Fourteen Months!

Well, Katelyn, it's been quite a month for you! You definitely deserve a monthly post this time. I guess I'll keep it up until you're 2. Here's what you've been up to:

You have one new tooth coming in for a total of 9. But the ones you already had have come in so much more and it makes you look so much older!
You are starting to grow out of some of your 12 month clothes.

You started asking for hairbows. And you leave them in.You love shoes. They are your favorite thing to play with. Here you are with a few of your favorites: a doll, a paci, and a shoe.You are a little princess. But you also know what you want, and you do what you have to do to get it. You stick up for yourself when big brother takes your toys. You hit and scream. And then you make me hold your sippy cup for you.

You dropped a bottle feeding and a nap. You now drink a bottle when you wake up and when you go to sleep, but none during the day. According to my plan of completely weaning you at 15 months, you weren't supposed to have that morning bottle this morning. Maybe tomorrow. You consistently nap from about 12-2 (give or take) every day. Good girl!

You still love to eat. This month you started taking bites of your food. We don't have to break everything up for you anymore. (I can hand you a whole waffle or pancake now, and you can handle it.) Your current favorite food? Ritz crackers. I usually top them with either hummus or cream cheese for you.You always fall asleep on your own. YAY! I feel like for a while we were going back and forth, but we finally got it. You never cry when I leave you in your crib. Sometimes you don't even want me to sing songs. You try to crawl out of my arms into your crib. I have a TINY bit of sadness about this, but I'm so happy you feel comfortable falling asleep by yourself.

You sleep with blankie and a baby doll. Oh, and paci. (Yes, you get to keep that until you're 3 just like brother). And you use your bumper pad as a pillow, often with your bottom straight up in the air.

You stayed without Mommy for 3 nights in a row and did great! I missed you so much, but I'm glad you were able to adjust so well.

I disconnected your Angelcare monitor this week. This came after Nanna found you with the cord to it wrapped around your neck during naptime! I highly recommend this product to any new mom with a new baby. But once that baby is a toddler, it's time to take it out.

Your vocabulary now consists of mama, dada, uh oh, and something that sounds like "thank you". You have also imitated the word "cracker" once. You consistently sign "more", "all done" and "eat".

You love animals. And you think that all animals say "woof woof". But you will roar like a lion when prompted.

You are standing! Only for a few seconds so far, but you get so excited!You are walking with assistance too! You LOVE to push your stroller and went from barely taking steps with Mommy holding the stroller to strolling all by yourself in one day. Today you also walked with only one hand held!


We love you so much sweet girl! Happy 14 months!

Snow, snow, and more snow!

Well, this is really late, but we have been busy doing this:Most of you know that we got quite a lot of snow in Georgia a couple of weeks ago (6-8 inches at our house!). Reminded me of when I was a kid and we actually got snow like that about once a year. At least it seemed like once a year to me. Enough for us to own snowsuits. I was so glad my kids (well, Collin) got to experience the fun. Without snowsuits. We waited all day for the snow to start falling, and it finally did after dark. It was amazing how much fell in such a short period of time. Collin was so excited when he woke up! On the first day, it was so soft and powdery, you couldn't even make a snowball. But Collin really enjoyed playing outside (twice) and having hot chocolate and marshmallows. I think Katelyn thought we were crazy. She wasn't very excited. We also made snow cream for the first time. Both kids loved it. Not great in my opinion, but better than I thought it might be. The only thing Collin didn't like about the snow was this:

The second day, there was a layer of ice on top of the powdery stuff. Collin and I were able to make a snowman (okay, I built the snowman while Collin ate handfuls of snow). And here's why I will not spend an hour making a snowman next time it snows:

I didn't get any pictures or video of day three, but it was complete ice. Dangerous to walk on ice. It didn't break under our feet like the day before. Collin had a blast "sledding" on a cardboard box in the backyard. I had fun running up (to get ready for the next sled down) and down (because I was afraid he would keep going down into the woods) the hill for about an hour. Mike had finally made it into work this day, or I would have called in for reinforcement. But it was worth it.

On day 4 we headed down to Fayetteville as planned (well a little later in the day so the sun could melt some of the ice) to get the kids settled at Nanna's and Mimi's before we headed to Vegas. It was amazing how much ice and snow were still on I85 4 days later! But we made it safely there and to the airport the next morning and had a great weekend away. Thanks to Nanna, Gumpy, Aunt Kandace, Mimi, and Auntie Joy for taking care of them. I know they both had a blast, as did we!

Typical Day

a little bit of love

a little bit of fighting

a few poopie diapers (watch...it's in the first few seconds)

a little bit of the dog getting in my way

a little bit of noise

a little bit of wild and crazy

a little bit of cleaning and laundry (behind the scenes)

a whole lot of LAUGHTER



And I wouldn't trade it for the world.

11 in 2011

I'm really not one to make a New Years resolution. I usually don't make one at all. This year, however, I think I have a few, or 11. I don't really feel the pressure that I think accompanies some resolutions. I'm just making a few goals to make this year even better than the last.

1. I will drink more water. As soon as Katelyn stopped nursing, I think I forgot what water was, because I was so excited to be drinking other things (mainly sweet tea and Starbucks).

2. I will walk the dog more. This was going really well until daylight savings time ended. And it got cold.

3. We will eat healthier dinners. This will not be hard if we're comparing to how we ate over the holidays.

4. I will read more. This will not be hard either. If I read more than 1 book this year, I've done it.

5. I will read to the kids more. I've already added reading into Katelyn's nap time routine since taking away that midday bottle feeding.

6. I will listen to more Zac Brown Band. Have more date nights. And hang out with my sister and brother-in-law more. What a fun New Years Eve!7. I will play more. I have done pretty good with this since becoming a stay at home mom 6/7 days a week, but I think I could do even better. Especially when I remember that Collin will be in school every day 8 months from now. I will have plenty of time for cleaning then.

8. I will give more hugs and kisses. Not sure if this one is possible (because of how many I already give out), but I can always try!

9. I will not string lights on a tree this year. It wasn't so bad putting them on, but taking them off was a different story.

10. I will be more consistent with "time out" and do less raising my voice.

11. I will treasure each and every moment that I am lucky enough to be able to be home with my kids. Even the whining, fighting, and messes. Like when Katelyn discovered the Tupperware cabinet lock was broken today.Happy 2011!

Christmas, Snow, and 13 Months

We had a great Christmas and got to see lots of family. Only one of our family events was "snowed out" because of the first white Christmas in Georgia in a REALLY long time.

Collin was a bit overwhelmed at times and quite different from the past couple of years. In the past, he would very slowly and deliberately open each present and ask to open/play with each one. This year was completely opposite. He wanted all of the gifts opened at once, would throw toys/clothes out of gift bags, and only halfway opened some of the wrapped presents (just enough to see what it was). And he was completely uninterested in any sort of clothing item. I was a little embarrassed, because I thought he wasn't being thankful for the gifts he was receiving. I'm so glad to say that for 2 days I've heard how much he loves his toys and how thankful he is for them. He's played with them for hours. And watched Toy Story 3 five times since Christmas Eve. Hey, it's Christmas vacation, right?

Katelyn was pretty oblivious to the whole ordeal. Other than seeing lots of family, staying up way too late, and having some cool, new toys to play with, she pretty much went on about her business with all the hustle and bustle around her. She didn't really care anything about opening presents, but the tissue paper sure was fun. And of course, she loved all the eating :)

Here are some pictures from our Christmas festivities:

Christmas Eve at Gran's.

Nanna and her granddaughters.
Collin checking out what the big guy left for him.
Katelyn's favorite part.
Christmas Day.
2 of Collin's favorites: Buzz Lightyear snuggie and Zurg's Blaster
Merry Christmas.

We had snow here starting on Christmas Day and into the day after. Although it messed up our plans for another family get together, it was pretty and of course Collin loved it. He and Daddy went out to build a snowman. I told them to tell me when they were done so I could take some pictures (Katelyn was napping, so we stayed inside.) When I went out, I found that they had not made a snowman, but rather a "snow Katelyn". It was Collin's idea. Here's a picture of him and "Katelyn". Such a sweet big brother.

And on this snow day, Katelyn turned 13 months! Wouldn't you know, I didn't take a single picture of her. Here are some of her from 2 days before and after Christmas. I thought about not doing a 13 month post, but it just seemed weird not to. So, I'll add it on here with a few words about the past month. To sum it up, she's got new words (uh-oh and night night), new teeth (all 4 molars are in as well as her top front teeth), new ways of expressing herself (screaming and hitting) and new toys! And one of her new favorite things to do is talk on the phone (or any other object that might resemble a phone...or not).

12 Months!

Katelyn Leigh, you went for your 12 month checkup last week and here are some things we learned about you:
You are 19 lbs 5 oz (10-25%ile) and 29 3/4 inches tall (50-75%ile). Hence, you are 3/4" too tall for your infant carrier (and about 10 lbs to heavy for me to be lugging around on my arm anymore). Don't worry...your brand new carseats are being shipped to us currently. Since it's too cold to go anywhere anyway, we'll just try to stay out of the car until they arrive.

You continue to have one large noggin (48 1/4 cm-95+ %ile).

Your ears weren't infected! Your tubes were in place and looked good.

You were mildly anemic. We added iron to your daily vitamin and will recheck at 15 months.

You are pretty much back on track developmentally. Yay!

Mommy has to start thinking about taking your bottle away in the next few months.

You had already had enough poking and prodding for one week. (That, and you have figured out those doctors.) Thankfully Mommy delayed a few of your vaccines for you. Although the doctor said it was fine to immunize you even though your surgery was 2 days before, I just didn't feel right about it. You still got 2 shots and a toe stick for the CBC.

Here's a little bit more about you these days:

You are still on the move. You started pulling up to stand 2 days after your birthday.

You have 2 front bottom teeth and 2 bottom molars. I think the 2 front top teeth are about to make their appearance finally :)

You wear size 12 and 18 months and a size 3 shoe.

You do not like hats or gloves. But I got you a hat that you can't take off and interestingly enough, you haven't tried.

You will not keep a hairbow in your hair.

You stopped nursing right after you turned 11 months old. You now take three 6 oz bottles a day. You drink Enfamil Enfagrow Vanilla formula. Just this week I started mixing it with cows milk. You have gotten better about drinking milk with your meals.

You have a sweet tooth. You can spot a sweet from across the room. Some of your favorites? Chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon rolls, and ice cream.

You haven't been quite as good about eating your veggies lately. Especially carrots. They mostly end up on the floor. You still eat lots of green beans. And you LOVE fruit. New favorite? Mandarin oranges.

You have been consistently going to sleep all by yourself. Mommy gives you a bottle, sings 4 songs while you lay your sweet head on my shoulder, lays you down in your bed, and walks out of the room. You do not make a peep. And while I miss rocking you to sleep, I've been willing to give that up since you sleep so much more soundly (7/7:30 to 7:30). No more night wakings!

You are becoming gradually more attached to your paci. You are less willing to give it away when you wake up. You also love to have one in your mouth and at least 1 in your hand sometimes.Up until this last week, you took 2 good naps a day. This has recently gotten much more inconsistent, so it looks as if we may be on our way to 1 nap a day.

Inconsistently, you have said dada, mama, and baba. You are trying to say "uh oh" when you drop something, but only the "uh" comes out.

You have a "fuss face".You do not like to pose for pictures. But every once in a while, Mommy sneaks up on you and catches a sweet smile.
You love music. And you have some rather interesting dance moves.

You love the playroom. You get so excited every time we open the baby gate to head upstairs.

You need baby proof latches on the drawers in your room. Poor little fingers.

Big brother makes you laugh all the time and you love his toys. Although you don't always play with them appropriately.

We love you so much sweet girl! Here's to another year of milestones, laughter and silly faces.

Surgery Day

Katelyn had her ear tubes placed today, and everything went very smoothly. She didn't even fuss when I woke her up at 1130 for a bottle or at 530 to leave. We made it to 285 before she started to protest the whole ordeal. Here are a few things I learned today:

When you wake your child up at 530 (and she normally sleeps until 730) to drive 30+ minutes in the car, sit in the back seat with her.

I (still) love Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. Although I'm only working there as a holiday/vacation PRN right now, I was proud to call myself a CHOA employee today more than any other day. As soon as we walked through those doors, I knew we were in the right place for Katelyn. The first words I heard (rivaling the greeting you receive at Moe's) was "Welcome to Children's". I relaxed immediately. I would have expected some slight kinks in the plan, considering her surgery wasn't scheduled until around 3 pm yesterday. But, no. Everything was perfect. From the time the pre-op nurse called me yesterday afternoon, to the polite lady who checked us in while most of us would still be in our jammies, to all the nurses caring for Katelyn during pre and post-op, to having a toy closet for her to choose a toy from to take home with her and lots of toys to play with while she was waiting, to allowing a parent to walk into the OR with their child and stay right beside her until she's completely asleep, and finally to thoroughly explaining what is happening/is going to happen and why and directions for caring for her at home. Perfect. Especially the part when they took her back to the OR 10 minutes ahead of scheduled time.Having tubes placed is FAST. Had I not been warned it would be so quick, when I saw her doctor walking into our post-op room 2 minutes after I did, I would have thought "Oh my gosh. He couldn't do the procedure."

A 12 month old can go about 2 hours awake without eating in the morning. That last hour was a little rough.You can never predict what the "worst" part of a day like today might be. Katelyn's least favorite part of the day: the pulse oximeter (tiny little device to measure her oxygen saturation) placed on her finger (and then her toe) with tape during pre-op.

When puffs can't be your life saver, Elmo's World, mommy's rendition of Jesus Loves Me, and this pop up toy work almost as good.When your child has surgery, you want them to "sleep off" the anesthesia. SO glad Katelyn did this. We actually had to wake her up about 20 minutes after she was brought to us. She was so peaceful. (Almost too peaceful. I kept trying to make Mike wait a little longer before waking her. I just didn't want her to wake up upset. But I have to admit, it was a little unsettling to see her like that.) Thankfully, as soon as we woke her, we put a bottle of pedialyte in her mouth and she was happy as could be. She also saw her puffs and started asking for them. Thankfully, the nurse said it was ok to go ahead and try solids. But goodness, we could hear many poor little kiddos who had woken up in that in between stage. Sort of reminded me of when I had my wisdom teeth cut out.

If your child does sleep off the anesthesia (and probably if she doesn't), she will continue to do so ALL. DAY. LONG. Katelyn took a 3.5 hour nap today. Less than 2 hours later, she took a 2 hour nap. And she went to sleep at normal bedtime.

Don't forget to warm up the antibiotic ear drops in your pocket. Wow, she HATED those. That will be a fun battle for the next 3 days.

Today could have been much harder. I actually saw a family in pre-op getting BOTH of their girls ready for surgery.

No matter how simple the procedure, it's hard to see your child go through it. But it's SO worth it when they are so happy and you can tell they feel better already!

All buckled up and ready to go home!
Enjoying a late lunch after her 3.5 hour nap