Thursday, August 30, 2007

My First Week Of Day Care - ACHOOO

I only lasted 2-1/2 days for my first week in day care. I really thought my immune system was strong but I guess I was working too much on my sumo physique and not enough on my immunity cloak. Last night was a rough night for all of us. None of us got more than an hour of sleep as I labored to breathe through a clogged nose. Mom said she was ready to fry an egg on me I was so hot. Dad tried to drain my nose with a bulb syringe but at three o'clock in the morning in a dimly lit room with his eyes crusted over and my head on a bobble it didn't really work so well. Mom new something wasn't right and finally picked me up and allowed for my head to clear just enough for us to get an hours sleep sitting up before the alarm clocks buzzed.

Mom called Dr. Ramsdell and she said to come right in. The nurse took all of the necessary readings and proceeded to weigh me before sending us off to the room to wait for Dr. Ramsdell. I weighed in at a whooping 13.12 pounds! Dr. Ramsdell looked me over and listened to my lungs before telling mom that I had a very bad cold. Mom and Dad are constantly monitoring me to make sure I don't spike another fever and dehydrate myself. All I want is just to be able to blow my nose! If I could do that I would both feel and breathe better and we would all get some much needed rest!


Taking my own temperature


Squirting saline up my nose



I have learned a new habit of sucking my bottom lip. It will most likely stop once my bottom teeth come in!



It just goes to show that even during the hardest times a smile can always brighten your day!



Laughing also works.

Monday, August 27, 2007

My First Day Of School

Today was my first day of school at Country Sunshine. I am now the newest rugrat in an army of crawling droolers. I'm not really sure I knew what was happening this morning when we showed up but I knew from Mom's face that something wasn't the same. I am usually starting my first nap around 8 in the morning but today was a little different.

I caught all the stares from the veteran day care droolers as I was the last one to arrive this morning. That's OK because my teachers were so excited to see me. Ms. Heather is so nice and treated me like a queen...even though at times I did not act like one. I had a little crying, or as Ms Heather says, a screaming spell around 10 a.m. They had to call Mom just to tell her that they have never heard a baby cry so loud. I guess I am gifted with a powerful set of lungs!

I must have been so wiped out from all of the crying, sorry screaming, that I passed out in the pool. No not a pool filled with water but a play pool. When Mom showed up at lunch to feed me I was still sprawled out in the pool. I didn't wake up until Mom made me wake up so she could feed me and return to work.

Just this past week I have been falling asleep on my own. I normally need to be held or nursed to fall asleep but Mom and Dad have been working hard to break this habit. They are using several techniques they learned from the book No Cry Sleep Solution. Babies are born only knowing how to suck. We all have to learn how to fall asleep and that it is OK to fall asleep on our own and I am well on my way!

I have also learned over the past 2 weeks that I have 2 hands attached to my arms. Every morning when I wake up I check to make sure they are still attached and surprisingly enough they are! I am even gaining enough control to grasp onto objects and play with them before dropping them. I hope to interact more with my friends at school to learn some new tricks.

Mom came to pick me up around 5 and we headed home for some dinner and a bath. After my bath mom swaddled me up and went to the kitchen to help Dad with their dinner and sure enough I did it again. I fell asleep on my own and surprisingly enough I didn't even wake up at the exact time that Mom and Dad sat down to eat dinner. I guess I was just wiped out from a long first day at school.

I am only at day care until September 14th. Mom and Dad have canceled my spot at Country Sunshine and instead have found a nanny to care for me. Andrea is so nice and I can't wait to start with her. I will miss the one on one that I am used to with Mom and Dad while I am at day care. It won't be too long before I will get to hang out with Andrea and her 3 year old daughter Abi.

More Wedding Pictures

Gramma sent me some photos tonight that I wasn't able to take so I thought I'd post a few of them to add to my ongoing list of memories. Enjoy!


Aunt Kelley, what a beautiful dress!


Dad, Uncle Jon and Gramma at Riverbend Farms, Biltmore Estate


Gramma and Dad.



Hanging out in the hotel with Mom

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Sumo Style


This past week I have been working out with Dad to increase my strength. I begin tryouts for sumo wrestling with my fellow daycare classmates on Monday.



In order to survive my first week of day care I began the art of meditation.




"OK Pooh, lean to the right..."



I also began to increase my arm strength by using my parrot as a punching bag

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Jon and Kelley's Wedding




Last Thursday we packed up the car and drove to the Blue Ridge Mountains for My uncle's wedding at The Biltmore Estate. We arrived to a family with arms spread wide waiting for their turn to hold me. Isn't it amazing how everyone wants to hold a baby but when it comes to changing diapers they are nowhere to be found? It was great to see everyone and finally get a chance to meet my extended family. They are all so loving and some of the best people in the world.

Jon and Kelley had to have picked one of the most beautiful spots in North Carolina for their wedding. The ceremony was at the Riverbend Farms on the Biltmore Estate. This was not your average barn I assure you. It was set in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains with antique farm equipment scattered throughout the stalls. The setting really took you back in time.

What little of the ceremony I got to see was beautiful. Mom and Dad were both in the wedding and I sat in the back with my cousin Elizabeth. She wanted to sit near the back so she could escape if I got unhappy. I did get upset once. At the beginning of the ceremony all of the wedding party walked hand in hand down the aisle as they made their way to the alter. Dad was the first to go by followed by Uncle Tony and Jon's friend Charlie. Next to walk down the aisle was Kent who was walking with Mom. I must have been about 20 feet from the aisle and as soon as Mom walked by I began to cry. I can smell her scent from a mile away and knew immediately she was near. As soon as she got out of range I calmed down but not before I caused Mom some anxiety. Sorry Mom!

We danced the night away to a local bluegrass band. They sounded great and by nights end had the entire group square dancing. After a full belly and lots of dancing everyone migrated to the bonfire to listen to the band play acoustic. What a fantastic way to end a party.

On Sunday we packed up the car and said our goodbyes before heading back to Raleigh. As if we haven't had enough bad luck already, Dad's car decided to get sick about 45 miles outside of Asheville. All signs lead to a dead alternator. We called for a tow and then began searching for someone who was willing to help us out on a Sunday. We knew we were hard pressed to find a way out of Hickory that same day. So we had the tow truck operator drop us off at a nearby hotel and asked him to take the car with him to his shop. We were initially told 1 week for an alternator but he said he could have one by Monday. Turns out, all we needed was a new battery. We learned that you can never trust the battery tester on the battery because ours said the battery was good.

Monday was supposed to be Mom's first day back to work. When she called in to tell her work the story they couldn't help but think she was trying to figure a way out of coming back. She reassured them it was true and she was in fact coming back to work. I'll save the details of going back to work for another post. It's a long story in itself.

Until then, enjoy a photo story from the weekend!

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

New Post Coming Soon!

Sorry for the delay in between postings but it has been a little crazy lately. We traveled to my uncle's wedding in Asheville, North Carolina over the weekend and got stranded on the side of the road on the way home with a sick car. When does the good luck streak begin?

This week will be a little hard as we try to get settled back in and Mom adjusts to her first day back to work in 12 weeks. I will have a video of the wedding and an update on the weekend by tomorrow night.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Buy It Here And Keep It Here!

For the second time in a month Mattel has issued a new recall on toys contaminated with lead paint that happen to be made from China. You can read the story here or listen to it here.

Here is a great kit that I found from Ace Hardware that helps to identify lead on most household items. You can even use it to test your baby bibs for lead. They have been known to contain lead.

Go local when at all possible!

Monday, August 13, 2007

Hanging Upside Down

Last week Mom and I went to see Dr. Bell for my 2 month chiropractic visit. I have been doing very good and only needed one minor adjustment in my neck. Mom and Dad think it is because of the way they see me sleeping. I guess I still don't have full control of my neck muscles and I tend to wake up with my neck at a 45 degree angle to my back. This problem may have been solved since I now sleep swaddled up tightly in my blanket. Dad calls me his little burrito! When I sleep I tend to squirm all over the place and flail my arms knocking Mom in the face while she naps. I guess she got tired of this and after reading The Happiest Baby on the Block decided to swaddle me to keep me from spiraling out of control.

Dr. Bell also suggested to Mom that she hang me upside down from my feet at least once a day. It is said that this helps to increase my IQ. I'm not sure that I am any smarter today than I was yesterday but I do enjoy the view.

On Tuesday of last week we went to the Museum to see Dad and his co-workers. They put together a welcoming party for me that included a beautiful chocolate cake, drinks and other snacks. It was so good to finally meet everyone. Thanks for the great gifts, we can't wait to use them!

Mom and I also went to the local La Leche League meeting and the baby wearers meeting last week. At LLL we got to meet other working moms and learned how they cope with life away from their children. Mom left with lots of resources and a few books to read. I start day care next week which also happens to be Moms first day back to work.

At the baby wearers meeting Mom got to see what cool carriers other moms had. She found one she liked and just had to get it. Dad likes it so much he even carries me around. Now that I have a little more head control, though still not enough to sleep correctly, I can face outward and see the world.

Before leaving the blog please be sure to vote on the latest poll question in the upper right hand section of the page

I look forward to seeing everyone at the wedding this weekend.

~Maya



Here is my Mei Tai Baby



Without the facial hair I'd say we look just alike.

Saturday, August 11, 2007

A Bear and His Friend

Meet my new friend Pooh.


Reading myself to sleep...

Goodnight room. Goodnight moon.
Goodnight air. Goodnight noises everywhere.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

When You Say Nothing At All




I thought I would recap the last 10 weeks of my life with a video tribute to all of the pictures Mom and Dad have taken so far.

Enjoy,

Maya

Monday, August 6, 2007

Gardening 101

Mom and Dad decided to introduce me to gardening early so tonight we went out and tended to our garden. Mom and Dad planted 6 red bell pepper plants and 12 tomato plants. Last week we must have had over 50 tomatoes ready to ripen and then almost overnight they were all gone. Mom saw deer tracks in and around the garden and knew Dad had made a mistake by not putting up a fence. We were lucky enough to rescue 2 green tomatoes that the deer dropped on the way out. We cut our losses and had fried green tomatoes for Grandma Mary's birthday while she was in town. Dad was fearful that we would loose our peppers before they turned red so we picked most of them and Dad made stuffed peppers for dinner. It sure smelled good! I can't wait until I can eat the produce out of our garden!



That pepper is almost as big as I am!

Sunday, August 5, 2007

Staying Cool!

To beat the heat Mom, Dad and I have been spending time at the pool. Yesterday we went to my friends 3rd birthday pool party and today we went over to one of our friends for dinner and a dip in their pool. I haven't gone under water yet but I do enjoy hanging on to Mom and swimming with her. We may begin an Aqua Moms class since I really love the water.


Mom went to Kid to Kid yesterday and got me my first Bikini!


Blue eyes + Strawberry Blonde Hair = One little squirt! If I do end up having red hair should I change my last name? Red Herring?

Baby enrichment

Grandma Mary and Kathleen came to visit last week. It was really great to have them down. Since we didn't have any AC in the house we spent most of our time at their hotel and pool. Thanks Grandma and Kathleen for allowing us the chance to get out of the sauna and enjoy some good food and company!



Here is the old AC (Air Handler) unit. It was 32 years old and as you can see in need of replacement. Our new unit is about 45% more efficient and the air quality inside the house is much better. Now I can breathe clean air and sleep in the cool breezes!!

Friday, August 3, 2007

Ten Reasons to Sleep Next to Your Child at Night

I found this article and wanted to share this quote with everyone. You can read the article by clicking on the link below.

A child who is cared for during the night as well as the day receives constant reassurance of love and support, instead of having to cope with feelings of fear, anger, and abandonment night after night. Children who have felt safe through the night as well as the day with a loving parent close by become adults who cope better with the inevitable stresses life brings. As John Holt put it so eloquently, having feelings of love and safety in early life, far from "spoiling" a child, is like "money in the bank": a fund of trust, self-esteem and inner security which the child can draw on throughout life's challenges.

- Jan Hunt

Ten Reasons to Sleep Next to Your Child at Night