Staying busy & keeping cool!

Summer is in full swing for sure, and we are just hoping to beat the heat! Audrey and I just arrived back this week from a visit to Mattoon. We went so that I could attend my friend, Sarah's, wedding. Sarah and I have been friends since 5th grade, so I was so happy I was able to be there for her special day! We were also able to enjoy a nice visit with our family while we were there. Audrey was able to spend a good bit of time with her grandparents, great-grandparents, and Aunt Jill up in Illinois! We went swimming, took her to the park, and of course, ate a lot! Audrey has grown particularly fond of watermelon! She wanted it every meal at Grandpa Max and Grandma 'Laine's house!

Audrey has also been busy learning lots of new things! She now says, "Woof woof!" when you ask her what a dog says. She can also identify her nose, belly, toes, tongue, teeth, and sometimes eyes and ears! She continues to do a great job signing, "Eat," "more," "all done," and even, "thirsty" sometimes! She's extremely affectionate and loves to hug and kiss every kid she meets (and sometimes dogs!). Even at the grocery store, if she sees another child, she says, "Look!" and tries to wave at him/her! I have so enjoyed being home with her this month and watching how much she's learned and grown! Speaking of grown, when I took her to her 15 month doctor's appointment, her weight was off the charts! The nurse wrote, ">99%" beside her weight of 28 lbs! Her height, 32'' and some change, is at the 95% mark as well! At least she's big both ways I guess! The doctor was very happy with her development, and we don't have to go back until September for the 18 month visit.

June is ending, and I am wishing that the summer would slow down! This weekend, we'll have our dear friends James & Brandi stay with us, and then my mom will arrive mid-week for a visit to help out with Audrey so we can go out of town next weekend. We're looking forward to more family time and hoping that the hot temperatures break and allow us to enjoy some summer fun!

Here are a few pictures from our summer so far!

It's fun when Daddy throws me in the pool!

Hanging out with Aunt Jill in Mattoon

Great-Grandpa Max is so funny!

 

BATH MOHAWK!

Swinging at the park

On her new slide!

Swimming with Mommy

Hanging out at Lytle Pool

Catching Up

Audrey has had an eventful month or so since I've last posted. One of the biggest events that happened was, unfortunately, quite a scary one for us. On Monday, May 14, I took Audrey to the pediatrician after school because she'd had a fever all day. They diagnosed her with an ear infection (she's had several), and prescribed an anti-biotic and told me to use Tylenol for the fever. She was fussy when she went to bed that night, but who wouldn't be with an ear ache and a fever? She finally drifted off to sleep, and so did we. Around 1 something in the morning, I heard her fussing a bit. I waited about a minute, and she stopped. I knew she wasn't feeling well, but getting her out of bed wasn't going to do any good. Then, within the hour, I was awakened again, but this time, the noise I heard wasn't fussing. I heard more of a gasping/hiccup-type noise and instantly knew something was wrong. I jumped out of bed and rushed to Audrey's crib. What I saw next is an image that I will never forget, no matter how much I want to. She was stiff but shaking hard while making this noise. She was having a seizure. I immediately started yelling for Jerry, trying to wake him up. I had picked Audrey up and was holding her by the time he came into the room. I handed her to Jerry, grabbed my phone, and dialed 911. During the call, the seizure stopped, and Audrey began snoring loudly. I was so thankful for my past experiences babysitting a sweet girl we know who had seizures frequently. I knew that Audrey would be so physically exhausted after the seizure and was thankful she was sleeping, and more importantly, breathing.

When the ambulance arrived, the EMTs got her settled in, and I just sat there in the ambulance waiting to leave. Audrey had a few more seizures, but they were much less severe. The EMT gave her something to stop the seizures, and Audrey began to sleep. After what felt like hours, we finally arrived at the children's hospital sometime before 3 A.M. I believe (I would share more about the ambulance ride, but quite frankly, I am very disappointed in the EMTs, their lack of professionalism, and their lack of capability to treat a toddler, so I don't want to go on a rant!). The nurses and doctor there were fabulous, comforting Jerry and me, assuring us that everything would be okay. After taking an x-ray, taking some blood, and running some tests, we were told that Audrey's seizures were febrile seizures  caused by her temperature changing suddenly. They told us to keep her fever down by alternating Tylenol and Motrin every 3 hours, even through the night. We were discharged and arrived home sometime after  7 A.M. and were very sleepy. Thankfully, Audrey slept most of the day, allowing Jerry and I to nap some too.

Throughout the remainder of the week, we had Audrey back at the pediatrician's office 2 more times. Her fever wouldn't go away at first, but then it did. Then, her ear infection had returned, so we were given a different anti-biotic. She also developed roseola, which is common in children her age with a fever for that long. Thankfully, she was fine by the weekend, acting like her normal self. We praised God and thanked him countless times for keeping our precious girl safe and healthy. We were and still are so incredibly grateful to our family, friends, neighbors, NewSpring church family for keeping Audrey and us in their prayers during that tough week.

Now, to more positive things! Audrey will be 15 months old on June 15. She continues to grow and change so much all the time. She definitely keeps us busy, and it's going to be a BUSY summer for me, as I chase her around the house and do my best to keep her entertained! Here's what's been going on with her for the past month & a half:

• She weighs about 28 lbs or so (beast, I'm telling ya!)
• Wears a variety of clothing sizes, depending on the brand/item. She mostly wears size 18 months, but has a couple of 2T pairs of shorts, and swimsuits are always a crazy thing because I think they all run so tiny!
• Wears size 5 shoe, but is moving into a 6!
• Is in size 5 diapers
• She walks around like crazy and even tries to run some!
• Her new favorite word is, "LOOK!" which she exclaims as she points her finger any time she sees something that catches her eye
• She loves dogs so much, which is something we'll have to teach her boundaries about, as not all dogs take her "affection" as calmly as Betsy does
• She uses sign language to say, "Eat," "please," "More," and sometimes, "all done"
• She says, "Ma ma," "Da da," "Uh-oh," "Nigh-nigh" (night-night) and then several other words or phrases that she definitely understands, but I don't!
• Pushing things around is one of her favorite things to do, whether it be her toy stroller, the laundry basket, the kitchen chairs, or any other item that will slide across a floor.
• If music comes on, she dances!
• She sleeps about 11 hours each night and naps twice a day (the naps vary in length any where from 20 minutes to 2 1/2 hours!)
• Outside is her favorite place to be! She loves going on walks, us blowing bubbles to her, chasing a ball -- anything outside!
• If someone laughs in conversation, she laughs too, which is quite entertaining.
• She is such a ham! She constantly tries to catch the eye of people walking by if we're in a store or restaurant.
• She lets us know if we have done something she doesn't like by letting out a short, but loud scream. This is something Mommy & Daddy are not pleased about, and we're working on teaching her that we don't have to shout to be heard!
• We've taken her swimming a few times in the past week, and she loves kicking her legs and jumping in the water. She tries to be a bit more independent than she's ready to be, but she quickly sees that hanging on to Mommy or Daddy is a must!
• Climbing into and onto anything is something she loves, and it gets quite dangerous! I have had to show her that climbing into her toy stroller is not a good idea!

She certainly is a lot of fun at this age, and also a lot of work! We couldn't love our little girl any more than we already do! She's such a joy to our lives!

Summertime!

Every teacher's favorite part of the year has arrived: Summertime! The end of this school year is especially sweet for me because it's my first summer home with Audrey after working for a year. THIS is truly one of the best parts about being a Mom who teaches.

Our summer started off with a trip to Ohio! We left the day I got out of school to head to our cousin Rebecca's high school graduation. The week prior, my grandparents had visited, along with my parents. My mom and dad traveled to Ohio with us, and my grandparents met us there, as they had already returned to Illinois before school ended for me.

The car trip was much different than the ones I took Audrey on last summer. Now, she is a bit more difficult to keep entertained, and she is much more adamant about wanting out of her car seat after a couple hours! Thankfully, she did a great job sleeping in her pack & play at the hotel. We were fortunate to get a room right next to Mom & Dad's, so we just put her in her bed, walked next door, and kept an ear out using the baby monitor! That way, she was able to go to sleep, and we were able to stay up and socialize. The trip went very well, and we are so proud of our cousin. This was Audrey and Jerry's first trip to Findlay, so we had to be sure and visit Dietsch Brothers', which is my Grandpa Max's favorite ice cream. 

Audrey LOVED Dietsch Ice Cream!

While in Findlay, Jerry & I also had our 5th wedding anniversary! There were several, "Five years ago today, I was..." comments made by all of us in the family throughout the day. Jerry and I are so blessed to have had these 5 years together and look forward to so many more.