4 months and a rough past week and a half

Well, I started this blog almost a month ago, and have to follow through so here goes. It's about her 4 month appointment even though she is now 5 months :) Geez....I'm not very good about this.
Peyton had her 4 month appointment last Tuesday, and I'm so glad that is over. She didn't react very well to the shots this time. She ran a fever for 5 days, and I eventually called the doctor and he said it wasn't normal so I should take bring her in. So, we spent our Saturday at the walk-in clinic so that the doctor could tell us that he didn't see anything wrong. She still wasn't feeling well so I took her back to my doctor who finally concluded that she must have some kind of viral infection. She definitely feels better now, but she is hoarse so she sounds so funny.



We started the "cry it out" method a few weeks ago and it was definitely not fun, but Peyton seemed to adjust more and more each night. Well......that has all changed. I don't know if it is because she was sick or because we went to San Angelo, but she SCREAMS bloody murder every time we put her in her crib now and it lasts for what seems like an eternity. We are sticking with it, but it is so frustrating because I thought it was supposed to get better, not worse!!



Here are Peyton's 4 month stats:



Weight: 12 lbs 11 oz (50%)

Length: 24 in (50%)

Head: 40 cm (25%)

Since she is now 5 months (at the time I'm finishing this post....I'll update her likes/dislikes in that post)......

Daddy getting her started early.
Not so sure at first....

Hmm....I actually could like this

Jammie scoping out things

My first horse ride at the ranch.......I'm sure it will be many more to come!

When Ryan and I were driving around the ranch, we came across this little girl all by herself. She couldn't have been but a few days old and her momma was no where to be found. We eventually found her mom, but for some reason her mom wouldn't nurse her, so we named her "Nugget" and bottle fed her for a few days. I'm happy to say that her mother finally came through and now Nugget is doing just fine.

Here is a picture of Peyton the first time we put her in the jogging stroller without the carseat.

Yay mom....this is fun!

Just woke up....

St. Patrick's Day

Always so serious....I can't imagine where she got this from!

Working on our tummy time. She is getting where she likes it better, but still definitely prefers to be on her back.

Going on a walk.....trying out my hat for the first time.

Paranoid?

I have been really paranoid lately, and I really apologize if this poar makes anyone else paranoid but I'd like to know your thoughts. I came across a family's blog about a month ago and it has been tearing at my heart ever since. Their little girl, Maddie, was 4 months old when she quit breathing during a nap and passed away. I had never really thought about SIDS before that (other than the obvious precautions), but ever since I can't get it out of my mind.

Many of the precautions are obvious and we hear about from day 1 (i.e. sleeping on their back), but some of the others I had never heard about. For example, you are not supposed to put bumpers in their bed? Peyton really isn't at the point yet where she moves around a whole lot, but if the bumpers are a hazard to her life, then I will absolutely take them out. I just don't understand why all of these bedding sets come with bumpers if they aren't safe. What is your opinion?

Also, Maddie's mom's blog talks about Angel monitors, and I have seriously been thinking about getting one. I have a video monitor, which I LOVE, but maybe we should use the other one as well. Am I being too paranoid, or is this really a necessary precaution? Have any of you ever used an angel monitor or something similar?

On a much lighter note, Peyton is 4 months old today. I will be posting pics later today!

We're Back....and We are All Smiles

So I knew this blogging thing was going to be an issue me for. I am such a procrastinator and if I don't have a deadline, it's going to take me a while to finish something (if I ever do). For example, Peyton is now almost 4 months old and I have yet to write a single thank you note for all of her gifts (I take that back...I've written three). The reason being is because Ryan and I moved into a new house in October (in between my two showers), we were busy trying to get the house in order (which is still isn't) before Peyton arrived, and then Peyton arrived which means no free time. My "free time" is dedicated to going to the store, working from home OR cleaning our home. So, I promise that I will write all my thank you notes MOM, and for those of you who are wondering if I ever received your gift.....I did.....it's just taken me longer than Emily Post would prefer in writing my thank you's.



Peyton has changed so much in the last two months. People are not kidding when they say they grow up quick. Here is a snapshot of what has been going on in our lives.



February started out with a winter storm......I did not leave the house for 5 days, and I was going crazy. While the roads were being iced over, and the snow was piling up, this little angel and her crazy hair slept soundly in the comfort of her swing oblivious as to what was going on outside. I chose not to bundle her all up, just to take a picture of her in her snow gear.

The dogs LOVE playing in the snow.

The house across the street

Our house--The sun finally came out on Friday.

View from our back porch

Peyton playing on her mat, which she still loves. Rex and Mugsy are usually close by.

Since we weren't able to score tickets for the Super Bowl, we made the trek to Kelly and Michael's house. This is a picture of Olivia....she is one week younger than Peyton.

Ashley, Sam, Ryan and Peyton

Peyton loves her baths!! We are still bathing her in her tub in the kitchen, but I think we are going to have to move it to the bathroom soon. She loves to play and waters goes everywhere, which isn't too good for our wood floors in the kitchen.

We bought Peyton an Exersaucer last month, which she really can't fully enjoy yet, but she likes to play in it for a little while.

Valentine's Day.

Sitting in her bumbo.....which she loves!

3 months old on February 21st....can you believe it???

Hanging out with Jammie

Snuggling with dad

Yes, the hair is still crazy, but it has tamed a bit.

Helping Jammie bake a cake!!

All smiles!!!!

The whole clan gathered around!

Smile! Peyton smiles all the time, but sometimes it's hard to capture it on camera because she is so intrigued by the camera she is too busy checking it out.

This is my favorite picture!!

2 Months Old!

I can't believe that Peyton is already 2 months old! Everyone always says how time flies by so quickly and now I completely agree! I apologize for the long post, but since I just started the blog, I'm trying to catch up and get all of our pics on here.

Here are a few updates on what's going on with Peyton at 2 months:

Height: 22 3/4 inches (75th percentile)...I'm not sure where these stats are coming from, because I can honestly say that I was never in the 75th percentile. Maybe she'll be lucky and get some of the Albert genes for height. At her 2 week appt, she was in the 50th percentile.

Weight: 9 lbs 14 oz (50th percentile)....She was in the 25th percentile at 2 weeks.

Head: 38 cm (50th percentile)....She was in the 25th percentile at 2 weeks.

According to these measurements, she's been a growing girl over the past 2 months!

Diaper Size: Still in Newborn, but I think it's time to change to size 1

Clothing Size: We can wear some 0-3 clothing (we just have to roll up the sleeves), but we still wear a lot of Newborn. I'm ready for her to be in 0-3, because there are so many cute clothes awaiting the closet!

Sleeping Habits: The past few nights she has been sleeping 7-8 hour stretches, which is amazing! She generally goes to bed between 10 and 11, but last night she went down a little after 9. Just over the past week, she has learned to put herself to sleep. In the past, I could be holding her while she is sleeping and the second you put her down, she would wake up and start crying. The past week I have given her a little "snack" right before I put her in the crib and she is content. She may fuss a little bit, but she will go to sleep after a few minutes. Now, if we could just tackle napping in the crib. Peyton has been in her crib since day 1. This was not our original intention (we had planned on her sleeping in the pack in play in our bedroom), but since I had a c-section I could not get into our bed right at first (it was too high). So, we were sleeping in the extra bedroom which is right next to her room, and it seemed to make sense to let her try out the crib. Plus, I am more at ease watching the monitor versus having her in our room trying to decipher her noises. So, moral of the story.....she loves her crib at night, but for some reason doesn't like to nap in the crib. Her favorite place to nap is in her swing or in her carseat. She instantly falls asleep in the car!

Eating Habits: Nursing every 2-3 hours.

Milestones: Over the past couple of weeks, she has discovered that she can turn her head back and forth. It's pretty funny to watch. She will just sit there and move her head from side to side. She is also starting to smile. Her favorite person to smile at is her daddy. I'm still working on the smiles.....I guess she just sees me as the gravy train and would prefer to save her smiles for others :-) She has recently discovered her thumb. She tries so hard to suck it, but she ends up sucking her entire hand.

Likes/Dislikes:

-We finally broke out the playmat, and she loves it! She will lay there for quite a while, and just kick and shake her arms. It's pretty cute.

-She also loves her swing still, although she definitely is wanting to be held more. She also prefers movement, so I've mastered the bounce.

-She loves the car! We've been to San Angelo and Austin, and she slept the entire way.

-She will not take a pacifier which I'm okay with. There are definitely times I wish she would, but I also would prefer not to have to deal with taking the pacifier away in the future.

-I don't have anything to compare her to, but in my opinion, Peyton is a great baby. She is really only fussy when she is tired or hungry. She loves to cuddle and be held, so I'm going to treasure this while I can!

We had our 2 month checkup on Monday, and Peyton decided to wear her cammo attire because she wanted to be tough for her shots. I was dreading this appointment. It made me almost cry thinking about it!


She ended up getting 5 shots and an oral vaccine. She definitely screamed while she was getting the shots, but it didn't take too long to calm her down. I just felt so sorry for her. She was already kind of fussy because it was time to eat, and she had no idea that what was coming.


But, on a positive note, the cammo outfit ended up being the perfect attire because she got 5 little pink cammo bandaids on her chubby legs. Who knew that bandaids could be considered an accessory!

We went to Austin a couple of weeks ago to celebrate Liza's 30th birthday and to see Ashley and Boogie and the kids. Ashley watched Peyton while we had a night out with our friends. I forgot to take my camera that night, but we had a lot of fun. It was nice to get out!

Look at my new boots that Aunt Ashley got me!

Peyton is sporting a mohawk these days (or a fohawk as Ryan likes to call it). There is no taming her hair, so we just roll with it!

Ty decided to bake us some brownies!

These are a few pics of when we first got out the playmat. Mugsy lays right by Peyton and watches her play. She hasn't really discovered the dogs yet, but they are so interested in her. Mugsy is definitely going to be her shadow.

Lily decided she wanted to try out the playmat too!

This pic cracks me up! My mom and I were on our way back from lunch one day, and when I went to get Peyton out of the car this was what I discovered! She was still sound asleep, and this did not phase her at all. Sleeping Beauty! I didn't want to show Ryan because he hates the bows I put on her head and I knew he would have a comment, but this was too funny not to share!

Peyton on the Cotton Bowl game day.

Hanging with dad! Thanks for my adorable outfit Lisa!