Although I find it aesthetically atrocious, I have to admit that, at least on his first day in it, Jonah finds his baby einstein exersaucer thoroughly entertaining.
There’s a raised round thing he can pound on and depending on which button he hits, it moos, roars, meows, quacks, barks, announces the name of each animal in English and Spanish, and plays a piece of classical music. Except for one button, I don’t know which, that plays Old MacDonald Had a Farm. I think the duck. The trick is to hit one button four times in succession to get to the music. I don’t think he’s mastered that yet. His application of hand to plastic object is mostly random. I do like the way it sort of moans questioningly “co-ow?” in a non-determinate female voice.
He likes to pull the alligator puppet into his mouth for a tongue kiss, and seems frustrated that he can’t likewise succor the globe full of plastic beads. The three spinning dials are training him to feel at home while playing slots, for when we take him to Vegas.
Also nice is the fact that his crazy cowlicks give him an einsteinian do. Thematically appropriately speaking.
We had to stuff a pillow in the bottom because his feet don’t quite reach yet, even at the lowest setting, and even though he’s quite tall for his age, statistically speaking.
My question is, if we have this, does he still need a bouncer jumper? I kind of like the bouncer jumper. As ugly as I find the b-e stuff, I think the b-e jumper rocks. (We’ve also got the playmat — yes, I registered for these things, but that was when I was pregnant and perhaps a little irrationally in fear of breathing all the off-gassing chemicals from the new stuff at Babies R Us and Target; so I registered online, where they looked less ugly, and I was swayed by a report somewhere that said b-e stuff was less chemical-ly, which I’m not sure is true. If you’re reading this and you’re pregnant, I have two words for you: Tiny Love.)
I’m not sure which thing, bouncer jumper or saucer, is bad or worse for his spinal development, according to the “They” who say. Somehow I think the bouncer jumper is supposedly worse, in inverse proportion to the pleasure every mom I know reports their child gets out of it.
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Pediatrician now thinks that Jonah’s constant near-permanent no matter what I do diaper rash is yeast. She suggested Nistatin. I asked, is there a hippie mama alternative? She didn’t hesitate, “Gentian Violet. It works faster, too.”
The thing about hippie mama remedies, is they’re not always a health food store thing. Whole Foods didn’t carry it. The natural goods store by my house sold me gentian tincture, which is not it. The first two drugstores I went to didn’t have it. Only the third store, the Long’s that is bigger than a football field, had ONE bottle. Shazam!
So, for the time being, our boy is Prince-like in his purpleness.
Will the rash recede? I’ll keep you posted.
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It wouldn’t be a blog post if I didn’t talk about sleep. One friend who has a toddler says that sleep will dominate my conversations for about a year, and then I’ll never mention it again.
My friend Leila who reads this blog was under the impression that the shush pat and bolsters I’d written about previously was still working for us. It’s not. In fact, I think it only worked that once. But since she brought it up yesterday, I tried a variation last night — after rocking him to oblivion on my lap in the glider chair, laying him down, and having him pop awake and scream, I turned him on his side between the bolsters, held one hand FIRMLY on his belly, stroked his head with the other hand and said “shish shish shish shish” for about five minutes. That did it. That night anyway.
The night before that he cried and woke every half hour for the first two hours.
Teething? The rash? Developmental leap? Everything changes. And changes again. Still dreaming of the day when he does that 10 or 11 hour stretch that other people talk about. That sounds so luxurious. For now, a night where he sleeps till 2 or 3, nurses, and sleeps till as close to 6 as possible, is a good night.
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Jonah on the swings. Video is sideways due to it being taken with a camera phone (not mine). Just turn your laptop:
I give up. Can’t get video to upload properly. You’ll just have to imagine he’s here, swinging back and forth and smiling.
The exersaucer. One of my kids loved it; the other had casts on (club feet) and never could use it before he started crawling around. I remember that the head of Pediatric Rehabilitation at Children’s Hospital recommended the exersaucer. That was 7.5 years ago, and research changes, but still. You’d think he would be authority enough to countermand “Them” of the ‘no equipment that FDA approves, baby likes and makes mama’s life easier, because our Spirit Guide told us it all has cooties.’
If that’s too mean, chalk it up to late-night blogging… Still. You know what I think of “them.” OTOH what if They are right about the plastic? argh
Leila’s last blog post..Granola
I think he might be outgrowing the age where he’d be into a bouncer. Once he can sit up on his own he won’t want to recline. So if he’s digging the exersaucer I might stick with that.
mayberry’s last blog post..Haiku Friday: Follow-up edition
I forgot about that… the bouncer’s days are indeed numbered, whereas there are kids who like the exersaucer for so long that they climb into it themselves. I knew a tiny six year old who wouldn’t let her mother get rid of hers because she would still get in it sometimes.
Now I do agree with “them” that you don’t want baby in exersaucer for long periods of time.
He’s better off on a mat, rolling around and trying to get stuff. He might like the exersaucer better, and you might find it more convenient to keep him confined, but he is better off unfettered and rolling. Develops those stomach and leg muscles he’ll need for sitting up and crawling.
I wouldn’t worry too much about always having soft surfaces for him, either – he will have to deal with crawling on your floors very soon so he’s okay rolling around on them without tons of padding.
OTOH a foam futon is a nice surface at this stage – plenty of room. Takes up space in the living areas but in a few more months he’ll be past that stage, too. Yes he can “get away” if he’s on a futon, but you want him to get away. This is good experience.
Playpens are good for letting them be on their bellies & backs unfettered, until they get mobile enough to find the playpen a drag. (even then, you can keep ’em in). Of course there are no playpens anymore, only portable cribs, but same difference.
I think there’s some confusion. Bouncy seat is the recline thing. Bouncer is the one that attaches to the door frame or has it’s own frame and holds baby upright so he can jump really high. Maybe it’s called a “jumper” and I have my terminology mixed up?
Leila, thanks for the advice on rolling/moving about…
He sure loves his exersaucer right now. Not tall enough to get the jump/bounce mechanism going yet. He pulls himself around in circles and plays with each toy. He has licked every surface that he can get near his mouth. And he finds the musical surprises delightful.
Ulp, my mistake, I wrote bouncer but thought “bouncy seat.” Do people still use the bouncer thing that hangs in the doorway? I thought those weren’t so safe? But they may have modified them.
Sorry to dispense advice, you know it’s a compulsion of mine. Love you!
Yeah babies love those exersaucers.
Princelike in his purpleness.
Ha!
Jenny, Bloggess’s last blog post..I will murder my husband this Wednesday
I can’t imagine NOT talking about sleep anymore…that will be a happy day. As for the bouncer/exersaucer thing all I can say is how JEALOUS I am that you have space for both! We have an exersaucer and a doorframe jolly jumper for Megan (although neither is nearly as skookum as yours) and try to let her roll around on the floor as much as possible, just using the equipment to keep her busy while we eat.
eva’s last blog post..Me on the Sauce
Aaaah Nystatin.
H had the yeasie beasties, and our pediatrician/specialist said that if it’s in the bottom, it’s in the top too so she recommend an oral treatment for H and one for me as well.
H also had a HORRIBLE incident with diaper rash (red, open, bleeding sores…good times). A friend recommended the Alba Unpetroleum Jelly, and we use it after every poop for sure, and depending on the state of his bottom, every diaper change. And I’ll tell you what: H hasn’t had a diaper rash in a year. Worth every pretty penny…
liz’s last blog post..mission: accomplished
Our littlest guy had a nasty summer-time case of yeasty rash when he was 12 months old. I think we did indeed do Nystatin. I think I also made self and both kids eat plain yogurt w live cultures for a while.
“For now, a night where he sleeps till 2 or 3, nurses, and sleeps till as close to 6 as possible, is a good night.”
Right about now I would make burnt offerings to Baal for such a night.
And I so wanted to ask to see Jonah’s gentian-blue butt last Sunday. But that woulda been rude.
Laura’s last blog post..Halfway there
Jenny — Woot! You perhaps also went to high school during the mid-eighties?
Eva — Jolly jumper sounds like fun. I’m not sure we actually have room for the giant b-e jumper. There’s already little space left for walking. We’re like a small country, giving up our borders to the invading neighbor nation called baby.
Leila & Liz — We have the Avalon Organics version of un-petro, will use it after rash clears up? Been putting even more purple stuff on. Seems to be helping. Will try to give him daily acidophilous again (spelling?)
Laura — Oh, it was only one night that he did that. Mostly we get the 1:30 and 4:00 requests for room service. You’ll have to come with us to that uber-yoga class this Friday to see his tie-dye butt (during the baby massage portion). I won’t tell work, I promise.