Strange Machines

Milestone alert! 10 month-old Wolf climbed down the bed himself, look no support Ma! And also down the stairs himself bottom first with a nervous me, arms outstretched below. He was so confident he kept heading down the bed and for the stairs till his tired Dad and I installed the safety gate my brother passed to us at the foot of the stairs and I put the energetic bear to bed.

Now for me to head to bed… zzz…

More evidence surfaces to reinforce the fact that:

1. We mirror the people we are with.
2. Angry and negative people sap the happiness out of you.

I’ve read about toxic relationships years ago and make it a point to avoid them.

So what are toxic relationships? Basically they are one-sided, negative relationships where there is little or no reciprocity, and which serve to make you feel bad about yourself or the things you care about. And they bring you down.

This doesn’t mean we’re not there for friends who are sad or having a bad time. That’s the basis of friendship. But when they resolutely want you to be unhappy by their words and actions, that is the time to cut all ties, albeit gradually and gently.

I have made it a resolution to be happy and positive and be a joy to the people around me (and if I fail, do let me know). Everything is about perspective. I choose to see things in a positive light. Note that even the title of this post focuses on the positive.

Life is too short to dwell on unhappiness. Find a solution and work through it if you are. How happy you are is really up to you. Remember, you can’t please everyone. Sit up, smell the roses, and hug your pet, baby, or parent today.

(Source: Angry/negative people can be bad for your brain)

This morning Wolf politely pooed at 11am allowing me to sleep through most of the night. It was pleasant and normal and we both enjoyed a hug after he patted my face very hard and pulled my hair to wake me up earlier.

Our noses are still runny, and my face particularly, since I can’t speak for him, is still sore from my sinuses clogging up. We are both in good spirits however, as we now see the back end of the virus.

Wolf enjoyed a happy morning playing with his new Paddington Wolf, a lovely gift from Uncle Andrew from London (actually he was more intrigued by the tag) and as usual, my phone.

My memory is so poor these days that I have to set reminders on my phone or I’ll forget. I star all the important emails I need to reply and scribble all the to-dos on any paper I can see since I keep forgetting to bring my scheduler out!

The saying that mothers get back their memory after 6 months has just been disputed by me.

I just came from nursing Wolf and he cooed in his sleep. It was so sweet I had to stop and listen for more.

Anyhow, the 5am poo recurred last night and interestingly enough, Wolf slept through me changing his diaper (till the very end when he woke and wasn’t very happy). Let’s see if it returns tonight.

An increased risk of bad eyesight, obesity, premature puberty, and autism. Isn’t that reason enough to drag your child kicking and screaming away from the TV right now?

(Source: PhysOrg.com – Television poses risk to childrens’ health: study)

Time flies so fast and Wolf is quickly outgrowing all his clothes. Even those I bought last month. He is such a tall and outgoing boy now. His stomach virus seems to have cleared and he is no longer pooing 3x a night. Over the last two days he only pooed in the morning. Normal again.

He speeds up the stairs so fast now and is very keen to explore just about everything. I fear he has my daredevil spirit which got me in a lot of trouble as a kid.

My Mom still proudly tells of how I shook my solidly wooden crib bars till they broke and I escaped. Then when they put me in a nylon woven crib, I used my toes to slowly climb out of it.

Wolf is displaying the same loathing for being confined. He screams when put in his car seat and bangs on the door when I shut it. He sits 10 minutes in his high chair before howling to get down. Only my most valiant efforts at entertainment there receive a smile.

But put him on the floor and he is the happiest baby on the block. In fact, he is happiest crawling everywhere and exploring at his own leisurely pace. And of course, when he needs her, in Mommy’s arms and nursing.

It’s been a wonderful day playing with Wolf! He discovered the joy of rhythmically banging on the chair cushion to make music. I cheerily joined him hitting a pen on the cotton bud container, and then the hubby joined in hitting the table. It was some rap-tribal music bash we had there.

Later, as he watched me from the corner of his eye, I hid Humpty in his Dad’s side cupboard and then asked him, “Where’s Humpty, Wolf?” He sat there for a while and without hesitation moved to the cupboard and opened it.

I did a little jig and then went to animate Humpty to thank him for finding her. He grabbed Humpty, kissed on her mouth several times and then put her one side but kept checking on her to make sure she was okay.

For this first time since the first time I nursed Wolf, I felt teeth actively but gently grinding into my nipple.

My first thought was, is it time to wean? Then I quickly corrected myself, reminding of my promise to let Wolf wean when he is ready (of course I’ll draw the line at 5 years old).

His teeth have been emerging so quickly. The top 4 are already showing and it explains why he was so fussy and upset last night. He’s still drooling like crazy and poos 4-6 times a day (normal pasty poo).

The emergence of multiple teeth is quite normal and definitely the drooling. I remember reading about loose stools but not about multiple poo parties. I have to check that one out.

Last night Wolf demonstrated his understanding of lots of words when he looked to the light when my Mom said, where’s the light? And to the fish when she asked, where’s the fish?

He has also learnt how to high-five in the past 2-3 days and has been very tickled when we ask him to high-five.

Here’s a pic of him looking tickled when my Mom got him to wear a cap.

Because I usually work late at night, sometimes I hear Wolf crying for me from the next room. Now the interesting thing is, out of every 5 times, at least twice it is just my imagination. I definitely have baby on the brain…