Yellow River Game Ranch

On MLK day, we found out that the Yellow River Game Ranch was having dollar day. I sent out emails and invited people to come with us. My mom, Harriet, my friend Jennifer, her husband Paul, and their son joined Mollie and me for the adventure. We decided to get there early because we knew it would be packed! We arrived at 10. There were cars everywhere, but it didn't look too crowded.
 
We bought our tickets, all kinds of food, and headed into the park for a day of fun! Mollie had an absolute blast! She loves animals. I think it's because she grew up around dogs everywhere. So, she loves to pet, feed, and talk to the animals.

 
Her favorite part by far was the barn at the end and feeding all of the animals. She would ask for more and more peanuts to feed to the goats. She was so funny!

Here are some pictures of the day. I was so glad that Harriet brought her camera for us to take some really cute ones!

                                    She wasn't scared one bit!!!

                                                                So proud of herself!

                                        Trying to figure out what is in the cage...

We had so much fun!! I heard they are doing another one President's day. We might be going back for another fun adventure if anyone is interested in going with us. It was a great way to spend a dollar!!

18 month check-in

I can't believe my little girl is already 18 months! She is becoming so independent... almost too much, but it is so fun to watch her learn new things every day.

 

Mollie's stats:
Height:32 1/4" (62 percentile)
Weight: 24.8 lbs (76 percentile)
Head: 19" (92 percentile)
Diaper: Size 4 (She is starting to show some interest in the potty, but we aren't quite there yet. She will tell me to change her diaper when it is dirty and will ask to go on the potty, but she hasn't figured out that you actually do something on there.)
Clothes: Mollie is currently wearing anything from 18months -2T clothes. She wears smaller shirts and bigger pants.
She is developing well and the doctor is proud of her progress. She was concerned when we talked about speech, but said that we can revisit that in 3 months after the tubes. She said she thinks that will really help with Mollie's pronunciation of words. I feel like it is a little bit better, but I don't know if that is just because I am understanding what she is saying more or if her words are sounding more like real words.

What she is doing:
Mollie is very vocal these days! She loves to talk, whether to herself or to anyone around. She loves to pick up a phone and act like she is talking on it. She also enjoys taking things out of baskets and putting them in other baskets, playing outside, and watching Sprout. Chica is her favorite! She has become very independent. She walks everywhere we go, and she will ask to hold your hand if she is unsure.

Mollie's favorites:
Food: Yogurt (She has become quite a picky eater in the past month. She used to eat everything, now she is very selective about what she wants and when she wants it.)
Drink: Milk (We are only offering her milk and water at this time. We will start to add some juice in very soon.)
Toys: Her kitchen from Christmas from her Gram! She will pretend on that thing all day long. She also loves cars. (She calls them Car -- Wee Wee)
Cuddle: She loves her blanket (Nigh Nee).

Tubes Conclusion

As my alarm when off at 4:30, I realized I got very little sleep that night. I was up praying and getting ready for my little girl to have surgery. Once David and I got ready, we woke Mollie up and put her in the car. I was really worried about her being hungry, so I we dressed her in pajamas she could wear to the hospital. When we got there, David let Mollie play with all the toys in the waiting room while I checked us in. It was all very painless. That put me at a little ease.

Then we were called back to get Mollie's vitals. As we were back there, Mollie did very well with all of it. The worst part was the oxygen machine. Mollie HATES that thing being wrapped around her finger. Finally, we got past that. We were put into a room with a small hospital bed and some toys. We had about an hour before the actual surgery, so we played and walked around the halls of the rooms. Mollie was starting to get very hungry, so we had to do everything to keep her busy.

After about an hour, they came to get Mollie for surgery. David took her back.  (I knew I wouldn't be able to handle seeing her laying there like that.) They put me in a recovery room where we would wait for Mollie to get out of surgery. About 25 minutes later, they brought her in. I was very emotional. It was so sad for me to see my baby on a big hospital bed. She looked so tiny on that big bed. They said she would wake up soon and we would be able to take her home once she was fully awake. It took her about 20 minutes to wake up. We had to wake her up because she had gone into her nap.

After she woke up, she cried until we took the oxygen monitor off her finger (about 1 minute). Then she was completely fine once that thing came off her finger. We gave her a cracker and her water. She was so good! We were able to leave. She slept on the way home, and she was back to herself right when we got home.

We haven't had to have any problems with her ears since. We will go back at the beginning of March for a recheck.

The 3 am wake ups

It was over a week ago that we finally stopped using the paci, or as Mollie calls it "ba". She has done very well with it overall. She does still ask for it in the car, but instead I say "ba's are for babies and you are big girl." Then we turn up the kid songs and I make sure it is a song she knows. She forgets all about the "ba".

Ever since last Saturday she has been waking up between 3 and 4 in the morning. That makes for a very tired Mommy and Daddy. It is like having a newborn again!We are not opposed to the cry it out method. In fact, that is the method we have used since she was a tiny, little baby. So, we will let her cry for about 15 minutes and then go in and check on her. Every morning, she is wailing until someone comes in there. (Even if it is well after 15 minutes.) We go in, bring her downstairs, try to rock her back to sleep, and she refuses. Sometimes she asks for milk, usually asks for Toby, and then wants to watch Barney. She is well aware that her shows are on at that time of the morning. UGH!

David and I alternate our nights up so that one of us can get sleep and the other is up. However, since I wake up at 4:30, we are all up very early! As much as I hate getting up that early, I do enjoy my time with my girl. I have really missed her since I have been back from Christmas break. (Not that I don't miss her other times. It just seems like more and more now.)

I think that she used to use her paci to self-sooth and we have taken that away from her. She doesn't have anything to use now, and that is a problem for all of us. I also think the move has been hard on her. She isn't used to staying in the room she is overnight. I think when we consider all of these things I can't help but feel bad for her. I do give in and give her the milk, tell her Toby is still in bed sleeping, and that Barney will be on in a minute. Then we cuddle on the recliner and enjoy each other's company.  She is still and will always be my baby!

Tubes Recap

Since October, Mollie has had consistent ear infections. The pediatrician would give us medication to take for 10 days. The week after the medicine was finished, we were always back in the doctor's office for another infection. This was so frustrating as a momma. I couldn't imagine putting my daughter on all of these antibiotics to have them just not work. We now have certain antibiotics that she can't take anymore, because her body is immune to them. All at 18 months old!! We went to the doctor this past week for a check up, and this was the first time we have not had an ear infection at the doctor's office. In December, we were sent to an ENT. We went to see Dr. Thomsen with Pediatric ENT of Atlanta. He was FABULOUS!! I loved his professionalism and knowledge. He said he wasn't there for the kids to like him. He was there to get an accurate check of her ears. I completely agreed with this statement.

When we walked in the office and were in the waiting room. My mom, Harriet, and Mollie were sitting at a table reading books. I was filling out all of the paperwork.

Then we were called back. She immediately cried when anyone walked in the room. (She now does this anytime we are at an appointment.) We had to have an extra nurse come in and help me hold her while the doctor checked her. It turned out that she had another ear infection. Not surprising, since we had finished medicine for the last ear infection 3 days before that. We were then taken into a room for her to do some audiological testing. It was really cool to see how they do this with children Mollie's age. The first couple things were they put something in her ear to make sure she could hear. Then they put us in a sound booth. In one corner was a duck (Mollie's favorite) and then a cat. The animals would make noise and Mollie had to find the animal making the sound. It was really cool! I had to hold her on my lap and make sure I didn't make any movement. I was really proud of her! After all that testing, they knew that she could hear. (I didn't ever think that was a concerned.) We will retest her, because one of the tests came back kind of low, but they think that is because she had an infection at the time.

We then were sent to the scheduler to schedule the surgery. As ready as I am, it is never fun to sign a consent form that says the things that "could happen". YIKES! I don't even want to think about it! The surgery is scheduled for this Wednesday at the CHOA outpatient facility. We are asking for prayers, but know that the surgery is what she needs!

We will update later this week with how she does.

Thank you for the prayers!

Christina

January's Family Day

At the beginning of the year, David and I talked about doing a family day each month. As we have talked, it has been difficult to figure out what we want to do this month. It is so cold outside! We are not cold people, so usually we tend to stay inside on months like January. Well... as things have gone through my mind, I couldn't find anything that I was really excited about. Today I finally figured out what we are doing! If Mollie is feeling well enough from her tubes surgery on Wednesday, we are going to the Imagine It! Children's Museum. As I was looking at the website, it looked like a lot of fun. The reviews seems to be balanced and lots of people said their young children had fun. I am WAY excited about this adventure!!

I can't wait to take lots of pictures and tell everyone about it!

Here is the website to anyone that might be interested! If you want to join us, we would love to have you come with. Just let me know.

http://www.childrensmuseumatlanta.org/

Mollie's "Ba"

I feel like every time I look at Mollie lately, she has grown. My little baby is quickly becoming my big girl. She is so independent, asks for help, and wants to help with everything. David and I have been talking about getting rid of the pacifier. Everyone is ok with this big change.... EXCEPT ME!!!!

The pacifier is the only thing I have left of her being a baby. I know there are lots of reasons why the paci needs to disappear -- she is becoming dependent on it, her teeth are coming in, and she REALLY doesn't need it. All of these are reasons that I understand and would totally tell another parent. I just can't stand it! I am just so sad.

Last night I went to dinner with a friend. David laid Mollie down for bed without a pacifier. I was proud that she went to sleep when I heard the story. She woke up at 3am looking for her "ba". I just couldn't do it! I had to go give her to it. I guess we can see that I WON'T be the disciplinarian around the Evanina house.

We are trying again tonight. We will see how she does without the paci. I hope that she will make it through the night and this "ba" won't be needed in our house again. I just want her to stop using it, without me having to take it away from her. :(

She has been crying for 15 minutes... I know I can't give in, but I hate having my baby cry.

Off to watch Duck Dynasty and try to forget that "ba"....