Fighting off Something

Luke and I seem to be fighting off something. Luke has had a cough for a few days now, but doesn't have a fever. He seems to be feeling okay... just a little bit more whiny than usual. He's sleeping really well at night... 11-12 hours straight, which is awsome.

Lexie is sleeping much better at night. She's been sleeping 8-4:30 or 5, which was a little rough for me. But last night she slept 8-6:30. Thank God! I actually got 7 hours straight of sleep last night. I'm just dragging and feel a bit achy. I got over the mastitis but seem to be fighting off something else. It feels as though I may never be completely caught up on sleep.

Luke is talking more than ever. He's asking me to name things for him. He points to something and asks, "This?". It's a lot of fun. I just wish he'd eat better. He is the pickiest eater. He's crazy about milk and juice, but it's like pulling teeth to get him to eat anything other than fruit.

He used to eat all kinds of stuff, especially veggies. It seemed to change around the time Lexie was born. I'm trying all kinds of tricks but not much works. He'll eat something, like yogurt, for 3 days in a row. Then he won't touch it again for weeks. He'll seem to like something a few times then doesn't want it again, so it's frustrating. Oh well.

Other than that, we're good. Have a very blessed Thanksgiving!

Back to Crazy Sleep

The last several nights Lexie has been going to bed around 8 or 8:30, waking up to eat at 11:30 or 12, then getting up again at 5:30 or 6. (She got stuck on 5-6 stretches of sleep.)

That schedule has been a little rough for me, especially considering I can't get to bed before 10 or 10:30 since I'm a night person. (At 4 months old Luke was sleeping 9-7, so I got a little spoiled with him!)

Then last night Lexie was asleep by 7 pm, so I thought she'd be up by midnight for sure. She ended up sleeping until 4:30, drank 8 ounces and went right back to sleep until 7. Not too bad. I'm definitely encouraged by the 9 hour stretch of sleep; I just wish she'd do it from 9-6 or even 10-7 since I'm not a morning person!

Mastitis Again!

Yup, I just went to the OB and he confirmed it's Mastitis again on the right breast. This one is even more painful than last time. Yesterday I thought it was just sore and engorged because Lexie has been cutting back on feedings, and is now only nursing 1-2 times at night or first thing in the morning.

But when I woke up in pain and feeling achy all over and like I've been run over by a truck I knew what it was. Antibiotics and rest are what I need, but the rest may be a little elusive with a toddler. All I want is sleep. I pray that both kids will go in for their afternoon naps at the same time. That would be such a blessing!

Fortunately my parents will be here this evening to celebrate Marty and my mom's birthdays, so I'll have help then. Mom will help again tomorrow afternoon and then Marty will try to take Friday off to watch the kids so I can get some sleep.

Please pray that I will get some rest and that this will heal quickly!

Lexie Slept 8:30 to 6:00!

I'm so thrilled that Lexie is sleeping better. I actually got both kids in bed between 8:30 and 9, which was quite nice. It gave me time to relax in the evening for a couple of hours. Time to myself... what a luxury!

Lexie was fussing at 5:00 am when Marty got up for work, so I popped her binky back in and she slept another hour. Then she wanted to play and talk. Go figure. (I though she'd be starving since she hadn't eaten for almost 10 hours!) She just wanted to hang out in her bouncy seat and start the day watching a Baby Einstein video.

That Fisher Price rocking bouncy seat is awesome! It's really secure and she's slept in it many a night. I was even able to lie back down for another hour. This gave me a grand total of almost 8 hours of sleep As Marty would say, "Woohoo!"

I ended up feeding Lexie at 7 am. I tried nursing her, but she's pretty much weaning herself. She prefers a bottle now and is too busy looking at everything going on around her to nurse. We've been giving her formula during the day for the past month or so already, so I think we'll be done nursing very soon. I don't mind at all, especially because it's easier to feed her a bottle when I'm busy chasing Luke.

Luke got up at 8:15 this morning, and I'm very happy with that. Right after the time change last weekend, both kids were up at 6 or 6:30 for several days which was killing me!

So we're all good here. After having kids, I will never take sleep for granted ever again!

Go Buckeyes!

While I was out getting my allergy shot this morning, my sweet husband decked our kids out in their OSU gear and took some adorable pictures!

Lexie Shares her Bottle

Here's a great shot that Marty took of Lexie trying to give him her bottle. We think she's practicing to give out bottles of water at the next church outreach. Looks like she'll have no problem showing God's love in a practical way!

Lexie Slept Through the Night

Lexie finally slept through the night again. It's been almost 2 months since the last time and it was sorely needed. (Lately I haven't made it through the day without a nap.)

My parents watched both kids so Marty and I could go out for our birthdays. (Yay for Red Lobster and shopping at resale shops!) Mom put the baby to bed by 8:30 pm and she slept until 6:30 am! Praise the Lord! I only had to get up and pop her binky back in once around midnight.

It appears Lexie does best if she's put to bed much earlier than Luke. (At this age, Luke slept 9-7.) I think I'll try putting her in between 7:30 and 8 from now on, because she seems to do her best sleeping early on in the evening.

Unfortunately, Luke was up at 1:00 am. (Figures, right?) I think his molars are trying to come in. I had to change his diaper and give him teething gel and tylenol, then he went right back to sleep. Thank God!

Either way, it's the most sleep I've gotten in a long time and I'm very grateful for every bit of it!

God Bless Elmo!

Tonight while we were watching tv, Luke folded his hands and said, "Pray. Jesus." It was so adorable that he wanted to say a prayer even though it wasn't dinnertime or bedtime. (Sidenote: He knows who the Touchdown Jesus is off I-75 near Monroe!)

Usually the main person he asks to pray for is the baby. He always makes sure we don't forget her!

So I asked him who he wanted to pray for tonight. He listed the usuals: "Baby, Grammy, Poppy, Daddy." Then he said, "Elmo".

So... God bless Elmo!

Lexie's 6 month checkup

Lexie went for her 6 month checkup the other day. She now weighs 16 pounds and is 25 1/4" long. (Luke was 17 pounds at this age.) She's in the 50th percentile so she's perfectly average. She's very healthy and only reacted a little bit to this round of vaccinations with a mild fever.

The only problem we're having is with eating solid food. She hates it. I've tried to feed her rice cereal and baby applesause every couple of days for the last several weeks, and so far she doesn't want anything to do with it.

She makes the most disgusted faces, gags, and clamps her mouth shut tight so I can't get any more food in. You'd think I was torturing her! The pediatrician said to keep trying every 2-3 days and she'll eventually get used to it.

I sure hope she does, because at this age Luke was loving the cereal and fruit and veggies, although he is much pickier now.