MamaBlogga

Even Hayden. Check out this insightful analysis of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

I know, it’s just one of those silly videos only a mom can love, but I thought it was pretty funny.

If not for Mommy, then for Marty.

I saw a study today from the NDP Group about children and technology. It said that:

On average, children begin using electronic devices at approximately 7 years of age with televisions and desktop computers showing the youngest initial exposure (about 4 or 5 years of age), and satellite radios and portable digital media players (PDMP) showing the oldest (about 9 years of age).

‘Round here, we start ‘em young. Here’s a video of Hayden when he was six months (ie, during the silent film era):

I’m really focusing on my audience this week and one member of my audience made a request. Okay, it was my sister. She’s dying to see Hayden. (I’m always surprised at how this blog has changed. It started off as a way for our far flung family members to see Hayden and hear about how he’s doing, and now I have to practically force myself to include him in the mix every once in a while.)

So pardon me while I indulge my sister: Here’s Hayden!

A minute and a half from a typical day (preceded by part one and part two):
And Hayden climbing into his stroller, a recently acquired skill:
I also uploaded videos of him drumming and with his beloved, a broom.

And a report from the doctor visit earlier this month: Hayden weighs 20 lbs, 12 oz. This isn’t a huge increase from his last visit… in fact, it’s less than a pound (if I’m remembering correctly; I can’t put my hands on the reports). He’s also grown about 1/2 - 3/4 of an inch (when they first measured him, the measurements indicated that he’d shrunk!). So he’s gone from above average height to average height to below average height (25th percentile). At his relative “heaviest,” he was in the 25th percentile for weight, and now he’s in the 6th. However, he’s at 89% of the ideal weight for his height, so I’m not overly worried. But why is my baby shrinking?

The doctor was a little concerned that Hayden doesn’t say any words yet, even though Hayden has 4 or 5 signs. Ryan pointed out that this is a reversal of Hayden’s 12 month appointment, where I was all worried that Hayden didn’t speak and the doctor wasn’t worried. I’m satisfied with signing and babbling right now. Clearly, he can hear (he responds to lots of quiet noises�y’know, when he wants to) and the language portions of his brain are working. I think the talking will come, and I think soon.

I’ve been a little remiss in talking about Hayden lately�and what’s discussing motherhood without mentioning the one who made me a mother?

So, here are some of the things he’s been up to lately!

Six recent Hayden firsts
More signs. This week, Hayden learned ‘doggie.’ It looks a lot like ‘hi’ when he does it, but he does it when he sees a dog. This is a bit of an improvement over signing ‘kitty’ when he sees a dog. He’s also learned to blow when he sees a fan.
Hugs. Yep, spontaneous hugs. Don’t believe me? Watch this:

See, he tries to hug the kitty and then he signed ‘kitty.’
Kisses. Yep, Hayden give and (mostly) receives more kisses!
Weaning.
Separation anxiety. Suddenly, Hayden really cares about being left at the gym daycare. They’re really good at distracting him, but it’s still heart wrenching to hear him cry out.
Climbing. Yesterday he climbed onto one of our couches. Here’s one of his first climbing experiences:
Half a dozen not-so-recent Hayden firsts
Babbling. He’s been talking up a storm for a few weeks now. Still no words, although he does seem to whine “mamamamam” to me and “dadadada” to Ryan.
Grabbing my legs. On the whining note, Hayden has learned to grab my legs and plaintively look up at me (while whining “mamamam!”). This is most common when he’s hungry, and when I’m trying to walk around the kitchen to get him something to eat.
Walking backwards. I’m not sure exactly when he acquired this skill, but he’s quite good at backpedaling.
Sense of humor (and feeding himself) (video)

“Teefers!” We’ve gotten him to show his teeth when we say this. In fact, he’s so good at this, that he does it even when I ask him where are his feet are, he shows me his teeth. (He points to his feet when you ask him where his stinky feet are.)
Typing. Here’s a sample of his work.

/ “””"”"”"” I?II?i ,bbbbbbbbbbbbbbby,,.dz h ionjnyn GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVMMMM*
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
V 88B6666666666666666666 VVVVVVVVVVVV 088888888 h i8n mj gvgftfrtfhft 0 66666666666666666666666666666cvN v6c FDZS J8 B K VVVVVVVVVVVGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG N ===================================================
================OKM

That’s our boy!

We’ll be keeping the back door deadbolted from now on.