Dear Scarlett:
Today you are twenty-four months old! Today is your second birthday!
This month was a pretty fun month. We were able to take you to Gardner Village to experience all their Halloween decorations. You loved seeing all the pumpkins and witches! Dad and I went on a vacation without you for a week and Grandma Carlson came to stay with you while we were gone. You had a fun time with Grandma and you did much better than we all thought you would! You of course missed us but you also adapted really well to someone new taking care of you and were very good for Grandma. We were all very excited to see each other when we got home! We also took you to Cornbelly's before Grandma left and you enjoyed it so much more than last year! You are at such a fun age and it is so great to see you taking in all your surroundings as you experience new things. We also celebrated Halloween and you enjoyed dressing up in your Minnie Mouse costume! I can hardly believe that we'll be at your 2nd birthday party later today.
I can hardly believe that you are now 2 years old. It really does seem like only yesterday we were looking at you in your little isolette watching you grow. These two years have definitely run the gamut of emotions. We experienced such worry and concern when you born early and spent 8 weeks in the hospital. We were SO relieved when you continued to grow and remain healthy and had no complications and we could finally bring you home. We've been stressed and angry with you at times, but overall we have been extremely overjoyed with you. You have been such an amazing addition to our family. You are such a happy little girl. You make our family whole. We love that you are ours.
Throughout this year we've have some obstacles with you that we had to overcome. To this day we still struggle with your eating habits. The older you get the better you get at eating, but it's still not ideal. You are still so tiny and I doubt that when we take you in for your 2 year check-up that you'll weigh 20 pounds. You are growing, in very small increments, but you are growing. We are very grateful for that. Another obstacle was you didn't learn to walk until you were almost 19 months old. We waited a LONG time for you to walk and were SO grateful when you finally started taking steps. Now you run and walk everywhere and love it! It's almost as if you knew how to the whole time but didn't want to. The final obstacle is your bowel issues. We thought we had those under control but they've come back again. We're hoping with some new dietary things we'll get it under control again. We realize that with the crazy start that you had that we could be dealing with much worse obstacles, so we are grateful that in the grand scheme of things our obstacles are fairly easy to deal with.
Scarlett, you are such a fun toddler now. You love to color, read books, watch movies and play with babies and dolls. Your vocabulary increases all the time and it amazes me the things you know. One day while driving in the car while Grandma was in town you were whining and crying but I was ignoring you because you wouldn't tell me what you needed. You finally yelled out "Hey! Don't ignore me!". It was SO funny! I don't know where you learned that but your timing was perfect. You also have recently become interested in trying to dress yourself. You love to take your socks on and off and love to try and help put your shirts and pants on. Your favorite part of the day is when you get to zip up your jammies. You still love music and dancing. Your music taste cracks us up (Lady Gaga is a favorite!) but we love to see you get so excited by music. We think by the Spring you'll be ready for dance classes.
Scarlett, this month I have been especially grateful for you. A month to the day of my last miscarriage we found out that I was pregnant again. I immediately contacted my doctor and I was put on a pill that was supposed to help me keep the baby. When I went in for an ultrasound the baby was measuring on target but did not have a heartbeat. I had to go in for a surgery to have the baby removed. It was such a sad and stressful time. It has been especially worrisome because I was assured after the first miscarriage that my next pregnancy would be fine. With this second surprise pregnancy we tried to be hopeful that maybe this one would work out. After 3 problematic pregnancies though, I can't help but wonder if you'll ever get a sibling. That may sound overly dramatic, but every pregnancy I've had has ended with complications. No reasons have been given and no one knows if it will continue. Dad and I hope and pray that we'll be able to one day give you a sibling. Until then, we'll just enjoy our time with you, our little miracle.
Scarlett, you are such a good baby. You make us so happy. We love your laugh and happy demeanor. You are the best thing to ever happen to us. We are so proud to be your parents. Happy birthday, Scarlett! We hope you enjoy your day!
I love you little girl!
Love,
Mama
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Twenty-three Months
Dear Scarlett:
Today you are twenty-three months old!
My mind is having a hard time dealing with the fact that in a few short weeks you are going to be two. Where is my little baby?! Some days I wish for the tiny little girl who would sleep on my chest and let me cuddle her for hours. Other times I love sitting on the floor with you playing and laughing. I think no matter what stage you're at in life, I'll always want you to be that little baby I used to hold, but still enjoy you at that moment too. Your vocabulary has really taken off lately and you are learning new words all the time. You're even speaking in short sentences. You are normally very vocal about what you want, but not in a rude way. You are still very good about saying please and thank you and we've even recently taught you to say sorry, which is just about the cutest thing ever. You still love to color, read books and watch movies. But what has really amazed me this past month is how you are using your little imagination. You have a baby that we bought you for your 1st birthday. You've played with it off and on since then but have really come to love it lately. You will take the baby, grab a place mat off the kitchen table, then grab a pillow off the couch and find your baby. You will pick the baby up, put the place mat on Baby like it's a blanket and say "Shhhh. Night night baby." and rock her for a second before you lay her on the pillow and carefully cover her with the blanket. You are doing all the things to her that we do to you. You are so cute and careful with her and you will even bring her to me and say "Baby sad" and want me to help comfort her. I love seeing that your imagination is growing. It also gives me great joy and hope for how you'll be when you one day have a sibling.
We had a few fun family activities this month. We went to the Utah State Fair, the zoo and for a drive up the canyon. We even took you to your first ever movie at a movie theater to see The Wizard of Oz! You were so fun at the zoo this time because you're learning the names and sounds of the animals. You loved seeing them and trying to make their sound. You loved seeing the animals and the sight at the fair. We even took you on the big yellow slide and you loved it! Seeing The Wizard of Oz was the highlight for me, though. I really felt like it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to be able to see it up on the big screen. I wasn't sure how you'd do but we figured we'd try it out and leave early if we had to. You surprised us and did extremely well almost the entire time. (Due mostly to licorice and popcorn.) You loved watching the movie and I think you actually watched most of it. I'm so glad we got to do that with you. It is so much fun to be able to do these things with you and actually have you participate in them and have a good time. You actually behave very well most of the time. You have your moments where you want to get out of your stroller and run but mostly you just enjoy your surroundings. We're hoping that we're able to do some more fun activities outdoors before the weather changes and the snow hits. we know how much you'll miss the ducks once the pond freezes over!
Dad and I are going on a vacation alone later this month. It will be the first time I've ever been away from you for more than a day. We're leaving you with Grandma Carlson for almost a week. She's going to come up and stay with you while Dad and I go away. I'm hoping that I do okay with the separation. I'm hoping you do okay with the separation. Part of me wishes you were going with us, but I know that Dad and I need this vacation alone. I know that you're going to be in very capable hands, but it makes me very nervous that we won't have any contact with you (or Grandma) for 4 days. I'm really hoping that I'm just psyching myself up and all will go smoothly. I'm sure we'll come back and we'll have had a fabulous time and you did too because you'll have been spoiled by Grandma. I'll probably buy you way too many things because I'll miss you so much!
Scarlett, I am so amazed that you'll be 2 soon. I love seeing how far you've come. I love contemplating the little girl you'll become. I don't know that you will ever understand what a blessing and a miracle you are to us. You are our tiny little bird and we can't express enough how much we love you!
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Today you are twenty-three months old!
My mind is having a hard time dealing with the fact that in a few short weeks you are going to be two. Where is my little baby?! Some days I wish for the tiny little girl who would sleep on my chest and let me cuddle her for hours. Other times I love sitting on the floor with you playing and laughing. I think no matter what stage you're at in life, I'll always want you to be that little baby I used to hold, but still enjoy you at that moment too. Your vocabulary has really taken off lately and you are learning new words all the time. You're even speaking in short sentences. You are normally very vocal about what you want, but not in a rude way. You are still very good about saying please and thank you and we've even recently taught you to say sorry, which is just about the cutest thing ever. You still love to color, read books and watch movies. But what has really amazed me this past month is how you are using your little imagination. You have a baby that we bought you for your 1st birthday. You've played with it off and on since then but have really come to love it lately. You will take the baby, grab a place mat off the kitchen table, then grab a pillow off the couch and find your baby. You will pick the baby up, put the place mat on Baby like it's a blanket and say "Shhhh. Night night baby." and rock her for a second before you lay her on the pillow and carefully cover her with the blanket. You are doing all the things to her that we do to you. You are so cute and careful with her and you will even bring her to me and say "Baby sad" and want me to help comfort her. I love seeing that your imagination is growing. It also gives me great joy and hope for how you'll be when you one day have a sibling.
We had a few fun family activities this month. We went to the Utah State Fair, the zoo and for a drive up the canyon. We even took you to your first ever movie at a movie theater to see The Wizard of Oz! You were so fun at the zoo this time because you're learning the names and sounds of the animals. You loved seeing them and trying to make their sound. You loved seeing the animals and the sight at the fair. We even took you on the big yellow slide and you loved it! Seeing The Wizard of Oz was the highlight for me, though. I really felt like it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to be able to see it up on the big screen. I wasn't sure how you'd do but we figured we'd try it out and leave early if we had to. You surprised us and did extremely well almost the entire time. (Due mostly to licorice and popcorn.) You loved watching the movie and I think you actually watched most of it. I'm so glad we got to do that with you. It is so much fun to be able to do these things with you and actually have you participate in them and have a good time. You actually behave very well most of the time. You have your moments where you want to get out of your stroller and run but mostly you just enjoy your surroundings. We're hoping that we're able to do some more fun activities outdoors before the weather changes and the snow hits. we know how much you'll miss the ducks once the pond freezes over!
Dad and I are going on a vacation alone later this month. It will be the first time I've ever been away from you for more than a day. We're leaving you with Grandma Carlson for almost a week. She's going to come up and stay with you while Dad and I go away. I'm hoping that I do okay with the separation. I'm hoping you do okay with the separation. Part of me wishes you were going with us, but I know that Dad and I need this vacation alone. I know that you're going to be in very capable hands, but it makes me very nervous that we won't have any contact with you (or Grandma) for 4 days. I'm really hoping that I'm just psyching myself up and all will go smoothly. I'm sure we'll come back and we'll have had a fabulous time and you did too because you'll have been spoiled by Grandma. I'll probably buy you way too many things because I'll miss you so much!
Scarlett, I am so amazed that you'll be 2 soon. I love seeing how far you've come. I love contemplating the little girl you'll become. I don't know that you will ever understand what a blessing and a miracle you are to us. You are our tiny little bird and we can't express enough how much we love you!
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Twenty-Two Months Old
Dear Scarlett:
Today you are twenty-two months old!
I can hardly believe that in two short months you will be two years old! It seems like only yesterday we were sitting in the hospital with you watching you grow. Now we watch you run and laugh and play. You're little personality is so funny to me. You try so hard to be independent and do things on your own, but you also really love to have us help you. You still love to try and figure things out. You love to color and we've recently started painting with you. You still love magazines and books and you've recently become much more interested in movies than before. You still love music and dancing, but one new thing you're doing is "singing". It is so funny but when you hear dad or me sing you try to sing along too and you just mumble sounds or talk. It is so cute and so funny! You're vocabulary is really taking off too and it is so fun (and sometimes frustrating) to try to figure out what you're saying. You are just so fun lately! Not perfect, but still fun!
You're still a tiny little girl. We know that you're growing, but you can't seem to put on any weight. You've recently outgrown almost all of your 6-12 month clothes and we've had to start buying 12 or 12-18 month stuff. You haven't broken 20 pounds but we know you've grown because of the change in clothing size. We'll see exactly how big (small) you are in a couple weeks when we take you in for a weight check. We're hoping that you'll be 20 pounds by then, but we aren't holding your breath. You have been eating much better and even ask to eat by saying "eat" and signing it too. You aren't as picky as you once were, but we still have a ways to go with your eating habits. You still love your "baba" and though we know you shouldn't have it, it's your one comfort and one that we're not willing to strip you of yet. I guess part of me wants to keep you a baby a little longer.
This month we took a fun family trip down to Lake Powell. We weren't sure how you would do with camping and being in such unfamiliar circumstances, but you did great. You ate very well the whole time we were there and hardly had any melt-downs. You had so much fun playing in the sand and keeping yourself occupied. I was so impressed at how well you played and that you wore your life jacket without throwing a fit. I could not have asked for you to be more well behaved. You loved playing with the other kids and hanging out on the boat. It was such a wonderful vacation! It was such a great ending to our summer.
I hesitated to put this in your newsletter, but a lot of what I was/am feeling is tied to you. It will be a long time before you know or even understand, but earlier this month dad and I found out that I was pregnant. We were so excited for this unexpected addition to our family. I was nervous what that would do to our family to add another member to it. I wasn't sure that we were ready for it and that I was ready to give you up as my baby. I wasn't sure how I would split my love between two children. I knew it would all work out, but I still worried about what two babies meant. Just as it really started to set in I started having some complications and lost the baby. It was such a hard thing for me to deal with. I felt guilty like I had done something wrong and that my body had failed. Logically I know that doesn't make sense, but sadness makes the mind think weird things. All of the same thoughts and feelings from when you were born early came rushing back. I know that much like your early birth things worked out exactly how they were supposed to. That doesn't make it any easier, only more bearable.
As I was grieving the loss of the pregnancy I couldn't help but hold you a little tighter and hug you a little longer. Pregnancy and birth really is a miracle. You are proof of that. Scarlett, you are such a blessing and a miracle. I am so grateful for your strength and your spirit. You amaze me every single day. I am so grateful to be your Mama.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Today you are twenty-two months old!
I can hardly believe that in two short months you will be two years old! It seems like only yesterday we were sitting in the hospital with you watching you grow. Now we watch you run and laugh and play. You're little personality is so funny to me. You try so hard to be independent and do things on your own, but you also really love to have us help you. You still love to try and figure things out. You love to color and we've recently started painting with you. You still love magazines and books and you've recently become much more interested in movies than before. You still love music and dancing, but one new thing you're doing is "singing". It is so funny but when you hear dad or me sing you try to sing along too and you just mumble sounds or talk. It is so cute and so funny! You're vocabulary is really taking off too and it is so fun (and sometimes frustrating) to try to figure out what you're saying. You are just so fun lately! Not perfect, but still fun!
You're still a tiny little girl. We know that you're growing, but you can't seem to put on any weight. You've recently outgrown almost all of your 6-12 month clothes and we've had to start buying 12 or 12-18 month stuff. You haven't broken 20 pounds but we know you've grown because of the change in clothing size. We'll see exactly how big (small) you are in a couple weeks when we take you in for a weight check. We're hoping that you'll be 20 pounds by then, but we aren't holding your breath. You have been eating much better and even ask to eat by saying "eat" and signing it too. You aren't as picky as you once were, but we still have a ways to go with your eating habits. You still love your "baba" and though we know you shouldn't have it, it's your one comfort and one that we're not willing to strip you of yet. I guess part of me wants to keep you a baby a little longer.
This month we took a fun family trip down to Lake Powell. We weren't sure how you would do with camping and being in such unfamiliar circumstances, but you did great. You ate very well the whole time we were there and hardly had any melt-downs. You had so much fun playing in the sand and keeping yourself occupied. I was so impressed at how well you played and that you wore your life jacket without throwing a fit. I could not have asked for you to be more well behaved. You loved playing with the other kids and hanging out on the boat. It was such a wonderful vacation! It was such a great ending to our summer.
I hesitated to put this in your newsletter, but a lot of what I was/am feeling is tied to you. It will be a long time before you know or even understand, but earlier this month dad and I found out that I was pregnant. We were so excited for this unexpected addition to our family. I was nervous what that would do to our family to add another member to it. I wasn't sure that we were ready for it and that I was ready to give you up as my baby. I wasn't sure how I would split my love between two children. I knew it would all work out, but I still worried about what two babies meant. Just as it really started to set in I started having some complications and lost the baby. It was such a hard thing for me to deal with. I felt guilty like I had done something wrong and that my body had failed. Logically I know that doesn't make sense, but sadness makes the mind think weird things. All of the same thoughts and feelings from when you were born early came rushing back. I know that much like your early birth things worked out exactly how they were supposed to. That doesn't make it any easier, only more bearable.
As I was grieving the loss of the pregnancy I couldn't help but hold you a little tighter and hug you a little longer. Pregnancy and birth really is a miracle. You are proof of that. Scarlett, you are such a blessing and a miracle. I am so grateful for your strength and your spirit. You amaze me every single day. I am so grateful to be your Mama.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Twenty-One Months Old
Dear Scarlett:
Today you are twenty-one months old!
last month you finally started walking! You were very timid at first and now you are a pro! You rarely crawl anymore, only to go up or down steps. When we go places you always ask to "alk" down the stairs or to the car, and when we get to our destination as we're getting you out of your seat you always say "alk". It amazes me how big you're getting. You also had a couple other big girl moments this. The first was we converted your crib to a toddler bed, and the second was you got your haircut for the first time. It was very surreal to me that all of these things happened about the same time. It was almost as if you were declaring "I'm not a baby anymore!". Trust me; we heard you!
These latest transitions have been interesting to deal with. We knew that transitioning you to a toddler bed would be a challenge but it hasn't been as hard as we thought it would be. The first couple nights we had to work with you on staying in your bed, but now you get it. You know when it's time to go to bed and sometimes you even get in your bed and say "night night" and put yourself to sleep. It's not perfect yet, but we're working on it. One unforeseen challenge we didn't anticipate is we think you're having night terrors. It's the only thing that explains why you wake up in hysterics and can't be comforted. We've done some research and everything says that you basically have to grow out of them. So unfortunately, that's what we have to do. I wish you didn't have night terrors. I'm afraid that the night terrors are going to further hinder us from properly sleep training you. We've really been trying to get you to bed at the same time and giving you consistent naps. I just hope that these pass quickly.
This has been a pretty busy month for us. We had a fun 4th of July to start the month. We went to Stadium of Fire after a family BBQ. It was your first real concert and you behaved pretty much how we expected you to - like a toddler stuck in a stroller in the heat. You handled the fireworks better than we thought you would which was a great surprise. We also travelled to Logan for a Maughan Family Reunion, and then to Loa for a wedding. We took you to the children's museum downtown and you love exploring it. Grandma and Grandpa Carlson came in to town with Shelbey, Alex and McKenna and stayed for a week. At first you weren't sure what to do with all the extra people, but you really got used to having everyone around, especially McKenna. I just hope that you adjust okay to it just being the 3 of us again.
We also took you to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House this month. Dad and I went to the Draper Temple Open House a couple months without you, but we decided this time it would be ok to take you. I'm really glad that we did. It was such a neat experience for the three of us to be in the temple together. Even as an un-dedicated temple it had such a special feeling. I think you knew that too. You weren't perfect while we were there, but you were well-behaved. It was nice that you wanted to walk (and that it wasn't super busy) because we were able to go at a slower and really enjoy walking through the temple. I loved that the last room you go through is the Brides Room. As I was walking through there holding you, I got emotional thinking what it would be like to see you in there one day. Scarlett, I hope you will one day understand not only how sacred and special the temple is, but also how important it is. I know that Dad and I need to be better about teaching you and setting a better example for you. No matter what, know this: Your Dad and I do have testimonies. We know the importance of the temple and are so grateful for our eternal family. We hope that as you get older you will make it a goal to be married in the temple.
Scarlett, you are only getting bigger and smarter everyday. You are so observant. You love watching people and learning how things work. You amaze me everyday with your new words and new skills. It truly is a marvelous watching you grow.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Today you are twenty-one months old!
last month you finally started walking! You were very timid at first and now you are a pro! You rarely crawl anymore, only to go up or down steps. When we go places you always ask to "alk" down the stairs or to the car, and when we get to our destination as we're getting you out of your seat you always say "alk". It amazes me how big you're getting. You also had a couple other big girl moments this. The first was we converted your crib to a toddler bed, and the second was you got your haircut for the first time. It was very surreal to me that all of these things happened about the same time. It was almost as if you were declaring "I'm not a baby anymore!". Trust me; we heard you!
These latest transitions have been interesting to deal with. We knew that transitioning you to a toddler bed would be a challenge but it hasn't been as hard as we thought it would be. The first couple nights we had to work with you on staying in your bed, but now you get it. You know when it's time to go to bed and sometimes you even get in your bed and say "night night" and put yourself to sleep. It's not perfect yet, but we're working on it. One unforeseen challenge we didn't anticipate is we think you're having night terrors. It's the only thing that explains why you wake up in hysterics and can't be comforted. We've done some research and everything says that you basically have to grow out of them. So unfortunately, that's what we have to do. I wish you didn't have night terrors. I'm afraid that the night terrors are going to further hinder us from properly sleep training you. We've really been trying to get you to bed at the same time and giving you consistent naps. I just hope that these pass quickly.
This has been a pretty busy month for us. We had a fun 4th of July to start the month. We went to Stadium of Fire after a family BBQ. It was your first real concert and you behaved pretty much how we expected you to - like a toddler stuck in a stroller in the heat. You handled the fireworks better than we thought you would which was a great surprise. We also travelled to Logan for a Maughan Family Reunion, and then to Loa for a wedding. We took you to the children's museum downtown and you love exploring it. Grandma and Grandpa Carlson came in to town with Shelbey, Alex and McKenna and stayed for a week. At first you weren't sure what to do with all the extra people, but you really got used to having everyone around, especially McKenna. I just hope that you adjust okay to it just being the 3 of us again.
We also took you to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House this month. Dad and I went to the Draper Temple Open House a couple months without you, but we decided this time it would be ok to take you. I'm really glad that we did. It was such a neat experience for the three of us to be in the temple together. Even as an un-dedicated temple it had such a special feeling. I think you knew that too. You weren't perfect while we were there, but you were well-behaved. It was nice that you wanted to walk (and that it wasn't super busy) because we were able to go at a slower and really enjoy walking through the temple. I loved that the last room you go through is the Brides Room. As I was walking through there holding you, I got emotional thinking what it would be like to see you in there one day. Scarlett, I hope you will one day understand not only how sacred and special the temple is, but also how important it is. I know that Dad and I need to be better about teaching you and setting a better example for you. No matter what, know this: Your Dad and I do have testimonies. We know the importance of the temple and are so grateful for our eternal family. We hope that as you get older you will make it a goal to be married in the temple.
Scarlett, you are only getting bigger and smarter everyday. You are so observant. You love watching people and learning how things work. You amaze me everyday with your new words and new skills. It truly is a marvelous watching you grow.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Twenty Months Old
Dear Scarlett:
Today you are twenty months old!
Sometime this month it hit me that you are just a little bit away from turning two years old. It made me sort of sad. Most days Dad and I realize that you're a toddler, and a lot of days we think you've already hit your terrible twos. We know you're not a baby but I don't know that I'm ready for you to be two. It is amazing to see you grow and learn, but it also hard to know that you are never going to be that tiny 5 pound baby we brought home from the hospital again.
This month we FINALLY got the milestone we have been waiting MONTHS for - you're walking! You started walking Saturday while we were up in Bear Lake. You would timidly take a couple steps here and there but wouldn't actually walk far. Then we got home on Sunday and kept you practicing. And now you walk more than you crawl! You are pretty good at it too! You can walk with things in your hands and try to maneuver around things. It is SO great to finally see you walking! I love seeing your little body toddling over to us. You always have such a smile on your face while you're walking. Dad thinks it's because you're mirroring the joy on our faces from seeing you finally walk. I think he's right.
This month you've also continued to increase your vocabulary. One of your favorite phrases is "thank you". You will bring us something and tell us "thank you" when we take it from you. If you're done with your cup you kind of grunt and whine to get our attention and then when we take it you say "thank you". It is so cute! We're working on "please" and you do occasionally say it, but you're better about saying "thank you". You're also remembering and understanding things better. You know to say "nana" in the morning for breakfast and you know to say "bish" (fish) or "nilla" for snack time. You call juice "goosh" and always ask for a "baba". It is SO nice that you are finally starting to communicate with us!
This month you had your eighteen month check-up. Your doctor said you look good and he's happy with your progress mentally and developmentally, but he is not happy with your weight. We knew that he would say that and I was dreading taking you because I was afraid I was going to get yelled at. He's too nice a man to chastise us, but he did tell us we need to be more aggressive with your feeding habits. Other than that he said you are right on track to catching up with other kids your age. He wasn't concerned that you weren't walking when we took you in and said you were fine. He told us he continues to be impressed with your progress despite your early arrival. He always manages to make us feel good about parenting you even though we don't always feel good about ourselves.
Unfortunately, we're still working on your eating and sleeping habits. More so your eating habits, but both need work. You're so weird about your food. You are either really in the mood to eat or you are not interested at all. There is rarely a middle ground. We try to give you options and let you pick what you want to eat, and sometimes that works, but mostly you just eat a little here and there. We're still trying to give you foods that will help you put on weight and we even introduced Pediasure into your diet (at the suggestion of your pediatrician). You like the Pediasure so that is good because we know that we're guaranteed those calories in you each day. It's probably going to continue to be a tough road for awhile, but we're going to keep on trying to put the weight on you. It's the same with sleeping. It's not easy but we're working on it. You refuse to sleep in your own bed or the pack-and-play anymore, so Dad and I take turns sleeping in our bed with you while the other sleeps on the futon. It has not been fun. We're going to work on new sleeping patterns soon, but we need to find what works for you and us.
It's so hard sometimes the battle I have going on inside when it comes to parenting you. Sometimes I feel like you should know certain things and I get frustrated with you and your progress and I feel like I'm failing. Other times I see how well you're doing and I feel like I may actually be succeeding at this. I guess it's just part of the normal ebb and flow of parenthood. You are becoming increasingly independent and sometimes I don't know what to do. You throw tantrums and scream and throw things. I often wonder what I'm doing wrong and if you'll ever be a well-behaved child. Other times you climb into my lap, hug me and say "nigh nigh" and close you eyes and snuggle into my chest. It's during those times I feel so at peace as a parent. I don't forget the struggles or quit worrying about how to parent, but it's in those moments I realize it's all worth it. It's worth the wet kisses and giggles and hugs. I'm not a perfect parent and I make mistakes, but your unconditional love makes me want to work harder.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Today you are twenty months old!
Sometime this month it hit me that you are just a little bit away from turning two years old. It made me sort of sad. Most days Dad and I realize that you're a toddler, and a lot of days we think you've already hit your terrible twos. We know you're not a baby but I don't know that I'm ready for you to be two. It is amazing to see you grow and learn, but it also hard to know that you are never going to be that tiny 5 pound baby we brought home from the hospital again.
This month we FINALLY got the milestone we have been waiting MONTHS for - you're walking! You started walking Saturday while we were up in Bear Lake. You would timidly take a couple steps here and there but wouldn't actually walk far. Then we got home on Sunday and kept you practicing. And now you walk more than you crawl! You are pretty good at it too! You can walk with things in your hands and try to maneuver around things. It is SO great to finally see you walking! I love seeing your little body toddling over to us. You always have such a smile on your face while you're walking. Dad thinks it's because you're mirroring the joy on our faces from seeing you finally walk. I think he's right.
This month you've also continued to increase your vocabulary. One of your favorite phrases is "thank you". You will bring us something and tell us "thank you" when we take it from you. If you're done with your cup you kind of grunt and whine to get our attention and then when we take it you say "thank you". It is so cute! We're working on "please" and you do occasionally say it, but you're better about saying "thank you". You're also remembering and understanding things better. You know to say "nana" in the morning for breakfast and you know to say "bish" (fish) or "nilla" for snack time. You call juice "goosh" and always ask for a "baba". It is SO nice that you are finally starting to communicate with us!
This month you had your eighteen month check-up. Your doctor said you look good and he's happy with your progress mentally and developmentally, but he is not happy with your weight. We knew that he would say that and I was dreading taking you because I was afraid I was going to get yelled at. He's too nice a man to chastise us, but he did tell us we need to be more aggressive with your feeding habits. Other than that he said you are right on track to catching up with other kids your age. He wasn't concerned that you weren't walking when we took you in and said you were fine. He told us he continues to be impressed with your progress despite your early arrival. He always manages to make us feel good about parenting you even though we don't always feel good about ourselves.
Unfortunately, we're still working on your eating and sleeping habits. More so your eating habits, but both need work. You're so weird about your food. You are either really in the mood to eat or you are not interested at all. There is rarely a middle ground. We try to give you options and let you pick what you want to eat, and sometimes that works, but mostly you just eat a little here and there. We're still trying to give you foods that will help you put on weight and we even introduced Pediasure into your diet (at the suggestion of your pediatrician). You like the Pediasure so that is good because we know that we're guaranteed those calories in you each day. It's probably going to continue to be a tough road for awhile, but we're going to keep on trying to put the weight on you. It's the same with sleeping. It's not easy but we're working on it. You refuse to sleep in your own bed or the pack-and-play anymore, so Dad and I take turns sleeping in our bed with you while the other sleeps on the futon. It has not been fun. We're going to work on new sleeping patterns soon, but we need to find what works for you and us.
It's so hard sometimes the battle I have going on inside when it comes to parenting you. Sometimes I feel like you should know certain things and I get frustrated with you and your progress and I feel like I'm failing. Other times I see how well you're doing and I feel like I may actually be succeeding at this. I guess it's just part of the normal ebb and flow of parenthood. You are becoming increasingly independent and sometimes I don't know what to do. You throw tantrums and scream and throw things. I often wonder what I'm doing wrong and if you'll ever be a well-behaved child. Other times you climb into my lap, hug me and say "nigh nigh" and close you eyes and snuggle into my chest. It's during those times I feel so at peace as a parent. I don't forget the struggles or quit worrying about how to parent, but it's in those moments I realize it's all worth it. It's worth the wet kisses and giggles and hugs. I'm not a perfect parent and I make mistakes, but your unconditional love makes me want to work harder.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Monday, June 1, 2009
Nineteen Months Old
Dear Scarlett:
Today you are nineteen months old!
The big news of this month is you took your first steps! You took actual steps! You have a few times but none completely on your own yet. We're working with you all the time on it and we can see that you're getting more confident and stronger. We are pretty confident that you'll be walking soon. You also can stand on your own and understand us when we say "up" or "stand up". You are doing great and standing on your own and balancing. You even clap while standing sometimes. We are SO excited for you to start walking!
The weather has been SO nice this month that we have been trying to do a lot of outdoor activities as a family before t0 gets too hot. We've been to Temple Square, the Renaissance Festival, the zoo, a Maughan family BBQ and dad tries to take you outside everyday too even if it is just the patio. It's funny to me to see how much you're like you're dad when you're outside. You tan just as easily as he does, but more than that you love to just sit and soak it all in. I'm sure as the summer progresses and we spend more time outside and at the pool I'll see even more similarities in you two. I know that you already love the water (as evidenced by your love of the bath), but this year will be different at the pool. We are anxious to see how you react to the pool and swimming. I suspect you'll be a fish like your dad.
This month we've also seen a not so fun side of you. You are definitely testing boundaries more and more. You are also throwing mini-tantrums. We are trying hard to discipline you and exert boundaries on you, but you aren't very receptive. We are often afraid that our lax parenting is coming back to haunt us. We are trying to find what you respond to in terms of discipline and rewards, but it has been a slow process. What works one day doesn't the next. Despite all this, you are still a very good baby. We can't complain too much. You are still a very happy girl, usually smiling and playing. You love to make new friends at church by playing with those around us. It is so fun to see you interact with those around you.
This month you have become obsessed with shoes! You love for us to put your shoes on and if you manage to get one of your shoes off you immediately want us to put it back on. You love to do and un-do your shoes. You especially love to play with dad's and find his shoelaces hilarious! You constantly pick his shoes up by the laces and laugh and laugh. It's not just any laugh though - you have this fake laugh reserved for playing. It is so funny! We've tried to get it on video but you always get stage fright. We're going to have to be more resourceful if we want to get it on video.
You've also become more interested in movies and shows this month. We've tried playing Blue's Clues and Baby Einstein videos for you in the past, but you weren't ever that interested. Now you can't get enough! You love Blue's Clues because of the "pup pup". You will sit and watch them for minutes at a time, which is better than you had done. This helps us SO much when we're trying to do small tasks around the house. We don't want you to be a TV junkie (though that might be hard to avoid since Dad watches so many movies and such), but we also want you to be stimulated in different ways.
Another fun thing we did this month was drive to Arizona for a quick weekend visit. You had fun playing with your cousins and we were able to get a picture with all 9 Carlson grandchildren. It was fun to see you all playing together. A not so pleasant experience this month was we had to take you to the doctor because you were sick. We weren't sure what you had but your fever high for you. Turns out that you have an ear infection. You're on an antibiotic now and we're hoping it helps soon. We all haven't been sleeping much because you're waking up a lot in the night. One good thing we found out at the doctor was how much you weigh. We had to re-schedule your 18 month appointment for June, but we were able to get you weighed this visit. You're still our little peanut weighing in at only 17.8 pounds WITH clothes on.
We're trying to fatten you up. We really are. You were doing better about eating up until you got sick. I think we've resigned ourselves to the fact that you're just going to be small. You love noodles and you love cheese. You could eat those all day if we'd let you. We're trying to introduce you to new things but you aren't as open to those as we'd like. Unfortunately we've been wasting a lot of food lately with your finicky habits. We're hoping that once you're over your ear infection you'll start to eat normal again.
Scarlett, we are loving watching you grow up! It is so fun to see you transform into this little girl. You are learning so much! You can tell us where certain body parts are and even try to mimic their names. You're doing better with sounds and words and you're even learning animal sounds. It is so true that your little mind is a sponge. We are trying to help fill it with good things. I don't want you to have any disadvantages because of your early birth. You are catching up in so many ways and I hope that you continue to. You are such a strong and special baby.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Today you are nineteen months old!
The big news of this month is you took your first steps! You took actual steps! You have a few times but none completely on your own yet. We're working with you all the time on it and we can see that you're getting more confident and stronger. We are pretty confident that you'll be walking soon. You also can stand on your own and understand us when we say "up" or "stand up". You are doing great and standing on your own and balancing. You even clap while standing sometimes. We are SO excited for you to start walking!
The weather has been SO nice this month that we have been trying to do a lot of outdoor activities as a family before t0 gets too hot. We've been to Temple Square, the Renaissance Festival, the zoo, a Maughan family BBQ and dad tries to take you outside everyday too even if it is just the patio. It's funny to me to see how much you're like you're dad when you're outside. You tan just as easily as he does, but more than that you love to just sit and soak it all in. I'm sure as the summer progresses and we spend more time outside and at the pool I'll see even more similarities in you two. I know that you already love the water (as evidenced by your love of the bath), but this year will be different at the pool. We are anxious to see how you react to the pool and swimming. I suspect you'll be a fish like your dad.
This month we've also seen a not so fun side of you. You are definitely testing boundaries more and more. You are also throwing mini-tantrums. We are trying hard to discipline you and exert boundaries on you, but you aren't very receptive. We are often afraid that our lax parenting is coming back to haunt us. We are trying to find what you respond to in terms of discipline and rewards, but it has been a slow process. What works one day doesn't the next. Despite all this, you are still a very good baby. We can't complain too much. You are still a very happy girl, usually smiling and playing. You love to make new friends at church by playing with those around us. It is so fun to see you interact with those around you.
This month you have become obsessed with shoes! You love for us to put your shoes on and if you manage to get one of your shoes off you immediately want us to put it back on. You love to do and un-do your shoes. You especially love to play with dad's and find his shoelaces hilarious! You constantly pick his shoes up by the laces and laugh and laugh. It's not just any laugh though - you have this fake laugh reserved for playing. It is so funny! We've tried to get it on video but you always get stage fright. We're going to have to be more resourceful if we want to get it on video.
You've also become more interested in movies and shows this month. We've tried playing Blue's Clues and Baby Einstein videos for you in the past, but you weren't ever that interested. Now you can't get enough! You love Blue's Clues because of the "pup pup". You will sit and watch them for minutes at a time, which is better than you had done. This helps us SO much when we're trying to do small tasks around the house. We don't want you to be a TV junkie (though that might be hard to avoid since Dad watches so many movies and such), but we also want you to be stimulated in different ways.
Another fun thing we did this month was drive to Arizona for a quick weekend visit. You had fun playing with your cousins and we were able to get a picture with all 9 Carlson grandchildren. It was fun to see you all playing together. A not so pleasant experience this month was we had to take you to the doctor because you were sick. We weren't sure what you had but your fever high for you. Turns out that you have an ear infection. You're on an antibiotic now and we're hoping it helps soon. We all haven't been sleeping much because you're waking up a lot in the night. One good thing we found out at the doctor was how much you weigh. We had to re-schedule your 18 month appointment for June, but we were able to get you weighed this visit. You're still our little peanut weighing in at only 17.8 pounds WITH clothes on.
We're trying to fatten you up. We really are. You were doing better about eating up until you got sick. I think we've resigned ourselves to the fact that you're just going to be small. You love noodles and you love cheese. You could eat those all day if we'd let you. We're trying to introduce you to new things but you aren't as open to those as we'd like. Unfortunately we've been wasting a lot of food lately with your finicky habits. We're hoping that once you're over your ear infection you'll start to eat normal again.
Scarlett, we are loving watching you grow up! It is so fun to see you transform into this little girl. You are learning so much! You can tell us where certain body parts are and even try to mimic their names. You're doing better with sounds and words and you're even learning animal sounds. It is so true that your little mind is a sponge. We are trying to help fill it with good things. I don't want you to have any disadvantages because of your early birth. You are catching up in so many ways and I hope that you continue to. You are such a strong and special baby.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Eighteen months old
Dear Scarlett:
You are now eighteen months old!
You are at such a fun age right now! We are really loving this Scarlett. You are becoming more aware of when we ask you to do things, you actually respond to questions, and you love to play and laugh. We're trying to teach you new sounds and words and you are really catching on. A (partial) list of words/phrases you know: dad, daddy, mama, no, ok, please, more, done, yes, oh no, uh oh, bonk, duck, baba, pup-pup, fish, no way, bye bye, hi, hello, and shoe. Your vocabulary has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few weeks.
We are very aware of the fact that you are a toddler. You love to share food with Dad and me, but you do not like to share anything else. You are playing much better with other kids, but you also still love to play on your own. We often find you babbling to a book, "talking" on your phone (which for some reason is actually you yelling into the phone), or laughing at your toys. One of your favorite things to do lately is to try and put things together. You are constantly trying to put things in holes, find things that fit inside each other and you love to unplug and plug things. You are often found by the front door, on your stomach with keys in your hand poking the keys into the hole of where the door stop used to be (the one that you figured out how to get off and lost). You do this for a very long time. It always cracks us up!
This month we were able to send you into the nursery at church. We sent you in a little early, but it was fine. The first time you went in Grammie's ward. We were a little nervous because you didn't know any of the kids or leaders, but you did fine. Then we sent you into our ward's and you did fine there, too. You even did your first church coloring. It was such a bittersweet moment for me to realize I have a child old enough to bring home papers from church. I think you are going to love being in nursery!
You still aren't walking and your eating habits have regressed. We think you're getting close to walking, but we've been thinking that for awhile now. We thought you had the eating thing down, but you don't really seem interested in food lately. Dad and I think it's because you don't want baby food, you want to eat real food. We'll see how that works out. You aren't sleeping through the night again and you end up in our bed halfway through the night. I don't know if it's nightmares or what. We're trying to work through it and figure it out but it's hard.
Other trying habits of yours: hair pulling and hitting. Though those seem reserved just for me. You understand us when we say "be soft" and "don't hit", but you still do it. We think you're just testing boundaries. You can be quite defiant when you want to. We've tried "spanking" (though it's more like a swat than anything), but I think you're too little to understand. Time outs may soon be on the horizon.
Despite all of the trials we've been having with lately, you still make me so happy! I love that you still climb up into out laps to cuddle when you're tired. You've started becoming attached to blankies and need one to go to sleep now. You understand what I mean when I say "tickle dad". It is so cute to see you "tickle" dad. You love to dance and as soon as you hear a song you start to dance. You love to play in the bath. You love to give kisses. All of the trials and hard times make it worth it to see you grow and be happy. I love being your mama.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
You are now eighteen months old!
You are at such a fun age right now! We are really loving this Scarlett. You are becoming more aware of when we ask you to do things, you actually respond to questions, and you love to play and laugh. We're trying to teach you new sounds and words and you are really catching on. A (partial) list of words/phrases you know: dad, daddy, mama, no, ok, please, more, done, yes, oh no, uh oh, bonk, duck, baba, pup-pup, fish, no way, bye bye, hi, hello, and shoe. Your vocabulary has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few weeks.
We are very aware of the fact that you are a toddler. You love to share food with Dad and me, but you do not like to share anything else. You are playing much better with other kids, but you also still love to play on your own. We often find you babbling to a book, "talking" on your phone (which for some reason is actually you yelling into the phone), or laughing at your toys. One of your favorite things to do lately is to try and put things together. You are constantly trying to put things in holes, find things that fit inside each other and you love to unplug and plug things. You are often found by the front door, on your stomach with keys in your hand poking the keys into the hole of where the door stop used to be (the one that you figured out how to get off and lost). You do this for a very long time. It always cracks us up!
This month we were able to send you into the nursery at church. We sent you in a little early, but it was fine. The first time you went in Grammie's ward. We were a little nervous because you didn't know any of the kids or leaders, but you did fine. Then we sent you into our ward's and you did fine there, too. You even did your first church coloring. It was such a bittersweet moment for me to realize I have a child old enough to bring home papers from church. I think you are going to love being in nursery!
You still aren't walking and your eating habits have regressed. We think you're getting close to walking, but we've been thinking that for awhile now. We thought you had the eating thing down, but you don't really seem interested in food lately. Dad and I think it's because you don't want baby food, you want to eat real food. We'll see how that works out. You aren't sleeping through the night again and you end up in our bed halfway through the night. I don't know if it's nightmares or what. We're trying to work through it and figure it out but it's hard.
Other trying habits of yours: hair pulling and hitting. Though those seem reserved just for me. You understand us when we say "be soft" and "don't hit", but you still do it. We think you're just testing boundaries. You can be quite defiant when you want to. We've tried "spanking" (though it's more like a swat than anything), but I think you're too little to understand. Time outs may soon be on the horizon.
Despite all of the trials we've been having with lately, you still make me so happy! I love that you still climb up into out laps to cuddle when you're tired. You've started becoming attached to blankies and need one to go to sleep now. You understand what I mean when I say "tickle dad". It is so cute to see you "tickle" dad. You love to dance and as soon as you hear a song you start to dance. You love to play in the bath. You love to give kisses. All of the trials and hard times make it worth it to see you grow and be happy. I love being your mama.
I love you little girl.
Love,
Mama
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