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After 9 long months, he's finally here!
My little bundle of joy was born today and he is a delight for me. I had a natural labour. Breastfeeding him became very demanding on me and so I hired a wet nurse. (Page 111)A wet nurse refers to hiring a lactating woman other than the mother to feed the infant. -
Sleepy Alan
I quickly realised Alan likes to sleep a lot. He sleeps around 14 hours a day including daytime naps. Knowing that babies can die during sleep (page 133) made it very difficult for me initially to let them sleep for long when they didn't move much. However, I made sure I did my best to avoid it by not having them sleep stomach down and by not putting them on soft beds or overheated rooms or dressing them up in multiple layers of clothing before putting them to sleep. (Page 134) -
Alan can crawl!
Alan has started crawling! I found him the other day trying to walk on his wobbly feet. I am glad his gross motor development which which is the development of abilities like balance and posture and crawling have started. (page 141)He isn't very fast at crawling but he has all the energy to crawl. Even if I place him back in his pram! I am positive he will soon start walking. -
Fine Motor Development
Alan can now walk up and down stairs. I baby proofed the house so he would be more safe. He can also draw semi straight lines and build long block towers. With a little help from me, he can even brush his own teeth! I am so thankful for all these fine motor development in alan. (page 181) -
Toilet Training for Alan
Alan seemed ready to learn his toilet training a year back because he would stay dry for an hour or so during the day. He would have regular bowel movements which happened around the same time daily and he would communicate it to me by his looks or words. (Page 184) And after a year and a whole lot of not successful attempts, he has finally gotten the knack of it! -
Curious Alan
Alan has entered the second substage of the preoperational stage which is the intuitive thought substage and his curiosity has no bounds. He keeps asking me "why" about any new phenomenon he encounters. (Page 243) The other day we went to the ground and he wanted to know why the sky was blue and why he couldn't drive a car. Then he went on to ask me why did he have to eat before answering it himself with a satisfied smile. I almost expected him to question me about gravity next. -
Alan is lonely
Alan has been going to pre school for a year, however he hasn't made many friends and mostly ends up watching his peers play games. Preschool social life rewards the bold, the children who are temperamentally inhibited spend a lot of their preschool time watching others play without taking part themselves (Page 270) I am not pushing him to do anything, but I do let him know that it looks like he wants to play and so maybe he should ask them if he can. Kindergarten mostly has organised play. -
Alan makes friends!
Alan is vey happy to have new friends to play ball with at his elementary school. As children's gross motor development advances, children can enjoy a wide range of games and sports. (Page 291) I am glad Alan's gross motor development is advancing and he is improving his sports skills considerably. He went from a "watcher" to a "good player status" very quickly! -
Alan got into his dream college!
Alan worked really hard and got accepted into his dream college. While I am very excited for his future, I am also sad to part with him. Also I know from reading on Pascarella and Terenzini that Alan will gain a long list of nonacademic benefits as well like a more distinct identity, clearer aesthetic and intellectual values, improved self concepts and many others. (Page 422) I am so happy for him! -
Alan is being bullied
Alan is the victim of bullying at his high school. Victims of bullying reported higher rates of a wide range of problems including headaches, backaches, difficulty sleeping, loneliness, helplessness, anxiety and unhappiness which could lead to suicide (page 377). Knowing the dangers involved I took all the steps I could to ensure this doesn't happen again. This included me talking with the principal, the parents of the bullies, consider transfer, threaten or expel the bullies.
