Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Mother's Day Out

Today we went to visit a church about their Mother's Day Out program. I was impressed. The director was really sweet and organization of everything was amazing. I didn't realize so much went into a Mother's Day Out program. Aric came with me and Savannah and I think he was just was impressed as I was. Before we make a decision, we are going to check out a couple of other churches. I must admit I was a little nervous this morning going to the church. This whole concept of actually going through the steps to get enrolled in a Mother's Day Out program is new to me and it is kind of scary. I have been so very blessed to be able to stay at home with Savannah and I have loved every minute of it. Aric and I decided together that getting Savannah into a Mother's Day Out program will have many benefits; not only for me but Savannah too. As she is growing so fast and learning new stuff everyday, she can interact and learn with little kids her age. I can have a few hours during the day while she is away to do what I need to do. With a new baby on the way, this will be very helpful. With the support of my wonderful husband and support from my sweet friends, I feel more and more comfortable with our decision to do this.
I can't wait to see what church we will decide on, but when we do, I know it will be the right decision. Exciting times are ahead and the Lord is in control of it all. :)

Monday, March 29, 2010

Ear Infections...

...are yucky! I took Savannah to the doctor today because she has had several sleepless nights from having coughing fits. These coughing fits were due to a little head cold that has now caused her to get another ear infection. This will be her 6th ear infection since August. While we were at the doctor, Dr. Doles brought up three little letters that I didn't want to hear, ENT. This was something I wanted to ask her about anyway, but I was scared to hear her response. She proceeded to ask me if I had thought about scheduling an appointment for Savannah. I told her no and began to ask her, "when do I know weather or not I need to schedule one?" She said some parents do not like the idea of having their child constantly on antibiotics so they will go to the ENT and opt to get tubes for their child. Opposite of that, some people will continue antibiotics every time there is an ear infection. She continued on to say that, a huge drawback to having constant ear infections is hearing problems which can lead to speech problems. (scary!) Now, I will admit, I am one of those parents that don't like to keep their child on antibiotics. While a firm believer that they work wonders, I have always had a fear of Savannah's body getting used to them and then one day if she really needs them, nothing will work. (I don't even know if that is possible, but I think about that kind of stuff.
I will pick up the antibiotics this afternoon and we will go back to the doctor in two weeks to check out her ears again. I am praying that they will clear up. And even if they do clear up, I pray that if she does get sick again, with a head cold or whatever, that the ear infection does not come back.
I know that little children and ear infections are pretty common, but is still no fun having to go through something like this.

(SIGH) Well, I need to clean up around the house. Me and my mom will hopefully find Savannah an Easter dress this afternoon.

I hope everyone has a wonderful afternoon,

Emily

Friday, March 26, 2010

Fun stuff with my sweet baby girl

Here lately, it seems as if Savannah has really "blossomed". It seems like we are constantly teaching her and teaching her and wondering, "will she ever get it?" Savannah has always been so observant. I knew one of these days she would just start doing fun stuff and we would just stand back in awe.
Some of the fun stuff she has started doing/saying that is so cute is, "thank you". She says it all the time now! Sometimes the context is not right but it is cute anyway. If she sneezes and you say "bless you" she will say "thank you". She loves to hand her toys off to people and say "thank you". I was doing laundry earlier and as I was folding the clothes from the dryer, she found me and started handing me the clothes from the dryer and saying "thank you." I hope this is just the beginning of good manners. :)
Another fun thing she does now is try to put on her shoes. She hasn't quite got it down yet but she sure does try hard. I can hardly put her shoes on her without her trying to reach for them and put them on herself. One thing she does know how to do pretty good is get undressed. I have caught her several times in her crib with her pants off and, you won't believe this, but her shirt off too! She is so silly!
She loves people. When we get out and about, she will say "hi" and "bye" to everyone! All with a huge grin on her face and her little hand just a waving. She will also let you know when she is ready to go by quickly waving her hand and saying "bye-bye".
One of my favorite things she has done lately is give kisses. She can blow kisses and give real kisses. When she blows kisses, she really gets into it by holding her hand to her mouth going, "mmmmm" and then she moves her hand away and goes, "mah" really loud! (if you can imagine any of that) It is really sweet. When she gives a real kiss, she will seal her lips together, lean in to you and make the same, "mmmmmmah" sound. The cool thing is, sometimes she does it when you ask her for a kiss, but a lot of the times she will just walk/crawl over to you and just give you a kiss. :)
Bath time has been really fun lately. She has figured out how to blow bubbles if she puts her face in the water. (thanks to her daddy!) She is not the least bit afraid and will giggle after she does it.
These are just a few of the fun stuff she has done lately. I'm sure this is more but I really need to finish the laundry. (with Savannah's help too) :)
I hope all of my friends with little ones are having as much fun as we are. Sure there are days that are hard but when they start doing all of this fun stuff, it is SO worth it.

God Bless,
Emily

Friday, March 19, 2010

Pink eye = no fun!

Savannah has pink eye..... poor baby!
It started Thursday morning in the left eye. She had a bunch of "goop" built up. She had a rough night so I thought maybe it was just sleep in her eye. Less than an hour later the "goop" was back and then it started to look irritated. I called the mom's line and of course the phone nurse was at lunch so I had to wait an hour and a half before they would be back. Since it wasn't a real emergency, I figured I could wait. Savannah had no fever or any other alarm causing symptoms. When called the mom's line back and explained Savannah's eye situation, the nurse immediately said, "pink eye". I know pink eye is a common infection but I was really bummed! The nurse was so nonchalant about it and I didn't even have to see the doctor about this. They just called in an antibiotic eye ointment and that was it! By the time I got off the phone with the nurse, Savannah was still napping, so I let her sleep while I got ready so we could get her prescription later and then go to the grocery store. Savannah had perfect timing yesterday because I had just got done getting ready when she woke up from her nap. I went in her room to get her and almost started crying. The pink eye was now in both eyes!! ( I just had to keep telling myself, "common infection, with medicine it will go away") Her poor little eyes both had "goop" in them and they were very swollen.
We left soon after I got her ready and I feel like I couldn't get that medicine fast enough! I have to put one drop in each eye 4X a day. So far, she has been doing very well with the drops. Her eyes no longer have the "goop" but they are still swollen. The silver lining out of all of this, is Savannah is acting just as happy as she can be. That makes me feel so much better.
Today is the first day in a long time the weather has been nice, so, I am going to take Savannah to the park and enjoy this nice weather. (Yes, I will keep Savannah clear of any little children) Maybe the nice weather will do us some good?!!

God bless and enjoy this beautiful day!

Emily

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

March Prenatal Visit

Today was my monthly prenatal checkup to see how things were going. For all of you mommy's who have been through this before, these visits are very short and sweet in the beginning, assuming everything is allright. Blood pressure was good, 119/60. All my lab work from the previous visit came back fine. We got to listen to the baby's heartbeat! That is always my favorite part of these visits. The heartbeat was 140. I don't know why, but this was surprising. When I was 15/16 weeks with Savannah, her heartrate was 160, so I guess I was expecting it to be higher this go round. The old wives tale is, a slower heartbeat means the baby could be a boy. I am not a believer in the wives tales but, sometimes I can't help but wonder. My weight was good which was a huge relief! I won't post those numbers but I really feel like I have blown up this past week and was sure that I probably gained at least 5 or 6 pounds. I only gained two.
Overall it was a great visit and I can't wait until next month when we find out what the baby will be!

God Bless,
Emily

Monday, March 15, 2010

St. Patrick's Day Quick and Fun Facts

I always find these interesting. Maybe one day Savannah is a little bit older and starts to ask questions about certain holidays, I can share these fun facts with her. :)

  • St. Patrick’s Day is observed on March 17 because that is the feast day of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. It is believed that he died on March 17 in the year 461 AD. It is also a worldwide celebration of Irish culture and history. St. Patrick’s Day is a national holiday in Ireland, and a provincial holiday in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
  • In Ireland on St. Patrick’s Day, people traditionally wear a small bunch of shamrocks on their jackets or caps. Children wear orange, white and green badges, and women and girls wear green ribbons in their hair.
  • Many cities have a St. Patrick’s Day parade. Dublin, the capital of Ireland, has a huge St. Patrick’s Day festival from March 15-19, that features a parade, family carnivals, treasure hunt, dance, theatre and more. In North American, parades are often held on the Sunday before March 17. Some paint the yellow street lines green for the day! In Chicago, the Chicago River is dyed green with a special dye that only lasts a few hours. There has been a St. Patrick’s Day parade in Boston, Massachusetts since 1737. Montreal is home to Canada’s longest running St. Patrick’s Day parade, which began in 1824.
  • St. Patrick was born in 385 AD somewhere along the west coast of Britain, possibly in the Welsh town of Banwen. At age 16, he was captured and sold into slavery to a sheep farmer. He escaped when he was 22 and spent the next 12 years in a monastery. In his 30s he returned to Ireland as a Christian missionary. He died at Saul in 461 AD and is buried at Downpatrick.
  • The harp is the symbol of Ireland. The color green is also commonly associated with Ireland, also known as “the Emerald Isle.”
  • The name “lephrechaun” has several origins. It could be from the Irish Gaelic word “leipreachan,” which means “a kind of aqueous sprite.” Or, it could be from “leath bhrogan,” which means “shoemaker.”
  • Legend says that each leaf of the clover means something: the first is for hope, the second for faith, the third for love and the fourth for luck.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Hello 2nd Trimester!

Last week was the official start of the 2nd trimester for me and I am SO relieved. With Savannah, the first trimester was hard because I felt sick and tired all the time but with this pregnancy, there was just something different about it. Maybe it was the upper respiratory infection, maybe it was the stomach bug, all on top of being pregnant, I don't know. Since last week, though, I have felt ALOT better and feel like a new person. I am going to enjoy every moment of this 2nd trimester and try and get as much done around the house as possible. I am also wanted to work out a lot more. I finished a 5K race this weekend and it felt great. Until I get too big to do anything that is going to be another goal of mine, run or walk as much as I can. I did not do anything in the way of exercise with Savannah. I still made it, but I firmly believe that it would have been a lot easier to get back into working out again, if I had already been working out before hand. I don't want to become some crazed work out person, I just want to be healthier. I am going to have two little munchkings to be looking after and I am going to need all the energy I can get! :)
So, this 2nd trimester is going to be good, fun, and productive. Wish me luck!

Emily

Thursday, March 4, 2010

How He Loves

(David Crowder Band sings this song and I love it. It has really been on my heart lately and every time I hear it, I believe it is such a great reminder of God's love for us. It is truly amazing! I will update our media player so you can also listen. The words are really great.)

He is jealous for me, Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realize just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

And oh, how He loves us oh
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all

He is jealous for me, Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realize just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

And oh, how He loves us oh,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves.

And we are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes,
If His grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking.
And heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest,
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets,
When I think about, the way…

That He loves us,
Oh how He loves us, Oh how He loves us, Oh how He loves. Yeah, He loves us, Oh how He loves us, Oh how He loves us, Oh how He loves. Yeah, He loves us, Oh how He loves us, Oh how He loves us, Oh how He loves.

Seaside Half-Marathon and 5k Race...

is this weekend! Eek!! At the beginning of the year, Aric set up a training schedule for me so I would be ready for this 5k race in March. I stuck to it for a couple of weeks then we found out we were going to have another baby and well, I slacked off, ALOT. First it was an upper respiratory infection, then morning sickness like you wouldn't believe, then the stomach flu and here we are, only days away from the race and I am NOT ready. I am very much a rookie when it comes to 5k races. I have only been in one other race, in Daphne, AL, when I went to visit my sister a few years ago. I did no training for that at all. I didn't even know I was going to race until the day of! I finished last in my age group of course, but had a good time! I am going to try and make it to the YMCA today and do some run/walking on the treadmill. My doctor said I am fine to race, but to stay comfortable and not push myself. I am not looking forward to finishing last but, I signed up for this race before we got pregnant and I intend to participate and at least finish! :)
Aric on the other hand is going a little bit further than me and doing the half-marathon. He ran the Hyundai half in October and finished better than he thought he would. Seeing as this course is going to be a lot flatter, I think he is going to do just fine.
We will be going to Seaside, FL with some sweet friends of ours, Will and Jennifer Barrett. They are brining their son Caleb and we will be bringing Savannah. Besides the race, I am really excited to be going down to the Gulf and enjoying a little R&R. It is supposed to be beautiful weather and that makes it even better.
Please say a short prayer for us as we travel and on race day. (by the way, race day will be on Sunday at 7AM)

God bless and enjoy this beautiful weather these next few days!!!

Emily

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Baby #2!

Finally, here are the ultrasound pictures from our first doctor's visit for Baby #2!

Savannah's 15 month check-up (a few weeks late)

Hello everyone! These past few weeks have been crazy. Shortly after finding out we were pregnant, I really struggled with morning sickness and fatigue. I didn't want to do anything! Once that started to subside, I got a stomach virus which later sent me to the hospital because I got so dehydrated. Aric then got the stomach virus and we were both sick. Thank God for my parents being in town! They were able to watch Savannah for two nights and that helped us out, ALOT. Sad thing is, about a week later my parents got the stomach virus. :(
It always seems like it is one thing after another and it is exhausting!
I am going to back up just a little, when I first got the stomach virus, before Aric got it and before I had to go to the hospital, it was time for Savannah's 15 month check-up. I was totally bummed that I couldn't go because I have been to every appointment since she has been born. My sweet husband not only had been taking care of me (he had to take off work to do this) but at the last minute (a few hours before) I remembered her appointment and he had to rush her there so that he wouldn't be late!
Since I wasn't able to go to the appointment, this is going to be a very brief update.
Savannah's 15 month stats:
-29" inches long
-20 lbs 13 oz
-Head 48 cm
I was a little worried about her numbers because her percentiles went down. At her 12 month check up she seemed to be in the 20th percentile or so for height and weight. She is now in the 5th to 1oth percentile for height and weight. Now, it is no mystery that Aric and I are not tall people. Aric said the doctor did not seemed concerned about her height and weight so that was a little relief. She is just going to be a pretty, petite, little girl/young lady/woman. I am just thankful that she has a clean bill of health and developmentally she seems to be doing well. She is still NOT walking, for those of you who are wondering. She can stand by herself and take steps here and there but not enough to be considered walking. Her vocabulary has really expanded these past few months. Here is a list of words she can say:
"thank you"
"nye-nye" (night night)
"bye-bye"
"dog"
"milk"
"teeth"
"bath"
"eye"
"nose"
"please"
"nana" (banana)
"bite" (when she is hungry)
"dada"
"mama"
"bear"
"car"
"juice"
There are other small here and there if we say them to her, she can somewhat repeat them back. Savannah still plays very well by herself. I try to get her around other kids when I can with playgroups and church. From what I can tell she plays with other kids well. She is very observant. Before she steps in with another child, she will watch them closely to see what/how they are doing things and then she will play. I find it very cute. Napping is no problem with Savannah. She can still take up to 2 naps a day, both about an hour long, sometimes longer, if you can believe that!
Now, for the not so fun stuff. Savannah's stubborn personality has really come out. We have really had our patience tested with this. When it is dinner time she can get very demanding and whiny. I usually try go ahead and cook dinner before I know she will be starving but sometimes my timing is a little off. So, she will get fussy when hungry, I guess that is normal for babies. Her diet however is more interesting. My poor, pitiful starving child is such a picky eater!! I have really started to worry about what she will/will not eat. For breakfast, I give her instant oatmeal and a fruit cup, milk to drink. (sometimes juice) For lunch, it is usually a sandwich of some kind, pb & J, turkey and cheese with fruit or crackers. For a snack, it is teddy grahams or yogurt. Then for dinner, it is a mix between chicken nuggets, mac n cheese and a vegetable. She likes green beans and carrots. Then for dessert she gets a fruit cup. The foods I just listed are what she eats a majority of the time. I try and give her what Aric and I eat but 99% of the time she will not eat it. I noticed on Savannah's well child instruction sheet, the doctor circled Poly-Vi-Sol and Vi-Daylin. Hopefully, with these vitamin supplements she will get all the nutrients she needs.

When I think of this 15 month check up, it blows my mind. I can't believe my baby is 15 months old! Has it really been 15 months?

Time flies when your having fun!!

God Bless,
Emily