Containment

We acknowledge and enjoy all of the milestones Sydney achieves. Each new accomplishment marks her progress in developing...sometimes physically, sometimes mentally, and sometimes socially. What I have come to understand is that her progression to a new phase also means that we, as parents, also enter a new phase. There are often new challenges to parenting, which also means issuing new goals to tackle that particular period of her life. Learing to talk, walk, eat, speak...those are all of the big goals for parents. In this particular phase, though, the primary goal of parenthood is containment!

This current goal of containment naturally parallels Sydney's goal of increasing her proficiency in crawling, and in turn her overall mobility. She really has become much quicker, and her new abilities have finally drawn a line in the sand...baby gates must go up!!! The challenge for this task is made exponetially difficult by living in a two story split-level home. They do not make gates that fit this particular situation with our rails. This has led me to a couple of fallback ideas that I entertained early on. Tethering (I'm thinking through an ankle cuff) could have great potential in minimizing surface area that could be covered by Sydney. This could easily keep her far away from problem areas, such as the stairs). This could be kept on all of the time, and made to look stylish. This would also come in handy when participating in outdoor functions, such as BBQ's and family gatherings when she could be staked outside in the yard.

The other thought was to simply use existing products to help her. All sorts of helmets and pads have been around for centuries. Mabye babywear should just be made to include these items in a fashionable manner, but with all of the appropriate safety-oriented measures. If the market would not support that, then perhaps her outfits could have velcro place on her rump area, and also mounted to the top of stairs. This would prevent the ability to reach the top stair that leads to the long treacherous drop. Although...I have seen flies stuck to tape....so maybe that's not the best idea. If there are any pearls of wisdom out there surrounding this topic of stairs, and overall baby containment, please let me know of any success stories. Please note, I am aware that bungee cord and duct tape are already at my disposal.

In other news, Sydney has had brief flashes of standing without assistance from a nearby object or parent. These have been very short in duration, but another sign that her balance is getting better.

Sydney was also able to visit with some old friends this week. They go back...way back...in fact all of the way back to the womb. She's known for Kate, Logan, Olivia, and Maggie since birthing class, when they were negative years old. She had a great time playing and visiting with all of them!

Tip #7: Diaper Frequency

Remember to change your baby’s diaper regularly…which should mean every two to three hours. I know there are great new products on the market, but using a ShamWow (not intended for diaper use) does not mean you can put it off for 36 hours. I’m sure it’s super absorbency nature could hold about 10lbs of various liquids, but that doesn’t mean you should try it. So, do your baby a favor and change them regularly. :)