Friday, May 29, 2009
pictures!!!!
i know, i know, i'm late... so sorry. but they're here, and they're done.
aunt loren and anna in the park at the end of april.
aunt carrie and anna in the park.
nana's visit on may 2nd.
playing with a toy on nana's lap.
grandma and anna jae on mother's day.
grandpa and anna jae on mother's day.
uncle steven and anna on mother's day.
anna jae on the dodo rocker at the ICFF.
aunt loren and anna in the park at the end of april.
aunt carrie and anna in the park.
nana's visit on may 2nd.
playing with a toy on nana's lap.
grandma and anna jae on mother's day.
grandpa and anna jae on mother's day.
uncle steven and anna on mother's day.
anna jae on the dodo rocker at the ICFF.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
crying it out -- the good, the bad, and the scarring
anna has been getting a bit sassy as of late. she is a great baby, really happy, but when she wants something (usually that something being mommy), she starts a blood-curdling scream that everyone hates. she's also awful on naps, not wanting to go down and needing to be rocked, but she is fully capable of putting herself to sleep because she does it every night. so we wanted to start having her cry-it-out -- CIO -- for naps and such, so that she learns that a) she can put herself to sleep, and b) she can't just scream for no reason.
so she and i did it yesterday afternoon. she cried for about 45 minutes, on and off, and i would go in every so often to let her know i was still there. after 45 minutes, she fell asleep, and slept for a half hour. i was very proud! and she woke up all happy and cheery the way she usually does.
this morning, i woke up at 5:45 with the realization that i didn't turn on the monitor last night. i always turn on the monitor if i'm in my bedroom, even if i'm just getting dressed, so i don't know why i left it off. so i turn it on and i hear anna jae screaming bloody murder. i jump up out of bed, wake dave, and run out to get her. before i can get to her, our door knocks -- it's our irritating downstairs neighbor, wanting to know if everything was ok. really, he was just pissed off that she woke him, but still, i was embarrassed. i ran to her room, scooped her up, and thought that would end it. but she wouldn't stop screaming. i brought her to our room, unswaddled her, and she wouldn't stop screaming. she would touch dave's face, then bury her head back on me and keep crying. she would look up at me, then bury the head and keep crying. she was so upset with us. i have no idea how long she was crying, but i guess that she woke up at her usual 5am and since i didn't arrive with the pacifier and the soothing head rub, she thought we left her.
i could only comfort her with a short feeding -- goes against everything i do during her morning wakes, but i couldn't help it. i felt so bad, and she needed the comfort. i fed her for about 5 minutes, and took her off. she played with her dad for a while, while i layed there and cried. and then she came over to me, found her niche in my side, and put herself to sleep. and i cried some more.
we are totally fine with CIO. it doesn't bother me at all, because i know my girl, and i know she can take it as long as she knows we are there. but when we didn't show up this morning, she got so scared, and i felt so awful. really, i still haven't stopped crying. she's fine, she was fine, everything will be fine. but i feel terrible. so does dave.
so there you go kids. if you are going the route of CIO (hey, that rhymes!), make sure you know that your baby knows you're there. sigh...
NOTE: she did go down to sleep again by herself this morning, after playing for a while and then some minor whining. i went in a couple of times to give her the pacifier and rub her head. then she fell asleep. so i guess she's not too scarred. i am. but she's not.
so she and i did it yesterday afternoon. she cried for about 45 minutes, on and off, and i would go in every so often to let her know i was still there. after 45 minutes, she fell asleep, and slept for a half hour. i was very proud! and she woke up all happy and cheery the way she usually does.
this morning, i woke up at 5:45 with the realization that i didn't turn on the monitor last night. i always turn on the monitor if i'm in my bedroom, even if i'm just getting dressed, so i don't know why i left it off. so i turn it on and i hear anna jae screaming bloody murder. i jump up out of bed, wake dave, and run out to get her. before i can get to her, our door knocks -- it's our irritating downstairs neighbor, wanting to know if everything was ok. really, he was just pissed off that she woke him, but still, i was embarrassed. i ran to her room, scooped her up, and thought that would end it. but she wouldn't stop screaming. i brought her to our room, unswaddled her, and she wouldn't stop screaming. she would touch dave's face, then bury her head back on me and keep crying. she would look up at me, then bury the head and keep crying. she was so upset with us. i have no idea how long she was crying, but i guess that she woke up at her usual 5am and since i didn't arrive with the pacifier and the soothing head rub, she thought we left her.
i could only comfort her with a short feeding -- goes against everything i do during her morning wakes, but i couldn't help it. i felt so bad, and she needed the comfort. i fed her for about 5 minutes, and took her off. she played with her dad for a while, while i layed there and cried. and then she came over to me, found her niche in my side, and put herself to sleep. and i cried some more.
we are totally fine with CIO. it doesn't bother me at all, because i know my girl, and i know she can take it as long as she knows we are there. but when we didn't show up this morning, she got so scared, and i felt so awful. really, i still haven't stopped crying. she's fine, she was fine, everything will be fine. but i feel terrible. so does dave.
so there you go kids. if you are going the route of CIO (hey, that rhymes!), make sure you know that your baby knows you're there. sigh...
NOTE: she did go down to sleep again by herself this morning, after playing for a while and then some minor whining. i went in a couple of times to give her the pacifier and rub her head. then she fell asleep. so i guess she's not too scarred. i am. but she's not.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
forgot to add...
i'm off dairy. anna was throwing up, had lots of mucusy green poop (TMI, i know, but it's a sign of dairy issues) and was generally unhappy a couple of weeks ago, right after a weekend when i had had lots of milk, cheese, and ice cream. she started feeling better by that tuesday, but that wednesday she had milk that i had pumped on monday, and got sick again. so that was that.
i told dr. cao about the reactions. he agreed that she probably didn't have a milk protein allergy (though it's still a possibility) but that she seemed to definitely be lactose intolerant, at the very least. so i am on soy milk for cereal and coffee, not eating cheese or ice cream or creamy cakes, and trying my best to stay away from other things like chocolate that may contain milk. she's definitely doing better -- spitting up less in general, more yellow poop instead of green (good!), and in a better mood. it's better for my diet too -- i can't give into temptation! but of course, this is a very difficult diet plan to follow, so i am only doing it as long as i have to. =\
i told dr. cao about the reactions. he agreed that she probably didn't have a milk protein allergy (though it's still a possibility) but that she seemed to definitely be lactose intolerant, at the very least. so i am on soy milk for cereal and coffee, not eating cheese or ice cream or creamy cakes, and trying my best to stay away from other things like chocolate that may contain milk. she's definitely doing better -- spitting up less in general, more yellow poop instead of green (good!), and in a better mood. it's better for my diet too -- i can't give into temptation! but of course, this is a very difficult diet plan to follow, so i am only doing it as long as i have to. =\
18 weeks -- and her first design shows
oh goodness. little miss anna jae made a splash this past weekend. we took her with us to the ICFF (international contemporary furniture fair) on sunday, accompanied by her aunt loren, and she and i went solo at the NSS (the national stationery show) on tuesday. she was the absolute star of both shows! and i'm not just saying that because i'm her mother. this kid entertained all the strangers that she met, laughing and smiling and flirting with them. she had a blast -- though of course there were the crank-fits where we had to run out of the exhibit areas to feed her and quiet her down, but no one had to deal with that but us. =) in fact, i got very little done at the stationery show this year, because everyone just wanted to talk about anna. that's my girl!
the other star of the stationery show was anna's babyhawk. so i will put it out there again -- this carrier rocks! it's really very comfy, anna likes it, and it looks really cute.
as far as new things go... well, the sleep schedule is at a pretty solid bed at 9:30-10, wake at 7am. there was a constant waking at 5am that required one of us to go in, give her a pacifier, and shush her back to sleep. but that has ceased in the past couple of days, and she's just going straight through. fabulous!
her eating has gotten better -- and by better, i mean faster. she takes a half hour most times these days. which is really fast for anna. LOL... she likes to savor her food i guess.
the only problem we're having is a bit of a mama-attachment. she developed it last week, very suddenly, not wanting to be with her daddy for her pre-bedtime feeding and screaming for me. thankfully that only lasted 2 nights, because it made dave upset and made me even more exhausted. but anna is still having issues not being in my arms. she gave her grandma a lot of trouble on monday going down for a nap, constantly looking for me. eventually she went to sleep for her, but it took a lot of work and willpower on my mom's part to put up with the screaming. i hope we can break her of this phase quickly, because it's very wearing on me, and not very easy for others to deal with.
i know i owe photos -- and i will be downloading them later today or tomorrow. =)
the other star of the stationery show was anna's babyhawk. so i will put it out there again -- this carrier rocks! it's really very comfy, anna likes it, and it looks really cute.
as far as new things go... well, the sleep schedule is at a pretty solid bed at 9:30-10, wake at 7am. there was a constant waking at 5am that required one of us to go in, give her a pacifier, and shush her back to sleep. but that has ceased in the past couple of days, and she's just going straight through. fabulous!
her eating has gotten better -- and by better, i mean faster. she takes a half hour most times these days. which is really fast for anna. LOL... she likes to savor her food i guess.
the only problem we're having is a bit of a mama-attachment. she developed it last week, very suddenly, not wanting to be with her daddy for her pre-bedtime feeding and screaming for me. thankfully that only lasted 2 nights, because it made dave upset and made me even more exhausted. but anna is still having issues not being in my arms. she gave her grandma a lot of trouble on monday going down for a nap, constantly looking for me. eventually she went to sleep for her, but it took a lot of work and willpower on my mom's part to put up with the screaming. i hope we can break her of this phase quickly, because it's very wearing on me, and not very easy for others to deal with.
i know i owe photos -- and i will be downloading them later today or tomorrow. =)
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
4 months old, vaccines, and screaming it out
anna jae is 4 months old today!!! as i write this, she is screaming in her room. i'm trying to let her cry it out. she has a nasty, ear-piercing, i-think-my-eardrum-may-burst scream that comes out when she's cranky or just wants something really bad, and we would like to break her of it. so i'm letting her cry it out in her room right now, since she's uber-cranky and has taken to the scream.
she had her 4 month checkup today. she did really well. she's 13lbs, 2 oz, putting her at the 50th percentile in weight gain, and 25.25 inches long, putting her at the 75th percentile there. the only thing that's behind is her head circumference, at a mere 10th percentile. LOL... she has a tiny head!
she got half of her second round of vaccines -- next week we have to go for the rest -- and she did surprisingly well. i breastfed her while she was getting the shots, and she cried much much less. she even laughed on the way out the door, so that was a plus! so, for those who nurse or who will nurse their kids, i leave you with that example on how to handle the vaccines. it really does help a lot.
ok, i'm going to go to the bathroom, and then pick this poor kid up. she's been crying for a long time now. boy, can she keep going!
she had her 4 month checkup today. she did really well. she's 13lbs, 2 oz, putting her at the 50th percentile in weight gain, and 25.25 inches long, putting her at the 75th percentile there. the only thing that's behind is her head circumference, at a mere 10th percentile. LOL... she has a tiny head!
she got half of her second round of vaccines -- next week we have to go for the rest -- and she did surprisingly well. i breastfed her while she was getting the shots, and she cried much much less. she even laughed on the way out the door, so that was a plus! so, for those who nurse or who will nurse their kids, i leave you with that example on how to handle the vaccines. it really does help a lot.
ok, i'm going to go to the bathroom, and then pick this poor kid up. she's been crying for a long time now. boy, can she keep going!
Monday, May 11, 2009
17 weeks and my first mother's day! boy am i behind
first, let me start this out by wishing all the moms i know a very happy mother's day. especially my mom and grandma, who lead by example every single day, and barbara, who obviously raised a wonderful boy. =D
yes, it was my first mother's day this past weekend. and it was lovely. everywhere we went, strangers went out of their way to wish me a happy mother's day, and i was just so happy. your mom wasn't just guilting you -- this IS the hardest job in the world. from the pregnancy to the birth and now, only 4 months in, i can't believe that i have been able to do all of this. i know the hardest is yet to come (though i can hardly imagine anything harder than anna's birth, but i'm sure i'll eat those words). so i'll earn my mother's day celebration every year for the rest of her life! ha!
we celebrated by ourselves, our little family of 3, on saturday by relaxing and spending time together. first i got a haircut (woohoo!!!). then we went to bklyn designs (thanks for the pass, lor!), sat outside for a while, and grabbed a burger before heading home to watch "doubt" and chill out for the evening. it was a lovely day. sunday was spent with my family, and though we had a bit of running around and stress involved in the morning (our printer died just when we needed it the most), it was still a great day. we went out to dinner with everyone, and anna got to charm a restaurant full of people and make her grandma and g.g. smile. grandma gave me a lovely bracelet with "anna jae" on it, which is just great.
i'm having some trouble keeping up the blog as often as i would like, but i'm going to try to post daily with simply the new things that anna is doing or major events that have occurred. that way i don't forget anything. because i swear, this kid does something new every day.
did i update this blog on how long she's sleeping now?! 9 HOURS!!! it's fabulous. she had a streak of wakes at 4:30 in the morning a few weeks ago, which made me very nervous. but last monday i decided not to go to her when she woke at 4am, and she put herself back to sleep, not waking until 7 -- and she had gone to bed at 10 the night before. =D she did it all week. the past two mornings she's gotten up after about 8.5 hours, but i won't feed her until the 9 hour mark, so she has to hang out by herself or spend time with daddy until i'm ready for her. it's great.
anna has her next round of shots on wednesday, her 4 month birthday. i'm not looking forward to it, of course. but i am looking forward to the ped visit, so that we know how much she ways and what to expect next. i'm especially curious to see when dr. cao wants to start her on solids, though i have a feeling that he'll want to wait until month 6.
can you believe she's 4 months already? that's insane! where did all the time go?
i have a ton of photos to go through and post up, which i will do this week. in the meantime, enjoy your day!!
yes, it was my first mother's day this past weekend. and it was lovely. everywhere we went, strangers went out of their way to wish me a happy mother's day, and i was just so happy. your mom wasn't just guilting you -- this IS the hardest job in the world. from the pregnancy to the birth and now, only 4 months in, i can't believe that i have been able to do all of this. i know the hardest is yet to come (though i can hardly imagine anything harder than anna's birth, but i'm sure i'll eat those words). so i'll earn my mother's day celebration every year for the rest of her life! ha!
we celebrated by ourselves, our little family of 3, on saturday by relaxing and spending time together. first i got a haircut (woohoo!!!). then we went to bklyn designs (thanks for the pass, lor!), sat outside for a while, and grabbed a burger before heading home to watch "doubt" and chill out for the evening. it was a lovely day. sunday was spent with my family, and though we had a bit of running around and stress involved in the morning (our printer died just when we needed it the most), it was still a great day. we went out to dinner with everyone, and anna got to charm a restaurant full of people and make her grandma and g.g. smile. grandma gave me a lovely bracelet with "anna jae" on it, which is just great.
i'm having some trouble keeping up the blog as often as i would like, but i'm going to try to post daily with simply the new things that anna is doing or major events that have occurred. that way i don't forget anything. because i swear, this kid does something new every day.
did i update this blog on how long she's sleeping now?! 9 HOURS!!! it's fabulous. she had a streak of wakes at 4:30 in the morning a few weeks ago, which made me very nervous. but last monday i decided not to go to her when she woke at 4am, and she put herself back to sleep, not waking until 7 -- and she had gone to bed at 10 the night before. =D she did it all week. the past two mornings she's gotten up after about 8.5 hours, but i won't feed her until the 9 hour mark, so she has to hang out by herself or spend time with daddy until i'm ready for her. it's great.
anna has her next round of shots on wednesday, her 4 month birthday. i'm not looking forward to it, of course. but i am looking forward to the ped visit, so that we know how much she ways and what to expect next. i'm especially curious to see when dr. cao wants to start her on solids, though i have a feeling that he'll want to wait until month 6.
can you believe she's 4 months already? that's insane! where did all the time go?
i have a ton of photos to go through and post up, which i will do this week. in the meantime, enjoy your day!!
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