Life is Good...

For the last couple months we took a refrain from most activities (including blogging) because Morgan was having lots of problems with reflux.  For about 4 weeks she was up about every hour at night.  Morgan has a milk and soy protein allergy which means that I avoid all dairy and soy products.  It turns out that it is common for babies with this allergy to also have reflux.  To make a long story short, we opted to see a GI Pediatrician because our general pediatrician wasn't super helpful in trying different medications that may help.  So, after seeing the GI Pediatrician in Round Rock, we found a dosage of medication that worked.  She started sleeping longer stretches but was still up quite a bit.  At that point, we had no other choice but to do some sleep training.  I have never been a proponent of letting her cry but fortunately it worked and wasn't nearly as dramatic as I thought.

I'm happy to say that she is sleeping from 9pm to 9am and get up only once at night to eat.  She is also eating solids 3 times a day (2-3 jars) and has her fourth tooth coming through.  She is even out of the bouncer at night and is in her very own crib.  Most importantly, her overall mood is better.  She is a very happy little girl during the day....unless I am making her take her reflux medicine.

My Strong-Willed Child

We had another rough night last night.  So, I took Morgan to a new pediatrician today to hopefully get some answers as to why she is getting up every couple hours at night.  Also, whenever she strains she seems to be in pain but she isn't constipated.  We went to see a doctor who is in the same practice as our previous pediatrician. 

I told her all about Morgan's background with food allergies.  Morgan also has a cold so she checked her ears and eyes.  Fortunately, she said they looked fine.  However, our little angel wasn't quite in the mood to be examined by the nice doctor lady.  She started screaming and flailing her hands in the air.  Before I know it she was in a full-blown tantrum all because it was not her prerogative to have her ears checked.  When the doctor was done, I scooped her up only to have her spit up all over me.  The pediatrician was so nice about it and said "Wow, she really lets you know what she is thinking, doesn't she?"

Basically, Dr. Tomlin told us that Morgan has reflux.  That would explain the pain when straining, the night wakings and why she can't sleep on her back flat. So, she gave us some Zantac and we are supposed to see if things improve.  I'm also supposed to stop nursing her to sleep (easier said than done) and put her on a sleep wedge instead of in her carrier.  Apparently  the carrier can cause her to slump making reflux worse.  So, hopefully these changes will help her to feel better and get this tired Mama some sleep.

She definitely wasn't phased too much by the "spit-up incident".  She was smiling and joining in on the conversation in a matter of minutes.  Dr. Tomlin even commented on how vocal she is for her age.  Then, on the way out my little strong-willed extrovert had to smile at all the nurses as we passed by.

Morgan is feeling better this evening.  This picture was taken right after she managed to somehow poop on the carpet.  She seems to think its pretty funny.

5 Months

Morgan Likes:

Giggling at Daddy and Mommy, watching her puppies, going on walks and sitting up!

Morgan Dislikes:

Laying down, Bottles, pacifiers, boredom, and the Roomba.

What’s New:  Morgan just started sitting up.  She is not much for rolling over still although she can do it.  She enjoys sitting up so much that when you lay her on her back, she tries to curl up in a crunch position until you aquiesce and sit her up.  Her hair is growing quite a bit and it is long enough to be able to mess up.  She has graduated from headbands with bows to bows with clips.  Her eyes are STILL blue to my amazement.  If they stay blue then I think that trait is from Jeremy's mom and my dad since Jeremy and I both have hazel eyes.   We went to Sunday School for the first time on Sunday and I just went and fed her in between class and the service since she is more hungry in the mornings.   Morgan has developed a liking for prune juice since we had some constipation issues when we started solids.  Now we are taking a break from solids and hoping to get back on the right track.  I miss the days where she slept 7 hours straight.  Last night she got up twice (12:30 and 4:30) and that is considered a good night.  She is teethign so I'm sure that is not helping.

What Morgan Plays With:

She enjoys her little stuffed monkey that wiggles.  She also likes to play with Mommy's hair and Daddy's glasses.  She still enjoys the jumparoo and is getting better at actually bouncing.  Morgan laughs and grins every time one of the the dogs approaches her.  She also likes to laugh when someone else starts laughing.  She and I could giggle back and forth for hours.  She is really something else!

What Morgan Eats:

Milk, milk and more milk since we are taking a break from the solids.  She took my milk from a spoon for the first time last week!  (She is definitely stubborn but she gets it honest.)

What Morgan Says:

Morgan likes to "sing along" and is starting to imitate noises I make.  

How Morgan Spends Her Time:

Every morning Morgan usually wakes up at about 7:00.  She likes to be fed first thing and then is in a good mood afterwards.  Then we spend some time talking and singing songs.   We take a walk around the neighborhood before it gets too hot.  She also does a weekly playdate with her BFF Adalyn and we have our SS class playdate on Fridays.  Last time, we got to feed ducks at a pond.    She will usually take a short nap at about 3:00.  When Daddy comes home she sits at the table and watches us eat.  I do our bedtime routine starting at 7:40.  Apparently, 8:40 is the magic time for her to be able to go to sleep for the night.  We had her sleeping in the crib on a sleepwedge but since she was getting up so much, I went back to the carrier in the crib.  I almost wonder if she has had some reflux since she does so much better sleeping at a pretty steep angle.  For now, I am getting her out of the habit of nursing her to sleep and then we will work on sleeping on the wedge again.  I am learning to prioritize and take one thing at a time.  

It is hard to believe that our sweet girl is already 5 months old! Sunday is Baby Dedication and we'll have lots of pictures to post.

A cool front came in a couple weeks ago and Pop Pop got some good pics.

"Laying down is for babies!"

Morgan's First Easter

It is hard to believe that our little Easter bunny is almost 5 months old.  We went to church and Morgan had another good day in the nursery.  When we went to pick her up she had been sleeping in a lady's arms for almost 30 minutes.  We were pretty amazed since she was really fussy before we left.  We think she has more teeth coming in.

Apparently it was a very eventful day in the nursery that morning.

After church we went over to Grammy and Pop Pop's for dinner.  Mommy made roast and apple pies and Grammy took care of the rest.   As always, Morgan was the center of attention

The next day we went over to Adalyn's house to take some very professional- looking Easter pictures.  Miss Robin did a great job when Morgan was not in the best of moods!  This is our back-up Easter dress since we had a mishap with the first one.

Teething? Really???....

Well, it seems like once we get somewhat used to our routine, a new challenge comes our way.  A few days ago, Morgan started getting very fussy and did not want to be put down, even to get her diaper changed.  I looked in her mouth with a flashlight and sure enough...I could see one of her bottom incisors right below the surface.  I called our pediatrician's office since it seemed like nothing was working.  I don't think she believed me that Morgan was teething already but she recommended teething tablets.  These little pills are amazing and the other thing that seems to calm her down.  It is an all-natural homeopathic remedy which sounds pretty "granolay" but whatever works, right?
                                     
 Morgan is learning to do lots of things with her new little tooth including biting her Pop Pop's fingers and eating applesauce mixed with rice cereal.  She is quite the trooper when it comes to eating and is opening her mouth better for each bite.

The teething tablets not only calm her down but seem to help her sleep as well.  Here she enjoys dozing on Daddy after he comes in from work.  No matter what mood she is in, she always greets Jeremy with a big smile when he gets home.

Four Month Update

Height: 26 inches! (95th %)

Weight: 14 lbs. 2 oz. (80th %)

Morgan Likes:

Trying to stand while we balance her, the “Little White Duck” song, laughing at her flower toy, baths and she is just starting to like rice cereal!

Morgan Dislikes:

Bottles, pacifiers, going to bed early, Infant Tylenol, boredom, and getting her diaper changed in the morning when she is hungry!

What’s New:  Morgan just started to roll over both ways. She used to dislike tummy time but now she seems to enjoy it.  Her hair is growing quite a bit and several people have said that it looks auburn.  Her eyes are still blue and she is full of smiles and giggles.  She is a little shy when we get out but is a real ham at home with her Mommy and Daddy.  Morgan looked like Jeremy a lot more the first couple months but several have said she is looking a little more like me – which I don’t mind.  J  She is getting to the point where she is starting to really “play” since she has better control of her hands.  We think that her food allergy is probably to milk and soy so at least we have narrowed it down quite a bit.  Also, we think she might have her first tooth coming in.  When you look closely, you can see it through her gums. 

What Morgan Plays With:

She enjoys jumping in her Jumparoo.  She is not technically tall enough so we put a book under her feet so she can put weight on her legs.  She also likes her flower toy Petal which she thinks is hilarious.  Her play yard is fun and Mom likes it to when she needs a break for a quick shower.  Morgan has also had a sudden interest in Katy, my parents’ dog.  She likes to laugh at her as she runs around the room.  We also read books every day.

What Morgan Eats:

Morgan is starting to really like rice cereal.  Since she won’t take milk from a bottle we are looking forward to her being able to eat in different ways.

What Morgan Says:

The cutest noises you can imagine!  She talks up a storm in the morning and also during diaper changes.  She likes to “sing” along with her two favorite songs – “Little White Duck” and “You are My Sunshine.”  She and her Pop Pop have very in-depth conversations. 

How Morgan Spends Her Time:

Every morning Morgan usually wakes up at about 7:00 or 8:00.  She likes to be fed first thing and then is in a good mood afterwards.  Then we spend some time talking and singing songs.  Morgan usually takes a little nap at about 10:00.  Then we run whatever errands and play.  Yesterday we went to her first birthday party for her friend Clara and she really enjoyed taking it all in and watching the “big kids”.  Her buddies Adalyn and Emma were there who we have playdates with.  She will usually take an hour-long nap at about 3:00.  When Daddy comes home she sits at the table and watches us eat.  Then we feed her rice cereal, give her a much-needed bath and put on pjs.  We do our bedtime routine but she usually doesn’t go to bed until 10:15 at the earliest.  She is officially out of the swing at night and is sleeping in the carrier which is in her crib so we can watch her on the monitor.  We think she likes to be in a tight space.  She could probably sleep in the crib but it is kind of nice that we can rock the carrier to get her to sleep.

We love our sweet girl SO much and don’t know what we ever did without her!

Big Girl Food

The last few days we have been experimenting with rice cereal.  We had low expectations since she has had no interest in a bottle.  However, she actually likes it and is even learning to open her mouth like a baby bird when she wants a bite. As you can see, she probably gets more on her than in her but she is making progress. Jeremy and I can’t believe how fast she is growing up!