She's Back!

Audia seems to be over her teething, at least temporarily, and my sweet, funny, happy little sprite is back! YAY! No new teeth have officially cut the gum, but I can see one on the bottom just below the surface. Hopefully either A) it will be another week or two before it decided to continue it's journey or B) it simply has stopped hurting her and will not hurt as it does finish cutting through.

The past couple of days have been hot and sticky. Minnesota hot is soooo different from Arizona hot. I would take 90 and humid-as-hell over 110 and dry any day, but would much prefer 100 and dry to 90 and humid-as-hell. It really is true that it's the humidity that kills you. Anyways, I went out and bought a new swim suit yesterday so that we could take Audia to the pool today. And boy, am I glad we did! She LOVES swimming! She was kicking and squealing and babbling pretty much the whole time. I wasn't such a fan of water at her age, so I am glad that she likes it so much.

I can't get over how smart our little monkey is; every day she is doing something new. She's been "AT-AT" (like from Star Wars) walking all over the back yard to avoid letting the grass touch her knees, and just a day or two ago started pointing at things she wants or is interested in. I also could swear to God that she's said "Hi" four or five times, and actually meant to say "Hi", as opposed to random babbling that ends up being words. She's been testing us a lot more lately, doing things just to see what kind of reaction she gets, and unfortunately she's also started hitting people in the face to get their attention....I am doing everything I can not to take it personally and am hoping she gets over it quickly. I'm told it's a common thing for babies around a year old to do. 98% of the time, though, she is sooooo sweet and cute and funny and just SO MUCH FUN! She gives hugs and laughs when I laugh; it is so rewarding being her mom :-)

New borns are cute for sure, but I am just loving this age where she is learning and interacting so much!

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Audia's at-at impression

Nine Months (a little belated...)

So, Audia had her 9 month well check last week. We got a recommendation for a practice from a friend's dad, who's a doctor. We really like this new pediatrician, Dr. S, so far. She was amazed that Audia hasn't been sick more than twice in her life so far, and had nothing but good things to say about her health, size, disposition, and activity level. She commented more than once on what a busy girl Audia is; it's nice to know that we're not the only ones who thinks she's a very active tot!!

Audia weighed in at 19 lbs, 10 oz and is now 28.5 inches tall. She's in the 75th percentile for both.

We went up to the cottage from the 7th til the 9th to visit Chris' brother and his girlfriend, who were visiting from AZ, as well as to see his parents. It was very cold and rainy while we were there (in the 40's in June?! Give me a break!), but we still had a great time.

Audia's teething again, I'm afraid, which is why this entry is a bit delayed....crabby baby means stressed out mommy, so I've been unwinding while she naps as much as possible (aka losing myself in the Sims 3) as opposed to keeping up with blogging and correspondence. Unfortunately for all of us, I can't see the teeth that are cutting through yet, which means it may be a while before they come through and she, and I, find relief.
As a side note to the teething thing, a friend recommended that we try homeopathic teething tablets, so we called our pediatrician and read her the ingredients to make sure they were safe. She said that the one ingredient we want to stay away from is Belladonna because it can severely sedate, as well as cause heart and urinary problems, in some young children. So we'll see if we can find a different brand that doesn't have that. But, for you other moms out there, I thought I'd share that info.

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Daisy girl :)

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Still searching for santa...

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Audia waves Ciao

Poop

Forgive me if the formatting or spelling in this post is wonky; I am attempting to blog from my iTouch which is not exactly easy.

Yes, you read right. The subject of this entry is poop. Before I became a mom, I never in my life imagined I would someday spend even half as much time as I do thinking and talking about feces. But for the past almost nine months, poop has not only become a daily topic of conversation between Chris and myself (and, for that matter, anyone else who will listen), but sometiMes we talk about it multiple times a day. Not our poop, of course, but our daughter's. Color, consistancy, frequency.... These are things that are discussed in detail on a regular basis. And something that is sometimes discussed and compared with other mom friends of mine. Most of the time I don't think twice about it; this is my life now. But sometimes, like tonight, I manage to get a different perspective and I can't help but laugh at how much things have changed in the past nine months. I mean, when's the last time you talked, in detail, about poop?

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Trying to get in the fireplace

Babies

So, I found out today that another friend of mine is pregnant with baby #2! How exciting! It is crazy to me that I am at "that age" where my friends and I are getting married and having kids. What really seals that realization of how OLD I am is that this past weekend we went to a graduation open house for a kid I babysat all through middle school and high school. I started sitting for him when he was 3. This funny, cute little tow-headed kid is now a polite, handsome, tow-headed adult.

But back to the baby #2 thing. My dear friend J, who I truly see as the ultimate mom, is the first to have baby #2 on the way; she's due this summer. J is my hero in a lot of ways. She dealt with some tough times with baby #1, but came through them with flying colors. If I need parenting advice, she is the first person I turn to. So when I heard that she was expecting baby #2, I was not suprised. If anyone can do it, she can. Seriously. But then I was talking to a few other friends who are moms and they ALL said how they already wanted a second kid. Now, one of those friends is expecting baby #2 in January! I am the only one of my friends with kids who does not feel ready for a second child. And I am feeling a bit self-conscious this. I worry about what this says about me as a mom. Am I less capable? Less compassionate? Less patient? I mean yes, I do want a second child....someday. But I cannot imagine having two spirited, independent, actively curious children under the age of 2. or 3. or maybe even 4. I love Audia more than words, and being her mom brings me an immeasurable amount of joy. But I feel like my hands are full with just her. She wants to go EVERYWHERE. If we put up a gate, she stands at it and cries, even if the room she's in is filled with new toys she's never seen before. So gates aren't an option. And she gets into EVERYTHING. If I stop her from getting into something, she shreiks and whines and cries until I let her get into it. Diversion hardly works anymore. Add to that the fact that she's now walking more than she's crawling, potentially starting to teethe again, and has started waking up at 5 am. I simply cannot imagine dealing with this and a 2 year old. Or 3 year old. Or maybe even a 4 year old. Now don't get me wrong...I am not complaining about Audia. As I said, I love being her mom. I honestly feel like it is my purpose in life, to be her mom. My point is simply that she is enough for me right now. But the fact that everyone else is or wants to be onto baby #2 makes me feel guilty. Granted we are the only parents I know who are following the attachment parenting route, so that might have something to do with it. I don't get self-conscious about much these days, but the fact that I am no where near ready for baby #2 and so many of my friends are makes me wonder if I'm doing something wrong.

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My little flower child :)