second child syndrome Archives

Daily Life

My Stage 5 Clinger

Posted on June 6, 2018

My sweet baby girl! It’s a beautiful burden having such an attached baby. We laugh because we had to put up the baby gate the minute Katie started crawling and we left it up until she was 18 months old. We have never put the baby gate up for Isabelle because she is never not touching me. Some days it drives me crazy. When I’m using the bathroom, when I’m trying to put on my shoes, when I’m trying to do literally anything that requires body autonomy…

When I’m using the bathroom, when I’m trying to put on my shoes, when I’m trying to do literally anything that requires body autonomy…

And it doesn’t make for an enjoyable start to the day when you’re trying to pack your kids’ lunches so you can go somewhere fun and there’s a baby screaming at your feet and tugging on your pants because you had to set them down for 5 minutes. There are times Jason holds her so I can have a break and she stares at me and cries the whole time. Does not feel like a break.

It’s sweet, it’s exhausting. Some days I want to melt, some days I want to pull my hair out.

But she’s also the snuggliest baby I’ve ever met. On the rare occasions she does walk away to play on her own, she comes back every couple minutes to climb up on my lap, lie her head on my chest, and suck her thumb for a minute before getting back down to play. (And rinse and repeat every 3 minutes until she’s done playing…) She is constantly bringing me books and curling up next to me so I can read to her and she holds on so tight when I carry her. It’s sweet, it’s exhausting. Some days I want to melt, some days I want to pull my hair out. I know it won’t last forever, but it’s definitely a different experience than when K was a baby. It’s funny how different siblings can be.

Daily Life

IB is walking. Sort of.

Posted on April 26, 2018

Okay, I’m calling it. We have a walker. But I’m putting it in the baby book with an asterisk because this adorable little face is the face of a faker. It all started last week when she started taking a few steps here and there. We figured she was still learning and wasn’t ready.

Earlier this week we saw her walk from the coffee table to the door (about 5-6 steps) when she thought no one was looking.

Then earlier this week we saw her walk from the coffee table to the door (about 5-6 steps) when she thought no one was looking. Later the same day, she walked over to me when I put on the carrier because she wanted to be picked up. But if I set her down on her feet and try to get her to walk to me, she sits down and cries. This continued several times throughout the week; she was taking several steps when no one was looking.

Then last night I saw her walk around the coffee table to the couch (about 12 steps)

Jason and I joked that she was waking up and night and walking around the apartment under the cover of darkness. Then last night I saw her walk around the coffee table to the couch (about 12 steps) and when I came in the room and busted her, she sat down!

She also still pretends she can’t hold her fruit pouches

She also still pretends she can’t hold her fruit pouches and makes us hold them for her, and even though she had been standing unassisted for MONTHS now, she still only does it on her terms. If she has a toy or a sandwich, she will stand for several minutes while she plays or eats. If I try to stand her up on her feet, it’s like her legs are jello! Does anyone else’s kid do this?

Is it possible we are creating this fake helpless damsel in distress?

Katie is the complete opposite. When she learns a song, she wants to sing it to us again, and again… and again. She wants to show us how she can open her own string cheese and tell us how she went potty on the potty (I mean, still? You’ve been doing this for months now. Do we have to throw a party for every single poop for the rest of your life?) Part of me wonders if this is a second child thing with Isabelle. We are always saying “be careful with the baby” and “she’s too little for that.” Is it possible we are creating this fake helpless damsel in distress? Is your kid(s) more “look what I can do” or “I can’t do it”? And who was firstborn and who is the baby if you have multiples?