Make Hay While the Sun Shines

Today they mowed all the hay here on the farm, and there is a noticeable coolness in the air. Betty would never be so gauche as to wear white after Labor Day--and certainly not a white outfit featuring a beach scene applique--so this week may be the last time she wears this ensemble. It's cliche, but this summer really did go by fast.

Interior Monologue

"Hmmmm. What's this? Why does it keep moving around? And, most importantly, can I eat it?"

Before Sunset

With the hurricane clouds blowing around I figured our internet connection might crap out, so I uploaded a picture early today--it wasn't very good. Maybe you saw it. If you didn't, you aren't missing much.

Then Steele went outside to pick apples and vacuum the car and Betty and I tagged along. We were all pleasantly surprised to discover that in the space of an hour the temperature had plummeted, a breeze had picked up, and for the first time in 5 months it wasn't very buggy out! So we got out the car seat and just sat around outside marveling at how nice it was.

It was almost nice enough to make me forget the little mail bomb I got from the hospital today telling me that my insurance company has still not paid for Betty's birth. But not quite.

Party Animal

Betty is ready for the weekend. She's got big plans--gonna binge drink (milk--maybe up to 5 oz in one go!) and sleep it off (til 6 a.m.). Here she is practicing some of her dance moves--I think this move is called "the worm."

Pretty In Pink

Pink is definitely her color. And her eyes...well, they're definitely not blue, but I wouldn't call them brown either. They're dark gray. Very mysterious. When she's a little older I'll teach her to bat her eyes.

Dog Days

This picture of Betty sort of sums up how I feel today. I taught two classes for the first time in a year (last year I didn't teach at all having squirreled away my course releases to use while pregnant/writing the dissertation) and whoo-boy, even with all our "dress rehearsals" of the childcare routine it was still quite a day. Despite her face in this pic, Betty, at least, seemed unfazed.

Today was also the four-year anniversary of Tessa's adoption. You might have been wondering why Tessa has yet to make an appearance on the blog--I mean, Tessa was the light of our lives for a long time. Well, as you might expect, we have less time for Tessa these days. Also she spends most of her time outside digging holes, so she's filthy and no longer allowed on the carpet. Mainly though, we just don't bring baby and dog together. Tessa is truly the sweetest dog I've ever known, but she's still a dog and it's pretty obvious that she's also a certain kind of dog that has a bad reputation for eating small children. We don't want to be the rednecks on the evening news who say, "She was always so sweet. We didn't expect her to turn." We're probably being overly cautious, but we don't take any chances.

Onomatopoeia

Little Things We Love About Betty:

- When she cries, she actually says "wah!" Imagine Tessa's bark sounding like "woof!" It's so funny that it has really helped save us from the frantic why-is-she-crying that so many new parents go through.
- She can be red in the face screaming mad and as soon as you pick her up she stops crying, like turning off a faucet.
- Right before she wakes up after a night's sleep she spends 10-30 minutes stretching, grunting, and lifting up both legs (which, wrapped up in the sleep sack/swaddling blankets makes her look like a caterpillar).
- When we go to get her from her crib in the morning she looks up at us and smiles. She is happy to see us, and that smile starts the day off right no matter how tired we are. The look on her face is something like, "Oh hello! Imagine running into each other like this! How wonderful to see you! Want to go for breakfast?"

Everyone Needs a Hobby

Betty continues to try to eat the world. The little towel thing in her hand is actually a baby toy, and we got two of them as gifts--one a yellow cow (thanks Argia!), one a pink cow (not pictured) (thanks Jo Lynn!). Well, I think they're cows. I'm not sure. One of them has antlers, and I don't think cows have antlers, though I could be wrong. Anyway, pre-baby I didn't know what these cow(?)/blankie/puppet/rattles were exactly. They're too small to be a blankie. There's no room in the head for a finger, so they aren't puppets. They rattle, but there's no handle. Well, Betty figured it out for me. They are for babies who have only recently discovered their hands and like to chew on textiles. (It's a niche market). These toys are the perfect size, shape, and texture for exactly that task. The cow(?) head, is, it turns out, mere decoration. It's the edges that hold all the allure.

Hungry Mungry

One of the many things to love about Betty is her fat little arms--not unlike the Michelin man's. In this pic you can see her grabbing her dress, which she does in order to stuff it in her mouth. She also likes to eat her bibs, her blankets, and her sleep sack (and, as already documented, her pacis, thumb, and fist).

And Baby Makes Three

A family self-portrait.

Betty Smash

Betty rolled over again! Again, it was while I was at work. And these days she keeps her head up like this for whole minutes at a time. She's getting very strong, and is moving around so much that we may buy a crib bumper after all. Last night she managed to wiggle over and stick a foot through the bars. Maybe I should have laid off the 'roids during that last trimester.

Edit: By " 'roids " I mean steroids. Not hemroids. And I'm kidding. And I can't spell hemroids. Dang, this is the worst blog post ever. I've been in faculty meetings all week so my brain is a bit mushy.

Right Round Baby Right Round

Steele and I had to attend a four-hour faculty meeting today, so Betty stayed with a "stranger" babysitter for the first time. She did just fine, and, surprisingly, so did we.

Betty also spent some time today trying to flip from her back to her belly. She apparently doesn't know that she's not supposed to be able to do that yet. She worked so hard, but in the end just managed to lie on her side, her head staying in one spot, pivoting around 360 degrees.

Big Gulp

Of course we put Betty to sleep on her back, but sometimes she prefers to sleep on her side. We can roll her over but she just rolls right back.

And Betty has reached another milestone, and I was surprised at how happy/sad it made me feel, not unlike when I folded up the newborn T-shirts and put them away for possible future Peanut II; namely, Betty has outgrown her 4 oz. Dr. Brown's bottles.

She now eats 4.5 oz per feeding, which requires the next size bottle--one that holds up to 8 oz.

In other news, I went to the doctor today to check to make sure the infection is gone. Things look good, and the doctor told me I made the right call by switching to bottles--he thought any more nursing would just bring back the same problems. So that's that. Not only are we sticking to bottles for good they are GINORMOUS bottles. And we got our formula of choice in the mail today (thanks Dan and Katherine) but that's a post for another day.

Eat Poo

Betty is a baby who loves to be held, and after playtime she needs to be rocked to sleep (yeah, we're not Babywise). This was pretty hard on our arms til Steele developed a method of holding Betty in one arm, putting on the Boppy with the other, and sitting down in the glider. Betty then lies on top of the Boppy instead of on your arm, and it's more comfortable for all involved.

It sounds simple, but it's made it possible for us to read while Betty takes her time falling asleep, and for us reading=working. We also give her a pacifier and sing to her. I usually sing "Angel Band," which is a song about death, but it's one of the few songs I know all the words to and it's a nice quiet song that puts her to sleep. Sometimes she'll reach up and hold my hand while sleeping. This scene would be 100% idyllic if only my T-shirt didn't say "eat poo."

Barrel Roll

Betty spent some time this morning looking at her feet. In the afternoon she rolled over from her belly to her back! It was during Daddy's shift, so I missed it. (She has done it before, but this was the first time she did it on her own and on purpose).

Good Clean Fun

Betty has now graduated to sitting in the baby tub by herself, without the supportive hammock. Bathtime is easier now that she has more head control, and she splashed around tonight for the first time. When she starts splashing on purpose we'll probably have to move to the bathroom and put the baby tub inside the grown up tub. Look how much she's grown!

Unplugged

I tried to upload a video of Betty "talking," but our internet connection and/or Blogger was being uncooperative. Instead, here's a much less exciting photo of Betty taking a snooze.

She still likes to have her lower half swaddled for naps, but we put her in a sleep sack at night because it is supposedly safer than blankets.

Doing Shots

Betty's two month doctor's appointment was today. She weighs 10 lbs 14 oz--four pounds more than when she was born. She got a bunch of vaccines today too, four shots in the leg and one oral dose. She didn't like any of it (who would?)--here's a picture of her whimpering in the car on the way home. Poor Betty.

Some people are choosing not to immunize their children because they believe there could be a connection between vaccines and autism. That connection has not been proven. What has been proven? That polio can kill you. Especially now that people are choosing not to vaccinate. So, as un-fun as it is for all involved, we had to do it.

When we got home Betty had a dose of Tylenol to help with any fever or pain lingering from the vaccines. And in 2 months we get to do it all over again.

Ee Eye Ee Eye Oh No

Today I joined the ranks of mothers all over the world who dress their babies up in ridiculous clothing in order to take an even more ridiculous photo. I fell in love with these overalls before Betty was even born, didn't buy them, regretted it, saw them on sale after she was born, bought them, and counted the weeks until she was big enough to fit in them. Living on a farm and all, I figured what a cute picture we can take! So this morning, when it was still (relatively) cool out we went to (Tray's half) of the garden to get a picture of Farmer Betty. Betty was not amused. I think maybe I'll try again when she can sit up a bit more and when she grows into the overalls. Maybe then it will be cool enough she can wear her John Deere socks too!

(In case you are curious, she's lying on top of sweet potatoes and in front of melons).

The Cows Have Come Home

We started the day by having some laughs in the vibrating chair. Later we took a trip to the Mennonite grocery store where I bought some yeast rolls, bulgur wheat, something called a whoopie pie, and some fresh peppers, tomatos, and peaches.

The peaches are for babyfood. I had a lot of fun making Betty's squash babyfood, and I think that perhaps making and freezing babyfood for her can help me deal with the disappointment of not making her milk.

After ten painful weeks of trying my hardest, I've decided to wean Betty to bottles in the near future because--with the early weeks now behind us--the most important thing is the relationship we build together as a family. It's time to be able to hug my baby and husband without wincing.

Nose Goblins

Betty was a little stuffed up today. Because we are still pretty new at this we overreacted a little. By afternoon we were sure she was sick. We even got out the thermometer and some lube. Realizing, perhaps, that she was about to be probed alien-style, Betty blew two huge boogers out during Tummy Time and breathed easily from then on.

I'm starting to realize that this blog contains way too much info about various bodily fluids (and semi-fluids). Here's a picture of some tears--now, that's not so gross.

The Calm Before the Storm

Somtimes Betty likes to stretch waaaaay out, stiff as a board, while poofing out her tummy. Not sure why she does it, but it may have to do with, er, nature calling. Not long after this photo was taken Betty got a bath. "But it's Monday" you say. "Bath Night is Sunday and Wednesday." Indeed. But today we celebrated another Betty First. First Diaper Blowout.

If It's Not One Thing It's An Udder

Betty can hold her head up higher and longer than ever these days. Tummy Time is also the best time to hear her cute squeaky noises.

We didn't have such a great weekend though...while it's wonderful that Betty sleeps in one 8 hour stretch just about every night, the long hours without nursing sort of gummed up the works, and I ended up with mastitis. I was running a 102 fever this morning and my doctor called in a prescription for some antibiotics. It's a fairly common thing, but I'm pretty tired of solving one problem only to get hit with another. And of course I have to go back on the anti-fungal medicine too because antibiotics will almost certainly bring back the yeast!

Faux Amis

Here's Betty relaxing on the Boppy in Daddy's lap. In the background you can see some of the baby heads I've cut out of magazines and taped around the glider. I read somewhere that babies like to see other babies' faces, and Betty really does enjoy looking at her "friends."

And yes, she's a thumbsucker.

Fashion Victim

Betty has lots of cute clothes thanks to the many baby showers we had and to Auntie Argia's generosity with Carmella's hand-me-downs. Oh, and Grandma. Grandma alone has supplied an entire wardrobe. Anyway, Betty never wears those clothes! She's always in onesies because it's so hot and boring in our little corner of Virginia. So today I decided to heck with it! Betty will "put on the dog," as our landlord says, even if she's just hanging around the house. So I got out all the cute 0-3 month dresses and chose this one, a cute pink and purple floral seersucker with matching bloomers. But, as you can see, it tried to eat her head. So...Betty's back in her onesie.

Smiley Face

We are blessed with a happy baby who smiles a lot...sometimes even during diaper changes, something she used to hate. And she always greets us in the mornings with smiles--a great way to start the day (I use the term "day" here loosely).

Fist Bump

Betty is starting to find her hands, and her current project is trying to shove her entire fist into her mouth. She also has started hanging on to her pacifier as if she's holding it in place and reaching up during nursing, almost as if she's trying to get more milk--like a kitten does to a mama cat. I'm not sure if this is instinct, coincidence or learned behavior, but it's astonishing how rapidly she's gained this new motor control just in the past two days.

Pfthbbbbbt

We caught a mouse last night, but not sure if it was the mouse, so we had playtime today up on the bed. Betty seemed chilly at that altitude, and I didn't have a bib on hand, so the blankie had to serve a dual purpose. Also we're just silly like that.

Mouseketeer

This might be the last floor photo you see for a while. We have mice. This isn't the first time we've seen mice here, but it is the first time that 1) we've seen one upstairs 2) we've seen one in the daytime 3) HE HAS RUN STRAIGHT TOWARD US.

Kill Your Television

One thing people say about having kids that I've discovered to be true is that you can make all kinds of plans when you're expecting, but babies are individuals, and you can't really predict how they'll react to the world once they arrive. Steele and I made lots of plans. For anyone keeping track, here's how things stand:

cloth diapering -- currently not using the cloth diapers because of Betty's diaper rash, which did not respond well at all to the Nystatin but seems to do best with disposable diapers and Boudreaux's butt paste.

breastfeeding -- currently still breastfeeding though still with some discomfort. It's not the blissful experience we had planned. I've learned not to think long term though. One good feeding does not mean we'll be doing this a month or even a week from now, but then one bad feeding doesn't mean we have to quit either.

garden/home made baby food -- currently our side of the garden is a jungle of weeds and plants gone to seed (except for the okra, which grows best when left alone in the hot sun). Tray, however, has kindly given us plenty of veggies from his side, and today I pureed and froze about 2 quarts of squash that Betty can eat once she's about six months old.

no TV -- We're still sticking to this plan! We'd like to keep Betty from watching TV until she's 2 years old just in case the studies are right and it scrambles baby brains. When things were unraveling with the breastfeeding and the garden and the cloth diapers, this was the one plan we had any control over and we were determined to keep it (even though we'd love to watch 30 Rock while we're eating, and Betty is almost never asleep at suppertime).

Since she doesn't get to watch TV, Betty enjoys watching the aquarium that attaches to her bouncy chair.

Breakfast in Bed

...A lazy Saturday morning with breakfast in bed (for Betty anyway) and just hanging out under the covers having fun. This idyllic time together was sandwiched between a 5:00 a.m. feeding when Betty gorged herself and then went Exorcist baby all over the pillows (look closely and you'll see the pillowcase here doesn't match the rest of the covers--had to be changed) and the discovery that the funny sound the trash can was making was, in fact, a mouse come back to life.