About Our Katie » December 2004 Journal Entries » AboutMyBaby - online baby scrapbooks, photo albums, videos, birth and pregnancy announcements

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Tue, Dec 28, 2004 10:00 AM
At last, Katie got to meet my former boss, Marianne, and her two kids, Jessica and Zane. Right around the time Katie was born, they were in the process of relocating to Northern Virginia. So, it wasn't until yesterday that they got to see Katie in person. The get-together was great, but too brief!

In other news, the sleep situation continues to be dismal. I am not sure how to address it at this point. The initial cereal success must've been a fluke, as it's no longer working.

What I wouldn't do for eight, or even SEVEN, hours of straight-through sleep... Perhaps the pediatrician will have some words of wisdom at Katie's six-month visit.

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Sun, Dec 26, 2004 4:30 PM
Katie's first Christmas has concluded.

The three of us spent Christmas Eve at the home of our neighbors, Kevin and Kelly. Every year they host part of Kevin's family--to the tune of about 30 people! We enjoyed experiencing their longstanding traditions and eating their delicious food, including homemade potato and cabbage pierogies.

On Christmas morning, Danielle and Angel came over to see all the loot from "Santa." Katie loves the Care Bear toy Danielle got for her. As for her other gifts, she seemed to like the wrapping paper and boxes most of all!

That afternoon, the three of us headed up to Gary and Mimi's house for the Fanelli Christmas. We had a great time, even though Steve lost quite a bit (about $5) at poker. ;-)

P.S. This morning I accidentally dropped my digital camera. Now it's acting funny--not letting me transfer all my images from the media card. Anyway, here's hoping I can get it fixed shortly.

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Mon, Dec 20, 2004 8:10 PM
Katie and I are back from our whirlwind visit to Louisville. We had a great albeit exhausting time!

On Friday, about 30 relatives and friends visited during a "Katie Open House" at Gran and Grandpa's. Guests included many people she'd "met" during our September visit, as well as some new faces.

Saturday afternoon was Greatma's 80th birthday party. Katie got to meet numerous great GREAT aunts and uncles, as well as Great Uncle Tim and our cousin, Gary Dean. On Sunday we visited again with Greatma and Greatpa.

I've posted plenty of photos in the December album. I tried to get pics of everyone, but I fell short of my goal. My apologies to anyone who isn't featured!

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Thu, Dec 16, 2004 12:00 PM
The rice cereal continues to be an unequivocal success. Katie has eaten it four days in a row--and she's slept beautifully all four nights.

We're going to stick with the rice through Saturday, and then introduce oatmeal on Sunday. She's bound to love that, too.

Tonight she and I are flying to Louisville for a long weekend--assuming I can get myself organized! So far, it's been a crazy day in the neighborhood: My work e-mail was down most of the morning; I accidentally left my breast pump at the office yesterday; Katie did a blow-out in the middle of a diaper change; and then Trixie snuck in the study and chewed through the goldfish filter tubing while I was greeting the sitter.

Did I mention I haven't started packing yet?

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Tue, Dec 14, 2004 8:45 AM
Katie had rice cereal again after dinnertime yesterday. And, she slept through again--9:00 p.m. until 6:30 a.m.

By the way, Steve is having a gloat-fest about the success of our experiment. (For about three weeks, he's been telling me she's hungry and should have a little cereal.)

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Mon, Dec 13, 2004 8:00 AM
After eating that small portion of rice cereal, Katie slept from 8 p.m. until 7 a.m.

Was it a coincidence or a case of cause and effect? I really don't care! I'm just glad for the sleep. :-)

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Sun, Dec 12, 2004 9:00 PM
Today my mom asked what Katie's latest "tricks" are. Just this weekend, she started blowing raspberries. And, for the past couple of weeks, she's been getting better at grabbing for things. She LOVES reaching for the box of disposable paper liners that we have resting on her changing table. (Yesterday she actually grabbed a single liner out of the box--and starting gumming it, of course.) Also, in general, she's becoming much more aware of and interested in her surroundings.

Tonight we had a big milestone: We fed her rice cereal for the first time. I wanted to wait until she was six months old, but she seems to be very hungry lately. She's still getting up a lot at night (ugh!), and even during the day, she doesn't always seem satisfied.

So, while picking up my prenatal vitamins at the pharmacy, I bought a box of the rice cereal. I am being uncharacteristically spontaneous and unscientific about the whole thing. Instead of giving her the recommended portion--one tablespoon of cereal mixed with four to five tablespoons of breastmilk--we did one TEASPOON of cereal to five TEASPOONS of breast milk.

We put her in her feeding chair, and Steve fed her with one of her baby spoons. I have to say, she loved it! She made a slight face at the first spoonful. But, after that, she was very keen on it. When the spoon hit her mouth, she would first blow out--making noisy bubbles--and then suck it in. Then she'd literally pull the spoon away from her dad and finish the job herself. Eventually he started letting her do most of it herself. Toward the end, I gave it a shot. I guess I was too slow; she would fuss while I was preparing each spoonful.

She finished all six teaspoons of the mixture--with a good bit of it ending up down her chin and on her onesie, of course.

Anyway, we're going to monitor her and see how she reacts. If she's OK, we'll continue giving her this small serving at night.

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Sat, Dec 11, 2004 10:00 PM
This afternoon Uncle Bob and Aunt Carol came over to visit. They hadn't seen Katie since August, so they could definitely notice all the changes in her appearance and behavior. Aunt Carol even had a lengthy "conversation" with Katie.

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Tue, Dec 7, 2004 6:00 PM
Apparently I jinxed us with yesterday's announcement about Katie's good sleeping. Last night she was up again! And, our cats made matters worse: Vito was downstairs crying loudly for attention, while Trixie was clawing noisily at the mini-blinds in our bedroom. Sigh.

At any rate, I won't be posting new photos until Friday at the earliest. Steve is away on business and has taken my beloved camera with him. I'm not sure which I'll miss more--my husband or my Olympus. ;-)

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Mon, Dec 6, 2004 8:00 AM
Knock on wood, Katie has resumed her good sleeping habits. Four nights in a row, she has slept her usual seven to nine hours. Thank GOODNESS. Perhaps now we'll feel human again!

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Fri, Dec 3, 2004 12:00 PM
This past week will not go down as one of the best for us. All three of us have been "off"--that is, overtired and cranky--for most of the week. A big reason? Until last night, Katie had been getting up in the middle of the night at least once, if not twice.

Her previously beautiful sleep habits spoiled us; we're not at all conditioned for sleep deprivation.

Anyway, I'm hoping we've turned a corner and settled back into a better routine. Last night she slept from around 9 p.m. until just before 6 a.m. Please cross your fingers that she continues this trend. Otherwise, I'm not sure we'll survive the rest of the holidays! :-P

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