Smell the Roses

Taking a walk with a 2-year-old can be a little like plucking each hair off of your arm as slowly and deliberately as possible but in no order whatsoever. As best I can gather, here are the top 10 requirements for any 2-year-old walking excursion:

1. Do not walk in a straight line
2. Do not walk at an even pace
3. Do not walk at a pace resembling anything faster than a small turtle
4. Do not pass by an interesting object without stopping to touch it
5. Do not pass by a flower without stopping to smell it
6. Do not pass by a grate without bending down to see where it leads
7. Do not pass by a grate without dropping a stone down to confirm where it leads
8. Do not pass by a strange dog without trying to pet it
9. Do not pass by a bug without inspecting and then being deathly frightened by it
10. Do not forget to say what color the sky is, what the weather is like, or what color you are wearing
11. (10.5) Do not forget to repeat the same phrase from step 10 over and over for the duration of the walk.
    

I would say that on a typical 2-year-old walk, you need to at least quadruple the time that it would take an average adult to walk the same distance. For example, going to the park near our house should be a 2 minute walk. It can take 15-20 minutes if Hailey walks the whole thing. I allow for extra time because we are still refusing to hold Mommy’s hand when crossing the street which happens to be one of Mommy’s only requirements. Plus, maintaining all of these requirements simultaneously during a walk is quite tasking on Mommy, although they are absolutely no problem for the 2-year-old.

Regardless of how excruciatingly slow the walking process can be, it can be really fun to see the world through Hailey’s eyes. I’m trying very hard to have less anxiety related to time, so walks with Hailey really test my ability to stop and smell the roses myself. It's a good exercise for all of us.

LA Looks

Our little world traveler just returned from LA where she was spending time with friends and watching her cousins play in the AVP Manhattan Beach tournament. She spent about 3 days at the beach, but I believe that her favorite part of the trip was shopping. Shockingly, the thing that her mother hates to do the most brings Hailey endless joy. These pics are just a few of the things that she had to try on during our short shopping trip one day. She was in heaven. I guess we need to invest in some dress up clothes soon!

The Balloon Saga

Two weekends ago Hailey received a red and a blue balloon at a birthday party that we attended. She loves balloons so she had a good time with them until they ran out of air. They proceeded to sit on the floor of my garage, half-deflated. On Tuesday (garbage day), I threw them into the big trash can without deflating them because, let’s face it, I’m lazy. As we are getting into the car to go to school, the trash man arrived and Hailey saw him take the balloons out of the trash can and put them in the truck. You would have thought that he had thrown her blankie in that truck. She was completely traumatized. For 20 minutes on the way into school, we had to listen to “Where my balloons go?” “Why balloons in truck?” “Why man take balloons?” “I want balloons.” Honestly, it was non-stop. There was no subject that could supersede the ever important balloon conversation. There was no song that could be sung to make the balloons go away. I was, at that moment, the worst Mommy in the world.

However, I would like to say that I redeemed myself in a big big way. That afternoon I stopped by this little shop in my building on my way out of work. They hang balloons outside of their door every day. I’ve often seen them deflating their balloons at the end of the day. I went in and asked the lady if I could have the balloons instead of her throwing them away. She was so happy to give them to me. But here’s the kicker…I had to carry those stupid balloons (a red and a blue one) 10 blocks downtown to get to Hailey’s school. What an idiot I must have looked like! Regardless, the balloons were safely delivered to our precious angel who talked about them the whole way home and then proceeded to forget about them after about 10 minutes in the house. Ah the joys of motherhood!

Green Beans and Broccoli

Like most parents, I think that I am the most fortunate Mommy in the world. Every day, I could think of a new reason why I’m the luckiest Mommy, but here’s my reason for today – my daughter eats green things. It’s true! The child loves green beans. She knows how to clean them and put them in the bowl. The other night we cleaned a huge batch of beans and cooked them up. She ate mostly beans for dinner. Poor Luke didn’t even get any! Same thing last night with broccoli. She would just keep eating vegetables if we didn’t insist that she eat other things. She’s some kind of bizzarro child.

Of course, I don’t take her vegetable-eating for granted (or even think that it will last forever). That’s why I’m writing to remember these fun times when we don’t have to fight at the dinner table because let’s face it, those days are probably not far off.

Tally from the Weekend

Friday - 2 accidents (one at school)
Saturday - 1 accident
Sunday - 2 accidents

When she has accidents, it's usually our fault for not stopping her activity and putting her on the potty. Potty training is 99% about training us right now!

It's a Big Day

Hailey is wearing big girl underwear today. She has had such outstanding potty reports from school the last 2 days that I decided to bite the bullet and make the change. Plus, it seemed like starting on a Friday would give us some good momentum to go into the weekend because she really is much better about going at school than at home. I guess it’s the positive effects of peer pressure. Anyway, I have the over/under on accidents at school today set at 3. I’m going to say under, but I think it could go either way.

Could it be?

When we first found out that we were pregnant, I felt immediately that it was a girl. I wouldn’t even consider the possibility that it was a boy even though Luke said that he believed it was. I was 100% girl all the way, and no, I couldn’t possibly believe my husband.

Then, I had the premonition (see August 8, 2008 entry). That was the first clue that I might have to consider the possibility that it could be a boy. Then, I started having night sickness instead of morning sickness as I had with Hailey. Could it be because there are different hormones from a boy? The final clue came on Tuesday when I went to the doctor. This was the first time that I was able to hear the heartbeat, and it was much slower than Hailey’s was. It was a very strong heartbeat, but not the speed racer heartbeat that I remember from Hailey.

So, I think I’m reversing my stance. I think that this baby is a boy. 7 weeks until we find out! Everyone should post your bets in the comments.

"I'm Not Crazy...I'm Eating"

I told Hailey she was crazy because she stuffed a whole strawberry in her mouth, and this was the response I got. Not sure why I thought it was so funny. Maybe it's just because I've been away from her for 3 days.

Our Latest Princess Purchase

May I just begin by saying that I think many Mom's would agree with me when I say that Disney is the Devil. Their Princess packaging is so catchy that my child is obsessed, despite my best efforts to shield her from their primarily pink, perfectly-proportioned, and poignantly anti-normal girl faces. Yes, I ran out of p-words, but you get the point!

That being said, on our last trip to Target (thus the previous post), I wanted to buy Hailey some bedding for her new big girl bed. Shocker as to what she picked out...Princesses! As a compromise, I offered to buy her a Princess stool in exchange for buying bedding that was not adorned with Princesses but also was made out of something other than 100% Polyester. My sinister plan worked. She latched on to the stool. I was thrilled because she actually needed a stool to get on the potty all by herself. I'm a genius!

Yes, I was a genius until we got home. That's where my plan fell apart. Shockingly, she's not interested in using the stool for the potty. No. She wants to use the stool to run around the house flicking the lights on and off, reaching things on the counter, and otherwise making mischief at heights never before thought possible. Now, I know that she didn't intentionally trick me into buying the stool so that she could use it for these ulterior motives, but sometimes I just get the sense that she's outsmarted me again!

Top 10 Reasons You Should NOT Take a Toddler to Target

10. Long aisles serve as racetracks.

9. Sitting in the cart is only a temporary state of being.

8. Clothes racks make fun forts.

7. Giant red balls out front require inspection from on top.

6. Over-stimulation makes for good times for hours to come.

5. So much to grab, so little time.

4. Hide and seek made easy.

3. Quite an audience for the next tantrum.

2. Candy, candy, candy.

1. Something with a princess (or car) on it will make it's way into your cart.

The Princess, Her Mother, and the Princess Pull-Ups

There once was an adorable princess who lived with her evil mother in a three-story castle. The mother was so evil that she did not believe in pull-ups. In fact, as the little girl became more and more consistent with her potty training, the mother considered pull-ups. However, a trip to the store revealed that pull-ups are in fact ridiculously expensive and really no different than diapers. The evil mother declared, "No, my dear, you will move straight to big girl undies, which are cheaper and washable." The evil mother was quite proud of herself for uncovering the pull-ups scam and determined that her daughter would never know the joys of the pull-up.

Then one day, the evil mother did not bring enough diapers to school, and one of the Princess's teachers decided that it would be a good idea to put the Princess in a princess pull-up. The Princess immediately recognized the beautiful Disney princesses that adorned the pull-up. That day she went home and demanded that the evil mother buy her princess pull-ups. "How could this have happened," the evil mother wondered. Her secret plan to move straight to undies had been foiled!

After much prodding, the evil mother consented and purchased the princess pull-ups at the magic princess grocery store. With the pull-ups on her behind, the Princess had even more success with potty training. Her great potty success meant that she could wear each pull-up for longer because they stay dry. The evil mother learned a very valuable lesson from the princess pull-up incident: when it is time to move to big girl panties, she better find some with princesses on them. Oh and also, don't be a cheapskate when it comes to the Princess's welfare and development. With princess pull-ups stocked all over the castle, they all lived happily ever after. The end.

I Still Fit in My Pants!!!

Sorry, I just wanted to make that point because I'm somewhere in the realm of maybe 10-11 weeks, and I still fit into my normal work pants. Granted, not every pair, but enough that I have not had to break into my bin of pregger-pants yet. Yippeee for me.

Unfortunately, I am breaking into the Pepcid bottle already. I don't remember having heartburn this soon with Hailey. I guess it is different with every pregnancy. Can't wait to see what other fun stuff NBH (New Baby Hamilton) has in store for me!

The Loop

Hailey is so funny sometimes. It's almost as if she gets stuck in some kind of brain loop. She will either say or do the same thing over and over again. Sometimes it requires adding two or three steps into a relatively simple task. For example, putting a pile of clothes in the washing machine (yes, she "helps" with laundry) requires her to open the door to the machine, pick up one item, put it in the machine, clothes the door to the machine, and then repeat. Even if I hand her multiple items, she'll only put one at a time in the machine before closing the door again and repeating the entire exercise.

Here's another example:

Hailey: "Where Daddy go?"
Mommy: "Daddy's at work today"
Hailey: "Where Daddy go?"
Mommy: "Daddy's still at work"
Hailey: "Where Daddy go?"
Mommy: "Still at work, Hailey."
Hailey: "Where Daddy go?"
Mommy: "Look, I see a puppy."

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

I donated my hair to charity. It’s been hot here - really, really hot. When I got home from Chicago at 10:00pm on Wednesday, it was 91 degrees, with at least 91% humidity. Glad I had short hair. I’ll put up a picture of the actual cut at some point, but it’s not as bad as you would think.

The Premonition

Two nights ago, I had a nightmare. Hailey, Luke, Josie, and I were at a friend’s house for a party, but all of a sudden the weather turned dangerous. The winds picked up and a terrible storm moved through. All of the humans hid in an interior room, but Josie would not follow. When the storm passed, we took my friend’s monster pick-up truck out to survey the wreckage. (No my friend does not actually own a monster pick-up truck…what kind of friends do you think I have?). We drove the monster truck down our street and realized that our house had been destroyed by a series of tornadoes that had moved through the area.

Summary of the dream: Outside force comes into our lives, destroys our house, and alienates our dog.

Interpretation: It’s a boy.

Details

Well, most of you guessed it from my not-so-subtle hint in my last post. Here are the details:

Due date: 3/10/08

Sex: Unknown at this point but we will be finding out in November or December

Hailey's Age at Birth of Sibling: Close to 3

Baby Heartbeat: YES

Mommy's Physical State: Nauseous, tired, cranky (that's a physical state these days)

Mommy's Emotional State: Ask me in a few minutes as I'm sure it will change.

Hailey's Choice of Brother or Sister: Neither, either, or TV instead, depending on when you ask her

Daddy's Favorite Question: "Hailey, what's in Mommy's belly?"

Hailey's Response: "Baby in belly"

Hailey's Understanding of Response: None

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAILEY!!!!

Birthday Bath This Morning

Hailey Opens a Few Presents after Breakfast

Disney Book with her Favorite Stories!

Another Book...

A Special Book from Mommy and Daddy

Cool Learning Game from the Palmisanos!

Hailey had a fun birthday morning. She's going to be having a party with mini-cupcakes at school today too. We're saving her biggest present for later tonight. Plus, we're taking her to get a real big girl bed later this week. What a fun second birthday!

Ode to Manipulation

Last weekend when my doe-eyed child looked up, held her arms out and said, “My Mommy,” I unsuspectingly swooped her up in my arms and said “Of course I’m your Mommy, and I love you very much.” That was the beginning of the end for my independence this vacation. Every two seconds, we were dealing with “My Mommy” or “My Daddy,” which was used as a demand to be picked up immediately.

This became increasingly troublesome any time Hailey approached a sandy area (which was the entire island!). If our little angel had shoes on, the sand made her freeze immediately in place. Then, she would cry, “rocks in my shoes” because apparently when you’re almost 2, fine sand particles have the same effect as having shards of glass in your shoes. God forbid she take even one step on the sand. Nope, better to cry “My Mommy” and hope that your easily manipulated Mommy will save you from the torture.

Belize or Bust!

Hailey, Luke and I are off to Belize tomorrow. We will be staying in Mom and Harry’s condo on Ambergris Caye. We are very excited to go away even if it’s only for a week this time. We all need a break! I’m sure that Hailey is going to love the beach and the pool. Hopefully, I’ll come back rested and with lots of fun pictures to share. Have a wonderful week!

Song Breaks Out at Snack Time...

Translation..."If your name is puppy, jump up and down."

Crossing Over

Let me start by saying that I am not a gadget person. I am not an electronics person. Technology for me is just something that is there and hopefully works. When it doesn't work, then it's highly frustrating, and I pretty much swear it off (at least until Luke fixes it). My husband, on the other hand, lives for technology. It's what he does for a living for crying out loud!

This brings me to my conversion - "crossing over to the dark side" I like to call it. It all started with my first iPhone. I didn't even want it, but Luke insisted. I'm sure that he had some rationale. I can't remember what it was. It doesn't matter now because I loved that damn phone the minute I got it. I didn't do anything with it other than take pictures, text, and use the phone. I don't even think I had music or videos on it (well none that I put on there).

You may realize that today the new iPhones came out. I really could not have cared less, but for some reason we had to have them. Here's where the dark side comes in. Where do I find myself at 7:45am this morning (Luke got there at 6:05am)? You guessed it...waiting out in front of an AT&T store with all of the serious geeks. The morning came complete with a near riot when someone tried to cut the front of the line, announcements of inventory shortages every half hour, and the entire system crashing before we could activate anything. In the end, we could only purchase a phone for me (because I got the smaller version), while Luke had to order his. Haha! Sorry...I had to throw that in because how ironic is it that I'm the only one in the family with the new toy now?

Anyway, you might wonder how I have time to write this what with my new gadget and all. Here's why...because I haven't touched it since "I" got it. Oh wait. Hold the phone (literally)...I have it! I have it in my hand! My husband has turned it over. Just kidding. He just wanted me to see something. He took it back. Apparently, I need some apps...whatever those are.

Happy iPhone Day!

Pics from the 4th

Timeline of the Tantrum

For some reason, everything is a battle these days. Little Miss Independence does not like to do anything when she is told to. It's very frustrating. The middle of the tantrum is by far the worst part because my stubbornness starts to wear off and I start thinking that maybe I should give in. Still, when you suffer through a tantrum and come out on the other side, it's a little bit invigorating because you know that you are both better for having played your respective roles. Without further ado, here is the basic timeline that applies to virtually every tantrum...

Time	Hailey Behavior	Mommy Thoughts
:10	Stubbornly refuses to do something she’s been asked to do	What is the problem? You do this every day. Why is it an issue all of a sudden?
:30	Continues to refuse with a pouty face now	Ok. Let’s lighten the mood. Perhaps a distraction or two will be enough.
:45	Head down on the floor and/or commence with the crying	Are you kidding me? Do we really have to do this right now?
1:00	Screaming persists and/or elevates	Fine. We have two choices now: 1) I will ignore you or 2) You will sit in timeout. Maybe we need both!
1:15	Possible flailing about or just a continuation of screaming	I feel like screaming now to. This is not the end of the world. Why are you making this so difficult?!?!?
1:30	Possible shrieking interspersed with some calls for Mommy	You brought this on yourself, and I will not be bullied by your bad attitude. I guarantee that I’m more stubborn than you are.
2:00	Keeps it coming	All you have to do is what I asked you to do and life would be much easier. AHHHH…My ears hurt!
2:30	Some more	Will this ever end? Ok. I’m not going to lie, my stubbornness is waning. I feel the call of the Mommy to console you.
3:00	Hasn’t tired yet	Don’t do it! It can’t be much longer, right?
3:30	Starting to cooperate with some whimpering	What? Are you actually learning your lesson. You mean it worked? I win. I win. I win.
4:00	Cooperating	Excuse me. I meant to think, “see the important lesson that you learned here.” Also, Mommy wins.

Boom!

There’s nothing like sitting with your child while she watches fireworks for the first time. Hailey was fortunate enough to watch the fireworks with her friend Corbin at a park in Nashville. She was so enthusiastic about it that she insisted on adding her own “Boom!” to the end of each, as if the actual noise wasn’t quite loud enough. She was pretty mesmerized by the entire affair.

All in all, she had a wonderful weekend in Nashville! Unfortunately, our camera was out of batteries, but our friends captured the highlights on their camera. Now, I just need to get the pictures from them. I guarantee that there are some great ones!

Hyper- Hypo-Chondriac and Her Mother

Over the weekend, Hailey started drooling like a geriatric patient without teeth and sticking her fingers into the back of her mouth. I figured she was teething, but a quick Google search revealed that she isn't scheduled to get any teeth at 24 months. What the heck could be wrong with her? At dinner tonight, she would put a piece of food in her mouth and then just start crying. This made me a bit nervous so I asked her:

"Does your mouth hurt?"
"Yes"

"Does your throat hurt?"
"Yes"

"Does your tongue hurt?"
"Yes"

Hmmm....that's no help. I started thinking that maybe her tonsils are red and irritated OR maybe her adenoids are inflamed (are adenoids in your throat?) OR perhaps, it's actually her uvula which is swollen to twice its size (your uvula is in your throat...you don't forget a word like uvula).

Ok. Time to pull out Mommy's secret weapon - the miniature flashlight. Why I insist on pretending I can see down her throat is a mystery to me!!! Regardless, after much coaxing, she finally opened her mouth and let me take a look inside. What is the cause of all of her pain and misery? A teeny, tiny cut on the tip of her tongue!

First Night!

Oh Boy! Hailey’s first night in her big girl bed (which is just her converted crib) was fairly uneventful. In fact, she got up only once when I put her to bed, but she waited right at the door of her room. She also woke up at 2:30am, but I just stuck her binky back in her mouth. Not too bad! Tonight we are taking her to see the new animated movie Wall-E. Luke has been showing her little clips on the computer for weeks. It will be her first movie in a theater. I can’t wait to see how she does. I bet she says “again” when it’s all over…just like at home.

Story Time

Did I mention that Hailey can recite the entire book Where the Wild Things Are? Of course, she won't do it for the camera, but if you listen carefully, you can hear bits and pieces. The clearest part comes when she's supposed to be reading Peter Pan at the end. Oh well. Close enough!

Big Girl Bed

On Monday night, Hailey made a startling revelation at bedtime – she wanted to sleep in Mommy’s bed. After much confused and garbled conversation, I discovered that she didn’t want to sleep in Mommy’s bed, she wanted to sleep in a big girl bed. Where is this coming from? I blame Luke because he let her lay all over the big girl beds at IKEA a few weekends ago. Still, she didn’t demand one at that point. Now, all of a sudden, she wants a big girl bed.

This comes at a particularly bad time for me because I had just won an argument with Luke that she should NOT have a big girl bed yet. I won on the premise of three key points: 1) She loves her crib; 2) I don’t think she’s ready; 3) we haven’t completely kid proofed her room yet; and 4) he’s not the one who will have to get up with her in the middle of the night. Do you see how Hailey’s sudden change of heart kind of negates my first two points?

Here’s what I was thinking last night… Ok, let’s not panic here. Maybe by tonight she will have forgotten that she wants a big girl bed. Guess what? She didn’t! She asked for it again! Eventually, she gave up and reluctantly climbed into her crib, but those days are numbered. Within the next few nights, we will have to do the conversion.

Monkey See...Monkey Do

Hailey Reading a Book at Barnes & Noble

Hailey is so easily influenced by what she sees these days. As an adult, I rarely see someone doing something that makes me think, “Oh, I gotta try that.” Hailey, on the other hand, wants to do everything that other kids or adults are doing. Sometimes that works to our advantage and sometimes it’s, well, a disaster. Take two examples from the past week.

First, Hailey watches a little boy learning to float on his back in the pool. She decides that she wants to try it too. When you put Hailey on her back in the pool, it’s kind of like trying to knock over a weeble wobble toy. She always bounce back the front, and she floats about as well. Still, it was good to practice because they say learning to float is the best way to keep kids safe around water.

Episode number two involved Hailey watching an older boy hang from this strange playground apparatus at our park. She decides that she absolutely must hang like that, and she cannot possibly receive any help climbing up the 6 ft high equipment. When Mommy would not let her do such things by herself, I was left with a tantrumy (but safe) little girl.

Oh, as a bonus monkey see episode, I should share with you Hailey’s first gymnastics experience. We had the gymnastics Olympic trials on TV over the weekend. Completely unprompted, Hailey got down on the floor and started to do forward rolls, only she can’t quite do the roll part. So, she basically stands there with her head on the ground until she falls over sideways. If we try to help her flip, she gets angry…Little Miss Independence!

Meltdown...Hers not Mine

Yesterday, Hailey was diagnosed with Roseola which is a fairly common viral infection characterized by a high fever for a day followed by a rash that lasts a few days. Thus, we were home all day together where she learned how to put on her own clothes (kinda…see picture).

In the evening we decided to take a ride up to a local shopping plaza where we went to Barnes and Noble. While Mommy was looking for coloring books, Hailey had a little altercation with an older boy who proceeded to rip book after book out of her hands while his father looked on and did nothing. Luke managed this situation quite well, but it still resulted in Hailey laying face down on the floor screaming bloody murder. Ok, clearly it’s past her bedtime at this point. Meltdown #1.

This morning she woke up as usual in a good mood, but things quickly soured when I put her in her seat for breakfast. For no reason at all, she just started scrying (that’s a combination of screaming and crying. You know it well if you’ve had a toddler). The scrying just went on and on all morning. She wouldn’t eat, didn’t want to get dressed, didn’t want to get in the car…you get the picture. It was rough. I pretty much let her carry on, but Daddy was the weak one this time (usually those roles are reversed). It was just so clear that she was in high manipulation mode. Either manipulation or she’s sick with something else now, but I can’t stand the thought of that possibility.

Anyway, I really just wanted to share this funny picture with you. Notice the shorts on the head and the two legs through one leg hole of the other shorts. Hysterical. Almost makes up for the multiple breakdown morning...ALMOST!

More, Please

More milk? Great.

More crackers?  Ok.

More crab legs?  Oh no!

It was inevitable.  Following in her Mommy (and Daddy's) footsteps, Hailey has taken a strong liking to crab legs.  She tried them for the first time last last night at our Father's Day dinner. She couldn't get enough of them.   I can feel my wallet getting thinner as we speak.  

I Scream, You Scream

Back to School

Today is Hailey's first day back at school after her little virus. We kept her home for two days after the fever broke just to give her a chance to recover and build her immune system back up. She was very excited to see her teacher and her friends. While she was out, she moved into the 2-year-old classroom. This classroom has a higher student-to-teacher ratio, but we absolutely love the teacher. Plus, her room gets to take 2 field trips a week during the summer. Oh, and they also start potty training in that room. I can't wait to not be buying diapers anymore!

It's Over...I Think

Hailey's fever broke last night (I'm pretty sure). When she woke up at midnight, she was drenched in sweat, but had no sign of a fever. She's also been waking up pretty consistently at 3am but not last night. We're going to keep her home today to watch her and get her on a good eating schedule, but I'm pretty sure that the fever is gone!

Change

When your child gets a cold or even the flu, you don't really wonder if they'll be the same after their illness as they were before. When your child has a fever and is sick for 8 days, you wonder how different they'll be when they are finally well again. I find myself wondering that now that I feel Hailey is finally getting better. Don't get excited; she still has a fever! However, she has eaten more today than on any other day, and she has a bit more energy. However, she doesn't talk nearly as much as she used to, she doesn't sing, she hates medicine and doctors (shocker!), she clings to Mommy as if Mommy is going to disappear forever, she wakes up 10 times in the middle of the night, and she just seems more insecure and whiny. I'm sure that this is all just the fever, but it made me pause today to wonder if she will be the same toddler that I remember when she finally does get better. I just don't know how parents handle having a truly sick child. I have always counted our good health as one of our many blessings and will continue to do so knowing that when this fever finally subsides, I will still have my beautiful child to hug no matter how different she is.

PS: It is with great reservations that I will be going back to work tomorrow and leaving Hailey in the loving and capable hands of her Nana. I am not worried in any way about her being home without me; I am more worried about me being without her. Wish us both much luck!

5 Hours, Countless Tests, No Answers

We just returned home from 5 hours at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta (our children's hospital). After consulting with our doctor this morning, we decided that 8 days of fever was worth further testing.  So, we took her in at about 11:30am.  We had been trying to avoid going to the hospital because we knew that it would require a series of uncomfortable and intrusive tests.  Unfortunately, we were right.  She had her throat swabbed, her chest x-rayed, her temperature taken rectally, her nose swabbed, and was generally poked and prodded.  It was completely miserable.  After all that, we are absolutely no closer to understanding what is wrong with her.  What we do know is that she does not have an ear infection, strep, pneumonia, mono, or a ruptured appendix.  Their best guess at this point is that she has some type of viral infection which can not be treated.  We are supposed to keep her hydrated and manage her fever until she can give another urine sample tomorrow.    

A Fever of Unknown Origin

In a few hours, Hailey will officially have had a fever for 7 days. The number of days, apparently, is important in the medical world because nobody worries when it's 5 days or less. Well, we're on 7 days, and some of us are starting to worry. The fever started last Saturday night, but we really started monitoring it on Sunday. She's been to the doctor and does not have an ear infection or a UTI. She has virtually no symptoms other than the fever, which also causes lethargy, lack of appetite, thirst for milk and milk only, and apparently, waking up at 3am. The doctor has told us not to worry; that she's not at risk for anything without having other symptoms. She thinks that it's just an infection that will clear itself up. I really have no idea what to think. I feel terrible for my suffering child. I'm glad that our doctor is not overreacting and ordering a bunch of unnecessary or painful tests. Still, every day that goes by, that sense of fear in the depths of my stomach grows stronger and my patience grows thinner. I can only hope that she wakes up tomorrow miraculously cured.

Does Anyone Else Detect a Southern Accent?

Article Published

The article that I wrote about The Toddler "No" Phase was published in Atlanta Baby this month! See page 16. I've been so busy that I just took the time to check, and there it was.

Ouch, Mommy

Hailey’s hair has been long enough for pig tails for some time now. She comes home from school with elaborate pig tail arrangements, such as the one in this picture. Apparently, she lets her teacher do whatever she wants to her hair, but she screams bloody murder when I come anywhere near her head. It’s ridiculous! Even when it’s time to take out the rubber bands, she insists on ripping them out herself, which looks like it hurts terribly. I try to use the more humane method of untwisting them, but that just doesn’t suit her. Nope. She wants to pull them out herself, taking about half of her hair with it. I remember when I was little that I never wanted my Mom to do it either. What is with that???

Please see the Flickr link for new pictures.

It Was Bound to Happen...

My daughter loves wii. In a few months, she'll be better than me!

A Little Dip

Sorry for the lag in the blogosphere. I’ve been running a bit behind after being out all last week. I’m back now with all new stories and Hailey adventures. My favorite occurred last Sunday when we were visiting Grandma and Papa Harry in Virginia. Luke and I decided that it would be fun to take Hailey on her first canoe ride. Little did we know that Josie, our dog, also wanted desperately to come with us. We tried to leave her on the shore, but she kept trying to swim out to us. Finally, we relented and let her in the canoe as well.

Once we were a good distance from shore, Hailey decided that she wanted to paddle with the oar all by herself. So, Luke let her play with it for a while. When it was time to head back, he took the oar away from her. She, however, decided that she could still paddle by leaning over the side of the boat to paddle with her hand. Do you see where this is going? Yup, Josie shifts, Hailey slips, and she goes head first into the water. Luckily, Luke, with his lightening fast reflexes, grabbed one of her legs on her way down. So, there he is plucking her out of the water by one leg. She was about half way in for maybe a second. She was pissed!!!!! Oh, there was screaming. I watched the whole thing from the front of the boat and found it absolutely hysterical. Oh wait, I mean, I was completely distraught and concerned for the safety of my child. Isn’t that what I’m supposed to say?

One Step Forward

Hailey is learning how to go up and down the steps without holding on to the railing. She’s very careful and deliberate about it, but it makes me exceedingly nervous. She especially likes to do it at the park where she going up and down concrete steps without a railing. Of course, she doesn’t even want me to go near her while she is making these attempts. So, I’m relegated to the bottom while she goes up and down about 20 times. I guess we’re just lucky that she’s so cautious about it.

On another note, isn’t this the cutest picture you’ve seen of this child? Oh my goodness! I hate to brag, but she’s pretty damn cute…wouldn’t you say???

Hailey Meets Worms

Yesterday was our first day without Daddy, and I have to say that it went very well. As much as I complain about her terrible toddlerness, she’s actually a really good kid. I think that the key is just to keep her really busy, and yesterday we were!

When we got home from work, we went straight to the park, then picked up dinner at a nearby restaurant, ate quickly at home, and then headed to our new garden plot. Since this is our first year in the community garden, we decided to purchase some worms like many of our neighbors. The garden ordered 1,000 worms, and I got 100. So, how do you pick out 100 worms? Well, that’s where Hailey and a shovel come in. I first just scooped up what looked like 50 with a shovel and dumped them into my plot, but that wasn’t very fun for Hailey. So, I picked one up with my hand to introduce her to the concept. She touched it reluctantly and said “slimy” and “soft.” I decided to give her the important job of picking up the worms one by one and carrying them to our garden plot. Now, she didn’t do all 50, but she did really enjoy it. Then she decided that the worms needed to be dug into the garden with a trowel AND a hammer. It is clear to me that I better build her a garden of her own, lest she dig up my plants all summer long! Here are some shots of her escapades with the worms.

Put Your Game Face On!

I have a problem. It’s a major discipline problem. It could potentially make me a bad parent. Here it is – I cannot discipline my child without eventually laughing at her. If you could see the ridiculous and adorable faces she makes, you would understand. It’s like disciplining Cindy Lou Who with those big, expressive eyes. I’m not trying to make excuses for my bad parenting; I’m just trying to give you a sense of the situation on the front lines. The problem is that she knows that I’m weak. That is why she listens to Luke and not to me. That is why she will sit in timeout for him but not for me. Ugh…it’s so frustrating.

I must put an end to this Mommy abuse. I must be stern and strong and firm when I am disciplining her. Why am I contemplating my incompetence at this point? Because Luke is going away for 4 days and leaving me at home alone with our angel-faced demon-child. The test begins on Wednesday. Will I fail miserably or step up to the challenge? Only time will tell.

Funniest Picture

I think that these are the funniest pictures that I've ever taken of Hailey. After her nap (thus the hair), she was all ready to go help me in our new garden plot. The boots, unfortunately, were 3 sizes too big so she couldn't make it all the way to the garden without significant assistance. That didn't stop her from demanding to wear the boots for the rest of the day!

Full Sentences

While Hailey’s parrot-like behavior is still a constant, she’s now coming up with her own sentences. For example, at breakfast on Sunday she said “Josie is funny.” This morning she said “Go upstairs. Wake Daddy up.” That was my favorite so far. It’s really strange to know what she’s saying without having to translate it in my head.

It’s been pretty rainy here lately. Due to the drought, we try to be grateful, but it is difficult to have a pent-up toddler. On Sunday, we took a little trip to the Children’s Museum. Here’s a shot of Hailey painting. She loves to paint and what better place to do it than someplace where I don’t have to clean up the mess!

Evolution of a PlayDoh Fish