The Karlin Clan

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Snip Snip- Jacob's first haircut

We took Jacob to a place called Snip-Its in Franklin to get his haircut. This place is so cute. Its a very kid friendly place. Jacob loved it. We walked in and we put Jacob onto the chair and buckled him in. He didnt want to be buckled in but the hair stylist gave him a lollipop and turned on cartoons and everything was great. She snipped off some of the mullet in the back and a little bit off the sides and a bit off the top. He did so good. Of couse Nate and i were standing there taking video and pictures. After he was done, he was able to put some of the his hair in a machine and out popped a toy. I am so proud of my big boy!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

2 Year Appointment

When we moved, we left the best pediatrician ever! He was so wonderful and would recommend him to anyone. I knew it was going to be very hard to find a Dr. as wonderful as Dr. Rhoads. Nate and I did some research and read so good reviews about a Dr. that was about 5 minutes away from our house. We were excited. At first this Dr. was good and we were pleased but of course she wasnt Dr. Rhoads. She tried to help us figure out why Jacob wasn't gaining weight but we feel like she didnt try hard enough. After a year of weight check ins, he still wasnt gaining weight and she never gave us new ideas. She kept telling us the same thing everytime we went in for a weight check-in which is feed him high calorie foods and give him carnation breakfast. We have been doing this for almost a year now and nothing new. We are also worried about Jacobs speech. He isnt talking as much as he should and is a little delayed. We showed our concern for that and she never said anything about it. To make a long story short, Nate and I decided to meet other pediatricians that can help us and show concern for our child when needed. We found another pediatrician's office down the street and interviewed this new Dr. So far, Nate and I have absolutely no complaints. He is very personable and a lot like Dr. Rhoads. Needless to say, we changed Dr's and now we go to Dr. Hughes.

We took Jacob to his 2 year appointment on Tuesday at this new pediatric office and Dr. Hughes is going to help us as much as we need! YAY!!! Jacob still weights 22.6 pounds which is -3 percentile which is off the charts. Good news is that he now is 32.5 inches tall and he gained 1 1/2 inches since his 18 month appointment. This is a lot for Jacob. Dr. Hughes has referred us to a GI Specialist who can help us find a reason why Jacob isnt gaining weight. Also, Dr. Hughes is referring us to a speech therapist to help Jacob's speech and vocabulary. Nate and I are very excited to finally get some help and find out some solutions to why this is all happening.
The Dr.'s appointment went really well and Jacob is right where he should be as a 2 year old and is advanced in some areas! He got his last shot until he goes to kindergarten. So far, things are turning out a little better and so happy that we found a pediatrian that we really like!
Updates to come about Jacob's progress on weight and speech!

Monday, April 11, 2011

Two is not completely terrible.

I found myself really missing Jacob today as I headed to work after dropping him off at day care.

That's not to say I've never missed him in the past when my job interrupted our time together. It's just that something about today felt different.

Jacob is two years and one day old. He transformed overnight into a full-blown toddler. He's more independent. He knows what he wants to do, and he'll kick and scream when we have other plans. He wants to try everything on his own before asking for our help. If he had his way, he would play outside 24/7--popping bubbles, being pulled in the wagon, riding his four-wheeler, climbing up the slide ladder before going down.

And of course, he's mastered the tantrum. Some nights he spends most of the time in the corner. He cries loudly. He screams. He throws toys that aren't intended to be thrown. He pulls Dolly's hair. He pokes her eye and sticks his finger in her ear, saying those body parts out loud as if it were a learning activity. He keeps us on our toes and our blood pressure high.

But on my way to work this particular morning--one day after his second birthday--a light went on in my head. Just then I realized how trivial those blood-boiling, terrible-two moments are. It's easy for first-time parents to put too much emphasis on the bad annoyances.

I thought about how much fun he had over the weekend at his birthday party, his face lit up from a combination of elation and record-breaking heat. He was independent. He was outside. He was having the time of his life running around the back yard. And I had the best time just sitting back and watching him.

I thought about the adoration he has for Erin and me. His constant mimicking. His high-fives. His big hugs and kisses. He wants us to know every new thing he learns, sees or hears. He's always trying to grab our attention, make us laugh and smile. He's successful every time. It's impossible to stay mad at him when he flashes that baby gap-tooth smile, accompanied by his little giggle.

I'm looking forward to what this year will have to offer. Airshows, rodeos, county fairs all are on the calendar. The parental learning curve will be steep as we battle the Terrible Twos, but the bonding memories will last forever.

Year two is going to be hell, and it's also going to be heaven.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

And then there was one, pacifier.

Saturday, March 19, 2011, is a day that will be passed down through Karlin Clan lore.

It will be remembered as the day Erin and I took charge to curb an obnoxious habit.

For the longest time, Jacob has fallen asleep with two pacifiers--one in his mouth and other in his hand. On special occasions like flying and long-distance car rides, we would let him suck on a pacifier. And of course he needed to hold that second one. It became an automatic motion for him to stick out his hand.

At first it was cute, but it quickly became a nuisance. He would drop it or throw it. He would misplace it while sleeping and wake up crying. He NEEDED to hold a pacifier.

Pacifiers are designed to soothe babies through simulated suckling. They're a blessing when used appropriately.

They're annoying when your kid just wants to hold the damn thing.

So, on Saturday, we put an end to this ludicrous obsession. After all, he doesn't nap with a pacifier at day care.

That night, we made him sleep with only one paci. Jacob may not agree, but we thought we were offering a respectable compromise.

He will turn 2 years old in a few weeks. He shouldn't need a pacifier at all, period. But we decided to break up the pacifier breakup, so he won't completely hate us before he's a teenager.

We plan to take away the remaining pacifier after his birthday party. God help us.

At first, I was just going to hide the second pacifier and hope he wouldn't notice. Wishful thinking. Immediately he began looking for the pacifier. It was heartbreaking to watch him crouch on the floor, stick his butt in the air and look under the bed for his AWOL sleeping buddy.

Erin and I looked at each other with matching frowns. We didn't want him spending the entire night searching or waking up in the middle of the night to look for it. So we decided to show him the pacifier and explain to him it was going bye-bye.

He knew exactly what was transpiring. Not a second was spared before tears drenched his cheeks. He gave the pacifier a kiss goodbye and lied down in his bed.

As Erin stared at Jacob through the video monitor after putting him to bed, she said it was nice to see him just lying there holding Mickey, rather than twiddling the pacifier or scraping it against the wall or bed rails. On most nights, it would end up on the floor, causing him to wake up and lean over the bed to retrieve it.

Fifteen minutes later, he was asleep. One pacifier down, one to go. Cold turkey.