So much in So Little Time

Well the past few days a lot has happened. Saturday we went to get our Family photo, Christmas and Winter photos. It was such a long long day too. Our appointment was at 11am and we didnt get in to get our pictures done until almost 2pm. Kaitlyn started to get tired towards the end of the photos but she did a fabulous job and smiled and laughed in every one! All of our pictures are posted in our Fuchs Family Shutterfly collection as well as many pictures from Thanksgiving and our visit to Michigan a couple weekends ago.
I dont think the pictures of us as a family came out too bad! The ones of Kaitlyn are amazing! She is so beautiful and I was so proud of her for posing and smiling and being so good even though she was tired!

Kaitlyn is getting even more independent than ever! She sits up like a pro now and has been for a couple weeks now. Since she started sitting for only a few seconds at 4 months to now where she can sit for minutes at a time playing with her toys. She sits on the couch and sits on the floor she sits anywhere. She really wants to get going too. She isn't the best at rolling around, but she can roll over. She doesnt put herself in a sitting position from laying down but she will get down on her belly from a sitting position and then roll to her back.

Kaitlyn is really trying so very hard to crawl. She will get down on her belly and pull her knees up and pull herself forward with her arms. She is very active and get so very frustrated when she cant get where she wants to be fast enough! I think it will be happening very soon she can not sit still at all! She wont lay still anymore after eating, she has to roll around the couch or sit up and play.

Kaitlyn also chooses which toy she wants to play with. She picks them up and changes hands with them and she knows which parts are the teething parts and everything. She is very smart. Today she was hanging toys on her feet.I kept giving them to her and she would toss them on the floor. I would pick them up and give them back... we did this over and over until I realized she only threw one on the floor so I gave it back again and when I looked at her she had the toys hanging off of her foot. I got a picture and of course I have to put it in here.
She's such a cutie!

Let's see what else is new... the foods Kaitlyn has eaten now are Apples, Pears, Bananas, Squash, Sweet Potatos and YoBaby Apples & Cereal. Next week we might try peas again or Carrots. We're still staying away from Peaches for now but perhaps soon we'll get back into those. Kaitlyn loves her foods now. She even cries when it's time to have some! We've even tried some mixed things and she likes them so far. She had some Apples, Pears and Bananas mixed and we have a jar of Apples and Cherries to try too soon!

Kaitlyn is getting very helpful with her bottle as well. She has been trying to hold it and was holding it for a bit with help but now she holds it for a few seconds by herself. I think the Dr Browns bottles are a little long and harder for her to keep up. They always seem to fall down while she is holding them. She's having fun practicing though!

I'm sure she'll get it in time. She really loves practicing all the things she is learning. I'm sure there are more things to come too!

First Thansgiving!

Kaitlyn had celebrated her first Thanksgiving at her Aunt Donna's house in Ronkonkoma, NY this year. Everyone was there, Mommy, Daddy, Kaitlyn, Grandma Lois, Aunt Michelle, Aunt Donna, Uncle Charlie, Cousin Nancy, Cousin Tom, Great Aunt Janet and Great Aunt Marilyn. Uncle Charlie and Aunt Donna's kitty Jack was there too of course! She had a great time visiting with everyone. She did get tired and had to nap but overall it wasnt too bad of a day for her. She isnt used to being around large groups of people yet so she got a bit overstimulated and was fussy, however, we all enjoyed the day very much.

Kaitlyn got to try a couple of new foods that day, she got a very tiny piece of turkey, a spot of mashed potatos and a tiny bit of turnips. She only really swallowed the piece of turkey and spit everything else back out but I'm hoping she got a taste of it anyway.

As for new foods we started Kaitlyn on some new foods! So far she has been eating Butternut Squash baby food and she really likes it. She also gets her fruit during the day too. Not to mention the fact that she is eating more solids now at each feeding. She is still only eating her 4 bottles a day which have dwindled down to only 4 or 5 ounces each but she is eating 4oz Stage 2 jars of baby food 2-3 times a day as well! She does puke a lot of it up but she is still eating it.

Once a week now I also give Kaitlyn some YoBaby yogurt. She has only had the Apple & Cereal flavor but she seems to like it. I don't give her much as I think she has a bit of a sensitivity to dairy but she seems to be able to handle a little bit once a week or so.

Our next goal is to try more veggies now so we can get her into eating more of a variety of foods.

The only other "new" thing is that we finally got Kaitlyn a sippy cup, which she loves to put up to her mouth and chew on. She loves that she can hold it and move it around but she hasnt quite figured out how to actually drink from it yet.

Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Longest Short Trip ever

Well Kaitlyn got to take her second trip to Michigan this past weekend. Overall it was a great trip and seeing Grandma and Grandpa was wonderful.

On Friday when Jon got home from work he took a little nap after dinner and we left that night right after Kaitlyn's last bottle and she slept the entire 10 hour drive there. We got to my moms (where we were staying) at 8am Saturday. Jon was tired from driving most of the way and took about an hour nap or so, I stayed up and fed Kaitlyn and visited with my mother for awhile. My mother went over and got Kaitlyn's cousins Derek and Kinsley and at 11:30 we went to JCPenny and got some Christmas photos of the three kids together. When we got back I got ready quick and we drove 45 mins to the other side of town to my Dad's birthday party. We had a great time at the party and we loved seeing Grandpa!! I probably had tears in my eyes the whole time because he looked so happy and he told me just having me there was the one thing he wanted most for his birthday! Jon kept trying to get Kaitlyn to take a nap at the party because all day she had not slept but maybe 10 mins here or there. She desperatly needed a nap. He tried everything, even taking her out to the car and she would not sleep. She was SOOOOO overly tired. Anyway, we left the party and drove another 45 mins back to my moms and Jon went to bed. I fed Kaitlyn her last bottle and tried everything to get her to go to sleep but since she was so overly tired she couldnt sleep. I was so incredibly tired myself since I hadn't slept since Thursday night. I thought maybe if I took Kaitlyn in the bedroom in the dark and rocked her she would fall asleep. She DID! I was so happy, I went to put her down in the Pack N Play (not hers - one my mom put up for her) and she laid there for about 5 mins and woke up screaming. We went through this about 5 times before I finally decided since she was sleeping just fine in my arms that I would just leave her there and let her sleep with us in the bed. So her and I got a few hours of sleep after all that trying to get her to sleep. I think she just didnt like the pack n play because she wasnt used to it or something. I was extremely grateful about my mother being so nice as to let Jon and I have the bed and she and her hubby slept in the living room. It was great, after driving so long, to have a comfortable place to sleep!!

So we got up Sunday morning (I got up at 6:30 and woke Jon at 730), my mom made us breakfast (Thank God hahaha she makes good food!), we visited for a bit and we left at 8am just after Kaitlyn's first bottle. She did really well in the car on the way home until we got to New Jersey (I HATE THE GEORGE WASHINGTON BRIDGE!!!!). She was so sick of sitting in her seat so I did the worst thing ever and while caught in traffic at the GW Bridge I took her out of her seat and let her look around and stuff... She was crying and fussy by then and who wouldnt be after being in the car seat for 12 hours?? We finally got home at 9pm and when she went to bed I could see how happy she was to be in her bassinet!! Hahaha

Anyway, it was a good trip besides all the driving and Kaitlyn is finally getting back to herself.

Besides the trip, Kaitlyn tasted mashed potato for the first time Monday night and gagged on them. We also picked up some YoBaby yogurt and she seems to like it. We got the Apples and Cereal kind and she ate it. It seems to be a little thin for her but at least she likes it. I'm only going to give her one or two a month for now while she is still young. We picked up more fruit for her and we also got her a couple of mixed jars too. They have Apples, Bananas and Pears in one and Apples and Cherries in the other. We'll see how she does with them after we give the yogurt a few days. She also tried Butternut Squash yesterday too which she didnt seem to gag on but she was crying while eating it. We'll try that again a little later today and see how it goes.

Oh my mother also got Kaitlyn some beautiful clothes! I havent decided which outfit she is going to wear for Thanksgiving but it's a toss up between two of them! They're adorable. She got her some larger ones too that I cant wait til she fits into. She got her a really cute Christmas dress too that hopefully she will fit into by the time Christmas comes and when we go home to Michigan again in a few weeks. It's a 6-9 months so it will probably be big but hopefully she can wear it.

We're going Saturday to get Kaitlyn's Christmas/Winter pictures done too. I cant wait to see how beautiful she will be in her little outfits. We're going to get a family picture done too, which will be our first one since she was born. Then later in December we're going to take Kaitlyn to get her first picture at the Mall with Santa!

Well I've got laundry to do if Kaitlyn is going to wear one of these outfits tomorrow for Thanksgiving. Tomorrow should be an exciting day!

Damn Those Shots!

Well Monday Kaitlyn had her shots and Tuesday she had a 102 fever and was miserable all day. She was crying and crying and crying and just felt horrible. She slept a lot and she was puking and just having a rough day... poor girl.

Tuesday and Wednesday weren't terrible, actually besides all the puking, but today is a whole other story. She has been miserable just about since she woke up. She's been crying and fussy all day and she was up about 5 times last night screaming and I had to get her back to sleep. I hate how she does that... she must get so freaked out... I know I would if I kept getting woken up by something causing me to scream and cry. I wish I could stop it for her. She's been doing it all day today while napping too. Her reflux is bad today, she's been coughing and choking and spitting up and puking from the time the bottle is done and leaves her mouth until she either falls asleep or eats again. Although she is still refluxing in her sleep because she gets woken up by it and chokes and coughs and starts to cry.

It's really terrible that this poor tiny defenseless girl has to deal with this everyday of her life. I hate it for her... I hate it for me... I hate it for all the babies!

5 Months Old Now

We went to see the Pediatrician today who says Kaitlyn looks wonderful and healthy. She was a whopping 14lbs 13oz and 24 1/4" tall. Kaitlyn even thought it was funny when she farted at the Doctor while she was examining her! The Doctor also complimented me on how well I am doing as a parent. She said I have come a long way especially when having to deal with a baby with reflux. As far as Kaitlyn's reflux goes, she is doing very well... the Pediatric GI Dr increased her dosage of Zantac to 1mL 3x's a day now and since she did Kaitlyn hasn't needed Maalox much at all and has really only been whiney because of her teeth. She got two shots today too so I'm sure she will be crabby and have a fever for the next couple days. Thats ok though... thats what they make Tylenol for!

The Dr also said since Kaitlyn doesn't like the baby food veggies that we can start to let her taste whatever we're eating!! If we have veggies, we can smoosh 'em up and let her taste it. She said we can let her try anything we want... even meats. Of course they have to be chopped very very tiny but she said even just to get it in her mouth so she gets the taste is great. She gets to try a sippy cup soon too!! She's getting so big I can't believe it. I think it's time to put her in her highchair finally... still looking for a place to put the darn thing though! Hahahaha

I think we're going to take a big step too and put Kaitlyn to bed at night in her big girl crib. I think 5 months of sleeping in her bassinet next to mommy is long enough. It just means when she wakes up screaming, mommy's gotta run up the stairs to get her!! Oh well, I need the work out! She hasnt been waking up much lately so I think she'll be just fine! I think I'm the one that will miss her being there most!! hahahahaha Yeah mommy has some attachment issues but how could I not be attached to someone so amazing and beautiful?? I'm sure I'll be writing about how thats going down the road but we'll see how it goes.

Coming up this month Kaitlyn has 2 trips to go on!! This coming weekend, November 18th is Grandpa's 70th birthday so we're taking a trip home only for one day to see him for his birthday and we're going to see Grandma Debbie too. It's going to be so nice to see them and they can see how much Kaitlyn has grown. We're also going to be taking a trip again to Michigan in Dec to see Grandma Debbie for her birthday too! While we are there we are going to get together with Great Aunt Sheri and Uncle Glenn and Cousin Lindsey to have dinner and celebrate Christmas. We're very excited about that and can't wait to see everyone!!

We're going to take Kaitlyn to get her Christmas photo's done and a family photo. YAY! My very first family photo! It's just too bad we can't get the kitties in the picture with us... I'll have to put them in it with a picture editor!! hahahahaha

Well I'll add a picture of Kaitlyn in her Christmas dress when we go get the photos done. That's all for now!

Mastered a New Trick

Well Kaitlyn has been doing raspberries since the one she did out of the blue earlier. She had no prompting today at all other than the past week or so we've been doing it to her to try to get her to do it. She didnt seem to have any interest in it... then out of no where tonight she does it and she has been doing it all night long!!! She's got it just about mastered!

Kaitlyn continues to amaze me with how she seems to instantly start doing things. I just love it... she made me so incredibily happy tonight by doing this. I cant help but laugh when she does it because it is so cute!! I'm so glad I got video of her doing it!!

Well... now on to the next thing... "saaaaaaaaay Mmmma mmmma!!!!" :)

Raspberries

Today Kaitlyn finally tried doing a "raspberry" today!! She was doing her favorite things as of late and flipping out of her boppy pillow and laying face down in the couch. She ended up on the couch right side up and she was ptttttttth-ing while laying there. I have been trying to get her to do it for about a week now. She just now started to try it!! I hope she can get it, it's so cute when she does the things I teach her!! Like her screeching!! hahahaha it's great!!

Now she is standing on Daddy's lap and screeching in his face. She's so beautiful!!

Ok I'm off to play!

Things I've Noticed...

There are things I have noticed about Kaitlyn and her growth that I'm not sure I have mentioned here. I just want to make sure I take the time to write them down.

For the past few weeks or so Kaitlyn has been doing so well eating. Even trying her hardest to help hold her bottle and feed herself. Although most of the time she is ripping the bottle out of her mouth and making a mess of her face.... she is still trying!! Most of her bottles are 6 ounces now and she gets about 24 ounces total a day. There are a few days here and there that she only eats 20 ounces but still most of them are 24 ounce days. She also loves her fruit, Bananas, Apples and Pears being her most favorite. She has been eating about 2 full Stage 1 jars of fruit twice a day. We're actually going to start buying the Stage 2 jars since she is wanting to eat more and it is more quantity for about the same amount of money as the Stage 1 jars!!

We recently found out that we may be able to get some help with Kaitlyn's formula through our health insurance company. We're working with the Pediatrician now to get it all worked out so they can help us pay for it. It's so very expensive... we figured it to be about $50 a week just for her formula. That doesn't include the cereal and baby food she is eating as well... so she's a bit of an expensive kid but worth every penny and more!!

Kaitlyn has been able to spend more and more time on her back and tummy lately and I'm grateful! She's really learning to roll over quite well and she's trying so very hard to get moving!! I got some wonderful video of her playing with her "soft" books and of her trying to crawl!! She's working on it and getting there but she does have a lot of fun playing with her toys on the blanket! She's really getting mobile even though she isn't crawling! I can put her on the floor and go do dishes and turn around a couple minutes later only to see her 3 feet from where she was!! She's a very good inch-wormer! hahahaha Today she was even laying on her tummy with her small monkey pillow under her chest and she push that along under her as she moved on the blanket. She probably moved better with it since it's a soft satin-like nylon material!! She never stays put, even in her boppy on the couch... she used to lay in it or sit up and play with her toys but now she goes rolling out of it, ends up laying across it sideways and practically flips over on her belly in it. It's great!! She's getting so big so fast!

She's very chatty as well, not really saying anything in particular but trying to get the constants sounds now. She loves to make this growling-like throaty sound and her and I do it back and forth to each other all day. She loves to screech and squeal and giggle. I even MADE her laugh outloud at me yesterday! Sometimes she will just giggle on her own at things but I was playing with her and she looked right at me and laughed out loud! It was great and it made me feel all gooey inside!

I've noticed too that Kaitlyn is very into touching things now and feeling new textures. I went and got some toys for her from a lady I know with kids and a few of them are soft blocks with texture on them and she likes to feel them. She feels my pants, the pillows on the couch, the blankets and our shirts. She just puts her little hand on things and slides it up and down and scratches her nails on it and is really trying to learn about the world around her. It's amazing to watch her grow into this little person.

Well she just woke up from her nap and is screeching in the monitor, I guess she wants out! It's time for some fruit anyway!!

She's almost 5 months now so that big update will be coming up soon!! I'm going to look into Baby proofing materials and getting out the instructions for the baby gate for the top of the stairs!!

Miles of Stones

Well it seems everyday Kaitlyn is getting bigger and getting better at everything she does. Lately Kaitlyn has spent more time on her back and belly and she is working on mastering rolling over from front to back and she also pulls her knees up under her. She really wants to get going and gets frustrated when she can't. It's so cute to watch her as she figures out what she can and can't do. She has so much fun lately playing with her "soft books" on the floor. She has a set of Sesame Street books that each make a noise and we also got her a "My Kitty" soft book which she LOVES to chew on.

Kaitlyn is GREAT at night, when it's bed time she goes in her bassinet and she will play for a few minutes with her baby doll, who we call "Baby" and then she will go to sleep on her own. She wakes up and doesnt cry either, she is all smiley and when she sees me come to get her she kicks her legs and flings her arms. She even did VERY well with her nap yesterday. She went to sleep in her crib and woke up a couple times but fell back asleep and had a good 2 hour nap in her crib. I was so proud of her! She's really getting to be a big girl.

Kaitlyn has been feeling a lot better lately. The increased Zantac seems to be helping a lot. She has only needed to get Maalox one time since we started the bigger dose. She gets it three times a day and it seems to cover her all day now. She's still spitting up but not in pain when it happens so thats a good thing. Her rash is completely cleared up and she is a happy little baby again!! She's been eating 20-24 ounces of formula a day still and eating 2 whole jars of fruit!! Sometimes she wants more than that too but we dont want to push it. If she starts getting more she starts throwing up the food. She loves her fruit though!

We did try to do veggies and she continues to gag and puke on them and spit them out. We're going to give that a break for awhile and concentrate on the fruits for now since she enjoys them so much. Kaitlyn even lets me know when it's time for fruit. She cries at about 11am and 7pm and thats "food from a spoon" time!! :) She's so much fun and she loves to eat like mommy and daddy. She's very interested in what we are doing.

She's been teething a LOT lately too. It's a pain because sometimes it makes her reflux worse and she is cranky a lot too. Sometimes I wish she would just get the teeth already to give her a break. If it's not puke or spit up or pain from reflux it's teething pain. I wish for her to have just a normal happy day as a baby. She's getting there though. She's a lot happier these days and a lot more happy than she is cranky so thats a relief!

She still loves to grab her foot... I say foot because she really only sits there with the left foot in her left hand. She doesn't do anything with her foot, just sits there holding it. Ah well, I'm happy she is discovering her parts! :) Although I've noticed one of her favorite "toys" is my hand. She loves to look at me open and close it and he loves to hold it and move my fingers around and chew on them.

On Nov 18th, which is Grandpa's 70th birthday, we're leaving to take another trip to Michigan. We're only going for the day to have lunch with Grandma Debbie and then have a Birthday dinner with Grandpa. It's going to be a long weekend but it will be great to see my dad and for Kaitlyn to get to see Grandma and Grandpa again.

I Can Touch my Toes!!

Well we figured out that Kaitlyn had to have had some kind of virus for the last two weeks. The Dr's think it might have been Fifths Disease or something but they dont know. That is where the rash, extra reflux and puking and miserableness came from. Kaitlyn is feeling better and her rash is pretty much gone. She has a couple dry spots on her cheeks but hopefully they will go away soon. Her puking has subsided a bit so thats good for her and us!!

Kaitlyn went to see the Pediatric Gastroenterologist (Dr. Hample) yesterday and she increased her Zantac to 1mL THREE times a day now to see if that helps in giving her all day coverage. It seems we were using the Maalox more throughout the day between doses so hopefully this will help some. They also weighed Kaitlyn there and she was 14lbs!!! She's getting so big now!

Kaitlyn tried carrots for the first time last night and didnt like them all that much. She kept gagging on them and spitting them out but she ate 3/4 of a jar after awhile. She also ate half of a jar of pears too which she REALLY liked! So far I will have to say that Apples, Pears and Bananas are her favorite. I think thats just because they are smoother and sweeter and easier to get down... although they do taste yummy!! :) hehehe

The other thing Kaitlyn has started doing is sitting herself up now and grabbing on to her feet. She knew her feet were there before but never really bothered with them, now she sits up and holds them or falls back and holds on to them!! :) It's so cute to watch her. She did this for the first time last night and it was neat... now I just hope she doesnt start chewing on them!! hahahaha

Kaitlyn has been teething something fierce too!! She's drooling like a faucet and sometimes her teeth/gums are bothering her so much she is a little "fusser butt." She's starting to get a little bumpy rash on her chin from all the drool. She chews on her fingers so much that she makes them all red. We try to give her toys and she will chew on them for a minute or two and then it's right back to her hands... they are the perfect size I guess. I just wish she could get all of her teeth at once, all this teething stuff does is make her miserable and make her reflux act up.

It just amazes me that she seems to do things and discover things overnight. Like playing with toys or her feet or anything... one day she does nothing but stare at things and the next she is playing with them like she has been doing it for weeks. I just love how smart she is... now I'm just waiting for her to say Mama or Dada!! Everyday we sing the alphabet a few times and I say Mama and Dada over and over and try to get her to say it. I'm sure THAT will happen overnight too... one day she will just come out with Mama! I think I might just cry! :)

Awake for 2 hours and it happens

Well Kaitlyn and I got up this morning at about 7 after a long night of her waking up constantly in discomfort. She hasnt been sleeping well in a few days now... which is making her and I both crabby, since I get up with her everytime through the night.

Anyway, I fed her this morning at about 7:15 and at about 9:15 or so she projectile vomitted all over her, me, her boppy pillow and the futon. It was pretty much most of her morning bottle.

I spoke to the Ped. GI's office yesterday and we have an appointment now for this coming Monday (Halloween) to see them. They told us to continue giving Kaitlyn the Zantac 1mL twice a day which I started back up last night. She spent the entire night scrunching up her tummy and grunting and screaming because she was not feeling well and obviously her tummy hurt! This is what she did every time she woke up last night too and once I did hear her get some gas out. Anyway, I gave her the Zantac this morning too and then this happens.

I wish I knew why all of a sudden Kaitlyn is 10 times worse than she was and she is seemingly continuing to get worse. I guess we'll see how things go til Monday and then we'll see what the Ped GI has to say about possibly different medications and maybe adding a motility medication to help her tummy with emptying.

Until the next thing...

Tootsie Roll

So today I decided to give Kaitlyn some tummy time since she doesnt get it really. She seems to be feeling ok so far today too.

Well she JUST rolled over from her tummy to her back on the right side!!! YAY!!! WOOOHOOOOO!!! This is probably the 3rd time she has spent any time on her belly and the first time on a flat surface!! I'm so happy for her!! After she rolled I wanted to see if she could do it again and I put her back on her belly. One of her rings was on the blanket about a foot ahead of her and she really wanted it. Well while I was writing this she decided to go get it... she scrunched up her knees under her belly and pushed her belly up and did a little "inch worm" thing a few times til she got to her ring!!!

YAY! What a big girl she is!! She only spit up a little bit so far on her blanket so no biggie.

Well I'll be sure to write if anything more happens!!

What a week...

Well the last week has been hell to say the least! Kaitlyn developed a rash on her cheeks, started puking a lot and her reflux was at an all time high. She has been miserable and screaming for about 85% of her waking hours and screaming while eating and like I said miserable.

At first I thought Kaitlyn was allergic to the peaches we gave her last week because thats when the rash and reflux upset started. We went to the Dr on Thursday and she upped her Zantac dose and gave me some Cetophil lotion to put on her cheeks. When I put the lotion on Friday Kaitlyn screamed because it hurt... I looked at the bottle and it has alcohol in it!! I can only imagine that was like lemon juice on a paper cut!! Anyway, since we gave her the higher dose of Zantac her rash got worse and ugly (*see pic - both cheeks look like that) and she was throwing up even more! Jon and I decided it might be better to NOT give her the Zantac and go see the Dr. So yesterday she got NO Zantac and has yet to have any today either and so far this morning she has spit up a few times (it was clear gooey liquid with curdled formula in it) and so far she hasnt this afternoon. Yesterday she had a few reflux episodes and screamed during them but she didnt spend the entire day screaming which was a relief for me! We just treated them with some Maalox and helped her get through them.

We went this morning to see the Dr again and she wants us to put her back on the 1mL of Zantac instead of the higher dose of 1.4mL to see if that works she also says the rash getting like that might just be coincidental and that if it was a reaction she would have a rash all over her face and body and not limited to the cheeks. I'm skeptical myself and I will talk to Jon later when he gets home to see what he thinks. If he wants to start her back on it then we will do it this evening. The Dr also wants us to go back to the Pediatric Gastroenterologist again because this is all still such a battle for Kaitlyn and she is still in pain after 4 months. She said the only thing more she can do is suggest Neocate (Prescription) Formula so she wants us to see the GI, which I'm happy about because I think I'd like to see about getting Kaitlyn on a different medicine. Maybe we could try Prevacid now that she is bigger and can eat off a spoon.

I'm waiting on the GI Dr to call me back now and to set up an appointment and I guess we'll see where things go from here.

Sometimes I wish we could just go back to the beginning and start all over again...

Baby Sitting

This morning has been quite the pukey morning so far. Kaitlyn doesnt seem to be in much pain from it so I'm ok with it. That just means we use more bibs and burp cloths today and change clothes a few times. She's already in the second outfit and she's only been up a couple hours.

She's napping right now and I'm so pleased that she has started to take naps... kind of. She still doesnt take good long naps like she needs too although she is getting better. Yesterday she took a few little cat naps here and there but she must have been really tired by late afternoon or evening because she fell asleep and I put her in her crib and she slept about 2 hours in there. Well... she wakes up about 5 times while she is sleeping because her pacifier falls out and she cries because she wants it. If I'm able to get to her fast enough she will go right back to sleep - if not she's either up or I have to get her to fall back asleep. She is getting much better than when she was a newborn... she didnt nap at all then!

Kaitlyn is becoming a regular little sitter! No matter where she is now she tries to sit and loves to sit. I think she is sick of laying around. She can sit supported almost perfectly now... no problems at all. She can even sit unsupported for a few seconds before she tips to the side. She is getting there though and I think thats one reason her reflux is acting up. She is trying so hard to sit and using her tummy muscles that it's causing her to throw up. Once she gets it mastered and she doesnt even know she is using her tummy muscles to sit she might not puke as much. Well, a mom can hope right?

Anyway, I know she loves new things and loves doing them when she realizes she can! Just like with her Exersaucer, the first day we put her in it she wasnt quite sure of it and then the next day she played with the toys a bit and now, she's a mad woman in there banging on things, spinning things, standing up, turning herself (the seat) around and loving every minute of it. Right now she can play for about 15 or 20 mins alone in there and be happy. Although it might be longer if she werent puking all over herself while doing it. She still has fun though! Mommy has it all set up to cover her clothes and the seat cover so she doesnt get puke on them and so far it works pretty well.

Kaitlyn tried Peaches for the first time yesterday and so did I... they're actually very strong tasting and she made a funny face too when she ate them. She didnt like them at first, she was gagging on them and stuff but after a few bites or so she started to get used to the taste. She will be getting some Peaches this morning too soon so we'll see how that goes!

For now we just try to enjoy the rest of this chilly windy day and try not to puke so much anymore!!

I Have Holes in my Lobes

Well we took Kaitlyn to get her ears pierced today and they look wonderful!! She did such a good job too getting them done. She cried for about a minute and then started people watching like she does. She was great!!

Now she is teething something fierce tonight!! She had a red bump on her gum and I think there is a tooth in her nearer future! Poor thing is very uncomfortable!! Well back to soothing her!

4 Months... My Big Girl.

Well today is October 13th and Kaitlyn is now 4 months old. She's getting so big and so much more independant!!! She had her Dr appointment today and she weighed 13lbs 9oz and was 24" long (2 whole feet tall!) She only gained 1 pound in a month which is low but she is staying at her own little growth curve and thats a good thing. So we're not so worried about all that anymore. I'm really tired of worrying and fighting with her about eating. She wins! I will feed her only what she will eat... it's all I can do. On a good note she is eating more! Actually an amazing amount! First of all for her size, age and weight and all that she should be eating about 33 ounces a day to gain weight like she needs to. She was eating 12-15 ounces for a very long time and about month ago she started eating 16 ounces steadily. Then more recently she has wanted to eat more and more so she was getting 18 ounces a day and sometimes 20. Although sometimes she was still acting hungry and since yesterday she has started eating just about 24 ounces a day! We're doing four 6 ounce bottles a day and so far she is doing great. We did realize that keeping the cereal to formula ratio the same in the larger bottle made her puke. So I lessened the cereal in her formula and she seems to be doing a lot better with the 6 oz bottles at each feeding. She also started eating some solids about a week or so ago off and on... on the days her reflux is bad we tend to stick to bottles to make it easier on her tummy. Soon she will be eating more of them too but she sure does love Apples!! :)

Her reflux is still hard but we have learned and realized that it is simply part of life now and that no matter what she is going to puke and we are going to clean it up, she is going to be in pain sometimes and we just deal with it. She is still on her Zantac and seems to be doing well right now. I have a GERDling and she will be, we cant sit around waiting for it to go away and hoping that it does and then keep gettin stressed out and upset when it doesnt. Life is too short to be stressed out about puke all the time! :)

She has been teething for awhile but lately it has gotten worse... or at least it seems to be bothering her more. She chews on everything and she screams and growls at things. Although I encourage it so it's no big deal!! I love to hear her talk so much and make all the noise she is making. Her vocabulary is really coming along great! Hehehehe

Her favorite things right now are Mommy singing the ABC's song to her, Mommy doing Itsy Bitsy Spider with her, Daddy doing his own Cheeky, Nose, Chin game with her and her Baby Einstein DVD's. She just cracks up and laughs and smiles at all of them. SHe also has recently started actually playing with her toys. She bangs them around and grabs them now and pulls on them and chews on them. It seems like these things just happen one day... there is no gradual thing about it... one day she isnt touching them at all, the next day she punches them and chews on them and loves them!!! It's amazing! She also just started going in her Exersaucer and so far she likes it but she still needs some encouraging to play with the toys.

Well I think that about covers all of the news with the baby... She's getting so big so fast now it seems... soon she will be crawling and sitting and then walking and talking!!

Puke, Puke and More Puke

Well the last three days have been pretty rough for all of us. Kaitlyn has been puking and spitting up all day for three days and she has had a low fever for the past three days too. I think the fever is due to her teething which seems to have become worse. She sounds like she might have a cold or something because her nose is stuffy and she sounds congested. It's just so hard to tell since sometimes she just sounds like that from the reflux. Anyway, I just hope she is feeling better soon, I hate when my baby is sick or not feeling well. The good thing is that most of the time when she pukes she isnt in pain lately. The Zantac mustbe doing it's job for the most part which makes me happy!

Just a side note: Jon and I went and traded in our car for something bigger. We figured since we have the baby and lug all of her stuff around and with us when we go to Michigan that we should get something larger. We bought a 2004 Santa Fe, it is pre-owned but it's in perfect condition. It's beautiful and has sattellite radio in it and lots of options. It's nice, we really like it and the ride is great too. It has lots of room and we will have no problems getting stuff to Michigan when we go next. It will also give us plenty of room as a family when/if we have another baby. This way we wont have to go looking for another car when that time comes.

Well Kaitlyn's 4 month appointment is on Thursday so we'll see how much she has grown in the past month... it sure feels like a lot!! :)

Hand - Eye

Well for the last two days I wake up to Kaitlyn rubbing her eyes with her little fists! It's soooooooooooooo adorable! She has tried to do it before and once in a while would get one hand somewhere near her eye but she has got it down good. She even does it when she is tired and it is amazingly cute! I just cant believe how beautiful she is and how much she can do now. I remember holding her limp little body just a few months ago. She's growing so fast now!

She's still doing very well with her Apples and we are going to go a few more days with the Apples before trying anything else. I think we might try carrots next and see if she likes that. I havent decided. She did great again today too, she was opening her mouth and chasing the spoon because she likes them so much!

She loves playing with Daddy too... they play "Cheekie, Chin, Nose" and she laughs and smiles and tries to bite his hands when he gets them. She's so much fun!! :)

Toys, Eggs and Apples

Well... I'm in awe at my own child! So much has happened in the last few days! Kaitlyn's hand-eye coordination has gotten sooooooooo much better! She's grabbing things and putting them in her mouth like a pro! Up until Friday 9/30/05 Kaitlyn really hadn't played with the toys on her little rocker seat. I hardly ever put them on there because she never attempted to get them. On Friday for some reason I got the urge to put the toy bar on and I wasn't really paying all that much attention to her and all of a sudden I heard the toys banging against each other and banging on the bar. I was shocked to see her playing with them. She was grabbing them, trying to eat them, banging them with her hands and just having a good time. She even pulled the little cows "handle" and made the music play a few times. She was there playing with them for about 10 to 15 mins! It was great to see such progress!

Then this weekend she was sitting in her carseat where she has a few toys hanging from the handle and until this weekend she had never touched or even tried to grab at them either. She plays with them almost constantly now!! I LOVE IT!

So speaking of this weekend, we went upstate to attend the Baby Harvest put on by Albany IVF Fertility Clinic. Each year they hold a "Baby Harvest" in October for all of the families that had given birth after successful fertility treatments. It was wonderful to see all of the little miracles there. Every one of them there was so special in their own way and each family there was so grateful for all of the staff at the fertility clinic. Radio Disney was there and they had door prizes and Costume contests too. Jon had decided to get me to make Kaitlyn a costume and so I did. On Saturday at the hotel I sat and made Kaitlyn's costume. We figured since we were going to a Fertility clinic get-together we would dress her up appropriately... she was dressed up as an Embryo! She kinda looked like a Potato but one of the Dr's there was able to figure her right out! hehehe It was so much fun and we ended up winning one of the door prizes from Gymboree and then Kaitlyn won Most Creative Costume and got a Build-A-Bear gift. We had a great weekend and Kaitlyn's reflux was on a low, thank God! hehehehe Oh and Kaitlyn's shoes were a HUGE hit, everyone we passed was commenting on them! The photographer there was in love with Kaitlyn too she kept taking pictures of all every chance she got. I guess we have a cute kid! hehehe

Today the reflux has been on a rampage but she has been amazing and handling it so well. She has been puking all day, not even spitting up but I mean puking and has had minimal crying as compared to other days! I'm so proud of her!!

We have also hit a HUGE milestone... since Kaitlyn is almost 4 months old we wanted to see how she would react to solids. We tried some cereal last week one day and she screamed when we put it in her mouth and made this horrible face and just cried and cried and hated it. I decided not to give up as a mommy and I just picked up one jar of Apples to see if maybe she is just sick of cereal, since she gets it in her bottles everyday. Well this evening before her bottle I got out the jar and gave her some. At first she was confused because she wasnt sure on the texture but she closed her mouth once and swallowed and there was no crying, no nothing.... she liked it! As a matter of fact, I gave her about 10 little spoonfuls and by the end of it she was opening her mouth wanting more!!! YAY!!! I'm so happy! She's eating solids!!!! She is such a big girl! Looks like it's time to get out the highchair soon!!! Wooohooooo!!! Awww my little girl is growing up already!! :)

I Scream, You Scream, We All Need to Stop Screaming!

Kaitlyn hasnt been doing well since this last "cycle", as I call it, has come around. She is screaming almost constantly while awake and during feedings and even wakes up periodically during the night screaming. It seems like she is either having a nightmare or some reflux and it's waking her up. I have to help her back to sleep, which usually doesnt take too long but still... Her screaming when tired has gotten worse too, I kinda get the feeling like she is afraid to go to sleep or something. I dont mean she gets fussy when she is tired I mean she SCREAMS and screams until her little face turns beet red.

It doesnt help that Mommy has insomnia and can't sleep at all. Here I am at almost 3am wide awake. I guess I'm going to be taking a nap with her tomorrow morning.

If she is still screaming tomorrow like she has been, I'm going to call the Dr and see if there is something else we can do for her because it's horrible for her to spend majority of her waking hours screaming. She has a few happy moments during the day but they are usually ruined with puke, spit up or just pain in general. Sometimes she will smile and cry at the same time because she isnt sure what emotion she wants to or needs to show. It's sad sometimes 'cause I know she is happy but she is hurting!!

This morning, well Monday morning, Kaitlyn just had a plain old bad morning. She ate and I burped her and sat her up like we always do and then she shot puke all over the pillow she was laying on and my shorts and my leg. She managed to shoot it far enough that only a couple drops got on her PJ's! She puked a few more times today and we had to change her anyway, but still.

I don't like when my baby is hurting... Reflux Sux!