Canon Is Still Growing Strong

Canon had his 15-month wellness visit this morning, and I thought everything was perfectly normal until talking with the doctor. His height seems to be normal, 2' 8" which is the 75th percentile where he's been the past few visits. His weight is steady at the 10th percentile (21 lbs 6.5 oz), so that's good.  I'm not so nervous about his diet as I was the last time, however, now I have a new concern. Apparently Canon's head circumference of 49 cm is totally humongous.  His head has grown dramatically over the past few visits, so the doctor asked me to come back again next month to measure it again.  As long as he's not showing any other symptoms, like vomiting, then there's not big worry; but if his head continues in this trend, it could be sign of an abnormal growth and they would need to do a CT scan to make sure he doesn't have a tumor or whatever.  It's possible that he could just have a huge head that is growing faster, and the rest of his body will catch up soon.  I never noticed that his head looked big because he just seems to be doing great in everything else... and babies heads are just big.  I guess that might be the reason his shirts have started to feel snug.  I thought it was just because he's now 15 months, so I shouldn't expect that 12month clothes should still fit. (Silly mommy!)

But look at this face... does he look like his head is huge to you?

Also Canon's language might be lagging a little behind.  Now, to tell you the truth, I'm not really worried about it, but the doctor says that he should be saying a few words by now.  So, I need to work a little harder to limit the tv and rev-up the language stimulation.  The doctor suggests that I try to get him to actually say words instead of just pointing to things or going to get them.  I figured he's just not quite ready to talk, but it won't be too long.  Just the other night I told him to pick up his ball and he grabbed it and shouted, "Bah bah bah!"  So I think he's close, but not just there yet.  With a little more concentration on that aspect, I'm hoping we'll see improvement over the next month or so.

12 1/2 Month Check-up

Today (Feb. 1, 2011) I noticed that this post (started back in Dec. of 2010) was not published.  I guess I didn't finish it back then, but there's no reason to leave it unpublished... so here's the really late post.  (Actually, it may have been posted and then changed and therefore saved as a draft, but I'm not sure what happened...so if you've already read this, sorry!)

So Canon has been growing up so fast, and he's always seemed to be so good and healthy to me.  My pediatrician in Boston never seemed to give me any impression for the opposite, but the doctor here did.  Although she didn't seem terribly worried about it, she said that he was down to the 5th percentile in weight (only 19 lb 4 oz).  That in and of itself is not a big deal, but with him being in the 75th percentile in height (over 30" tall) and head circumference consistently going down in the charts for weight, she wanted me to change his diet and come back in a month to weigh him again.  She told me that I should offer him snacks all day long and increase his calorie count during meal times.  Canon never seems to show that he's hungry, so that's probably why I never really gave him many snacks before... although he usually would accept them if I did offer them. The doctor did mention that children like in his situation rarely show signs of hunger.

She also said that Canon ought to be further along in language development, such as being able to obey simple commands like "Bring me the ball."  When she asked about that, I told her that I think he might understand sometimes, but he seems to either not care that I'm making the request or not realize that when I tell him to do it that it means he's supposed to actually do it.  Either way, I had a couple things that I needed to work on before our next doctor's visit (which is on Dec. 21st).

Now, I'm not sure how much I like this doctor because I believe that if I offer him snacks all day long he won't be hungry enough to want to eat at mealtimes.  Honestly, I think I'm right.  Ever since I've been so much more concerned with calories and fattening up the little guy, I've been getting so frustrated with his diet.  It feels like I can't get him eat much of anything now.  I was so excited when I was able to use the last jar of baby food and last bottle of formula.  Yes, whole milk and real food!!  Yeah, well that wasn't long lasting.  I've gone back to baby food because I don't have problems getting him to eat that stuff.   Oh well, at least I know that he's getting his protein and veggies and that whole milk goes down nicely.  Although, he loves his snacks, the baby food ends up being his main source of nutrition... again.  *sigh*

I'm looking forward to this doctor's visit though because he seems to be gaining weight now, and he's starting to understand things better.  He'll also get his second shot for the flu vaccine.  So, if there's nothing else, I'll know he at least has one positive thing going for him concerning the doctor's opinions.  (He's still adorable, so that ought to count for something, right!)

Things I don't want to forget about this stage in his life:

1. He's walking around like crazy now, but most of the time his waddle reminds me cuter version of Frankenstein with his arms sticking out.  
2. He's now trying to climb up on things, like onto the couch (but it's too high) and onto boxes or into his toy basket.  He even tries to climb the safety gate, but it's only vertical bars past 4 inches off the floor, so it doesn't do much good.
3. He's pretty good at climbing up the stairs now, but he usually will get distracted part-way up, so it either takes a long time or I wind up picking him up to finish the flight of steep stairs.
4. Canon is learning about going down the stairs.  I still can't let him go down a single step by himself because they're so steep and dangerous, but he tries to.  The problem is that he won't make up his mind on which way to go down- bouncing on the bum or turned around backwards and going feet first.  All too often he stands up and reaches for the railing, which is obviously too high to be an help to him going down.  
5. He certainly loves to rough-house...nothing too painful.  Hanging upside down, "wrestling", jostling him around, pretending to drop him, and even bonking heads are some of his favorite things to do.  
6. He's become more hesitant about it, but Canon gives "kisses" which is totally adorable.  
7. One of my favorite things is to see him throw his arms out, get a huge open smile on his face, and watch him "run" excitedly towards me to give me a hug.  It just melts my heart!
8. Canon is such a sociable character.  He loves to smile at strangers who give him attention.  It almost seems like he watches someone, waiting for them to look at him to grin.  He LOVES getting attention.  He pretty much will go to any stranger as long as they seem friendly (which can be kinda scary).  I don't think he gets much stranger anxiety, and he doesn't seem to care if we're gone.  I don't know that he misses us... at least if there are some cool kids or toys to play with and explore.

Toddler Tantrums... Here They Come

Canon gets upset much more easily than he used to.  I think it's because he's getting to the stage where he wants to have control over his own life, and he knows what he wants... but I can't always let him get what he wants.  "Sorry, Canon!  I love you, but nope... you can't play with that knife!"  or "I know you want to go outside, but you're not wearing your coat and we're just not going outside right now."  or "Canon, would you please stay out of the dishwasher!"

I've learned that distraction doesn't always work, but if I let him choose I can often get him to do what I need him to do.  For instance, when I need to change his diaper and he just refuses, I give him a choice between two toys, and usually he'll just relax and fiddle with that toy until I finish.  Now when I give him the choice between doing what I want him to do himself or else I make him do it (like come down the stairs or get out of Daddy's office), he usually doesn't want to do it at all and I have to go grab him.  A short battle ensues, and then he calms down when he finds something to play with.  Canon has always been a really good kid, but I can see why some people can lose patience with their children.

He's getting a lot more difficult to handle during church too.  Those meetings are a really long time for a little kid to sit still and be reverent.  I can't even get him to be reverent for a whole prayer, let alone an entire meeting.  He's just at that age where he's so restless especially when he's tired (go figure!) and he just wants to get out of the pew and run up and down the aisles. (Not that I let him do that... but that's what he wants.) It's a good thing he's cute, and people are generally understanding and non-judgmental.  Pretty soon I'll be counting down the days until he can go into nursery.

Canon is starting to understand more and more of what we're saying.  I think he just chooses to not really listen to us.  One day about a week ago I was telling him that it was almost time to go pick up Daddy from work.  He looked at me and then over at the couch where all our coats were laying.  He walked over to the couch and grabbed his winter coat.  Wow!  Great job!  Yeah, we need to put on our coats so we can go outside to go get Daddy.  (Now, if only I could find a way to keep him from throwing a fit every time I strap him into his carseat.  Ok, so it's not every time, but most of the time he hates the carseat.)

Things I Wish I Had on Video

Memory #1
About a week ago I was out of the house for a while and Mark was tending Canon.  He told me that as he was playing with Canon he was just talking and making some random noises.  Mark decided to recite a line from one of Canon's storybooks, Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?:

 "BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Mr. Brown is a wonder.  BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Mr. Brown makes thunder."

Apparently Canon got a little excited about that and ran over to his toy basket, moving his toys out of the way, digging around in there.  He picked out that book and brought it over to Mark.  So, Mark proceeded to read it to him.  Canon remembered where that line came from, and he knew where to go to find it.  I think it's so amazing because it shows that he understands some things that we say even though he can't talk to us yet.  Oh, I wish I was there to see that!  So cute!

Memory #2
Canon is always so happy to see me in the morning and right after his naps... that is, if he's completely rested, which is most of the time.  He stands up in his crib and has a huge grin behind his binky.  Sometimes he even bounces a little or stomps his feet out of excitement.  He is rarely a grouch after sleeping, and I am so grateful for that.  I'm hoping that he will always be a morning person... although, lately he's been waking up a little too early.  I'm thinking that has to do with the temperature changes as the heater kicks on in the morning, but we'll see what we can do about that one.

Memory #3
Lately Canon has found it quite fun to "dance" to music that he hears.  He'll stand up and start stomping his foot.  If he's really getting into it he spins in circles and stops to stomp both feet energetically.  Usually there will be a low yell in there too.  He also spins just to get our attention or to make us laugh.  Sometimes Canon gets Mark to join him in the spinning fun.  Canon, you're such a ham... and I LOVE IT!!

Memory #4
Many times when I am in the bathroom and Canon is just playing around, he'll enter the bathroom and start playing peek-a-boo with the shower curtain.  He'll hide behind the curtain and just giggle and giggle.  Sometimes he'll reach his hands out, so I can see his little finger prints through the curtain, and I'll reach out and touch his hands.  He just laughs and laughs at this.  Sometimes he'll grab my hands or he'll just pull his back to try to hide more.  Whatever I do though, he gets such a kick out of playing through the curtain.  It's like his new favorite game.

Memory #5
Canon absolutely LOVES Veggie Tales.  I shouldn't be turning my child into a couch-potato, but he gets so giddy when he hears the Veggie Tales theme song.  If he's out of the room, he'll come running to watch.  When he sees that tuba playing at the very beginning, his eyes light up and a smile comes to his face.  Often he'll point to the screen too.  Usually he'll sit through almost an entire short episode... on the couch... not moving a muscle... like he's mesmerized.  I told Mark today that it looks like I'm brainwashing him with the look he had on his face: eyes staring and jaw dropped, practically looking like he's in a trance.  Mark just replied, "You're not brainwashing him.  Besides, even if you were, this isn't something bad to brainwash him with!"  (He was watching the one called Silly Thing Called Love where they were talking about how we show God that we love Him.)  I don't really like to have Canon watching a lot of television, but when he does I think it's just the cutest thing EVER!

First Haircut

Shortly after Canon's birthday I tried to cut Canon's hair, but I couldn't get him distracted enough to NOT look over at me and the scissors.  I knew I needed someone's help so that I wouldn't cut his ear off.  When Grandma Dahl (my mother-in-law) and Auntie Colette came for a visit in early December, it was the perfect time to get his hair cut. 

Here are some pictures and a video for your viewing pleasure! :)

This free picture collage personalized with Smilebox

This is the video that Grandma Dahl (Mark's mom) took of the whole ordeal.  (Actually, the video includes more than just the haircut because I wasn't sure how to edit it from YouTube.  Have fun watching his bath and a little playtime before bed too!) It's not very eventful, but you can see how hard it would've been for me to do this alone, especially since I'm not really an experienced barber.  I'm singing to Canon to try to keep his attention on me instead of on Colette's scissors.  She did a great job!  Thanks, Aunt Colette!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGCh6F6BP9M

Canon's Sleep Un-Patterned

Canon has always been a pretty good sleeper compared to most babies.  He rarely gives me problems with putting him down for naps, and he usually goes to sleep pretty easily at night.  Apparently the babysitters who try to imitate his routine don't have troubles getting him to sleep either.  He's been sleeping through the night for a long time now, but recently he's been more fickle with his sleep.

Earlier this week Canon had a REALLY hard time going down at night.  He started getting really ornery, so I decided to get started a bit early with his bedtime.  By the time I normally would've put him down in his crib, he was in now way close to falling asleep.  I tried to get him down for about an hour (usually only needing about 15 minutes- tops), putting him in his crib with holding my hand on his back to keep him calm... but he would not let me leave his side.  I was so frustrated (and hungry because my dinner was waiting for me that whole time), I asked Mark to go up and take care of him.  Canon was crying so hard, even after Mark was holding him for a little while.  He just didn't want to calm down, at least not by anyone other than me.  Once I finished my dinner, I went up to relieve Mark, and Canon stopped crying within seconds of me taking him from Mark.  I guess he just really wanted his mommy.  (That actually hurt Mark a little, that he wouldn't accept being consoled by Daddy).  I gave Canon some pain reliever and teething tablets, and after about another half hour he was happy to cuddle with Daddy for a little while.  I finally was able to get him to sleep at about 10pm... 2 hours later than normal.  I think this time he was in pain, hopefully teething... but I would've expected him to sleep late into the morning because of it.  Nope!  He was up at 6am, and didn't want to go back to sleep.  Ugh!

His normal time to wake up is about 7am, but lately there seems to be no rhyme or reason for the times he chooses to wake.  This morning it was about 5am, and even though I could tell that he was super tired, he wouldn't go back to sleep until 6am.  I had to go get a new bottle and change his diaper, and pretend that it was his regular nighttime routine.  That seemed to work, but after going back to bed, I ended up not being able to get up in time to take Mark to work this morning.  So I'm without the car, but I'm not planning on going anywhere... so that's alright by me.

What do you think?  What can I try to get him back to sleeping normally through the night?

Definitely A Tigger 2

When Mark was tiny, his grandma would call him Tigger because he was so "bouncy" and I can tell that Canon is the offspring of Mark.  He is so active; I'm not sure if he really ever stops moving. There's no wonder that Canon is so low on the weight charts.  He burns so many calories playing and barely takes any in with his foods.  At least he does pretty well with eating snacks. In fact, as I'm typing this entry, Canon figured out how to climb up onto the couch all by himself, without a push or something to step up on.  The only times he seems to just sit calmly is when he's watching Veggie Tales... but don't expect that to last through the whole episode.  Why do you think I've not posted on this blog for so long?

I wonder if Canon's activeness is because he's a boy, or if it's just because it's his personality.  We were babysitting a friend's baby girl just before our anniversary, and Charlotte was not nearly as active as Canon.  Granted, she did seem scared of Canon and wanted to be held most of the time, but the difference between the two kids was quite obvious.  Here's a little video of when they were watching Veggie Tales: Jonah and the Whale, and they were both "dancing."  You can see a little how Charlotte was trying to get away from Canon and then he tried to catch up and touch her.  This happened a lot, Canon was curious, but Charlotte was frightened.

Canon has started "dancing" when he hears music now; he bounces up and down or shifts his weight from left to right.  It's really cute.  He's also gotten really good and climbing up the stairs.  He has learned how to go down the stairs by kind of sliding on his belly, which frightens Mark a bit.  Canon has also discovered that if he lies on his tummy going feet first, he can get off the couch, bed, or chair all by himself.  However, he has not realized that stepping off like his parents do down the stairs is not a good idea.  I need to keep a close eye on him so that he doesn't accidentally kill himself. Ha ha!