DVR is Good

On nights like tonight I appreciate having a DVR. Elsa was very fussy all night, and it caused us to have the gator game interrupted while we made her happy and comfortable. However, this game has been terrible, so I'm not so sure I really needed to watch it. C'mon Gators, let's do this!

Daily Struggle

This morning was one of those days where it took everything I had to go to work. I sat in bed feeding Elsa, having a good time and I didn't want to leave. I wanted to stay home and play with her all day. But alas, I do have responsibilities which include providing for her, so hi ho hi ho it's off to work I go.

Clean and Jerk

My neighbors are work out fanatics. I'm pretty sure the wife works in the health and fitness field. 

One night we heard these loud booms that sounded like tree limbs falling on our roof. So I went outside and stood there staring at my roof with a flashlight trying to see what the heck was going on. Then I heard the boom again. I was standing between our house and the neighbors and the sound came from behind me. I realized it was the neighbors lifting weights. It is the clean and jerk kind of weight lifting. The noise I was hearing was the weights thundering to the ground. It is so loud that it shakes our house, photos on the wall and vibrates the floor. 

We have been listening to this for about 2 years now. At all different times of the day and night. Even as early as 3 am. It hasn't been a major problem, because Elsa would somehow sleep through it. 

But last night, she was not feeling well and was having an already restless night when the lifting (or I should say dropping) started. Every time we heard the boom she would wake up and cry, then fall back asleep. This was around 1am. I waited for him to stop, but it wasn't happening. A couple of times I swear it sounded like a sonic boom rocking the house.

I finally had to go over there and politely ask him to stop. I know they have no idea how loud it is. And I wish I could get one them over while the other one lifts, so they can hear it. It's so bizarre because we are in houses. And we aren't on top of each other, so the fact that it shakes the house is pretty crazy. He obliged, and was very nice about it. And I thank him for that. Elsa slept soundly for the rest of the night.

Complacency is Dangerous

I know I have been blessed with a child who sleeps through the night. Knowing that once she goes to sleep around 9pm, she won't wake until at least 5:30 or 6 am is very comforting. But this has lulled us into a sense of complacency. We boast and brag about how well our child sleeps, and then, and then....she doesn't. She has a night like last night. Poor thing is sick, and coughed all night long. Then woke up at 4:15 and wanted to eat, be changed, and play. She finally went back to sleep at 6:15am. We are exhausted.

Baaaaad Pineapple

Well I feel like a class a moron. I gave some fruit to Elsa from a fruit bowl. While I did not give her pineapple, of course the rest of the fruit was drenched in pineapple juice. And she got a rash all over from it. I just feel terrible. I even picked fruit that wasn't touching pineapple deliberately. Bah!

UPDATE:
Apparently it wasn't the pineapple at all. She still had the rash the next day after taking Bendryl. It was determined at the Dr's on that Monday that she had a virus that was causing it.  On Tuesday she developed bacterial conjunctivitis in the left eye, the next day in the right eye. She was put on antibiotic drops on Thursday.  She has since fully recovered!  Scary for mom and dad, but as always we learned a lot.

Stranger Danger Ain't No Joke

I had been told by Elsa's pediatrician that somewhere around 9 months she would start get a fear of strangers. She has always been so outgoing, and would go to anyone. On Tuesday I stopped by my old building at the museum with her to visit. One of my co-workers took her down the hall to another co-worker's office, and the next thing i heard was crying. Yep, it is kicking in. The question is, should I use immersion therapy, or just hold onto her instead? Hmmmm.

I can do it!

Elsa is now feeding herself. I am very proud of her new milestone accomplishment, but boy is it messy!!  This photo does not do the messiness justice.