our little angel

our little angel

Monday, April 30, 2012

5 months old!

Today Hailey turns 5 months! I can't beleive how fast the time went..it's almost half a year! So much has happened since my last blog, which is why it's been a while. We flew to NB on the 20th and are still here until May 20th.  The flight went good, she slept for the majority of the time and on the descent of the final flight she started to scream which I'm guessing was because her ears were bothering her. It was a small plain so there was a lot of pressure coming down.
The time change was the biggest problem for Hailey. With 4 hours difference, she was napping at weird hours and was very fidgety at night. She has now adjusted though and is doing good. We switched her to formula while we're here. There are a few different reasons why which I don't really feel like getting into since it caused so much of a debate last time I mentioned the word formula..like it was a curse word or something! Let's just say I have justifyable reasons AND she started biting on me. With 5 full months of breastfeeding, I think she got a great start anyhow:) She is doing sooooooo much better with life, which brings me to question, is it because of the change to formula or just her body getting used to digestion. You can't tell for sure but I don't want to question it haha.
On Saturday, we got her ears pierced..another contraversial topic. The way I see it is that she will probably want them done later on and I hear of so many kids who are either too scared or actually stop after they get one side done. I don't know of any woman or girl who hates that their mother got their ears pierced when they were babies anyway. On the plus side, she's young enough not to pick at them. It went pretty well. The woman was very professional. Hailey cried obviously, but after a couple minutes of cuddles in my arms she forgot all about it! They look great now too, no redness or anything :)
The rest of the time, we have been busy visiting family including her great great grandmother. Yes, that is 5 generations, however, my grandmother is no longer with us. Other than that, she is getting spoiled rotten and we plan on going for a few more walks this week and go to the park. Here are a few pictures to enjoy :)
                                                                            5 months
                                                                           5 generations
5 month stats:
weight: 15.2 pounds
height: 25 inch
new discoveries: holds feet, brings knees up while laying on tummy, swings arms when she wants us to sing!

Monday, April 16, 2012

Friday, April 13, 2012

Mom, I got this!

We had Hailey's 4 month immunizations today and she handled it like a pro! After all she's been through, these tiny needles were nothing! I gave her a bit of baby tylenol before hand..and I have no shame in it. We did it last time and after having a community health nurse ask ME if I had tylenol to give to her before hand (without me even brining it up), confirmed that it is the right choice for Hailey and I. It's not for "avoiding pain" but simply an aid in avoiding a fever. (Sort of like how we get some people to take an Advil before getting a dental procedure done.) It's not necessary but it's not harmful either..unless of course there's an allergy to it. That being said, I would rather pre medicate and have less of a chance to deal with a huge fever afterwards.
Ok, enough of that rant. I shouldn't have to justify my parenting style/techniques anyway, after all, there is no right or wrong way, but the one way that works for you :)
That aside, Hailey had a "wine up" cry as I call them where she is about to start bawling but then that was it. She barely had any cry at all! It was amazing! I quickly realized that I wasn't nervous or worked up at all, coincidence? I think not! It's true that they feed off of our emotions and that was very apparent today when I had no tears, not even a lump in my throat and Hailey was absolutely fine! She even had me laughing afterwards! On the walk home, she was in her stroller observing her hand! She kept rotating it and staring at it intently like she just discovered something remarkable! Now, she is fast asleep. I love her especially when she is a rockstar like today!

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Rainy day



Today was a little boring as it was kind of a rainy day out. We started off with a walk which she was awake and just chilling in her stroller. When we got home a special package arrived from her nana and papa. An activity jumper! (the kind that rotates too) I was so excited. I immediately started putting it together which was a pain in the bum but I won't get into that. I was so anxious to get Hailey in it that it was a bit of a disappointment when she was a tad too short :( She still seemed to like it once I bounced it for her a bit.












After that excitement she napped for a bit and then I gave her and I a little pedicure with matching polish hehe. For those who will get all "woah nail polish on a a baby???", don't freak out it's not toxic and it's the best time since she doesn't put her feet in her mouth! Oh having a girl is so much fun! Here's her finished product (you don't need to see mine lol)


Monday, April 9, 2012

Easter long weekend!


I think that I couldn't have asked for a better holiday weekend! Not only was Rob off all weekend, but Hailey was so good! Normally, Rob and I would jet out of the city for Easter long weekend, and we were even contemplating it this year with Hailey. Instead we decided that it just makes things too busy and we would rather spend quality time hanging out around home and go for drives and spend time at the parks :)
It was such a good decision on our part! The weather was beautiful (sunny all weekend and up to +15) and Hailey was able to see the Easter bunny! She was having some difficulty sleeping all week (probably gas) but this weekend she was back to her good sleeping schedule (thank God)
Friday, we went for a drive to Alice Lake and just past Whistler. Saturday, we spent time downtown. We went to the conservatory and walked around the park there. Hailey seemed to have really enjoyed herself. Sunday, we opened gifts with her and went to see the Easter bunny at the Quay. Monday, we went downtown and walked along the sea wall by False Creek. She seems much more portable now that I don't mind feeding her in public! It makes life a little more enjoyable at the moment haha. I am glad she had a good weekend cause she has been having quite a rough go and it's nice to see her happy :)



Wednesday, April 4, 2012

I'm a cutie and I know it!


I love sunny weather! It gets me in such a good mood! I think Hailey likes it too :)
So today she learned something new! She actually rolled over from back to front! Yay Hailey :) Since turning 4 months, she has learned so much its freaking me out! So far she can amuse herself with her toys, sing or speak (whatever that adorable sound she makes is), roll from front to back, hit her musical toy on her playmat, blow spit bubbles (although she's been doing that for a while now), stand firmly on her feet with just holding my hands, roll from back to front and ALMOST sitting on her own! (still working on the balance) Oh and she also tries to get her knees under her like in the crawling position..Boy I think I will have my work cut out for me faster than I expected lol
She also recognizes her nana and papas voice even though they are all the way in the maritimes :)
Oh Hailey you are growing so fast!

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

A birth story



Today was extremely uneventful! It was raining most of the day so we hung out inside, read some books, played with toys and I cleaned up the place a bit. Totally boring. So I decided that since I started this blog pretty much 3 months after her birth, I am going to back track a bit and share how her birth went!
So November 27th 2011, I felt sort of crampy (which I had been feeling through out the pregnancy) but it woke me up in the middle of the night and there was a bit of bleeding. That sort of freaked me out a bit since there was still 2.5 weeks until my due date, but also late enough that it could be labour starting. So we went to the hospital. They monitored me and sent me home since I was only dilated 2-3 cm and my cramps were very mild and irregular. The whole next day I seriously thought I was going to be back at the hospital and giving birth. The doctor even told me she was expecting to see me back there. My cramps turned into contractions that were becoming regular and closer together but tolerable. (To me, I didn't know the level of pain I would be in cause they were painful but tolerable) We went back to the hospital. They told me I hadn't dilated anymore and that if I could handle the contractions that I could go home until they got worse, but that I should go to see my OBGYN to get my cervix checked again the next morning.
That night I was up all night at home. The next morning, tired but still ok, we went to the OBGYN and she checked my cervix and I went up to 4 cm. She told me that by that night I would probably be in the hospital...which was the case! Not because I was ready to deliver but because I had gotten pretty tired of the contractions, since they had been going on for a while at this point. So they kept me there for the night but I STILL wasn't dilating. That night was the worse, mainly because I KNEW I wasn't dilating but the contractions were getting worse. If I knew that things were progressing, I may have been able to handle them more. So, with that thought in my mind, I asked for Nitrous Oxide..which did NOTTA. It helped me relax to sleep a bit but, they then gave me a morphine shot to get me through the night so I could sleep to build reserve my energy needed for second stage labour.
The next day, I nearly bawled when I hadn't dilated more! The doctor at this point decided to induce me since I had been in labour for quite some time. This was at around 9 am. The pain went from 0-100 in no time, but I hung on! I really really wanted to do this naturally. So a few hours pass and the pain got worse and worse, but I just kept focusing on breathing. Then came the most painful cervix check to date, and what was most painful was the fact that I still wasn't dilating as fast as I thought, I think I had dilated 1 cm or something like that. So I cried and said I want the epidural then. At this point, I was so tired of having contractions, and not have slept very much in the past few nights, I was just exhausted and didn't care anymore about my original birth plan! Again, if I knew there was great progress, I probably could have made it, but to find out all that time and only 1 cm difference was very discouraging!
The epidural was the best decision I have ever made! It kicked in about 10 min after and it allowed me to sleep for a few hours so I could be ready to push later which is so important. (To be well rested that is) It was worth the rest too because she came out in less than an hour of pushing! She was born at 6:44 pm :)
Oh and the entire time, Rob had his gopro cam going so we actually have a time lapse of the entire labour/birth.
Did the anesthesiologist ever get me good haha. After 2 hours post birth, I should have been ok to get up on my feet, but nope. The nurse was helping me get off the bed to transfer to a wheelchair and I fell. Wow, it was the strangest feeling to not have any sensation. I could move my legs while I was lying on the bed, but I didn't know when my foot was touching the floor!
My recovery was quite good I think. Hailey had a bit of jaundice but didn't need the light, we just had to make sure she ate regularly since it made her sleepy.
It was definitely a unique and amazing experience!

Monday, April 2, 2012

Sleep training FAIL!

Oh poor poor baby! I will never put her through that again. We decided last night since she is 4 months and Rob is done his "on set" work to try and train her to fall asleep in her crib on her own. We chose the "ferber" method which is letting her cry for 5 min, go in and comfort her, then 10 min, comfort, then 15 min, and then keep it at max 15 min for the rest of the night. Well, let me tell you, that is NOT the method that will be working with Miss Hailey Bannister!
The first 5 min were good, we put her to bed at her normal 7:30 starting to get sleepy time. She was sort of sucking on her hand and talking to herself then began to cry. After I went in to comfort her she stopped crying and I left. The next 10 min were REALLY long, she cried and cried but by the end of the 10 min her cries sort of sounded less intense so I actually thought it was going to work! So Rob goes in after the 10 min and she starts WAILING! Then I hear Rob say "OMG" so I run in and she literally cried to the point of throwing up and starting to choke on it. I never felt so bad! I mean I've had my share of hearing her cry for her needles and scan but this was horrible since it was our decision. She then sobbed while I held her for quite a while. Let me tell you, so many people swear by this method but I think Hailey is far too stubborn for this. My pediatrician even wanted us to let her "cry it out", as if, this would never have worked.
Anyway, after she fell asleep in my arms, I transferred her to her crib where she slept her usual time (from 8:30 -12 am) and then when I fed her at this point she seemed sort of congested. I wasn't sure if this was left over phlegm from crying or if she caught my cold, but whatever it was I decided she had a hard enough night and I let her crash with me for the rest of the night!
Aside from that, she has settled into a pretty consistent routine where she naps 2-3 times a day and sleeps from around 7:30/8 until about 7 am, (waking up a couple times at night).
So that is my story on sleep training. I am totally ok with rocking/shhing her to sleep even if it means building a habit that way. After all, they are only babies for so long!