Goodbye, September

Hello, October!  I can't believe that tomorrow's already the first day of October!  It's a reminder that we're 1 month closer to having a 2 year old.

Anyway, we had a relatively good, yet busy, final weekend of September.  Friday was basically a fail: Judith refused to go to bed at a decent time, and after a messy diaper change, she fell asleep only to wake up an hour and a half later, screaming.  We tried bringing her to bed with us, but she didn't want to sleep, so she went back into her crib.  Repeat the process every hour and a half for the next few hours, and you can see why we were seriously dragging Saturday morning (and she decided to bless us with a 6:45 AM wakeup call on top of that...).  Dosing her with tylenol helped once I realized that her teeth really must've been bugging her.  Like I mentioned in previous posts, her 2 year molars are the last 4 teeth we're waiting on, and they better not take 6 months to come in like the 1 year molars, otherwise I might go insane.

Saturday brought a wonderful treat!  My uncle, aunt, and cousin's son decided to make the trip east for a visit!  Between Judith's health, the logistics of traveling with a small baby and all of the gear we would've needed, the steadily increasing Turnpike tolls, and a general clash of schedules, it's been well over a year since we had the chance to visit.  The last time they saw us was in the beginning of April 2011 when my cousin graduated from the state police academy.  I couldn't get over how much my cousin's son grew, and everyone else couldn't get over how much Judith grew and changed!  It was hilarious watching Judith interact with her 2nd cousin, too!

That evening, we all went downtown for my hometown's annual fair.  I always forget how much of a pain it really is to have to drive around that sucker (it's a street fair, and it blocks off the main street and several of the side streets).  I have to say that the prices for things were insane at most stands, but some were relatively reasonable.  And it was neat seeing some of the new games and rides, but it was also nice to see that some things never change (hello, Fat Albert!).  Judith didn't ride anything this year - she's still a little too small for most of them, and I know she wouldn't sit still long enough to truly be safe on most of them.  She enjoyed watching the crowds and looking at all of the sites, though.  We had to leave early (don't ask...), then went back to my parents' house to have dinner with them and my grandmother.

Today was uneventful in comparison, but we did get a lot of housework completed.  We removed the air conditioner from our bedroom window, and it's already nice having the extra light filtering in!  I want to put the screen back in that window so we can get some extra air flow, but it'll probably have to wait until later in the week when we have time to seal it off from the stinkbugs.  I also transitioned out Judith's wardrobe, and cleaned out her closet.  Putting away the 12 month clothing was bad enough, but I could've cried packing up some of her small smocked outfits.  Her Easter dress from last year (size 3 months) looks absolutely tiny in comparison to her dress from this past year (size 12 months), and even though she's still really small, it's hard to believe that the 3 month size was huge on her not that long ago.  I feel a bit better putting them away knowing she has 2 adorable dresses and 1 adorable long bubble (soon to be 3 adorable long bubbles, once the other 2 ship) hanging in there, ready for her to wear.

A Change in Appearance

We had a new milestone yesterday: Judith's first pair of glasses arrived!  We made the trip to the ophthalmologist after speech therapy so she could get them fitted.  In retrospect, I kind of wish I had someone with me so I could get a video of her reaction when we put them on.  The optometrist gave her the case to hold, and the look of wonder as she explored the case that she could see much more clearly was priceless!  I was pretty proud of her: she didn't fuss with them a lot, and left them on her face for the ride home and for the rest of the evening.

Our little scholar

Today was a good day as well.  She did fuss with them a few times, and figured out how to get them off once during dinner, but otherwise she's been leaving them alone.  We'll see how long it lasts, especially after the novelty wears off.  However, I'm optimistic that she will wear them regularly because she'll realize she can see much better with them on.

Annual Eye Exam

Judith's annual eye exam was this morning, and what a fun visit it was (I use "fun" loosely).  The appointment overall went well: they dilated her eyes, and the opthamologist saw that the farsightedness progressed to +4 in her right eye and +4.5 in her left eye.  That's still borderline, but is at the point where they'll start to prescribe glasses to help correct things.  The opthomologist was kind of leaving it up to us about whether we wanted to do it right now or wait a few months, but I told her that Judith's still having issues with color contrast (if things are too similar in color, she doesn't always see where it is) and she said we should go ahead and do this now.  Judith was fit for some cute frames, and will be getting her new glasses in about a week.  I have to say she does look cute in them!  I promise to post a picture or 2 once she has them.

Judith treated her opthamologist just like any other doctor: she was a hot mess from the moment the doc walked into the exam room, and didn't stop until we were at the checkout desk.  I swear you would think we were ripping out her toenails based off of her screams!  I'm glad my mom was there to help.  I really can't wait for the day that she doesn't scream bloody murder at every appointment.  I know the doctors are used to this kind of behavior, but now it's getting embarrassing.  Minnie only worked as a distraction for so long, and I'm starting to be at a loss about what to do with her.  Frequent doctor visits aren't going to ease up, and I'm hoping she'll start adapting to things soon.

21 Month Pictures

I made the second (and final) attempt at 21 month pics for Judith this afternoon.  They turned out decent - I'm not super satisfied with them, but they're not bad.

Toddler-zilla!

Sitting still just doesn't happen these days.

Finally, a smile!  This prayer afghan was made by members of one of my father-in-law's former parishes.  One of the ladies that helped make it is also a CF mama.

Are we done yet?

Today was Rally Day at church, and while Judith is still too young to attend Sunday School there, they welcomed her/encouraged her to try to join in some of the festivities.  The biggest hit of the morning?  The balloon decorations - she would see them and declare "A boon!"

21 Months

We attempted a photo shoot this morning, and that was a pretty big fail.  So no pictures with the post today, but I promise I will post them sometime next week after we try again!

Judith, you are 21 months old today!  Only 3 months to go until your 2nd birthday.

Some big things that have happened in the last 3 months:

* You (along with the rest of us) survived another insanely hot summer.  We had to spend a lot of time indoors because of the heat and humidity, but we made the best of it.

* You had another CF clinic appointment, and everything looked good!

* You finally got your airway clearance vest!  You're not the biggest fan of it, but if we distract you with something (toys, Disney Jr. shows, books) you tolerate the treatment.

* You've continued your speech therapy sessions, and have had a language explosion - we're amazed at how many words you've added to your vocabulary!

* You had another cold, and got your first ear infection.

* We had a fun play date at a great park!  You had a blast walking around and exploring things, but we discovered you're not a fan of the swings this year.

* You went to the Hands-on-House for the first time and loved it!  We're definitely going back again soon.

* You have tons of energy, and some days I wonder where you get it all from.  You're constantly on the go, and have turned into a little spider monkey - climbing up and down things is one of your newer sources of entertainment.

Judith's 21 Month Stats:

Adjusted Age: 1 year, 6 months, 2 weeks, and 4 days

Weight: about 21 1/2 lbs (as of mid-August)

Length: 30 1/4" (as of 7/24/12)

Hair & Eye Color: Neither has really changed.  You're slowly growing your hair, and there's a little more than what you had 3 months ago.

Teeth: You almost have all of your baby teeth!  All of your front teeth, canines, and 1 year molars are completely in.  We're just waiting on your 2 year molars, but you're definitely teething so I think they're starting to slowly work their way to the surface.

Clothing: Still 9-12 month sizes!  I'm surprised at how well your 12m pants fit length-wise, and I think we'll be able to get through a portion of the fall with them.  You can wear some 18m sizes, but it's generally pretty big/long yet - you'll grow into it this fall/winter.

Diaper Size: Still in size 4.  I'm anticipating that you may need to move to 5's for overnight soon.

Diet & Nutrition: You're definitely becoming a picky eater, and getting you to eat enough calories is becoming a real challenge.  You do drink about 32 oz of Pediasure every day.  We got the ok from your nutritionist to try some whole milk - you're not a big fan of plain milk, but seemed to enjoy some chocolate milk.  You're also having an easier time drinking water, and are starting to learn how to drink from a regular cup.  We're working on using utensils, but you have a long way to go.  Some of your favorite foods are cheese curls, pasta with different sauces/toppings (butter, spaghetti sauce, cheese, etc), cereal, pancakes/waffles, potato chips, and assorted veggies.

Developmental Milestones: You've had a language explosion over the last couple of months!  I stopped counting how many words you have, but some of the newest are mommy, daddy, duck, really, wow, whoa, uh-oh, oopsie, cracker, Elmo, Cookie (as in Monster), full, foot, and shoe.

Happy 21 months, Judith!