18-Months Old

 

 

Scarlett Jane turned 18 months on Friday. Here she is on her "birthday" passing the time "ow-THIDE," one word from her daily growing vocabulary. Among Scarlett's new words are "trash," "corn," "purple," "cookie," "car," "teeth," and of course the classics like "thank you" and "shoes." 

 

 

 

 

She loves to tear leaves off of my lantana and yell, "UH-OH!"

This face says, "Why did you put me up here?!"

Scarlett says phrases like, "thank you, Momma," and "Hey, Papa!" and "Hush, Bay-Bay" to the dog, Bailey.

At the doctor for her well-baby visit she got one shot and cried for about 20 seconds. She is in the 10th percentile for weight at 21 lbs 9 oz and 85% percentile for height at 33 inches. She loves to throw things away in the trash for me and tells me when she needs a new diaper. Whenever she walks inside from being outdoors she says, "HI!" to everyone who will listen. She still loves to read and hasn't been using a bottle in about 3 weeks. I know, I know, still the bottle. But since we didn't wean off of nursing until 15-16 months I am fine with the bottle still being in the not-so-distant past. She doesn't seem bothered by its absence and still drinks her warm milk before bed, morning nap and afternoon nap. She sleeps 11 hours each night and takes about 3-4.5 hours worth of naps a day.
She loves water, lotion, getting dressed and wearing bows in her hair. Headbands are not something she tolerates very well anymore, though. Every morning when she wakes up she must hand me her pillow, blanket and stuffed animal before I take her out of the crib. If I leave anything in the crib she gets pretty indignant. She does the same thing when we pick her up from nursery at church. When she sees us at the door she starts crying and runs for her diaper bag. Oh, and, Elmo is now a major facet in our lives. There is infinitely more I could say about my precious 1 and 1/2-year-old but I would be here until her second birthday and I imagine I would miss out on some other stuff. So, I'll end here with this--I will never get back a single second of time spent with her, so I am incredibly thankful that I get to stay home and raise her. So grateful for our days together.

15 Months

Scarlett turned 15 months old on Friday, the tenth. She had her well-baby check with her new pediatrician that same day. She is 75th for height and 8th for weight, so we are finally starting the weaning process in hopes of getting her to drink more whole milk. My biggest concern is that she get enough fat for brain development as her ped isn't concerned about her being thin or malnourished. Her vocabulary grows each week. Her words are:
Momma
Poppa
Baby
Dee-Doo (thank you)
Bay-Bay (for bailey)
Mee-Mee (what she call's Texan's mom, and something she shouts when she is being silly)
Nigh-Nigh (accompanied by waving)
Bye-Bye (more waving)
Hi! (always said as an exclamation)
No-No or No-No-Ma!
Bee-buh (peek-a-boo)
Yum or Num-Num-Num (when eating my delicious cooking...and chocolate)
Uh-oh

Scarlett's favorite foods are spaghetti, yogurt, roasted ham, cheesy Spanish rice, orange slices, turkey sandwiches, and anything made of chocolate. She likes to feed herself with a spoon, but is so messy I have a hard time allowing it to go on for too long. The girl needs to get some of it into her belly, after all.

She is walking very well now and hasn't reverted to crawling in about a week. She is fast, recovers well from falls and can lean over to pick something up and keep on going.

We are down to nursing once in the morning and once in the night. It has only been two days on this new regimen but it has really increased the amount of whole milk she will drink. I offer it to her all day along with some water and diluted juice.  But last night she drank a 5 oz bottle before bed and slept great. Her doctor doesn't want her drinking from bottles anymore, but as long as she is drinking milk I am going to let her get used to not nursing before I cut out the bottle.
She has all of her teeth except her 2-year molars. It has been so nice having a break from teething since December.
She had one ear infection in March. It was her first since her surgery back in January.
She still naps once or twice a day and loves to brush her teeth at night.
Her favorite song is Twinkle-Twinkle. We sing it at bedtime with some had motions and she smiles and leans against me as I sing. When I read her book called  Good Night Texas she leans back against me and points at all the pictures and helps me turn the pages. She lets me lay her down in her crib and gets her thumb in her mouth as she falls asleep.
Her favorite pastime is playing outside. I leave the back door open and she walks all over the back patio pushing her walkers and yelling at the dogs. Sometimes she wants to swing and other times she just wants to pick grass and pretend she is me working in the garden.
She is such a good baby. I think I will keep her.

Foreshadowing

My favorite kind of schoolwork growing up was literary analysis. Right up until I graduated college I loved writing papers which elaborated on the personification, alliteration, allusion, and any other device that made a story work. One of my personal favorite literary devices was foreshadowing. I loved (and still love) when an author takes a mundane detail and mentions it or highlights it and leaves the reader wondering, "Now, why did she point that out here and now? What's the significance?" That's when I file that detail away, expecting to see it play a major role right at the crux of the story's theme. aha!
Well, if I thought my life was anything like a novel then I should have seen this one coming. This morning, Texan made himself some scrambled eggs with cheese. I was horizontal on the couch trying to pay attention to the Today show as Scarlett bid good morning to her toys. Then Texan said, "Oh, that's not ketchup. That's chili sauce. That would've been gross on my eggs." I didn't respond. But I was listening. That one sentence stood out to me. I just wasn't awake enough to wonder why.
Later that morning while washing some dishes, I looked over to see Scarlett had reached up onto the kitchen table and pulled down the bubble machine I had recently bought. The floor was now flooded with liquid bubbles and she was kicking her feet in the slimy puddle. I changed her clothes and put her down for a nap. This was incident #1.
When she woke up we played outside. She sat in her swing as I played her Disney Pandora station and folded laundry on the patio. She ate lunch. Then we went on a nice long walk with our neighbor and her new baby. When we got inside I was shaking from hunger. It was already 2 o'clock and I hadn't eaten lunch. As I opened the fridge to put some shredded cheese on my salad it happened. Texan had grabbed the chili sauce from the fridge and put it back in the wrong place. He had put it where the ketchup normally goes--on the bottom rung of the refrigerator door. CRASH. In the time it took me to open the cheese drawer Scarlett had grabbed the bottle, holding by the lid, raised it up in the air and dropped it. It was a brand new glass 140oz bottle of chili sauce, which looks just like ketchup but smells 10x more intense. It was now all over my feet along with tiny shards of glass. I lifted Scarlett of the floor and inspected her piggies, which were perfectly clean. She smiled. I sat her in the living room and barricaded the kitchen with the ottoman. Instead of eating lunch I sopped, swept, wiped, and mopped the mess of the floor for what felt like an hour. I wish I had seen the foreshadowing. Incident #2
After I ate lunch it was time for Ellen, which I was only half paying attention to because her guests were sort of sub-par today. I don't remember what I was doing but I looked up to see Scarlett looking out the front storm door as she loves to do. Then about five minutes later Scarlett began to cry hysterically, which she never does without reason such as a fall or a pinched finger or toe. I ran over and saw a giant wasp or bee or yellow jacket (What is the DIFFERENCE?) floundering on the threshold and Scarlett was holding up her little pointer finger, which was swollen and red. She didn't want me to touch it. I immediately administered Benadryl, called my sister (because my niece has had bad reactions to insect bites), called her doctor, and while awaiting a return call I rang my friend who is a pediatric nurse. By the time her doctor called back and told me to give Benadryl and hydrocortisone Scarlett was asleep in my arms. After laying her in her crib, I located one of her newborn mittens from her sock drawer, covered her finger in the cream and slipped on the mitten. She didn't even stir. Naturally, I took a picture too. She looked so exhausted--she rarely takes 2 naps anymore--so I figured the exhaustion stemmed from the meds and the extra fresh air and mischievousness. Incident #3 to round out the day.
By 9:15pm she was still bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, which Texan loved because he got to spend extra time chasing her around the living room and calling her "Stink" as he does. So, she stayed up late. But today had its victories too. Not only did her finger go down in swelling, but she drank cows milk today! I have, in the past, not been able to get Scarlett to drink. Water, milk, juice, smoothies--she won't have it. She will only drink if she is sharing from my cup and drinking like a big girl. Which is just a giant mess in the end. But this past weekend she finally took to--of all things--the bottle! She has drank almost an entire container of apple juice over the past three days. That is huge for her. And tonight she drank 4 ounces of whole milk from the bottle. I am so excited. She still won't drink water from her bottle and when I give her a cup she will take only a few sips then throw it. But since she has never been a bottle drinker expect on a few special occasions, I am okay with this. I could really care less that we had a rough day filled with messes and medicine, I just wanted to jot this day down in history so I can look back at it. If every day was this hectic I would still never trade being her Momma for anything. She is my girl and I love spending my days with her.

Scarlett's First Birthday

We were without a computer from the beginning of the new year up until a couple weeks ago, and now I can finally blog Scarlett's first birthday!

Usually I blog from my phone so long as I can get all my pictures from my phone, but in this case I have a ton of photos on my camera that I needed to upload.

As you may know, Scarlett had surgery the day before her birthday party. My mom came into town to help me out, and I can't imagine what I would've done without her here. On Scarlett's birthday I went to the church early to set up for the party and had some help from my friend, sister and brother-in-law, while my mom stayed home making tea sandwiches and holding down the fort while Scarlett napped. When it was time for the party, I went home to find Scarlett freshly bathed and all dressed in her tutu and matching onesie, even right down to her matching bow and glitter shoes. My mom had the diaper bag all packed and my sweet birthday girl had a full belly and was even strapped into her car seat and ready to go. I have literally never see Scarlett ready to leave the house when I wasn't the one who did it. My mom not only had helped prepare all the food for the party, decorated cookies, baked desserts, but let me have a break from the stuff I have done every day for the past year without imagining what it would be like to have a break. Someone fed my daughter lunch, bathed her, put lotion on her, dressed her, put her in her carseat. I just have to relive it one more time. Ok. Now for some pictures. We had the party in our church fellowship hall surrounded by friends and family including my sister and her family, my dad, Texan's mom and Nanny, and of course my mom. Sadly I made the party plans not knowing if Texan would have the day off--because his first day at his new job was only five days prior to Scarlett's birthday. And he ended up having Friday off, which was nice because he got to see Scarlett in the hospital and be there for that big milestone. So he ended up missing the party. But since I have known him he has never made a big deal out of a holiday, birthday, or otherwise. So I am not under the delusion that he lost much sleep over missing the party, especially since Scarlett won't remember that he wasn't there. I think he would've been more hurt if she had been old enough to say, "You're not coming to my birthday party, Poppa?" with a sad little face. But that won't ever happen!

The party theme was Enchanted Tea party and the colors were pink and gold. Scarlett was showered with tons of summer clothes which I cannot wait to see her in. The weather has not warmed up at all despite it being March, so I haven't been able to see her in any of them yet. But I can't complain because she is still very much in 12-mo size and the summer clothes everyone got her are 18-month. At Scarlett's 12-mo visit she was at 15% for weight and 65% for height. So, she' very tall and slender and fitting just fine in all of her 12-month clothes, which I love because I am going to be very sad to see some of her adorable winter outfits go into storage bins in the attic. I hope I have at least one more girl some day so I can see her in these same outfits. Now, onto the photos.

 

 

Scarlett Surgery

Scarlett Jane had tubes placed in both ears on Friday, January 9th. 

The day before the surgery, the surgery center called to tell me this: no food after 10 pm and no nursing after 1:30. Now, if her ears hadn't been making her so uncomfortable this wouldn't have been a major issue. But for the week leading up to surgery she had been going to bed at 8, waking up at 11:30, 2, and 6. Then waking up for good around 8:30. Thankfully she is an awesome napper so we weren't really feeling exhausted from all the wakefulness. 

But the night before surgery my mom came into town and helped me feed her a giant dinner in hopes of keeping her full. I put her to bed at 7:45 and she woke up at 10:30 to nurse. In hindsight I should have woken her up at 1:15 to nurse one last time but I was so concerned with her being well-rested I didn't think. Well, at 1:50 am she awoke. And I had to rock her and sooth her with no nursing. Obviously it was a major fail--I hope you could tell from the tone and all of the foreshadowing. I got approximately 2 hours and 50 minutes of sleep that night. We NEVER went back to bed. Texan got up and played with her for an hour while I tried to sleep, but I was too stressed from having to push her away from my "nursing zone." I cried. She cried. Then I gave up and took her into the living room and turned on the television. She was fine. Happy to be awake, even. I baked 36 cupcakes and a chocolate cake for her birthday the next day and by 4:30 she had fallen asleep in my arms in front of the morning news. Of course, by this point we needed to be waking up at 5 to leave at 5:30 for the hospital. So all I could do was clean up my kitchen and get dressed. Texan had gone back to bed around 4 because there was no sense in both of us being utterly exhausted that day. 

When we got to the surgery center at 6:15 we were checked into our room and told that our surgery was scheduled for 9:30. Three hours of waiting, no nursing, was what we must endure. But at least there was cable and Starbucks for me and a wagon and toys for Scarlett. She was so tired but in great spirits for such a starving, sleep-deprived girl. She looked so tiny yet so grow-up in her hospital gown on the gurney. We took turns walking her around the halls in the wagon. My mom did most of the walking since she had a blissful 9 hours of sleep. At one point Kyle came into the room with Scarlett on his arm and started rummaging through the cabinets asking, "Isn't there a girly-looking hospital gown in here?" And I knew exactly why he was asking. "Did someone call her a boy while you 2 were in the hallway?" His reply was so classic, pouty and angry, "Some guy nurse said, 'we'll get to you soon,  little buddy.'" I laughed pretty hard. Poor Scarlett. We had to take her earrings out when they checked her in. Poor Texan.

The time finally came for surgery and the nurse came in to take her. As she wheeled her away on her miniature hospital bed I watched the back of Scarlett's head. Her face was so curious. Alert. Not at all bewildered or concerned. She looked so brave. Tiny. Texan took the opportunity to go to the bathroom and I sobbed for about 10 seconds on my mom's shoulder before getting it together. Within 10 minutes her doctor came in and said she had done great and that she was in recovery. "Those ears were REALLY bad," he said. "I don't know how she has been feeling lately, but they were awful." I felt so guilty. Waiting for her to come back wasn't so bad because it felt like nothing compared to the night of waiting, crying, and baking I had endured. But once I heard her cry down the hall I bolted to the doorway only to see a nurse wheeling her back to the room on her gurney. But this time Scarlett didn't sit up straight looking brave like before. The nurse was hunched over the bed with her arm encircling Scarlett's waist. And Scarlett was on her knees, her left thumb in her mouth, her right Arm around the nurse's neck and dried blood covering her left ear. And she was crying a broken, weak cry. More like bursts of tired sadness. Later Texan would tell me, "that broke my heart to see her crying on that bed. That's my baby girl and my heart broke."

The nurse was very serious and instructed us to move a rocking chair close to the left side of the bed so I could pick her up without her falling from my arms. She told us that Scarlett had no control over her movements and could very easily flop around and fall. But Scarlett laid perfectly still in my arms and I nursed her. Finally. 

Her pulse monitor told the story of a mother and baby's bond. On the bed her pulse was rapid. The beeping was deafening. As she nursed and curved to my body under a warm white hospital blanket we heard her pulse drop and drop and finally regulate. I loved that my warmth and milk were able to put her at peace. 

Soon she fell fast asleep. She nursed for 15 minutes, sat up, and wanted to play. So we got the thumbs up to go home. The surgeon had given her a large dose of Tylenol and a narcotic, so that paired with her sleepless night sent her into a 5-hour nap at home. After which, she was ravenous and just as sweet as could be. I was so grateful to have my mom and Texan both there. And most of all, I am grateful for the prayers of friends and family which were answered for my sweet baby Jane. Grammy's girl

Getting measured and checked in.

Daddy helping out.

In our room

Sweet baby on her mini hospital bed with Santa. 

Santa got to go in the operating room too! For those of you who don't know, I have had this Santa doll since we got married and I get him out every year with my decorations. But this year I kept catching Scarlett carrying him around under one arm and if I would hand him to her she would give him a great big hug. So, yes, Santa will be staying around for a while and not going back in the attic. Her gown was purple with orange, black, and white cats all over. She also got a fluffy pair of white socks and a blanket, which we brought home with us.

A sneek peak at Scarlett's First Christmas Eve

Scarlett's Birthday Party--Planning

I am so excited for Scarlett's first birthday. It's not only a celebration of the day she came into our arms and the year that followed. January 10th of 2014 was also the biggest day in mine and Texan's lives. And for me, it was the day I discovered an untapped well of love and nourishing. Scarlett has brought out my favorite part of myself. Thanks, little baby.

When it came time to choose a theme--who am I kidding? There was never a time to choose a theme. I was trolling the Pinterest boards mindlessly months ago when I came across a tea cup or something or other...and it hit me like a good shot of espresso! A tea party theme. That's it! When I counted up the family that lives close enough to attend, I decided the house would feel very cramped with that many people in it, especially if the weather is nasty and forces us to stay inside, as it very well could be in mid January. So, I found out through a friend that our church is open to hosting parties. Which is perfect because our church is a beautiful, convenient location for a little shin-dig! Tables, chairs, a full kitchen, it has everything we need for a fabulous day. Yesterday I made the invitations, so it seems a party is imminent. Yes, I need to hand them out still, but that's just a technicality. It's happening.

Does having a tea-themed party mean that I can guzzle down as much coffee as I want without shame or retribution and claim that it's in the spirit of the party? Say yes.

The invitations are printed on card stock, the "afternoon tea"-themed stickers are from a Melissa and Doug book I found at Target, and the little tags are from Office Max--made awesome by some glittery scrapbook paper cut to look like a teabag tag.

 

I love that each one is a little bit different and I made more than needed so I can have one to put in her scrap book. By the time this party is over, I am going to exert every last ounce of creativity that I possess, or that my budget will allow. That's my goal.

 

*There are a few little baby gentlemen who will receive invitations, and on their invitations I placed some dapper little prince charming stickers. This sticker book I found has a ton of themed pages, including a princess page, which is where I got the princes.

My only wish is that all of our favorite ladies could come be fancy with us: My sister and niece in Vegas (oh, heck, bring the boys too!), our Florida friends and family--we miss you all!