Not So Spirited

Everly has always seemed a bit more alert, energetic and intense then most of the other kids we encounter. At the same time I usually have been able to keep her happy and cooperative while we are out. We have only had 1 bad tantrum (so far) while out in public and it was easily explained (she was tired and hungry).

I had read a lot about the book "Raising Your Spirited Child", on mothering.com and after 2 difficult weeks with Everly at home I went out and bought it. Of course the two days before I got it were good ones... and it seems her last tooth has come in and she is as sweet as can be.

Anyways after reading the first 2 chapters, I was pretty confident Everly is NOT spirited, so I don't think I will read the whole book. There is some great info in it though and I definitely read the chapter on tantrums which reinforced everything that I do. Basically it encouraged you to first of all try to avoid them by knowing your child's triggers. If one occurs you should stay with your child and do what you need to do to help them come out of it. For Everly that means just staying close by until she starts to wind down and then offering hugs and "boo boos". If I try to touch her or talk to her while she is in it, it makes things much worse. It felt good to have my approach reinforced.

The other chapter I enjoyed was on intensity and how to help lower it. Some of the suggestions were play-dough, which we play with often, sensory activities (like water, sand etc.), reading, back scratching etc. I found this all really useful because I do find that Everly is more balanced when we have enough down time each day. It is easy to forget about when you have a kid that is so energetic.

I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who thinks their child might be spirited (more intense, persistent, hard time adapting to change etc.)

Concoctions

Currently there is nothing Everly enjoys doing more then making concoctions. I try to avoid giving her a drink with dinner because inevitably it will end up being the base for "soup". Every chance she gets she is squirting soap or cream into containers.

My approach to this has been to hide away all the soap, cream etc. from her reach so I don't have to say no. I am torn between setting up a table with lots of stuff to concoct, and trying to avoid encouraging this. My thinking is this, concocting is a creative thing and I want to encourage her creativity. She enjoys it and I am sure she is learning about volume, texture etc. while doing it. At the same time I don't want her thinking concocting anything and everything is OK, and I have noticed that if we avoid a certain activity eventually it loses it's allure. I suppose I will lean towards doing some structured mix making for her, and just be really diligent about hiding away things I don't want her messing with.

The video from above was taken one morning. I went upstairs to put my hair in a ponytail and left her playing in the living room. Our kitchen was pretty messy and had lots of inviting things on the counter. So I came down to her making "ice cream" for her best friend Amelia. It was so gross!! Anyways I just asked her about what she was making and then redirected her to another activity. I don't see the sense in getting mad. Everly is a smart cookie but I can't expect her to not get into stuff, when I leave it out. I just have to make a note to self - "clean up kitchen unless you want a bigger mess to clean up!"

Home Birth

When I was pregnant with Everly I did a ton of research on pregnancy and child birth. After all my reading I knew that I wanted an all natural birth with no interventions unless absolutely necessary, and that I would prefer a home birth. Well I go the all natural birth but my husband was really against a home birth. At the time he said it was because we were in a small condo with paper thin walls.

Now we live in a town house with thick walls and lots of space comparatively. My husband is still really apprehensive about a home birth, but in my mind that is what I am having. We are going to go to a home birth seminar at the midwifery clinic, and hopefully that will get him on board.

So why do I want a home birth?

1./ I don't want any pain medicine or other interventions the hospital might have to offer.

2./Labour tends to be quicker. You are at home and comfortable.

3./ I will feel more in control. Last time I basically lost my mind when I got to the hospital and totally lost control on my pain management. Luckily I was only there for 3 hours before Everly was born.

4./ Less exposure to germs

5./ I won't have to endure a painful car ride while in labour, and won't have to wait around until I can pee to go home. Last time it took 3 hours after Everly was born before I could go because I couldn't pee. I was able to pee a little bit and that got me out but when I got home I had no problems.

6./ I can just relax after the birth in my own home.

Hopefully everything goes well and I am able to have a home birth. Everly's labour was really hard but other than the cord being around her neck (which is very common) everything went smoothly.

My Amazing Girl

Everyday I am amazed with what Everly says and does. I wish I could share her accomplishments without coming across as bragging. I want to keep track of her milestones, so here are her most recent ones.

The other day she woke up and informed me that she wanted to "do learning... to learn ABC's mommy". I started to sing them and she got furious and said she wanted to do them by herself. She is getting pretty close to reciting them correctly at this point. I try to point out letters as much as possible and she likes to play starfall as well. It is great because she can fully navigate the site now on her own (well the ABC section).

She now understands what reading is... at least as much as she can. She knows what words are and that I am reading them while we read books. She will point and ask me what they say. She will also sometimes point to a "D" word and ask if it says "Daddy" and same with several other letters ie/ A-Amelia S-Siri obviously E-Everly. When we are out in public she will pointe out E's and say "E for Everly", and be quite happy to see random E's. I am in no rush to teach her to read but since she is interested I will point out words that come up frequently in a book and tell her what they say. Then when we turn the page I will ask her to find that word. She enjoys doing this.

She is also constantly asking "how many is this?". Then she will hold up her fingers and show me some random amount to see if that is how many. She sometimes will count objects up to 3, but when she tries to count objects she usually races ahead. She is starting to count up to 14, but will leave out one or two numbers. She can point to two objects versus, three, and vice versa. Same with one, and I think she is starting to recognize a grouping of 4. I mostly just read number books to her and count objects with her. Sometimes I will group things and get her to pick out a grouping of 2 etc.

I think what is the best about Everly right now is how much she is talking and what a little ham she is becoming. She has said a few times "I make people laugh". She enjoys finding new ways to make her friends and family laugh. She will suddenly cross her eyes on purpose, or make a silly face or say something funny. Sometimes she will just talk and talk and talk about things and she is always saying "remember that mommy"... and will recall things we have done in the past.

I am so interested to see how baby #2 is compared to Everly. I have taught some sisters who are quite similar in what they are good at and their personalities and some that couldn't be more different. The only thing I am PRAYING baby #2 will do differently is be a better sleeper!!! YIKES!!! Everly hasn't slept well in 5 months, since her 2 year molars starting coming through. At least we will be done with that by the time #2 arrives!

It's a Girl!!

Today we found out that we are having another baby girl!! I am over-the-moon. I really wanted a little sister for Everly, and always dreamed of having two girls. Everly has been very adamant that the baby is a girl, and has actually expressed that she does not want it to be a boy.

We had a run in with a boy she did not like at gymnastics, and when I told her the baby might be a boy she said "mommy... remember that boy gymnastics?" OMG! I couldn't believe she would make a connection like that and that playing with that boy would put her off. :P

I am so glad that this baby is due in May like Everly and that I have all the clothes this baby will need for quite some time. All I really want is a couple new infant toys (non-plastic), an ergo and a baby swing. Oh and a couple of matching outfits for Everly and the baby! :P

I am now 20 weeks along and feeling so much better!! I am SEEING our little girl move now which is fun, and I am finally feeling less nervous about the whole thing. I am still waiting to have a real pregnant belly but it is starting to take form. I think come February I will finally really look pregnant... which I love.

Gymnastics

This fall I decided to enroll Everly in the rec centre "kindergym".  Which is basically a really laid back gymnastics class.  She loved it so much I decided to enroll her in a "real" class at a gymnastics club.  The rec centre class is pretty much a free for all.  The kids do what they like and play together.  I love that about it.  The club class is very structured and the children must do a warm up together and then do different circuits.

The first few times I took her to the club class she really didn't listen at all, and I had to constantly keep her on track, while keeping it all fun.  On Monday we had our last class and it was so amazing to see the difference.  She didn't take her eyes off the instructor and did the whole warm up with only one reminder (to do bunny hops instead of runs).  She was just so fully engaged.  

She gets so excited for both classes now and it is amazing to see what she is able to do.  She is so coordinated - much more so then many of my 4 year old students.  It will be interesting to see if she is just an early bloomer or if she will always be so coordinated.  She can do the beam all by herself and she does it quite quickly.  Her forward rolls are easy for her now.  I am just encouraging her to stand up right after, because that does take some strength on her part.  On the trampoline she is starting to be able to land on her bum and back on her feet, which I don't think they even bother teaching for another year or two.  

She is always asking about taking ballet lessons.  We are holding off on those until next year because for one there isn't a convenient class with a good teacher, and two I just don't think she is ready to follow that much structure.  We dance at home most days, and for now that is enough. 

I never thought I would put my kids into ballet, but Everly is totally taken with it.  I also get almost free classes at the studio's I teach at, and with money being tight it means she gets to do something she loves without breaking the bank.

I think it is really important for kids to develop their coordination, strength and flexibility right from the start.  Enjoying being active is really important to me and I hope both my kids find something that they love participating in.  That way they are more likely to want to stay active as adults.

Baby #2

Well... I was intending on blogging after our busy summer but then I got PREGNANT!!  Everly will be a big sister end of May/ early June just after she turns 3.  I am really excited... and nervous.

It has been extremely rough since I first found out I was pregnant.  First the morning sickness hit me before I even got my BFP, then a few weeks later I had the flu for two weeks, and just when I started to feel rested again I got bronchitis, which turned into the most horrible sinus infection that I finally seem to over.  All the time this was going on Everly has been getting her 2 year molars and waking up SCREAMING, and inconsolable at night.  I feel like I have barely had a chance to think much about this pregnancy or enjoy it.  I am 16 weeks and still not showing at all so I don't have a bump or movement to make it feel real.

I am hoping that come January everything settles down and we can get back into some state or normalcy and work on preparing Everly and our home for our new arrival.  I would really like to nightwean Everly and have her sleeping in her own bed.  I want to make things as easy as possible on us all when the baby arrives.

I have a great midwife and I am hoping DH will agree to a homebirth.  He has been pretty against it but the midwife is very supportive and I hope with her help I can get him on board.