A New Year

Passage of time is significantly accelerated when you have growing children.  I think in particular when you have a very young child or someone under one.  Mallory is growing up so quickly and everything seems like it only happens once and then she is on to the next growing pain.  With Conrad things did seem like they lasted forever and the idea that "this too will pass" was much needed as teething struggles or each sleeping (or non-sleeping) phase seemed long and like it would never end.  Now I look back and know it all went by in a flash and with Mallory having that knowledge that it really will pass makes the time fly.

As we approach Mallory's first birthday already I think back over this year and can't even remember what we have done or how we got here.  Life in our household has been so busy it has felt like we were just trying to get through one thing at a time and couldn't see the forest through the trees so to speak.

Mallory is crawling, pulling herself up to anything, climbing, chattering away, dramatically crying when she does not get her way or wants something, and dances to music.  She has no fear and pushes her way into a crowd or past someone to get what she wants.  What she wants is generally whatever brother is playing with.  He is so sweet to give her something else or a car he is not playing with at the time, but that does not suffice, she wants what he has.  She has two teeth on the top and two on the bottom and her hair is growing out more now so she has a touch of curls in the back.  Generally she is a good sleeper.  She is easy to read when she is tired and goes down well with a bottle and her blanket.  She does still wake up at night needing to be settled again, but we have gotten to that only being once.  Last week she had such a terrible cold she could not breath and would wake up coughing.  The poor girl was miserable.  Now we are having some after effects from that where she still is coughing a bit and her sleep routine is off so we have been getting up with her more than we had been.

Conrad has grown up a lot since his birthday in August.  He is such a little boy now.  He loves that he is a "bigger boy" and wants to help and do things himself.  He uses the potty all on his own, gets himself dressed, well when we bribe him to do so by paying him a quarter.  He wants to get Mallory things and tells her what to do and not do (somewhat to Kris and my dismay).  Lately he wants to hold her which she does not want, but he is so sweet and will hold her hand in the car or give her hugs hello and goodbye.  The one thing Conrad struggles with is sleeping.  He really still wants Kris or I, and mostly me, to lay with him at night.  Really he wants us to flat sleep with him and preferably in our bed not his.  We can't get any kind of grasp as to what is wrong with his room or his bed, I think nothing is really wrong with them except he knows we leave.  He wakes up at night and comes into our room or cries until we come to him.  This is tough as we know he needs to start not needing us so much at night.  I mean why does he wake up at all; why can't he sleep alone?  He is a pretty thoughtful boy and very loving.  He loves to snuggle and cuddle.  Right now he is loving the shows Paw Patrol, Daniel Tiger, and Team Umi Zoomi.  He likes to read books and is starting to "read" them on his own too.  Most of all he plays with cars and trucks and has them talk and go places together.

 

We wish everyone a happy new year!