Bekah, Jimmy, James & Baby Georgia: The Ups and Downs of 18 months

Thursday, September 16, 2010

The Ups and Downs of 18 months

Mom... I thought you said we were ready to go out... I'm want to see my friends at daycare.

You're taking too long messing with the camera. I like my new outfit and the balls I'm holding but I have a cold and that is not fun.

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Georgia at 5 Months

Georgia is so happy she is an absolute delight. She smiles, laughs out loud and "talks" a lot by squealing and shouting. She kicks her legs a mile a minute when she is in the tub and when she is held high in the air. Georgia likes to play peek-a-boo, loves to be tickled under her chin, and one of her favorite things to do is eat her own feet. She rolls over to her side a lot and has rolled completely a few times but does not do it on a regular basis yet. Georgia still wakes up once a night, takes a few naps a day and is a very noisy sleeper. She grunts, snores, kicks her legs and makes all kinds of strange sounds. She likes tummy time for a few minutes but then begins to fuss about it. Georgia loves to watch her brother James and he loves to be affectionate and entertaining to her.

Georgia's Birth Story

Bekah went into labor 10 days early. She had already been 3 cms dilated and experiencing contractions on and off for more than 2 weeks so the doctors kept saying ‘any day now’ at her weekly appointments. Her belly was very big (she had added 43 pounds to her starting weight of 110) and was having a hard time waddling around. Jimmy was on stand by and had already cancelled all business trips for the month of March.

On Friday, March 18^th Bekah and Jimmy went to work as usual. Jimmy dropped James off at April’s daycare and headed to the office in Wareham. When Bekah got out of school and finished up some maternity leave paper work at the school department, she decided to call the doctor to see if she could get one last check before the weekend.

At 3:00 on Friday afternoon Bekah was put on the monitor, 30 minutes and 3 contractions later, the nurse practitioner told her she was 4.5 cms and ready to go to the hospital.

Jimmy was almost to the daycare pick up so he got James and called Susan. Bekah went straight to the labor and delivery floor while Jimmy handed James to his Grammie in the hospital lobby.

At 6:00 Bekah is in a hospital gown and starts walking laps around the 10^th floor of Beth Israel Medical Center with Jimmy. Contractions are getting stronger and more frequent at 6 minutes apart yet still not too painful. At 9:00 we are still waiting for things to pick up so we decide to do a slow drip of Pictocin. By 11:00 the guy comes in for the epidural. It takes him 3 tries to get it in right – first because the spinal space is small and then because of a faulty needle. Bekah asks him for a much smaller dose so she can feel the contractions more and be more effective at pushing the baby out.

At 11:30 the OB comes in and breaks the bag of water. The contractions intensify.

The serious pushing starts at 1:00. Bekah is on her back, in a squatting position, on her back and in a squatting position again. The OB is really serious about how to push, how hard to push and how to get this baby out. Bekah stays focused and does her best to push as hard as she possibly can. The head finally comes out after an hour of pushing. Then the shoulders get stuck and the doctors have to pull and twist the baby out.

At 2:25 am we have a perfect baby girl weighing 8 pounds 8 ounces and measuring 19.5 inches long.

Georgia Violet Blakeney screams right away, making her parents so happy.

Over a Year

James is about 14 months and he knows how to do and say so many things I hardly know where to begin. James wakes up happy everyday at 6:00 am. We don't need to set the alarm clock ever because his little voice saying Mama, Dada, Mama, Dada, is our new wake up call. He eats lots of 'people food' like yogurt, grapes, cheese, bagels, bananas, crackers, pretzels, french fries, etc. For obvious reasons, he knows how to say snack really well. He also says ball, box, book, shoe, keys, eat. James adores our 7 year old neighbor Rowan and say Ruh-Ruh everytime we step out into the hallway. He points at anything he likes and waves to every person, dog, bird and bicycle we come across. James is starting to climb on high things. Yesterday he went up on the couch, then on the arm of the couch, then on Jimmy's desk that is next to the couch. Within minutes he was standing up on the desk clapping at his own accomplishment. James loves to take a bath and can say bath in the evenings when we ask if he wants to take one. He plays in there. We try to get him to sit down but he keeps standing up and walking circles around the tub. When he is done in there he starts to climb out on his own. We are looking foward to lots of good adventures this summer!

Wants to Walk at 9 Months

James is 9 months this week and he wants to practice walking like it's his job. He is so active, the doctor told us she thinks we are getting our money out of daycare. James stands up constantly, pulling himself up on anything and everything- even moving objects like our legs and our exercise ball. He has a little cart he pushes down the hallway and a minature grocery cart he uses non-stop at daycare. These 2 toys assist him in walking at high speeds. It looks so funny to see his little hips going at a mile a minute. James is also getting really good at throwing balls of various sizes. He can chuck them in our general direction and catch them when we roll them towards him. He loves trying out new toys and using his Dad's baseball cap as a toy to put on and take off. James also loves 'reading' books and is quite good at turning the pages of his board books. He loves lights and points at them whenever they turn on. His Grammie in RI taught him to play 'nite-nite' and now when we say those words, he rests his shoulder on the nearest surface- only to pop it up when we say UP. His Grandmother in DC got him the cutest winter gear and he is looking pretty cool in his UGG boots. James lifts his arms over his head when we say 'So big' and shakes his head back and fourth whenever we say no or a word that sounds like no. He claps and babytalks to beat the band. He is still happy 99.9% of the time and he loves to laugh and be chased around the floor by his Dad. James is a pretty good eater even though sometimes he just doesn't want to be fed. We told the doctor our concerns and she just looked at his belly and told us it doesn't look like he is skipping any meals. We feel so blessed by this healthy, happy boy!

Mr. Physical at 8 Months

James does so much now and Mom refers to him as Mr. Physical. He loves to:

- Climb over our legs and torsos when we are laying down on the floor.

- Pull up to standing every chance he gets.

- Crawl as fast as he can

- Throw his toys or roll a ball and chase after it.

- Push back to a seated position from crawling.

- Shake his head over and over, (especially when we do).

- Clap his hands and say yaaaah...

- Laugh hysterically at funny noises his dad makes.

- Aggressively rub his eyes when he is tired, occasionally scratching his own face.

- Bounce, bounce, bounce, bending his knees while standing.

- Mimic us when we chew our food, munching away on air.

- Blow raspberries

- Say Ma ma ma, Da da da and Ba ba ba

- Eat little star crackers

- Loves to roll the ball back and fourth and bang 2 toys together

- Cruise up and down the length of the couch while holding on (sometimes with one hand!)

- Walk down the hall with one of us holding his hands.

- Likes to listen to us sing while he has a bottle.

Even MORE tricks at 5 months

James is really doing some cool stuff... Lately, he's been :

- Babbling a bunch and having a lot of fun listening to himself scream with delight.

- Reaching out for objects he wants and trying to dive out of my arms if he wants something far away.

- Doing a LOT of cuddling in the mornings between waking up and eating. We just hang on the couch and he is so sweet!

- Drinking 6 oz of formula out of a bottle in one shot.

- Sleeping from 7pm to 4am every night and then 4am to 7am right after nursing.

- Wiggling across the floor on his belly if there is some thing he wants.

- Looking out the window in the car.

- Laughing hysterically to 'creep mouse,' the 'I'm gonna getcha' and peek-a-boo games.

- Holding his head in his hands- Pa calls it "checking for hair"

- Sucking his thumb for about 5 seconds before letting go.

- Chewing on any or all of his fingers.

- Pulling the pacifier out and putting it back in over and over and over again.

- Pulling his mom's hair, not my favorite trick!

- Holding his toys with one hand, switching to the other and spinning them around to examine them before putting them in his mouth.

- Pulling on his ears a lot (maybe due to teething?) and scratching himself (inside his ears) when Mommy has forgotten to trim his nails.

- Eating his toes whenever I am trying to change his diaper.

- Wearing 6 Month clothes.

More Tricks at 4 Months

James can:

- Have fun on his belly for long periods of time

- Hold both of his feet with his hands when on his back

- Drink a mixture of mom's milk and formula from a bottle

- Follow a 4 hour schedule of eating, playing, & napping...

- Sit & stand up when someone is holding his hands

- Sit and hang out in his blue Bumbo seat

- Hold and shake a rattle

- Put everything he can hold in his mouth

- Sleep on his side

- Fall back to sleep in the night without needing to eat

If he would only sleep through the night, then we'd REALLY be able to brag about him!

4 months and ROLLING

Now that James is 4 months, he rolls freely from front to back and back to front. He laughs the whole time and seems to be quite proud of his accomplishments. He is also sleeping on his side these days, which is new. We just got him to drink a bottle with a little bit of formula in it because he refused a full formula bottle the other day. We are trying to "wean him on to it," as Jimmy says. Nursing has been great, but I am wanting to have a smooth transition when I go back to work. Baby steps!

Latest Baby Developments at 3 1/2 Months

Sweet Baby James:

- can roll over from his belly to his back

- likes to stand on his feet with a lot of assistance

- wiggles a bunch when he is on his belly, in attempts to crawl

- splashes like a maniac in the tub and soaks the kitchen counter

- is growing LOTS of new hair- and the new stuff is blonde!

- sleeps in the big crib, in his own room (but not thru the night)

- spins his body completely around (in bed) between feedings

- flings his legs up in the air and throws them down when he he is on his back in bed

- actually enjoys tummy time and can hold himself up

- holds toys and puts them straight into his mouth

- likes to be kissed and nibbled on the belly, feet, neck, etc

- talks up a storm and makes us laugh

Bekah, Jimmy, James & Baby Georgia

Thursday, September 16, 2010

The Ups and Downs of 18 months

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Georgia at 5 Months

Georgia's Birth Story

Animal Sounds

Vocabulary

Over a Year

Walking and talking

Wants to Walk at 9 Months

Mr. Physical at 8 Months

James at 7 Months

Flowers In Lowell

Diving into it

Profile of a 6 month old

Thumbprints All Day Long

Summer fun with James

I'm 5 Months

Even MORE tricks at 5 months

Chubby Cheeks at 4 months

More Tricks at 4 Months

4 months and ROLLING

Latest Baby Developments at 3 1/2 Months

James is Getting so BIG

Soooo Big...

Brand New Baby!

Nearly 9 Months Pregnant

Expecting

The Wedding

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