9 Months!

Wow, Aaron has officially been out of me as long as he was in me. That's really bizarre to think about. His 9 month birthday is tomorrow, but since he measured ahead and wasn't really in for the 40 weeks, it all balances out.

In late July, early August we went to Hawai'i. I had a conference, and then we tried to do some vacationing. It was rough, but the kids loved it. Some pictures for your enjoyment.

I don't really have time to update the blog as much as I'd like, between teaching 8 classes this fall and doing everything else on my schedule. That, and on my home computer, blogger doesn't let me upload pictures. It's frustrating. But I'll try to at least keep up with once a month updates.

As an aside, Aaron had his 9month appointment yesterday. He's 19 lbs (down to 40th percentile, when he started his life at 95th percentile in weight -- I'm frustrated with that), 29 1/2 inches tall (95th %ile for height) and a head that's 18" around. He got blood drawn to see if he's allergic to environmental allergins because of this cough he's had since January. We'll see how that comes out next week.

6 Month Appointment

Baby boy is somehow 6 months tomorrow. The time is flying by somehow.... I guess working two jobs and juggling everything else does that. At today's appointment he stayed the same length (Ped guessed he was too wiggly to get an accurate assessment, but he's in the 90+ percentile still), is 17 1/4th pounds, and did really well with his four (yes, 4!!) shots.

I'll upload pictures once Blogspot lets me.

Aaron's 4 Month Check-Up

Big guy was 27 1/2 inches long (99th percentile) and weighed 15 lb. 10oz (dropped to 68th percentile in weight). His sister wasn't that big weight-wise until she was 6 months old, and not that tall until she was 8 months. He's a big boy! Will try to upload pictures sometime soon -- my computer and blogger are not getting along right now.

2 Month Checkup

At the pediatrician's office today, my "little" guy weighed 13lb, 15oz (98th %ile) and was 24 1/2 inches long (93rd %ile). Head circumference is 16 inches. He's big!

Poor guy got 2 shots and the rotovirus today, so he's had a rough day. I didn't take a 2-month picture because he was so sad. Maybe tomorrow.

Doctor Visits

Aaron's 13 day Check-Up:

At birth, his weight was 8lb, 5oz.

At d/c from the hospital, his weight was 7lb, 14oz.

At his last appointment (5 days old), he was back to 8lb, 5oz.

Today, at 13 days, he was 9lb, 5oz!! Way to go baby boy! They said he was 22 inches, but there's no way he grew 2 inches in 13 days. :) Breastfeeding rocks.

His umbilical stump is still there, doc said it should fall off in the next few days. He's trying to hold his head up, even though he really shouldn't be yet.

Emma's 3 Year Check-Up

Big girl weighed in at 29 lbs (35%ile) and 37.5 inches (75%ile). I mentioned her random snoring, and the doc checked her tonsils, which were a little red and swollen. They did a swab, and it turns out she has strep! So she's on antibiotics for a little while.

All in all, it was a really good visit with the pediatrician. Aaron goes back at 2 months, Emma goes back at 4 years.

On a side note, I'll be donating to the Mother's Milk Bank of Central Ohio, and I'm really excited about that. I should easily be able to get over the 200 oz that they request. Since I haven't donated blood for a long, long time (and that's one thing I always enjoyed being able to do), I think this is an exciting next step for me.

At 5 Days Old

Aaron is back up to his birth weight of 8lb, 5oz (he was 7lb, 14oz when he left the hospital). Is eating and sleeping really well.

Emma is stepping up to her role as big sister. She's good at stroking his hair, patting his back and bringing him a paci when she thinks he needs one. :) She's also gotten to feed him once, which she thought was really neat.

I hope to add some new pictures later on this evening!

Emma's little brother

Meet Aaron:

8lbs, 5oz of trouble. He spent the night in the NICU because he was working a little too hard to breathe--his O2 sats were fine, but his respiration rate was too high. By the time they wheeled him up to the NICU, though, he was fine. X-rays showed he had some fluid in his lungs that took a while to clear. So we're just waiting for him to be discharged from the NICU.

2 Year Pediatrician Appointment

Emma is 34 inches tall (75th percentile), 24 1/2 pounds (15th percentile) and meeting her developmental milestones. Her bottom 2-year molars are peeking through and she has a bit of walking pneumonia. The pediatrician is happy with her development! She seemed happy and excited that we were still breastfeeding and didn't even talk with me about stopping. We can go in for a 2 1/2 year appointment if we want, but basically we're in the clear until she's 3.

15 Month Stats

Emma is exactly 21 pounds naked at the pediatrician's office, and was 31 1/2 inches tall (exactly what I predicted!). She is in the 80th %ile for height, and in the 25th %ile for weight, which is consistent for her. Tall, skinny baby!

She got the last Hep B shot today, and her first MMR. And she had a double ear infection, which explains the horrible week we've had sleeping. We'll go back in three more months for her 18-month appointment. The pediatrician is happy with her development, and so is Mommy. :)


My messy baby girl is growing up way too fast!

One Year Updates

At our ped appointment today, Emma was 29 1/2 inches tall (I think she's probably 30 inches tall but she was very squirmy when they were measuring her), and 19 lbs 11 oz. She would have weighed more, but she woke to vomit this morning at 4am, 4:45am, and then vomited on the way to daycare all of her breakfast (around 8:30) and then threw up again around 9am. I did what I needed to at work and came back to be with her, and she hadn't thrown up again today, but we're just taking it light on the solids and giving her lots of momma milk.

She's walking with ease, climbing up on things, and has learned how to get down safely from the couch and the bed. She grabs with her fingers and has her pincher grip mastered, and can easily transfer things from one hand to another.

She loves food! Her new favorite is hummous, cheerios, yogurt (soy) and of course, cake! She really enjoys chicken and butternut squash. And she's loving strawberries and grapes. We're still breastfeeding (YAY!) and she probably nurses 4-5 times a day and 2-3 times a night. We are starting the night weaning process (disrupted by the vomiting last night, of course).

We haven't had more than 4 hours of sleep in a row since she was born (with that one exception of a 5-hour stretch) where she rouses enough to cry and want to nurse. I am looking forward to her sleeping 8 hours in a row without crying or searching for my boob in the night!

She's talking more and more. She says Momma, Dadda, Kitty, Delilah, Samson, More, All Done, Banana, and today she said "Good Nap" after we were done with her nap. She mimics our words more frequently.

I can't believe the cognitive leaps she's making. At daycare she "helps quite a bit. They ask her to go get a bib out of the drawer and bring it to them, and she will. The other day her primary caregiver asked her if she was tired and wanted to take a nap, and Emma walked over to her crib and waited for Cathy to pick her up and put her in it. She'll pick out her own coat. She pushes her arms and legs through sleeves and pantlegs to help us get her clothing on. She walks all the way out of her classroom, through the building at daycare, and out to my car on her own (she knows which one it is).

She is absolutely a joy and a blessing for us. Everywhere we go, people smile and wave at her, and she likes to wave and smile back. As long as I'm within sight, she has virtually no stranger anxiety. She LOVES other babies (I hope we can give her a brother or sister someday).

I'm excited about our 4 days off together. Hopefully we'll take lots of pictures and get lots of cuddle time. I love my little girl. :)

11 Months Old

Wow, where has the time gone? Is it possible that Emma will be a year old in 30 days? I can't really believe it. One year ago I was huge, enjoying the feeling of my baby girl growing inside of me and washing all her teeny-tiny clothing and today, I'm watching her walk around and talk to me, and putting her teeny-tiny clothing away in storage.

We weighed her naked this morning on the Wii, and she's a little over 19 1/2 pounds. She'll be 20 pounds by her one year mark, I'm sure. She's at or above 30 inches, and we went up to the next size car seat. Her old one is now in the basement crawl space, awaiting the next (if any) child.

She's walking with ease, doing some running, and very stable unless she's tired. She's eating more solids and her poo is more solid too. :) And she's "talking" more -- she's definitely said "Mommy" and "Dadda," "Kitty," and we've recently heard "Delilah" and "Hello." Daycare says that she'll say "All Done" and sign "all done" when she's finished eating. A few days ago she slept for 5 hours in a row at night without rousing -- hasn't done it since, but I expect we might once her first-year molars are through. She keeps working her back gums with her teethers, so likely anytime now.

Here's some pictures of Emma playing with the couch-cushion fort we built yesterday. Happy 11 months old, my baby girl!

9 Month Appointment

Weight: 18lb, 9oz (up from 6lb, 5oz at birth; almost tripled her birth weight! 50th percentile)
Length: 28 1/24 inches (up from 20 inches at birth; 75th percentile)
Head Circumference: 17 inches (50th percentile)

The pediatrician was very pleased that we were still breastfeeding, and remarked how Emma seemed to be very happy and healthy. She made sure we had started babyproofing (we have, somewhat) and gave us the number for poison control, LOL.

Emma tolerated her flu shot and the first of the Hep B vaccination shots like a trooper -- she didn't even cry. Momma's got a short day at work, so I'm going to pick her up early from daycare and we'll have a little time together before Daddy gets home to do some special things.

My baby is 40 weeks old today!

Things I'm Proud Of....

*Breastfeeding for 7 1/2 months and no intention to stop anytime soon.

*Cloth diapering despite others' bets that I would quit after a month.

*Holding off on starting solids until 6 months, and then using a baby-friendly technique to help her enjoy the tastes and textures of different foods.

*Taking Emma to the zoo, the conservatory, the park, the state fair, etc., etc., etc. within the first 6 months of her life.

*Losing 55 pounds from my highest pregnancy weight!

There's more, but those are really the top 5 things. And I'm not "shove-it-in-your-face-I'm-better-than-you" proud, but just very much "I-can't-believe-I-did-it-yay!" proud.

And speaking of the State Fair, here are a few pictures from that day.


We started by watching the sheep show, and Emma enjoyed watching the animals and the kids participating.


There was a BIG fan above the arena (and if you click on the picture, it will show up bigger to show you exactly HOW big it was, LOL).


Then I think I mentioned that she got to see the lamb triplets that were all of 5-6 hours old, which she found fascinating.



So cute!

Yay!

Quick post as we're heading out the door, but Emma was 13 pounds, 10 oz at the pediatrician this morning! She gained almost 1 whole pound in two weeks... which tells me how sick she was before. The ear infection is completely gone, yay!

Plus, Momma is back down to the lowest weight she's been in a while -- I hit the low that I hit when I was pregnant and lost those 10 pounds.

We're a happy family. :)

Four-Month Pediatrician Appointment

*sigh*

I'm glad we have a good pediatrician that's calm and able to (mostly) reassure me.

At 4 months, Emma is 12 lbs, 13 oz.... she's only gained 2 pounds since her 2-month appointment, and dropped from the 50th percentile down to the 30th percentile. I was sure the ped was going to be concerned, might even push formula and she didn't even blink -- said that since Emma has been sick and started at daycare not to worry, keep breastfeeding whenever she wants, and she'll catch up. She wasn't worried at all.

She did grow in length -- she's now 25 1/2 inches tall! That's something like the 65th percentile for height. She only gained 3/4 inch around her head, but again, the ped didn't think it was a big deal.

What WAS a big deal is that my little girl has a bad ear infection. We thought she was just super-fussy because of her cold and cough, and she's slept horribly these last two nights (up every hour, crying in her sleep, etc). But the ped said when they have an ear infection, lying down actually hurts because of the pressure, so Emma is going to prefer to be upright as much as possible right now. She's napping on my chest as we speak.

So 10 days of antibiotics, a re-check in 2 weeks, and no vaccinations today because she was too sick. I hope she feels better soon... it just breaks my heart that she doesn't feel well.

Another Worry

We went to weigh Emma today, and she was only 11 lbs, 11 oz. She's 3 months and 4 days old. At 2 months, 3 days old, she was 10 lbs, 7 oz. She really should have gained more weight. :( Now, I know that we've had a week of her not eating at daycare (and she didn't eat great for Daddy today) but that little bit worries me.

*sigh*

Oh... and my middle-of-the-night insomnia is back. I was up from 2-4am and even though I'm completely exhausted, I couldn't sleep. I really hope that goes away asap!

Ten Pounds!

Yes, my daughter is "officially" in the double-digit weight category. After much fretting about the color of her poo, her weight, her eating, etc., I decided to take her to the hospital to get her weighed. They have a great free infant scale in the back of the mother's clinic there. I also thought this was a good opportunity to do a pre- and post-feeding weight.

Pre-feeding, she was 10 lb, 1.4oz; post-feeding she was 10lb, 3.3oz. So she is definitely getting a good amount of milk when eating! That made me feel happy, especially since this was only the second time she's nursed out in public.

We've gotten into somewhat of a routine now that we're almost 2 months old. We get up between 6:30 and 7am usually (although this morning it was closer to 7:30am; Mommy had been up since 4am, sadly enough... but that's for another post). We eat, and then Mommy pumps an hour later. Today I got 5oz out of my right breast, and 2.5 out of the left (which is the one she had eaten from an hour earlier). That 5oz amazed and scared me! Anyway, so then there's a mid-morning nap, then an early-afternoon nap (which is going on right now on my chest), and a late-afternoon/early evening nap. We start getting her ready for bed around 7pm, and between a bath/reading/rocking ritual, she's bypassed much of her evening fussiness.

I took half of that 5oz and put it in the freezer, and then put the other in the fridge. I want to get an idea of how much fat/cream is in that milk and how much appears to just be thin, watery milk -- some of my frozen milk looks very watery, and some looks creamy. I know the milk consistency changes over the day, but again, just something I can do to reassure myself that the milk has some good cream. I have been wondering about my own diet and how it affects the breast milk -- since I've gone off dairy, I've essentially been on a low-fat, high-fiber diet and maybe lower fat in my diet means less fat in the milk? Who knows.

In any case, I feel happier that since last week's appointment with the pediatrician, she's gained a fair amount and now that she's over 10 pounds, I feel I can relax somewhat. Our next appointment is next Thursday for her 2 month appointment and it's also her first vaccination.

We had a great visit with Ms. Tracy yesterday and I have some pictures to upload, when I get a chance. Right now I'm just going to snuggle with Emma and maybe close my eyes.... 3 hours of broken sleep is just not enough. It does lend itself to a LOT of night time thinking about life, however!

Rashes and Excuses

Mommy thinks she was looking for an excuse to go to the pediatrician anyway, just to make sure we are still doing OK!

So Emma's had this little rash on her head, and now it's all over her head, neck, shoulders, and upper torso. That was enough for Mommy! Considering we're supposed to get another 6-8 inches of snow on Tuesday and Wednesday, I called and go in for a "sick baby" appointment. The pediatrician reassured me that it's completely normal, checked out Emma anyway because I mentioned she's had a little bit of a cold over the last week, and told us that we were doing a great job. In fact, said that she's doing great because she lifted her head up while on her belly, and smiled at the doctor.

The only thing that worried me was when they weighed her, she was only 9lb, 10oz.... last Tuesday she was 9lb 8 1/2 oz. :( So only 1 1/2 oz gain in the last 6 days? Now, she has been sick and not nursing great. Plus, she hadn't eaten for almost 3 hours when she got weighed AND had made a massive poo before we left, but still! Mommy was sad. I tried to reassure myself that it was a different scale (manual scale at their office -- I'd been using a digital scale at the hospital to do her weekly weights), and that probably was something too.

So we'll go to the hospital tomorrow and do our normal weekly weight. In the meantime, she seems to eat better doing side-lying, and we'll do that from here on out until she can breathe a little better. We'll keep up the humidifier at night, which has also helped. I know it's a little obsessive, but I'm not going to stop weighing her weekly until she gets over 10 pounds. Just something to help me relax. :)

Will try to do some more pictures and/or video later -- we've had a busy morning!

At 6 weeks, 1 day

She is 9 lbs, 8 1/2 oz!! :) We have a happy Mommy today.

Off to take a walk since it's 40 degrees out. :)

Tuesday Weight

At 5w1d of age, she's exactly 9 pounds!

Now, I would be really happy about that except she hasn't gained as much as she typically did. From week 2 to week 3, she gained a pound in 8 days. From week 3 to week 4, she gained 9 1/2 oz in 7 days. I'm not sure why she slowed down so much, she's eating fine and still wetting/pooping fine. She is eating for shorter time periods (5-7 minutes instead of 10-12) but she acts full and doesn't want the other boob. I guess when I weigh her next week, we'll know if everything's ok!