Great Toddler Invention

It is no secret to any mother that babies and toddlers LOVE Cheerios. For you new mom's, they are, seriously, like Baby Crack. They can't get enough of this bland tasting cereal and Kyra is no different.

We keep Kyra's crack stash in a zip-lock bag in my purse/diaper bag. It is handy, convenient, and we can take it anywhere and everywhere. "What's that Kyra? You want to scream and throw a tantrum for no apparent reason in the middle of the store? Here, have some Cheerios." Yes, folks, Cheerios. It works every time.

The problem is, the zip-lock bag worked great when we could hand feed it to her and it wouldn't make that big of a mess. Now that Little Miss Independent wants to not only feed herself, but hold the bag too, this zip lock bag just isn't doing the job. This wouldn't be such a problem if Kyra understood the concept of gravity. When the bag gets turned upside down, there are no more Cheerios to tame the monster with.

Thus I have been searching for the better part of the week for this Cheerio/Baby Crack holder contraption. I have looked all over our little town to find this stupid cup. Wanna know where I finally found it? Either one of the local Wal-Marts? No. They had some other snack holding contraption that was worthless, and did not hold in the crack stash when Kyra tipped it over. Did I find it at Target? Um, nope. Not there either. Same cheap crap that Wal-Mart carried. Only in Target, they'll charge you a dollar more for it! I had to venture to Babies R Us. The one baby store I hate to go into. Why do I hate this store? Because it is so damn convenient and there are thousands of oh-so-adorable clothes that Kyra really doesn't need, but I have the will power of an ant when it comes to baby clothes.

So yes, there is my major find for the week. I am loving it right now. Kyra is happy. She has her crack, she can feed her self, and she can hold the container too. This is a wonderful invention.

Oh, and Jeremy will be happy to hear I went into Babies R Us, picked out several oh-so-cute outfits, stood in a long line, and before I made it to the cashier, decided I'd wait until he goes out on his next underway to treat Kyra (and myself) to some new, cute, toddler sized clothes.

Kyra's New Tricks

She's quietly sitting on the floor in her room thumbing through a book Santa put in her stalking. It's The Wheels On the Bus, it has little spinner things between the pages that makes the picture she's looking at change. She has figured out how to finger the spinners around and amuse herself. I am quite impressed! It didn't take her long, but she's got the book spinner thingies figured out.

Kyra is a book lover. She got lots of books for Christmas, and I'm thankful for that. For a while she was really, really into those touchy feely books. You know, the kind that has different fabrics and textures for the kids to finger and feel. But now she's a lover of all books. Pictures or not. She pulls all the books off from her shelves and piles them in her lap and around her, thumbing through all the pages.

Her other new discovery this week is figuring out that we put her sippy cup in the refrigerator when she's not using it. We don't let her walk around with it... we want to teach her early that food and drink are to be had at the table, not while you play. So when she's finished with her sippy, we put it in the fridge to keep it cold. Now that she knows where we keep the goods, she runs to the fridge and tries with all her might to open it. She fusses, squeals, and pulls until her little fingers turn white, or until the hubby or I notice and retrieve the sippy for her.

My baby, learning new things every day. Man am I amazed by her.

Birthday/In-Laws/Christmas

It has been one busy week for me and my family. Please forgive my absence and neglect to you all. I haven't forgot, I just chose to catch my breath rather then catch you guys up. So, on with the show.

The in-laws flew through like a hurricane and spoiled Kyra only the way a grandparent can. They showered her with all the love and attention she could possible stand. Picked her up and carried her as if she were a little girl with no legs, and now she's paying the price for it because my husband and I are mean, mean parents who make her walk. It was a lovely visit that was too short.

For my birthday, I got lots of well wishes and I thank you all! I was spoiled with new boots from the hubby, a charm bracelet and a check for some new clothes from the mommy, another check for what ever I please from Granma, a bouquet of fruit from Joelle and her family, and a Best Buy Gift certificate from my sister. To top it all off, Jer made my chocolate cake from scratch. Frosting and all! That's right ladies, he can cook! And he's all mine! See, I told you I was spoiled for my Birthday! The only down side was that I had class that night. All in all, it was a fabulous day for me.

On to Christmas. Santa surprised Jeremy and Kyra each with a sled, what Santa forgot to leave was some snow to use the sleds. Jeremy was dressed with style, Kyra and I got him lots of new clothes. I got a nifty new digital camera! Now, for those pictures that would be cute just to be "see what you're daughter did" but I was too picky to waste a roll of film with, I can now capture them just long enough to show, post, then delete with now harm done.

Kyra made bank this Christmas. She's in love with the new pillow and case Jer and I got her. She bear hugged it into the ground when she got it opened, and until we put it away in her crib, she would carry it around so she could plop down on it and lay anywhere she wanted. Her favorite present is the Cinderella Lego set Rachel, Joelle and Sean got her. She hauls this thing everywhere! I think the coolest present Kyra got was a Veggie Tales CD from Rachel's Grandma. It sings songs and has her name in with the songs, and its all kinds of personalized. I didn't know these things existed, but how cool are they!

All in all, we had a wonderful Holiday Season. It came it with a roar and left a disaster in it's wake. All the preparation, all the mess, all the fuss; it was all worth the work when we got to spend the day with friends and family. May the New Year bring and equally happy time.

Well, I have many, many more photos to show you over on the side bar. Click the new Flickr Photos for Christmas 2006. Hope everyone else had a very Merry Holiday!

*remember to click the "view slideshow" that's in tiny print on the side of the flickr page so see all the pictures*

Five Things You Don't Know About Me

Heather tagged me to do this meme. It was actually difficult to come up with something slightly creative. But I thought, and typed, and deleted because it was lame, and typed some more. Here is the final results...


1. I am super, super, protective over Kyra. Not in the way that most mom's are. I'm not afraid of her getting hurt, the girl is a bruiser. Always has a new bruise to show off. I'm afraid to let someone else watch her. Joelle is about the only person, other then Jeremy, that I (nearly) completely trust. And even then, I often wonder how Kyra is doing and if whoever is keeping her is doing a good enough job. I thought I could trust my own mother, until she fed Kyra something I didn't want her to eat, and didn't put her in bed at 7 and keep her there. She's ruined my trust with that one. Now, the in laws are trying to pay Jer and I to go out on a date and leave Kyra with them. Um, ya, no. If I can't trust my own mother, I'm not trusting you either. I know, a little over bearing and crazy right?

2. I don't eat meat. Its not that I have anything against it. I'm all for the natural process of the food chain. I just don't like it. Some people aren't too particular with their veggies, I don't like dead carcass.

3. I am usually sorely misunderstood. I have a dark/mean sense of humor. I often crack mean jokes, meaning them to lighten a situation or just be funny, but for those who don't know me all that well just think I'm a jerk.

4. I am terrified of strangers. It goes back to the whole misunderstood thing. I don't like people to dislike or think poorly of me, so if you're a stranger I probably won't make many jokes. Instead, I'll freeze up, not talk, meekly smile, and answer quick short answers. For this I'm often though to be a b*tch rather then being shy. It completely messes with my confidence.

5. I am a very good artist who enjoys sitting on her talent. I took art in high school because I thought it would be an easy class. Turns out I had some talent. I don't do any work anymore. I'm too lazy.

Cootie Free!

That's right, Kyra is, among other things, EATING, DRINKING, playing, fussing, and all around acting completely normal! Hip hip hooray! As of yesterday, she was still on her hunger strike. But today has turned over a whole new leaf. And it couldn't come at a better moment. I think I was nearly about to go stir crazy being cooped up, and mostly alone, in this house with a sick child. It was the farthest thing from a vacation, and after all this... I think I deserve one.

With that said, I am seriously behind on my Christmas shopping and need to get it done before the in laws come in tonight.

Not The Smartest Move

Jeremy decided last night that he was going to go Christmas shopping today. With Kyra. Who is still not quite up to par.

I think he is in this whole denial thing that Kyra might still be ill and contagious. She's happy, she looks healthy, she only poo'd once yesterday and it was only kinda yucky. (as opposed to 10 times and out right gross) But, the child still isn't all that fond of eating and drinking.

Yesterday we (read: I) got her to eat a small breakfast, a morning snack and a 2 1/2 fish sticks for dinner. She also up'd her fluid intake to about 25 ounces of milk.

Improvement, right? Still not well enough that I'd trust to take her out in public and not get the rest of the town infected with her cooties. Jeremy, on the other hand, sees this as a fun opportunity to spend time with Kyra and give me some much needed time to myself. Thoughtful. I'll give him that.

So, to those of you who live in my town and happen to know my family, if you see the husband and the kiddo around today, turn the other direction and run. Neither one of them are cootie free yet.

Is That the Light I See?

She has ate breakfast and some dried cranberries for a snack. She has also drank (almost) 15 ounces of milk. And it's only 10 o'clock.

On top of that good news, the husband has rose from the brinks of death and cleaned the downstairs today!

I think this calls for a celebration! Well, lets wait on that celebration until closer to the end of the day... or, maybe, until we know Kyra's pneumonia and fluid in her ear has both dried up.

Either way, I think the light I see at might be the end of the tunnel. Thank God.

The Saga Continues

Kyra is finally taking very small amounts of fluids. I think I've gotten (maybe, if I was lucky) 20oz of fluid in her today. Much better then nothing, but still not enough to sustain her much longer, being that she still has the constant squirts.

Her follow up appointment today has found as follows:
1) She's still sick with this bug, and apparently she's trying to keep it that way by not eating or drinking. Any advice on how to solve this is welcomed. Forcing her is doing no good as she clinches her teeth and what little you do get in her mouth is then spit back out.
2) She had to have chest x-rays today because her lungs sounded "cruddy". She's in the early stage of pneumonia.
3) She can only be treated for the pneumonia with a mild medication because the drug they usually use will make her more dehydrated to the point of hospitalization.
4) She has fluid in one ear.

5) They are not going to actively treat the fluid in the ear for the same reason as #3. They're "hoping" the mild medication they put her on will fix both the lungs and the ear.

Wait, the story just gets better. Jermey came home from work with the same vomiting illness Kyra has. Fun fun! There is nothing I like more in life than taking care of 2 sick babies.

Oh, and the in-laws coming in next week. As of right now, my house is trashed and looks more like a bunch of dirty vagrants live here.

Dear Santa,
My only wish for Christmas this year is please don't let me catch this virus. Lord knows this shiny, brand new house will fall into complete disrepair if I, too, get sick. And, well, we just can't let that happen when company is coming to town. I promise I will bake you the finest of sugar cookies for you and your reindeer to snack on Christmas Eve.
My love and respect,
Alicia

The Vomit Virus Continues

As you have read, Kyra starting blowing chunks Monday night. It continued into the wee hours of yesterday, on into the morning and early afternoon before the chunks quit flying. Not to forget that on top of the chunks... diarrhea. Mustard yellow to green pea soup, thick like mucus, watery like... like... I think I'm going to get sick.

Needless to say, I took her to the pediatrician yesterday. My only real concern is that she didn't want to drink or eat anything. Not to say that I can blame her, but I know this isn't good for her. The pediatrician told me there was nothing we could do except keep her hydrated. Great, how to I make a stubborn toddler drink her liquids? I expected this, I just wanted to be sure it was nothing more then that silly stomach bug that had got the best of her.

So I take the sick little booger bear home. Offer sick booger bear her sippy cup. She proceeds to bat it out of her face. Okay, well, will she try to drink from a regular cup? No. But she obviously thinks its funny to make me wear the apple juice/water combo. Fine. As some one wiser then me (although I can't recall exactly who) has told me before, she'll drink when she gets thirsty. Other then when she's throwing up, she's happy and plays all day.

Jeremy comes home from work. I give him the run down of our vomit/poo filled day. Explain the doctor's orders. Take myself to class.

I come home from class, he says he got Kyra to drink quite a bit, but she turned around and threw it back up. Mission not accomplished.

We go to bed. Quiet, uneventful night. She slept all through the night. Slept until 9, when I decided she needed to be woken up because sleeping this late is highly unusual for her.

She's kinda difficult to wake up, but I get her eyes open. She still doesn't want to eat. Still doesn't want to drink. Go to change her diaper, which is usually close to overflowing, is, um, nearly dry. Not good since she's been sleeping in that diaper for 14 hours.

We head down stairs to start our morning routine. Feed Kyra a cracker (because up to this point she has refused to eat anything for nearly 24 hours) make her a sippy with water/juice combo. She drinks a few sips, eats half of her cracker before feeding the other half to the dogs. Well, guess she's done, so here, go play.

Nope, she wants to cling to me like glue has suddenly bonded her head to my shoulder. Highly unusual. She sits quietly in my lap as we watch the last half of Regis and Kelly, never makes a peep, never tries to get down. Offer her the sippy, she doesn't even bother to bat it away. She's too busy staring off into space. There's something not right with her.

She falls asleep before Regis and Kelly ends. I lay her on the couch and begin dialing numbers to get a hold of her pediatrician. No one answers... What kind of doctor's office is this? Oh, its the Navy. Lazy son of a b*tches. Call appointment center, no appointments until 7:40 tomorrow! "Um, that's not going to work ma'am. She's dehydrated, she's lethargic, she's not urinating, she's not even fussing. She needs to be seen today. She needs to be seen now." Sweet, kind lady on other end quickly speaks to her boss and gets me permission to go to the ER.

Good, great, lets get this show on the road. Oh, wait. Aww crap, Jeremy has the truck and the car seat. Call Jer, get him home, we head to the ER. We wait in the ER for 4 hours before we see a doctor. Um, if you're waiting for her to get so dehydrated that her body shuts down, could you let us know, cause, just because she's refusing to eat, doesn't mean my husband and I are.

Kyra is seen, pronounced to have stomach bug, deemed to be in need of IV fluids immediately. This was all determined in the 2 minutes the doc decided to grace us with his presence. Jackass.

Two bags of IV fluid later, Kyra is alert, oriented, playing, and happy. She even walked out of the hospital on her own two feet! Lets hope tomorrow is a much better day. I don't think I can take this much longer.

Lesson of the day, I need to hurry up with these EMT classes so I can get to the intermediate level and learn how to put IV's in myself.

Who Decided to Share Their Cooties?

Fess up. It was one of you, I know.

Kyra is been so good today. I mean, just a doll. A temper tantrum or two because she was starving to death and withering away and Mama just couldn't get dinner on the table fast enough. But other than that, she has been my sweet, darling of a daughter all day long. Until bed time that is.

Her bed time is 7. The child is like clock work. When 7 draws near, she starts fussing, rubbing her eyes and acting out because she's tired. Today was no different.

I take her, put her to bed. She fusses a bit. Not unusual. Plays for a while in her crib. Still, not unusual.

She begins to fuss some more. Okay. This is fine. Go in comfort her, lay her back down. Tell her I love her, leave the room, crack the door.

Screams bloody murder. Alright. If that how you want to play it, I'll stand here and rub your precious little head until you calm down.

Calming ensues. Leave the room. Hear her playing some more.

Fussiness begins again. Okay... check diaper. Wow, she's pee'd a lot. I just changed her 45 minutes ago before I laid her down. Well, lets get you a new diaper then.

Lay her back down. Leave the room. Crack the door, sounds of playing escapes room. Good, playing is better then crying.

Take dirty diaper down stairs. Oh, look, Jeremy's walking through the door with my Christmas presents hidden under his jacket! Now he must go hide in the bedroom to wrap the present so tomorrow I can perform the shake test 18 times or until I figure out what it is. (I'm fantastic at shaking and knowing what's inside)

Aw, crap, Kyra's fussing again. Ignore it, she'll go to sleep eventually. Um, nope, now she's all out crying. Must go save her from the vicious crib of torment.

Hmm? Is she sick? She feels warm, but the upstairs is scorching hot at the moment. Take temperature. 96 degrees even. A little low for a baby, but not bad. Kinda odd being that its so hot up here and she's sweating.

Is she hungry? She did feed herself (did you see that? she fed herself!) a mixture of mashed potatoes and corn for dinner today. Maybe more made it to the floor and into the Babies' tummies then I realized?

Give her piece of bread. Sit in front of the TV (which I rarely have on when she's awake because she's starting to be sucked in it and would rather stare blankly at the TV then play like a normal child). Keep her calm and maybe she'll fall asleep in my arms.

Ya, no. Plays with bread, tries to climb out of Mama's arms to go play with the Babies who are circling like ravenous vultures waiting for her to drop her piece of bread.

Oh, good, Daddy's back with wrapped presents in hand. Here, you take baby, I'll take presents!

Kyra plays happily with Daddy, poking him in the eye and saying "wa's tha?", grabs his nose and attempts to pull it from his face, then finds his ears and wiggles them back and forth. Must remember to thank Joelle for teaching Kyra the body parts, because this torturing of Daddy is hilarius!

Okay, well, while kiddo is awake and not going to sleep anytime soon, lets go out and pick up a few groceries. It is 9 o'clock now. Surly she'll be good and asleep by the time we get home.

Grocery shopping ensues. Wondering through the isles picking up odds and ends needed to get through the rest of the week. Glance at Kyra, she looks funny. Just tuckered out, hopefully. Take groceries to check out lane. While Jeremy's paying for purchases, puking begins.

A little at first. Reminiscent of spit up. Surely at 14 months she shouldn't be starting to spit up. We were over this a while ago.

Oh, no, wait. She's not done. More spit up, this one covers her whole front. What? Wait? This isn't normal?! Oh, God, here comes more! And its, chunky, ewww!!!

Yes, that's right. Kyra threw up chunks in the Stop and Shop check out isle. Beware of check out lane #6, it has some gross debris.

So my question I pose to you is... Who decided to share their nasty cootie virus with my daughter? I did all I could not to start up-chucking right there with her. Do me a favor, and pass the word on to all of your friends. The next time anyone feels the need to share the vomit virus with Kyra, DON'T!

A Meme About Me

I stumbled upon Erica's page (who apparently has her own Kira, how cool is that?) while reading some comments on my lovely friends Heather's blog about her beautiful daughter's Christmas photos. Really, you all should stop by and tell Heather that she has one of the cutest babies ever.

I am: afraid to hurt people's feelings.
I want: to grow some balls. Figuratively speaking that is. You know, to stand up to some choice people who like to run over me. Figuratively speaking that is.
I have: a very difficult time telling people "no." That is unless you're Kyra or my husband(I love you, Cupcake!)
I wish: we could go home and see our families for the holidays.
I hate: stupid, snobby, cocky and/or arrogant people.
I miss: The Gulf of Mexico... God Bless it's warm summer water temperatures and soft, white sandy beaches.
I hear: the clock ticking and the computer humming.
I wonder: if we should make Kyra's crib into a toddler bed.
I regret: being so shy.
I am not: perfect. I know, this is such a shocker to you all.
I dance: very well, when I'm in shape.
I sing: alone in my car.
I cry: when I'm frustrated or hormonal.
I am not always: patient. In fact, I have very little patience, especially for the above mentioned stupid, snobby, cocky or arrogant people.
I make with my hands: delightful food for all to enjoy. I am a great cook!
I journal: most often when Jeremy's working long hours. It gives me the sense that I'm talking to another adult.
I confuse: Kyra, on a regular basis. "Does Mommy even know what she's doing with this whole parenting gig?"
I need: more hours in the day.
I should: start exercising more often then never.
I start: my mornings listening to Kyra play in her crib.
I finish: my EMT class January 7th!
I will tag: I don't know, why do I have to tag someone? Let me know if you do copy and paste this yourself. It'll be fun to read your answers too.

"Its Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas"

If any of you knew me really well, you'd know that my most favorite time of the year falls between the months of October through January. I am obsessed with the holiday season. To the point where I begin some of my Christmas shopping ideas in February.

I love when people begin to decorate their houses the weekend after Thanksgiving. It sends butterflies through my stomach and such giddy-ness, that Jeremy compares me to a 5 year old child. I love to go driving around and looking at all the pretty holiday decorations, and the Christmas tree lights shining through the windows. If I weren't so afraid someone would catch me, call me a Peeping Tom, throw my butt in jail, and of course, if Jer would let me, I'd probably walk house to house admiring the decorations from the street, then running up to the window just to sneak a closer peek at their tree inside.

I asked (ok, so I demanded) my friend Heather to show me her Christmas tree. Because she lives in the nice warm South and I live up here in the frozen tundra of the North, I can't just walk to her house and peek through her windows. Or, in her case, I'd probably just knock on her door and ask to look at her tree.

Any-hoo. I thought it only fair that since Heather so kindly posted a picture of her beautiful tree, that I should do the same. Except that we don't have our tree yet. We wanted to get it this weekend, but because Jer had work on Saturday, and I had class on Sunday (yes, class. At the exact same time I also have church. Oh, Toto, I don't think we're in the bible belt anymore), we were not able to go cut our Christmas tree yet. This weekend. Hopefully, weather and Navy permitting. Until then, you all will just have to look at a couple of our trees past.
This was our tree in 2004. It's cute right? Minus my finger being in the picture. I use alternating multi-colored and white lights. (one string of one, one string of the other. You understand, right?) The popcorn string there was made by Jeremy himself. He thought it would be fun and festive. Except, only a quarter of the way through the stringing process he changed his mind, not so much fun after all. He did finish, and it looked great.


This next tree was from last year, 2005. This picture was from Christmas morning, before we dived in and unwrapped the presents. Same patchwork of decorations, minus the popcorn string that I begged Jeremy to do and he refused.

But there you have it, two years worth of my Christmas trees. I'm sure once we get our tree for this year and it's all decorated, I'll post a picture of all its beauty and splendor!

Thank you Heather for posting your tree. It's so pretty! Happy Holidays to the rest of you!

( I guess I should mention that the 1st picture was not taken on Christmas Day, but probably a week before. Santa had not arrived yet, thus the reason why there was no huge presents in front of the tree. The large presents under last years tree were not only for Kyra. As she was only 3 months at the time, one of those presents Santa left for Jeremy. Santa is a generous person if you believe in him!)

Stupid Comments People Should Keep to Themselves- The Baby Edition

1) Babies are expensive- well no sh*t Sherlock! You mean the government just doesn't hand you an all expenses paid check when you walk out of the hospital?

2) Babies are hard to take care of/work- wow! Now that's something that maybe should have been considered before we got pregnant. Cause, you know, I was really only planning on this whole child rearing thing to be a cake walk. There goes my dreams of care free days filled with watching soap operas and eating bon bons.

3) Having children is a life changing event- *gasp* I would have never known had you not put this thought into my mind. I just expected my life to remain exactly the same with this new appendage attached to my hip.

4) Just remember, Mom can take a nap when Baby takes a nap- first of all, have you met my daughter? Queen of I hate naps and would rather scream bloody murder for putting me in this god awful crib then be a normal baby who sleeps most of the day away. It has gone from that in infancy to this today; Hey, thanks for putting me in the crib mom! Now I can tear it all apart while playing for an hour before you give up and check on me only to find me still awake and now smelly, with pillow, blanket, and toys thrown to the floor below as I hop up and down on a bare crib mattress, excited that someone is going to put it all back together just so I can do it all over again in the next hour that I'm supposed to be asleep! (insert evil baby laughter here)

5) No one cares what you look like, they understand that you just had a baby- This is in reference to my ginormous ass I grew while pregnant, as well as the lack of clothing with spit-up stains/stench. While it may not have mattered to the rest of you what my ass looked like, I'm quite sure the aged milk oder and white splotches all over my shirts offended someone. Heck, even my ever so sweet husband came home once in the early months and had the audacity to ask me if I had any shirts left without spit up on them. Lets just say he's alive today, barely. Oh, and if any of you care, my rear end is back to normal size and my shirts are stench and stain free.

6) No one cares what your house looks like, they're just here to see the baby- First of all, I care what my house looks like whether company comes or not. Its bad enough they have to smell the sweet scent of curdled milk all over my shoulder as they give me a hug, but now they have to walk through the door into a pig sty too? Secondly, thanks for killing any confidence that maybe someone would come to my sty of a house because they wanted to see me, and then the cute kid in the corner.