It's been a long time

No posts since July? I didn't think it had been that long. I was looking at a friend's blog, noticing how she keeps her blog so well maintained with updates about her child. I pondered to myself why I am not blogging anymore. I guess I assume I am too busy, that if I have time to blog then I probably have time to be doing something else (i.e. cleaning or studying.) As you may or may not know, I have started school again. I am taking human physiology and microbiology this semester in hopes of completing all of my prereqs and entering the PA (physician associate) program next summer.

We started going to a new church and helping with the youth. I'm very excited about that and happy to have a regular place of worship where I feel like we can grow as a family. I am not sure Naomi is enjoying her time in the nursery. That concerns me, so I think i will sit in there with her Wednesday and Sunday. I would volunteer to work in the nursery, so I could be with her more, but from past experiences I am not very good with kids. Seriously. Plus, I know I would play favorites and would give Naomi more attention than the other kids.

Naomi has her first birthday Wednesday. How exciting? She has really grown and changed and I'm excited that we are always entering new territory with her. She is walking better with each day and getting into something new everyday. She had more allergy tests today and goes for her vaccines tomorrow. I have been maintaining a list of questions for the doctor because I feel like I haven't been in so long. On the list are concerns about: lead poisoning, wheat allergies and is Naomi too tall to ride backward in her car seat? Also, back to the vaccines, I have been thinking about how grateful I am that we are able to vaccinate our children in this country. With all of the concerns with autism, and I am not brushing those off by any means, it is something to truly appreciate that we are able to protect our children from certain diseases. Many people throughout the world do not have that luxury and numerous children do not make it to age 1 or age 5 because they die of diseases that have been all but eradicated in western countries. Anyway, that's my moment of thankfulness about vaccines.

Naomi's party is this weekend. I am super excited to see friends and family. Everyone is asking us about gifts and we are doing pretty well and don't need much. I am just excited to see everyone and celebrate this milestone with them.

I am praying that this week goes relatively smoothly with work, party planning, doctor's appointments, plus classes and a test. I pray that your weeks (and the last few months) are going well. Hope to see you this weekend!

Sorry no posts

I'm sorry I have not been posting much. There is a ton going on right now. I will have to post about it later. Basically, my excitement for Naomi to start day care has turned to dread and grief. We are examining some options, but thus far the day care just doesn't seem to be working out. Please pray for us.

I'm a coffee drinker

I have taken to drinking coffee. I had quit for several years since it seemed to hurt my stomach and may have been linked to my migraines. But I have convinced myself I can't function without a morning cup of joe...jazzed up, sugared up cappuccino. Even though Naomi has still been sleeping through most nights (which is so fabulous), I can't seem to get to bed on time and/or I am so exhausted when it is time for Naomi to wake up for breakfast. Seven in the morning comes so early. It's really not so bad, but I have spent a couple years working a very erratic work schedule and attending classes at odd hours. I used to love mornings and now, I like to sleep until at least 10. So, now I need my coffee. I'm not even sure it helps, but I insist on drinking it anyway.

Outside of my new coffee fetish, I have been trying to eat healthier. Cut out soda. Drink more water. Eat more fruits and veggies. Eat breakfast and smaller portions. Plus exercise. On top of just wanting to have more energy and relieve stress, I swear I still look five months preggers, so I have to get in the gym. It's so frustrating because I weigh less than I did before, but my stomach is all out of wack. I should be exercising right now.

Today, I let Naomi go swimming. She got all suited up, and we splashed around in the baby pool on the porch. It was too hot to sit her out in the sun. It was so fun. She is getting big. She will be 9 months old next week, but she looks much older than that. She looks like a toddler, especially when she is attempting to stand on her own. Oh, what fun times.

It's a family thing

The last few months have been rough without consistent child care, but I am so thankful for my family who have been helping to watch Naomi while Robbie and I go to work. They have been such a huge help. I am sure I have been abusing my poor sister who recently graduating and is "looking" for a job. She has been recruited to watch Naomi on a variety of days because she is the only one who isn't working or ill. So instead of working on her graduate school apps and hang out during the summer she is keeping Naomi out of trouble and changing diapers (he he.) Yeah, so my family is pretty cool. But at the end of the month we should have something permanent. Yay!! And finally!!

Home buyer's education class Friday. So excited. I have been browsing Zillow just to see what's out there. The class is free and is a one time class. Let me know if you are interested in learning more. 

I haven't mentioned this, but Naomi's eczema is a lot better. She isn't scratching anymore and it's not dry and cracking like before. That $90 cream, which somehow came out to be $45, really helped. Things are going pretty well. She's still doing well with her food, too: bananas, blueberries, apples and lots of mixtures like apples and squash. 

Social butterfly

Naomi is our little social butterfly. People always tell us how wonderful she is, that she never cries and that she is so cute. It helps that she goes to pretty much everyone and smile and laughs with anyone who will share her joy. I'm not saying all this to brag. But I'm excited that my little one has such wonderful social skills and that she is a "good" baby. I hope she continues to be confident and loving toward people and that people see beauty in her. 

She is still sleeping through the night, and is even crying less. Now that we are passed the initial phase of putting her in the bed and letting her cry it out, I am able to rock her a little and rub her back before putting her in the crib sleepy, but awake. Then, she quietly drifts off to the sleep. I'm still so happy that she is getting rest. It really has been such a blessing for her to start sleeping through the night. We functioning better as a family, and things don't seem as difficult. They run a bit more smoothly and happily. Now, if only I could get to bed at a decent hour. See, instead of going to bed early now that Naomi is resting, I stay up until 2 a.m. or so surfing the Web, watching TV or just thinking about stuff. Check the time stamp. I really got a do better because I still have to wake up at 6 or 7 to feed Naomi breakfast. One day, I'll start eating breakfast, too.  

But I really do need to go ahead and go to bed right now because we have a graduation in the morning. My friend graduates from pharmacy school. How exciting!

To be free

Even babies don't like people encroaching on their freedom. Last week, I put up a safety gate between the living room and the kitchen. Naomi immediately came up and studied the gate, knocking on it and staring at it, trying to figure out how she could get through. It kept her out of the kitchen--for a while. But the sides of the gate were poorly constructed and the next day she knocked and knocked until she knocked it down. She crawled right in despite my earnest efforts to keep her out. There's really nothing for her to play with in there and the kitchen floor is one place that I'm never really sure is clean. So that gate got taken back to the store. But we haven't gotten a new one.

A few days later, I tried to "trap" her in her room. She seems fascinated with an old floor vent in the hallway. Again, I do not know what is so fascinating about it, especially when she has dozens of colorful, musical toys in her room. The old vent does nothing. It's old, dusty and has holes that I seem no point in her playing with. So I tried to keep her playing in her room by putting two ottomans in the doorway. She waits until I go a few yards away to the bathroom, then comes up and bangs on the ottomans trying to get out. She was playing nicely until she felt her freedom disappear from the room.  She got so flustered by the trappings that I had to pick her up and just remove the ottomans. ... I know why the caged bird sings...

Home sweet home

I think it's the desire of every person to have a home of their own, or at least a place to call home. I have really been wanting to buy a house. So we can stop renting and have a place that we are investing in. So we can decorate the way we want. So we will have a place that will just be ours (and the banks of course.) And that $8,000 tax credit isn't too bad either. 

We briefly started looking at houses last spring, but decided to wait until we had more money for the monthly mortgage and the down payment and closing costs. I'm sad to say, but we have not made much progress on saving for these things. We have saved some, but with the recession and mounting medical bills and other costs, it is difficult to save much. So, I have again started looking at home buying information. This time I've been focusing on how we can roll the down payment in or find first-time home buyer grants. It's all very confusing. There are a lot of logistics and terminology that I don't really understand. And I'm not sure if we should continue waiting or go ahead and buy (again that $8,000 is really attractive and would allow us to pay off those other bills.)

I would say perhaps we could buy a cheaper, basic house right now and just stay there for a few years. However, we are not buy one house move to a bigger house later people. We are buy one house that we really love and stay there until we die or have to move people. Plus, my number one concern with where we buy a house is what school district it is in. I applaud Oklahoma City Public Schools in what headway it has made in improving its schools, but no offense, I still do not want my daughter to go there. 

Anywhere, we are signed up to take a home buyer's education class, so we will see how it goes. 

An update

In other news, Naomi is almost 8 months old. Saturday will be the day. We have all been pretty sick the last few weeks so I haven't had much time to post. Within a matter of weeks (or days it seemed at times) Naomi has started crawling, pulling herself to a seated position and standing while holding onto something. We have some videos, but they are not loaded on the computer and I'm not sure how to upload them here. But perhaps I will try to load them at a later date. (I'm a smart girl, I can figure it out.)

Also, Naomi has been sleeping through the night for almost a whole week now. With one exception: the night she came home late from my mom's she got "stuck" in a corner which I assume is what woke her up or it could be that she didn't go to bed on time. Alas, after hours of "fighting" her to go to sleep one night, I decided we were doing her a disservice by rocking, singing and bouncing her to sleep. We were doing the most to try to help her go to sleep and still she was crying and fretting and waking up every couple of hours. Even though, I do not like putting her in her crib and letting her "cry it out," (it is 20 minutes of agony, watching the clock and wondering if she is really okay,) it seems to be working for her. She started sleeping through the night immediately. I am happy that my husband and I are getting sleep, but I'm even happier knowing that her sleep isn't as broken and that she is getting a good night's rest that will help her with her development. I hope this progress continues and that it spreads to her nap time.

A weekend in the ER

The better part of yesterday was spent on the phone with doctors and in the emergency room. Naomi had another allergic reaction. This time to milk-based formula. Her face and body swelled with hives and a rash. Pretty sad to see your daughter look like that. She had tried that type of formula before, but it didn't agree with her so we started using soy-based. However, last time she did not have that type of extreme reaction, so we were told to try it again at a later date. It was quite a surprise to see the hives growing in number on her little body. Coupled with vomiting and crying, the situation was pretty intense. I think I started to panic after I gave her Benadryl and didn't see any relief. The medicine worked quickly with previous allergic reactions, but this time things seemed to continue to get worse. But after talking to the doctor on call at her doctor's office (which was after we already took her to the ER) and talking with personnel in the ER, it seems the key thing to look for is breath problems. However, I didn't want to wait until she was having breathing problems, as I was worried it might be too late by then. Things escalate quickly with allergic reactions and I didn't know what to expect. Plus, she had a cold recently and I wasn't sure if she was breathing hard or just more congestion.

Anyhow, it was very stressful, but she seems to be doing better now. The swelling went down and she seems to be happy once more. But the question remains: what does this mean for her and us? Does it mean no milk, cheese, ice cream, pizza or lasagna ever, or just not until she's older? I guess I will have to ask her doctor next time we go in, which isn't supposed to be until she's 1.

I'm still happy that she's been doing well with the rest of her food. She seems to love anything that's introduced to her, fruits and veggies, alike. I will be skipping introducing anything else new this week since we had such a traumatizing Saturday.

First Mother's Day brings other firsts

My first Mother's Day was spent taking care of a sick baby. Day care seemed to go well this week, until a few days later Naomi is feverish, vomiting, coughing and sneezing. I took her to the urgent clinic yesterday and learned she had an ear infection and a cold, likely picked up from another baby. This is her first ear infection. Even though, she seems to be going right along playing and smiling, it has been no fun for my husband and me -- cleaning up messes, forcing medicine and missing even more sleep.

I dread sending her back to the day care, but feel limited as far as my options. I tried to seek ways to keep her from getting sick at day care, but so far all I've found is that illness is inevitable in those types of situations. But, I've found, it should help her build her immune system. She also seemed to enjoy playing with the other babies. This is her first real experience with being around other babies, especially playing with them for several hours. She has her own crib and access to many more toys than we have at home. I just hope she is better by the time she has to go to day care again, so that her immune system is ready to fight off more germs, or I might have to take off work.

By the way, that other day care I went to look at didn't pan out. Let's just say it wasn't what I was looking for.

A day out

Today Naomi started going to a part-day day care. It's a mother's day out/children's day out program at a church. It's a temporary solution since we have been unable to find full time, quality and affordable day care. We have been looking for 4 months now. By the way, Naomi turned 7 months old last week. So as far as I can tell her first day went well. She did seem to be sneezing a bit more and have red, puffy eyes once she got home. But the weather has been crazy, so perhaps it's allergies. The day care also doesn't use hypoallergenic laundry detergent, so we are going to be providing our own crib sheet.

Finding a day care is a little nerve wracking. I called once in the middle of the day and was somewhat nervous about leaving her, but she didn't cry or even seem to notice we were gone. She just got down in the thick of things with the other babies and found some toys to play with. As long as I'm busy at work (which I always am) I don't have much time to worry about if she is okay or all the things that could go wrong and did I remember to tell them this or that. I even typed up an informational sheet on Naomi because frequently she seems to be "changing hands" and being watched by a variety of people since we don't have a permanent child care provider (outside of ourselves of course.)

Tomorrow I'm going to look at another day care that said they have a space (plus they are within our price range and it's not far from my job.) I'm not sure if I'll like it. I had passed it several times, but was skeptical about calling. It looks more like a house than a center, though it is categorized as the latter, and if you have talked to me about day cares you know I'm skeptical about home child care providers. From my news readings, they are where a lot of the "shady" business happens. But who knows? Maybe it will be an answer to prayers. I really like 2 or 3 of the others, but they don't have any openings until later in the year.

What's new? This past week Naomi has been getting better at rolling from her back to her stomach. She could already roll the other way, from her stomach to her back. So she has become a terror when you try to change her diaper, flipping this way and that with her little dirty tush in the air.

She's still not crawling, yet. But she seems so eager to learn and is always up on her knees attempting to lunge forward. She hasn't quite figured it all out, though, how to make those arms and knees coordinate one after the other.

She seems to have really taken to solid foods. She gets so excited and will grab the spoon and the container of food from you and gets upset if you aren't feeding her fast enough or the bowl gets empty. We have gone through all the cereals and vegetables with only one problem with a certain type of cereal. Next week we will be starting fruits and then, maybe, some juices.

Not sleeping through the night still. But last week she went 3-4, sleeping through the night three days and not on four. But she's been going to bed earlier, so I think that's good.

She visited a dermatologist about her eczema. I'm not sure that he told me much I didn't already know, which is why I didn't want to go in the first place. He told us it was okay to bathe her daily as opposed to every couple of days, which is apparently "old school advice" as he said. We just need to moisturize her skin right afterward, which we were. It's really been doing a lot better, just not perfect. The other new thing he did was give us a new prescription topical cream ... that costs $90 after insurance (before: $300). So yeah, I'm calling him back to see if there's anything else we can try first or if he feels that is the only thing that will work.

I really have to write here more often, so all these thoughts don't build up. But I can honestly say I don't have much time. Go figure.

From sleepyland

As some of you may not Naomi is is nearing 7 months old and she still does not sleep through the night. So I’ve been doing “research” about how to help her do this so my husband and I can stop being daytime zombies. The number one method that I have found is best known as “crying it out.” As I've mention before but I am not a proponent of this method. I tried it for a week and honestly felt like it was a nightmare and that it made everything worse. I don't understand how crying yourself to sleep is equivalent to "soothing" yourself to sleep. Plus when Naomi gets upset and cries she scratches herself and further irritates her eczema (which is likely another source of her/our sleep woes.) So, I’m trying some other options first, but we may have to reluctantly retry the crying method.

So far, the most important thing I’ve found in my sleep research is babies need to go to bed early — 7 or 8 p.m., even as early as 6:30 p.m. This was such a surprise for me because we were putting Naomi in bed about 11 p.m. or midnight or even 1 a.m., right before we went to bed. I work pretty late on some nights and don't get to spend much time with Naomi, so it was nice to see her still hanging around when I got home.

Also, I guess the thought process was that the later she went to bed the later she would wake up. Not so says my research. We were more than likely making her overtired and too fussy to sleep. We’ve started putting her to bed earlier. The first night I saw some success. She briefly woke up at 11 p.m., but quickly returned to sleep. The other nights she sleeps until about 3 a.m., which if you count from 8 or 9 p.m. is six or seven straight hours, and acts like she doesn't want to return to sleep. I am hoping to weed this out, but I'm not quite sure how yet.

By the way, in reference to sleepyland, it seems I'm usually the sleepy one, not Naomi.

Briefly on traveling with a baby

I seem to be going longer and longer between posts. So here's the latest: Last weekend we took Naomi to Houston. It was a minor disaster. She got tired of being in her car seat, I guess, and was wailing on the trip down. It was a six hour trip, so that's to be expected. I was ready to get out of my seat, too. We made several stops, but at points we were stuck in traffic. And I don't care how briefly, I refuse to take a baby out of a car seat while a car is in motion because an accident can happen any second. You just never know. But she did better on the way back. But I still don't want to take her anywhere for a while.

And I've been going to day cares on my off days. I found something maybe part time, meaning 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter!

It seems I have not posted here in so long. I started writing for another blog and have been busy in general. So just a few quick, random thoughts:

Day care. I'm so stressed out about finding day care. We are on the waiting list for four or five centers, so we are just waiting. I am going to try to keep looking and hopefully find something else we like that can get us in sooner, especially since I recently found out that the person who watches Naomi on Friday won't be able to do it starting at the end of May. I'm praying for patience and an opening.

Joy. So, part of the reason I started this blog was to focus on the simple joys in life. I am always so surprised by the amount of joy others seem to have despite their circumstances. Someone I know recently wrote on Facebook that at times they feel their life is too good to be true. I think that is so amazing. Honestly, it blew me away when I read that. I really want that type of joy, peace and happiness in my life. Praying for that, too.

Fires. Speaking of circumstances. My heart is just broken for those who have lost their homes to the recent wildfires. I am going to make some calls Monday about where center's are accepting baby clothes and blankets. Though, I don't have much money, I at least might have some baby stuff to give.

Food. Naomi started barley cereal this week. She broke out in hives, so we had to quit that. Perhaps we will try it again later. We tried carrots and those are going well. Sweet potatoes next. I also want to try giving her just a plain cracker to suck on.

Easter. I wish I could say I'm excited about Easter (the holiday, itself). But I don't feel as excited as I have been in previous years. But I'm still so thankful for the sacrifice of Christ and want to see Him move even more in my life and the lives of those around me.

Photos. At last a picture that shows Naomi's teeth. Sorry so delayed.

Doctor's visit

The doctor's appointment went well -- 14 pounds 8 ounces and 27 inches. And she didn't cry too much when she got her shots. Two nurses did them at the same time, so they wouldn't have to stick her more than once. No more shots for six months. Yay! The doctor did say we should try to put Naomi to bed earlier. No more hanging out with us until 11 p.m. or midnight.

A collection of thoughs

Birthday. Tomorrow, which will be today by the time I'm finished writing this, Naomi will be a half year old. To celebrate, she will be getting another round of vaccinations. Fun, right?

Skin. Yesterday, Naomi came home with blood all over her face and clothes. She looked like she had gotten into a fight. If, I didn't know she was notorious for scratching her face (she has eczema) then I would have thought something had happened. Her face had been doing pretty well recently. But yesterday she got upset while riding in her car seat and I guess she decided to take her frustration out on her face. It is hard to see your child like that. I know it itches and I've tried all I know to do to help. I wish I could make it better for her. Next stop will likely be the dermatologist.

Daddy's home. My hubby is back. He went on a trip with his youth group. We missed him and are glad to have him home.

Pictures. I've been wanting to take Naomi to get another round of professional pictures (for Easter), but the weather keeps raining/snowing on my plans.

Solid food. This week, if I haven't already mentioned this, we are moving on to try other types of cereal. Naomi has mastered the rice. It's time to try oatmeal. Then, barley, then on to veggies ...

How sweet it is

Are you sleepy
Are you sleepy
Naomi
Naomi
Go to sleep right now
Wake up with a smile
Go to sleep
Go to sleep

How sweet, yet maddening, it is to have lullabies stuck in your head. The lyrics above are stuck in my head today. My mom was singing Naomi to sleep and this was her remix. But usually I have some variation of Ol' McDonald or Twinkle Twinkle Little Star stuck in my head. A simple song can put a lot of joy in your heart, if it doesn't drive you crazy first.

What's new

The latest developments: This week I've seen Naomi pass a toy from one hand to the other and she's pulling her feet toward her face. She is eating rice cereal very well. Once or twice a day. Next week, we are moving on to oatmeal or barley cereal. I keep forgetting which one comes first in the food hierarchy. Then, carrots and other orange veggies. Plus, we got her a Precious Planet Jumperoo. I think it is a hit. Though, she doesn't seem to know quite what to do yet or how to turn around.

When I grow up

Lately, I've become fascinated with all the possibilities in Naomi's future. Who will she be? What will she do? Will she become a beautiful ballerina, a photographer or an enteurpreneur, or all three? Maybe, she'll be the doctor who finds a cure for cancer? Will she love music? Maybe, she'll be a rapper like her daddy. Will she love math or will she be a history buff? Will she shun my yellow and brown nursery decor in favor of pink, frilly designs? Will she come to know the Lord and do great works for Him? I fantsy that she will do many wonderful things, and even if she never becomes the first ... whoever ... or the best ... whatever ... she will be wonderful just being herself.

Hooray for sunflowers

Something green for St. Patty's Day

I guess you could say I'm green when it comes to the green movement. I don't know if my emphasis translated properly, I intended to imply that I'm new to green consciousness and don't know a lot about it. To say the least, I'm shocked to find the number of recycled and upcycled products that are available. Upcyclying is the practice of taking something that is disposable and transforming it into something of greater use and value. I didn't know what upcycled meant until recently, and it's not even in some dictionaries, so I figured I would explain. The products, such as the Mandala on Pink linen bag seen above, often are amazing beautiful despite their humble origins. I found it via HeySusy* at Envirosax. They sell designer reusable bags, one of which I've been considering getting to carry a small number of groceries, so that plastic bags don't end up stuffed in my cabinet waiting to be used as a trash bag and then tossed in a land field somewhere. They are as low at $8.50 on Envirosax, but I think I've seen $1, although plain, versions at drugstores.

Another amazing find that I'm craving right now: Pixiebell Elfinwear on Etsy. Seen below is the Slouch Hat in Apple Blossom. If only I had a reason to wear one in the warm, spring weather. Well, I guess I could have used it during last week's snowstorm. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

She's good with her hands

Dexterity: readiness and grace in phyical activity, espcially in usuing the hand.

Naomi tried to grab my brownie the other, a key indicator that she is ready to start more solid foods. But she is reaching for other things too: my glasses, my earrings and necklaces, bottles of water, books, and worse my nose and my skin, etc. I keep asking her, "What are you doing? You don't even know what that is." And she loving responds by grabbing for the object again -- "I know mommy. That's why I'm curious."

Occasionally I read What to Expect the First Year, so I can get an idea about Naomi's progress and what she should be doing from month to month. Right now, she is increasing her dexterity. She loves wrapping her little hands around things, shaking rattles, tossing Tweety, pulling on the legs of a certain polka-dotted puppy, and petting her horsey-giraffe (it's not quite a horse because it has those little things atop its head that giraffes have, but it's not quite a giraffe because its neck is too short.) What will she find next?

Not one, but two
By the way, I had planned to post pictures of Naomi's teeth, but they are on the bottom row and you can't see them unless she laughs or cries. Neither emotion allows me enough time to capture a picture. Plus, I'm worried about putting the camera that in her face. And it's two, not one.

Making an impact

I had fun at the banquet. Even though, I didn't get to wear my fabulous dress  and I almost didn't get to sit with my husband. The dress, which I bought online, was supposed to be knee length. I supposed if you are 5 foot 5 inches or less, it would have been, but it hit about two inches above the knew on me. We couldn't decide if it looked too short or not, so I opted to save it for another occasion. 

At the banquet, I was so moved by the videos of students and the student performance at the end. I don't think anyone saw the tears roll down my face, but it is so amazing to me to see the work that God, and only God, can do in people's lives. These children and their abilities are so amazing. And to hear former gang members and previously poor students speak about how their lives have changed and how they want to change is even more amazing. Thanks to all the youth ministers out there who are holding it down and IMPACTing students in the inner-city and beyond.

Why three hours of fun takes five hours of preparation

I'm off work today. I will be spending all day, likely, getting ready for a banquet. It takes forever for me to get ready for anything these days. If I want to be somewhere on time, it seems I have to start preparing three or four hours in advance because I have to get ready, I have to get Naomi ready, I have to get all her stuff ready (can you say luggage?), and I have to be mindful of Naomi's eating and sleeping schedule. She does have some what of one. Plus, I have to prepare for any quirks that might happen, i.e. dirty diapers, fevers, late husband, broken car, you know the usual. But I'm so super excited to see my friends and to go out somewhere. I wanted to post a picture of my blue china pattern dress, but even though I bought it last week, it appears that the website is no longer selling it. Odd. But china pattern, sounds cool, right? I am tired but a big day awaits and I must start getting ready. 

You would cry too

Naomi is getting her first tooth. We have known for weeks that she was likely teething because she has been drooling excessively and putting everything in sight in her mouth. But today, I can actually see the pearly white tooth starting to crown on the bottom row. As exciting as it might be for me to see her get her first tooth, it is not exciting for her. She has been very fussy the last few days. At times her cries seem inconsolable. But I would cry too, if there was a new tooth forcing its way through my gums, trying to make its debut to the world, yet I had no idea what was going on or why my mouth was hurting. I've been trying different things to soothe the pain: frozen teething ring, cold water, Tylenol. I'm not sure any of them are really working, at least not for extended periods of time, except for maybe the Tylenol (but I'm not a big fan of giving a lot of medicine to a baby.) I want to run to the store and get some teething gel to rub on her gums, but I haven't made it. Perhaps, tonight or tomorrow. That likely will help, but the best cure will be for the tooth to come in. No worries, though, because within the week (or two) I am certain my pretty baby will have a pretty new tooth.  Pictures to follow.

Crying it out

Robbie and I recently got into a discussion about "crying it out." He said that according to other parents we shouldn't pick up Naomi every time she cries. We could be spoiling her, she's not learning to comfort herself and we should let her cry it out, he said. We didn't come to a consensus on the subject, so we agreed to research it.

The Ferber method, better known as crying it out, was developed by pediatrician Richard Ferber. He is the author of Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems. Basically, Ferber recommends putting your child once she reaches 3 or 4 months to sleep following a warm, loving bedtime routine and then putting her in the crib awake. Then, you leave her, even if she cries. You let her cry for one minute before re-entering the room, gradually increasing the time increments to 10 minutes over seven days or longer. Parents can pat and comfort their child upon re-entering the room, but should not pick her up. This is what I read about on Baby Center.

I am not a fan of crying, period. I don't even like the sound of phones ringing. So, I guess some might say I'm bad about picking up Naomi when she cries. It just breaks my heart to see those tiny tears well up in her eyes. Not to mention the ear-piercing screams.

The Ferber method, from what I have read, is a technique to encourage your infant to soothe himself or herself to sleep. I didn't find anything that said we should try this in the daylight hours, which is what my husband seemed to suggest. I am trying not to pick up Naomi at the first whimper, instead I'm trying:

Talking to her without picking her up
Offering a new toy (she gets bored)
Patting her on the back
Getting on the floor and interacting with her

These are things I'm doing in the daytime because, honestly, she sleeps through most nights. She doesn't soothe herself to sleep. I rock and sing her to sleep. Sometimes I read to her. And I don't mind doing that. I just always have Twinkle Twinkle Little Star stuck in my head.

Another month gone

By the way, Naomi is 5 months old today! Pretty soon, I'll be saying Naomi is 5, then 15, then 25 ... Happy Birthday baby girl!

Toys galore

I can't remember how I found it, but I'm in love with The Pajama Squid. They have the cutest clothes and foreign toys. Like Polly Horse, Pococo Giraffe by Jellycat, and this Elephant Onesie. I can't wait until I get to order something from the site. Naomi needs some new toys and this site has some unique offerings.

Don't do a new do

This week Naomi hasn't been taking her usual hourlong naps. Instead she has been taking these 30-minute (or less) cat naps, where she seems to wake up as soon as you put her down. To say the least, this means I haven't been getting a lot done. But she has been sleeping better through the night. So, Tuesday we had people from church over for a couples Bible study, so I was cooking and cleaning and trying to prepare for guests. 

Tuesday is usually my "Sunday" because my first day of the workweek is Wednesday. It's the end of my "weekend" so that means I try to get ready for work: consider making my lunch (usually don't), pick out clothes (though they never get ironed) and do my hair. And when I say do my hair this normally consists of washing, conditioning, leave-in conditioning, drying and flat-ironing. That all takes a good two or three hours. 

Now, back to Naomi's short naps and the Bible study. I didn't get to do my hair at all. Of course I had to do something to look presentable. I had seen other people wear wigs and it was no big deal. The wigs looked great on them. Sometimes you didn't even know it was a wig. I had bought one a few weeks earlier and decided to give it a try. The perfect solution to my dilemma, right? 

If you are expecting me to say that I wore a wig and it got snatched off or the strings were hanging out and I looked all crazy, though that would be both sad and funny, that is not what happened. "I absolutely love your hair!" "Great haircut!" These were among the comments I received. I should have known I couldn't just wear a new do and not have everyone comment about it. I wasn't trying to pretend like it was my hair. It was just a quick solution. I tried to not lie to people and make it seem like I had gotten a haircut. I would say, "just trying something different." Anyway, I spent the better part of a week continuing to wear the wig because I felt silly since everyone thought I had gotten a great haircut. And I felt silly wearing it because it was like wearing a hat and it just wasn't my hair. I don't know what I'm going to tell people who think I got my hair styled and now it's back to normal (ponytails and puffiness.) Maybe, I'll bring the wig back for special occasions. But for now I know I have to go back to being me. "I am not my hair ..."

Giving the blog world another shot

I have tried to blog before, though unsuccessfully. I never really had the motivation, but I decided to give it another run because I've been finding a lot of great treasures that I want to share. (i.e. cool baby websites, cute baby pics and candid stories about my daughter and my life as a mommy.) Plus, I have been taking HTML classes online, and I figure this could be a good way to practice the skills that I'm learning. So here we go ...