More?

Back in May, H and I took a baby sign language class and I started teaching Tali how to sign the word "more" in June. They say it takes 8-10 weeks for a baby to learn her first sign so I stuck with it. After about 10 weeks, I gave up. She didn't know how to clap (the sign for "more" is very similar) and didn't seem any closer to picking up the sign. I worked on it often and it was very time consuming so I felt a bit defeated but it was exhausting.

Then, about a month later H convinced me to try again. So once again I started doing "more" with her every chance I got. About 8 weeks later, we went to visit friends of H who have a brilliant son. They were talking about how they tried to teach him sign language and he never picked up on it. So I figured if this little boy couldn't get it, then I shouldn't feel bad that Tali didn't seem any closer to picking it up. So, once again, I stopped.

But today we had a breakthrough! H was giving Tali her lunch while I finished preparing ours. He started doing "more" with her and she signed back! I didn't believe him (he's tricked me before, telling me she was signing) until he continued to insist I stop and watch. This time, he was telling the truth - she finally figured out the sign! While it's not perfect yet (never is when a baby starts), she gets it. We did it again with her snack, dinner and in the bath - just to make sure it wasn't a fluke. So I'll continue with this for a week or so before I introduce a new sign. Hooray - my baby can "talk"!!

Tali's New Trick

Two days ago, Tali displayed a new trick. When she is finished eating, she pulls off her bib. Now she does it for every meal.

Sick

Yesterday morning was a first for us. Tali made a little noise at 5:30 a.m. but seemed to go right back to sleep (not unusual) and I didn't hear her again until about 7:30 a.m. (still normal). When I went into her room, it smelled off, like she had pooped. I got to her crib and could see something in it and thinking it was poop I turned on the light to make sure I didn't touch it. Sadly, I was wrong. Tali had thrown up in her crib - gross! The strange part was that she didn't even cry when it happened. I assume it was the brief 5:30 noise but I have no way of knowing for sure.

So I woke H up and asked for his help. He kept Tali entertained while I got her some bread and water then cleaned out her bed. He then played with her in the bath after I gave her a quick shampoo (got in her hair - gross again!) and then went downstairs to spray some Shout on her clothes and sheets and throw everything in the wash.

I'm not sure what made her sick but she definitely had an upset stomach (no fever, luckily). She didn't eat much yesterday and slept a lot but she acted just fine. Today she's on the mend and I would say she's about 80% better. She's still not eating as much but everything else seems fine.

Poor thing. I wish she could've told me she wasn't feeling well. At least it's almost over. I'm sure she'll be back to normal tomorrow.

First Trip to the Aquarium

When: Yesterday

Where: The Norwalk Aquarium

Details: We got our new car yesterday (hooray!) and H wanted to take it out for its inaugural drive. So we decided to go to lunch at a restaurant in Westport that we really like and then to the aquarium in Norwalk. Tali was an angel at the restaurant but I was a bit nervous about the aquarium. She's at the stage where she doesn't want to be in the stroller but still isn't walking well enough to just walk around somewhere. And since the floor would be REALLY dirty, I didn't want to let her crawl. Luckily, Tali proved me wrong - she loved the aquarium! She enjoyed watching the big turtles, sharks and fish swim around. You could see her follow them back and forth in their tanks. Even when H took her out so that she could see all of the tanks that weren't at ground level, she was well behaved. Now I have a place to take her if we've been stuck inside for a few days. And I can't wait to take her to the New Orleans aquarium - it blows this one out of the water (no pun intended) - I'm sure she'll have a blast.

I Love My Big

I am the older sister and the oldest cousin. As a child, I didn't have a big sister to look up to or get advice from. But that all changed my first week of college. I met Michelle the day I received my bid to join her sorority. She was a year older than me and let me borrow her shoes for that night. From that moment on, I knew we'd be friends. Michelle became by sorority big sister and we've stayed close. I still call her Big and she still calls me Little.

Last week her big sister advice came in handy. I was a bit nervous about leaving Tali for the first time and spoke to her the day before I left. She said to me: she might cry when you leave and she might even cry the first night, but just know that she will be well cared for. She will be with her grandparents and she will be well cared for. She will be fed, she will be changed and she will be loved. So even if she misses you, she will be taken care of.

This was great advice. Every time I worried about her, I immediately thought of Big's advice and was fine. Thank you, Big, for helping me relax on our trip!

Goodbye Tali, Hello Palm Beach!

For Tali's first birthday, H got me a present - a long weekend together in Palm Beach ALONE. I am finished breastfeeding so now I could easily leave her for an extended period of time. We left on Friday morning and came back on Tuesday evening and it was wonderful! Yes, it was hard to leave Tali (and Jackson) but they stayed with Savta and Saba and so I knew they would be well cared for. I tried to be good and only check on Tali once a day.

H and I spent the entire weekend relaxing and eating. We stayed at the Ritz and enjoyed their spa on Saturday and Monday. I did yoga every morning. We went out to dinner every night. I slept. It was perfect.

As our flight was landing on Tuesday evening, I said to H "Do you think she'll remember us?" H thought that was a silly question, but I was just predicting the future. When we got home, Jackson went nuts but Tali just stared at us. H went up to her first and she just looked him. Then I went up to her and she just looked. It was like she was watching a tennis match: stare at Dad, stare at Mom, stare at Dad, stare at Mom, etc. I think she was confused. Eventually she started smiling at me and then got comfortable with us again. She had a tough time going to sleep that night (afraid we were going to leave again?) but she was completely back to normal yesterday.

It was good to get away but it's also good to be back.

I Spy With My Little Eye...

...Tali's first tooth!

I noticed it this evening while she was eating dinner. She opened her mouth very wide and there it was, just barely poking out of her gums. It's the lower, center, left tooth. How exciting - no more worries about having a baby with dentures!

One Year Check-Up

Last Monday Tali had her 1-year-old check-up at the pediatrician. Everything is great and Tali is hitting her developmental milestones. She's still tiny (around the 5th percentile) but has grown two inches since her last visit. I came with my usual list of questions and learned a few things:

1. She eats WAY more than most babies her age. But she also poops WAY more than most babies her age so it balances out.

2. While she does understand the word "NO" when I use it, she has absolutely no self control at this point. So she will do it anyway, not because she's being defiant but simply because she cannot control her urges. I have to wait a whole year until she develops this self control. Until then, I'll continue to tell her "NO" and watch her laugh (literally) and try to do it anyway.

3. It's time for big girl shoes! Now that she's taking steps she needs the support. I bought her first pair this past Friday and they are pale pink and very cute (and very expensive since her feet are so small and so narrow).

4. It's okay that she's still toothless.

Tali also got two shots and some blood taken. This was the worst round of shots yet. It took me a whole 15 minutes to calm her down afterwards. I hate the shots just as much as she does. It's too bad they can't make a pain-free needle.

The Bigger, The Better

One of the first rules of feeding small children is to cut their food into tiny pieces so that they don't choke. Great idea - but not for Tali. She will actually refuse to eat some foods in small pieces and prefers to break up the bigger pieces for herself.

For example, on Friday morning I was giving her some banana as a morning snack. I cut 1/3 of the banana and put it on her tray to cut into pieces. Before I could cut the rest, she took the whole chunk of banana and started eating it herself! (She actually ate the whole banana that day - in 3 big chunks - but that's another story.)

That same afternoon, she refused to eat a blueberry blintz in pieces but when I gave her an entire square, she ate almost the whole thing.

Yesterday I gave Tali Swedish meatballs as part of her lunch. I cut it into bite-size pieces and it just sat on her tray. Then I gave her an entire meatball and she ate it.

This morning it was the same thing with her snack. I gave her toast with a spinach spread. She refused it in small pieces but enjoyed the entire piece of bread with the spread. At least she eats, right?

Resolutions

Like most people, I make a New Year's resolution every year. But I think about what my resolution will be for a few months and make a realistic goal that I know I can accomplish and continue with after the year is over. My goal is never to lose weight or any other typical resolution - if I need to drop a few pounds, I don't need a resolution to make me do it. Instead, I try to focus on something that will improve my life and hopefully those around me.

For example, three years ago I made the resolution to learn how to cook a few dishes well. I didn't want to learn how to cook because I believe that is an ongoing process that cannot be accomplished in one year (or perhaps one lifetime). But wanted to get myself into the kitchen for the first time. Now I cook dinner almost every night and have plenty of great recipes to choose from.

Two years ago I resolved to start writing regularly. I always had a dream of publishing a book (who doesn't?) but knew that my writing skills needed practice. So, I started a blog about being pregnant. Now I'm onto blog number two and writing regularly.

Last year I resolved to budget my (our) finances better. With a new baby I knew we'd be spending more money than before. So I began clipping coupons for the grocery, stopped buying clothing for myself unless it was necessary or a gift from someone else and reviewed our credit card statements more closely.

So what's in store for this year? I'm challenging myself with TWO resolutions this time. The first is to be more focused. Like most women, I multitask. But when you multitask you don't get either job done well. So now I'd like to do one thing at a time - especially where Tali is involved. Since she'll be very mobile soon I'll need both eyes on her and I want her to know she has my full attention. My second resolution is to become my family's nutritionist. I'd like to learn more about what each member of our family needs (including Jackson, who's put on a few pounds from eating Tali's scraps) and implement changes in my food purchases and cooking to help everyone be as healthy as they can. It's not a diet (except for Jackson - his has already started), but just a healthier and more informed lifestyle choice.

With two resolutions for the new year, I need all the encouragement I can get. Feel free to send any helpful thoughts (or favorite recipes) my way!

Happy New Year!

Tali's first taste of blueberry blintzes on New Year's Day. Yum!

Happy 2010 to everyone! This time last year I had a little blob of a baby at home who didn't do much besides eat a lot, sleep a lot, poop often and cry a lot. Now I have a little girl who eats a lot, sleeps sometimes, poops a lot and still cries often. But, she has personality - and tons of it - so she's much more fun and entertaining than that blob from a year ago. 2009 was an eventful year and I'm sure 2010 will be even more eventful.

Looking back on 2009:

• All things Tali - from her first smile to her first steps, what an adventure it has been.
• Many, many, many sleepless nights.
• Having most of our family here together for Tali's almost baby naming in January and then her actual baby naming in December (long story but it involves lots of snow, both times).
• My sister's wedding in New Orleans and Tali's first trip on an airplane.
• My family's annual "girl's week" in Florida.
• Our never-ending house hunt that consumes most of our weekends from February through October. This year we actually had two accepted offers, but both fell through. We're getting closer...
• Buying a new car. It won't be here until the end of February, but we've joined the SUV club (reluctantly) and will now be a bit safer on the road.

Looking forward to 2010:

• All things Tali again - she'll start fully walking and talking this year, should be fun.
• Our first baby-free vacation since Tali was born. We'll relax, get massages and I'll finally get some sleep!
• Seeing my whole family together for my grandfather's 90th birthday in New Orleans.
• This will be the year we buy a house. (Now that it's written down, it must happen!)
• Most importantly, a happy and healthy family. I know it sounds super cheesy, but it's true. Life's so much better when everyone is happy and healthy.