Music Together: Sound Investment?

Our little musician admiring a summer outfit

Lauren and I are taking the six-week summer music course Music Together down at the community center. It’s geared towards kids birth-5 years. You get a songbook and a CD so you can practice the songs at home, and then at the meetings, kids play with sticks, shakers, balls, maracas, etc. It’s a good chance for kids to get the wiggles out before bedtime.

Obviously, Lauren doesn’t do much more than chew on a stick or shaker. But she grins crazily at the teacher when she plays the guitar, and her favorite is “See the Pony Galloping” when she gets to “ride” on Mama’s bouncing knees (she might be ready for Grandpa R’s “horsey” game now). Like at daycare, she LOVES watching the older kids.

BUT for grown-ups, Music Together is kind of dull. Repetition is important for kids, but the downside is you end up glancing at your watch a couple of times during each 45-minute class.

On the upside, I now have an arsenal of kids’ songs for the next time Lauren needs entertaining in a public place. Maybe we’ll again return next summer, when 18-month-old Lauren can run with the best of them.

Two Hungry Girls…

Sweet potato magic!

Lauren’s tried rice cereal, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, avocado and bananas. All but the avocado were store-bought; maybe I’ll try making my own foods later. Last Sunday, she’d nibble. Within one week, her milk consumption went from 4 oz a feeding to 5-6 oz a feeding, and she now eats solid food twice a day. I’ve introduced each one solo for 3-4 days to check for allergic reactions. Thank you, Babycenter.com “Age-By-Age Eating Guide” and “What to Expect: The First Year”. Both helped tremendously with the what-to-eat, how-much-to-eat questions.

I think this picture’s funny for two reasons: Lauren’s teething, so she’s enjoying the spoon more than the sweet potatoes. And, she’s holding the spoon in her left hand, when she holds everything else in the right one.

Since I’m working hard to keep up, I’m browsing nutrition books for myself. “Eat Well, Lose Weight, While Breastfeeding” by Eileen Behan, R.D. is a good one. She suggests meal plans with three meals a day and three small snacks a day. Finally, an answer why I want to chomp on an energy bar every two hours! I can’t explain why I’ll eat a big lunch and then, one hour later, want more food. And I’ve lost two pounds, which is not really the goal, but I can’t complain.

Happy Father’s Day to all! Lauren got a card for Daddy, telling him that his gift will be a joint Father’s Day/birthday gift, and he’ll have to wait. She’s such a good speller already at this age…

Happy Six Months, Lauren!

Ready for summer…will it stop raining?!

June 8 marked Lauren’s six-month birthday. We hosted a cookout, for an unrelated reason, and my friend K said, “Six months ago, what were you doing at this time?” It was an interesting question; I looked at my watch (3 p.m.) and noted that I was in the hospital bed still trying to get stronger contractions. By 4 that day, they’d kicked in. How far the three of us have come as a family! And all the things I worried about that first day (Will I be a good mom? Will we find day care and a pediatrician?) have all been resolved.

This weekend, Southern Wisconsin got pounded by rainstorms. Up north, an entire lake drained out into the Wisconsin River. Entire roadways and towns are under water. Today is a bright sunny day, but communities continue to piece themselves back together. Kaye’s basement flooded with water, leading Nick and me to split two days at home with Lauren. I’m enjoying the extra time with her but realize we really should look into day care centers for substitution drop-in care.

Lauren’s very close to holding her own bottles as she feeds, and still getting used to solid food. We’ll keep trying; she just doesn’t have the appetite for it yet! We started our parent-baby music class last Wednesday. Although she can’t play the maracas like older kids, she loves watching and seems fascinated by the guitar-playing teacher!

Finding Matilda

Look at these big eyes! With Doggie, and Matilda on right

I tried to get a work walking team together for Madison’s Komen Race for the Cure on May 31. But I must have sent out the email too late; even the people who do Bike to Work Week with me were busy. So Lauren and I set out with the stroller for the one-mile excursion with plenty of sunscreen, hats and Matilda, Lauren’s favorite toy (a pink plush fairy with crackling wings; see April 18 entry).

The race grounds was swarming with people. Some had pink papers pinned to themselves on which they’d written who they were walking for. One in particular, “In Memory of Mom” hit home for me. I chatted with a woman whose mother recovered from breast cancer, and then SHE got it too. Somewhere around a quarter-mile in, I noticed Matilda was missing from Lauren’s grasp.

After the walk, I checked the lost-and-found, nothing. Lauren’s too young to notice her missing “friend”, but Matilda is a surefire way to calm her if she loses it in public! I thought about buying a replacement, but she was a gift, and how do you Google “pink fairy/crinkling wings” and expect a result? Days later, I emailed the race chair as a last-ditch effort. “We found it!!” was her return subject line. Those Madison Komen people were great.

And that is the story of how Matilda can cross the country with us one week, but gets lost on a one-mile charity walk! My friend L said, “Only other mothers can understand the loss of a baby’s favorite toy.” So true.

New breastpump arrived for me this week. Avocado is Lauren’s newest food. Her coos are turning into blabbing that almost resembles real words. And although she’s not sitting up on her own yet, she’s already fascinated with baby dolls.