Trick or Treat!

Addison was our little Pea in a Pod for Halloween today! The costume was a good idea for a non-wiggly 4 month old...but not a wiggle-worm 7 month old! Regardless, she was adorable. We went to a couple of houses on our street, then we packed up and went to Grandma and Papa's to see the family, and we hit Steve, Lisa and Joel's and then over to Pat and Kristina's. It's fun to take her trick or treating at this age because WE get the candy! :)

I put more Halloween pictures on the photo site...

Broken Heart

Nothing is worse that hearing your baby cry. It's like being stabbed in the heart. There are definitely varying degrees of how much it hurts depending on the situation, but every cry causes a mother to ache. (and some daddies too...Chris included) We've come to a crossroads with Addison's sleep habits. It's coming down to either me being an exhausted mom, with three hours of sleep each night, or us making a change with how we put Addison to sleep. We've decided a change has to be made. I can't go on any longer with our current situation, especially doing the nights alone for four nights a week. I've been reading up a storm on different sleep solutions, paying closer attention to those solutions that include phrases like "no-tears" or "no-cry." We've attempted the no-cry sleep solution method where you put the baby down drowsy, and if she cries, you immediately pick her up, get her drowsy again, and repeat. This is just the first phase, and we've never made it past Phase I. Addison will cry every time, never fail. We can set her down and pick her up 20 times, and she'll never put herself to sleep. We've tried just hovering over her crib, shushing her and rubbing her tummy and legs, however this causes her to get even more frantic, escalating her crying even more. So I've decided that it's time to try a little bit of "controlled crying" with lots of check ins and soothing, and not going past a certain agreed upon time limit. I don't know how to get around the crying thing. Currently, the only way Addison knows how to fall asleep is with our help, ie: bouncing, rocking or nursing. I just can't seem to allow myself to let her completely "cry it out" as in the Ferber method. I know Addison needs to learn how to fall back asleep on her own when she wakes up, but isn't there a way to help her that doesn't involve letting her scream bloody murder? I know I'm not the only one out there who feels this way. My parent-baby group is filled with moms who feel similarly, however sleep hasn't been our topic of discussion lately and I'm wondering if anyone has a baby who isn't sleeping and what they're doing about it? I know we have a lot of co-sleepers in our group, (us included) but is anyone getting any sleep?
Before we had Addison, I remember hearing about friends with babies who didn't sleep and parents who refused to let them cry, and I would think to myself "What harm is there in letting them just cry themselves to sleep?" Now that we're living it...I understand. I've also come to the realization that no matter what ideas you have about how you're going to raise your child, and how you're going to deal with certain situations in the future, you can't decide until you are dealing with it IN THE MOMENT. All of my pie-in-the-sky ideas are out the window. Addison is our precious, angel from above, and that alone guides us to make decisions based on who SHE is and what SHE needs, and not because a book says so, or other well-meaning people say it worked for them.
As I'm typing this, Addison is crying, and my heart is breaking.

Sleep? What's that?

Addison turned 7 months on Friday, where has the time gone? She's growing and changing everyday. She's still not mobile, which people tell me is a good thing and we should enjoy it while it lasts because our lives will change drastically once she starts moving! She's just starting to sit up with more confidence, not as wobbly and I can leave her sitting if I put pillows around her just in case she tips. She loves her new vantage point! I imagine lying on your back for 7 months can get old! She still hates being on her tummy, she immediately rolls onto her back whenever we put her on her tummy. Oh well. Sooner or later she'll like it.

Our biggest challenge lately has been sleep. Or lack there of it! I know it's my own doing, as a result of Chris' shift and my need to just survive, but we've created a situation that is becoming harder and harder to fix. Addison is nursing about 7-10 times per night, no joking. A couple of months ago, she started waking up constantly, and I was getting up multiple times per night to put her back down. I would nurse her (not every time) and then rock her back to sleep. After the 4th or 5th time of this, I would just bring her into bed with me because I couldn't physically handle the constant up and down all night. In my mind, I thought this was a temporary fix and that she was going through some sort of growth spurt and just needed me more. However, nothing has changed, if only gotten worse! At first she would nurse and then fall asleep for 2-3 hours and then nurse again, and this would happen a few times per night. I could handle it. Now I'm at the point where I need my space and I need uninterrupted sleep! She's nursing every hour, sometimes every 30 minutes! I've become a human pacifier! I seriously don't mind her sleeping next to me, but only if she would just SLEEP!!! I've tried putting her pacifier in her mouth when I hear her stirring, and she just spits it out and starts clawing at me, and eventually screaming if I don't nurse her. If I roll over with my back to her, she knocks and claws at my back. What have I created?? I've been holding it together these last few months, and now I'm falling apart. I can't go on with only 3 hours of sleep...my body just can't take it. So last night, my mom came and helped. I went to bed, turned the monitor off, and grandma took over. When Addison woke up, grandma put her back to sleep. She left around 2:30 and I brought Addison in with me at that point. What a difference I feel today! I actually feel a bit normal! Slightly refreshed! Tonight we're doing the same thing, except Chris is home. We need to break her from this habit, and I'd like to do it in a humane way, no endless screaming involved. The first big issue is breaking the "boob habit" then we can work on soothing herself to sleep in the middle of the night when she wakes up. One thing at a time. I think we're on the right track though! Ask me in a week...

Oooh, a walk!

Addison LOVES to go for walks around our neighborhood. We have a couple of routes, but she's not picky, just as long as she can see the world!

Boo!

Addison is full of energy these days, keeping both mom and dad busy! Yesterday at Safeway, she flapped her arms up and down the whole time, causing each person we would walk by to smile and say "Awwww, so cute!" We're having fun trying out new foods, Addison's favorites are squash, pears, bananas and apples. We're going to try out peas today, so we'll find out if something "green" is going to sit well with her, after our avocado debacle.

Addison is also wanting to be held 24/7. Literally. The only time she doesn't mind being left alone is when she's in the high chair (eating) or on a blanket in her room playing with her toys. Don't even dare put her in the exersaucer for more than 5 minutes, or else she will fuss and cry until she's picked up. She's figured us out!

Guacamole Girl (hold the avocado)

We tried some Avocado with Addison the other day....definitely NOT her favorite! She ate it, but not with much enthusiasm. What tipped us off was the gag-reflex towards the end of the feeding! No more avocado for awhile, we'll try it again in a few weeks. Darn, because it's such a nutrient-rich first food for her!

We're over the sickness that overtook our household for the last week and a half. Addison actually vomited yesterday, which threw us for a loop! She was asleep in the swing, and suddenly started to cough and vomit! It was so scary, Chris and I didn't know what to do, and poor Addison was so upset, crying and probably wondering why her stomach contents were coming up! She only threw up the one time (a couple more gags within the hour) and that was it. She was back to our normal, happy little girl, no fever, no fussiness. It was weird. And no, it wasn't the avodado...we gave that to her the day before. That morning she had some applesauce and brown rice cereal. Both items she's had before and had no problems with. Who knows what caused it, you never can know with that kind of thing!

We've been busy making tons of applesauce for Addison. Tyler brought us a huge box of apples from their orchard in Chelan, so we've been steaming and pureeing away! Thanks, Ty! We're freezing it in ice cube trays and then dumping the frozen applesauce cubes in freezer bags. That way it's easy to un-thaw just a couple cubes, perfect for one serving for Addison! We also pureed some acorn squash, and pears. Yes, we're a little on the nuts side when it comes to this, but we have the time when we have one child. We know this probably won't be an option when we have child number two someday!

Sniffles

Well, our first case of the sniffles has arrived. Times TWO. I started feeling lousy two days ago, crossing my fingers that Addison would stay in the clear due to her strong immune system (so they say) because of breast feeding, but I guess I was too optimistic. Today she woke up with a runny nose and sniffles. She's doing surprisingly well though, not too fussy and going with the flow. I tried "plungering" her nose and she of course protested wildly, so I won't be doing it unless absolutely necessary! I'm feeling much better, however. So hopefully this little bug is short-lived. I've cancelled two play dates because of it, and we probably won't go to Kindermusik tomorrow just to stay on the safe side. Sometimes a runny nose can be an indication of teething, but since I've been feeling sick (sore throat, stuffy nose and head) I'm sure her runny nose is a bug, and not teething. I did have a dream, however, that Addison cut 4 teeth all at once, wouldn't that be nuts? Still no sign of a tooth, but I'm sure one of her bottom teeth is on the way.

Our little peach

After a couple of fussy days, we're bound to either see a tooth or a big roll over from back to tummy! Or both! I'm amazed at the growth we've seen in Addison, just in the last week! She's now sitting up, with much more confidence and not as wobbly. She's grasping objects very well now, and she's able to put her binky back in her mouth, with I'd say about 75% accuracy! Sometimes she puts it in sideways, or upside down, but at least she's now hitting her mouth and not her eye! Another new development is her ability to stuff her feet into her mouth. Chris and I are amazed at how she can stuff those things in there! I gave it a try last night, and it wasn't a pretty sight. Babies are just natural contortionists, and mommies should NEVER try to imitate their moves!

We've had a busy week, starting with the Extreme Makeover Home Edition mayhem! The house is just down the street from my parents, so we made a couple of trips over to see the craziness. I've posted a few pictures on Addison's photo site, it was so cool to see it all in action. We got quick peek of Ty, but no close ups. Our friends who live across the street actually went and filmed some spots with Ty and the crew, and hopefully they will make the cut for the episode in January. I haven't seen the house since it's been finished, but I've heard it's gorgeous. My mom said the traffic is finally back to normal, the detour went right by their house and brought tons of speeding drivers! Don't get my mom started...

Our week continued with Kindermusik, Parent-Baby class (we graduated to the 6-9 month old class, we're now called the "Movers" class) and Tully's with my play group. No wonder I'm so exhausted! Actually, Addison's sporadic sleep pattern right now is the culprit. We're trying to wean her from the swaddle, and it's been difficult. She's breaking out of it, so we're leaving one arm out. Hopefully once she figures out how to stop waking herself up with her dangling arm, we'll keep both arms out. I'm actually waiting for the day that she rolls over onto her tummy, because I'm hoping that she'll like to sleep on her tummy and she'll sleep better! Yes, she's supposed to sleep on her back, but once she can roll onto her tummy, if she rolls onto it in the middle of the night, it's OK to leave her there. And maybe, just maybe she'll go back to her old sleeping habits...10 hours! OK, that's a long shot I know....we'll settle for 5 hours straight at this point. Anything would be better than our current situation. :)

16 and some change

Addison weighed in at 16 lbs, 11 ounces at her 6 month check up on Friday! The weight isn't too surprising...it's her height! At 27 inches, she is in the 90th percentile for height for her age! She's definitely taking after her daddy's family, because mommy's family is slightly challenged in the height department! You never know with these percentiles though, they seem to change at every appt. Maybe she just had a growth spurt these last 2 months, and she'll plateau for a bit.

The doctor said Addison is a very healthy girl, and she's right on target with her development. He said to go ahead and start solids again, we really didn't need to stop when we had the issue with the sweet potatoes, next time there is a slight reaction with a particular food, we will just stop that food for a bit, and try to give it to her again in a few weeks.

So we started her back up with some organic brown rice cereal. Sounds pretty good, right? Well, I took a bite yesterday and practically puked! It was sooooooo yucky. Granted, I put a tiny bit of formula in too, which probably didn't help matters. Sooooo, I've decided to make my own cereals instead! I went to Whole Foods and bought some millet, barley and a really obscure grain called quinoa. I read about how these grains are the least allergenic. I've checked out from the library every book under the sun on the topic of "baby food" and I've realized that making our own food is not only easy, but so much healthier and free from those icky fillers they put in commercial baby food like Gerber. Today I made millet cereal, (Chris likes to call it "mullet") and Addison LOVED it! I'll give this to her for about a week, and then we'll try barley or quinoa. Chris is making a "pear puree" as I'm writing this...we're really getting into this baby food stuff!

I'm also posting a picture of Addison and her Auntie Tara....Tara brought Addison balloons for her half-birthday! So sweet! :)