It's hard to believe Juliana is already 4 months (yesterday)! 1/3 of the way to 1 year! It's funny, those first few weeks, although they definitely flew by, they also seemed to take forever since it was taking it day by day. Now, I feel like I'm taking things week by week, so it seems faster.
In the last month Juliana has been a busy little traveler! Here's the list highlighting things she's done and places she's been:
1. July 14th- Took her first trip Bristol for a cousin's wedding and got to meet even more loving and adoring family members
2. July 15th-23rd- Enjoyed a week at Lolli and Pop's house with Mom. Got to meet some cousins from Mississippi, and began rolling over from back to front!
3. July 23rd-28th- Went to Pipestem, WV for family vacation. She enjoyed the outdoors immensely, experienced her first cold (maybe it was allergies? Not sure), stuck her feet in the lake, and went swimming. She bonded with all the cousins, and especially enjoyed naps with Aunt Caitlin.
4. July 30th-31st- Juliana enjoyed quality time with Grandma while Mommy went back to work for two days.
5. August 5th-7th- A (short) trip to Lolli and Pop's house in anticipation of travel to San Diego, which, due to unforeseen circumstances, was cancelled.
6. August 13th-15th- More fun times with Grandma while Mommy started back to work on her regular schedule.
Challenges we're facing:
Juliana's reflux has come back more aggressive than it was before. As a result, she's started a new medication, and she's not sleeping well at all during the day or night. We've introduced her to her crib in her own room, but seeing how she's up to eat a little bit every 2 hours at night, Brian and I have resorted to taking "shifts" to either get her back to sleep, change her diaper periodically, or hold her while she sleeps on the occasions when she's extremely uncomfortable. During the day, she will only nap while being held. On the bright side, I don't feel like I've been spoiling her by not introducing her to taking naps in her crib (I think subconsciously I knew it wouldn't work). I have reached out to the MOMs club I joined about a month ago, and have found fellow mommies who are going through or have gone through the same thing. This has been a great source of encouragement and a plethora of ideas for going forward with her "condition." One of the suggestions (found online and through people) is to elevate one side of her crib to 30 degrees. Well, just think for a second... 30 degrees is pretty drastic... Almost halfway to 90 degrees, a right angle. And for a little girl who is constantly moving and wiggling, she quickly ends up at the bottom of the crib, with feet sticking out of the slats. So, I took to my crafty side and sewed velcro to a crib sheet, the bottom of a cloth diaper cover, and two small rectangular pillows to act as bumpers to keep her from rolling over in her sleep. This keeps her at the top of the crib while she's sleeping, so that's a good thing. I've also invested in another more portable option suggested by a few mommies from my club that she can sleep in until she's 25 lbs, although I haven't officially tried it out yet. I'm waiting until I can be home during the day to see how it works, not when I'm exhausted from a day at school.
Prayers/Thoughts needed:
1. Juliana's reflux... We're trying to provide as much comfort to her as possible, but at the same time, having a little one with "special needs" like this, sometimes we forget to take care of ourselves.
2. The driveway and sidewalk! We will be finishing the concrete driveway and sidewalk this weekend if the weather holds, but poor Brian has a bunch of things to do before the concrete can be poured Saturday and I have relied on him extensively to help me with Juliana. So, prayers that he gets all he wants done, done in time, and that concrete goes smoothly on Saturday!
3. Juliana starts attending day care next week, and I'm excited for the opportunity for her, but also a bit nervous about how she'll handle it.
And now pictures, because I know that's what everyone wants anyway! I need the writing part to vent/rant, but everyone is more curious to see how our beautiful, sweet, happy, little girl is growing!
Her favorite book is Skippyjon Jones... And the other week at Kohls they were selling the books and a stuffed bumblebee as part of their Kohls cares program, and she's in LOVE with "Alfredo Buzzito, El Bumblebeeto Bandito"!
Smiling for Aunt Caitlin
All decked out in her swimwear, taking in the scenery at Bluestone Lake near Pipestem. This baby loves water, the next Missy Franklin?
One Sunday afternoon, we thought we'd try her out in her soon-to-be 'new ride', the hiking backpack Brian got for Father's day. She loved chewing on the straps and the drool pad in the front behind Brian's head.
Even comes with a sun shade! Styling!
Not eating solid foods yet, but who says you can't join the family at the table in your high chair with some toys?
"Coordinating" tie-dye made at Pipestem for the family. Juliana also has a 2T tee-shirt that she will be able to wear the next time the family goes.
Feet through the crib slats, even before it was elevated!
Mommy's bumpers Velcro-ed to the crib sheet. When she's awake, she enjoys chewing on them.
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