2 1/2 Kelly & 7 Month Layla

KELLY (2 1/2Y) & LAYLA (7M)

This will be a joint post to highlight both of some of the sweetest little girls :)

Kelly Ruth turned 2 1/2 on Nov 18th. As with all Half-Birthdays, we celebrated with baked goods, this time we made fun-da-middle cupcakes, that didn't turn out perfect, but Kelly had a great time helping me. here are her stats:
Height: between 33-34 inches
Weight: 25-26.6lbs
Size: mostly 2T pants, 3T shirts
Diet: Everything, favorites are organic chocolate milk and anything candy lol!
Diaper size: Potty Trained! (excepttions--BM's...she had diarrhea last week, so things got messy, but she is better now, though, we are still working on poops)--2-3T panties :)
Kelly Loves: crafting! To celebrate Thanksgiving we make a turkey shirt!

She also loves going to the park, having dance parties, playing with other 2-5 year olds (and her little sister), taking baths, paying mommy & house with her babies, going potty (Q10mins, LOL), changing her clothes, having her hair brushed, doing everything herself & talking! Her vocab probably has well over 100 words now. She speaks in short phrases and short sentences. She loves going to the library, the zoo, shopping, and anywhere else she may score a suprise!

Kelly interacts well with adults and children of all ages, and animals. We read together, build with legos and blocks, and she pretends to do anything anyone else is doing. She is so energetic and luckily still takes her naps more times than she skips it. She of course eats with a spoon and fork, and has been practicing with toddler sized butter knives.


Naps: 1x after lunch, no later than 1:30pm, for 2+ hours
Bedtime: Start the rituals around 7pm, with bath, then cuddle and read 3 books, I lay down with her in her bed, we pray and thank God for all our blessings, then cuddle for maybe 5mins, I fill her 2 waters, and then she falls asleep. Last night we could hear her on the monitor practicing Happy Birthday mommy over & over again until she fell asleep. She also still sucks her thumb. 
Other: She knows most of her colors, and is starting to recognize letters. We will continue to work on it. She is still going to speech therapy 2x/week, so she doesn't know all the sounds quite yet, or rather cannot speak them, but she is getting there. We need to really work on shapes and counting too.

Mrs Layla Marie is getting so big! She is basically crawling (7 1/2 months). For a few days she would get on both knees and rock back and forth, then lunge forward onto her head, or just go backwards. But literally yesterday or today she started going forward. I feel like she is getting so old way too fast!!! Everyday when Kelly throws a fit, I look down at Layla, who I am usually holding and think Oh Baby, stay so sweet, PLEASE don't do this like your sis! But oh well, thats part of their learning and maturing.
Height: 25.5in
Weight: 13lbs 6oz...(gained 300g since 6 months...still 3rd %tile, Dr says its ok)
Size: 6-9months, some 3-6 months onesies still fit
Diapers: size 2

First Thanksgiving

Diet: still breastfed about 4-5 times/24hrs (early AM [4-5am], 9am, 12-1pm, 3-4pm, at bedtime usually) very occasionally a bottle of breast milk (I have so much frozen milk in the deep freezer, its ridiculous) anything we are eating I give her, either after I process into non-chokable size, or just give her and let her suck on it...she has had egg yoke and finally the whites and no allergies...still haven't given honey, but then again I never use honey for anything anyway. Still just has the 2 teeth, and still biting mommy, but I am over it.
Activities: She loves playing with anything, eating paper, sucking on everything, sitting up with toys, still enjoys her exercise saucer and sometimes her swing, loves baths & cuddling, loves-loves little rhymes and stories, loves watching her big sister and HoneyGirl, likes trying to pull self up to stand or holding onto our fingers so she can stand, babbles

looks like Daddy!

Other: She interacts well with everyone and anyone, but really only has eyes for mommy. We have hit the separation anxiety stage, so anytime I leave the room or she just can't see me she cries, even with Daddy there. I feel bad, but its a part of life. Kelly never went through this stage, at least not memorably, so its kind of hard to deal with sometimes. As long as she doesn't watch me walk out of the room, its fine.

Loves her Uncle Sam

Sleeping: wakes up about 6:30-7am (usaully 6:30), Still taking 2 naps a day, usually one short (0930am-35mins), one long (1:30-2:00pm for 1-2 hours), bedtime is 6:30pm, unless we are taking a late bath or get dinner started late, but no later than 7pm.

I love-love-love having my two babies! They are so wonderful, and even on the hard days, we have good times. I love them so much, I don't know what I would ever do without them! They are they light in my world! Thank you God for those girls!

Big Crawler

 

Attempting to update on IPod at work

Not sure how this will work but let's try it!

Still teaching Kelly the basics of going potty on the toilet-I'd say she is learning new tricks and hints everyday and definitely seems interested and "ready". She has had many,many accidents, mostly of the poop variety, loose, she doesn't make it on the toilet in time, then ends up with it all over the bathroom :( oh well. She did really good for a full night and day, so the reward was going to target to buy new panties, and she got very into it and was so excited, it was all she talked about all day! The teaching continues.

Layl is a little bugaboo. She is so great. She gets up on her hands and knees and rocks back and forth until she finally goes backwards. I don't think she's been able to go forward yet. And of course she does her down-dogs and up-dogs. I'd love it if she was crawling by my birthday, but we will see. She was letting me feed her stonyfeild farms organic yobaby. But is back refusing to be fed..instead I process whatever we are eating and let her try it. She has basically tried everything except straight up cow's milk, soy milk or honey. She doesnt seem allergic to anything.

I am the same as I was a few days ago, only even less motivated to run. Eh. I need something to train for or something. That plus the pain is really starting to take it's toll on me. Imam more moody and depressed. Maybe I need new or different dose of my Celexa? Idk. Oh but I did finally get an IUD. I went with the paragaurde, which is the copper one without hormones. it's just as effective, without having go have medicine. It's suppose to cause bleeding and cramping, but I've had absolutely none? Cramping yes, but hard to tell if it's my uterus or my stomach. Aa long as it will prevent me from getting pregnant, I'm not complaining! Aaron said the Other day, "well what if I want a boy later?" and I said "I would gladly try as long as he agreed to be a stay at home dad with him (or her!) and do everything. Otherwise forget it, I'm not doing it again." I don't think her was bengal totally serious, but who knows...probably won't be the last time we have that talk.

Hubby is the same as always. I wish we didn't argue about stupid things so much, we can both be so stubborn..I know I can, I take everything so personal and get very defensive, even when I have no reason too, it's my default..that and being passive-aggressive. I gotta work on this...it's going to be one of my birthday resolutions. My Golden Year will my year of change.

Other news, my mom got a job as a homecare & hospice CNA. Just parttime. I am really happy for her, now Colleen just needs to find somewhere to be a CNA. My brother Sean is at the house, I didn't realize how mch I missed him til he showed up last Friday. He is going with my mom, Ryan, and Dylan down to see Katie and her boys. For some reason I get jealous when my mom talks to her or makes plans like this. I don't know why I would feel this way about my sister and my nephews. I wish I could go! Idk. I hope they have fun. We are doing thanksgiving at Aarons parents' house after we run the turkey trot with Kendall, Brandon and their little baby Kennedy.

Ok it's now after 4, time to work :)

November Post

Since I only seem to post monthly, I suppose now is the time. Layla is 7 months now (separate post to come), Kelly is 2 1/2 today :)

Aaron has been working a lot, he's gone out to the field once for a few days and nights and then came home, on Day 1 of potty teaching for Kelly.

Kelly woke up one day and said, "Mommy, I want this, I want panties." so I said, ok, now we start. She did so awesome! We were out most of the day and she would use the potties and pee a little and stay dry. Everyday we start out fresh. Its frustrating, time consuming, dirty, and hard, but so worth it in the end. This week I had or perhaps still have, some sort of stomach virus with diarrhea, and Kelly must have caught it, or maybe I caught it from her bc whoa did she make some gigantic poop messes in her panties! ew! LOL (this will be graphic) Kelly's poop used to be round, not hard per-say but solid. Recently, its loose and runny. So, although I completely disagree with going back and forth between diapers to pull ups to panties and back again, I put Kelly in a pull-up today. She said "mommy, pink panties, I wanna wear panties!" And I explained, if she could keep herself dry and pee and poo in the toilet, she could wear panties.

She kept her PU dry all day and earned panty privlages! I just get nervous for poop messes, ew! lol we will see what happens.

So my job search continues. I have a few good leads for L&D and Mother/Baby at Evan Army Community Hospital, just waiting to hear back from my contact there who told her nurse manager about me. Hopefully my awesome cover letter and revamped resume impresses her enough to at least agree to talk to me. Aaron's Parents bought me a very stylish power blazer from Banana Republic, and I also got the trouser pants (skirt didn't seem appropriate) and a cute lavender colored blouse. And I got some black pumps from Target that finish it off...sooo, I am ready when they call!!!

I am still running, nearly everyday, but not my usual 5-6 milers. I only manage about 3-4. ::sigh:: Pain is my problem. My pubic bone and S-I joint paint are awful. I had more X-rays done and the show "bone degeneration in the pubic bone and sacrum, with pubic bone separation" So I have been continuing with Physical Therapy (1 or 2x a week), Motrin 800mg QID. I am not approaching it in a more holistical and alternative approach. I am researching and writing up a Holistic Plan for Bone Degeneration...here is a preview:

Holistic Plan for Degenerative Bones

By Mouth

·         Calcium: eating almonds, figs, dairy and soy products. Take a calcium supplement enriched with vitamin D for optimal calcium absorption. Additional bone benefits come from the plant estrogens contained in tofu.

·         glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin sulfate

·         fish oils

Body

·         Exercise: building muscle tone with weight-bearing and strength-training

o   Weight-bearing: Running

o   Strength-training: bands & weight lifting

Pain Relief

·         Alternating heat & cold

o   Heat for 20mins or longer

o   Cold for 20 mins or less

·         Acupuncture is also thought to decrease pain by increasing the release of chemicals that block pain, called endorphins.

o   Many acu-points are near nerves. When stimulated, these nerves cause a dull ache or feeling of fullness in the muscle.

o   The stimulated muscle sends a message to the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord), causing the release of endorphins (morphine-like chemicals produced in our own bodies during times of pain or stress).

o   Endorphins, along with other neurotransmitters (body chemicals that modify nerve impulses), block the message of pain from being delivered up to the brain

·         Massage

o   reduces stress and relieve tension by enhancing blood flow

·         Therapeutic touch and reiki healing

o   Thought to help activate the self-healing processes of an individual and therefore reduce pain

o   Healing touch is used to identify imbalances and correct a client's energy by a therapist passing his or her hands over the patient

·         Visualization

o   Try the following exercise: Close your eyes and try to call up a visual image of the pain, giving it shape, color, size, motion. Now try slowly altering this image, replacing it with a more harmonious, pleasing -- and smaller -- image.

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There is still more I need to research, such as how glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin sulfate and fish oil can do. And I have already been getting my eating in line--less junk, no candy or ice cream in the month of November, trying to get down to everything organic, but that's expensive so I make sure the important ones are for sure organic (milk, eggs, cheese, meat/poultry, stock, yogurt, and food for the babes, most fruits and vegetables (any that are available))

Any way, I have no idea where this post is going. There are 3 adults in the other room, drinking and arguing and being louder than loud.

I have a post coming on Layla's BIRTH day <3

I just love that baby so freakin much!!!! and Kelly is so fun, yes 2 years old is HARD, but we have so many good times! And her speech is getting so much better too, I love my physical therapist and kelly's speech therapists---they are making our lives better! 

ok more to come. I'm going to bed!