Sunday, December 4, 2011

16 Months Forget the couch!!

...we're walking just fine all by ourselves.

Slugger

Real age: 16 months
Adj. age:  13 months
Weight:     21 lb. 2 oz.

Milestones:  She's a walking machine!!!  No longer wants baby food or purees, everything has to have substance or chewability.  Holds and can drink from a sippee cup.  Waves bye-bye and almost blows kisses (she brings her hand to her mouth and then forgets the rest). Can scribble on paper with a pen or crayong (we had no idea she knew how until the Easter Seals therapist was testing her skills).  Oops.  Starting to point when looking at a book instead of just flipping pages rapid-fire style.  Gives kisses when asked (heart melting). Has developed three distinct dance moves (the head toss, the arm swing, and the knee-bending bop).  She loves all her toys that plays songs.  She'll press the buttons and then dance away.

Schedule:  Still sleeping 10 pm to 8 am.  Still taking two naps but they're shortening slightly in length and are not as consistent.  Usually one around 11 am for 1.5 hours and one aruond 4 for 1.5-2 hrs).

Diet and Nutrition:  We switched to cow milk without any problem.  She definitely needs solid food as she can eat a whole meal and then tank 6 oz. of milk.  We struggle to find foods that she wants to eat as she is starting to get picky.  Even her favorites, she'll eagerly eat four or five bites and then she doesn't want it anymore.  Like tofu and yogurt.  Food that she will never get tired of: eggs (scrambled with no salt), breads (any kind), broccoli, cauliflower, zuchinni, rice, chicken.  Peanut butter. cheerios. She looks like she's chewing but we suspect she's really just swallowing the small pieces whole.  She only has two teeth.  She still has a disgusting habit of eating anything off the ground, she especially loves hair.  Man, the pressure to have clean floors.

Huge events: She started taking just a few steps every now and then but didn't really do much.  Seemed perfectly happy to just crawl.  We had family over the first weekend of November and it was a huge, crazy week.  As soon as everyone left, it was like she was just waiting for things to calm down.  That night, she just walked across the living room.  It clicked and she just started walking back and forth.  The next night, she was walking and turning and then walking back.

She also got her first haircut.  Her bangs were getting so long and she learned to take out her hairbands which she would promptly toss in her mouth as a snack.

And after a pretty great year, she had a really rough week right after Thanksgiving.  She was playing and go to close to a hibachi  that had been used early.  She burned her hands pretty bad.  At first, she was in a lot of pain and it was just horrible for everyone to see.  Thankfully, she fell asleep and when she woke up, she wasn't bothered at all.  Unfortunately, her hands had blistered so we had to wrap her hands to protect them while they healed.  She's been quite amicable, adapting well to her club hand.  Then, she got very sick and developed a fever that just wouldn't go down.  We're nervous parents who are constantly in touch with medical professionals so we know all the warning signs to look for and what they could mean.  Nothing except the fever but it just wouldn't go down even with medicine.  But then one night, her fever sailed up to 105 and we found ourselves racing to the ER.  Her first visit to the hospital.  She had to undergo numerous blood tests and X-ray and her tears made everyone sad.  But she cheered right up, happily trying to lick her oxygen mask.  All the nurses kept stopping by, completely charmed by her.  As we walked out after a long sleepless night, she happily waved by to everyone in the ER.

We're so relieved that she survived everything and her little body is healing well.  She's such a trouper although she has become way more whiny.  I'm really hoping it is just because she sick.  And I'm thankful for every day that we get to hug her and love her, all she has to do is flash her gummy smile and the sun just shines.

An update wouldn't be complete without pics.  Here's pictures from her first hair cut and a photo of her bandaged hand, the "club."


























13 Months Couch walking already!!

Slugger

Real Age: 13 months
Adj. Age: 10 months

Milestones: Holds on to things and slowly cruises along.  Still only two teeth on the bottom.  No new words besides Dada and barking "woo woo" when she hears Charlie barking.

I'm writing this 3 months after the fact.  Ack, I can't remember what she just started learning at that phase.  Bad bad mommy.  August was a big month for us.  I started a new job that allows me to be home at night and on weekends, but it also meant that we had to find a babysitter a few days a week.  What a stressful journey that was.  I never realized how much timing plays into things as most of the home daycares just didn't have openings.  We did manage to find a few qualified places but really lucked out when the mom of one of Slugger's friends said she was thinking about starting babysitting to supplement their house income.  What a relief that was.  We loved the mom, she's sweet and she's British.  Scott jokingly requested that she sing Mary Poppins songs to Slugger everyday.  We half-hoped Slugger would develop a British accent as well.

Slugger loved it there but as it worked out, another babysitter whom came highly recommended had an opening and our current babysitter found out she was...expecting her second baby!!!  It truly felt like God was helping ease us through transitions and finding Slugger the perfect place.  Slugger goes to her current sitter only a couple times a week but she LOVES it.  She LOVES the other kids there.  It's such a comfort to my heart when I pick her up to see that's she happy.   We've been putting her in the church nursery and she can't wait to play with the other babies.  Last week, we kept her out because she was sick and we didn't want the other babies to get sick.  Slugger cried when we just walked by the nursery without leaving her there.

I'm going to post her 16 month update already but I wanted to share these photos that we took on the beach while Daddy was performing a wedding nearby.













Thursday, July 28, 2011

The best birthday gift you could give...

1 Year
365 days.
One year ago, Scott and I were in a hospital room....terrified...stunned..naive...and now, parents.

Our story is not completely unique. Search the internet and you find forums and letters from other parents who have lost multiples asking how to deal with birthdays. It does bring comfort to see other people have struggled with some of the emotions we are still trying to figure out.

Guilt. I think every new parent struggles with guilt. There are those moments when I’m hugging Slugger and my heart is filled with such love and such joy and I remember how long we waited and how much we hungered to start a family. And then my heart aches that my twins will feel like they’re not utterly and completely missed. I can’t explain how hard it is when you feel guilt over being happy and feel guilt for being sad. I can’t shake the feeling that I’m failing one or more of my daughters no matter how I feel.

As much as we’ve been yearning for this day, we have been dreading it even more. It’s a reminder that it would have been Allie’s and Rory’s 1st birthday. And this is one of the many huge milestones and events in their lives that we will not be able to share with them. We have so much to be thankful for. It has been a wonderful year full of blessings. But this first birthday will be a hard one. We had decided long ago to celebrate Slugger’s first birthday closer to her due date…so she’ll be more like a real 1 year old…with cake and all. We don’t know how we’ll feel on the girls’ actual birthday so we’re playing it by ear. And we’re giving ourselves space and grace to play it that way. We’re allowing ourselves the opportunity to grieve if that is where our hearts are…or to enjoy it for the beautiful summer day it is.

We’re going to honor the fact that today is Allie’s and Rory’s birthday. We won’t ever get to celebrate a birthday with them. We can’t scoop them up in our arms and kiss their cheeks. No cake smash photo sessions. No matching paper hats. We’re going to write cards to them to tell them how much their parents and their sister love and miss them. And we took time off (or tried to) to spend time with Slugger and each other.

And let’s not forget Slugger!!! We’ll be celebrating Slugger’s birthday in the fall, just for this year. So, please, no gifts for our little Slugster. She’s super blessed with more than she can play with. Seriously, she loves other babies so bring over some friends for her and maybe some of those toys can get some action. If you really want to give us a gift, do something kind today in honor of our two oldest girls. Out of something so painful, it would be amazing to see good things grow. Hold open a door for a stranger. Smile at that obnoxious coworker. Talk to that woman on the corner you’ve passed on the way to work every day for months. And if you find the opportunity to make a positive change…no matter, how small, do it!!! How awesome would that be to know that our girls helped inspire a little act of kindness. It would really be a ray of light in our world. So shine on!!!

Happy birthday to all my precious girls! To my angels, Allie, and, Rory, we were so blessed to have you even for just a short time. And to our Slugger, you are such an amazing child and you have filled our home with mess and laughter (both of which I couldn’t live without now). I love you!!!


Slugger 1 Year Birthday!!!

Slugger:
Real Age: 1 year old
Adj. Aige: almost 9 months old
Weight: ~18.2 pounds
Height: ~28 inches


Milestones:


-can transfer object from one hand to other hand
-LOVES to stare in a mirror. So thankfully we don't have many full-length mirrors because she would be glued to it for hours
-can crawl and move to sitting easily
-pulls up to standing and "couch walks"
-can pull herself up on crib rail
-loves climbing stairs (but still tries to go down them headfirst)
-responds to her name
-will "fake laugh" if she's in a room with other people laughing and she feels left out
-pushes things away (like bottles and spoons) if she doesn't want them
-her first tooth has appeared-bottom front and center
-stranger anxiety has begun, only wants mommy and daddy...mainly mommy
-teething=crying and whining


Welcome to the teething era!!! Man, she has become a completely different child out of nowhere. I'm not going to lie, it's tough. Our usual mellow, sweet child is now grouchy and whining at the drop of the hat. It's so hard to know when she's in discomfort and not being able to take it completely away. We've tried all sorts of tricks but her favorite teether is my old license and credit card that she found. Now they're permanently in her toy bin.
Her favorite new "trick" is to make a clicking sound with her tongue against the roof of her mouth. Oh, she cracks herself up. Scott has this hare-brained idea that she's imitating the sound we make when we give her lots of smooches. Personally, I think it's wishful thinking but it does make it really sweet when she starts clicking away and we tell people "she's giving you kisses." She seems to know and has perfect timing, I almost start to believe.


She inherited some toys from her friends, HB and LP. One of the toys is this globe that sings the alphabet song when Slugger spins it. She was spinning it and the recorded vocie sang "h-i-j-k" and I swear that Slugger sang something that sounded exactly like "lllmmmmoooh." My jaw dropped. Was this pure coincidence or is she a complete genius and I should plan on her college graduation party being when she hits ten? I kept watching her but she never did it again but my fingers are crossed.


She's "couch cruising" and is still shaky on the legs but she has gotten a lot better and started to experiment with taking one hand or both hands off the couch.
She's become very attached to me...which I've been waiting for. But now, that it is here, it does make life much harder. She wants to be carried or held...by me. Honestly, I'm not sure why. I hug and love on her...but so does everyone else in her life...so I haven't figured out my appeal yet. But, I hug her harder when she clings to me and I'm enjoying this attachment for now because she might have slightly different feelings to me in about 15 years=)
[Uncle Steve was being a pain and kept throwing this cap over her head. But she could take it off]
[This is the first time I saw this happen. I put her down for her nap and was looking through a closet when I heard laughing and turned around to see this cute face staring at me.]
[I laugh every time I look at this screen shot of the baby video monitor. She and her nap buddy, Elmo, really are two peas in the pod]
[Yah, it's picture time. The monkey is back!!]
Want to see the first pictures she took with that monkey....travel back to September of last year!!


Sunday, June 19, 2011

10 month Videos-Crawl, laugh, and slobber

Her second time crawling (no camera the first time) with the help of Uncle John-John snatching her toy away).


She now loves to babble. She's got kind of a soft voice. She loves to say "da da da da." Scott's parents insist that she said "da da" when she saw Scott on the computer screen. But they said then she said "da da" again when Scott's sister was on the computer screen. Maybe "da da" is her word for the computer?



and now, the grand-daddy of them all. The cutest video I've yet to take. Slugger and her cousin. We met up at the beach but we also hung out with them in Kona a few hours before our plane took off. Slugger was just fascinated with Zylin, she is amazed by other kids. And Zylin decided to share a little love for his cousin. I think he thought I was saying "kiss her." So he did=)!!!

Kind of.

Warning: This might be the cutest video you have ever seen.

10 month update-Big Island Trip


Slugger:
Real Age: 10 months and 2 weeks
Adj. Age: 7 months and 2 weeks
Weight: ~17 pounds
Height: ?

Milestones:
-can sit unassisted for short periods of time (not a lot of improvement there)
-passes toys and objects from one hand to to the other
-is starting to prefer her parents (FINALLY!)
-loves to talk in long run-on sentences "da da da da da da da da"
-crawls
-attempting to climb the stairs in our house
-is pulling herself up on lower things (only to faceplant)
-first tinge of stranger anxiety, looks like it's in our near future
-eating 2-3 baby food meals a day in addition to all the bottles

Happy Father's Day, Scott!!! You are such an amazing man in all you do. I am in love with the son you are to your parents, the friend you are to others (and myself), the husband I have, and the father you are to Slugger (and Allie and Rory). I wish I had the chance to take some father/daughter pictures this past week to go with this post. But I'm so happy we finally get to celebrate our first father's day together and we are so blessed to have many more for years to come.

This is our regular appointments
Speech Therapist-once a month
Physical Therapist- every other week
Public Nurse- once a month
Pediatrician-every 3 months
And we'll having a retina check-up in the next month.

Of all those, I really love her physical therapy. It has helped Slugger catch on to new skills much more quickly. Just 8 days ago, Slugger learned to crawl. She couldn't do it at all before. She planted her hands like they were stuck in concrete and kicked those legs...did pushups...did handstands...but those hands never moved. Last Saturday, one of her favorite uncles, John-John, came to visit and was trying to tempt her with a stuffed animal and she picked up a hand...put it down and then I think she realized how it worked. She crawled across the room to the toy. No problem!!! And that was that. She suddenly became very mobile in five minutes.

I had this misconception that I would have time...there would be a gradual learning process. That she would crawl 1 foot. The next day, maybe a foot and a half. Nope. Once she picked up how to move her hands, she was crawling everywhere. The next day, she crawled to our living room stairs and began tackling that first step. We found her behind our TV. One time, I got distracted and when I looked around, she had disappeared. I was mystified until I saw two little pale feet kicking out the bathroom door and there she was rolling herself in the bathroom mat. In the past week, she's completely mastered crawling and now she's not happy unless intent on standing up. Everything becomes a makeshift crutch to pull herself up to her feet with. One big problem is that she thinks she can stand on her own so she doesn't bother to hold onto anything and topples over straight as a board.

This past month, we took advantage of memorial day weekend and our days off to take her on her first trip ever. We went to the Big Island so my brother and sister could meet her for the first time. And my brother and his girlfriend had their baby boy on July 4th, just 3 weeks before the girls were born. I've never seen my nephew and I was so excited. It was an amazing trip. One thing we've learned this past year is that life is short and you never know when you have to say good-bye. My perception of what's important really has changed and I hope for the better. It was very important for us that Slugger sees her family and I wanted my siblings to see that's she's fine...she's great and they don't have to worry. I know it was so hard for them to not be here for everything.

The trip did have some hilarious highlights, that are so fun that I'm probably going to blog about them on my photography website soon. Look for that. A rodeo and the signs that tell you that you're on the Big Island. But the second day of our trip, my sister, Genesis, took us to lunch at her working place, Merriman's Restaurant in Waikoloa. She's been telling her coworkers all about Slugger and so she wanted them to be able to meet her too. Slugger was a little celebrity as Genesis took her around to meet all of the staff.


Then we drove to "69s" beach to meet my brother and his family. I don't think I need to explain how the beach got its name. It is pretty much what you think it might be=). Slugger went in the water for the third time in her life. She loved it but the sound of the waves along shore really spooked her. Check out her face!


Happy Father's Day, Scottie!!! We were a little short on chairs (which Jordan thoughtfully brought) so Scottie had to hold all the towels for everyone.


Here's Slugger getting ready for her swim. That bathing suit used to be her cousin, Lauren's bathing suit. It's neat to see things getting passed down.


And here is Slugger meeting her handsome cousin, Zylin. They must be family, they both love sticking their tongues out at each other. Oh, no, already the antics begin!

First time I got to see my first and only nephew, and I am in love. He's such a happy and content baby.



And this sight warms my heart. My baby brother holding my baby girl. Oh, I think Zylin is getting a little jealous. I don't think he knew what to make of Slugger.





He burst out laughing when she lost her balance and tipped over. Aunty Genesis was so quick to catch her though.

Cousins!!! I can't wait to see them grow up and become friends!

Jordan, Carolin, Zylin, and Slugger.

Scottie and I taking our turns with the babies.

Genesis, me, Jordan, Slugger, and Zylin.(just missing our older sister and we would have had a little reunion)





Check out the latest post of three recent videos. Crawling, jibber-jabbering, and getting a surprise.