Update, as promised.

This photo was taken at Fort Lauderdale beach on 23rd January 2011. Only a week has passed since then, but it seems that Isaac is quite different now. It serves to remind me that some things are inevitable and it's nice to remember them, even if they do all happen within a very short space of time.

Isaac has totally weaned himself from my breast milk. I always thought I'd be more upset about this than it turns out I am. I know that if he still needed it then he wouldn't have weaned himself, and he did wean himself. I continued to offer and he just didn't want it anymore. When they're done, they're done and that's the end of that. It's as though my body knew too. My breasts haven't swelled up to epic proportions, but I guess the amount he was taking gradually diminished and so my supply steadily decreased until it stopped production. As Vinnie Jones once said "it's been emotional", but I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Our young man now wants to walk everywhere that he can. He LOVES walking. I think he'd prefer to never be carried again actually and seemingly never tires. It's been lovely while Simon's been here because we've held a hand each while Isaac confidently and carefully places one foot in-front of the the other between us. He really is very good and I'm sure, with a little more practice, that he'll be off on his own and, as everyone we meet delights in telling us, then the fun will really start.

He's had a growth spurt while he's been here and so now wears size 12-18 months. Finally he's the same age as his clothing size! Not that that is important at all, rather it feels strange not calculating sizes and weather! He's also outgrown his shoes and now measures a size 4 in the US which equates to bigger than 3 1/2, but not quite a 4 proper in the UK. Confused much? The only problem now is I can't bring myself to get rid of his old shoes. I've kept his first pair, but he was in and out of those so quickly that his second pair seem more like his first. Aah...silly old sentimental bugger.

Before he came away Isaac had a terrible time with teething, so much so that we resorted for the first time to the dreaded Calpol. It wasn't a decision we took lightly, but he was in so much pain that he couldn't nap and subsequently couldn't sleep. We've managed his teething well using Chamomilla and Gumomile until this point. He only had Calpol a couple of times, but it did the trick and he was able to sleep. Soon after arrived two bottom molars and two upper incisors...four teeth simultaneously!

So those are some changes we've experienced recently, but there's so much more that happens daily to make me realise how much of a little person he is now: his vehement dislike for vegetables (we keep trying in new and ingenious ways to no avail), his waving and saying goodbye to people and more recently saying "hiya" and waving hello, reactions to different things I whisper in his ear, the habitual fight at nappy changing time, his continued comical use of objects as telephones, his preferred use of a fork and spoon to fingers when eating, giving us proper kisses on the cheek at bedtime, how he looks at me to see what my reaction will be...this list is by no means exhaustive.

When I was younger I never understood why people wanted to have children, I found the idea (along with marriage) bewildering and somewhat ridiculous. Now, as I sit here pondering the life Simon and I created, there isn't a flicker of doubt that remains in my mind as to why we did. Isaac is the greatest joy, heartache, frustration and love I have ever experienced. I don't expect everyone to understand and I'n not saying children are for everyone, but I make no apologies for how I feel.

Fruity fruity!

Today Isaac had his first taste of nectarine. He used all 4 of his teeth to nash his way through it. He has 4 teeth now by the way; the top 2 came through just before the weekend and now he's onto his next lot. He puts his hand to his gum & grimaces...poor little mite. I don't envy him this pain at all.

Anyhoo, I think he liked the nectarine as he scoffed nearly the whole thing! :-D

Peg the second

Isaac, in true Turner fashion, has gone from one tooth to two over night! He also seems to have another one on the way. Poor little chap is starting to show it though. He has a runny-nose and a cough (which I think we picked up on the way home from our Spanish ordeal, both of us) and is funny about his food all of a sudden - not Isaac at all. Put it down to teething. So anyhoo, here it is in all its peggy glory!

I can't get over how quickly the other one has come through once we noticed it. That's some power pushing on Isaac's part!

Peg alert!

Yep yep yep Isaac has a toothy peg on the way! It's broken the skin (as evidenced by tooth clinking on glass while slurping water) and is definitely a tooth rather than yet another Epstein's pearl (of which he's had 2). Whoop whoop whoop!

We haven't really noticed that he's been grumpier than usual or that he's drooling lots, maybe that's to come?  He is a little off his food at the moment, but we'll see.

I read somewhere that, as the teeth cut through the gum, the cells of the gum actually die & fall away to make way for the teeth - how amazing is that?

I'll have to start brushing it when it gets a bit bigger. Which raises the question of toothpaste. We use Kingfisher fluoride free fennel toothpaste, well Simon still does - I've discovered this! General Jack Ripper must've got his intel from somewhere about the dreaded fluoridation of the American water supply and the subsequent contamination of "precious bodily fluids"! On a more serious note, I found this in Juno (Spring 2010).

"I do not believe that fluoride has any major effect in reducing tooth decay, in spite of all the statistics presented by health authorities. Flouride is a powerful toxin that should be avoided. In the doses advocated for decay-prevention, it has a hypothyroid action (suppresses the thyroid gland), penetrates all bones of the body and accumulates in the pineal gland of the brain, causing it to calcify. Perhaps a better informed choice would lead to fewer parents using fluoride products."

K M Hajikakou, Holistic Dentist

No fluoride for us ta!

I thought that teeth would mean the end of breastfeeding, but no! Because Isaac's tongue will still form the airtight seal, it means my nipple etc is protected from teethies, on the bottom anyway. I guess by the time the top ones make an appearance he'll be more or less off boob for good :-(