Ari's Seventh Checkup!

Wow. This has been the most insane month ever. With my birthday, finals, and now being sick.. ugh.

Yes, we are currently all sick over here with either an evil mutant cold, or the flu... which is also evil. It's been over a week since the first of us got sick, and I've been sick since Friday. I was supposed to work tonight, but I asked them to take me off if they have a low census.. and they just called me to tell me that they were able to cancel me!! Thank God. Well, I definitely don't have the energy to catch you up on everything, but I'll mention some of what's been going on.

Ari had his seventh CranioCap checkup a week-and-a-half ago now. This was the SECOND TO LAST CHECKUP!! I cannot BELIEVE that the next one is our last one! Wow.

The appointment went very well. The specialist adjusted Ari's helmet as usual. This time she actually shaved off some of helmet above his sideburns, because it didn't need to be there anymore to help keep it on and it was causing him some chaffing. So far it hasn't seemed to help a lot. I think it's more cradle cap or eczema or something instead of chaffing that's going on there.

After that we discussed Ari's schedule. She said that really we could leave the helmet off now except for when he is lying down: changing, napping, and also when reclined in the car seat.

We are going to go 3 weeks between visits for this last one, because Ari's head will be growing slower now. So at the beginning of January, he will have his last visit and then be HELMET FREE!!! Woo hoo! I told his specialist, Janet I believe is her name, that we need to get a picture of them together at the last appointment. She was so happy about that, and told me that I will have to email her a copy. She will miss seeing Ari. = )

Ari has been growing so fast lately! He is so close to walking on his own. He has taken up to 4 steps from one person to another. He can also walk very well holding onto his walker toy that his Grammy and Papa gave him. He is clapping, shows you how "big" he is, and waves hi and goodbye now too! He says "Mamamama" and "Dadadada", and I think he tries to say "Boo Boos" which is one of our nicknames for Abita (one of our dogs). One of Ari's favorite things to do lately is to pull all the books off his bookshelf and sit in the middle of them all "reading". He such a stinkin' cutie. = D



Academic update: I got an A in Anatomy & Physiology II !! Wow, what a crazy semester; my first since having a baby. Next semester I will be taking Microbiology with the same teacher. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.. right?! = ) Also, next month I will be applying to the North Hennepin Community College Nursing Program! I am applying to this program because they have a Night/Weekend program, which Century College does not. If I get accepted, and God willing, I will start Fall 2011!

Other than that, I still have Christmas shopping to do, gluten-free Christmas food recipes to prepare and stock up for, Christmas cards to make (they'll probably be New Years cards again) and Ari's first birthday party to plan. Oh well.. at least we have a white.. VERY white Christmas coming up this week! And Ari's first! = D

Merry Christmas Everyone!!.. in case I don't blog or see you before then. = D

'Tis the Season to be Busy!!

For a quick academic update: I am continuing to do super well in my A&P II class! I got a 30/30 on my lab presentation (in case I didn't already mention that) and got 96/100 on my most recent lecture exam! Woo woo! Haven't got my score back from this past Monday's LAB FINAL though... dun dun dun.. or my recent Nutrition Homework Assignment. But, I feel pretty positive about those. I have my lecture final on Wednesday, and a homework assignment and bonus quiz due by next Friday (he extended the time for these so we can study for the final) so I still have a lot to do.

Phew! There is sooo much that I need to get done, and that is going on this month!! Aaaa!

I know the holiday season is always very busy, but this is a little overwhelming! All the things I need to do!!... helmet appointments, Abita teeth removal/follow appointments, Christmas parties, Santa dates, studying for finals, taking finals, taking a Christmas picture, making Christmas cards (they will probably end up being New Years cards again) getting the Christmas tree up, Christmas shopping, finding time to work some shifts, finding time to get re-CPR certified, figuring out bills, planning Ari's first birthday/unhelmeting party (coming up next month!)... this does not include all the normal every-day things that cannot be put off!...

[Deer in the headlights look]... I don't even know where to start.

Besides the fact that I feel like I'm drowning in all the things I need to get done, I really am feeling very positive about this holiday season. It's Ari's first, so I'm super excited about seeing how he reacts to it all!

Plus I CANNOT wait for his first birthday party!!.. although I don't really know what I'm going to do for it. I'm not a super good planner. Our living room does not seat a whole lot of people, and it's winter so it's not like we can have an outside celebration. There is room in the basement, but it's awful cold down there and it's depressingly lit. I guess maybe I can see about borrowing some space heaters and lamps... there is additional seating down there. Or perhaps I should look into having it at church or something.

And who does one invite to a first birthday party? Just family and close friends? Or all my friends who oooh and ahhh over Ari's growth and CranioCap progress on Facebook as well? I don't want to exclude anyone who would want to come. Please comment and let me know what you think!

Alright, no more time to go on and on and on about everything (like I enjoy doing). Gotta "Get 'R (all of 'R) Done"! = D

Hope you're all enjoying the Season as well!

Ari's Sixth Checkup!

Sorry it's taken me FOREVER to write about Ari's latest CranioCap checkup. Things have been VERY crazy for me! Recovering from being out of town, classes, Drew's BF visiting from out of town, holiday stuff, work trainings, lab final prep just to name a few. Phew! Wish I could have kept up and blogged about it all too, but alas. = )

Anyways, Ari had his 6th CranioCap checkup last Tuesday, almost a week ago now. It was another pretty short visit, but a good one.

The specialist adjusted Ari's helmet while we waited. This was actually the last visit that they had originally told me to schedule, so after the adjustment we discussed what we wanted to do from there. She said that normally it's decided that treatment should discontinue by now, since growth is slower and kids get more fussy about having the helmet on. But, she thought that since Ari is such a laid back guy and doing so well in the helmet, and since I still catch him rolling on his back to sleep sometimes, we could keep the helmet on for 5 more weeks. She told me that she wants to see us in two weeks (one week now) and then 3 weeks after that for the last visit (since growth then will be even slower).

I am excited about this. We have already seen such great progress during the first half of the treatment, that I want to get as much as possible before we discontinue treatment! And Ari really could care less about the helmet.. he is so used to it by now. = )

The specialist also told me to start giving Ari longer helmet breaks, so that he can start getting used to experiencing normal every-day injuries. Now we're doing three 45 min-1 hr helmet breaks a day when he's crawling around/cruising, trying hard to still have the helmet on anytime he is lying on his back, in his car seat or sleeping.

I have to tell you, it's sure been working. That boy has been getting more bruises, bumps and cuts, and I have heard more crying, in the past week than probably all the previous months of his life combined. Mommy has been doing a whole lotta comforting. My little boy is growing up. = )

So that's probably all the helmet news for now. Oh, except for that we've been finding temperature control even harder now that it's winter out. It's sooo hard knowing what to dress him in. It seems like he's always too hot, or his little hands and feet are too cold. He still doesn't complain though. I swear, he must be the most laid back baby on the planet... minus all the drama. He sure is a dramatic little boy in many other areas. ; )



































On to a few fun new developments:

Ari is cruising like a maniac. Seriously. He's maniacal about it. He races around the table as fast as he can cruise, rapidly panting with effort and excitement, and sometimes giggling. It's hilarious. He looks like he's lost his mind and is loving it. = )




He is also able to crawl/climb up onto short objects now, like his little baby sofa or my nursing pillow if it's on the floor. It's pretty darn cute.

Just a couple days ago, he did "sooo big" for the first time when I asked him how big he was. He was so proud of himself. = D

Also, his top right front tooth has poked through about 3 mm now! So cute. We still haven't been transitioning to solids very well. I think I need to start working him towards eating soft finger foods, because he is very capable of picking up tiny things with his "pinchers" now and also does the grinding movements with his jaw. Ugh.. so much to think about. I don't think life will ever be easy again. = )

Here's a couple final pictures of him at Pho Quan, my favorite restaurant in the world, which we were at for my birthday this past week. He had a helmet break when we were there. He was so tired, but had a great time. He's so stinkin' cute.. wow. = D

Has it Been Two Weeks Already?!!

That's right, it has!

Wow, time has really flow by this month. Ari has his.. 6th? CranioCap appointment tomorrow.

I am not really looking forward to going in this time. Ari had a fever for a couple days last week while we were celebrating Thanksgiving in Branson, MO with Drew's family. On those days, we kept his helmet off to help him stay cool and now I feel like we missed out on some good progress. Of course 2/14 days is not really that big of a deal I guess. But still, I am less excited about this visit.

I know he will need it adjusted a little, because his neck has been getting some chaffing marks on it. I guess that means his head is growing, right?!

Well, off to bed. Still feeling under the weather.

Taking a Break.. Kind Of..

I am currently on vacation in Missouri with some of Drew's side of the family. His parents rented a cabin for all of us to stay in for Thanksgiving week, which is really nice of them!

It's interesting how much "vacation" changes once you have a kid. Basically.. it's not anymore. It's not vacation... it's "getting away from your own house to go to a different house and hang out with different people". Which is still very nice! But not really the vacation I'm used to.

Vacation used to be a time where I could sit around, eat, chat, watch movies, sleep, eat, sit around, chat, watch movies and sleep, sleep, sleep. Alas, no more. Ari's schedule is still the same, even when I'm away from home. He still needs to be fed, washed, unhelmeted, rehelmeted, changed, etc and repeat. Naps are the only "vacation" time I get. At least Drew is helping out here and there with washing Ari and feeding him cereal... that is very nice. = )

Anyways, I'm not really complaining. I'm more.. emoting and reevaluating so that I can grieve, accept and move on to enjoying this new type of "vacation". And I am also slightly low on sleep...

Unfortunately I have schoolwork to do while I'm here. I have an online quiz due in a day and also a homework assignment due right when I get back. So is life. = )

Glad I missed that MN ice storm...

Ari's Fifth Checkup!!

Ari had his fifth helmet checkup today!! = )

The specialist adjusted his helmet a little bit, and then we talked a bit about when Ari might get the helmet off. She said that because he is doing so well in the helmet and doesn't mind wearing it, we could perhaps go even up to 11 1/2 months old with it on but that we'll just see how it goes. That would be two more months. She said the last month would probably be a modified wearing schedule; only during naps, at night and during long car rides.

Drew and I already talked about how we want Ari to continue the treatment for as long as we could see results happen, so this is not a problem for us. We want his head to have the best chance of becoming normal shaped.

Ari is doing sooo well. I completely forgot to mention it, but Ari took his first two steps on Sunday night at my parents house! I think I am still in shock from it, which is why I haven't been blabbing all about it. He is only 9 1/2 months old and he's not even been in the practice of standing without holding on to thing yet (though he's been cruising like a mad man for some time now). Sheesh. I can't believe how fast he's growing.

Here's some pictures of my crazy little guy waiting to get his helmet back. ; )

Helmet Appointment Tomorrow!

Wow.. I can't believe it's already been two weeks since the halfway appointment! That means that Ari only has 5 weeks left, if we're still on target. = D I've been thinking about maybe having a Un-helmeting Party at the end... not sure if it will actually happen, but it sounds like a fun idea, doesn't it?!

Time is really flying by incredibly fast. I'm sure it has something to do with be being in school. At this time of the semester things really start getting busy as teachers try to catch up and cram everything in before finals.

This week is going to be absolutely CRAZY. Drew is out of town for work until Friday, I have an exam on Friday to prepare for, have to buy a nice outfit for a dinner on Friday for Drew's work, and also have to fit in packing because we leave for Missouri for 10 days on Saturday! Phew!

I always feel rebellious when Drew is out of town for work. I imagine him having tons of fun eating out and hanging out with people while I'm home doing the same old same old. The funny thing is that Drew would much rather be hanging out at home doing the same old same old while I go out with people. But still I rebel. My rebellion normally consists of eating junk food, stay up late watching movies and not doing anything else. That just won't do this time with the busy week I have ahead of me, and the baby I have to take care of. I need to muster up the self-control to deny my rebellious urges and stick to the tasks at hand. For example, I should be sleeping right now.

So.. I guess I will cut this short, be a good girl and go to bed. Hopefully I'll find the time to post on Ari's helmet checkup sometime soon. ; ) Goodnight! Zzzzzz...

My Little Ari

My little lion. = D (Ari means "lion")

(These are probably the only Halloween picture I will get up here. There's a couple more at the end)

Ari is just so darn cute. = D

I was looking at him today, chunky legs smooshed into his Bumbo seat, and I thought to myself.. wow, he doesn't look like a baby anymore. He looks like a little toddler! When I stood him up, the Bumbo seat stayed attached to his bum. LOL! Luckily he can still cram into it without it being uncomfortable because it is so handy for putting that antifungal cream on his scalp for his cradle cap. It doesn't have a tall back like his high chair, so I can easily get at him from all angles.

I swear to you, that little boy is sooo close to walking. Drew was telling me today that he thinks Ari will start walking over our little Thanksgiving vacation to Branson, MO coming up. I wouldn't be surprised. He is getting better and better at walking around the house holding on to us with only ONE hand now! It's adorable. He gets so proud of himself. = D

I also wouldn't be surprised if at least one of his top front teeth comes in by the end of the month. He has been teething like MAD. His new favorite thing to do?... bite my knee caps and shoulders with his two bottom front teeth. Ouch! The funny thing, is that it kindof tickles too, so my "knee-jerk" reaction (pun intended) is often laughter when I get caught unawares. Not good. Now he thinks it's a joke and tries to get away with it more often. So I'm trying to stifle my laughs to teach him right from wrong, while busting at the seams inside. Isn't that what a lot of being a parent is about?

Ari's also figured out how to crawl down backwards off my lap from the rocker to the floor. When he first started attempting this, I was like, "Man.. this boy sure is squirmy all the time now!", which was really nothing new. He's been a mover since in utero. But over the period of about a week, I started to discern his motive. I realized that the stinker could not wait to part with me after he had got his fix!! Now, almost immediately after he's done being burped (and often during) he starts squirming to back his way off my lap and onto the floor so he can go play. *sigh* The baby stage is SERIOUSLY not long enough. I need a new one. ; )

Ari is such a goofball. He has such a quirky, weird, and fun-loving personality. It blossoms more and more each day. I know he's going to be very quick-witted when he grows up. I am looking forward to the day when he starts telling jokes. You know the stage.. when their jokes aren't funny, but they're trying to figure out humor? I think he'll master it very quickly. But I can wait. This chapter is so awesome too. = )

The saddest part of it all is that he doesn't want to snuggle with me almost at all anymore. He wants to play with me, and joke with me, and be tickled by me.. and sometimes bring me a wide-open, drooly mouth for kisses... but not snuggle. I miss it a lot. Lately I have been milking the time (another pun) after his last feeding for all it's worth. He normally falls/stays asleep during it, so I'm able to just sit there rocking my not-so-baby baby, cuddling his still-baby-cheeks, for as long as I want.

*sigh* Man. It really does go by sooo quickly. I'm glad I listened to the mothers before me and haven't taken these baby months for granted. It's the only time in my life that I feel like I've succeeded in not rushing towards the horizon. It was worth the patience. = )

New Poll

I've been thinking about state of mind/perspective/state of being stuff lately, so I thought I would put up a new poll to see what you guys think.

I know all of these can be seen as being related, but that makes it all the more interesting to me.

Here's a fun link to Visuwords.com that you can check out that may help you contemplate these concepts more deeply.

Ponder away! = )

Oh, and feel free to comment with some thoughts behind what made you choose the one(s) you chose.

Thankfulness

I love my family. I am so thankful for them. = )

I am thankful for Drew. He makes me laugh with all his closet-weirdness. He works so hard at a job that is very stressful to bring home a paycheck to support our life together. He makes compromises he doesn't want to make because he values me as a partner in this relationship. He is patient with me. He is a learner and is willing to be taught when he doesn't know how to do something. He is willing to make hard changes when he knows it is for our best. = D

I am so thankful for Ari. He is such a sweet little boy. He smiles with his two-toothed mouth and my spirit glows. Even as he is sick and crabby, teething and tired, I still adore him. He experiments with new things and looks over to me for approval. When I come around the corner, he lights up with the biggest smile ever. If I walk near him, he immediately gets excited because he always wants to be playing with me. He already turns pages when I read to him and it makes me so happy. I can't get enough of him. = D

I am so thankful for my dogs. They love me even when I am crabby. All they want to do is be near me (and preferably on me) at all times. They love to curl up on my lap and be pet. This greatly reduces my stress level. Even when they pee on my floor and bark at the neighbors that they see every single day of their lives.. I can't imagine my life without them. = D

I am so thankful for life. I'm so thankful for the life that I have. I'm thankful for green grass, blue skies. I'm thankful for sunshine and music. I'm thankful for colors in general. I'm thankful for taste buds and wonderful food creations. I'm thankful for beauty. I'm thankful for friends, family and laughter. I'm thankful for learning. I'm thankful that I can afford to go to school. I'm thankful for "gluten-free" and mango sorbet. = D

I'm thankful that I have life after death awaiting me because Jesus paid the price I couldn't for my sins. Even when I am in the depths of despair and hopelessness, I know He is with me, and he pulls me back up out of it all. I am so thankful that His arm is not too short to save me from my muck. (Isaiah 59:1; John 3:16)

Ari's Halfway Done!!!

Alright.. so I'm finally ready to write this blog post.

It's probably because I've been under the weather, but it has felt very daunting to write about this visit, and especially to get photos ready for it, until today. I am feeling much better today. = )

So, Ari just had his fourth helmet checkup on Tuesday. It went very well!

The specialist began by ooo-ing and ah-ing about how great Ari's scalp looks. I am serious (and anyone of you who has seen it recently will agree) it looks almost 100% better! That anti-fungal cream really did the job!

I'm not sure if I mentioned this in a previous post, but Ari's doctor said that cradle cap is actually a fungus and that the awful red, raw mess under his helmet was actually a horrible case of cradle cap! I was fascinated and dumb struck. I had no idea cradle cap was fungal. She said she was not surprised that his cradle cap got worse under the helmet since it is warm, dark and moist.. the perfect fungus growing environment.

I digress.. so after ooo-ing and ah-ing, the specialist adjusted his helmet since his head has grown more and it was again getting too tight in some areas. The adjustment took about 15-20 minutes, so while she was in the back room, Ari played with the zipper on my sweater and in his stroller for a bit.







































When the specialist got back, she showed me that she also applied a felt-like medical bandage circle over that silver button that has been chaffing Ari's skin and creating blisters (I don't know the actual name of it). Up until now, we have had to try and get gauze under that area each time we put the helmet on. But with that circular piece of material bandage over it, it's no problem now! Huzzah!

Next she showed me the original mold of Ari's head which she had also brought back with her! If you recall from my post "Hooded and Scanned", they made this mold (which I had never got to see before now) by scanning an electronic picture of his skull onto a computer with a scanner. They then fitted the CranioCap to the mold of his skull before Ari got to wear it the first time. Here are some pictures of the mold. The one on the left is a front/anterior view (the writing would be the left side of Ari's head) and the one on the right is a top/superior view (the flat part on top of the picture being the back of his head).



















She measured the original mold of Ari's head to see what the dimensions were, and then measured Ari's head to see what his head was measuring now. He kept on trying to get her name tag. She thought that was hilarious. = D




















After she finished measuring, she told me that Ari's head has grown about a half a centimeter on the sides and a little over a centimeter in the back since we started the treatment! She said this is great, because it means that most of the growth has been in the back where his head is flat!

She informed me that Ari is about halfway done with his treatment now, which means that we only have about 7 more weeks to go unless they decide to extend the treatment at the end. She said it is unlikely that they will extend it since Ari is getting so mobile now and spending much less time on his back. She even said that towards the end of the treatment she may have us do a modified schedule again, which would involve him only wearing the helmet when he is in reclined positions, such as for naps, changing, nursing or in the car seat. Something like that.

So, yeah! It went really well. However, a couple centimeters growth still didn't sound like that big of a deal to me, so later that day I took some pictures of Ari's head, so that I could get a better picture of how much the treatment has been helping. I've included both the before and halfway pictures here so you can see them for yourself! Do you think it's working?... = D


P.S. I will try to do a post with cute pictures from Halloween soon. No guarantees. = )

Helmet Checkup Tomorrow!

Hey guys. Sorry I've been an absentee blogger for the past few days.. more than that I guess. I haven't been feeling very well. Cold-like symptoms, but I'm not quite sure if it's a cold. Ari and Drew haven't caught it, so it might be wheat related...

Anyways. Lots to blog about, but I still don't feel well so I'm going to make this one short. I should be able to do a longer one tomorrow.

Had my A&P II Lab presentation on Asthma tonight. It went really well. I think we'll get a really good grade. Unfortunately I ate a big dinner right before going into that stressful situation, so now I feel even worse. I was hungry and didn't think, but I completely knew better. As I JUST learned in A&P (it was on my most recent exam) when you're stressed out, digestion pretty much stops. It's "Fight or Flight" versus "Rest and Digest". So.. don't eat a big meal before a stressful (physically or emotionally) event, or you will get indigestion. Ugh...

What I really wanted to fit in was that Ari has his 4th Checkup tomorrow! I am SUPER excited about it, because somehow they are going to compare his skull now against the original mold they made. I can't wait to see how much it has improved.

So yeah, off to bed for now to hopefully rest, repair... and digest. = D

A This-kit a That-skit...

I'll assume you all got the reference up there and shall continue.. ; )

At the beginning of the day I felt like there was a whole lot I wanted to post about... but now that it's later I may not be able to remember it all. (Warning: this will be long and probably unorganized.) Let's see...

Well, for one we're getting a new roof! Hoh yeah.. it's going to be awesome. I picked the color out myself... teak.. whatever that means. It's a brownish color that looks better than the one Drew picked out. I wanted it to be even more chocolate-y brown, but Drew was like, "I don't know about a brown roof with a green house." I was like, "Are you kidding?.. green and brown?.. that's what all of nature is!" Well, I still didn't get that awesome color, but I got the next best thing. Teak. The roofing guy said our install should be set up within two weeks! Woo woo! That hail storm really did us in. Insurance is covering it and everything. Thank goodness.. we were going to have to get a new roof next year as it was!

Next up is my wheat and dairy trial. So as I may or may not have already said in a previous post, at one of Ari's recent checkups (I think it was the head rash one, or maybe it was the 9 month one on Monday?..) our doctor told me to start trying to reintroduce wheat/dairy one at a time as I could handle it. She wants Ari to start being exposed to it via nursing so that he hopefully won't be allergic to it also once he starts eating it after around a year old. She wanted me to begin with trying to eat something with wheat in it every other day.

So, I have followed what she said, and it has been going pretty well. My stomach hasn't been hurting at all! I have been experiencing some gas (sorry) after eating wheat. But in the past few days I have also started to get more congested. This morning, I woke up with a scratchy throat and feeling even more congested. Are they related, or do I just have a cold? If I do have a cold, did I get it because my immune system was compromised by trying to deal with the allergens I've been giving it? And if it is only a cold, could my eating wheat (which I am allergic to) be making my congestion worse? I don't know the answer to any of these things, or what to do about it. I think I will give myself an additional day or two between wheat ingestions and maybe decrease the amount of wheat I eat for a couple of dosages as well. I hope that I will feel better soon, and that Drew and Ari won't get sick as well.

Okay, so on to my most recent A & P II test... hold on.. before I moan about how my grade is still not posted, I'm going to double check here and make sure he didn't snake it in while I'm writing this...(*one-minute-pause*).. WOAH! He actually did snake it in while I was writing this!! Okay.. so I did not do as well this time. 89/100 percent, which in case you don't know.. is not quite an A.

Grrrr. I totally deserve it though. I waited to the last minute to study again, and it was a HARD test. In my opinion, much harder than the first one. Ugh. Maybe I can argue my way into a few more points and sneak into the A-range. There were some questions that were really unclear. (and I'm not just saying that because of my grade.. they were really confusing) I'm still happy though. I'm getting an A overall, and I think this just might be the motivation I needed to get my butt in gear and stop procrastinating so much (I'm going to have to add a "procrastination" label to this blog). I swear I will try to do better and study in manageable chunks this time. Anyways, so glad to know my grade... I will sleep better tonight. = D

What else... oh! That's right.. the darn food issue again. Okay, so I will preface this by saying that I feel sooo blessed. Many new moms have trouble figuring out nursing/latching/all that stuff. I never did. Nursing has really been a breeze overall for me. But I am telling you, this darn switching over to semi-real (baby food) and real foods is giving me such a headache!! Ugh. It seriously just makes me want to go back to 100% nursing. Of course I won't. I'm just venting. But really, what is so hard about this for me?

I think it's the "don't feed him this yet because of allergies", "don't feed him that because he can choke on it", "don't feed him more than one thing at a time and three days in between new foods because then you'll know what caused a reaction if he has one", "but make sure that you're exposing him to a much wider variety of foods now". One book tells me to feed him X, the next says not to. Another book tells me to feed him cheerios at 9 months for finger foods but to wait until one year old to give him wheat. HELLO!!! CHEERIOS HAVE WHEAT STARCH IN THEM, which is from WHEAT!!!

Okay.. give me a second here... (*deep inhale... deep exhale*)..

..alright, I'm back. So anyways, perhaps you can understand my frustration. Or perhaps your baby came with a manual that does not have conflicting information. I dunno. I AM going to start trying to make my own foods for Ari. The canned Gerber foods don't have enough variety. I think I will try freezing little ice cube trays of mushed up cooked foods for him so that they are readily accessible.

You know, it's funny. When you're up at 1am in the morning feeding a newborn, and then up at 4am again, and 7am, etc, etc.. you think, "Gosh, I sure can't wait until he doesn't need to feed this often, and I get more sleep, and it gets easier".. but it really never does. I mean, you do get more sleep, which should theoretically help you deal with the stress of figuring things out better.. but if it's not one thing, it's another! There's always something else that comes along that you are unprepared for and you have to start from point A all over again until you figure that thing out, and then the next thing comes...

I really do love being a mom though, I just really hate this whole FOOD thing. If you got a different idea from the previous couple of paragraphs, then you misunderstand me. You see, this is my blog... a place where I can vent and people don't HAVE to hear it. I can emote and it doesn't HAVE to ruin someone else's mood. You can just go to a different website if I'm boring you or stressing you out.. which maybe some of you already have. I say, good for you. I'm just super glad that I can get all of this off my chest and fall asleep easily, rather than mulling it all over again and again in my brain as I lie in bed tonight. Tomorrow is a new day and I will again try to do the best I can do with what is given to me. = )

So thanks for listening.. blog. Goodnight. = D

Test Today...

I have an A&P II test this evening. But all I want to do is crawl back in bed. I am SOOO tired!!

Ugh. I am going to exercise every bit of power I have to go over to the table, sit down and start studying.

I studied for about an hour yesterday, but that's about it so far. I have a feeling that I have done myself in this time. Only God and 6 hours of studying (minus all the time Ari will consume) can help me now.

Off I go. I'll let you know how it went... after the test. ; )

Ari's 9-month Checkup!

Ari had his 9-month checkup today!

I cannot believe he is already 9 months old. It seems like just yesterday that I was finishing packing my hospital bag to head to the hospital when my water broke! (I did not pack my bag ahead of time...and I advise against it)

I didn't realize it, but Ari wasn't due for any immunizations for this checkup, so that was nice! I did have the option to get him the flu vaccine, but after talking to my doctor about all factors involved, we decided it was not the best decision to give it to him right now.

So, his stats. Ari now weights 20 lbs 7 oz and is 29.25 inches long! He is in the 50th percentile for weight (still), and now the 82nd percentile for height. Still a very tall little guy!

The funnest part about this visit (not) was that Ari got to have his penile adhesion separated. Oh joy. We have been putting hydrocortisone on the area at night for a few months now. As also instructed, I gave him a nice warm bath right before bringing him in so that the skin would be softer. He really didn't cry a whole lot at all when she pulled it apart. We're supposed to continue with hydrocortisone for a while until the skin heals. We're also supposed to MAKE SURE to pull back the shaft skin all the way each time we change his diaper so that the skin won't reattach. Why wasn't I taught all of this in the first place at the hospital after he got circumcised? Grrr.

Not all of the skin was ready to be freed, so we're supposed to continue to put hydrocortisone on for another month or so and do the bath/pull apart thing again. After watching his pediatrician to it this time, I feel confident that I can do it myself next time. It's a much smaller part that needs to be set free now.

His doctor told me that Ari doesn't need to have easy to swallow babyfood anymore, and that he can also start having a much wider variety of foods. She said that I can just make them myself at home and grind them to a consistency that he can handle. That's nice.. but a lot more work for me. ; )

So, I think that's it. My brain is not feeling very creative today. I still have a bunch of school stuff to do, so... I'm out! Peace. = )

Good Things... Gooood Things

Phew!! I am EXHAUSTED. I have been really exhausted a lot lately. For about the past week or two actually. I'm sure part of it is that Ari is getting a lot more active now (and is gaining a pound a day, I swear), school has really been picking up and I'm trying to not drink quite as much coffee each morning. Ugh.

Anyways, I just got back from a date night with Drew! It was so much fun. I'm telling you, I never knew how valuable dates were until they were so hard to come by! Drew and I have maybe had three dates involving just the two of us since Ari was born, and I'm pretty sure I've almost cried each time. It seems so silly, but each time we're out together it feels like our relationship is new again and I feel like my old self!

At one point tonight, I thought for a second how nice it would be if we never had kids, but within a blink (and not related to the prior thought) I found myself missing Ari so much and wanting to text my mom to see how he was doing. It's a strange mix of emotions that accompanies a kid coming into the picture. I just try to roll with the punches. = )

Earlier today Drew and I had a budget meeting. It went so well, and I am actually excited about our goals and where we're headed financially! This is such a stark contrast to my feelings at the end of many budget discussions in the past that I had to take the time to bask in the glow of how much our relationship and communication skills having grown this past year. I commented on it to Drew and he agreed that we have improved a lot and is also very glad that we have. = D

On a drier note, I have another A&P II exam coming up on Wednesday evening. I have not been doing a good job of studying AT ALL. Tomorrow is completely booked, but at least Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are pretty much free. I will try to whip myself into submission and study a bunch on those days. I also have a group presentation for Lab the following Monday, so I have my work cut out for me. You may not see me posting as much until then if I'm behaving. ; D

Alright.. headed off to bed now. Had to charge my iTouch (alarm clock) on my laptop because the power is off in half of our house tonight. Drew's working on creating an electrical outlet behind the flat screen TV so that cords don't hang down to the existing outlet anymore. That little boy Ari is into EVERYTHING. Seriously guys.. I swear that he is no more than a month away from walking and he's only going to be 9 months on Monday. He's crazy! I love it. = D

Ari's Third Checkup!!

Ari's third CranioCap checkup was on Tuesday! Sorry it's taken me a while to write about it.. I've been a pinch busy. = D

When we got there, the specialist was so happy to see Ari to find out if his head rash was improving. She said she had been thinking about "this poor baby" (she is so sweet and has a foreign accent that is so endearing). She looked at his head and was very pleased to see that his head rash is almost gone (held at bay by daily application of anti-fungal cream). I explained all that the doctor had said, and she was very interested to hear about it. She said that Ari has had a harder time with the helmet than most babies and that she is so impressed with how easy-going and happy he has remained during all of this. I'm so proud of him. = )

After this, the specialist took the helmet back to adjust it. She pushed out the back some more to relieve pressure points at the top back of his head, expanded the base of the helmet by his neck where it was chaffing too much, and also tried to push in one of the anchor buttons for the velcro slot which had recently caused a blister. I'm hoping that this will help so that we don't have to put gauze over the button under the helmet, which is what helped his blister to heal.

When she got back, she explained that when she sees us in two more weeks we will be about halfway done with the treatment if all continues to go well. She said that when we come, we will compare his head against a foam mold of the original shape of his head to see how much progress we have made. That should be interesting!! = D

While we were waiting for her to adjust the helmet, Ari played with his reflection in the mirror. I've included a few photos of this playdate. ; )

Helmet Decorating (or rather) Decoupaging!

Taken the morning after in his pj's. = )

Yesterday Ari had a date with a professional helmet decorator (*wink*) to get his helmet decoupaged!

Our friend Megan is a master crafter and when I thought about decorating Ari's helmet, she was the first person that came to mind. She has her own blog, Polish the Stars, where she blogs about the crafty things she does, so I knew she would be able to figure out how to make the project successful and look awesome. = D

Ari and I headed over to her house yesterday afternoon. I was running late, as usual, so we landed there right at lunchtime. We all ate lunch together (Ari played with a toy in his portable high chair, which ROCKS) and then got down to business.

While Megan figured out how to miniaturize the photos Drew and I had decided we liked, I chatted with her and took pictures of her working. (I'm a very good helper!) Based on your votes during the Helmet Poll, we chose to do some classic "Sailor Jerry" style tattoos. = D

I also kept a very close eye on Ari while he explored. That boy is a dare-devil already! When he did have his helmet on, I swear I counted about 15 incidents that would have resulted in a bruise and intense crying. So, when we took it off, I really had to watch him as he crawled and cruised around, working on developing. ; )

Jeremy, Megan's son, was really excited about Ari being there... although his excitement slightly dwindled once he fully understood that Ari would not be able to run around the house and chase him. I did attempt to help Ari do this once, but wore out quickly. Ari loved it though. = D

Jeremy was very interested in Ari, asking questions about his eating habits, pooping habits, sleeping habits, physical abilities. Trying to explain everything in a way he would understand was good practice for me and very entertaining. = )

After Megan was done, and had given the helmet a little hairdryer action to speed up the drying process, Ari got to try his awesome helmet on. He felt like a new man.. empowered really! ; )

After a little bit more eating and playtime, we were on our way. We had to get Ari back home for his nap. Jeremy decided that Ari should sleep at his house, but I told him that I had to get back home because I also had studying to do. (I totally ended up flaking out on that and instead edited my fun pictures.. *sigh*)

Ari and I are so thankful for Megan's awesome gift to us! I am not blogging details about how Megan decorated his helmet, because I didn't really help, and I know she will be blogging about it when she has the time. When she does, I will let you know so that you can check it out!

Here are some pictures though, both of the process and the final result. = D

Watch out everyone... Ari now thinks he's a bad mother.... ; D