this is ridiculous. it's been over 4 months since i've posted anything and SOOOOO much has happened with Annabelle. i don't think i can begin to write it all in one blog. i'm gonna look for video i've taken (if it'll ever load on here) and i'm gonna post some little tidbits as i try and remember. tomorrow Annabelle goes to the ENT for a possible scope of her airways. i'm pretty nervous, but mostly i'm just ready to find out what's causing her to wake up gasping for her during her sleep.
on a lighter note, it has finally been warm enough this past month for us to take Annabelle on her first few boat trips! she loves it just as much as we do and is such a water/sand baby. she's gonna be a trip to watch as she continues to grow!
Monday, May 3, 2010
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
half a year...
my little sweetie will be 6 months old tomorrow... i figured it was time for a little update since i've been slack and haven't posted in like a month or more.
at her sick visit to the doc on december 9 she weighed a whopping 17 lbs! big girl! and she wasn't even 6 months old yet. big chunky girl. i take her back to the doc next week on december 22 for her 6 month well checkup. i'm curious to see how big she's gotten in 2 weeks!
i quit breastfeeding the day she turned 5 months old. my milk was diminishing again. i already had to go through this one time and it was very difficult to build it back up and she was constantly hungry. she was still wanting to eat every 2 hours and it was wearing both of us out. i cried and cried over the decision. but i ultimately decided it was time to switch to the bottle. it was the hardest decision i've made yet. but, now i know it was the best one. she's a lot fuller and happier now.
her appetite has become quite insatiable. it's insane. she's already eating 3 times a day on top of her bottles. she usually gets 6 ounces every 4 hours, but now she's hungry after 3 hours all the time. so, i figure this week i may start feeding her 8 ounces at feedings to see how she does. she now eats rice cereal, carrots, sweet potatoes, bananas, peas and squash. and i'm so proud of her! she seems to love everything she puts in her mouth. which is a great thing, because opie and i are not picky eaters and we hope not to raise one.
she had her first yucky cold a couple of weeks ago. i chose to keep her home and not rush her to the doctor (i don't want to be one of those moms, especially when they have a cold and there's nothing that a doc can do). after about 2 weeks she wasn't getting any better and i figured her cold must have developed into an infection. she was still sooooo tough. never pulled at her ears or cried too much. she just became a little fussy and ill. i took her in and she had double ear infections. poor baby. we're treating with antibiotics and she's doing much better!
if you remember back to a couple of months ago, annabelle had began to cut teeth. it had been a VERY LONG PROCESS!!!!!!!!!!!! HOLY COW! last night she was pretty ill and fussy and chewing on everything again, so i put my finger in her mouth to soothe her gums and what do you know?!? there's a little toothy cutting my finger! yay!!!!!!!!!!!!! finally. it's not all the way out, but it's poking through and you can definitely see it and feel it. i give it a couple of days before it's sitting there smiling back at me when she grins!
i'm so proud of her! she will be 6 months old tomorrow and i can't believe how fast it has happened. everything really does fly by! it's been half a year and my life is more amazing than i could have ever imagined. I JUST LOVE HER TO PIECES!!!
at her sick visit to the doc on december 9 she weighed a whopping 17 lbs! big girl! and she wasn't even 6 months old yet. big chunky girl. i take her back to the doc next week on december 22 for her 6 month well checkup. i'm curious to see how big she's gotten in 2 weeks!
i quit breastfeeding the day she turned 5 months old. my milk was diminishing again. i already had to go through this one time and it was very difficult to build it back up and she was constantly hungry. she was still wanting to eat every 2 hours and it was wearing both of us out. i cried and cried over the decision. but i ultimately decided it was time to switch to the bottle. it was the hardest decision i've made yet. but, now i know it was the best one. she's a lot fuller and happier now.
her appetite has become quite insatiable. it's insane. she's already eating 3 times a day on top of her bottles. she usually gets 6 ounces every 4 hours, but now she's hungry after 3 hours all the time. so, i figure this week i may start feeding her 8 ounces at feedings to see how she does. she now eats rice cereal, carrots, sweet potatoes, bananas, peas and squash. and i'm so proud of her! she seems to love everything she puts in her mouth. which is a great thing, because opie and i are not picky eaters and we hope not to raise one.
she had her first yucky cold a couple of weeks ago. i chose to keep her home and not rush her to the doctor (i don't want to be one of those moms, especially when they have a cold and there's nothing that a doc can do). after about 2 weeks she wasn't getting any better and i figured her cold must have developed into an infection. she was still sooooo tough. never pulled at her ears or cried too much. she just became a little fussy and ill. i took her in and she had double ear infections. poor baby. we're treating with antibiotics and she's doing much better!
if you remember back to a couple of months ago, annabelle had began to cut teeth. it had been a VERY LONG PROCESS!!!!!!!!!!!! HOLY COW! last night she was pretty ill and fussy and chewing on everything again, so i put my finger in her mouth to soothe her gums and what do you know?!? there's a little toothy cutting my finger! yay!!!!!!!!!!!!! finally. it's not all the way out, but it's poking through and you can definitely see it and feel it. i give it a couple of days before it's sitting there smiling back at me when she grins!
i'm so proud of her! she will be 6 months old tomorrow and i can't believe how fast it has happened. everything really does fly by! it's been half a year and my life is more amazing than i could have ever imagined. I JUST LOVE HER TO PIECES!!!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
etcetera...
she's also had her first cruddy sickness this past week. don't know if it's a cold or just congestion and yuck, but whatever it is, it's making me sad. she's not old enough to know how to cough in a productive way to express the mucus, so it's pitiful to hear her cough and breathe. i've just been cleaning her little nose out as much as possible. and of course, now i have it too! fun fun fun!
she's also getting fatter. much fatter! but, i love it! she is so adorable and so sweet and i am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO blessed!!! oh, and the gripe water has worked wonders for her gassy belly/teething issues! (it has helped with gas, teething, acid reflux issues and has even helped with painful hiccups). pretty much any ailment can be helped with the gripe water... and the best part about it is that it's all natural! just ginger and fennel. yay!
Monday, November 9, 2009
memory overload... gotta unload some.
soooooooooo i'm officially the mom with a notepad! yep. started carrying around a notepad everywhere i go because annabelle is a freakin genius! haha! no, really. she's doing wayyyyy too much and i can't keep up with her. and she's acting all grown up and she's not even 5 months old. after opie started traveling so much she started doing everything all at once. it was like she knew my poor little brain couldn't handle it all by myself and she thought it would be funny to make me cry on a daily basis at just how fast she's growing. well, it worked.
first off, i'm very slowly weening annabelle off the breast. my goal was to breastfeed for 6 months, but my milk has been on the decline again and this time it's not replinishing th
e way it did before. so, i'm trying to make it through 5 months with the breastmilk. i'm just not making enough anymore. so, i've started to introduce the bottle more. she still gets breastmilk a few times a day, but also gets more formula now and rice cereal. i usually hold her to feed her the bottle if we're anywhere except for home. but, at home i sit her in her boppy and sit next to her and hold it for her so she will begin to learn some independence about eating. well, i'd say the second time i did this, she took the bottle in her hands, as she has done before and held on. i thought she'd drop it like usual, but nope. she fed herself a 4 ounce bottle! she even turned it up at the end until she got every drop out. i was so proud, but so sad because she didn't even need me. i mean before she needed me every single time she ate. we were attached at the boob. literally. haha! i crack myself up!!! but, now she was feeding herself?!? wow! too much to take in for a mommy! a lot of babies don't feed themselves bottles until 6 to 8 months of age, so this was huge for me. she's a genius. and pretty much feeding herself every single bottle now, unless she's too lazy and then i feed her.
same day as the bottle incident, she was playing in the floor rolling around trying to play with her toys and being a little fussy (as it was almost naptime)... and i look down and she had found her pacifier. she reached for it, picked it up off the floor and put it in her mouth! just like a big girl! i mean seriously. doesn't need me for that anymore either! she just self-soothes now or what? her hand/eye coordination is amazing already.

first off, i'm very slowly weening annabelle off the breast. my goal was to breastfeed for 6 months, but my milk has been on the decline again and this time it's not replinishing th
same day as the bottle incident, she was playing in the floor rolling around trying to play with her toys and being a little fussy (as it was almost naptime)... and i look down and she had found her pacifier. she reached for it, picked it up off the floor and put it in her mouth! just like a big girl! i mean seriously. doesn't need me for that anymore either! she just self-soothes now or what? her hand/eye coordination is amazing already.
i already blogged about her first experience with rice cereal. so, all that has happened this month too! and here's a pic of the first time with rice cereal. --------->
the little stinker has rolled over from front to back and back to front. she did this probably a month or so ago. but, if you're a mommy you know they may do this a couple times and then not do it for a while. they just forget about it. well, last week she started desparately trying to roll over again from back to front. and she did a couple times. i was so happy for her! thought i'd seen the most i'd see for a while, but no. she's still just been going to town with the rolling over! all over the place. just today she did it earlier and kept going and going and going. i would flip her back over because she was having trouble getting back onto her back and then she'd roll right back over to her front again! she's too funny!!!
she's been trying to sit up longer than she's been trying to roll over. i've had picture after picture of her trying to sit and actually sitting with a little help from the boppy. this past week, i worked with her a lot one day because she was just trying so hard to pull up and sit. so, i'd help her up and sit with her and let go (with supporting arms surrounding her, of course) and she actually started to learn to catch herself as she falls off balance to tilt one way or the other. she's starting to form that connection in her pretty little head! it's like i can see the wheels turning in her head as she's doing it. so, she should be sitting alone in no time at all!
annabelle's always been a very vocal baby (i wonder why). she loves to laugh out loud, make lots of babbles and squeal a lot!!!!!!! she loves to squeal! especially at the fan, the t.v. or myself when i'm being silly. yesterday i noticed her making a new sound with her mouth. she's figured out how to make the funny spit noise with her mouth. you know, the motorboat sound? it's hilarious! she'll just look at me and blow her lips together and it sounds like she's doing the motorboat. also, she does it with her tongue sticking out sometimes too! so adorable! so much fun!
she loves to dance with me! i was dancing in the living room the other day and i noticed she was starting to sway back and forth, so i picked her up and we danced together! forever! we had such a blast and she just laughed and laughed and couldn't get enough. at least i know she'll love to sing and dance just like me!!!
her smiles have gone beyond sweet, innocent smiley grins. they are now smirks or "haha mommy, look what i'm doing" with the raised eyebrow thing. just such grown up looks all the time and just looks at me like such a big girl. oh, and she loves to give all the men the fli
rty, eye-bat. she's too much!
she's been trying to sit up longer than she's been trying to roll over. i've had picture after picture of her trying to sit and actually sitting with a little help from the boppy. this past week, i worked with her a lot one day because she was just trying so hard to pull up and sit. so, i'd help her up and sit with her and let go (with supporting arms surrounding her, of course) and she actually started to learn to catch herself as she falls off balance to tilt one way or the other. she's starting to form that connection in her pretty little head! it's like i can see the wheels turning in her head as she's doing it. so, she should be sitting alone in no time at all!
annabelle's always been a very vocal baby (i wonder why). she loves to laugh out loud, make lots of babbles and squeal a lot!!!!!!! she loves to squeal! especially at the fan, the t.v. or myself when i'm being silly. yesterday i noticed her making a new sound with her mouth. she's figured out how to make the funny spit noise with her mouth. you know, the motorboat sound? it's hilarious! she'll just look at me and blow her lips together and it sounds like she's doing the motorboat. also, she does it with her tongue sticking out sometimes too! so adorable! so much fun!
she loves to dance with me! i was dancing in the living room the other day and i noticed she was starting to sway back and forth, so i picked her up and we danced together! forever! we had such a blast and she just laughed and laughed and couldn't get enough. at least i know she'll love to sing and dance just like me!!!
her smiles have gone beyond sweet, innocent smiley grins. they are now smirks or "haha mommy, look what i'm doing" with the raised eyebrow thing. just such grown up looks all the time and just looks at me like such a big girl. oh, and she loves to give all the men the fli
she's gotten so strong on her tummy and can hold herself up well! she also LOVES her exersaucer and is learning so much everyday. she just jumps all around in that thing! she is having a blast! --->
WHAT A MONTH IT HAS BEEN!!!!!!! can't wait to see what new, fun stuff she has in store for us next month. she'll be 5 months old next week and it seems like just yesterday she was a brand new baby that only slept, ate and cried. not anymore. she is forming the sweetest, most beautiful little personality. so proud of my little stinker!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
first food fun!
i've been so excited to start annabelle on rice cereal since her 4 month birthday! opie was away and i didn't want to feed her for the first time without him here, so i waited and waited all week for him to come home. and first thing yesterday morning we fed her! it was soooooooooooooo funny! hahahahahahaha!!! i was totally prepared for it to be a flop because a lot of babies don't take to it right away. well... not my chunky, hungry babe. she dove right in! of course she made this funny, weird face the whole entire time, but she just kept eating. it's like when something is so ugly you just can't look away. well, for her it was like the food was so odd and weird that she just couldn't stop eating it with that goofy look on her face. it was a success! and i fed her again today and she loves it. hopefully her little tummy will start to settle down now that she's eating the rice cereal too. the doctor seems to think her reflux will get better once she's eating cereal on a regular basis. she hasn't started any spoon grabbing yet, but is very receptive to the spoon and doesn't really try and spit the food out. sometimes her tongue will give that reflex and try to push it out, but then she sucks it back up. so cute! this is so much fun!!!
i video taped the whole process and it was quite entertaining! everytime i try and post a video to this site it won't upload. so, i guess everyone won't get to see it. i'll continue to try and post it when i have time.
i video taped the whole process and it was quite entertaining! everytime i try and post a video to this site it won't upload. so, i guess everyone won't get to see it. i'll continue to try and post it when i have time.
while daddy's away...
this past week was rough... to say the least. opie left us sunday night for the week and while he was gone i thought we were falling a part. well, i almost did. if it weren't for my mom and some good good friends, i probably would have had a nervous breakdown. i don't think you realize how much you lean on your better half until they are gone. i've had to do a couple days here adn there and a short week or two without him before, but this was harder and much more drawn out. annabelle is at an age now where she needs constant attention and i need more help.
my mom came up and played with us monday and tuesday and we had a blast! all week annabelle was ill again due to her teeth. she's still teething pretty seriously. it's sad. i took her for her 4 month check up on tuesday morning. dr. stewart says he can see several tooth buds and they are all just waiting to pop through! he said she was growing just great and he was very impressed that i was still breastfeeding and was happy that she has done so well with it. her weight and height were great and her head is growing just as it is supposed to. i have been SUPER hesitant about vaccinations. it's been so tough for me to want to poison her little body with all of the additives in the vaccines, but when it came down to it, i just decided to put her on an alternate shot schedule and the pediatrician has agreed to work with us on that. so, tuesday we only got one of her shots and the rotavirus oral vaccine. i will take her back in a few weeks to get the other shots.
on wednesday annabelle started acting weird. arching her back and neck a lot and then she would spit up violently. she's always been a spitter, but now it seemed to be causing her pain. after two days of this i finally took her into the doctor on friday. dr. stewart feels she has a severe case of acid reflux, so we have now started her on baby prevacid solutabs. poor baby. it breaks my heart. she will probably have to do this for about 4 months or so. he feels that the older she gets and the more she sits up on her own and the more solids we start to feed her that it will clear up; however, if we don't start treating the problem now, the acid could ruin her esophagus. i was warned early on that babies with spit up problems usually hit their peaks at 3 to 4 months and it's at its worst at that point. oh boy, they weren't lying!
recently annabelle has started to do a lot of fun things! she LOVES her new exersaucer!!!!!!!!! absolutely LOVES IT! she's hilarious when she's in it. looks like such a big girl! she's always been a smiley baby and a giggler, but lately all she does is laugh. it's so funny! you can't help but have a smile on your face when you look at her and she's smiling from ear to ear just because you look at her. and then she'll just laugh for no reason. and talking... man, she's a talker. but, i guess she is learning from "THE TALKER"! haha. poor child never stood a chance with me as her mother. i talk to her all day long... i'd love to be a fly on the wall in my house just to see our interactions all day long. haha. if someone were to see us talking all day long, they would think i'm a NUT! annabelle has also started to turn herself around a lot while she's laying down and if you walk behind her she turns around to follow you. I LOVE IT! she's finally learning about everything. it's so cute! while laying on her back she will turn herself all over the floor reaching for toys and she is babbling now more than she ever has!
so, this last week was rough. i don't see how single mom's do it! my hats are off to them. it's tough enough just being a stay-at-home mom, but when you're doing it all day and all night by yourself, you pretty much become a single mom. not having opie here at night when i need a break really did test my patience. but, i've realized how valuable he is as a father. he really is such a big help when he's here. it's sad when he's gone. i wouldn't trade him for the world. he is an amazing dad and a wonderful husband! just since he came back on friday night, annabelle has been a different baby. so happy and so funny! she loves her daddy. hopefully all this traveling ridiculousness will end one day soon. we're praying for a change.
my mom came up and played with us monday and tuesday and we had a blast! all week annabelle was ill again due to her teeth. she's still teething pretty seriously. it's sad. i took her for her 4 month check up on tuesday morning. dr. stewart says he can see several tooth buds and they are all just waiting to pop through! he said she was growing just great and he was very impressed that i was still breastfeeding and was happy that she has done so well with it. her weight and height were great and her head is growing just as it is supposed to. i have been SUPER hesitant about vaccinations. it's been so tough for me to want to poison her little body with all of the additives in the vaccines, but when it came down to it, i just decided to put her on an alternate shot schedule and the pediatrician has agreed to work with us on that. so, tuesday we only got one of her shots and the rotavirus oral vaccine. i will take her back in a few weeks to get the other shots.
on wednesday annabelle started acting weird. arching her back and neck a lot and then she would spit up violently. she's always been a spitter, but now it seemed to be causing her pain. after two days of this i finally took her into the doctor on friday. dr. stewart feels she has a severe case of acid reflux, so we have now started her on baby prevacid solutabs. poor baby. it breaks my heart. she will probably have to do this for about 4 months or so. he feels that the older she gets and the more she sits up on her own and the more solids we start to feed her that it will clear up; however, if we don't start treating the problem now, the acid could ruin her esophagus. i was warned early on that babies with spit up problems usually hit their peaks at 3 to 4 months and it's at its worst at that point. oh boy, they weren't lying!
recently annabelle has started to do a lot of fun things! she LOVES her new exersaucer!!!!!!!!! absolutely LOVES IT! she's hilarious when she's in it. looks like such a big girl! she's always been a smiley baby and a giggler, but lately all she does is laugh. it's so funny! you can't help but have a smile on your face when you look at her and she's smiling from ear to ear just because you look at her. and then she'll just laugh for no reason. and talking... man, she's a talker. but, i guess she is learning from "THE TALKER"! haha. poor child never stood a chance with me as her mother. i talk to her all day long... i'd love to be a fly on the wall in my house just to see our interactions all day long. haha. if someone were to see us talking all day long, they would think i'm a NUT! annabelle has also started to turn herself around a lot while she's laying down and if you walk behind her she turns around to follow you. I LOVE IT! she's finally learning about everything. it's so cute! while laying on her back she will turn herself all over the floor reaching for toys and she is babbling now more than she ever has!
so, this last week was rough. i don't see how single mom's do it! my hats are off to them. it's tough enough just being a stay-at-home mom, but when you're doing it all day and all night by yourself, you pretty much become a single mom. not having opie here at night when i need a break really did test my patience. but, i've realized how valuable he is as a father. he really is such a big help when he's here. it's sad when he's gone. i wouldn't trade him for the world. he is an amazing dad and a wonderful husband! just since he came back on friday night, annabelle has been a different baby. so happy and so funny! she loves her daddy. hopefully all this traveling ridiculousness will end one day soon. we're praying for a change.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
YOU GROW GIRL!
in a week, Annabelle will be 4 months old and she's growing so fast. we're about to hit the crazy months where things are changing every single day... sooooo excited!
a few updates on our nanner:
this past week Annabelle has been trying to pull herself upright from a lying down position. it's super cute. she's getting so frustrated everytime she tries because she's just not quite strong enough and not quite there yet. she looks like she's doing crunches. she tries to do it when she's hangin out in the boppy too. it's hilarious! the other day i decided to sit her on the floor and put the boppy securely around her waist and she sat up in that position for a very long time! so yay! shouldn't be long now and i'll have her sitting up all alone with no support from boppy, mommy or bumbo!
my mom thinks she is going to be a crazy soccer player or other sporty girl as soon as she is able to run. she has entirely too much energy and has to be moving or playing at all times... it's exhausting! and my mom says i should watch out because as soon as she's able to walk, she'll be running! the child NEVER EVER stops moving! it kinda wears me out! but, at the same time it makes me super happy to know her little brain is working so well and working overtime! she is a little over-indulgent. i mean i constantly catch her with two toys in her hands (one in her left and one in her right, just going to town shakin away) or one toy in her hands, but she has to have both hands, all 10 fingers and toes and her face smooshed up against the toy! she is quite a hoot!
she's getting a million times better with tummy time. she can hold herself up with her arms and she reaches for toys while on her belly.
ALSO... this morning she ALMOST rolled over from back to front! she hasn't tried from front to back because she doesn't prefer her stomach... but soon enough. she's been close to rolling over a few times recently, but this morning was the closest yet! i made sure to get it on camera at least. didn't have the video camera ready, but i did get it on camera. it's all happening so fast!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i have to have the video camera ready at all times from here on out. she's keeping me on my toes! it's crazy how excited i am about this... it's so sweet how much life changes when you become a mommy. it's so much stuff to capture and i love being home with her and being able to see it all happen first hand the minute it does. makes my heart smile :)
P.S. Today Opie and I pulled out the video of the first 5 minutes after she was born and her first bath in the baby nursery and i cried like a baby. she's already growing so fast... it's unreal! oh i'm so blessed!!!
a few updates on our nanner:
this past week Annabelle has been trying to pull herself upright from a lying down position. it's super cute. she's getting so frustrated everytime she tries because she's just not quite strong enough and not quite there yet. she looks like she's doing crunches. she tries to do it when she's hangin out in the boppy too. it's hilarious! the other day i decided to sit her on the floor and put the boppy securely around her waist and she sat up in that position for a very long time! so yay! shouldn't be long now and i'll have her sitting up all alone with no support from boppy, mommy or bumbo!
my mom thinks she is going to be a crazy soccer player or other sporty girl as soon as she is able to run. she has entirely too much energy and has to be moving or playing at all times... it's exhausting! and my mom says i should watch out because as soon as she's able to walk, she'll be running! the child NEVER EVER stops moving! it kinda wears me out! but, at the same time it makes me super happy to know her little brain is working so well and working overtime! she is a little over-indulgent. i mean i constantly catch her with two toys in her hands (one in her left and one in her right, just going to town shakin away) or one toy in her hands, but she has to have both hands, all 10 fingers and toes and her face smooshed up against the toy! she is quite a hoot!
she's getting a million times better with tummy time. she can hold herself up with her arms and she reaches for toys while on her belly.
ALSO... this morning she ALMOST rolled over from back to front! she hasn't tried from front to back because she doesn't prefer her stomach... but soon enough. she's been close to rolling over a few times recently, but this morning was the closest yet! i made sure to get it on camera at least. didn't have the video camera ready, but i did get it on camera. it's all happening so fast!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i have to have the video camera ready at all times from here on out. she's keeping me on my toes! it's crazy how excited i am about this... it's so sweet how much life changes when you become a mommy. it's so much stuff to capture and i love being home with her and being able to see it all happen first hand the minute it does. makes my heart smile :)
P.S. Today Opie and I pulled out the video of the first 5 minutes after she was born and her first bath in the baby nursery and i cried like a baby. she's already growing so fast... it's unreal! oh i'm so blessed!!!
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