Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Good and bad
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Habits
When Porgie was a newborn, I tried in vain to give her a pacifier (she was a chronically fussy newborn). My baby girl adamantly refused to keep that thing in her mouth. By the time she was six months old, she was sucking her thumb (which John and I thought was adorable and sweet). Fast forward 5 years, and she is STILL sucking her thumb. But how do I make her stop? It is her thumb and there is very little I can do about it.
When Porgie was about 7 months old, I strongly encouraged her to take a lovie to bed with her. I thought this would help ease the transition from co-sleeping to crib sleeping. We started out with one blanket, but every time someone gave us a soft stuffed animal, Porgie added it to her collection. Fast forward 5 years, and she is carrying FIVE lovies around the house with her. Porgie has two blankets, a stuffed elephant, a stuffed brown dog, and a stuffed polka-dot dog. She rubs one of the lovies on her face while she is sucking her thumb, so these two problems are definitely interconnected. My big girl still sleeps with her lovies. She still carries them everywhere. She still cries when we can't find one of them. When is she going to outgrow the need for all these lovies?
Over the past 5 years, the thumb sucking has given my baby girl an open bite. Porgie has several loose teeth (OH MY GOD, my baby is getting adult teeth!), and she is currently getting her six-year molars. I don't want her thumb sucking to ruin the alignment of her adult teeth. Unfortunately, my big girl (with her new big teeth) seems to be under the impression that she is still a little baby.
When Porgie was about 7 months old, I strongly encouraged her to take a lovie to bed with her. I thought this would help ease the transition from co-sleeping to crib sleeping. We started out with one blanket, but every time someone gave us a soft stuffed animal, Porgie added it to her collection. Fast forward 5 years, and she is carrying FIVE lovies around the house with her. Porgie has two blankets, a stuffed elephant, a stuffed brown dog, and a stuffed polka-dot dog. She rubs one of the lovies on her face while she is sucking her thumb, so these two problems are definitely interconnected. My big girl still sleeps with her lovies. She still carries them everywhere. She still cries when we can't find one of them. When is she going to outgrow the need for all these lovies?
Over the past 5 years, the thumb sucking has given my baby girl an open bite. Porgie has several loose teeth (OH MY GOD, my baby is getting adult teeth!), and she is currently getting her six-year molars. I don't want her thumb sucking to ruin the alignment of her adult teeth. Unfortunately, my big girl (with her new big teeth) seems to be under the impression that she is still a little baby.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Where have I been?
My great aunt died last week, so we drove back to Kentucky for the funeral. We left so quickly that I didn't have time to fret and worry about all the details. The 11 hour drive was surprising easy. I was confident that Guppy would scream for hours on end, but he was really good.
It was definitely a sad trip home, but I am so glad we went. I got to pay my respects to my aunt, and I also got to visit with my grandma. Granny was a mess. She can barely walk, she just had a heart attack, and now her sister died. She cried frequently, but I think my children were the perfect distraction. She couldn't help but smile at the baby and laugh at Porgie & Izzy's antics.
I am glad to be home though. No matter how nice the accommodations were, no matter how well-behaved the children were, there is no place like home.
It was definitely a sad trip home, but I am so glad we went. I got to pay my respects to my aunt, and I also got to visit with my grandma. Granny was a mess. She can barely walk, she just had a heart attack, and now her sister died. She cried frequently, but I think my children were the perfect distraction. She couldn't help but smile at the baby and laugh at Porgie & Izzy's antics.
I am glad to be home though. No matter how nice the accommodations were, no matter how well-behaved the children were, there is no place like home.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Developments in Cakerwakerville
Granny is doing well. She is home resting, which is definitely a good thing. I couldn't find a flight for less than $800 (per person), so I couldn't afford to go back to Kentucky this week. In addition to the cost of the flight, I am going to have to rent a minivan and pay for a hotel room. Needless to say, this trip isn't going to be cheap. Anyways, I have been searching for tickets, and I am planning on going home at the beginning of February. I have got to see my granny!
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Guppy has been sleeping horribly lately. In addition to his 30 minute nap routine, he has been waking every two hours ALL NIGHT LONG. I have been running on empty for weeks. I know that it is a phase and that it will pass, but it is so hard when you are in the thick of it. I am crabby and cranky and just no fun to be around.
A few days ago Izzy was playing on the floor with Guppy. He excitedly announced that Guppy had a tooth. I thought he was crazy, but I came over to look anyways. I was shocked to see a little white tooth beginning to poke through on my baby's lower gum. At the ripe old age of 4 months, Guppy is getting his first tooth! He is so young that I didn't even consider teething as a possible cause for all of his night wakings. Yes, I have three kids and I am still clueless.
Between the teeth, Guppy's new rolling skills, and that pesky 4 month sleep regression, it is no wonder he hasn't been able to settle down at night and sleep. Poor little guy.
___________
Guppy has been sleeping horribly lately. In addition to his 30 minute nap routine, he has been waking every two hours ALL NIGHT LONG. I have been running on empty for weeks. I know that it is a phase and that it will pass, but it is so hard when you are in the thick of it. I am crabby and cranky and just no fun to be around.
A few days ago Izzy was playing on the floor with Guppy. He excitedly announced that Guppy had a tooth. I thought he was crazy, but I came over to look anyways. I was shocked to see a little white tooth beginning to poke through on my baby's lower gum. At the ripe old age of 4 months, Guppy is getting his first tooth! He is so young that I didn't even consider teething as a possible cause for all of his night wakings. Yes, I have three kids and I am still clueless.
Between the teeth, Guppy's new rolling skills, and that pesky 4 month sleep regression, it is no wonder he hasn't been able to settle down at night and sleep. Poor little guy.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Getting old sucks
My granny had a heart attack on New Year's Eve. Of course she didn't go to the hospital, because that would be the logical and sane thing to do. Instead, she sat home for 3 days feeling like crap. Then disaster struck. She woke up in the middle of the night, tried to get out of the bed to go pee, and ended up falling on the floor. She was basically paralyzed (remember that she just broke her hip last winter), and was unable to get up off the floor. FOR HOURS. She laid on the cold floor from 2am to 5am, because she didn't want to wake anybody up. Isn't that insane?
My grandma lives with her sister (let's call her N), who has Down Syndrome. My grandma called for N to bring her the telephone at 5am, but she didn't call 911. No, she called my cousin (let's call her C). C and her husband came over, picked Granny up off the floor, and took her back to their house. Everyone was hoping that it was just a little tumble, but after a few hours it was apparent that something was wrong. My grandma couldn't move her legs, her chest continued to hurt, and she felt like utter crap. So, they took her to the ER, where it was confirmed that she had had a heart attack.
The hospital ran a bunch of tests on her today, but we don't know the results yet. From what I've heard from several family members, Granny will likely need a stent placed in her heart. I have been a nervous wreck, full of worry and fear. My grandma is the strongest woman I know. I love her dearly, and it is breaking my heart that I am so far away right now. I haven't seen her since Christmas of 2010, and I just have this overwhelming urge to go home. To be with my family. To see my grandma. Of course it isn't that easy. I have a little baby. It takes 12 hours to get there. John has to work. There are a million reason not to go, but my heart keeps insisting that I should be there.
My grandma lives with her sister (let's call her N), who has Down Syndrome. My grandma called for N to bring her the telephone at 5am, but she didn't call 911. No, she called my cousin (let's call her C). C and her husband came over, picked Granny up off the floor, and took her back to their house. Everyone was hoping that it was just a little tumble, but after a few hours it was apparent that something was wrong. My grandma couldn't move her legs, her chest continued to hurt, and she felt like utter crap. So, they took her to the ER, where it was confirmed that she had had a heart attack.
The hospital ran a bunch of tests on her today, but we don't know the results yet. From what I've heard from several family members, Granny will likely need a stent placed in her heart. I have been a nervous wreck, full of worry and fear. My grandma is the strongest woman I know. I love her dearly, and it is breaking my heart that I am so far away right now. I haven't seen her since Christmas of 2010, and I just have this overwhelming urge to go home. To be with my family. To see my grandma. Of course it isn't that easy. I have a little baby. It takes 12 hours to get there. John has to work. There are a million reason not to go, but my heart keeps insisting that I should be there.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Porgie's Dental Ordeal
I am not sure how much of this story I have told, so I am going to recap. Last year we took Porgie to the dentist for a cleaning and discovered that she had cavities between her molars, on both sides. We had the cavities filled. Six months later (at her next cleaning), the dentist noticed that one of her fillings had fallen out. I was annoyed, but figured it was a fluke, and I let him refill the cavity. This was a mistake.
In November Porgie went in to have her teeth cleaned again. The dentist revealed that the fillings on both sides had now fallen out. He also mentioned that she had more decay in those teeth, which meant that she would need crowns placed on those teeth. I was livid. This fucking dentist and his inability to correctly place a filling was ruining my daughter's teeth.
Since the fillings he placed in her teeth kept falling out, I asked if he would place the crowns for free. He refused, and acted as if the missing fillings were my fault. He kept asking if I fed her gummy foods. Umm...no. She eats like a normal person, fuckface.
So, I asked for Porgie's records and we left. I called my dentist and got a referral for another pediatric dentist. In December we went in for a consultation with the new dentist. He confirmed that she needed crowns because of the extensive decay. He said recurrent decay under the fillings was likely making the fillings repeatedly fall out (implying that the other dentist had never put the fillings in correctly to begin with. GRRR). He assured me that if his crowns fell off, he would stand behind his work and correct the problem free of charge. So, we made an appointment to have the crowns placed in January.
Yesterday was the big day. Porgie had the left side done first. John took her, and he assured me that it was the most horrible thing he has ever seen. But Porgie? She said the new dentist was nicer and that it didn't hurt as much as it did at the crappy dentist's office. I am keeping my fingers crossed that this dentist will be competent and that we can finally stop traumatizing my daughter with all this dental work.
In November Porgie went in to have her teeth cleaned again. The dentist revealed that the fillings on both sides had now fallen out. He also mentioned that she had more decay in those teeth, which meant that she would need crowns placed on those teeth. I was livid. This fucking dentist and his inability to correctly place a filling was ruining my daughter's teeth.
Since the fillings he placed in her teeth kept falling out, I asked if he would place the crowns for free. He refused, and acted as if the missing fillings were my fault. He kept asking if I fed her gummy foods. Umm...no. She eats like a normal person, fuckface.
So, I asked for Porgie's records and we left. I called my dentist and got a referral for another pediatric dentist. In December we went in for a consultation with the new dentist. He confirmed that she needed crowns because of the extensive decay. He said recurrent decay under the fillings was likely making the fillings repeatedly fall out (implying that the other dentist had never put the fillings in correctly to begin with. GRRR). He assured me that if his crowns fell off, he would stand behind his work and correct the problem free of charge. So, we made an appointment to have the crowns placed in January.
Yesterday was the big day. Porgie had the left side done first. John took her, and he assured me that it was the most horrible thing he has ever seen. But Porgie? She said the new dentist was nicer and that it didn't hurt as much as it did at the crappy dentist's office. I am keeping my fingers crossed that this dentist will be competent and that we can finally stop traumatizing my daughter with all this dental work.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Christmas cookies
Also, here is a picture of my latest pie creation - a chocolate hazelnut tart...
I am bound and determined to gain 20 pounds (which is odd, since I really need to lose about 20 pounds).
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