HOORAY for prunes!

That's one thing I never thought I'd say. :) Poor little Ayla was having some major [ahem] pooping issues this past week. I think the rice cereal was doing a number on her. I tried just about every suggestion the nurse had to offer--apple juice, pear juice, rubbing her tummy, suppositories, and the winner--PRUNES mixed into her cereal. We had to use suppositories twice, which helped but I think the prunes are what's helping her now. It was so hard to see her cry, strain, and turn beet red while she was trying to go. I felt like she kept looking at me like, "Why does this hurt so much?! Help me!"

I've never been so thrilled to change poopy diapers...I'm pretty sure I feel as relieved as she does right now. :)

Hopefully we can keep her regular as her body adjusts to all these new foods. Next up? Peas. I figured I'd start with the gross stuff first and work our way up to fruits. She's still having trouble keeping the food in her mouth...maybe I'M the problem and need to figure out a better way to feed her. She did really well last night, but tonight her bib ate most of it. She twists and turns so much and is always wanting to look around so it makes it a little difficult at times. When she does get a good bite, it's so cute to watch her "chew" and smack her lips.

I know I always say this, but it's so fun to watch her grow, learn, and try new things...she makes me notice things to which I normally wouldn't give a second glance. She's the most amazing, fascinating little person and I love her. Every night when I kiss her goodnight, I can't wait to see her again in the morning.

Before I was a Mom

This morning, I received this from Barb (my mom-in-law) in an e-mail. I read it with tears in my eyes...it's perfect.

"Before I was a Mom, I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby. I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous. I never thought about immunizations. Before I was a Mom, I had never been puked on, pooped on, chewed on, peed on. I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts. I slept all night. Before I was a Mom, I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests. Or give shots. I never looked into teary eyes and cried. I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin. I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep. Before I was a Mom, I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down. I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt. I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much. I never knew that I could love someone so much! I never knew I would love being a Mom. Before I was a Mom, I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body. I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby. I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child. I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy. Before I was a Mom, I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay. I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment, or the satisfaction of being a Mom. I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom."

Random tidbits...

So we're on Day 9 of our quest toward successful rice cereal consumption. Survey says? She hates it. Hate's a strong word, I s'pose...it's getting slightly better...she's gone from throwing her head back and shrieking to moderate whimpering after a few bites. I think rice cereal is just meant for practicing with eating from a spoon...I'm not sure any of it actually gets eaten. I've tried feeding it to her at different times day to day to see if she prefers it more at certain times...before a nap, after a nap, before a bottle, after a bottle. We'll keep trying. :)

She has gotten a lot better at using her hands...even since her last appointment. She's able to put her pacifier back in her mouth and she has also figured out how to pull her fleece car seat cover off of her face. It's funny to see her little hands poke out from underneath while we're walking to and from the car. :)

I may jinx us again by saying this, but she has been sleeping really well lately. I don't remember if I mentioned before that she was all of a sudden waking up a few times during the night and almost always ate around 4:00am. Now, she goes to bed between 9:00 and 9:30pm and will generally sleep until morning with just a peep or two...sometimes nothing...and doesn't eat until morning. Nice!

She's laughing more and more, which is sooo fun! I don't think there's a better sound than her laughter...it's contagious. I was cracking up with her the other day with tears in my eyes because I was laughing so hard. LOVE it.

Cancun!

I'm a little behind on posting about Cancun...I may have a few more pictures to post later on. We had a really great time! It really doesn't even feel like we were ever there...it went by so fast! On the Monday before we left, I cried off and on all day while I was home with Ayla. Everytime I thought about it, tears came. :( We brought her over to Dean's parents' house early in the evening so we could get her settled in and put her to bed before we left. I was doing just fine until I was holding her before I put her in the pack 'n' play and once I put her down, I lost it. I was fine after a few minutes, but before we decided to head home, I went in to give her another kiss and lost it again. I should've just stayed out of the room.

Obviously, we all survived...we had a nice trip and Ayla did really well with both sets of grandparents. We were able to call them and check in a few times while we were away, so that was nice. Just like I thought, I missed her a lot but had plenty of pictures and a few videos on my camera that I could look at whenever I wanted. :)

Once we got to Cancun and that first beer was handed to me, all was well...here we are in the van on the way to our hotel.

We spent a lot of time on the beach...it wasn't really too warm the whole time we were there, but definitely nice enough! One of my favorite parts of the week was eating shrimp cocktail while sitting on the beach...can't beat that. This is a group shot of the Omaha Aerotek crew before heading out for dinner...we had several WONDERFUL meals while we were there...great food, great drinks, great company. I don't know...we're weird. Just goofing around before heading out for some drinks after dinner.

At Senor Frogs...

We went parasailing one day!! We've always wanted to do it, so we decided to go for it. I thought we would be in a harness with our legs dangling...instead, we were sitting in a sling-type seat with NO harnesses or buckles. It was scary...I white-knuckled the entire ride. I'm a bigger chicken than I thought. I felt like we were going to tip over and dump right into the ocean.

We were waaaaay up there...look how tiny the boat is!
View of Cancun from up above:
This is right before we zip-lined through the "jungle"...it was awesome! Definitely not as frightening as the parasailing.
We did 11 zip-lines and took a mile bike ride that led to this lagoon. (I thought for sure that I was going to run into at least six trees while we were on the trail...I don't remember the last time I rode a bike and I'm not exactly what you would call coordinated, so it was a rough ride for me.)

That's Dean on the line before dropping into the water:

We really had a great time and so, so, so appreciate our parents taking such good care of Ayla while we were gone (Kody, too!) It was fun to get away for a few days and just RELAX...I'm already looking forward to next year! :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! Dean and I went to Baby Blue last night for our Valentine's Day dinner while Grandma and Grandpa watched Ayla. It was nice to sit and have dinner as just the two of us and not have to get up several times. :) The things we used to take for granted...

I'm working this evening, so Daddy and Ayla will have the evening to themselves...plus Uncle Tom. :)

We gave Ayla a little pink puppy and a scarf for next winter (the puppy is wearing it.)Kisses from Kody!

I know I've said it before, but Kody is SUCH a good dog. He's so sweet and gentle with Ayla and so calm and patient with us. He doesn't get nearly the same amount of attention these days, but it's almost like he understands and he'll sit and wait until we can get to him.

Rice Cereal!

Ayla had rice cereal for the first time yesterday evening...she didn't really know what to think of it! I don't think it was too exciting for her...she made a bunch of grossed out faces. :) Eating from a spoon is definitely different.

Before her first bite.

"Hmm...what IS this stuff?"

Trying to "chew"...
"YUCK."
"Wait, it's not so bad."
Not sure how much of it actually made it into her mouth.

"I've had enough, Mom!"

All cleaned up and ready for bed while Daddy reads a bedtime story.

4-Month Appointment

All zonked out in her carseat after her appointment.

Ayla had her 4-month check-up today. Her doctor said she's doing just great...healthy heart, healthy lungs, healthy all-around. She weighs 14 pounds 6 ounces (59th percentile). I changed a big poopy diaper when we got to the doctor's office, so she got rid of some weight there! :) She's 25 1/4 inches long (77th percentile)...and her head is in the 82nd percentile!

She did great while Dr.Davey was examining her. She kind of had a half-smile on her face the entire time. It was like she didn't know what to think of the whole situation and couldn't decide whether or not she should like it. He even got her to laugh! We got the okay to give her rice cereal! It'll be fun to see if she likes it...

I was, of course, dreading the part when the nurse came back in to give her her shots. :( We did the same thing as last time...we each held one of her hands and I just watched her little face. She cried...really loud. :( I did better this time...just got teary-eyed when she first started to cry but no Kleenex needed. By the time we got her dressed and out to the car, she was fine and fell asleep on the way home and stayed asleep for over an hour.

Hopefully she doesn't develop a fever and is able to sleep well...

P.S...I have lots of Cancun pictures to post once I get them all organized...we had a really great time!

4 Months!

(Since Dean and I will be leaving for Cancun early tomorrow morning, I'm writing her 4-month post a day early.)

Today is the end of my two weeks home with her...it might have been the quickest two weeks ever. I was soo looking forward to it and now it's the last day already. :( Right now she's napping and I almost wish she would wake up so I could spend more time with her!

Her little personality emerges more and more each day...it has been so fun to watch her grow and develop. The littlest things, like being able to grab a toy, are so exciting for us to see. The past few days, she has started to grab her legs...if her flexibility is anything like mine, she probably won't be able to grab her feet. (I've never been able to touch my toes without experiencing quite a bit of pain.) She's also finding her voice with a variety of squeals, giggles, coos, and shrieks! She is LOUD. She no longer has that cute little newborn cry...it has turned into full-out screaming and sobbing. She only does this when she is REALLY tired though, so if we get her to fall asleep before she gets to that point, it can be prevented. Poor Dean's blood pressure skyrockets when she cries like that. It's no fun to see or hear...she cries so hard it seems like she can't catch her breath and afterwards she does that shuddering thing as she's trying to calm down. Besides a few good crying sesssions like that here and there, she's still our happy little girl. :) We just can't get enough of her and we're going to miss her oh-so-much while we're in Cancun.

And just a side-note...in case you haven't noticed, we have lost all control of that crazy hair of hers! Sometimes I'll wet it down and brush it...and no kidding, I turn around for a second and [POOF!] it is standing up again. I wonder how much higher it can go...

Her 4-month appointment is on the Monday after we get back in town...I'll post again then!