The Mystery is Solved!

For a few weeks now, Leah had been saying something that eerily sounded like, "F***, s***." It was so bizarre. Dan and I couldn't figure it out. Sure, we've messed up here and there and said a curse word in front of her but never both of those back to back like that. Were we horrible parents? Was she picking up on these words and putting them together for the heck of it?

Thankfully, we found the answer this week: she's really saying "Five, six"! The Wiggles have a few songs where they count, and one of Leah's new favorites is about a chicken with SIX little chicks and they count them twice in the song. Ah-ha! Now that we've figured this out, we can clearly hear Leah saying, "One, two, five, six!" (She doesn't seem to care for three or four, oddly enough.) ;) We are quite relieved about this one.

Momma's Intuition

This was the scene Sunday afternoon. Poor Leah had come down with another cold on Friday and by Sunday morning she was coughing, congested, and her breathing was very labored. Exactly like she was on Easter Sunday. We took her to a local clinic and all that doctor said was that she had an ear infection and prescribed us an antibiotic.

As yesterday went on, Leah's breathing seemed to be getting worse and she was exhausted. She barely talked, didn't eat, didn't play, and basically wanted to lay around on the floor or in her bed. As always, her good buddy Dodge kept her company when he could. Leah's 2 year old checkup was scheduled for Monday morning (today) and we tried to hold out until then but by 6pm last night, Momma broke down crying at Leah's condition and off to the ER we all went!

Leah received two breathing treatments, a steroid, and a chest x-ray. They discharged us around 10pm and Leah was already feeling a gazillion times better. Talking to the doctor and nurse, trying to walk away (!), etc. We sort of feel like we should have just gone to the ER in the first place since they knew exactly what to do and it worked 3 weeks ago. Live and learn. Our nurse was wonderful too - she made a glove balloon for Leah and sang the Elmo theme. ;)

Anyhow, after all this, Momma is convinced Leah is experiencing asthma. We've got the family history and all of Leah's symptoms are extremely similar to her experiences as a kid. Thankfully, at this morning's checkup, Leah's pediatrician agreed with Momma and said, "Two strikes and you're out, Leah." Basically, if a child has two wheezing episodes like this in one season (let alone within one month!), then it's usually asthma. With one wheezing episode, they don't want to diagnose asthma because it can be completely isolated to one illness and the child may never wheeze again. But, this is obviously not the case with Leah, and pretty much what Momma had suspected back at Easter.

We've got a nebulizer now and Leah will have to use it everyday, in order to try to prevent any further wheezing episodes when sick. She's got a couple silly masks that attach to it, so we're hoping to make a fun game out of it. We are just so thankful that the pediatrician agreed and gave us the tools to help her now.

TWO!

OK, so we're not the greatest at keeping this blog updated since this is "old" news, but yes, our girl is two! :)

She had a wonderful birthday, full of balloons, yummy food, great company, bunches of fun presents, and gorgeous weather. What more could a little girl ask for?

Spring is in full force here in the South, and thankfully, the pollen count has gone way down, so Leah has been enjoying a ton of time outdoors. She is absolutely fascinated by the soft, fuzzy caterpillars that are inching all over the place. She calls them "puh-puhs" and will watch them for hours if you let her. Leah even let Momma put one on her arm and she loved it. :)

Leah's other new love is her sandbox. Last year, we only filled it with water even though it has two sides and can double as both a pool and sandbox. However, because this girl loves to play in the dirt, sand seemed like a logical (and cleaner!) idea. We picked some up on Saturday and Leah played for hours. She fought to come inside for dinner, and even afterwards, we stayed outside until 8:30 so she could continue playing. Honestly, I think the only reason she agreed to come inside is because it was getting dark and harder to see. Looks like she's gonna be a beach-loving gal just like her mom - yay!

YouTube Addiction

Yes, Leah is currently exploring the wonder that is YouTube. What does she watch? You guessed it - The Wiggles!

There are a ton of wiggly videos out there, and seeing as how we only have two of their DVDs, Leah is in search of new material. And she's getting acquainted with Greg, the former yellow Wiggle. As you may have guessed, Leah can be quite picky about which videos she wants to watch at any given moment. She has a fairly short attention span and is usually ready to switch to another video while in the middle of the current one. If all else fails, and she becomes completely bored of The Wiggles, she resorts quite happily to watching videos of herself that have been uploaded to the computer. But watch home movies on the TV? No! Are you silly? The TV is for Barney. ;)

Leah just spent her first full week at home with Momma. It was pretty lovely, really. The weather cooperated, so a good deal of time was spent outdoors. Dodge had to be taken to the vet on Friday (and that's a whole other story!) so a little adventure ensued. Leah was lucky enough to be given a couple lollipops, so she barely noticed that Dodge was bumping into her and generally acting like, well, like himself.

As Leah approaches her second birthday, she is talking in LOTS of two-word sentences. It's exciting! For a couple weeks, she would do it here and there, but now, this skill is in full force! Some sample phrases include: "Baby cry", "Daddy work", "Doggie ball", and "Momma sit". It is so amazing to see her putting thoughts together and coming up with explanations for everything. I think I speak for Daddy too when I say we are SO thankful to have reached this big communication boom!

One, Two Punch

After being sick for over a week, Leah saw the doctor again on Monday only to find out that she has a sinus infection AND a double ear infection. Yikes!

Thankfully, she's on antibiotics now and already seems to be perking up and acting more like her usual self. For several days last week, she was lethargic, whiny, and miserable. Fun times. Definitely the worst illness we've seen her experience yet. Momma caught the same cold, and was out of commission for much of Saturday. It seemed to work out OK, as Daddy was Leah's favorite person all weekend long! She loves taking him by the hand, or even putting him in a headlock, and dragging him around wherever she sees fit. And if you try to interrupt their Daddy/Daughter time, look out. Leah will wave you off without a second thought.

We expect Daddy to come down with this cold any day now. ;)

Snow in the South

We received approximately 4 inches of snow on Friday! It may not have been Leah's "first snowfall", since we had that freak 8 inches last March, but it was definitely the first one she could explore and experience. Leah was fascinated! As she walked around in the snow, she was a little chatterbox. One can only guess what she was saying, but clearly she was enjoying herself and had a great deal to comment on.

Since it's been entirely too long since we've updated the blog, here's what else is new with our little monkey:

--Her vocabulary is growing every week. She may not say words perfectly, but she certainly tries to say just about anything you ask her. She can say between 50-100 words, though she's not quite at the point of stringing 2 or more words together yet.

--She IS a monkey! She has mastered climbing up onto the couch, climbing onto the chair in her bedroom, and walking up the deck stairs ALL by herself - no help from Momma or Daddy.

--Her newest obsession is The Wiggles: 

They're corny but actually a lot more fun to watch than Barney. Momma & Daddy even sing and dance to their DVDs. ;) Her favorite song right now seems to be "Dr. Knickerbocker", and she even tries to imitate the moves.

--Leah LOVES to take a bath. She has bunches of bath toys (mostly animals/fish) that she likes to line up along the edge of the tub and speak to. It's hysterical. She could talk to them for hours, and often protests when she must be taken out of the bathtub. Hey, at least the girl is clean.

--She's becoming a pro at using her spoon and fork and eating WITHOUT MAKING A MESS! It's amazing. Yeah, sometimes the bib doesn't quite catch everything or her face is a little saucy, but for the most part, she does a great job. Not much clean-up on her hands, unless it's something sticky like maple syrup. Momma is impressed (and glad).

Hard to believe Leah's second birthday is just around the corner! She's becoming such a big girl. :)

Forget New Year's Resolution

The time to make changes for the better is when you find yourself with a two-and-a-half foot tall shadow.

While feeding the dogs peanut-butter, Leah watched Dodge attentively and once done, she asked him, "Was. It. Good." Just like her momma and daddy say almost nightly to the dogs after dinner. She said it. We both heard it. Uh oh.

So its time to take stock of some of our lesser habits. The ones we don't want her to pick up and demonstrate at daycare, pre-school, a friend's house, or (lets hope not) in front of child services someday.

1. Burping. That's how we say it was good.
2. Eating ice cream during the Biggest Loser.
3. Slapping. This house is like a professional baseball team with the random acts of way-to-go slappery. The dogs get it, the parents get it. If only it actually translated into being good at sports.
4. Nothing. Imagine sitting in front of the tv for hours. Doing nothing, saying nothing, learning nothing, gaining nothing but a wider load.
5. Use of certain words. However this conflicts directly with number 4. If dad attempts to actually do something, a less favorable word will almost certainly escape his lips at some time.

These resolutions may actually last beyond March, as those little eyes are always watching. That little, growing brain is always soaking it all up. We have to be careful about everything. No more inappropriate scratching. No more wind-breaking. No more watching....Oh no! She's here. She's looking at me. . .