Advent Calendar 2008

My original plan was to just recycle last year's advent calendar but when I looked at it there were several things that we just couldn't do in Egypt. Things like visiting Temple Square or going Christmas Light Looking. So I made up some new ones, only I forgot to include any "grown-up" Christmas stories. Rachel doesn't really have the attention span for that, though, so I suppose we can read those as we see fit and add more grown-up things as our family grows.

Here's what we'll be doing this year:

• Watch "Mr. Krueger's Christmas"
• Watch "Nora's Christmas Gift"
• Watch "The Story of the Other Wise Man"
• Watch "The Nativity"
• Watch "Joy to the World"
• Reach the Christmas story and act it out
• Watch the 1st Presidency Christmas Devotional (Dec. 7)
  
• Choose a favorite Christmas song to sing
• Take a donkey ride on Daddy's back
• Play a game together
• Sing your favorite Christmas hymn
• Watch Mommy and Daddy dance to "their" song
• Turn on Christmas music and dance around together
• Go caroling to a friend or neighbour
• Go to the branch Christmas party (Dec. 13)
• Share your testimony about the Savior
• Tell why you love someone
• Send out Christmas letters (Dec. 5)
• Call Grandparents to wish them a Merry Christmas (Dec. 24/25)
• Share a favorite Christmas memory
• Draw a Christmas picture
• Make snowflakes
• Bake Christmas cookies
• Sing Christmas songs around the Christmas tree

The ones with set dates will be reserved; no surprise fun on those days. The others I cut into strips and put them into an empty kleenex box. We'll take turns drawing them out and hopefully it will help us get into the Christmas spirit. Another benefit of putting them in the box is that if we draw out a time-consuming one and Andrew still has too much homework we can put it back in and fish around for a quick one and leave the time-consuming ones until after finals.

Go To Sleep!

When your baby was, lets say about 9 months old--what was his/her bedtime like? Did he/she cry a ton in the crib, while you listened in the other room? Or did you rock them until they were asleep in your arms? Or do you just let them stay up until they just crash? Bedtime rituals? I want to hear it all.

Mostly, I lack the patience to rock him over 15 minutes each night, and sometimes that just doesn't seem like enough, because once I lay him down, Michael just screams. But I can only take so much screaming. But I don't want to take him out, because he only thinks it's play time again.

So I'd love to hear about some of your experiences, and advice...please.

The Potty Diaries

On Friday Rachel woke up at 7:30 AM and went potty. She went all through church without an accident. Then we stayed after church to be home taught. Then we stayed even later so that Andrew could do his home teaching. Rachel finally went pee (in the potty) while Andrew was home teaching with Girgis and Joseph.

Then Andrew had to home teach the Lewises, so we went over to their house and Rachel stayed dry the whole time. We then had a lunch appointment for a lunch/dinner at the Barton’s and Rachel managed to stay dry until around 3:30…when she peed her pants…but she was standing up when she peed and her rubber pants contained the whole mess. Amazing! I was really happy about that because the Bartons have a very nice home and I would have been forever embarrassed had she peed on their floor.

She napped for 45 minutes once we got home, woke up and went potty. Then she played with her new toys until it was time to go to the Sharp’s for dessert and games. She stayed dry there until around 9:00 PM when she peed in her pants again. She just doesn’t do well at other people’s houses, I guess, but since she should have been in bed I suppose I can’t really blame her for peeing her pants.

We were in the middle of a good game of Settlers (I won, so it must have been a good game) and Rachel just wouldn’t simmer down. She was jumping on the couch, running around the apartment, and “mopping” the floors until 11:00 PM when we left. We tried putting her down, but she was in a screaming mood and we didn’t want her to wake up Finn or Abby, so she stayed up virtually all day long from 7:30 AM until 11:00 PM with only two accidents all day long. Not bad for a 14 month baby, I think…

Today Rachel got up at 7:00 AM, but since she didn’t go to bed until 11:00 last night I just nursed her and put her right back in her crib. She fell back asleep until around 10:00, got up, and wouldn’t go potty. We bummed around the apartment, watching the Presidential Debate on CNN, while we waited for her to be ready to go. Eventually she went and then we left to go explore the Citadel. She stayed dry the entire time we were out, I was a little nervous to have her be in underwear because I was “wearing” her, but I don’t like the idea of putting her back in diapers when she’s doing so well in underwear. She did a wonderful job, though, and went potty when we got home, and then went down for a nap.

When she got up she didn’t want to go potty, so we let her play but continued to pester her about going on the potty about every 10 minutes or so. She ate dinner and still didn’t want to go on the potty, so we let her play again, still pestering her about going.

Finally, around 7:00 PM, she dropped her toys and kind of squatted. Then she stood up straight and ran over to me shaking her little fist like a wild woman. I was so happy!

We’ve been trying to teach her the sign for “potty” for a few months now. You make the letter “T” by holding your hand in a fist with your thumb between your pointer and middle fingers, then your shake it back and forth to mean “toilet.” Rachel hasn’t been able to get her thumb between her fingers yet so she usually just shakes her fist. She’s never done it to let me know that she has to go before, though; she’s only done it when she’s already sitting on the potty and we’re talking about it.

So I ran her to the potty, pulling off her undies as we went. It was a good job I did that, too, because the minute I set her down she let everything go.

We celebrated her communication with high fives all around and a standing ovation and lots of hugs and kisses.

Rachel is doing a wonderful job at going on the potty. I’m so proud of her! And I’m absolutely thrilled to announce that I can’t even remember the last time I’ve had to change or wash out a poopy diaper (of Rachel’s). It’s had to have been at least 2 weeks? I’m not sure. Let’s just say that elimination communication is the bomb. With the next one, I think we’ll start a little earlier. With Rachel, we’ll just keep on keeping on. She’s doing so well!

FHE Idea

Since we've been married, Family Home Evening lessons have always revolved around very grown-up topics and grown-up conversation. We've used big words, no visuals, and lots of scriptures.

We continued with this after Rachel was born. She spent most of her FHEs nursing or sleeping.

She's bigger now, though, and a lot more focused and we've been struggling with what to teach her and how. We lack resources and we lack creativity. Rachel loves to look through her "reverence book" and talk about the things in the pictures--sacrament, temples, prophets, Jesus, etc.--and that's been going alright, but what we really wanted was some sort of direction to go with this. We want to teach her the basic gospel principles in our home so that she can start building her testimony today.

But how do you help a one year old do that?

You use the new nursery manual! I'm so excited that they've redone this! It has awesome little lessons that are still a little too long for Rachel's sake but simple enough that she can sit through about half of one. There are pictures and activities with every lesson. In short, it's awesome.

Andrew taught the first lesson this Monday and Rachel seemed to enjoy it.

Car Seats

Copied from our blog:

Now that Amy is 1, the time to get her a front facing car seat is coming closer. (We're not quite ready to be done with the carrier that we can just bring in the house without waking her up. I love that. But before long, it will be time to change.) So I was just curious if any of you parents have opinions of what you did/ didn't like in the car seats you've gotten. What kind of features should we look for? Do you have favorite brands or even specific car seats? We have been pleased with graco so far and would be happy to get another graco car seat. I plan to do some research/ price shopping before we get one, but I thought this would be a good way to start the process. Thanks!

I Am a Mother

I'm going to post this on three of the blogs I post on so more people see it. Sorry for those of you who read all those blogs. I just loved this book!!!

I Am a Mother by Jane Clayson Johnson

It's the story of an LDS woman who chooses to be a stay-at-home mom rather than continue in her successful, high profile career. She refutes myths the world would have women believe about motherhood being inferior somehow.

My sister, Laurel recommended this book to me - no surprise. We talked about it yesterday, and she said that she was surprised how much it touched her because it was already all what she totally believed in. I felt that way, too. Her story was encouraging and inspirational and fun to read. She had great things to say about motherhood. Reading her book is quite similar to reading Elder Ballard's conference talk from last conference in that it makes you just feel good about being a mom and takes off a bit of the ridiculous and unnecessary pressure we moms sometimes put on ourselves. Enjoy!

Lanisinoh made my day

Rachel went through the diaper bag a few days ago, scattering this and that all over the living room. Forgotten diapers, toys, extra outfits, and other random items found themselves decorating our floor. Among all of Rachel's paraphernalia was an unopened package of breast pads.

I have finally reached the point where I don't leak a gallon of milk every time Rachel whimpers and have been able to go without breast pads for a few weeks now. Before that I used washable cotton pads, not the disposable kind. But I had received a free sample of Lansinoh disposable breast pads and they got placed in the diaper bag for emergencies. They've been in there for about a year. I'd totally forgotten that I had them.

I remembered when I was cleaning up the living room and found them.

On the box was this little message,

"Good for you! Breastfeeding is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. Breastmilk not only enhances your baby's growth and development but provides health benefits for you as well. Lanisinoh realizes that it isn't easy to breastfeed in today's hectic environment. You are giving your child the best possible start in life and you have our respect, encouragement and full support."

I just about cried.

I've been really emotional, what with my little baby reaching that year mark and all. I've been going through her pictures and just crying, wondering if I've taught her everything I should have taught her by now, if I sang enough, if I played enough, if I held her enough.... You know, all the am-I-a-good-mother thoughts.

When I found this box of breast pads I again found myself awash in emotion. I remembered how difficult it was for us to start--we didn't really "get" it until she was at least 3 months old! All the pain, and the tears, and the pain, and the pain, and the frustration, and the pain. I remembered how excited I was the first day she latched on by herself without any problems. I remembered all the fun times we've had just sitting, holding each other, getting to know each other, stroking each other's faces. Oh, and then the biting! Ack, the biting!

I love the bond that nursing has helped Rachel and I make. I love that I "have to" spend time with my baby because she "has to" eat--it means that I always get a turn holding her no matter how many people are there to hold her for me!

I'm not quite sure when I'll be weaning Rachel. After our move to Egypt. Maybe around the time she enters nursery. Maybe beyond that. I don't know.

It's nice to be reassured, though, that I made a good choice to breastfeed. I'm not sure why that little blurb on the back of the box moved me to tears. Perhaps I just happened upon it on a day when I needed a little encouragement myself.