This and That

Okay. So I know this is long overdue, but I just can't seem to find the time to really sit down and write. I put a lot of thought into these blogs, so I can't just whip something out real quick. My new goal is to get one out every month instead of every week! I'll try to achieve that! :)

Lots has happened over the last month since I last posted. About a month ago, Kayden came down with a cold. Well before it got better, it got worse and developed into an ear infection. After taking antibiotics for 10 days, she finally got the all clear last week. However, the antibiotics took a toll on her body. She was having diahrreah like 9 or 10 times a day and developed a horrible diaper rash. So that also took some time to clear up. But like I said, last week we got the all clear.

Rocking her baby

So life was pretty good up until Wednesday. And that's when Kayden started sneezing, coughing and had a runny nose. "Oh great," I thought. So I waited and watched, and I decided to take her to the doctor on Friday since it was a long weekend. Low and behold she had ANOTHER ear infection. So I am foreseeing tubes in her future, but we'll see. She has been on antibiotics since Friday and just today is starting to clear up congestion wise. It's been rough, because she hasn't been able to breathe through her nose, so it's been hard for her to eat or sleep. Hopefully she's on the road to recovery now and we can mark this ear infection off the list! :)

I'm not sure where to start now. It seems like so much has happened in such a short time! The biggest things that I want to mention are some major milestones that Kayden has reached. She is now standing all by herself! She can go from sitting to standing without holding onto anything. And here it comes......she took her first steps! We got it on video, which I will post at the bottom of this blog. She was so extremely proud of herself when she did it. She had a huge grin on her face and was so excited!!!! We are so proud of her! And at 8 1/2 months old too. Goodness! I think I'm going to be in for it now! :)

I am loving this age! It's my favorite so far! Yesterday I had a doctor's appointment, and I decided to take Kayden with me. She did fabulous and everyone ooohed and ahhhed over how adorable she was! Feeling brave, I took her to McDonald's after we got finished at the doctor's office (I had to get a flu shot :( ). Kayden sat in the high chair like a big girl and ate some of my chicken and played with her toys until I was finished eating. She loved watching the kids playing on the playground. Feeling braver and less like a germaphobe, I whipped out my camera and took Kayden to the playground. As soon as I put her at the top of the slide, she got a huge smile on her face and started waving her hands in the air. She slid down the slide a few times and LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it! :) I climbed all the way up to the top of the playscape with her in my arms, but decided against going down the dark tunnel slide. The thought of her screaming the whole way down or us getting stuck in there didn't appeal to much to me! :)

Kayden has now graduated to taking a bath in the bath tub instead of her big pink duck. She was just too big for that. She LOVES the big bath tub, but I have to watch her every move! She thinks she can crawl around on all fours in the water and pull up on the faucet and side of the tub. The child has no fear and never sits still! :)

She also got her first pair of shoes, which she's not too sure about, but we put them on and walk outside every afternoon to get her used to them. We are also going for walks every evening when Nick gets home from work. Kayden will now sit in her stroller if it's sitting straight up and not reclined back, so she can see everything. Also, we put cheerios or puffs on her stroller tray and she is quite content the whole way! I am excited about this, because I've been wanting to get a jogging stroller and go running with her. Looks like now I may be able to!

My brother Trent, and his fiance Amy got married on the 23rd of August, here at Nana and Grandpa's house. It was simple and beautiful. Kayden did very well, but was just a little overwhelmed by all of the people crammed into the living room.

At Trent and Amy's wedding

We've been going to story time once a week at the library, and Kayden loves crawling all over the place and sitting in the teacher's lap and playing with her puppets! :)

Kayden is completely down to two naps a day and usually takes a long one in the morning anywhere from 1 1/2 -2 hours and usually a shorter one in the late afternoon. It's been nice having her more on a solid schedule. Her bedtime still varies from day to day, but it's getting a little more predictable. She usually goes down between 8:30 and 9:30 at night. Nights are still pretty rough right now. With the ear infections, Kayden hasn't been able to breathe through her nose, so she's had a lot of trouble sleeping. She's also cutting some teeth, so she's had a hard time sleeping because of that as well. One day we'll get a good night's sleep! Someday! :)

8 1/2 moths old

I'm really enjoying staying home with Kayden and watching her learn and grow everyday. We really do have a fun time. We get out at least a few times a week for playdates, story time, grocery shopping, etc. Kayden does very well and loves going places. My little shopper! :)

We turned the extra bedroom/Longhorn room into a playroom for Kayden. We moved most of her big toys in there so our living room didn't look like a Toys R Us showroom! Kayden loves it in there!

We were having a very hard time getting her to eat anything solid for quite sometime. She just decided that she didn't want to have anything to do with it. So I talked with her pediatrician, and she said to not worry about it and that it was just a phase. She would probably go from not eating anything to eating straight table food one day. So I stopped giving her solids altogether for a couple of days and then started putting her at the table in her booster chair and offering it to her 3 times a day. Sometimes she'd eat a couple bites of bread or fruit, but never baby food. Until a couple of days ago, she was pretty much on a liquid diet again. And then we found the secret! Whatever Nick and I are eating, she wants! So we pretty much give her whatever we eat (within reason) cut up tiny for her. She has also decided that hse will eat baby food if we give it to her with an adult spoon and make a big deal when she eats it! So every night when we sit down at the dinner table, Kayden eats what we eat (thus we're eating healthier) and Nick and I clap and praise Kayden for eating her food like a big girl. She loves to eat now! :) It's fabulous! When she went into the doctor last Friday, she weighed 21 lbs and 14 ozs. So she's still gaining fine. She goes back in next Wednesday for her 9 month well check.

I guess that's all to report for now. I'm going to try to squeeze in a shower real quick before the little ladybug wakes up! Sorry it's taken me so long to update everyone. The little Miss keeps me busy! :) Have a great rest of the week!