Annmarie's Adventure

Post Mother's Day Cold Wash

2012-05-16T20:16:00.000-07:00

I still love my crazy purple baby!

Look how tall I am getting!

I can't believe it's been over a month since we've had time to post! And of course, all the pics are blurry.
Mother's Day Cold Wash. Cold Wash is a military term used to discuss a debrief. There's hot wash and cold wash. This is well after the event, so it's a cold wash. Annmarie is 32 inches tall now, weighing in at 24 pounds. She also now has six teeth at 16 months old!
On the Friday before Mother's Day, Annmarie moved into her very own bed. I didn't want to put her into a toddler bed because it's too far off of the floor. So, I took her single bed off of the frame and put it onto the floor with the bed rails onto it. We also started using a booster seat at the table vice a high chair next to the table. I figured I would compensate putting her into her own room with including her at the table. I don't think it helped.
Her first night in her own room I slept in there with her. The second night, I just stayed until she fell asleep. The third night started out ok, until she fell out of bed in the middle of the night. She turned herself sideways and rolled the entire length of the single bed and fell off the bottom -with a thud. Saturday I also had duty. Sunday, Tori slept in and made me late for turnover. It was ok because the guy relieving me was four hours late. This led to a snowball day that included two more ear infections and a blown up microwave. I am so glad that day is over. She's feeling better physically now, but she's still pretty mad at me for putting her into her own room. She holds quite the grudge.

Mom's trying to take pics and I am attacking!

Back to the Zoo!

2012-04-15T12:10:00.000-07:00

Our ONE lone Easter Bunny Pic that came out halfway decent.

I love the ducks!

The huge red bird Mommy calls a McCaw!

I got him!

He's trying to get me!

Lemme at 'em

I'm gonna get her.

MOMMY HELP!!!! SHE'S GONNA GET ME!

I wanna eat too!

Happy Easter

2012-04-08T19:14:00.001-07:00

Look at the awesome dress Aunt Kayla got me.

But Mommy, I am afraid of the water.

This is the dress Grandma Judy sent!

Annmarie absolutely loves this book, thanks Nana and Grandpa.

When Annmarie reads this 20 or 30 years from now, I want her to know a couple of things. She was terrified of the Easter Bunny. Annmarie turned her nose up to chocolate in favor of blackberries. Her first grab of the morning was a new wooden puzzle. Second grab was the book Nana and Grandpa sent her. She thought the eggs were rattles....and then mommy opened one for her. She took four or five of the Reece's Pieces and shoved them into her mouth all at once. As soon as the taste hit her she spit them out. She loved the box that the chocolate bunny came in. Mass...hmm...maybe by Christmas she will be more able to make it through Mass.
The trip to the beach went good. We went to Dog Beach. Annmarie absolutely loved all the dogs. She hated the water, so we played in the sand for a good half hour. The salty air was great for her nose. We polished off the day with Skype. It was nice to see family again, even if the program didn't work so hot.
And for some reason, Annmarie, my dear, would not look at the camera for anything today. And, the pictures are out of order.

Pre Easter Swim

2012-04-07T18:58:00.001-07:00

Easter Picture Debacle

2012-03-31T19:38:00.000-07:00

What a busy day. We were able to get the grass mowed and edged, do all the laundry, cook breakfast and snack, mop the kitchen and vacuum all the upstairs all before our 10:30am appointment to have Easter pictures taken.

We arrived on time and were taken right in. Poor Annmarie was SO scared of the Easter Bunny. She cried everytime I took a step away from her. So, we tried to do the pictures with her and I and everytime she even looked towards the Easter Bunny it was all tears. I briefly looked at the raw shots there and I don't think a single one turned out. Tomorrow I have to go back to look at the proofs. I went ahead and scheduled another sitting. I really hope I can fit another sitting in. I also got her Easter Basket together today. I got her a cute basket and some fake grass, a dozen painted plastic eggs, two little stuffed animals, a chocolate bunny, some chocolate candies, two new books, 3 new puzzles, a new outfit, and 2 little stuffed baby dolls. Traditional, but not all candy. Educational and fun.

Spring is in the Air!

2012-03-27T20:28:00.000-07:00

Annmarie is either allergic to pineapple or her antibiotics. I have another appointment for her next week. I am going to make them send her back to the allergy clinic. I want them to do the full panel. I am tired of accidentally finding out what she's allergic to. We did a 14 prick test about seven months ago. But, obviously, she has a few more triggers. Her rash isn't getting any worse -or better. She had better balance today but her mood was kind of down. I think her mouth hurts. So, between being itchy and sore I think I was pretty lucky that she wasn't an absolute terror.
Thankfully the weather was nice today. I was able to get some more running done and go around with the bank a little more. I hate that bank. They lost all my paperwork again. For the sake of Annmarie not feeling well, I was able to keep my temper.
We play this game where she looks at me from under the high chair tray as I am lifting it. Then she tries to jump out and hug me. As I try to dodge her because she's usually covered in food. All while preventing her from jumping out of the chair. Welp, it finally happened, she flipped the tray over and food went flying everywhere. I slipped up and said, "Damn". She looked up at me and said, "damn". I am very thankful for the hardwood floors. I am waiting for her to repeat it at daycare.
The weather was pretty awesome today so I went ahead and gave in and took her to the park for about 20 minutes. She enjoyed being outside. I was happy to have a few minutes outside too.

Nana posted some really great pics of Annmarie's birth tree, so I added them to yesterday's post. I was so excited when Annmarie ate normal this morning that I posted the picture on Facebook.

Almost Fifteen Months Old

2012-03-26T19:24:00.001-07:00

Annmarie's birth tree is finally in bloom and Grandpa was nice enough to send us pictures. Mommy bailed out of work after the end of her duty day. Well, I used up a vacation day, but it was so needed. I had to take Annmarie into day care so I could go to turnover. So, I left her there for the morning and started running. I had so many odd things to take care of. I was able to get paperwork notorized, transfer over my GI Bill benefits over to Annmarie, mail off boxes, clean my kitchen, try on my uniforms for an upcoming inspection... And, then I picked her up and drove her home only to find out that she is covered in a rash. I was going to take her to the park for a bit, but she kept digging at her ear, so I thought better of it. Once I discovered the rash it sealed the deal. Plus her ears are jacking up her balance. She kept falling down. I have tomorrow off too. Hopefully the rash will go away and the weather will be nice...and hopefully she will sleep.

Little One...Not having so much fun.

2012-03-25T14:42:00.000-07:00

Poor little baby girl. Nasty ear infections mucking up the day. But, one of the two eye teeth has popped through. Today was the first legitimately fever free day since Thursday...so far! I have duty today so I am on a tight leash. I will take whatever I can.

I am still trying to figure out how I want to attack Easter. This is the year that will set the tone for all future Easters. I don't want it to be all about chocolate. Don't get me wrong, I am not ready to turn in my woman card yet. I still worship chocolate like any other true woman. I just want her to have a semi traditional tradition. I do know I want to start the day with Mass. Yes, she was supposed to be baptized already. But, when she goes to bed at 6pm and the RCIA classes start at 6pm in Mission Valley (30 minutes north), I haven't been able to get to them. My normal day consists of leaving work between 3 and 3:30, picking up the girl, getting home between 4:15 and 4:45, then dinner, 1/2 hour of phonics and then I get her to bath and bed. She's usually asleep by 6:45 ish then I have to get everything ready for the next day. I don't dare stay up much past 8 -just in case she's up all night. So Grams, no baptism yet.

Anyway, they can't throw us out of church, so we still go! I haven't decided on a basket yet. I know one thing...no nasty jelly beans. Ewwww. She's still too young to color eggs. Maybe we will try it anyway. I wonder if I am supposed to do something for daycare. I was really caught off guard on Valentine's Day. I had no clue they exchanged cards and candy/crackers. I really thought she was too young.

I am under the five month mark and still don't have any hard copy orders or funding...or dates for my transfer. Argh. I am still being patient. I have yet another buyer for the condo. I have been steadily faxing off paperwork. I truly have no idea where I am at in the process because I have had to start it over so many times. I think that handles all the random areas.

Yay...Drills are Done!

2012-03-24T11:30:00.000-07:00

The other night, Annmarie started getting really feverish. We were able to make it through the night without using the 'Not So Yummy Tummy' bowl. I thought we had it licked, but we still took it slow yesterday morning. I waited until noon to attempt to take my car back into the shop. The man guaranteed me it wouldn't take more than an hour and a half. About three hours into it, Annmarie started to get feverish again. And, we were stuck there. Luckily, mommy had a full diaper bag with everything we needed -except her own bed. It was a little after 5pm when we finally got the car and started home. My car is safe again. Bottom line is that it sucked to have to take her out when she wasn't feeling well, but there wasn't really a choice.
She didn't eat for crap yesterday or the day before. I put her on pedialite yesterday. It was helping...until I ran out of grape and had to switch to fruit punch. After a long night of bouncing up and down between 102 and 104, I gave up and took her into the emergency room. I tried everything from putting wet socks on her to wiping her down with wet cloths...plus Tylenol and Ibuprofen laddered throughout the night. I was trying to wait until the drills were finished. Its a mad house there as it is, I would have just sat there if I tried to take her in the middle of the mass causality drills. I was able to get in and out in under 5 hours. Nice. I am not sure about the doctor though. She changed up her existing medication doses...a lot. Of her three main medications, a) 1.8mL every 6 hours, b) 0.8mL every 4 hours and c) 2.5 mL once a day -she changed her up to a) 5.0mL every 8 hours, b) 5.0 mL every 4 hours and c) 2.5 mL once a day with d) new drug 5.0mL two times a day. It really bothers me because the two of them are more than 3 times what the other doctor had her on. They have messed up with her dosing before. The one time they tried to hide it by moving her over to a totally different drug, but didn't realize I research what they prescribe. The new drug was the same strength, but they halved the dosage. Which tells me they gave me the wrong dosage to begin with. So, before we start these new drugs, I emailed a Florida pediatrician that I met through my southern family -and for good measure, I am going to look them up via Web Md. She's sleeping now and I have to get a bunch of stuff done for my duty day tomorrow. So, I am cutting this short, but wanted to give you guys an update.

Operation Citadel Shield and Iron Curtain

2012-03-22T21:01:00.000-07:00

My favorite flowers!

Operation Citadel Shield and Iron Curtain...thankfully we only have to play this reindeer game once a year! Don't get me wrong, these are very important drills that make us think and plan for real life events. So, we spend a week testing our emergency response systems. As a part of these drills, the base gets locked down. One year, the lock down was rumored to start at 1500, so I left work at 1400 thinking I would beat the clock. Hm. That year, it took me almost 4 hours to travel 6 blocks to get off base. The problem and race this year was in that I was working on a different base this week. So, I had to leave the base I was on, get over to pick Annmarie up and get her out of the military child care facility before it locked down. This year, I left earlier. And yes, if the base is locked down and your child is on base and you are not, then they will graciously care for your child for you. Insert sarcasm here -as how well do you do if you don't have your own personal care items, medicines... Now, picture a baby in that situation. So, I left early. Way early. 9am early. Insert smile here.
Not only was I able to get out of there and get her out of daycare, I was able to finally get my car over to the shop. I have had a check engine light on for about two weeks and just haven't been able to get it taken care of. Annmarie did good. The timing was awesome. There was literally only one other car at the dealership. After we left there I took Annmarie to lunch. She wasn't very hungry, but she was very well behaved. I also was able to fax off some paperwork and mail out a book of other paperwork. She fell asleep in the car so I brought her in and took her up to bed. She slept for almost 4 hours, but since I had her up at 4:30am, I let it happen. We went for a walk after she got up. Everytime we pass by the neighbors little purple flowers she has to stop and touch them. I can't remember what they're called, but I used to have them in front of my house when I lived in Point Loma. Whereever I go next, I am definitely planting some of these flowers.

The other one was her thinking she was being sneaky. I had the camera held around the corner. You can tell when she spotted me because she just smiled and tried to eat the camera!

In the second video, she is trying to put my shoes on. Usually she gets really frustrated, but of course she spotted the camera before she got mad.

So, everything was good until I took her up to bath. It was the strangest thing. She was in the bath playing and all was well and then she just stopped in the middle of a giggle and looked at me. Then she started to frown. Then it just all went down hill. She didn't start screaming, but she was obviously upset. I took her out of the tub and she was hot and shaking. She doesn't shake like that when I get her out of the tub. I always bundle her up really quickly. She just layed there in my arms bundled in the towel shaking. I took her into the room and started to put lotion on her, but she wouldn't stop shaking. So, I just kept bundling her and rocking her. I took her temperature and she was at 101.8 degrees. She was alright when I put her into the tub for crying out loud. So, I gave her some Baby Advil and some honey...for the coughing that also just started again out of no where. She's been asleep for a couple of hours, but her breathing is labored and she is rolling around alot. I know this may sound selfish, but I really NEED for her to not get any sicker tonight. I need to get new tires put on the car tomorrow. I just don't have a lot of time that I am able to do this type of thing -and they are balder that my master chief.

I lost another buyer on the condo. But, luckily, I have another one already. I have lost count on how many buyers I have signed contracts for. It's got to be close to 10 by now. I am getting closer, this last one was 2 weeks away from closing escrow. So, the new one we talked the bank into just switching the names out on all the paperwork. That should shave a few weeks off of the paperwork process.

Shame on you AUNT Janyl

2012-03-21T19:47:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, things have been a little strained between Janyl and I. Well, today she took her pettiness to a new level. I deliberately haven't been letting people know about the stunts she's been pulling because I didn't want to flame the fire. However, if you really want to know, just ask. I am ready to spill it. Today however, I find out that she has been holding a gift that was sent to her home for Annmarie. She has been jealous of the fact that I spend money on whatever Annmarie needs -whenever. So, she has had that gift at her home for well over a week now and hasn't bothered to say a word about it to me. Why would she finally say something today? Because although she has time to dive and go to dinner a few times a week and plant things in the yard...she doesn't have time to go online and pay $1. to have her mail forwarded over to her new address. So, her paycheck arrived here today. Which is the only reason she told me about the gift for her niece which is sitting in her home. Which by the way, she has made no attempt to have anything to do with Annmarie since SEVERAL weeks before she moved out. HEAR THIS LOUD: I will never tolerate someone/ANYONE using my child as a pawn in some idiotic jealousy bullshit. KNOCK IT OFF OR GET OUT OF OUR LIVES.

Big Girl Panties

2012-03-18T20:14:00.000-07:00

I am so irritated this picture is blurry. But, today we tried on our first pair of big girl panties. Man, did she like them. We still sit on the potty right next to each other every time I have to go. She hasn't quite learned that she can control when she goes. But, she hates diapers so hope is high.

She still has a fever and a cold, but the honey is helping control the cough. I worry about her teeth with the honey, but she gets her teeth brushed every day already -and its all natural. Spoke too soon, she's up again.

Pre St Patty's Day Catch Up

2012-03-15T21:12:00.000-07:00

It seems I am always catching up! Annmarie has had a super busy, but non sleep filled week. She caught a cold and I can't give her anymore medication without jacking up the delicate allergy balance of medicine that she's already on. So, the doctor (finally) today told me to put her on shots of honey. I have half a million medicine droppers -so about once an hour I give her a couple mLs of honey. She's been asleep for almost 3 hours straight now -which is promising. I almost fell asleep at my desk today while eating my lunch. Even though St Patty's Day isn't until Saturday, I am dressing Annmarie up in her St Patty's Day outfit for school. This picture was about 20 minutes after her second shot. She went from laying on my chest lifeless to smiling and active. I was so happy that she was moving that I let her call the grandparents! She doesn't quite understand the whole concept -but she loves to put the phone up to her ear and pretend to talk like mommy.
Uncle Matt is coming out for a visit! We are so excited! All that excitement is slightly dampened by the fact that I still have no funding for my next job. Time is getting short. The more last minute things are the messier they are. I think I am still going in August. The closer you are to October, the higher the chance of shoving you off until the next fiscal year. The pinch is that I can't miss the August school without losing my school. If I miss the start date, I have to wait until Jan 4 to start the next class.

A day at the fountians

2012-03-10T19:55:00.000-08:00

Today after I caught up on a grip of chores we went to play in the fountains. She has a blast when we go there. She tries to catch the water. The fountains vary in height in timed intervals. So it's only a foot high for about 30 seconds...then it shoots up to five feet. She thinks it's awesome. After our trip here I dried her up changed her and took her onto the swings for a bit. She was so appreciative that she pooped on the floor when we got home. The house was hot so, I let her run around naked for a little bit. It just reminded me of the time I was at Dad's house and Kayla pooped on the floor. It was just Dad, Kayla and I at the house. They were potty training Kayla, so she was running around the house naked. She was standing in front of the TV and reached up to push a button and pooped at the same time. Dad kinda freaked out. He instantly came out of his zone and started to run towards her. Then stopped and ran the other way. I didn't see the need to freak out -the deed was already done. He was running to get tissue. Kayla is going to kill me. :-)

Two Front Teeth

2012-03-09T19:54:00.001-08:00

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth...my two front teeth... This is the first picture where you can see her front teeth. They have dropped rather quickly. Her two eye teeth haven't pushed through yet, but they are definitely in process. The girl is giving new meaning to the phrase, "Double Tap".

And of course, she doesn't fit any of her PSU or Steelers clothes...so she has to show her Gator Colors!

Where'd Spring Go?

2012-03-04T14:52:00.001-08:00

As we head into summer....I was supposed to take Annmarie to Sea World yesterday with some girls from work. But, I was so far behind from having duty on Thursday that I just couldn't make it work. So, we went to the park on Saturday. Annmarie still refuses to sleep past 6am. But the good side of this is that I was able to get groceries, do two loads of laundry, and clean the house all before 9am. This weekend our goal is to finish up a lot of the projects we have in process. Aunt Janyl mowed the grass, so I was finally able to get out there with Annmarie and pull weeds. Man did it need it. I still wasn't able to plant the seeds in the flower garden, but there's still next weekend. I also got the pictures we had done over a month ago ready to mail! So, I rewarded us with a trip to the zoo. I risked it and took Annmarie into the petting area at the zoo. We only made it about 15 minutes..but she was fully medicated so it wasn't too bad. I tried to get better pictures but wasn't leaving her side. Later we went to see the snakes. She really love snakes. I don't get it, but OK. Then we went to see the monkeys. Annmarie loved this one 50 year old orangutan. He just hung out at the window and let Annmarie try to give him five!

It looks like I am going to Cocoa Beach for 10-13 weeks in the August time frame. So far, here's what we got on the side of mission planning.

-Friend Catina lives in Cocoa Beach, she is going to scope out child care facilities.

-Brother Adam and wife will fly out of Florida to here and drive my car to Florida.

-Dad has offered to fly to Florida and drive car to Fallon.

-Aunt Jeannie bought a house about half an hour from base. If she isn't living there yet, my intentions are to ask to rent it from her for a few months. This is a long shot.

-Cousin Cassie lives 90 minutes from base and has offered help, but not too sure what she can do. But she's a resource.

-Mom is storing baby stuff in Hernando that I can use while in Cocoa Beach. So far she's got everything from high chair to car seat.

-Brother Matthew has offered set up and baby sitting help.

-Cousin Tricia in Tampa is professional nanny and will take a leave of absence to help me if needed.

Here's our stumbling blocks:

No firm dates on ANYTHING yet.

If Aunt Jeannie has already transitioned to Florida, will need a vacation rental.

Will be carless for a few days with a baby in Cocoa Beach on both sides of the trip.

Will need to identify pediatricians in Cocoa Beach and Fallon before we get there. Cocoa Beach isn't so bad because I have several RNs and PAs in the family within an hour's drive.

Need to get to Fallon to find a place to live BEFORE I go to Cocoa.

Lost another buyer on my Mission Valley home. I am taking a $1083/month pay cut in Fallon and just can't afford to keep anything in San Diego.

Will need to identify what gets shipped to Florida, Fallon, and what flies with. When I leave San Diego in August, I will not be able to return.

Nana's Package!

2012-02-25T19:56:00.000-08:00

We were so lucky to get a package from the Grandparents yesterday! The package had everything from books to venison jerky! It also had an envelope in it! That envelope had the makings of her new Dora chair, sidewalk chalk, some more books, baby shoes and supplies for mailing out pictures. It was a pretty cool envelope. Annmarie has an art desk, but it doesn't have a back to the chair. This desk is perfect for her to eat her snacks, color, or just chill out and work on phonics. Plus, it's heavy enough that Annmarie can't push it around everywhere. Today we put away the walker and jumper. We also let Janyl know that she would be responsible for taking back a suitcase of baby gear for Kayla. Yes, Kayla is making Annmarie a cousin!

Annmarie had another nasty bout last Thursday night. But, with the help of Janyl we made it through. She is still sluggish, but much better.

On the work side...no freakin news. But, Aunt Jeannie and Uncle Ron bought a house 25 minutes away from where I will be going to school. Nice.

Sick Again? Geez

2012-02-16T20:32:00.000-08:00

Things were starting to look better. She actually slept for two nights in a row. Then...another cold and sore throat. I would like to be able to say she's teething...but there's no teeth. Well, she has the same two she got months ago. The thing is, I am finally getting a grip on the other crap and don't want to screw with the delicate balance of meds. So, no cold meds -nothing more than Tylenol or Ibuprofen. We are just going to tuff it out. We have another follow-up next week. Point blank, I need some sleep.
On that, it appears I have stood my last 24 hour shift for a little while -unless significant events happen and I need to handle them from work. That's kind of bitter sweet. Duty nights were the only time I could realistically get more than 3 or 4 hours sleep straight. The other side is that Aunt Janyl refuses(d) to sleep in the same room as Annmarie. This meant when things happen, she had to 1) wake up and 2) go into the other room to figure out what the issues are. With all the times she's choked in the middle of the night, this quite frankly scared the death out of me.
On the orders side...I found out today that my special programs detailer was holding my package and hadn't routed it to the ECM (enlisted community manager) -her boss...the guy that cuts the orders for where I go. So, she says I am still slated for Port Huyeme. However, that job is supposed to disappear. So, I still have no firm word on where I am going...or when. There are money/funding issues and she can't cut orders past April. Then I was told that with the current budget situation, they can wait until 30 days before I transfer before giving me firm orders. I love budget cuts. I do know the class I am supposed to attend convenes August 6. After that it doesn't convene until late September. I am supposed to transfer in August. I can ask for 30 days transit time. I really need firm orders. If they really do get rid of this job, I am back to square one -again. I miss the old days when the military had all the money they needed to get our job done. How can they demand you pick a job in the 6-9 month window, but then tell you they can take until 30 days prior to give you the job. And, I have to get things in order. I am in my 10 week window for my next physical assessment...so no junk food and lots of more trips out and about with the girl!

The Flu...On My 13 Month Birthday...That Can't Be Good

2012-01-29T19:20:00.000-08:00

After my trip to the zoo, I came home and had my nap and made mommy some ewww eees for when I woke up. Little did I know that wasn't the only thing I was leaving mommy! I made her ewww eees three more times in the next few hours...then my tummy was really upset. I didn't feel like eating a whole lot of dinner. I didn't even want to take a long bath. Then, half an hour after I went to sleep...it was on. Most of the time when I throw things, I have horrible aim. Not when I am tossing cookies though. I got everything from my pillow to my sheets and poor bunny. Mommy was right there to roll me over so I didn't choke on it. She cleaned me all up and laid me on her bed while she changed my bedding and got me a new pillow. I didn't cry at all, I just laid there watching my mommy -the pro. My mommy tried to put me back into the fresh bed, but I decided I wasn't done tossing my cookies, so I did it all over again. So, did mom. Then mom sat with me in the rocking chair for a while. And, I decided to make some pea soup. Mommy made it with me to the bathroom sink. Poor sink. Mommy changed my PJ's (and her own) again. Did I mention I made her some more ewww eees? I was good though, I didn't cry much at all. Then my mom decided she wanted to play catch to. I sat with my head against the wall while my mom used the bathroom. Then my mom broke out the "not-so-yummy tummy" bowl. I didn't want to drink any water so my mom fed me pedialite from a medicine dropper. One dropper full every 15 minutes just like the RN on the ped helpline said. I stopped playing catch and finally fell asleep around 3am-ish. I still woke up at 5:30 ready to be awake. My mommy tried to feed me a pop tart, some banana pieces and water. I did eat a few bites. About two hours later mommy tired to give me some Cheerios and peaches...I gave them back -promptly. Mommy kept making me drink water and pedialite. I must've worked because around 3pm I was able to keep down some rice and yogurt. Mommy is still moving pretty slow, but she is happy that I was able to eat some dinner. She's not happy with how much my ears are draining, but that's another fight. I really hope I get some good sleep tonight. If not, mommy is taking me back to the doctors in the morning. I hate going there -they keep giving me shots.

Almost 13 Months!

2012-01-28T12:08:00.000-08:00

I am proud to announce that Annmarie has slept through the night the past two nights! Yay! Yay! Please let this be a new trend. Annmarie is now confidently drinking from a cup! The only thing is she forgets where her arms are and knocks the cup over. She also hasn't put it together that if you tip the cup as you are putting it down, it will spill. Time to pack up most of the sippy cups! I am going to save one or two for car rides and such. She is at about where she was on Thanksgiving with her walking. I am not sure why she back slid so much, but we are finally progressing again.
Thinking of back slides, a couple of days ago in daycare she took a nice little tumble...hence no recent pictures. She has a skid mark all over the front of her nose, to the right of her eye, the center of her forehead, the right side of her forehead, a little one on her chin, a little one on the top of her head, and (finally) one on her right knee. She looks like she got mugged.
Teeth, she's getting two in at once. Either her front teeth are going to be gapped or she is getting one front tooth and one of the secondary teeth. You can see them plain as day under the skin, but they haven't erupted yet. The front tooth is crooked...but the bottom teeth look like they are straightening out.
Today we took a trip to the zoo. I got there right at 9am so we could spend a couple of hours before lunch and nap time. Priority one is keeping to her schedule. We had some really good quality Mommy and daughter time. Of course it meant skipping getting groceries, but we will save that for our next outing. Annmarie LOVED the giraffes and hippos -and it helped reinforce the words on her phonics.

No More Bottles!

2012-01-16T11:06:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Mommy packed up my bottles and bottle warmer. I was ready. I haven't used any in three days and before that I was only using them in the middle of the night. Now the challenge is getting from a sippy cup over to a real cup. I practice every day. I love dumping them out and putting my food into them!
The doctor moved me over to a new medicine. My mommy doesn't think it's working so well. But, I have such a miserable cold that Mommy can't tell what's cold and what's allergies. I am slowly making progress towards sleeping through the night. Now when I wake up, if Mommy rubs my back, I will sometimes fall back to sleep.

Orders Update!

2012-01-14T20:11:00.000-08:00

I finally received the official message stating I am good to go for the Equal Opportunity Advisor job applications. This is awesome news for Annmarie and I. It means we will go to Cocoa Beach, FL for 10 weeks for school. Upon completion, I will go to my next duty station. Guam is now out of the picture. Someone else took that job. It looks like I may go to a place about an hour outside of Tahoe named Fallon, NV. He talked about an opening in DC, but I don't think that one will be open long enough for me to bid. I can't put my bid in until I actually finish my screening and interview process. Naples is still in play, but I can't travel all over Europe with Annmarie -by myself. Lemme tell you, if I were alone, I would sell my soul for that job. Bahrain is open, but it's only a 1 year job and I think some Master Chief has his eye on it.

Weekend Catch Up

2012-01-06T20:13:00.000-08:00

For being a four day work week, my Mommy was pretty busy! She took me to the doctors again and raised quite the stink. Now I am on ephedrine and an inhaler. The doctor did all kinds of silly tests on me only to determine that I do not have any kind of virus. My first day on the medicine went pretty well. My mommy was waiting to see if the trend continued. Alas, I still won't sleep through the night. But, I have not puked or had diarrhea since being put on the medicines. My mommy is starting to feel the pain of no sleep. She did things like accidentally try to drink from my bottle instead of her cup. She also tried to use rubbing alcohol as mouth wash. Luckily she realized that she grabbed the wrong bottle just prior to putting it into her mouth. Nice. I have a follow up appointment on Wednesday and my mommy is going to make them tweak the medicines until the doctor gets it right. After the first night, the next two nights were the start of a downhill slide. I was pretty snotty again tonight, but I hope I am able to get a good night's sleep. My mommy needs it.
I also started my new class this week. Every day they kept me in the new class a few more hours. Today was my first full day in the new class. I impressed the teachers with my physical skills. They can't believe how fast I move from one place to another -or how well I climb, for that matter. They also have a set nap schedule. I am not allowed to go to sleep until 11:30, but then they wake me if I sleep past 2pm. Today I only slept two hours during the day. Mommy is thinking of pulling me out of Mommy n Me classes so she can keep me on a steady schedule during the weekends. I am pretty sure it will depend on if she can get me to sleep through the night.

Getting Ready to Get Back on Schedule

2012-01-02T21:18:00.000-08:00

Defeated.

After another night of no sleep, I tackled the day (with Janyl's help). Today I went thru and feild dayed (milly term for clean from head to toe) the both Annmarie's room and my own. I also discovered the vacuum had a broken belt and repaired it. Which means all the cleaning and dusting I did yesterday was for not -as the filter in the vacuum was also blocked and dislodged. I had Janyl take the girl to the park so I could get in both bedrooms and rip it all apart and make sure every square inch was dust free and clean. I also finished unpacking and organized stuff that has been out of place for weeks. Of course, everything took longer with the half hour repairs on the vacuum and a trip to Walmart for a new belt. After I finished everything I ran the air purifier to get the dust that I stirred up.

And still, within half an hour of being back in the house, Annmarie started having another attack. Even now, she is weezing and snotting everywhere -in her sleep. She has Vapor Rub on her chest and the humidifier on -sleeping in a bed with allergy covers and freshly washed (in hot water) linens. Oh, and a vapor plug in turned on full power and a dose of allergy medication. Tomorrow is her first day back to Day Care. Hopefully the day out of the house will help to clear her up a little.

Tuesday we are back in the pediatrician's office. I swear if she feeds me one more line of crap about day care kids being sicker than other kids, I am firing her and going to a different one. I have finally had enough and have done absolutely EVERYTHING I can think of to make my baby better.

Ringing in the New Year

2012-01-01T21:49:00.000-08:00

So, last night was New Year's Eve. I really wanted to stay up and celebrate but knew better than to try. The girl, however was sure to wake me in time for it! I put her to bed at 7pm as normal. She then woke back up at 10pm -which wasn't bad. But when she woke up at 11:30pm, it was on. You see, earlier in the day Janyl and I went out to buy an air purifier. I was really hoping it would help with her allergies. I did my research and found out that I needed a hepa vice ionic one. And, then we went and found one for much less than advertised online.
Annmarie was still coughing when I put her to bed. I figured maybe it hadn't ran long enough. The longer I had it on the more she coughed. To make a long story short, she puked on me twice. I had her on the inhaler and it wasn't working. The only way I could get her to calm down was sit in the bathroom with her with the shower on full blast. She was finally able to fall asleep around 1am only to wake back up for another round at 4am.
The only thing I can figure is that air purifier made the air too dry in the room.
Today, I got all new allergy covers and raised her entire bed another 6 inches all around. I also went through and did the stairs. I also made a point to have her out in the warm fresh air today. And, steamed the bathroom up really well before her nightly bath. She has been on meds steady since last night. She is still coughing and very very snotty, but finally sleeping. Of course the allergy covers are scrunchie sounding so it's a little annoying for her. I am really frustrated because I just don't know what else to do.