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8 months and what i've learned so far

Can't believe it! Elaina is 8 months old today. 2/3 of a year. T-Minus 4 months until her birthday party! Eeek!

The past month has been eventful. Elaina got her "new accessory" (helmet) shortly after turning 7 months.

She's adjusted to it so well and I hope it's a peek at how easily she'll adapt to things as a toddler, kid, pre-teen, teen, and adult. We've gotten use to the helmet too. Let's just say Nana, Mommy and Daddy all three have had a few good injuries from that thing. She is a "cuddler" when she gets sleepy, so she'll throw her head into you wanting to snuggle, but the helmet will about break your jaw. Ow. I speak from an experience or 12.



Let's see...what else has she done. Well, she's became a good screamer, loves almost all baby food she's tried, pulls up on the ottoman and her crib non-stop, says "Yummmmm!" and straightens her arms out when she gets really excited, loves the song 'This Old Man', shakes her head and smiles when you say 'No' (i forsee a problem with this in the future), still has ZERO teeth, and loves water. She'd chug water from her sippy cup all day if we'd let her.

According to our scales she's 22lbs (staying up there in the 95th %tile) and I haven't measured her length yet. I'll post that and her 8 month pics soon.



So...what have I learned in the past 8 months. This should be fun.

*Formula feeding =/= bad mommy. Before having Elaina I was damned and determined to breastfeed her for a year. Then she latched on and my toes curled. We did it for about 5 weeks. I hated it, she wasn't eating well, and I developed mastitis. Ow. Good-bye boob, hello bottle. I don't regret it. I plan on trying with our next kid too, but I think I have more realistic expectations now. Will I breastfeed for a year, probably not, but I will breastfeed him or her for as long as I can.

*Just because they're the "fancy diapers" doesn't mean they hold the poop.


The hospital sent us home with Pampers, which we liked. Friends and family had bought us Pampers, Huggies, and Luvs for our shower. Let's just say about a dozen blow-outs later, we do NOT buy Huggies. Actually we're 99% Luvs, all the time. I've tried Target's Up & Up brand, and I did like them. However, if I have a coupon for Luvs I can usually get them cheaper than the store brand.


*Sleeping through the night is not a skill...it's luck.
I was prepared for Elaina to not STTN for at least 4-6 months. I prayed she'd STTN earlier, but also knew I shouldn't press my luck. Well, thank God for answering prayers because by 6 weeks old Elaina was STTN 5 out of 7 nights. By 2 months old, it was 7 nights a week. I've had so many people ask 'How did you do that?!' and honestly, I have no clue. From day one I've never said "Elaina eats at 8, naps at 10, wakes at 11:30, eats at noon..." Actually, we've just went off of her cues, and she's basically set her own schedule. She wakes up between 6 & 7, eats, plays, naps (for about 90 mins) within a few hours of waking up, eats, plays, takes another nap around 4ish, and by 7:30 she's in bed.


*Do what YOU think is right. I had certain people telling me at 3 months old that Elaina was "starving" and needed real food. Mind you, she was in the 95th %tile for her weight. Did I listen? No. As soon as she started eating food, people were telling me to cut back on her formula and feed her more food. Did I listen to that? No way. That's nuts. Nor have I listened to "Give her some juice." (Actually to their dismay, I don't plan on giving her juice for quite some time. I'd rather her eat the real fruit.) "Give her a bite of this *insert crazy food here*" "Let her sleep with you." or any of the other unwelcomed suggestions. I do what I feel is right. Kevin and I make choices for her based on our thoughts. Sure, sometimes other peoples suggestions are helpful, but sometimes they're not. Sometimes they're just plain stupid. So take them with a grain (or cup) of salt, and do what you feel is best. Remembe, YOU are the parent. No one else.

*No mommy is perfect. Simple as that. Try as we may, none of us are perfect. However, I've stopped trying to reach that perfection and just enjoy every moment with Elaina. The way she smiles at me when I walk in the room tells me that she thinks I'm perfect and that's what matters to me :)

much better.

My last post described just how horrible Elaina's first night sleeping in the helmet was. Well, thank God, it has gotten MUCH better. Actually, she's doing great. She sleeps in it just as good as she was sleeping without it, we can take it off/put it on without any tears shed, and she doesn't pay any attention to it when it's on. Woohoo! We went back for her 1st week check-up and got a great report. The specialist was very happy with the way it fits her. I did have to go back Thursday though for them to make a minor adjustment to it, because it was starting to rub a spot on the back left corner of her head. Very minor and it's fitting great again! :)

Here are some pics I snapped of the princess in her new crown

and one without

*sigh* i love those blue eyes.

that was horrible :(

Last night was Elaina's first night sleeping in the helmet...and a smooth night it was not. We ended up staying at my parents house last night, so I don't know if her not being in her bed had something to do with it, but she was awake probably a dozen times between 8 and 6:45. Needless to say, I'm exhausted. I finally broke down around 1:00 and my mom took Elaina in her den to rock her...I bawled my eyes out asking my mom if I'm doing the right thing. She told me of course I am, but I can't help but second guess.

When we got home Kevin was nice enough to take over 'Elaina duty' and let me nap for around an hour. It helped but I could easily snooze for a while longer. Mommy duties call though.

Please pray tonight is easier for her and for us. I know it's just going to take some time for her to get use to...but a simple prayer would be nice.

now to lift my spirits

I've decided on a theme for Elaina's 1st birthday party. (Yes, already.)

Birds + Bugs + Butterflies + Flowers...but for short we'll call it a Garden Party :) All things girly. Flowers, beautiful butterflies, dragonflies, birds and cute (not scary!) bugs. I'm excited.

My idea/inspiration board...

Eek! I love it :)

3 years.

My grandma was the best person I've ever known and will ever know. She was my rock. She was my role model. She was my angel. As a kid, I'd gladly pass up nights at a friends house for nights at Grandma's. No one can make chicken n' dumplins like she did. Her skin was like silk. Summers were spent at her house playing outside or inside watching Days of Our Lives and The Price is Right.

Grandma was a very religious and faithful person...through her good times and her bad. She never doubted God and never turned her back on him. Not easy to do when you battle cancer for 6 years. Six long years. I'll never forget the day they told us she had cancer. Ovarian. Less than a year to live. She proved them wrong. She even went into remission twice. The last time though, the cancer came back stronger than ever. They tried to do surgery but Grandma's body was just too weak. So we waited. They told us it would be within 24 hours. She proved them wrong again. 4 days later...my angel on Earth got her wings. I know that sounds corny, but she really was my angel.

God, I miss her so much. I'd give anything to have her back. I would've given anything to have had her at our wedding...to have her there when we announced the pregnancy...to have her at the hospital to see Elaina the day she was born.

I believe in angels. I know she's seen Elaina...and when Elaina just looks off at nothing and smiles, I know she's seeing her angel...my angel. I've tried to "tell" Elaina about her great-grandma, but I break down everytime. I hope that one day I can explain to her how wonderful of a woman she was. Seeing my mom with Elaina now makes me so happy because I want Elaina to have that relationship with her that I had with my grandma.

My goal in life isn't to make a million, live in a mansion, or have a fancy car...my goal in life is to be to my children and grandchildren what Grandma was to hers. Those aren't big shoes to fill...those are HUGE shoes. Nothing makes me happier than to hear my dad (her son) tell me how much I'm like her. That's the best compliment anyone could ever give me.

7 months

Elaina turned 7 months this past Wednesday. According to our measurements she's 20.4 pounds and 28" long! 90%tile+,as expected.

She's so fun. I love this age. She rolls like a champ now, blows raspberries non-stop (actually what she's doing right now), fake coughs, screams "dadadada", tries to play peek-a-boo, and loves to eat. So far she's loved about every food we've tried. Hates rice cereal but loves oatmeal. Also loves yogurt, apples, carrots, sweet potatoes, prunes, pears, peaches. She's not a fan of consistency yet though. The small little puffs that melt on her tongue make her gag. Smushed up banana makes her gag. Basically, anything not pureed makes her gag. Oh, and she LOVES water. Just like momma!

She's still sleeping through the night but as mentioned before, she keeps rolling onto her tummy and waking herself up. The bast few nights have been a little better though. Thank God.

Happy 7 months Elaina Rose! Mommy & Daddy love you :)

rollie pollie

The past few nights have NOT been the best as far as sleep goes in the G household. Elaina has decided to become a rollie pollie in her sleep. So, she rolls onto her tummy, wakes up and realizes where she is, gets pissed and instead of rolling back over she just screams and whines. I swear I've been trying to let her CIO but someone *cough*daddy*cough* says he can't stand to hear her cry and not go "save her"...I'm gonna tie him to the bed if he doesn't join in on the CIO game. I'm sure that she'll eventually get use to sleeping on her tummy...and I pray it's SOON! We've gotten so spoiled by her sleeping till 6ish that 4:45 - 5:15 wake-up calls are turning mommy into a zombie! I just hope when she gets her crown next week it doesn't mess up her sleep even more.


Now for a picture of my cutie :)

play dates

Elaina has finally got to have a few play dates lately! I hate that all of my friends with babies live over an hour away. :(

Anywho...much to her Daddy's chagrin, all of Elaina's play dates have been with little boys! haha. Well, she went to a birthday party which was for another girl, but play dates...2 out of 2 have been boys! Oops. hehe. She loves them though. (down Kevin. i mean the play dates!) She loves seeing other kids and watches every move they make.

Playing with Zane, who just turned 1 in January. He didn't pay much attention to her (until she got a handful of his hair! ha), but she loved watching him!

And here she is with Brooks, who is about 6 weeks younger than Elaina. He loved her shoes...and once again she went for the hair. Lucky for Brooks, he didn't have enough to pull! :)

Looks like I need to find some people with GIRLS for her to play with! The two friends that I have who are pregnant right now are both having boys. Poor Elaina is out numbered. :)

how flat are we talking?

I've gotten this question quite a few times since everyone found out about Elaina's diagnosis of plagiocephaly. Google plagiocephaly and you'll get results that vary from mild to severe. Thank God, Elaina's is mild.
So...here are a few pictures that show you just how flat her head is. Sometimes, I can barely notice it and other times, it's pretty obvious. Some may not think it's severe enough to put her in a helmet, but we choose to take the advice of a trained and licensed physician and specialist.

Crown Ordered.

Monday was Elaina's appointment for her scan that will be used to build her STARBand aka crown. I wasn't sure how the scan would work, but it was easy and painless. I wish now I'd taken my camera so I could've had a picture of Elaina in the cute little cap. Basically, they put a "skull cap" like thing on her that was covered in this little white circles. Then they used a laser gun to scan around Elaina's head and *boom* next thing we knew there was an exact replica of her head AND face on the computer screen. Mom and I were amazed. So, the doctor sent that off and it will be used for the building of her crown and for comparison later on to see how her head shape has changed. We go back March 1st for her fitting.

And in case you're wondering...her crown was ordered in light pink and I'm just waiting on it to come in so I can order her decals from blingyourband.com :)

a shiny new page

I've added a new page tab to the top of the blog. It's a page I'll use to keep you updated on Operation:CrownToGoRound. I'll post pictures and such on the regular blog, but I'll use that page for before/during/after pictures and summaries of her progress.

Enjoy.

i'm exhausted.

Elaina finally got to go to her first birthday party today. Our dear little friend, Alyssa turned 1. The party was great and I got to see some of my absolute favorite people that I met while in college. Seriously, these girls are the best. I feel like I've known all of them since we were little! Alyssa's family is just too precious, so any time we have an excuse to visit them, we're there! Elaina loved watching the other little kids play and she was itchin' to run around with them. I'd love to show some pictures...but none were taken. Kinda hard to take pictures when you're holding/feeding your kid, figuring out where to change her diaper, trying to keep her hands out of your plate, eating the food off said plate, entertaining her AND trying to socialize with friends. Shew, it was exhausting...but SO worth it.

Tomorrow is the day we visit the specialist....our appointment is at 9 so if you have any extra prayers to send up, please say one for us. I'm very nervous and a ball of emotions. Kevin's much more calm than me...maybe the doctor will calm me down. Again, a prayer or two would be great. :)

baby food making 101

I'll say it now. I want my child to be healthy. By no means do I want to make her weight conscious or for her to have some complex about eating unhealthy food, but I do pray that she grows up to be a young lady who will make wise food decisions...unlike her mommy. However, now that I say that, the thought "practice what you preach" runs through my mind.

ANYWHO...long story short. I tried breastfeeding when Elaina was born. It worked for about 5 weeks before I basically gave up and switched to 100% formula. Look down on me all you want, but I do NOT regret that decision. Not one bit. If you think you're a better mommy than me because you breastfeed, then so be it. However...you're not :) So, since I was a "breastfeeding drop-out" as I like to call it, I feel I'm making up a little bit by making my own baby food. Right?! :P

www.wholesomebabyfood.com
Go ^ here. I promise you, you won't regret it.
Seriously, making homemade baby food is SO easy! Steam, blend, freeze. That's it. Not only does it save $, but you actually know WHAT is in your childs food and WHO made it. I love that. Money wise...I pay $1.87 for a bag of ORGANIC baby carrots, and it makes 16-18 oz of carrots for Elaina. Hello pete, you pay $1.87 for two cans (5 oz maybe?) of organic already made baby food. Woohoo bargain!

Wholesome Baby Food has oodles of recipes on their website. Who knew you could feed your kid all this stuff? Oh, and the secret to freezing them? ICE. CUBE. TRAYS. yep. Each cube is about an ounce. So freeze them, pop them out into freezer safe storage containers, and thaw as needed. Simple. :)

Now get me wrong, just like you're not better than me b/c you make your own milk, I'm not better than you b/c I make my childs food. No way. If you buy Gerber, Beechnut, etc you're STILL an awesome mom! Seriously, you are. Breastfeeding isn't for everyone and baby food making isn't for everyone. Simple as that. However, if you have some extra carrots or apples laying around and a baby who loves to eat...give it a try! :)


P.S...turn the blender off before stirring the puree...i learned this the hard way. let's just say i got a "prune facial" yesterday. :) yeah.

6 months = sad mommy

Elaina is 6 months old! :( Where did my little baby go?!

At her checkup she was 19lbs 12oz and 27" long...90%tile for both. Her head is in the 105%tile...the dr told her she has lots of brains. haha. He told us we have a happy, healthy and beautiful baby girl.

There was one concern he had though, that lead to me crying most of the day Tuesday. Elaina has a flat spot on the back of her head. Most babies develop one. However, Elaina's has not rounded out and her pediatrician is afraid that if we don't address it now, we may not be able to correct it. He assured us that it's 0% health related and 100% cosmetic. I know that should make me feel better, but it doesn't.

Anywho, we go Feb 7th to see a specialist who will decide if Elaina needs to be fitted for a corrective helmet. :( I know lots of babies have to wear them, but I just feel so guilty. I feel like I've done something wrong...that I've failed as a mommy. I told my friend Tiffany that I'm afraid one day Elaina will see a picture of herself in the helmet and question me on what I did wrong. Ugh. I know. I'm WAY over-thinking this...but that's what I do. So...please say a prayer that the dr will think Elaina's case is minor and will correct itself. However, I believe God knows whats best for us and if Elaina has to wear the helmet, so be it. God has blessed us with a healthy baby and I am so beyond grateful for that. (And if we can choose a color, Elaina's helmet WILL be pink. duh ;))

So...I leave you with some pictures of our beautiful, happy, healthy, 6 month old princess.