Month: June 2005

Today was my cousin’s son’s first birthday party. They have a pool and it was incredibly hot out, so Carrie and I decided to take the plunge. She loved it! She was kicking and splashing and giggling. She tried to drink the water and coughed a little, but she was generally having a fantastic time. All my worries about dropping her were pretty silly. Between her swimsuit which gave me something to grip and the buoyancy of the water she really wasn’t going anywhere.

Several of my family members were teasing me about Carrie’s “safari hat”, but she still doesn’t have a very thick head of hair and I’m not going to try to smear sunblock on her scalp so I think it’s important. Besides, she’s as fair-skinned as I am, and I burn if I stand too close to a window.

The only thing is, I’m not sure how Carrie’s swimsuit is supposed to work. It’s got a built-in swim diaper, but we’re not sure if we can/should put disposable swim diapers on in addition (especially in other people’s pools) or if the built-in diaper is sufficient. It’s not meant to soak up liquid, but then again I’m not sure the disposable ones do either. Plus, I think I’m going to have to buy her a second suit because this one takes forever to dry. (Oh, and I’m feeling very vulnerable about posting a picture of myself in my swimsuit, so please be nice…)

We went to a play group today (well, more like play date since Carrie and I were the only ones there besides the mom and baby hosting it) and Carrie got to play in a baby pool. She looked pretty cute in her swimsuit, although I didn’t think to take pictures. (Nor did I think to bring a towel or a bag for the wet clothes. Silly me!)

I’m nervous about putting her in our in-ground pool, but it’s more because I’m afraid I’ll drop her or something than anything else – she loves the water. She didn’t even mind when the other little girl splashed, although after a while I think she was getting cold and cried to be picked up. I certainly have enough flotation devices to choose from since we’ve bought several for visiting children to use, but I kind of wish I’d bought a mesh water sling or something.

I suppose the sooner we do it the sooner I’ll get over my nerves, so maybe if there’s some non-rainy time this weekend we’ll try the big pool. And this time I’ll make sure we get out the camera!

Carrie tried squash today. Anyone want to guess whether she liked it or not? I think I could feed this child pureed lima beans and brussels sprouts and she’d eat it happily.

I guess in a few days we’ll start barley cereal, then maybe plums or nectarines. And then she’ll be pretty close to 8 months old so I think I’ll give her some yogurt. It would be nice to have something to mix her fruit into that isn’t cereal for a change.

(Oh, and once I’m sure she likes barley, I’m going to have to mix up some oats, peas, beans and barley and sing this song to her while she eats.)

I can’t even believe I’m admitting this. 14 hours later I still have a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach just thinking about what happened…

Carrie migrated to our bed at some small hour of the morning, which is not unusual. When Denis got up to take his shower, he put pillows on his side of the bed, but Carrie was already stirring and I was soundly asleep. I awoke abruptly to a thud and wailing. Apparently, she crawled headfirst over the side of the bed.

Amazingly enough, there were just a few tears (well, from her – there were a lot from me) and a little rug burn where her forehead met the carpet – not even a bump. It could have been so much worse. In fact, my mind has been racing through all the horrid things that could have happened all day.

And the nurse at the pediatrician’s office, while assuring me that Carrie was probably ok, made me feel like the worst mother ever. She told me that her little checklist of questions to ask to decide whether the child needs to be seen or not were mainly for children 2 years or older. So, I’m the only mother who’s allowed her 7 month old to fall off a bed?

Now I have to figure out a way to make co-sleeping for part of the night safe for my very mobile baby…especially because I love waking up to a giggling baby face an inch away from mine. Any ideas?

I bought some frozen peaches the other day to make for Carrie to try. They really aren’t as sweet as I’d hoped – I think I might have done better with fresh ones even though they’re not quite in season. But I gave them to her today and guess what? Carrie likes them!

I’m now on a quest to find a food she doesn’t like…and yes, I know I’ll be eating those words when she hits the picky toddler stage…