Wednesday, August 11, 2010

9 Month Well Visit and Feeling Better


Scarlett is doing better. She is still teething but her fever is much better and she seems to be feeling better overall. This morning we had her 9 month well visit with Dr. Clapp. Scarlett is 28" long (about 70th percentile), 18 lbs 7 oz (about 40th percentile), and 17" head (30th percentile). She is a little light right now since she hasn't been eating as much as usual (likely due to feeling crappy). These pictures are of Scarlett and her carrot juice. She loves carrot juice and loves her sippy cup but we sort of got scolded today about giving her juice. I guess even if it is no sugar added it isn't a great idea to give them juice because you want them to focus on milk or water. She was disappointed I guess that we haven't been giving her formula in her sippy cup. Sigh. It just seems like a lost cause because only a small portion would get down her throat. Oh well, maybe after we get done traveling this month we'll give it a try. We leave in the morning for Miami so it isn't really on our radar right now. Anyway, besides that, everything is fine and Scarlett doesn't mind the doctor since they gave her a tongue depressant for her to play with. Whatever works!

Sunday, August 8, 2010

9 months and burning the midnight oil...

Today is Scarlett's 3/4 birthday! Unfortunately her present was a 103 degree fever. We've been fighting fevers since Thursday night and off and on before that (thank you, top two teeth) but she has hit her all time records -- 102.4 degrees on Friday night and 103 degrees today. She woke up clearly irritable (not her usual "I love the morning" attitude). She hasn't really wanted to eat all day. She even refused strawberries (her favorite) and her formula. She did eat some spinach (her second favorite) and once we could finally coax the bottle into her mouth, she did eat some formula. Nothing has really helped; we've tried Tylenol, cold compresses, sitting her in the bathroom by the air conditioning vent, keeping her in basically just a diaper... The poor baby feels pretty bad. We've talked to the doctor a few times but if she isn't better by tomorrow we'll take her in again. She is supposed to have her 9 month check up on Wednesday morning but I doubt she'll be able to get her shots if she still has a fever like this. It's so hard to watch a sick baby! I just feel terrible for her. Plus, she is exhausted but refuses to go to sleep and has been waking up during the night the past few days (the doctor said to expect that when they have a fever). Hopefully this will clear up before we leave for Miami on Thursday or it will be a very different trip than the one we planned.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

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 :)