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Talking to the First Child About a Baby
The difference between talking with Henry about a baby when I was pregnant back in May and June (when he was ~17 months old) versus now (when he’s 21 months old) is drastic. Back then, he gave no indication that he understand what we were talking about at all. Now, he initiates conversations about the baby and adds his own thoughts.
The first thing he said about babies is that they “cry.” He sings “The Wheels on the Bus” at school, so he knows that babies go “wah, wah, wah.” He even does hand gestures to go with it. After a while, he added to the conversation that babies “poop.”… Read More -
Book Recommendation
I know I’ve recommended this book before, but I can’t help it! It’s designed to be read in stages–from diapers to dating–so I’ll be coming back to it again and again as Henry grows.We’ve been following the book’s advice to label the parts of the body using accurate terminology. Henry is particularly interested in learning new vocabulary, so it’s felt like an easy and natural time to help him learn about the human body in a non-shameful way.Since Henry is rapidly approaching his 2nd birthday (at the end of February), I went ahead and read the chapter on “The Preschool Years: Ages 2 to 5.” Lots… Read More -
Our Baby Is Swimming Around!
Phew! What a huge relief. Everything looks great so far with our little Baby. I’m sorry to scare you yesterday. The whole scenario felt all too familiar: Go to the midwife at 11 weeks. Don’t hear a heartbeat.Last time that happened, I was hopeful that it was just too early. And then the miscarriage happened.This time, it wasn’t so easy to stay optimistic. I turned off the comments yesterday because they get e-mailed to me, and I couldn’t bear being reminded (even nicely!) while I was at work. As it was, I had to fight the tears a few times.I was flooded with surprise when the… Read More
