Cassie is Two Months Old!
25 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
in Cassandra, update Tags: milestones, update, weight
Christmas Day was also Cassie’s two month “birthday.” I’ll write about her first Christmas (and Jackson’s 6th) tomorrow, but I wanted to post her two month photo and update tonight.
Cassie's Official Two Month Photo
We took her to the doctor on Wednesday. She is 11 pounds, 5 ounces and 23 inches long. That puts her in the 25th to 50th percentile for weight and 50th to 75th for height.
Cassie smiles! She always smiles the first time she sees big brother when he comes home from school. She often smiles for me when she sees me the first time each day or after it’s been awhile.
One of the second month milestones is that she should respond to a bell in some way. I don’t ring bells near her, so I have no clue if she would respond to a bell. She doesn’t seem to startle much due to noise when she sleeps, but she sure does notice it otherwise.
She’s starting to coo too. I remember Jackson cooing more, but that could be just me. No, I just looked at his two month post, and he was definitely cooing more.
We don’t put her on her tummy much. Actually, we don’t put her down much during the day. She doesn’t like to be put down. She’ll play for short periods of time in her play gym or lying on a bed with Jackson. However, she doesn’t like to sit in her chairs. She’s OK in her swing for a bit. She really likes being worn. My friend Autumn taught me how to use the Baby Bjorn, so now I have another carrier in my arsenal, and I can use both hands! My friend Shaina brought over a new mei tai too and Annemarie brought another sling that Max can use.
I suppose we’ll have to start tummy time soon. Jackson never had it. He had bad acid reflux, so learned to flip himself over off of his tummy almost from birth. Seriously. He would roll onto his side first, then, a bit later, he learned to kind of throw himself onto his back. I think he’s developed OK nonetheless.
She holds her head pretty steady when she’s upright, but she’s still a little wobbly. However, it’s good enough that now Jackson is allowed to hold her while he stands up. However, as she’s 25% of his weight, he can’t really go anywhere with her.
She can also follow objects with her eyes if you hold them in front of her, which is apparently an advanced skill for a baby her age. Just today, she stopped crying when she saw me shaking her bottle, and boy did she follow it! She’s looking around all the time now. Great-Grandma was really surprised by how much she’d grown in just one week.
Quick Update
13 Feb 2009 1 Comment
in update Tags: height, update, weight
Jack had his 3 year old well visit (no shots of course) last week. He’s 35 1/2 inches tall and weighs 32 pounds. I almost can’t carry him anymore!
New Year’s 2009 Update
01 Jan 2009 Leave a Comment
in update Tags: Christmas, height, hobbies, singing, update, weight
Jack will be THREE years old next month! Our little baby is now a big boy. Jack is very excited about turning 3, and very much wants a birthday party. “Happy Birthday” is one of his favorite songs.
Jack had a good Christmas. This year, he knew to be excited. He would ask everyday “Is it Christmas?” and we’d have to say, “No, but it’s the Christmas season!”. Jack is a little confused now that Christmas happened. He wants it to be Christmas again.
Our little man made out like a bandit, acquiring a kitchen and food to go in it, many Thomas trains and track, several books, an electronic piano, a froggie towel to go with his doggie towel, and more. You can read more about Christmas in this post.
For the record, Jack is 30 pounds and is about 35 inches tall. He communicates at a five year old’s level, speaking full sentences, using pronouns and prepositions, and making up stories. He’s also singing all the time! This Christmas, his favorite tunes are “Jingle Bells”, “Frosty the Snowman”, and “Away in a Manger”. He’ll put new lyrics in any song, turning “I Like to Move It” into “I like to do anything Mommy and Daddy don’t let me do”.
Oh yes! The boy loves to get into trouble. He’s all about semantics. But he’s also very lovable, and gives hugs and kisses to humans and animals. He still loves to visit the pet store, and he’s getting along better with our neighbors’ dogs.
Jack enjoys being outside more than anything. Because it’s colder and raining sometimes, he’s frustrated at being in the house. Of course, we could tell him that his friends on the East Coast don’t get to go out without a coat from October through April, but we don’t think he’ll understand that.
He does show an interest in going to Disneyland, which we hope to do towards the end of next year.
Jack’s interests include Thomas & Friends (trains), WALL*E, trucks and dirt, music (especially boom-boom-bap), reading (reciting the books he’s memorized), cooking, and pretending everything. The kid has a serious imagination on him.
Overall, Jack is a good kid, who is incredibly smart. He likes school, though due to our employment situations, he’ll be going part time in January. He has many friends, and we’re trying to make sure we cultivate these friendships.
Oh, and although Jack has been asking for a baby, we have no plans to adopt in 2009. Ask us again in 2010.
September Web Site Update
06 Sep 2008 Leave a Comment
in family fun, my kids are great Tags: family fun, height, holidays, milestones, preschool, reading, vacation, wall-e, weight, words
As usual, Jack is surpassing the milestones of other kids his age. This September, Jack will be 32 months old. (Soon, we can stop keeping track of months. Woo hoo!) In terms of milestones, he’s at about a 4 year level in his language, cognitive, social, and emotional milestones. He’s about average in his physical milestones. For example, he can throw a ball, but can’t catch it. He can’t draw letters, but he can draw lines and other shapes. He can alternate feet going up and down stairs (who knew that was a milestone?), but he can’t pedal a tricycle.
For the record, Jack is just about 30 pounds and is 35 inches tall.
Jack started Montessori preschool in July, just after July 4th, actually. We’d love to show you some pictures from Jack’s first fireworks display, but the camera is gone. It was either stolen from my car, or a gremlin has taken it from the house. I’m very distressed about this. In the end, Jack really did like his first fireworks. Once they were done, he said, “Wan’ it again. Jus’ one more time.”
Jack is learning a lot in school. He can put on his own shirt, shorts, and shoes. He can wash his hands, and indeed hates having dirty hands. His vocabulary continues to grow, with words like “reservoir”, “Neosporin”, “happenstance”, and “dame la mano”. Jack speaks in complete sentences, with pronouns, although they’re not always grammatically correct. He remains ahead of the curve, verbiage-wise. He asks for many of his books by name, and has practically memorized B is for Bulldozer. He has some pretty impressive words from that book too – he knows the names of many big trucks, including the excavator. Furthermore, Jack enjoys hearing “Once ‘pon a time”s, especially the one where “Pooh Bear gets stuck in Rabbit’s house”.
Jack has many friends at school, and he’s continuing to make more as the summer ends and “real” school begins.
Jack saw his second in-theater movie, Wall*e and LOVED it. He now has four Wall*e books, a Wall*e lunchbox (thanks Nana), and a transforming Wall*e and the Reject Bots (thanks Grandma and Grandpa).
Jack really started to love drawing back in May, and will now scribble on anything he can find. He has crayons, markers, pens, and pencils everywhere. He’s pretty good at drawing ovals and circles. He also loves drawing with his sidewalk chalk. Jack doesn’t write letters, but apparently his cousin, our nephew, Orion does. We got the chance to visit with Orion and his brother Cyrus at the end of July. Pictures forthcoming, we promise.
Jack has gotten to the stage where he tells everyone what to do – where to sit, what to draw, what to read, and so on. It’s very cute, in a small dictator kind of way. He’s also into pretend play. He loves his play food, and will share it with anyone. He has a great imagination too. He’s pretended that a basket with cloth napkins is a bucket and shovels. He’ll throw a birthday party for any of his stuffed animal friends.
Jack knows his colors, and recognizes most capital letters. He understands things that are the same and things that are different. He enjoys pointing out similarities between himself and Mommy and Daddy, for example. Jack can count to 20 (though he sometimes skips 16) and can recognize most numbers from 1 through 11.
Jack loves playing outside, and since we had our front and back yards re-sodded, he spends lots of time out there.
One task Jack hasn’t mastered is toilet training. He was very into it at the beginning of June, and we thought our gDiaper days were numbered, but, upon starting preschool, Jack became very anti-toilet. We need to be more consistent about it here at home, and encourage him to use the toilet more often.
We just got back from Pennsylvania, where we visited with Grandma Sandy and Grandpa Clyde, GG (Great-Grandma Trimble), Aunt Pam, Aunt Molly, Uncle Wayne, Aunt Lolo, and cousins Bryan, Joe, and Marie. We went to the zoo for the first time, and played at Pleasant Kingdom. Again, pictures will come soon.
Nine Months
27 Oct 2006 Leave a Comment
in past Tags: first words, food, godparents, height, milestones, naps, new hampshire, standing, talking, teeth, toys, travel, weight
At 9 months, Jack is meeting pretty much all of the milestones listed in What to Expect the First Year. He’s figured out the “If I drop it, it still
exists and Mommy and Daddy will pick it up for me” game. He does not crawl, but he does creep, schooch, and roll himself all over the place. Thanks to Auntie Trisha, he now walks when he stands holding on to someone’s fingers. While we were in NH, he finally learned how to sit up from a lying down position. This has brought his schooching to a
whole new level. Now, all he wants to do is stand! Holding onto us, holding onto a table or chair, holding onto the crib rail.
Most importantly, Jack has TWO words: “Hi” and “Daddy.” “Hi” definitely means “Hi” but “Daddy” may mean “Mommy” and “Daddy” as he often says it to Mommy. The cutest behavior is watching him
saying “Hi” to himself in a mirror. For the record, he first said, “Hi” on October 2, and “Daddy” on October 13.
Jack will often respond to his own name, but he usually responds to “Jackson” better than to “Jack” or “Jack-Jack”.
At his 9 month check up, Jack was 20 pounds and 26 and 3/4 inches.
He is 50th percentile for weight and is finally on the chart, length-wise, in the 5th-10th percentile. His head circumference is in the 90th percentile.
His two bottom teeth are in, and his two top ones are still growing. He loves to bite and chew on anything he can grab. Yes, we have teether toys, but items that he’s not supposed to chew are so much tastier,
including human fingers. As for food, Jack does like yogurt (Yo-Baby), and combinations of cereal and fruit from the jar, in addition to his orange foods.
Jack’s favorite toys are blocks. He now has a few different sets, and he loves them all. He loves knocking towers down, and banging blocks t
ogether. He has also learned how to drum on empty containers and tables.
We were in New Hampshire for 18 days this month, and we were happy to see a lot of our friends. Jack didn’t take too well to the time change, so spent the first week being cranky and not sleeping well at all. The
second week, he was great, but because we lost the first week, we didn’t have a chance to connect with everyone we wanted to see. On October 8, we had a small dedication ceremony for Jack, at which his godparents and parents promised to look after him in all ways, including spiritually. As we are not members of a church, this occurred at his godparents’ home. His godparents are Marc & Joanne Gamache, of
Bedford, NH. Jack was a big hit at the Swonger household, where our flower girls, Jenn and Katie, clamored for his attention. They spent lots of time constructing elaborate towers and then letting Jack destroy them.
He still sleeps well at night, going to bed between 7 and 8pm and waking
up between 5:30 and 7am. Naps continue to be a challenge. So what else is new?
Being a Mommy
28 Sep 2006 Leave a Comment
in moments, update Tags: height, mommy, weight
Tonight, Jack fell asleep while I was feeding him, and when I went to put him into bed, he opened his little eyes and reached out for mommy. And then I got to rock him and sing to him and hold him close while he went back to sleep. That felt really good.
I always try to savor these kind of moments, because I know that in a blink of an eye, he’ll be 13 and trying to talk me into buying him a personal jetpack or something.
For the record, Jack is 8 months, 11 days, and is now on the growth chart in all areas: 20 pounds, 26.75 inches, and his head is 46 cm.
Catching Up
14 Aug 2006 Leave a Comment
in activities, update Tags: height, mommy, naps, sassy, singing, swimming, vaccines, weight
I am currently catching up on email from April. I have decided to place anything of interest in this one post, then I do not have to write email to everyone I know.
I’m not lazy, I’m just a person who can only get things done when the baby is asleep.
People ask about work, and if I like being at home with Jack. Well, I really miss working with the people at NEDC. Jack is GREAT and I enjoy being an SAHM, but I have to admit, when Max asks me questions about XML and FrameMaker, I get so happy and excited. I know, I need help. I like using that part of my brain; it doesn’t happen often enough.
How did Stephen Colbert get to be the speaker at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner? I love this stuff!
- What’s Britannica to tell me the Panama Canal was built in 1914. If I want to say it was built in 1941, that’s my right as an American. I’m with the president, let history decide what did or did not happen.
- If anything, they are rearranging the deck chairs on the Hindenburg.
- It’s like boxing a glacier. Enjoy that metaphor, because your grandchildren will have no idea what a glacier is.
Jack is in the 2-3% of weight and not on the chart at all for height. (His birthparents are both short.) He has a large head though.
He’s finally begun napping on a somewhat regular schedule. If by regular, you accept that he sleeps once somewhere between 9 and 12 and then again somewhere between 12 and 4. Planning is very difficult under this schedule, but we’re getting more done and he’s a happier little guy. One week ago yesterday (Sunday) he began to sprout teeth. He has two rising ripples of solid teeth. And his favorite teething toys: His parents’ fingers. OW!
We’re delaying or not doing a lot of the vaccines, but we did decide to get the HiB shot. Max had to take Jack, because of my severe needlephobia.
We had professional pictures done a few weeks ago, and they were SOOOO expensive. We got the sitting for free through the MOMS Club, so we went. Jack was insanely fussy, then ended up falling into a deep sleep. We didn’t think any of the pictures would turn out, so we decided we just weren’t going to buy any. Unfortunately, a lot of them did look very nice, so I ordered as few as I could, while having enough for us, the grandparents, greatgrandparents, and birthmother.
We go to Missouri at the end of the month to finalize Jack’s adoption (8/25), stay in MO for 2 days, fly to Pittsburgh to see Max’s family and friends. Max’s parents are having a party for Jack. We’re in Pittsburgh for 2 days, then we come back home. I’m so looking forward to the new airline restrictions on liquids.
Jack does actually sing, but he only does it for me and only when he doesn’t think I’m listening. Really. He’s going aaahhh aaahhh or laaa laaa or some combination, with a slightly musical tone.
Jack pulled Sassy’s tail yesterday, so today he was not allowed to be too close to her. Sassy has been very patient with Jack in the last week or so. I think she’s beginning to understand that he’s another person who adores her. Unfortunately, Jack doesn’t pet, he grabs. Sometimes, this is all right, as she likes to be scratched, and that’s what gentle grabbing kind of is. I try to show him how to pet, by petting him, by holding his hand to pet Sassy. Still, he is fascinated by her tail and tries to grab it whenever it gets close, which isn’t often.
I’m glad that the weather is settling down. I couldn’t take Jack out for walks. He did have swimming lessons though. He’s so cute! He enjoyed the water, and I want to take him to the pool on my own, now that I know what to expect, how to handle him in the water, and all that important water safety information. Today, we went to the park and swung. He didn’t want the baby swings, though. Nope. He had to sit on my lap on the big kid swings, which weren’t made for moms, even short ones like me. But it was fun all the same.
My friend Wendy said” I’m finding that even when I have “time to myself” it’s not really “time for myself” and I’m sure you’re experiencing the same phenomenon.
EXACTLY! I finally told Max, that I have exactly one hour each day to get work done, and that he needs to “come home from work”. Because he works from home, he’s always working. (Or playing computer games and reading humor sites.) I’ve been better about asking him for help this past week, and I have told him that he will be taking Jack for a few hours on Sundays, specifically so I can get scrapbooking done. I really enjoy it, and was able to finish about 6 pages yesterday.
I’m constantly reading parenting stuff. I took a break to read The DaVinci Code. So not worth it. I have several books going: What to Expect the First Year, The Baby Book (both of which I read parts of each month), and I’m Chocolate, You’re Vanilla, about raising children and race awareness. Next up: Scrapbooking for Profit and The Safe Baby (about baby-proofing, which Max is doing some of this week).
My cousin Mandi won Miss Teen Vacaville 2006!
All Purpose Update
24 Jun 2006 Leave a Comment
in adoption, everyday, funny story Tags: adoption, Friends, height, humor, mommy, naps, singing, update, weight
I never explained where “I’m the Mommy” came from. In the TV show “Mad About You” Jaime (Helen Hunt) has interviewed for a job, and somehow Paul (Paul Reiser) runs into the hiring manager, sees his family picture and tells the guy that he and Jamie are “trying.” Jamie finds out and is pissed when the guy has to rethink hiring her. She complains that she shouldn’t have to give up her work, why should she have to change everything in her life? “Because I’m the Mommy?” Paul: “Yeah.” Jamie: “I’m the Mommy?” Paul: “Yeah.” Jamie: “Oh God, I’m the Mommy!”
Thus, it dawns on the woman that everything changes when you’re the mommy, and supposed to have all of the magical answers and unlimited patience, along with the ability to sing endless verses of Old MacDonald and not repeat animals.
Which reminds me: Awhile back, I was singing Old MacDonald to Jack and Max was helping. (HILARIOUS!) Then, I got bored and started: Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are? Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky. Old MacDonald had a star… “
Jack will now nap with me in the morning/early afternoon. So I’m well rested, but not getting anything done. I’m behind on sending pictures to his birthmom, I have a pile of thank you notes begging to be sent, and I haven’t touched my scrapbooking stuff in ages. And then, Jack will not nap during any other part of the day. The best we can get is, sometimes, he screams himself to sleep and can be put down in his swing. I’m sure that the nap problems have something to do with pain, either from teething or reflux, but he sleeps so well at night. He can be put into the crib awake, and as long as he gets his binky, he goes right to sleep. He also spits his binky out about half an hour into his sleep. It’s so cute! And no, he doesn’t normally cry for it back.
In other Jack news, he’s 12lbs., 6oz., which is small for his age. However, his birthparents are short people, so this is to be expected. He is learning to “sing” — I can’t describe it and do it justice, but it’s really cute. (Although Max finds it aggravating.) He’s hitting all of his milestones, more or less. He won’t do tummy time; he immediately flips over onto his back.
I’m in Weight Watchers. I’ve lost about 10 pounds so far, but the last 3 weeks, I’ve gained little tiny amounts. While I’d like to think it’s because I’m building muscle from carrying 12 pounds around for most of the day, it is more likely that I am not counting points correctly. Eating and remembering what you eat are both difficult tasks when I can get maybe 20 minutes of not interacting with Jack. He plays by himself, but likes intermittent attention, along with verse after verse of Old MacDonald.
My friend Annemarie is getting married at the end of July and I’m a bridesmaid. However, I’m a bad bridesmaid because I haven’t gotten with the other bridesmaid to plan the shower yet.
We had our third post-placement visit Tuesday, and it went well. Jack was awake and happy for it. It’s the last one, then she’ll send her reports to our lawyer and we’ll go to Missouri. In August, after which, we will go and show Jack to Max’s extended family in Pittsburgh.
I’ve recently reconnected with 2 of my high school friends: Adri (Slovick) Frick and Yoon-Soon (Cindy) Cho. It’s so great to have friends!
Of course, Max is rather depressed because he doesn’t have many friends out here, and the ones he does have live far away. That reminds me: Gus, Jenn, I have your Christmas presents in the back of my car!
Five Months
18 Jun 2006 1 Comment
in update Tags: height, update, weight
So much time has gone by so fast, and though he may still seem like a
little baby to y’all, to us he’s growing to be such a big boy! Jack is 12
lbs. 6 oz. and is cuter and cuter everyday. He’s also crankier and
crankier — not taking naps will do that to a baby (and to his parents).
We’re working on that, so please pray to the deity of your choice that
Jack will sleep and be more like his happy go lucky self more often.
Other than the not napping thing, Jack is great! He’s very sharp and
observant. He’s learning to be gentle with Sassy (when Sassy will come
near him). He’s eating applesauce (sometimes mixed with oatmeal cereal)
and learning to drink water from a sippy cup.
Post-Placement
12 Apr 2006 Leave a Comment
in adoption Tags: adoption, post-placement, weight
Forgive me! I’ve been so busy listening to the swing that I completely forgot to write about our first post-placement visit from the social worker.
Last Tuesday, the 4th, a social worker from The Family Network came to our house. Our house was miraculously clean, though not OCD so, mostly thanks to Max. (I did help by re-organizing the living room/office.) I should have taken pictures. Anyway, she came in, we figured out where we were going to sit, and she asked us questions to which she already knew the answers: When was he born? How much did he weigh? etc. Then she gets to the health questions: Has he been to a doctor? – Yes. Does he have any medical problems? – Not exactly; he does have acid reflux so he’s on Xantac, which helps. Is he growing? – Actually, the last time he went to the doctor he had lost 2 ounces, but he had a cold, so we’re taking him again next week to re-weigh him. What about immunizations?
Here, I am prepared to do battle. I say, We’re delaying them until he’s at least a year old.
The social worker’s response? – Good!
Literally, she said “Good.” It turns out that she’s someone who never had her child vaccinated, and she swears that her daughter had fewer allergies and illnesses than any of her peers.
The rest of the visit went splendidly! I think the only question we weren’t prepared for was – Have you gotten any alone, adult-time without the baby?
I know I was puzzled, and Max looked like, “Huh?”. We explained that we hadn’t, although we had taken Jack to stay with my grandmother once so that we could visit my mom in the hospital. I felt the need to qualify the information with the explanation that we really didn’t do a lot outside our house in the first place. (Although I know Max would love to see his Silicon Valley friends.)
Jack was asleep when she arrived, and at the end of the interview, she asked if we could take her up to see him. Of course! Jack was lying there, quietly awake in his crib. She fell in love with him. I mean, who wouldn’t? He impressed her by talking to her, and he gave her the flirty eyes. He’s only done the flirty eyes twice by my count. They’re so adorable!
Anyway, it all went well, and we’ll have another one in another month or so. We need to have 3 or 4 before we can go back to Missouri to finalize. Yes, we get to spend 4 hours on a plane to spend 1 hour in court.
It’s not often that I want the federal government to set up more laws, but I really would love a United States adoption standard. No more ICPC, or this state makes you put the baby in cradle care for 10 days, or that state allows the birthmother to change her mind in 2 weeks, while the other state allows it only for 2 days. More and more, people are crossing state borders to adopt children, and, frankly, the country’s government should, well, control that.
I know, I know. It must be that damn swing.
PS: I took Jack back to be weighed and he’s now 9 pounds, 14 ounces, and he’s grown over an inch!
