- 1st smile: 3.5 weeks
- 1st "talked": 4 weeks
- 1st giggled: 6.5 weeks (looking at mobile above compactum)
- 1st night in own room: 18 weeks
- 1st rolled over: 4 months
- Eating hands: 4 months
- 1st tooth: 8th December (4 days before 8 months old)
- Crawl on all 4's: 17th December (8 months)
- 1st waved: 4th February (9 months)
- 1st clapped: 9 months
- 1st word: "Ta" 10 months and "Daddy" at 10 months
- 1st standing without holding on: 11 months
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Some noted milestones
Zac's milestones to date:
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Sleep training
We are now on day 4 and tonight is night number 5 of sleep training and oh how things have thankfully improved! Last night saw Zac crying for a mere 3 minutes before settling himself and falling asleep which is a vast improvement from the first night which saw him crying on and off for 45 minutes. He then woke up at 9:45pm, but after about 5 minutes he was asleep again and he stretched through the night until 5:30am! I wasn't sure whether we should have started the day at this time or try get him to fall asleep again so I decided to listen to what the sleep trainer had instructed me to do which was to continue with the sleep training until at least 6am. Thankfully I did that and he went back to sleep until 7am! Brilliant.
The first night with the sleep trainer didn't quite go as planned. I had visions of being up all night with a screaming baby who we would need to continuously train. We had paid this woman a mini fortune so I was looking forward to some heavy duty training going down. And of course, Murphy's Law, after the initial put down of 45 minutes and one wake up an hour later, Zac decided to sleep right through! The first time in his little life! So the woman who we were paying to work that night just sat on the couch waiting and waiting for him to wake up! I was so disappointed. Thankfully the second night Zac woke up twice so we could get a little training done - made it a little more worth the money spent.
And after 2 nights, the sleep trainer was done and I was left to continue with the training on my own. I have been incredibly strict and have followed her instructions down to the letter. Things are improving every day and I'm sure in a few more days I will be able to put Zac down to sleep without any crying at all. Already his cries are intermittent and consist more of moans than anything else.
I'm already feeling more refreshed with much better nights. I don't know how I'm going to get used to actually enjoying a full night's sleep again! I think I'm going to have to train this body not to wake up during the nights as it has become accustomed.
Sleep training is definitely the way to go when you're enduring nights like I'd been having. I totally believe in the process and Zac was never left to feel abandoned or unloved. Everything was done with the utmost love and care possible. I would have paid almost any price to hire Erica - I was that exhausted! And quite honestly, I don't think you can put a price on sleep. It is SO needed!!!
The first night with the sleep trainer didn't quite go as planned. I had visions of being up all night with a screaming baby who we would need to continuously train. We had paid this woman a mini fortune so I was looking forward to some heavy duty training going down. And of course, Murphy's Law, after the initial put down of 45 minutes and one wake up an hour later, Zac decided to sleep right through! The first time in his little life! So the woman who we were paying to work that night just sat on the couch waiting and waiting for him to wake up! I was so disappointed. Thankfully the second night Zac woke up twice so we could get a little training done - made it a little more worth the money spent.
And after 2 nights, the sleep trainer was done and I was left to continue with the training on my own. I have been incredibly strict and have followed her instructions down to the letter. Things are improving every day and I'm sure in a few more days I will be able to put Zac down to sleep without any crying at all. Already his cries are intermittent and consist more of moans than anything else.
I'm already feeling more refreshed with much better nights. I don't know how I'm going to get used to actually enjoying a full night's sleep again! I think I'm going to have to train this body not to wake up during the nights as it has become accustomed.
Sleep training is definitely the way to go when you're enduring nights like I'd been having. I totally believe in the process and Zac was never left to feel abandoned or unloved. Everything was done with the utmost love and care possible. I would have paid almost any price to hire Erica - I was that exhausted! And quite honestly, I don't think you can put a price on sleep. It is SO needed!!!
Monday, March 11, 2013
VERY overdue update
Wow, things have been so extremely crazy and busy in our household that I haven't had any time to sit down at the PC and actually update this blog. I can't believe how time has flown and how busy life has become!
My precious Lily Pie is just an absolute blessing. She is thriving at school and just loves it. They started potty training her about 3 weeks ago and bless, she is taking quite a bit of time for the whole process to actually "click". She will ask to go to the toilet on occassion and then the next, will wet her pants. I suppose she gets involved in her little school activities and doesn't stop to think that she needs a wee until it is too late. We haven't been as strict with following through with the potty training at home (difficult with Zac and the busy-ness of our lives) so I'm making an extra effort to do so from today. She had a great day at school today asking to go to the toilet without making one mistake. So fingers crossed we are getting there...
Otherwise she is learning so much at school and comes home singing little Brocha and Hebrew songs. I don't understand half of what she is singing, but it is just too precious. Hubby asks her repeatedly to sing for him, he just loves it! Her vocabulary is expanding too - she in fact said to me yesterday, "Mommy, I have a good idea". I've never said that to her before so it must be something she has heard at school.
She has adjusted so well to her new little school routine. She likes me to walk her into class and swing her on the swings for a few minutes before I leave. We then go back into the classroom where she asks for a love and a kiss and she happily bids me farewell. When I fetch her from school, she is full of shrieks of delight, laughing and giggling while running towards me. It just melts my heart - I love it!
Zac is getting so big and is just too edible! I can kiss those soft chubby cheaks all day! Shame, he has had a bit of a rough month, fighting viral infection after viral infection. He has been fighting fevers as a result and has just not been himself. He has been rather miserable and extremely clingy. The last infection he had the week before last saw him fighting fevers of 39.5 so off we ran to the doctor for the third time in a month. She immediately phoned our paediatrician who thankfully was on call that weekend. We were admitted into hospital and my poor little baby was subjected to a terrible time - injection in the neck for sedation, a lumbar puncture to rule out meningitis, bloods drawn and a drip inserted. It was heartwrenching hearing his screams from down the passage. It was truly awful! We had to spend the entire weekend in hospital where he was given intravenus antibiotics and continuous fluids. It was a weekend I most certainly never want to have to repeat again.
Thankfully he was diagnosed with severe tonsillitis instead of something more sinister and we were discharged on the Sunday morning with a course of antibiotics. We are now a week later and he is back to his normal happy self. No more moans or clinging to mommy - he is quite content and smiley. I'd missed that.
Zac's sleeping is unfortunately horrendous! He just can't fall asleep without my assistance so on most nights calls me every hour. I am exhausted, hence the lack of updates as I'm usually trying to catch up on sleep when the kids are sleeping. Thankfully today I feel rather energised... well energised enough to forego my nap and update here instead. So in order to get any sleep, I've resorted to putting Zac in the bed with me and he sleeps on my chest. Not the most comfortable of sleeps for me, but at least I get some form of sleep instead of continuous disrupted nights.
We have now resigned ourselves to the fact that we need to introduce sleep training in order to get any sort of sleep for both Zac and myself. The sleep trainer starts on Wednesday night and spends both Wednesday and Thursday nights with us. She will show me what needs to be done on the Wednesday while I observe and then on Thursday I will implement what I've been taught while she observes and assists me. I then need to continue with her methods strictly and hopefully he will be sleeping through very soon. At a cost of R3,550 for the sleep training and for my sanity, I sincerely hope so! But at this stage, I'm of the thought that you can't put a price on sleep and am willing to spend whatever amount to get a full night of sleep - something I haven't experienced for 11 months (and probably longer with the uncomfortable pregnancy sleep prior to Zac's birth). Thankfully her method of sleep training is gentle and the baby is never left to cry for longer than 5 minutes at a time. A far gentler method than I used with Lily, but then again, Lily was older when I did her training. So fingers crossed, by next weekend, maybe we will be having more sleep in this house and my hubby can move back into the bed with me (he has been sleeping in the spare room for the last 2 months in an attempt to have a good night's sleep).
In the last 2 weeks, I have started going to the gym with a personal trainer and have entered myself into an 8 week fitness/healthy eating challenge so my mornings are occupied by training at the gym - another reason why things have been so busy. But I am enjoying it - some Mel time, which I haven't really had since Lily was born. In addition it is healthy for me so I'm not going to feel guilty about it while leaving little Zac with Ritah while I'm gone. He is very happy being left with her which I'm truly grateful for.
So that's what's been happening in our home for the last few weeks. Hopefully the sleep training will go well and soon enough I will no longer need my afternoon naps and will have more time to do more updates :)
My precious Lily Pie is just an absolute blessing. She is thriving at school and just loves it. They started potty training her about 3 weeks ago and bless, she is taking quite a bit of time for the whole process to actually "click". She will ask to go to the toilet on occassion and then the next, will wet her pants. I suppose she gets involved in her little school activities and doesn't stop to think that she needs a wee until it is too late. We haven't been as strict with following through with the potty training at home (difficult with Zac and the busy-ness of our lives) so I'm making an extra effort to do so from today. She had a great day at school today asking to go to the toilet without making one mistake. So fingers crossed we are getting there...
Otherwise she is learning so much at school and comes home singing little Brocha and Hebrew songs. I don't understand half of what she is singing, but it is just too precious. Hubby asks her repeatedly to sing for him, he just loves it! Her vocabulary is expanding too - she in fact said to me yesterday, "Mommy, I have a good idea". I've never said that to her before so it must be something she has heard at school.
She has adjusted so well to her new little school routine. She likes me to walk her into class and swing her on the swings for a few minutes before I leave. We then go back into the classroom where she asks for a love and a kiss and she happily bids me farewell. When I fetch her from school, she is full of shrieks of delight, laughing and giggling while running towards me. It just melts my heart - I love it!
Zac is getting so big and is just too edible! I can kiss those soft chubby cheaks all day! Shame, he has had a bit of a rough month, fighting viral infection after viral infection. He has been fighting fevers as a result and has just not been himself. He has been rather miserable and extremely clingy. The last infection he had the week before last saw him fighting fevers of 39.5 so off we ran to the doctor for the third time in a month. She immediately phoned our paediatrician who thankfully was on call that weekend. We were admitted into hospital and my poor little baby was subjected to a terrible time - injection in the neck for sedation, a lumbar puncture to rule out meningitis, bloods drawn and a drip inserted. It was heartwrenching hearing his screams from down the passage. It was truly awful! We had to spend the entire weekend in hospital where he was given intravenus antibiotics and continuous fluids. It was a weekend I most certainly never want to have to repeat again.
Thankfully he was diagnosed with severe tonsillitis instead of something more sinister and we were discharged on the Sunday morning with a course of antibiotics. We are now a week later and he is back to his normal happy self. No more moans or clinging to mommy - he is quite content and smiley. I'd missed that.
Zac's sleeping is unfortunately horrendous! He just can't fall asleep without my assistance so on most nights calls me every hour. I am exhausted, hence the lack of updates as I'm usually trying to catch up on sleep when the kids are sleeping. Thankfully today I feel rather energised... well energised enough to forego my nap and update here instead. So in order to get any sleep, I've resorted to putting Zac in the bed with me and he sleeps on my chest. Not the most comfortable of sleeps for me, but at least I get some form of sleep instead of continuous disrupted nights.
We have now resigned ourselves to the fact that we need to introduce sleep training in order to get any sort of sleep for both Zac and myself. The sleep trainer starts on Wednesday night and spends both Wednesday and Thursday nights with us. She will show me what needs to be done on the Wednesday while I observe and then on Thursday I will implement what I've been taught while she observes and assists me. I then need to continue with her methods strictly and hopefully he will be sleeping through very soon. At a cost of R3,550 for the sleep training and for my sanity, I sincerely hope so! But at this stage, I'm of the thought that you can't put a price on sleep and am willing to spend whatever amount to get a full night of sleep - something I haven't experienced for 11 months (and probably longer with the uncomfortable pregnancy sleep prior to Zac's birth). Thankfully her method of sleep training is gentle and the baby is never left to cry for longer than 5 minutes at a time. A far gentler method than I used with Lily, but then again, Lily was older when I did her training. So fingers crossed, by next weekend, maybe we will be having more sleep in this house and my hubby can move back into the bed with me (he has been sleeping in the spare room for the last 2 months in an attempt to have a good night's sleep).
In the last 2 weeks, I have started going to the gym with a personal trainer and have entered myself into an 8 week fitness/healthy eating challenge so my mornings are occupied by training at the gym - another reason why things have been so busy. But I am enjoying it - some Mel time, which I haven't really had since Lily was born. In addition it is healthy for me so I'm not going to feel guilty about it while leaving little Zac with Ritah while I'm gone. He is very happy being left with her which I'm truly grateful for.
So that's what's been happening in our home for the last few weeks. Hopefully the sleep training will go well and soon enough I will no longer need my afternoon naps and will have more time to do more updates :)
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