Tales from the battle zone

Lily has a new favorite pastime - pinching me. While she's nursing, she feels the need to pinch my arm over and over again. I now have a sizeable bruise as the result of her tormenting. I do try to prevent her from this abusive treatment, but I am sometimes on the phone or writing while I'm nursing at work, and I can't block her attacks fast enough. So what hotline number do I call for help in this situation? ;)

Lily has been going to sleep in her crib for the past 3 nights, and we couldn't be happier. We seem to be back on track on that front.

She is also pulling up constantly at home and at school and even taking steps while holding on to things like the free-standing mirror at school. Of course, these early attempts at walking have led to several boo boos, although all very minor so far.

Lily continues to be a very good eater. Her total repertoire to date includes: rice cereal, avocados, bananas, sweet potatoes, apricots, nectarines, peaches, pears, papaya, mango, apples, asparagus, carrots, prunes, green beans, peas, and squash. In the next couple of weeks, we will add broccoli, plums, and kiwi. Mango is definitely still the hands-down winner for best taste. Green veggies continue to be barely tolerable on their own but are readily eaten as long as we maintain a 2:1 ratio with the sweeter, orange veggies.

We tried a different formula, and Lily has not had any negative reactions to it, but she doesn't like it either. I make a very small amount (2 oz.) for her to drink at school, but she immediately spits it out. Because we have not used bottles in such a long time, she refuses them; so she only drinks from a cup. She does really well drinking from the cup, she just doesn't like what is in it. So it may be that we go the full 12 months with breastfeeding by default. There are certainly worse things.

Christmas in July

Welcome to my house!

In order to celebrate Lily's first graduation from the Infant room to the Toddfant room, we bought her a present: her first house. She actually pushed open the door and crawled through the doorway all on her own. With these kind of skills, she might skip the Toddfant room and go straight to the Toddler room. If it wasn't for that one minor detail: walking :)

Country Baby

Family Pics

Me and daddy at the airport

Hangin' with mom, Aunt Pam, and Aunt Lisa

The Deetz fam: Carl's brother Alexander, his sister Ingrid, Carl, his dad, Grandpa and Grandma Deetz and Lily

The Murphy clan: Carl's mom, Carl, his sister Ingrid, his Grandma Murphy, and Lily

Enough pictures!!!

My sister Angela, my mom, me and Lily

Over the weekend, we celebrated Carl's successful completion of his PhD with a party at Carl's grandparents' house in Indiana. We were so grateful that we had family on both sides there that came from Illinois, Colorado, Missouri, and Tennessee. How amazing! Although I know that our families were there to support Carl and celebrate his accomplishment, they did have the added incentive of seeing a certain someone that we had in tow. These are a few pictures from a truly wonderful weekend. Thank you everyone!!!

8-Month Escapades

A few updates from Lily Land...

We had an unexpected trip to the doctor's yesterday after what we think may have been an allergic reaction to formula. I typically breastfeed Lily 5-6 times per day which means that we are together every 3-4 hours every day. It has been a rare event when we have missed one of these meetings in the 8 months since Lily was born. Even though I do love our time together, I really am ready to start the weaning process. I was hoping to do one formula feeding per day for a couple months, then 2 formula feedings for the final months until she turns 1-year-old. Yesterday was the first day that we tried out this plan, and we ended up with a baby sporting some pretty serious hives around her mouth, on her neck, and back. About 60 seconds after her teachers brought her to me, she also proceeded to throw up the 6 oz. of formula, her applesauce, and her prunes all over me, her, and the floor.

I know that I have mentioned on more than one occasion how I love working downstairs from Lily's doctor's office, so this is the last time I will restate my feelings on the matter. But because of my work locale, Lily drank the formula at 4:10, her teachers brought her out to show me her reaction at 4:15, and Lily was in the doctor's office at 4:30. I feel very fortunate to have this set-up.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a definitive ruling about the reaction. The doctor was baffled about the reaction because if she was allergic to the milk in the formula, this should have shown up sooner. Since I consume dairy products, she has been exposed to dairy from day one. Also, the hives that developed at 4:15 were virtually gone by 5:15 which is atypical for an allergic reaction. So who knows? We are going to try some different options this weekend to see what works best for Lily.

I have been debating (with myself) about the formula/breastfeeding issue for a while now. I felt very pressured (again from myself) to solely breastfeed until Lily turned one. But now I am very comfortable with my decision to use formula as a supplement (as long as we can find one that Lily can tolerate). I think that breastfeeding should be beneficial for both of us, and although it may be a bit selfish, I need a break during the day. I want to be able to go out and not worry that she will need me in order to eat. I also do not want to pump because if I'm going to spend time doing that, I might as well just breastfeed directly. She will still get all the benefits of breastmilk every day, but I won't be required at every single meal - a very welcome relief at this point.

In other news, Lily has been sleeping through the night for a while now. However, we got into a bad habit of having her sleep in our bed so now she protests when we put her in her crib. We will be working on this issue in the upcoming weeks.

Lily is moving all around and often pulls up on anything she can find...the couch, shelves, tables, toys, us...literally anything she can find - stable or not. She also has an uncanny ability to find Terra's toys no matter where we hide them, so she keeps us on top of our game in terms of supervision.

Lily is discovering new games. She enjoys any activities involving taking things out and putting them back in. As we found out in Indiana, plastic drinking cups and measuring cups offer hours of entertainment.

Vocalizations primarily consist of "ba bas" and "da das" with the occasional "aye", but she now varies her tone to convey emotions. There is no doubt when she telling you that she is frustrated or unhappy with the current circumstances, and she doesn't need crying to tell you about it.

Probably the biggest change in Lily's near future is that she is moving to the "Toddfant" room at school. The infant cottage at The Young School consists of an Infant, a Toddfant, and a Toddler room. She will officially be a "Toddfant" on Monday. Fortunately, the teachers will move to the new classroom with her and her entire class (all 6 of them). Transitions to new rooms are done this way to make the adjustment as easy as possible, and I'm glad that Lily will be able to keep the attachments that she has formed with her current teachers. The only major change is that the toys are more suitable for children her age. We have noticed even at home that Lily is less impressed with her "baby" toys. I think that we will be shopping for some new toys this weekend. She seems to like cause and effect toys (like when things pop up when a button is pushed) and things that make noise (like toy pianos).

...And that's all the news for now!

Who's Your Daddy?

Dr. Carl Oscar Deetz

Congratulations to Lily's daddy for completing the requirements for his PhD in molecular biology. We are so proud of you!

Let the (turtle) races begin!

It's official - Lily is a crawler! This has been a very gradual process with some starts and stops along the way, and she still is not completely stable on all fours, but she's doing it! We are especially proud parents tonight.

Just two days ago, I went to get her out of her crib in the morning, and she was standing up! I was so thankful that I had lowered the mattress in her crib a few weeks ago (a little too close for comfort). It seems that these little changes happen every day, and then all of the sudden, major milestones are accomplished, and you forget that there was a time when they could not do these things. It is hard to remember back to when she could not roll over, make vocalizations or purposefully reach for something... Of course, you know that babies develop along a pretty predictable course, but to see it unfold each day is nothing short of a miracle. I still cherish the days of holding Lily when she was so tiny and just watching her...be. But I have to say that this age is amazing and awe-inspiring. I would not trade this for the world. A very close friend of mine (you know who you are) is currently considering starting a family. To her, all I have to say is that you will NEVER regret it. It is the part of your life that you never knew was missing.

Happy Girl

Lily is enjoying lunch time at school. (Isn't her little friend so cute?)

Hobnobbing

Here is Lily with our current mayor (and hopefully future governor), Martin O'Malley. The Young School participated in the Perry Hall festival so Lily is sporting a Young School onsie that I made this morning. I was so excited to get this photo-op; I felt a little like a blushing school girl when I asked him for the picture. I mean, am I wrong ladies, or is Marty a total hottie?

Lunch Time!

Lily chowing down on some papaya and peaches at school

Lil' Trooper

For those of you that don't read Brainy Girl's blog, you may not be aware of a very real battle that is underway against cancer. Carl's cousin, Roger, and his wife, Nadine, have a a 30-year-old friend, Tricia (or Teb, as she's called) with a 1 1/2-year-old baby that is currently in the fight of her life with melanoma. If you have never read Teb's blog, it is a moving account of her struggle that is both humbling and inspiring. You can also visit the website set up by her friends at www.tebstroops.org, read her story, and lend support in any way that you can. Come what may, Teb has been and continues to be a role model for so many who have felt the torrent of emotions brought on by cancer. We send all our best to her, her friends, and her family.

A Maryland Feast

On the grill today: crabs, shrimp kabobs, and split lobster tail. It just doesn't get any better than this.

Fun in the Sun

The Monkini

Pretty Girl

Matching Mohawks

Sunday Shopper

I can't believe how old Lily looks in her more recent photos. It blows me away when I see her sitting in the grocery cart like a big girl. We've come such a long way in 7 1/2 months.

The best part about grocery shopping at Whole Foods is eating lunch in the store. Lily is happy as ever even though she has decided to be "Baby No-Naps" lately.