Cold +Teething = Fussy Baby (and parents)

Scarlett is having what I would call a tough week. She is still getting into everything and enjoying trying new things (e.g., mushroom strudel -- she loves phyllo dough!), but her top two teeth are coming in and she has picked up a cold. I can feel a corner of one of her top two teeth but we can see both of them through her gums so they must be pretty close to breaking through. She is still pretty happy overall, but she has been a lot fussier than usual and you can tell that her teeth are bother her and she just doesn't feel all that great. I noticed that I was starting to pick something up by the end of the week, but today Paul and I both woke up with really sore throats and generally feeling pretty crappy. Actually, if she feels like we do, she is a much better sport about it! She took a 3 hour nap this morning after sleeping until about 8:30 (thank you, Scarlett!). We ordinarily would have woken her up but I figured if she felt like we did, she could use the extra sleep. Last night Paul and I got a babysitter and went out on a date! The babysitter was referred to me by someone in one of my mom groups. She came by on Wednesday night and hung out for 2 1/2 hours learning our routine. I really like her but Scarlett loves her! She was reaching for her and everything, which is pretty good these days given her mommy-attachment. We walked to dinner and saw a movie. It was very nice but even with a moderately priced babysitter, it makes it very expensive to get out of the house! We still need to spend some time at home baby proofing because Scarlett gets into everything and it is hard to move as fast as she does. Next weekend is really our only chance for the rest of August because the weekend after we're heading to Miami for a wedding and coming back and turning around and heading out to Seattle to see my parents. It sounds like Scarlett will be meeting a lot of her cousins too -- My Aunt Lee and her family in Miami and my sister and her kids in addition to my parents in Seattle. Hopefully the illness and teething is over by then or the trips will be pretty long!

The good news for me (Paul) is that Scarlett's mommy-attachment is lessening when I'm in the room! Woo hoo! She's never has an issue when its just the two of us, but lately the moment mommy enters the room, its all over. Shonna can't leave without Scarlett fussing or crying... and at times she will even stop breathing, which is what she tends to do when she is REALLY upset. This has been going on for at least a few weeks, but recently she has started to settle down. She is now using me to pull herself up for a hug (which could be my leg, shoulder, or unfortunately my chest hair). She is back to hanging out with daddy even if mommy is in the room. Ahh the little things, but you really miss them you lose out for a week or two.

Big events have recently come and gone, and we have more to come. Scarlett is now cruising and will soon be walking. As was mentioned earlier, Scarlett has 2 teeth, and about to have 2 more. Shonna's worry is that the two top teeth will be like mine- with a gap, although Shonna's worry is Tina's dream... My worry is not with her two front teeth, it is with the two upcoming flights in August. YIKES! We have a trial flight to Miami, but the main event is the 5 hrs tour... a five hour tour... to Seattle. Fortunately for us, and probably less fortunate to the rest of first class, we upgraded our seats with miles. At least they will offer everyone around us free drinks. Hopefully that will be unnecessary and Scarlett will be just fine :)