For Easter we went to San Antonio to be with Grandparents. I was so excited to go into the hill country for bluebonnet season! It's been so long since I've gotten to see all of those beautiful flowers along the freeways! Galveston doesn't get very many wildflowers! So, as is typical for Texans, Lydia got to take her first pictures in a field of bluebonnets. And, if I might add, she was quite the photogenic baby this time! You would never guess that she had been screaming just 5 minutes before and continued her fit 5 minutes later! But, she was a little angel for her photoshoot! She even gave us some smiles without having to be coaxed!
So, in honor of your 2 month birthday, here is your monthly letter from your Momma!
Dearest Lydia,
You have grown so much this month! I am anxious to go to the doctor this week to find out exactly how much you have grown! My guess is that you're about 24 inches and 12 lbs. But we'll find out for sure. This last month has been both difficult and amazing. We're starting to make more connections with one another. You're cries are not always a mystery to me. We're starting to figure eachother out. And I am growing more and more fond of you! Some of your new tricks include smiling at us when we play with you. You love it when we talk to you and sing to you and you show it with your sweet smiles. You also have added bits of talking. You're finding your voice and don't use it to scream all the time anymore! I love listening to you! You love watching things around you and are getting better at focusing on things. You are fascinated by the mobile we recently put in your crib. Speaking of which, you now sleep in your crib during the day. Pretty soon you'll get to sleep there at night too. Majority of nights you sleep between 5 to 7 hours. Occasionally we get graced with a 8 or 9 hour night! Those are Saintly! But, you still also struggle on occasion with the 2 to 3 hour nights. But they are improving.
We love having you in our family. You bring us such joy! Watching you grow and learn new things reminds me of God's miracles. You are a miracle! A beautiful Daughter of God! We love you!
How could you not want to kiss her? I must have gotten a lot of good luck with all the kisses she got yesterday!
Also, here are a couple of videos for the grandparents enjoyment. Not particularly the most entertaining, but something to watch anyways. David put together Lydia's crib last weekend and so here's Lydia enjoying her crib and also Lydia just looking cute with her quacking hiccups.
Exciting news! I have just started selling Mary Kay products! If any of you have ever tried their products, you know that they are amazing! I have always loved them and have thought about selling them several times, but am just now starting to do so. My personal favorite products would be the Satin Hands and the Satin Lips! They leave your hands and lips so silky and kissable! I am just now starting to try out more of their products and am falling in love with the Microdermabrasion set and the Timewise Miracle set. And, of course, I love their make up too. Actually, I have never used a product of theirs that I did not love.
Well, since I am just starting my business, I need a lot of help getting going. So, in order to get a great jump start and to honor all the fun of March Madness, I am running a bit of a sale. Anyone who orders anything off of my websitebefore midnight March 31st will recieve 10% off of their purchase! There are a lot of great tools on my website, such as virtual make over tools and the latest trends and tips in makeup! Plus you can do all of your shopping 24/7 at your convenience. Plus, if you live outside of my immediate area (but within the US) the shipping will be free! So, check it out and let me know what you think! You can call or email me anytime with questions. (801)473-5929 or aerorox23@yahoo.com.
Plus, remember that Easter is coming up and these would be great gifts for Easter baskets, and Mother's Day is not so far away either! And we have some great men's care products as well with the more manly "MK" logo!
Okay, now I know the real reason why you came to visit my blog is not for the Mary Kay advertising (though I really am serious about everything I said!). So, here are some more up to date pictures of our sweet little angel! She has had a sad little stuffy nose and cough this past week, so we have been a bit under the weather. And we had a couple of not so fun visits to the doctor. But, we found out that Lydia would have probably also had an ear infection this last week if she was not breast fed. So, despite all my complaints about breastfeeding, I am so glad that I was able to help her not feel so sick! And our little baby just keeps getting bigger and bigger! She is now a whole whopping 10 lbs! And she sure does show it! (at least in my eyes)
Your Daddy and I can hardly believe that you're already a month old! It seems like only yesterday that the doctor placed you in our arms. I remember that day so vividly. All the emotions that rushed through my body when I first heard you cry. It was a joy that I don't think I can express in words. I already loved you so much. And my love has only grown stronger since that day. I have felt an overwhelming duty to protect you. Just after we brought you home from the hospital, we had a scary experience where you choked on your vitamins and couldn't breathe. Luckily, your grandma was there and helped me get you breathing again. I then realized how fragile you really were. Though some people may think that I am ridiculously over-cautious, I want to make sure that I don't put you in any situation that may harm you. You have already been through so much. But I have watched you grow stronger! I love watching you curiously watch things around the room. You especially love to stare at the picture of the Manti Temple we have hanging on the wall. It seems to always draw your gaze. I think that you remember the day you were sealed to your Daddy and Me not so long ago. It brings me peace to know that you were there. You love the sound of the bath tub running and, as such, also love your bath time. I know that when both of us are frustrated and tired, that a bath will be just the soothing touch that both of us need! And, you lost your umbilical cord just the other day and can finally get all the way in the water! Hooray! You have had some pretty hard days of non-stop crying where we can't seem to figure out how to help you. But the past few days have been especially pleasant! You are content to just watch everything around you and learn all you can. You are so precious and we love watching you learn! Your Daddy and I chose your name for some special reasons. So, consider this your explanation just like when Helaman in the Book of Mormon talks to his sons, Nephi and Lehi. The name Lydia comes from your ancestors. Lydia Parker was one of the first to join the church in Canada and then traveled to Utah to be with the Saints. The name Dawn was not just my middle name. It comes from your Great Great Grandpa Matthews. He had a covered wagon named "The Golden Dawn". He described the Dawn as the "Ultimate Beauty". And that is what it has truly become to me. It is the beginning of a brand new day. And just like that new beginning, the Savior has given us a new beginning each time we repent. The Atonement truly is the "Ultimate Beauty" and the Dawn is a symbol of that gift. That is what I think of when I think of our name. No matter what mistakes you make, you can always start over again with a brand new day. A new Dawn. Remember that. I am so excited to continue to watch you grow. I wish it wouldn't go by so fast though. I love you and will always be here.
Can you believe it?! It feels like we've had Lydia for forever, yet it also feels like we just got her a couple hours ago! So, today, in honor of Lydia's 3 week day, we went to the Doctor's Office for her check-up. Lydia is now a whopping 9 lbs 3 oz! Holy Cow! She has gained a full pound and an ounce! And she has grown a full inch and a half! Wow! I knew she had grown a lot, but Wow!!! Her newborn outfits are already getting snug on her and she's fitting into the 0/3 month clothes that she swam in the day she was born! It seems a lot has happened since I last posted! Lydia was blessed on Sunday. She was fortunate to have both sets of Grandparents there. So, she was blessed by her dad with Grandpa's Anderson and Dickinson, and friends Jason Hobbs and Jeremiah West in the circle. She looked so pretty in her dress that I made! And she was a perfect angel throughout the entire Sacrament Meeting! I think I'll go one more week of just taking her to Sacrament Meeting and then we'll start trying to extend it. Some other fun things of note. 1. We have a picture of the Manti Temple hanging on our wall just above the couch I usually feed Lydia in. Well, it seems that whenever she has her eyes open while I'm feeding her, she is staring at that picture. I think that she recognizes the temple because she was there when David and I were sealed. At least the thought brings me peace that she has been with us and will be with us for eternity. 2. Also, check out these 2 pictures! Notice anything similar? Our little lady was a model in the womb and is continuing her career outside of it as well! It is common to catch her in this pose whenever she is relaxed or sleeping. 3. Lydia has also started to grab onto more things. Especially our clothes when we feed her. It's so precious! 4. I was able to capture somewhat of a smile with my camera. They often get much bigger than this one. 5. Lydia calms down when we take her into the bathroom and run the water in the bathtub. I guess the sound reminds her of the womb or something. Sorry there are so many pictures and randomness, but these are some fun things that I wanted to share and record for myself. Happy Three Weeks Little Lydia!
Lydia has found her fist and enjoys sucking on it. Sorry the video is so dark, we need to figure out better lighting. But enjoy! Also, here's a video where we were able to get her to smile a little bit. She is such a sweetheart! Sorry about the high pitched voice! Lydia just brings it out of me!
Our Little Lydia's time at home was short lived and very stressful. When we took Lydia to her first doctor's appointment on Monday, Feb 8th, we spent forever in the waiting room with tons of sick kids running all over the place and Lydia screaming her head off only to get into a room and hardly even see the doctor before she says, "I have some bad news. I need to send y'all back to the hospital." Lydia's bilirubin level was far too high and Lydia was jaundiced. They were unable to draw her blood due to a couple of veins blowing, but they didn't want to stick any more of them because the hospital would need to get an iv in one of them. Needless to say, I felt like an awful mother! I couldn't hold back my tears! I was so incredibly sleep deprived and already had several other hormones taking over my body that it all just came out. I had noticed that Lydia was near impossible to wake up to feed and that she rarely had any messy diapers, but I had thought that it was somewhat normal. Well, not so. Apparently high bilirubin sedates you and she was so dehydrated from not getting enough food (she slept through most of her feedings) that she didn't have much output. In fact, the poor girl was so dehydrated that it took the nurses and doctors 3 hours to get an iv in her because every vein was blowing! She had so many bandaids all over the place, including her head before they finally had one successful one which was protected by a cup on her head. The nurses and everyone was so wonderful and supportive while we were there! They kept giving me hugs and asking if they could do anything else to help me out. In order to get rid of the bilirubin in Lydia, she was given photo-therapy. I don't know all the science of it, but basically she lays in a bed with tons of lights on her which are supposed to help break down the bilirubin and then she pees it all out. She got a cool pair of sunglasses (a piece of felt with sunglasses pictured on it) to protect her eyes. Lydia looked like a little fake-baker! Guess she started young! I was able to take her out of the bed to feed her and had to hold a pad on her back that had a bunch of green lights in it. After 16 hours of being under the lights, her billirubin had decreased from 18 to 9! A very significant change! So, the doctors turned off the lights and said that if she was able to maintain that level for 8 hours on her own that she would be good to go. However, the next 8 hours were just as difficult as the last 16! Lydia still had the problem of eating and she wouldn't be able to go home if she still was unable to eat because then she would end up back in the hospital again. We tried and tried! The nurses had me pumping milk and trying to give her bottles along with trying to breastfeed. The lactation consultant came to see me again and after 2 hours of working with Lydia and Lydia fighting every trick she had, we finally noticed something. Lydia habitually keeps her tongue in the roof of her mouth and doesn't bring it down on her own to suck. So, we figured out how to get it down and then she drank like a pro from the bottle! Lydia was able to keep her billirubin down on her own for the next while and with her finally eating enough food, Lydia was able to come home the next day, Tuesday, February 9th. We were so happy to have our baby home again! Although it really felt like it was the first time since we had only been home for about a day and a half before. We have still had our share of adventures since coming home! Most of it has to do with eating. Breastfeeding is a whole lot more difficult thnt I had imagined and Lydia is one heck of a sleeper! She is great at drinking out of a bottle while she is sleeping, but not so much out of a breast. There are also other complications, but I'm not going to get too detailed on my blog. Basically I have to pump for at least part of every feeding and bottle feed her. So, every feeding takes about an hour and the doctors told me that I had to feed her every 3 hours. So, I feel like that is literally my life right now! Good thing about pumping is that David has been able to help a little bit more and I try to get one longer stretch of sleep each night. Unfortunately it pays a toll on David though and we need him to stay awake in his classes everyday! We were lucky enough to have my mom here with us till yesterday morning. She helped out so much! And she definitely seems to have the magic touch with Lydia! When Lydia won't calm down for David or I, Grandma holds her and she quiets right down! I appreciated having all the support and encouragement through all the initial stresses of bringing a baby home and also with Lydia going back to the hospital! Thank you so much mom! You were wonderful and we all love you so much! Lydia also started getting really gunky eyes yesterday and so I was debating taking her to Urgent Care today. However, I really didn't want to be around a ton of sick kids with her and would much rather take her to the doctor's office. But, tomorrow is a holiday and so she wouldn't be able to do that until Tuesday. So, as David is good at, he got on the internet and started looking up stuff. He found a few websites that suggested massaging the side of her nose by her eye for a few seconds several times a day and also laying a warm damp cloth on the eyes for a few minutes at each feeding. These things help out with the clogged tear ducts, if that's the problem. I did this a couple of times this afternoon and just a few seconds after massaging for about the 3rd time, her eye got so insanely gunky it was gross! It was like I had pushed everything out of the tear duct! Well, it seems to have been a good thing, because her eyes have been so much clearer since then! They still are a little bit gunky and I am still doing some of the massaging and moist cloth stuff, but they are clearer than they have been since yesterday morning! So, we like the home remedies so far on this one! Well, I know that this has been a long post. I have been meaning to write it for a while, but you all know how tiring it is when you have a newborn! I'll try to get at least one post up a week so that people can see all her cute pictures and know about all the fun little developments. She is such a precious little baby! We love having her in our home and feeling her spirit. And I have my little snuggler now! Well, here are a few more pictures to enjoy! You can always see more by clicking on the links to the side of my blog.
