5 times as expensive and Pookie actually prefers the Ikea one.  The one good thing about the BBLP is that it is smaller so it is better for infants.

Pookie loves her baby dolls

Pookie LOVES her babies.  I recently cleaned "little baby" and she is so happy to have 2 babies to love.  Today they have gone everywhere with her.  She wanted them to do our Montessori activities too, which caused her some frustration when they couldn't do anything without her help.  She loves pushing them in their stroller, kissing them, giving them to me to nurse, rocking, patting and dancing with them.  She is a very "attached mommy", and also enjoys wearing them.   Perhaps for Christmas I will make her some sort of baby carrier.  Her Daddy put on my mei tei on her and she loves carrying them around like that, but I am sure it would be nice for her to have one that is child sized.

She was feeling very serious about taking care of her babies when I took these pictures.  She kept glaring at me like I wasn't understanding how important her job as "momma" is.  She calls out "momma" when she sees her baby... it is her baby calling for her.  I love seeing her play like this.  It is amazing how much has changed in a year. 

Putting Books in the Slots

Pooks came up with this activity on her own!  She has these Rosemary Wells books (given to her by Aunt Terry) that come in a case with a slot for teach book.  She was putting them in on her own, so I showed her "spine up" and she quickly started putting them in spine up.  She stuck with this for quite a while.  Every so often she would stop to point to the book "The Bear Went Over the Mountain" and say "UP UP".  When I sing it to her I say the "bear went up" the mountain to encourage her to say UP as well... and she does. 

2 Piece Puzzle a no go

I went to Mastermind the other day and couldn't resist picking up these 2 piece animal puzzles.  I was so excited to show Pooks because I thought she would love it.  She really didn't have much of an interest in it.  Fitting the pieces together was hard for her, and she didn't really seem to get matching them.  Although I know she can match other things.  I think I will just leave this one on her shelf and maybe one day she will be in the mood to work on it.  

She does love those toddler wooden puzzles.  She has been doing a 3 pieces one since before she turned one, and she can do the a 9 piece shape one pretty easily.  I think what makes this less appealing it the lack of a "snap" when you put them together.  

Co-Sleeping

One of the decisions I am happiest about is co-sleeping.  We started out with our crib sidecarred to our bed.  That was great for the first 2 months when she was so tiny.  As she got bigger we used the crib less and less, until finally we went to sell our condo and took down the crib and just put her in the bed.  Pookies Dad was mostly sleeping on the couch because Pookie was such a noisy nurser.  When we moved my parents gave us a single bed and we just put that next to our queen.  Since then Pooks and I sleep in the "big bed" and Daddy in the little one.  It has been working great.  I honestly can't imagine having it any other way and I certainly can't imagine breastfeeding at night with her in another room.  This way I barely have to wake up to nurse her.  Eventually I would like her to sleep in the little bed next to us in preparation for a sibling one day.  Right now it is not possible because she is sleeping so poorly due to teething.

It might not be the most beautiful room but it works really well for us.  

Lock & Key

I remember seeing a picture in one of my Montessori Books with three locks and keys of different sizes.  I remembered I had one so I pulled that out for Pookie to try.  It was a HUGE hit!  It is not easy for her to do.  She only got it once without some help from me, but it really kept her interested.  I also attached it to the Melissa and Doug latch board to show her how it worked and she thought  that was pretty neat!

Pipecleaners & Spice Bottle

I am pretty sure I saw this one over at Chasing Cheerios.  I got the supplies at the dollarstore. The holes is the spice jar looked really small so I was worried it would be too challenging for Pookie, but it was a HUGE hit!  She is able to put a pipecleaner in every hole no problem.  She even got one of her babies to do it. You can see her trying to put the pipecleaner in the babies hand.  She then proceeded to make the baby put a couple in.  I am hoping to find a slightly more challenging fine motor activity to add to our collection.

She also worked on her pompom/ chopstick activity today.  She really enjoys that one and I think I can add a few more poms to the bowl now. 

Of course she also wanted to draw.  I think this is her favourite thing to do at the moment.  She is really getting more involved in it and using her markers and crayons in different ways.

Found the perfect kitchen

I did a bit more hunting yesterday and I found the PERFECT kitchen (click the title of this post to read up on it).  Aesthetically it is exactly what I wanted, the price is right and Pookie's dad was excited to build this one.  We are going to add a real faucet to it and I am sure my husband will add some of his own creative touches.  It is made from a $20 ikea table, with some additions.

Breastfeeding & CIO vent

The Story

So... a woman breastfed her toddler on the steps of a pool. Personally it is not something i would do... although I have nursed on the pool deck and above is a picture of Pooks nursing in the ocean! Anyways the woman was asked to go to the change room. There are a nurse-in, security guards and now it is in the news.

What I can not believe are the ignorant comments (click on the title on my blog for links). Someone compared breastfeeding in public to peeing in public. Honestly it just makes me sick. All my closest friends share the same views about breastfeeding I do so sometimes I forget how ignorant people are.

I think someone suggested giving the baby a bottle of formula. *sigh* I honestly thought people were getting it through their heads that "breast is best" and that we should be doing everything possible to make mothers able to breastfeed!

I was listening to CFRB 1010 last weekend to Dr. Lester (first and last time I will listen to his show), and he had a caller with a baby under 1 who was not sleeping through the night. He suggested Ferberization (letting the baby cry it out) and giving some formula. WTH!!! I can't believe someone would give such out of date advice. The Dad seemed really unsure and you could tell it went against his instincts. UGH! No wonder people are so ignorant when you get advice like that from a "professional".

Here is a quote from the following website :

"It has been suggested in the past that CIO is healthy for infants’ physical development, particularly the lungs. A recent study looking at the immediate and long-term physiologic consequences of infant crying suggests otherwise. The following changes due to infant crying have been documented: increased heart rate and blood pressure, reduced oxygen level, elevated cerebral blood pressure, depleted energy reserves and oxygen, interrupted mother-infant interaction, brain injury, and cardiac dysfunction. The study’s researchers suggested that caregivers should answer infant cries swiftly, consistently, and comprehensively, recommendations which are in line with AP principles. "

I could go on and on but it just seems like either people are receptive or they aren't.

$450 Kitchen

In case anyone is interested in what a $450 kitchen looks like here it is!

From their website (naturalpod.com):

"Europly carries the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) ecolabel, which verifies that any wood in Europly originates from well-managed forests. These timberlands are independently certified by SmartWood, in accordance with the rules of the Forest Stewardship Council, so customers can be assured that their Europly panels combine equal parts beauty, strength and environmental sensitivity. Each time. Every time.The FSC is the largest independent, third party, global forest management standard available today. FSC is readily recognized and specified by architects and designers for compliance with many emerging green building programs like LEED® and Build it Green, which call for this platinum standard of forest certification programs."

Wood Kitchen no-go

I decided that we should get Pookie a play kitchen for Christmas (the plain wood one seen above) as she loves playing with the one at the play centre. I did lots of research on which one would be best and talked to my mom who agreed to chip in for it. So... it turns out there are none sold in my price range in Canada! There is one that is very similar to the Camden Rose one but it is $450 with tax!! Other than that one the rest aren't what I had in mind. To order one from the states would cost an additional $130 in shipping.

I am pretty bummed out. However I did see a DIY one that I loved! It is the red and white one above. I am hoping Pookies Dad will agree to build it.... AND to use recycled parts. I think he is sure I am out to make his life more difficult. This is the one that I just love! http://stukatneva.blogspot.com/

Water Play

Pookie's very favourite thing to do next to reading books is "cleaning dishes", which is really just pouring water back and forth from one container to the next.  She now will push the chair in from the other room and get the blue towel we put on the floor when she wants to do.  To be honest I am always a bit disapointed when she wants to do it because it means I just have to stand there supervising (so she doesn't fall).... but it is worth it since she loves it so much.  

She has a rash around her mouth right now.  I noticed she is licking her face so that might have something to do with it.  Her Dad is really worried about it, but it seems to get better whenever I am diligent about putting on some all natural balm.   She is getting 4 teeth in at the moment, and just got a molar.  I wonder if that has something to do with it.

Wheel Barrell

I was reading something on the internet and it mentioned wheel barrells were good for pre-schoolers to do.  I thought I would see if Pooks could even do it.  She could and really enjoyed it.  When we first started I could hold her around her knees but by the time we took the picture she was tired.  She can go about 10 "steps" so far.  I also thought I would start working on somersaults with her too - you can see the mattress we can use for doing them and it is great for jumping on too.  She has always enjoyed doing gross motor things.  She loves galoping, doing plies (knee bends), "skips" (she actually is marching), developes (lifting her leg in the air)  and tip toe walks.  I also started showing her how to slither like a snake since already has a bit of a fascination with snakes - we make them when we do playdough.  

Cars & Colours

In the past few weeks I have really been making an effort to mention the colour of everything.  Somedays I thought she was starting to recognize them but then others it would seem like it wasn't sinking in yet.  Yesterday she pulled out her Mega Blok cars.  I disassembled them.  Whenever she plays with them I try to point out that you can match them up by colour, and yesterday she matched them all up and put them together on her own 3 times in a row.  Just a month ago she couldn't even fit them together on her own.

I was thinking I would make some coloured parking spots for her to drive them into so she can do some more matching.

Weekend with Daddy

JJ my husband watched Pookie for a large part of the weekend.   He teaches her things I wouldn't think of.  Like "funny face" - seen above.  Whenever he watches her alone she gets into her camo pants and they head off to the mall for bagels and to play in Mastermind.  Since she past the one year mark JJ and Pookie have lots of fun together.  It was much harder when she was so little and needed me around all the time.  

Drawing at 18 months

Pooks is really starting to enjoy drawing.  She enjoys using markers the best.   In the past few weeks she has gone from making scribble to making big swirling spirals, and sometimes little dots too.  I need to make sure to hold on to her the occasional drawing so later on she can see her progression.  She enjoys putting the caps back on the markers.  This past month she has figured out that only one end it the correct one and she will fiddle with the cap until it is the right way.  She has always enjoyed working on things requiring her fine motor skills.

At the playcentre they had watercolours out once and she loved it.  I haven't been able to find the children's dry discs yet, but watching her draw today made me decide I need to find some soon.  

Chopsticks and Pom Poms

Today I set Pooks up with some pom poms, a bowl and some kids chopsticks.  I showed her how to pick them up and put them into the bowl.  This is the third time we have done this.  At first I thought it was too difficult but today she did several the "correct" way.   She was so pleased with herself when she picked up all by herself.

She also worked on the latch board, the ball banger, and scooping beans from one bowl to the other, which turned into pouring the beans from one to the other.

It was really neat today when I told her to go sit on the mat and she did.  Then I asked her not to touch something while I got another bowl and you could see she REALLY wanted to but she stopped herself.  

Montessori Shelf

Since Pookie has never slept in her room I decided to put away the crib and turn it into a Montessori-inspired room.  So far all I have is a shelf.  We bought a table for it but I decided to use it in our dining room instead.  

Here is her shelf.  We got it on craigslist for $25!  It is perfect.  I have set up some of her more "Montessori" toys.   She really enjoys taking the toys down and setting them down on her mat.  She also seems to take a lot of pride in putting them away... most of the time! 

I want to set up an art corner and have her markers and paper accessible as well as her playdough.  Eventually I would like to get her an easel but right now she is way too short for any of the none plastic ones I have seen.

Our EC Story

 Today Pooks and I went to the mall.  I put her in a diaper but I could of taken her in underwear.  I took her to the washroom after we had been there for a while and she peed in the huge public toilet.  A few months ago she would go near those big toilets but now she will happily go on it.  I think I will start taking her out in underwear with waterproof pants overtop.  I find she knows the difference between underwear and diapers, so it seems like it is pretty important to keep her in underwear as much as possible.  I am really hopeful she will be totally diaper-free in the day by the time she is 2.  My goal has always been to have her potty learned by the time we have another baby.  

She is around 8 months in the above picture.  At this point she was going quite frequently on the toilet.  She seemed to prefer the potty insert. The way I approached it (we were "late" starters at 7 months), was to put her on the potty when she woke up from sleeping, or anytime I thought I could get her to sit there.  I tried to catch one pee a day.  While she peed I would say "You are going pee pee".  Sometimes I would catch no pees and I felt so discouraged.    Eventually she started to make the connection and would release her bladder if it was full when she was on the toilet.  I just kept up-ing the amount of pee's I tried to catch.  I remember it was Boxing Day when I caught the first poo, and something really must of clicked because since that day I have probably only cleaned about 10 poopy diapers.  Things just got easier and easier.  The best thing I did was to stop putting so much pressure on myself, and not aim to be "perfect".  Once I did that we became so much more successful.  

My first entry

I was inspired to start a blog after finding "Chasing Cheerios".  I love reading her blog, and thought it would be fun to start my own.  My daughter "Pookie" is now almost 18 months.  While pregnant with her I did a lot of reading over at mothering.com and my eyes were opened to natural parenting, which I knew was right for us.  We hardly used a stroller in the first year, instead we used various baby carriers, which she still enjoys riding in.  We co-sleep which I love.  I am planning to let her self-wean from breastfeeding when the time is right.  We had such a hard start.  It was extremely painful for the first couple of months, but we stuck with it and it has been wonderful every since.  

Elimination Communication 

When Pooks was 7 months I was so fed up with her horrible diaper rash.  We mostly used cloth, and changing to disposables didn't help.  I had read about elimination communication before but thought it was only for really crazy hippies, so I never considered doing it.  With the diaper rash being so bad I knew she needed more diaperfree time.  I decided to give "EC" a whirl.  It was really frustrating that first month.  I didn't try very hard and it was next to impossible to get her to pee on the potty.  Then something changed and suddenly she started peeing on it when she would wake up.   We did the sign for potty and by 1 year she would sign "potty" when she needed to go... some of the time.  In the summer we really slacked because we were so out of schedule, but once September came around I decided to put her in undies during the day.  We had a few accidents the first week, but since then she has been so amazing.  If we are home all day, or just go to the play centre she is in the same underwear come bedtime.  The first time I took her out in underwear was a little stressful but now I can safely take her out for short errands.   She has 5 squat potties around the house and is really good at using them.  For the record you can get ones just like the Baby Bjorn little potty for $2.99 at IKEA!  She is able to pull her pants down now so we are definitely entering a new phase.  It will be interesting to EC our next (and last) baby from birth!  Here she is at the free Play Center, not that you can see but she is in underwear. 

Thoughts on Toys

Before Everly was born I never put much thought into toys.  I knew I didn't like some... like toy guns.  Now after doing lots of reading I have a different perspective.  First of all I really don't want to have a huge amount.  Luckily I am pretty frugal (to a fault my husband complains), so we don't buy her much.  Sometimes I see something I just have to get her.  I recently bought her the Melissa and Doug Latch Board, which she really enjoys, and JJ (my husband) got her a wooden pull toy from Plan Toys.  I try to keep as many of her toys made from wood as possible.  Most of the plastic ones are hand-me-downs.  Before Pookie I didn't even realize plastics were bad.  We only have one toy that I can think of that is battery operated and it plays music.  I have avoided toys with all the whistle's and bells.  I guess I want toys that stimulate her creativity and curiosity.

 I am hoping excited that this blog will inspire me to take pictures of our daily lives.  I think tomorrow I will post about our Montessori-inspired home.