Keeping The Faith...: January 2009

As of tonight we will be separating the boys and starting the "cry it out" method. Hopefully this will be very temporary b/c we want the boys to share a room for a long time to come. But...we have reached our limit. Matthew is a terrible sleeper and we are all exhausted. I cannot go through one more sleepless night. J and I are running on fumes. We were both up for hours on end last night. We are usually up multiple times every single night. Plus...Matthew is not getting nearly enough sleep. This in not good for him. I have never been a fan of the crying out of method but nothing else has worked. This has to work. Please please please!!!!! I also hope we survive how difficult this could be.

Labels: 12-18 Months

We just had our 15 month check-up 3 weeks late and the stats were:

Matthew: 33 inches tall (90 percentile)
21.2 pounds (10th percentile)

Andrew: 31.5 inches tall (60th percentile)
22.1 pounds (25th percentile)

I worry just a touch about Matthew's weight. He doesn't look overly thin or malnourished. The pediatrician isn't worried at all. But...I do try to feed him extra and put butter on his waffles and English muffins. He's so active...constantly running around and he is sooo picky at meals. He hates vegetables and almost all meat items. He's used to love fruit but I've noticed he leaving more and more fruit on his plate at meals. He seems to be a carb addict. He wants crackers, cookies, granola bars, etc... although at times he cracks us up b/c he'll love something spicy that we're eating. I gave him spicy onion meatloaf that I had made for J and both boys loved it. Eww! I personally don't like meatloaf. I ended up feeding that meatloaf to the boys for three days b/c I was so excited that Matthew was eating meat. I also gave them chili lime chicken patties one night and Matthew loved that too. Only that one time though. I'll have to make another meatloaf and see if they still like it.

Andrew is less of a concern. He always been and continues to be a great eater. He likes pretty much everything. The only thing is he's not a huge fan of water. He'll drink it but only a few sips whereas Matthew guzzles water all day long.

They do love milk! Love it! Can't get enough. I give them a sippy cup w/ 8oz in the morning when they first wake and they get another 6-8oz in the afternoon w/ their snack. They could easily drink more but my doctor said to keep it below 16oz per day.

Milestones and more:

Matthew has had 16 teeth since 13 months and Andrew has had 16 teeth since 14 months. So no more teething until they get their very back molars which shouldn't be for another year. Both boys got their first tooth at 8 1/2 months so that's a lot of teeth in a short period of time.
Matthew can run...truly run no problem. He goes up and down stairs, he goes down the slide by himself, and plays on the small children's play equipment at the park no problem. He's like Forrest Gump b/c he never stops. He goes goes goes....
Andrew is still crawling most of the time. He takes a half dozen independent steps a few times a day. I think he gets impatient w/ his wobbly walking when he wants to keep up w/ his brother so he speed crawls and he can crawl super fast.
Andrew can climb almost as well as his brother although he's not as sure footed. He sure tries though. Both can get up and onto the couches...including on top of the back of the couch *sigh* They also like to stand on the recliner and ride it like a surf board *sigh* and they pile their toys in front of the entertainment center so they can climb them to reach non-baby items *sigh* Luckily they can get down fairly easily most of time so I don't worry as much as I used to.
Matthew has decided it's fun to bash toys into Andrews head and he also likes to push him into the wall. So Matthew is now in time-out several times a day. I put him in a pack in play that's in our master bedroom. I say "No... Not Nice... Time Out" while shaking my head and then put him in the pack and play. I leave him for about one minute and then bring him back out. I'm hoping I can warn him off w/ the shaking of my head in the future.
Both boys get very physical but Matthew is "rougher" about it. Sometimes I wish Andrew knew he was bigger so he could push Matthew off him.
Matthew gives me hugs and kisses all day long. I can open my arms wide and Matthew will run into them to hug me. I love this of course and forgive him immediately for everything naughty he's done all day long. =)
Andrew loves to be thrown into the air or ride horsey on your knee. He laughs a full belly laugh. He also cannot have you chase him around the house enough. Never tires of it. Around and around we go....
The boys love mega bloks. We play w/ them all day long. J and I enjoy them too. We build stuff as fast as we can while they knock it down.
Andrew's favorite toy is a big blown up balloon. He bats it all around the house.
The boys hate having their teeth brushed. We sing the alphabet song while brushing their teeth so I wonder if they'll hate that song since they'll associate it w/ something unpleasant to them.
Andrew is a wonderful sleeper! He rarely wakes up at night. When he does it sucks though since he's very difficult to get back down. Matthew... not a great sleeper.
Both boys will try to help you dress/undress them. They will raise a foot or arm which is something they've only been doing the last month or two.
They aren't saying a whole lot. Both say MaMa, DaDa, Ut Oh, will point and say "that", and that's all I clearly understand. Sometimes I think they'll say something but then I won't hear it again so I'm not sure. Andrew can sign the word water very well... I think he just likes that he's communicating w/ me b/c he'll sign the word and get excited when I give him his sippy cup but not really want it.
Both boys wave good-bye.
Both are in size 4 diapers and wear size 18 month clothing.

I just can't believe they are already almost 16 months. Where does the time go. One of my friends just had a baby girl and she weighed exactly what Andrew weighed and I can't get over how tiny she seems. I don't remember Andrew being so small. Matthew was even smaller and the memory is so distant. I was lucky enough to hold this baby girl two hours after she was born and it made me a bit sad and touched at the same time. I had never before held a two hour old baby. I wasn't even able to hold Matthew until the morning after he was born and I never even saw Andrew for the first 24 hours. I just feel like everything happens so fast and I want to capture it all and remember it forever.