Must have been a good snack.

My kid choked on a piece of pear yesterday. At first I thought he was playing - sometimes he sticks his tongue out at me while he's eating, so I thought he was flirting with me until his face started turning red and he gave me the crazy eyes.

Anyway, I stayed totally calm and did exactly what I remember from CPR class - I took the tray off his highchair, unbuckled him, flipped him over and whacked him on the back. When the piece of pear emerged from his throat hooked it and swept it out with my finger.

The boy was scared and sad, but I gave him a sippy of water and put him on the couch. He kept glaring at me like this whole ordeal was my fault. Then he rolled off the couch and crawled over to the discarded highchair tray and finished his snack. It was a good snack, I guess - yogurt melts, graham crackers and (of course) pears.



I did everything exactly right, but all I could think of was that I'm not certified in infant and child CPR anymore and that scared the living shit out of me.

Peekaboo!

Okay, so he's been doing this for a couple of weeks now, but it took some time to get photographic evidence.

The Zen of Sippy Cup

Let's say you're trying to transition your child to a sippy cup. Let's say he hasn't quite grasped the mechanics of holding it up and tipping his head back and swallowing all at the same time.

And, just for fun, let's say you've bought six different brands of sippy cups.

Want to bypass all that? Put your baby in a car seat on a sweltering June day in a vehicle with marginal (at best) air conditioning. Hand him a cup filled with cold water and a few ice cubes. See how fast he figures it out.



You're welcome.

Happy Father's Day! (belated)

http://www.marionvitus.com/

Here we go.

"Mom. Mama. Ma. Ma. Mommmma. Mom."

Today my kid called me "Mama" because he needed something. He's said it a hundred times before, but mainly in terror (f I leave for the store without him), exasperation (if I dare to wipe his hands and face after a meal), and general babbling (cruising around the coffee table with a spoon in hand).

Today I was feeding Max and the Czar was at my elbow. I heard him talking, but I was busy and he had to wait. A few minutes later the "Mama" was coupled with rhythmic jabs to my side. He was poking me!

He's brilliant and annoying at the same time!

Teddy? Blankie? Nope.

Lest you think the spoon thing was a fleeting phase:




He rediscovered this cat toy yesterday. It gives him much joy.