Friday 8/10 - First Family Vaca

Today Mama, Daddy and I are heading off to MA for our first family vacation! I was so excited yesterday I didn't want to nap. Mama said that we will be spending the night at Auntie Wendy's house tonight and tomorrow. I’m excited for a cousin sleepover even if I don’t get to sleep in a bunk bed.

Mama got out of work a little early which was a good thing because she put off packing until right before we were leaving!!! How crazy is that? Mama went to load up the pack and play and it was covered in yucky slimey bugs. I told her that there was NO WAY I was sleeping with bugs. I’m not a prissy girl but I sure as heck don’t want to be sharing a bed with bugs! Mama and Daddy went to Toys R Us and got me a new pack and play.

Finally we were all packed up, new pack and play and all and we hit the road. Mama got on I 95 South instead of North. So once we turned around, we were really on the road. The radio was on so I was singing for a while. Daddy said that there was some traffic but I couldn’t really tell. I was busy singing and looking at my toes. I wonder when I’ll be old enough to get blue toenails like Mama. Hers sparkle. Maybe next week. I’ll have to remember to ask.

We drove for days and days and days. Finally, we stopped the car and I smelled food. Mama and Daddy stopped at Wendy’s while I was sleeping and didn’t even order me a frosty! I was so mad and I let them know it. They quickly started the car back up again and we went to Auntie Wendy’s house. They must have heard me yelling because we parked the car in the driveway and Uncle Ken was there to help with the bags!

Once we were inside and I got a new butt put on, I was ready to explore! My cousins were around to help make sure I got into trouble. Wait. I mean, stayed out of trouble.. yes that’s right. I found the stairs pretty quickly and then I saw it. It was amazing. White, fluffy and 4 legs. A KITTY!!! Best.day.ever.

The kitty’s name is something hard to pronounce and remember. I just call it Kitty. I was so excited to have found the kitty that all I wanted to do was find it. AND climb the stairs. It’s a tie as to which one I liked fun with the most… the stairs or the kitty. We should get stairs at home… Mama said we can’t have a kitty because of my puppies. That’s ok. I’ll settle for stairs.

Ka-BOOM!

Happy 4th of July everyone!

Last night Mama and Daddy woke me up from a super deep sleep and put me into my stroller. I'm not really sure why they woke me up to go for a walk when I was right in the middle of a good dream. We walked down the road and said hi to the neighbors that were out. We walked down to the little beach and saw LOTS of people. Mama and Daddy threw me a little party- now i knew why they wanted to wake me up! There were lots of kids that I've never seen before. Mama forgot my shoes so I couldn't walk around. I was pretty annoyed by that. ka-BOOM! scared ya didn't I? that's how I felt when I heard the first ka-BOOM go off! It was so close I didn't know what it was. I was a big girl though and didn't cry. I just tried to crawl up Mama's head. She pointed out the various ka-BOOM's when they happened. They were so loud that we didn't stay at the beach very long.

We walked back towards the house and ran into Jake the dog. Mama let me get out and walk on the road and I had fun petting Jake. Jake's Mom said that they were going to go to the house at the corner and watch the fireworks from someone's lawn. She invited us to go along.

This house was great! It was on the corner and it had a pretty cool lawn. Mama and Daddy eventually let me get out of the stroller and walk around on the grass. Daddy set up his camera and took some pictures of the ka-booms. I walked around and patted Jake and played on the lawn chairs. They were kinda bouncy and Mama let me bounce on them as long as I held her hands. It was fun.

It started to get buggy and I think one flew in my mouth. Mama told Daddy that it was time to go home and Daddy was kinda bummed that we were leaving before the ka-BOOM finale. As soon as Daddy packed up his camera and we got up to go, the ka-BOOM finale started. We stayed for the last few minutes and then rushed on home. Mama and Daddy washed my feet off since they said I was walking around without shoes on. After my foot bath, I finally got a bottle of milk and went to sleep!

night night!!

My holey heart

Today Mama and I went to Dr. Snyder so he could have a listen at my ticker. The ladies at the front were super impressed with my walking. I kept trying to go into their room to see if they needed help making copies or something, but Mama said that they didn't need any summer interns. I think that I could have done something for them. I liked waving at them.

Once it was my turn, Mama and I went into the little room. They weighed me (19lbs 14oz) and measured how tall i was (30"). I didn't get a chance to do a really good stretch so I bet i'm even taller!

Dr. Snyder listened to my heart while I was sitting on Mama's lap. Then I guess he wanted me to relax because he made me lay down on Mama's lap. He told Mama that he could only hear the murmur slightly when I was laying down. We then gathered our stuff and went into another room. Dr. Snyder turned on a movie (my first Disney Pixar film). It was about Cars and they were going round and round and round. Mama said that Nana liked to watch something like Cars but it was called NASCAR. No idea what that is, but these cars had eyes and winked! How neat is that. I told Mama that was the kind of car I wanted but in blue.

Dr. Snyder put some goopy stuff on my belly and then took a magic wand so he could make pretty pictures on a robot that was sitting next to Mama. He would push buttons and it would go from no color to blue and red. I like blue.

He told Mama that my holey heart was the size of a pinprick and that I didn't even have to come back for a follow up! He also said that he was surprised it healed to quickly and got so small all by itself. I looked at him quickly because why would he tell that to Mama? She's already a nervous nelly. But Mama didn't seem to hear him because she was smiling.

Dr. Snyder said that while he would miss not seeing me (I only met the man 2x) he was happy it was all fixed!

We canceled my 2 year follow up and when we were in the waiting room we saw Daddy! So glad that Daddy made it. He was there to meet Dr. Snyder again and to hear the good news himself!

Daddy carried me to the car and then it was time for me to go and play with Abuela.

I'm a big cousin!

I'm a big cousin. I think she missed the demo that cousins are supposed to be born on May 26, but that's ok. Mama showed me a picture and she's super duper cute. Must take after RyRy and me.

Baby Claire Christine Pugh was born today at 7:40pm, 16lbs 15 oz and 19.5"

Worst.Day.Ever

Had a wonderful weekend. Went to stepping stones and then yesterday Emma's Water Park was open. The neighborhood kids came by and we all played. It was pretty hot out and Mama and Daddy did a good job of keeping me slathered up with some white gunky stuff.

I wasn't feeling so hot but didn't want to complain too much because I was having so much fun. Mama and I went out shopping to pick up some spices and herbs for the garden at this amazing store called Home Depot. It was so hot out but I had fun waving at everyone. Mama felt my head and thought I felt warm, but it was probably because we were outside.

We came home, ate dinner, did bath time and I went to sleep. Mama gave me some Advil because my teeth were hurting so bad. Well, the teeth under my gums. I don't have any real teeth yet. But I will don't you worry.

I was so uncomfortable during the night that I kept waking up. I tried tossing and turning and counting sheep, but I can only count to 1. So that didn't really help me get tired. I bet that if you can count higher than 10 then you get different sheep to count. I only get the same one over and over again. After a while it’s pretty boring. I even tried singing. But no. I was hot, bored and really uncomfortable. Finally I was at the end of my rope and I called for Mama and Daddy.

Mama must have already been outside my door because she came super fast. She picked me up and was quite surprised that I was so hot! She stripped my clothes off and took my temperature. I was so uncomfortable that I didn’t even care that she had the nerve to poke my butt with a stick 3 times! Each time it was 103.5 degrees. That must have been super duper hot because Mama called for Daddy. Daddy came in and then they went and ran me a bath. I did NOT want a bath. I was hot and cold at the same time. A bath was NOT what I wanted. A bottle filled with some magic white liquid would have been better than that. Or boob. But not a bath. Blech. Yes, normally I do LOVE my baths, but you try getting dunked into a lukewarm bath when your body hurts and you're hot and cold at the same time. It’s unpleasant. I tried climbing out and Mama got the hint to get me out of there.

They took my temperature again and it was still 103.5. Not really sure what they were expecting it to be but I guess they were pretty unhappy that it was still so high. So, they put some lightweight clothes on me and packed me in the car. I thought it was a pretty strange time for a road trip, but these people have done stranger things.

Mama and Daddy drove me to where I was born. I wasn’t sure if this meant that they were going to drop me off and get another baby that wasn’t so hot. Daddy told me that we were in a different part of the hospital and reassured me that I was NOT getting returned. That was nice to hear. The hospital lady checked me in and I was very busy looking around. They wanted me to stand on some thing that checks how heavy I am. I was not in the mood to perform tricks like standing so I kept lifting my legs up. Did these nuts not realize it was 3am? Good grief. Finally they put me in the baby chair that tells them how heavy I was. I tried to explain to them that my weight wasn’t the thing that was high. Whatever… they were obsessed with how much I weighed. Fine. I weigh 9kilos. You do the math.

We were ushered into a little private room. I guess we are VIPs because our room was the only one that had a glass door! I could see all the action that was happening but couldn’t hear anything outside the room. It was cool. Unfortunately, that early in the morning there wasn’t any action. I guess that’s a good thing. I hear Daddy’s kinda squeamish when it comes to blood. I’m going to be a vet so it doesn’t bother me. Granted I haven’t seen any yet (other than when I was born), but I’m sure it wouldn’t have bothered me.

A bunch of nurses came in and hooked me up to various machines. Mama said they were making me into a robot like that time I had my heart checked out. It was kinda neat to be a robot. I had a little thingy on my toe that they taped on. I kept trying to play with it but they didn’t really want me to. Must have been a re-boot plug.

At one point some genius decided that they needed to get a pee sample. I had gone in my diaper but I guess they didn’t want that. Not sure why. It was fresh! The nurses said that they were going to have to do a catheter to get even fresher pee. These people are so weird. They asked Mama and Daddy to hold the top half of my body to make sure I didn’t project myself off the bed. Frankly, I should have! These wacko’s put a TUBE up my little pee thingy. There wasn’t any warning, it was cold and it pinched! I was hot, tired and now they were sticking tubes INTO my body. And not even an easy way like through my mouth. Well, I will tell you that I screamed and cried. So now I wasn’t only tired, hot and cold but also SUPER PISSED.

I was mad at those nurses the most. They were all friendly to start and then they go and stick a tube in me. Once they were done, Mama and Daddy put my diaper back on (with the old pee in it…again, not sure why they couldn’t have just gotten the pee from there) and held me while I cried. The nurses tried to be friendly again but no thank you. Fool me once shame on you - and I’ll tell ya, there’s no fool me twice! Those nurses were on my poop list. I was no longer interested in playing peek-a-boo or waving hi. No way. You have to earn those games and they lost those privileges for life. For the rest of our time in or VIP room, I remembered the ones who stuck that mean tube in me and I let them know I was still pissed off every time they came in the room.

After a while, a doctor came in and told Mama and Daddy that they would have to follow up with Dr. Dobos in the morning and to keep my fever down with medicine. He said to not bother with cold baths and to just give me the drugs. Sheesh. I could have told them that! Pretty soon afterwards, the nurses gave some papers back to Mama and Daddy and said that we could leave. I didn’t wave to anyone. Ha. Take that you meanie nurses.

We got home around 5:30am and I tried to get some shuteye. Mama called work and told them that she was going to spend the day with me. Yay! Daddy had a big test so he couldn’t stay home too. Booo!

At 9am, Mama and I headed to go see Dr. Dobos in Ridgefield. We just saw him last Weds at my 1-year check up (where I got 3 shots). He wasn’t sure what was wrong with me. It could either be a virus, a reaction to something or the cow socks disease that Daddy had when he was a baby. Mama asked if it could be a reaction to the chicken pox and he said no because it was too soon after the shot but Mama thought it was. It would have only been about 1 day too early.

Dr. Dobos recommended medicine, cool clothes and lukewarm baths. Mama was surprised to hear this as the hospital doctor said no way jose to the baths. These doctors can't make up their minds about what they want. Some say to do things, others say don't. I told mama that I would let her know when I was ready for a bath.

Once we were done with Dr. Dobos, we went back home. Mama pureed me some watermelon and added water and cherry pedialyte to make it extra tasty. I basically tried to drink that all day to help keep my insides cool.

Mama let me lay down on the cool tile floors and kept giving me medicine. I was so uncomfortable it was hard to sleep. Mumsie came over so that Mama could get some sleep.

Mumsie and I played a little bit and she was able to get me calm enough to go to sleep. I took a nice long nap and when I woke up, I was feeling a little better. Not great, but better than I had been feeling. I didn’t really want any dinner but I choked down a few bites of whatever Mama made me.

Mama and Daddy installed a second kind of monitor to make sure that I would be ok during the night. I was so tired, still hot and uncomfortable that I didn’t really care. I wish they had some sort of cool pack that I could hug. Mama said that she ordered one but it would be a few days before it got there. Didn’t FedEx know that I was sick NOW?

I just wanted to be rocked all night but I also wanted Mama and Daddy to get some sleep. We compromised. Mama slept in the rocking chair while rocking me. I was happy!

12 mos check-up - take 2

Today was my actual 12 mos check up with my good friend Dr. Dobos. Funny story. Mama thought the appointment was on Monday so we went to her office then headed to Ridgefield. Once we got there, the receptionist said that the appointment was actually on Wednesday. Oopsie.

Mama laughed and we came back home. So, today we went back to Mama's office and I played and showed off my walking skills. Everyone was super impressed with how well I am walking, how I like to drop my toys and then pick them up again. We got to the doctor appointment and we went through the usual questions and procedure. I am:

19lbs 1 oz (16%)
29.75 inches tall (70%)
46 cm head circ. (75%)


Dr. Dobos said I'm on track to be tall and skinny like Daddy. :)

Mama was pretty impressed that I pooped 3 times while at the doctors office. I told her 2x that i wasn't done yet. But she insisted that I needed a butt change. whatever. now she has to refill her diaper bag. ha ha.

I had to have a toe prick which didn't hurt at all. Mama and I played a game on MY phone (really her phone, but i let her borrow it most of the time. I'm good at sharing). The nurse was pretty impressed that I didn't cry or move at all with the toe prick. They wanted to test my iron levels, lead and for TB.

Unfortunately, the next nurse who did my shots wasn't as lucky as the toe prick nurse. You don't want these nurses getting to cocky so I let her have it. I had to have 3 shots (chicken pox, MMR and another one that I can't remember), which i did NOT enjoy. I SCREAMED and tried to get away. Mama had to hold me down and she felt really badly. Mama thought since I hadn't had a reaction with the others that it'd be ok to skip giving me tylenol before this one. Boy was she WRONG WRONG WRONG. I have 3 huge welts / bumps on my poor little legs. Mama felt horrible and give me some advil the second the saw the bumps. I drank it all like a champ.

I also was a great patient for my hearing and vision test. The student nurse, Miss Abby, did my tests. I tried to be super good for her since it was her first time. Might as well get her spoiled by my amazingly awesome good behavior.

In the car Mama gave me a bottle and I fell asleep while I waited for Abuela Lita to show up and get me to bring me home. Mama let Abuela Lita take her car so that I could stay sleeping on my way home. Frankly, I think it's the least that Mama could do. Although I'm pretty sure if i bat my eyes I might get some yummy ice cream tonight to help with the shot pain.

:)

LIght at the end of the tunnel - flashbacks

It's amazing to think it's almost been a year since I graced the world with my presence. This time last year, i was collecting my bags and making the long trip down from Mama's rib cage to well, the outside world. (the technical terms are much harder to spell)

It's been a crazy year too! I've met a TON of people and learned even more things. I have been astounding people since the day I was born. Mama and Daddy were smitten right away even though Mama said I hurt her a little bit. I told her to grow a set.

From the time I lifted my head about 6 hours after being born to walking, it's been a great ride! Mama and Daddy have done a great job in making sure I'm fed, bathed, loved, getting sleep and not hurting myself too much. (It's hard to learn to do stuff without SOME bumps and bruises along the way) I know that they've gotten a lot of advice from Mumsie, Abuela Lita, Nana, Grandpopi, Auntie Marie, Auntie Wendy, Uncle Mikey and Auntie Helene, but I'm sure they would have done a wonderful job either way!

My favorite moments of the year.. too many to name but here's a few

1. my grand entrance. I copied RyRy not just on the day he was born, but also his style. I put my hands on my face too! It was a tricky move, but it totally paid off.

2. Seeing Mama and Daddy

3. Seeing Mumsie, Nana, Grandpopi, Auntie Marie, Abuela Lita, Auntie Wendy, Auntie Helene, Uncle Mike and all my cousins

4. Dogs! i love the dogs

5. pooping on Mama during my photo shoot

6. Sleeping in Mama and Daddy's bed

7. Sleeping on Daddy

8. Peeing on the scale at the dr.'s office

9. Impressing Dr. Dobos at all of my appointments. Also not having to have surgery bc of my heart

10. Baby massages

11. walking / crawling

12. jump jump / stomp stomp

13. watermelon

14. bath time

15. hair! i finally got hair!

And we're off!

A lot has in the last few months and I apologize to all my avid fans for not posting sooner. I took my first steps (that Mama and Daddy know about anyway... they don't know I've been practicing in my crib at night) while we were at Stepping Stones 3 weeks ago. They were SO excited! It was cute actually. I didn't even give them my best steps. I wanted to give them a little taste of what I could do and leave them wanting more.

On Daddy's birthday, I was practicing my walking all day with Mumsie and Abeula. When Daddy came to get me, I was ready! No one knew my plan (well, except Cartman but he promised he wouldn't tell. Although, I'm pretty sure he told Skyler. i can't prove it though...) So when Daddy showed up, I walked 6 steps to him! He was so happy!!! It was so sweet to see his big smile. I hope he liked my birthday present to him. Mama took away my credit card so I couldn't buy him anything. (don't worry, a new one is in the mail - shhhh)

It's a good thing I gave Daddy my present because Mama didn't get her act together at all. She forgot to get Daddy a card (and I can't drive so I couldn't get one) and a cake! Who forgets Cake?? I'm not even entirely sure what Cake is but it sounds amazing. Nana brought Daddy a cake though so he wasn't too horribly mad at Mama.

I've been taking a few more steps everyday so I can build up my confidence. It's a little scary this whole walking thing... One minute you're totally balanced, the next some nitwit didn't pick up a toy that was left on the floor and you're on your butt. (not to point any fingers.. cough cough mama cough cough)

Mama and Daddy put together a new bookcase for all of my great toys. It has bright colored canvas basket things to hold them all. I really like to take everything out of them and throw them all over the room. It's so much fun. Mama was so sneaky last night and took a video of me playing with  my bookcase and toys. I then saw my toy chest was moved and so I decided to really give Mama a thrill.

Watch now!

Awake Training for Parents: A very funny letter from a fellow baby

Dear Fellow Babies,

OK, here's my situation. My Mommy has had me for almost 5 months. The first few months were great – I cried, she picked me up and fed me, anytime, around the clock. Then something happened. Over the last few weeks, she has been trying to STTN (sleep thru the night). At first, I thought it was just a phase, but it is only getting worse.

I've talked to other babies, and it seems like its pretty common after Mommies have had us for around 5-6 months. Here's the thing: these Mommies don't really need to sleep. It's just a habit. Many of them have had some 30 years to sleep – they just don't need it anymore. So I am implementing a plan. I call it the Crybaby Shuffle.

It goes like this:

Night 1 – cry every 3 hours until you get fed. I know, it's hard. It's hard to see your Mommy upset over your crying. Just keep reminding yourself, it's for her own good.

Night 2 – cry every 2 hours until you get fed.

Night 3 – every hour.

Most Mommies will start to respond more quickly after about 3 nights. Some Mommies are more alert, and may resist the change longer. These Mommies may stand in your doorway for hours, shhhh-ing. Don't give in. I cannot stress this enough: CONSISTENCY IS KEY!! If you let her STTN (sleep through the night), just once, she will expect it every night. I know it's hard! But she really does not need the sleep; she is just resisting the change. If you have an especially alert Mommy, you can stop crying for about 10 minutes, just long enough for her to go back to bed and start to fall asleep. Then cry again. It WILL eventually work. My Mommy once stayed awake for 10 hours straight, so I know she can do it.

The other night, I cried every hour. You just have to decide to stick to it and just go for it. BE CONSISTENT! I cried for any reason I could come up with:

-My sleep sack tickled my foot.

-I felt a wrinkle under the sheet.

-My mobile made a shadow on the wall.

-I burped, and it tasted like rice cereal. I hadn't eaten rice cereal since breakfast, what's up with that?

-The dog said "ruff". I should know. My Mommy reminds me of this about 20 times a day. LOL.

-Once I cried just because I liked how it sounded when it echoed on the monitor in the other room.

-Too hot, too cold, just right – doesn't matter! Keep crying!!

-I had drooled so much my sheets were damp and I didn't like it touching me.

-I decided I was sick of all the pink in my room so I cried.

It took a while, but it worked. She fed me at 4am. Tomorrow night, my goal is 3:30am. You need to slowly shorten the interval between feedings in order to reset your Mommies' internal clocks.

Sometimes my Mommy will call for reinforcements by sending in Daddy. Don't worry Daddies are not set up for not needing sleep the way Mommies are. They can only handle a few pats and shhing before they declare defeat and send in the Mommy.

Also, be wary of the sleep sheep with rain noises. I like to give Mommy false hope that listening to the rain puts me to sleep sometimes I pretend to close my eyes and be asleep and then wait until I know Mommy is settling back to sleep to spring a surprise cry attack. If she doesn't get to me fast enough I follow up with my fake cough and gag noise that always has her running to the crib. At some point I am positive she will start to realize that she really doesn't really need sleep.

P.S. Don't let those rubber things fool you, no matter how long you suck on them, no milk will come out. Trust me.

Sincerely,
Baby J

My ticker

Today we had my 6 month heart doctor appointment. I got dressed in an easy to take on / off comfy outfit. We arrived right on time (a few minutes late, but close enough) and they showed us to our room. they checked my weight (16lbs 5 oz) height (26.75") and listened to my heart.

They then did my blood pressure (92 over 65 i think) and then stuck these funny little stickers all over my body. the stickers were a little cold but didn't hurt at all. Then the dr. attached some wires to them and i looked just like a robot! i guess i passed that test because a few minutes later i was disconnected from being a robot and they made us go into another room. They covered me in warm goopy stuff and then put some wand thingy on my chest. I kept trying to help move the wand around because i wanted to see more of the cool, one-of-a-kind picture of my ticker. it was really neat to see! i could hear this awesome noise too. Mama and Daddy said it was of my heart, and i liked hearing it. they also turned on the cool colors for the pictures and i saw the red and blue lights dancing all over my heart. it was nice

so, long story short and the part you're all waiting for - my holey heart has shrunk!!! it's decreased 50% (big words huh?) and the dr. said that the likelihood of my needing to get a procedure to fix it is slim to none. he said that if it doesn't close up entirely on its own in a few years that the only thing i won't be able to do is scuba dive. now, that does put a definite damper on my future plans of being a great white shark scuba diver hunter... but that's ok. I'll find another activity to scare the crud out of mama and daddy

my 6 month check up

Yes, i'm almost 7 months but today i had my 6 month check up. Long story short - I'm perfect. but those following at home already knew that.

I'm 16 pounds exactly, 26.25" tall and have a huge head to hold all of my brains. My hips are perfect, no ear infections and still no teeth.

i got 2 more shots today... they're really crazy about all these shots. I only cried for a second because they startled me. One minute they're wiping cold stuff on my legs and the next they're sticking me with needles. You'd cry to. After wards, Daddy made me an airplane and i was the tallest in the room! it's hard to cry if you're flying.

Mama is wrapped around all my fingers...

I had such a fun time playing in a jumper at my new friend Maya's house on Sunday that Mama found me one that night on Craigs List! Mumsie went to pick it up and Mama put it together once she walked in the house after work.

I love it!

I showed Daddy how much I love to jump in it this morning. He was smiling really big! I think he wanted to get in it too and jump. it's too small for him though.

It's a little too big for me so Mama put some foam block thingys below my feet so i could get in some good jumping. It has so many things to play with; a mirror, an elephant that is stuck in a clear plastic thingy (poor thing) and some other buttons i like to push.

i love it! check out this video I had Mama take of me

my first play group data, Mama crafts and I learned how to....

so, today was my first real play group date. Mama and I were "ladies who lunch" yesterday but I'm not counting that because they were weird. But today was great! Mama and i had a super long bath this morning and then I napped a little while Auntie Nina and Mama crafted. They were painting poor Leon's feet funny colors and making him step on some canvas. I pretended to be sleep so that I wouldn't be next. I'm always thinking.

After my nap, Mama put me back into the tub for another bath. I've had a bit of an upset tummy which is making Mama nervous because now i have red bumps on my tush! they don't hurt and Mama is doing a wonderful job of putting desitin on my tushy. it's just red and inflamed. It bothers Mama more than it bothers me. but, i lost track of where i was going with this post.

Oh yeah, so after my nap and bath, i played for a little while and then some more of mama's baby group friends came by. I played with them for a while. it was fun! there's a boy Gregory, who is 1 day older than i am. I could do more stuff then he could! Mama was really proud of me. I could tell even though she kept telling him he was such a big boy.

Another friend, Maya was born in June i think. She's 22 lbs!!! i'm 15 lbs! i can't believe how big she is. Her mommy, Ute, is a pretty tall lady, so maybe she'll be tall! I felt like such a peanut next to her.

Mama made a painting with my feet too. I wasn't able to escape it. She mentioned that she messed a part of it up so i'm getting the feeling we'll be doing it again tomorrow after our sign language class. sigh

oh yeah - GUESS WHAT?!? I can sit up by myself!!! I can do it for about 10 minutes now. Then I like to take a closer look at the carpet. Mama says I topple over, but I'm just inspecting the carpet. Someone's got to see if those little ants are gone! :0D I like to sit up. It's so much easier to see where all of my toys are. That sneaky mama keeps putting them a little out of my reach so that i have to lunge for them. so annoying. i squawk at her to bring them closer, but she doesn't listen, so i have to roll over to them.I can't sit up yet by myself, but once i'm sitting i can stay there. Then of course something on the carpet will catch my eye and i want to take a look at it.

well, time for rest. i have to get up in a couple of hours to make sure mama is ok and isn't missing me too much

i'll have mama post a picture tomorrow of how well i'm sitting up!!!

Mama ordered my Xmas Card!

5x7 Folded Card

View the entire collection of cards.

Connecticut bound

Had a great time in Virginia. Now my chauffeur erm I mean mama is driving me home to daddy

We are stopped at the Maryland house to get gas, pee and so mama can pump.

It's not easy to get a butt change in the backseat of a car!



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

October 2 - Chatting it up with Nana and Mama

i'm really chatting it up!

August 22 – Mama and Daddy are on vacation

Mama and I had some good quality cuddle time at 2am this morning after I ate. She explained that she and Daddy were going on a little vacation to Las Vegas and that I would be staying home with Mumsie. She said that they would be gone for 5 sleeps… well, I’ve already been asleep 5 times today and they’re not back yet. Not sure where Mama learned how to count but I’ll find a different math teacher that’s for sure.

I've been having loads of fun with Mumsie and Abuela Lita while I wait for Mama and Daddy to come back home. Mumsie put me in my rocking swing and I had lots of fun listening to music and swinging away!



Mumsie and I went for a walk and had a lot of baths! I love my baths. Mama even put little love notes around the house for me to find! Mumsie and I found one on the mirror in the bathroom so that when I had my bath, I could read how Mama and Daddy love me! We also found a love note near the changing table and a note in my crib wishing me sweet dreams! Mama and Daddy are so sweet, even though i'm not entirely sure that they realize I can't read yet. Mumsie read it to me and pointed out the words, so i think i have the hang of it now. :0D

Oh a super funny thing happened when Abuela Lita was changing me - i pooped on her! HAHA. i'm sure she didn't think it was funny, but i had a great big chuckle out of it! Mama laughed when Mumsie told her about it.

Mama left some spreadsheets for Mumsie and Lita to fill out to track what goes and what comes out of me! Mumsie has been doing a great job of filling it out. Mama is so happy to see that i'm eating, peeing and sleeping. She definitely needs a vacation if she thinks that pee is entertainment!

Mama and Daddy called me a lot and it was nice to hear their voices. Mumsie even showed me some pictures they sent her. I wish i had a cell phone so they could send me photos directly. Maybe when i turn 3 months.

Mumsie and I called Mama when it was time to go to bed. Mama and I go through the list of everyone who loves me. I think it's a shortened list because we'd still be chatting otherwise!

I'm having lots of fun with Mumsie and Abuela Lita, but I miss Mama and Daddy. I know they're having fun but next time i'm going with them!

August 18 – Celebrating being 12 weeks old with long walks and waterfalls

Mama told me when I woke up this morning that we were going to go see Grandpopi. He and Auntie Marie are finally back from france and he couldn’t wait to see me! Auntie Marie had to work but Mama said that she wished she could see me too. Mama was excited to show Grandpopi my new kick-tushy stroller! It’s a 3-wheel jogging stroller with cup holders, speakers to play some of my favorite tunes by Cyndi Lauper, Paul Simon and Elton John and it even lets me recline back so I can sleep without getting a hunchback. Mama did a ton of research on it and was excited to show it off.

I slept during the car ride to Grandpopi’s house and then we drove to where we were going to walk. We were going to walk at the Croton Harmon Bridge. At least that’s where I think we went walking. If not, don’t blame me… I’m just a baby. We walked across a bridge and we stopped a few times to take some pictures. Mama was a little nervous but she even took me out of the stroller for a picture on the bridge. She didn’t get too close for fear of dropping me. After that bridge, we took a long hike over some dirt / gravel pathways down a really long hill to the bottom of the waterfall thingy. Grandpopi then walked me over to a chain link fence and we took some more pictures. The waterfall sounded like my sound machine! It was great. I slept pretty well.

A little while later, once Mama and Grandpopi were done taking photos and walking over bridges, we hiked back up the long, winding hill and went in search of some food. I woke up super hungry in the car and kept yelling at Mama to make sure she knew I was hungry. She said she knew it but still didn’t produce a boob or a bottle for me to eat. Sheesh. We got to Grandpopi’s house so he could take his car to the restaurant and Mama finally gave me a bottle. I worked up such an appetite from my hiking, that I sucked down my measly 2.5 oz and wanted more. Mama took me inside and fed me. Once I was milk drunk, they put me back into my car seat and we drove to lunch. I guess Mama and Grandpopi were hungry too. They put me on top of the table at lunch and remembered to bring in my comfy sheep blanket that Auntie Marie made. It was chilly in the restaurant and I walked something warm on my legs, which were still sore from that crazy nurse shooting them. I drifted in and out of dreaming of my ladybug and monkey friends to smiling and spitting up at Grandpopi.

After lunch, Mama and I drove home because she had a dr. appt with Dr. Ofer. Dr. Ofer delivered me and while I wanted to go and say hi to him, I was too tired to argue when Mama said that I would be staying home with Mumsie. Besides, I like it when Mumsie comes over because she’s always saying that “deli order 29 is ready for pick up”. She seems to get a real kick out of it, which I think is funny.

8-16: Two month check-up 2 weeks late

Today was a very very long day. Mama and Mumsie woke me up at 3:30 to feed me, change me and put me in a car seat. Not sure why since I was sleeping perfectly fine in RyRy’s crib. We left Uncle Mikey’s house at 4:00. I fell asleep pretty quickly once those crazy adults started the car and we took off. We stopped around 7 I think so I could eat and get another diaper change. We then stopped a couple more times to eat, change diapers and so Mama and Mumsie could go to the bathroom too. I hung out in the back seat with my ladybug friend and my soft monkey. The shoulder dogs were a little jealous that I had so many friends and I had to talk to them a lot so they knew that I loved them too.

We made it home around 10:30. Daddy got home around 12:30, which was great! I sure did miss him.

Not only was today filled with a long drive from Virginia home, but it was also my two-month appointment with Dr. Dobos. I haven’t seen him in about 6 weeks and I guess he missed me because he had Mama and Daddy bring me on in. The nurse measured me and weighed me. I was in a good mood so I didn’t even pee on the scale although by the end of the appointment I would wish I had!

Dr. Dobos was happy to see that I had grown 2 inches (I’m now 23” tall!) and gained some weight (ladies never discuss their weight so if you want to know, too stinkin’ bad!). He listed to my heart, looked in my ears and stuck something up my nose. He humored Mama with her weird questions about my tugging on my ear, eating, pumping, weight gain and ear infections. He made me smile and giggle and he said he liked the sound of my voice! Mama told him that I don’t really like tummy time (she was downplaying it because I HATE IT!) and he said that while I had excellent head control, it was important to get tummy time because it would help me crawl. Blah. Who wants to crawl anyway? I like to stand.

Once Dr. Dobos was done poking and prodding me, it was time for some crazy nurse to come in. Mama and Daddy gave me some baby Tylenol stuff at the start of the appointment ,which tasted kinda like a purple jolly rancher, but with sand in it. Daddy help my hands and I thought we were playing a game. Mama came and put her head near mine and gave me kisses. I should have known something was up because last time she did this was 6 weeks ago and I got poked with something sharp. Before Mama knew it, that crazy nurse stuck 2 SHOTS in my legs! One on each side. I’m glad I didn’t have more legs because I’m sure she would have stuck those too. That nurse gets some weird pleasures out of making babies scream. So NOT cool. Those shots hurt something fierce. I screamed for about 5 minutes and Mama cried a little… frankly she shoulda cried more. Those things really hurt! I bet she never has to get shots otherwise she wouldn’t make me get them. She keeps telling me that she knows it hurts, but I dunno if I’m buying that. If you know something is going to hurt, why do it? Seems strange to me.

Mama and Daddy got me dressed and we headed out of that painful place. We went to get Daddy’s hair cut and I slept in the car. Mama drove around with me for a while and then we went back to get Daddy.

Afterwards, we drove home to get ready to go out to dinner with Auntie Marie, Uncle Eddie, Auntie Alli and Uncle Rob in Fairfield. Mama put me in a really super cute brown outfit that finally fit (my big head has a hard time gong through it, but Mama said that just means I’m super smart) and we headed out. Mama and Daddy said that if they felt at all during the dinner that I was unhappy, that they’d skedaddle on outta there. We get to the restaurant and I am SUPER uncomfortable. I’m hot yet a little clammy, my legs are hurting from where that crazy nurse shot me, I’m uncomfortable in that god awful car seat and I just want a pony. Or ice cream. I could be swayed in either direction.

Mama and Daddy got to the restaurant and Daddy swaddled me in my special doggy blanket and carried me inside. Auntie Alli and Auntie Marie were so excited to see me. I was tired of crying so I let them fawn over me. It doesn’t get the least bit tiring hearing how cute I am and how I look like my beautiful Mama.

We were shown into a private room in the back under the guise that it had a huge table to fit everyone. Mama and Daddy joked was so that we wouldn’t scare the other people eating their dinner. Mama and Daddy didn’t understand that I was trying to warn everyone around me of the crazy nurse that got BOTH of my legs!

I stopped crying for a while so Mama and Daddy could eat dinner and have a beer. Then Auntie Marie and Uncle Eddie dropped the bomb… they were moving to Orange County, California!!! I couldn’t believe it. I tried to make sense of why they would leave Connecticut since I was there and head to California where I definitely was not. After a little while, I just couldn’t take it anymore and started to yell at them about moving. Mama and Daddy felt badly so they paid and we went home. I was so sad that Auntie Marie and Uncle Eddie are moving but am happy that we have a cool place to visit!

We got home and I ate and slept but my schedule is so far gone. Mama still felt terrible about the horrific shot lady that we cuddled for a long time. I like getting cuddles but don’t like getting shots!

August 8 - walks and playdates make for a very long day!

Today I took Mommy to the Danbury Mall to walk with Allison and Alex. We had a great time and Allison told us that Alex's heart is doing loads better and they will know more about next steps in 5 weeks. Alex has a heart murmur just like me, but hers is much worse and will most likely need surgery. Mommy was so sad when she heard that from Allison and gave me lots of hugs and kisses and told me she was happy that mine seemed so minor (in comparison).

Mommy made Alex a pink taggie blanket just like what she made me. Hers has a little brown fuzzy doggy in the middle. Mommy said she really made it for me first, but asked if she could give it to Alex because she thought she could use some cheering up. I said of course! It was the first time I gave a present to a friend! :D It felt good to give something to a friend and cheer her up.

We walked around for a long time. Mommy and Allison sure can chit chat! i got hungry so mommy fed me downstairs near some fountain. she had a cool cloth thingy so she could cover up my head. She said she didn't want me to feel self conscious about eating and maybe drooling a little. She's so funny. I don't care if people see me eat! i watch other people eat all the time.

After lunch, she put me back into that silly car seat and we headed to Babies R Us, Mommy has been looking for a new stroller for me that would let me lay down instead of sitting up when going for walks. She decided to check out the BRU in Danbury versus the one in Milford that we had checked out before. I was crying when we got to the BRU parking lot because I was so tired of being in the car seat and super hungry. Mommy grabbed me out of the stroller and carried just me into the store. We went into the family changing room where she changed me and fed me.

Once I had been watered and changed, it was time to get down to business. Mom and I walked over to the stroller section and a nice guy helped us out. Mommy laid me down in a whole bunch of different contraptions to see how i would fit and if i liked it. We found one we liked pretty quickly so we checked out and headed out to visit with Auntie Gabby.

I slept in the car most of the way and woke up just as we were pulling into the driveway. Auntie Gabby was outside throwing a wet slobbery tennis ball to some strange dog I haven’t ever seen before. He was a golden retriever named Ranger… and boy was he stinky! Skyler and Cartman aren’t so stinky and I am happy about that! Auntie Gabby ordered a yummy smelling pizza for dinner; it had mashed potatoes, cheddar cheese and broccoli with some sour cream drizzled on top. It smelled really tasty. Mommy had a couple of slices and told me I could try some later. I kept opening my mouth for a bite, but Mommy said I’d taste some in my milk later. I was a little bummed because it smelled so good now, but later would work too I guess.

Auntie Gabby wanted to hold me so Mommy let her. I was getting really tired and cranky and kept crying. Auntie Gabby thought it was because I didn’t like her. Not true! I like her just fine. But you try being held by someone you haven’t seen in 2 months when you’re tired. No thank you! I just wanted Mommy and I wanted to go HOME!

Finally Mommy got the message and into the car we went. We then had to drop Auntie Gabby off at the car place somewhere on the way home. I couldn’t believe it. At this pace I was never getting home and into a nice warm bubble bath. I cried and cried. Mommy felt really badly for not being able to get into the backseat with me but she explained that she was driving and if she got into the backseat than the car would have to drive itself and it doesn’t know how. Sheesh. How hard can it be?

I finally stopped crying and fell asleep. We dropped Auntie Gabby off and continued on home. I tried to send Mommy “no more stops” brain waves and I think it totally worked because our next stop was home! She quickly brought me inside and then tried to put me back to sleep. I gave her a hard time because I had been trying to go to sleep for a few hours and now she wanted me to go to sleep. No way lady! You have to train these adults otherwise they just expect you to sleep on their schedule. HAH!

While Mommy was putting me to sleep Daddy put together my new stroller! I can’t wait to try it out tomorrow on my morning promenade.

About 40 minutes later I think Mommy learned her lesson and so I passed out. I could hear them talking about the stroller and I know that Mommy was showing Daddy all the features. He liked the big tires, the speakers you could connect to your ipod / iphone and how it folds up pretty small. I just smiled and kept dreaming about my walk!