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 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 had her 4 month Well-baby check up today.
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. 
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.
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! 
Ashtyn meets Santa! We did it! I had been worried that we wouldn't make it for Ashtyn's first Santa picture this year due to her young age and my "first-time mom fears", but we had success today at Penn Square Mall. Since it was a Tuesday afternoon there was absolutely NO LINE and we were in and out in minutes! Thankfully, Peter was able to take off work this afternoon so I still have never taken Ashtyn anywhere in the car or stroller alone. We even spent an hour or so shopping and had lunch in the food court. Ahh...it felt so good to re-enter society today and now...a cute picture with Santa!
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