Sippy cups, Tiny Tunes, and Adams Farm!

A lot is going on in Roselyn's life lately! First of all, as we continue to work on Roselyn's finger foods we now have introduced another new object- a sippy cup! The first time I gave it to her I was probably a little optimistic and filled the cup to 5 ounces. At first I placed it in her mouth so she could taste the apple juice/water mixture without dealing with holding the cup as well. She gave a strange look and let the juice dribble out of her mouth. I then allowed her to hold the cup since I figured maybe she just wanted to explore it herself. She did a great job holding onto the cup, but had no interest in drinking from it, she only wanted to chew the nipple of the cup. Once that bored her she took the cup by one hand and swung it around allowing all the juice to fly out. I placed it back in her hands and tilted the cup in her mouth- she dealt with the situation, but you could tell she rather chew the cup than drink from it. Since the first time we are slowly making progress- I think she is actually swallowing some now:)
Tiny Tunes is a music class for babies and toddlers that Roselyn attends on Tuesdays. The class has about 9 kids, and thankfully, Roselyn is not the youngest. The ages range from 6 months to 4 years. There is a "curicullum" that includes a CD for the kids to listen to at home and a music book with all the songs. Roselyn loves listening to the songs and experimenting with the musical instruments. Some of what takes place is for kids that are more mobile (there is time for kids to dance with scarfs and such), but Roselyn LOVES to watch the other kids. She also enjoys the bubbles at the end. She truly does not stop smiling the entire time! I work with her on the songs at home and in the car and she always perks up when she hears them. She sometimes will "sing" along too, and it is too cute!
Adams Farms is a u-pick berries farm in Fayetteville. In the past I have gone in the summer by myself and have picked a few things for fun. Rob actually suggested we go and take Roselyn with us. We went at 10am in the morning hoping it would not be too hot, but it was still nearly 90 degrees when we arrived. Luckily, the aisles for the raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries were wide enough to take Roselyn's stroller and we could angle her stroller so she always had shade. Rob and I picked berries while Roselyn watched and smiled. We let her hold onto the small baskets and touch some of the raspberries and strawberries. I did watch carefully that she did not squeeze the the berries because she was wearing a white top and there was no way to clean off red fruit stains. Roselyn loved looking at all the berry plants and receiving complements from the other pickers!

9 Months Old!

Hard to believe, but Roselyn is 9 months old! Of course, that means another doctor's appointment. Luckily, there are no shots this time around! She certainly has grown- 20lb 5oz, 28inches (she is in the 75th percentile). I can't remember the head circumference, but that is in the 95th percentile (she has a big brain!). Roselyn did not like the doctor checking out all her nooks and cranies- she showed Dr. Cheeks how she can "talk"- dadada and ahhhh were heard a lot. The consensus was that Roselyn is a healthy and happy baby. I asked about finger foods and a sippy cup. I was told both were a great idea to start as soon as possible. I was also told the normal summer precautions (sunscreen and bug repellent) and given a list of food for Roselyn to avoid. I ask if I could ween Roselyn off nursing from 4 times a day- luckily (or maybe unluckily since it is a joy) I was told yes, but hold off on cow's milk until she is a year old. Lastly, it was recommend that I have Roselyn's finger pricked for an iron check. Thankfully, Roselyn is used to being poked and got over this pretty quickly. However, I did recieve a call later that day telling me that Roselyn will need to take Poly-Vi-Sol plus iron since her count was a bit low. Oh well, that is the way things go...
So Friday I tried strawberry yogurt melts for Roselyn's first dinger foods. I placed one in her mouth and she contemplated what it was while it dissolved in her mouth. The next one I placed in her hand, which she seemed to like to hold, but did not quite understand it was FOOD and needed to be directed to the mouth. The third piece I placed om her tray which she picked up and played with- again she was having trouble realizing it was food. The forth piece was much like the third. Still, I was happy she did eat them, and my fear of choking was unfounded. Yes, it will take time, but she will be a big eater before you know it! On to the sipply cup...

Memorial Day, Dahlonega, and POOL TIME

Finally another long awaited update! This time I will back track to the end of May and describe Roselyn's Memorial Day. First of all, the Memorial Day festivities actually took place on Sunday, May 24th. On Sunday Roselyn's Aunt Stephanie, Uncle Ted, cousins Brett and Carl, and Mimi and Grandpa Bill all came to visit and have dinner. Also visiting was John and Shelley Clifford with their son, Colin (he was born one month after Roselyn). When Roselyn woke from her nap she was surprised to see all the people in her living room, but seemed happy to have some many people to play with her and give her attention. Colin and Roselyn played on the floor the entire time everyone was visiting- even during the meal time people watched out for them while eating dinner. Roselyn still did something special on Memorial Day, however- she attended a wedding for Ken Ferguson and Christina Paino. The wedding was outdoor in Dunaway Gardens and was gorgeous! Roselyn enjoyed the attention given to her by the wedding attendees. She also danced with Rob several times and seemed to love the dance floor (or maybe it was just who she was dancing with).
As for Dahlonega, we went to stay at Lily Creek Lodge like we always do a couple times a year and visit the local wineries. This was the first time the innkeepers had a chance to meet Roselyn and she was a hit! Unfortunately, she was tired the first night and very fussy- so off to bed early she went. Luckily, our monitor worked great in the lodge and we were able to stay with Don and Sharon downstairs while Roselyn slept (and cried a little- she is teething after all) upstairs. Day one in Dahlonega we visited wineries. However, due to a sleepy baby needing an afternoon nap, we cut our wine excursion short and relaxed on the deck at the lodge (with baby monitor in hand). When Roselyn would not sleep (lots of noise coming from the baby monitor) we went on to the Oar House for an early dinner. Roselyn finally fell asleep on the way to dinner and so Rob and I had a relaxing meal with a sleeping baby in her stroller beside us. Day two in Dahlonega was the Georgia Wine Country Festival. Again, Roselyn was a hit. Everyone asked if we were "starting her early". As most nursing moms can relate, the only place to feed and change Roselyn was in the bathroom. I sat in a stall on the toilet (with pants still up) and gave Roselyn her lunch. However, I did not realize there was a line generating outside the stall and its services were needed. When I left the bathroom I apologized and quickly gave Roselyn to Rob so that I could get in line to use the bathroom for myself (I wasn't going to preoccupy it any longer than necessary the first time).
Once we arrive back at the house from Dahlonega it was POOL TIME. We had tried to take Roselyn to the pool before, but it was too crowded. At the Lodge, the water was way too cold. We were told the pool in the neighborhood also had cold water, but we were determined to get Roselyn in a pool. Unfortunately, Roselyn was in rare form and cried the entire time we got her ready for the big event. Thankfully, pacifiers do wonders. Her attitude did change once we hit the pool. Rob gently put her in her penguin float in the water and she let out the biggest smile! Both Rob and I joined her (me for short duration because I hate cold water). Our friends the Bevills were there with their 5 month old daughter, Addison. It was fun to watch them interact and enjoy the pool. Roselyn really got into splashing the water and kicking her feel. Overall, a successful ifrst experience!

Adventures in Baby Food

I decided to do it. I am far from a hippie tree-hugger, but I thought, why not? Today I decided to make my own baby food. Rob (or I should say, Roselyn) gave me a baby food cookbook for Mother's Day and I figured I might as well try a few recipes. They seemed easy enough. Just puree some fruits or vegetables. I even went "all out" and bought organic produce. I decided to try items I have not seen "pre-made" in jars- zucchini, cauliflower, and blueberries. The zucchini was cut, steamed, and pureed- super easy. I was so impressed and confident with myself I went straight on to the cauliflower. The cauliflower steamed great, but the pureeing was another story. The cauliflower was having trouble getting to the blades, so I pushed it down with a spoon- a wooden spoon. Yeah, you guessed it- the wood in the spoon became part of the pureed cauliflower. Yum, fiber. Luckily, I still had more cauliflower to try, and this time I pushed the cauliflower down with metal spoon. However, with the lid off the mixer the cauliflower decided to take flight- and land on my counter, cabinets, and yes, even my ceiling. I hoped the blueberries would be better. Unfortunately, the quantity of blueberries that come in a container at the store makes very little baby food. By the time you puree the blueberries, push it through a sieve to remove the skins, and heat it up, I had about an ounce of baby food. I also have a battle wound from making the blueberries. You were to heat the blueberries to make it easier to "digest". The directions read 3-5 minutes, but that was for two cups of blueberries. At 3 minutes my blueberries were burning. I quickly took the blueberries off the stove and tried to spoon them into the ice tray. Because they were slightly burned they stuck to the spoon and I used my finger to try to help them fall into the ice tray. Yeah, I burned my finger as a result. Even with all the drama, I am pretty proud that I made my own baby food. Next step, let's see if Roselyn will eat it...

Long awaited update

So I did write about Mother's Day, but what has happened between Mother's Day and the middle of April? It is hard to know where to begin- there has been so many little things. First, Roselyn now eats both fruits and vegetables and is down to four nursings a day. She is eating mixed veggies and LOVES them! I am surprised that pureed spinach, peas, and grain can be so appetizing! Roselyn seemed to have her first episode of constipation at the beginning of May. Luckily, I have purchased prunes, and they work great! Thankfully, I was at a friend's house when the prunes corrected the constipation, but I arrived home just in time to hear Rob yell LAURA in a shaky voice begging for help. You can't expect a dad to do a mom's job:) Roselyn seems to be enjoying her belly more and more, though she tends to do bend her elbows and lays "Superman" style. She likes to roll to her side which causes her body to turn- there are times I leave her for a moment and she had done a 180 degree turn in a couple minutes! There have been some fluke times she has kind of rolled over-finally!
Roselyn has had a couple of dates with her friends Addison and Hudson. First we all went to Newnan Utilities park and had a picnic lunch and swinged in the swings. Roselyn had a great time, but by the time we were at the swings she literally was falling asleep as the swing rocked her back and forth. The next day we all met was at our house. Hudson loved Roselyn's toys (at least chewing on them) and Addison loved Roselyn's Sweetpeace swing. I have recently started working two mornings a week at Atlanta Fitness' childcare. Roselyn seems to like me there, but she is getting used to seeing me holding other babies and playing with other children. I have been impressed with her patience overall.
Lastly, we finally seem to have some sort of insurance resolution. We appealed Blue Cross Blue Shield's decline of Roselyn. They then approved her- starting May 1. We now have applied for a conversion policy for the month of April so we are not beyond the 63 days and show a lapse in coverage. Because Roselyn has coverage for May (YEAH) we went to have her bloodwork done. I returned to LabCorp worried about the insurance coverage elsewhere. Like before, they stuck her in her arm and could not get anything. Roselyn cried and cried and I asked them not to stick her again (they tried four times the last time and never got anything). When I asked if they could prick her heel, I was told they had too much blood to draw to do that. I then asked them to call Dr. Van Meter. I was told to bring her to his office at 1:45 that afternoon. When I arrived there I found out it was Dr. Van Meter himself drawing her blood. He took it from a vein in her hand. What a difference! She cried for three seconds when the needle came in, and cried for three seconds when the needle came out and that was it. I wish blood was drawn regularly there because it was such a huge relief to have a happy baby. And the result came back today- her levels were normal and there is no need for an increase in her medication. Good news!