Green snot

Back to the doctor again today. Cassidy started with green snot on thursday, more green snot and a low grade fever on friday, and a continuing fever with massive green goop from her eyes and nose this morning. The diagnosis: another sinus infection. The good news is her lungs are clear and her ears aren't infected ... yet. But they are filled with mucus and headed in that direction. We started another antibiotic this evening and she's old enough now for a decongestant too, so she wasn't feeling too terrible today after mucinex cold and ibuprofen doses today. Just extra whiney, extra clingy, and not as energetic as usual.

Hmmm .... I was just saying how she's been pretty healthy lately.

14 months

What a difference a day makes!!!!

Cassidy was taking a few steps here and there yesterday ... today she's is running all over the house. This evening while I was making dinner, she tried to climb the shelves in the refrigerator.

She also seems to be adjusting to her new schedule with one nap a day. She's gradually been lasting longer before the nighttime crabbies start. Tonight we made it until her 8:00 bedtime without the need for the nighttime stroller ride to stop the whining!

The past few nights have been a bit rocky with more teeth coming through. At our last visit, the doc said her gums were really swollen back by her molars and that those would be coming through any day now.

The second dose of antibiotics finally knocked out her ear infections and Cassidy got her second flu shot last week. Now we are just waiting for her clinic to get the H1N1 shot.

Walkin'

On Saturday Cassidy took her first steps without holding on to anything. She was very hesitant about it all weekend and I have yet to get a good video of it, but I'm working on it. She's been walking while holding onto our hands for awhile now, but too afraid to let go, usually even with one hand. On Saturday, though, she had a toy in each hand, and took her first couple independent steps before she even realized she wasn't holding on to one of us. Today when I picked her up from daycare, they said she was taking steps by herself all day, and even breaking into a run at times. UH-OH. Phase two of baby proofing here we come...

She's been pushing various things (like the laundry basket) around while kneeling or walking slowly behind them, but this weekend she really got the hang of it and is now just about running behind her parade car.

Trick or Treat: Our Little Lamb

Cassidy Graduates

Friday was Cassidy's last day in the "Baby Room" at daycare. She's officially graduated to the one and two year old room. She moved over with two others from her class, one also born in september, and another a couple months younger than her. She's not walking yet, but I don't think it'll be long now that she's surrounded by other kids that are walking.

The main differences between the baby room and her new classroom?

• No more napping in a crib. Now she naps on a mat on the floor with all of the other kids at a designated time once during the day.

• No more eating in a high chair. Now she eats her lunch and snacks at a mini-table with all of the other kids.

• Directed activities. Throughout the day, Cassidy will be in a group of five kids with one teacher, who will encourage her to join the group in various activities.

• Outside playtime when weather permits.

• She's down to one bottle a day at daycare, usually late afternoon, plus one bottle before bed.

• We're still nursing, but down to twice a day, first thing in the morning, and at bedtime. We're planning to phase out the morning nursing after she's adjusted to her new classroom.

For the past couple of months, I've been working on some gifts to give her teachers from the "baby room" as well as the head of the daycare who I absolutely LOVE. She's been so helpful and encouraging.

Cassidy's first day in the "Big Girl" classroom.

Cassidy's 1 year Photos

Here they are... the first professional pictures I had taken of Cassidy. She did great! I wasn't expecting to pick the photos out right then and there, so I was a bit unprepared. By the time we were done, we had a hungry baby (no bottle along) who had peed on my pants (diaper leaked), and an irritable, crabby mommy. Grandpa was a life saver though, helping to entertain Cassidy while I looked through the pictures and tried to convince the girl showing them to me that I really DIDN'T want a $100 collage.

This one's my favorite

I really like the ones with a black background, but in one, Cassidy looked plain goofy, and in the other, she looked like she was floating because of the way her feet were positioned. The girl taking the pictures was a little slow on the trigger, and there were several instances where I would have "clicked" but she didn't. Another guy there was GREAT at making Cassidy smile, and kept telling the other girl to "click" but she still didn't quite get it. Maybe she was new? Hopefully next time we'll get him, or someone more experienced, to take the pictures.

Kitchen Makeover Continues

With Grandma Sandy and Grandpa Skip here for 6 days to take care of Cassidy, Jeff and I continued on our kitchen transformation project. We painted all day on Sunday, and Monday I finished up the trim.

While we were busy in the kitchen, Grandma and Grandpa had their first outing with Cassidy on Saturday: breakfast at IHOP and Cassidy's first trip to the park to play on the playground. They said she was a little angel and had a blast on the swing, Merry-go-round, and slide. They repeated their outing on Monday, with lunch at Wendy's, a trip to the park, and then to Sam's club for groceries for dinner, while I enjoyed my blissful time at home ... alone... ahhhh (sigh of contentment).

We painted the backsplash so there isn't any rush for part three of the makeover - tiling; though we already have the tiles picked out.

I'm really happy with the way the kitchen turned out. It's the first time we've gone from a bold color to a more neutral one. It's taking a little getting used to, but it definitely has a more calming feeling than the yellow, which is nice. The white trim helps to tie in the white cooktop, hood, and dishwasher. Eventually it might be nice to replace them with stainless steel or black, but since they don't look awful with the way we've decorated, it can definitely wait.

I still have to touch up a few spots on the walls and the bifold doors, so that's on my agenda for this weekend ... when Grandpa Fred and Grandma Josie are visiting!

When Sleep Deprivation Meets Neurosis

Last night Cassidy slept. She woke up once around 1:45am, so I went in and rubbed her back. She laid back down again immediately, which is a GREAT sign... usually means she'll go back to sleep easily. So I settled into the rocking chair next to the crib with my arm extended into the crib for her to hold my hand ... our latest middle of the night comforting ritual. My mind wandered to work as I dozed and thought about what I had done that evening and what I would do tomorrow.

My eyes popped open as I remembered that I never put my transformation plates into the incubator. Okay, not the end of the world. I could put them in the incubator in the morning and they'd still be ready to use by late afternoon/evening. Then panic set in as I realized that I couldn't recall turning off the gas bunsen burner on my lab bench. I sat there trying my hardest to remember what I had done, in what order, and where I had walked when I left the lab because surely I would have noticed a bright blue flame when I turned off the lights... wouldn't I?

Crap.

So I snuck out of Cassidy's room after she had drifted back to sleep, woke Jeff up to tell him I had to go to work, and crept out of the house at 2:25am. Ridiculous, I know. But the entire drive (all of 10 minutes --- traffic is wonderful in the middle of the night, and actually so is radio.. much better than when I normally drive) I had visions of toxic smoke and flames billowing from the 7th floor of our building. Relief started to set in as I exited the highway to see our building still intact without any emergency lights flashing around it.

In the lab I found ... my lab bench as it should be with no bunsen burner lit and my plates in the proper incubator where they should be. I still have no recollection of doing either of these things.

I was back home in bed by 3:05 and able to sleep (which I know full well I wouldn't have if I hadn't gone into work to check.) Yes, I know... I'm completely neurotic. I've accepted it. You should too.

And a brief update on Cassidy: Running a low grade fever this morning again, not the least bit interested in eating anything, whining, and snotting all over. No daycare for her. I'm home again.

Our little trooper.

On Saturday morning, our girl started with a low grade fever again. With a little tylenol, she was back to her happy self so we decided to pass on the urgent saturday morning doctor's visit.... and by 5pm we (and by "we" I mean "I") were regretting our decision. By then, her eyes were red and tearing, her nose was snotting green like crazy, and her fever was up to 101.7. My prediction: secondary ear and sinus infection from the cold she's had the past two weeks.



With no Sunday office hours at the pediatrician, we had to stick it out until Monday. Saturday night Cassidy did pretty well, with only one wake up and long stretches of sleep. Sunday she was lethargic, wanting only to sleep in our laps or with us holding her.



She had trouble nursing starting Saturday night because of the congestion, and then on Sunday couldn't eat solids either because her mouth hurt. We regressed back to bottles (we were down to 2 bottles a day and using sippy cups) to get her to take fluids.

Sunday night was miserable. She woke up just about every hour, cried inconsolably while awake not wanting to be held, but cried harder when we put her down. Mommy cried hysterically right along with her as she flailed on the ground and in our arms. Daddy stepped up and took her to the opposite end of the house so I could compose myself. The only good thing about this was that the screaming seemed to loosen up her congestion enough that she could nurse a bit.

Her fever finally let up overnight on Sunday, though we continued giving her tylenol for the pain so the fever really didn't have much chance to show. On Monday, she seemed a little better, but I called the pediatrian first thing and got an appointment for 11am. When I walked in to the office, I nearly turned around and walked out. The "Sick Waiting Room" was full ... as in, only a chair or two left, with people coughing and kids laying down or resting their heads on their parents lap or shoulder.

Now I'll be the first to admit I'm a total germ-phobe, especially since the whole hospitalization from infection thing. A "well visit" in the healthy waiting room brings anxiety and massive amounts of hand sanitizing along with Cassidy staying in her stroller and touching as little as possible. I nearly choked when Jeff let her play with the toy table at the last visit, which she promptly licked. Aaacckkk! A visit involving the "sick room" makes me stressed and afraid to breath. I usually sit in a corner as far away from everyone as possible, trying to inhale as little as possible, and coating my hands in sanitizer after touching the doors or chairs. Monday's visit brought me close to a panic attack. I looked through the window into that room and decided right then that there was NO WAY I was walking in there, let alone sitting in there for what is usually at least an hour for a last minute appointment on a Monday. Nope. No way. Not a chance. So I paced the 20 foot area outside the reception window with Cassidy in her sling for 45 minutes, striking up the occasional conversation with the receptionist while alternately strategically positioning us at opposite ends of the hallway from the sick room whenever the door opened and opposite the exit door where the "sick ones" were leaving the office. (Yes, I know, Cassidy is sick. But I was 99 % sure it was bacterial and not contagious ... and NOT the flu).

We finally made it in to see the doc, who apologized for the wait (as usual -- at least she knows) and made the expected diagnosis ... secondary bacterial sinus and ear (both ears) infection, along with a bit of wheezing in her chest (big surpise there). So we got the prescription for antibiotics, instructions to increase breathing treatments to 3 or 4 times a day, and come back in a week if things aren't better.

I stayed home Monday and Jeff left work at 3 so I could go into the lab for a couple hours to get some experiments going. Same thing today. Cassidy's still not running a fever, and has had her second dose of antibiotics this evening. She's almost back to normal (aside from the congestion), just more irritable and clingy than usual. So the plan is for daycare tomorrow. And please, please sleep for tonight!

Cassidy's September

I'm a bit late here, but on the 16th, Cassidy had her 12 month well visit with our pediatrician. She got a flu shot (and goes back for the second dose after a month) and two of her other normal vaccinations.

Her stats:

Weight: 21lbs 8 ounces (55%)
Height: 28inches (20%)
Head: 44.5cm

Overall, she's looking good ... no wheezing. We are continuing the NEB treatments with pulmicort (freakin' expensive stuff, that is!) once a day and xopenex as needed (usually once a week).




We also saw the allergist/immunologist this month. He said Cassidy looks pretty healthy overall, and agreed with our pediatrician and pulmonologist that this is something she'll likely grow out of. He said it doesn't look like allergies or asthma; more likely that she's getting one virus after another. He decided to do some bloodwork to check her antibody levels for the vaccinations she's already gotten to be sure that her immune system is working properly (the blood draw was awful!). We go back again after 8 weeks.

Jeff went on a cruise last weekend with his coworkers and dad came down to keep me company .. well, actually I think that was just an excuse to come... he really came down to see Cassidy!



We had a nice weekend, just the 3 of us.

Meanwhile, our daycare has had the occasional h1n1 case. This week 2 cases have shown up in Cassidy's classroom of 10 babies, so we are keeping our fingers crossed that she doesn't get it. Realistically, though, we know it's only a matter of time.

The kitchen is functional

The plumber came back out last week, after 1 no show, and 45 minutes of phone calling and verbally assaulting various people over the phone. But the end result is that we have a funtional kitchen! Countertops, cooktop, sink, dishwasher... the works.

Up next: painting and tiling the backsplash!

A Functional Kitchen ... almost.

Back in May, Jeff and I ordered new granite countertops for our kitchen from Home Depot. We waited until mid-August, when we finally got the call that they were ready. The plumber (contracted by home depot) came out to disconnect the cooktop and sink. The installers came out, removed our existing countertops, kitchen sink (which they broke in the process - which at the time seemed no big deal since we had bought a new one anyway), and cooktop... and then told us they couldn't install the granite countertops because the cabinets weren't level ...

And they don't do that.

So we called up Home Depot, and they said

"Yes, that happens sometimes."

"No, we don't have anyone who can level the cabinets for you".

"No, we don't have anyone to recommend."

Their recommendation was that we contact the better business bureau and pick someone listed with them.

Hmmmph.

This was something that the Home Depot guy who came out to take measurements for the countertops was supposed to check and tell us about, but he either forgot, or chose not to do it.

I asked our daycare people if they knew of anyone who did this kind of work. As it happened, one of the other dads has a construction business and does "handyman work" on the side. So he came out, and after much discussion, we decided the best way to level the cabinets was to put plywood across the top of them and level that. GREAT! He did the work for us that week.

The countertop installers came out a week later (when they were back in our area -- Home Depot contracts out the countertops to a company who is not in the New Orleans area ...hmmph). They were supposed to be there between 1 and 3 so Jeff took the afternoon off. They showed up at 5:15 ... and said the cabinets still weren't level, so they couldn't install them. What!!???!!

At this point, Jeff had taken time off work on 3 separate days, and we still didn't have a kitchen. Well the Home Depot people got an earful at this point, with the conclusion that they had 24 hours to find a solution to this problem, otherwise we were cancelling our order, disputing the charge with our credit card company (who Jeff had already talked to and said it was okay but we should try to work it out), and getting our money back. They called Jeff with a recommendation for someone to level the cabinets the following day. He came out the next week and un-did everything the first guy did, and then leveled the cabinets without the plywood, in 1/2 the time.

The countertop guys came back out last week and finally installed them!

The plumber was out the following day to hook up the sink and the cooktop, but the cooktop connection had a leak. The plumber didn't have the correct part to replace it, but said I could pick it up at Home Depot and hook it up with no problem. I got the new part (I tried Lowes first, but they didn't have it), hooked it up, and can still smell gas under the stove. Hmmmph.

So we've been using the stove but turning off the gas when it's not in use, and the plumber is coming out again on Wednesday, but he suspects the leak is actually in the unit itself and we'll need a new cooktop.

Uggghhh!

So we have a functional kitchen again, for the most part, which is a relief after almost a month of cooking on the grill and in the microwave and washing dishes in the bathroom sink.

And we've learned two major lessons:

• We will not use Home Depot for any of their "installation" services EVER again.
• We will shop at Lowes whenever possible.

The Birthday Celebration

We started this morning with Cassidy's gifts.

Thank you everyone, for remembering Cassidy's birthday! She enjoyed all of her presents, but most of all ... she enjoyed the wrapping paper.

She focused on each present just long enough to tear off a piece of paper, which she then found much more facinating than the gift itself.

Then we had "cake" for breakfast.

Now this cake .... Why on earth, you might ask, would I dream of making my child's first birthday cake healthy, rather than the fun, sugary, smeared-with-buttercream-frosting experience it should be? Well I'll explain. The recipe, which I first found out about on babycenter.com, came from the "What to Expect: The first year" book ... and it got great comments online! I thought, "Perfect! Something baby friendly so we don't end up with a baby with an upset tummy or cranked up on sugar!" Nor would we have to be concerned about food allergy or anything like that because almost all of the ingredients we had already introduced and had no problem with. I asked Kim to slightly modify it to eliminate the eggs it called for since we haven't introduced eggs yet. As it turns out, the eggs must be EXTREMELY important. While the cake was lovely, 2 layers separated by cream cheese frosting,

complete with candied carrots around the outside (great job with the decorating, Kim ---you can't be held responsible for the rest since I gave you the recipe to use), it wasn't really cake. It had the density and texture of cheesecake, but obviously lacked the flavor as it had no sugar and was sweetened only with apple juice and apple sauce. The carrot-cinnamon flavor was mild and not bad ... just not cake. We gave Cassidy a giant piece to dig in to.

She ended up eating a small amount of it, but then spent the rest of breakfast pointing (she just started pointing at what she wants - apparently everything - this week) at the container of puffs on the kitchen table, which actually contains cheerios much to Cassidy's disappointment. She's recently decided she likes puffs much better than cheerios, no doubt because of their sweet flavor.

After breakfast, we uncovered her other birthday gift ... a little kitchen set (which hopefully will occupy her while I make dinner in the evenings).

She immediately noticed the phone on it, which she was just fascinated with and played with more than anything else.

Overall, it was a good celebration! But our next one will be complete with chocolate cake and/or buttercream frosting!

The Baby in the Mirror.

In the morning after getting dressed Cassidy usually makes her way into our room, stopping to play on the dog bed, and then heading over to the mirror on the closet door.

The Birthday Girl

Cassidy's ONE year old today! And wow, has this year flown by!

We decided to wait until tomorrow to celebrate because the evenings after daycare are usually unpredictable. She's always very clingy, wanting to be held even when she's playing and gets tired and cranky as the evening goes on.

Tomorrow we'll have ourselves a little celebration... complete with carrot cake with cream cheese frosting (sugar free, nut free, honey free, and egg free; made by Kim, our lab's own "professional" baker) and gifts.

She's up to 6 teeth now... 4 bottom and 2 top ... and she's discovered how to use them. While eating her gerber puffs or cheerios, she puts them in between her teeth and bites down with a "crunch" before popping them all the way into her mouth.

Check out my teeth!

She's not quite walking yet but seems to be getting more comfortable with the idea, happily walking while holding our hands, and sometimes even just one hand for a few steps. I think she'll attempt it on her own sometime very soon.

In the mean time, bath time has recently grown more challenging as Cassidy thinks it's great fun to try to stand up in the bath tub. We've got a no slip mat, but have made it a rule that she sit down while she's in the tub. So over and over, she sits with her back to us, goes up onto one knee, glances over her shoulder with a huge grin, and stands up to put her toys into the soap cubby in the tub surround. And over and over we say

"No Cassidy. We sit down in the bath. No standing."

while trying to keep a straight face because that mischievious grin is just so darn cute!

Based on what we've seen so far, I think we're going to have our work cut out for us with a very happy, but very willful toddler.

And still, I can't wait to see what she'll try to get away with next!

Dear Grandma and Grandpa,

Thank you for my new dresses. I've worn the green outfit also, but mommy forgot to take pictures. We'll put up pictures of the other ones as soon as I wear them.

I miss you.

love, Cassidy

That Makes Three...

Nights in a row of sleeping through the night. 9:00-7:15 (actually she started waking up around 6:30, but was still playing and babbling away in her crib when I went to get her at 7:15!

I'm hopeful that she's back into her normal routine!

I've eliminated all caffine except the occasional diet coke, but I can't really say if that's it. We are on day 6 of antibiotics and her ears don't seem to be bothering her anymore, so that may be the answer too.

Two in a Row!

9:00pm until 6:30am last night.
Let's go for three, baby girl!

She slept...

from 9pm until 7:30 am! With just a few bursts of crying (in her sleep, I think) but no actual waking up.

I hope it'll happen again tonight.

Our first "Cassidy is sick" phone call

On Friday, we got the call for the first time. Cassidy's running a fever. You need to come get her. Daycare's rule is no fevers over 100 degrees. Cassidy had been running a low grade fever all week with congestion, but never more than 99.5 and she hadn't really been acting sick. So I wasn't really surpised to get the call. Actually I'm surprised it has taken this long considering how often she's been sick with one thing or another.

I went to pick her up and got her in to see a pediatrician at her clinic, but her normal doc was out until monday. The good news, actually GREAT news as far as I'm concerned since I was really expecting to take her for more lung xrays and another diagnosis of pneumonia, is that the congestion is all in her nose and ears. Her lungs sounded okay. The bad news is that she's got infections in both ears. So we picked up her antibiotic prescription last night and got started on it right away along with a little tylenol. She slept great and was back to her cheery self this morning. We'll give her this antibiotic (augmentin) for the next 10 days which will take us almost to her 12 month checkup on September 16, so her normal doc will recheck her ears then.

Something about the shoes.

There is something about Cassidy wearing shoes that makes her seem like more of a little kid than a baby to me. Maybe it's just that she is looking more like a little kid than a baby, but for some reason, I only seem to notice it when she's got shoes on.

(Cassidy in her "big girl chair")

(She was always wanting to sit in the Ijoy chair which she can't

really get in and out of, so we bought her a chair of her own)

We've just bought her a few pairs of shoes in the last week or two. Before that, she's always been barefoot or just had socks on. We're sticking to soft soled shoes for now because being barefoot or wearing soft soled, flexible shoes while learning to walk is supposed to help foot development and ankle strength. She's not walking yet, but "cruising" pretty well. She still prefers to sit down and crawl to wherever she wants to go rather than holding our hands to walk, or even holding on to the furniture if its more than a couple steps.

(We also bought a storage ottoman to use as her toy box.

This way the living room doesn't always look like a playroom)

Our main struggle right now (aside from her being sick with something all the time) is sleep. Cassidy's latest trend is to go to bed around 8:30 or 9:00 and sleep until sometime in the middle of the night, usually around 3 or 4 am. She then wakes up and is up for around 2 hours. She'll finally tire out again and sleep soundly right past her usual wake up time of 7 or 7:30. This weekend we were up from 3 until 5am and then slept until 9am... okay for the weekends, not so good when we have to get up for work. Sometimes she's fussy during this time, other times she is just wide awake. We figured out that part of the problem could have been the pumped breast milk we were giving her right before bed which contained various levels of caffeine depending on my coffee, diet coke, and vitamin 10 water intake for the day. However, this new sleep pattern has been going on for the last month or so, which doesn't coincide with our change to all breast milk before bed. Switching back to a supplement of formula and reducing mommy's caffeine intake hasn't helped the problem, though I'll admit she wasn't up quite as long last night, only an hour.

I think there may be several contributing factors:

• the antibiotic she was on after the pneumonia and the one she's on now seem to give her a tummy ache.
• the yogurt we are giving her 2-3 times a day to prevent diarrhea from the antibiotics may give her a tummy ache.
• I'm pretty sure she's cutting another tooth.
• Caffeine in the breast milk.
• Her ear infections bother her more at night when there is nothing to distract her from the discomfort/pain.
• Her congestion wakes her up, either from coughing or just not being able to breathe well through her nose.

Since most of these involve some sort of discomfort or pain, we've been giving her some Tylenol before bed, and end up giving another dose in the middle of the night if she seems uncomfortable when she wakes up.