Well, the last month and a half have been a whirlwind of activity and development. We found a new house here in Toronto after a fairly in-depth search. Daigoro and Kenshin were very patient as we trucked them around from house to house. Daigoro would often ask if there were "guys" (kids) or toys in each house as we went in, as one of the earlier houses we toured had toys on display in one room.
We're happy with our find, which should give us a lot more elbow room in the long term. It's close to schools, parks and shops, as well as being not too far from where we are currently, so many of the social contacts we've already made in the area won't have to be dropped. I'm also pleased that it's actually closer to our current United Church, so we'll be able to stay on with the congregation there without a long commute each Sunday. The commute will be shorter for Marli and only a few minutes longer by bike (and shorter by transit) for me, so it's a great find.
Based on the way we're bursting at the seams in our little two-bedroom apartment currently, moving day couldn't come a day sooner.
Kenshin is more mobile in his cruising and occasionally stands without support, though still nowhere near as rapidly as Daigoro seemed to progress. In the past two weeks, he's been increasingly hyperactive (in the non-clinical sense) which has been a little bit of a strain for Marli and me. Some of his increased awake time and night-time feeding may be due to yet another pair of teeth coming in, the first of which poked through his gum this morning. Kenshin's current favourite toy is a Curious George jack-in-the-box which he received as a gift from his aunt this past Christmas; it absolutely entrances him when it plays. He generally shows a markedly higher interest in music and rhythm than Daigoro ever did; Daigoro is not uninterested in music, but it's not his first love.
Daigoro swings between being a really resilient and well-behaved kid to a whiny little so-and-so, with the decent majority of it being good rather than bad. I suppose that's entirely normal for a kid his age, but I can see how some parents start to lose their cool about now. I have a comparatively short fuse when it comes to whiny-ness, whether it be children or adults. I tend to think I'm a fairly patient guy otherwise, so it's difficult for me to find myself blowing my top at times. His hand-eye coordination development continues to impress me, just last week he drew a pretty credible version of a whale which had a striking (but coincidental, in my opinion) resemblance to West Coast aboriginal art depictions of whales. I'm pleased that he's showing an interest in art.
Starting last Tuesday (February 19th), he's been running a streak where he hasn't pooped in his diapers while he was awake. He's been quite motivated by the reward of being able to wear special "Cars"-themed pull-up diapers if he tells us that he has to go potty in time (and subsequently goes). Seems the reward/carrot motivator has trumped basic training methods this time.
We're continuing our now three month tradition of going to my parents' house on Thursday and swimming at a local community centre for about forty-five minutes to an hour. Both kids seem to enjoy it a lot (so long as the wading pool is warm) and Daigoro in particular has advanced a long way towards being more confident in the water.
More to follow... I've just run out of steam on this entry for now.
Showing posts with label swimming. Show all posts
Showing posts with label swimming. Show all posts
Monday, February 25, 2008
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Wagging Tongues
This past weekend (August 25-26), Kenshin has started to babble. He's previously been making noises; cooing and gurgling and squawking, but hasn't been stringing them together into a sequence of connected sounds. Now he's "bah-bah-bah"-ing and "goo-goo-goo"-ing with the best of them.
It was funny to observe him work up to this level. On Wednesday and Thursday of last week, I noticed that he was working his jaw open and shut in a sort of silent version of babbling - not making any noise. At the time I commented to Marli that it'd be funny to just overdub a video of him with some sort of voice track.
Then, after three days or so of this, he connected the idea of opening and closing his mouth with making sound at the same time and voilà, he had made the leap to babbling.
At the same time, in the past three weeks while we were on vacation and the week since, he's steadily improved his ability to push up and roll over, to the point that we have to be careful of putting him down on couches and chairs without a healthy padding of pillows to prevent him rolling off and onto the floor.
He's developed a cute habit which will probably pass quite quickly; he occasionally sticks his tongue (a tiny, pointed red-pink flag tip) out one side of his mouth or the other. It's almost too cute, but the fact that he's doing it without prompting or self-consciousness keeps it from slipping into the saccharine.
On the Daigoro front, he's still testing the limits of saying no to various commands, suggestions or requests. It can be wearisome at times, to say the least, and I feel for Marli for having to deal with him all day long. Fortunately these episodes are not so frequent as to make dealing with him a constant chore.
We've been able to "upgrade" his sleeping arrangements into a small cot without much fuss. He rolls about quite a bit at night, so we didn't want to put him into a full size bed yet for fear of the dreaded "thunk" in the middle of the night (as has happened once or twice when he's been left to sleep in full-size beds. Marli made the observation (and I agree) that it's curious that Daigoro hasn't formed strong attachments to single objects or routines. He doesn't really have a favourite toy or stuffed animal; he didn't protest at all when we stopped putting him in the crib and started him sleeping in the cot; he doesn't seem to bat an eye when our routine is shifted slightly or we do something out of the ordinary. In one sense I am grateful, in another I wonder if there is something to the idea of children having strong attachments. I guess he would make a good Buddhist. Well, in this one sense, anyway.
While on vacation, my in-laws made helpful suggestions about higher levels of discipline and obedience. Though I feel we've made a good effort along these lines, I admit that we can do better. In the larger spectrum, I know that Daigoro is actually quite a bit better in terms of obedience and temper tantrums than many children, but it's easy to bristle at correction from elders, even if meant with the best of intentions. So, I think Marli and I will be working a little harder on the concept of obedience with Daigoro over the next few months. My in-laws certainly have valuable experience on the subject.
Our efforts at potty training are so far met with sporadic success. He's managed to let us know on a few occasions now, but his successes are far fewer than his accidents. Nothing to worry about yet, of course; just unfortunate that he hasn't gotten the knack of yet, considering how well he seems to catch onto other activities.
Daigoro's dietary preferences have narrowed to an even thinner range of carbs and sweets, a development which does not please us. There are nights when he eats quite well, on many others he is getting a less than optimal balance. We are spending some time and discipline on this - future health depends a lot on his learned habits now.
The stresses of childcare continue to put strains on the time Marli and I spend together. Fortunately we are learning to adapt both our activities and our expectations and I am thankful for a partner who is willing to discuss issues before they become deep-rooted problems.
We took the children to visit my sister this weekend - she lives in a very nice apartment building with a penthouse level swimming pool. Both Daigoro and Kenshin seemed to enjoy their time in the water, though Daigoro is still reluctant about floating and kicking, preferring instead to be passed from one adult to another.
There are a number of stories from our vacation on Manitoulin Island that I should also relate, many of them very fond memories, but I should sign off for now and save them for another entry.
It was funny to observe him work up to this level. On Wednesday and Thursday of last week, I noticed that he was working his jaw open and shut in a sort of silent version of babbling - not making any noise. At the time I commented to Marli that it'd be funny to just overdub a video of him with some sort of voice track.
Then, after three days or so of this, he connected the idea of opening and closing his mouth with making sound at the same time and voilà, he had made the leap to babbling.
At the same time, in the past three weeks while we were on vacation and the week since, he's steadily improved his ability to push up and roll over, to the point that we have to be careful of putting him down on couches and chairs without a healthy padding of pillows to prevent him rolling off and onto the floor.
He's developed a cute habit which will probably pass quite quickly; he occasionally sticks his tongue (a tiny, pointed red-pink flag tip) out one side of his mouth or the other. It's almost too cute, but the fact that he's doing it without prompting or self-consciousness keeps it from slipping into the saccharine.
On the Daigoro front, he's still testing the limits of saying no to various commands, suggestions or requests. It can be wearisome at times, to say the least, and I feel for Marli for having to deal with him all day long. Fortunately these episodes are not so frequent as to make dealing with him a constant chore.
We've been able to "upgrade" his sleeping arrangements into a small cot without much fuss. He rolls about quite a bit at night, so we didn't want to put him into a full size bed yet for fear of the dreaded "thunk" in the middle of the night (as has happened once or twice when he's been left to sleep in full-size beds. Marli made the observation (and I agree) that it's curious that Daigoro hasn't formed strong attachments to single objects or routines. He doesn't really have a favourite toy or stuffed animal; he didn't protest at all when we stopped putting him in the crib and started him sleeping in the cot; he doesn't seem to bat an eye when our routine is shifted slightly or we do something out of the ordinary. In one sense I am grateful, in another I wonder if there is something to the idea of children having strong attachments. I guess he would make a good Buddhist. Well, in this one sense, anyway.
While on vacation, my in-laws made helpful suggestions about higher levels of discipline and obedience. Though I feel we've made a good effort along these lines, I admit that we can do better. In the larger spectrum, I know that Daigoro is actually quite a bit better in terms of obedience and temper tantrums than many children, but it's easy to bristle at correction from elders, even if meant with the best of intentions. So, I think Marli and I will be working a little harder on the concept of obedience with Daigoro over the next few months. My in-laws certainly have valuable experience on the subject.
Our efforts at potty training are so far met with sporadic success. He's managed to let us know on a few occasions now, but his successes are far fewer than his accidents. Nothing to worry about yet, of course; just unfortunate that he hasn't gotten the knack of yet, considering how well he seems to catch onto other activities.
Daigoro's dietary preferences have narrowed to an even thinner range of carbs and sweets, a development which does not please us. There are nights when he eats quite well, on many others he is getting a less than optimal balance. We are spending some time and discipline on this - future health depends a lot on his learned habits now.
The stresses of childcare continue to put strains on the time Marli and I spend together. Fortunately we are learning to adapt both our activities and our expectations and I am thankful for a partner who is willing to discuss issues before they become deep-rooted problems.
We took the children to visit my sister this weekend - she lives in a very nice apartment building with a penthouse level swimming pool. Both Daigoro and Kenshin seemed to enjoy their time in the water, though Daigoro is still reluctant about floating and kicking, preferring instead to be passed from one adult to another.
There are a number of stories from our vacation on Manitoulin Island that I should also relate, many of them very fond memories, but I should sign off for now and save them for another entry.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Things to Make Your Heart Go "Pitta-pat"
Yesterday my elder son, in the midst of running in and out of the space formed by a sidewalk sandwich board-style advertisement, stopped, looked at me and said quite clearly:
"Happy Father's Day, Daddy!"
He had been coached by Marli as well as his aunt and uncle on Saturday and Sunday, but he said it to me quite independently of coaching or prompting. I'm sure he still doesn't know what it means, but it was nice to hear him say it, even if his only motivation was to make me happy.
Back around the 7th of this month (+/- five days), Daigoro figured out how to climb out of his crib. He's a nimble little guy. It's quite a strange feeling, once you're used to lifting your child out of a crib, to hear him come plodding down the hallway when you know that no one has lifted him out. Sort of creepy at first.
He's becoming a little more contrary - he's quite frequently saying "no" or ignoring our various requests ("come here", "please eat", "no shouting", etc.). We're still holding to the firm but fair model of punishment and discipline - currently we're using about 30 seconds of enforced sitting still as a mild punishment. He obeys maybe 40% of the time when he's otherwise occupied or interested in what he's doing. That number goes up sometimes when he's tired (generally more compliant) and goes down when he's exhausted (generally more cranky). It's a balancing act for sure.
In the afternoon of Father's Day, I took Daigoro to a local outdoor swimming pool. He hasn't quite gotten used to full body immersion yet. Unlike his father, he appears to be a little uncomfortable in water. We'll have to get him used to it slowly.
Kenshin seems to enjoy standing up with assistance. He's quite capable of pushing up with his legs while Marli helps him to stand.
"Happy Father's Day, Daddy!"
He had been coached by Marli as well as his aunt and uncle on Saturday and Sunday, but he said it to me quite independently of coaching or prompting. I'm sure he still doesn't know what it means, but it was nice to hear him say it, even if his only motivation was to make me happy.
Back around the 7th of this month (+/- five days), Daigoro figured out how to climb out of his crib. He's a nimble little guy. It's quite a strange feeling, once you're used to lifting your child out of a crib, to hear him come plodding down the hallway when you know that no one has lifted him out. Sort of creepy at first.
He's becoming a little more contrary - he's quite frequently saying "no" or ignoring our various requests ("come here", "please eat", "no shouting", etc.). We're still holding to the firm but fair model of punishment and discipline - currently we're using about 30 seconds of enforced sitting still as a mild punishment. He obeys maybe 40% of the time when he's otherwise occupied or interested in what he's doing. That number goes up sometimes when he's tired (generally more compliant) and goes down when he's exhausted (generally more cranky). It's a balancing act for sure.
In the afternoon of Father's Day, I took Daigoro to a local outdoor swimming pool. He hasn't quite gotten used to full body immersion yet. Unlike his father, he appears to be a little uncomfortable in water. We'll have to get him used to it slowly.
Kenshin seems to enjoy standing up with assistance. He's quite capable of pushing up with his legs while Marli helps him to stand.
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