tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35223839881625305622024-03-13T04:52:43.819-07:00Emmi ExpectingMy adventures in pregnancy, motherhood and beyondEmmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.comBlogger146125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-30383009737535787802015-10-16T16:00:00.000-07:002015-10-16T16:00:00.479-07:00Grayson Year 3<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Oh, my baby boy. You've grown up so, so much.<br />
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He's now 25 lbs, and about 3 ft tall. He's got sass, is extremely well spoken, and hardly ever shuts up ;). He's got a crazy awesome imagination and tells us stories, engages in imaginative play, and comes up with crazy ideas. He's my little tornado, has the energy of a hummingbird, and never holds still, even in his sleep. He's mastered potty training, which I'm thrilled with. He's obsessed with Mickey Mouse, and we've ended up with a DVR full of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. He still loves cars and trucks, and boats and trains, and anything else with an engine. He loves being outside, regardless of heat or bugs, and especially loves water, whether it's the Gulf, the bay, a beach, the splash pad, the hot tub, or even baths. He's wearing 3T shirts, but is still in 18-24 months pants, with size 7-8 shoes. He's been moved up in school, and is loving the more school-like environment. I still can't get over how grown up and intelligent he is. He talks constantly and comes up with crazy stuff: saying Gaga is "nervous" instead of "hilarious," congratulating the pilots on driving the plane well, and the absolute hijinks he gets into with his little girlfriend L. <--Seriously, they kill me with their cuteness. I've loved the last three years getting to know him, even when he's as stubborn as me and we butt heads. I can't wait to keep watching him grow and see the kind of man he becomes.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">3 years silly</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Park time with the baby dinosaur</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birthday party</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dolphin cruise; we told him to look at the camera</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Caught a crab</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hawaii</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Napping with Gaga</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sibling love</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First baseball game</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Feeding his cousin</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Battleship selfie</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My silly goose</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><3 <3 <3</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Helping to clean up sticks</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-30268732674733798962015-10-15T09:30:00.001-07:002015-10-15T09:37:55.577-07:00Ainsley Month 11 and 12<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Sure, I didn't do month 11 and we're almost to month 13, but it's been a busy couple of months, so bear with me.<br />
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It seems like around this age, everything starts changing fast. You wait, and wait, and wait for milestones, and the seem so few and far between, and then BAM, all of a sudden they seem to happen every other day.<br />
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Over the past few months, Ainsley has started sitting up from lying down, waving, saying "bah bah" for bye bye, pointing at things she wants, standing all over the place (including in her crib), cruising along, walking with help, and babbling her head off (we've heard attempts at yellow, doggy, moo, moon, knees, boo, Pippin/puppy, and even pumpkin!) She makes mmmm noises when eating something yummy and says bye bye and hi, as long as you don't expect it on command. Daycare is getting better. She's still not napping nearly as much as at home (3 hours at home vs 1 maybe at daycare) but she's not screaming bloody murder when I drop her off either.<br />
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We've also got a climber on our hands. G was never that interested in climbing anywhere, but even though she can't walk, she hoists herself up onto the back of the couch, tries to climb on the windowsill, and treats me and James as a jungle gym. I have a feeling baby proofing will need to be a bit different with this one than with G.<br />
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We're still nursing! She's pretty good about solids, but we still nurse a few times a day. I've decided I'm going to let her decide when she's done, but I'm also not going to continue pumping or using fenugreek or worry about supply. So once she's done with the freezer supply of my milk, we'll switch to cow's milk for daycare and I'll nurse when we're together til she decides she's done.<br />
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She and G have been getting into some sibling rivalry too. Mostly about toys, since she always wants what G is playing with, and he likes her toys too. This ends with her "scratching" or trying to bite him, or just screeching at him. Then he tattles (no, really), or screeches back at her. Sometimes he knocks her over, but we're working on all that. I'm sure it'll get worse in some ways and better in others as they grow up, but we're trying to teach them how to behave while still letting them be little.<br />
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Here are the pictures from the last few months:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">11 months</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bathtime fun! <br />
(Photoshop courtesy of Amanda, since I had two photos, one good of A and one good of G and she spliced them together!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">12 months!!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My adorable 1 year old!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The end result of the cake!</td></tr>
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Quick mama update:<br />
-I've lost all the baby weight, plus 20-25 lbs more, bringing me back down to my normal, pre-SD weight. Usually this would be awesome, but it's mostly because I don't feel like eating because of all the stomach issues I'm having.<br />
-My PPD is being handled pretty well between medicine and therapy, which has been hugely helpful to me.<br />
-Hips and the diastasis rectii are still an issue, but hopefully at some point I'll find something that actually works. For now, the PT, chiropractors, etc I've seen haven't really been much help.<br />
-I'm still job hunting. I've had a few interviews, but nothing that has gone farther than that.<br />
-I think I'm up to thinking I've got this mama thing down about half the time now, which is pretty good. At least, the kids seem relatively happy and I get love from them, which always makes me smile. <3</div>
Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-11709460888676936142015-07-28T13:49:00.002-07:002015-07-28T13:49:21.112-07:00Ainsley Month 10<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
June 24-July 23<br />
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-She is 15 lbs 15 oz, 27" long<br />
-No common food allergies! She's had all the most common allergenic foods as of this month: peanut butter, eggs, strawberries, and shellfish (shrimp) with no reactions<br />
-She babbles all the time!<br />
-Teeth! Up to 4 now<br />
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Her naps have been a little off lately. Even though shes nowhere close to needing only one nap, she's been consolidating like crazy, often taking one monster 3 hour nap in the middle of the day instead of two naps. It drives me nuts, but our schedule while at camp is making it really difficult to find a decent sleep schedule for her. She also refuses to nap anywhere but her crib/pack n play, so I've become a bit of a hermit lately, or else I end up with a crabby babe.<br />
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She's saying stuff! While I was skyping with a friend I jokingly said "Say Angela!," and she fully said "an he ha!" I know that might not sound amazing to most, but it was so cool seeing her try to imitate our words. She also said "pup pup" when I was pointing out the puppies to her and she's said "baba" when we've told her to say "bye bye!" The mama and dada are getting more distinct too and she seems to know that they mean us!<br />
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It took nearly two weeks, but her two top front teeth have broken the surface! They're still coming in all the way but at least they're through. I took her in for a routine blood draw to test for anemia, and she didn't make a single peep as they put the needle in and found a vein, just looked me them and at me. She must have a pretty high pain tolerance.<br />
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She's had a lot of firsts lately. Her first day at daycare was on the 21st, and she only drank one ounce of milk. Her second day she didn't drink any milk. She hasn't slept well there either. We'll give her a few more weeks, but if it's still causing more stress than it's saving, we'll pull her out. She clapped, or rather just brought her hands together, but she's so exciting about it! Then a few days later, I picked her up from daycare, said "Say goodbye to teacher" and she waved! Up and down with her hand. It was adorable. So now she waves and claps on and off.<br />
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She has become one of the most happy babies I've ever seen. She still has her moments, but overall, she is just such a happy, content baby. She enjoys being held, but also enjoys crawling around on the floor (scooting really) and getting into anything we don't want her messing with. It'll be good to get back to our house when camp is over. It'll be bit of a hassle to move back in, but I think everyone will be much happier; G will have all his toys, which will feel like new toys to him, and Ainsley will love exploring a new place. (I will enjoy having tv, internet, and cooking again).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--pVLlgLs5zw/VbfqZFwPQgI/AAAAAAAAOT8/aUzkA4glQ2c/s1600/20150724_185113.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--pVLlgLs5zw/VbfqZFwPQgI/AAAAAAAAOT8/aUzkA4glQ2c/s400/20150724_185113.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When did she get so big?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hardly ever holds still</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-13646931207432832922015-07-17T18:00:00.000-07:002015-07-28T12:37:35.637-07:00Summer G Update (pic heavy)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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My baby boyo is growing up so quickly I can't even stand it sometimes. Of course, once he manages to potty train successfully, I'll be even more impressed. It's an ongoing process.<br />
AND UGH TODDLERS. Threenager is not an exaggeration. We've gotten some "leave me alone!"s and some "get out of my room!"s. These tantrums are making the terrible twos look like, well, kids' play! I'm hoping this is the threes kicking in because I don't want to see how it can get worse. Though, in the last week, it seems to have gotten better, so I have some hope.<br />
Some Little Moments:<br />
-I took a shower with him, and when we got off and I'd dried him off, he started hopping around the bathroom saying "ribbit! Ribbit! I a fwog!!"-Pat my toe! No, faster!-Knock Knock! Me: Who's there? G: Stinky sock! Hahahaha!-I Gwayson Lawrence. Your name Mama Lawrence. And and and Baby Lawrence.-We were reading his animal alphabet book, and we got to the elephant and he says "Roll tide!" complete with hand motions. I tried to move on, and he continues saying "Elephant! Roll tide!" He did NOT learn that at home!-"I need cheers Mommy!" And made me clink my water bottle against his sippy cup-I had the perfect opportunity to talk about consent with G. He has a friend at our church who he absolutely adores. They're so flippin' cute together. His friend gave the "teacher" a kiss and I asked G if he wanted to give her a kiss too. He said yes and walked right up to his friend, lips puckered, face up. I don't know if she didn't realize it, but she walked away. G said "I want to give kiss her!" And I told him "You can kiss her, but you have to ask her first, and see if she says yes. Sometimes people don't want to be kissed, so ask her first." He wouldn't ask; I think he was too shy, but he kept saying he wanted to kiss her and I kept responding that you have to ask someone if you can kiss them before you actually do. Repetition is great in this case. He did eventually get his kiss when they said goodbye. She's at least 2 inches taller than him; it melts my heart to see them together. And I'm so glad that this opportunity presented itself so we can start these conversations early!!-Me: What are you counting? G: Fingers! Me: Fingers? G: On truck! One, two, free, fowr, fibe, six, eight, nine, ten, eleben, twelb, tirteen...one-teen, two-teen, free-teen...-Me: "Do you want your sister to sit in the cart with you?" G: "Ya!" Me: "Ok, but you have to promise to be nice to her." G: "I need to pet her!!"-Just last Sunday at church, he and his friend were playing around, and when it was time for communion, they both ran between the two lines, up to the railing and started yelling "Mommy! Mommy!" Luckily, our church is very kid friendly and we were allowed to skip the line too, standing behind them. They continued to play during coffee hour, doing their usual run between the parish hall and the sanctuary. Eventually, I had to take G home, and when he said goodbye, he walked up to her and (umprompted) said "Can I gib you kiss?" Before he even finished, she'd full-on kissed him. It was so cute. On the way home he kept saying "[Name] kissed me on lips, Mama." So freaking adorable! <br />
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Pictures<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first and only time he's enjoyed making a mess. It lasted about 15 seconds. (It's an ice cream sandwich)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We made Peeps play doh. It didn't work, but he had fun</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taking care of his baby</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bathtime fun</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">See-saw on the beach</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Easter 2015</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I can't take my heels out of the closet without him wanting to wear them</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sibling sweeties</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready for camp with his sunglasses and his "pack pack"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7DyNKcomnF8/VbfW9rhzPII/AAAAAAAAN3U/QJDegWQ7K9k/s1600/20150613_104112.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7DyNKcomnF8/VbfW9rhzPII/AAAAAAAAN3U/QJDegWQ7K9k/s400/20150613_104112.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His fashion sense could use some help</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pNXzqjOYbDQ/VaaZOWuNKbI/AAAAAAAAM88/AtQ8t9qRLWE/s1600/20150607_132753.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pNXzqjOYbDQ/VaaZOWuNKbI/AAAAAAAAM88/AtQ8t9qRLWE/s400/20150607_132753.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mermaid tail from a friend's birthday party</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Minion ice cream</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Gran Gran and homemade Fourth of July shirts!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xYQyWEmIecc/VaaZOXgkjHI/AAAAAAAAM88/QRQk_Lb6QqM/s1600/20150706_080618.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xYQyWEmIecc/VaaZOXgkjHI/AAAAAAAAM88/QRQk_Lb6QqM/s400/20150706_080618.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'll take the extra snuggles when I can</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-86-UmO9QyQM/VaaZOaMZptI/AAAAAAAAM88/MTOoo5bM-ek/s1600/20150708_074233.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-86-UmO9QyQM/VaaZOaMZptI/AAAAAAAAM88/MTOoo5bM-ek/s400/20150708_074233.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Take my picta Mommy!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-77JHevJ0Cz8/VaaZOeGjr4I/AAAAAAAAM88/12Ql_bDTinA/s1600/download_20150711_150134%257E2.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-77JHevJ0Cz8/VaaZOeGjr4I/AAAAAAAAM88/12Ql_bDTinA/s400/download_20150711_150134%257E2.jpeg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I've started taking photos of things that may be our "lasts" soon, like the last time he falls asleep on me</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-15895580457678344572015-07-16T18:00:00.000-07:002015-07-16T18:00:01.060-07:00Ainsley Month 9<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
May 24-June 23<br />
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-Said Dada May 24<br />
-Spent her first day in the church nursery on June 7<br />
-Pulled up on her own on June 23<br />
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She's continuing to grow, grow, grow! This girl loves music! She dances in her seat during meals at camp, and smiles and laughs when the music plays. At church, she held herself up on her own on the pew and danced to the music that was being played behind us.<br />
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She's continuing to eat well, whatever she can feed herself, and pieces of what we're eating too. A lot of carrots and cucumbers from the salad bar at camp. She had ice cream for the first time at the beach when James' parents visited. She really, really loved it, and Jimmy had a great time sharing his ice cream with her. (It was also my first time getting ice cream from an ice cream truck! So I can check that off my bucket list. No joke.)<br />
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She's still army crawling around, but will also scoot on her butt, much like G did. She can't move from sitting to her tummy, or from her tummy to sitting on her own yet. The counselors at camp love to hold her, but she's showing extreme separation anxiety, so we're working on it. As long as she can't see me, she seems to do alright, but if she catches sight of me, it's all over.<br />
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One day she saw her reflection in the glass door of the oven. She started waving her arms and smiling and talking at it. She had such a blast, acting like she'd made a new friend. It was great! I guess I've gotta find her some playdates soon!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cutie!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at those faces!</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-70441714562855898012015-07-15T09:30:00.006-07:002015-07-15T09:46:20.640-07:00Ainsley Month 8<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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April 24-May 23</div>
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-New foods: pickles, eggs, blueberries, meatball, egg noodles, macaroni and cheese, chicken, grapes, strawberries, sweet potato, chocolate cake. This girl LOVES to eat!</div>
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-First word! On May 8 she said "mama!"</div>
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On May 14, Ainsley spent her first night in the crib in her room, and she slept 11.5 hours straight! We moved her after she went from sleeping through the night to waking up 3+times a night and nursing wasn't helping her fall asleep anymore. I think she was waking up because she could hear us moving around (or more likely snoring), and then could see me right next to her. If she couldn't see me, she'd go back to sleep. So I guess we've officially moved to the crib. It's a little sad, but we've ALL been sleeping much better, and her naps have improved to. I give partial credit to the zipadeezip, which is an amazing product for transitioning from the swaddle (even though mine is a bit big for her.) She was getting her feet stuck in between the crib slats, so we bought those mesh, breathable bumpers, and it's seemed to really help. They're pretty cute too, since they have safari animal scenes on them, which goes with her animal/giraffe demi-theme.</div>
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She's started really army crawling on her belly and can get pretty far,especially when she's going after one of G's toys. She's also starting to realize cause and effect with her noisy toys. She especially loves the music ones and will bounce around when they play music.</div>
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She adores feeding herself. She's not much for purees, so we've been steadily pursuing the baby led weaning path for her. If I manage to get food into her mouth, she spits it right out again until she feeds it to herself. Purees have much the same reaction, with much more mess. G has always hated being messy, but Ainsley couldn't care less and can make an astounding amount of mess with her food. It's adorable. And aggravating sometimes since she's not too fond of the cleaning up process</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V4E7XNtz4-s/VaaJoqgNIYI/AAAAAAAAM7k/KnQQ85tnVto/s1600/DSC_0517.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V4E7XNtz4-s/VaaJoqgNIYI/AAAAAAAAM7k/KnQQ85tnVto/s400/DSC_0517.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting a bit big for these pjs!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the best parts of having a girl is the clothes!! Thanks, Grammy for the dress!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Like I said, loves to make a mess :)</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-45211627099274337102015-06-11T13:59:00.001-07:002015-06-11T13:59:08.799-07:00Disneyland<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
When I tell people I want to go to Disneyland or DisneyWorld, they always tell me to wait until my kids are older. If you have told me this, I'll try to put it gently: this is when I want to slap you. My kids aren't the reason I want to go to Disney. I want to go to Disney for ME. I love Disney. I love the fantasy, the movies, the songs, the rides, the food. So when my parents suggested Disneyland while we were in California I jumped! OF COURSE.<br />
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It was our second trip to Disney with kids. Our first had been right before G's first birthday, and had been a success, in my opinion. We met Mickey, went on a few rides, saw World of Colour, and I even rode my favourite ride (Indiana Jones). This trip went even smoother despite the addition of a second child. Ainsley was only 6 months when we went, so she was even more flummoxed by the sounds and sights than G had been the last time. But G. Oh G was old enough to enjoy himself this time. It was SO much fun to see him enjoying the rides and meeting characters and exploring.<br />
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Here's what we did:<br />
-Realized we had no SD card in the camera and were held hostage for one on Main St<br />
-Grabbed pins!<br />
-Went to the firehouse and played on the horse drawn fire engine<br />
-Rode the train to Toon Town (no room left on the Lille Belle car) This was by far G's favourite part. He was so excited to ride on the train and hear it whistle. It was so fun to see his face light up.<br />
-Met Pluto. G loved getting hugs from Pluto.<br />
-Met Mickey. G enjoyed exploring the house while we waited in line, but got really shy when actually confronted with Mickey.<br />
-Played in Toon Town, exploring all the vehicles and the jail.<br />
-Headed to the teacups, which he had a BLAST on. James and I (with Ainsley strapped to me) rode in a teacup with G, while my parents were in the neighbouring one. G loved looking for them and spinning around and around. PS: I am super proud of myself for managing to nurse A in the ergo while we were in line.<br />
-Rode the carousel, which was closed last time. G had fun, and my dad wore Ainsley, though I'm pretty sure she slept through her first carousel ride.<br />
-Stopped for lunch, and G crashed in the stroller. So we had a grilled cheese that wasn't eaten, but oh my gosh, he was so cute because he just curled up in the stroller to sleep.<br />
-Went on Dumbo. I stayed off the ride; 5 people doesn't split up well. James rode with G, and my parents rode together, with Dad carrying A.<br />
-Met up with my little Joy and her boyfriend and another friend of theirs as we stopped for snack since someone was hungry. Not surprising, since he didn't eat lunch. We got him a hot dog and I got my delicious cream-cheese filled pretzel. YUM.<br />
-We all rode the train to Toontown again, and went on Small World. G seemed mesmerized by it, but I enjoyed riding it with him.<br />
-Joy and her friends had to go afterwards, though we saw part of the new parade. G enjoyed seeing Donald Duck.<br />
-We decided to head toward Jungle Cruise, which was RIDICULOUSLY busy! It took forever to get through, but everyone seemed to enjoy it. G obviously didn't get the jokes, but he did seem to enjoy the boat ride, the people laughing, and the surprises (like the hippos)<br />
This is where my mind goes fuzzy on what happened when.<br />
-We went on Pirates of the Caribbean. We waited for a front row seat for G. Incidentally, I was wearing A and we found out that when I wear her, we count as two people, so James and my Dad sat with G in the front and my mom and I were behind them. And we all got splashed. G seemed to enjoy it, though he was a smidge freaked out by the drops. James said he grabbed on to him, but he wasn't scared enough to say anything, and seemed to enjoy them by the end.<br />
-We ended up in Downtown Disney for dinner at the cajun place. Definitely not where I thought we were eating, but the shrimp and grits were good. And yes, I traveled halfway across the country only to eat traditionally Southern food. I recognize the irony.<br />
-We were planning on leaving after dinner, but G fell asleep in the stroller again, and A was perfectly happy to be sleeping on my Dad's chest, so we decided to take advantage of that, and James and I got to ride on Indiana Jones, and the new Star Wars, which was awesome!<br />
-We headed home on the bus, which G loved :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XgCnLHcLBc0/VXn09ch0GBI/AAAAAAAAMGM/7rZjv40TA4k/s1600/DSC_0019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XgCnLHcLBc0/VXn09ch0GBI/AAAAAAAAMGM/7rZjv40TA4k/s400/DSC_0019.JPG" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Firetruck</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Train time!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pluto hugs</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pluto</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-D2cGrwtKTGU/VXn1QvmSIJI/AAAAAAAAMGg/mewaYQE5SM4/s1600/DSC_0075.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-D2cGrwtKTGU/VXn1QvmSIJI/AAAAAAAAMGg/mewaYQE5SM4/s400/DSC_0075.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He was totally shy in front of Mickey</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GaxRYEKDS4E/VXn1TCfIMKI/AAAAAAAAMGw/SZob7qCH4vg/s1600/DSC_0132.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GaxRYEKDS4E/VXn1TCfIMKI/AAAAAAAAMGw/SZob7qCH4vg/s400/DSC_0132.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In front of the castle</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gV_FqaSwmMU/VXn1iXWbSkI/AAAAAAAAMHA/3kQgLhfnm_k/s1600/DSC_0138.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gV_FqaSwmMU/VXn1iXWbSkI/AAAAAAAAMHA/3kQgLhfnm_k/s400/DSC_0138.JPG" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waving at Daddy</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J12VazxAmtM/VXn1hR75LYI/AAAAAAAAMG4/67utLRCvVUo/s1600/DSC_0225.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J12VazxAmtM/VXn1hR75LYI/AAAAAAAAMG4/67utLRCvVUo/s400/DSC_0225.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Being silly</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2h4YqvlqsKY/VXn1lLzoxdI/AAAAAAAAMHI/XiC12767h8A/s1600/DSC_0241.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2h4YqvlqsKY/VXn1lLzoxdI/AAAAAAAAMHI/XiC12767h8A/s400/DSC_0241.JPG" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hugs</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6NWZI3B8imI/VXn1vmPZfrI/AAAAAAAAMHQ/I_-3J7EuvNA/s1600/DSC_0257.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6NWZI3B8imI/VXn1vmPZfrI/AAAAAAAAMHQ/I_-3J7EuvNA/s400/DSC_0257.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Train again! With his "looking eyes" on</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yD4Zjie6KQs/VXn1v1x2C0I/AAAAAAAAMHU/MC410SzdxUA/s1600/DSC_0269.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yD4Zjie6KQs/VXn1v1x2C0I/AAAAAAAAMHU/MC410SzdxUA/s400/DSC_0269.JPG" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Worn out</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-8758180135969482102015-04-30T19:45:00.000-07:002015-04-30T19:45:00.045-07:00Grayson Update<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This update has been a work in progress for a few months now.<br />
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April 14 G officially turned 2.5. Boy is he a handful. I sincerely hope that he's going through the "threenager" stage early, because I honestly don't see (and don't want to know) how it could get much worse. His favourite word is NO and he likes to deliver it with gusto and volume, frequently. We're working on manners and being nice, and using words like "frustrated," "angry," or "upset" instead of hitting or screaming "no." It's hit or miss, though tonight he said he was frustrated that my show was on instead of his, so that's improvement. <br />
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We switched schools shortly after the new year. When we got back from Christmas, he was adamant about not wanting to go to school and pitching fits in the morning. We noticed in the 5 days he was at his old school his vocab and diction dipped. Unsurprising considering he was almost 2.5 and in a 1 year old classroom. They did nothing but sit them in front of the TV and allow independent play. He was bored brainless. We found a great place that put him in the 2.5-3yo room, and he loves it. They teach him letters and numbers, do worksheets, colouring, fingerpainting, play outside every day, provide breakfast, lunch, and snacks, and he has a blast. His vocab and diction improved immediately and he now tells us about what he did at school, and what he learned. He is so much happier. They're even working on potty training him (though he doesn't seem to care if he's wet or dirty, and I'm not sure how to get him to care while taking care of Ms Velcro). He hasn't had a single biting incident since he switched schools because he's in the appropriate level. He's even starting to engage in imaginary play, telling us he's going to the store on his trike, or having a tea party with his play kitchen.<br />
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Noises are freaking him out lately. Not all loud noises, but thunder, and garbage trucks. We even waved at a truck driver at a rest stop, and he blew the horn for G, but it just freaked him out. After waking up to him out of his bedroom, screaming at the top of his lungs from the top of the stairs at 3:30 am about the "loud noise garbage truck" we made a few changes. We switched out his door handle for bathroom one, lock on the outside. It seems mean, but if he gets out of his room without us knowing, he can mess with the gas stove, knows how to turn on the fireplace, reach the knives, etc. I wouldn't put it past him to figure out the gate on the stairs either. So we lock him in at night. He also knows all about the video monitor and that if he gets scared he can call for us to the camera and we'll come up and get him. He's a smart kid, that's for sure, but I do miss the days when he couldn't open his door.<br />
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He still loves trucks, trains, and anything else that goes. Dump trucks and garbage trucks are pretty big, though he gets excited about the mix trucks (cement mixers) we see on the way home from school. He also loves water towers. He will yell out "water tower water tower!" whenever he sees one from the car. He was so excited when James took him to one and they got out to touch it and walk around it.<br />
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We did have one really super scary incident recently. We were at Sam's, having hot dogs, and he fell off the bench and smacked his head on the concrete floor. James was sitting right next to him, holding Ainsley while I put the carrier back on. I ran around to get him and he actually lost consciousness for a second. He revived immediately, and seemed ok; he wasn't even crying that hard, but it was petrifying. We called his doctor, and when the nurse called back she said to take him to the ER. James took Ainsley and I home, and headed to the ER with G. He said every nurse in there must have asked what happened, and every time would almost accusingly ask where he was. What are you supposed to do to prevent something like this? Have him wear a helmet 24-7? Never let him sit on a bench? By the time the doctor saw them, he was fine, laughing and smiling, and even told the doctor "my head feel much better!" He was mostly concerned with watching Nascar apparently. He did really well for the CT scan, and they found a hairline fracture on his skull. They sent James and G home with an appointment with a pediatric neurosurgeon the next Tuesday. That was probably the scariest part; waiting all weekend knowing that we were referred to a specialist in neurosurgery. But, he was really nice, and very unconcerned. He said any symptoms that G experienced from that point on were unrelated, there was nothing he could do to make it worse (even hitting his head again), and that it would heal on its own in 4-6 weeks. This happened the Saturday after my kidney stone surgery, so it was a busy, busy week. The next weekend he ended up with a horrible fever (it reached 104F) while we were out of town. Since we were in a condo on the beach, he wouldn't slow down, even when he was throwing up. It turns out he had an ear infection, and he's doing much better now. I hope we get a break from doctors for a while.<br />
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Overall, he's a happy, healthy, typical toddler. He has the sweetest smile, dotes on his sister and loves to eat cous cous, yogurt, rice, and chicken nuggets. He's intermittently sweet and terrorizing, aggravating and adorable. He's smart as a whip and stubborn to boot. Most of all, I can't imagine my life without my little G man in it. (Especially the heart melting moments when he asks for mommy.)<br />
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He has started saying hilarious things, most of which have been shared on facebook. For those without facebook (hi Auntie Van!) here are some gems:<br />
-G: I tired. Me: I'm tired too. G: Mama, me too too!<br />
-Go to chicken nugget store!<br />
-Good job turning into driveway, mom!<br />
-Find hidden treasure! (While chasing after his friend Lilly after church)<br />
-Be be back (be right back)<br />
-We bought him water sandals at Nordstroms. He was so excited, and wanted to wear them immediately. He put them on, walked over to the fish tank and said "need swim fish tank!"<br />
-He now gives kisses when something is hurt. When I said my head was hurting, he came over and gave me a kiss on the forehead<br />
-I miss you gone Daddy (to James, constantly. James likes to say G misses him being gone because he'll say it even if he hasn't been gone recently)<br />
-Sweetheart mama<br />
-Backhoe is good stuff. How cool is that?<br />
-I fwear Daddy (I swear Daddy, delivered like an exasperated teen)<br />
-Go hostal. Get surgy. Go hostal, feel much better. Feel much better, mama.<br />
-Wrinkle...I eat it! I like wrinkle! (re: his wrinkly fingers after a bath)<br />
-G: Knock knock. Me: Who's there? G: I'm here!!<br />
-*sneeze* Me: Bless you. G: I bless you too!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Showing off the eggs he found at church</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ELnZ3eTbQw8/VT7zk820oNI/AAAAAAAAKvY/FXtl_5NJNgw/s1600/DSC_0520.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ELnZ3eTbQw8/VT7zk820oNI/AAAAAAAAKvY/FXtl_5NJNgw/s1600/DSC_0520.JPG" height="263" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cous cous</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FzYxCIlIcKY/VT7zlIslC0I/AAAAAAAAKvU/6_rMFmLB4Yc/s1600/DSC_0527.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FzYxCIlIcKY/VT7zlIslC0I/AAAAAAAAKvU/6_rMFmLB4Yc/s1600/DSC_0527.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Take my picture!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GrpqNtYTkZM/VT7z4mV1YkI/AAAAAAAAKvs/LXCCrA1ww7g/s1600/DSC_0035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GrpqNtYTkZM/VT7z4mV1YkI/AAAAAAAAKvs/LXCCrA1ww7g/s1600/DSC_0035.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pluto hugs</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PByeL2F5E7k/VT7z1U1_oFI/AAAAAAAAKvk/21NUlBHp-jI/s1600/DSC_0105.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PByeL2F5E7k/VT7z1U1_oFI/AAAAAAAAKvk/21NUlBHp-jI/s1600/DSC_0105.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The face of concentration</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O8Fay1oN_JA/VT7z4r-dK0I/AAAAAAAAKvw/-5RoEsu9VFg/s1600/DSC_0394.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O8Fay1oN_JA/VT7z4r-dK0I/AAAAAAAAKvw/-5RoEsu9VFg/s1600/DSC_0394.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Highlight of his life? Bus rides</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mtlSp3jLCE0/VT7z8ZiV4VI/AAAAAAAAKv8/5jjATIAUXCk/s1600/DSC_0485.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mtlSp3jLCE0/VT7z8ZiV4VI/AAAAAAAAKv8/5jjATIAUXCk/s1600/DSC_0485.JPG" height="263" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loving older brother</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-20448829450518157652015-04-29T19:00:00.000-07:002015-07-15T09:46:33.084-07:00Ainsley Month 7<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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March 24-April 23</div>
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-14 lb, 8 oz, 25" long</div>
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-Ditched the swaddle (waaah!)</div>
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-Still in the cosleeper next to mommy</div>
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-Absolutely adores her big brother. He can always get her to smile (or calm down)</div>
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-Her first real giggle from nuzzling her cheek with my nose</div>
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-Attempting to crawl!</div>
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-Teeth. I forgot how much teething sucks</div>
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-Everything she can grab goes in her mouth. Everything</div>
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-Loves her jumper! She has a blast jumping up and down and playing with the toys. Gives my arms a break!</div>
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Ainsley rolled over swaddled the very day she turned 6 months (3/24). This meant we had to ditch the swaddle, which has resulted in a lot of hit or miss sleep lately. She's sleeping pretty regularly in a sleep sack or her zipadeezip (though that's a bit big and we've only used it for naps). </div>
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She's also becoming way more mobile: she'll get up on her hands and knees and rock back and forth, a definite precursor to crawling (which G never did). She also pulled herself to "standing" with her belly supported on the arm of the couch--what?! She definitely gets frustrated when she wants to get somewhere and can't.</div>
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Since she's done much better with feeding herself, we're using a modified baby-led weaning approach. and being very inconsistent. Poor second child. Yogurt gets put right on the tray for her to play in, and she has a little silicone feeder musher thing that seems to work pretty well. She's had carrots, yogurt, red bell pepper puree, avocados, cucumber, and some lettuce with balsamic vinaigrette she thieved off my plate one night. You've really got to watch your food, because she'll lunge for it. She'll also just watch you eat if she's not eating; it's kinda creepy. She's got two teeth now, so it's on (it being teething crankiness). </div>
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We're still experimenting with babywearing. She usually ends up in the ergo because it's the fastest and what I'm most proficient with. I love her ring sling, but she's kicking all the time, and manages to pop her butt out of it quickly. I also can't wait to try out the mesh water wrap I got for this summer, so I can take G swimming at camp. I have a woven wrap I borrowed to practice with this month, and I fell in love with a beautiful mei tai I borrowed. For now, I'll just keep drooling over pretty ways to carry her until I make a decision on what "one last thing" (-James) to get.</div>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-29060286287722404722015-04-28T18:00:00.000-07:002015-07-15T09:46:44.157-07:00Ainsley Month 6<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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February 24-March 23</div>
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-First bottle; Nuk brand finally worked (like her pacifier)</div>
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-Going down awake, but drowsy. Sleep trained halfway through last month to avoid a maternal meltdown</div>
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-First food this month: oatmeal. Verdict: ugh</div>
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-Loves to talk, smile, and flirt (smile, then hide her face, the look up and smile again)</div>
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-Car rides are going much better</div>
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-Started shaking her head back and forth</div>
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-Food: Baby mum mum, french fry. She does well if she can hold the food and "feed" herself</div>
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-First airplane ride</div>
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-First trip to Disneyland</div>
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-Loves swings!</div>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-24111278833824361872015-04-27T18:43:00.004-07:002015-07-15T09:46:54.004-07:00Ainsley Month 5<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
January 24-February 23<br />
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-13 lb, 8 oz<br />
-Rolled back to tummy<br />
-Reaches for toys<br />
-Laughed/squealed for the first time!!<br />
-Tries to do sit ups when she's lying on her back<br />
-Sat up unassisted for a few seconds<br />
-First double bath with G<br />
-Plays on her playmat for tummy time, but always rolls to her back<br />
-Trying to grab food off our plates<br />
-Felt tooth buds! Eek!<br />
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-76093759708089287442015-02-17T18:00:00.000-08:002015-07-15T09:47:03.398-07:00Ainsley Month 4<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
December 24-January 23<br />
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-12 lb, 4 oz, 24.5" long<br />
-loves to coo and talk, all the time<br />
-better at being put down (we're practicing)<br />
-can grab toys and move/shake them<br />
-reaches for things<br />
-distracted nursing sucks<br />
-tummy time is going better<br />
-teething? lots of chewing and drool<br />
-double swaddling has been a life saver: the miracle blanket, then a muslin swaddle blanket over that<br />
-first time leaving her with a non family member on January 20<br />
-wakes up in the morning and stretches as I unswaddle her, then gives me the biggest grin<br />
-knows the sound of my nursing cami unhooking and what it means<br />
-stops smiling when the camera comes out<br />
-loves her paci/schnulli now<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">EYES. EARS.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">4 months </td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-32854440865590259882015-02-16T18:00:00.000-08:002015-07-15T09:47:13.851-07:00Ainsley Month 3<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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November 24-December 23<br />
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-10 lb 10 oz on 12/19<br />
-11 lb even on 12/22<br />
-is starting to nurse without a shield (HALLELUJAH!!!!!)<br />
-loves to chew on her fingers, and mommy's too<br />
-can bring her hands together, and to her mouth<br />
-is trying to sit up<br />
-has crazy good head/neck control<br />
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-has full gurgling conversations and smiles back at people</div>
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-likes to "stand up" (bears weight on her legs)</div>
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-rolled belly to back!!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Merry Christmas! </td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-59473772724566655412015-02-15T18:00:00.000-08:002015-07-15T09:47:23.609-07:00Ainsley Month 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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2 months! 10/24/14-11/2314<br />
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-9 lbs, 15 oz, 22.5" long<br />
-Getting a little bit better in the car<br />
-Loves the ring sling!<br />
-Gurgles and big smiles<br />
-Swaddled to sleep; usually midnight to ~9<br />
-Hates being put down; she is a velcro baby!<br />
-Has the longest, curliest eyelashes I've ever seen<br />
-Eczema on her hears, baby acne on her cheeks/temples/chin<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chillin'</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wha' 'choo lookin' at?</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-61970315807615657762015-02-13T17:00:00.000-08:002015-07-15T09:47:32.645-07:00Ainsley Month 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Ainsley's first month! 9/24/14-10/23/14</div>
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-8 lbs, 9 oz (almost a full pound gained since birth!)</div>
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-Loves: having a clean diaper, lying on mommy's chest, nursing, being held like a monkey on daddy's arm, the swing, the ceiling fan, going to "baby world," sticking out her tongue (she looks like a dinosaur from Land Before Time when she does this!)</div>
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-Hates: changing clothes, the process of diaper changes, being dirty/wet, pacifiers, the cosleeper/bassinet, car rides, tummy time</div>
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-Can: grunt/coo, go through 15 diapers a day hold her head up during tummy time, roll onto her side, smile? (maybe just gas, but it's cute!)</div>
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-Eyes: dark blue</div>
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-Hair: auburn</div>
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-Clothing size: newborn</div>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-26427709398212313742015-02-13T09:56:00.002-08:002015-02-13T09:56:45.051-08:002 Years (G)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
October 14, 2014<br />
<br />
I can't believe my boy is two years old! I've been looking back on baby photos of G, and it's so bittersweet. I'm so unbelievable proud of the little boy he's growing up to be, but I miss my little squish so much sometimes. His vocabulary is still steadily improving, and he's so fiercely independent and opinionated. He's so smart, and he's proven to be a very loving brother to his sister.<br />
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His birthday this year was a small gathering; mostly family. Both sets of grandparents, his uncle, and a family friend were there. The original plan was to have his birthday at the city park, but on Saturdays, that park is a madhouse, so we ended up going down to the beach by the pier, which was pretty much deserted. It worked out pretty well, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.<br />
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Since this is so late, I don't remember much from the day(s) of, but I love my baby boy so much, and no matter how old he gets, he'll always be my baby <3 <3 <3<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2 years old!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just ignore the bug bite on his chin...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NQi-_VmlW-I/VN45zU_CAyI/AAAAAAAAIfs/6zwbM03clUg/s1600/DSC_0220.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NQi-_VmlW-I/VN45zU_CAyI/AAAAAAAAIfs/6zwbM03clUg/s1600/DSC_0220.JPG" height="263" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not quite sure what to make of the candles...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eSdkgTYAjDg/VN457yiJQCI/AAAAAAAAIgE/s8cNPyoR1tY/s1600/DSC_0176.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eSdkgTYAjDg/VN457yiJQCI/AAAAAAAAIgE/s8cNPyoR1tY/s1600/DSC_0176.JPG" height="263" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy boy at his party!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ri2synsbTf8/VN458rnBVbI/AAAAAAAAIgM/9bK1qjFwszM/s1600/DSC_0188.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ri2synsbTf8/VN458rnBVbI/AAAAAAAAIgM/9bK1qjFwszM/s1600/DSC_0188.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Presents!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aG_OnfkxQFI/VN46P4AmUNI/AAAAAAAAIgU/ZIv51lvjQ9A/s1600/20141015_162618.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aG_OnfkxQFI/VN46P4AmUNI/AAAAAAAAIgU/ZIv51lvjQ9A/s1600/20141015_162618.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love his new truck bedding!</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-8920576007358453652014-11-17T10:44:00.000-08:002014-11-17T11:52:55.573-08:00Ainsley's Birth Story<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I put the start of labour at 9 am, since that's when I started to think that these contractions might not be just Braxton-Hicks. At 10 am, I was 4 cm dilated and by the time I got into labour and delivery, I was at 5 cm. This was when I realized that my hospital bag was nicely packed in my closet at home. And that since James and I both had our keys with us, there was no way for my parents to get to the hospital. Luckily, we have an amazing contractor, and Dan came to pick up keys, <i>twice</i>, since James gave him the wrong keys the first time! The anesthesiologist took over an hour to arrive, despite their original assurance that he would be there within 20 minutes. Needless to say, I was a little frustrated by this, which was exacerbated by the nurse checking me right before and saying "Oh, you're at 8 cm, no wonder you're in pain!" Really, lady? My frustration turned to anger when they made James leave the room while they started the epidural. So instead of leaning on my husband's arms and having him talk and love me through my anxiety about the needle I was leaning on a nurse I'd never met. </div>
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My parents arrived after that with my hospital bag, but Mom had to leave to pick up G pretty quickly. Dad stayed until Dr Shoemaker came in to check me, when I kicked him out. I was at 10 cm, but my water hadn't broken yet, so he broke it for me. I was incredibly shocked at the results, because I wasn't really sure how he would break it, or what the result would be. Embarrassing at the time, hilarious in hindsight, it was very much like the movies and the doctor had to change his scrubs (and I hope his beeper was waterproof). James was out of the room for a few minutes (getting my dad keys and showing him to the car), so he missed the first push. Dr Shoemaker was there and James came in right after. I pushed again, and the doctor said he had to do an episiotimy (if you think you might ever want to birth children, don't Google this!!) I wasn't too hot on the idea, but he explained that I was going to tear again, and along the same line I tore last time, which would result in more painful scar tissue after I healed unless he did an episiotimy. I consented, and on my third push, Ainsley Grace Lawrence was born! We hadn't even had time to put on music!</div>
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Ainsley Grace Lawrence was born Wednesday, September 24, 2014 at 12:45 pm, less than 4 hours after labour started. She weighed 7 lbs 10 oz, and was 19.25" long.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DbiTtJ0BNcE/VGo607eFw9I/AAAAAAAAGUU/ZBx1fodzah0/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DbiTtJ0BNcE/VGo607eFw9I/AAAAAAAAGUU/ZBx1fodzah0/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" height="640" width="420"></a></div>
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I wanted to wait to cut the cord until it stopped pulsing this time, and they laid her on my chest while we waited. James cut the cord and she pooped on me. She had a spike in heartrate and temperature, as well as some trouble breathing. It turns out there was a little meconium in the amniotic fluid, and she inhaled a little, causing some mucus in her nose/lungs as she coughed it up. They asked me to wait on feeding her until she was breathing easier, and I asked to hold her skin to skin to help her temperature. Within a half hour, her temperature had normalized and I got the ok to feed her, because she seemed incredibly hungry. She latched on immediately and nursed on both sides for 30 minutes each! As soon as she ate, her breathing and heart rate normalized.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v0bL89TvSAI/VGo7TrsiUoI/AAAAAAAAGUs/IorEpeYAw2A/s1600/10653446_10100340529039229_7854249557514232233_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v0bL89TvSAI/VGo7TrsiUoI/AAAAAAAAGUs/IorEpeYAw2A/s1600/10653446_10100340529039229_7854249557514232233_n.jpg" height="400" width="400"></a>As soon as G woke up from his nap, Mom brought him to the hospital. He wasn't too interested in the baby, though he did give her a kiss. He wanted to sit on the hospital bed and watch "TB" and play with his new puzzle, a gift "from the baby."</div>
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<u>Differences this time:</u></div>
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-3 hr 45 min vs 12+ hr</div>
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-3 pushes vs 2 hrs pushing</div>
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-The epidural kicked in within 1 contraction instead of taking 25 minutes</div>
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-I was still able to move my legs this time</div>
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-Contractions with G were front and center, but with A, they started in front and as the contraction subsided, my back would ache indescribably</div>
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-Though possibly more painful than G's contractions, I wasn't screaming myself hoarse with each contraction</div>
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-The shaking was much more pronounced this time, though that might have been because it took so long to get the epidural. In fact, I could tell when I was having a contraction because it was the only time I stopped shaking.</div>
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-The recovery was easier and I wasn't half as sore. I had more energy and wasn't as out of it. I can remember so much more about her birth than about G's.</div>
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-I didn't have to pump at the hospital at all and she was an amazing nurser!</div>
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Quick loose end points:</div>
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-She only lost 5 oz of her birth weight, and had gained it all back by her first appointment, when she was only 6 days old!</div>
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-Dad broke his foot just by walking. He said he heard a snap, but he didn't tell anyone for three hours, because "[I'd] just had a baby!"</div>
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-They did save my placenta, and my parents took it home that night. I came home from the hospital just as the encapsulation lady was finishing up. I got 194 capsules!</div>
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-The hospital and nursery protocols weren't ideal, especially compared to St. Joseph's, but I don't really feel like rehashing that. Suffice it to say they didn't bring me dinner that first night and they kept A in the nursery way too long, and she was beyond way too hungry when they finally brought her back.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9iEOliyN580/VGo6tiSIYpI/AAAAAAAAGUM/IWnggPk6gRk/s1600/DSC_0043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9iEOliyN580/VGo6tiSIYpI/AAAAAAAAGUM/IWnggPk6gRk/s1600/DSC_0043.JPG" height="400" width="263"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy and his little girl</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8Eg0QHmW8XA/VGo7Tr3upCI/AAAAAAAAGUw/XQCY7RsQRZo/s1600/10703517_10152741730117855_8611846797050084508_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8Eg0QHmW8XA/VGo7Tr3upCI/AAAAAAAAGUw/XQCY7RsQRZo/s1600/10703517_10152741730117855_8611846797050084508_n.jpg" height="400" width="300"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mommy gets a snuggle before leaving the hospital</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jjjx1QC-EWY/VGo6ojAgLMI/AAAAAAAAGUE/UKCzi12EpLo/s1600/DSC_0056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jjjx1QC-EWY/VGo6ojAgLMI/AAAAAAAAGUE/UKCzi12EpLo/s1600/DSC_0056.JPG" height="640" width="422"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Daddy's toy, sleeping peacefully</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-64827803351775009482014-11-17T09:31:00.000-08:002014-11-17T09:31:27.502-08:0040 Weeks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Time to play catch-up!<br />
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<b>How far along: </b>40 weeks<br />
<b>Total weight gain: </b>+26 lbs<br />
<b>Favourite clothes: </b>Do blankets count?<br />
<b>Sleeping: </b>Not so great--between Braxton-Hicks contractions and lying on my side, I don't get much rest<br />
<b>Best Moment: </b>Dad's here!<br />
<b>Worst Moment: </b>Have I mentioned that I hate waiting?<br />
<b>Miss anything: </b>The ability to be still. I'm so restless!<br />
<b>Cravings: </b>Bagel with lox<br />
<b>New symptoms: </b>Nothing new<br />
<b>Looking forward to: </b>By Monday, I'll be meeting my baby girl!<br />
<b>Crafting: </b>Can't settle, so I don't have the attention span to work on anything<br />
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On Sunday, James was preaching at a church in Niceville, FL, so Mom and I were on our own with G. It was pretty good, and we made all the lumpia to freeze for the future while we watched the first Hobbit movie. The movie was ridiculously boring, though G enjoyed yelling "oh no!" at the screen during fight scenes. Mom made schnitzel (the ultimate comfort food) for dinner and though G didn't eat much, he went down pretty easily.<br />
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The rest of the week was full of errands. On Monday, we had someone come by to give us an estimate on blinds, painters came by to work on the ceiling, more construction and more everlasting laundry. Mom watched G while James and I got an oil change and ran to Target and Publix, by which time I was totally worn out and ended up falling asleep on the couch when we got home. On Tuesday, I went to the hardware store while Mom got her nails done, and then we went to Ulta (fun!) and had to get some more groceries before picking G up. We took him to Bed, Bath & Beyond when he woke up from his nap, and had a pretty good dinner. We had a friend on call just in case I went into labour while Mom was picking Dad up from the airport. We wanted to be asleep before he got home, but we were still finishing up some last minute things when they got back. Inconsistent contractions every night were driving me NUTS.<br />
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Wednesday, I had a morning OB appointment, and I was having some contractions, but I didn't think much of it since I'd had plenty of them every night this week. We dropped off G before heading to the doctor's, and James had to take a call right as we got to daycare. I carried G since I didn't want him running back across the parking lot to Daddy, but a pretty strong contraction made me put him down as soon as we got inside. I dropped him at his class, and the teacher said "Today's the day!" We headed to the doctor's and my contractions were still irregular, but getting stronger, and making my back hurt. Dr Shoemaker was running a little late, and I was about to send James out to get him when he came in. My first words? "I think I'm in labour." He checked me, and sure enough, they loaded me up into a wheelchair and wheeled me down the corridor to the hospital. Though I was in pain, I didn't lose my sense of humour; when asked if I wanted an epidural my reply was "HELL yes," which made everyone (except for me) laugh.</div>
Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-24796590546338555272014-09-23T21:52:00.005-07:002014-09-23T21:52:48.477-07:0039 Weeks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>How far along: </b>39 weeks<br />
<b>Total weight gain: </b>+22 lbs<br />
<b>Favourite clothes: </b>Any shirt that still covers my belly<br />
<b>Sleeping: </b>I kinda sleep. But my hips can't take much more sleeping on my side<br />
<b>Best Moment: </b>G's outside day--he was so happy<br />
<b>Worst Moment: </b>Waiting and waiting and waiting and expecting<br />
<b>Miss anything: </b>Being able to drink water without getting heartburn<br />
<b>Cravings: </b>I've been eating a lot of ramen, but I'm not sure I'd describe it as a craving<br />
<b>New symptoms: </b>Heartburn. All the time, heartburn.<br />
<b>Looking forward to: </b>Having a baby!! Well, not the labor part necessarily, but the smell of my baby's head and little fingers and tiny toes and squeaky noises<br />
<b>Crafting: </b>I'm honestly so restless and exhausted, all at once that I can't settle to any one thing, whether it be a movie, writing, reading or crafting.<br />
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Oh my goodness, the tantrums. We had tantrums in Target, in the grocery store, at home and in the car. Our schedules have been so far from routine this week that it's not surprising, but it's still frustrating. On Tuesday, G fought for an hour about putting on socks, wanting to choose his own, but then refusing to have them put on, and went through the same thing with shoes. But we had to go to the grocery store for food. Then he refused to eat once we got home. It was exhausting. In fact, he refused to eat a lot this week; at least he's been good about eating breakfast, lunch and snacks (red pepper, grapes and cucumbers) even if he refuses dinner.<br />
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The house is really coming along! Beth and Jimmy left Sunday, but they were so helpful and helped me feel much more settled in. Monday the backsplash was installed, Tuesday it was grouted, and Wednesday the window trim was installed, and the cabinet folks finished up, which means our dishwasher doesn't try to fall out when you open it. The backsplash really finishes the kitchen off nicely, and it looks fantastic! I'm so thrilled. Our contractor is still working on getting things done downstairs, but it's coming together. Thursday the picture window in the living room was installed, which really heated up the house. Friday James and I met with the representative from the window company, and they're going to have to replace our sliding door because it's turning pink. No one knows why, but these darn windows have been such a pain! Only two arrived as they were supposed to, and it's just added delays and frustration. On Saturday, he sanded and began staining the stairs so they match the other flooring. It looks great, even though he has a few more coats of polyurethane to add.<br />
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We also got a few other things done. My hospital bag is packed, I got to catch up on Skype with a friend for the first time since June and we even found G a Halloween costume. On Monday night, mom took care of G and James and I went out to see Guardians of the Galaxy, the first movie we've seen in theatres since Frozen! I enjoyed it, though the violence seemed extreme; maybe because the comedy/cartoon-y aspects don't seem to warrant it. Wednesday we went back to the OB, and all the nurses were surprised to see me, sure I would have had the baby by then. 2 cm dilated and the last of my doctor's September babies!<br />
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Saturday was a long day. Since the stairs were being stained, we tried to get out of the house, so we took G to the pier in the morning. Walking the entire length twice just about killed me off, and we headed home to be exiled outside due to fumes. G had an awesome time running around outside, intermittently helping James with yardwork. James took out two fences that were awkwardly dividing the yard so he can put down sod and add a play area for the kids. G ended up in the pack n play when he was so tired he was stumbling, and the iPad was a Godsend since he watched Thomas (or "choo choo") on it for a while. Finally, the house was a bit less smelly, and as James and mom cleaned up the mess from the stairs being sanded, I put G down, who was so beyond tired that he was not interested in a nap. I was so frustrated and hurt by him screaming for "Daddy" that I started crying too. G stopped yelling, looked at me, and cuddled up right next to me, and we both fell asleep for two hours. He wasn't interested in bed a few hours later, but at least he ate dinner.<br />
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It's been a rough week, filled with strong contractions that seem to be moving toward active labour for about 5 or 6 contractions, then disappearing for hours. I think she's going to defy the second child expectations and be late. I'm terrified we'll have to have the induction on the 29th. It's really not what I want, but my body won't physically be able to handle being pregnant any longer than that. The pain is already constant and exhausting and there is no position or medication that offers any relief at this point. I'm so tired of being in pain, being exhausted beyond belief (yes, even more than when G was a newborn), feeling like I'm burning up while James is practically shivering, starving even though my stomach is full and getting heartburn from water (seriously?!) that I'm more than ready for her to be here. Maybe she's just being considerate and waiting until my dad arrives on the 24th, but I might go crazy if I'm still pregnant then. Dealing with the intense, painful, inconsistent contractions and my own impatience is really making it harder to reign in my temper. So if I'm cranky with you, I apologize and hope you'll forgive me.<br />
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SEVEN DAYS.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">39 weeks: Mermaid is the size of an Adelie penuin</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VsMmW9FdGV8/VCJNvHeVV9I/AAAAAAAAE_4/AV85wX8__Ho/s1600/DSC_0017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VsMmW9FdGV8/VCJNvHeVV9I/AAAAAAAAE_4/AV85wX8__Ho/s1600/DSC_0017.JPG" height="263" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She's so low and sticks out so far that I have very few shirts that still cover my belly</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-82838563009628257962014-09-20T18:57:00.004-07:002014-09-20T18:57:50.656-07:0038 Weeks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>How far along: </b>38 weeks<br /><b>Total weight gain: </b>+20 lbs (yeah, I lost two lbs, go figure)<br /><b>Favourite clothes: </b>Mom took me shopping and I got this super soft shirt that I don't ever want to change out of<br /><b>Sleeping: </b>Toss and turn, toss and turn<br /><b>Best Moment: </b>Finding out I was dilated! I know it's not an imminent sign, but any progress is appreciated after about 6 weeks of her being dropped<br /><b>Worst Moment: </b>It feels like stress upon stress is piled up right now. And at this point it's a waiting game and it SUCKS<br /><b>Miss anything: </b>Salami, prosciutto, sushi, margaritas. I've started daydreaming about the things I can eat once she's born (and may have said "screw it" and eaten a salami slice anyways)<br /><b>Cravings: </b>Food! I am so hungry lately!<br /><b>New symptoms: </b>Some cramping and other TMI symptoms I won't share. My nausea has returned and headaches!<br /><b>Looking forward to: </b>Holding my baby!</span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">James was gone all day Sunday since he was preaching in Niceville, FL. We missed him, but had a pretty lazy day with a few errands run. On Monday we had someone come to fix the second garage door (yay) and Anna came over to help unpack the last few kitchen boxes. She has been so helpful, and I wish we had more we could have done, but until the house is done, we can't really unpack much other than the kitchen. G refused to nap, we ran some errands in the afternoon and both G and I had breakdowns. It was a pretty rough day for me, and knowing that hormones and stress are adding to my crabbiness doesn't make it easier to accept it, nor easier to calm down sometimes. James has been hinting for a few weeks that he has a surprise for me, but was waiting for the right time, which he decided was after a bad day. He had gotten me an iPad mini with a TARDIS case! We'd been discussing it (honestly, for educational apps for G) and I've been having fun playing with it and realized how useful it'll be for traveling. With two kids, there's no way I'm lugging a laptop through security as well! So it's been fun to play with that and get it set up. It's come in handy when my phone's died too.</span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">On Wednesday, we had another appointment with the OB, who said he could feel her head (but not tell the hair colour) when he checked me! After weeks of absolutely nothing, I'm effaced and 1 cm dilated! I know it's no indication of impending labour (read <a href="http://www.pregnantchicken.com/pregnant-chicken-blog/2014/8/6/your-vagina-is-not-a-crystal-ball">this</a>), but after she dropped so early (especially for #2), any progress is heartening. My doctor doesn't expect any issues and would be surprised if I made it to my due date, but we went ahead and scheduled a spot for an induction the day after her due date (my hips just can't handle more than that). I pretty much crashed when we got home; I've been having frequent headaches, and this one seemed to turn into a migraine. Always fun. Mom took care of dinner which was great.</span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Thursday was pretty low key. I got my hair done for the first time in three months. I was dying to cut it all off, but I know how that goes, so I restrained myself. Instead, we took off a few inches, so it comes right to my shoulders, abandoned the bangs (humidity) and lightened the colour a bit. I like the lighter, more natural red better, and I really think the shorter hair suits me better. I've always wanted long hair, but my lack of patience with styling my hair (even blow drying) and the fineness of my hair really precludes great lengths. </span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Friday and Saturday were busy, busy days. James' parents came to help us move in. The house is over a month behind schedule now (as if we needed more stress) and feels like it'll never get done, but we had to be in the downstairs bedroom. We were able to move our bed down there, and mom helped me get my closet set up. We were able to unpack the books and set up the guest room. They're just going to have to work around us being unpacked. G loved having more grandparents around, and Beth took him for walks and to the park. On Saturday, they went down to the park with the splashpad, and he got run into by a much bigger, older girl. The side of his face got pretty scraped up, and it looks like he got in a fight with the pavement. He's pretty much unaffected though. Tough little guy. He has been having a few more and more intense tantrums lately, but stress and exhaustion will wreak havoc on little dudes. He totally freaked when James and Jimmy took the love seat downstairs, and I tried to tell him that we're moving stuff around, but not moving again for a long while. It worked as well as reasoning with the dogs. It's been a long, difficult summer, but I'm hoping by the time fall is over, we'll be settled and doing better.</span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">TWO MORE WEEKS TIL D-DAY!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZY2bWdt6Y28/VB4wNf3MuGI/AAAAAAAAE6k/m7rcef3aoPc/s1600/DSC_0006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZY2bWdt6Y28/VB4wNf3MuGI/AAAAAAAAE6k/m7rcef3aoPc/s1600/DSC_0006.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">38 weeks: Mermaid is the size of a Galapagos penguin</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rPXkOVwE74I/VB4wN_PVEoI/AAAAAAAAE6s/wki3CAUOYFc/s1600/DSC_0010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rPXkOVwE74I/VB4wN_PVEoI/AAAAAAAAE6s/wki3CAUOYFc/s1600/DSC_0010.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes, the penguin is saying "Hey! Let me out!" But she seems quite comfy right where she is.<br /><br />Which is on my bladder.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VpsGB8ipsFE/VB4wNjevwgI/AAAAAAAAE6o/WaJ0Iru0SWY/s1600/DSC_0020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VpsGB8ipsFE/VB4wNjevwgI/AAAAAAAAE6o/WaJ0Iru0SWY/s1600/DSC_0020.JPG" height="320" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I can <i>kinda</i> still see my toes. If I lean waaaay over...</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-18535800126700023792014-09-17T07:53:00.002-07:002014-09-17T07:53:34.295-07:0023 Months<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Time is a tricky subject. You're counting down the hours to bedtime and praying he falls asleep quicker than the night before, and all of a sudden you realize your kid has figured out how to use a stool to get stuff he wants off the counter and since when has he been able to say <i>that</i> word? Sometimes he's so well-behaved and mature that it's hard to remember that he's not even two yet. Then he throws a tantrum because we washed his dirty shoes or is so upset that he forgets his words and it's easy to see that he is still a little kid. A really little kid.<br />
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Tantrums have been getting worse, and I know it's related to all the changes. Since camp ended, everything has been changing. My mom is here to help us move in, prep for Mermaid and take care of G while we adjust to two little <strike>dictators</strike> people in our lives. We have moved into the house, but it's still not done (over a month overdue now), so besides moving in, we have people in and out and working and loud construction noises. Things are being moved around and unpacked and everyone is stressed out, which I'm sure he's picking up on. So his stress and over-exhaustion are taken out on me, James and my mom in tantrums and physical expressions of frustration because he's so upset that he can't remember the words he's just now learning.<br />
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He still talks a lot, and he still loves to read. When he's been fighting naps, but is confined to his room anyways, he often picks up some books and reads out loud to himself, which is adorable to see and listen to through the monitor (Craigslist!) He knows his bedtime routine and will often request a "baff" and "ny ny" when he's done eating. His eating is so-so. Sometimes he eats a ton, and sometimes it's a fight to get him to eat anything, but we've adopted a new "this is dinner" attitude that avoids the fight. He either eats what we're having, or he sits with us while we eat and then goes on to his bath and bed.<br />
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He still loves to be outside, but I'm still reluctant to take him out. Aside from me being exhausted and unable to keep up with him, he gets bitten by bugs every time we go out it seems. He just scratches and scratches and they end up bleeding or infected. Then we have the bandaid: he never wants a bandaid where he actually needs one, but on his toe (impossible) or other arm. Sometimes he doesn't want these on after a minute or so, but he still needs bandaids to at least keep him from scratching the bites as badly as usual. Poor little dude seems to attract mosquitoes as much as I do, even with bug spray on. And of course, he's got the typical little boy energy and takes the tumbles that go along with that. He's not used to how slick the laminate floors are, and has eaten it a few times but he's pretty resilient.<br />
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He's obsessed with trucks. It's been going on a while, but it's not waning. He'll go so far as to pull a shirt with a truck on it out of the wash to wear (this is how to start a tantrum). So we bought him more truck shirts and even got him PJs with fire trucks on them. When we're in the car, he yells "truck! vrr vrr!" when we pass any kind of truck, sometimes following up with "whoaaaa" or "woooow" which is utterly adorable. He loves pushing toy trucks and cars around, and we watch the movie Cars all the time lately. He loves his books about cars and planes, and really, anything with an engine is fair game (planes, trains, construction equipment). It's funny since neither James nor I have or have shown a ton of interest in trucks, and we haven't bought him trucks until he showed an interest in them.<br />
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Just wait until next month, when I'll be freaking out about him being two years old. He's definitely becoming his own little person and he is so independent and as stubborn as me most of the time. He feels strongly and I don't ever want to discourage that. Even though it goes by both slowly and quickly, I've enjoyed watching my little man grow up and can't wait to see him grow into a big brother!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My sweet little boy would NOT stay on the couch.<br />At 23 months, he doesn't ever stop moving</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His Gaga taught him this (though he'll deny it)</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-59538078354375243472014-09-15T09:52:00.002-07:002014-09-15T09:56:41.697-07:0037 Weeks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>How far along: </b>37 weeks<br />
<b>Total weight gain: </b>+22 lbs<br />
<b>Favourite clothes: </b>Sesame Street boxers<br />
<b>Sleeping: </b>Still terribly<br />
<b>Best Moment: </b>Watching G at the park<br />
<b>Worst Moment: </b>Leaving the park<br />
<b>Miss anything: </b>Not being in pain<br />
<b>Cravings: </b>Appetite is up and down, and I only want starches<br />
<b>New symptoms: </b>THE PAIN (not new, just increased)<br />
<b>Looking forward to: </b>The house being done sometime this century?<br />
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We took G to church on Sunday, and I must've had about 3 comments about Baby Girl's arrival being imminent. I'm officially HUGEly pregnant! One guy didn't give me ten days! James and I are still holding out for the house being done, my big sis is hoping for her birthday, my dad is hoping for the 24th (once he arrives), and I just want my hips to stop hurting. We ended up going out to lunch after church, and G loudly announced to the entire restaurant that he had pooped (yay--note my enthusiasm. -_-) After G's nap, we got to video chat with my dad; it was my parent's 29th anniversary!! G is also starting to figure out gently petting the dogs, and I got a beautiful picture of terror and joy (Moose and G)--all G wants to do is rub his head into the dogs like a pillow. He really is doing better, though, and hardly ever grabs their fur/skin anymore.<br />
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Monday we took G to the Fairhopers Park (does anyone else think Fairhopers sounds reminiscent of oldtimers? Just me?) and he had an absolute BLAST! It's a new park and has a splash pad, so of course we came prepared with a towel and change of clothes, and he loved running around in the water. He also found a boat to play on when he was done with the splash pad. We had some trouble convincing him to leave, but he'd been there for over an hour and was pretty tired. Plus, with my hip pain, I was just sitting and watching and even that was HOT. I don't think Lower Alabama got the message that fall means lower temperatures.<br />
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Tuesday we had another OB appointment, and sure enough, Dr. Shoemaker said that if labour starts, he won't be stopping it. Guess this means I need to actually think about packing a hospital bag, huh? She's healthy and making my stomach move around like crazy; the nurse said she could just watch my belly all day. Seriously, though, G never pushed out like this, it's creepy and awesome all at once. My pain is off the charts, but the only treatment/cure is delivering the baby. So as much as I want her to wait for her health and our sanity (the house, omg), I'm also hoping for labour so I can move again. I swear, if it goes on much longer, I may be in a wheelchair. The doctor said he expects a pretty smooth labour since G "greased the wheels" and he's been spot on about everything else, so I'm totally going to trust him on that.<br />
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Wednesday morning, mom and I took some time off to get our nails done! Mom hadn't had her nails done in forever, and we both got pedicures. I don't get my nails done since it never lasts more than a day or two, but it was still so nice to relax, have my nails pretty and crochet for a bit while mom and I talked. We headed to Walmart to look for some kitchen organizational stuff and I ended up having a bit of a meltdown. 3.5 weeks away from her due date, and we have no towels, G's old stuff is in the abyss of the garage along with the infant bath and car seat and probably needs a good wash and I was just feeling completely unprepared. Last time, I told James during labour that we weren't ready because the baseboards hadn't been cleaned and we hadn't organized the bookshelves. This time it's likely to be "our bedroom is under construction!" or "the car seat is still drying!" I know that she won't care, but I'd still like to be a bit more settled and know where things are!<br />
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Thursday was BUSY. I went straight to Michael's after dropping G off to get the yarn I needed. When I got back, mom and I went through G's old clothes whose location I actually knew and pulled out what was gender neutral enough for Baby Girl, but most of the stuff was 6 mo+. Our friend Anna came over during G's nap, and helped kick our butt into gear with the kitchen boxes. We ended up unpacking 5 kitchen boxes, which was great! I really can't thank her enough for being willing to spend her time helping us lug boxes upstairs from the garage and helping figure out where stuff will go/what needs to be washed. Friday was more unpacking/washing, but G was pretty fussy. James ended up coming home with 4 boxes of clothes and a pink playmat from one of the women who works in Beckwith's kitchen. It was truly a balm since I had been concerned about the amount of clothes we had. I have NO concern about that now!<br />
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I spent most of Saturday sleeping. G woke up at 1:30 am and wouldn't really go back down. I got in bed with him, but he kept tossing and turning. I was so exhausted, I barely noticed him climbing over me and leaving the room. I don't think he was unsupervised for very long, but I didn't wake up until James told me to go sleep in our bed around 7 am (which is when he usually wakes). I was up long enough to sort through the clothes with my mom. We washed the smaller ones and boxed up the larger ones for future use. As it is, I'm not sure all the 3-6 month clothes will fit in the dresser! We're set for the first year; and if she's anything like G, the first two years (yes, he's still wearing 12 months, though shirts need to be 18mo+ for the neckhole). James and mom took G out to run some errands, and I slept through all of that too. I'm grateful for the sleep, but I wish I weren't so exhausted. The pain and the exhaustion are just too much coupled together and I end up feeling useless and frustrated that I can't do more. It's slow going unpacking, especially since there's nothing we can unpack but the kitchen because nothing else is ready. Once the downstairs is taken care of, we can shift some of the boxes and start actually moving in, I hope. At least, the bedrooms should be ready to be unpacked and the guest room/craft room can be set up too. So that's the light at the end of the tunnel right now. That, and Baby Girl's arrival of course. I can't wait to see her little hands and feet and smell her head (seriously, babies' heads smell fantastic!)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oYzMgtyW7k0/VBcYz4DD0NI/AAAAAAAAEz4/6fjGz8TnQJQ/s1600/DSC_0022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oYzMgtyW7k0/VBcYz4DD0NI/AAAAAAAAEz4/6fjGz8TnQJQ/s1600/DSC_0022.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">37 weeks: Mermaid is the size of a newborn fur seal<br />
and FULL TERM!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Any day now!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I am well aware of how huge I am, especially when my belly runs into things, or prevents me from reaching certain things. </td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-19296759794648638592014-09-09T10:00:00.000-07:002014-09-09T12:06:33.946-07:0022 Months<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
My baby boy is growing up so fast!<br />
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In a little more than a month, he'll be a big brother and then a few short weeks later he'll be TWO. YEARS. OLD. How did that happen? It feels like I was just holding him in the hospital for the first time yesterday. Other days, it feels like an eternity ago (this feeling usually occurs during tantrums).</div>
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He's been eating well and it seems like he's growing like a week, though I don't have any measurements to corroborate this. Though quite frankly, he seems to be getting heavier as well, and some of his onesies had to be taken out of commission (the truck ones were snuck* out during laundry). He had his first grilled cheese, and loves bananas, apple juice popsicles and string cheese. He still like cucumbers, and has discovered that macaroni and cheese is actually quite tasty.</div>
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He's still talking up a storm. He talks all the time. Sometimes I think he must think we're incredibly thick, because we don't always understand what he's trying to say. For example, he kept saying "mee-mo" and I thought he was trying to ask for more milk, but he was actually saying "Nemo" and pointing to a drawing of two fish. New words seem to pop up daily, and he's really starting to put them together. Though he's pretty much been speaking in sentences, it hasn't been in English, but now he can say things like "Mama sit" when he wants me to sit with him, or "one more" when he's trying to get yet another round of "Wheels on the Bus" or reading of "Moo, Baa, La, La, La." </div>
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He is willful and spirited, and his tantrums are still going strong. I think we're starting to get a handle on the physical aspects at least. It's a serious zero tolerance policy. Any time he hits, kicks, throws something at the dogs/us, pinches, etc, during the day, he gets a time out. He knows right where his time out spot is, and he stays there until he calms down. Then I talk to him, explaining why he got a time out, and what he could do differently the next time. I always make sure to validate his feelings, but explain why we can't react that way. Then he gives me a hug/kiss, and we continue playing or watching TV, or whatever activity we were doing before. If we're out, I can't usually do a time out, but he gets talked to in the same manner. At night (which is when most of this happens) he gets two warnings and the third time, I leave for 10 minutes. He almost always cries. Sometimes he falls asleep, but usually he calms down and is still awake when I come in again. He needs to know that I won't let him hurt me. As much as I hate leaving him crying in his room, it seems to be helping him to understand that I'm not just going to let him flail around at me. </div>
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It's been a busy, busy month. Though, honestly, life is full of busy, busy months and weeks. We have a lot of adjustments ahead of us. Camp has ended, so Dad is around more, Mommy's belly is getting bigger and she's getting even less patient. Grammy is arriving soon, we'll be moving into a new house, and then welcoming his little sister into the world and our family. There are so many changes. I know it'll be difficult for him since we haven't had a break from changes since we moved, but I think once we get settled in the house with the baby he'll do really well. </div>
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Mama, however, is still having trouble accepting that two years is only two months away.</div>
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*snuck is in the Oxford Dictionary, therefore I will use it. *sticks out tongue at any dissenters* (MOM!)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is one of only two photos I have from the 14th. He's chewing on his foot in the other one.<br />I promise I'll get better photos next month!</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-78730564637223824562014-09-08T20:34:00.001-07:002014-09-08T20:34:13.958-07:0036 Weeks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>How far along: </b>36 weeks<br />
<b>Total weight gain: </b>+21 lbs<br />
<b>Favourite clothes: </b>Anything that will still fit over my massively huge belly<br />
<b>Sleeping: </b>Terribly<br />
<b>Best Moment: </b>How well G did for the dentist<br />
<b>Worst Moment: </b>G getting stuck in the slide (see below for full, hilarious story)<br />
<b>Miss anything: </b>Being able to move without pain<br />
<b>Cravings: </b>Munchies all the time<br />
<b>New symptoms: </b>I'm suddenly ravenous all the time, my back and hip pain are out of control (can't move or sleep or walk or sit or anything)<br />
<b>Looking forward to: </b>Meeting Mermaid when she gets here<br />
<b>Crafting: </b>I finished sewing in the ends of the French knots on the cupcake hat. I have two or three more to make and decide on. Better get hooking!<br />
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What in the world possessed me when I was signing G up for daycare in March? I thought it would be a great idea to do 3 days a week part time. Part time is fine, but I wish I'd signed up for Mondays and Fridays as well.<br />
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I am honestly having trouble with this week. I fell behind on my blog due to the move, and my memory is so frazzled and my brain is so all over the place that I'm having trouble remembering where I left my phone (check the fridge), let alone what happened last week. Please excuse the gaping gaps.<br />
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James took G to church on Sunday and let my mom and I sleep in. Mom was feeling sick, and the bronchitis is really hanging on tightly, so we definitely needed the rest. Even though I was awake, I did get to rest a bit, and even finished up the cupcake hat prototype! I'm so excited! I have a few more to make and see how they go, but it was nice to see one finished at least!<br />
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The next memorable day was Wednesday. G had his first dentist appointment! Our original move to Alabama in October and all the changes that followed had managed to continuously push this back, but I knew I really had to get my butt in gear. After driving by their office multiple times (right by our house), checking the insurance, having a friend take their child for a broken tooth and seeing a balloon in a car at daycare pickup, I finally called and made the appointment. He was pretty fussy; lately he's had a thing about never wanting to ride in my car. He always goes straight to James' and was pissed off that he had to ride in mine. When we got to the dentist's office, it was like a kids' dream land, especially the spiral slide they have in the waiting area. G immediately bee-lined for the slide, with James following, but changed his mind once they got to the top and came back downstairs. He ran back up following an older boy, and James and I let him go up alone. The slide itself is clear, so we could see him, and he could see us, and we figured he would come back down the stairs, but he decided to try the slide. Well, I should've said something (I was filling out paperwork), because like a premonition coming to pass, I saw him get around one turn of the slide and stop himself short. Then the crying started. I'm not sure if he went too fast, it was too enclosed, or he plastic-burned himself by stopping, but he stayed fast halfway down the slide. Then some idiot girl decided to slide down and slammed right into him. Over and over again. I have no idea where her parents were, but I was about ready to rip some limbs off. I was talking to him, trying to coax him to come down the slide as the girl kept lifting herself up and sliding into his back. Finally, a hygienist went down the slide from the top, trying to stop her and get G, while I climbed up from the bottom, trying to coax him down. As soon as I managed to get my face around the corner and he could see it clearly, he let himself slide down, though the crying continued for a while after. He recovered pretty quickly, and I'm sure everyone was amused to see a gigantically huge pregnant woman trying to climb up a child's slide. Thank goodness they had the foresight to make it clear AND large enough for an adult to get in too. The actual appointment itself went great! They had TVs mounted on the ceiling above the exam chairs, sang to them as they checked their teeth, and had toys scattered around the office for them to play with while parents talked to the doctor. G did SO well, and he didn't bite the hygienist or the dentist. In fact, he didn't even protest the exam until the child next to him freaked out (poor kid). The dentist said his teeth look great, and he probably won't need any orthodontia since they're straight and have enough space between them. He is teething, and his last molars should be fully in by his next appointment in six months. In fact, the biggest freak out came when trying to put him in his car seat to <i>leave</i> the dentist's office, since it was my car instead of James' and he's developed a serious preference for James' car. He also cried when I dropped him off at daycare. All in all, it was a long day, and James and I still had the OB appointment that afternoon. We learned that Baby Girl has already dropped (!) and that's what's been causing so much pain in my hips and back, including the clicking when I turn over in bed. It also explains why it feels nothing like last time; G never dropped, not even when I was in labour. Dr. Shoemaker assured us that this didn't mean that her arrival was imminent, and he would still try to stop labour if it started...until the weekend was over. Hopefully she'll wait until the house is done, but I'm excited to meet her!<br />
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Thursday was moving day. If you know me, you probably know how much I loathe moving. It goes beyond simple hatred; I truly can't stand it. I get overwhelmed by the entire process: packing, moving, unpacking. And when I get overwhelmed, I just kinda shut down. This move is out 6th move in 18 months, and we're approaching the 1 year mark of stuff in boxes, which is driving me nuts. However, it's hard to truly settle when the house isn't finished. Everything is still halfway done. The kitchen is the most put together, but even then, the trim for the window needs to be installed and the backsplash put up, as well as a few other little things. As for the rest of the house, well. The upstairs is a lot of little things, but the downstairs is still a bit of a mess. With all the delays I'm really just hoping it'll be wrapped up quickly, but I'm starting to feel like it'll never be done. I don't know if I'll ever want to come near a remodeling job ever again after this.<br />
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Friday and Saturday were unremarkable, meaning I honestly don't remember what happened. I assume it was settling in and unpacking.<br />
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Basically, this entire post was "G's Adventure at the Dentist!" I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do in retrospect, and don't worry, I won't ever let him forget it (nor will anyone in the dentist's office I'm sure.)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5lwP4tT-o2s/VA50oiKOy0I/AAAAAAAAEqo/VW7jpVrjxUs/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5lwP4tT-o2s/VA50oiKOy0I/AAAAAAAAEqo/VW7jpVrjxUs/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">36 weeks: Mermaid is the size of a porcupine pufferfish</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-I9N5G-qiZY0/VA50ou7fUWI/AAAAAAAAEqs/m8NKMI7szkw/s1600/DSC_0018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-I9N5G-qiZY0/VA50ou7fUWI/AAAAAAAAEqs/m8NKMI7szkw/s1600/DSC_0018.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She is sooooo low</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FdPpk_xqS2g/VA50n9zP8JI/AAAAAAAAEqg/NNY7nsojkGE/s1600/DSC_0014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FdPpk_xqS2g/VA50n9zP8JI/AAAAAAAAEqg/NNY7nsojkGE/s1600/DSC_0014.JPG" height="263" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Note the awesome pufferfish I drew!! <br />(and ignore all the stuff on the unfinished stairs/bookshelf....)</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3522383988162530562.post-55693285328453422722014-09-05T09:45:00.002-07:002014-09-05T09:45:34.781-07:0035 Weeks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>How far along: </b>35 weeks<br />
<b>Total weight gain: </b>+20 lbs<br />
<b>Favourite clothes: </b>Sweat pants<br />
<b>Sleeping: </b>Been using unisom to get some interrupted sleep between coughing and peeing<br />
<b>Best Moment: </b>Date night for James' birthday!<br />
<b>Worst Moment: </b>Bronchitis. In summer. Really?!<br />
<b>Miss anything: </b>Not taking 8 pills a day<br />
<b>Cravings: </b>None<br />
<b>New symptoms: </b>Same old same old. Fatigue, back pain, hip pain, some contractions, lots of movement, headaches<br />
<b>Looking forward to: </b>Hopefully getting into our house next week. Having a dishwasher, a decent-sized fridge and freezer, and our nice (though old) washing machine and dryer will be wonderful!!<br />
<b>Crafting: </b>Working up another cupcake hat in a different yarn, and then back to the wave blanket<br />
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Sunday morning, G managed to get out of his room and into ours, so for the first time ever, I woke up to him standing net to my side of the bed, saying "Mama, mama!" At 5:30 am. We got to church, which was simple since it was at Beckwith that week! They were having the backpack and school supply blessing and a picnic following the service, but G and I were still sick and barely made it through lunch. We headed back to the house for naptime for everybody after lunch; luckily G didn't notice the bounce house.<br />
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Monday was boiling hot, so we ended up staying inside to keep cool. G had a short nap, and James and I took him to the doctor, since he was still coughing a lot, especially at night and naptime. They said he looked healthy and the cough wasn't in his lungs, so she sent us home with some samples of cough medicine (yay for avoiding purchasing a prescription!) and told us he was fine to go to school the next day. Tuesday went really well! G seemed to enjoy being back at school, and he was one of the few who didn't cry when dropped off. It was useful as well because I was still extremely sick, and ended up needing to see a doctor. It was a good thing I did, because it turns out I didn't have just a cold, but bronchitis. My first ever respiratory infection. In the middle of summer. How is that even possible? Life doesn't stop though, and we left G with my mom that afternoon and went to go look at gas fireplaces. He had a good time with "Gaga" (all grandparents are currently Gaga) but was happy to see us when we got home too.<br />
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Wednesday night, he refused to let go of his blue plastic truck through his bath, teeth brushing and pyjama change. I checked on him after he had fallen asleep, and he was still clutching it in his sleep. I think we've moved beyond fascination and into obsession with trucks, tractors, cars and anything that has a motor! Thursday was a full day! We had the ultrasound in the morning, and everything looks great! She's about 5.75 lbs right now, not affected by the single cord vessel at all, and looks healthy. Everybody commented again on how active she is (yes, I know, it's my kidneys she's practicing roundhouse kicks on!) and it looks like that's the last ultrasound we'll need since she has enough amniotic fluid to get her through the end of the pregnancy. It was also James' birthday!! Mom took G for the night and we went out to Cosmo's and had a lovely dinner out. We haven't done that in a while. I know it's not that long since we've been out, but so much has been going on that it feels like forever. It was nice to have dinner without needing to baby wrangle!<br />
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Friday showed me just how quickly my baby boy is growing up. James let me sleep in (angel) and G pushed his stool over to the bathroom sink and brushed his teeth by himself! James got him the toothbrush and all, but I just couldn't handle how grown up he looked standing there brushing his teeth (I only saw the picture, but still). It just drove home how grown up he's become. Saturday drove home how little he still is. We tried to take maternity photos and it was just a failure all around, for multiple reasons. The camp photographer was nice enough to agree to meet us, so we got all ready, and went down to the pier. It had been another early morning for G, and he was on the edge of fussy. I was hoping we could manage, but apparently we just pushed a bit too much because he did not want to be held and did not want to eat or drink. When we went down to the beach, he just wanted to walk out into the water. In his clothes and diaper. Between the pieces of jellyfish that were washed up on the beach. He ended up sitting in the water, and luckily he managed to miss all the jellyfish pieces. But when I removed him from the water, and proceeded to go up the beach with him, he totally flipped and we had a full blown, crazy tantrum on our hands. It wasn't as bad as it could've been. Unfortunately, water had somehow gotten into the camera's lens and all the pictures were extremely foggy, so our photographer wouldn't have been able to get any photos, even if G had been well-behaved. Tyrant McCrankypants was pretty much a mess all the way home, and James and I decided that pictures, especially by the beach, probably weren't a good idea this time around. It really bums me out, but I also know that there's no way to predict or control a toddler's emotions. Poor guy is probably having just as rough a time dealing with his emotions as I'm having with mine. Pregnancy and toddlerhood are more similar than I'd like to think about right now.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BmzT_TOea2E/VAnoOYEdaFI/AAAAAAAAEn0/xDTIV9wBbN8/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BmzT_TOea2E/VAnoOYEdaFI/AAAAAAAAEn0/xDTIV9wBbN8/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">35 weeks: Mermaid is the size of a flowery flounder</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fGJz0QciH3s/VAnoPeGftMI/AAAAAAAAEn4/7Uovsxe9MJY/s1600/DSC_0014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fGJz0QciH3s/VAnoPeGftMI/AAAAAAAAEn4/7Uovsxe9MJY/s1600/DSC_0014.JPG" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I know the flounder looks bearded, but it's not. Look them up online.<br />Also, yay for the Sesame Street boxers from the last pregnancy!</td></tr>
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Emmi Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11773243823128067344noreply@blogger.com0