My Experiences as a Father... January 5 to February 4, 2000 (9th month)

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Wednesday, February 2, 2000
Just over 2 weeks ago, we started giving Maeve Cheerios to eat, and I commented that they help develop " fine tactile control requiring use of her fingertips".   Since then we have learned that the same skills are used to pick little pieces of lint off the floor.
 

Tuesday, February 1, 2000
Because Maeve sucks on her finger so much it has gotten chapped.  Jill keeps putting lotion on it, but it still looks bad.  I told Jill I was worried about people thinking she is some kind of freak.  When I said that, Maeve was holding my shopping list and immediately started crumpling it.  Jill said no one would think that, but even she mentioned that it looked like some sort of Elephant Man's finger.
 

Monday, January 31, 2000
Maeve is really starting to discover moving by herself.  In just the 10 days since she first pulled herself up to a standing position she is now crawling all over the house and climbing on everything.  She has found the stairs, but she isn't going up yet.  She just stands there.  She even tried to climb the stack of baskets in the living room tonight.
 

Sunday, January 30, 2000
Now that Maeve is standing in her crib, we had to take out the bumper pad this weekend, so that Maeve doesn't tear it down.  We also had to get the "infant/toddler" child seat from the attic.  It still looks a little big for her, but she is hanging out of the other one, so it's time.  Jill is experiencing a little denial about her daughter growing up so fast.  Before we know it she will be off to college.
 

Saturday, January 29, 2000
We hadn't washed Maeve's clothes for a little too long.  Jill went in to get Maeve at night and found her playing with dirty clothes that she had reached through the crib rails to pull out of the clothes basket.
 

Friday, January 28, 2000
Maeve has always had a problem sleeping if she thought she was going to miss something.  Now that she can stand up, she will wake up at night and stand up in her crib.  Soon enough she will start crying and be waiting when someone comes to her.
 

Wednesday, January 26, 2000
After Maeve's bath tonight, Jill and I were drying her and putting on her pajamas.  I was cleaning her ears, and I gave her two Q-Tips to play with to distract her.  In the past Jill has told me not to put the Q-Tips into her ear canal.  Every so often Maeve will stick the Q-Tip too far into her mouth and start to cough.  Jill will say, "Don't stick it in so far," and I get defensive, saying, "I'm not sticking it in" because it sounds like she is talking to me.  Jill has to remind me that she isn't.

Jill was tired, and made some comment about Q-Tips and Maeve's "ear hole."  I explained to Maeve that while Jill did a very good job of teaching her about the digestive system, that the correct term is "ear canal" or "external auditory meatus".
 

Sunday, January 23, 2000
Maeve was helping Matt read a Bible verse today, and she couldn't see it well enough with Matt holding the Bible.  She ripped the page right out.  Matt learned to let Maeve get a good view if they are going to be sharing a Bible.
 

Saturday, January 22, 2000
We put new batteries in a Disney toy for Maeve.  When you push on different Disney characters, it plays the Mickey Mouse theme.  Maeve can even sit on it and make it play the theme.  Jill and I said she can play music with her butt.  We are so proud.
 

Friday, January 21, 2000
Maeve pulled herself up from sitting to standing for the first time today.  She is crawling a little, but moving around is more a combination of a little crawling and a little rolling.  Standing and walking while we hold onto her are occurring more frequently.  Soon enough I will be able to send her out for a paper on Sunday morning, or to get the mail on Saturday morning so I can sleep in.
 

Sunday, January 16, 2000
We visited the Steins today to bid them farewell.   It was Maeve's first time really playing with someone close to her age.  We were afraid that she would handle Kristin like she handled the Fighting Nun, or roughly, like she tried to handle Baby Matty.  It went pretty well.  The only problem was that Maeve would take the pacifier out of Kristin's mouth.

Maeve will spit out her pacifier (or throw it), but soon enough she will want it again.  To make it easy for everyone, I put the part that is supposed to go outside her mouth in my mouth.  Then when she decides that she wants it, she can grab the nipple and put it in her mouth.  So it looks like we have trained Maeve to take pacifiers out of other people's mouths.
 

Saturday, January 15, 2000
We've started letting Maeve eat Cheerios.  She is good at grabbing things, but she has trouble with fine tactile control requiring use of her fingertips.  She can eat Cheerios from the palm of her hand easily.  Picking up individual Cheerios takes practice.  So she's practicing.

Jill had a discussion with Don in her office about Cheerios.  Don said that since they had a whole in the middle, it is difficult to choke on them.  I explained to Jill that when you chew up a glob of Cheerios, it no longer has a hole in the middle.  I also told Jill that pediatric endotracheal tubes are sized by the patient's little finger.  Comparing a broken off piece of the Cheerios to Maeve's little finger, we decided that it's about 75%.  So Maeve could occlude 75% of her airway with just a little broken off piece.  But I feel better knowing that she can't choke on an entire Cheerio.
 

Friday, January 14, 2000
I showed Maeve how the Fighting Nun works.   I hit Maeve in the pacifier a couple of times, but Maeve was feisty.  She would grab first one Nun fist, and then the other.  Finally she spit out the pacifier, grabbed one Nun fist, put it in her mouth and started chewing on it.  Then Maeve started clawing and scratching at the Nun's face with her free hand.   I hope no real life Fighting Nuns attack Maeve - they don't know who they are dealing with, and Maeve would tear them up.
 

Sunday, January 9, 2000
During church today Maeve was standing, waving her arms and even singing along.  Jill said she was going to grow up to be pentecostal.  Unfortunately that type of behavior is disruptive in a Lutheran Church, so I took her out into the hall.

I didn't get very far before one woman grabbed Maeve from me, and another chased her down the hall, trying to get Maeve.  They reminded me of two seagulls on the Mall in Washington, DC when I threw my apple core to one.  About 5 minutes later it flew past, being chased by another sea gull, probably trying to get the apple core that was still in the mouth of the first.

I yelled after the women to not drop her.  We're trying to get Maeve through her first 18 years without being dropped on her head.  People always ask me that, and I don't know what the answer is.  It would be nice to be able to know for sure.  We're doing well so far.
 

Saturday, January 8, 2000
Maeve keeps getting new teeth.  They bother her, and she tries to find new things to chew on.  Tonight Jill's breast was the choice, and Maeve broke the skin.  I reminded Jill how I had warned her about Maeve's foaming at the mouth, and how Jill had claimed that Maeve was not rabid.  I'm still not convinced.  Maybe Jill should get some shots, just in case.  The only other good explanation for Maeve's overzealousness is that she is a vampire.  Being a vampire without teeth would be a bother, so for Maeve's sake, I hope she's just rabid.
 

Friday, January 7, 2000
Maeve had another Doctor's visit today.  She is up to 15 lbs and 27 inches.  She's at the 50th percentile for weight and a little higher for height.  She is long and slender for her weight.  The doctor said that will help her walk sooner, because she doesn't have lots of excess weight to try to balance.  She is almost half as tall as my sister (58 inches).

There was a digestive tract poster up in the examination room, and Maeve was very amused when Jill pointed out the different organs.  Jill would point to an organ and tell Maeve what it was.  With every one Maeve would laugh and laugh.
 


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