Week 11

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

I think we had an enjoyable day. Emmaline woke up around 6 as usual. We were able to get her to take a nap around 8:15. She slept for about 45 minutes and then we got dressed and went to church. We went up to Target to print off some pictures since I'm trying to update the scrapbook. I know I'll have a lot to add after our trip to Cape Cod next week for K's wedding and want to be caught up with months 6-8 beforehand. After a long afternoon nap, Emma and Dan did some grocery shopping. We all had dinner together (Emma had puffs, kiwi, and banana; we had frozen pizza). The kiwi was new and she seemed to really enjoy it! She was absolutely covered in the black seeds afterwards. They were suck in her neck folds, between her fingers, in her hair, and all over her face. Such a mess! We tried pureed peas earlier this week and she didn't seem to thrilled about those. Because of the long late-afternoon nap it took almost an hour to get her to sleep tonight. Nursing was also a pain (literally) because she is getting more teeth and was chomping down again. Luckily, this was the first biting all week.

Speaking of teeth. Emma has cut 3 teeth this week and I have a feeling that 1 (if not 3) more can be expected very soon. I think that is going to make for a difficult vacation, but we'll take some tylenol (generic brand, not the icky stuff that has been recalled even though we have a brand new bottle of that). We could tell that she was getting another one this weekend because she tugged on her ear more and has been chewing on her tongue with it hanging out. I thought it would be the bottom side teeth, but finally thought to feel her top gum tonight and discovered that a center one has already cut. I think I mentioned last Sunday that we felt a top side tooth. By Wednesday we could see the opposite tooth as well. I'm glad that the center tooth is coming in, because I was worried that she would look like a jack-o-lantern. So far, her teeth have arrived in pairs so I think we should see or feel the other center tooth within 2 days.

Yesterday we went to our first Baby Signs class. We learned food signs (eat, drink, cereal, milk, all done, and more). We had a good time other than the car ride. Looking back now I blame the tooth, but she was a little monster. I rode in the back seat with her the whole way back (about 45 minutes) and she was very unhappy. I am praying that she is better on our trip this week since she will be in the car about 5 hours for 4 days (2 days there, visit for 3 days, 2 days back). I don't know how we are going to fit everything in the car for such a long trip. We were planning on taking the travel swing, but there's no way to fit that. We bought an umbrella stroller because her other stroller won't fit with luggage. The pack'n'play has to go even though we know she won't sleep in it. With all the crawling she is doing, we need some way to contain her occasionally. She is also pulling herself up and learning to climb things. She is already taking steps if she's holding on to something (table edge, crib rail, hands, etc).

Few random things- Tuesday was officially our last day at work for the school year. I had a job interview that afternoon for a different position within the district. I went to the dentist on Wednesday for my fillings and a cleaning. My experiences with this dentist haven't been horrible and I may actually go on a regular basis (cleanings twice a year and yearly exams). Dan had his exam on Thursday - he doesn't have any cavities though. Dan & I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary on Friday. It was nice to be able to drop her off at daycare and spend a day together. That same day we also said goodbye to the doctor who delivered Emma. She finished her residency at our family practice so we took Emma up there after we picked her up from daycare and let her see the doctor. We are going to continue going to the same practice, but will probably keep seeing the nurse practitioner there. She is really nice, adores Emma, and is easy to schedule with.

Week 10

What a week! Emma still has her cold and it led to an ear infection. She's spent most of the week being too congested to nurse (which led to a lot of biting) so I had to pump more often and stick with bottles for several days. We went ahead and cut out solids so she would still get enough milk. Nighttime has been particularly rough for us. Emma still wakes up once during the night, but instead of just eating and going right back out she has been up for 1-3 hours at a time. It's exhausting. We went back to the doctor and they started her on an antibiotic. We were able to get a powder form of probiotics for infants at the local health food store and started her on that too (mixed with her juice or breastmilk). We went ahead and gave her some puffs, mango and chicken tonight since we've had the mango all week and didn't want it to go bad. (The picture is from last weekend - somehow Dan missed the spot of peaches on her nose during bathtime.)

Being sick hasn't stopped Emma from learning new 'tricks'. Today she officially pulled herself up to a standing position. She is picking up speed with her crawling and loves splashing in the kitties' water bowls (and trying to grab the cat food). We also finally felt the sharp point of another tooth this morning. It's not one of the central top teeth though, it's on the right side.

Week 9

More firsts: Emma figured out how to go from the crawling position to sitting up on her own. She is now working on pulling herself up from the sitting position. She loves standing up (with help) and seems to get more balance every day. Her new favorite sound to say is "na-na-na-na". Yesterday we took Emma to the mall for the first time. She had a blast riding around in the stroller. We went in search of a dress for her to wear at the wedding later this month (3 weeks from today) and found a ton of other cute clothes for her too. As long as she doesn't have a major growth spurt anytime soon, she is now set for summer.

We also took Emma to the doctor yesterday because she has had a very runny nose and bad cough since Wednesday. (Thank you very much sick babies @ daycare.) She was sounding wheezy so we wanted to have her checked out. Lungs are clear and ears look good. If she's not improving by this Wednesday or Thursday we'll take her back. Dr. wants to make sure all the congestion doesn't lead to an ear infection. She's fussy off and on, but mostly her happy self.

The school year is wrapping up. Only 4 1/2 days left with students. My testing is finished (did pretty well overall, couple disappointments) and Dan's test is tomorrow. I'm looking forward to this year being over. I'm not looking forward to having larger class size next year, but ready for a fresh start. Also looking forward to a summer break! We are heading up to Cape Cod for the wedding this month and flying out to Las Vegas in August to see family.

I guess the solids are going alright. Emma's favorite vegetable is currently carrot and her favorite fruit is mango. She still gags when she bites off too much or shoves a whole piece in her mouth. It totally freaks me out and Dan has to deal with it. Tonight was one of the those nights where I want to just stop with the real solids and stick with purees, but Dan keeps us going. He does well being the voice of reason when it comes to stuff like this. He's been a great supporter when it comes to breastfeeding. I remember all the times I sat in tears telling him that I was giving up and we were switching to formula. And here we are, 8 months on Tuesday and still never used a drop of formula. I'm not enjoying this biting phase, although it seems like she only bites on Saturdays - no clue what's up with that. But it's just something else we'll work through. It isn't nearly as painful as mastitis or thrush and doesn't crush me heart like a nursing strike (although I do hate how sad she looks when I tell her 'no biting').