Randomness

For the past couple weeks Journey has been staying half the day with Aspen at Grammy's house. It is tough to leave her because she starts crying when she knows I am going to leave, but it is nice to have a little break. Even if I am going home to work in the office!

Journey has become quite the animal lover. She loves Auggie (our cat) and looks for her every time we go outside or to the car. She also loves dogs and is saying doggy and kitty.

Other new words are: "booh" - book, "di di di" - for Aspen, and her new favorite, "mo" - more, which she says constantly because she is always hungry! I swear she eats half the day.

Today Journey threw her first real fit in a store. She started screaming when I needed to look at my list and I think everyone in the whole store heard her. Fun times!

Today Aspen had a prayer answered. He found his "man"! It was lost at Grammy's house for about a month and he was very missed. Another great thing is that he has stared eating veggies. If you know him, you know this is a huge breakthrough. If I had known how easy it would be to make him eat them, I would have done it a long time ago! So far he has only eaten green beans and edemame, but he eats them without a huge fuss and that is something I never thought I would see :)

Aspen has a very passionate personality. High drama just like his Daddy. He has been going overboard on the crying fits lately. Everytime we say "no" to him it's a crying fit. I have reached my limit with this and am DONE with it. I am laying down the law! Things may be a little rough around here for the next couple days, but it can't be worse than all the crying I have been enduring just for saying "no"!

Better

I'm feeling a little better today about Journey. She slept through the night last night (yea!) and I read something online that around 13 months babies sleep at night and naps goes through a phase of interruption. That makes me feel so much better! Also, in the last couple days Journey has been starting to throw little "fits" when she doesn't want to do something and kicks her legs.
It's kind of funny but here is where the harder part of parenting starts......

Ahhhhh!!!!

That is how I feel about Journey right now. She has been soooo crabby and hasn't been sleeping or napping well for the last week. It is driving me insane! I can't tell if it is teething (please tell me it is!) or if she is just being difficult.

I am starting to wonder if she is going to be a stubborn one. This worries me because I don't know how to deal with that! Aspen is very busy, high maintenance and passionate (aka cries at the drop of a hat), but isn't what I would call stubborn.

More New Words

Journey has been saying a few more things...

"papa"

"kit kit" for kitty, kitty

and she imitates us saying"tickle, tickle, tickle" which actually comes out more like "thicka, thicka thicka" :)

She is such a sweet little girl. I LOVE having her. Last weekend we had a girls morning. Mark, Dan and Aspen went out looking at cars and Journey and I went to coffee together. We sat for about 30 minutes and ate a scone together. She was completely happy to just sit on my lap and say "hi" and smile and wave to everyone that came in. Then we went shopping together. It was so much fun and what I had dreamed of doing years ago when I was hoping to have a girl.

Quck Update

Journey had her CT scan on Wednesday. It was very tough to see her put under for the scan but it only lasted about 15 minutes. We got the great news this afternoon that everything is normal. Thank God!

I think I was most stressed about the scan. Or maybe I was just too emotionally spent to be stressed about the results. Or maybe it was the prayers, but once the scan was done, I didn't worry too much about the results. I had peace. I guess it must have been from God.
Anyways, her doctor wants her to do some physical therapy to strengthen her upper body.
So good news!

New Things

This is a little gross, but I have to write it down because it probably won't last.....
For about the last 4-5 days Aspen has been running to the bathroom to fart. He will announce and then run! It is so great! If it lasts, it may be the first "polite" thing that I have imparted to him :)
Oh, and Journey made her first official mess today. She can get around in her walker now and likes to open drawers and cabinet doors. I don't really watch her too closely because I didn't think she could get to anything much.....Wrong! Somehow she got her hands on a big container of oatmeal, took the lid off and walked around the house, dumping it as she went.

Happy Birthday Journey-Bear!

This week, January 31st, was Journey's first birthday. Yes, I know I am late, but for the record, I set up a slide show and small blog on my myspace page dedicated to Journey 6 days before her birthday :)

I can hardly believe a year has already gone by since she was born. What a great year it has been! I love her so much. We have such a strong bond that I really hope lasts. I dreamed and prayed for a little girl many years before I had her, and I feel so blessed.

At her 12 month check-up she was 21.4 lbs. (55%) and 28 1/4" (50%). Not the giant that her brother was! Unfortunately, the doctor is concerned about her development (not walking, crawling, or scooting around) and her head shape/size. We will be getting a CAT scan because she is concerned that there is extra fluid on her brain. This definitely has me scared, but I am doing my best to trust God with her. The good news is that she is on track in her fine motor skills (pincher grasp, etc) and in her verbal skills. Speaking of that, here is what she is saying at 12 months:

Hi Dada! (usually waves and loves to say that when Mark walks in the room)

"mo" more (when she wants more food or drink)

"dah dah" dolly

Mama

She also likes to wave and say "hi" to people in passing and is clapping. It is so cute! She has a smile that lights up the room and likes to mimic us when we laugh. She has become very fast in her jeep walker (finally)! That seems to be her first step of freedom way from me.

Journey seems like she is always teething and seems to have a low pain tolerance. Fussy, fussy! She has 4 teeth on the bottom and 3 on top (working on the 4th and a lower molar). Ugg!

It's all worth it, though. I love waking up every morning to her smiling face, and Mark loves the way she wakes him up by either waving or patting his shoulder and saying "hi dada!".

We love you Journey. You are as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside.