Thursday, November 26, 2009

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.


Monday, November 23, 2009

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...

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

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. 


Monday, November 9, 2009

What a difference a year makes...

November 9,  2008



November 9, 2009




Wow. 

Saturday, November 7, 2009

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