Emma is 5 months old today! The last 2 weeks have gone much better than the previous month. Emma is now eating 4 times a day, nursing in the morning around 8am and in the afternoon around 4pm, and having a 5oz milk + 5Tb cereal bottle around 12pm, and a 6-7oz milk + 6-7Tb cereal bottle around 7pm. She goes to bed about 7:30pm and sleeps until 7:30-8am. Such a change from just a few weeks ago! Having the right meds and the thickened feedings have really helped her feel so much better. We are going to her Peds ENT next week and we'll do a weight check. We think she's getting chubbier every day and are hoping she's still gaining weight well (we're guessing about 14lbs, we'll see :o)). Emma is able to stay awake longer stretches now and enjoys the Jumperoo, the exersaucer, Bumbo seat and just being held and cuddled - especially sitting with Daddy, although she is a mama's girl when she's upset, hungry or tired. She is taking 3 naps during the day. Usually 2 hrs in the morning, 2-3 hrs in the afternoon, and 1 hr in the evening around 5-6pm. She is very alert and interactive. She is usually happy even if she misses her nap, which is a change from Will, who turned into a gremlin without his naps! She is a great joy and we love her to pieces!
Halloween was fun this year because Will as old enough to be pretty excited about it. For the last week or more, he's been asking me about when he gets to put on his costume, trick or treat and have a "Halloween party." Yesterday, we walked across the street to the pumpkin patch at the college. We picked out a pumpking and Will rode the kiddy train, then we walked back home. Today after his nap, we carved the pumpkin (which started out Thomas and became a face because it was taking too dang long and we couldn't find out pumpkin carving set!), then put on our costumes to trick or treat. Will was Thomas, Emma was a monkey (Will's costume from his 1st Halloween), and I was a princess. We started to go around our neighborhood at 6pm, but no one was out! We tried 3 houses and not a single one even answered the door. At the last house, the person saw us through the front window, then proceed to turn around and turn off all the lights! So we called our neighbors from our old house and they said everyone was out - so we drove over to our old street and did trick or treating there. Will got pretty scared by the haunted house, but besides that he had a great time and enjoyed getting candy. We came home to hand out candy - and we only had ONE set of trick or treaters! We knew we lived in a quiet neighborhood (mostly retired folks) but sheesh! There's only 3 houses on our street, so maybe that's why no one came. Oh well, lots of leftover candy for us!
And an update on Emma: she is doing very well with 30mg Prevacid + thickened feedings. Per the GI doc, I'm trying to do two or three 5-7oz bottles a day of pumped milk with 1 Tb cereal/oz of milk, then nursing the rest of the day. It's kind of a pain to pump so much, but it's helped her reflux so much that she's back to sleeping 9-10hrs straight at night. She hadn't been able to do that since she was 13 wks (7 wks ago!) so we're thrilled. She is happier, growing very well, and just doing so much better.
Emma is 4 months old today. She had a ENT appointment and weight check today because her reflux is acting up again. She hasn't been eating well this week, so she only gained 2 oz since last Wednesday, putting her just under 12 and half pounds (25%), but 25" (85%)! This mommy's opinion is she needs her meds upped after gaining over 2lbs since they prescribed it, but we have to wait to see the Peds GI, hopefully next week. In other areas, Emma is doing very well. She sits well supported and can almost pull herself all the way up to the sitting position from her back - pretty early, probably because she is so light. She started eating rice cereal a few times a week off a spoon and does very well with that. She giggles and laughs and talks, but all in her own way - you can definitely tell what she is doing, but the vocal cord paralysis is very apparent when she's being verbal. But it's also adorable and even Will tries to copy her and smiles when she's "talking." She loves to hit hanging toys, chew on teething rings, watch TV (yeah, yeah, I know it's "bad"), and most of watch her big brother Will and talk to her mommy. She's the happiest when she's watching things happen around her and loves to stare at people and smiles so big. Emma is a sweet, brave girl and I love her fiercely, as does her dad and big brother.
This week Will started potty training - he's been at it for 3 days and has only had 1 accident! I think that must be some kind of record, but I'm biased of course. I think it's like walking - he didn't want to walk alone until he was 15 months, but once he started, he didn't do all the falling down that most toddlers do, just started walking one day and didn't stop. He's a big helper for me during the day with Emma. He lets the dogs in and out for the potty, feeds them, gets things for the baby, and frequently tells me, "I'm so proud of you too Mommy." He also lets me nap some mornings when Emma has had a bad night, which is wonderful and something you can't do with all 3 year olds! This is a hard time in our lives with Emma's difficulties, Jered's dad being so ill, and Jered being gone so much, but it makes me appreciate what a wonderful gift God has given me in my family. If Will wasn't such a good boy, Emma so sweet tempered, and Jered so supportive, I think I would have stuck my head in the sand weeks ago!
We went to the Chula Vista Fire Station open house this morning with some families from church. It was really fun, especially for Will. He got to dress up like a fireman and run with a fire hose, climb in a fire engine and ambulance, ride in a fire engine "wagon," build a toy boat with Jered, and watch a helicopter landing and a pretend rescue mission.
We're all enjoying Jered's time at home. I'm especially appreciative right now because Emma is eating every 3-4 hours around the clock. I'm lucky to catch 4-5 hours of sleep at night, so it's more like naps all day than really sleeping. She is finally starting to gain some more weight though. She is eating 5-8oz 7 times a day, so hopefully she will catch up soon and slow down again. Mommy could use a little break. It's nice to have Jered here to help out with meals and housework since I'm so tired. Will enjoys having him here and even the dogs got a bath today, so they are happy too! We have the Khaki Ball Saturday, then Jered is off for four days next week too. We are going to try some potty training next week while he's still here to help.
6 Years Old: 51lbs, 47.5" 5 Years Old: 45lbs, 45" 4.5 Years Old: 42lbs, 43.5" 4 Years Old: 41lbs, 42" 3.5 Years Old: 38lbs, 41" 3 Years Old: 34lbs, 40"
32 Months: 32.5lbs, 37.25"
28 Months: 30.5lbs, 36.5"
25 Months: 28.5lbs, 35.5"
18 Months: 24.5lbs, 32.5"
12 Months: 20lbs 1oz, 30"
6 Months: 15lbs 10oz
4 Months: 12lbs 6.4oz
3 Months: 10lbs 15oz, 24"
2 Months: 9lbs 14oz, 22.5"
Birth: 8lbs 3oz, 21"
Will's a Growing Boy!
9 Years Old: 62lbs, 56" 8 Years Old: 56lbs, 53" 7.5 Years Old: 52lbs, 52"
7 Years Old: 52lbs, 50" 6.5 Years Old: 48lbs, 49" 6 Years Old: 45.6lbs, 48"
Emma is 5 months old today! The last 2 weeks have gone much better than the previous month. Emma is now eating 4 times a day, nursing in the morning around 8am and in the afternoon around 4pm, and having a 5oz milk + 5Tb cereal bottle around 12pm, and a 6-7oz milk + 6-7Tb cereal bottle around 7pm. She goes to bed about 7:30pm and sleeps until 7:30-8am. Such a change from just a few weeks ago! Having the right meds and the thickened feedings have really helped her feel so much better. We are going to her Peds ENT next week and we'll do a weight check. We think she's getting chubbier every day and are hoping she's still gaining weight well (we're guessing about 14lbs, we'll see :o)). Emma is able to stay awake longer stretches now and enjoys the Jumperoo, the exersaucer, Bumbo seat and just being held and cuddled - especially sitting with Daddy, although she is a mama's girl when she's upset, hungry or tired. She is taking 3 naps during the day. Usually 2 hrs in the morning, 2-3 hrs in the afternoon, and 1 hr in the evening around 5-6pm. She is very alert and interactive. She is usually happy even if she misses her nap, which is a change from Will, who turned into a gremlin without his naps! She is a great joy and we love her to pieces!
