The National Marrow Donor Program is doing a "marrowthon" through June 22, allowing you to join the registry for free. The prerequisites are fairly lax, so I was able to sign up and will be swabbin' as soon as the kit arrives at the house. I also used the opportunity to register as an organ donor (here's the link for Texas and here's the general US link).
I used to donate blood on a regular basis, but am no longer eligible because of having lived in Europe too long (stupid mad cow disease). Luckily the marrow prerequisites aren't as strict.
I can see why people might be squeamish about donating blood or marrow, but I don't see why anyone would not be willing to be an organ donor. I mean, by the time you become a donation candidate, you really don't care, do you?
I have friends and family who received donated tissue and blood. I also have friends who, tragically, did not get to, due to a shortage organs. Please if you can, do sign up.
I used to donate blood on a regular basis, but am no longer eligible because of having lived in Europe too long (stupid mad cow disease). Luckily the marrow prerequisites aren't as strict.
I can see why people might be squeamish about donating blood or marrow, but I don't see why anyone would not be willing to be an organ donor. I mean, by the time you become a donation candidate, you really don't care, do you?
I have friends and family who received donated tissue and blood. I also have friends who, tragically, did not get to, due to a shortage organs. Please if you can, do sign up.
For the last couple of months, we've been playing the "hold-your-breath while driving past a cemetery" games. It's something Jennifer started and Magda has recently really gotten into it and is starting to be quite aware of the cemeteries in the local area.
So the other day we're driving and Jfer and I are talking about funerals or something and mentioning someone getting buried at a cemetery. And from the back seat Magda pipes up with an incredulous voice: "They do what at cemeteries!?! Bury dead people? That's crazy!" Turns out we never mentioned what a cemetery is for -- beside holding your breath while you pass it, that is.
Today, Jennifer is with the kids in Wichita Falls, attending the funeral of a family friend. This will be Magda's first funeral, and last night was an open-casket memorial service. Apparently Magda wanted to go by the coffin a couple of times, mainly because she'd "never seen a real cowboy before" (the deceased had cattle and loved his horses and Magda's a big fan of Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa
). I'm sorry I'm missing her experience, but I anticipate there being quite a bit of death talk around the house in the coming weeks.
So the other day we're driving and Jfer and I are talking about funerals or something and mentioning someone getting buried at a cemetery. And from the back seat Magda pipes up with an incredulous voice: "They do what at cemeteries!?! Bury dead people? That's crazy!" Turns out we never mentioned what a cemetery is for -- beside holding your breath while you pass it, that is.
Today, Jennifer is with the kids in Wichita Falls, attending the funeral of a family friend. This will be Magda's first funeral, and last night was an open-casket memorial service. Apparently Magda wanted to go by the coffin a couple of times, mainly because she'd "never seen a real cowboy before" (the deceased had cattle and loved his horses and Magda's a big fan of Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa
). I'm sorry I'm missing her experience, but I anticipate there being quite a bit of death talk around the house in the coming weeks.
May turned out to be a busy travel month. Beside a trip to Ft. Worth we spend the Memorial weekend in Houston attending a couple of family parties and enjoying the local sights.On Sunday, we rolled out of the house kind of late and spent some quality time admiring ducks and ducklings at some office complex off I10. The girls had a good time feeding them bread and chasing them around. Simone doesn't seem a big fan of crawling over grass and sand on her bare knees, but that doesn't really stop her.
On Monday, we visited the Cockrell Butterfly Center (if you go on a busy weekend, make sure to pre-order tickets online and then pick them up a will-call while laughing at the throngs waiting to buy tickets). They reversed the tour from last time we were there in 2003 but it's still as cool as ever and starts off with an impressive roach collection. We were looking for the cool iguana we admired last time, alas, he's no more, having plunged to his death from the waterfall!
Magda loved it when she could get a butterfly to crawl on her finger so that should could admire it from close up. Simone had a good time, too, trying to grab some insects, but without much success (it's not easy when mom keeps you away from them).
You can't keep Simone down. While she still spends a lot of time sitting and playing with stuff, she's on the prowl a lot, especially when you move to a different room and she feels the need to stalk you.
Her crawling has pretty quickly progressed to pulling up on anything, any chance she gets. It's usually me or Jfer, but it can also be furniture, dishwasher, or really, pretty much anything she can get a grab on. So far the dogs haven't been exploited this way, but it's only a matter of time.
The major problem with this is bath time, because she often insists to stand up and try to get out of the tub (especially when I wash her hair). We do have a bath mat, but the tub wall is still pretty slick, and at times it feels like I'm wrestling a slippery fish. She's having a blast but it's weird going through this with her several months earlier than with Magda.
Her crawling has pretty quickly progressed to pulling up on anything, any chance she gets. It's usually me or Jfer, but it can also be furniture, dishwasher, or really, pretty much anything she can get a grab on. So far the dogs haven't been exploited this way, but it's only a matter of time.
The major problem with this is bath time, because she often insists to stand up and try to get out of the tub (especially when I wash her hair). We do have a bath mat, but the tub wall is still pretty slick, and at times it feels like I'm wrestling a slippery fish. She's having a blast but it's weird going through this with her several months earlier than with Magda.
I sometimes have to consciously struggle against my overprotective tendencies when it comes to our kids (well, Simone has it easier in this aspect, being #2) However, I can see the positive impact it has on Magda when she gets a chance to stretch past her boundaries and beyond her comfort zone. I love to see the wide eyes and hear the thrilled "I did it!" when she accomplishes something new. So I encourage her to try new things and root for her when she comes up with new goals.Of course, I sometimes wonder what her age appropriate limits are. I'm in the process of reading Free Range Kids which provides a bit of a sanity check about what does and doesn't make sense for a kid to do. I think that so far we've been well within the "no need to call CPS" limits.
Here are some of the little things she's been working on:
- Hanging and dropping from horizontal bars (started with the pull up bar in our kitchen and progressed to pretty high monkey bars)
- Hanging off a low horizontal bar upside down and letting go with her hands into a handstand (just the other day at the CM playground)
- Crossing the street on her own (we check for traffic and she makes sure to look both ways)
- Going to the mailbox down the street to send stuff
- Taking the stairs at Barnes and Noble while we take the elevator
I hadn't heard that story, but when I took her to B&N yesterday, she said she wanted to go up the stairs by herself while I took the elevator! It went well, though not without some trepidation on my part while waiting for the lift. Once we met up, Magda suggested we see who can get down first and started heading down the stairs (assuming I'd be right behind her). I misunderstood and took the elevator down again - and there she was in the same predicament as with her mom last week. This time, however, she did know how to find the elevator at the bottom (though with a quivering lower lip) and we decided that next time we'd be clear about who goes where.
Magda had her first away trip last week. G came down on Wednesday to babysit while Jennifer and I went to see the Dialogues of the Carmelites (our second date that week - after David Sedaris on Monday). The next day, Magda went with her to Ft. Worth to spent the night first at Rita's place and the next one at her Abuelito's.We were a bit apprehensive, but she had a blast. There were only two times when she wanted to go home, but apparently these were very short lived. It was great being able to video skype with her every evening before bed time.
On Saturday we went picked her up and then went to my cousin's in Dallas where we babysat their son Martin. Magda wasn't too thrilled with the prospect ("Martin's as Pest") but they had a blast playing at home and at the playground. Martin's amazingly social and it takes him no time to hook up with kids and get into games and Magda was pretty good about playing along and getting involved.
Simone has been taking advantage of her new found mobility and is crawling up a storm. At the playground she spent most of the time sitting and playing with the dirt (I mean "wood chips") and observing the kids. On Sunday, she also crawled up to a chair and pulled herself up into a standing position for the first time on her own. And then didn't quite know what to do next. :-)
I got home from work and was talking to Jfer when I see Simone approaching me on the carpet! Apparently she had started doing during the day...
She'd been scooting around (mostly backwards) for weeks now, and has been practicing her "down dog" position for a while, too. Well, she finally figure out what was missing and is now officially crawling.
The technique is interesting. She does this crab-like thing on one foot, one knee and hands, but it works quite well. And she knows how to get to a sitting position from lying on her belly - that should reduce some frustrations.
So we're excited for her. But now that her sphere of influence has grown, we need to get serious about keeping all small things off the floor and our eyes on Homer when she's roaming.
She'd been scooting around (mostly backwards) for weeks now, and has been practicing her "down dog" position for a while, too. Well, she finally figure out what was missing and is now officially crawling.
The technique is interesting. She does this crab-like thing on one foot, one knee and hands, but it works quite well. And she knows how to get to a sitting position from lying on her belly - that should reduce some frustrations.
So we're excited for her. But now that her sphere of influence has grown, we need to get serious about keeping all small things off the floor and our eyes on Homer when she's roaming.
In the last few weeks Magda has been struggling with her emotions. Sometimes little things can set her off when she doesn't get her way and it can spiral down into a major league tantrum. One big point of contention has been her going to her preschool, which closed her old location which means that she has to deal with a new environment. Two weeks ago she was inconsolable about going; later it turned out that she was coming down with an ear infection, but she still doesn't want to go. She also tends to overreact to small things that didn't used to be as big of a deal, like skinning a knee or resolving sharing issues with Kayleigh. Kayleigh has been amazingly sweet and supportive, but I don't want her to be suffering from Magda's outbursts, either.
We're starting to think that her (figurative) head butting with us is a subconscious reaction to Simone's role in the family and how it affected our dynamics. Magda used to be momma's girl and now, since Simone is around all the time, she doesn't really have much opportunity for focused one-on-one time with Jfer. I've enjoyed the opportunity of being more involved in Magda's daily routine, but she "misses her mom" doing the things with her that Jennifer would primarily do. Other changes, like having to give up her high chair, stroller, etc. for Simone make the transition harder too.
I don't think she's conscious about Simone's role in all of this. Magda doesn't express resentment against her and still "loves her sister", which IMO is a good thing, but also the reason why this might have slipped past us. We'll try to change our schedule so that Magda can have dates with Jennifer where it's just the two of them while Simone and I do things on our own. Hopefully this will give Magda a better sense of balance and ease her stress.
We're starting to think that her (figurative) head butting with us is a subconscious reaction to Simone's role in the family and how it affected our dynamics. Magda used to be momma's girl and now, since Simone is around all the time, she doesn't really have much opportunity for focused one-on-one time with Jfer. I've enjoyed the opportunity of being more involved in Magda's daily routine, but she "misses her mom" doing the things with her that Jennifer would primarily do. Other changes, like having to give up her high chair, stroller, etc. for Simone make the transition harder too.
I don't think she's conscious about Simone's role in all of this. Magda doesn't express resentment against her and still "loves her sister", which IMO is a good thing, but also the reason why this might have slipped past us. We'll try to change our schedule so that Magda can have dates with Jennifer where it's just the two of them while Simone and I do things on our own. Hopefully this will give Magda a better sense of balance and ease her stress.
It's not unusual when I call my family members by the wrong name. Jennifer and Homer are usually safe, but I occasionally mix up the girls (including Rose). Seems like it's not necessarily my age, since Magda also occasionally switches our titles when she talks to me or Jennifer.
Here's an exchange from last Friday (Magda sometimes doesn't like it when she's trying to talk to Jfer and I answer her question and vice versa). We were sitting around the table with some friends for dinner:
Magda: Táta?
Me: Yes, Magda?
Magda (flustered): No,I'm talking to mama!
Here's an exchange from last Friday (Magda sometimes doesn't like it when she's trying to talk to Jfer and I answer her question and vice versa). We were sitting around the table with some friends for dinner:
Magda: Táta?
Me: Yes, Magda?
Magda (flustered): No,I'm talking to mama!
Simone has turned 6 months on Sunday and we've finally have gotten around to start her on solid food. She had been focused on us eating for at least a couple of months, so we didn't anticipate any difficulties.During our Sunday breakfast at CJ, we mixed her up a bowl of rice cereal and she took to it like a fish to water. As expected, the feedings are a little messy, mostly because she lounges for the spoon when it comes within reach, which throws off your aim and sometime the food ends up in places where it shouldn't.
But it's great having everyone eating at the table during dinner. Simone really gets into it and makes very contented sighs with every spoonful. We'll see how it goes when we introduce more interesting foods. I think Jfer has sweet potatoes and peas planned next.
