Moving

This blog has taken a slightly different direction since I started it, so I thought it was time for another new address. I promise it will stay put after this. You can now find me here.

10 Week Well Baby Visit

Joey had his checkup on Monday. He seems to be doing really well except for the thrush that STILL has not gone away (we are going on our 4th week of meds). He is 11 pounds, 9 ounces and just shy of 23 inches long (50th percentile for both). The doctor said he is meeting all of his developmental milestones as expected - yay! The only bad thing was that this was the visit with all the shots. Poor little guy, they stuck him twice in each thigh AND he got an oral vaccine. I know people have all sorts of opinions on vaccinations, but this is how our pediatrician (and insurance company) does things, so we went with it.

Here's a picture of Joey post-immunizations. He took them like a champ and was back to his cheery self almost right away, but maybe that's because he knew the next stop was Grammye's house. We spent the rest of the day kind of relaxing which I think was good because all the excitement wore the the little man out.

Another Yoga Mat Bag

I promise not to post every single one of these that I do, but since this one looks so different from the last, I wanted to share. This bag was made for my friend Vanessa who requested that I make it in "purples" and promises to make a "sizable" donation to my Avon Walk fund (I would have made her one without a donation, just for the record). The different textures of the two yarns make the stripe pattern really cool and textured. I'm sad that my pictures don't show this very well.

The Front

The Strap

The Top

The Bottom

Playdate at the Park

A couple of weeks ago, Joey and I went to meet some other Moms and babies at the park in Newport. It was really nice to sit and chat about mommy things. Two of the babies are Joseph's age, the other two a bit older. One of the moms (Samm) was nice enough to take some pictures of the babies, individually and as a group.

Here are Joey's new friends, all lined up.

And here's a great picture of Joey doing his share of the "playing".

Quick Update

We were back at the doctor earlier this week for a follow up from last week's appointment. Not much has changed except for the thrush meds Joseph is taking. The Nystatin was topical, now we are doing Diflucan which is swallowed. It's a 14 day cycle, so I'm hoping we can be done after that. The big 10 week appointment is Monday - that means vaccinations. Keep your fingers crossed that it's not TOO traumatic for Joseph (or Mommy).

Happy Birthday Mom!

 

My mom and I have been through so much together over the years. She has been so supportive of me over the last, crazy year of my life and I appreciate that more that I could ever put into words. I love you, Mom.

Yoga Mat Bag

I found this super easy (and quick!) pattern on Joyful Abode . Since I know LOTS of yoga people, I thought it would be fun to make a few of these as gifts. I will also be making some (assuming I am able to get permission from the pattern creator) to sell in order to raise money for this year's Avon Walk.

This bag is made with a round base of double crochets, half double crochets create the tube, and alternating front and back post double crochets make the cool ribbed top (these were new for me, but I figured them out thanks to this YouTube video). The strap is just single crochets all the way up with a single crochet border. The tie is a chain made from the two different yarns I used. Since I thought this one looked a little plain, I decided to add my Mom's initials to it (she's getting the bag as a birthday present from Joey).

Amazing

I'm sitting on my couch this morning watching coverage of Inauguration Day and I'm crying. Anyone who knows me well knows that I'm not really a crier, but I don't think these are the last tears I will cry today. I was so proud of us, as a country, when we elected Barack Obama president. I love that people have so much hope for where he will take us.

I am holding my sleeping baby in my arms as I type this (super talented, I know) and talking to him about what a different world he's going to grow up in than the one his grandparents grew up in. They were born in a time where segregation was still legal and accepted in this country; Joseph was born less than two weeks after we elected our first black president.

I'm so excited to see what this new era will bring. I don't have any illusions that anything is going to change overnight, but the important thing is that people once again believe that things can be different. And you know what they say about the power of positive thinking . . .

A Couple of Days Late

Dear Joseph,

I can’t believe you are already two months old. It’s been amazing to watch you grow and develop over the last month. You have become more of an “infant” and less of a “newborn”. You bring us constant joy and happiness with your silly little personality.

This past month (specifically the last couple of weeks), you have started smiling in response to things going on around you. For some reason, diaper changes are a favorite reason for you to smile which is far better than the days when they made you scream. You even have great little dimples to go along with that big, toothless little smile of yours.

You are getting bigger and stronger every day. You can hold your head up pretty well and you rock yourself from side to side on your back (especially when we are trying to dress you or change your diaper). You’ve grown out of those tiny newborn sized clothes that were so big on you when we brought you home from the hospital and it won’t be long before you grow out of your current wardrobe.

Your first Christmas went by without you really noticing it, but you got tons of great gifts that you’ll be using for months to come. You also didn’t seem to notice that we celebrated the New Year – at least partially because you and Mommy were in bed by 10 pm. We’re hoping it’s all more fun for you next year.

Just before your 3 month mark, Mommy will be going back to work which will be so hard for her. You will be spending your days with various people who love and will spoil you, though, and you’ll still get Mommy all to yourself on the weeknights and Saturdays. You’ll be fine and I’m sure you’ll adjust to your new daily schedule without much trouble.

We love you, little man, and we’re looking forward to what the next month will bring.

All our love,

Mommy (and Daddy, too)

Two Months Old Today

Here are a few comparison shots. I think you can get a really good sense of how much Joey has grown from these -
both in size and in personality.

Reflux Update

So we went to the doctor again this week. I had called to ask a question about the thrush meds because I thought they were upsetting Joseph's already sensitive tummy, but when I described some of the symptoms I was seeing the doc recommended that I take him in. They were able to see him the same day which was nice. The doc asked if there was any way I could bring in a video of what I was seeing. Thanks to my super handy Christmas present, I was able to do just that.

Based on the video and some other info I gave her, the doc said she believes that the current tummy issues are also reflux related. We decided it's time for a med change (Zantac to Prilosec). Also, the doctor ordered a swallow study (we won't know when that will be until we get approval for it from the insurance). I am collecting stool samples (not so quick a process when the kid never poops) so they can check for blood which would be a sign that Joseph is allergic to the soy we are giving him in place of milk-based formula which we already determined he has a sensitivity to.

I can't tell yet if the med change has made a difference. I really do hope this one works, but I will tell you it's a HUGE pain in the ass to get my hands on. Since Prilosec is not made for babies, we have to get it from a compounding pharmacy where they crush up the pills and dissolve them in a liquid. Who knew?

Getting So Big!

They tell you that time goes fast when you have a baby, but I don't think you really know until you have one. Since I have been so negligent about my blogging, you will probably all be shocked at how much Jaeby has grown - even since Christmas.

Here is a collage of random photos. I swear, he doesn't live in his carseat, that just seems to be my favorite place to take his photo. ::reaches for camera to take a picture of Jaeby napping on the couch::

And this makes me laugh. Jaeby was relaxing very contentedly on his Aunt Dani's lap last night until his "big" cousin AJ started shooting some hoops with Uncle Rob. Then, this happened. It's crazy how much more aware he is of his world these days.

Here is what he was looking at. It's only a matter of time until the dynamic duo are terrorizing Papa and Nana's house together. Watch out world.

Getting Crafty

A while back, I promised to start posting pictures of my craft projects. Between getting ready for the baby and trying to figure out life with a newborn, my time for crafts (and posting about them) has been limited. I decided I better get caught up, though, because I have several projects in the works.

I made this blanket at the request of some friends - I've been working on it since Memorial Day. They have a son a couple of weeks older than Jaeby. I still haven't figured out if the blanket is for the baby or his dad.

Anyway, this is counted cross stitch on a crocheted background with a crochet border. The main part of the blanket is really just single crochets, so it was super easy. The cross stitch on the crochet "fabric" was a little tricky to figure out at first, but once I got the hang of it, it was just like normal counted cross stitch.

I added this piece of flannel to the back (folded under and zig-zagged with clear acrylic thread) because I could not deal with the ugly, back side of cross stitch look. It wasn't part of the pattern - I guess this doesn't bother other people?

I made this scarf super skinny, super long as a Christmas present for a friend. I love, love, love scarves, but there really isn't much need for them here in sunny SoCal. I tried to capture the detail of the shell pattern in the pic below, but it's a little hard to see because I used such chunky yarn. Eh, I prefer cool yarn to intricate patterns anyday.

I hung the scarf on the back of my front door to try and show just how long this thing really is. Hopefully the length is as good in practice as it is in theory.

6 Week Check Up - A Week Late

We went to the doc today. Jaeby is now 10 pounds, 4.5 ounces and 22.25 inches long. What a monster. The doc said he's "perfect". Duh.

In the last few days, the reflux issues have returned, so we increased his dosage of Zantac a bit. We have permisson to bump it up one more time if it doesn't work after a week, but then that's it. If that doesn't work, we will explore the possibility of a different type of medication.

And, in case you haven't heard, Jaeby has a case of thrush. Ick. Now that I know he has it, some weird stuff he's been doing (smacking his lips, pushing the bottle away every few seconds while eating) makes a lot more sense. They put him on an anti-fungal (nystatin) at the urgent care - 4 times a day for week! His pediatrician upped that to two weeks, so we will be giving meds 6 (yes, 6) times a day for the next two weeks. Fun stuff.

Our next appointment with the pediatrician is January 26. Jaeby is scheduled to get his first round of immunizations that day. Poor little guy - there are 5 injections and 1 oral.

Seriously Congress?

Since I live in a bubble, the first I heard of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act was here on Christie's blog. Um, what??

Admittedly, I have really only skimmed some articles (including this one from the LA Times) about this new law, but from what I understand it would prohibit the resale of children's clothes and toys as well as the sale of handmade childrens items - unless they are tested for lead and such. It appears that there may be some flexibility in how the law will be interpreted, but it still seems pretty harsh. I get that we need to protect our children from the hazardous crap that can be found in unregulated products, but this is just ridiculous.

We have quite a few baby items that are second hand. When you have a child, you figure out pretty quickly that everything does not have to be new. The Jaeby (new term courtesy of Kelly) changes clothing sizes more frequently than I shower these days. Maybe Congress could also consider imposing restrictions on familial hand-me-downs? Between that and my proposed pay cut from the Governator, we may have to live on soup for the next 18+ years.