8 Months

Caroline is now 8 months old.  I know I say it every month, but I can't believe how quickly time is flying by.  She is 20 lbs, 3 ozs and I have no idea on a length.  I'm guessing she's approaching 30 inches because she's obviously taller to us, but she hasn't been officially measured.

She is sitting up for as long as she wants now.  In fact, we have put the bouncy chair away.  She's either playing on the floor or in her activity center.  She likes to pile all of our toys into her lap so she can have instant access to them.  

She is not crawling yet, but we feel like it's going to be any day.  She can move around on the floor and sometimes I wonder how she's 2 feet away from where she started, but she's not actually crawling.

She eats like a champ.  The only things she hasn't liked is avacado and pumpkin.  She loves carrots and sweet potatoes best.  She also likes all the fruits she's eaten.  She loves fruit mixed in with her oatmeal and that's what she has everyday for breakfast at school.  She also loves her yogurt and fruit puree mix too.

She is feeling much better and getting over all the crud she had a couple of weeks ago.  However, she hasn't been able to kick her ear infections.  We went to the doctor last week thinking she had pink-eye, but it was drainage from her ears still.  So she's on another antibiotic and we have a check up next week.  If she hasn't improved, we are being sent to an ENT.

Her teachers at school tell me that she does not like Matthew, a little boy in her class.  Every time Matthew goes near her, she screams until they move him away.  Even if she is in her bed and he walks over, she will scream until they move him.  Now, it should be noted that Matthew is sort of the class bully.  He takes toys and pacifiers and is kind of an overall menace.  Caroline is just the only kid smart enough to tell him to get away.  I guess we won't have to worry about her speaking her mind.

Everyday with her is wonderful... even when she isn't smiling.  Each new stage is the best and most fun. I can't wait to see what she brings next.

Are you chicken?

I'm really more of a tofu.... at least for the next 40 days.  I've decided to give up meat for lent.  Not just on Fridays like normal, but the whole time.

Day 2 and so far so good.  Although T's chicken at dinner smelled DI-VINE!   Oh well, my mac and cheese was good too.

Bleh

I have quite a bit of things to talk about, so I'm going to keep this limited.  Otherwise, it will be all over the place and you'll wonder if I need to be locked away in a padded room.  I'll be posting more by weeks end to include topics such as the Super Bowl, our 8 Month post and why I've been MIA.

But now, I'm going to catch you up on the infectious disease known as my daughter.  After a solid week of breathing treatments and a spreadsheet of medicines, we seem to have everything under control.  Our happy baby was back and she was sleeping and eating like a champ.

Mom came to visit this past weekend and we had a nice time.  Sunday, the baby woke up from a nap and she had gunk all over her eye.  It was basically gunked shut.  Yes, gunked is a word.  Because I said so.  So we got a warm rag and ungunked (yes, also a word) her eye.  It wasn't red or swollen... so I didn't think much about it.

If she had gunk on Monday, I didn't notice.  But yesterday when she woke up from her afternoon nap, her eye was gunked closed again AND it was red and swollen.  She wasn't acting sick, but she didn't eat all her dinner.  After we put her in bed, I googled "pink eye" and with all my years of medical training, I declared that she had pink eye.

We did decide to go to the doctor today to allow the doc to concur with me.  And I figured, since we're here, let's check her ears and make sure they are healed after her double infection.  Well, lo and behold, her ears were just as bad looking as they were almost 2 weeks ago.  And this is after a big time dose of antibiotics.

So we are on MORE antibiotics for her ears.  As for the eye, she thinks it's because of the ears and not pink eye, but we've got drops just in case.  We have a follow-up appointment next Thursday.  If her ears aren't better then, we are being sent to the ENT.

And since we are now at the doctor so much, they know who we are.  We don't even have to give our name.  In fact, they keep trying to get me to leave her with them because she's so cute.  It's not gonna happen, but at this point, I think the doctor's office may have less germs than daycare.

Factory Slows Production

Breaking News:  It appears the Snot Factory is cutting production.  No one in Smithville seems disappointed by this latest development.  In fact, the small kingdom is celebrating.

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I joke... but it was a happy morning today.  It appears our spreadsheet of medicines is making a difference.  Doodle slept all night and when we got her up this morning, we were happy to find not only a happy baby, but WAY less mucus.  Her fever is also gone.

She happily took her bottle with her medicines and we watched TV through the breathing treatment.  And as of about an hour ago, things still seemed pretty good in Smithville.  It appears we are on the road to recovery.  We have a follow up doctors appointment in the morning.  I'll have another report then.

A spreadsheet even Leslie wouldn't want to do

Leslie, my sister, loves to make a spreadsheet.  If it can be quantified and put into neat little columns and rows, all the better.  I, myself, am a list maker.  But tonight I had to venture into the spreadsheet side of things.

Poor Doodle is sick.  She's that nasty kind of snotty sick.  Ear infections (yes, two), congestion, fever, labored breathing... the works.  We went back to the doctor today because I wasn't happy with the lack of progress being made since the beginning of the week.

RSV is going around at daycare.  I wanted her tested today to see if she had it.  The doctor said she is the classic presentation of RSV.  But surprise, surprise, her test came back negative.  Seems like the Doodle might take after her mother in that regard.  She is currently on a antibiotic once a day for the ear infections, a steroid, a decongestant and breathing treatments... oh and don't forget the Motrin for the fever and aches.

Frankly, that's too much to remember.  So tonight I sat down and made a spreadsheet of the times, amounts and medicines she should take.  We've never had a problem giving her medicine, but she has been spitting stuff back at us that she's normally taken quite easily.  So now we have to give her medicine to her in her bottle.  The steroid is HORRIBLE.

Honestly, HORRIBLE is an understatement.  I dabbed my finger on the cap and touched that to my tongue to taste it.  I gagged.  And not only does it taste bad, the aftertaste is WORSE!  I gagged more.  I'm downing a big glass of water to get that taste out of my mouth and she has to take a whole teaspoon of the stuff!  Her first go with it was not so successful.  Hopefully tomorrow and our new schedule will be better.

I hope this is over soon.  We have a follow-up appointment on Friday to check her progress.  Hopefully we've made some.