Give Me the Finger?

Well not too much to update about since Kaitlyn is just practicing walking and standing and bending and kneeling (from standing). She's got it and is VERY good at it too. She stands for a couple seconds unassisted but then falls because she tenses up her body when she realizes she isnt holding on to something. She can walk using only one hand to hold on now but is too afraid to do it if we hold one of her hands... it's ok if she is holding on to toys or chairs to walk while holding on with one hand. She's REALLY good at walking all over with her push toy and actually using anything she can move AS a push toy... like her highchair, the folding chair, anything.

She has also become my little "Shakah Shakah" baby... she grabs on to things with two hands (or one) and shakes as hard as she can... and let me tell you, it's HARD! She shakes stuff off my laptop table all the time and she bangs the hanging lamp down at Grandma's too! She also shakes all of her toys (i.e. the activity table) and slides them around the floor.

Kaitlyn has found her finger! Hahaha I know sounds funny but what I mean is, she found out that she can touch things with one finger. She goes around now touching EVERYthing with her index finger! She finds buttons on things now and sticks her one finger in the memory card slots and in the vcr. When she did it before she was finding the holes with her hand and getting some fingers in. Now she purposely puts them in and pushes buttons.

The last few days or week Kaitlyn has been miserable... I dont know if it's her reflux acting up but she screams about 50% of the day - sleeps 40% and the other 10% she MIGHT smile or play with her toys. I have no idea what she is screaming and crying about... I have tried everything and she just stands there SCREAMING. I pick her up but then she screams in my ear and I have to put her down. Nothing comforts her... I'm actually at my wits end here and I feel like having a drink! I wish I knew why she was screaming... I dont know if she is hurting or it's frustration about not being able to walk or do something... but she can get around anywhere she wants by walking or crawling so I just dont get it. She still doesnt have any teeth so it could be that but it's weighing on my last nerve and this time needs to go by and she needs to stop the screaming!

Kaitlyn has finally started to babble now... when she isn't screaming she is almost constantly "talking" and making some constant sounds as well. She actually did say "Ma" once but no Mama came of it... I'm still waiting! I think she will be talking soon enough. She's got more important Gross motor skills to work on, I guess! She also has begun testing her vocals and how low and high her voice can go. Grandma Lois jokes and calls her "Madison" from the movie Splash because she squeals so high sometimes when she is doing it. She, of course, loves to squeal too. She's still doing her raspberries as well and she loves them! She will now fart and then make a raspberry and smile or laugh... she sure knows what sounds her farts make!!

Well when I get back from going insane from screaming, I'll update more!

Gamer Girl or Dare Devilette

So Kaitlyn's favorite thing to do lately is get into ALL of Daddy's video game systems that are in the entertainment center. Jon had to give Kaitlyn her own controller so that she would leave his alone while he plays games. She really just chews on it but it keeps her occupied for a bit at least. She spends a lot of time sticking her fingers in the memory card slots and in the vcr, trying to explore everything in the Entertainment center. She also is very good at opening the drawers that have all of the video game controllers and accessories in them.

I really let her do it until she is going to hurt herself or break something. I figure if I let her play with the things now she wont be too interested in them later on and I wont be digging cookies out of the Playstation or the VCR. I'm hoping she will get her fill of these things now and will stop chewing on them sooner or later! For now, our little explorer can have her adventures.

She just better give me a cut if she finds any gold or diamonds or anything worth money! Hahaha

Ohhhhhhh yeah I forgot to mention Kaitlyn is getting brave too, we were watching tv the other night and she was playing with her "push toy" and was pushing it around the living room. She managed to push it across the room and then walked around to the front of it and was pushing it backwards. She ended up getting it pushed up against the entertainment center. Since she keeps taking off the little doors on the front of it, she had a place to climb. We happen to notice that she climbed right in it and was standing there trying to reach things on the entertainment center! She's crazy, but I did manage to get a picture and a little video as proof. It's still on the camera and I will add it later.

Well when she starts climbing Mt. Everest I'll be sure to update. Hehehe

Smooooochie Smooch

Kaitlyn started doing Kiss noises today... well she's really sucking on her bottom lip but it sounds like Kisses so we're going with that! It's SO cute when she does it! Now I just have to work on her actually giving us kisses!!

Not much to write about, thats really the only new thing. Besides her getting much stronger and she's very speedy now with crawling and walking along stuff. She can get anywhere now! She still gets a little upset or frustrated when trying to get down from standing but she practices often. She stands next to something holding on and then bends down to pick things up or just touch the floor. She's getting there. She is also getting a lot better at walking while holding one hand. We're trying to get her to do that more often so that she will be ready to walk when she wants to.

Thats about it!

Something About Space

Well I cant believe how so much happens in just a week. This week Kaitlyn has learned to "get down" from standing. She's been practicing bending over now all week. She's so cute, she bends over and reaches down to touch the floor (to hold on) and then puts the other hand on the floor and plops her butt down on the floor. Oh man, it's so great to watch her! She's getting much better at not screaming her head off when she falls down from standing. Now when she falls to a sitting position, without banging her head on the floor and crying, we clap and tell her "Yay! Great Job." That way she knows that she did a good thing by sitting down from standing. I know it's hard for her to understand but it is so amazing when she does get it.

She's LOVING when WE understand HER. She will put her hand to her head to sign for Daddy and we say to her "Dada" when she does and she gets a GREAT big smile. Also because she fully understands the "Hi" sign (opening and closing hand to wave) she gets a huge smile when we do that too. She's getting so much better at understanding us and we are of her too and it seems like such a big deal to her that we do communicate what she is trying so hard to.

She's still teething like mad and this week she spiked a 103 fever one day and we were up all night with her screaming and screaming in pain. We think it was teething, anyway because she wanted nothing to do with a bottle or her pacifier or anything. She was just miserable. All I could do was pace the floor with her to keep her calm. I know she was hurting but she had Tylenol and Motrin to bring the fever down but it wasnt cutting it for the pain though. She's been better this week since then so thats a good thing.

Kaitlyn's hair is getting longer and I think it's going to have some body and curls to it. It's starting to curl up on top of her head... it's cute. She also has these cute curls on the sides of her head that turn into wings sometimes. I'm constantly pushing them back along the side of her head. I forgot to mention that she found her hair and ears. She grabs her ears to play with them and move them around and also when she is tired. I noticed, too, that she found her hair because when she's tired she will grab the hair on the sides of her head and pull it. It's funny but she doesnt mind it so she can do what she wants. I'm sure her pulling her hair is nothing compared to the reflux pain she gets!

As for her reflux, it's still sucks! She's still puking a lot and still in pain sometimes. Right now I have to call the Pediatrician or the GI to see about getting a dosage check because she is back to crying while eating and she's also not eating nearly enough again. She's cutting herself back again to about 14 ounces a day. Yesterday I gave her Maalox before her bottle and she actually ate 4 or 5 ounces but she has only been taking two or three at a time lately and thats just not enough for the calories she is burning! On that note, Kaitlyn is very into our food. I have to order her something when we go out to eat now. She get so mad if we she doesnt get to eat while we are or what we're eating. She eats just about everything we do now, except for things that will aggrivate her reflux of course. She doesnt get tomato sauces or anything like that. She does get some of our veggies, rice, potatoes and plain pasta.

As for gross motor skills, Kaitlyn is SO great at walking around the room with all her toys and her highchair and anything else she can grab on to to walk with! I even went and bought her a new pair of real sneakers with real bottoms. All the other shoes she has in the size she is wearing now (a size 2) are basically decorative and have no real soles on them. She likes to stand at restaurants and other places we go and walk around the highchair there or whatever she can and now that she has real shoes she can do that. They are cute too, I took a picture of them! Anyway, Kaitlyn and I built her a whole round circle of things so she can officially walk the entire room by herself. It's really great how independantly dependant she is, ha ha ha. Oh she's getting really good too at walking while only holding on with one hand. We've been practicing with her trying to get her brave enough to try it on her own. She is getting brave while standing on the couch and she will practice standing without holding on. She's actually not bad at it, if she wouldn't concentrate on it! When she doesn't pay attention to herself doing it, she can stand for a couple seconds.

Ah, anyway, I think that about sums up the week. We did go last night and buy Kaitlyn a coat. Though they don't make coats for babies under size 12months, so we had to get her one in that size. They really only make snow suits and stuff like that for babies that cover every part of their body... I guess they don't think a 7 month old would be walking and need her feet out! So we got her a cute dark pink coat with white stripes and a little butterfly and flowers on the front left side. At least it's big enough that it will fit her until spring. She does have a snow suit too but since it's been 60 degrees here lately (in FEB!) it's not needed.

Ok thats enough, this is long enough already! I'll update more soon!

Amazing Little Creature

Well I think Kaitlyn is amazing, in just a few short weeks she went from a whining, screaming, crying, frustrated child on her hands and knees to the Mistress of her Domain! She is so great at crawling now, not that she goes far, but she is exploring more of the room now and finding even more things to stand up with. She's mastered the standing up thing and she is starting to get even more confident with walking along the furniture and her toys. She's even starting to get into things she shouldn't be into! She's crawling over to the entertainment center now and getting a bit grabby and now she constantly heads for the wires hanging off my computer. I even got a picture of her yesterday "red handed" as she was grabbing the wires. Soon she will learn "No!" hehehe. Most of the time I do try to say "Please don't do that, Kaitlyn," but when it's something very important like the wires or something she will hurt herself with I have to say, "No!"

Kaitlyn has recently ventured into the kitchen and started "feeling" the cupboards. She hasn't tried to open them... probably becuase she never sees me open them, but she does scratch her hand on them. She loves to hear plastic bags too and she always plays with the ones on the floor that have stuff in them.

So, I forgot last week I decided to put away all of Kaitlyn's 3-6 month clothes. Most of it still fit her but I figured since she was 7 1/2 months old we should move her into the bigger stuff. SHe is now swimming in her 6-9 month stuff but the length is much better. She was getting a little tall for the 3-6month things. Jon says he likes these clothes because they are starting to look like real people clothes but miniture. Not that I dont love it too, but he said it! hehehe

Oh and Kaitlyn has decided that she would much rather have big people food than pureed baby food. So lately she has been getting waffles, mashed taters, and pretty much anything I'm eating. She was eating fried rice with me yesterday for lunch and some of my cheeseburger the other night and even some of my hamburger helper the night before that. I make it with ground turkey so it's not that fattening hahahaha! She's really enjoying the foods though so I let her eat them.

Well yesterday I finally got the chance to do something with Kaitlyn's hair. She's so cute and I call her my "Little Onion." She's just amazing and beautiful and so much fun! Even if she does things and I get frustrated or angry or whatever. She's not doing thing maliciously, I know, but in her frustration I become frustrated. It's so hard being a mother or even a parent but it is also the most rewarding thing to see her smile, hear her laugh or help her develop a new skill.

Jon and I were thinking back last night and remembering the first few weeks when Kaitlyn was born. When we were crying with Kaitlyn, severely sleep deprived and just feeling like the most horrible parents. I remember wondering if we made a mistake in choosing to have kids and feeling so incredibly inadequate. Wow did we soon realize that this was more meant to be than ever. It scares me and saddens me to think my hormones were so crazy those first few weeks that I could think that way! I guess when you dont get good sleep and your baby doesnt sleep or stop crying you tend to think and act a little crazy!

I wouldn't change anything for all the riches in the world. I think that first time parent experience is something every woman or man need to go through. Jon and I both know how hard it is now and though it will be just as hard next time, we'll know to expect it!

Anyway, I'm just so happy I get to share my life with the two most wonderful people in the world, Jon and Kaitlyn (and the worlds best cats, Toto and Max)! Alright, I'm done being sappy!

One Small Crawl For Baby...

I realize it's been a bit since I've updated, but with Kaitlyn getting so frustrated trying to crawl and wanting to stand everywhere on everything, I haven't had much time!

Jon and I went upstate for our Annual Wedding Anniversary Bed & Breakfast trip to Cornerstone Victorian (www.cornerstonevictorian.com) we just LOVE it there!! Doug and Louise (the innkeepers/owners) are amazing, wonderful, great people. Kaitlyn joined us, of course, and really enjoyed Doug and Louise and their smiling personalities! The B&B house is so wide open and there is a lot of space so Kaitlyn had all kinds of room to crawl around. Which over the last two weeks has really come along. She doesn't have as much room here to crawl around and she did much more there than she does here. Anyway, she finally crawls! However, she only crawls over to get to something she can stand up with/on. Ha Ha! She is getting so much stronger at standing and she thinks she is so great and funny when she stands there holding with one hand and looking at us like, "Hey, look what I can do, nah nah!" She's great and she's going to be walking around in no time. She's doing very well at walking along the furniture and she walks around her little activity table too.

Lately, Kaitlyn has been working on her consonants too. She sticks out her tongue and makes a "P" or "B" type sound a lot and then she will babble a bunch of other things too. Hopefully she will be saying something soon, anything... Mama would be great though! ha ha!

Anyway, we just got home from upstate and we're all tired and Kaitlyn is cranky from the drive. I'll be sure to update more, now that she isn't going to be whining constantly from frustration.

First Official Fall

Well this morning was Kaitlyn's first official fall... right on her head! You see, Kaitlyn loves to hang over the front of the couch to play with the toys under the couch or on the floor. Usually I'm there to grab a leg if she starts to head over too far. This morning she had just finished her bottle at about 8:30am and I went to go get myself something to drink. I heard a clunk on the floor and looked over to see my daughter who landed right on top of her head and fell on the floor. She cried instantly so I guess I knew she was pretty much ok. I was very surprised at myself that I didnt freak out. I calmly went over and picked her up and made sure she was ok, checked her head and neck and she seemed fine. So I hugged her and told her it would be ok, I think she was more scared than anything. It's amazing... it only took her a minute or so to calm down because I was being very calm about it. I think had a freaked out she would have been much worse in calming. So thats was our fun this morning! The other thing she did this morning was remember where her books were and got them. The other night I was reading her books and I put them down in the little holder on the side of the couch. You can get to it from either side of the arm of the couch so she made her way over to the side of the couch and I thought she was just playing with toys. I looked over at her and she was pulling her books out from the side of the couch! There are other things in there too and she didnt touch those, just pulled out her books. She's so smart! I cant believe she remembered right where they were! YAY!

Anyway, the last couple days I've noticed Kaitlyn is getting herself back to sitting if she is on her back. She rolls over to her belly and gets on her hands and knees and she can get back sitting up by herself finally. Thats one thing she was having trouble with. She's still not crawling yet, and still getting mad as heck when she tries, but she's making progress... she just doesnt know it yet! She still gets around to get her toys since Mommy lets her whine on the floor instead of going and getting everything for her and moving her where she needs to go. I hate hearing her upset but I know that if she doesnt get upset she wont push herself to learn to do it. She does great scooting around on the floor but really doesnt notice because she wants to crawl or walk so bad. I noticed when I'm really not paying attention to her and she knows I'm not, she doesnt scream and whine, she just plays and moves around on her butt to get whatever she wants. So I let her spend time on the floor and go to the bathroom or get involved in something so she can concentrate on playing.

Oh Yesterday she did another thing to prove she has a good memory! I pulled out her table and set it in front of her with the Spoon (the only thing that comes off the table - it's a rattle too) on the opposite side from her. Well my smart little cookie leaned over the table and grabbed the spoon. She remembered that was the one that came off and she wanted it! Kids really are smarter and understand a lot more than we think!!

So everyday Kaitlyn is getting better and better at standing and pulling up. She loves to pull up on the white wire shelving we have in the bathroom (which means I need to get something to anchor it to the wall) and she does it great! She's also getting great at pulling up on her Exersaucer and this morning she actually pulled up on the couch! Usually she needs something to wrap her hand around but now she just used the couch to do it. Yesterday she had to prove mommy wrong too! She was standing next to her Exersaucer and playing (she doesnt like going in it anymore) and I kept telling her to "hold on" like I do constantly. Well she decided to show Mommy that she didnt need to hold on and she could stand there on her own. So she turned her little head to look at me across the room as I said "hold on, Baby" she lets go and holds her hands out to the side and stood there on her own for about 2-3 seconds and then smiled and grabbed the Exersaucer again. She's a smart ass already just like Mommy and Daddy! All that did was make me believe more and more that she will be walking in the next couple months!

Kaitlyn is done going for rides in her swing as well and it's time to put it away. Everytime she goes in it now she grabs the legs on the swing and stops herself so there is no point in that anymore. So we have a lot of stuff to store away before it starts to snow and get too cold out to put it in the garage.

Ohhhhhhh yeah! She's also getting GREAT at grabbing her little "puffs" and putting them in her mouth. Though I can only give her a couple at a time because she puts them all in her mouth! She's mostly using the "rake" method to get the food in her hand and then puts her entire hand in her mouth to get the food in there. She is getting more control of her arms though and once in a while gets then between her thumb and index finger. She's almost got it and everyday we practice, about three times a day. She started getting three meals a day on Monday and it's been working out great. She gets cereal w/apples in the morning, some Fruit and Veggies in the afternoon and then a "Dinner" at night. Last night she had Chicken & Rice dinner and she seemed to like it. Though I can pretty much put anything her her mouth and she eats it! She likes food, just like Mommy!

I think that about sums up the week... it seems like a lot happens in a little time lately. It's amazing how fast she catches on with things! I just love her and her accomplishments, she makes me the happiest person alive!

Stand, Stand, Stand... Busy, Busy, Busy

Well it amazes me at how just in the last couple days Kaitlyn has gone from trying to crawl to wanting to stand ALL the time and walk (with our help of course). She's already standing up by herself (pulling up on the couch and us) and she makes us walk her around... she cruised around Olive Garden yesterday afternoon. She keeps pushing off of us if we are holding her because she wants to stand on the floor and walk around.
Last night she was standing up next to me chewing on my couch cushions. She's nuts... she stands up in her crib now, even if I put her in there for only a minute! She's only 6 months old... she needs to chill, I still want her to be a baby not a 7 month old toddler! She HATES being on her hands and knees and SCREAMS bloody murder when she is and cant go anywhere... she doesnt mind kneeling which she does a lot too but she really wants to stand!



Well I really think that in the next few months she will be walking. She really is busy busy busy lately and has to be standing or having me walk her around. She wont even sit to play with me for very long anymore. If we sit and try to play with toys she just reaches out and grabs my shirt or arm or leg or anything to pull herself up with. Then she stands there holding on to me with one hand and trying to lean down and play... like that works! Ha! ha! She ends up falling on her booty most of the time.

Yesterday while we went out shopping, she sat in the back seat and "talked" the whole drive. It took us about a half hour to get where we were going and she just practiced talking the whole way there. It was great... but I'm still waiting to hear Mama! Anyway, we did go get her her big girl car seat yesterday. We got a Britax Marathon and it is a rear and forward facing car seat and goes to 65lbs! It will last awhile, which is great! Jon and I had bought a car seat a long time ago (before she was born) and thought it was a rear and forward facing one but apparently when we got it out recently we realized it was only a forward facing one that goes from car seat to booster seat (up to 100lbs). So we are going to hang on to it and if/when we have another baby we will use the Britax we just bought for the new baby and the booster one for Kaitlyn. Seeing is she will definitely be a year old and 20lbs (I hope) by the time we have another one.

Anyway, I guess I'll write again if she starts doing anything else like running a marathon or something!

Pulling Up

Well for the last week Kaitlyn has decided she would rather stand than crawl. She is still working on crawling and getting very very frustrated in the process. I feel bad for her but I know she needs to learn on her own. She's getting there though. She pulls up now on anything she can, especially the crib which, even though she doesnt spend much time in there, needs to be lowered because she loves that she can hold on and pull herself up. She kneels (stands on her knees) great now and does it all the time. She's getting so big and she's still so tiny.

Kaitlyn definitely knows some Baby Signs now, she does Daddy all the time and she can wave Hi but still working on mastering the opening and closing of her fingers. She knows Up and she lifts her arms to be picked up. She also seems to be doing a "come here" type sign. It looks like she is doing the same thing I do when I hold my palms up and open and close my hands and tell her to "come here" when she is working on crawling. When she sees something she wants she does the "come here" thing. It's cute and I like that she is actually using some of the signs we are teaching her. I really think it will help when she is a toddler and cant express herself well enough.

So Kaitlyn had her first New Years and she almost stayed up with us to watch the ball drop but she fell asleep and actually slept in her crib for about two hours before she started screaming and I went up to get her and brought her down to sleep with us. Thats where she has been sleeping for awhile now since she is too big to sleep in her bassinet anymore. I always said I would never co-sleep (in the same bed) because I was so worried about her suffocating but it's actually been great. She sleeps better and rarely wakes up with the little screams she used to wake up with. I'm slowly giving her a chance to sleep in her crib everynight but I'm not pushing it. I figure over the next few months we can work on her being in her crib. Right now, this is easier for all of us and we all get the sleep we need. She still wakes up about 3 or 4 times a night but thats a lot better than the 6 or 7 it was. She isnt waking long and mainly just needs her pacifier and a little pat from me and she goes right back to sleep so it doesnt distrub me to have her next to me. I think it would be worse if I had to run up and down the stairs 4 times a night just to give her a pacifier. This works for now and we'll work it out over the next few months.

I have no idea what to expect from this new year, Kaitlyn is going to grow up at lightening speed and I know it's going to be amazing to watch. I'm so excited that soon she will be crawling, walking and talking. I'm dying to hear her say "Mama."

I Can do it Myself, Mama

Well I'm VERY excited to report that Kaitlyn fed herself today!! Well she is working on it and she managed to get a "Puff" in her mouth about four times. I'm so excited! She still can't pick things up between her thumb and index finger but she finally grabs them in her hand and trys very hard to get them in her mouth. I'm sure she'll be a pro in no time though!

For about a week or so Kaitlyn has really been working on crawling and she's getting better and better at pushing herself backwards, though she cries the whole time she is going backwards because it's not the way she wants to be going! She'll get it, she is practicing a lot lately.

Kaitlyn has also graduated to the bigger pacifier! My baby is really growing up. We decided last night to try the bigger one since she seemed to be having a bit of trouble sucking the other one and we couldnt figure out why. As soon as we popped the 6mo+ one in her mouth we noticed a difference!

Lately Kaitlyn has been doing so many things, she is drinking more from her sippy cup now but still chews on it more than drinking from it. She's learning her Baby Signs too, she started waving Hi by opening and closing her hand and she has been doing the sign for Daddy for a couple weeks. She loves to lay on her belly on the couch and wave Hi to the kitties when they walk near her. It's great to watch her, she's still learning to do it and she turns her hand as if she is saying Hi to herself. I think she does it to make sure she is doing it right. Kaitlyn also lifts her arms up to be picked up now, she's been doing it for a few days now.

Now on to the most important new Milestone! Kaitlyn has always loved to stand, since she was born practically. Well for the last few days she has been working on pulling herself up to standing and absolutely loves doing it. I think she would rather do that than crawl! She needs to learn to crawl so she can get to something to pull herself up. Anyway, I guess Kaitlyn is going to be taking after her daddy, Jon started walking at about 9 months so at the rate Kaitlyn is going she probably will be too.

It's so amazing to watch the progress she makes everyday. Watching how much stronger she's getting and the new things she can do. I love seeing her face when she pulls herself up with my arm and stands there next to me. It's the most amazing thing and she gets so happy that she did it! Jon and I both love hearing Kaitlyn laugh as well, it's the cutest thing. We usually "get" her belly when we change her diaper and she just laughs and laughs and laughs. She's starting to laugh now at silly faces when I make them and I just love it, it helps that I love acting silly too though!

So far Christmas has been good, we spent the afternoon today at Aunt Donna & Uncle Charlie's house and had chinese food for dinner. It was a nice quiet afternoon and Kaitlyn enjoyed playing on the floor with Aunt Donna and her stuffed animals.

Well we're off to practice more crawling!

The Plague This Close to Christmas?!?!

Well I see it has been awhile since I've had a chance to write. I have tried many times to catch up and well, I'll explain...

First of all, Kaitlyn turned 6 months on Dec 13th and we went to the Dr and she was 25" long and 15lbs 13oz. The Dr said she looks great and was so amazed at how well she sits up (even though she has been doing it for 2 months now). She was sitting on the exam table tearing up the paper again and having a riot doing it. Her Zantac was increased too and other than that everything is wonderful. She got one shot and did really well with it. Kaitlyn doesn't go back for another "Well visit" until she is 9 months! That's in March!! I can't believe how fast the time goes, I'm enjoying every minute of it while I can!!

Now, about our trip to the City, it was great! We went to Toys R Us in Times Square and bought Kaitlyn a shirt and a Geoffery the Giraffe doll as her first souvenir. We had lunch/dinner in Times Square too at the Applebees and Kaitlyn actually enjoyed eating some of my rice. In fact she was very vocal about wanting some... especially if I wasnt fast enough in giving it to her hehehehe. Then we took the trip up to see the tree and other than the 18 million people all doing the same thing, it was as beautiful as ever. We took some pictures, Ooo'd and Ahh'd and then headed for home! The weather wasn't too bad that day and it really did turn out to be a great first trip into the city with Kaitlyn.

After our trip to the city it was just about time to head to Michigan again to see Grandma Debbie and Grandpa and Kaitlyn's cousins. We left on Wednesday night and spent time with my niece Lisa and her family and the babies loved playing with each other. I wish we lived closer so they could play more often but at least when we go home to visit it will be special because she will get to see them again. Lisa and Brian got Kaitlyn a cute gift too, it was a little Bongo and Tamborine toy that plays music, she loves it too and plays with it constantly!

After spending sometime with the cousins, Kaitlyn got to see and spend some time with Grandpa! Friday we celebrated Christmas with them and they gave Kaitlyn some money to help buy her car seat that was have to get soon. They also gave her a little Cow hand puppet. Then we went to dinner at the Chinese buffet and had a good time eating! Kaitlyn enjoyed having more rice there! She spent a little more time with Grandpa and then it was time to go see Grandma Debbie.

We spent some time with Grandma Debbie and cousins Kinsley and Derek on Friday night and then Saturday was the Christmas celebration with Grandma and her family. We had a really good time, there was lots of food and Kaitlyn had some broccoli, ham and buscuit. She really enjoyed all the people and the food! She got some really great gifts too. She got some Little Touch Leap Frog books and a beautiful outfit from Aunt Sheri and Uncle Glenn, A bath toy from Jimbo and Peggy, A Turtle toy from Uncle Jim and Aunt Erica and I think that was it. Later that night we went back to Grandma's house and Grandma had even MORE presents for little Miss K-T-Poo. Grandma bought her two great "Baby's first Christmas" ornaments and got her some little bath toy squirters and also a pretty white "Baby's First Christmas" stocking. She also gave her some money to help pay for her new car seat too!

Anyway, we had a great time in Michigan, and it will be exciting to see everyone when we go back next year! Kaitlyn will be a year old and it will be interesting to see how much she will have changed by then!

Now on to the PLAGUE! Sunday we got up at 4:30am to leave and drive home from Michigan. When I woke up I had a sore throat, as we were driving home I just kept getting sicker and sicker and noticed Kaitlyn started getting a runny nose as well. By Monday Kaitlyn and I were MISERABLE we both had colds (or so I thought). This entire past week Kaitlyn and I have been very sick with sore throats, coughs, congestion, stuffy head and nose, and fevers! I finally decided to go to the Dr because after 5 days my sore throat was not going away. I found out I had Strep throat and 2 ear infections. I took Kaitlyn by the Ped's office and she was fine. They said it's very rare for a child her age to get Strep and that it doesnt usually stick to their throats. Other than her runny, stuffy nose and congestion she is doing very well. I'm on antibiotics and I'm feeling much better too! I have been using Little Colds to treat Kaitlyn's symptoms and it's a great product. I use it twice a day, once in the morning and once before bed and it helps to keep her nose dry and her cough supressed. Though she doesnt seem to be clearing up yet... I'll have to keep watch and see how she is in a few days.

Now on to bigger and better things!! Kaitlyn is very very very close to crawling! She is now scooting on her butt, slowly inching her way around and she can now push herself backwards while on her knees. She just has to figure out the going forward part! She really is doing well. She still can not go from lying flat to sitting and chooses not to roll over, instead she would rather yell until Mommy comes to sit her up! hehehehe It's so amazing to watch her learn and perfect her movements. We watched her practicing and exercising last night. She was on her knees and she was switching back and forth leaning on her right hand, then left, then right, then left. It's just incredible how much she can learn in only a couple days.

We put the tree up last night as well. It was actually quite emotional for Jon and me both. Decorating the tree and listening to Christmas carols with Kaitlyn as a family. Kaitlyn even hung her own ornaments (the one's Grandma Debbie got her), sort of. She did need our help because all she wanted to do was chew on them, but she did finally let us put them on the tree. Today, Christmas Eve, we're going to be celebrating with Grandma Lois, Aunt Donna & Uncle Charlie, and Aunt Michelle. Tonight Grandma, Kaitlyn, Jon and I will be going to Church and then tomorrow we get to have our first official Fuchs Family Christmas! The stockings are hung on the entertainment center with care (yeah, no mantel hahahaha) and we're just waiting for Santa to bring us good Cheer! Tomorrow afternoon we're going to go out to Uncle Charlie & Aunt Donna's to have Chinese food for Christmas dinner!! It should be a great weekend!

I think that about sums it up.

Hopefully Kaitlyn will enjoy her first Christmas, or at least be able to look back and like the pictures we took! :) I know I have a lot to celebrate this year, my Christmas present came early and she is the most amazing, most precious gift I could have ever received and I Thank God everyday that I was blessed with my little Miracle. Last year at this time Kaitlyn was in my belly about the size of a grain of rice and I was only imagining what Motherhood and being a Family was really going to be like. It is everything I imagined and a heck of a lot more and I wouldnt trade it for all the money or gifts in the world.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good weekend!

Pureed Pears Between My Toes

So last night I'm feeding Kaitlyn some pears and she was only wearing a onesie. Since she just loves her feet now and they have become one of her favorite new toys she decided to stick them in her mouth while eating. Hahahaha It was so funny, she had pears all over her hands and feet and between her little toes. Each time I would give her a bite she would stick a finger or toe in her mouth. Then she would suck on it a bit to get the pears down. She is a little crazy girl! I just love her! Hahahahaha

I forgot to mention last time I wrote that Kaitlyn actually used her sippy cup the other day and drank out of it. She did it all by herself, she loves to hold it and put it in her mouth and this time she actually sucked on it and drank a little bit of the water that was in it. I only put a very small amount because the water is so thin and she can't handle it but she did it. She's getting so very big and every day more independant!

So far the soy is still going good. We'll see in a few days onces the other formula is out of her system. She did sleep a bit better last night than the past few days but I still need a good nights rest!

Anyway, today we are taking a trip into New York City to see the big tree and all of the wonderful Christmas lights! It should be a good day today, it's supposed to be nice weather! We'll write all about it later!

So Much in so Little Time

Well in the past two days so much has happened! Yesterday after about 2 months of being in her Exersaucer and us showing her how to make the music play, she finally did it herself. Only once but she did it! There is a button in the shape of a monkey on top of a little truck that you push to make animal sounds and music play, I'm so glad she knows what it does, even if she only pushed it once so far!!!

Kaitlyn has been getting Soy formula since yesterday, she doesnt seem to be doing too bad on it either. So far, we woke up this morning with no diarrhea! She did have a bad night last night with gas and everything and was up all night with tummy pains, but we got through it. The Soy hasn't changed her spit up or puking at all, she is still doing both. It seems to be thicker when it comes up as compared to the Alimentum.

Anyway, today she seems to be doing ok on the Soy and she had a big appetite at lunch! She ate Sweet Potatos, a few noodles, Gerber Veggie Puffs and had her Biter Cookie in her new Net feeder thing. She can't actually grab the little food yet but she is working on it. She does very well chewing on things sort of and was enjoying her lunch. She did puke a few times after but at least she enjoyed it and it wasnt painful coming back up!

Last night was Kaitlyn's first bath in the big tub and she had a good time. She was splashing around trying to get her little mini ducks. She really doesnt have any bath toys and I think it's time to get her some but she seemed to enjoy herself anyway.

My baby is really growing up!! I went to the store yesterday and got her a bunch of Stage 2 foods so we can try them out soon. I want to get her over the diarrhea first but even that seems to be coming along well. Hopefully it will all be over soon!!

Little People Eating Big People Food

Just wanted to make sure I got it down. Kaitlyn sat with me and ate my KFC mashed potatos tonight out of the container. She enjoyed it so much and really liked the potatos!! She ate quite a bit and I'm hoping it will help her diarrhea.

We did go see the Pediatrician today because since she has been going on with diarrhea for 5 days now they wanted to make sure she was ok. She's fine and we just have to keep lubing up her butt so the rash stays under control.

I found out recently that tummy viruses can cause temporary Lactose intolerance and I'm going to try some Soy formula for a few days and see if Kaitlyn's diarrhea gets better and it will also be a trial run for next month. After we get to the end of this batch of Alimentum we bought, we want to see if Kaitlyn can be switched to Soy, so this will be a test to see how she does for almost a week. It should give us a good idea.

Well... she is whining and I think it's time for bed so I'll update in a few days after we see how the Soy is going.

Visit to the Pediatric GI

Kaitlyn had a blast today at the GI, she sat on the exam table and mutilated the paper she was sitting on. By the time she was done (the Dr came in) she had only the piece left under her butt, legs and feet left. Jon and I wished we would have had the camera!! We laughed for a good 20 minutes while she shredded the paper and loved every minute of it. Anyway besides her tummy issues and diarrhea the GI said she looked great and wanted to up her Zantac a bit for her weight gain but wants to wait until she gets over the diarrhea since Zantac can make diarrhea worse.

Anyway Kaitlyn is now 26 inches (I didnt think we would be here yet... it's TIME to stress about a new car seat now...) and she is 15lbs 7ounces. I'm amazed she is so big. She is still perfectly on her curve and thats great, 50% for both height and weight!!

Kaitlyn still has her diarrhea today, bad... she's pooped green water about 8 times a day... poor thing. She has a bad rash on her butt from the diarrhea irritating the skin too and I've been lathering on the Balmex and Vaseline... it seems to help a bit when it's nice and thick.

She is handling being sick very well and even the GI noticed how great she is acting even though her butt and tummy hurt. I'm so proud of her for dealing with things so well. She's such a strong girl, sometimes I think she is much stronger than her mommy!!!

The GI also mentioned what a great sitter she was at such a young age. She said she cant believe she's sitting so perfectly and that her 7 month old cant even sit yet! YAY!! Way to go Kaitlyn!

Baby's 1st Snow Day!

Well first of all Kaitlyn slept all night in her crib!! She looked like such a big girl in there last night. I decided since she wasnt feeling well to leave her be in her crib and she did great. She slept there all night and woke up this morning at 7!

When we got up this morning there was SNOW SNOW SNOW! It's beautiful out and it's Kaitlyn's very first snow day! I even took a picture out of Kaitlyn's bedroom window today so she can look back and see her very first snow day!

Hopefully she will be feeling a bit better today and not so sick. I think I will give her some Pedialyte today if she still has diarrhea. I know I hate when I'm sick, so it must be really hard for someone so little and who doesnt really know whats going on.

I'll be here for her though so we'll all get through this! In the mean time we can try to enjoy the snow!

Crying, Tummy Aching, Pooping and Miserable

Well I think it's official that Kaitlyn is sick. She had mucosy poop this morning and diarrhea the rest of the day. She has been grunting and whining and crying all day because her tummy hurts. The poor girl is miserable. She has a fever of 101 and has been crying most of the day because she just doesnt feel well at all.

Well the good thing is that she's eating again but it hurts her tummy when she does so she grunts and crunches up her tummy for awhile afterwards and I feel bad but she needs to eat. She's still puking like crazy but hopefull she will get through this soon. She's also got her first diaper rash which I'm sure is a result of the diarrhea! I feel so bad for her because I know it hurts. The weird thing is, is that it looks just like the rash she just got over on her face not too long ago.

I just feel so bad for my poor little baby, she has never been sick like this. She is sleeping in her crib tonight for the first night ever... not sure if we are going to leave her there especailly while being sick, but she is there now and sleeping so we'll see when we decide to go to bed if we will leave her there or take her down to the bassinett... she had a VERY rough time going to sleep last night. She had to lay with me in bed to even go to sleep. I was going to let her sleep with us but finally did put her in the bassinet and she woke up screaming so many times.

Well, I'm hoping she starts feeling better tomorrow and we can all get out of this funk. The poor baby is miserable and I hate seeing her like this. This is her first time ever getting watery diarhea like she has and I know she doesnt like it either. I guess we'll just see how things are going and how she is feeling in the morning.

Upside Down Through the Roller Coaster Loops

Well it looks like we are back on the Reflux Roller Coaster again. Today has been bad for Kaitlyn. She has been puking and not eating again. She ate this morning while half asleep and then went back to sleep. Then she only ate an ounce and a half from her next bottle and even getting that in her was a battle. She was fighting me and hitting the bottle away and turning her body around to get away from her bottle. She was also taking a suck and then crying, sucking then crying and it was just a pure battle trying to get her to eat the small amount she did eat. She was fighting her baby food earlier too and was spitting it out and wiping it all over herself today. I know she isnt feeling well.

For the last couple days she has been crying a lot, most of the day and nothing was really soothing her. Today is no different except for she isnt eating and she is puking more.

I feel bad for her today and I wish there was something I could do to make her feel better.
Here is a picture of Kaitlyn in her high chair, this is how she likes to sit in it after eating. She's so cute, even if she does feel miserable today. You can see it on her face, huh?

Big Girl in the High Chair

Today was the first day Kaitlyn sat and ate in her High Chair. She's so little in it but it worked. I had to dig it out from behind all the stuff in her room but it's finally out here so we can use it. She's getting so big now she is going to have to learn how to be in it! After she ate I put the toys on the chair from her swing and she decided to put her feet up and kick at them. Like I said, she is still little in the chair so she can put her feet over the littl "play" tray. I think she would be ok in there with the big eating tray but for now we'll just get her used to it!!

I think she likes that she can watch tv at a normal height in it too!! We'll see how things go. My job is to clean the rest of the room here so we have room to actually have her high chair in it!

She's sleeping right now so I'm off to get her laundry!

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!