Becoming "Real" Parents

Last night I felt like JW and I were truly becoming "real" parents and we owe it all to the Supernanny. We successfully executed a timeout with Luke for the first time and it worked like a charm! We were both in shock that it actually worked. When it was time to eat dinner he started throwing a fit because he wanted ice cream. (go figure!) When I tried putting him in his chair he was kicking the table away and screaming and this was something he had never done before. JW and I had actually watched Supernanny on Friday and she kept going over the proper steps to timeout, which I am REALLY glad we watched TOGETHER! JW typically doesn't care for those kind of programs but on Friday he stuck around to watch tv with me instead of playing games on the computer like usual. So we put him in the timeout chair and told him why... then we sat on the couch and ignored him while he yelled for "Diego Juice!" (His apple juice in a Diego cup). He only tried getting up once and it wasn't too hard to get him seated again. The hard part was keeping my mouth shut! The Supernanny kept telling the dad on the show that there should be no communication during this time and it just seemed wrong not to re-explain everything to the kid. But I kept my mouth shut and then he sat for 2 minutes and I told him why he was in timeout and asked him to say sorry mommy. That took some prompting but he did reach out to hug me first and then he said sorry and we told him how much we love him and hugged and kissed him. I was a little nervous when JW picked him up to put him back in the highchair for dinner then.... My lenient side says just let him be until he decides he is hungry later on!! But surprisingly enough Luke then sat at the table and was all smiles and totally happy and he ATE! The boy ate lots of peas, meat, and sweet potatoes. He repeated to us "I listen" "I dessert"... because that's what we have been trying to instill in him that he can get dessert if he eats good. So then he earned his jell-o pudding pop! His behavior was so totally different and cute and sweet at the table that JW and I kept looking at each other in shock! I am sure it won't always work perfectly but for a first attempt we were pretty proud of our parenting skills with the timeout!









If you notice in these pictures... Luke got a "big boy" haircut courtesy of the Daddy Boutique! He cut it a little shorter than I had expected but it turned out cute. It kind of made me sad for a few hours because he looked a lot older, but then I got used to it.
Charlotte started getting a rash on her face last week and I have been trying to deal with that. I finally got in to the doctor's office this morning and just like I thought he would say, "It's just baby acne". I don't think it really is. I think it's a reaction to something but of course this morning it looked a little less irritated and red. I have just been keeping it greased up with Aquaphor and maybe that is helping and it will continue to get better. I've been all worried about whether it's a milk allergy, food allergy, and that she is going to have horrible red faced dermatitis for the first few years of her life until she grows out of it.. and of course the doctor just says "it's just baby acne". From what I have looked up online I think it's atopic dermatitis that infants can get around 6-12 weeks of life. Of course, I don't think the doctor wanted me to question him and explain to him that I already have diagnosed her through the internet!! Haha! Since it looked a little better today I am hoping to continue the Aquaphor and being careful about what her face touches and see if it goes away on it's own. He said we could try a topical steroid but I think I will wait on that. She is eating good and sleeping good so I don't think it is bothering her too much. When they weighed her today (with diaper and clothes on) she was 10 pounds 10 ounces! So in a month she has gained over 2 pounds! When Luke went for his 2 year check up he was 31 pounds and 35 1/2 inches tall. That's the 85th percentile for weight and 70th percentile for height.
Charlotte is now starting to smile and of course she gives Daddy the smiles the most! I have been trying to get a picture of the smiles but it never seems to work out. She is still an excellent baby and still very content and we are thankful for that. Here are some random shots from earlier in April...
Luke's first fish caught with Bunka...






















Looking cute with Nanny...













Watch out for these party animals... cousin Karlson brought home a storm trooper helmet toy on Easter which Luke and Colin also had to wear. Notice Luke's cool Spiderman slippers and yes, that's him under the helmet. He is also becoming quite the light saber fighter when Karlson is around. Karlson always gets to be Luke Skywalker and Luke has to be Darth Vader and they battle around with the collapsable light sabers- complete with sound effects and colored lights! It's just a little frightening!

























Hmmm... Do I look like I could use a timeout????