Movie night magic

February 22, 2016May 26, 2016catherinemryan

When we were sleep training Kiwi, Eric and I slept on an air mattress in the living room. Peeper was enthralled with it: It was just like the bouncy castle, except in the house! As she jumped on it, her expression was all, OMG YOU GUYS! You’ve been holding out!

When we tried to deflate it, she deflated, too, into a heap of tears.

Eric and I looked at each other. “Would you like to have a sleepover on it later on?” Eric asked. Peeper immediately perked up.

Peeper talked about her sleepover the entire day. I was looking forward to it, too. I imagined a movie night with popcorn and snuggles and a toddler falling asleep on me. But all day she acted more like Meet the Fockers than a Disney flick—everything that could go wrong went wrong.

She refused to eat. She sassed. She demanded. She threw fits. She threw toys. I was ready to call off the whole sleepover.

Somehow Eric, whose job as a special education teacher should have depleted all of his patience, kept a cool head. We pushed through Peeper’s bad attitude and got set up for our special evening together.

I’m so glad we did.

Toddler movie night sleepover — Finn enjoyed the sleepover, too. Can you spot him in his camouflage?

Kiwi is six months

January 25, 2016June 11, 2016catherinemryan

I haven’t been this thrilled with Kiwi getting older since, well, she was born.

Six months marks a watershed in her short life.

Sweet, sweet sleep

Most important in her development, of course, was the sleep training. Kiwi transformed from a sleep-shunning infant who never slept longer than two hours at a time to a Ferber-ized champ who puts herself to sleep (no more bouncing!!) and snoozes for up to six hours at a go.

Getting more sleep means I feel less like a hollowed out shell of myself—and means I get to enjoy this dumpling much, much more.

Tiny giants

January 7, 2016June 11, 2016catherinemryan

This week something crazy happened:

My girls got big.

Big firsts

Kiwi ate her first food. (No, I’m not counting the snow.) She’s acted ready for weeks now, but I just hadn’t gotten around to it, and I wasn’t keen on the possibility of messing up her sleep, reflux and sensitive stomach even more. But this week we made it happen.

Baby's first food - Ten Thousand Hour Mama — “Mom, are we ready to eat yet?”

I had planned on pureeing sweet potatoes, as I did for Peeper’s first food almost exactly two years earlier, but I didn’t manage to cook them. So I just mashed up a banana with a fork, swirled in some breastmilk and called it good.

(Isn’t that funny how a baby’s first food is such a big deal with your first kid, and with the second one, not so much?)

Kiwi seemed more confused by the banana than anything, but she didn’t hate it! She had several bites and Peeper even fed her a few. And when Kiwi took a bite, Peeper clapped and cheered! It’ll be fun to continue to offer foods and witness her palate—and appetite—expand. Who knows, maybe Kiwi’s culinary adventures will even inspire Peeper to eat more (though I’m not holding my breath).

Big girl in a big bed

Peeper also met a milestone: She transitioned to her big girl bed.

Big girl bed - Ten Thousand Hour Mama Read more →

21 months

April 7, 2015catherinemryan

A baby’s first months are filled with milestones—first bath, first outing, first smile, first everything. Once she grows into a toddler, those baby book moments become fewer and stretched farther apart.

Peeper’s 21st month turned that pattern on its head.

The last month was filled with new experiences, and this adventurous toddler soaked them up. Most notable was her first trip without Dada. We met my parents in Mexico, where Peeper enjoyed a slew of firsts—tasting her first mole (so huge a hit that she ate it plain and straight from the dish), her first swim in the Pacific Ocean, witnessing her first lightning storm. Read more →