Her big day is almost here!

| September 22, 2011

Today, two years ago, I was in the hospital, still waiting for Sam.  We thought she would have made her appearance by now, but she was taking her own sweet time!  I had been on Pitocin since 8:00 a.m., and they finally shut it off around 4 or 5:00 p.m. since things just were not moving along.  Mark and my mom went home to get some rest, and no sooner had they left when I started having major contractions!  That must have been about 5:30 p.m. the day before Sam was born.  None of us had any idea we were in for a really long night, and a really long day, waiting for Sam to decide to be born.  Well, I can say that I got a good bit of sleep, but I can’t say the same for my mom and Mark who spent the night sleeping in chairs!

What was I doing 2 years ago today?

| September 21, 2011

I was at the hospital, having what I thought was my last non-stress test, then I was going to come home to Mark so we could have lunch.  Sam certainly surprised me!  By this time in 2009 I was all checked into the hospital for monitoring.  I remember being a little scared, because I had never had any issues at my non-stress tests before, but also very excited because Dr. Bailey decided that he would induce labor the next day.  Boy, was Mark shocked when I called to say I was going to be a little later than normal getting home.  He thought it was because the Perinatal Center was running behind.  You can imagine his surprise when I said I was being admitted for at least 4 hours of monitoring!  I think he must have drove 80 miles an hour to the hospital for how fast he got there.  We had no idea at the time it was going to take so long for Sam to be born! 

For a blast from the past, click here!

Taking care of her choppers

| September 19, 2011

Sam went to the dentist today for the first time.  It didn’t go as well as I had hoped.  Not that there was anything wrong with her teeth, but she was not a happy camper.  I made sure to choose a pediatric dentist so they would be more used to dealing with little ones who don’t know what is going on.  Well, it didn’t help.  When we got there, Sam was perfectly fine.  The waiting room had tons of toys and other kids for her to play with.  We went into the back, and as soon as I put Sam in the exam chair, she started to get nervous.  She kept putting her arms out for me to pick her up.  The hygienist tried to put her at ease, and for a while it worked.  Sam helped to brush the teeth of a stuffed dragon with a huge toothbrush and she thought that was pretty funny.  Sam was allowed to pick her own toothbrush (orange, of course).  Then came the actual exam part.  When the hygienist tried to brush Sam’s teeth she got so upset she wouldn’t even open her mouth.  We tried plying her with stickers and jewelry and even that didn’t work.  I knew we were in trouble because stickers and jewelry are two of Sam’s favorite things!  Eventually, I had to sit in the chair with Sam on my lap and basically just hang her upside down a bit so that her mouth would open.  She cried the whole time her teeth were getting brushed with the fluoride treatment.  That didn’t take long, thankfully, and I did get her to calm down.  But then the dentist came in…cue the ominous music here…dum dum dum….

All Dr. Megan wanted to do was look at Sam’s teeth and you would have thought Sam was being tortured.  So, again, she cried like a lunatic.  But the good thing is that Sam’s teeth do look great, they all came in properly and they are healthy.  We talked about her 2-year molars and how I know they are coming in because Sam has been chewing a lot and she keeps putting my finger in her mouth so I can rub her gums for her.  Dr. Megan said it could take 4-6 months for them all to come in, so we probably have a ways to go.  When I rub Sam’s gums in back I don’t feel any teeth poking through yet.

Sam goes back in 6 months for her next checkup.  I am really hoping that she will handle it better by then since she will be older.  I know they will want to do more to her than they did this time and if she doesn’t cooperate, well, I don’t know what we will do.  I really don’t want Sam to dread going to the dentist, but if she doesn’t let them do some basic dental care, eventually, she will need a lot more than a teeth cleaning.  I suppose all I can do is keep brushing at home to keep her pearly whites in good shape.  At least she is good now at letting me brush her teeth at home.  She opens her mouth and says, “Ahhhhh”, which is adorable but I have no idea where she learned that.  Maybe if I tell her without brushing she will get no more beans (jelly beans) or M’s (M&Ms) or other assorted goodies!  Or bribery, I am not above bribery…

Ahhh! Refreshing!

| September 18, 2011

Sam has been drinking exclusively out of sippy cups and straws for a while now. She sometimes wants to try an actual cup and we have had some limited success. Mostly, she gets a few sips in and then manages to spill the rest all over herself. I have been reluctant to let her try very often because I am tired of cleaning up the mess!   But, today, she grabbed Mark’s half empty bottle of water and she wanted a drink so I figured, ok, let’s see how this goes. It’s only water, right? She did great! It took a little assistance at first, but she eventually got it. For some reason, she seems to want to stick her tongue out and I keep explaining to her that her tongue needs to stay in or drinking doesn’t work. She only spilled a little at the end, but mostly because by that time she was bored and just goofing off.  Later in the day she tried again with Mark. She looks so cute and grown up. I think we really need to work on cups and water bottles. She is a big girl now, almost 2, and she has to do it sometime!

Happy Anniversary!

| September 18, 2011

Today is our 12 year anniversary! I can’t believe how fast it went. We don’t have anything special planned for today, just hanging out with our baby. She was the best anniversary present we ever got!

I love you Pam, happy anniversary!