Mama Ali

Ali is too funny with Sammie. When Sammie cries, Ali will go running to see what's wrong, like she did last night (and multiple other times). It's just too funny and sosweet. If only Ali could give Sammie her paci or feed her a bottle! Thanks, Ali Roux, for looking out for your baby!  >^.^<

Baby's asleep.. Blogging time.

The Watchful Owl

During the night, I heard Sammie wake up. Out of habit, I got up to check on her and get her paci (I don't think I need to do this anymore, but I do)- Since she's free to roam, roaming is what she does. She got herself to one side of the crib and had kicked her rain forest crib toy ON! I felt bad turning it off and putting her back to sleep because I felt like I should have let her enjoy herself as a reward for getting it on. Oh well. Zzzz..... Awake again. I think she may have been crying this time. I tried looking for the paci and couldn't find it. As I was looking, Sammie rolled from her back to her tummy! I let her be and left the room and watched her in the monitor. Not a good position for her yet, she just wanted to keep her head face down. Back up again to roll her to her side. I wrote all this down in my book as it happened. Good thing, because when I woke up I couldn't remember if I dreamed it or if it was real.

the new breathable bumper

Tonight was Sammie's first night with rice cereal. Let's just say, it's not safe for anyone in the kitchen when feeding a baby who is in "raspberry mode".

Reading about the "watchful owl"and the other animals in A Book of Sleep

Little BunnyFoo Foo...

Sammie left for Grandma's a sweet innocent little girl...

... and came back a silly bunny!

By the way~ Sammie now smiles with her tongue sticking out. It's too cute!

The Results Are In (Doctor Update)

We went to the GI doctor today. Sammie is 14 pounds, 15 ounces and measures about 25 inches. I brought in a poopie diaper and they tested it for blood...... NO BLOOD! Even though there was a small streak of blood in her diaper yesterday, I am on the right track of finding out that Sammie is allergic to oats...or rye... or barley. I am taking them all out my diet and including peanuts, just in case. We have a follow up appointment in 4 weeks :)

5 1/2 months

I like to eat my fingers and everything else in sight

I also pull at my hair... and my right ear.

When I'm Ready

Sammie is so awesome! When she's ready to do something... she will! And she was ready sleep without the swaddle. As her mommy, I am glad that I can pick up on her cues and neither of us need to suffer. Sleeping without a swaddle was no fluke. She slept great through the night and into the morning. In fact, we "over slept". She woke up on schedule at around 7:00, I got up to put her paci back in and she went back to sleep until 9:00! She slept well for her naps today and went out like a light for bedtime- granted she wasn't feeling well. She loves to sleep on her side though.

Fly Little Bird, Fly!

What a day! I don't think that Sammie was feeling well.  I spoke with the pediatrician the other day and asked her about the swaddle issue. She said if Sammie gets out the swaddle and wakes up, let her do her thing because she will fall back asleep on her own. So, I tried that. Sammie woke up and I wrapped her and I think she may have woken up again. I gave her the paci, left and turned the monitor down. She was babbling SO loud. I'm not sure what happened next, but I know she didn't sleep well. We slept until about 8:30 or so this morning and she was so tired all day. She took 2 1- hour naps and a couple of short cat naps, but still wanted more. We were planning on going to San Antonio for a "Memorial Celebration", but things just didn't work out. It's probably best that we didn't because not only was Sammie extremely tired, she kept spitting/throwing up.... Maybe she didn't like the Chinese food I had for dinner last night. On top of that, she must really be gumming because she kept chewing on her tongue and everything in sight. I put OraJel on her bottom gums and gave her the paci and she stopped fussing. Poor thing!
We went to a friend's house and she was late getting to bed, but I fed her, rocked and sung to her, and out she went with NO SWADDLE!!! I laid her down on her side and she's been out since. I guess these last few days where she was sleeping like she had a broken neck, she just wanted to be on her side. She eats on her side, rolls on her side for a diaper change (this is new too), now wants to sleep on her side. I hope this is the answer to my swaddle issue!

Asleep with no swaddle!

Razzamatazzberry

Sammie was in a quiet mood this morning. She slept late and slept a lot at Grandma's too. I'm glad she got her rest in because when I got home with her and she woke up, Mommy, Daddy, and Sammie played-played-played and giggled on the floor. It's been a while since she's stuck her tongue out, but this evening she would blabber, then stick her tongue out, then do a raspberry. It was HILARIOUS!
She wouldn't keep the carrots in her mouth tonight. She was very tricky... she would eat, eat, eat and then spit it all out. How frustrating! After a couple times, I called it quits and we went and sat outside to feel the sweet breeze and watch Daddy blow some bubbles. She was very relaxed.

Rockin' Grandma's Old Dress

It was just Sammie and Grandma today. Sammie was in such a good mood this morning and good thing, because she had such a busy day! They baked brownies and Grandma took her all over the neighborhood to visit some friends. Sammie loves being out and about and meeting new people! Grandma dressed Sammie in an old dress of hers from when she was a little girl. Sammie also rocked in a little rocking chair. She understood what to do but needs to hold on tight and not lean forward... Oopsies!
  Ok... maybe she doesn't "understand" what to do, she's just always a-rockin'.

Thanks for sending pictures, Grandma, of Our Little Doll!  Love you....

Milk & Ducks?!

Sammie and I went and dropped off January's stash of frozen breast milk (195oz) to the milk bank. I had to clear out the freezer for the newer stuff. Since I only give Sammie "fresh" milk, whatever goes in the freezer usually stays there and does not get rotated through. I decided I will drop it off for donation just before the 3 month expiration. After wards, we stopped by my eye doc to pick up my contacts. Last time we were there, Dr. Mooney's wife fell in love with Sammie. She was there again today visiting and everyone was so excited to see/meet Sammie. She even gave Sammie a new pair of Little Mermaid sunglasses... "You have to protect those beautiful eyes!" she'd say. Sammie loved wearing them. I think she thought it was cool that everything looked blue. We rushed home to pick up Daddy and play for a minute and then back in the car to get some frozen yogurt and feed the duckies. Sammie fell asleep in the car and woke up at the park... Strange to see all the nature and ducks swimming around. She was very quiet and relaxed and just took everything in.

Th Wiggle Dance

I know Sammie cannot sleep without the swaddle because she moves so much. Last night Matt woke me up saying that Sammie was awake and she wiggled herself out of the swaddle and it was wrapped around her neck. It's happened before. She really needs to grow out of this habit and keep still! Tonight I put her to bed with just a blanket wrapped around her and she fell asleep just fine. But then she wiggled loose and was wide awake. I let her be, figuring she would be tired enough to go back to sleep... Nope. After about 30+ minutes, I decided to wrap her back in the "serious swaddle"- as Matt called it- and she fell right to sleep. Oh man, I don't know how to ween her from this! Would I seem like a crazy Mama if I go to the pediatrician and ask for advice on Weening Your Infant From Being Swaddled? Do they have a pamphlet or chapter on that? hee hee hee

I know it's been awhile since I have mentioned the food allergy. I believe it is OATS. The last time she had a blood-in-poop diaper, I ate a soy- free hamburger bun with dinner the night before. Daddy checked and sure 'nough, it contained 'oat flour'. Since then, I have been very serious about the breads I have eaten, and pray that when they test Sammie's diaper on Monday it will come up negative!

GOOD MORNING, SUNSHINE!

"Little Bird, little bird, fly through my window..."

Just Another Monday

Sammie slept last night looking like she had a broken neck. I went in and checked on her, but that's just how she wanted to be. It looked like she wanted to roll over onto her tummy, so when I went in to re-swaddle her, I decided not to and rolled her to her tummy. That didn't work quite as well as I hoped. She was up for a couple hours. I tried.... I finally went in and re-swaddled her as usual for her to sleep.

We ran some errands today and she got a new ball to play with. It's a nice size for her and very colorful. For dinner, she had some Gerber mushed carrots.... they weren't as yummy as Daddy's. She kept making a yucky face, but some how she stomached some of it.

Bye-Byes

We had to say our bye-byes to the Brown Family today.  We had a fun- crazy weekend and we'll miss them bunches. Besides stealing Sammie's toys, Grant did such a good job with her. We even got some hugs from him :)
Sammie was happy to finally just be home to catch a looong nap, but we had to wake her up to give goodbyes. That, she wasn't happy about. Later, after a 2+ hour nap, I dragged her to do some quick shopping since I found a coupon and gift certificate. She was pooped again by the time we got home. Poor girl. Lucky for her, she got a nice bath, a warm bottle, and is now asleep until tomorrow.

The weekend is over.

So Much Going On

Good thing Sammie got her beauty sleep last night! She went to bed about 8:30 and woke up talking at 6:30 this morning. I waited until about 7:00 to go get her and she was already back asleep... until 8:15! Good thing because she didn't get a nap at all today besides in the car for short intervals.
Today was Kristie's bridal shower, so we attended that and everyone fell in love with Sammie! She was so good and it was past her nap time. She just went on smiling and laughing at everything going on. She even made a new little friend there, who she played with. Once we got home, Daddy, Alex, Shila and Grant were waiting for us to go to lunch and then do some shopping. Sammie got her first bathing suit today! Summer, bring on the sprinkler park!!! I tried to give her a nap when we got home, but there was just so much going on that she wouldn't close her eyes. She did catch a short nap when we went to dinner, which she awoke scared. She was in her carrier on the floor and didn't see any of us when she woke up screaming! Finally, Sammie's day ended at 8:45! Whew! What a long day!

Ready to go!

House Guests

Alex, Shila and Grant drove in from Dallas tonight. It was past my bath/bedtime but I stayed up for a little bit to visit. I was happy to meet them. I am looking forward to hanging out tomorrow.... but I need my beauty sleep  :)

Erin Go Bragh!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

I see the rainbow, but where's the pot of gold, lil' leprechaun?

I took an almost 3 hour nap! Grandma had to wake me up.

The Car Goes Beep Beep

We had to wake up waaaay too early today because we needed to bring the Mazda in to get checked. Sammie woke up the same time we did, then it was rush- rush to get out the door. Sammie had her first feeding in the car! She was a little interested in looking out the window at first, but when she realized it was this or nothing, she sucked that bottle down! She also even enjoyed me sitting in the back seat with her because she was ALL smiles. I don't blame her, there's nothing else to do. I felt like our day had been thrown off. She napped well and ate well, but it just felt different. I guess that's what happens when you throw off a routine. I have a feeling the rest of the week will be just as hectic!

After Sammie's naps we went to a friend's house to hang out and play with her little one, Kayla. I was hoping Kayla could teach Sammie how to crawl since she's just under 2 years old, but no luck there. Later, we had to rush to pick[ Daddy up then pick up the Mazda. I bet Sammie felt like she was in the car seat all day. We got back around 7:30pm and we let her jump for a little bit before getting her to bed.

Round Two of the Carrot March

Man, was I exhausted today! For some reason Sammie kept waking up this morning- 4:40, 5:45, 6:00, 6:45, 7:00.... It also didn't help that I went to bed very late. All I did was wrap her and leave, then she would stay up just staring off into the darkness. Some times I wonder if it was the carrots that she ate, but there isn't any sugar in them to keep her up. I don't know.
We had round two of the carrot march tonight. It was Daddy's turn to feed her. She spit more out tonight than last night, but I think it's because Daddy was giving her a little too much on the spoon and too often. But she ate what she could, anyway. I'm surprised that she ate as much as she did! I'm pretty sure she was quite full when he started feeding her. Within 2 hours, she nursed for about 14 minutes, ate some carrots, drank some water, then had her night time bottle. I hope she sleeps well tonight! Mommy (and Daddy) need more sleep... well, just to sleep a little longer in the morning. This day light savings is torturous! It's still dark when we get up. No more calling out "Good Morning, Mr.Sun!"

Today I am 5 Months!

Fell asleep while eating and look, no swaddle!

What a day! Sammie is 5 months old, she took some great naps, she jumped and we went to Target. I had my fingers crossed for a no-bloody poop, which we didn't have :) and she is doing so well sitting up on her own that I decided to leave the car seat in the car. I did bring in the in the shopping cart cover, but sadly, the Target carts are a little too big for Sammie to sit in. She kept leaning sideways with a leg kicked up. I figured I'd better just hold her.

Mama, can I have a pillow, please?

   I really wanted to start her on 'solid' food at 5 months, but then with the allergy, I thought it would be best to wait. However, this poor little girl just stares at food and wants to eat so badly, first the grapes, then the pineapple, give this girl some food!!  So, Sammie and I talked about getting some bananas while at Target, but I totally forgot. Good thing, because I remembered that we should start with orange veggies. When we got home (after a quick nap and a feeding) I steamed a little bit of  a carrot and Daddy mushed it and added some breast milk. She made a yucky face, but took right to it. She even tried to feed herself! What an AWESOME girl!!!
  Since it was a beautiful day, we went for a walk with the jogging stroller.  Of course Sammie fell asleep again, so instead of coming home, Daddy and I walked a little longer to let her sleep. Boy was she tired tonight! She sure did have a big day!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Today was Daddy's birthday. What a fun day! I jumped, played with Mommy and Daddy, I napped well (2 1+hour naps), then I had some family time and celebrated Daddy's big 3-0. I saw my Grandma and Grandpa Wells, Auntie Pam and Uncle Jack, Auntie A and Uncle Shake, and Cousin Nate. By the end of the evening I started to get tired and a little fussy. I was still tired! Daddy sat me on the table so I could be in the center of everyone and Mommy fed me some water from a spoon! I liked it and laughed while drinking it. Mommy also let me 'taste' some pineapple. It was YUM! I can't wait to try some solid food!.... maybe birthday cake!?!?

Tickle Kisses from Daddy!

Hanging with Cousin Natey-Nate

Auntie Pam makes me laugh :)

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Go Go Go

What an eventful day! After Sammie's feeding this morning, she got to jump in her jumperoo, until she was pooped out, then took over an hour nap.  While she was napping, Mommy and Daddy got to get some yard work done, yay. Later, we went to the outlet mall to meet up with friend, Mikaela and Baby Reiston.  Afterwards, we rushed home to eat, which she keeps getting distracted, and then we all went over to Brad's to watch some UT basketball. Sammie loves getting so much attention and everyone was wow'd at how she sits up by herself already. Our friend, Nate, was very sweet and kept watching her. He wants to play with her so badly... He's just going to have to wait just a little bit longer, he turns 2 in April!

Jumper... Rooo!

Today we received Sammie's new jumperoo that Grandma Maria got her for Christmas. Grandma wanted to get her a walker to roam around the house, but I just didn't find one that I liked, so we got the jumper instead. Sammie was so interested watching Daddy put it together and had even more fun jumping! Her legs are a little short, but we just put a box top and she's good to go!

Watching Daddy put my Jumperoo together. I am awesome at sitting!

Sitting Duck

Grandma caught Sammie sitting up by herself playing with her toys...