All about Aida.

A note for Tara, aka our new Mary Poppins. Nov. 4. 2011 Tara, We cant thank you enough for agreeing to watch over our sweet baby girl while we work on Fridays. We hope youll enjoy your time with her. Aida is the light of our lives and it means so much for us to be able to leave her in the care of someone we believe will keep her safe, comforted and engaged. Aida is eight days away from her first birthday. She is a loving baby with a big smile, a melt-your-soul laugh and one little dimple on her right cheek. She enjoys exploring, talking/squeaking, gnawing, sucking and sleeping, among many other things. Some of her favorite activities include: crawling/walking around the house both by herself and with your assistance (the walking part, I mean.) shaking her new tambourine and clapping her cymbals walking while pushing things that can be pushed the opened step ladder, a kitchen chair, her push-cart toy with blocks, and even the stroller (watch that!) listening and dancing (bouncing?) to music dancing in your arms to music turning on and off light switches jumping in her Jumperoo standing at the open front door (with the screen locked), watching the scene outside (or as she calls it, OUT-suh) when the weather is pleasant humming to herself during walks in her stroller swinging at the park or in her new, pink, backyard swing flipping through her board books playing peekaboo (shell pull the blanket off of you if you ask her Aida, where did Miss Tara go?) reaching for things, including things on high-up shelves! (Beware!) helping unload the dish washer (Best to keep it closed!) staring out the window in her bedroom after she wakes up from naps waving at herself in mirrors

Tooth alert! Aida has eight teeth and more on the way. When shes teething, as she appears to be now, youll find she turns from happy to tearful without warning. She drools like crazy and she frequently puts her fingers in her mouth. The best way to comfort her

is to hold her close, put her blanky on your shoulder and let her rest her head or hug the blanky. We also have baby Tylenol and Baby Orajel. If you feel shes in enough pain (you know it because the cry is sudden, urgent and seems inconsolable) that you think this will help, please give one or both to her judiciously. And please keep track of what/when you give it to her for our purposes. Baby Tylenol - She can have only .4ml (the smallest measure/lowest line) of the Tylenol and she takes that pretty easily because I think she likes the taste. She should not get it more than five times in 24 hours. Baby Orajel She doesnt always take this well just kinda seems to depend on how tired and sore she is. Just wash your hands and put a tiny bit on your clean finger and rub it on the gum where you believe she indicates shes having pain. She should not get this more than four times in 24 hours.

Naps & our naptime routine Aida usually takes two naps a day. Her schedule varies, but on a typical day, she wakes up around 6:30 or 7 a.m. and starts to get tired for her first nap anywhere from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Usually, it happens earlier rather than later and 10 a.m. is pretty standard. Her morning nap typically lasts about 1 hour to 90 minutes, but even recently has been known to stretch to 3 hours. It just varies. And we roll with it. How long she napped in the morning obviously affects what time she gets tired in the afternoon. Typically, shes down for her afternoon nap in the 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. range, though. And this one easily lasts for two hours or more. (But, again, she could get tired at noon or 1 or 4, so look out.) We try to be responsive to Aidas sleepy cues and help her get to her crib when she needs it. This means watching out for the following signs and responding accordingly: Eye rubbing. (Clear sign. She only ever does this when shes tired.) Yawning. (If shes yawning, you better stop everything and get her to bed cuz things will turn unpleasant fast!) Grabbing her ears. (This week, this could be related to her little ear infection, but it often means shes tired.) Putting her head down. (This means shes probably pretty far gone.) And if she just seems suddenly supersensitive/cranky/needy, shes probably pretty well into naptime and you best hurry her diapered bottom to the crib.

Our naptime routine Carry Aida into her nursery. Draw the shades and turn out any lights. Fetch her blanky for her to hold. Shell usually put her head on your shoulder if you drape her blanky over your shoulder. If she doesnt, shes probably not as tired as you think she is, or shes a little too wound up for some reason. Settle down in the rocker with Aida on your lap and give her a bottle about 24 oz of milk, finished off with a little drink of water from a cup or her sippy cup (cleans her teeth). Let her hold her blanky while she drinks and you can read a book to her while she drinks, as well. When shes finished, put the bottle aside and stand up. Drape the blanky over your shoulder and let her rest her head on your shoulder. Hit the button on the wave machine and sway a little bit with her while you stand. Then, lower her, with her blanky, into the crib, laying her on her back. Usually, she hugs her blanky to her body and curls over on her side. Head out of the room and close the door behind you.

She might cry, babble or sing a little bit when you first leave, but if shes really tired, it should cease pretty quickly. Dont feel you have to rush in at the first cry. Shes pretty good at soothing herself and putting herself to sleep. Now, if you hear her happily playing and moving around for a long time and it sounds like shes not going to sleep at all after like 20 or 30 minutes, she may not be ready for a nap. If I have doubts, I usually just peek in the room ever so quietly (so she cant hear me) to see if shes lying down, or just standing up in the crib playing with her imaginary baby friends. If its the latter, I might get her out and let her play freely a little while longer. This doesnt happen often, though, so use your best judgment.

Meals/Snacks Aida will have eaten breakfast by the time you arrive, so her typical eating day is as follows Wake 4 oz milk followed a little while later by oatmeal with fruit and maybe some organic baby puffs (because they make her happy) Before a.m. nap 2-4 ounces milk followed by sips of water Lunch @noonish, or after she wakes from her nap (whichevers later) A small container (about 2 oz.) of baby food (usually homemade fruit/veggies, sometimes prepared stuff because I cant get my act together), as much as she will eat. If she eats two containers, thats great. But usually she has about half. And perhaps some

organic baby puffs (because they MAKE HER HAPPY!) Along with a bottle of milk and followed by water. Before p.m. nap 2-4 ounces milk followed by sips of water Shell eat dinner after I get home, so you dont have to worry about that. Some days, Aida eats more than others. And some meals she eats more than others. We dont try to force her to eat if she indicates she doesnt want more than a bite. And since were still giving her new foods, there are times when its clear she just flat out doesnt like something. Our pediatrician says this is one clear area where she gets to exert her preferences, so we try to be respectful of that as long as we know shes getting the nutrients she needs. Helpful feeding hints While you should feed her her food, you should also give her a chance to feed herself. That said, shes learning to self-feed and her MO lately is to take the spoon and drop it on the floor. Im sorry. This doesnt necessarily mean she doesnt want to eat. More likely, it means she likes to see what happens when she drops or pushes things on the floor. But that is why we have a clear vinyl mat to put under her high chair! Ive found that she often eats better if you sing to her and make other entertaining noises. This is something I do if shes particularly resistant for some reason. So, try that before you give up. Along the same lines, her BONGO CD Disc 1 in the CD player is an asset! She loves that thing and it seems to set her at ease in any situation. (Watch her bounce!)

Going for walks I welcome you taking Aida out for a walk, but only ask that you send me a text when youre leaving and when you return, and let me know where youre headed. Im a paranoid former cops reporter who wrote about crashes, kidnappings and stuff, so this helps me feel more at ease. The red stroller is a great one for strolls on the foot path to and around Coffee Pot. Youll find baby sunscreen in the bottom of the stroller. If its sunny out and shes not fully covered, please apply accordingly. The best way to move the stroller from the garage to the porch is to pull it through the study. (It doesnt fit through the other door). Please make sure to put Aida in the Pack N Play when youre doing that, though, to avoid her taking a spill down either set of stairs. She might gripe when you first put her in there, but dont worry. Shell get better.

As I mentioned before, she often fights being put in the stroller. The best way to get her cooperation is to distract her with something she finds interesting. Usually, this means something that isnt a toy. Things that work like a charm: - plastic water bottleendless fun (theres one in the bottom of the stroller!) - plastic sunglasses - keys (this is dicey, though, because of course youre going to need them back and when you take them, trantrum will ensue, however brief!)

Diaper changes I know I warned you about this, but Aida is going through a stage where she just does not want to lie on her back for diaper changes. Sometimes shes more cooperative than others. Similar to what we do when loading her into the stroller, I try to give her something to hold, something interesting (which is not usually a toy). Things that sometimes work plastic water bottle (see above) the little blue battery operated fan, usually above the changing table the entire tub of wipes a closed tube of Desitin a diaper her banana shaped toothbrush her baby comb or brush her zipped toiletry kit another clean diaper

If she just wont stay on her back, you might have to relent and let her stand while you change her. I dont know how to describe how to do this. But about 95 percent of my diaper changes are done this way, lately. She still usually needs to be holding onto something she thinks is interesting (see above). Im sorry.

Misc. stuff to know... * If Aida is going for something that isnt a toy, we say, No, not a toy, and we redirect her. * If shes trying to pull our hair or jewelry or something like that, we say, Gentle and try to show her what that means. * We talk sing to her as much as possible, reinforcing words that are in her world. She has a small vocabulary: Up, down DahDah OUTsuh Were working

on things like bottle, cup, cat, dog (oh, she LOVES dogswait til you take her on a walkshe gets excited every time she sees one), etc.

Our preferences The dont dos Dont keep the TV on while Aida is awake. TV is meaningless to her and we would rather she spend her awake time playing, moving and learning than watching weirdass pictures on the flat screen. Keep the bathroom and master bedroom doors closed. Dont have anyone over. We feel very strongly about this. Use the pack n play (and feel free to move it from the back room), if you find yourself in a position where you cant be in the same room with Aida for a short period of time (bathroom break?) and to leave her alone might present a safety hazard. Dont drive her anywhere.

The dos Help yourself to any food. Feel free to watch TV while Aida is napping. Use your computer while Aida is nappingour guest WiFi network is XXXXX. Password is XXXXX.

Contact information: Ok. So, here are all the important numbers: Rebecca , (Im about 3 miles away), personal cell: XXX-XXX-XXX; work cell: XXXXXX-XXXX; work desk: XXX-XXX-XXXX, and, the main switchboard at work is 1-800XXX-XXXXmy ext is XXXX; email xxxxx@gmail.com. If you need me and cant reach me or Steve, my editors are M and J, so ask the people at the main number for them. Steve (hes about 4 miles away), personal/work cell: XXX-XXX-XXX; Google voice number (in case of emergency, this rings his cell and his desk at work), XXXXXX-XXX; email xxxxxx@gmail.com D (my mom, who cares for Aida 4 days a week and is just 15 mins away), cell XXXXXX-XXXX Pediatrician: Dr. M and Dr. E, XXX-XXX-XXXX their offices are not far away.

Sooooo..I guess thats about it. (Have I overwhelmed you?!)

Thanks again for watching our baby. Please dont hesitate to call for anything. No question is too minor, nothing too stupid or silly. As you can tell, Im still a nervous, first-time mother. And shes the most precious, most wonderful, incredible thing in the world to me. I hope you enjoy her a smidgen as much as we do.

With affection and gratitude, Rebecca