Almost back to normal

It’s been a very hectic couple of weeks. Mia’s ear infection really affected her sleep. A few nights she was inconsolable, then after the ear started feeling better she got a head cold from her allergies. For 12 nights straight, Mike and I had minimal sleep. One night I got up with her at 2:00 a.m. and never went back to sleep (that was a fun day at work), another night Mike stayed up with her until 4:00 a.m., then we switched. We’ve been like walking zombies. During all this we went to Gatlinburg for a weekend with Missy, SP and Cara. We had a great time during the day, but the nights were pretty miserable. Mia was very congested and it was hard to get comfortable sleeping with her in a bunk bed. The great news is that last night provided us some relief. She only woke up twice and immediately fell back to sleep. I’m hopeful we’re going to get her back into her routine and Mike and I will be able to get a full night’s sleep at least once this week!

In other wonderful news, Mia is in a new room at daycare with great teachers. I dropped her off yesterday and today, and I’m extremely comfortable with these women. They seem very devoted and caring, they offer lots of information about what Mia’s up to, and they also offer practical advice for a new mom. I’m so thrilled! She seems very happy in there and I have a good feeling that she will thrive in their care.

Mia has started a few new tricks these past few days. Now that she’s starting to feel better, it seems like she’s ready to get back in the swing of making baby progress.

• Although we always place her to sleep on her back, we very frequently find her sitting up in her crib playing with her toys now.
• She scoots herself around so much in her bed that she gets her legs caught through the crib rails. I had to buy a mesh bumper so she wouldn’t do that all night.
• The other day she started pulling up on her crib rails so we had to lower her mattress and remove her mobile.
• She stands at the ottoman to play with her toys, and on Sunday I realized she wasn’t holding on, but just standing there for a few seconds on her own. It wasn’t long before she fell on her bottom, but it was an accomplishment nonetheless!
• She’s now making clicking noises with her tongue. We actually enjoy doing it together. It’s our mother-daughter musical act.
• She mimics me when I clap my hands and say “yay”. Of course her “yay” is more like “eeehhhhhh”, but I get her point.
• She did a brief wave to me on Sunday, although she wouldn’t repeat it on demand. She’s not caught on to the “obey your father and your mother” commandment just yet!
• She’s still primarily crawling backward, although since Sunday she’s been moving herself forward one “step” before collapsing and rolling onto her back.

I really think things are starting to align for her. She’s feeling better, she’s in a new room at daycare and she got to hang out with Cara over the weekend and see how these crawling and waving things are supposed to work. It’s nice to see her back to her bouncy little self!

Mia’s social calendar is very full this week. She’s spending the evening with Granny and Grampy Hollkamp tonight, going to a Halloween party with Nana and Papa Wilson and Cara tomorrow night, a Halloween party at MODA on Thursday night, and visiting with Mamaw and Papaw Robbins at her Trunk or Treat party at daycare on Friday. There’s no question this little social butterfly is our daughter!

Daycare update

Mia will be moved to her new room at daycare on Monday. We’re relieved!

Daycare

We had another issue at daycare. Yesterday Carol went to pick her up and Mia was sitting in the floor in just a diaper, crying. I spoke to Tina, the director, about it today and told her Mike and I do not get good vibes from the teachers in her room. I told her there seems to be a huge breakdown in communication and that the late afternoon teacher can never answer any of my questions about why Mia is not wearing the outfit I put her in (did she get sick, have an accident, get food on her, etc.), where her paci is, where her car seat is, where her diaper bag is, what she did today, etc. She’s also crying a lot more when we get there, which I first attributed to a schedule change, then to her ear infection. I told Tina that Mia is a happy baby and it causes me anxiety when I continually find my little girl crying with caregivers that don't seem to know what's going on around them. Tina said they have had problems with the teachers in Mia’s room and she’s been trying to work with them but hasn’t been making progress. Tina actually asked if I’d like to have her moved. I thought her bringing it up was a big red flag that my answer should be yes. I spoke with my co-worker whose children were in the other crawler room and she said she loved those teachers. One of them still babysits for her at home on evenings and weekends. She said when her kids would be sent to Mia’s room in late afternoon (sometimes they combine the rooms late in the day once some go home), she would leave work early to go get them because she didn’t get good vibes from Mia’s teachers either. She said that if Tina offered to move Mia, move her. Tina said it may be a few weeks before they have an opening, but Mike and I have decided to do that. Hopefully it will ease some of the anxiety we’ve felt with her in that room.

Ear infection

My baby girl has an ear infection again. It was harder to figure out what was going on with her this time. She's been much more tired from her new schedule at daycare and she's had a runny nose for awhile due to allergens in the air. Friday night there was a chili cook-off at MODA, so she was off her schedule a bit. She wasn't her usual bouncy self, but I knew it could have been from a variety of factors. She didn't sleep well Friday night and yesterday morning it was clear she wasn't feeling well. She was fussy and slept all morning. Anytime I tried to put her down she would cry, so she spent the morning sleeping in my arms. Mike and I had plans to head to Lexington for the UK game with Jimi, Jaime, Matt and Allison. We'd been planning it for nearly a month. Since Mia didn't have a fever, Carol and Brent went ahead and picked up Mia so we could go to the game. Our friends arrived and we loaded up the car. As soon as I climbed into the backseat, Mike's phone rang. Carol said Mia's fever was 102. 4. We said good-bye to our friends and went to get our girl. 

We took her to the urgent care center and they confirmed an ear infection. We spent the evening cuddling her and monitoring her fever. At one point it rose to 104 and we were pretty anxious. But the doctor had said her actions were more important than the number on the thermometer and we were still able to rouse her and elicit a smile. We put her in bed with us so we could check her temperature frequently throughout the night. She never got very hot again. By this morning our smiley, babbling girl was back, just in time for her 8 month birthday. We'll continue to give her antibiotics for the next 9 days, but hopefully the worst is over. My poor little baby.

Swinging and sliding

We went to the park yesterday with the high school girls and their families. It was a smaller group than usual - Kim, Missi, Margo and me with our hubbies and kids. It was a gorgeous day and it was great to see all the kids. Miss Mia had her first adventure on the swing. She absolutely loved it, and laughed her hearty laugh over and over. I also put her on the slide a couple times, starting about halfway up and holding her as she slid down. She didn't enjoy that as much. 

Mia was very perky this morning, and played outside the bathroom while I got ready for work. Here's a picture I took of her as she played.

Crawling..backwards

Mia is crawling...backwards! Yes, she's up on all fours, moving herself backwards and side to side. She's not going forward yet, but I'm sure it's just a matter of time. She still prefers to sit and play, so I'm enjoying the peacefulness that comes with that while it lasts.

Mia is really into feeding herself these days. She grabs the spoon from me and shoves it into her mouth, twisting and turning it while globs of food drop all over her. It's pretty funny, and quite a mess. 

Mia seems to be adjusting to her new room at daycare. She's exhausted when she gets home, and it's all I can do to get her to stay up until 7:30 each night, but otherwise she seems to be doing well with the change. Mike and I aren't adjusting to her new room as well. We haven't really bonded with her new teachers, and don't have the same warm and fuzzy feelings when we leave her and pick her up as we did with her former teachers. We're hoping we'll warm up to them, but since we haven't, it makes it hard to know that's who's interacting with her all day. I try to remind myself that it's not as important that they get along with me as it is that they get along with Mia. As long as she's happy, that's all that matters. And so far, she seems happy. 

Transitions

Ms. Mia has had a busy and tiring couple of weeks. She participated in her first charity walk for the American Heart Association with Mommy and Daddy, Nana and Papa Wilson, Aunt Pat and cousins Sarah, Katie and Emily. It was a lot of fun. Another first was eating pancakes with Mommy! Of course Mia got no butter or syrup, but she loved them all the same. She’s doing great with solids, so we’ve started introducing mixed baby foods and some other harmless table foods.

Mia has completely transitioned to the crawler room at daycare. It was a huge disruption for her and last week was pretty rough. Her teachers were so sad to see her go. Ms. Elizabeth even crocheted a baby blanket for Mia, and there were tears shed by all of us on her last day with them. They clearly loved Mia from the start and that made it so much easier for us to leave her there each day. Her teachers were all blessings to us and we will never forget them. Mia’s new room has a defined schedule, so the babies are doing the same things at the same times. Mia now gets only a short nap in the morning and a two-hour nap from 12:30-2:30, so when I pick her up she is exhausted. She likes shorter, frequent naps. They are doing a good job with her, but the schedule has been an adjustment. Last week she didn’t sleep well at night because she was so out of sorts, but the past two nights there has not been a peep out of her from 7:30 p.m. until 7:00 a.m.!

Mia and I have also been battling allergies. We’ve both been congested, coughing and sneezing. I’ve taken Ben@dryl to knock me out at night, but she’s been fine without medicine. Hers seems to be clearing up on its own.

Mia is ready to be more mobile. One part of our daily routine is that I sit in the chair with my knees propped up on the ottoman, and put her on my lap, facing me. We talk and play games and sing songs. But she’s getting restless and is not satisfied to just sit and talk to me anymore. She wants the remote or the phone or wants a drink from my cup or to pet the dogs. I’m very aware that we’re transitioning to a different era, and my little baby will no longer be happy just sitting in my lap, looking at me. Although I will always be happy to see her learn and grow, it makes me sad that I’m losing a time with her that has been so very precious to me.

I told Mike the other day that we are going to have to have another child, because I love Mia so much that I will smother her if she’s the only one we have. I am so consumed with her. I think about her all day, wondering what she’s up to. When I’m at home with her, I just sit and stare at her while she’s playing. I talk to her, sing to her, make faces to get her to smile. At this age, it’s great to be this into her, but one day she’ll want to hang out with other kids, or stay the night with someone and if she’s my only focus, I think I’ll worry myself crazy. I have had no problem leaving her when Mike and I have things going on with MODA or when we go on a date, but that’s because she’s with our parents. What will I do when she wants to stay the night with some kid and I can’t be there?! I will be worried sick! I won’t even leave her at the gym daycare for an hour because I worry something will happen to her while I’m on the treadmill. So yeah, we’ll have to have another child so Mia and every breath she takes will not be my sole focus for the rest of our lives.

Speaking of that, I did my progesterone test last week and the levels came back elevated. The doctor said that with my levels as high as they were, there was a good possibility I was already pregnant again. I’m not due to start until tomorrow, so I haven’t missed a period, but all pregnancy tests have come back negative. She said when we do get pregnant again, I need to come in immediately for hcg tests every 48 hours, take progesterone supplements, and get ultrasounds to monitor the fetus. I love her. She takes really good care of me.

Mike and I celebrated our two-year wedding anniversary on Monday. We stuffed ourselves at the Melting P0t. It was so yummy! We've had so many changes these past two years, but I can't imagine going through all this with anyone but him. We are well-suited for one another and I'm very blessed to have him as my partner. I love you Mikey!

In other news, Margo and Grant found out they are expecting a baby girl! She will be almost one year younger than Ms. Mia, which Margo and I find cool since she is almost one year older than me. They will be great friends for sure! Melissa and Derek are expecting Woodson any day now. We have a Girls Group family outing planned this Sunday and we aren't sure they'll make it until then. Good luck!