BTDT moms: is it as hard the second time around?

So you mean Ericka is going to get it with Genevieve in about a year?
(That'd be my bet g!)
--
Be well, Barbara
Mom to Sin (Vernon, 2), Misery (Aurora, 4), and the Rising Son (Julian, 6)

Lol! Could be.

Gender doesn't seem to matter cos you have Vernon following a boy then a
girl, and Lewis following a girl then a boy. So we'll have to see - lol.

Circe wrote:

Sophie wrote:

See my response to Ericka--he's just more balls-out and
hell-bent-for-anything than the older two were. Like you, I'm
surprised he's never had a trip to the ER. As an example of stuff
that happens to him that has not happened to either of my other
kids, he has taken at least two head-first tumbles off of beds--I
mean, literally, HEAD-first. And both times, he's done it while I
was watching him--one second, he was sitting on the bed doing
nothing worse than bouncing on his bum and the next he was
standing up and diving off the bed!

Vernon and Lewis sound a lot alike. I think it's a 3rd child thing.

So you mean Ericka is going to get it with Genevieve in about a year?
(That'd be my bet g!)

Oh, it's already starting! When I said she wasn't
a delicate little flower, I wasn't kidding ;-) When other
little kids come up to her (all the time with little sibs
of the kids her brothers have activities with), I never
have to tell them to be gentle with her. I have to tell
them to watch out or she'll rip their hair/face/etc. off.
She throws herself at people and *growls* at them (delighted,
of course). If you hold her, she unpredictably throws
herself backwards (she likes to hang upside down). The
higher you throw her, the louder she laughs. She chases
the animals and isn't a bit worried if they growl or hiss
at her (needless to say, we keep a *very* close eye on
her with animals). She hangs right over the edge of
things, no matter how high. We can already tell she's
going to be right handed because she has a mean arm
and can throw (overhand) things a good 8-10 feet. She
pulls up on everything--apparently unstable things are
far more interesting. She puts everything in her mouth.
She is fascinated with cords and outlets. She has no
fear of water (she'll plunge her head right in and
come up giggling with water streaming down her face).
Yeah, I think I'm going to be working hard to keep
up for the next couple of years ;-)

Best wishes,
Ericka

Ericka Kammerer wrote:
Oh, it's already starting! When I said she wasn't
a delicate little flower, I wasn't kidding ;-) When other
little kids come up to her (all the time with little sibs
of the kids her brothers have activities with), I never
have to tell them to be gentle with her. I have to tell
them to watch out or she'll rip their hair/face/etc. off.
She throws herself at people and *growls* at them (delighted,
of course). If you hold her, she unpredictably throws
herself backwards (she likes to hang upside down). The
higher you throw her, the louder she laughs. She chases
the animals and isn't a bit worried if they growl or hiss
at her (needless to say, we keep a *very* close eye on
her with animals). She hangs right over the edge of
things, no matter how high. We can already tell she's
going to be right handed because she has a mean arm
and can throw (overhand) things a good 8-10 feet. She
pulls up on everything--apparently unstable things are
far more interesting. She puts everything in her mouth.
She is fascinated with cords and outlets. She has no
fear of water (she'll plunge her head right in and
come up giggling with water streaming down her face).
Yeah, I think I'm going to be working hard to keep
up for the next couple of years ;-)

Oh my, yes, I think you're going to find the toddler years very interesting!
Just wait until she's 2yo and does all these things but is *waaaaay* faster
than she is now. That's what's so terrifying with Vernon--he goes from doing
something perfectly unconcerning to doing something totally hair-raising in
seconds. Vernon hasn't gotten the (extremely good-natured, tongue-in-cheek)
nickname "Sin" for nothing; it really fits g!

One of the few things about his fearless and relative physical competence
that I'm really glad of, however, is how well he does in water. He has one
of those flotation suits and he has already figured out how to use it and
motor around the pool on his own. Last summer, we didn't so much take him
swimming as we took him drowning and then tried to prevent it g, so it is
very nice (and a lot more fun for his parents) now that he actually "swims".
--
Be well, Barbara
Mom to Sin (Vernon, 2), Misery (Aurora, 4), and the Rising Son (Julian, 6)

Aurora (in the bathroom with her dad)--"It looks like an elephant, Daddy."
Me (later)--"You should feel flattered."

All opinions expressed in this post are well-reasoned and insightful.
Needless to say, they are not those of my Internet Service Provider, its
other subscribers or lackeys. Anyone who says otherwise is itchin' for a
fight. -- with apologies to Michael Feldman

"Nikki" wrote in message
...
.

Sometimes (like at bath and baby woke up) I'd say out loud that I was
helping Hunter right now and that I'd be there in a minute. I guess I
blamed the toddler but the baby didn't notice, lol. I was doing that for
the toddlers sake, so he'd realize that sometimes his needs come first
too.

Nikki,

That is excellent advice that I used just today.

Thanks!
Nancy

Circe wrote:

Oh my, yes, I think you're going to find the toddler years very interesting!
Just wait until she's 2yo and does all these things but is *waaaaay* faster
than she is now.

Perish the thought! She's already *really* fast!
She's not walking yet (thank goodness), so it still takes
her a *tiny* bit longer to get to a different part of the
house, but I swear she must have rubber arms that can
suddenly stretch to twice their normal length with the
speed of an attacking snake ;-)

Best wishes,
Ericka

I think it's easier in some ways and much harder in others.

For me, the *baby* part was a lot easier the second time around. You don't
second guess yourself as much, and you just do what you feel is right without
wondering if you should be doing something else.

What I found much more difficult was adjusting to having two, not having a new
baby- and helping my older child to adjust to having a sibling. It may partly
depend on the personality of your older child.

Myself, I found going from 0-1 to be fairly easy and going from 1-2 to be quite
hard, but I think it's very different for everyone.

laurie
mommy to Jessica, 3 years
Christopher, one year old!

"Sophie" wrote in message
...
See my response to Ericka--he's just more balls-out and
hell-bent-for-anything than the older two were. Like you, I'm surprised
he's
never had a trip to the ER. As an example of stuff that happens to him
that
has not happened to either of my other kids, he has taken at least two
head-first tumbles off of beds--I mean, literally, HEAD-first. And both
times, he's done it while I was watching him--one second, he was sitting
on
the bed doing nothing worse than bouncing on his bum and the next he was
standing up and diving off the bed!
--
Be well, Barbara
Mom to Sin (Vernon, 2), Misery (Aurora, 4), and the Rising Son (Julian,
6)

Aurora (in the bathroom with her dad)--"It looks like an elephant,
Daddy."
Me (later)--"You should feel flattered."


Vernon and Lewis sound a lot alike. I think it's a 3rd child thing.


I'm not so sure about that. It sounds a lot like my 2nd! She's already
been to the hospital with a knocked out tooth and still isn't afraid of
climbing as high as she can go! I don't want to hear that the 3rd is going
to be even worse!

--
Sandi
Mommy to Abby, 3 1/2
Natalie, 21 months
& #3 due 6/3/04

Sophie wrote:
See my response to Ericka--he's just more balls-out and
hell-bent-for-anything than the older two were. Like you, I'm
surprised he's never had a trip to the ER. As an example of stuff
that happens to him that has not happened to either of my other
kids, he has taken at least two head-first tumbles off of beds--I
mean, literally, HEAD-first. And both times, he's done it while I
was watching him--one second, he was sitting on the bed doing
nothing worse than bouncing on his bum and the next he was standing
up and diving off the bed! --
Be well, Barbara
Mom to Sin (Vernon, 2), Misery (Aurora, 4), and the Rising Son
(Julian, 6)

Aurora (in the bathroom with her dad)--"It looks like an elephant,
Daddy." Me (later)--"You should feel flattered."


Vernon and Lewis sound a lot alike. I think it's a 3rd child thing.

Gads, sounds like Luke only he has a temper to go with it. Maybe I don't
want a 3rd after all if they only get worse ;-)


--
Nikki
Mama to Hunter (5) and Luke (3)

Nancy P wrote:
"Nikki" wrote in message
...
.

Sometimes (like at bath and baby woke up) I'd say out loud that I was
helping Hunter right now and that I'd be there in a minute. I guess
I blamed the toddler but the baby didn't notice, lol. I was doing
that for the toddlers sake, so he'd realize that sometimes his needs
come first too.

Nikki,

That is excellent advice that I used just today.

Thanks!


Well I'm glad you could use it :-) I think it really did make a difference
for Hunter. I did that (or something really similar) at least once a day.

--
Nikki
Mama to Hunter (5) and Luke (3)

Nikki said:

Maybe I don't
want a 3rd after all if they only get worse ;-)

Nah . . . my third was much easier than my second, and my fourth easier yet.
Let's hope the trend continues! :-)

Leslie