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When Mom Runs Out of Coffee, the Baby is Teething, and the Toddler Refuses to Nap

October 7, 2013 By Jenna 11 Comments

Remember a while back when I asked you to come up with titles for me, and I would come up with the content of the post? This title is brought to you by Allison Kinyon from Rosaries by Allison.

So, I’ve been trying to pick up a coffee addiction. I am having a hard time starting one. I am pretty sure I would be just a grande black kind of girl because I like the taste of coffee on its own, and also I am too lazy to make myself something fancy everyday. But then, there are all of those cool creamers and syrups that you can put in your cuppa. Sometimes I brew myself some decaf and add warm milk and sugar-free vanilla Torani for a yummy latte when I want to trick my brain into being awake.

It’s just that caffeine and I aren’t the best of friends. It likes some people; it gives them bright eyes and bushy tails. Me? It gives me a heaping pile of jitters and the occasional panic attack.

But I want it.

I want that magic stuff that wakes moms up after all night nursing sessions and evenings when husbands text that they are coming home late from work.

So, run out of coffee? I haven’t even picked it up yet.

But I need something because my baby is teething and my toddler refuses to nap. I am losing my ever loving mind. And if you tell me this is just a season of my life, I will tell you, “I KNOW!” and then hand you my inconsolable infant and my smart-ass toddler and run for the freaking hills. Enjoy.

The thing is, I know this will pass and I will miss these days and yadda yadda yadda, but right now? Right now I just want a helping hand in the form of liquid energy. How do I start this addiction?

You can only do what you can do.

July 18, 2013 By Jenna 14 Comments

There was no way I was going to be late for their well visits today. (We like to call this foreshadowing in the English teacher world.)

I woke up, showered and got the kids ready 1.5 hours before we had to leave. We had time to kill, I say! So, with my time to kill, I was responsible and I got the diaper bag and my purse by the door and ready to go. The kids both had snacks and diapers changed. We were going to leave 15 minutes early just in case one of them had to poop all over the place before we left.

I got this.

That must have been where I went wrong.

I didn’t plan on three poop emergencies from my TWO children while we walked out the door (Sam, Ellen while dealing with Sam, then Sam while dealing with Ellen.) But, we made it out of the house and got in the car. We did it. I would just have to drive a little over to get there. No prob.

Cue Sam’s “screaming until he chokes” fits in the car. Cue me stopping two times to burp him and get him to stop choking.

But, we got back on the road. So Sam could start screaming again. And scream the whole way to the doctor’s. While Ellen kept complaining she was hungry. Didn’t I offer you a million snacks before we left?

We got off the freeway with just a few minutes until the appointment. He is five minutes off the freeway. Perfect.

I looked in the back seat to offer Ellen some crackers I finally scrounged up. She is SLEEPING?!?! What the ish? If you’re a mom, you know this is the kiss of nap death. Three minutes sleeping in the car and then waking her up for the doctor means no nap for the rest of the day. Greeeeeat.

Arrive in the parking lot. Pull two sleeping children out of the car. Step in gum. Beautiful. Keep walking.

We got inside and checked in, and all went as expected – almost.

The doctor comes in to tell me he is sorry that they are running behind, but he didn’t get my charts until 1:50 (the appointment was at 1), and my showing up late was backing things up.

Screeeech. What?

“Um, I got here at 1pm.”
“Well, by my watch it was 1:05.”

Restrain yourself, woman.

“Well, my watch said 1pm.”
“We like you to get here 15 minutes early to get measured and weighed and whatnot.”
“So, you want me to get to our appointment early so you can get things done that are supposed to be a part of our appointment?”
Ok, I didn’t say that, but I thought it.
“Mmmkay.”

On with appointment. Kids scream during shots. Everything is normal.

Go back to car. Step in gum. Oh, hello again, damnit.

Drive home.

Repeat mantra: You can only do what you can do.

**Disclaimer: I love our doctor. I think he was just a bit off today, and I was too. No harm, no foul. But I will spend today imagining lots of kids pooping on him.

Finally! Finger Food Fiesta!

May 7, 2012 By Jenna 4 Comments

Hey Everyone! I have an awesome guest post for you today. It is super timely for where I am at in my parenting life right now. Jen was a huge help to me when figuring out how to feed Ellen finger foods without having a panic attack. She has been generous enough to share her knowledge with all of you as well! One last note, if you are a blog reader like me, and you enjoy Call Her Happy, subscribe to Jen’s blog. It’s a great read!

Hello, internet friends! I’m Jen from A Ginger’s Guide to Parenting and Design (gingerguide.com), and I’m so happy to be guest blogging here at Call Her Happy. A little bit of info about me: I’m married to my graphic designer husband Mac and am the proud mama to a 16 month old whirlwind named Sullivan. I blog about parenting and modern design with some randomness thrown in so come on over and visit sometime!

Starting finger foods with my kiddo was an exciting and terrifying time. Oh and frustrating. Did I mention frustrating? You’ll need the patience of a saint at this point in your parenting career. My greatest fear, as I’m sure it is with any other mom, was choking. I was sure he was going to choke. I am CPR certified but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t refresh my skills before letting him start feeding himself. (EVERY parent should be CPR certified! I cannot stress this enough. Classes are easily found and inexpensive.)

Where to start?

Puffs are always a good starter food. We started with puffs when Sullivan was about nine months old. Before every meal, we’d put some on his tray and let him play around with them. At first he just held them in his hand and smashed them. We would put one in his mouth just to let him get used the texture and to tell him that this, unlike the dog food, is something he CAN eat. The first few times he spit it out but every so often, he’d keep one in there. Give your child five minutes or so to play around with the puffs then move on to the pureed baby food. Consistency is key! Don’t expect them to get it after one try. It takes time; lots of time and patience. And cleaning products, you’ll definitely need those. After weeks and weeks of us showing him the puff and putting it in his mouth, he still had no interest in it. Then, one day he just did it. Out of nowhere, he picked up one right after the other and delicately put them in his mouth while looking at me as if to say “What’s the next course, mother?” Let me tell you, for a while there I was envisioning him going to kindergarten and still having to be spoon fed pureed peaches. They will get it! Just be consistent in offering it.

Where to go next?

Don’t afraid of trying a variety of tastes and textures once they get the whole hand-to-mouth thing down. Anything you can easily squish between your fingers, your little one can chew with his or her gums. Keep the pieces very small at first, about pea size. Some of Sullivan’s favorites were mangoes, blueberries, peas, sweet potatoes with cinnamon, cooked apples, carrots, squash, and avocado. Cinnamon is a great new addition to their food, especially on sweet potatoes and apples. A note about blueberries: while delicious, your child’s diaper might be a bit alarming the next day. You’ll think he ate a smurf or fifty blue crayons and start to freak out. Then you remember the blueberries and hope it doesn’t stain your hand. Sullivan had a texture problem with food. If it was too slimy or squishy, he wouldn’t eat it. He’d either throw it onto the floor or squish it to smithereens. If you have this problem, crush up some puffs and coat the pieces of food in the powder. It helped immensely.

At the beginning, Sullivan was distracted by everything. The tv, the dog, a bird outside. Try to eliminate as much of these as possible otherwise you will be at the table for hours. No cute plates or bowls either. They’ll just end up on the floor or your lap. I speak from personal experience on this point. I also suggest only put a few pieces of food on the tray, not the entire meal. Once Sullivan got the hang of feeding himself, he would shovel as much in as his chubby little hands could handle. This is where he started choking. Several times I had to do a finger sweep to clear out a huge mass of food from the back of his mouth. It is so important to always pay attention to your kid while they eat. Don’t be reading Fifty Shades of Grey with a glass of wine while your toddler is eating. You can make the pieces as small and soft as possible, and they’ll still find a way to choke.

Moving on.

Once Sullivan hit a year, he was full steam ahead on finger food and we dropped the baby food. It was then we found the “guarantee food”. That’s the food he’ll eat no matter what. If he’s pissed or not liking the rest of his meal, this is my backup. For us, that food is chicken nuggets. I try not to give them to him often but if he’s refusing to eat anything else, I know he’ll at least get some sort of meal. Often, once I get him going on the nuggets, I sneak in some fruits and veggies on his tray. He just grabs and gobbles them right up. I’m sneakier than my toddler and yes, I’m proud of it.

It was at this time Sullivan learned all about gravity and how fun it was to drop things from the high chair. See how they smash on the ground? Fascinating. At first, we knew he wasn’t doing it on purpose. He was just learning…very messily. We told him “We eat food, we don’t throw food” then take a bite ourselves. Usually he did the same. Soon we noticed he was doing it on purpose. After he’d drop the food, he’d look up at me and I could tell. We warn him once with “We eat food, we don’t throw food”. The second time he does it, we pull his tray off and set it on the table. This normally causes a huge tantrum once he realizes the food is gone. After thirty seconds or so, we give the tray back while again saying “We eat food, we don’t throw food”. Rarely, very rarely, he does it a third time. At that point, we pull him fully out of his high chair and set him on the floor saying “All done!”. We give him a few minutes then put him back in the chair if he’s still reaching for the food. Repeat as needed.

Finger foods can really help introduce the rest of the family to healthy eating, I know it has in my house. We have much more fruits and veggies in the fridge now than before. I’m also meal planning and couponing like crazy. Saving money is always a bonus. There are so many websites and books available that have tons of ideas for toddler meals so you don’t keep going back to the same meals. Keep up the variety and consistency and, most importantly, don’t give up! Your kid will not be eating pureed PB&J in kindergarten, I promise.

I hope this gives you some good ideas about getting started and where to go from there. If you have any questions, leave a comment and I’ll do my best to help out. Come visit me over at A Ginger’s Guide to Parenting & Design (gingerguide.com) and thanks to Jenna for having me visit today.

This post is participating in the Mommy Monday Link Up!

Where to start?

Where to go next?

Moving on.

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