Bathroom update

The bathroom has come quite a far way. Alann has been working hard on it, and hasn't required any work of me. Yay. So far, the shelves are all built, installed, and painted. The walls are repaired and painted. The ceiling even got a fresh coat of paint. Next stop: floor. We've got all the old nasty floor out, we just need to lay the new tile. Then we can reinstall the vanity and toilet. OR maybe it is the other way around. I don't really know which order Alann will do it in. Either way, I should have a beautiful new bathroom shortly. Then I can clean the office. And put away the christmas wrapping paper.

In Claire news- Claire has an ear infection. I've learned that if your mommy sense says something isn't right with your child, you should listen to it. Phone calls are free, and that is all it took for the nurse to tell me that Claire probably had an ear infection. I know some ear infections aren't bacterial and can go away on their own, but this one was just getting worse. So I took her to the doctor and sure enough, right ear is infected. We both got a good night's sleep last night and she is a little more sprightly this morning. She doesn't really tend to get upset when sick, but she wasn't sleeping very good at all. And was very fussy. And yesterday didn't eat much. So it is good to know she will be on the mend now.

In baby news- I don't know that I have shared this yet publicly, but we do have a name, should the boy really be born a boy. If he is born a girl, then we might argue a bit. But the boy will be named Mark Alexander, and will go by Alex. He is becoming more active. He is also giving me awful heartburn lately. The last three nights in a row have been pretty terrible. Last night I finally got some liquid antacid, since milk and tums weren't working. That did help. It was slow, but relief did come. (I'm sure the salsa I ate at dinner didn't help the situation.) I really can't say I am very excited about this pregnancy. I feel very uncomfortable already. I feel like I am more uncomfortable now than I was with Claire at this point, and he is measuring small and she always measured large. So I am a bit concerned about the latter end of the pregnancy and what that will do to me. The hand numbness is starting in. It isn't constant yet, but if I do something for a prolonged period of time, my wrists start aching. Typing, sewing, dishwashing, baking cookies. All of these things have started the aches. I'm not too excited about that. But otherwise all is well.

Baby news

We had our 20-week ultrasound on Weds. It seems like this pregnancy is just flying by. I guess it helps that I don't have to worry and wonder what it will be like every second, since I've done it before. I also have Claire to keep me busy. Everything looks good on the ultrasound. Baby has 2 legs and 2 arms and a head and a butt, so everything seems to be in order. We also found out it is a boy. I figured it would be, since I wanted a girl for ease of dealing with two so close together, but that's okay. Alann wanted a boy so we could be "done if we want to be". If the boy is anything like Claire, we just might be done because the two of them will run me ragged. So far, he isn't as active as Claire was. I'm feeling him more and more. He is measuring a little small- about a week smaller than he "should" but ultrasounds are iffy anyway. My doctor says that the earlier they are, the more accurate they are at predicting fetus age. So the one we had done at 13 weeks at our first appointment sets a more reliable due date than this one at 20 weeks that would possibly set him back a week. Not like it matters anyway. He will come when he is ready.

I'm a little apprehensive about having a boy. I'm sure once he is here it will be fine, but caring for the girl has been so easy. I guess it is fear of the unknown. I don't have brothers. I have no idea what young boys are like. That, and I don't know how much of the clothing we have is adaptable to a boy. Plus all the other concerns we have staring us in the face this year- selling the house, Alann finishing school, moving (or not- nobody knows), being totally unemployed. I made it to Christmas. My next obstacle is February- with Alann and Claire's bdays, then May. I'm just trying to take it one month at a time.

Claire's 9 month checkup

Claire had her 9 month check up yesterday. It's a little early, but I scheduled it around when I didn't have Jocee, because it was just easier that way. She is weighing in at 20 lbs 3 oz, which is in the 50th %. She is 28 1/2" tall- 50% again. And her head is 44 cms- I think that was in the 50th% too, but I wasn't really listening because I was trying to get her diaper back on her. I was a little concerned that her growth slowed down, but the doctor said she looked really good, and at her 6 month checkup, the doctor had said that once she started crawling she would quit gaining quite so much weight because she would be burning it off. The other really good news is NO MORE EAR INFECTION!!! YAY! I am so excited that we got that thing taken care of.
Claire has been cleared to eat meat, wheat, and cheese and yogurt. You have no idea how easier that makes my life. I will obviously still offer her a lot of veggies and fruits, but she is SO interested in what we are eating, that this will make having a sandwich for lunch a little smoother. I try to have at least one veggie or piece of fruit with every meal, but sometimes I am having raw carrots, so she can't eat that obviously. It also makes me have to be less neurotic about making sure we have gluten free cereals in the house. She loves Rice Chex, and I certainly won't start feeding her fruit loops, but if we run out of Rice Chex, I can give her some Raisin Bran or something and not worry about it.
The doctor said her gums are starting to "get full" and swollen, so maybe we will have teeth soon. Maybe.
We also talked about her sleeping. The doc said that once babies hit "4 months and 14 pounds" they should be sleeping longer at night and not necessarily needing to eat at night. She said Claire definitely does not need to be eating in the middle of the night anymore. She said we are at the peak of separation anxiety and we just need to train her to sleep through the night. This means no picking her up and rocking her or feeding her at night anymore. If she cries, just let her cry for a few minutes, go in, reassure her, lay her down, and let her cry for a few more minutes. We got up twice last night- once just as we were going to bed and again at 3. The first time she was up for about 20 minutes or so. She babbled for the first little while, then started crying. She really only cried for about 10 minutes then went to sleep. The second time she cried for about 5, I went in, laid her down, she whimpered a few times and went back to sleep. I'm hoping for just once tonight. She really really really needs to sleep through the night.
Otherwise, she got her last Hep B vaccine and both of her flu vaccines- h1n1 and seasonal. I'm still not really convinced that a vaccine is necessary for h1n1, but the doctor is so I let her do it. We still have to go back for a second h1n1, but otherwise she is done with the doc until February, when she will turn 1. I don't even want to think about that. I can't believe it's been 9 months already, let alone 12.
Otherwise she is a happy healthy little girl. She is into everything and is starting to say dada more and more.

Bad shopper

I'm usually a very thorough researcher when it comes to shopping. I look carefully at reviews and products and prices and check several stores before I make a major purchase (anything over $30 or so). Yesterday, I was finally fed up with our baby monitors. As we were going to bed the night before, the one in the bedroom started making noises. So I turned it off and back on. It was still making noises. So I unplugged it. BIG MISTAKE! See, the plug-in part broke a while back, and I took it apart and put the piece back where it belonged. When I unplugged it, it moved back to where I couldn't get the plug in. So I had to go get the other monitor from the living room. I didn't dare unplug that one, so I had to drag the whole cord in and replug it and it was just a hassle when all I wanted was to go to sleep. So yesterday I said "enough is enough. We are getting new ones." So I got on BabiesRUs and did some research. I like their site because I know I will get baby related items and they have reviews. So I looked at monitors and picked one I liked. Then I decided since I was going out anyway I should get Claire's noise machine that I have been meaning to pick up anyway. So I looked and they didn't have any that I could find. So I looked at Target and Walmart and found one or two at Target. So I ended up going to BRU to get the monitor and Target to get the noise machine. Well, when I was at Target, I saw the same exact monitor for ten dollars less than what I paid at BRU. I debated- should I buy another and return the first? I don't know. I'm still on the fence. Given my experience with my last baby monitor, I bought the 15 month protection plan on this one, which was part of the cost difference. I wouldn't get that with Target. So I bought the sound machine and left. Then later Shannon mentioned that she got hers at Bed Bath and Beyond. I didn't even think to look there. She said her's were closer to $20. I paid $40. So I just feel like I was a complete failure at shopping yesterday. I got what I needed yes, but I think I paid too much. So we will go to BB&B sometime this weekend and see what they've got and probably return this one to Target.

Claire and I didn't sleep great last night. Claire went to bed early. She was so tired. She went down at 7:15 without a single fuss. Then, she woke up at about 10:45 as we were going to bed. I fed her, changed her diaper, and rocked her, and she just refused to go back to sleep. She laid in her bed and babbled to herself until at least midnight. I finally shut off the monitor at midnight so that I could get some sleep. And like clockwork she was up at 4 and 7 this morning. Luckily, she just whimpered a few times at 4 and went back to sleep, but it still woke me up. Now she is in her crib babbling to herself again and refusing to nap. Crazy child. I think the garbage truck making it's rounds is keeping her up this time. And yes, I have the noise maker going.

Lots of Claire

I realized I hadn't posted any pictures lately. So here they are, from newest to oldest, just because Blogger still posts them backwards to how I load them.

This is her happy face! It is a silent laughter almost. She does laugh, a lot, but this is her most common happy face.

In her Halloween costume. She was an octopus.



Grandma, Great Grandma, Mommy, Sick Claire, and Aunty Teene on Columbus Day.

This is her playing with Jocee and the ball popper. She loves to put her face in the wind.

On the airplane to Grandma's house.

Standing in her crib

Her first attempts at standing.

Claire just changes all the time. It seems like every day she is doing something new. Yesterday, she took her first VERY tentative steps without holding onto anything. She fell down almost immediately, but she is thinking about it. She crawls VERY fast now. It's incredible how fast she can crawl. She just books it when she sees something she wants. She stands on just about everything. She can stand for several seconds, almost a minute, without holding onto anything and she walks around all the furniture. She is starting to walk if we hold her hands. She still isn't too sure about that one. She has just started giving things to people. She will hold onto something, then give it to me, then take it back, then give it to me. It's a start at sharing I guess. She just loves to laugh and play. She is a very happy girl. She has started holding her arms up to be picked up. She started that a while ago actually, but she does it consistently now. And she snuggles a little bit when she is tired. We are working on getting her sleep schedule back to normal. Being sick for so long really threw her off. I get a full night every 5 nights or so. Otherwise she is up usually in the early morning hours. Sometimes she eats and sometimes she just snuggles. I think we have finally kicked the illnesses. Alann and I have been better for a while, but she had that ear infection that wouldn't quit. I am hoping it is gone now. She finished round two of a different antibiotic on Monday and the doctor will check her ears tomorrow at her 9 month checkup. I can't believe she is 9 months already. The time has just flown by. I wouldn't trade it for the world. It's hard to believe how much you can love one little person, especially when that person keeps you up at night and gives you stinky presents and whines and cries at you most days. But she is just so dang cute I can't help but laugh at her most of the time.
She has also decided that for the most part, she doesn't want to be spoon-fed. If she can't eat it herself, she doesn't want it (unless it's breakfast. She will still eat her cereal and fruit for breakfast). She's been on the sippy cup full time for a while now and she loves it. I love it because she can hold it herself and she is learning that if she looks somewhere, sippy can go with her. She loves playing with Daddy. She is definitely Daddy's girl. If she hears him talking, she wants to see him. They roughhouse together and she just laughs the whole time. He swings her around and "tosses" her on the bed and she just laughs. She crawls to him when she is sad or wants to be picked up more than to me.
All in all, October ended on a better note than it started. We have some exciting things going on in our lives. Alann's parents sold us a new fridge. It's way nice. (Okay, they haven't sold it to us yet. We are waiting to sell our fridge to give them the money for it.) So we are trying to sell both of our fridges. We are selling the smaller one because really we just don't need it anymore and we are giving that money to the in-laws. We are trying to sell the bigger one so that we can buy an upright freezer. I've realized that we really don't need or use the fridge part very often on our second fridge. I've shoved it full of flours and baking supplies just so that it runs more efficiently, but mostly it holds milk. Our new fridge holds 6 gallons of milk at once, which is usually more than we buy at a time. What we really use and need is more freezer space. I would love to get into once-a-month or freezer cooking, but we just don't have the space. (Not that I see myself cooking for a month at a time, but I can definitely see myself doubling some recipes and freezing the extra meals or parts of a meal.) So if we can sell the big fridge, we can afford (both space and money) to buy a new (probably just to us) freezer. I am way excited. I want this to happen, like yesterday. I've only had 1 bite on the fridge though. Maybe I am asking too much. Not sure.

The other exciting thing is we have decided to buy a minivan. When we bought my car, we thought we could easily transport a baby, maybe two, and the dogs in it. Well, yes and no. For a short drive across town, they will accept the cargo space as accommodations, though usually one or both of them hop the back seat and sit there. But for a long drive, like to go to Phoenix or Missouri, it just isn't really feasible, even with the hitch box we bought last year. When my car died in Page last year on the way to Phoenix, we ended up with a Toyota Sienna minivan and we REALLY enjoyed it. The dogs had all the room they wanted, we could have slept in it if we so needed, it was great. So that planted a seed. We knew that eventually we would buy a minivan but we kind of dreaded it. This showed us that it wouldn't be so bad. So this year, things have been crazy for holiday plans. We planned on flying out to MO for Christmas but the frequent flyer tickets didn't work out. So we decided we would drive. At the time, we didn't have a dog sitter, so we looked at renting a van. No vans to be found. Now we have a dog sitter, so driving my car is feasible again, but we thought about it and talked about it and agonized over it and decided you know what, we just need a van. It will make things so much easier. If we do for some reason end up taking the dogs with us for Christmas, we will have the space. Even if we don't, we can sleep in a van easier than in my car, especially with the little one. So now we are in the process of shopping for an 04-present Toyota Sienna, somewhere in the 50k-80k miles range, preferably the 8 seater. We are picky no? We want it to last. That is why we are saying the Sienna and just the Sienna. We can get a Dodge a lot cheaper, and they do have some perks (second row stow and go for instance) but they also have a poor reliability rating. We anticipate driving this car until the wheels fall off. So we have the financing lined up (thanks Grandma!) and are just waiting for the right one to come along. It's so hard to wait...
So that's it. Stay tuned for another exciting episode, probably this weekend some time. (Dun dun DUN!)

I'll probably say it again

I know I've said it before, and I will probably say it many many times, but my little girl is smart. Too smart for her own good I'm sure. We have this ball popper that blows little plastic balls in the air and makes noise. She has learned how to turn it on herself (which isn't too hard- push a big red button). Today, we got new balls for it. It didn't have any (DI find) that went to it. I showed her how to put the balls in and turned it on. A little while later, I look over and she is reaching up to it and putting some of the spilled balls back into it. She is almost 8 months old. I don't expect this stuff from her yet. It was a proud moment. The only thing she doesn't seem accelerated in is talking and teeth. We have been on tooth watch here for a few weeks now- still nothing. She drools a lot and chews a lot and seems to be teething, but no teeth. She can say mama and seems to mean me now. Every now and then she says "dada" but it isn't directed yet. And she LOVES to watch fish tanks. I play a fish game on facebook and it makes bubble noises. She loves to watch the fish swim around and listen to the water noise. It's funny. She actually sits still for it. Otherwise, she stands ALL The time, on everything. She tries to pull herself up on me when I am wearing my pajama pants- that doesn't end well for me or her (They aren't too tight). She walks around and around the coffee table and lets go or holds on with one hand more often. I've seen her stand (for about 2 seconds) without holding anything about 5 times now. She is learning to wave a little. She does it every now and then. The other day in church I was signaling for her to "come here" and she waved bye bye in response. Stinker. She likes to try and stand underneath my desk, and she just doesn't fit anymore, so she bonks her head, but it doesn't stop her from trying. (She is doing it now, while going through my old laptop bag.) I think that is about all the news about Claire. She just grows and grows and grows. When we had her weighed at the Dr last week she was 19+ pounds. I don't remember if I put that in my last post or not. But she is a little chunker and we love her.

Mama called the doctor, the doctor said....

Nothing helpful really. Yesterday I took Claire to the doctor about the stuffiness and non-sleeping. She checked her ears- they are fine. She checked her nose- looks okay. She checked for teeth- nothing. I told her about how Claire gets stuffy when my allergies act up and she said it is very very rare for children to get seasonal allergies before school. She said it could be a pet allergy, but that would be constant and not just at night. She said it may be that she is just drying out because of the weather changing- run a humidifier, saline in the nose (which we have been doing but hasn't seemed to help)- and that she is waking up because she is stuffy, then she is experiencing separation anxiety. So her advice was to just let her cry a minute and see if she will go back to sleep. It wasn't a complete waste of a trip though. Claire got her flu shot, which I learned needs a booster when it is their first year, so I'm kind of glad I brought it up instead of waiting until November, and I changed her November appt to a day when I don't have Jocee anyway. It was frustrating that she didn't have any more help though. But she said Claire probably isn't sick, so that's good I guess.
So last night we didn't turn the baby monitor on, I just left the doors open, that way a major cry I would hear but the minor ones wouldn't bug me. She actually only cried three times- once when we were still up, again around midnight, and again around 3. But I didn't get out of bed for the midnight one and just peeked in on her at 3 and she was fine. So maybe that is all it is. It's still frustrating. Though I guess she could have been a little cold too. I put her back in the sleep sack last night too. So maybe that helped. Who knows. I just hope she sleeps well again tonight. We've moved her bedtime to 7:30, which helps with her going down. She goes right to sleep again. But now she is wanting to get up around 6:30. I usually just leave her in there and let her play until she starts really screaming. I don't want her up that early. Some days I like to sleep in too.

Claire

She is still waking up multiple times in the night. (Last night was rough. I ended up sleeping on the couch for a while because it was easier than getting in and out of bed. My bed is about 3 inches too tall for me to get in and out comfortably.) I think she is so stuffy she cannot breathe. She sleeps fine from 7:30 (yay new bedtime that makes sleep easier!) until about midnight. Then she starts in with the every hour or so crying. Last night I finally suctioned her nose at about 4, and she went to sleep after that, until 6:15. No dear, you cannot get up at 6. I went in and sat with her for a minute, then put her back down and she seemed to understand that it wasn't time to get up and went back to sleep until 7. I am going to call the doctor tomorrow and probably take her in. I think she might have a sinus infection or something causing the stuffiness. She gets really upset when I suction her nose and starts rubbing violently at her eyes.
In other Claire news, she has started being able to sit on her own. I feel kind of bad because I know she did it for a few days before I even really noticed that she was doing it. I saw it, but it didn't register that it was a new thing. She is also becoming more confident with standing, and will let go of whatever she is holding and lean against things. This results in more crashes, but you can't learn to walk without falling down. She has also learned to fall on her bum, instead of her face. She is seeming to start to recognize when we tell her not to do something, like play with the TV or the cords on the computer or whatever. She still does it, but she looks at us and smiles mischievously first. Otherwise, she is a crawling fool and just goes everywhere!

I'm alive

Jocee hasn't killed me. I've just been really busy. Since I can't really clean while Jocee is here, I have ended up doing chores afterwards. Which doesn't leave much time for blogging.
And I have been super-exhausted. Claire has been a fitcase lately at night. The last 4 nights in a row she has been crying at least 5 times a night. Not really getting up, just crying in her sleep, but enough to wake me up and I usually go check her, because sometimes she has crawled into the corner and is hitting her head. The first night she had really bad gas, which probably contributed, and otherwise she has just been stuffy. Not runny nose, just congested. I'm not getting much out when I suction it. She doesn't seem sick otherwise. (I've also been having allergies, so it may be that.) It's frustrating to say the least. Tonight she fell asleep at 7:30 really easily, so I think we will move her bedtime back to 7:30 and see what happens. I've been toying with the idea anyway, because 8:00 has been really hard for her lately. 7:30 is SO early, at least to me, but if it is what is best for her, then we will do it. Now I just have to remember that it is 7:30.

Claire

It's amazing to think how much she has grown and learned in just the last few weeks. It's only been about 17 days since her 6 month checkup. Since then, she has decided to start crawling. She finally realized on Saturday that "if I want to go somewhere, I can!" and boy does she. I set her down on the rug to get her formula, and she crawls after me, sobbing pitifully and calling mama. She stands all the time, without help. She pulls herself up on things- the crib, the coffee table, me. If you stand her up somewhere, she holds on to whatever it is and is totally stable. She still falls, but not too much and she doesn't wobble. She has even started "walking" to objects she wants, as long as she can hold onto something. She loves to stand between the couch and the coffee table. If I put my legs on the coffee table to either side of her, she will go back and forth between me and the table. She will drink from a sippy cup now. She still doesn't get the concept of holding it herself, but she will drink from it. (I've been lazy and haven't washed bottles, so I ran out today. She has been drinking from the sippy all day. I'm thinking of getting more so maybe we can wean her off the bottle.) She says mama when she isn't upset. I still don't know if she associates it with me, but she says it. She has also decided that if she can't eat what I am eating, she isn't eating. So I have to either have some of what she is eating on my plate, or feed her before or after. Of course, she still wants to be a part of meal times, which is fine by me. Of course, if I eat her baby food, she will eat that too. (Which I do with the home made stuff. The cereal and the jarred kind I fake. She doesn't fall for it.) I also gave her some cheerios for the first time today. She gummed them pretty well. I am starting to wonder if she will be like me and get teeth really late. My top teeth took forever to come in. She chews on her fingers ALL THE TIME now. It is super annoying, but nothing else satisfies like her own fist. Of course, then she wants to put her slimy hand on my face or in my hair. Ugh. Oh well.
She has also started to really enjoy bath time and splashes like a little devil. And she has started holding on when you carry her. She either hooks her arm around my neck or grabs my shirt. It's awesome. It is so amazing how fast they change and grow. Mama's little baby is starting to grow up. =( and =)


BTW, I read an article today about the Duggars. They are having their 19th child. And their first grandchild will be born before it. My question is did the wife marry the son for the fame (and assumed fortune) or is she just crazy like them? Weird. Nice people, but weird.

My funny girl!

Claire spent about 20 minutes watching Daddy mow the lawn this morning. She was FASCINATED. This is from my point of view.




"Hi Daddy!"

"Daddy, I'm over here!"


And this is his point of view.




I guess it wasn't just Daddy she was fascinated by.


This is what greets me most of the time that I go get Claire from a nap. Since she is crawling now, she has learned to crawl to the edge of the crib where her door is, and usually looks out and calls for us.

At the Dodson family get-together, there was a play set with a swing. Claire liked it ok. She liked it better when we went to park a few days later. She was giggling while she swung.


Nothing like a good bite of swing.




Bubble mohawk!"Do I have something on my face?" (She did it to herself.)


We love the bath!




Jocee really wanted to hold Claire. Any kid under the age of 5 wanting to hold Claire is a little ridiculous, because she is SO big. But I let her. Then I suggested they sit next to each other.


So Jocee held her hand instead. Here are the cute girls I get to hang out with all day. (Yeah I know, Claire doesn't match. I'm not really sure why I put those shorts on her. I'll just say Daddy dressed her.)

Some Ideas on kids

Feeding toddlers is messy and wasteful. Some day, I will learn portion sizes. Of course, Jocee always surprises me by wanting different amounts at different times. I made a whole sandwich, she ate 1/4. I made a half, she ate it all. I guess I should just learn to give less than I think she might want, and give her more later. That is hard though, because I nurture people through food. I always try to make sure everything someone could possibly want is available. But I hate to be wasteful. Oh well, it is only day 4. We will get it.
I was looking for activity ideas to do with the kids and stumbled upon (not the website) a blog about a mom that does Montessori-type schooling with her kids. I am intrigued. I've heard the word before, but never knew what it was all about. From what little I have read, it is about teaching real-life skills in ways that kids can master- i.e. learning to lace shoes on a board, then transferring that knowledge to a shoe. They also have "error controls" which is basically the answer so that the kid can check themselves. I like the activities in general, so I will keep looking into it. Once I can place more holds on books. I have "exceeded the hold limit for the borrower type" at the library. I didn't even know I HAD a hold limit. (Which is 10, btw.) Most of the holds are DVDs. I don't even know if I will check them all out. My library only does dvds for one week, so I don't have much time to watch them. I just get excited and place a BUNCH of holds at once, whether or not I can actually use all the items before the time limit. Someday, I will learn that too.
As soon as Claire gets up from her nap (yes, it is 6pm and she is napping. This is a new thing.) we are going to Target to get some stuff for Jocee. Well, stuff we will use and need with Claire eventually, but Jocee can use now. We need a step stool for the bathroom, a booster seat for the table, and some toys. I really want to go to Ikea this weekend and get the step stool they have. And look at other stuff. And buy lots of stuff. But I probably won't do that. I shouldn't anyway.

And now, for something completely different, we contemplate my hair.


Okoboji, IA 2004- growing out from my previous cutting my senior year of HS.


Okoboji, IA 2005- long. I curled it especially for this night. Usually when it is long, it goes in a ponytail.


Christmas 2006. Sheesh. Super long.

Current. I've had this specific hair cut since about early spring 2007. (apparently before Shannon and Ian moved in because Shannon has seen the Christmas picture and didn't believe it.) (I can't find a single picture with my hair right after a cut. Strange. It is usually shorter than it is now.)
So, it's been over 2 years. I like it. In general. But it needs something done to it right now. Headbands don't contain it. I can put it in a (very stupid looking but functional) ponytail. Either I need a cut, or I need to decide to let it grow. I see the pictures of it long and kind of miss it. And then I think about all the maintenance (I have THICK hair) and the washing and the brushing (I rarely brush my hair these days) and the blow drying and the washing and the constant need for hair ties and the washing and the static and did I mention the washing? When it is long, I put it up in a ponytail most of the time (when I am home anyway. Which is always now). I have to pony it to sleep or Alann complains about it attacking him, and it hurts to lay on it. Then there is the baby. She LOVES to pull hair. It's a handy place to grab on. So I just don't know what to do. I haven't colored my hair in years and years. That used to be my go-to "hair boredom" relief act. But I like my color. And it is easier and cheaper to maintain naturally colored hair. So what do you guys think? Long or short?

Family

The kids are both napping. I suppose I should be cleaning, but I'm not.

The in-laws visited last week. Alann's parents came out from Missouri and his sister and her baby flew in from Florida for a few days. It was good to see them all. So I've been neglecting my blog again so that I could spend time with them and keep the house clean and prepare for watching Jocee and make sure Claire got enough mommy-time.


Here is Claire and her cousin Andrew. He is almost as tall as her, but she weighs 2 pounds more, and is obviously a chunk compared to him.

Here is the proud Grandma and her two babies. Steph took one of Grandpa and the kiddos, but I haven't seen it on facebook yet.

Here we all are together. Except for Steph's hubby. He couldn't get away from Florida. Something about a job or something...

Here is Claire and a few of her second cousins- Jensen, Claire, Will, and Andrew. She makes them cry.

I love this picture. We were trying to take pictures of the kids together, and all of a sudden, she just face plants. No apparent reason. Then she just laid there like this. She didn't even try to move. Silly girl.

So it was fun to see the family. We got to see both the Sev side and the Dodson side. I always mean to spend more time with them, and then that life thing gets in the way.

Now, I am watching Jocee, my friend's two year old. She is fun. Claire is way jealous. Every toy that Jocee plays with, Claire wants. Every time Claire trys to take something, Jocee says "mine". Claire had a hard time yesterday not being alone with me. By the end of the day, she was grabbing me and trying to climb up me. She also didn't nap well at all. I'm hoping today goes better. We went to the gym and I put her in the day care there so I could work out. She apparently cried most of the time. I don't know if I should have just not done it since she had a rough day, or if I should just keep doing it to get her used to it and a little less clingy. She is getting super clingy already. She still goes to Daddy and loves to be with him, but a lot of other people she doesn't want to go near. She screamed when she saw Julie at the Sev reunion. We left her with Julie a while ago, and she woke up after she had gone to sleep and screamed and cried for an hour. When we got back two hours later, she was still sniffling in her sleep. It was apparently very traumatic, because the second Julie held her at the reunion, she started screaming. Julie couldn't even come close or she would start to pout, then cry, even if I was holding her. Though she was luckily ok with Grandma, and she LOVED Grandpa. So I am hoping that hanging out with Jocee will help her be ok with more people. Though I am still not sure what to do about the gym. The best thing for me is to go right after Jocee gets picked up (sometime after 3). Early morning just isn't going to happen. So I can drop her at the day care, I just feel bad if she screams the whole time. So I don't know what to do. I guess we will figure something out.

Grr and frustration

Who knew that a diaper could wreak so much havoc in one's life? I will never use huggies again. Ever. Anyone want a partly used package of 3s or 4s? Because I refuse to use them. I have had emergency diaper and pj changes TWICE in the last week. (In the middle of the night, btw.) (Have I mentioned how Claire has taken up screaming at the top of her lungs when she is changed? That's a wonderful sound at midnight.) The first time it happened, I thought it was just a fluke. Then a day or two later I went to refill the stash and realized that Alann had opened the package of 4s, instead of using the open package of 3s. So I thought that must have been the problem. I bought 4s because she was close to too big for the Target brand 3s. Then I got some 3s in Huggies as well because I'm like that. Then last night, about an hour after I went to bed, she wakes up screaming. I go in there, and she is soaking wet! (Like, did I even put a diaper on her wet? Did someone dump some water on her wet?) I pull off her pjs and take off the diaper. The diaper is bone dry. Somehow, she totally missed the diaper. I don't know what happened. If it was just the diaper leaking because it was full, I can deal with that, but when the diaper itself is dry, that is the end of the line. I don't know if they just aren't designed well for her body type or if it has been operator error, but I don't care. I'm going to have to go to Target and buy some of the other kind, because I know they fit and I know they work and I know that there is no operator error with them. (Also, the tab ripped off of a huggie. I've never had that happen with the Target brand. Why is the "cheap" brand working better than the "premium"?) She has become a super screamer wiggle worm during diaper changes, so no operator error becomes REALLY important. She wants to roll over and look around and play with things, not get her diaper changed.
I am just so frustrated with her sleeping right now. Between the diaper malfunctions and the late nights with family visiting and being WAY too distracted to eat properly (with the family visiting) we haven't slept well since last week sometime. I know things will go back to normal here shortly. I hope.

car seat dilemma

I've narrowed the choices down to three. All of them have 65 pound weight limits for forward facing.
Britax Marathon:
Pros: very well loved seat, decent ratings on consumer reports. on clearance for $180
Cons: the pattern is hideous (says Alann), but we can buy a new cover if we want. 35 lb weight limit rear facing

The First Years True Fit:
Pros: no re-thread harness, built in locking clips, removable head rest, can get for $160.
Cons: some reviews say it pinches legs. 35 lb weight limit rear facing

Graco MyRide 65:
Pros: Can get it for $136. Graco has decent ratings in general (this seat isnt rated yet on CR), has a 40 pound rear-facing limit.
Cons: some say it's bulky, and the permanent cup holder may make airplane travel iffy.

I really cannot decide. What are your ideas?? If we go straight from price, then the Graco is the hands-down winner. All of them have 4 stars at BRU (customer ratings). The Britax is a GREAT deal ($100 off). The True Fit might fit better in my car with the removable head rest, but we would have to turn her around earlier. Though, will she really want to still be rear at 1 year? I have no doubt she will be big enough to turn around. Parents of young childrens: what do you think?

6 month checkup!

Claire will be 6 months old in just two days. My how time flies. Seems like just yesterday I was telling people I was pregnant. We had a great checkup at our doctor's office today. Claire measured 17 pounds, 4 ounces, which puts her in the 75% for weight. I was starting to get a little concerned about her weight, but am at peace now. I know I know, I shouldn't worry about baby chub at all, but she seemed to grow like a weed the second I started feeding her cereal. Of course, most of that growth was in height. She is at 27 1/4"- 95%! I knew a new car seat was on our horizon, I just didn't realize how close it was. Time to figure out what I want I guess. She is so close to outgrowing it- 29" is the limit. At least this measurement confirms my idea that I need to concentrate on car seats with a very tall limit. Her head is measuring at 42.8 cm, in the 65%. Claire did NOT want the nurse to measure her head. She kept moving around and trying to shake the tape off. It was funny. So who knows if this is a good number or not. Her head looks the right size for her body, that is all I care about.
Otherwise, we were given the all clear to start "real" food. She has started wanting more food anyway, so I am glad we can start some new varieties. I'm looking forward to it. I know she is. The doctor and nurse were also impressed with how well Claire sits. She sits by herself pretty confidently. If she falls over, it's usually because she is reaching for a toy, not because she loses her balance like when she was younger. The doctor was also impressed that Claire is trying to crawl. She said the average age is 9 months, so 6 months is ahead of the curve. Why do I have a feeling Claire will ALWAYS be ahead of the curve? (Oh right, because her mother is a genius. I forgot.)
In other baby news, she has started reaching for things. When she wants something that she sees but can't reach, she has started grabbing for it in the air. Almost like she is doing the "one hand clap" or something. It's darling. She also has started reaching for people, which is of course super cute. She isn't a cuddler, so we take every chance we can to snuggle her. She still has no teeth, but seems to be working on them more and more often- chewing on her lip, drooling everywhere, chewing on EVERYTHING!! All in all, she is the bestest baby ever and we love her to pieces. I'd post some pics, but I don't have any new ones really.

I love my baby

Sometimes it is hard to remember that. Especially at 2 in the morning. She has started waking up, again. I think she has been getting cold. It has started cooling off a little. Yay. I hadn't realized until last night how cool her room was. So I put her in the sleep sack and she went back to sleep after she ate. (once she is awake, she wants to eat unfortunately.) I'm hoping that the sleep sack will help her sleep again. The other thing that wakes her up is when she gets her arms caught in the crib slats, but Grandma took care of that and bought her a good bumper. (It's mesh so air goes through it, important with an all over sleeper.) Hopefully it will contain the binky a little bit too! She has been either up really early or up in the middle of the night for about a week now, and it is making me super exhausted. We are also working on a better nap schedule. I'm hoping for two good lengths a day. I'm planning (with wiggle room) for 9-11 and 2-4. those are the times she is most likely to be asleep anyway. The nights she hasn't been sleeping well, she also hasn't been napping well. She has been taking maybe 3 45 minute naps and then waking up. So here's hoping. Otherwise, here are some new pics. I am so excited for her to turn 6 months in August, so we can move on to more foods. I can tell she is ready. She is always trying to take food off my plate. Anytime I walk by her with food, she opens her mouth. But the Dr said only cereal until 6 months. So I am waiting.

"all done and clean after a meal!"


She even cleans out her mouth for me. Silly kid.

Daddy feeding her.

Baby and Daddy

No, she wasn't feeding herself. I gave her an extra spoon because she kept grabbing the one I was using. But she loved it.

Some days she barely makes a mess because she is SO hungry. Other days she wears the cereal in her hair.

And her nose.

And all over. But she loves it.

Hey look Teene. I thought of you when I bought this.

What is up with that crazy smile?

Bath time!!

She loves to grab the bubbles in the bath. When we went to the swimming pool, that was all she did- grab at the bubbles. She also loves to play with the rubber ducky. This is our current bath time setup. She is too heavy and slippery for me to shower easily with her anymore. (though the other day I let her sit on the floor of the tub while I showered, then washed her, and that worked out pretty good.) And our tub has high sides, so bending over it is difficult. So this works. She can still lay down in it so I can wash her legs and such.

She is also really really good at sitting up now. She still falls over once in a while, but she doesn't need to be propped or anything. This morning she rolled from her tummy to her back. I'm hoping we practice this skill so she quits waking me up because she is stuck on her tummy. She made some definite forward progress on the crawling yesterday, but then went backwards three times as far. She is getting it, slowly but surely. She is also starting to try to pull herself up. It's definitely about time to get some baby gates.