16.5 months - a day in the life

Today you woke up at 7:15, but hung out in your crib until 7:45. Like most nights these days, you slept great after going to bed at 7. You usually sleep from 6:30/7pm until anywhere from 6:30-9 am. 

After waking, we nurse, then do a diaper change. You help me throw away your diaper (a new obsession), then we walk downstairs together to put the dog outside, counting the steps, which you mimic. You immediately want breakfast, and i usually have no more than 10 minutes before a meltdown ensues. Today, you ate 1.5 scrambled eggs, a handful of Cheerios and Chex. Mama needs to go to the grocery store, clearly, because we are out of fruit! 

After screaming at me numerous times over various infractions (you dropped your fork, you wanted water and not milk, you wanted more cereal and no more eggs, you wanted me to feed you eggs, etc.) you finished your breakfast and got down to play. We read books and play in the living room for an hour or so, until mama feels a little more human thanks to her coffee, then head upstairs for a diaper change and we get dressed for the day. 

We spend some more time playing and eat a snack (and we usually put on Sesame Street at 9), then I put you down for an early nap just before 11. I'm hoping you will wake up earlier so we can go to a playdate at 1:30. You feel pretty warm to me so I take your temp - 100.7 is the highest reading I get so I give you Tylenol. This is pretty normal for you to run a temp, and because of your seizures I get panicky and give you meds even if you are acting normal. 

I spend your naptime on the computer or phone, do some laundry, pick up toys, shower, drink more coffee, and eat lunch. I also prepare your lunch and make sure the house is dog-proofed so we can leave as soon as you are done eating after nap. 

As usual, you sleep late because we have somewhere to be! I let you sleep, knowing that your nap will be a little weird tomorrow because we have friends visiting. You wake up at 2:15 - we change your diaper, nurse, and go downstairs to eat. Lunch consists of butternut squash ravioli and sausage. 

After lunch, we play inside for a while but you are clearly bored. We watch a little bit of a movie (Tangled), which actually interests you for the first time. After about 15 minutes, we head outside to the backyard to play until 5. 

You start telling me you are hungry again so we head inside. Papa will be home late tonight so it's leftovers for dinner - rice, chicken fingers, grapes, hummus and crackers. After dinner, more play time and books until 6:15 when we watch a few minutes of 101 Dalmations to wind down. You've been in a bit of a cranky mood today and the evenings are usually the worst - today has had more tv time than usual. We head upstairs for PJs, diaper, and teeth - your temp reads 99.7, so I go ahead and give you some Motrin. It could be your canines starting to come in causing the fever. We go downstairs again, read a few books and nurse. By 6:40 I take you upstairs for bed, even though it's a little early, you seem tired. We turn on Violet the dog for bedtime music, rock and snuggle for a couple minutes and I lay you down in your crib. You fall asleep on your own within 10 minutes without a peep!

Evie Brooke- 14 and 15 months

14 month highlights:

Getting close to walking

Doesn't like chocolate cake 

Had Bronchiolitis and ear infection, stomach flu, and allergic reaction to amoxicillin within 3 weeks. 

Dairy free

Dropped to one nap = hell

Won't go to sleep on her own anymore

15 month highlights:

Words: dog, cat, mama, papa, down, outside, uh oh, all done, ball, banana, more, snack

Loves being outside

Loves 5 little monkeys jumping on the bed book and song

Meatballs and pasta, blueberries, bananas, toast, broccoli, snack foods

Still mostly dairy free 

Nurses 3-5 times a day

Back to sleeping through the night, 13-14 hours and a 2 hour nap +/- between 11-12pm

Loves to put her shoes on and brings me my shoes to put on 

Still not walking! 

Had another febrile seizure - no illness just 101.6 fever at JP and Kara's wedding. Less severe than the last one, recovered faster. Referred to neurologist, appt next month 

1st haircut - Memorial Day - we cut off the rat tail! 

Loves cars, trains, airplanes and rides in the wagon 

Evie's big scare - febrile seizure & RSV

February 2nd: Evie spent the night coughing and awake a lot - darn it, I thought we had kicked this cold! In the morning, she was congested again, and coughing a ton, so I went ahead and called the doctor. The nurse went over things to try, agreed we were doing everything we could, but said we could come in if it would make us feel better. I decided that we should, because she had been sick for going on two weeks at this point if this was the same cold flaring back up. 

After a nap she woke up and felt warm - her temp was 100.4. I didn't give her any medicine because it isn't considered a real temperature until it's over 101 in babies and toddlers. She refused most of her lunch and we snuggled until we needed to leave for the doctor appointment.  She dozed which was unusual for her but didn't seem like a big deal. 

We less than a mile from home when I heard a strange choking noise and looked back at her - something was wrong. I pulled into the next side street and jumped out of the car, remembering my cell phone somehow. At once I realized she was seizing - I called 911 and pulled her out of her car seat to hold her on her side. The ambulance and fire truck arrived within 5 minutes, and her seizure only lasted about 2 minutes. The postictal state after a seizure was so scary because it lasted so long. She had no muscle tone or control, wasn't crying and kept falling asleep. She wasn't making eye contact either. 

After checking her out in the ambulance (sugar level was fine, o2 a little low and fast heart rate, temp 100.2) we went to the hospital. They did a chest xray, EKG, and tested her for RSV and the flu - all of which were normal. Her chest X-ray showed she had some kind of virus but we left in a few hours and followed up with our doctor the next day. It was diagnosed as a febrile seizure which can happen with a sudden spike or drop in temp as well as a high temp. 

She didn't really worsen over the week, but I couldn't ever get her fever to stay down. We went back to the dr on Friday and her o2 levels were low enough they put her on oxygen to see how much she needed. 

We ended up being admitted to the hospital for RSV and Bronchiolitis because she wasn't able to stay off the o2, especially when sleeping. She also had double ear infections, which surprised us because she had shown no signs. We only had to stay the one night, which went okay. 

She stayed on o2 while sleeping for a week and improved gradually until we were home free! 

It's THE WORST feeling in the world when your baby is sick like this. Fingers crossed she is a healthy kid because my nerves will be shot if not! 

Evie Brooke - 13 months

So many changes this month! 

At a doctor visit for a possible ear infection (she was fine) on March 24th I think Evie weighed 20 lb 14 oz, which was a ten ounce gain in 2 weeks! She started out the month of March with lots of birthday celebrating and ended it with her 2nd Easter, which was so much fun for her.

Verbal: Makes car noises, moos, woofs, says mama (or maaamaamaamaaamaa) occasionally, says ball occasionally 

Motor skills: Snaps without sound, crawls up the stairs, down with help, pulls up to standing, will "walk" between items in reach (table to couch to toy), bear crawls, first big falls - off a chair and down a few stairs

 

Favorite foods: cheese, berries (strawberries are not the fave though), eggs, veggie/fruit muffins and pancakes. She will drink whole milk from a bottle but not straw cups. Nurses when she wakes or before sleep (4-6 times a day) - working to cut back on "snack" nursing. 

Growth and health: One maybe two molars have cut through partially - they are so much worse than the first 8 teeth. First time with a stomach bug - wasn't too bad but definitely not fun! 

Evie had her first overnight away from mama - Oma stayed with her at home and she did great while mama and papa went to a concert and stayed downtown. 

We are spending much more time outside and she loves it. She will sit and crawl on grass finally, whereas before she would cry and lift her feet every time we tried to put her in the grass. 

She has learned to make a ton of new faces - frowning, wrinkling her nose, funny faces using her mouth, and a new pout face that KILLS us! 

Birthday eve thoughts

Oh little girl. How is it possible a year has passed?? You are so much more than we could have wished for. I looked back and re-read my thoughts the day before you were born and I swear I feel like that was yesterday. So cliche, I know. I referred to this year as a baby time warp because it's so true that time passes faster than you think is possible once you have children. I read my questions about you - 

"My head is also filled with questions about you - will you have lots of hair like me? Who will you look like? Are you going to shock us with your weight? Will you be as tall as we think you are?"

To answer those: you have SO much hair and it's the envy of everyone in our playgroup! You are my mini-me but you have your papa's eyes, only dark like mine. Those big brown eyes with "fake" eyelashes are going to be the death of me. You shocked us with your weight alright - you were TINY when you were born, at only 6lb 11oz and you were average height. Today, you are a healthy girl in the 50-65th percentile for weight and 70-80th percentile for height. 

Your personality though - never in a million years would I have guessed I would have the ornery, silly, goofy girl who is also social, loving and a bit of a scaredy-cat. Now that I think about it though, that's the perfect mix of your papa and myself. I can see you have a stubborn streak at least as wide as mine or your father's, and you continue to teach is patience as you do things at your own pace. You will NOT be rushed or persuaded to do something that isn't 100% your idea. 

You are such a social creature, and I love to see that. You have the strangest mix of being a complete mamas girl, who freaks out if I leave the room, and also lighting up around other people. You love attention, from friends or strangers, and you especially love other kids. Now that you crawl, you have reverted back to your obsession with the pets at our house and Oma & Grandpa's house, chasing them around and saying "dog" continuously. Your curiosity and love of communicating has been so much fun to watch - you love identifying things and learning new signs like light or ceiling fan. 

You hate missing out on things so you've only recently become a better sleeper. The first 8 months of life you preferred your company to be sleep deprived and you let us know that. Repeatedly. Long days and longer nights have finally given way to a better routine, but you are still really flexible as long as we don't skip/push naps and bedtime too many days in a row. Thank you, my dear, for FINALLY allowing us to sleep through the night! 

You love food and love nursing - you enjoy both ALL day long. You prefer snacking and comfort nurse often. It's hard to keep you focused long enough for a full meal or a full nursing session. How can you be the same baby that was the most painful nurser EVER for those first few weeks!? I'm so happy I stuck with it because now it's hard to imagine giving it up. That won't be happening anytime soon, that's for sure!

I can't even imagine how much you are going to change each year from here on. You have already become such a little person instead of a blobby baby! I miss that blobby baby a lot, but I also love each new stage that has come our way! Let's hope toddlerhood is at least a little kind to us ;)

We love you baby! I can't imagine life without you now, and can't remember what it was before you! 

Evie Brooke - 12 Months

We have a one year old!!!

(March 12th measurements)
Weight: 20 lb 4 oz - 57%
Height: 29.5 inches - 62%
Head Measurement: 17.72 inches - 52%

What we've learned: Our girl is the perfect mix of Luke and I. Cautious, funny, ornery, happy, beautiful, smiley, opinionated, stubborn, and a big scaredy-cat :) Parenting challenges are always changing - we used to be worried about her basic needs and now we are worried about what we need to teach her so she becomes a strong, smart, independent, and good-hearted girl. 

What we’re enjoying right now: We love seeing her crawl around, shrieking and giggling. It's so fun to show her something and watch her repeat it. She loves attention so she loves to perform!

What our biggest struggles are: Her sleep has improved immensely but she still changes her schedule daily so that can be a little frustrating. She's a little behind on gross motor skills (rolling, crawling, pulling up, cruising, walking) but she continues to make improvements. My personal frustration is her whining - I need to develop more patience and learn to tune it out. 

What has been Evie's most exciting milestone: Crawling! She's developed more independence and confidence. She also gets into trouble a lot more often ;) hence the dog water picture below. She's trying to speak more as well and that's so much fun. 

What we’re looking forward to: learning to walk, more words, and celebrating the 2nd of all her holidays, beginning today with St Patricks day!

Sleep: She naps for anywhere from 45 minutes to 4 hours in a day. Usually it's 1-2 hours but it can differ based on what her sleep has been like before that. She generally sleeps through the night. If she wakes, it's due to illness, not enough napping or she drops her binkies out of the crib 😁 

Health: She seems to catch a lot of colds but I think that's normal. She started out her month being REALLY sick  (her febrile seizure and her RSV/ear infections) but she hasn't been too sick overall this year. 

Eating: She makes me a little crazy with her eating. She gets bored in the highchair and wants down or wants to nurse, but then signs that she's hungry 20-30 minutes later. She can be picky or won't eat much for a lot of the time, but then she will devour 3 plates of food. She's learning to use a fork and spoon - if I load the food on, she can get it into her mouth now. 

Hard to believe how much this little chicken has grown this year! We are so lucky to see it! 

365 days, 52 weeks, 12 months, 1 YEAR!

oh my...

Where does the time go?

Three days before Evie's first birthday, and it's finally sinking in.  We have succeeded in raising a beautiful, smart, funny little girl for an entire year.  This year has taught me so much about myself, my marriage, my family, and most of all, Evie. 

I'm learning about balance, and patience, and love. My heart is so full of love for this little girl, I didn't know it was possible.  How can you love someone so much and not squeeze the life out of them daily? I'm still trying to figure that out. ;) I find it a struggle every day to be 100% engaged so my goal is setting aside time every day to do just that. Finding the balance between losing myself to Evie's needs and doing what I want (reading, crafts, cooking dinner, etc.) has been a struggle for me.  One thing that helps immensely is being involved in our playgroup and getting out of the house. I get to expose Evie to other kids, new experiences, and new environments while having adult conversations as well! Some weeks we spend too much time away from home, and then the next week we try to make up for it by getting back on a schedule. That's another hard balance to find, but we do okay with it.  I am really focused on doing more for myself and hoping to find some way to contribute to the family in a way that doesn't involve Evie's needs. 

I love seeing Luke as a father. He's so in love with his daughter, and she thinks he is the bees knees as well! They have a completely different dynamic than she does with me, and sometimes I sit back and wonder why.  She's more independent with him, and he has more patience when she is whiny, which I envy.  They spend almost every weekend morning together, just the two of them, while I catch up on sleep. He's so willing to take care of her in order to give me a break - whether it's a solo trip to the grocery store, a girls night out, a massage, or lunch with my mom, he steps up every time.  She does so well with him, especially as she's grown and needs to nurse less. Luke and I are struggling to connect lately, as we each need our break once we put Evie to sleep.  We are committed to making more time for each other and getting back to our fun relationship. We also are focused on spending more time as a family of three, without others and doing actual activities on the weekends instead of laying low at home.

And then there's Evie.  Our light, our laugh, our love. You, my little one, are such a joy and the answer to every hope and prayer we ever had.  You are a clown like your father, cautious like your mother, and affectionate like both of us.  You are a mama's girl, but love your time with papa as well.  You love people so much! Your Oma and Aunt Nanny are two of your favorites, but you love every member of the family as well.  You light up if a stranger looks your way, and you think that other kids are the coolest thing in the world.  You are fairly demanding, and you aren't exactly known for your patience, which tests mine daily! You love animals, evidenced by your first word being "dog". Your cautiousness has slowed you down in terms of movement - you didn't crawl until almost 11 months, but you haven't looked back since you started.  You stand, but don't pull yourself up, and you won't sit down unless I let you grab my hand before letting go. You will walk if we hold you, but won't cruise around on the furniture, because, hello, that's scary without someone holding you! :)  You are completely spoiled by your Mama's family - not just with gifts, although that too - you get undivided attention whenever we see them, which is usually at least once a week.  You are so curious little girl! You point to things constantly so we will identify it, and you bring us toys too. You love communicating through sign language - your signs include milk, more, please, all done, light, ceiling fan, and eat. You use most of these without prompting or mimicking us when we ask you about these things. You will go to Papa and sign milk so he will bring you to me to nurse, or you will sign eat when you are hungry, without me asking. You are very close to saying more words - I can tell you are telling me SOMETHING we just haven't been able to decipher it yet! Now that you are crawling, you love to explore and we are seeing your ornery side even more.  You smile when we say no, but you handle being redirected fairly well. You KNOW when you are doing something you aren't supposed to, like pulling on a cord, so you aren't surprised when we pull you away! You enjoy tormenting the dog, so we try to give him space and encourage you to play with something other than his toes and ears.  I can tell that we are going to have to be creative with discipline, as we are already seeing the beginnings of tantrums. 

I can't wait to see what you learn next! I look forward to seeing you become more affectionate, as you are already know how to give hugs and kisses when prompted. You are so silly and love to make others laugh, so I know you will only continue to make everyone who knows you happier. We love you Evelyn Brooke!