RSV

Well....long story short (because we're exhausted)...Layla has RSV and we spent the day at the ER being treated for it. She was doing well enough after a few nebulizer treatments that they sent us home. We'll continue with albuterol every 4 hours for the next 24 and then take her back to the pedi on Monday. Scary day, but we're all doing better now and we're hoping that the worst is behind us.

Pink Eye?

Well, the cold seems to have evolved. We're gonna take her to the pedi tomorrow to see if it's pink eye as I suspect. Luckily, she's still in good spirits. More tomorrow!

Down But Not Out

Layla finally caught the cold that both Chris and I have been battling. Complete with snotty nose and a bad cough. It seems to bother Mom and Dad more than it does Layla. Despite coughing throughout the night, she still managed to sleep until 3:30.

Does this cutie look sick to you?! Too happy and cute for any dingo to eat THIS baby!

Cooperative Baby

I think Layla must know that I am going back to work next week. Two nights ago she had her nighttime bottle at 8:00 and didn't wake until 3:45; we were super excited. Then last night she ate at around 8:15, was asleep by 9:00, and then didn't wake until 5:30! I'm hoping she keeps that up, since I'll be trying to leave the house with her around 6:45 once we start daycare. Layla is so, so lucky though that Mimi is coming to spend two whole weeks with her at the start of my return to work. After Mimi leaves we have a week of February vacation and then finally she will start day care at the end of February. Hopefully by then I'll be used to leaving her (sniff!) and we'll have a bit more of a schedule worked out. For now, I'm just psyched about the 8.5 hours of sleep she achieved last night!

Reunited

Today Layla got to visit with her friend Cody, who was born just 36 hours after her at the same hospital. Cody's mom, Alison, works with me at the North, so these two babies have known each other since they were in utero. It was really special being able to share all the ups and downs of pregnancy with Alison, and now it's even better that we can bring the kids together outside of the womb! Cody and Layla first officially met while still at Mt Auburn Hospital, where both moms were recovering from exciting births. Hopefully today is only the first of many play dates. Future prom dates, perhaps?!

2 Month Visit

Layla had her two month check-up today. She is as healthy as can be and continues to pack on the pounds. She weighed in at 14 pounds, 1.5 ounces, which places her above the 95th percentile. She's also now a full 2 feet long....hard to believe!

She had her immunizations today. We picked up some infant tylenol on the way home from the doctor, just in case she has any reaction. Right now she's lying next to me on the couch, a happy girl; I think she's forgiven me for the torture I put her through with the shots!

Successful Night

Last night went pretty much as I expected it would. Caitlin and Emily, by all accounts, had a good time with Layla. She slept in her swing while they ate dinner and then turned on the crankiness around 7:30. Chris has been going to work for weeks now, but this was my first time away from her for more than an hour or so. It's amazing how much you can miss someone so little! When we came home around 11, Layla was asleep (sans paci) in her crib and Caitlin and Emily were watching TV. So all in all, it was a successful night. Not to mention, Chris and I had a nice time in the North End with his company and we ate a TON of food. We had to leave before the end of the entertainment, What is it Like to be a Robot?. Nothing like a party full of engineers and scientists!




Mommy and Daddy on our way out.


















Mommy and Daddy saying goodbye to Layla.













Layla's trusted sitters, Caitlin and her cousin Emily.

Big Night Out (or In)

Tonight's a big night. We're leaving Layla at home with a friend of mine while we go out to a CRA dinner party in the North End. Hopefully Layla's evening fussies won't be too much for Caitlin. And hopefully we won't feel the need to call every hour to check on her! Results will be posted tomorrow!

Morning Sleep

A not-uncommon scene....usually from about 7 am till 9 am. Not sure how I will function when I go back to work and don't get these extra few hours of precious sleep!

Happy 2 Months!

Layla celebrated her 2 month mark by giving us her best night of sleep yet. She had her bedtime bottle at 7:30 and didn't wake up to eat again until 2:00 (though she woke around 11:00...but quickly fell back asleep). Then she didn't wake up again until 6:30. Way to go, Layla!

Yes We Can

Layla is celebrating in the most patriotic outfit I could find that would fit her this morning!

Playing with Toy?

Layla began this historic day hanging out in her crib while I got dressed. This is the first time that she appears to be intentionally manipulating the toy in her crib (thanks, Aunt Christie!). It may not look convincing in the video, but she entertained herself this way for a good 20 minutes. Every day she seems so much more aware and grown-up. What happened to the little peanut we brought home in November? It's all so exciting...

Fiona and Jane

Layla had a very sleepy morning and early afternoon. This is one of the few wakeful moments she had. She looks like a big girl in her overalls.

I think she was resting so that she'd be in a good mood for her visit with....








Fiona and Jane!













Layla thought Jane spoke funny....


















until she met Fiona!


Hopefully in the next couple of years, Layla will be able to travel to London to visit Fiona. And we'll have to get to Upton (much closer!) to visit with Jane and Chris. Thanks for the visit today!

Weekend Update

A bit blurry, but it's clear who Layla's rooting for!
She's expressed satisfaction with Youk's new contract and she's hopeful that Varitek will stick around. Go Sox!










What a cutie! One of the teachers at school (thanks, Pam!) had her mother knit sweaters for all the North babies back in the fall. It finally fits and is adorable. It served Layla well when we went out in the single digit temps yesterday to go to our first Lexington play date. We met Owen and Olivia, both about 10 months old. It was fun to see what Layla will be up to in just a few short months.

Big Girl

Look at what a big girl I am, sitting in my Bumbo (thanks Nikki!)!

Technically, Layla should have a bit more neck control before hanging out in her seat, but I had to try it. She actually did quite well, and it won't be long before we're using it regularly.

Hopefully I didn't blind her with the sun in her eyes!

A Typical Day

Layla and I are having a good Tuesday hanging out.


First we bundled up and braved the snowy sidewalks to get to Walgreens and Trader Joe's (Chris has the car today). I thought it would be good to get one last walk in before the bitter cold sets in tomorrow.










Later, Layla hung out in her swing while I made a baked ziti that we'll cook for dinner later.


















Eventually Layla fell asleep while I made some yummy peanut butter treats .

We're experimenting with an "all ages" pacifier today. The newborn nuk leaves such severe marks, almost bruises, on her chubby cheeks when she really gets sucking. This new one seems a little big, but we'll see how she does.




Now we're watching Oprah together and waiting for Daddy to get home around 6. A day in the life....

Visit to the North

Layla had her first visit to Mommy's work today. You can tell from the pics that the teachers weren't at all happy to see her ;-).



Kim and Jan are saying, "I want a grandchild!"

Layla is saying, "Please don't retire!"












Really, Sally, don't you think you should wait until she's at least talking before you start explaining long division to her?!











Layla says, "Thanks, Miss Drury, for this super cute outfit!"

Thumb Frustration!

Don't you wish you could just put it in her mouth for her? She's trying sooo hard!

7 Weeks Already!

Most of you who know me know that from the age of about 12 I babysat every chance I got. Sure, I liked the extra cash, but I've just always enjoyed caring for kids of all ages (probably why I have the job I do!). Even when I was in grad school, and perhaps past your typical babysitting age, I continued to work for a handful of families in the Boston area. While working with these children, and by watching how their parents parented, I really began to solidify many thoughts on how I wanted to raise my future children.

Today, one of my former families came by to meet Layla. When I met them in 2003, Jonah (stripes) was just 16 months old; he's now finishing kindergarten and Ben is in middle school! It was wonderful to share my child with the children I once watched.

So today I thank all the families of the children I've had the pleasure to care for in recent years. Layla is lucky I met you :). Thank you Ben, Jonah, Nina, Lucy, and Auggie.

Little Fashionista

Note how Layla's pacifier perfectly matches her green and yellow froggy outfit.

Sleep Update...and other cuteness

Update on sleep.

The last two nights have been much improved. Layla's woken around midnight, 4 am, and 7 in order to eat. In between there were just a few cries or pacifier adjustments. We've been fortunate that she doesn't need the paci to fall asleep initially, but it does help in the night when she wakes herself up.

Last night Layla was asleep by 9:00. She didn't truly wake up until close to 10:00 am. One would think that after 13 hours of sleep she wouldn't still be yawning!





Layla's morning moods:



Content.















Excited.













Happy.
















Silly.

"Tummy Time"

This was not the most productive tummy time ever. It quickly turned into nap time :).

Good days...more difficult nights

Full of smiles, Layla has been having such great days lately. Up until about 4:00 she is happy as can be. Today we had two spit-ups, and even then she just looked at me and grinned, not complaining that her face was covered in the milk she had just had for lunch. By around 4:00 she starts to get a little bit fussy, and by around 8:00 she is down for the count. She's been sleeping a few hours...maybe till 11:00 or midnight. Sounds great, right? Not so fast.

The last few nights, after her initial long spell of sleep, Layla's taken to waking every hour and a half or two hours. It's tough to know if she needs to eat, and when she does, it's often not that much because she is sooo sleepy. That means she's more likely to wake up "early" again for her next meal. Sometimes we can give her the pacifier and gain another 45 minutes or so of sleep. Of course, I don't really sleep, because I then lie awake listening, convinced that at any second she's going to wake up either to feed or because she's lost her paci. The main reason this is as frustrating as it is is because a week or two ago, she was consistently sleeping 3 or 4 or even 5 hours at a time. And now I'm happy if we get 2!

At around 6:00 or so, if we wake for a feeding, I often will bring her in bed with us and she sleeps on my chest. She LOVES this, and sleeps for at least another 2 hours, often more. Not so comfy for me, but I don't mind. I love her cuddles, and plus, when she sleeps like that she's MUCH less noisy than when she's on her back.

I know this is all par for the course and will work itself out eventually. What are the chances that happens before I go back to work in February?!

End of Vacation

Chris headed back to work today and I vacuumed up Christmas, but Layla and I squeezed in one last holiday visitor this morning. Dreolin popped by before heading back to California. Unfortunately, I neglected to snag a picture as proof of the visit. You'll just have to trust me that we had a nice time; Layla slept, woke up happy, and then ate her "lunch". Thanks, Dre, for fitting us in to your East coast visit!

Now....back to reality. Well, back to the reality we were in before Christmas. I'm already dreading February when the new reality sets in and I return to work. For now, we won't think about that!

It had been 6 weeks...

...since Becky's parents had last seen Layla. She's changed so much since that first weekend of life, and Grandmommy and Granddaddy were more than thrilled to spend time (hours and hours!) snuggling and cuddling and kissing Layla, in addition to oohing and aaahing at her cute little smiles.



Granddaddy has the magic touch!

















Layla was pleasantly lounging in Grandmommy's lap. Hopefully Granddaddy managed to snap a pic of Grandmommy's face, since we failed to get one!