Compare and Contrast

People keep telling me that Cameron is starting to look more like Cameron and less like Madison. As I look back at pictures of Madison at about the same age as Cameron, I realize how much alike they still look! I thought it would be fun to do a little compare and contrast again.



Madison fell asleep in her exersaucer, Cam fell asleep in his Johnny Jump Up. Madison didn't like the Johnny Jump Up so much, Cameron really likes it.

Both Madison and Cameron were total hams when the mamaratzi came around. They are both very photogenic and smiley.

Both Madison and Cameron are good eaters! They love their food and I have very few food battles.

Both Madison and Cameron have the same lean to the side when they sit up. Madison had hair that hung in her eyes at this age - so does Cameron. Cameron weighs a little more and has a little more junk in the trunk, while Madison was more petite.

Madison was more demanding (and still is!) while Cam is very easy going. Madison was on a set schedule right from the start but I cannot get Cameron on a schedule to save my life. He usually takes one good nap in the afternoon - but otherwise he takes cat naps. Madison went right to bed at 8pm, sometimes Cam goes to bed at 8, othertimes he is wide awake until 1opm.

Both said DADA first but both are all about cuddling with Mama.

So - although they are different in many ways, I still think that Madison and Cameron look a lot alike.

Six months old!

• I love this age. This is the stage where your baby is still a cute cuddly little baby. They look like a baby, smell like a baby, you can still hold them on your chest while they sleep and kiss their soft skin. At the same time, six month olds can interact with you. They start to babble a lot. They are starting to move and are learning new things. They smile when you walk into the room. They giggle uncontrollably when you tickle their tummy. They aren’t as “fragile” and when they cry, you usually know what it means.

Yes indeed, I love this age.

Stats:

18 lbs 12 oz. 75th Percentile. Yikes! It looks like we will be buying a new car seat very very soon!
26 inches tall 50th percentile. He grew a few inches in the past two months, thank goodness!

Cam is saying bababbaba and dadadadad. Much to my chagrin; he started saying this over father’s day. I do 90% of the care and he says dada first! I demand justice!

Cam blows a pretty mean raspberry! It’s really cute.

No teeth yet, but he sure is chewing and drooling.

Cameron is still nursing but he is also eating cereal, veggies, fruits, and snack puffs. I also learned last night that he likes to suck on pickles.

Cam likes to give kisses. He does those big wet open mouth baby kisses. (Okay, he is just trying to put my entire cheek in his mouth, but it’s still a kiss in my book!) He even grabbed his big sister by the pigtails and pulled her cheek down to him for a kiss.

He is sitting up on his own now.

Cam has even army crawled on a few occasions. It won’t be long.

I think we will skip walking all together. This kid is constantly moving his arms and legs. He is going to go from crawling to running!

He is still a huge blankey boy. Give him a soft blanket and he will be the happiest kid in the world!

For some reason our skittish cat, Zelda, seems to like Cameron. She will even let him pet her. She runs and hides from everyone else.

Cameron has developed a moderately flat head. It’s mostly from sleeping on his back. We had a laser measurement taken last week and his head is at the stage where it might correct itself, it might not. We are taking what we feel is a conservative approach. Mind you, we would not hesitate to correct any medical issues if it were necessary. Cameron is at the ideal age to correct his flat head but because his condition is moderate, we can afford a little time to wait and see. So, we are waiting just one month. In mid-July Cameron will have another laser measurement. If his head has improved we will continue to wait and repeat the scan again if necessary. If it has not improved then we will immediately order a helmet for him. The helmet will apply gentle pressure to the sides of his head (his head is slightly wider because of the flat spot) to correct the flat spot. He would wear it for about 12 weeks, 23 hours per day.

Wanna know what is really cool about the helmet? We can order a Green Bay Packer Helmet. How sweet is that?

Wanna know what kind of stinks about it? We would have to cut his hair.

So, we are hoping it will correct itself on its own, but if it doesn’t the fix is relatively simple and that helmet will look pretty sweet with his Packers jersey!

Going to School

I was putting Madison to bed last night and we were having the usual bed time battle. This is how it went:

Mommy: Madison, Mommy has a conference call for school so you need to go to bed and stay in bed.
Madison: Are you getting on the bus, Mommy?
Mommy: No, my school is on the computer.
Madison: Mommy, you don't go to school on the 'puter, you have to go to school on the bus. ON THE BUS, MOMMY!

I guess I'll be getting on the bus from now on.

Overheard in Rochester

Have you ever seen the website "Overheard in *enter city name here*" I follow http://www.overheardinminneapolis.com/. People send in the funny things they overhear as they go about their day. It is some pretty funny stuff and makes me laugh every day.

Today, I will post my own version - overheard in Rochester. I almost laughed out loud in the middle of Kwik Trip this morning!

**Little boy to morbidly obese Mom whose arms are full of a dozen donuts, a gallon of chocolate milk, a big buddy of Coke and other sweets.
Boy: "Apples! Mamma, I want an apple!!!"
Mom: "No! You're getting donuts!"

Help me decide who overheard it:
Overheard by: Oh the Irony.
Overheard by: I guess I don't want a donut today.
Overheard by: An apple a day...will keep the gastric bypass surgeon away.

Orca Kids Swim School

I C A N S W I M

Instead of enrolling in our regular community ed swimming lessons, we put Madison in Orca Kids Swim School at the Rec Center. MAN! She learned so much more in these lessons! They were well worth the extra money. The program has 8 levels - I C A N S W I M. Madison skipped the I level and went directly into level C.

She just finished up this session of classes and has advanced to level A. Each time they move up a level, they get a button with the letter of the level that they just passed.

In level C, Madison learned how to put her face under water, kick, and float on her back. She was also starting to work on floating on her front, a technique typically taught in level A.

She could continue taking lessons throughout the summer, but we are usually so busy in the summer that we decided to hold off until fall. So, she is getting a little break from lessons and then will start up again in the fall.

Madison learned and improved so much over the 6 weeks of lessons. I'm so proud of how far she has come!

It's 5:00 Somewhere

Cam was fussy today. So fussy that our daycare provider was probably ready for a beer when I picked him up!

Mike was holding him and had just taken a cold beer from the fridge. It was sitting on the end table near the chair. Cameron couldn't stop looking at it. He just kept staring at that beer. I really like beer, so he could have some genetic pre-disposition for the stuff.

Or, he could just be teething. With the way he kept gumming on the side of the cold can, I'm guessing that's the case!

We took the above "promo" shot just for our friend Chad. His twin girls really like beer too. If teaching your kids to drink beer were a chapter in a parenting book, two things would happen. 1. The parenting book would say to teach your kids to drink good beer. 2. Chad would fail miserably at it.

Monster Truck Madness

Mike has had a nitro-fuel radio controlled truck for years. He has rarely used it because for every thirty minutes he spends driving it, he spends 3 hours (and even more money!) fixing it.

His office recently had a NASCAR themed Friday to help build employee morale. Everyone brought in their radio controlled cars and had races during a potluck lunch. (It's funny how many people actually have them!) The day must have lit the rc car fire in him again and he just treated himself to a new electric rc car.

He has been driving it around our driveway nearly every night since he got it. Madison has been pretty interested in it. Mostly, she likes to run and scream as Mike chases her down with the car. She also likes to watch him drive it over the jumps he has built with a few logs and an old piece of plywood. She started asking to drive the car tho - and it is much too expensive and goes much too fast to trust her at the controls. So, Mike had to buy her a car too.

Now they both stand in the driveway at night driving their RC cars. At first, Madison couldn't go forward and turn at the same time - it takes a little coordination to work the forward lever and the turning lever at the same time...but she is now getting the hang of it. Not only does she now know how to push the lever to make the car turn, but she also turns her arms. I'm sure that it helps it turn...somehow.

Check out these pipes!

The swift flush of death

If you follow me on Facebook, you know that Madison's fish died about a month ago. We didn't have the heart to tell her that her precious Cinderella had died, so we quickly replaced the fish. She was none the wiser.

Fast forward to today. This morning we received the sad news that Mike's parent's cat, Buddy, had to be put to sleep last night. He had unexpectedly gone into kidney failure and there was nothing they could do.

Then, we got home after work and discovered the fish had died again.

Hmmm...these things come in three's...I wonder what is next???

Madison asked why her fishy was floating upside down. So, we explained that her fishy got sick and died. That it went to fishy heaven, just like Old Grandma went to be with Jesus in Heaven. She knows its a pretty cool place, because she thinks Old Grandma is with Jesus and eating all the ice cream and cookies that she could ever want. That's a pretty good idea of Heaven, so we'll run with it!

Mike helped her scoop the fish up in the net and carry it to the bathroom. We had a little fishy funeral that ended with a ceremonious flush.

As we went back to the kitchen to clean up the dinner dishes, Madison asked why her fishy had died. We explained that God had decided the fishy's time was done and God needed her for something else now. We weren't sure how to explain something that we truly don't understand ourselves.

I decided it was probably time to tell her about her Grandparent's cat, Buddy.

So I said, "Madison, do you remember Grandpa's kitty? The one named Buddy?"

She said, "yea, he is mean to me."

I kind of laughed and said "That's the one!" I went on to say, "Madison, Grandpa's kitty got sick last night and he had to go to kitty Heaven. Grandpa is really sad about it."

She thought for a minute and then said:

Are you ready for it???

"Did Grandpa flush Buddy down the toilet too?"

Sibling Rivalry?

Not yet! Cameron is so lucky to have a big sister that loves him so much. If he is playing on the floor, she is usually right there with him. She likes to sing to him and make him giggle. She can make him laugh better than any of us can! Madison also asks to hold her baby brother just about every day. At bedtime, she has to give him just as many kisses and hugs as she gives Mommy and Daddy.

I hope their close relationship continues! Kisses and hugs are so much better than punching each other in the face!