Tuesday, June 26, 2007


Maya knows the word "pee." I'm not sure how this happened. What I do know is that every time I sit down on the toilet at home to do my thing, Maya toddles over and announces, "Pee! Pee!" Seth thinks maybe she picked it up from him. Regardless, it's mildly horrifying/somewhat amusing.

On Sunday afternoon Maya befriended Lucy, my friend Jen's little dog. Lucy is so calm and good-natured---she was the perfect little companion for Maya! Maya giggled when Lucy licked her face, and Lucy tolerated Maya kissing and hugging her repeatedly. There was much cuteness going around.

Seth and I went out for our first date in a year on Saturday night. We had sushi and saw a movie, Knocked Up, which was great and really funny, but probably not for you, Mom and Dad. We were back by 11:00, and Maya was snoozing soundly. One of the teachers at Maya's school did the babysitting. Her name is Lupe, and she's really fantastic.

I am reading an enlightening and very, very helpful book by leading pediatric nutritionist and mental-health professional Ellyn Satter called Child of Mine: Feeding With Love and Good Sense. (Bought with a Mother's Day check from Mrs. K.) It is wonderful, thoroughly researched, practical, and full of very useful advice. I only wish I'd read it before Maya was born! Anyway, Satter's years of research and clinical experience have taught her that children are skilled self-regulators when it comes to eating: They eat when they're hungry, they cut back when they're not. Even the most seemingly erratic eaters (Maya, that's you) get what they need over the course of a week, calorie-wise. According to Satter, it's the parents' responsibility to determine the what, when, and where of feeding; and it's the child's responsibility to determine the whether and how much of eating. In other words, parents make a variety of healthful, wholesome food available at certain times and in an appropriate, pleasant environment, and the child determines how much (or how little) of that food to eat. It seems like plain old common sense, but for me, who thought it was my responsibility to "force" food into wee little Maya, it's been a revelation. I am now able to relax more during meals, because I know that once I've presented the food to Maya, I can rely on her to take what she wants or needs. Even when that's not much, it's OK. Over the course of several meals and snacks, Maya will get herself adequately fed. I'm focusing now on providing nutritious meals and snacks for Maya, then sitting back and enjoying her company while we eat together. It's made a huge difference. Sorry to ramble on, but I just can't tell you how important this book has been to me!

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