big babies, big puppies

The doctor established it for me yesterday: I have a big baby. Not big as in chubby, really (doc does want her to gain more weight), but big as in tall (I don't care if she can't stand on her own yet--she is tall, not long--and she is getting to where she likes to stand with help, although she is top-heavy and leans forward). And a neighbor I met while walking in the neighborhood on Tuesday wondered why Bridget seems so much more mature than her baby, who is ten days older than Bridget. I'm assuming part of it's her size, but the fact that she was awake and the other girl was sleeping could have had something to do with it. And since Stacy (neighbor, and maybe new friend, since she said that she'll drop by the house sometimes to see if I want to go walking) teaches and coaches high school girl's soccer, she may not be breastfeeding and that may just have something to do with it. This is all just wild speculation, of course.

Most of you know that in addition to a big baby, I have a big puppy: a sixty-pound, nine-month old rottweiler. It's an established fact by now that Al does not get along with her. She nips at him (and he thinks it's full-out biting) and jumps on him all the time, and he gets angry and in her face. Even Caesar would tell Al that his energy is not good for the puppy, that it just gets her more excited, and that he has to maintain a "calm aggressive" attitude around her. Well, I'm not sure about all of his techniques, but I do know that issuing commands calmly and not giving her attention when she's acting out helps tremendously. I also know that it helps not to be nervous about her actions around her, which Al has been since the moment we got her: afraid that when the baby came Mya would hurt her (and now that Bridget's here, he's even more afraid). Well, my husband may not listen to me, but I'll give some advice for dealing with babies and puppies that other moms might like. After all, mommy knows best! (Well, sometimes.)

First bit of advice I got from the vet: bring home a blanket that you've wrapped your baby in before you come home from the hospital and give it to your puppy. This seems to work for a lot of parents/dog owners, but my puppy sniffed it, peed on it, and went back to playing with my sister's dog (she stayed with Beth while we were in the hospital). But the second piece of advice (also from the vet) has been more valuable: don't try to keep the puppy away from the baby. Instead, lay the baby on the floor on the blanket and let the dog have a whiff. If you try to keep the puppy away, she'll just get jealous and resent the child. But if you let your dog near the child, it will become protective of the little tyke as he/she grows and be a good play companion. I have no problem putting Bridget on a blanket or her playmat and letting Mya walk over, sniff her butt (hey, I've found a few wet diapers that way) and give her a few kisses before telling her "that's enough" and making it necessary for me to bathe Bridget all over again. Mya has never used (or tried to use) her teeth on Bridget. Since she doesn't seem to realize that walking on top of people is not a normal thing to do, though, I do watch her and guide her away from Bridget when her big paws get too close.

One thing I've been doing on my own, without advice from anyone, is setting Bridget on top of Mya or right next to her when Mya's laying down and resting. I want her to get used to having Bridget climb all over on top of her, which I'm sure she'll be doing in a few months. Of course, I'm still holding Bridget there at this point (not quite sitting up on her own at two months), so I'm also able to move her quickly if she does something that scares/startles Mya. And another thing I'm doing? Making sure to have puppy time, too. It's hard to get in puppy play/cuddle time when you have an infant, and Mya had almost all of my attention before Bridget was born. At times I think she's a bit depressed, so I do my best to play with her and cuddle with her for a few minutes each day. I also take her on walks with Bridget and I--she does great with the stroller when I have her Gentle Leader on.

So, there are my little bits of advice for those of you with big dogs and small babies. Of course, you have to know your dog and work with it, so take my advice with a grain of salt.

I do have other Bridget news: last night was her first night in her own room, and she slept the entire ten (plus twenty minutes) hours she's been sleeping for a couple of weeks. I only heard her in the monitor once, and even the big storm didn't wake her up (it did me, though, and I was trying to remember if I have batteries in the unit in her bedroom as backup--I'll have to check on that). What a big girl I have! Okay, better get lunch while she's calm in her crib. Not sleeping, as far as I know, but she was pretty tired after eating...