6 Months Old

Thanks to my friend Bethany's husband, I now have a computer (for awhile).  Our hard drive is dying so we are saving for a new one.  No one knows how much longer this one will last.  I was SO afraid I'd lost all of Sweet Pea's baby pictures.  Thanks to him, I didn't.  

 Hard to believe she's six months old.  She now rolls places FAST, pulls herself along by her arms (in a pre-crawl), and can sit up for a little while with the assistance of a Boppy.  She has always been really really good about tummy time.  She babbles all the time and screeches.  When she's happy she'll smile, but usually she's serious.  When she's mad, she's ANGRY.  She does not like to wear a cute hat or a bow or a headband.  I try and try, but she pulls them out.

She is a mama's girl, big time.  I can't even walk through the room without her crying because she saw me.  I still don't have trouble dropping her off in the church nursery, but I always leave quickly.  She's very cuddly, but also squirmy.  That sounds contradictory, but it is what it is.  She moves all the time, but it doesn't mean she doesn't want to be held.

She starts off in her crib, but is in bed with me by 11pm most nights.   I don't mind, and my milk supply is all the better for it.  We're not starting solids with her anytime soon.  I want her to keep on her curve and am not doing ANYTHING to mess with the system we have now.  I attribute her growth to me taking 6-8 Fenugreek a day, drinking 3-4 cups of Mother's Milk Tea, nursing round the clock, and most of all prayer.  I have several people praying specifically that my supply will remain steady.

This picture came out weird because my camera flash needs a new battery and is acting funky, but I thought it was kinda cool how her eyes look.  She's chewing everything she can get her hands on as she has two top teeth that just won't pop through.  I don't think they could be any closer...and yet there they sit right under the surface.  At 6 months old Sweet Pea is 24 1/4" and weighs 13# 13 oz.  She is still perfectly balanced on her curve that she's been on since birth.  You grow girl!

Six Weeks...I'm An Aunt!...We Had Snow!!!!!

Six Weeks...I'm An Aunt!...We Had Snow!!!!!

This is a combined post about all the exciting things happening in our lives.  First off, a day late, here is Sweet Pea's six week post...

 She is learning to pick up her head.  She's doing pretty well, but hates tummy time.  She's happier to practice her muscle control while being over your shoulder...she'll pick her head up, look around, and then flop back down on the shoulder.

 I've been trying to capture a picture of her smiling...this is the closest I've gotten.  She's  serious most of the time.  She is also pretty fussy...I'm hoping it isn't because she has tummy trouble.  We spend hours each day walking and bouncing and patting.

She is growing so fast!  She has nothing newborn that she can wear anymore (unless it was labeled newborn but clearly 0-3 month size).  She is outgrowing her newborn cloth diapers and I give her another week or so and they'll be done.  I weighed and measured her at 8 lbs 14.5 oz and 21.25 inches.  They had "measured" her at 22 inches last week at the doctor, but I didn't believe it.  They do it on this paper that moves while she is kicking and screaming.  They make a line at her head and then as she wiggles all over they grab her foot and make another line.  It is always comical because I SEE her moving well below where they drew the head line as they mark her foot and yet it goes on her chart.

All that matters I guess is that she IS growing.  She is nursing really well.  She and I connected that way from the very beginning.  Rosebud nursed well from the start also, and I attribute that to their births.  I'll have to share that another time.


I'm an aunt!!!!! My brother and sister-in-law had a baby girl this morning.  She looks just like my SIL & she is beautiful!  I'd think she was beautiful even if she looked just like my brother  :o)  Anyway, she is one special little girl and I know they'll be fantastic parents.  They named her Ivy which is such a pretty name.  She weighed 1/2 oz less than her big cousin Sweet Pea.  Not Sweet Pea's birth weight, Sweet Pea's today weight.  So much for sending all my newborn girl clothes their way!  I cannot wait to see her and hug her and kiss her!!!!

 We got some Snow on Friday and the boys played outside Saturday.  LMM enjoyed filling his mitten with snow and then eating it.  GROSS.  He was thrilled nonetheless.

 Snug ran around with our dogs who LOVE snow.  They're 1/2 husky so I guess that is understandable.  I took these pictures from inside the warmth of my home thanks to the lens from my aunt!  I feel very spoiled.

Anyway, it has been an exciting time here at our house.

For those of you on my blogroll, I have been reading your posts...but I've been doing it as I nurse via my Kindle Fire.  Leaving comments isn't as easy that way, so I often don't.  I feel bad too because when people comment you know they are actually reading.  I'M READING!  Someday I might be better typing one handed with a touch screen...but today is not that day!

Bits And Pieces

I technically have had time to blog in the last week. We are finally falling into a routine. I'm keeping the house...well...sanitary and we kinda have a schedule. This is due in part to the fact that my mom was around helping us out and visiting with us. It is also due to the fact that Rosebud is now 9 weeks old! She weighed 11 lbs at her 2 month checkup, but they weighed her with a full diaper and clothes on. Not the way I'd do it, but oh well. I weighed her on our digital baby scale (the one I weigh her on weekly) and she was 10 lbs 8 oz.
But instead of blogging I've been trying to spend lots of time with the kids. When Snug prayed "Thank you God for this food so we can eat...and help mommy to stop yelling at 'Little Monkey'." And when Snug told daddy to "just yell at it" when the chainsaw wouldn't start...well we decided we'd better work on the not yelling. I'm reading a couple of books, he's got accountability in some friends. We're trying. We are so not perfect parents.

Rosebud is modeling her new bathing suit. I'm not quite sure why they sell bathing suits for little babies. I bought it so I guess I am the reason that they sell them :o) This one is size 3-6 mos. I think it she may grow out of it before 3 months!!!

She actually was quite happy to look at the grass, don't worry. This picture looks more torturous than it is. I just wanted to remember how cute the back was too.

Rosebud spends much of her day lounging about in the backyard.

And she smiles all the time. She is such a blessing.

Little Monkey Man keeps himself busy with his water table...and anything else he can get his hands on in the backyard. He usually doesn't play with toys. Here he is using the watering can we use for our deck railing garden. Oh well.

We also get to as many of #1's softball games as we can. He plays at least two times a week.

I just had to post this picture. He cracks me up. Some days his speech seems like it is really coming along. Some days all I can get is pointing and grunting and screaming. I know there is so much in that little head of his. He understands SO much and he is really smart. He just has a hard time telling us what he knows.

Snug has recovered nicely from his surgery. Here he is entertaining Rosebud during her mandatory tummy time (not her favorite). Keeping him "quiet and still" was no easy feat. This toy I picked up at a garage sale last year helped.

Snug just loves his sister. Sometimes too hard, but he truly tries. He is constantly in her face kissing her and talking to her.

Another activity this week was putting in the clothesline. My dad built the poles and #1 and I put them in.

Snug is very proud of the job "he and daddy did". Snug sprayed the hose for daddy. And on daddy.

I am just so happy to have my diapers out sunning themselves. I never like how stiff my inserts, doublers, and AIOs are after a day outside though. My pocket diapers and covers are always ok. I found the solution. About 10 minutes before another load of clothes is done, I quick stick all the "stiff" diaper pieces in the dryer and then they are not only sunned and smelling nice, they are also back to their normal soft selves. Problem solved!

4 Weeks...But Not Yet A Month

Rosebud is four weeks old today, but will be a month old on Friday. That sounds funny, huh? Excuse the lovely red marks on her thighs, she was squished in her car seat for longer than any of us wanted today.

So far cloth diapering her has been a bit of a challenge because we only have enough cloth for a day at at time (if that), and laundry adds up quickly at this house. I am trying to do a day of cloth, a day of sposies. Other than that, cloth diapering is not hard with a newborn. (When is she not considered a newborn?) She has less leaks and blowouts when she is in cloth than disposables. It just isn't financially right for us to buy tons of tiny cloth diapers that she will grow out of and not be able to grow with (like one size diapers). So far we haven't bought any newborn disposables because we had some left from Little Monkey Man (LMM) and the hospital sent us home with tons.

Both Rosebud and LMM had a doctor's appointment today. She weighed in at 8lbs 1 oz and is 20 inches long. I wasn't surprised she was over 8 lbs, she eats all the time! Because of LMM's wheat-gluten intolerance they are going to keep a close eye on her weight gain-she could also easily have the same intolerance and then I would need to go off of wheat/gluten in order for her to be able to continue breastfeeding. So far so good, but LMM didn't show any signs of the problem until he was between 4 and 5 months.

I am trying to remember to put Rosebud on her tummy as much as possible. It isn't easy with two big brothers running around the house, but I try to get in a few minutes everyday.

Keep up the good growth little Rosebud!

LMM had his appointment today too and is starting his modified vaccination schedule. He wasn't thrilled to get a shot. In fact he wasn't thrilled to be there at all. We are working on transitions and putting him in new situations. When he isn't in control, he has a hard time functioning. This happens with lots of toddlers, but he (and other SPD* kids) have a particularly hard time in new situations if they haven't been prepped properly. I'm sure the next time he goes he will be even happier to be at the doctor now that he knows what might happen! After his appointment, he had his first center based session with his therapists. For the first time he met with them not at home. Although we had a few hiccups, he did rather well and will meet there once a month along with his home based activities.

Here's where I get controversial, so if you don't want to read controversial, don't read on :o) I don't want to step on toes, so please just know this is what our family is doing, and we don't push it on anyone else.

Although doctors and the American Academy of Pediatrics are adamant that there is no link between autism and vaccinations, many many parents believe something happens.

I strongly believe that it is a good thing diseases like polio have been eradicated in the United States due to vaccinations. However, we do not think that the regimen that babies go through is safe or necessary. We have voiced our concerns with our family doctor (the pediatrician wouldn't even give us the time of day back when we had one) and today had a really good conversation about our feelings. Our family doctor is on board with us delaying and spreading out the children's vaccinations. This means extra visits for us to the doctor, but no extra co-pays.

LMM's EIS* and therapists are also very much for his vaccines to be given slowly. He hasn't had any since he was six months old, but started again today. Although these people are not doctors, and they have to (legally) promote all children getting vaccinated...they also told us to proceed with caution. They work with SPD kids and kids on the autism spectrum daily. They do not take lightly the timing they have seen. Do vaccines cause these problems? In my opinion, probably not but I really don't know. Could they trigger them in some kids who are prone to these disorders? Who knows! Why not be extra careful and not give young children an onslaught of chemicals?

I think that each parent should do what they feel is right for their child when it comes to vaccinations. I also think that if a parent has a strong feeling about them they shouldn't be criticized. "Mother's Intuition" I do believe is a God given thing.

A great book to read if you want to know more is "The Vaccine Book" by Dr. Robert W. Sears. He tells what the vaccine is, when it is usually given, how the vaccine is made, and what possible side effects are. He gives his opinion on each vaccine, but gives pros and cons for each. He is not anti-vaccinations and he is not pro-vaccinations. He is just getting the information out there as far as I can tell.

Well enough of all that, Rosebud would like to eat and I have laundry to do!

*Sensory Processing Disorder

*Early Intervention Specialist

Baby J's Therapy Session #2

You know a therapy session goes well I guess when this ^ is the result! Baby J was knocked out by the time his physical therapist was done with him.

Great news! He is 5.5 moving to 6 months in large motor skills. He appears 'normal' to people, not only because of his size (tomorrow we weigh him again, and tust me, this boy is putting on pounds ounces!) but also because he has splintered skills. He has great supine skills and is wonderful with his legs he puts on a great show. However, the skills needed to crawl*/creep*/pull up still need to be worked on. His upper body and oblique muscles are pretty weak.

After a few more days of him exploring rolling over on his own, I have some exercizes to do with him to prepare him to crawl! Can you imagine? He should be crawling* very shortly.

The PT described Baby J to a T today when she explained babies with lower muscle tone. He does not have low muscle tone, just lower than it should be...confusing, I know. Low tone babies are like jell-o, and that is not him. She described them as extremely laid back and sleeping LOTS in the first few weeks. Baby J slept the first 5 weeks, up to 22.5 hours A DAY. We joked that we didn't meet him until almost 2 months.

These babies are pretty happy to sit back and do nothing...but get really irritated if made to do things, go places, move. Um, yep. Baby J used to scream his head off for diaper changes, clothes changes, and car rides. If he was held or lying comfortably, no sweat. We have pictures of him screaming through almost every event for a few months. This does improve (as we've seen with him) but they can still be pretty apathetic (we can go in and Baby J is awake in his crib staring at the ceiling or crib slats when we think he has been sleeping. We never know when he wakes up and unless he sees us or gets hungry he will lay there indefinatly).

They hate being on their tummies. They like everything done for them. Meet Baby J.

However, he is coming along very nicely and we are seeing excellent progress already. We may just have to insist that he do things a certain way for...well...his entire childhood. Baby J being "happy" is certainly not a goal of his PT at this point.

If you coupld pray for his comfort in the next couple of days, we would appreciate it. His diapers are really gross/stinky/irritating while on the PediaSure and this morning he woke up screaming in pain. He has a rash over almost his entire diaper area because he had a BM in the night and it burned him. It may also have something to do with the fact that he CUT HIS THIRD TOOTH today. Snug had diaper rashes when he cut his molars (Baby J did not cut those, it is a top front tooth).

Thanks for praying and reading. We are doing really well. :o)

*in PT terms, crawling is pulling yourself along the floor, not necessarily on hands and knees...creeping is up on hands and knees moving around. That was really confusing to me and I am sure I will mix it up often.

Contest Ended

#1 just checked the blog comments while I was nursing again to try and get Baby J's weight up and said that we have a winner...Melissa of Racecars & Ruby Slippers guessed correctly, although many of you had part of it right. He is currently sleeping in a laundry basket in our bedroom. Why not a Pack N Play? Because, as MelArcile of The Meyers Chronicles knows, my dog Lucy has her crate in there so there is simply no room. However, the dogs have been banished to the garage for a couple of nights until this page in our life is over. I have been waking up several times a night to feed him in hopes that my milk supply will get better and he will have gained weight at Friday's checkup.
So congratulations Melissa, I will get with you on what color sippy saver you want and get your address too!

Meanwhile...here is a tast of Tummy Time these days...he can't roll over but he can scoot himself backwards under the couch screaming the entire time :o) If you click on the picture, it is the first time I've been able to catch a photo of his new pearly whites.

Jack The Ripper Stripper

When I got Baby J up from his nap today, he had taken his arms out of his sleeper and was naked from his chest up. I hope this is not a sign of things to come.
Baby J finally is having some quality tummy time thanks to R and the new cash register.

Yes, my son wears fairy wings...to color...to play...to bed...and to church. They make him fly, what can I say?

Princess panties Pull-ups Model.

"I pitty momma" Princess take 2.

And this is how he came home from church Wednesday because he had no more pants...just princess pants.

Clearly Baby J is impressed with his older brother.

Just a little Baby J.

***Click the pause button on the Christmas music at the very bottom of the blog so you can hear him!***

What We're Doing Today

Ok, this was killing me. R was giving "Sanna Cause" rides in our baby swing in the basement today while having her "Gordon" in a "sling". She calls all baby dolls Gordon-her mom hasn't even started to understand why that came about. Well, we can never start babywearing too young I guess!

There are so many things I love about Christmas, but one I really love this year is new books out to read. Snug has a few tried and true favorites we read over...and over...and over...and over. Currently Goodnight Moon and Peekaboo Baby are tops. But then I got out the Christmas books and now we are tra la la la la ing through Deck The Halls (Thanks to an aunt last Christmas), Elmo's 12 Days of Christmas, and Christmas in a Manger. Yes, we have more Christmas books, but really how fun would it be to read several? Shouldn't we just stick to a few and wear them completely out?

Tummy time is still a daily struggle, but today I got about 3 minutes of happiness and caught the tail end on camera. Still no 'baby push ups', attempts to roll over. or grabbing for toys that are not immediately within reach.

And yeah, I know Snug has no pants on. LOOOOOONG story.

EYE SPY will be back next Wednesday, I promise. My friend Melissa from college is helping me get a button for it. How high tech is that? Video AND a button. Wow. Uncle Alligator, you better be proud!

Abby???

Ok, so I gave up ER last season because it was just too soap opera-y for me...and it made me cry too much...but I've taken it back up this season because it is the last season and I want to know what happens to everyone. I started watching ER my freshman year at Cedarville with my unit. I have to tell you, Thursday nights were one of the only things I looked forward to in my week because I was sooooo homesick. Anyway, #1 was glad when I gave it up because he had to remind me these were not really people I knew. But I always felt like I did. Abby's little boy was born premature and in the NICU the season after I had Snug...kinda touched a nerve. And now Abby is leaving? So sad.

INTERESTING:

This is one of the books I am reading. I left it on the back porch swing while I went to change Baby J. I came back out to find E and Snug fighting over who got to scribble on it with my highlighter...isn't it ironic? There should be a book "How To Make Children Mind After You've Lost Yours"

WE LOVE HER:

Here is our M. entertaining Snug while I tutor T. We love M., we really do.

F IS FOR FIRETRUCK:

Yep, our letter this week is "f" and we made cute firehats...thanks mom! #1 was making fun of them saying the kids were dressed as the pope for Halloween. How mean.

TUMMY TIME:
Baby J hates tummy time, so I've been trying to make it more fun. Usually I "fly" him while I lay on the floor and this usually brings lots of laughs from him and deposits of drool on my face. I also try to get him up on the boppy too. He just doesn't like tummy time on a blanket. #1 and I looked at Snug's 4 month pictures today and it was eerie how much the boys look the same. Baby J had the exact same expression on his face while we were comparing the two. They are way different in size and personality, but in the face...practically twins.

Well, Abby is about ready to resign from County. I am so sad, and I might start crying. When Dr. Green died a few years ago, I cried for a hour after and teared up for days.