November '05 notes

I found these notes on my computer recently, and thought they should be added here.

Background

Liam and Judy have been running around organising preschool for Orson for next year. His birthday was also much planned and worried about and a big success. Three other boys and a swarming multitude of adults descended on the only shady table in Beckett Park for hours of running around fun and food too. We are pleased such a party for Miranda is a long way off still.

Judy did a website over the last few months and her client has been spoiling her with expensive lunches. She knows she undercharges but she prefers it that way.

We had an overseas guest and are house-training a new dog - Mingus

Miranda Notes

17th November 2005

Now Miranda's 15 months it's evident she's no longer a baby but a little girl. She's still very patient and amuses herself in the highchair or playpen or rocker chair if she's left in one place while we attend to chores or Orson management. Having a cold makes her miserable, as does tooth pain but even then she can be delightfully cheerful.

Language
Miranda has lots of non-words that she uses generally but she has specific repeatable sounds for "dog" (doh) "that" (dah) "duck" (duh) "Mommy" (muh muh muh) and Daddy (Dah-dih). She has non-verbal sounds like "uh-oh" and "tih-toh-tih-toh" and clear "uh-huh" for yes and headshakes for no. She's very good at communicating if she wants something and helping us work out what.

She understands a lot more than she can express, also, as she does things like making a break for the kitchen whenever I say I'm going in there to get Orson some milk.

Mobility
Miranda's a hair's breadth from full-on walking. She cruises all the time, and takes steps when encouraged - nine today. But so far she hasn't made the mental leap that she could do this all the time. Or maybe she's a little underconfident, especially with all the through traffic she encounters - boys, dogs, you name it.

But, as the expression goes - it'll happen any day now.

Growth
Although darker than Orson's honey-colored hair, Miranda's heair still counts as blonde to my way of thinking. But with her long eyelashes very dark, I see this will most likely not last.

As she has not grown out of much clothing, I surmise her height increase in unremarkeble. They'll measure her again in January, but so far, so average.

More remarkable are her teeth. Fifteen in as many months, with that final eye tooth on its way.

Sleeping
Mirnada has hit 10 kilos, so we're phasing out the Bjorn. Or trying to. We're rolling her out of it and into bed as soon as she drops off, day and night. So far we've had mixed success. Her nap can be one hour or three, but often it's two. Her night sleep is from eightish to sixish or sevenish, Daylight savings has thrown out both kids, and the early morning light is waking both children.

Food
Miranda weaned overnight just before her first birthday, much to her mother's discomfort. And she eats pretty much everything. Food preferences are starting to kick in, however.

Behavior
Miranda is still delightfully cheerful, and suffers through the morning period in her high chair while chores are done and Orson is dressed and breakfasted with a lot of patience. But she is very keen to be down on the floor, crawling or cruising, and loves to be where the action is, playing with Orson's toys, or climbing on Orson's chair to see me at the kitchen sink, or whatever.

She is getting braver with other people and will smile at strangers a bit. She only cried twice at her birthday party. :)

She is now attending Tuesday playgroup, but will be having a lot more fun when she is walking and is allowed more freedom to get about in these public spaces. Friday playgroup will be a real possibility for her at that point, but it may interfere with her morning naptime - we shall have to see.

Miranda is starting to exhibit a fondness for soft things, unlike Orson. She snuggles up to damp washcloths, her bedtime koala, the boo boo bunny Deirdre sent for recent birthdays and the blue sailboat blanket Jo and Andre gave her.

Two Kids
Miranda and Orson can now sort of play together - peek-a-boo or chase, or look-who's-sleeping games. He adores her alhough he gets quite upset when she takes something of his, and tends to take her things unless we're vigilant. She adores him, but now will complain when he takes things she wants. She even hams it up a bit.

She watches far more TV than he ever did at her age as she is often present for his morning stint of ABC Kids or for his DVDs. It's not a great thing but it's unavoidable. We joke that when he toilet trains, which we are hoping will be before next February, or his preschool won't take him, she will too.

Orson's asked for his car seat to be moved to the rear, and seems pleased to be there, so Miranda is alone in the middle row for now. She appears unphased. It's up to us to determine when we'll put Mirnada back there too, where they'll be much closer together than they have been previously.

Orson Notes

Finally I (Judy) get to write another Notes for Orson. It's the end of November, and very warm indeed.

Words
Orson's putting consonants on the end of a lot of words now, making them quite understandable to other people. He's learned a bunch of letters and can count to 10 reasonably reliably except for the common omission of 2. Today he learned to say his full name.

Mobility
Orson jumps.
Orson's also pretty good at play equipment now, although nervous parents and grandparents are still close by when he swarms up rope nets onto platforms higher up than our heads.

Eating
Orson has now eaten lettuce with no problem. He won't eat salad as a rule, though. Spoons are either well used or ignored. He's beginning to transition from the high chair to the far-preferred eating sitting on a chair at the table.

Behavior
Orson's been doing an unstructured playgroup now since a few weeks after Miranda was born. At first Bill and I went together, with Miranda in the Baby Bjorn, but now Bill stays at home with her and I go with just Orson. It gives us some time together. Orson's learning about navigating places with other kids and backs off if anything untoward is going on. He's loving the sandpit, and seems to like a cute boy six months younger than him, Michael. He's more recently started at a structured playgroup and is a bit freaked out by the bits where you have to sit and sing or be read to in a large group. I've made a one-year-old friend, and I think Orson feels a bit monstered by him when we're sitting and this baby comes over to bat at my face.

Orson's not too happy about having his hair cut, which accounts for his shaggy locks. He's also not too keen on needles, and I'm thankful he has no more coming until he's 4, except for the occasional flu shot.

Orson is doing a bunch of imaginative play, feeding carrots to the rabbit and yesterday and today taking the dog puppet for a drive in his car, making sure to do up everyone's seatbelt and all. Our first structured playgroup day was spent at the park and although we did a lot of running and climbing, what he found most engaging was getting on and off the play tram and driving to Balwyn and visiting Georgina in the coffee shop and coming home again. This is what he talked about when he got home.

Growth
Orson has all his teeth, which showed up early and took a long time to fully come though. He's also growing out of all his 2T clothes. He's still very skinny, though, although he eats as much as I do, and I'm breastfeeding and eating heaps.

Two Kids
Orson is always very nice to Miranda, although he isn't always too pleased at the inordinate amount of time she spends drinking "muk". Today it was a plaintive "feed Mwana - no!".

Since Miranda's birth, he's regressed on using eating utensils and taking regular naps. He can most of the time be put to sleep on long pram walks, and Liam can always nap him on the big bed if they go up together. Bill and my records for on-bed napping are patchy at best. No-nap days are characterized by manic evenings, often bad food behavior at dinner and some record-breaking falling asleep times at bedtime.

Since Miranda was born, Miranda and I have been sleeping in Orson's future bedroom, waiting for Miranda's night schedule to settle. It has settled wonderfully, and there's now a single bed in our bedroom, which Orson will transition across to in the next few days, freeing up the crib for Miranda. With summer hitting its stride before December is here, I'm keen to get a move on as the bedroom has air conditioning and Miranda and my temporary quarters doesn't.

Orson's sleeping most of the night in the crib now, and Miranda doesn't wake for a feed until somewhere between 4 and 6, so we're hoping for our peaceful spacious bed back for most of the night, most of the time.

Look at some images of the children from September/October 2005.