Teething and Rolling

Tuesday, January 15, 2012

So, it has been over 2 weeks since I have posted and I realized when I woke up this morning that I can’t let myself go so long without an update – even if it is just a short one.  So, here I am!

I am thrilled to report that Maddie rolled over (again?) 2 days ago.  I was a little worried because she doesn’t do it very often and I began to think that maybe the past times when it happened were just a fluke. But, this weekend when I put her on her tummy, she flipped onto her back twice in a row (and Phil was there to see, too!).  Then, later on, she was babbling in her crib after her nap when I walked in and saw her laying completely on her side.  She is really working on getting from her back to her tummy, although I’m sure she won’t be happy about it once she succeeds. She will hopefully be flipping left and right in the next month or so. 

Maddie and her cousins on Nikki's side of the family: (from left) Dylan, Jaidyn and Brandon. 

Teething is now in FULL FORCE! Maddie was so miserable the past 3-4 days and was back to her “colicky” screaming.  She was inconsolable a few nights and was very difficult to get to sleep.  She has been chewing on her hands a lot more and drooling a little. We have tried Tylenol a couple of times, but I’m not sure if it really helps or not. I’m reluctant to give her any unnatural remedies, but I also don’t want her to be in so much pain.  I try giving her teethers and cold washcloths, but she doesn’t hold onto them in her mouth, so I end up holding them in place for her sometimes. 

Maddie and her cousins on Phil's side of the family: (from left) Charlotte, Sammie and Tucker.

Maddie’s also waking in the middle of the night more and I wonder if this is from the teething or “sleep regression.” Thankfully, she goes back to sleep pretty quickly after we shush her and give her the pacifier, so we aren’t rocking her for hours on end.  Thank God! Last night was fantastic: she went to sleep at 9:15, woke at 10:15 and then my wonderful husband rocked her back to sleep.  She’s still sleeping now at 8:30! So, all three of us got some much needed rest. 

Maddie just started “hitting” last week. I got a kick out of it! She was nursing and, while she used to stroke my chest gently, one morning she was slapping me instead.  It was really funny.  Yesterday, she was hitting her chest with both hands, too.  Time to buy a drum set! 

5 months old! 

Her legs are getting really strong now. We have been standing her up and she will stay upright for long periods of time.  I have also sat her up and let go to see if she can balance. She is far from sitting on her own, but she did balance for a few seconds one time.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! First picture of 2013 taken at midnight. 

New Year’s Eve was a lot of fun.  We spent the night with the Ishikawa’s next door and had a few drinks and some yummy food.  Jay always makes noodles after midnight to signify a long life and they were out of this world (as usual)! Phil and I set up a camera and a timer and took a picture of the three of us at midnight.  It was nice.  Wow, Maddie’s first New Year!

Our first dip into buying something off of Ebay.  We love our Fontanini Nativity set! 

Nikki being silly. We are still cooking and made some gnocchi from scratch.  It turned out yummy.  This was my "I'm braving the cold and venturing into the garage to put the gnocchi in the freezer that we keep out there" outfit: complete with Phil's "red-man" hat. Even the dogs think I'm nuts. 

Let’s see….what else? Well, I am really loving my small group! I feel like I am learning a lot studying the book of Ephesians and the Lord is pulling on my heart and changing me in so many ways. It is wonderful.  The Lord also tugged at my heart to memorize more scripture this past month and after memorizing Psalm 1, I have now taken on the challenge of memorizing the book of Titus.  I have said Psalm 1 so many times, I feel like it is engrained on my heart, so God has answered my prayers of not letting me forget the verses after I have committed them to memory.  Yay! Now, I am working on Titus and it is so rewarding.  The entire book is 46 verses long and I am almost done with the first chapter (16 verses).  It’s amazing how much you can learn from a verse when you are meditating on it throughout the entire day. I always used to skim through Paul’s introductory verses thinking that there wasn’t a lot to learn other than the “from who”, “to who”, and “why” about the letter, but there is so much more in there.  Thank you, God, for inscribing your word on my heart!

My little beauty. 

Well, Maddie is talking in her crib and I should get her before she starts crying.  I’ll try to make more updates soon.