Busy, Busy!

Rachel and I have been putting in some major fun time. I think we're trying to cram it all in before we move. On Thursday, we went to the zoo with two other friends. The zoo was kind of disappointing. There was a lot of walking but most of the animals were sleeping or the exhibits were closed. Even the food places were closed. At least it was a beautiful day.

Playing in the synthetic mulch

Holy huge gourd, batman!

Friday, we went to the local garden and had Rachel's 18 month pictures taken (18 months!!). It was about 80 but sunny and with a nice breeze. I think the photographer got some good shots and I'm happy that we got some nice pictures taken. We didn't really get any 12 month ones and with the new baby showing up so close to her 2 year birthday, we may not be able to get those done either. I'm excited to see the pictures and we should get them before the end of the month!

We went to a play date on Saturday morning. It had been a long time since we got together with this play group but Rachel had a blast. She just LOVES other kids and especially shy little boys. She had fun playing in their ball pit, with a play car and outside with some bubbles. We hope to get together with this group again before we move.

My friend, Kylie, came to visit with one of her little boys on Sunday. That didn't go so well. Rachel didn't sleep well the night before and so was cranky and needed a nap. Unfortunatly, that nap took place in my arms and Kylie had to leave before Rachel woke up. Let's hope the next time we get together it doesn't happen again! Also, Rachel figured out she can open cabinet doors. The first cabinet she opened? The one with the pots and pans. Go figure. :)

Yesterday, we had our big news along with Rachel's 18 month check up at the pediatricians. I am happy to announce she is getting much closer to 19 pounds finally after 6 months of staying at about 18. She is 18 pounds, 10 ounces and 27 3/4 inches. Again, I'm not sure about the height measurement because I swear she's longer than that. At least 28 inches. But whatever, as long as she is growing and maybe will get out of 12 month clothes by the time summer rolls around!

This coming weekend we are visiting more people and then we take off to Huntsville to visit Daddy and look at places to live. Moving day is getting closer and I'm happy to see the end in sight. Still not looking forward to finding all new doctors though. Gar!

THE BIG ANNOUNCEMENT

I'm going to have a BROTHER!

Getting Closer...

to walking!

Growth Spurt

By growth spurt I do not mean physically, although she has grown taller, I mean developmentally. This past week Rachel has decided that she no longer wants to be a baby. She had truly entered toddlerhood. She has two molars coming in along with the top two teeth that have already broke through. She holds her own bottle...finally. That is a strange site to see. She is standing without pulling up on furniture or me and you can tell she is thinking about taking that first step. Rachel drank from a straw today. too I guess all that spitting and sucking the spit back in, as disgusted as it makes me, was actually helping her learn how to purse her lips together. Rachel also wants to eat big girl food. No more little bites please! She wants to take bits from big pieces of anything. She is also learning how to hold on to the food and takes bites of it instead of trying to shove the whole thing in her mouth. Tonight we tried out Utz's White Cheddar Curlz. She loved them and crunched happily away. I am really enjoying this new side of my girl. It's nice to see her grow and become more confident in herself. Please enjoy the  video but ignore me in the background. I was talking to her daddy. I needed to tell him how big his little girl is getting.

100 Followers!

Rachel has 100 fans! Thank you all for your support and comments!

"Thank you!"

Cheese Ball

Seriously folks...I don't teach her this stuff. It's in the genes somewhere. I'm placing bets on Grandpa C.

So Much To Say

Raiding the pantry...

Rachel has been on a roll recently. She signs "all done" and "more" (her version) consistently. I never thought we would get those signs down. I feel like I've been doing them FOREVER. So to have her do them and understand what they mean makes me very happy. We are really starting to communicate!

She likes to "sneak" up behind you and peer over your shoulder.

But the big deal in our house right now is Rachel stood independently for the first time yesterday. Her OT was over for a session and Rachel just stood up in the middle of the living room. I swear that girl is a show off and she waits for an audience to do major stuff. Of course she hasn't done it since but now that she has I know it's only a matter of time until it's an all the time thing. Which will lead us to walking! And then running....oh boy. I am so happy she cannot reach the door knobs in the house!

Over the weekend Grandpa Cooklis came for a visit. Rachel thought he was a lot of fun. She especially loved to yank the glasses off of his face. He also came with us to the annual Down Syndrome Group of Greensboro's family event at Tumblebees. It's a huge gymnastics place. Rachel was in heaven. A big room with cushy floors and lots of places to explore. That girl didn't stop crawling or climbing or pulling up for the whole hour we were there. She was pooped! I'm going to have to look into a gymnastics place down in Huntsville when we move. I know she will have a blast at a weekly class.

We also had a little play date today with Rachel's first love, Mr. Jonas, and his mom. It had been a while since they really hung out but the chemistry was still there! Rachel couldn't wait for a hug!

A day late...

I was going to post for "Spread the word to end the word" yesterday but Rachel had a bad night and I ended up holding her for a while before heading to bed myself. But I thought I was still worth posting about.

Before Rachel, my mouth let out a slew of words. I try hard to not swear in front of her now. I realize how ugly it sounds. While "retard" or "retarded" may not technically be swear words, used in every day speech to describe how you forgot something "I"m so retarded" or how you messed up the words to a song "I"m such a retard", they become swear words. I know this word is in everyone's language and unless you have a child with special needs or know someone who does, you would probably never give a second thought to saying one of the above phrases. I'm asking you now to think of Rachel before you let something come out of your mouth. She is, by definition, mentally retarded. It is in the description of Down syndrome. So, when you call yourself or someone or someTHING "retarded", you are saying my beautiful, special, smart daughter to something less then worthy, stupid or ugly. I can assure you, she is none of those. I know sometimes words escape you and what's done is done. I forgive you. I only ask that you commit to not saying it again. Rachel deserves more. Visit this site to take the pledge.

Happy Birthday Jackie-Boy!

My puppy Jack turned 11 yesterday. I cannot believe it! I got Jack in May of 2000 while I was still in college. I had originally wanted an older dog because I didn't think I had the patience for a puppy. It took two trips to the pound (it really was a pound) to convince me that he was my dog. He was the cutest little bundle of fur! I will never forget calling my dad and asking him, after already getting Jack, what he thought of me getting a dog. He said it sounded like a horrible idea and that I should wait until I have a house and a yard. Um. No.

But it only took one meeting of little Jack for my dad to fall in love with him. Jack was a handful. I was on the phone with puppy classes within weeks of having him. He was only 3 months old. They wouldn't accept him until he was at least 6 months. Even when he did take classes his attention span wasn't there but you wouldn't know it now. He listens so well. We used to go for hikes and walks for hours at a time. It was the only way to get all the energy he contained down to a manageable level. Jack has been my traveling companion. We've gone up and down the coast together a couple of times. It was nice having him. He kept me company and we've had lots of adventures together. Old Jackie-boy has slowed a bit but you would never guess he is 11. I think our pug, Dizzy, keeps him moving and keeps him young.

I love you Jack. Happy birthday buddy!

Battling the Demons

Most days I am completely fine with Down syndrome and Rachel. Other days, like ones recently, Down syndrome gets to me. I have a hard time knowing what is typical toddler behavior and what may be a "special needs" issue we need to tackle. When Rachel was in the hospital a couple weeks ago, she didn't want to eat anything. All she wanted was her milk and that was fine by me. I could tell she wasn't feeling well. Who wants to eat when they are sick? When we came home, things seemed like they were improving. She was starting to eat some foods again. Then this weekend she just really decided she doesn't have much interest in solid foods at all anymore. She will eat cheerios and some goldfish crackers, but getting her to eat anything else is just frustrating. She'll pick up a piece of whatever it is and throw it off the tray or she'll put it in her mouth on her tongue and just let it fall out. She may even chew a little bit and spit it out.

I don't understand. She's never had a sensory issue before with food so I try not to let my mind go there but having a child with Down syndrome makes you automatically jump to "what's next on the list of things to work on." I try to let my rational mind take over - this could be completely normal. She is teething. She is still getting over being sick and coughing up stuff from her lungs. But the other side of my mind is freaking out, jumping up and down, screaming "OMG, sensory issues! Call the OT, call a food clinic, call the nutritionist! Send help! SOS!" The fact that she now weighs as much as she did at her 12 month check up in September makes me scared too. Those NICU days of counting grams never will leave me I'm afraid. These issues (of mine) are always going to be there I think. I try hard to overcome them but it's so hard sometimes. I just hope Rachel gets through this phase and starts being my munching champ again. Making food just to pick it up off the floor meal after meal can make you go a little crazy.

Look Ma, No Hands!

Back Home!

By Saturday afternoon, I think the staff at the hospital could tell we were done being there. The resident on duty came in and said she would get the paperwork rolling. By 2:30 p.m. we were back at home where we belong! Rachel was super happy to be able to get on the ground and crawl and roll around on the carpet. She also missed her toys and was super happy to see her doggies too. Daddy gave her a post-hospital bath which was badly needed. Check out our little Ed Grimly.

Too bad this morning Daddy had to leave to go back to Huntsville. Tomorrow, Rachel and I will travel to the pediatrician to make sure she is still getting better. She still sounds pretty junky. I am hoping her oxygen stats will be good and that her lungs will sound better. Going back to the hospital would not be welcomed at all!

Trip to the ER and in the Hospital

So folks, there is good reason I've been MIA from this blog.

Back story - Rachel and I have been stuffy with the same nasal congestion since the 23rd of January. Starting on the 4th Rachel started coughing. I thought "uh oh, here we go." That Sunday she began having a fever. I brought her into the Pediatrician the next day and they diagnosed her with double ear infections and told me to use the nebulizer with albuteral ever 4-6 hours. That night her fever went up to 103.2 and she projectile vomited all. over. me. ...yeah. She did manage to sleep Ok but coughed through out the night. The next day she still had a slight fever and when I tried to put her to sleep that night she couldn't stop coughing. I could hear the mucus in her throat like she was drowning. I went up and tried to have her sleep on my chest sitting up a bit but it didn't help at all. What I heard was not good so I packed her up and went to the ER.

At the ER she was listened to by the doc and had x-rays taken. It was determined that she had pneumonia and that a different antibiotic would be used and a nebulizer treatment would be done at the hospital. The doctor said we could go home but I told him I didn't like the sound of her breathing and that I wasn't comfortable going home. (This comment from me gave me deja vu of Rachel's birth - always trust your instincts moms!) He said he had no issues with me staying the night at the ER. They hooked Rachel up to the pulse-ox monitor. She was sat-ing below 88 (out of 100). The doctor then decided he wasn't comfortable with that and booked us a room.

We finally got to our room at 2AM, the nurse then had to ask us an hour worth of questions. The only good question that was asked was "did they test her for RSV?" Nope. They did not. She did the test on Rachel, which involves sticking a tube down her nose to suck out snot, and about 2 hours later we found out we were dealing with RSV too. I called Stephen to let him know what was going on and his work allowed him to drive home Wednesday to help out. Thank God because I wouldn't be doing well without him. We've been able to switch nights with Rachel so we can get some good sleep.

Rachel is still in the hospital. It seems as though the worst has passed though. She needs oxygen at night while she sleeps and during her naps but the rest of the time she's her happy self. It's now just a waiting game for the gunk to clear from her lungs so she can breath better and get more oxygen into her lungs. Let's hope tonight goes terrific so she can come home. Living at the hospital stinks.

Introducing...

our newest family member!

I had my 12 week ultrasound today. I am so happy with my OB-GYN practice because they allow their techs to tell you about the baby and everything that they are doing. It certainly makes you more comfortable. I am 12 weeks, 1 day along but am measuring 12 weeks, 6 days. The nuchal fold measurement was about 1.8 so well within normal. The baby also had it's nasal bone and, from what she could tell, all the parts accounted for and developing properly. I've only gain 1/2 of a pound as well. I have Rachel to thank for that. She keeps me moving! This little bean is a mover like it's sister. Whether or not it's are a boy or a girl that will be chasing Rachel around, we don't know yet. We have another 6 weeks until that little secret is reveled. Until then, I'll be keeping busy with Rachel and being thankful that so far this pregnancy is heading down the right direction. Yay!

Mischievous

Don't let this sweet face fool you.

 This girl is capable of getting in to some trouble.

Today she...

dug out dirt from the plants in the house,

crawled under the bed and got stuck,

threw a number of items through the gate and the top of the stairs so they would tumble down,

got in to the laundry hamper and put my clothes in to the tub,

and ate a barrette. I think. I can't find it but I'm pretty sure Rachel thought it was tasty.

Watch out counter tops everywhere!