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Tuesday, July 31, 2012

4 Month Check up

Just a quick recap on Elsa's four month check up. Got 2 shots, took them like a champ with minimal crying. She is ahead on her motor milestones. And her growth curve is good. She is still on the small side but symmetrical.

It was still harder on momma to watch the shots, and afterwards she was very snugly. Which made it very hard to drop her off at the sitter's. I would have preferred to have stayed home with her all day cuddling.

Elsa's First Cold


We have been weathering Elsa's first cold. She so kindly gave it to her momma too.  Kids get colds. In fact I read that babies can get on average 8 colds per year! Let's hope Elsa is less than average on this one.  Listening to her cough and sneeze is terrible, but the strain on her voice when she cries is heartbreaking. Through it all she has been a trooper. Still happy, still smiling.


Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Disgusting baby fluids

I am learning about all the fluids that can come out of a baby. Not only am I learning about them all, but I'm finding that I am slowly adapting to them as well.  Before having a baby I was kind of crazy about any kind of gunk.

Babies poop. Not just poop like adults or dogs, but it is a special kind of poop. And it can get EVERYWHERE! Example, yesterday we went to the store with Elsa and she was in her car seat. When we got home Steve made a comment that the house smelled like poop. When he went to take her out of the car seat, he realized that smell was from her. She had a major blow out. Probably the worst we have ever seen, and she was so quiet about it. We had no idea. She had to go straight to the bath.

Babies drool. Their drool is thick, gooey and leaves a film if they choose to either drip it on you or suck on your arm. Elsa does both. I go into the shower the other day and as soon as the water hit my arm I felt the slick film. Gross!! Also I find that she can drool just about anywhere. On her playmat, all over her car seat shoulder pads, on our bed sheets, on our clothes, on her clothes...Do I need to go on?

Babies snot. Elsa has her first cold. Because she is so small she can't blow her nose or sniff. So the snot just drips out. When she sneezes or coughs it becomes a projectile bullet of goo.

My conclusion: babies do alot of gross stuff, and I am learning to deal with it and just go with the flow...litterally!

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Baaaaad Dog

Steve came home to this last night:


These are parts to my breast pump. Brisco decided to dig through the bag and chew them up. Now I get to replace them!

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Baby Version of Time Management

In the old days (pre Elsa) I was somewhat neurotic about being on time, to the point of always being early. And not just a couple minutes early but anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes early. Being early sometimes has its perks, like getting in to see the doctor earlier, or getting first dibs on seating. But after Elsa was born, my time management skills went out the window. After Elsa (AE) I can barely make it to work at the time that I am supposed to. I show up late to events. Getting her ready for travel at first was a major ordeal, now not as much, but still time consuming. I have to make sure I have everything she might need for our outings, clothes, diapers, wipes, pacifiers, toys, burp cloth, etc. Eventually I hope to get the swing of this, get faster at it, thus returning to my old always early self.

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

The Tree Trimmer

This morning on my way to work I saw an older couple taking a walk. All of the sudden they stopped at some bushes, the old man pulled out some garden trimmers and started going to town on the bush.  Apparently it had overgrown the sidewalk just a tad, and that must have been unacceptable to him and his mate.The questions that came to me were: is it ok to trim someone else's property? is it so hard to just avoid the bushes that you have to trim them? And who carried trimmers with them? Seriously?!

Monday, July 16, 2012

Is it Enough?

I have recently started feeling like I'm not doing enough for Elsa's brain development. I don't know why I am having this feeling, but it is quite irksome.
We were in Toys R Us yesterday and Baby Einstein DVDs were on sale and I kept thinking that we needed to buy them. Money is a little tight, so I had to ask myself "Is this an unnecessary purchase?" How much is Elsa's education and brain development worth? Then I freaked out (inside my head of course, lest other parents see me), am I screwing up my kid by not buying this DVD? Then I thought should we be using "Baby Can Read," or other learning tools? She is changing so fast, will I miss a critical learning phase if I skip this DVD? Am I messing up her learning foundation?
We talk to her all of the time. Explain everything to her, trees, plants, animals, household items, you name it. We read to her, but not as much as we probably should. I work with her on her alphabet and counting using a Fisher Price ap on my iPhone.  She really likes that. But is it enough? I have no idea! I try to read their developmental milestones for an indication, but there isn't one for this kind of stuff.  Just suggested age ranges on the tools themselves. I guess I will just cross my fingers and hope for the best?

Friday, July 6, 2012

Ahhhh Vacation

We are slowly bringing our first vacation with Elsa to an end. I'm not sure a vacation with a 3 month old is truly a "vacation." Let us recap.
A normally 5 hour drive took almost 7 hours. Stops to feed Elsa put us back a little bit. This long drive also put Elsa off her sleep schedule for a couple of days. This is turn made her momma and daddy exhausted.
I got sick. Not sure what the heck is/was wrong with me, but it isn't/wasn't fun.  4 nights so far and that means I haven't had the best vacation. Which is sad. I was looking forward to this so much. Crossing my fingers for tonight.
The fun stuff includes whitewater rafting on the Ocoee yesterday. Walking around downtown Blue Ridge. Finding a pair of Marie Switch Flops to replace the ones I have worn out that are now discontinued. Surviving a freak wind storm that took a tree down across the road leading out from our cabin. (Tree has since been chopped up enough for us to get out).  The giant jacuzzi bathtub that I have soaked in a couple of times so far. It's awesome! Must get one for myself someday. Elsa meeting Karen for lunch at the Twisted Taco. And Elsa meeting her cousins, and we got to meet Blake. Blake is Elsa's cousin born 2 days before her.

All in all a decent yet exhausting vacation. And we still have a VERY long drive home on Sunday.