Emily's Progress

Eli and I are just amazed at Emily's growth this past month in all areas. She's crossing the threshold of being a tiny baby to asserting independence. Not only is she able to sit up all by herself, but she can roll around to get to where she wants to go. We can tell she's going to be a pistol and getting into everything very soon--the doctor said she was one of the wiggliest babies she'd ever seen!

On the way back from our 4th of July weekend we got stuck in traffic for several hours (we left at 4 and got to Dallas at 12:30!) and poor Emily suffered the most. She was exhausted from the weekend and the vacation sleep schedule and just wanted to be in her own bed...so she cried. The whole way. And her face broke out in eczema, and swelled up so much that her eyes were almost shut. I took her to the Doctor on Monday and it is now apparent that the steroids she had been taken are ineffective (some kids just don't respond) and the eczema on her arm is not eczema, but a STAFF infection. Eli had staff in his leg during college from playing rugby and he couldn't walk. But our brave little Emily toughed it out for 2 months. So new cream, new antibiotics that fight the "unfightable" strain of staff. When we got home i put the cream all over her body to ease the itch of the eczema. Then Emily started to rub her eyes. And scream. Her body was having a crazy reaction to this cream too--I should have known. So the redness started at her eyes and went to her head and then down her entire body. I called the doctor again, afraid that it would spread to her airways, and got the ok on Benadryl. So I went 75mph in a 30 to get to Walgreens, ran in with Emily screaming and her body red and swollen. I can just imagine what the customers were thinking. During all this crying she managed to learn how to say MAMA!!! Of course she knew my most vulnerable time when I really wanted to make her feel all better, she has to go and say mama for the first time and make me crumble! Let's just say that I'm definitely initiated into motherhood!

These are the beginning stages when it wasn't really irritating her...

Anyway she's recovered now and after paying $400 for creams that didn't work, I'm moving to fish oil. Wish us luck! The nutritionist came yesterday and Emily weighs 15lbs! She's still below the growth chart for 11months, but for her gestational age of 8 months she's on the 15% yay!!! More importantly her height to weight ratio is between 25-50% which is PERFECT. All of a sudden she's fitting into 3-6 month clothes and some 6-12 month clothes...we may even move up to size 3 diapers soon. I think this growth spurt is because of her wonderful eating habits. At each meal she eats from 3 food groups, and she still nurses very well. Ridiculous!! The next thing we know she'll be crawling and eating independently!