Ashtyn's 9 month update

Wow. I just realized that I hadn't blogged a thing since Ashtyn's 6 month and now have little time this morning before work to say much.

Our family has had a busy time with the move to the rental home while our new home is being built in Iron Horse Ranch. We have been in the rental home a few weeks now. Everyone, including the cat, Bailey, has adjusted well. So far, on our new home construction, the lot has been cleared...that is all, but we are excited.

Ashtyn had her 9 month visit with her pediatrician on Friday. He thought she was doing great developmentally-wise. She is pulling up, trying to "cruise" (although she can't really take many steps in a row even though she is hanging on), feeding herself finger foods and babbling "dada" ALL the time. She is really a daddy's girl. She weighed 20.6 lbs, which is about 77% and I want to say it was 28cm (I have it written down somewhere) but regardless, that is the 66%. Her head measurement was 50%.

Ashtyn has been a busy little girl. She has attended several of her young friend's b-day parties including Maggie's 1st b-day and Nate's 4th b-day. She also attended a baby shower for the Palfreyman's little guy that has not yet arrived and is due in November (about the same due date as Ashtyn's last year!)

Let's see...more about Ashtyn:

1. She LOVES our cat Bailey but when she see's her she tries to chase after her. Even though she's a fairly fast crawler, Bailey knows about how fast Ashtyn is and at the last second runs off. Ashtyn also tries to call Bailey to her by making this strange "spitting" noise. It's funny.

2. She still has never rejected any type of food. Ever. She will eat ANYTHING you give her. She has even tried dried cat food once. (Yes, I was watching her when she picked it up, and yes, I let her "try" it but had to take it away when I realized she was not going to spit it out)

3. She is still taking bottles but seems to not want her morning bottle as much. We have started sippy cups of all kinds (the ones with straws also) but she's just starting to get the hang of it.

5. As mentioned before, she prefers her daddy to all others. This makes me a little sad, but I am told I was the same way.

6. So far, still just two bottom middle teeth but her gums are so swollen on top that I expect to see more any day now.

7. She doesn't seem to have a favorite toy any longer. It used to be her "mailbox" or her "toolbox" but now she seems to prefer boxes or block type things such as her shape blocks. Maybe we should get her some large leggos for her birthday.

8. She was bitten last week at day care. It didn't break the skin & I was told she didn't cry at all. I'm just glad to know she was the "bitee" and not the "biter".

Well, that's about all for now.

Pictures are from Maggie's birthday and also from the day of Jennie's baby shower.

:0)

Ashtyn 6 months

Hello everyone! It is time for an Ashtyn update. She had her 6 month check-up last Friday at Dr. Stephens in Edmond. Her stats this time were as follows:

weight-17 lbs, 5 oz (75%)

length- 26 inches (60%)

She's doing great. She is sitting up on her own for a little bit longer period of time each day. She has also began to say "da-da" which she repeats to no end. Peter is absolutely thrilled about this but I assure you, she says it as if she is speaking to me as well. She is putting everything she can get her tiny hands on in her mouth, but no teeth as of yet. She is enjoying "flying" these days and loves to be bounced in the air. This is the easiest way to get her to laugh out loud which is adorable.

On the parents side of things, we have just sold our home in Edmond. The sale does have a "contingency" on it however, in that the lady who is purchasing our home has to sell her home 1st. We'll see in the coming month or so how that goes. We have been busy beginning to pack a few miscellaneous things in the mean-time.

As for me, I am attempting to watch my eating habits a bit more and attend some water aerobics classes as well as some Zumba classes with my friends Abbey and Tracie. If you have never tried Zumba and like to dance, you would probably enjoy it so give it a whirl. I must warn you though...it IS a work-out! :0)

Ashtyn's 6 month pictures were done by Cara of Captured by Cara photography.

To visit the photographer's website, click here.

Happy Easter Everyone!

Ashtyn had a nice time this afternoon in the backyard on her quilt playing with her Easter basket. She loved to look at the colorful eggs. Too bad she cannot sit up on her own yet, but she still had fun. It was a beautiful day and Grandma & Grandpa Barlow were here to wish her a Happy Easter!

Ashtyn's 4th month baby check-up!

Ashtyn had her 4 month Well-baby check up today.

Her stats are:

Height: 24 inches @ 41%

Weight: 13 lbs, 8 oz @ 46%

Head Circumference 40.1cm @ 26%

Peter & I were shocked about the head circumference percentage. We think her head looks "big", but apparently, that is not the case. I'm interested to see the differences (if any) at her 6 month visit.

We also found out that the "bruise" I thought I kept seeing on her right shoulder blade is not a bruise at all, but a birthmark. A "Mongolian spot" Dr. Stephens called it. These particular birthmarks are common in Asians and in Native Americans. Funny...Ashtyn is both!

From Wikipedia: "Mongolian spots are most prevalent among Mongols, and other Asian groups, such as the Chinese, Japanese, and Koreans. Nearly all East Asian infants are born with one or more Mongolian spots. It is also common if only one of the parents is East Asian. They also occur in 90-95% and 85-90% of East African and Native American infants, respectively."

The most common color is blue which is why we thought she had a tiny bruise. Her spot is about the size of a "bb", like from a "bb gun". Honestly, I thought she may have a bruise b/c she is somewhat spoiled & we pick her up so often! Silly me! The doctor did warn us though that some may mistake these birthmarks for bruises and therefore...you guessed it..."child abuse"! So...we will let our friends, family, & day care workers know about this so no one will be alarmed. Even funnier...she may also have a tiny one in her tiny little "crack" so to speak! Shh! Don't tell anyone!

On another note, Ashtyn has now tried the baby food version of rice cereal, sweet potatoes, and green beans...in that order. I say this b/c today Peter and I were informed by her pediatrician that we were to start GREENS (green beans, peas), then ORANGES (carrots, sweet potatoes), then YELLOWS (squash), then later move onto fruits! I don't know...something about how rice cereal is like Frontier City... great unless you've been to other places...like Six Flags (vegetables), then finally Disney Land (fruits)!!! Okay??? So, we'll try the "order" as he prescribed, but Ashtyn doesn't seem to mind. So far, she'll eat anything!

Hug & kiss your little ones today...I won't (& quite frankly CANNOT discuss w/o crying) the reasons why I suggest this.

Peace to you and yours!

Bethany

Ashtyn-2 months

Ashtyn's 2 month doctor appointment was today. Peter went to the appointment with us to help out. Ashtyn weighed in at 10 lbs, 8 oz which is the 42 percentile and measured 22 1/2 inches which is the 58th percentile. All is well there, however, we received a bit of a lecture from Dr. Stephens about how it is time for Ashtyn to sleep all night in her OWN bed. All night to Dr. Stephens means 10 hours (8 p.m. to 6 a.m.). Admittedly, I was shocked! I really thought she would require feedings in the middle of the night..."at least one" I asked? "No!" he said.

Hmm...He told us to let her cry it out for 2 nights...NO MATTER WHAT... even if she vomits in her crib from crying! He said if we open her bedroom door, even once, we are "history". We'll have to start all over again. I mean really? We are going to give it a go starting this weekend, but I am certain that Mommy will be crying by the end of it. Possibly Daddy will cry as well. It will be tough but Dr. Stephens insists, "What starts at an effort to keep the peace end up in irresponsible submission to a deified baby". Okay. We'll try this. I would really hate for Ashtyn to end up like her mother. I ran into my parent's bedroom for YEARS in the middle of the night. So, the spoiling ends this weekend. (I hope). He told us we could wait a few days since she had her vaccinations today and will be fussy and need consoling. Wish us luck. Here's to a happy baby and happy family!

A White 1st Christmas

Christmas Eve 2009 and we are "snowed in". Ashtyn's first Christmas is a white one! A beautiful snowfall today. Some of the largest snowflakes I have ever seen. Normally, I refer to snow as "the white death" but admittedly, snow is nice at Christmas. However, due to the LARGE amount of snow we are unable to travel or leave the house to be with our family. We were supposed to be at Peter's uncle's house this evening and then head north to Tulsa to visit my family for a few days Christmas morning. Instead, we find ourselves snuggling with Ashtyn and playing our new Wii Fit Plus. We should probably be organizing closets, picture albums, etc. while we have the time, but hey...it's Chirstmas! So, we have opted to just relax with our newborn daughter and have fun together. Now...only if I had some hot chocolate! Oh...and a snow shovel. Note in the picture above, Peter is using a rake to try to clear the snow bank by our garage door.

Christmas & Friendship

This Christmas Peter & I are thankful for the safe arrival of our brand new baby girl. We are also thankful for great friends who have been there for us along the way. So many wonderful people kept me entertained while I was on bed rest. I do owe a special thank you though to Abbey Richards & Jenn McEvoy who stopped by on multiple occasions, bringing me lunch, smiles, understanding, & a lot of great advice!

We are blessed to have many great friends and luckily some of them have recently had children that will be Ashtyn's playmates. We look forward to spending time with these wonderful families now & in the future.

The pictures above show Ashtyn with Nate Hopper & with Maggie Richards...enjoy!