6-7 MONTHS!

This has been the FASTEST month of Ayla girl's life so far!! It needs to just SLOW DOWN! These are the fun facts for this month! 

Height: ~26 in

Weight: 14 pounds, 8 ounces

Clothes: some 3-6, some 6, & very few 6-9

Diapers: size 2!

Sleep: Ayla girl still sleeps in her own bed in her room! She's been home with me for the majority of the past month & I haven't been working, so her sleeping schedule is a little messed up... (we like to stay up late). But she's such a trooper and adjusts pretty well to change! She has been waking up mainly around 5ish - sometimes there is the random 1 am feeding sesh, but that rarely happens! Daddy is still being a trooper too and waking up with her! Mommy has been so exhausted (and sometimes doesn't even hear Ayla) - but we just found out that my thyroid is out of whack again, so hopefully once that is corrected it will get a little easier for me!! Ayla has a tendency to fight her sleep and tends to go to sleep easiest when I put her to bed. 

Diet: I still pump - so breast milk is still her main source of nutrition. She still gets some baby food as well - usually 1-2 jars a day. The only thing I can think of that she has tried new this month is green beans... which she wasn't too sure about!! She has grown to like sweet potatoes though!

Toys: she is still loving all the same toys that she loved last month... but now she has a couple of new favs! She has a little tambourine that she LOVES and will reach for constantly and she has discovered tags - so I got her a taggie that she is loving so far! She also likes this little hand held music player and her "phone"!She also LOVES a toy that is at her Grammy's house - a little v-tech sit to stand farm toy. She basically loves anything she can push buttons on and/or that makes noise! I swear I go to bed singing all the songs of her toys at night!! 

Milestones/firsts: Ayla has mastered sitting up and is loving it! She can bend down while sitting and then sit herself up again, but occasionally still loses her balance and topples over.

Health: so far, so good! - mom is just a little overly cautious and took her to the doctor this month for a mosquito bite because I was convinced it was infected and she had staph... turns out it was fine, so Ayla got a $40 bandaid :/

Likes: Ayla loves to chew on anything and EVERYTHING!! Still no teeth that I can see/feel... but surely they will make their appearance sooner than later!

Dislikes: Ayla still has the same dislikes as last month, but I think it's safe to say she doesn't like to ride in her stroller if she can't see you either... we've taken the stroller out shopping a couple of times and end up looking completely ridiculous carrying her and pushing an empty stroller! 

Misc: I love the little face Ayla makes when she is concentrating! She pooches her little lips out and makes a duck face/kissy face... i just LOVE it! She is rolling EVERYWHERE... and FAST! This little girl of mine has one BIG personality and I love when she laughs! She is seriously such a happy baby and it is so much fun and so easy to get a big smile and laugh out of her! She loves when you sing to her, play pee-a-boo, and blow on her belly! Ayla girl reaches for EVERUTHING - including faces - and puts everything in her mouth! She also grabs the spoon when I feed her & attempts to feed herself - resulting in a huge mess & requiring her to eat naked most of the time. She loves to "blow bubbles" and make a tooting(?) noise with her mouth. She's talking more and more and has definitely turned into a momma's girl! Toward the very end of her 6th month she started loving tags on everything so of course I had to buy her a taggie :) Diaper changes on her changing table are slightly challenging since she is determined to roll as much as she possibly can and she has also very recently started to "throw" herself backwards. She also loves her feet and is still constantly grabbing them!! I'm still waiting for her to realize she can put them in her mouth but she hasn't quite figured that out yet! 

Here are a few of my fav pics from this last month: 

We got Ayla girl's ears pierced the day after her 6 month birthday!!

Visiting our favorite doctor & nurse!

Ayla girl loves her FEET!

sitting up!

Miss Independent!

still loving her bath time!

Father's Day 2015

Father's Day photo shoot!

5-6 Months!

 

Height:  24" {second percentile}

Weight: 14 pounds, 3 ounces {twenty-fifth percentile}

Clothes: 3-6 month

Diapers: size 2!

Sleep: She is still sleeping in her own bed every night & I try to put her to sleep between 8-9. She does pretty good, but still mostly wakes up around 3:30-4:30am most mornings. Some mornings she will sleep until 6, but that only happens MAYBE once a week! Daddy is still the primary middle of the night waker upper... and I'm LOVING it! It is so much harder for me to get back to sleep once I've woken up to feed her, but he has no problem! :-P Sometimes I feel "bad" that he's the one waking up in the middle of the night, but then again I did it while she was in the hospital pumping every three hours religiously and when she came home I woke up with her every 2-3 hours to feed her AND pump, so I think I deserve a little break :) I always put her to sleep on her back in her crib, but it never fails that she will roll over and end up on her belly! I would just go in her room and roll her back over, trying not to disturb her too much - that failed a few times and I ended up with a screaming baby! - But the doctor reassured me that at this point it is ok if that is how she prefers to sleep.

Diet: I am still pumping, so breast milk is still her main source of nutrition, but she LOVES her daily container of baby food! She has had (and loved) squash, carrots, peaches, bananas, and apples. She's also had sweet potatoes but is NOT a fan of those! We get to start giving her more baby food and she can start taking water out of a sippy cup at this point!

Toys: she loves her play rings! She is constantly chewing on them and grabbing them... she really likes anything she can grab and put in her mouth! She likes to play on the floor and one of her favorite "floor" toys is a little cube that talks and makes different sounds that she will be able to play with for a while! It's a little advanced for her, but she like the different buttons and colors on it. She has gotten to where she will try to pick it up and put it in her mouth... but since the cube is bigger than her head, that usually doesn't end well for her! She also loves her vtech "phone". We got her a bounce around toy because she was always wanting to stand up on our legs and she LOVES it! She loves figuring out how all the little toys on it work and it is so much fun for me to watch her learn how to play with them. She got an orange and pink giraffe security blanket thing that she also likes that has been named Opie (for OP - orange and pink... clever I know)

Milestones/firsts: Ayla is a tad behind some of her peers - but she was a preemie & I tend to forget that when comparing her to other babies... but she is doing so good! She is so close to sitting up, but not quite there yet. She sort of-kind of tries to brace herself with her hands (when I help her) but just topples over eventually most of the time! She does better when I'm holding her hands or she is balanced on my legs. She is still rolling over and over... and over and is getting so fast! She has very recently started reaching and grabbing for things and is starting to scoot... kind of! She is also changing her tone when she "talks" and I swear sometimes she mimics what we say by her sounds. She is also laughing so much more now and I love it! (Who am I kidding though... I love EVERYTHING about this perfect little miracle & everything she does!)

Health: so far, so good!

Likes: Ayla loves to be up and be able to look around! She also seems to like to look at animals - horses and dogs in particular - and be outside. She still loves bath time and lotion "massages". She loves to snuggle when she is tired. She also likes to play peek-a-boo with her blanket and will pull it over her eyes on her own. She also loves to use her feet instead of her hands to play with her toys! She will put her hands in her mouth & maneuver her body and toys to where she can use her feet to play with them... It's so cute!

Dislikes: Ayla is such a happy and easy going baby, but she definitely has her preferences! She is definitely not a fan of the car seat... unless she's sleeping... and once you take her out it's even harder to put her back in because she is even more unhappy about getting in it than she was on the first attempt! Once she calms down though (or the car/stroller moves) she's usually pretty good about tolerating it. She also doesn't like to have her ears cleaned with a q-tip after her bath! And Heaven forbid you take too long to give her a bottle... when she wants it, she wants it NOW! 

Misc: Ayla is getting so big so fast! I can now hold her on my hip and don't have to hold her in my arms like a "baby"... it seemed to happen over night and I found myself asking myself "when did this happen?" She has given up her paci all on her own and won't even take it now, but has traded it in for her fingers and/or blanket! She will suck on her blankets sometimes to soothe her before she goes to sleep, and once she is asleep we take the blanket away from her... horrible habit to start, I know - but "whatever works" is my motto! She has been drooling like crazy and for the past couple of months I've thought that maybe she is starting to teethe, but I don't feel or see anything so far.

 

We participated in the March for Babies again this year! Last year we found out I was pregnant the day before the walk, so we were so thankful to have Ayla here with us to walk in memory of Sloan & in honor of her & babies everywhere! The NICU life was definitely not a "fun" life, but it was so worth it & we met some of the most amazing people who took such great care of our sweet Ayla baby!

My first Mother's Day with Ayla was this month! This is such a hard day for me, but all in all it was a good one! We went to lunch at one of my favorite places {Cheddar's} with some friends/family and it was so nice! It was light & relaxed and I was actually able to enjoy that part of my day!

 

Ayla's first time swimming!!!

Sloan's second birthday was this month, so of course we went for a visit and brought her balloons. Brady re-did the stones/rocks on her grave and we cleaned everything up. We released balloons for her and I took pictures of her grave like I always do. This is another hard day for me, and having Ayla here makes it easier and harder all at the same time. Brady, Ayla, and I went to lunch that day and that night we went to dinner with our parents. It was definitely a hard day, but we got through it...

 

5 Months!

Height:  idk because I haven't measured her yet :/ 

Weight: 13 lbs 6 oz

Clothes: some 3 month, some 6 month, some 3-6 month (all depends on the brand!) 

Diapers: still size 1... but very close to needing to go up a size!

Sleep: She is still sleeping in her own bed every night & I try to put her to sleep between 8-9. I don't swaddle her anymore because she's such a mover & roller now, but she tolerates it just fine! She usually wakes up to be fed around 3:30 or 4. Daddy has been spoiling me and waking up for these feedings every night this month! Usually by 6am she's ready to get out of bed (if daddy hasn't fallen asleep on the couch with her on his chest) so I will cuddle her for a little while then let her swing while I do my morning routine!

Diet: breast milk & baby food! Right now she is only getting baby food once/day after her evening bottle, but that will be increased really soon! She's tried squash, sweet potatoes, and carrots... Her favorite so far is carrots!
Toys: Ayla girl loves anything that lights up &/or makes noises & anything she can chew! She's learning how to grasp things better and usually takes it right to her mouth!

Milestones/firsts: Ayla is a tad behind some of her peers - but she was a preemie & I tend to forget that when comparing her to other babies... but she is doing so good! She rolled from back to belly on the floor for the first time on 4/10 and from back to belly to back on 4/12 and has been movin' & groovin' ever since! She has been doing MUCH better on her tummy since learning how to roll more consistently, but still gets mad sometimes when she "forgets" how to get back on her back! She is still working on her head control, but has gotten so much stronger this month!

Health: so far, so good!

Likes: she likes to talk, lay on her changing table & look up at her bows, and EAT! She loves to "stand" on our legs and to be up so she can look around! She is still loving bath time & I'm so curious to see how she will be this summer when we are able to take her swimming!

Dislikes: Ayla is such a happy baby & there isn't much she doesn't like... But if you are holding her and she is comfy the way she is, she does NOT want to be put down! That has turned into somewhat of a struggle this month, but I think part of that may be because of gas so it feels better to be up than to lay flat on her back... 

Misc: 

4 Months!

This has been a BIG month for our little family! On March 8th Ayla became a Christian through the sacrament of holy baptism! That evening she also rolled over from her back to her belly for the first time! Such a big girl! On March 9th I returned to work (sigh) but I know it was time. I'm not made to be a stay at home mom (because I would get nothing but snuggles done all day) but it was so hard to leave her at the same time. The only thing that made it easier was knowing she was at home being taken care of by someone who truly loves her! (We are so lucky that Brady's mom is able to take care of her while I'm at work!)

Here are some stats from this past month! 

Height:  23" - 5th percentile 

Weight: 11 lbs 8 oz - 5th percentile 

Clothes: 0-3 months 

Diapers: size 1 - mom prefers huggies snugglers or pampers swaddlers... I also like Luvs, but they aren't as popular & thankfully we still haven't had to buy our own since we were given so many at our diaper showers for Sloan & Ayla :)

Sleep: She tends to fight her sleep more these days, but it doesn't take long before she gives in. She naps during the day & was sleeping in her bassinet in our room at night... until one night (3/17) I laid her down for a "nap" in her crib and she just kept sleeping... until around 2 or 3 to be fed and then I put her back in her crib. Ever since then she has been in her room and seems to be sleeping much better in there. She goes to bed usually between 8-9 and wakes up around 3 and 630-7 to be fed. She just seems like she's such a good baby to me! I've started reading her a bedtime story most nights too :)

Diet: breast milk... I would guess an average of 3-4 oz per feeding, but she is really good about letting me know when she's done or wants more... I very much just follow her lead :) But on 3/26 we got to try baby food!! First up: squash! It wasn't love at first taste... but she finished her little bowl... with only a little mess!! ;)

 

Toys: She still loves her play mats, bouncer, & swing - especially the mobile on it!... I try to give her soft rattles to play with but she isn't very interested quite yet. Not sure if a bumbo counts as a "toy", but we are slowly introducing that too to try to help her get a little stronger :)

Milestones/firsts: she rolled from back to belly on 3/8/15 while on the couch with mommy! 

Health: perfect & thriving!

Likes: she likes to talk, lay on her changing table & look up at her bows, play patty cake, EAT, play on her pink play mat, car rides, and bath time!

Dislikes: we are still HATING tummy time - with a passion - but we still force her to do it some and it's hit or miss with how she will tolerate it... she usually doesn't last more than 5 minutes before she starts screaming!

Misc: one of my most favorite things right now is watching Ayla play with her hands... She has recently discovered them and seems to constantly play with them - especially when I'm feeding her! She loves to talk and laugh, and I just LOVE all of her sweet little noises! She's also started that pathetic/desperate cry stuff this month where it seems like she is just so miserable, until you pick her up - then she's magically healed! ;)

the bitter sweetness of it all

I can't stop thinking about how strange these feelings I have are. I feel like I've lived two completely different lives in one {short} lifetime. I feel like everything with Sloan happened so long ago, but at the same time it feels like it was yesterday. It's so hard sometimes because my pregnancy with her truly was a happy and exciting time, but for the most part those aren't the memories that flood my mind when I think of her. What floods my mind is the pure sorrow and heartache that I felt & still feel to this day. What floods my mind are the memories of that dark {literally & figuratively} hospital room. Every heartwrenching moment of that night and morning and the days that followed are the memories I {mostly} think of when I think of her.

Then I see Ayla - who has brought so much light to my previously dark life. I still sometimes just stare at her and start crying tears of joy. She makes me SO happy! Happier than I ever knew was possible. It doesn't seem possible to know the deepest sorrow & the most pure joy in such a short time span - but I do. And that can be overwhelmingly confusing some days... well, most days. I would do anything to have both of my girls here with me. But at the same time I know that I would not have Ayla had I not had to give Sloan back to the Lord. I love both of my girls and could never choose one over the other - all I know is I believe Sloan had a huge hand in bringing me to where I am now and bringing Ayla into our lives. And for that, I am thankful.

3 Months

Height:  21 3/4"

Weight: 9lbs 14oz

Clothes: NB & 0-3 months - She has definitely outgrown most of her newborn clothes this month & I packed up all but 4 outfits Tuesday :( 

Diapers: NB - was starting to look a little too small, so we moved her up to a size 1... which looked entirely too big! So for the time being we are sticking with NB until size 1 fits a little better :) As of today (2/26) she's only in size 1! Ayla still doesn't like diaper changes, but she doesn't like to be dirty either! 

Sleep: she naps during the day & is still sleeping in her bassinet in our room at night... she wakes up every 3-4 hours for feedings

Diet: breast milk

Toys: She still loves her play mats, bouncer, & swing - especially the mobile on it!... I try to give her soft rattles to play with but she isn't very interested quite yet. 

Milestones/firsts: not really a "milestone" for her - but it was for me - we survived our first grocery shopping trip with just the two of us this month! Yay us! {...& then she got RSV so we won't be returning to the grocery store together for quite some time!}

Health: Ayla got RSV this month :( I started to notice a very slight cough on 2/13 - so slight that I didn't think much of it. Then it continued & seemed to slowly get worse. I took her to the doctor on 2/15 (not her usual pediatrician) and was told it was just a cold. He said her lungs were clear and she didn't have a fever, so she wasn't tested for RSV or the flu. We were sent home and told to use the humidifier and take her into the bathroom with hot water running. I did exactly what we were told and checked her temp regularly. She never did get a fever, but continued to only get worse. I called the doctor Monday (the day after we first took her in) and told them she seemed to be worse & she was unknowingly exposed to pneumonia, but didn't have a fever. I was told "well her lungs were clear yesterday so nothing would have settled that quickly" and to keep doing what I was doing & call back if she had a fever. Tuesday she still seemed like she was getting worse and I could hear crackles and wheezing - without my stethoscope - so I called again. Finally she told me to go ahead and come back in. Almost immediately when the doctor saw her she told me it sounded like RSV, but they would test her to make sure. While we were waiting she explained that unfortunately there is no treatment and we just have to let it run its course if that's what it was. Sure enough the test came back positive. Before we were sent home she wanted to see what her oxygen saturation was & it was 76%! My heart immediately sank and when she started talking I told her I knew what she was going to say... She said "because she's a preemie & with her history I think it's best that she be admitted to the hospital..." I just started crying for a minute and stopped listening. Once I stopped she said the hope was that she would get over there, they would get a better reading, and she would go home the next day. I knew in the back of my mind that's not how this was going to play out - Ayla has yet to do anything how we all plan or think she will! When we got to our room they started hooking her up & her sats were good... For about a minute... then went back down to the 70s, so oxygen was applied to keep her sats >90%. She didn't need much at all - only 1/4L - but that little bit helped her so much! She got 2 neb treatments that day, but it made her pulse go higher than I was comfortable with & didn't seem to be very beneficial, so I requested that they be stopped & they were. Wednesday was definitely her worst day and the scariest for me. I tend to be relatively calm initially, and then start to think about all the possible complications that could arise, which makes my anxiety go through the roof! Plus, when she got worse and couldn't seem to get off of the oxygen it took me right back to her NICU days when she had what seemed like such a hard time getting off of the oxygen. When she was finally taken off of the oxygen in the NICU they just took it away, ran tests, then took her off of the pulse ox - which was a huge emotional hurdle for me to get over & caused SO much stress & fear for me! Then, like usual, after I had my mini-meltdown Ayla seemed to turn the corner and started to slowly improve. When she finally passed without her oxygen she would still dip down, but would come right back up and I was able to see it this time... thank God! She stayed 5 nights but is home and back to her happy self!
Misc: Ayla's personality is definitely starting to show more and more... and boy does she have a BIG one! When she gets mad she grunts - and I LOVE it! She's gotten so talkative this month and smiles back when you smile at her! She's a little on the impatient side (like her momma) and if I take too long to satisfy her need she gets a little loud and it seems like she's "fussing" at me! She loves to smack her lips - which is a HUGE pet peeve of mine so definitely something we will work on when she's a little older ;) She is still loving her paci and loves car rides... she lets us know when we stop that she isn't very happy about stopping! I just love her so much and she makes me happier than I ever thought I could be!

 

2 Months!

Height: 20 3/4" - 2nd percentile 

Weight: 8# 4oz - 1st percentile 

Clothes: newborn 

Diapers: newborn 

Sleep: still sleeping really well - wakes up every 3ish hours to eat :)

Diet: breast milk - 3-4 oz per feeding... & has also started spitting up more! 

Toys: she loves her swing, play mats, and bouncer 

Milestones/firsts: she rolled over from her tummy to her back for the first time on 1/23/15!!! 

Health: she is still perfectly healthy... But still has a paranoid momma! We took her to the dr for her first "sick visit" on 1/10 because I felt like she still looked really yellow and didn't think it was improving as quickly as it should. The doctor said she looked fine & they checked her bilirubin - which was still at 10, but that is not a treatable level. It was bothering me all week so I immediately felt better afterwards and was glad I took her in :) 

She also had her first trip to the ER this month... She started having cold/allergy symptoms on 1/20 but no fever and nothing extremely alarming. (Just lots of boogers and some green drainage from her left eye) Wednesday night she still didn't seem like she was feeling well & felt warm, but still didn't have a fever. We took her clothes off to try make her more comfortable and cool her down a little, and when she was sleeping she looked like she was retracting when she was breathing. I took a video and sent it to 2 of my nurse friends - who agreed with me and said that's what it looked like to them too. She didn't look like she was in "distress", but her breathing just didn't look normal to me so we decided to take her in. They did a chest x-ray (which was clear) and tested her for rsv & flu - both negative. They also suctioned her nose deeper than I could at home which seemed to give her some relief. The doctor said she saw what I was seeing, but thought she was just working a little harder because her nose was so congested. I felt kind of stupid for going in, but I'd rather be safe than sorry any day! 

Likes: rocking, swinging, eating, being swaddled, bath time, cuddling, & her paci 

Dislikes: tummy time, diaper changes, getting dressed, being strapped in the car seat