Sunday, January 13, 2008

Remembering my Dad...



We went to the cemetery to mark the 9 year anniversary of my dad's passing. Our whole family was there including a couple of my cousins and Uncle Clarence, my dad's brother. We ate (yes, there was food...in a cemetery!) sang a couple of hymns, and prayed together to remember my dad and celebrate his life. Lauren better get used to going there, we usually visit my dad's grave at least every other month.


Five Months Old!

Five Months?! Wow.

Party in my crib
To mark her 5th month, she said SO LONG, FAREWELL, AUF WIEDERSHEHEN, GOODBYE! to her bassinet. It has served her well, and now It must go into the sinkhole of outgrown and/or as yet unused baby gear otherwise known as the garage (we haven't been able to park our car in there since before the baby showers)

Plastic, Plastic, Everywhere!
Lauren scored this past Christmas...thank you everyone for all the gifts...she not only got lots of cute outfits, but lots and lots of cool toys! It's nice that she can keep herself busy playing and exploring so we can finally get some things done around the house or have a little time to ourselves. With some of her Christmas money, we bought her a new Jumperoo! I took back the one that we got her for Christmas because even though she loved it, we found it to be of poor design with a lot of potential for poking an eye out or bumping her head into hard plastic parts. Our home is slowly becoming overrun with big colorful plastic playthings.

Page Turner...
Lauren loves to read...well, she loves to sit with us while he read to her anyway.

Teething!
One day Lauren had a fever with crying, fussiness, and diarrhea Her cheeks were red (so cute...but she looked so sad) from her fever and she also had a slight cough. I thought she was sick so stayed home from work and considered calling her doctor. One look at her and my mom said, "Oh, she's just teething..."
"But she's got a cough" I said, disbelieving the woman who's had four children.
"Eh, that's 'cause she has lots of saliva. She's drooling a lot, right?" .
"But what about the diarrhea?"
"Teething. Believe me."
I didn't until I checked Dr. Sears Baby Book. She was right.

Liquid Diet
I thought that she would be eating solids by now, but Doc says to wait another month. She's still breastfeeding (with the occasional bottle of formula) but I can tell she's interested in eating by the way she watches intently while we eat. I got a baby food cookbook for Christmas and I'm going to try to make my own baby food. We'll see how long that lasts.

What's so funny?
Oh, and best of all, she LAUGHS! Nice, hearty chuckles and cute little giggles. Lots of things make her laugh...Peek a Boo, funny faces, flying through the air like superman, and especially Zzrbrts (raspberries on her tummy..or any bodypart, really). Even just staring at her bug-eyed will do the trick.

Her hair doesn't stand up anymore...much to the relief of the grandmas who love to adorn her hair with headbands and clips. (so she'll look like a girl...like all the pink frilly outfits aren't clue enough). Oh, and her ears...still hairy.

Monday, January 7, 2008

Darn that writers' strike


We actually watched American Gladiators. And I think Lauren really liked it. Oh no.

Yay for breastfeeding!


I recently received a jury summons and after reading the fine print, I noticed that I could request a postponement for up to a year for being a breastfeeding mother. Yay! Not that I want to shirk my civic duties...but if I do serve on a jury, I don't think the court would a appreciate a request for recess so I could pump. ("But your honor...I'm engorged!!!")

Sunday, January 6, 2008

Vax Day 2

Time for Lauren's second set of vaccinations and whooooboy she didn't like it one bit (as expected). Grandma and Grandpa P. brought Lauren to the Dr's office where I met them on a rain-soaked afternoon and Lauren was already grumpy/hungry/sleepy when they arrived so that didn't help (note Lauren and Grandma dressed in coordinating pink outfits). Grandma P, a retired doctor, went into the exam room with me so she could check out Lauren's Pediatrician and I think she was happy with him and his father (they have a father/son practice). I really like them too...we get two doctors for the price of one and we get the both of both worlds, the younger, more technically savvy doctor and the old school doc with all the experience.

Her Dr. was pretty pleased with her overall health, though. Her stats:

Height: 24 Inches (90th percentile..woah!)
Weight 14 Lbs. 11 ounces (50th)
Head Circumference: 39.5 cm (between 25 and 50th percentile)

He also said her diaper rash wasn't too bad and could be set off by the slightest change in her poop. He suggested blowdrying her butt in between diaper changes (on low or cold setting of course). He actually suggested using Boudreaux's Buttpaste which I was already using. It's funny to hear a Doctor say Buttpaste. heh.

Lauren was already crying during the examination so you can imagine the commotion she caused when he actually administered the shots. I haven't heard her scream like that since the early days. She got six shots, 3 in each leg (IPV, DTap/DTP, HIB, Hepatitis B and PCV) She cried while at the office but once she was in the car she was fine. She was talking to her froggy friend that hangs from her carseat and she was asleep within minutes. She had the usual reactions of fever and fussiness but was all good by the following afternoon. She can relax for now...no more shots for another two months.

Does Diaper Rash make me a bad mom?

Ow! Lauren's got a bit of diaper rash. It started when she got her cold and had some really runny and greenish poops (sorry, but you can't have a baby blog without some mention of poop). She's tried to reach down there during diaper changes for a quick scratch so it must be itchy, poor thing. I know it's not my fault and it was caused by the change in her poop, but still, I feel bad. I've been giving her some air time (lay down a waterproof pad and let her her run free and diaperless) and that seems to help. The plus side is that she looks awfully cute when she's scooting around nekkid and I get to say "Buttpaste" a lot which is fun to say.

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year Everyone! We ended up going to my Mom's house to watch the ball drop and for a bit of bubbly. Lauren surprisingly stayed up until midnight so we could welcome in 2008. We had money in our pockets and jumped up when the clock struck midnight (superstitions; to ensure wealth throughout the new year and a growth spurt).

Happy New Year Everyone! I hope everyone has a blessed and healthy 2008!