Was it only a week and a half ago that we were completely flabbergasted that Sophie was starting to pull herself along the ground on her tummy? It seems she has been saving up milestones...
So I was walking her around as is her wont - me bending awkwardly over, holding her hands and her crying "Mush! Forward" as we go in circles around the kitchen. and around and around and around. I had my standard contraption of a pair of teething rings for each hand, so I didn't do damage to my spine. And here's me the engineer thinking "There's got to be a way to automate this process..."
Sophie's Grandma Gerhard had bought her a walker/scooter thing, and we had tried it a month or two ago, and while Sophie liked to hold on to it, when it moved forward it got out of control and she fell to the floor. Well, I figured it was still too early to try that again, so I am running through scenarios in my head (A-frame structures, harness/stabilizer contraptions - I could post the sketches if there is demand) when I figure why not just try that scooter thing again, and I can build my new design on how that one works.
So we put it in front of her and she grabbed on to it and tentatively started to move. The first couple of passes were stressful (for us, not for her) but then we started to relax and broke out the camera...
Her excursions are limited by the short distance from one wall to the next (not so much with the turning radius yet) so we tried it outdoors. The grass was a failure - too much resistance. She tried pushing forward, got nowhere, then turned to look at me as if to say "what gives?" Then we put her on the deck, to more success, but I had to be vigilant what with the sharp drop-offs on all sides and the 700 degree barbecue in one corner.
So we figured the next thing to try (not today) would be to put her out on the front street. Not too much traffic there, so it should be ok, and if she gets to be able to steer we will be able to send her for the mail soon enough!
Another video of the walker-assisted walking. sorry it's sideways...
Friday, April 27, 2007
Thursday, April 26, 2007
New Baby Tricks
You know how David Letterman has Stupid Pet (and/or Human) tricks on his show... well, the serial that is our life has it's own Baby Tricks section. I will not call them stupid...entertaining, yes, stupid...no way. Actually, these tricks seem to indicate the genius that is waiting to be nurtured in our child. That's it, right? Genius!? Sophia, as she develops, is gaining better gross and fine motor control, and it is quite fascinating to watch.
Sophie spotted something across the table that she absolutely had to have. So instead of going around the table (which last week she wasn't so good at, but is mastering this week) she decided to try going over the able. Thankfully, Dad was there to stave off the inevitable frustration by offering his child a lift...
It certainly helped Sophia get the item of the moment (which I would like to point out is a REMOTE CONTROL....hmmmm). But then Dad let go...
Then something curious happened...instead of coming back down---
...Sophia happily hung out on the table while giving the remote a thorough inspection. Talk about sticking power! ;)
Sophia is a very curious little girl. And this has extended to finding out what is INSIDE things. This shows us that our intrepid nine month old can no longer be fooled with the "now it's here, and now it's not" method of distraction. She knows that things don't just go away. They've got to be somewhere. Well, that means she needs to find it. She has pulled toys of her basket in the nursery, and from the tupperware in the living room. On this particular day, it was the diaper bag that held her attention. She was very happy to piece by peice pull out all the things in the bag, look at them and unceremoniously drop them (oh yeah, she's good a dropping things, too. Another story...). She nearly got into the bag herself.
Just checking to make sure that everything is indeed out and on the floor...
This might just be an indication of what our future teenager will be like. I am really hoping she figures out that the phone is meant for talking on rather than for chewing or else she's going to be really, really embarassed...
Our happy, happy girl!
Sophie spotted something across the table that she absolutely had to have. So instead of going around the table (which last week she wasn't so good at, but is mastering this week) she decided to try going over the able. Thankfully, Dad was there to stave off the inevitable frustration by offering his child a lift...
It certainly helped Sophia get the item of the moment (which I would like to point out is a REMOTE CONTROL....hmmmm). But then Dad let go...
Then something curious happened...instead of coming back down---
...Sophia happily hung out on the table while giving the remote a thorough inspection. Talk about sticking power! ;)
Sophia is a very curious little girl. And this has extended to finding out what is INSIDE things. This shows us that our intrepid nine month old can no longer be fooled with the "now it's here, and now it's not" method of distraction. She knows that things don't just go away. They've got to be somewhere. Well, that means she needs to find it. She has pulled toys of her basket in the nursery, and from the tupperware in the living room. On this particular day, it was the diaper bag that held her attention. She was very happy to piece by peice pull out all the things in the bag, look at them and unceremoniously drop them (oh yeah, she's good a dropping things, too. Another story...). She nearly got into the bag herself.
Just checking to make sure that everything is indeed out and on the floor...
This might just be an indication of what our future teenager will be like. I am really hoping she figures out that the phone is meant for talking on rather than for chewing or else she's going to be really, really embarassed...
Our happy, happy girl!
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Playing Nice
We just spent a lovely week visiting with Tanya and Sheliza. Yup, they made the trek out to our beautiful (and somewhat brown) province to have some one on one time with us. And it was fabulous.
I have to admit, though, before Tanya and Sheliza's arrival, I was a little nervous about having two infants in the house. What if they don't like each other? What if the dog freaks out? More importantly, are we going to get ANY SLEEP? Thankfully, my worries were unfounded, and the babes had a great time together. And sleep? Well, it wasn't any different than normal. Sophia managed to sleep through both parent and baby noises as if we weren't even there. She didn't even change her routine (except one night where she cried for an hour and a half, but that had more to do with teething than anything else).
Mostly the weather held out for us... we did have some rain and it was a little cool, but that didn't stop us from doing some fun stuff. We went baby shopping ('cuz what mom actually shops for herself?). We went swimming --it was Sheliza's first time in a big pool and she did really, really well. In fact I think she kind of enjoyed it! What a little swimmer she's going to be. Sophia was far more interested in trying to climb OUT of the pool, or checking out the other babies in the pool. Oy. We also got the opportunity to go out for ice cream, check out a play at the church, and walk around Wascana Lake without being blown in! All in all, a very good time was had by all. Actually, the adults got some time together as well... we watched a little tv, talked alot and played some Scrabble... ask Tanya and David about my stunning win with "iguana"!
Here is photographic evidence of the fun we had:
Sheliza and her mommy, Tanya. Once they arrived we took a little time to get accustomed to each other, and then the full on exploration began. Sheliza is a busy, smiley, giggly six month old who brought a laugh to each of us.
All introductions must start with the customary hair pulling. Or in Sheliza's case, the reaching for the hair but not quite getting it because she doesn't have a lot...it's sort of concentrated on the bottom part of her head. Sheliza spent some time trying to get a grip on Sophia's hair instead. In any case, the girls got along pretty good, and I am sure that we won't have too many problems with hair pulling in the future!
Sophia's looking pretty proud of herself and I am very suspicious of why.
Here Sheliza is checking out some of Sophie's toys. It was kind of funny, but when one girl had a toy the other immediately wanted it. This need extended even to the toys that Sophia hadn't looked at or touched in a while. Thankfully, no tears were shed. Although trying to explain sharing to a nine month old is kind of like impossible...I had a better metaphor a minute ago, but it was lost when I discovered that Sophia had a pen in her hand. Yikes!
Another creature that needed to do some adjusting was Haley. For her it's bad enough to have one little thing around, but two? She adapted well...lucky for her there are plenty of places for her laze around on, and Tanya likes her. Now, Sheliza was a little harder to convince. She hasn't had a lot of experience with dogs, and I know for a fact that my parents' Schnauzer, Missy, spooks Sheliza a little (she's a much louder, more vocal dog!). So it was understandable for Sheliza to be a little cautious. This picture was from earlier in the visit... by the end of the week, Sheliza was a-okay with kisses from the dog!
I think this was Princess Sophia giving a royal lesson on waving... after all it is the older child's prerogative to pass on important life lessons...
Okay, each baby to her own side of the table... actually, the two girls played together (and apart) very well. The table was not an effort to keep them separated. Truly, it's the best drum in the house!
See, how well they got along? (This was Sheliza's first time sitting in a shopping cart. They are both pretty happy with their accomplishment!)
Okay, so it looks like my child is trying to pry Sheliza's hand off the cart. It's not because she didn't want her there. It's because that particular part of the metal rail looked tasty. Really, no violence in this kid at all...no, really!
I have to admit, though, before Tanya and Sheliza's arrival, I was a little nervous about having two infants in the house. What if they don't like each other? What if the dog freaks out? More importantly, are we going to get ANY SLEEP? Thankfully, my worries were unfounded, and the babes had a great time together. And sleep? Well, it wasn't any different than normal. Sophia managed to sleep through both parent and baby noises as if we weren't even there. She didn't even change her routine (except one night where she cried for an hour and a half, but that had more to do with teething than anything else).
Mostly the weather held out for us... we did have some rain and it was a little cool, but that didn't stop us from doing some fun stuff. We went baby shopping ('cuz what mom actually shops for herself?). We went swimming --it was Sheliza's first time in a big pool and she did really, really well. In fact I think she kind of enjoyed it! What a little swimmer she's going to be. Sophia was far more interested in trying to climb OUT of the pool, or checking out the other babies in the pool. Oy. We also got the opportunity to go out for ice cream, check out a play at the church, and walk around Wascana Lake without being blown in! All in all, a very good time was had by all. Actually, the adults got some time together as well... we watched a little tv, talked alot and played some Scrabble... ask Tanya and David about my stunning win with "iguana"!
Here is photographic evidence of the fun we had:
Sheliza and her mommy, Tanya. Once they arrived we took a little time to get accustomed to each other, and then the full on exploration began. Sheliza is a busy, smiley, giggly six month old who brought a laugh to each of us.
All introductions must start with the customary hair pulling. Or in Sheliza's case, the reaching for the hair but not quite getting it because she doesn't have a lot...it's sort of concentrated on the bottom part of her head. Sheliza spent some time trying to get a grip on Sophia's hair instead. In any case, the girls got along pretty good, and I am sure that we won't have too many problems with hair pulling in the future!
Sophia's looking pretty proud of herself and I am very suspicious of why.
Here Sheliza is checking out some of Sophie's toys. It was kind of funny, but when one girl had a toy the other immediately wanted it. This need extended even to the toys that Sophia hadn't looked at or touched in a while. Thankfully, no tears were shed. Although trying to explain sharing to a nine month old is kind of like impossible...I had a better metaphor a minute ago, but it was lost when I discovered that Sophia had a pen in her hand. Yikes!
Another creature that needed to do some adjusting was Haley. For her it's bad enough to have one little thing around, but two? She adapted well...lucky for her there are plenty of places for her laze around on, and Tanya likes her. Now, Sheliza was a little harder to convince. She hasn't had a lot of experience with dogs, and I know for a fact that my parents' Schnauzer, Missy, spooks Sheliza a little (she's a much louder, more vocal dog!). So it was understandable for Sheliza to be a little cautious. This picture was from earlier in the visit... by the end of the week, Sheliza was a-okay with kisses from the dog!
I think this was Princess Sophia giving a royal lesson on waving... after all it is the older child's prerogative to pass on important life lessons...
Okay, each baby to her own side of the table... actually, the two girls played together (and apart) very well. The table was not an effort to keep them separated. Truly, it's the best drum in the house!
See, how well they got along? (This was Sheliza's first time sitting in a shopping cart. They are both pretty happy with their accomplishment!)
Okay, so it looks like my child is trying to pry Sheliza's hand off the cart. It's not because she didn't want her there. It's because that particular part of the metal rail looked tasty. Really, no violence in this kid at all...no, really!
Friday, April 20, 2007
uncanny
Everyone says Sophie looks like me. I kind of see it, depending on the day. Sophie also looks like Todd and sometimes even Adam if the light is just right. A couple days ago, Mom discovered that some of the recent photos we sent her (Sophie showing off a new outfit) bore a strange resemblance to some other photos she happened to have in her collection:
That's me when I was Sophie's age. Hard to believe, no?
That's me when I was Sophie's age. Hard to believe, no?
Sunday, April 15, 2007
And just like that, nothing in the house is safe
It really was an all of a sudden thing - good that we had the camera around when it happened. Suddenly she was making forward progress. Still "creeping" as my mom calls it - pulling herself along the ground commando-soldier style (too bad there's not a less military-inspired metaphor) but soon it will be crawling and then walking and then "can I borrow the car dad" and MAN I am just not ready for THAT yet...
She still prefers to roll to get where she's going, although she's getting tired of the trial and error nature of that particular method of travel. Algorithm follows:
1. want that
2. too far
3. roll randomly
4. goto 1
She's starting to see that there might be a more direct way to get somewhere (or, more often, something). And we're starting to see that we have procrastinated for far too long in getting those gates up, those cupboards secured, and all those little chokable goodies away from baby-level. The honeymoon is over.
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