Our 23-month old

That's right, Addison is now 1 month away from being a 2 year old! Oh, it is so sad to see our baby girl turn into a big girl. But, on the other hand, her little words are just so adorable! Our favorites are "peas" for "please," "I love you," "Where's Da- ee at?" and "Hi Asher." When she wakes up in the morning, she just waits quietly in her crib until I come and check on her, then asks where's Asher at or where is Daddy at if they are not with me. Who knows if she just woke up or she has been awake for a while! We are in no rush to convert her new bed. She is doing fine in her crib and seems to like it. Let's not fix what is not broken. Have a mentioned how independent she is? She often comes upstairs with me while Alivia watches one of her many princess movies in the basement with Daddy, just so she can play alone in peace. She even sneaks upstairs to read books alone. We love it when she says "cheese" and squints her eyes and smiles as big as she can. Addison loves playing with her babies, strollers, and getting stroller rides herself even if it is in a baby doll stroller! I have already mentioned the potty training thing, although I have not gotten serious about it at all. I just am not ready for that yet. Maybe in the next few weeks I will go for it, we will see. Terrible 2's? Well, she does pull Alivia's long locks and push occasionally, and she has seen the time out spot a couple times in the past few days. But, I have more patience with her for whatever reason.

Oh, my next Addison update will be when she turns 2. Oh, where did my baby girl go?

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Asher turns 5 months old...already!

Asher turns 5 months old…already!

 

Oh, how time flies. Asher is now a happy baby. He has grown out of that fussy period completely now and is finally developing a routine. He goes down around 8:30 at night. When he wakes for the day varies. A couple times a week he gives me a 3 am wake-up call, which I have grown to not be surprised by. He has finally started to take 2 naps a day, the morning one at 9-9:30 and one in the afternoon. We have stopped the Zantac, but the nondairy diet continues. He will tell me when I have had the wrong thing to eat by making a big mess. So, I try to be a good girl. He is nursing about every 4 hours, sometimes more often depending upon his nap schedule for the day.

 

Asher now can sit momentarily without support, cries when he can not see Mommy, holds his arms up when he wants to be held (which is most of the time), likes to play with his hands (and eat them), jibber jabbers a lot, has the cutest little laugh, & has yet to actually swallow any baby cereal. He is now done with the bouncy chair and the Bumbo seat, having found how to escape  them! His cries are rarer now, limited to when he goes down for a nap, when I leave the room, & whenever Addison cries.

 

I can not believe he is 5 months old! It is so sad how quickly the time is going by.

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21 months ago...

 

Addison 21 months old

...Addison was brought into this world. So hard to believe that she will be 2 in only 3 months! Things we love about Addison...

...Hugs & Kisses, blowing kisses, cuddle time, her many taggies (along with her thumb in her mouth), her big smile, her loud scream as she runs through the house, how she says, "Hello Asher," every morning and pats his hair (oh, I love that!), how she tells me now when she wants a new diaper because it is wet or when there is, "poo in there, Mama," her endless chatting in her own little language, her gentle touch with all of her baby dolls, how kind she is to Alivia & Asher (she runs to them and hugs them if they cry and sits with Alivia when she is in time-out), her need to sometimes play alone, although she is a Mommy's girl - she is growing into playtime with Daddy, when she runs to Asher to give him his binky (although he does not typically take it from her) & if he does not want it how she puts Asher's binky in her mouth! She is surprisingly the little leader around here. She leads and Alivia follows. Funny how we thought that would be the other way around. We love how she says all of her words, too many words to list, but our favorites are Alivia, Asher, Mama, Daaa eee (Daddy), Piper, Thank-you, Peeese (please), owwwcch (ouch), night-night, & I love you.

What Addison likes now adays...

...Play-doh, coloring, markers, baby dolls, stroller rides, helping unload the dishwasher, helping make lunch or dinner, baking with Mommy (especially if chocolate chips are involved) & playing with Alivia & Polly Pockets. She likes to run and climb on everything. She is constantly falling and hurting herself because she thinks she is a big girl already.

Addison went back on milk this week & appears to be doing okay (no hives). Her favorite foods are broccoli, peas, califlower, pizza, yogurt, oranges, grilled cheese, macaroni, with muddy buddies being her favorite snack. Although it is cute to hear her say "cookie," Addison would eat broccoli over any cookie we would give her. She is usually a pretty good eater.

Oh, we are seeing our baby girl grow into a toddler. Oh, makes me sad. Why can't she stay 1 forever? 

 

 

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First Bites...

Asher's 1st bites

Last night Asher made attempts at his first bites of rice cereal. He was not sure what to do with it, opting to spit it out. Now, time for the high chair to come out of hiding!

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Asher turns 4 months old!

Asher Wade - 4 months old!

So hard to believe that Asher is 4 months old already! It does not seem possible! At his 4 month checkup, Asher weighed in at 13 lb 8 oz was 24 1/2 inches long. So, despite being very spitty, he has maintained his place on the growth charts. He is to continue the Zantac for possible reflux, and I am to continue a dairy free diet for what may be a milk protein intolerance, until his next checkup at 6 months. Although he giving me lots of laundry to do, the diet and the Zantac have helped him to not be fussy. Asher has been sleeping through the night (at least in my eyes) since about 3 1/2 months of age. Just when I think he has developed a pattern, he wakes up at 3-4 am, though. He usually eats around 8pm, waking to eat around 5-6 am, then sleeping again until 8 or so in the morning. He does not nap, however. I place him in his crib a few times a day to take a nap, but with rare success. My mom mentioned that I sent her a lot of pictures of Asher sleeping from February. That is because whenever I get him to sleep (which is usually for less than 5 minutes), I take a picture because it is so unsual! We are blessed that he does rest at night, though. I have begun "sleep training" him during the day for naptime. So, hopefully he will start napping in the next few weeks. 

So, what does Asher like to do? He loves playing with Addison (and Addison, now 20 months old, loves playing with Asher, too). Although I am still nursing, he does take a bottle of mommy milk once a day now. Alivia likes to help with that. He likes to eat about every 3 1/2 hours. He has gone 4 hours between feedings a few times, but that is usually when he wakes at night to eat, though. He has just started to recognize when Mommy is out of sight (perhaps the issue at naptime). He just started rolling over and scooting with his feet while on his back! He was trying to scoot off the examination table during his checkup. I also have to strap him into the bouncy chair because he wants to scoot right out of the thing. The times of laying him down on the playmat while I fix a meal will not last much longer. He can sit by himself for a short period of time, too, before falling over. What makes him laugh? He likes to be tickled and play peek with Addison. He has many sounds that he makes, but he has the loudest high pitched cry I have ever heard (and this is coming from a Mommy of 2 girls!). We like his laugh best, of course.

The months just seem to be racing by...so off to enjoy every moment!

 

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Asher at 3 months...

Asher Wade: 3 months

Asher turned 3 months old on Friday! At his apt last week when he had the ear infection, he was 11lb 11oz! He is getting so big! He is sleeping better now, too. He eats last at 8 pm and then wakes once to eat between 3-4, then sleeping again until 7-8 usually. Now, for his 3 month present, I quit my job!  My official last day was yesterday. Asher has started to coo, laugh and likes to smile at Mommy, Daddy, Alivia and especially Addison (she is at his level a lot when I am carrying the 2 of them). Asher is not a fan of tummy time, as he usually spits up his lunch several times while on his tummy. So, he does not get tummy time too often. He loves to ride in the car and has just started to like stroller rides (in the mall or outside).Today he had his pictures taken with his sisters, and he smiled for us!

 We will continue to enjoy every moment of Baby Asher!

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Asher turns 2 months old & Getting so big!

Asher Wade: 2 Months old!

January 29th: Asher is 2 months old today! Asher has changed a lot since last month. For one, last month he was 7lb 11oz. At 2 months he is heavy to hold! He is now 10lb 11 oz at 29% (up from 5%) and 22.5 in long at 32%! He has really filled out and is outgrowing his clothes. He is not going to be small for long. So he is on his way to being an average sized boy (yeah...he will fit right in on that soccer team!).  He holds his head up well and has started to smile when I do funny things (so it is not just random anymore). Now, I am working on getting him to laugh. He has just started to make cooing sounds. Now, for that binky that Alivia and Daddy (and now Addison) like to give him. He turned his head, took the binky and put it in his own mouth yesterday. Alivia and I saw him do it, and Alivia could not believe it! "Mommy, he put the binky in ALL BY HIMSELF!" He, I would say, recognizes my voice as he quiets when I enter his room at night. He has also just started batting at his toys on his playmat. But, with that said, he does not like his playmat. He has had several colds since last month and does not like being flat on his back for that reason. He also tends to spit up almost immediately. 

Asher still has his own schedule. I do feed him around 8 at night (and that can take a while). He typically wakes twice during the night (midnight, then between 4-6am). It has gotten better or I have just gotten used to it. I feed him in his room at night in the rocking chair, which has helped both of us. During the day, he usually eats every 3-4 hours. He has just started napping more if I put him in his room away from his loud sisters. Now, I just need to get a baby monitor that does not pick up other babies or the neighbors telephone conversations. :)

Alivia continues to be a big help. She likes to hold him and help with diaper changes. She also calms him if I am busy with Addison. Addison has also grown into a big sister. She continues to love his hair and pats his head. But, now she likes to give him the binky and sit with him if he is in his chair. Asher's big sisters will be his little protectors, I think.

After 6 immunizations, Asher is resting now. Maybe with all that growing he is just wore out.

Until next month...

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Update from Children's Hospital...

Perhaps I should start at how we arrived at Childen's Hospital. I took Asher to see his pediatrician on Friday morning after having 2 bad nights of many coughing spells with what appeared to be apnea. Asher's doctor did not hear wheezing and was not as concerned with the cough as we were. His O2 sats were 89% initially, but increased to 97%, so the Dr. felt better about that. After initially thinking he would send us in to Children's for a RSV test and chest X-ray, he reconsidered and sent us home on nebulizer treatments.

Well, about 3 PM, after Asher had not nursed since 8:30 in the AM, he became listless. We were having difficulty waking him, he was grunting and retracting with each breath. So, Chris stayed with the girls while I took him to Children's.

Upon arrival, they checked us in and his O2 sats were at 84% (you want it closer to 100%). The ER nurse calmly moved us to a room, where 6 or more RNs and the Dr moved in, started an IV and started talking about putting Asher on the ventilator!! I do not think staff uttered anything to me for the first 1/2 hour as they focused on stabilizing Asher. He was receiving hourly nebulizer treatments, O2, many blood draws, etc, etc.

After 3-4 hours or so in the ER, Asher's blood gases improved on oxygen enough that he avoided the vent and was able to move to the step down ICU unit. We are extremely lucky that we got here early enough so Asher's symptoms could be treated. It turns out that he was RSV positive. He has responded well to the nebulizer treatments, percussion, finally started to nurse, and he was taken off the oxygen at noon today. He has to be off of the O2 and stable for at least 24 hours before going home. Since going off the O2 today at noon, Asher has been wide awake, something he has rarely been since birth. He is now getting his afternoon respiratory treatment.

We are to plan on going home Tuesday and be happily surprised if we get to go home tomorrow. Good thing Chris is still home on Holiday break and we have grandparents to watch the girls so Asher can have his Daddy here, too. Chris has gone home a couple times, and I went home today for a couple hours before feedings. We both miss the girls so much!

So, Asher turned one month old yesterday, in the hospital of all places. His 1 month picture is of him with an IV and O2! What a month Asher has had...

 

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Our little 4 week old...

That's right...Asher Wade is 4 weeks old today! It is hard to believe it has been that long already. Asher is beginning to be awake more now, typically for a few hours in the morning. He does not seem to mind tummy time and holds his head well. He is quiet for the most part, crying to tell us when he is hungry. However, he did get his first of probably many colds on Christmas Eve and has been quite misterable. He has a bad cough that seems to scare him as he turns red and tries to catch his breath. It is scary having a newborn in the height of flu season...I will say that much. He has been sleeping in his chair for the last few nights to help with the cold. Good thing there is a nurse in the house!

After nearly a month, we are all adjusted to being a family of five. We were adjusted after a couple weeks probably. We did not have anyone stay with us or anything, so we were forced into adjusting immediately. Chris and I are amazed at how well Alivia and Addison have done. Addison has started to help with diaper changes now and comes out of play to see what is going on when Asher cries. They are both little helpers. Chris and I have also handled the sleepless nights and busy days with 3 kids better than expected. We have always liked a good challenge. Asher himself is far from a challenge right now though.

Until next month...

* Pictures to come later.

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