New School

Hannah started a new school yesterday. I was really nervous because she was doing really well at her last day care and I really liked it. So it was a hard decision to move her, and when I was on my way to take her I thought I was about to cry!

Throughout the day I thought about calling to check on her, but I don't really think they would tell me if she was doing horribly. I mean they probably would, but I know they wouldn't want to worry me any further.

I went to pick her up that afternoon and her smiling little face was waiting at the door. I walked and the lady imediately said to me, "Hannah did not sleep all day, is that normal?" Well, I inquired a little more, because you know how some people can exagerate. Not sleeping all day could have meant she slept for only an hour or 30 minutes, and to me that is sleeping, but to her it may not have been long enough to suffice as a nap. Well, it turns out that she didn't sleep at all! They said there was one point when she almost fell asleep, but then she woke back up and kept on playing. They said that she didn't cry all day or get fussy, but she just didn't sleep. I thought it to be a little strange.

So we leave and as soon as we get in the car she falls asleep. We get home and she falls asleep in my arms on the way in the house and stays that way the entire time I cook dinner. I couldn't let her go to bed without dinner. She woke up to eat dinner and take a bath, but then straight down again. My baby was tired!

This morning when I took her, her teacher mentions what a laid back child Hannah is and that she wished all the kids in her class were like her. She said she would just play and every now and then look up and smile. Now that is the Hannah I know. That made me feel better and I finally relaxed a little and thought for the first time since I dropped her off that things were going to be fine.

They say these things are harder on the parent than the child and they are so true. I am just glad it was a smooth transition.

What a week!

I know I haven't posted much this week or at all, but those of you who I have talked know why. I got a call from Hannah's daycare on Monday to come and pick her up. They thought she probably had pink eye! So I go to pick her up and thankfully was able to get an appointment, which was a miracle in itself.

Hannah was trying to get sick last week, but she got two teeth, so that is what I suspected was messing her up so bad. She had been running a fever and her nose was starting to run, but nothing out of the ordinary for teething.

Well, by the time I got her to the doctor on Monday, I thought she was just had allergies and that what was stirring up her nose and eyes. Well I was in for a rude awakening. When we got to the doctor she wouldn't hardly move. She was laying on me just watching the other kids, and usually she is right down there with them. Everyone who passed said how sick she looked. We finally get called back and the nurse does her thing. The nurse all of a sudden gets really still and just watches Hannah. She then tells me to turn her around and take off her shirt, that is when I knew someting was up. She was watching her breath!

Well, the final conclusion to all of this rambling is that Hannah had pneumonia and pink eye! We did the chest X-rays and the antibiotic shot and went on our way. They most frustrating thing was that the doctor said to watch her breathing through the night and if it got worse to take her to the hospital. Well, what exactly is worse? I really wanted to ask the doctor if he could just come and sleep in Hannah's room for the night so I would be exactly sure what worse was! I was probably a little exhausted which led to me being more frustrated, but gees!

Anyway, we made it through the night and she is doing so much better. She has had to be out of day care all week so that has been a little trying, but we are making it. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and Hannah is almost back to herself. Besides her really long naps she is back to getting into everything and playing like she always does.

I will be glad when this week is over, but I have to admit it has been nice being able to hang out with Hannah a lot even if she was sick.

Play the Music Mom!

Anyone who knows me knows that I can not dance. I always give a good effort, but I have white-girl syndrome to the fullest. They told me when Hannah was young that if you bounce babies a lot it teaches them rhythm, well I must have never been bounced, but it looks like I did a good job with Hannah.

Hannah is a dancing machine! She listens to the TV and dances, she turns on her toys and dances and she dances while I sing (which is also one of my strong points). For her birthday, one of my friends bought her a drum set that came with a xylophone, tamborine, bells, a shaker and of course, a drum. Hannah absolutely loves it, and I have to admit I see a little talent. She will take the drum stick and go back and forth between the drum set and the xylophone and make a little tune. She has a long way to go, but she interested.

Sometimes, I will play the drums and she will play the xylophone, or sometimes we will switch it up. Sometimes, I will sing a song and she will play along and dance. We like to get creative with out music. One song she really likes is: Rocky, Rocky, Rocky to and fro.....(you know how it goes). She will even start rocking her chair and humming along in the tune. I am telling you the girl has talent!

For now, I think we will keep up our own music sessions, but later she will definitely have to get real lessons. You know, (I never thought I say this) I wouldn't even care if someone bought her a lousy drum set or keyboard. I mean if she is good at it, who am I to say no!

Pretty In Pink

I totally underestimate my child most of the time. Lately she has been getting into drawers, baskets and bags and pulling out everything inside. She never really tampers with the stuff, she just pulls it out and throws it to the side. She may put it back in the bag or wherever she got it from, but most of the time it just stays on the floor for me to pick up later.

I think God was preparing me for this incident that I am about to tell. On Sunday, I was getting ready to go to my brother's for Mother's Day. Hannah was in my room playing with the usual stuff. By stuff I mean my make-up bag and clothes in the drawers. (I bet you can see where this is going.) I had on my TV, and she was really into this one show. Things were quiet, which should have been my first sign, but I went on getting ready. At that moment I realize how strangely quiet it is, and I look into my room. Hannah had found my lipstick tube and had it everywhere. It covered her, my hair dryer, the rest of my makeup, a few clothes and, yes, my carpet. Did I mention that I just got new carpet about 3 weeks ago.

So, why did God prepare me for this incident. A couple of days before, I was looking in my cabinet under the sink of cleaning supplies, and I saw Woolite carpet cleaner. I thought to myself, "Wow, didn't know I had that, but good to know!"

Well, I pick up Hannah and put her in the bathroom. I strip her down and kill a couple of washclothes trying to get the lipstick off of her. I run downstairs and head straight for the Woolite. It works like a dream. Of course, I was on the floor for a while scrubbing with all of my might, but it got out!

I know it is totally my fault, which makes it harder to accept. But I just need to stop underestimating how inquisitive my daughter is. I guess we live and learn. I would just rather not learn on my new carpet!

Random

Well it is almost the weekend and I am so glad. Hannah is getting so fun that I hate having to work so much, so I really look forward to hanging out with her on the weekends. She isn't quite walking yet, but she will hold your hand and walk everywhere. I know it is only a matter of time, and I can absolutely wait until that moment.

By the time Sunday comes, I am exhausted. After chasing her around all weeekend and doing stuff around the house, I need a little break. I have realized that I go to work on Monday's just to rest from the weekend, and Hannah goes to daycare on Monday so she can rest too.

This weekend is Mother's Day, so we are going to have some fun. I can't write about where we are going because it is a surprise for our Nona and I would hate for her to read my blog and give away the surprise! But it will be a place that Hannah will have plenty of space to roam, so I will get my exercise on Saturday.

On Sunday, we are going to hang out with my mom and my other neices, so atleast she will have someone to entertain her. The problem is that they all walk, except for Claire of course, so they will leave Hannah in the dust. Who knows, maybe she will get brave and just start running. I think that is what she is waiting for. I think she wants to be able to just start running instead of just easing into it with walking. That ought to be fun!

Well, since Hannah hasn't done anything out of the ordinary that I haven't already blogged about, this blog is just about random stuff. Can you tell? I just hate to leave for the weekend and not have anything for my weekend viewers to read.

Everyone have a great weekend. And Happy Mother's Day to all those Mother's out there!

Tooth Fairy

Hannah cut another tooth last night! I got a call from her daycare yesterday and she had a fever of 101.9. They said she was really clingy, and I thought that was wierd because she has been fine all week. I go to pick her up and she was a little fussy, but it wasn't horrible!

About 4 a.m. she wakes up crying. I get her up and feed her and take her temp. It is still 101, so we take some more Tylenol. I put her back in bed and had to go and console her a few times, but then she went back to sleep.

She woke up at 8, and there was a little tooth poking out of her gums, and her fever had broke. Those crazy teeth can really mess things up.

That brings Hannah to 7 teeth total and I assume the other one will be coming soon. It was her bottom left tooth if you are looking at her.

I know this blog is pretty boring, but maybe oneday when she gets older I will still have this blog and she can know exactly what happened on her 7th tooth!

Surprise Mom!

I know what a lot of you are going to say as you read this story, but I already know!

Yesterday, Hannah and I were at home just hanging out. I was laying on the couch as she played on the floor, and when Hannah plays on the floor she goes all over the place. My den and kitchen are like one big circle, so Hannah usually goes around the circle getting into everything. I have pretty much baby proofed everything, so I don't have to follow her around the house in circles - until yesterday.

We also have stairs in our house, but Hannah has never had any interest in them. She never gets near them or even looks at them, so they haven't been a concern. Well, I think yesterday she woke up and said, "Hey, today I think I am going to climb these stairs." And she did! While I was on the couch, Hannah was doing her circles around the house, but then suddenly it got very quiet. I immediately get up to see what she is in to and Hannah has climbed her way to the top of the stairs. Now I have two ledges, so she wasn't to the second story, but she was well on her way. I couldn't believe it!

So for the entire night I couldn't keep her away from the stairs. I was very curious how she did it, so I stood behind her and let her do it and I have to say I was impressed. It was like she had been climbing stairs her entire life! I know I shouldn't have done that, but since we have stairs in our house I figure she better start practicing (with supervision of course).

So I know what you are all saying. "Allison, you need to get a gate." So yes, I finally agree. It is time to get a gate!

My new cousin!

Welcome to the world Claire!

This picture ought to show you how much Hannah has grown in one year. She didn't really know what was going on with the baby, but every now and then she would point and make a sound toward her. We let her touch her head very lightly because we didn't want her pulling her hair or scratching her. Little Claire had already scractched herself plenty! I am still overwhelmed when I think about how much they do and grow in one year.

Anyway, another new toy Hannah got for her birthday was a machine that blows balls into the air. When they come out of the top, they are supposed to go along a spiral track so they can be shot out again. Well, I think ours has extra power because those balls get shot everywhere. They only land back in the toy when Hannah stops them.

Last night we were playing with it and Hannah figured out she like the balls better on the ground and the air in her face. She pushes the button to get it started and watches the balls fly everywhere. If she can catch a ball, she throughs it on the floor with the rest, and then she puts her face over the space that the air shoots the balls out. She gets really close to it, and then backs aways and laughs. She kept doing this while I ran around the den chasing loose balls to go back into the toy. My mother pointed out that this may be a new exercise machine for me!

I guess we can both benefit from some of her new toys!

Rocky Rocky

Here is my first story of last weekend.

Hannah got a mini rocking chair for her birthday from Nona and Kirbo. It was one of her first gifts she got. I would have guessed she wouldn't have been real interested in it, but I was so wrong.

We put her up there and she just started rocking like she had been rocking for years. It was so funny. Then she learned how to get out of it on her own, but she hasn't figured out how to get back in it. Again, she knows more than I give her credit for.

Well, we had to leave after her party to go to see the baby. When we got back on Sunday, I put her in it and she got to rocking again. After a while of rocking and laughing, she got out. She turned around like she was trying to get back in, but instead started pushing the rocking chair. She pushed that little chair all around the house. If Hannah went somewhere that little chair was pushed right along with her.

It is the beauty of a childs mind. I would have never thought to push the chair, but in her mind it was a great idea and it worked! I wish I could post the video on the blog. I will post pictures later when I get them back.

Happy Birthday

Yesterday was Hannah's Birthday! My baby is 1! We had an exciting weekend around here. Hannah had her party on Saturday. It was a huge success and she loved diving into her cake. We had to move up her party a couple of hours because my sister went into labor on Saturday as well. It was just a weekend full of memories!

I have so many stories from the weekend that I will spread them out throughout the week. I mainly wanted to post some pictures of Hannah from when she was born, so you can remember back to all of the wonderful memories from the past year. Enjoy and I will post some great stories later!

Put Her There!

I was just bragging on Hannah last night to my sister about her newly developed hand-eye coordination. It is just crazy how all of a sudden she can make her hands go exactly where she wants them to go and she understands where things go! For example, when she takes a bath, she likes to point her finger and stick it up the faucet. Also during her bath, she likes to play with a rag and suck the water out of it. Well, now she dips the rag and shoves it to my mouth like I want to enjoy the lovely bath water that she is soaking in! And a few weeks ago I noticed her putting the cap back on her bottle. She knew exactly where it was supposed to go. So, I get really excited because it is my first glimpse of Hannah being able to put up her own toys. I mean she knows where things go, so why can't she put up her own toys!!!!

Anyway, this morning I was giving Hannah her bottle. Every morning we crawl back in bed for her to eat. She holds her own bottle, which is story in itself, and she knows exactly where it goes (in her mouth). Well, as soon as I do all of this bragging on her excellent motor skills, she proves me wrong! This morning she takes a pause while taking her bottle, and I wait for her to get her breath and start again. But this time she doesn't make it to her mouth, she keeps trying to shove it in her nostrils. I die laughing and telling her that is not where the bottle goes, but she continues to try and get it in. Then she pauses and just leaves it with the end of the nipple sitting in her nostril (I mean it is just on the outside of her nostril because her nose is not that big!) And we stay like that for about a minute. Then she puts it down and starts her usual crawling around the bed.

So, I guess we still have a bit of learning to do, but we sure are laughing a lot along the way.

Where's Hannah

Well, Hannah and I are back home and getting back into our groove, which means that the Hannah stories are starting up again!!!!

As a lot of you know, Hannah loves books. At first, she really liked turning the pages. Then she actually would point to things and let me read to her. But now, it is all about where's Hannah?
She will open the book like she is about to read it, then she pulls it to her face. That is your cue to say, "Where's Hannah?" and poof the book comes down and shows a bright a little Hannah face. At first you actually have enough time to say where's Hannah, but after a few times, she starts going really fast. I try to keep up, but her arms move faster than I can talk!

It is really cute though, and a good sign that she knows what I am saying!

Picture Perfect!

I finally have pictures of Hannah to put on my blog, so this post will be dedicated to Hannah pictures

1) This is Hannah when I caught her with her Cadberry Creme Egg!














2) Hannah got a new bike helmet! I am sure she will like it on the bike if I can ever figure out how to put the carrier on!










3) This is Hannah and I on Easter Sunday outside of St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans.











4) Here is Hannah at Court of Two Sisters playing (eating) with her bunny she caught at the Easter parade.











5) Here is Hannah and I at the zoo with the Giraffes. This doesn't even depict how close they really were!









I hope you enjoy the pictures today! Hopefully I will be better about putting them up, so I don't have to bombard you all at once. I am leaving for Miami tomorrow, so I will not be posting until next Tuesday! Everyone have a great weekend!

Happy Easter

This past weekend was Hannah's first Easter, and I always hate when I have to blog after a weekend because so many things happen. I will go for the highlights.

On Saturday, we took Hannah to the zoo for the first time. She had a great time! I really wanted her to jump up and down in excitement, but she was really very still. She just stared and looked on in amazement. Every now and then she would stick out her hand and say "UH". (I have figured out the sticking out of the hand means - go this way.)

Not every animal got the hand though. There were a few criteria from the animals: 1) they had to be moving (and usually pretty fast) 2) they had to be colorful (no camoflauge animals) 3) they had to be really big (the turtles were not a big hit).

The big winners of the day were the anteaters and the giraffes. The anteaters were moving around a lot (not to mention they looked funny) and the giraffes were literally two feet from Hannah. You could put a branch in your hand and the giraffes would eat out of your hand they were so close. I will attach a picture as soon as I get them off of my camera!

It was fun and will get even more fun as she gets older, but I have to say Hannah loves animals.

As for the rest of the weekend, we hung around New Orleans. On Sunday we got dressed in our Easter outfits and saw an Easter parade by Jackson Sqare. Hannah came home with a few more stuffed animals (exactly what we needed). And we ate lunch at Court of Two Sisters. We sat by a fountain and Hannah wanted to stand by it the entire time, but it was okay because everyone stopped to look at the cute baby.

It was a great weekend, but Hannah and I are both still tired. I love weekends, but I feel like I have to go back to work to recuperate from them. In other words, we play really hard on the weekends. Hannah goes to school to rest up from the weekend!

Chocolate is a Girls Best Friend!

A while back my mother bought me some mini Cadberry Creme Eggs. I put them in our pantry for safe keeping (Well I thought it was safe). This morning Hannah and I were getting ready and we came downstairs to get breakfast together. I am, of course, running around like crazy because I never wake up early enough. Hannah is playing on the floor doing her own thing.

I obviously left the pantry door cracked, because after all of my crazy running around I look to find Hannah sitting contently at the pantry door. She had VERY quietly pulled the Cadberry creme eggs out of the pantry, unwrapped one and was diving in. She had gotten through the chocolate and was sucking the creme out of the middle by the time I discovered this!

So naturally, what do I do? I grab the camera! It would have been sad to let that moment pass. I am sure you can not get the full effect from the picture, but atleast I will have the real memory in my head when I look at the picture!

After our picture session, I start picking them up. I take the egg out of her hand and she dives for the others rolling around on the ground. I guess you can say she is a true female!

Tell Me What's Wrong!!

We had to go to Monroe yesterday, and in the middle of the day Hannah got a fever. At first I think it has to be teething, so I give her Tylenol and kind of go on. She usually only takes one nap a day, but she had already taken 2 long naps by 1:00. I started to get a little worried, but I knew I had to get back to Mandeville. After her second nap, she woke up and played and she felt cooler so I felt better.

So around 2:30 we get in the car to go home. She sleeps most of the way only waking up briefly to let out a cry. She usually doesn't sleep that much in the car. So, we make it home and I get her out of the car and she is burning up. She has been on Tylenol every four hours, so I don't think she should have been that hot. I run in and take her temp. It was 102, which is not too bad for a baby, but still not normal. She keeps laying on me and not being herself. Then I wonder, what is wrong with my baby. Her nose is running, but it is clear, she is not screaming like she is in pain teething and she is not grabbing her ears. WHAT IS WRONG!?!?!?

I give her Tylenol and she perks up a little after it takes effect, so I feel a little better again. After about an hour, I take her temp again to see if it has broken any. It reads 101.9, so I think GREAT, it has broked 2 tenths of a degree. So I do as any confused mother does, I call in the artillery. I call my mom for advise and I call my sister, each of them is just as baffled. I then look towards the books, which I have really given up because they always make me feel like I am doing something wrong! And sure enough it gives me more great news, since I take her temp under her arm I have to add a degree, which gives Hannah a temp of 103!

Finally she goes to bed and she finally starts to sweat. I feel better once again because I think it is finally breaking. She wakes up at 3 a.m. and I take her temp again, it reads 100 (adding a degree). I feel a little relieved because it has broken a bit. I feed her and put her back to bed.

In the morning we wake up and I again take her temp. It now reads 96, and I am like geese kid you take it to extremes! She is acting normal and playing around, so I feel better and relieved.

I promise all of this boring rambling has a point!

On the way to work I am telling my sister this story and I realize - how nice will it be when she can say, "Mom my stomach hurts and Mom my ears hurt." Then I can stop this guessing game of, what is wrong with the baby today?

But as I am saying this, I also realize as soon as she can say these things, she will also be able to say No Mom and I don't like you and all the other wonderful things she will learn to say her wonderful Mother!

I guess you take the good with the bad, and it will be nice to stop guessing what it wrong because I am still baffled! We will see how today goes. So far so good! No calls from the Daycare.

Here Puppy Puppy!

My sister, Amy, is about 3 weeks away from delivering her first child, so Hannah and I paid her a visit this weekend to do some last minute things.

Well, my sister has a dog who is very spoiled. She was kind of like my sister's first child, so you can imagine. She definitely has only child syndrome. Let's just say it is a good thing Hannah likes dogs!

Daisy, the dog, did not know what to do with Hannah. She didn't know whether to play with her or stay away from her. She would just walk around Hannah and let out a whimper of frustration. Hannah would sit on the ground and just watch her!

It is sad that Daisy was so confused because all Hannah wanted to do was play! When Daisy would get close to her and sniff her, Hannah would open her mouth and go in for a big ole kiss. One time Daisy actually licked her and she sat there and just laughed.

It was a very good learning experience for Daisy, but I think she may be spending a lot more time outside. Who knows, may be we should adopt Daisy for awhile! It sure kept Hannah occupied!

Almost There!

Hello everyone! I have to say, Hannah and I are both really glad it is Friday! We are exhausted. This time change really messed us up. Hannah has been getting up in the middle of the night again to eat, which makes us both really exhausted. So, TGIF!!!

Well, hannah is so close to walking. Last night we were sitting on the ground playing and she started to stand up on my legs. All of a sudden, she let go of my legs and kind of stood there with her legs half bent. She had that look of, "Okay, what do I do know? My legs won't straighten!" Then she plopped on the ground again.

She has a hippo thing that she pushes around, and she goes to town with that. She pushes it into everything. She hasn't learned reverse yet, so she sits there and just keeps ramming it into the wall (or furniture) until I come and and turn her around.

Maybe next week she will really take off. I have to say most times I can't wait until she walks, because when she starts walking we can play in the yard and in the park and I won't have to worry about her hands and knees getting totally dirty, and maybe I will get in really good shape by chasing her around!

Everyone have a really good weekend. I will talk to you soon!

I didn't get to blog and talk about Hannah's American Idol vote yesterday, so I will tell you who now.

Well, it is sad, but she voted for Mandisa, who got voted off yesterday! It wasn't a very strong vote from Hannah, but I have learned that we can no longer eat dinner while watching American Idol.

My mother came over so we fixed a nice dinner to watch American Idol. I usually sit at the coffee table to eat dinner and it is always a task to keep Hannah out of my plate. What can I say, the girl likes to eat! So I did as I always do and I sat at the coffee table and my mother sat on the couch. Then I realized that my sweet,darling Hannah is much like a dog when it comes to food!

I obviously wasn't giving her enough off of my plate because suddenly I feel her trying to squeeze between me and the couch to get to my mom. She eventually makes it, and she is now grabbing at my mother's plate! She stood there screaming until my mom put something in her mouth, much like a dog will bark until is gets what it wants!

I know it is horrible to compare my daughter to a dog, but I just kept thinking about how a dog will sit by your chair at the dinner table and make whimpers or barks until it gets some food. Not to mention, a dog will usually learn not to go to his owner because a guest will probably give in easier than the owner. Much like a grandma, they will probably give in easier than a mother would.

Anyway, I have decided that eating of my plate at dinner is just not acceptable. Hannah will now receive her own plate at dinner, so may be she won't harrass every guest who comes over. I am the only one who can compare my daughter to a dog. I don't want everyone leaving my house to do the same!

Just another learning lesson in this first year of being a mother. I am on information overload! Everytime I think I have things figured out, things change and we are onto something different! Oh Well! I have loved every minute of it.

Kissy Kissy

I promise I am not slacking on my blog. Things were just crazy at work yesterday!

Recently Hannah has started to give kisses. She hasn't done it on cue, but every now and then she will look at you with a wide open mouth and I will give her a kiss. Sounds sweet, huh?

Last night she was climbing on the couch and I looked at her and said, "Give mommy kiss." To my shock and total unawareness, she literally dives open mouthed into my face. Her mouth is open so wide it covers mine! And as soon as I think the slobber fest Hannah calls a kiss is over, she continues to pull back and plant another one over and over again. It is like she would was reloading the slobber in her mouth every time she pulled back and then would go in full force to share it with mommy. By this point, I am laughing so hard I can't keep my mouth closed long enough to breath before she has reloaded again. Finally it stopped, and Hannah just looked at me and let out a little giggle and went on her way.

Although it was funny and a little gross at the same time, it is nice when you start to see a little affection back from the human being that has taken so much but has not been capable of returning that same affection to you.

So I cleaned off my face, but I will still let her give me a kiss whenever she wants no matter how wet they are!