Feb 28, 2007

Extraordinary

Our daughter is EXTRAORDINARY. There is no question about it. She is remarkable and amazing. While we might be biased as her parents, there is way too much evidence to prove these statements.

Hadarya has had a runny nose since Sunday but we think it's related to teething issues not a cold. She has had less of an appetite and is sleeping more, but no fever, no crankiness, and no sick issues. She has also had a lingering red diaper rash that rears its ugly head more during the day. We cannot seem to rid her of it yet she never complains, whines, fusses, or cries about it.

We've been waking her up the last few nights to change her diaper (allowing us to sleep through the night knowing we've added more cream upon layer of cream to protect her private areas) and give her a bottle to in order to make sure that she is getting enough food.

You would think she would cry to be woken up from sleeping to get her diaper changed. Maybe she would fuss to be pulled up from her warm bed and cozy blankets. Possibly she would just sleep through it all and let us finish quickly. BUT no, not our EXTRAORDINARY daughter.

Our EXTRAORDINARY daughter opens her beautiful eyes and looks at me with a huge smile on her face. She giggles and waves her arms and kicks her legs a hundred miles a minute. ALL of this in the middle of the night. She let's me change her wet diaper, talk sweetness to her lovely face, and cuddly her delicious body against mine as she willingly gulps a few more ounces of her bottle.

Tonight our EXTRAORDINARY daughter went out to dinner with friends right at the time she usually falls sound asleep. She was napping and we picked her up to take her in the car. She had a ball at dinner, ate her dinner, and hung out with all of us way past her bed time. She then went out for dessert and laughed and smiled at everyone. She actually laughed out loud as I changed her diaper and put on her jammies and then snuggled with Aba and fell fast asleep.

Yes, our daughter is EXTRAORDINARY, REMARKABLE, and AMAZING. We are blessed to have this beautiful being in our lives.

Feb 27, 2007

This and That

Hadarya has had an amazing few weeks.

She turned 4 months old on February 8th.
She slept through the night the week before. (10-12 hours!)
She had her shots on 2/16 and handled them like a trooper.
She traveled to San Jose to meet her Great Aunt and Great Uncle.
She spends lots of time in her exersaucer.
She holds both her head and her back very steady.
She pulls up with her hands to a standing position and loves to jump.
She loves her new bumbo chair borrowed from her friend Maital.
She talks non-stop and is practicing her low, gutteral tones.
She smiles at everyone and anyone.
She is tall and healthy except for a runny nose (her first cold!)
She kicks up a storm on the changing table (her favorite place).
She has diaper rash because she now sleeps through the night (she doesn't complain)
She has begun scooting herself backwards by pushing off anything and everything.

The best part of the day is coming home to her smile and hugs.

We are looking forward to our trip to Philadelphia next week and more exciting adventures.

Feb 22, 2007

Gonna be a Flyer

Hadarya took her first plane ride on February 9, 2007--4 months 1 day old. We traveled to Northern California to visit her Great Aunt and Uncle and her cousins who came in from Chico and Sacramento to visit. It was a glorious trip!

We decided to leave on Saturday morning so we'd have at least one good night's sleep at home and she could fly close to her bottle and AM nap time. Our daughter had been sleeping through the night for about 10 days at this time, so we were hopeful that a flight wouldn't change things.

She is so alert and curious that she bypassed her usual 8:20 AM nap in favor of looking at the great things in the SD airport. We boarded the plane as pre-boarding passengers; which really means the head of the line! I was surprised to see the whole line of people right behind us as we struggled to get into the seats with all our stuff.

We were very lucky because there were extra seats on the plane and Hadarya got one to herself! She promptly fell asleep before I even buckled her into her car seat and slept the entire way.

We had a glorious weekend with all her cousins and Great Aunt and Uncle. Everyone delighted in her smiles and holding her and feeding her. Aunt Judy was thrilled to hold her and laugh with her and Uncle Ron was tickled to feed her. Cousin Eddie drove in from Sacramento and got the best deep belly laughs from our girl. Cousin Wendy and her girls, Cassidy and Callie drove in from Chico and stayed through Monday.

We all had fun hanging out, going to the mall, and taking lots of photos. Being together with our children, creating memories to last us a while helps ease any pain at living so far away. We can't wait to see them this summer!

Feb 6, 2007

No Babyland Blues

It's amazing that just over a week ago I thought the world was crashing down on me and I couldn't handle all the intense pressure I was putting on myself to BE to everyone and do whatever needed to be done well.

My daughter sleeps through the night. 5 nights in a row with last night not waking up once!
My daughter cuddled with me after her bottle and flashed her gummy grin often.
My daughter held onto the sides of her bathtub and steadied herself into a sitting position.
I made a delicious dinner that we actually ate together uninterrupted.
I pulled out clothes for our trip this weekend to SF.
My house is picked up and within my living standards.
I returned 4 phone calls and held long conversations.
I followed up with 2 business parties I booked for this month.

and it's only 8:30 PM. Wow, I might actually have time to read my book!!!

Feb 4, 2007

Sun and Sand ~ not babyproof

We spent the weekend in LA to celebrate my sister-in-law's birthday. We waited until the end of the week to make the final decision to go to see how my week at work was and my emotional IQ.

There were no specific plans for the weekend, other than my sister-in-law's request to spend time with us. Her friend was throwing a dessert party Saturday night and they were going out on a date for dinner beforehand. The entire family was having brunch on Sunday somewhere. No details were given except the time of the party.

So off we went and had a great, late lunch with Nana and Saba before heading over to play with Cousin Jonah, Doda Shlomit and Dod Dave. We spent a couple of hours hanging out with them before they left for dinner and then met them at the party. It was a nice day doing lots of things.

Brunch on Sunday was at a place called Back on the Beach Cafe in Santa Monica. While Nana had told us it was on the beach and Jonah could play in the sand, we did not really comprehend that it was ON THE BEACH. Literally.

Therefore the stroller with the sleeping baby was not going to make it to sit in the sand at the table. SO we turned around and put the stroller and car seat back in the car. We woke the baby as we put her in the Bjorn and carried the backpack diaper bag and sat at a table without any shade. In the sun. In the sand.

The only seats left at the table were the ones facing the sun, so we sat; with a 4-month-old who had no hat (we didn't know we were going to be here) and no sunscreen (too young) facing the hot morning sun. The diaper bag sat in my lap as the only other option was the sand at my feet, which were in socks and closed toe shoes.

We covered our daughter in a blanket to block the sun from her skin and face so she could at least see and held her as long as she allowed. The diaper bag was tall enough to provide a shade for her sitting on my lap, but that only lasted a few minutes.

I left the table when she got fussy, spit her pacifier into the sand, and needed a bottle. I discovered a shady area that led into an inside seating area; with no sand and no sun. More appropriate for a baby. So I sat by myself and fed her on the bench by the hostess stand. I sent my husband out to sit with his family and eat.

We were pretty angry at the lack of understanding, respect, and sensitivity. They have a child... Would they have sat with him at 4 months old in the sun? What was wrong with being inside? If we'd sat where they were at the table, we could have shielded her from the sun with our bodies, but then they would have had to sit facing the sun. It was not a good morning for us with family and the 1-1/2 hours we spent with them just made us upset.

When they went off to see the rest of the beach and the ocean, we left for home. Spending time with them was one thing; exposing our daughter to the hot sun and sand was another. We opted for the safety and comfort of our daughter over family. We do not regret it.

Feb 2, 2007

All Nighter

8:30 PM - 4:44 AM

Hadarya slept so well, despite the massive diaper episode (see previous post) and slightly interrupted sleep pattern. At the point that she let us know she was up she had managed to wiggle herself from the bottom of the crib to the middle side and was bumping her head into the bumper. She is trying so hard to roll over that when she gets into that position she arches her back and tries to move onto her side. This causes frustration.

We gave her the pacifier and she settled down... for 10 mins. Then we tried it again and she settled down... for 10 mins. At this point (5:10 AM) we brought her into our warm bed and she fell right asleep snuggled against her Aba. Ima had to get up in less than an hour, so Aba got the joy of her sweet, warm body. This time she slept until 6:45 AM and awoke happy and smiley.

The best part of all, is that we not only got a great night's sleep but she did not need a bottle in the middle of the night. We will see how the weekend goes, but I think we've moved into the sleep all night category! WOOHOO!

Feb 1, 2007

Three Diapers Later

After her 8 PM bottle she promptly fell sound asleep. Since we were not at home, she happily snuggled into her carseat, hugged her homemade taggie blanket, and slept, well, like a baby. We got home about 45 minutes later and began the transfer to her crib. Warm and cozy against my chest, I got a whiff of the baby scent. . . except according to super sniffer daddy it was not the lovely baby scent we love.

Off to the changing table with a sleeping baby to get her fresh enough to go to bed for a long long night. She actually stayed asleep while I took care of business. Then she peed all over the clean diaper but mostly on the top of her onsie. Off with that diaper (while she semi-awoke and stayed happy). We had to wipe her down, take off the pads, and the clothes. We put another diaper under her and got the diaper rash cream ready to go and SHE PEED AGAIN! Off with that diaper and wipe her down again and start over. By this time, she was awake and not so happy.

We NASCAR PIT CREWED her on the ottoman (since there was not a clean pad on the changing table) and together we got her into new jammies. We had a bottle ready and she topped off with 2 more ounces at 9:30. She was so completely asleep that she allowed us to put her in the crib without making a move or sound.

Hmmm...we could be in a for a good night! At least we can hope.