Norah has this thing about wearing shoes without socks - she hates it. I have no idea why, but she has pretty much been refusing to wear sandals (this backs up my theory that she is going to be an Engineer - socks and sandals are big in some circles, you know) In any case, we were getting ready to head out to a 4th of July party, and Matt actually got Norah to put on a pair of sandals, with bare feet! They were a size or two too big, but hey... anyway, that didn't last long, and here she is in the kitchen, trying to decide if she's going to put her shoes on, or eat some crumbs...
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Norah and her Cousins!
Well, second cousins for the most part... but still, here's the gang from the Annual 4th of July party at Matt's Aunt Fran's. Norah is the youngest by about a year and a half, but she seemed to have fun playing with the rest of the kids!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Was that Supermom?
Or is She? I thought I was having a Supermom day yesterday… started work early, before Norah got up, had her at daycare in time to dial into my 8:00 am meeting, ploughed thru a pile of stuff all morning, cleaned the bathroom at lunch (worked from home, obviously), and left at 4:15 to walk over and get Norah. When we got home, we had a nice time watering the plants and playing in the yard… and then it all started to go downhill... I think my first mistake was thinking we could stop over and play with Jack for 15 minutes, and still be able to go home and have a sane dinner time. Naturally, by the time we got home, Norah was really hungry and VERY difficult to deal with. She was throwing tantrums left, right and center, and absolutely refused to sit in either her highchair or on her booster seat. I could tell she was hungry, as she was following me around the kitchen, licking her lips (when she wasn’t crying, that is) In the end, I let her eat her dinner while sitting on my lap… I felt like I had given in to some extent, but between a long day and a head cold, it’s all I had in me. Bath time and bed time was equally exhausting, and Norah even refused to hold my hand when we said her prayers – thankfully she relented and she even wanted an extra prayer.
We’re really fortunate to have great neighbors, who like us well enough, but adore Norah. The problem is that we have a pretty hectic schedule between when we get home in the evening, and when we get to bed. Actually, I am sure everyone does, so really the problem is that all our schedules are not aligned! The only time we have to play outside is immediately upon getting home – but we don’t have a lot of time, since Norah also needs dinner, bath, and snuggles before 7:00. The neighbors get home earlier and are just emerging for some evening social time just when we’re ready to pack it in, having already had dinner. It’s tough, but I think I need to be a bit more disciplined about heading in for dinner on time, for my sanity. Supermom learns something new again!
In another parenting mis-step, I went in to see what the fuss was about when Norah was making a racket about 45 minutes after I put her down. I hardly ever do this, but she seemed as though she was upset, and not just stirring in her sleep. I intended to just rub her back, but she jumped up when she saw me come in, so I picked her up. She immediately nuzzled into my shoulder with a sigh of relief, so I sat in the rocker with her for a few minutes. She rewarded me with something like the sweetest kiss, though since she's getting bigger and stronger, it came off more like a headbutt... but whatevever! The important part was that after a 5 minute snuggle, she was down for the count. Whew!
We’re really fortunate to have great neighbors, who like us well enough, but adore Norah. The problem is that we have a pretty hectic schedule between when we get home in the evening, and when we get to bed. Actually, I am sure everyone does, so really the problem is that all our schedules are not aligned! The only time we have to play outside is immediately upon getting home – but we don’t have a lot of time, since Norah also needs dinner, bath, and snuggles before 7:00. The neighbors get home earlier and are just emerging for some evening social time just when we’re ready to pack it in, having already had dinner. It’s tough, but I think I need to be a bit more disciplined about heading in for dinner on time, for my sanity. Supermom learns something new again!
In another parenting mis-step, I went in to see what the fuss was about when Norah was making a racket about 45 minutes after I put her down. I hardly ever do this, but she seemed as though she was upset, and not just stirring in her sleep. I intended to just rub her back, but she jumped up when she saw me come in, so I picked her up. She immediately nuzzled into my shoulder with a sigh of relief, so I sat in the rocker with her for a few minutes. She rewarded me with something like the sweetest kiss, though since she's getting bigger and stronger, it came off more like a headbutt... but whatevever! The important part was that after a 5 minute snuggle, she was down for the count. Whew!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Nature vs. Nurture: A Year Later
It's been nearly a year since I posted my reflections about Nature vs Nurture, but something happened recently that got me thinking about it again. Norah's not a particularly girly-girl, at least not at this point. She doesn't seem to care one way or the other about dresses, she's not afraid of bugs or worms (in fact, she seems to enjoy picking them up and squishing them), she loves getting dirty and playing in puddles (ahem, no idea where she gets that...) , she can't stand any kinds of do-dads in her hair, and she has an affinity for any kind of toy with wheels or buckles.
However, she does like to cuddle and nurture her toy dolls and stuffed animals, she adores an old necklace of mind, and is fond of modeling odd socks as if they were a fancy shawl.
We have a neighbour, Jack, who is just a couple of months older than Norah. He's a real cutie, and they seem to play well together. If Norah is on the aggressive end of the scale for girls, then Jack is on the gentle end of the scale for boys - in short, he is a real mild mannered sweety. Norah and Jack both adore the two dogs across the street - Lannie and Tessa.
So I don't know if it's the weather or what, but Lannie and Tess have been 'playing ' a little rough with each other from time to time these days - wrestling, if you will, with each other. There is a tumble here, a growl there - nothing serious, but a bit different from what we're used to. Norah gets visibly upset when this happens, cries, grabs on for dear life etc. I generally just have her look away until things settle down (usually a manner of seconds) and then she is fine. Apparently Jack's reaction is the polar opposite - clapping of hands!
Now I have no idea what this means, if anything. Their reactions fall along very stereotypical gender lines, but is not generally reflective of their behavior. Do girls really have more nurturing tendencies? Have we taught her this with our interactions and expectations of her? Does it have anything at all to do with gender? Who knows!
However, she does like to cuddle and nurture her toy dolls and stuffed animals, she adores an old necklace of mind, and is fond of modeling odd socks as if they were a fancy shawl.
We have a neighbour, Jack, who is just a couple of months older than Norah. He's a real cutie, and they seem to play well together. If Norah is on the aggressive end of the scale for girls, then Jack is on the gentle end of the scale for boys - in short, he is a real mild mannered sweety. Norah and Jack both adore the two dogs across the street - Lannie and Tessa.
So I don't know if it's the weather or what, but Lannie and Tess have been 'playing ' a little rough with each other from time to time these days - wrestling, if you will, with each other. There is a tumble here, a growl there - nothing serious, but a bit different from what we're used to. Norah gets visibly upset when this happens, cries, grabs on for dear life etc. I generally just have her look away until things settle down (usually a manner of seconds) and then she is fine. Apparently Jack's reaction is the polar opposite - clapping of hands!
Now I have no idea what this means, if anything. Their reactions fall along very stereotypical gender lines, but is not generally reflective of their behavior. Do girls really have more nurturing tendencies? Have we taught her this with our interactions and expectations of her? Does it have anything at all to do with gender? Who knows!
Norah News: Booster!
On the advice of our neighbor, Jack's Mom, we thought it might be time to get Norah a booster seat. As might be expected, she saw it as another opportunity for Buckle-Mania, but after a couple of mother-daughter chats about it, she seems to think it's a fine place to eat her oatmeal! Now I need to figure out some way to protect the upholstered chairs from that same oatmeal! Nice work Norah!
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