reflux update

well, I was not able to wean Payton off her meds :-( I was able to eliminate an entire dose though, so now, rather then the Bethanacol 4 times a day and the Zantac 3 times, we are down to both twice a day. I tried going to once a day and she started spitting up again. But, twice a day is still better and should reduce her prescription which means less money to pay at the pharmacy, so I'm happy. She seems perfectly fine with the 2 doses. And maybe in a couple months we'll try and cut out another dose.

bib

Lately, Payton pulls and tugs at her bibs until she gets them off, then we kind of fight over the bib during the rest of her meal. So, at lunch today, I thought I'd be smart and put one on that pulled over her head. She pulled and tugged at it until I thought she was going to hang herself!! Guess that wasn't such a smart idea after all!!

11 months old

Wow, she's fast approaching that 1 year mark!

She is such a big girl! She is standing a ton, but not walking yet. She's seems pretty content to crawl, other then her knees being dirty a lot, it's ok with me. She is VERY proud when she's just standing up and hanging out. And she'll stand for a little while. She has taken 1 step on a few occasions, but always sets down after 1. So much for the early walker everyone predicted!

She has been such a perfect addition to our family, I really can't remember what it was like before we had her. She is a terribly happy, content kid. She really only cries when she's hungry, tired or you've taken something away that she wanted. She's pretty independent, and plays by herself quite well. But, she just lights up whenever any of us get down on the floor to play with her. Garrett is by far her favorite. Garrett & Matt went hunting this weekend and Payton crawled around saying, "eh", (that's how she says Garrett) and looking for him. She was very excited when she woke up Sunday and both Garrett and Daddy were back. Matt can make her laugh the hardest, and I'm the one she wants whenever she gets hurt or is tired.

She is a great sleeper, in bed by 7:30, sleeps about 12 hours, then takes two 2 hour naps a day. All I do is lay her down, turn on her little musical giraffe, give her a paci and she lays down. Every once in a while, if she's overtired, she'll cry for a bit. But, honestly, she couldn't be easier to put to bed. She's a good eater too, in fact, you have to be very careful with what you are eating, because she's going to want some and if you don't give it to her, she'll cry!

Here's to our little peanut, we love you Payton!

Acid Reflux

Payton was diagnosed with acid reflux a LONG time ago, maybe at about 4 or 5 weeks. That first 8 weeks of her life was pure misery for us. But, she has been on Prevacid (which the insurance company refused to pay for, so we had to switch her to Zantac), and Bethanacol since she was 2 months old. The zantac is 3 times a day, the bethanacol is supposed to be 4 times a day, but a long time ago, I switched it to only 3 times a day. Probably not quite as effective, but since it has to be refrigerated, I was a prisoner in my own home, trying to be here to dispense it. Over the last 9 months, we've steadily increased her dosages as she gets bigger. Well, rather then being better at it, I've become very forgettable about the meds!! This past week, every day, I've accidentally forgotten to give her one dose of meds, but you know what?!?! She hasn't been spitting up!! So, yesterday, I emailed the nurse at her ped's office and she said, that I could just cut that one dose out and since it had been a few days I could go ahead and cut a second dose out and see how she does, so we may be weaning her off all thse reflux meds, FINALLY!!

So far today she's been ok. Wish me and her luck, please!

Birthday's

Well, our busy month of birthday's is fast approaching! For those that may not remember, Garrett's 4th birthday is February 1, Payton's 1st is February 16, mine is February 18, throw in our 6th wedding anniversary on February 12, and Valentine's Day and well, February is a VERY busy month!

I promised myself I'd get through Christmas before I started worrying/planning the parties. I'm already knee deep into planning Garrett's, I went back and forth and finally settled on a Star Wars theme. He is OBSESSED with Star Wars, but I also feel he's just way too young. Then I stumbled on this website and there were tons of ideas for little kids Star Wars parties, so I really got excited. We are going to host a Jedi Knight Training Camp. He can wear his Halloween costume, I'm borrowing a Yoda costume for Payton. I'm going to make these super simple Jedi Knight costumes and light sabers out of pool noodles (if I can find them in January!!), and duct tape, and we will have an obstacle course set up for the kids to "train" on. I am SO excited and really hope the weather cooperates, if not, I'm trying to plan things for inside too. I've even secured a Chewbacca to come and make a guest appearance (thanks "uncle" Josh)!! I think G will be out of his mind. I've told him a little bit and everyday he asks if it's time for his party yet.

As for little Miss Payton, I really want to do an Owl theme. Being that it's her first party, there won't be much in the line of games, I hope the older kids aren't bored! Maybe I need to reconsider that...... Anyways, I've found some designs for ADORABLE owl cakes and I'm just really loving the idea. I'm still just gathering ideas for hers, I think I need to get through G's party first!

I'm going to do G's party the weekend before his birthday and Payton's the weekend after. I'm apologizing in advance, since a lot of the same people will be coming to both parties! But, I'm just not very into the idea of making them share a party. I'll see how this year goes and maybe I'll reconsider it next year. And for those who care, I wanted P to be a fall baby!! I almost, well, I think I did cry, when the Dr told me her due date, lol!!

Kisses

Payton is not much into giving kisses, she may still be too young, I'm not sure. She isn't much of a hugger either, she'll hug you when she's really tired and I think she's trying to tell you to put her to bed more then anything. But, we do a lot of air kissing around here, and I've noticed that Payton has started doing it and it's SO cute! It usually starts with Garrett playing and saying, momma, I love you and then making a kissing sound. Now, Payton makes the noise, and I have to say that I love it! Just now I was getting her out of the car and she was doing it. Mostly it's in response to us, but I've noticed in the last day or so, she'll just crawl up to you and do it. Someday, I know she'll give out lots of hugs and kisses, but for now, I'll take this, it's super cute.

NYE

Everyone kept asking me what we were doing on NYE and I kept saying nothing, but that wasn't really the truth. As Matt & I laid on the couch listening to the kids chase each other, I realized I was exactly where I wanted to be. Payton was crawling as fast as she could after Garrett and then they'd switch and Garrett would chase after her and they were giggling SO hard. It was the most beautiful sound in the world.

We just didn't go out for New Year's, maybe that was a better answer. We stayed in and enjoyed the last day of 2010 as a family, and seeing as 2010 made us a family of 4, it just seemed fitting to spend it all together. As I laid Payton down and kissed her sweet cheeks and the same with Garrett, I knew, just knew that 2011 was going to be a much better year for us. 2010 was a hard year, and maybe I tend to remember the bad more then the good, but it felt like a very difficult year, so I'm hoping and praying that 2011 will be better. Maybe it will be only because 2010 made us stronger and more able to deal with the trials of life. But, I know that we are all together, we are all healthy, and we're going to survive just fine.

So, come on 2011, we're ready for you!!