Saturday 31 July 2010

Hanging in there...

Below, Ailsa is obviously not buying what Daddy is selling.




Ok, so it's been 8 weeks since little Ailsa screamed into this world, and sometimes it feels like she hasn't stopped screaming since!


The doc prescribed some zantac-ish stuff, just in case she's suffering from baby heartburn, and if her disposition doesn't improve after a week, we get to try Ovol, gripe water (turns out you CAN still get it with alcohol! giddy-up!), and then I have to try eating nothing (well, no dairy, nuts, gluten, food, etc.) for a week ... if all of that fails, we'll just have to accept it: she's just a cranky, Huffy little girl!


But, to refresh my memory that sometimes she IS quiet and delightful, I take a look at this photo. Awww. The smiles are more and more frequent, and mostly occur on the changetable, of all places, but I got one out of her in her crib the other day. Little stinker was supposed to be napping (ha ha!), but charmed me into picking her up instead. Oh yes, I'm on to you!






This is Vaughn being sedate and serious, as always. Ailsa has some pretty goofy shoes to fill as she gets older!






Apologies to all: the thank you cards are (mostly) written, and just need to be sent out. So please bear with me while I continue trying to figure out which way is up.

Friday 23 July 2010

7 weeks: Smile, darn ya, smile!

Well, we just had Ailsa's 6-week follow-up today (and mine too!) - she's 22 inches long and 9 lbs 10 oz... just a little bigger than her big brother was at this age.

I'm back down to my pre-preggers weight and almost shape (but with less muscle) (and 2 more inches to go on my waist) - I have no idea how I pulled that off. Must be the no sleep/no time to eat or even drink water diet.

The sleeping (ha ha! What is this "sleep" of which you speak? She's averaging 2.5 hours between wakes at night) is still a struggle, as is coping with the screaming, but each day we're getting a little bit more quiet alert/happy time.



Speaking of happy, perhaps you should watch this one with the sound off...





I'm holding up "ok" at best, especially the days when Vaughn is cranky too, but I just keep telling myself that this will get better. Sometimes I repeat that into my pillow, sometimes into a glass of wine...



Good thing she's cute.


Some fun pics:

Another great shot of my two little stinkers angels.

Ok, who gave my son a gun???

Thursday 8 July 2010

One Month Later: What a Family!


Well, the droves of grandparents have all returned to their respective homes, much to my horror and dismay. They were all such fantastic helps -- I honestly don't know what I would have done without you! Vaughn still points at random old people (ha ha) and says "Bompa"!

I'm somehow still upright (but on my way for a nap - V's in daycare twice a week for 3-5 hours, just so he can play with his friends and I can have a bit of one-on-one with Ailsa, and I can't miss this window!), but am really wondering how other people cope. I find it a challenge, to say the least, to juggle the Screamerpillar and the Vaughnpire - it seems that if one isn't melting down, well, they both are.

Nights are going better - V goes to bed like a champ at 7:30 - throw him in his crib, give him a kiss, and he's all set till 6:30. A is more challenging - she reeeally doesn't like going to sleep, but once she's out for the night (usually around 9), she wakes up around 1 and 4, then is up for the day at about 7. Chris is really being amazing at doing the Vaughn Routine in the morning, since I'm busy at that point feeding Ailsa, but we're going to have to figure something out soon...something about Chris being late every day...!

All in all, I'm a bit of a soggy mess, and sometimes only call Chris once a day, crying. But I have faith that at 6 weeks, she'll be an angel baby. It could happen, right?

Right?

Ok, it's time to get out your Mortimer* and follow along at home!
Vaughn's 18 month stats are as follows:
  • weighing in at 26 lbs (whoa!), he's just under the 50th percentile; and
  • heighting in at 32 inches, he's between the 50th and 75th!

MY child! Above normal for height! Can you believe it?

I SWEAR that nobody posed Vaughn for this - he just plopped down beside his little sister and mugged for the camera, or the "cheeeese" as he calls it.






Speaking of words, he's up to about 100 identifiable words - a lot of them come out of nowhere - he'll point to something, name it, and leave Chris and I wondering what else he knows that he's not telling us! If he gets stuck, all he needs to do is say "pleeeeeease" and make the sign for please and look up at us beseechingly. It works on nice grocery-store-sample ladies when Mommy's not looking, to get cookies, ice cream, you name it! Little stinker.

He also says "potty" or "pee pee", just after he's peed in his diaper! Well, it's a start.


And this photo, well, this is what I love about the Vaughnster - it just sums up his personality perfectly! The world may be ending, but everything is still awesome.


And finally, although he stole the iPod from Grandpa, he gets his moves from Mommy:


*Any other 80s kids out there that get this reference?

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