Dec 31, 2007

Tough Night

One would think being back in our own house, with our own things, in her own crib would have delighted our child. Not so...she shrieked and cried when it was time for her afternoon nap. Because it was late anyway, we sort of skipped it. She's done that before. Bedtime went off smoothly, early at 6:30ish, and she fell sound asleep.

UNTIL...11:30. Then she drank a bottle and fell asleep on Yiftach and then she screamed and screamed and screamed and cried tears. It was heartbreaking. He was shaken. Nothing calmed her down. He left her room with her and she still cried hard in my arms. We changed her very wet diaper and she cried. We gave her tylenol and she cried. Finally, after about 10 minutes she fell asleep on me sitting up in my bed. Off to her crib, easy transfer and she was out.

UNTIL...3:30 AM. Same thing but with me starting the cuddle, bottle, rocking. She refused the pacifier. Wanted out of the crib and cuddled on me but cried out in spurts. So we left the room and settled on the couch with the lights dimmed low. She drank a bottle quickly and when Yiftach refilled it for her she pushed it away and cried some more. So into our bed she went and slept just fine until 6:48 AM.

I hope this is a phase. I hope those two top teeth break through very quickly. I hope that we are right in our guessing that it's the teeth that make her scream. This parenting thing is challenging enough without having to guess what ails our daughter in the middle of the night. The one who is full of pure joy during the day and who sleeps very well most days and night. We'd like a full nights sleep for everyone's happiness.

Oh yeah... when these teeth pop through the swollen gums, we're pretty sure the total will be 12. It's a little hard to count because the sharpness hurts when she bites down on your finger!

Dec 30, 2007

Vaction in Indio

Yep... you read that right. 7 nights and days in the desert with the two people I love so dearly. Add in great friends with an adorable 6 month old boy, E, super food, warm sunshine, conversation and movies, and you have a relaxing end to a crazy month and busy year.

There is not much more to say about Indio. We did all of the above and that is part of the reason why I have been off the blog. We took no computers, limited cell phone usage, and concentrated on our family. Heaven.

We spent three occasions in the pool. Watched 3 movies (STARDUST was exceptional). Read a long book. Played endlessly with my daughter. Reveled in her amazing ability to play WITH a 6 month old... never hitting, no temper tantrums, no biting, just sharing her toys, helping him crawl, and enjoying his company. They totally had a ball together!

We cooked super gourmet meals for breakfast and took turns cooking dinner. We had dessert every night and slept as late as possible. The week ended with our friends treating us to massages and our daughter sleeping from her late afternoon nap at 3:15 PM until 7:40 AM the next morning.

YEP... that's right, with the a 20 minute crying interlude from 3:50 - 4:15 and again from 4:45 - 4:55 (bottle helped the hunger), she was unwakeable. She slept in the lit family room in the pack n play with the TV on until we went to bed. She was exhausted from her playing, the wind in her face the day before, and the swimming. It was a wonderful night even though we were a little worried about the huge sleeping. She knew we needed some time as adults together!

This is a place to get away and relax and be together. We had a grand time.

Pure Joy

My daughter.

She finds pure joy in simple things.

Like the wind blowing in her face while being pushed through an outlet mall in cold weather. She laughed and cooed and threw her hands out to catch it and then threw her body back against the seat in contentment... over and over and over and over again.

Like hanging out on the inner tube in the lazy river at the timeshare and splashing about in the kids pool. She could not get enough of the inner tube on Ima's tummy while they were whisked through the water in the river. She splashed and laughed as it hit her face and then flung herself back over the edge for more. In the kid's pool she could not be content to sit still and be warm, she had to stand and jump and try to swim. Yep... she threw herself into the water, as we taught her this summer, and put her face under. All the while laughing, spurting water, and crumpling her face in joy.

Like the pleasure she derives from singing songs with us that have hand motions or movement to them. She can do all the motions to Itsy Bitsy Spider and clap YEAH when it's over; Bim Bam and through her hands in the air for Shabbat Shalom HEY; and mmmm when the little green frog makes her tongue eject in just the cutest way that you know she gets the song... every time you sing that part! She also does OH NO with her hands on her cheeks to another song from school, but I don't know that one yet.


You can see it. You can feel it. You can wallow in it. It lifts your day. It brightens your mood. It distracts you from doing anything else. The pure joy of Hadarya is the greatest thing I have ever experienced.

Dec 4, 2007

Making Dreams Come True

The last five days have been spent in humid, muggy Orlando, Florida. It was our first trip with a toddler who can walk, tell us what she wants, and is very curious. It was a blast and she was so amazing! We'd do it again in a heartbeat.

The conference itself was ok, not great, not bad, just in between. It's the relationships that we built, nurtured, and made during that trip that made it so fantastic.

I was attending the United Jewish Synagogue's Biennial Convention with the Education Director of Ohr Shalom, LeAnne, LeAnne Adams. Yiftach and Hadarya were our bonus feature for the long time away. We were able to secure our timeshare (2BR 2BA) and that made such a great difference for eating and sleeping and Yiftach having good space for Hadarya to play with her toys. It is here that she learned to open all the cabinets in the kitchen... cause it wasn't our house so why not let her have fun? We didn't think of the transfer of activities that would take place upon our return. Hence the childproof locks that Yiftach installed and that made Hadarya mad because she couldn't get into them!

We were lucky that Yiftach's bone marrow recipient and her husband, Grammy Phyllis and Papa Joel, were able to make the drive from Ft. Myers to spend time with us. They had the pleasure of lots of wonderful time with Hadarya and Yiftach. They took us to a scrumptious dinner on the pier and generally caught up on our lives since seeing them in May. It was so great to spend time together!

Yiftach has cousins, Lynn and Marc, who live in Orlando with their two boys, Matthew and Jonathan, whom Yiftach had not met since he'd not seen Marc and Lynn for almost 10 years. It did not matter! They had a lovely time Friday night together and loved being with the baby. We all hung out Sunday night at Downtown Disney, watched the fireworks from the beach across the way from the castle, and ate dinner at a gourment McDonald's. They all doted on Hadarya and her favorite stuffed animal to date is her Florida Gator...Albert Allie Gator!

Another bonus of this conservative movement convention was spending time with our dear friends Alisa and Stephen. They introduced Yiftach and I 7 years ago, and Alisa married us almost 5 years ago. They now live in New Jersey, so this time was especially precious. It's just like we saw them yesterday. Their friendship makes me smile and warms my heart when I see them. They loved having time with Hadarya and being able to relish in our child.

ON to her... she flew to Orlando like a pro and back to CA without any issues. She stayed on California time and napped well. She slept half the night in a crib (provided by the timeshare) and the rest in our bed taking up most of the space in the middle. She ate well. She laughed a lot. She ran around the gigantic hallways at the hotel amusing herself. She played hide-and-seek around the corners, explored the registration office, wedged her way under the end tables, and slithered off to poop in private. Can you tell how much I am in love with my daughter? She made everyone laugh and smile at her genuine happiness. Life is good, no scratch that, fabulouso, with her in it.