Ellis at 9 months

Ok...so I'm way late on this since Ellis turned 10 months old 3 days ago. I swear I just blinked and the month went away. Ellis has had a busy month growing and developing!

• She is gaining weight and growing, but her weight and length stats vary from the pediatrician and the GI. At the peds, she weighed 14 lbs 14.5 oz and was 26 in. A week later, she was 15 lbs 6 oz and 27.5 in. So she's somewhere in that range, but at both offices she had gained and grown and that is all that matters.
• She learned to crawl, and she is so proud of herself. She wants to explore the whole house on her hands and knees.
• She can wave bye-bye. She actually does it facing out like adults do instead of the usual facing toward herself like most babies start off doing.
• She learned to clap and enjoys playing Pat-a-Cake.
• She hums when she eats throughout the whole meal.
• She has started to warm up to other people. She will actually reach out and go to a select few people from me! To top that, she let one of our youth walk around and hold her while I was near her. I was shocked! However, when she's sleepy, she wants only me.
• She still loves to jibber jabber. Boy, will we be in trouble when she can say actual words. She's going to talk our ears off.
• She can pull up to her knees. She hasn't figured out how to pull up to a standing position but she's working on it.
• She will repeat "dada" after us, but I don't think she has made the connection of calling Paul "dada."
• She can have a temper. If you take something from her that she is very interested in, she will let you know that she is not happy with you.
• She and Parker have begun to play with each other. She will follow him and he will lead her to his room or somewhere to play. They will "talk" to each other. She will laugh at Parker.
• She is more sensitive to tastes and textures than I remember Parker being. She doesn't like her food to have little chunks in them, and when I gave her cinnamon in her applesauce, she didn't seem impressed. I hope that this doesn't mean she's going to be a picky eater.
• She's getting close to having two teeth. That second tooth is just waiting to break through the surface.
• She began picking up stuff with he pincers. She loves eating puffs. When she gets some more teeth she will be able to eat some table food.
•  She had her first trip to the beach. I'll post pictures sometime although I don't have many of her on the beach because she didn't like it.
• I celebrated my first mother's day as a mother of two thanks to her.

She is a sweet girl and generally a happy baby. She has brought so much joy to our family. I love watching her grow and develop (although I have to admit that it makes me sad that she will be one in 2 months). I can't wait to see the person she becomes. My prayer is that she will live her life for Jesus Christ.

Mr. Fix-it to the Rescue

While walking along on plastic railroad ties type thingies that hold in the sand at our local playground, Parker stopped when he came to one that was cracked opened.

Parker: It broke.
Me: Yes it is broken.
Parker: Daddy fix.
Me: Do you think Daddy can fix anything?
Parker: uh huh (with a cute little head nod that made him look like a bobble head doll)

After Paul fixed Parker's overhead light in his room which hadn't been working for months, Parker thinks that Paul can fix anything that is broken. I think it is so sweet that he has that confidence in his Daddy.

It makes me think about my own faith and trust in God, my heavenly father. God certainly has the power and authority to fix any problem I face. Of course, it is not always in my best interest for God to fix all the problems I face and tie them up in a nice, neat package. Problems, trials, difficult situations, and pain all remind me that this world is not my home. When I face troubles, I have to put my complete trust in God for Him to carry me through in a way that brings Him glory. He is my Mr. Fix-it; although most of the time, He is Mr. Fix-me.

Ellis at 8 Months

I figured I better right this post now since Ellis will be 9 months old in 3 days.  I usually do this post at the beginning of the month. I had planned on taking some more pictures of Ellis to go along with this post and I never got around to it so this post got pushed back too.So, without further ado here's what is going on with Ellis at 8 months.

• Stats: 13 lbs 12.5 oz, 25 inches, and 16.5 inches head circumference. After 1 week of nursing her every 2 to 3 hours and filling her up with solids, she had gained 8 ounces. Then, when we went to the GI doctor she was almost 15 lbs but that was with a wet diaper.
• Although she isn't crawling, she can sure make her way around the room. She rolls all over, turns herself around, and does this kinda sorta army crawl thing.
• You can tell she really wants to be mobile. She's working on getting on her hands and knees. Sometimes she lays on her belly and kicks her legs and arms in and out like that's going to magically pump her body across the room.
• Her teeth are getting very close to poking through her gums so she's chewing on everything.
• She still loves to jibber jabber and she loves to squeal.
• Parker really makes her laugh. It's so cute!
• When she gets mad, one of her veins in her head bulges out and her birth mark on the back of her head gets really red.
• She is still a mama's girl.
• She is a good eater. She loves carrots, sweet potatoes, apple sauce, mangos, and pears to name some.
• She loves to sit up and play and is working on transitioning from sitting up to laying on her belly. She can do it but it takes her a little bit of work to do it. She ends up with one leg straight out and one leg bent back. I think she looks like a cheerleader.
• She loves to sleep on her side. Sometimes she sleeps on her belly, but has her legs turned to the side so it's like half and half.
• She's becoming more social, but she's a little cautious to give a smile to someone other than family talking to her. Strangers can still send her to tears if they approach her in a way that she is not comfortable with.
• She's very good at independent play. She will have her moments though when she's in a clingy mood. Those are the days I get little done except at nap time.
• She's going to end up being a tough little girl. Parker will roll her around on the floor, try to pick her up, hug squish her, and give her kisses that seem almost inappropriate for brother and sister (I've been trying to explain to Parker that mommies and daddies kiss differently than others.)
• Ellis gives some good open mouth slobbery kisses. They are quite sweet but very wet.
• She continues to wedge herself deeper and deeper in our hearts. I don't know how she does it since I love her so much, but my love for her continues to grow and grow.

Please continue to pray that Ellis will continue to grow by leaps and bounds. So far, the doctors seem to think that the cause of her failure to thrive was lack of calories. We have an appointment with and endocrinologest (sp?) tomorrow since she has some cousins with a disorder of that nature. However, it would be almost impossible for her to have the same thing although I guess there's a possibility that there could be something related. I will also take her for her 9 month check up for them to monitor her growth. We are praying that she is growing and will soon catch up to what she needs to be.

Frugal Friday- Save the ends

I'm sorry that I haven't posted a Frugal Friday tip for the past two weeks. I wasn't feeling well one week and we were at Disney on Ice the next week. I really got to start doing these posts ahead of time and have them scheduled to post automatically on Friday. But that requires a little planning and I haven't been very good about that lately.

Anyway...back to the tip for today. Today's tip is to save the ends. I like to save the usually uneaten ends of a loaf of bread to make bread crumbs. When we finish a loaf of bread, I just put the ends in a bag in the freezer. When I have enough saved up, I grind them down to fluffy little bits of bread crumbs in the food processor and store them in an old bread crumb container (from when I bought bread crumbs) and put them back into the freezer. I actually like these bread crumbs better than the store bought kind because the texture is better. Doing this saves in two waves: you're not throwing away any bread and you don't have to buy any bread crumbs. I'm sure it would also be possible to use bread ends to make other recipes like breakfast casseroles too, but I rarely make them so it's breadcrumbs for me.

I also save the ends of onions, carrots, and celery and the carrot shavings and put them into a bag in the freezer. When I buy a whole chicken or split breasts, I will poach the chicken. Then, I use the bones and the ends of the onions, carrots, and celery to make stock. Again, I'm saving what I would usually throw away to make something else that I would usually buy. Plus, I think my homemade stock is better than store bought because I can season it the way I like it. Yum! Yum!

While we are talking about saving the ends, you can also save vegetable and fruit peelings, egg shells, and coffee grounds to use for compost. That way you can make less landfill trash and help out your garden.

It's amazing how what would usually be waste can be put to good use with a little bit of frugal thinking.

Good News!

Ellis had a follow up doctor visit to check her weight and get the results of the lab work. She had gained 8 ounces in a week. Also, all the lab work was normal. The doctor said that it doesn't appear there is anything major wrong with her. We still have appointments with a pediatric GI and endocrynologist in order to make sure there is nothing further wrong that could be causing her failure to thrive. The GI will also be able to help us figure out how to help her gain weight and grow.

We are so thankful to God for this blessing of good news. We are grateful for all the people who prayed for us. Please continue to pray that Ellis continues to grow and gain weight.

Frugal Friday-Paper Towels

Paper towels are quite handy when it comes to messes and drying hands, but they are consumable. You use them and they go into the trash. Of course you can get good deals on paper towels by buying them on sale and with a coupon. However, I got tired of seeing so much paper towels being used or barely used, then thrown away (my husband was the worst when it came to paper towel use). My solution to save money on paper towels and reduce our use was to hide them. That's right I hide our paper towels. Now, I'm not talking about the hiding like you would do for an Easter egg. I simply put them in the cabinet under the sink-  out of sight, out of mind. I have found that having to go through more of an effort to get the paper towel has forced us to use towels and wash cloths when appropriate. Now, we only use paper towels when it is a paper towel only kind of job. I bought about three big things of paper towels when they were on sale when we first moved here almost 10 months ago and I still haven't used them all. In fact, I won't need to buy paper towels for some time.
So, if you want to save some money on paper towels, put them in a place where it takes more effort to get to. Also, evaluate the "job" you are using them for. Think to yourself, "can I use something reusable instead?" Hiding paper towels can save you money and make less waste in the landfills. It's a win win to me!

Gotta get these feelings out

Yesterday, I took Ellis for her 8 month check up. I was already a little nervous about the visit because I had taken her 5 days before for sickness and she still weighed the same. She weighed the same as she did at her 4 month check up and her 6 month check up. I was concerned at the 6 month check up but the doctor wasn't concerned then because that can be a normal thing but now that after another two months of the same they are concerned. And so am I. She's actually dropped about an ounce. Her length and head circumference hasn't changed either. Now, we are trying to figure out why she is failing to thrive. The doctor ordered all kinds of blood test for blood chemistry, celiac disease, and even cystic fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis! That one freaks me out the most. We have to meet with a pediatric gastroenterologist and a pediatric endycronologist. And if all that doesn't give answers we will see a pediatric cardiologist. The possibilities of what's causing her failure to thrive range from simple to scary. Of course, as a mama it's hard not to think of the worse. It's so hard not to worry. I have to admit that I had a hard time this morning. I couldn't quit thinking about worse case senario. The fears were just pouring from my mind. I know that God is in control. I know that He created Ellis exactly how He planned for her. I know that whatever we face He can handle. But that doesn't mean I'm not allowed to feel pain. I just kept praying for God to overcome my fears because I couldn't do it.

The doctor wanted me to nurse Ellis at least every 3 hours during the day and increase her solid intake if Ellis would tolerate it. I feel like I have been stuffing her full today. I've been nursing her around every 2 1/2 hours and feeding her as much solids as she would take. We go back to the doctor on Monday to see if she gains any weight from doing this. If she has that will be great but a part of me will feel like this is all my fault. What if everything comes back normal and the whole reason she hasn't grown is because she hasn't eaten enough? Don't get me wrong. I would be so thankful for such an easy solution and compared to the other possibilities this is the best one. But I would still feel like such a failure. How could I have missed her signals that she needed to eat more? She doesn't really cry when she is hungry. I just always end up feeding her when she wakes up. She doesn't eat very long when she eats. It makes me wonder if she is getting the fattening hind milk. Is there something wrong with my milk? Am I producing enough? It is hurtful to think that my milk may not be good enough. This is my second time nursing a child. I nursed Parker for a whole year and he was always around the 95th percentile. She wouldn't even take solid food until a month ago, actually more like 3 weeks ago. I want to be able to breastfeed my child for a whole year, but I want to do what's best for her. If switching to formula is what is best then that is what we will do. But at this point, she refuses to take a bottle. So what am I to do? I know I'm speculating a lot when it will take some time to get some answers, but like the title says I gotta get these feelings out.