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May 23, 2007

You Can Tell We’re "Klassy" By The Mattress On The Floor

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So, uh, yeah…still here.

Remember how I thought I could be all clever and take the drop rail off the side of the crib to transition Cordy to a toddler bed? Oh sure, I thought, it’s still her crib – it’s just missing one side. She’ll adjust, right?

Yeah, well…not going so well thus far. Apparently a crib without its drop rail is, in fact, NOT the same as her crib. Two nights ago, I placed her in her room, tried to reason with her (HA!) about the coolness of her Big Girl Bed for over 20 minutes, then gave up and simply raced her to the door, managing to get out without shutting her fingers in the door. She screamed for about 2 minutes again, but then all was quiet. I figured she gave up and got in bed.

However, when Aaron went to check on her an hour later, he found she had climbed up into the rocking chair in the room and fell asleep there, slumped over holding one of her books. He moved her to the crib, where she did sleep most of the night. Around 4am she was up and moving around in her room, but she didn’t yell for us or cry, so she clearly wasn’t too traumatized.

Last night, though, was the worst yet. Twice I rocked Cordy to sleep and tried to lay her down in her bed, and both times her eyes would pop open and with lightening speed her arms and legs were wrapped around my leg. Aaron then tried twice, with the same results. He finally raced her out the door, but the screaming didn’t stop after 2 minutes like the previous nights. After 10 minutes, I went back in and comforted her, trying to place her on one of the beds, but she would not go near them.

I then spotted her little foam fold-out couch, and wrestled her down onto it, with me laying beside her. This was at least acceptable to Cordy, so we stayed there on the floor, with me right beside her patting her back, until she was asleep. I then was able to sneak out, and later Aaron came in and moved her to a bed again.

It seems we may have luck getting her to sleep if we lay down with her. The problem is, both toddler beds won’t hold our weight. Which now leads us to Phase 2 of Operation: Crib Eviction – we’re going to remove the crib entirely, and leave the mattress on the floor. She’s never liked heights, so maybe having the mattress on the floor will comfort her? And if it’s on the floor, Aaron or I will be able to lay down with her.

I’m not thrilled with the idea of her sleeping on a mattress on the floor – could be the college flashbacks it conjures up – but I’m willing to try it as another way to get her used to the idea of sleeping without bars.

Filed Under: Cordy, growing up · Tagged:


May 20, 2007

What Will The Night Hold?

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Cordy loves her crib. She has a beautiful toddler bed, a Christmas gift from grandma, placed directly across from her crib, but she is still devoted to her crib. We’re at the point where she will nap in her toddler bed (on those rare days she naps), but at night she cries out for her crib and insists on being placed in her cage. I think she feels safe in the confined high bars of her crib.

We can’t wait any longer, though. While baby #2 will be in our room for the first few months, she will need a crib eventually. So today we started Phase 1 of Operation: Crib Eviction.

When Cordy goes to bed in an hour or so, this is what she will be greeted with:


We took the front rail off the crib, and added the toddler guard rail. No more confinement in her crib from here on out. Luckily, she can’t open doors yet (I know, a 2 and 3/4 year old who can’t open a door – a rarity, right?), so no worries about her getting out of her room.

So her choices at bedtime tonight will be her toddler bed…


…or her modified crib. Either way, no high rail.

I have no idea what level of hell we’re in for tonight, but I’m preparing for the worst. It could be a long night.

Filed Under: Cordy, growing up ·


May 12, 2007

Real Moms Brag

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We may underplay our parenting skills, but one thing real moms won’t hold back on is talking about their children. Real moms know their kids are the best out there, and we’re not afraid to brag about it.

I mean, look at that face. (Click the picture to see that adorable face up close.) Those gorgeous blue eyes filled with both innocence and a twinge of mischief. That pretty, smooth skin. Those curls – oh, the curls! Her golden blonde curls attract many admirers at the playground, the mall, the grocery store…everywhere.

I know my daughter is beautiful, and I happily beam with pride that I created her from the building blocks in my body (with half of the DNA coming from daddy, of course). Where I see imperfections with myself, I see perfection in her.

But she’s not just the sum of her outward beauty. She’s also a bright, interesting little person that we’re learning more about every day. She loves numbers, counting all the way to 19 in English and 10 in Spanish. She can also recognize written numbers, reading off prices in the store, state routes on highway signs, and the address of any house we visit. She knows her shapes and colors, and can spend an hour sorting items by shape and color. Her sense of humor is unique, filled with knock knock jokes that don’t make sense to anyone except her.

I take pictures of her all the time. I want to preserve each new day, watching her grow and change slowly over time. I want to proudly introduce her to the world and celebrate each new milestone.

Of course, you should know I’m not insane. She’s not the ideal child by any means. I know others don’t see her the way I do: they don’t see that spark inside of her that I see. And that’s partially because every mom sees their own child as I see mine. They see past any imperfections to that inner soul, that reflection of something bigger than they are. Your own child is your legacy, your greatest project, your hardest job, and is undeniably a part of you.

So I understand if you see Cordy’s curls as a little unruly, or her skin a little too pale, or her temper a little too hard to handle. That’s OK – she’s amazing to me, and I’m not afraid to tell everyone about it. And I’ll happily listen to you brag about your amazing child as well. Because real moms aren’t afraid to brag – we know our kids are pretty damn special.

This post is an entry for the Real Mom Truths contest! The winner will receive this amazing 4G iPod Nano and Chocolate gift set, plus a link to their post on True Mom Confessions on Mother’s Day.

Filed Under: Cordy · Tagged:


Mar 9, 2007

Ninja Toddler

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Remember how Cordy climbed out of her pack n play at her babysitter’s on Tuesday? Well, her stealth ninja tactics continue.

Last night I put her in her crib for bed. I remember this clearly. She settled down quickly and went to sleep. We didn’t hear a sound from her until this morning, when we heard her normal routine of chatting to her stuffed animals.

Aaron opened the door to her room to get her out of her crib, but instead Cordy met him at the door, saying, “Hi, daddy!” I was in our bedroom at the time, but I could hear the surprise in his voice as he said “Uh… hi Cordy!”

There was no thump. There were no cries. She somehow climbed out of her crib without making a sound. By the time she’s 16, she’ll be a pro at sneaking out of the house at night. We always expected her to be a pirate, but apparently she’s heading down the ninja track instead.

So the crib will likely be coming down in the next week, and we’ll be forcing her to sleep in her toddler bed. If she can climb out of the crib, she doesn’t need it. I only hope she won’t learn to open doors anytime soon, although I’m sure it’s coming.

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In other news, I saw that Mayberry Mom has been into the Girl Scout cookies. I love this time of year – why can’t they sell these cookies year round?

I’ve tracked down a few boxes of Thin Mints around here, which I have been hoarding and eating away from Cordy. (Sorry kid, mommy doesn’t share her Thin Mints.) But what I really want are the Lemonades. I’ve asked three different troops here in Columbus, and all three told me they didn’t get any Lemonades, because they’re discontinued. Clearly they’re not, though, since you can clearly see an empty box on Mayberry Mom’s table.

Does anyone else have access to Lemonades? Surely someone knows a Girl Scout or is a troop leader out there? Help a pregnant woman satisfy this insane craving and tell me how I can get some of these cookies!

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Finally, check out my review on CleanWell hand sanitizers over at my reviews blog. If you want something that is non-toxic and won’t leak all over your purse like those goopy alcohol-based hand gels, this all natural option might be a good choice for you. Bonus: your kids will love it because it’ll make them think of pizza.

Filed Under: Cordy, growing up · Tagged:


Mar 7, 2007

Look Out, We Have A Climber

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While at work yesterday, I received a call from my friend, L, who watches Cordy on Tuesdays. “We have a bit of a situation,” she told me.

My mind immediately jumped to all of the bad things that could have happened. Did she hit her head? Did she hit or bite L’s son? Is everyone OK?

“We all went down for our naps, and I put her in the pack n play like normal. I was in B’s room with him, and felt like I was being watched. I turned around to look, and Cordy was standing in the doorway. I don’t know how she did it, but she climbed out of the pack n play! I didn’t hear a thing!”

It’s official: we have a climber. What’s worse, she’s not just a climber, she’s a stealthy climber.

Cordy was never interested in climbing before this. She’s always been unsteady on her short legs, and frightened of heights, so climbing was never a priority. But over the past month or so, we’ve noticed a new trend in attempting to scale furniture. Last week, she managed to pull herself up onto our tall bed for the first time.

So at 3am, when I was startled awake by frantic screaming, I jumped out of bed and rushed to her room, convinced she had tried to climb out of her crib and had an accident. After all, if she can get over the pack n play hurdle, the crib should be no problem at all for her. Thankfully, she was still in the crib, but her foot was once again jammed between slats and wedged against the wall. “I’m stuck, I’m stuck!” she cried.

I freed her foot, which was greeted with a loud, “You did it!” from Cordy. (Who says parents don’t need praise and affirmation, too?) But then she practically threw herself over the crib rail into my arms, clearly not ready to go back to bed. Remember: it’s 3am, I’m pregnant and groggy, and just had 35 pounds of off-center weight added to me. This can’t go well.

Stepping away from her crib, I lost my balance. I tried to make it the two steps over to the glider, but put my right foot through her bead puzzle (seen here when she was younger), which caused me to pitch forward even more from pain and no solid footing. At that point, it was impossible not to fall, so I focused on trying not to land on my belly or drop Cordy. We landed on the glider footstool, with Cordy’s head only barely tapping the dresser behind the footstool. My upper torso took most of the fall, although I also have a deep scrape down my right leg from the bead puzzle.

Still trying to keep a hold on Cordy, I pulled my leg free from the bead puzzle. While I expected Cordy to be upset by the fall, she wasn’t – she just didn’t want back in her crib. We went downstairs for a few moments, where she tried to talk me into turning on the TV. I gave my most convincing lie: “I’m sorry, sweetie, it’s still night-time, and the TV doesn’t work at night.” We’ll see how much longer I can keep up that lie. I’m hoping at least until she’s 10.

She eventually calmed down from all the excitement, and we went back upstairs. She cried when I put her in her crib and left the room, which meant I couldn’t go back to sleep until I was certain she wasn’t going to try throwing herself over the crib rail again. Finally, a little after 4am, she calmed down, had a lively discussion with her stuffed animals, and then all was quiet. I laid awake in bed a little longer, waiting to feel a few kicks from the baby to make sure the fall didn’t hurt her. I was asleep by 4:30.

Now that we’re facing a climbing toddler, it’s time to push harder for her to sleep in her toddler bed. She fell asleep in her bed for her nap on Sunday, but she’s been unwilling to try at night-time. I tried it last night, but she was too scared to stay in the bed. I don’t want to spend every night worrying that she will break a bone or give herself a concussion falling out of her crib.

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Filed Under: Cordy, daily life, growing up ·