The day I was in every baby room. I decided that since this was that day, it would be a great idea to talk about the babies and the baby rooms. I am going to do my best to mask the kids. I am doing this by not giving you their names. I am going to make the rooms different letters as well… hopefully that masks something. We aren't allowed to post pictures for privacy reasons.
Room Q!
I am going to tell you about the babies, but since I don't know how much I am allowed to actually say as far as names go, I am going to make them up.
H. He is a one year old. Transitioning. I adore him. His mom reminds me of my friend Michelle from Colorado. She comes in and visits him when she has some time. Adorable. You have to do what you can to get time with your kids when you are in situations like the military parents. He has a "hanky" he holds on to. So cute.
N. He is funny. Also one. Also transitioning into a 1-2 yr old room. Next week is his last week in this room. I will be sad to see him go, but since I am an intern for the entire building I will likely get to see him some more. He is ready to transition because he is getting too old for this room, but he may have a hard time because he likes the caregivers in his room so much. Kids at this age often form attachments.
C1. I can not express in words how much I am drawn to this kid. I think it is also because of his parents. They are one of the rare few who can and do drop him off together. They work on the same shift at the same place, so they are usually both bringing him in. They also stay for a while and talk and play with him. So cute, so cute. He is a really fast crawler. I was thinking about his parents story. They met when they were really young. I think I actually dreamed about them the other night. That was interesting. I didn't realize it was a dream for a long time.
S. This is a little girl. She is cute and is of the age of stranger anxiety. She I would describe as a doll to people in Kentucky. He mom puts her in cute outfits as well. He mom is beautiful. She has some asian in her I believe, so that just adds to her cuteness. She didn't like me for the first little bit, but after a few hours she warmed up and now even will let me touch her and play with her.
T. Another little girl. Small and cute. She doesn't like to be put down after she has been picked up. I usually have to sneak attack her with my leaving. She eats table food, but I forget that a lot, because she doesn't crawl or walk yet. Just sits. Thus I think she is younger than she is.
R. Sits by himself just fine. I have a place in my heart for him, because he was the first baby I took care of at the CDC. It was during my observations. I like him. he definitely sprit up on me the day i wrote this.
C2. Really small. This one makes me nervous. I haven't quite figured out his temperament yet. This has a lot to do with his being so young. He is adorable though. I knowI have basically said they were all adorable. He is a squishy one. That's the age he is at. Today was the first time I saw him roll over. That was very exciting.
L. He is a movie star. He has a movie star name. I like him a lot. He is bald and beautiful. He laughs and smiles like no other baby. When I am in a neighboring room, I look for him through the windows. He also has the best baby shoes ever, because they STAY ON! I like his face. He is easy to forget about though, as far as care goes, because he sleeps so much usually his care involves making sure he is breathing and still sleeping. Oh, also… he is a messy eater. He is one of my favorites. I guess I could say that about all of the babies though.
Room T
Babies are as follows:
J. He is one of my favorites. He laughs when you smile at him. He was getting over RSV when I met him. His hair sticks up because it is short. Almost spiky. He doesn't like to eat. He doesn't always let you put the food in his mouth. I am trying to decide if this means he is playing or just eating slowly? I don't really care. I may not have yet expressed, but I enjoy feeding babies baby food. Though it is challenging when an older baby is doing everything they can to hit the bowl with a toy.
Z. She i mix up with L sometimes, because I haven't spent as much time in that room and they look similar. Similar size and age, and when you only have two days with a kid, and they are wearing a different outfit the next time, challenge comes in. She sleeps well, but stirs easily. She is almost one. She can hold her own bottle. This room has a lot of almost one year olds.
L. Similar to Zoey. She is bigger though. Possibly older? She keeps quiet, and kind of walks around keeping to herself unless someone else tries to involve themselves with her, or she is bored.
I. Small. Very small. Similarly small to N in Room X, but N is MUCH smaller. She had stranger anxiety when I first met her, but after that first twenty minutes or so she was completely over it. You have to really decide if you want to pick her up though. There is no putting her down without tears after that. She just likes company. With babies, this happens. It also makes sense, but when ratios are 1 to 4 you can't hold all the babies all the time. Would not be able to properly care for them.
B1. This is a boy who I have met. He doesn't have a baby face. He is one of the cutest babies there, because he is so striking. He smiles a lot. Easy baby as far as tears are concerned. He is easy to fall in love with. When I peek in this room on a day i am not working there he is one of the ones I am really sad not to see. Just as babies have the ones they attach to, caregivers too have ones they are more attached to, but when giving care, you can not think or act this way. I try to spend equal time holding each baby. Especially in room Q, I try to spend one on one time with each of them, because I feel as if they all have a special place for me in their hearts as well, where as this room, I haven't been three long enough for all of them to care one way or the other about me.
M. VERY YOUG. I love her. She is very young though. Probably the youngest baby I care for. The only other option would be C2 in Room Q. she laughs when you change her. She smiles when she is awake and laughs. The rest of the time she is asleep.
B2. A girl. I haven't met her. She hasn't been in the room when I was there.
Room X
This room has A LOT of older babies. All of them are mobile.
L1. Only one of them is semi stationary, and she was a premie, so I am not sure about her development. Not that I think anything of her, I just know that with premies there is often development things in the first few years that are behind, and I don't really know how old she is. I have to admit that she is one of my favorites though. I spend a little quality time with her when I am in that room, because she seems to really enjoy that one on one time. With babies who are almost one, a lot of them like to go off an explore on their own.
L2. If I could describe him as a fictional character it would be Sunny Baudelaire with more crying. He is at that stage when he just cries. He tends to have no "in need of care" reason, but he has some personal reason or he wouldn't be crying. If someone walks in, if someone walks near, if nothing at all changed, if he is confused, I really don't know what the reason is. At first i tried to comfort him a lot, but after seeing his teachers kind of allow him to self soothe with some added talk, that is what I do. I like him a lot though, and I think he has a cool name and a cute face. He is one of the ones that has taught me that I can handle infant crying and not get impatient. I guess actually, all of them have taught me this. I could read a book with the soundtrack of crying infants in the background. (screaming in pain or upset is not the same as crying, just saying, so that neglect comments don't come my way.
N. AWWW. The smallest almost one year old I have ever seen. She was premature, and is a small girl in general. At first i though she was going to be a spit fire because of stranger anxiety things when I first met her, but she is actually very sweet with me. She plays peek a boo around objects, and laughs like no other. She giggles and is just cute. I love holding her. P.S. I also thing she has the best bottles of all the babies in all the rooms that i have personally fed. I like her bottles. If I have kids and if I bottle feed i am going to look for those bottles. I also worry about her transition, just because she is so small. EEK… those kids are a lot bigger.
A. She cries for no care needed reason as well. She could be walking fine, and just start crying. SHe is learning to walk. She just needs to push over the fear and she will be fine. She has the balance and the skill, now she needs the confidence. I don't know how she feels about me. I feel like she cares about all people the same way in general… this is in exception to her parents and family, fore I am not around them and there for have no idea. I am mainly talking caregivers in the CDC. She smiles though, and that makes me glad.
A2. Boy. Quite. Loves to have a blanket. As does H in Room Q. I thought he was a cries, because he cried when I first came in, but since that first day, he is the quietest baby in the entire building. He keeps to himself and doesn't really make a fuss about anything. Hunger. Needing Changing. These things you just have to know, because that is the kind of baby he is.
I. Stranger anxiety. Also, the prettiest little girl. I like her curls. Her mom is also VERY pretty. She sleeps well, but she definitely has her people preferences. Again, nothing wrong with this, just a challenge when giving care.
D. Transitioned. She was ready. She just liked to explore on her own and do things. Cried a little, but usually because she was tired or needed something. She had on the cutest outfit yesterday. I would wear it. Really, I would. Just in a different not quite toddler size.
Just some pre-toddlers I have slightly gotten to know through code 2's and other room things.
One room I really like has a few pre-toddlers I remember.
A. He is a spitfire. Likes to hit other kids into walls. It's that age. I assume he is the oldest in this room. He likes to look to see if you are watching, then ram another kid.
M. Adore this kid, mainly because she looks to me like what Sofia will look like at her age. When I see her, I think of Sofie. Thus the reason why she is my favorite pre-toddler. That can't be fair though. We all know how much I adore that Sofie. Who can win when I see her? This kid is talkative. She is just nice. When I come in the room she always tell me about what they are doing or involves me in some way. I like her a lot. She also tells you when she is poppy. She says.. "Hey, I'm poppy." Maybe potty training is soon?
C. I like his name and I like his face. He is a smaller boy in his class though he is tall. He gets pushed a lot, and he likes to come tell me. I feel for him, because I don't like when some kids push on others. He looks smart.
B. Reddish head. Cute. Talks some. Don't know a whole lot about him.
Those are some of the kids I see 5 times a week. I like them a lot, and through them I am learning a lot about the different personalities of children. You have to treat them all as individuals, because that is what they are. They are also all at different points in their development. Our job is to learn about the particular kid and help them develop to the next level at a pace that works for those kids. Along the way I get to hug, hold, and play with some special people.
