"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children... to leave the world a better place... to know even one life breathed easier because you have lived... This is to have succeeded."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein." — H. Jackson Brown
“There is no way to be a perfect mother,
and a million ways to be a good one”
-Jill Churchill
"You can be wise and happy or
stupid and miserable.
It's your choice."
Gordon B. Hinckley
Today was a busy busy day... a day full of running errands and getting ready for Joselyn's birthday party. After a day of being taken in and out of her car seat, Joselyn deserved a special treat so I took her somewhere she was SURE to love... the PET STORE. I still don't think I have quite caught on video or camera just how much she loves animals. As we walked into Petsmart, she squealed at the top of her lungs when she saw all the dogs with their owners. We stopped and said hi to as many of them as we could, and then went to visit the lonely cats, bunnies and dogs waiting to be adopted. After that we went and saw the birds, hamsters and gineau pigs. Joselyn was having the time of her life. She could be happy living in that pet store. It really cheered me up to see her so happy and full of smiles and giggles. I know what to do now when I have a bad day!!
So, imagine Joselyn's delight when we came home to this sweet little gift from her Great-Grandma Jennierose!!
She was tired and ready for some sleep, yet would NOT LET GO of this little puppy. She carried it around with her everywhere as we got her ready for bed, and kept squealing and making panting noises. (what she does when she sees a dog or hears us talk about one) What a sweet little gift!! She also got a very nice Curious George book, and since books are another one of Joselyn's loves, she is sure to enjoy that as well. Joselyn gives lots of kisses and loves to her Great-Grandma Jennierose! Wish we could give you hugs in person!
Oh... and P.S.
Hope you had a HAPPY HALLOWEEN! We didn't do much tonight with that since we kind of already celebrated and got some candy at Trunk or Treat, but I really enjoyed seeing all the trick-or treaters out and about tonight!
I can't even remember where I was when I first noticed it... but Joselyn opened her mouth at some point today and I thought I saw a little tooth coming out of her gums. So I opened her mouth and sure enough! There was a little jagged front bottom tooth poking out of her gums! It kind of helps explain why she's been a little more fussy during the night recently... nothing TOO terrible, just waking up at 11ish to cry in a little bit of pain. But once we would hold her and comfort her, she went right back to sleep. We expected a tooth a LONG time ago... our doctor said at her 4 month appointment that it looked like she had a tooth growing... and then again at 6 months... and subsequent visits. I'm not TOO surprised that she didn't get her first tooth until now though... I wasn't even expecting one for a couple more months actually. I didn't get my first tooth until I was 14 months! But at least now I know she isn't going to be toothless the rest of her life...
She is definitely getting used to the sensation of having something weird in her mouth. She has been running her little tongue over her gums all day feeling that tooth. Just another sign that my baby is growing up! Once again, I can't believe she is turning 1 on Sunday!!
Every year our church puts on a Trunk or Treat event... where people decorate their trunks and pass out candy to the kids. Although I went last year just for Autumn's sake (my niece, not the season!) this was the first year Adam and I really got into it. A major part of the fun, of course, was dressing Joselyn up for her very first Halloween! I decided to dress her up as a fairy... it just seemed to suit her. So I made a tutu (to possibly double for her birthday party?), a flower chain headband and bought some wings. We used an existing pair of polka dot tights and a onesie and voila! A Halloween costume for just about $5!!
By the time Trunk or Treat started, it was getting pretty chilly so Jos had to don a little hoodie. It took away from her full costume, but she still looked pretty dang cute in my opinion!
It was fun to take Joselyn around to get candy for us :) We tried not to get too much... we wanted all the kids to have plenty, and for the parents to have left over for the REAL Halloween. Joselyn had no idea what she was handling, but she liked holding all the fun colored items that were put into her bucket. She also liked digging into the big bowls of candy.
Our trunk: I loved the Ghosts my mom made, and Chelsea carved the pumpkins. I didn't get any pictures of Autumn... so sad. She looked to cute in her Cinderella dress though!
Today is what I would call a nearly perfect day. Joselyn was cheerful ALL day, took a nice long 3 hour afternoon nap and then when Adam got home we enjoyed the PERFECT fall weather for a walk in the park. We underestimated just how much Joselyn would enjoy the endless green grass to walk in. We were overjoyed at how happy she was... with all that she's been through lately, she deserved to have such a great day!
A few months ago a friend of ours, Melanie, who is a photographer, suggested something wonderful. She had just taken pictures at a wedding of a couple whose parents were childhood friends and who had taken a vacation together every year. Melanie's husband, Jason, has been a friend of Adam and his brother Jared since they were kids and so Melanie thought it would be a great idea to have a similar tradition. I LOVED that idea! Adam had talked about wanting to do something with them for a long time, but having a family sometimes made it hard for them to get together. So a plan was made and a date was set to rent a cabin near Gatlinburg (owned by Jason's uncle) and spend a weekend together as friends.
Joselyn's little fever ordeal kind of complicated things... I was so afraid we weren't going to be able to go although it's been in our calendar for months! On Wednesday, the day after a trip to the ER and a nice shot, Joselyn's fever was down. She had a follow-up appointment on Thursday with the pediatrician, right before we were supposed to leave, and got the go-ahead to take the vacation since it would be pretty low-key. Test results all came back negative for everything so her 3-day fever is still unexplained. I really do hate all these unexplained illnesses/symptoms she's been coming down with, and get a little frustrated that no one has any answers... however, I can't help but be grateful that Joselyn IS okay, and that she is back to her normal self once again.
With the OK from the pediatrician, we were off on our little family vacation. We arrived late Thursday night to our "Two Bears Cabin". The place was super nice and very cozy. 3 floors, 4 bedrooms (including one loft) and 3 bathrooms. There was also a pool table and hot tub. Adam, Jos and I shared the loft. The place was decorated with pumpkins and fall wreathes... as well as lots of pairs of brown bears. Melanie Jr. (my niece, not the photographer) counted all the bears and there were 107!! The thing I loved about the cabin was that it was cabin-ish without being overwhelming. It was just plain cozy.
It was the perfect time of the year to enjoy time at the cabin. Friday was rainy and we started off our day with breakfast at Pancake Pantry. The rain was to our advantage, as we didn't have to wait in line outside AS long as if it weren't raining. They did have some yummy pancakes, and despite all the competition (with all the pancake houses in Gatlinburg we were pretty sure that the residents lived off of them) finally understood why people were willing to wait in a long line to eat there... even in the rain. Then, since it was raining, we headed back to the cabin for the afternoon. The guys enjoyed some TV time with their girls on the comfortable leather couches.
Then the kids enjoyed a visitor on the back porch... a neighbor's dog named "Wrangler"
Later on in the afternoon, we enjoyed some yummy taco soup made in the crockpot (for the simplicity of it) and then headed out to check out some of the outlets. I must say that the outlets really were just all a bunch of hype... prices WEREN'T necessarily cheaper but it was fun to window shop anyway. And I did score a few much needed items for the babies... $2-3 shirts and sweaters at the Children's Place Outlet... the ONLY outlet store I thought even deserved the title of outlet.
Weather was a LOT nicer on Saturday. Jason and Melanie took their cute little 3-year old daughter Audrey for Pony rides while the rest of us enjoyed a girls vs. guys game of pool. Melanie Jr. and I won the first game but were barely defeated the last 2 times. It helped though that Adam sunk about half of our balls in!
Joselyn enjoyed a quick game of solitaire checkers before going down for a nap.
When Joselyn woke up, we decided to take advantage of the beautiful crisp Autumn day by heading back to Gatlingburg. BIG mistake. It took us almost 2 hours to get there - it should have taken us 30 minutes. The traffic was stop and go TERRIBLE!!
At least the drive through the beautiful fall leaves was enjoyable. Just beautiful.
We FINALLY got to Gatlinburg and enjoyed a short stroll down the 'strip'.
Melanie and I enjoyed a ride on the Sky Lift while the guys and Jos waited at the bottom. After that, we were ready to head back. Gatlinburg is great and all, but I think it's a lot funner when you're teenagers and you don't mind being in a tourist trap. (I've had some great fun there with some friends when I was in High School!) Now we prefer a nice relaxing evening talking with friends in a secluded cabin. We enjoyed relaxing in the hot tub (I just dipped my legs in the water, don't worry) and then the guys stayed up until 2am talking and eating chocolate. Hmmm.... yes, I did say THE GUYS.
Yesterday started out pretty optimistically. Joselyn's fever was down in the morning and she seemed more like herself than she had in days. So good, that I left her with my sister while I went to my Doctor's appointment in the morning. She continued to do really well. We took her and Autumn on a nice relaxing walk outside late in the afternoon - we thought the fresh air would do the babies some good. They sat back and relaxed in Autumn's wagon as Chelsea and I got some much needed exercise. Afterwards, I dropped Chelsea and Autumn back off at home. Joselyn was all of the sudden lethargic again. When I got home, I took her temperature and it was 102.9. The nurse had instructed me to either bring her in during the day or go to the ER after hours if her temperature were to reach 103... and 102.9 was too close for comfort. I just couldn't understand why the Motrin and Tylenol that we were alternating had not brought her temperature down! As soon as Adam got home, we took her in.
Joselyn never ceases to amaze me... despite her very high temperature and low energy she still smiled at every single person in the ER and waved hello. The doctors and nurses were charmed by her sweet personality. When we finally saw the doctor, he told us that he would have to run a series of different tests after the intial examination showed no sign of cause for her high fever for the past 3 days. This would include a urine test, a blood test and x-ray.
I wish I would have NEVER had to see her go through what she did. First, the nurses tried to insert a catheter in her to get a urine sample. Their plan was to kill 2 birds with one stone by drawing her blood, which should 'scare' the pee out of her. Unfortunately, they underestimated Joselyn's strength and could not get the catheter in her. All the while, Joselyn was crying harder than we have ever heard her cry. Adam had to leave the room while I tried to comfort her... all the while crying my eyes out. It was just too much for us. They decided to use another method to collect the urine sample that would be less invasive. We were glad for that! But they still had to draw some blood... I could tell the nurses didn't like this part of their job. They had to 'swaddle' her arms and legs down really tight while they stuck the needle in her tiny arm. It broke my heart, and I seriously could not stop crying. When all of that was finally done I just let her whimper as she laid her head on my shoulder. It was just so hard to see her go through all of that because I know she doesn't understand why she had to go through so much pain. On top of all that, she had to be DEAD tired as we went through all of this WAY past her bedtime. An hour or so later, she had an xray to check for pnumonia which was pretty harmless, thank goodness. Even after all this and no sleep, Joselyn somehow bounced back and continued to smile and wave at the nurses when they came in... AMAZING considering they had juts put her in the worst pain of her life!! The nurses were amazed.
Then we waited and waited... my dad brought us by some dinner (so sweet of him!) and we tried to get some rest (didn't really happen) until the Doctor finally came back to discuss the results of some of the tests. He said that she had some sort of viral infection and that they had to test her blood a little further to make sure it wasn't anything more serious. They gave her a shot filled with a strong antibiotic (which wasn't SO terrible after everything else) and we finally headed home around midnight.
So, still no 100% answer as to what is wrong with her, but we're getting closer. Oh, and that big spot on Joselyn's leg? The doctor also thought it was a bite of some sort... and that her body just doesn't handle them well. He said he's never seen a staph infection that looks like that and he sees a lot of them in the ER. So frustrating... The good thing is that we're on our way to finding out what the problem is, and viral infections typically only last 3-5 days. (that means she should be back to her normal happy cheerful self by tomorrow!!)
Joselyn woke up this morning with a temperature of 101.6 but seemed a lot like herself. Very cheerful, playful and she even drank her whole bottle, ate lots of grapes and a whole Nutri-grain bar. The doctor still wanted to see her though for her fever and her diaper rash, so I set the appointment and went in. She was very good and happy the whole time, better than she has EVER been at the DR actually!!! But she also woke up with this on her leg:
Like other things that have shown up on her leg recently, this doesn't seem to both her when we touch it (unlike her diaper rash.... she SCREAMS when we change her diaper!!) I pulled her diaper up to get a better picture, but it doesn't actually touch it. Also, the picture really doesn't look 100% like the real thing because the real thing is more scarlet than the bright red it shows here... it's almost purple and looks terrible. The shininess comes from the ointment we put on it (per doctors orders) and the flash. In reality, it really almost looks like a bruise. We once again thought it could be a spider bite.
Anyway, after checking Joselyn out, our pediatrician seemed puzzled. Ears and throat looked fine and she has had no other symptoms accompanying her fever such as runny nose or diarrhea. He said just to be safe, they were going to treat her for, you guessed it... a STAPH INFECTION. He said to keep an eye on her symptoms... there is obviously some sort of infection running through her little body.
Well, when we got home, we gave her the antibiotics prescribed and gave her some lunch. She was still cheerful and happy, drank a whole bottle and started out eating really well. Then after a few bites she started not wanting the rest of her banana and started getting a little fussy again. It was time for more Tylenol, so I gave her some and took her temperature again, and imagine my horror when it read 104!! She became very limp again all of the sudden and very lethargic. She laid her head on Adam's shoulder (who had come home for lunch) and laid there limp in his arms while I called the DR back to report the temperature. They told us to give the Tylenol an hour to work it's magic once again and call them back. We did... and I took her from Adam and let her lay there in my arms. After an hour her temperature was still 102.7. But she was back to her cheerful self and we knew it had made her feel better. I put her down for a nap, and now all I can do is worry and hope that she's going to be ok. The only thing I could think of doing was write about it. It eases my mind somehow. And so grateful for my family and sweet friends who are helping me cope with and research this mess. I'll keep you all updated.
I can't believe this. This morning we took Joselyn to church and she was acting a LITTLE whinier than usual but we didn't think much about it. Then during sacrament meeting, Joselyn practically crawled up onto my lap and laid her head on my shoulder to sleep. I thought it was a little unusual, but once again didn't think much of it because it WAS her nap time, and I figured it was just because she was tired. I also noticed she was hot, but Adam said it was probably because she was running around that morning and was now covered in a blanket. Well, things only got worse throughout the day. I kept on noticing how hot she was and she fell asleep on her blanket, on the floor, in Sunday school. Then she fell asleep on Adam's shoulder in Priesthood meeting. After church, we had a correlation meeting and she was acting really cranky... no smiles for the usually very happy baby, even after a bottle. This is when it started clicking in our heads that there was something wrong with her. She fell asleep on the way home from church and when we got home would hardly take a bite to eat. I took her temperature and it was the highest we've ever seen with her... 102.6. We called out Pediatrician's office right away where the on-call nurse gave us some advice and told us to bring her in first thing tomorrow morning. Since she had no other physical symptoms, she was a little concerned. She DOES have a bad diaper rash that has been around for a couple days, but the nurse didn't seem to think they were related. She gave us some advice on treating that as well. I started crying as I was talking to the nurse... it's terrible to see your baby not feeling well. We can tell that Joselyn is in some pain. She is just NOT herself and just wants to cuddle with us. Our home teachers just happened to stop by and gave her a blessing before they left. We were so grateful for that. When they left, we stripped her down to just a t-shirt and gave her a bottle. (the nurse told us to air her out as much as possible- and we have all day since 2:30 pm - 4 hours now. And 4 of her 5 blankets are washing or drying right now because she has peed on them)
Not a whole lot of smiles from Jos today but lots of cuddles. She fell asleep on my shoulder for a good hour and a half until I just got too uncomfortable and had to transport her back to her crib where she slept for about another hour.
We sure hope our little girl feels better soon and that nothing is too terribly wrong with her. We sure hate to see her like this!!
Although today was pretty 'hot' for a fall day, my friend Sierra and I decided to celebrate fall by taking our babies to Kelley Farms to enjoy a hay ride and to pick out pumpkins. Joselyn had a BLAST! It was the first time I let her walk around outside and she just couldn't get enough of all the fun. She even put on a dancing show for about 15 people... a crowd which gathered when they saw little Jos smiling and dancing to the music in front of the pumpkins. I didn't catch a video of her dancing in time, but I DID finally get a video of Joselyn walking! She is practically running now in this video.
I got SOOOOO many fun pictures I hope you don't mind the overload! I thought it was so cute how she tried to pick some of the pumpkins up although they were 3 times her size. We ended up picking out 2 medium pumpkins, a baby one and a little white one. If you can't guess, they represent me, Adam and Jos... the little teeny white one is our little boy! I set them out on my front porch... but didn't get a picture yet because it was too dark. I'll take one tomorrow. We also got a few gourds to decorate our home with some fall. I sure do love this time of the year!
Joselyn wouldn't keep this hat on... but I had a vision of her wearing it while in the middle of a bunch of pumpkins. This is about as good as I got but I still think they turned out quite adorable! (Thanks Sierra for the last 2!)
Joselyn trying to pick up a pumpkin... "It's... too... heavy!"
Inspecting the pumpkins
A few of Joselyn smiling and dancing for the crowd
... to take these pictures! Joselyn will not sit still!! She either wants to play with her elephant (which she LOVES LOVES LOVES KASEY!) or climb off the couch. I even tried to do pat-a-cake or itsy-bitsy spider with her and I seriously could not get a good shot. I probably could have done better with Adam's help but I am already 1 week behind and we weren't home at the same time until late tonight. So... which one is the best? You get to decide which one of these bad shots gets to be put in the monthly slide-show!
1. WAY up in the oven!
2. Um, I have a question...
3. Nice elephant
Yeah. And those were the GOOD ones.
Joselyn is such a happy baby! I am so blessed. Everyday someone asks me "Does she ALWAYS smile this much?" Yep. She does... always so smiley and friendly. She may not always let strangers hold her, but she will always gladly offer a smile or a wave followed by a "hi" or "bye"
Her biggest milestone this past month is definitely walking. I still have not gotten a video... my video camera is not in my possession at the moment. But Jos had made major progress in this past week. The first day she was taking 5-10 steps from one piece of furniture to another and now, 1 week later, she is walking in circles, drinking her bottle as she walks, dragging her blankeys around and carrying her toys from place to place. I thought it was about time to get her some shoes so she could walk outside but she can't walk with shoes, it's quite funny. Anyone have any advice to offer on the shoe situation? I have tried the flexible soles even, and they just don't do. Maybe Robeez? She looks too tiny to be walking and her little walk is so funny to watch... I will really try and get it on video soon!
Joselyn's vocabulary is expanding... she can now say most small words starting with B although they mostly sound alike. "Baby" = "Bay-ee", "Bird" = "Birrr", "Ball" = "Baa", "Bye" = "Bye" (she's good at that one!) She can also say mama, dada, hi, "all done"= "ah duh" and a few other words. She really tries to copy the short words we say.
She LOVES pat-a-cake and itsy-bitsy spider. This is another thing I just HAVE to catch on video because she can seriously do all the moves by memory! She even tries to sing and throws words in there at the right time like "dow..." for "down came the rain" or "bay" for "Mark it with a b". Nothing melts my heart more than seeing her do these two songs!
When I cuddle with her and she is laying her head on my shoulder, I sometimes pat her back - she has started to pat my back in return and it just makes me smile like crazy!
She is still pretty tiny for her age. In Utah, people kept on asking me if she was 7 months old. Funny thing is I was looking through some old pictures from when she was 2 months old and she is STILL wearing some of the same tops!! I couldn't believe it. I guess I was in such a rush to get her into her 3-6 month wardrobe that I kinda rushed it. She still wears a lot of 3-6 month sweaters, shirts and dresses but wears 6-9 month Jeans. The fact that she has NO HAIR probably doesn't help people know her age.
She definitely has a 'lovey' now... her Gymboree blankets. My own fault, I suppose, for providing so many so young but the good thing is she doesn't have a favorite. Any Gymboree blanket will do! Also, they are easily replaceable! I plan to cut them into large squares someday and making a huge quilt for her out of them. Wouldn't that be fun? If she falls and hits herself, all I have to do is get her blanket and put it up to her face. It calms her almost instantly. When she gets tired before bed or a nap OR just wants a little comfort she just bends over with her little bottom in the air and burries her face in her blanket.
It's hard for me to believe that in less than a month my baby is turning 1! I have already started planning her party and invitations were finished today. (hand made by me!) I plan to have a smallish party with family and friends who have been a part of her life in some big way. I can't wait for it! Planning has been so much fun! I want everything to be a surprise though, so pictures of my progress won't be shown until after the party... sorry!! Ok, well, maybe I will post some pics of the invitations once they get sent out and recieved.
Seriously... We LOVE this little girl and she lights up our lives. All of you new mothers or mothers to be- you just wait! Every day I say to myself "I couldn't possibly love her more than I do today!" but the tomorrows always surprise me.
