Take 2

The first thing I did this morning was run to work to get my plans ready. It's so hard to be out when you're a teacher. Some say that we have the best jobs because we can earn up to 15 days of sick time and get tons of breaks. However, it's probably one of the most stressful jobs around. Being out puts you way behind, and I'm out of sick days. I have to be there for 4 weeks to earn 1 sick day. Fortunately we are team teaching this year so my kids will only be behind on SS and Science.

After I got home I called Jewell's doctor and set up an appointment. It looks like she has her second ear infection. He's also concerned that she may have the beginning stages of bronchitis. Poor Jewell! She is supposed to take Amoxicillin for ten days. Thank you Publix for providing free medicine. What a great blessing.

No pictures, Jewell looks too sick to want a picture.

The Weekend--Good and Bad

Our weekend started out wonderfully. Matt and I watched a movie Friday night and made great plans for Saturday together. I was so excited about what we hoped to accomplish.

The first thing we did on Saturday was take Jewell to get her 6 month pictures done. She had a cough, but it seemed to be controlled. She was congested too, although I figured it was from allergies hitting her. Despite not feeling well, we were able to get several cute pictures of her.






That afternoon we ran to Home Depot and bought a ton of shrubs and flowers. We have never actually done anything to our flower beds, and I got the urge to plant! So far the beds look great. I plan to mulch them over Spring Break and post pictures once it's all set. We are thrilled with how our yard looks now just by adding a few flowers.

That evening was all about Jewell, she just didn't seem to be feeling well. I had been giving her Tylenol about every 4 hours since I detected a slight fever. She fell asleep after her last bottle like normal, but coughed quite a bit after. Actually, she basically coughed all night. She woke at 2:30 and I could tell she was really in pain. So I gave her more Tylenol and her pacifier. It seemed to soothe her so I went back to sleep.

Sunday morning came and we decided I would stay home from church with her. I'm the only mom who has a baby in the infant nursery that sends her child to day care so I didn't want to spread germs the kids aren't exposed to often. Jewell continued to cough and she had a fever just over 101 around 10:45. So I gave her more Tylenol.

That afternoon we had Matt's sister and her boyfriend over for lunch. Jewell was more fussy than usual, but I figured it was because she wasn't feeling well. After they left she really wasn't acting normal and her cheeks were very red and hot. I took her temperature again (about 4 hours after her last dose of Tylenol) and it was 102.1. By this point she was extremely miserable. I felt just horrible for her. I called the doctor and they told me to bring her in first thing tomorrow morning.

This weekend didn't turn out as hoped. I'm glad we got some good pictures, planted a garden, and had fun with family. But I'm extremely sad to see Jewell so sick. We'll see what the doctor says tomorrow.

Missing Dad Again

Dear Matt,
We are so excited you are coming home tonight. Even though it's going to be the very early hours of the morning. Jewell will be so excited to see you when she wakes up.

This morning went much smoother than yesterday. I actually made it to work on time. I was sad to drop Jewell off in the lobby at her daycare again though. She didn't seem to be mind, but I thought of it all day.

Jewell napped a little better in daycare today. She didn't sleep in a crib though. I'm afraid we really need to work on that this weekend. Mrs. Ohler said she was able to get Jewell to eat almost all her cereal with pears. She wasn't too into the sweet potatoes at lunch though. I guess she hadn't napped enough.

This afternoon we enjoyed playing in the bumbo, looking in the mirror, vacuuming (she was in her carrier), and reading time. I put her in the Daddy's Little Sweetheart outfit that you bought her before she was born. I couldn't believe she fit it in already.



Jewell ate half a tub of sweet potatoes for dinner. As you can see, she really enjoyed them! I didn't let her play with the spoon until the end. Don't worry! I made sure she had a good feeding before she had fun with the food :).



We are so excited you are coming home. We have missed you so much. I'm sure you will enjoy taking pictures of our little one tomorrow.



Love,
Your two girls

We Miss You Dad

Dear Matt,

Today started out as a mad rush to daycare. I got a little behind since I'm not used to taking Jewell in the mornings. When I got to daycare I realized that no one else in her baby room was there. Not even the teachers :(. I had to leave her in the lobby with the early workers. This made me extremely sad. I hated leaving her there so early (7:15) without her teacher or friends.

Despite being the first baby there, Jewell had a pretty good day. She ate almost all of her cereal and bananas for breakfast. She also ate half a tub of carrots for lunch. However, I wonder if she actually got the carrots in her mouth, seeing that they were all over her clothes when I picked her up :). Jewell didn't nap well at daycare today. Her teacher tried to get her to sleep in the crib, but she barely did. For some reason Jewell insists on only napping in the swing.

After I picked her up we ran to see Grandma at work. I left Jewell with her friend for about an hour so I could run to Bethany Smith's senior violin recital. It was great! I can't believe our favorite babysitter can play the violin so well.

After the recital we went home. By this point she was very fussy. I managed to get her to eat a few bites of cereal with pears. That didn't last long though because she really wanted her bottle. She ate 7 ounces and was in bed by 7. I hesitated putting her down because all she wanted to do was talk. She continued to talk for 10 minutes after I put her down even. But no cries, so I was happy.

We miss you so much Matt. Jewell is going to be sad to not have her Daddy in the morning. I believe she already knows how special mornings with Daddy are. We will be praying that the Lord gives you wisdom at your shoot tomorrow. We will pray that the rain holds off so you can come home tomorrow, even if it's after midnight. We love you so much!

With Love,

Your two girls :)

6 Months

I can't believe my little Jewell is already 6 months old. It seems like just yesterday that she was born. Here are the stats from today's doctor visit.

Height: 25 and 1/4 inches
Weight: 14 lbs 11 oz
Head: 42 cm

The doctor encouraged us to begin feeding Jewell solids 3 times a day. We just worked up to 2 feedings yesterday! I asked him when I should start this, and he said today. He also wants us to practice drinking from an open topped cup. I was concerned about this, but apparently it's a good way to get kids to learn how to drink without sucking.

We finished the visit with several more shots. They gave me a choice for the flu shot and I said yes. After last weeks sickness I decided I wanted the flu to stay as far away as possible. Jewell did surprisingly well this evening, despite the shots. I think it helped that I let her nap when we got home :).

This evening we had our first dinner feeding for solids. I decided to just do cereal with pears. Pears are new and I like to introduce fruits with cereal. She really seemed to like the pears too! I was so excited. But the best part, was the milestone we accomplished. While feeding her, she grabbed the spoon and put it in her mouth. She's NEVER even attempted to touch the spoon. I was thrilled to death. She kept grabbing in and putting in her mouth and moving it around. I was so proud.

Tagged

My friend Jessica tagged me for this game...
Rules:
1. open your first photo folder
2. scroll to the 10th picture
3. post the photo and the story behind it
4. tag friends

The picture I found was from the summer of 2005. I was working at a camp called the Wilds. I was a waitress that year. We didn't have air conditioning in the dining hall that year either! So, we didn't do much to ourselves. I believe this is spirit week, but I'm not sure what the theme of the day was. Most of us are wearing green. Looking back now, I realize why my husband hates my hair pulled up. Oh well. That's the way he fell for me (this exact summer) so I guess it will just have to do :).

I tag Krystina, Sara, and Katy.

Play Time

Jewell is beginning to feel so much better. I walked into daycare this afternoon and she got a huge smile on her face and laughed really loud :). It made me so happy. So we stayed and laughed together for about 10 more minutes. We had a blast together.

When we got home this afternoon we had sweet potatoes again. She enjoyed them, but was very full from her morning cereal with bananas, so we didn't push it.

After our meal I decided she needed to practice sitting in the bumbo seat again. She did a fabulous job! Jewell isn't a huge fan of sitting yet, she usually just leans to the left and complains until I pick her up. Today, she sat up straight and played with toys! Well, she actually was more fascinated with them since they were bright lights and a mirror. We danced together in front of the mirror, which she truly enjoyed. After the dancing died down we read books together.




Daddy came home and the 3 of us ventured outside for a nice evening walk. When we got home Jewell was still in a fun mood. So Matt put her on top of his shoulders. I love this picture!