5 Months Old!

      I cannot believe my sweet baby is 5 months old! She is 16 lbs 8 oz (75th percentile) and 26 in. long (50th percentile). She is transitioning from size 3-6 Month clothes to size 6-9 Month clothes. She wears size 2 diapers and size 1 shoes. We have moved her from drinking every 4 hours at daycare to every 3 hours, she was just getting too hungry in between feedings. So now she eats 5 oz every 3 hours at daycare, and she nurses about every 3 hours at home. We are finally through the 4 month sleep regression!! It lasted over a month: from about 3.5 months old until about a week ago! She now goes to bed around 7 and sleeps until 2-3 am. Then gets up at around 6 to start her day every day, like clockwork. So she is only waking to feed 1 time during the night now. She sleeps in her crib for her long stretch from 7 until 2-3, but then sleeps in our bed for the remainder of the night.

     We had hoped to wait until 5-6 months old to begin "solids" with her, but she got RSV at about 4.5 months old, and she was so congested she couldn't drink very well, so we introduced rice cereal to help her get what she needed. She still is learning and isn't entirely fond of eating from a spoon. We have found that she won't take the cereal at all if we make it thin and soupy, she likes it to be pretty thick, but even then, she still would prefer breastmilk or formula to cereal, which is fine since babies are supposed to get the majority of their nutrition and calories from formula or breastmilk until at least 1 year old! :) But she does eat about 3 tablespoons of cereal per day for dinner each night. Contrary to all the old wives-tales, cereal before bed does not make a baby sleep through the night! ;)

     Her sister loves her more every single day. I cannot express how full it makes my heart to watch the bond between Rylee and Payton grow and grow. Rylee will do anything for her baby sister. She spends more of her time at home playing with/taking care of baby sister than she does playing by herself. This is a big deal for my independent child! Payton is getting so strong and so active, now! She can sit unsupported for about 30 seconds to a minute at a time. It seems she can do more each day, and I think that is something that Rylee really enjoys. She loves interacting with her now that Payton will play back.

  I love you to the moon and the stars, my sweet girl. I have never met a baby as happy and sweet as you are! I seriously feel like I hit the lottery and ended up with the best baby ever (Don't worry I always told Rylee she was the best baby ever, too! They both were/are!) I can't wait to see what you become! Actually, I can wait, so if you could slow down on all this growing up you have been doing, that would be great!! :)

Payton's First Valentine's Day

      Our Valentine's celebrations started Thursday with the girls' class parties and my class "party" at school. The girls had a blast, and Rylee was so proud to pass out her valentines to all her friends.

     Friday was Valentine's Day. When the girls got home, we gave them their gifts: giant stuffed animals and a balloon each. They both loved them, especially the balloons! Payton sat and played with hers for over an hour. It was funny watching her try to catch the balloon. Ryan got me roses and made me a chocolate cake. It was perfect! Payton had an amazing first Valentine's Day and even passed out in her high chair during her dinner due to all the excitement.

     Yesterday, the girls went to Nonna's for the day and we went to Memphis. We went to lunch, ran some errands, and then we were going to browse some car lots because I have been needing something bigger than my Cobalt ever since Payton was born. I had good idea of our monthly budget and had done some research on some full size sedans and some SUVs, but we really weren't sure if we'd buy anything yesterday or not. But we did! I got a 2013 Hyundai Sonata SE with lots of extras. I love it! It is a full size sedan and has a lot more space than my Cobalt, and a bit more space than Ryan's Avenger. It drives and handles amazingly and the best part is I was super comfortable driving it right away (which is a big deal for me). We got a good deal with payments that we could afford, and they gave me a good price for my Cobalt. It was sad to say goodbye to Cheryl, but now I have Veronica. :)

Bailey is 4!

     I cannot believe my sweet Bailey Anne is 4 years old! In Rylee's words, Bailey had "the best birthday party ever!" We had a little bit of snowfall overnight before her party, but the sun came out and pretty much cleared the roads before party time and we ended up having a wonderful time.

      Rylee adored the party hat. She thought it was so much fun to wear! Payton enjoyed the snuggles. She was battling RSV and a bacterial infection, so she wasn't feeling 100%, but she loved all the hugs and kisses she was getting.

      Bailey got so, so many great gifts. She is one spoiled little lady! Chuck's dad even came in dressed up in an elephant costume because the kids said they wanted an elephant at the party. How cool is that?! Rylee and Bailey LOVED "Ella the Elephant." 

    After presents and cake, they turned on the air compressors and up came the bouncy house. The kids bounced and bounced until we had to go to make room for another child's birthday party. I would say this party was a 100% success.

      I love my sweet Bailey-girl to the moon! She is the spunkiest, silliest, sassiest, prettiest, best 4-year-old I know! I loved the time I had with her living under the same roof, and I feel like she and Rylee are sisters more than cousins. But if you ask Rylee, she'll simply say, "Bailey is my best friend!" :)

This Madness We Call Life...

      We have still yet to have a "normal" week, but I'm learning to appreciate each day for what it is and trust that God is teaching me something through the madness. As soon as we got Payton back to school after having croup (She was in the ER on a Monday night, she was able to return to school on that Wednesday), Rylee got sent home because she threw up and had a rash. I took her to the Dr. and it turned out she had Roseola, she had been through the contagious part of the virus already and was able to return to school that Thursday, but by then I had missed 2 days that week, and my classroom routine was well off...

     The following Monday was MLK, Jr. Day, so we had the day off from school. Ryan called me about 2 to tell me his boss was sending him home from work. He had fever and chills. By 8 PM the stomach flu had reared it's ugly head and he was sick nonstop until Thursday evening, and was off Friday, too, as a recovery day. My school days were back on schedule, but home life was hectic. I was running nonstop taking care of the girls by myself and trying to help Ryan in any way I could. I was also trying desperately to avoid and cross contamination to keep the girls and myself healthy. Friday night, Ryan was better and the girls and I were still well, so I thought I had been successful.

    Saturday morning, Payton threw up twice and she had some terrible diapers for the rest of the day. It's hard to tell what's going on with babies because honestly, they spit up and poop so often, that it's hard to tell when it's sickness or just normal. I waited to see what was going to happen, and she began coughing a little, and her nose was running, so I didn't think it was the stomach flu. I woke up with a sore throat and cough on Sunday, so I had Ryan take Payton to get her checked out to make sure it wasn't anything we should keep her home from school for. The Urgent care Dr. didn't do any bloodwork, so we didn't know if she had a virus, but he examined her throat and listened to her chest and basically said it was cold, and she was fine to go to school.

     So we started off Monday like any other Monday. Then around 2, I got a text from Rylee's teacher that her stomach was hurting. Then at 3, they called me to let me know she was throwing up. Ryan picked her up immediately, and I went later to get Payton. It had occurred to me that Payton may have had the stomach flu Saturday, but I didn't want to risk her getting it from Rylee if she hadn't had it already. School was called off on Tuesday because of a subzero windchill, so I was thankful I didn't have to use one of my sick days to stay home with Rylee. Then Tuesday morning, I woke up with the stomach flu and I realized I was the last one to get it. Ryan then Payton then Rylee then me. I was relieved in a way that I had it, so that it could just be done. It was easier on me and the girls than it was for Ryan and never lasted for more than 24 hours for any of us. Wednesday we returned to school, only to find the boiler was down and our heat was out. Luckily, there was enough hot water left in the boiler to keep some areas of the building comfortably warm, so we kept all students in the warm areas and the heat was fixed by lunch time. By the end of the day everyone was able to be in their own classrooms and schedules were resumed, but the morning was pretty hectic. Thursday and Friday were pretty much on schedule, but we are dealing with a difficult time at our church. We are praying for guidance and clarity on the situation.

     Friday night, we went to dinner as a family and just enjoyed that for the moment all of us are well. And today, we are trying to catch up on everything that got put on the back burner while we were just trying to get by these last few weeks. Most of all, we are just enjoying our time together. I love my little family.