Snow day!

Although they aren't quite as fun now as they were when I had nothing
to do but play outside, I still love snow days. Today was a great one.
There is just something awesome about being able to shower, put your
PJ's back on and just stay warm and dry. We spent a lot of time on the
floor today; Kayla is really close to pushing up on all fours. Awesome
yet terrifying.

I didn't venture out into the wind and snow today, but I hope to
tomorrow. I want to get some pictures, hopefully of Kayla too since we
didn't get any of what was technically her first snowfall two weeks ago.

For now, I'm going to put her to bed and go downstairs for a mug of
hot buttered rum. Then I plan to get some sleep myself. Goodnight!

Food Pictures

First taste of carrots

First taste of peas:

Hooray for veggies!

Looks like we have a good eater on our hands

So look at me, the girl who was having fits about not wanting to start her baby on solids too early.  Yeah, I did a 180 on that pretty quick.  Cereal time in the evening has been a fun and entertaining addition to our routine.  Every evening we put Kayla in her high chair and give her a sippy cup of water to play with while I get her food ready (she is able to get it in the general vicinity of her mouth now, but I still have to lift it for her to be able to suck any water out of it).  We're up to 1/4 cup of cereal mixed with 2 ounces of breast milk for her evening meal.  Most of the time she happily chows that down without protest.  Rice cereal was a hit, and we transitioned to oatmeal without so much as a funny face. 

So last week I got to thinking about adding a little bit more into her evening feeding, just to see how it would go.  I did a little reading and thinking about what I wanted to try next.  Friday I stopped at the grocery store and grabbed some frozen carrots and peas.  We steamed a few carrot slices and pureed them for her.  As with the first bit of cereal, the initial reaction wasn't very good.  Within a few bites though, we had a smile!  She seems to enjoy carrots so far.  She's gotten a tablespoon or so of them each of the last 4 nights.  Since we didn't have any adverse reactions, I'm thinking of trying the peas starting tonight.  I don't know how that's going to go since they're not quite as sweet as everything else she's been fed so far.  If that goes well, maybe we'll try our first fruit this weekend. 

Hopefully I'll have a little time and energy after the small one goes to bed tonight and I will be able to add some pictures to this post.  If I don't get to it then, this weekend for sure! 

Happy 5 Months!!

Dear Kayla,

Here we are celebrating another month of watching you grow.  I got a little teary eyed this morning looking at you and thinking about how much you've changed.  I hope I can find a way to put it into words. 

This month, we hit a real milestone - starting you on cereal.  That continues to go well every evening, and I can't wait until we can start adding more yummy things into the mix for you.  For the time being, Oatmeal is next.  After that, we will probably introduce a puree to see how you do.  I love feeding you though.  Every time you open your mouth and "ask" for another bite I want to laugh out loud.  It's so cute. 

We also survived your first real illness.  It was so hard to watch you be sick, but I'm glad we got through it since that was the first of many winter bugs to come. 

Now we're in the midst of your first Holiday season.  Thanksgiving was a hit, although a bit of a long day for you.  On Saturday, daddy and I took you up to Elizabeth Farm to cut down your first Christmas tree.  We rode the horse drawn wagon out to the field and walked around in search of the perfect tree.  Most of the time you slept soundly snuggled against my chest in the Bjorn.  you did wake up to look around a bit, seemingly confused as to why 1) it was so cold and 2) there was nothing but trees as far as the eye could see.  You were quiet and calm the entire trip though, and slept a bit more on the way home.  Once we got everything set up in the house, the tree was a new point of interest for you.  Grabbing the branches is so much fun.  The lights make for great staring too!  When you first saw the tree all decorated, you wanted to take it all in, but your eyes kept being drawn up by the bright star on top.  It's really difficult not to get excited about everything while watching you take it all in for the very first time.  I can hardly wait to watch you open your presents Christmas morning. 

You've had a few physical developments too.  You discovered (with a little assistance from daddy) that you are able to grab your feet and roll from side to side while you're on your back.  Now you're twice as squirmy during diaper changes as you used to be.  I think it won't be long before you're able to sit up on your own.  You do great with support - either in the Bumbo or sitting with me on the floor or in my lap.  I've let you go and you teeter there for a moment before slumping over to one side.  We'll keep working on that.  In the last few days, I've noticed you trying much harder to crawl than you have been in the past.  You get your knees up under you and move your legs, but keep your face to the floor.  Then you drop you legs and push your upper body up to look around as if to see if you've gone anywhere.  Although you keep getting closer all the time, I wonder if you might walk before you crawl.  Your legs are really strong, and you are able to balance on them pretty well while holding on to my hands.  I'm excited yet scared for this next phase of your development.

In any case, you are happy and healthy which is all we could ever ask for.  You're growing and learning every day and I love seeing your sweet smile each morning and listening to you breathe softly when I put your into your crib at night.  I always want to remember what it feels like to nuzzle your fuzzy head and breathe in the scent that is my baby girl.  You're my everything sweet angel.  Happy birthday. 

Love Always -

~Mommy

Happy Thanksgiving

This morning Kayla woke to be fed around 3:45. Afterwards, she didn't seem tired, but I laid her back down in her crib and tried to go back to sleep. Even without the monitor, I was able to hear her talking to herself at the other end of the hall.

And even at that hour I couldn't help but think about how I thankful I am for her.

Aaaaaand we're back.

Sorry for not posting lately; I know some were looking for updates.  Last week found both Shaun and Kayla not feeling well.  Kaya woke up last Monday night having coughing fits and crying.  I was able to feed and soothe her, but she obviously wasn't well.  I took her to the doctor on Tuesday and was told she had a virus and it had to run its course.  That didn't seem so bad at the time because she'd been relatively OK besides the cough.  After the appoinment, she developed congestion and by Wednesday she was running a fever.  I stayed home with her as much as humanly possible, burning my remaining PTO in the process. 

I've always heard parents say that it's incredibly hard to stand by when you have a sick child.  Understatment of the year.  I wanted to cry watching her struggle to breathe, listening to her cough until she choked and spit up, rocking her when she struggled to sleep because she cough kept waking her up, feeling how warm her skin was while she was feverish... I would have done ANYTHING to take all of that away from her. 

Thankfully by Saturday morning the fever had broken.  After 24 hours of no Tylenol, I declared that battle won.  She's still struggling with the congestion and the coughing fits are still present though not as violent as they were.  Sleep still isn't coming easy, but it's getting better little by little.  Last night she was only up one time to eat, which was her normal schedule. 

I'm really hoping that having the next 3 days to relax at home with Shaun helps her get better so she's good to go visiting on Thursday.  I'm excited for the long weekend for us to hang out, enjoy good food and maybe even do a little shopping for the munchkin while we are off.  I just have to survive the next 3 days first...

A day off and two firsts...

In case I haven't mentioned it, I love banker's holidays.  We took full advantage of my day off by going for two firsts... to mixed reviews. 

First, I finally remembered to try Kayla's first pair of baby legwarmers on her.  Love.  Love, love love.  They are absolutely adorable, and they make diaper changes a breeze.  Now she can lounge around in a onesie and her legs will stay toasty warm. 

For the second, I need to back up to last week.  At her 4-month checkup, the doctor gave us the green light to start Kayla on rice cereal.  I was a little hesitant since the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends giving baby only breast milk until she's 6 months old, but we figured since the doctor said it was OK that we would go for it.  So tonight we finally put her in her high chair for the first time.  I gave her a sippy cup with some water in it to help her get used to that while I warmed the milk for the cereal.  I showed her how that worked but she still doesn't quite have enough control to do it on her own yet. 

Then we got to the good stuff.  As you can see, the initial reaction was not exactly favorable. 

After a few spoonfuls, the attitude changed though.  She got the hang of opening her mouth for the spoon and letting me pour little bits of cereal/breast milk soup into her mouth.  As expected, more of the cereal made its way down her chin than down her throat.  It was still good practice though and I look forward to making this a regular part of our evening routine. 

What a difference a year makes...

November 9,  2008

November 9, 2009

Wow. 

Happy 4 Months!

Dear Kayla,

It's hard for me to express how amazing this last month has been.  There have been so many changes, and you're learning and doing so much.  I thought you had personality before!  Now I am really starting to see who you are. 

You're now rolling from your back to your belly and back again.  I love the way you look up and grin when you're on your tummy playing.  We've seen you start to take a real interest in your toys; figuring out how to grab things and make them make as much noise as possible on their way to your mouth is such fun! 

I can tell you are seeing better, because when you wake up in your swing, you smile at us from across the room.  You also seem to recognize our voices, smiling without even seeing us most of the time.  You still really love bath time, and tonight you splashed with your little feet for the first time and seemed to get a great amount of joy out of that. 

I hope someday you will understand how much your daddy and I love you.  I look at you with awe and love and pride every moment.  It still takes my breath away to realize how much you mean to me, and I still have to pinch myself sometimes to know that this really is happening - you really are the little girl I've dreamed of having for so long.  You're really here and you're ours.  I am so lucky that you chose me to be your mommy.  I love you, little angel. 

Love always -

Mommy

Happy Halloween!

How little miss Kayla spent the better part of her first Trick or Treat night:

While her cousins were out gathering candy:

When she woke up, she was less than thrilled about being put in a penguin suit, but indulged us anyway. 

Although it didn't exactly go as we'd hoped (a late/short nap, an epic meltdown, a rushed feeding in the middle of it all) we still enjoyed her first ToT night, and look forward to walking around with the gang next year.  I'm already plotting the next adorable costume for her; I really enjoy the fact that until she's a little older, I get to choose.  ;-)