Week 18

Woah...I've been in SERIOUS internet withdrawl. Our laptop's dc power jack was broken-so Kris took the laptop completely apart and replaced it. Now, the power cord is broken so we are waiting for that to come in the mail. While I COULD use the computer in the guest room...it's not very accessible when I'm with Anne. So...as soon as the laptop is fixed I'll be able to upload all my new pictures and videos!

We have also started the family room remodel. I'll be posting pictures of the remodel as it goes on. I'm really excited that Kris has already started on it!

I finally broke down and had my engagement and wedding rings resized. I feel like the swelling in my fingers is gone and that I'm not ever going to get back to that ring size again (and I haven't been able to wear my rings in over 7 months)...so they are currently being resized and I'm so excited to be able to wear them again soon!!! Also...WHAT THE HECK?!-My hair is falling out in CLUMPS! My hair is EVERYWHERE. All over the floors, counters, ANNE...I've had to pull my hair out of her mouth and hands many times. All you moms...explain please? And...what do I do about it???

OK...so here's the update you are really interested in...Anne's been a very busy girl these past couple weeks! 
~She is teething and her bottom center tooth is starting to come in.  I can feel a little ridge in there.  SO...we got all her "supplies" real fast.  She has:  4 frozen teething rings, 2 frozen washcloths, 1 textured teething ring, 1 vibrating teething ring, 1 textured teething pacifier, baby orajel, and teething tablets.  All these things seem to be helping, which is good.  She's also addicted to sucking on her fingers, thumb, and WRIST...really anything she can get in her mouth.  She has given herself and me numerous hickeys! 
~She is laughing a lot more these days...usually at something stupid I'm doing.  I just LOVE the sound of her laugh!!!
~ This past Friday Anne had rice cereal for the first time!  By the end of the "meal" she seemed to really like it!  She was moving towards the spoon and was very happy.  Since Saturday, though, we've been putting the rice cereal in a bottle with breastmilk before bed.... haven't noticed any improvement in her sleeping....
~Her pediatrician had her on the PolyViSol Vitamin drops.  They smell NASTY...and she's been throwing them back up since the beginning.  I finally gave up and stopped giving them to her (especially after talking to all my breastfeeding mom friends who didn't need to give their kids vitamins).  Our pediatrician really wanted Anne on vitamins, so we switched to TriViSol which has a cherry flavor.  She seems to be doing better with those...
~She is a TOE EATING monster. She is constantly grabbing her toes and just these last couple days puttting her feet in her mouth!
~Her doctors think Anne may be allergic to milk protein...so I've been on an elimination diet this week.  I can't eat anything with any kind of milk protein.  They gave me this list of foods/ingredients I could and couldn't eat...it's amazing how much milk protein is in foods!  I can't even eat Ragu pasta sauce, for example.  It's not been too bad for me...but I do miss my cereal.  :)
~We've definitely been having sleep issues.  We stopped using her sleep wedge and she seems to like that a lot...but she rolls around and plays a lot when it's sleep time.  These past couple weeks, she's been waking up every 2-2.5 hours at night...I'm hoping we will find the right amount of rice cereal to add to her bottle that will help her sleep longer.  Also these last couple weeks she's settled into a nice nap routine.  She wakes up at 7 AM and is up for less than a half hour.  She naps for 1-1.5 hours and is up for the day.  She plays, talks, eats until noon and then she takes a 1-2 hour nap!!!  Then she plays, talks, eats until around 3 when she takes an hour nap.  She's been taking a 30-60 minute nap around 7 and then goes to bed around 9.  It's been nice.  :)

She had her 4 month checkup last week.  She is 25 inches long, and weighs 14 lbs 11oz! 

And...we celebrated an important day since my last post:  On September 11, 2009 at 2:24 PM, Shady Grove Fertility Center transferred a single embryo into me....and today we have a gorgeous baby girl.  It's amazing what they were able to do.  I thank God everyday for giving those doctors the knowledge to make our dreams come true.