Name: Tess
Home: St. Louis
The Second Child
Today I pulled two items out of Meg's mouth before she swallowed them: a penny, which she picked up in the hallway, and what appeared to be the wrinkled inside of an acorn, which she found somewhere in the yard. Those little lapses in maternal attention made me think about how I'm approaching parenting differently this time around.
--The second child has had a Happy Meal before turning one. In fact, when Tom was out of town we had McDonald's twice in one week. In my defense, I'll note that she had apple slices as a side instead of french fries. In general, we've been less uptight about food this time around, and Meg usually eats bits of whatever we eat.
--The second child has even less in her baby book than the first child. We've noted that she was born, but not much past that. In all honesty, Ben's baby book still has gaps, so there wasn't much hope for Meg.
--The second child has a mother who is not adhering strictly to the AAP guidelines of no TV ever for kids under 2. In fact, when I had the swine flu I desperately tried to get her to watch Sesame Street. I am less uptight about the influence of licensed characters over my child.
--The second child has a mother who is not as concerned about when she'll hit baby milestones. Ben didn't learn to crawl or pull up until after he could walk, and now he's a normal five-year-old. I am, however, dying to hear Meg say her first word. She says "mamamamama," but I'm not convinced she knows what it means.
--The second child has a brother whom she finds fascinating and who adores her. I love watching them crack each other up.
--The second child was born into a family that already knew what to do with kids. We could just lug the crib or the booster seat up from the basement instead of scrutinizing all the reviews on Amazon. We know how to juggle a baby and a diaper bag and a car seat.
--The second child is growing up in a whoosh. I remember what another mother told me about babies: "The days are long, but the years are short." It seems like Meg just arrived, and now she's only a month away from her first birthday.
--The second child has had a Happy Meal before turning one. In fact, when Tom was out of town we had McDonald's twice in one week. In my defense, I'll note that she had apple slices as a side instead of french fries. In general, we've been less uptight about food this time around, and Meg usually eats bits of whatever we eat.
--The second child has even less in her baby book than the first child. We've noted that she was born, but not much past that. In all honesty, Ben's baby book still has gaps, so there wasn't much hope for Meg.
--The second child has a mother who is not adhering strictly to the AAP guidelines of no TV ever for kids under 2. In fact, when I had the swine flu I desperately tried to get her to watch Sesame Street. I am less uptight about the influence of licensed characters over my child.
--The second child has a mother who is not as concerned about when she'll hit baby milestones. Ben didn't learn to crawl or pull up until after he could walk, and now he's a normal five-year-old. I am, however, dying to hear Meg say her first word. She says "mamamamama," but I'm not convinced she knows what it means.
--The second child has a brother whom she finds fascinating and who adores her. I love watching them crack each other up.
--The second child was born into a family that already knew what to do with kids. We could just lug the crib or the booster seat up from the basement instead of scrutinizing all the reviews on Amazon. We know how to juggle a baby and a diaper bag and a car seat.
--The second child is growing up in a whoosh. I remember what another mother told me about babies: "The days are long, but the years are short." It seems like Meg just arrived, and now she's only a month away from her first birthday.
posted by Tess | 11:38 AM
1 Comments:
So True! I keep meaning to grab the girls baby books from their rooms so I can update them (my oldest's has gaps too)
I remember our youngest's day care teacher giving her "homework" to practice saying Mama because she had Dada down and some other words long before Momma or mommy.
Wait until she starts trying to do *everything* that Ben does, the good and the bad. I do love listening to mine play (when they're not fighting!) They've got such imaginations.
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