Category Archives: It’s A Phase…

That was a day. That happened. “It’s a phase…” — It just seems right. Some things just don’t fit any where and you hope it’ll go away with time as your baby turns toddler, and toddler turns prenager, etc. These are the heavy stories.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

January 21, 2016

Posted under

Child Development, Disney, It's A Phase...

Car-gy!

This TBT post is more of a dad’s ramble. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy! 🙂


So, “car-gy” is the way Nathan used to say the word “car” or “cars.” As I’ve mentioned before, Nate’s speech was of concern in the past. He’s coming great now… as you can see 🙂

Along with Cars, Nate also loves Toy story. And, gets sad & mad along with the characters. It’s actually quite interesting and rather sweet to see such a young kiddo empathize — he’s always been a very in touch child.

We also noticed that Nathan prefers the computer animated pieces more so than the hand drawn productions. I’m not sure exactly why this is, I only know that Wreck-It Ralph holds his attention better than Lion King does.

Which randomly reminds me about how we spent all this time finding a DVR opportunity to get Cars on without commercials. However, once we got it, Nathan started to lose interest. Before, the version we had was filled with commercials. These commercials served as interruption points where he would have to grab us to fast forward the show.

Once the video went without interruptions, he preferred it a lot less. We guessed that those interruptions served as regular and predictable chances for him to check on us.

Let’s see… what else? Well… he’s been playing a lot more with his ABC toys and chatter boxing to us. He’s even pointing at the label on his car seat saying “W” and “R!” It’s pretty cool stuff.

All this ramble to say that many fatherly worries come and go. Most of them will pass as the baby turns kiddo and kiddo turns *shudders* teen. The body has a fairly good sense of how to work itself out. I guess it’s just something to think about, remember, and be thankful for.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

January 18, 2016

Posted under

It's A Phase..., Just Saying...

Protect Your Smartphone

So, Nathan has this weird habit where if he grabs something he isn’t supposed to… if he feels like he can’t get away with the old:

HERE! Look what I found! I was, in fact, on my way to hand it to you. After all… I know this toy isn’t for me to play with.

That old song and dance. If he feels like he got caught and can’t get away with it. He likes to throw the object. Now, it isn’t just any type of throw. It’s more in the spirit of Thor’s “ANOTHER!”

Any guess what happened?

Lesson: PROTECT YOUR SMARTPHONE!

When my wife and I bought our new Samsung Galaxy S5s, we knew there was NO WAY that we were going to allow for a repeat. I went ahead and bought the Spigen Tough Armor. This thing has protected my phone from 5+ foot drops, face down bashes into tile, face down frisebee throws into gravel… you name it, and my phone remains scratchless. I cannot speak enough to the durability and protectiveness that this product provides. Definitely a recommended buy.

My wife, went with a smaller profile case which has worked just as well! It’s survived the tile flooring, corner strikes on asphalt, and even face down on concrete. She bought a Mint Green version. And, I’m not going to lie. I’m a little bit jealous. Not of the color, but of how thin that profile is. The S5 is a beautifully sleek phone. There is practically no profile and I love the way it its in the hand without any armor at all. This particular product gives you all that tactility without the bulk of the armor that I have on my phone.

I’m Just Saying… with a toddler, you NEED armor for your phone. Otherwise… you’ll likely be finding some busted screens and the several hundred dollar lessons that comes with it. Unless you have insurance… which only matters so much depending on the type you get.

So yeah… PROTECT YOUR PHONES!

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

January 7, 2016

Posted under

Child Development, It's A Phase...

Still Not Talking?!

Written Fall 2015

So, as Nathan turned 2 years of age, we had our well child checkup and the pediatrician was big on him talking. Much of this was preparation for preschool… which isn’t especially relevant since we’re planning on homeschooling. In any case, it was a big talk about how Nate needed to be talking and talking now!

She referred us to a developmental pediatric rehab/PT/OT/SLP program for a specialized screening as well as for warning signs of developmental delay.

I gotta be honest. I was little insulted. I’m a Physical Therapist. I know these things well enough. Who do physicians send kiddos to when their development is in question? Among good company, Physical Therapists! And yes, I’m biased because he’s my kid. But, it just struck me wrong. He’s my boy! I’m his dad. Objective or not, reasonable or not, responsible or not… it just wasn’t something I wanted to hear. It may not be rational. But, hey… emotions rarely are.

After talking on the phone for a lengthy conversation with the specialist, we decided not to go for the screening. Nate doesn’t do well with strangers nor in any medical office. He’s basically in panic mode the whole time he’s at the doctor’s office and is impossible to pin down. Imagine taking a kid like that to get “screened” — you can imagine how many false positives would come up.

So, we kept going, simply because the range of “normal” for children is so very wide. Later, I asked a retired Speech Language Pathologist about Nathan. She basically said that since I was catching him talking with himself and that when we asked him to reciprocate, he would refuse; speaking at the time for him, was basically a game. It wasn’t about communication. Nate just wanted to see how much he could say and not say, until it got boring. Or, until it became a point where social pressure of performing speech wasn’t involved that he would open up. He’s testing the boundaries of speech, social situations, and how it relates to communication.

A few months later, we noticed he would interact with TV shows, educational toys, etc and start spouting off all these words and interacting properly. Sure enough, recently, he started to open up a lot more. Yes… this might be slow according to all the books, blogs, and online resources. At the same time, who came up with such “norms?” Where they the same norms 100 years ago? 200? 1000? Probably not.

When you compare one kiddo to another, you realize that normal is such a wide range. Our son is ridiculously talented when it comes to physical development. His core control and athleticism is really quite astonishing, even when compared to kids a year older. Yet, he doesn’t do so well with “the talking.” Then, there are other kids we know who talk like they are a year older than they are. However, they are not walking so well and have trouble with the same motor control which Nate could do with his eyes closed.

What does this mean?

In my humble opinion (IMHO)… it’s ALL NORMAL.

Certainly, there were times and still are times when I’m a little worried about Nathan’s speech development. At the same time, I think part of this is because I am a healthcare professional… knowing too much — well, it’s a bad thing in this case. Nevertheless, it does appear that just in the last week or two, Nathan has turned a corner. He’s saying all sorts of words I’ve never heard him say before. He’s willing to open up and being far more verbal. Sure, he might be a few months behind the track as prescribed by whatever textbook out there. But, as far as I see it, “normal” is normal so long as the kid is healthy and functional.

So far, so normal.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

January 4, 2016

Posted under

It's A Phase...

Sneaky Baby

So, my kiddo is a total sneak. He can ninja step all super quiet when he’s trying to get into areas he’s not supposed to. And, he can Jedi Mind Trick people into doing things he KNOWS is against the rules.

Example: One time, my parents came over for a visit and he decided that he wanted to divide and conquer. He separated out one of the grandparents from the group and led them into his room. In his room, a line of flags are hung up in the middle of the ceiling space which were the same flags from his 2nd birthday party. And, I’m sure you’ve guessed it, he likes to hit and slap the flags… until the line breaks and the flags fall.

He knows this is NOT acceptable. However, he’s always able to get someone into that room, have them pick him up, hoist him upwards, and give him the range he needs to smack those flags.

flags

He is a total sneak!

And, it’s incredible because it doesn’t stop there. Many times, he’ll get his hands on remote controllers and/or our cell phones. He also knows he isn’t supposed to play with such things. When we catch him, he suddenly extends out the “toy” to us — as if he’s giving it to us.

“Look! Look what I found for you, mom & dad. I was just giving it to you in immediate and present time!” — Sneaky Baby.

It is a total crack up. And, the thing is, he is 100% cognizant of what he is doing and why. It is hilarious when we call him out, too! He shakes he head, says “No.” all matter of fact, then runs away. LOL! Of course, then there is when he is so guilty and he knows it, he throws whatever object it is that he hijacked… dashing it across the floor.

*Sighs*

Once, these were our smartphones… 🙁

Then we got replacements & he did the same Thor-like-smashing-thing. Fortunately, this time, I had a GREAT case on it… Hint-Hint: Product Review to come: Galaxy S5 Case, Spigen Tough Armor Case for Galaxy S5 – Copper Gold (SGP10764)

Any way! There are other ways he’s a total sneak. Primarily, when he’s quiet. You know that phrase: “Silence is golden, unless you have a toddler — in which case, silence is SUSPICIOUS.” None could be more true than in the case of my boy. When he’s quiet, he is inordinately getting into some kind of trouble. Whether this means he’s making a mess of our blinds, trying to break into the entertainment center, figuring out the exact frequency of pulling on the door to unlock our very painstakingly installed childproofed kitchen drawers.

The most entertaining part in all this is how he runs away when he knows he was caught RED HANDED. It’s this silly giggle and dash for freedom, knowing that we are coming after him! After all, he is still a kiddo. He’s not even 3, we’re not making full conversations with him, and even if we were, there’s no guarantee that just because he is able to reciprocate verbally — that he also has a full adult understanding of what he’s even talking about. Kids are smart. They know how to respond favorably. But, being able to respond and knowing the depth of what that response means are two very different things.

As long as he’s a kid, we’re always going to treat him that way. Toddlers may seem like little drunk adults; which means, we should be treating them that way. They are out for fun, for laughs, and for love — we can’t expect them to be mature… only to be what they are: Toddlers.