Addison - the 18 Month Old!

Whoops! Where has the time went? I was a bad mommy blogger and didn't update Addison's 17th month. It fell the week we were moving, so I just didn't have time. And, well, the days kept slipping past me and before I knew it, we were closer to her 18-month birthday, so I decided to just wait to give a nice big update for her 18th month - which is a milestone all on its own!

A New Nest

We have been in our new home for almost a month now. The time has gone quickly and we have been very busy unpacking and settling in. To our enjoyment, Addison had no problems adjusting. She was here a few times before we moved here, when I would stop by and drop off a few boxes in the morning. So she would enjoy running in circles and climbing the stairs. I would ask her "do you like your new home?" and she'd nod. I'm not sure if she actually understood me, but the answer was correct!

She loves running laps down the hall, round into the kitchen, then back through the living room. The best part for all of us with the new digs, is that since the kitchen has a HUGE dinette area, we do not have use for the dining room that is connected to the living room. So that is Addison's play area. This way, she's still right by us when she plays and we're watching TV, but her toys no longer take over the entire living room floor! She has some big Christmas gifts coming from Santa, so we will get great use out of that space!
Addison has had no problems sleeping in her new room. It is a little smaller and the walls are just blah white instead of the green/brown in her old room. We hung her pictures up last night finally, so it brought a little warmth into her room. But now, she doesn't spend as much time in there. We are usually downstairs, or when upstairs she likes climbing up on our bed or chair and watching TV.
Addison has had a lot of time to get used to her new house because for the first 2 weeks, Auntie Lorie had pneumonia so she couldn't watch Addison. Tim took a couple days off, as did I - and then between Grandma Simon coming down for a few days to babysit and taking her over to Grandma G's for John to watch her - we covered the 2 weeks off. Then, this past Thanksgiving week, Auntie Lorie and family were off to NYC, so I already had PTO days scheduled off, so we were home this whole week too! So, in the end it actually worked out well to really solidify the home change for Addison.
Even though the warm weather outside play days are over, I am looking forward to taking Addison out into our little backyard to play in the snow this year!

These are a few of her favorite things
TV Shows
Addison still loves her "Melmo!" and we watch Sesame Street almost every day. Her likes have expanded outside of just "Elmo's World", though - and she now knows how to laugh like Ernie and count (laugh) like the Count. It is pretty funny to hear her mimic their laughs! Oh, and the way she tries to sing "la-la lala, la-la lala Elmo's World" is adorable! It's basically just "lalalalalallalala", but we know what she means!
She also really like "Cat in the Hat" on PBS as well, and calls it "Go-Go-Go" from the song they sing in every episode. She associates and watches this show more with Daddy.
The past couple weeks, however, her favorite show has been "Mick!" as in "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" on Disney channel. She squeals with delight everytime Mickey walks onto the screen. She has also started saying "Duck" for Donald and Daisy Duck. It sounds the same when they sing the "Hot Dog" song at the end of every episode - Addison will hop around saying "Dog, Dog, Dog"

Toys
In her Toddler Time play class (which ended last week), Addison was a big fan of shooting hoops. That has transferred to home play as well. She has a few small balls and one volleyball-sized one she likes to toss around and chase after. Yes, at times we do play "fetch" with our kid :)
Several weeks ago, we got her the hokey-pokey Elmo doll that she loves, then when we were up in Milwaukee for Halloween, the Vogels were nice enough to give us their extra E-L-M-O doll. Addison loves them both, but now she won't just play with one. If one Elmo is going off, she runs and gets the other one so they stand next to each other doing their song & dance. She's in Elmo heaven!
She still enjoys her push toys and building blocks/legos.
I'm not sure when this started, it doesn't look like I wrote about in previous blog entires, but Addison LOVES the Geico "little piggy" commercial. Thank God for YouTube as we have used it to watch the commercial about 300 times with her. She loves it so much that when we ask "what does a little piggy say?" her answer is "WEEEEE!!!!!" And she's got the sound down pat! Everytime she sees a piggy anywhere, she points and says "WEE WEE!!!" It's hilarious!
Our 16yr-old kitty Pebbles seems to be on another life here in the new house. She used to sleep about 23 hours a day, but now she is out and about, exploring and romping around with toys. Addison always liked her kitties, but now that she sees Pebbles in this new light, she has been obsessed and runs up to her with arms out saying "hug! hug! hug!" Pebbles has been very tame and usually just sits there and lets Addison pet her and point at her screeching "KITTY!!!!"

Chatty Addie!
It seems like Addison learns a new word everyday. I'm sure I will miss a ton, but here are some of her "new words" in the past 2 months:
-juice
-mick (mickey mouse)
-duck
-two (she doesn't say one, but if you start to count, she will join in at 'two' - the other day she almost said 'three'!!)
-shoe
-bite
-eat
-yuck
-potty
-poop (yes, we are slowly introducing her to toilet training)
-ah-choo
-out
-ham
-hand (when she wants to wash her hands, which she likes to do a lot!)
-belly
-hot (she also knows how to blow on her food when it's hot!_
-bubbles
-Pebbles
-please (I've gotten her to repeat it a handful of times, gotta keep workin' on it!)
-cookie
-apple
-cold
-book

-gobble, gobble

-grandma (she's repeated it a handful of times, knows what it means and has said it on her own a few times - gotta keep working on it for the Grandmas!)

Ok! Well, I apologize for the delay in updating, friends and family. But now you know all about Addison, the 18 Month Old!

Next update will be after Christmas. Which will be amazing, I am sure!

Happy Holidays!

Whew. Ok, that's all I can think of. Seriously, I think there are more! There are some words she'll just say out of nowhere, but then not again - so those are hard to keep track of. More words to come next month, I'm sure!

Addison - the 16 Month Old!

A Little Girl's Dream

Addison always sleeps through the night, but in the past few weeks, she has woken up crying in the middle of the night. The first few times, it was because of teething (she's getting her first molars) - but the last several times we think it's simply been bad dreams.

We will go in to check on her and she will be sobbing, but her eyes are still mostly closed. As soon as we pick her up and snuggle her, she quiets down - and after rocking her for a few moments she is back to sleep, or dreamily staring at us. While I don't enjoy being awoken in the middle of the night, these short disturbances are cozy and remind me of when I had to get up with her every single night as a little baby. And nothing makes me feel the "powers of Mom" more than being able to stop a child's screams simply by holding her :)

Baby Addie Takes a Bite "Arr Rumph!"
Addison has a great appetite and she is not too picky of an eater. Generally, she'll try anything once. If she doesn't like it she's very clear in making a yucky face, sticky out her tongue, and taking the food out of her mouth (quite the scene!). Also, when she's done or knows she doesn't want something, she simply shakes her head and says "No!" So, there's really never any guessing games with her.
Her favorite foods are bananas, apples, pears, cheese, mac n cheese, crackers and french fries. She usually eats good meals, and snacks often. From the looks of her chubby belly, she's a well fed little girl!

These Are a Few of Her Favorite Things
Since last month, the drum corps obession has faded away - in mid-September. Instead, when she would bring me the DVD remote, I just started cueing up some Disney movies we have and watch those over the course of a few days. This past week, Monsters Inc has been in the whole time, so she's seen it repeatedly and really likes it!
Also, to give her an alternate to "Bob!" (SpongeBob) - we gave thumbs-up in TiVo to several PBS kids shows -so now we have Sesame Street and WordGirl being picked up to play on the weekends. She knows/loves Elmo from her "So Big" book - so she was immediately drawn to any scenes with Elmo. And - it just the past week or so has begun asking for "Melmo!" :)
Addison has been on a good rotation of toys. She's really enjoyed her building blocks/Legos for the past month or so. Her favorite thing to do is knock down what Daddy & Mommy build up. She's such a bully!
She has also learned how to throw garbage away in recent weeks, so when she drops a cracker on the ground or finds something on the floor -she goes to the garbage can to throw away (we have to open it for her - or else she will be throwing things away left & right!). She also does this for her diapers. She certainly likes this new "skill" and we are happy we've taught her this, and hopefully it will somewhat stick.

Out of the Mouths of Babes
Here's some new Addie words from the month:
-Cheese
-Ball
-Kitty
-Teeth (when she wants to brush her teeth)
-Hi
-Please
-Butt
-My
-Bob (SpongeBob)
-Melmo (Elmo)
-Bubba (cousin Nicolas)
-Gaga (when she hears a Lady Gaga song)

Toddler Time
A couple weeks ago, I signed Addison up for a "Toddler Time" class at the Schaumburg Park District. It takes place in the Creative Activity Room - the same room where her birthday party was. There are about 8-10 other toddlers, between the ages of 12mo-20mos, so Addison is right in the middle.
The class starts with some organized activities - sitting on a rug, singing/dancing to songs (like Hokey Pokey, Wheels on the Bus) and arts & crafts. Addie has made a few crayon marks on the paper, but that's about it on that.
Then, comes Addie's favorite part - free play time in the tumbling area! She usually starts by finding one of two push toys (grocery cart and ride-along) and pushes those all over. The teacher sets up some big soft blocks as towers, and Addison loves to clobber those and knock them over too. Then she typically just runs around all the different areas, checking it out and trying everything once. She's been forced to share a few times and has surprisingly taken it very well. I am also proud to say that she is one of the friendliest kids in class. The very first day she went up to a few of the kids and patted them on the head, handed them toys or simply said "Hi!"
The class continues until Thanksgiving and I'm really looking forward to these classes!

Addison - the 15th Month Old!

"How Big is Baby Addie?"
"Baby Addie is SO BIG!!!"

Addison had her 15-Month Check-Up on Friday...Here's the numbers:
Height
31" - between the 75th-90th percentiles
Weight
22lbs. 13oz. - 50th percentile
Head Size
18" - 50th percentile

Addison has been in these percentiles since she was born (with the exception of her head size which began only in the 10th percentile!). Everything at her appointment checked out well - and the doctor even said she was a very well-behaved child during the exam. Apparently during the exams, other kids get very cranky and cry - but Addison just sat there calm and quiet while the doctor checked her out. I think it's because she is in that stage where she's interested in EVERYTHING, so I think she was entertained by the all the doctor "gadgets".
That being said, just like all doctor's appointments, this one had a bad ending - shots! Addison received her DTaP #4, Hib #3, Prevnar #4 as well as her first round of Flu/H1N1 shots.

These Are A Few Of Her Favorite Things
I am Spartacus
Ok, I get it - "be careful what you wish for". Via Facebook, you may have read that I was *in heaven* that Addison had taken a liking to drum corps - specifically '08 Phantom Regiment's "Spartacus" show. Well, since then we've/she's watched the show about 50 times. And by "specifically" I MEAN specifically!!! She doesn't want to watch other drum corps shows (she'll watch moments, then just walk away). She nods emphatically when we ask, "Do  you want to watch drum corps?" and now we no longer bring it up. But she will come to us with the DVD remote, or the DVD case of the show. So yes, I sincerely enjoyed those first dozen times - cuddled on the couch with Addison on my lap - watching her clap, wave her arms to imitate the conductor or drumline and be enamored by the color guard ballad solo, but now it's a relief when an hour goes by without having watched it again. I know it could be much worse - this isn't some obnoxious cartoon she's obsessively watching (that day will surely come) it's music and pageantry and c'mon, how cool of a story will this be in 17 years when/if she follows in her mommy's footsteps over to Rockford?
Lives in a Pineapple Under the Sea
When it's not drum corps or no TV (those moments are great!), it's Spongebob she has started to really like in the last few weeks as well.
Oh, and don't worry - she spends a LOT of time away from the TV, outside or in her room playing.
Book worm
Addison still loves her books, and takes many off the shelves daily to flip through. She loves one of her pop-up books lately and her now long-time favorite "So Big" Elmo book and a baby Bible. She goes back and forth between a handful of books. However, she would rather just sit and flip through them herself rather than have us read to her. It's really the page-turning she enjoys. So I read whatever page she flips to, even if it makes the story quite the non-sequiter.

Out of the Mouths of Babes
Addison certainly understands much more than she can say - but she has also found ways to communicate many of the things she wants too.
Here's some words you can hear Addison say:
-Banana (Nnaa-Na!)
-Night-Night (Nye Nye!)
-Mama/Dada
-Milk
-Up
-Off (usually when she wants her shoes off)
-On (usually reverse of above)
-No
-More
-Cheese (maybe??)
-Cat
-Bye
-Go

There's probably more that I'm not thinking of right now - seems like there's new ones every few days!

Naughty Girl
Addison has had a bad streak of temper tantrums, especially over at Auntie Lorie's when she wants her cousins toys or food, etc. There's been a few instances of hitting and hair pulling. Tim & I are unable to recreate the situation as harshly at home, but we have been able to see her upset when she wants something we have that we don't give her, she'll wave her arms. When this happens, we take her arms, hold them at her side and say "Do Not Hit" - there's not much of a response from her until we hold her arm for about 10 seconds and then she'll start to cry. However, and this confuses me, when we let go of her arm, she'll go and point to my eye or nose - which is a game we play often (where's mommy's nose, etc). So, it's like her way of changing the topic?? We hope this discipline will set in so she stops this hitting situation soon. We do NOT want a naughty mean little girl!!!



Overall, Addison is a very energetic toddler. We are constantly on the move with/after her, even in our little condo! She sleeps through the night, no problem and takes 2 good naps throughout the day. She's very happy and there are times she has us cracking up (and she laughs right along with us!) She's social and creative and very curious. I love to sit with her when she plays and watch those gears turning. I can't imagine all she is learning!!!!

Next weekend we are going on our first family vacation to Galena, IL! We will be spending 2 nights at a Bed & Breakfast and can't wait to enjoy the scenery and have an amazingly cozy weekend with our little girl! Stay tuned for some pictures ;)

Addison-the 14th Month Old

Our Little Girl is Growing Up
Addison is becoming more and more a little person. She is fine-tuning her motor skills, being more verbal and communicating her feelings and needs/wants much better.

Walking, Running, Dancing

Addison has left her walkers behind with her days of crawling. She now walks everywhere with ease, only pausing or falling down when she attempts running or stairs/curbs. She can crawl all the way up a flight of stairs and move up and down a few stairs easily - however, always under our watchful eye!

The best thing about Addison walking - is when we crouch down with our arms out asking for a hug and she runs down the hallway - giving us a big bear hug and kiss. I look forward to many years of this :)

Addison is certainly a white girl. Her only dance moves are bobbing her head with her mouth open and stiffly waving her arms. But it is adorably hilarious all the same.

Some of her favorite songs are: "OMG" Usher; "California Gurls" Katy Perry; "Bad Romance" Lady Gaga

Communication
Addison clearly says things like "Up"; "That"; "Na-Na-Na" (No); "Nana" (Banana); "Nye Nye" (Night Night). It seems like she is on the verge of one day just saying 10 different words. She understands when we say it's time to go to bed, time to get dressed, when we ask if she's done or wants to be picked up and much more.

Books
Addison's favorite *toy this month has been books, which is a habit we adore! Her favorite books are "So Big"; "Guess How Much I Love You"; "My First Bible" and a Baby Einstein lift-tab word book. We are encouraging this fun pasttime as much as we can. Tim and I both loved books as children and hope that Addison grows up to be an avid reader.
She enjoys simply sitting in her Addison chair and flipping through books all on her own.

Overall, Addison is a good girl. She has her moments and certain things that make her bratty and throw toddler tantrums. We are trying to minimize her paci usage and that is often times the cause of her tantrums. That, and of course when bedtime sneaks up on her while she's playing and doesn't want to stop - but it also very tired.
We can't wait to see what fun awaits us just around the corner!

Addison - the 13 Month Old!

Toddler Time!
While many parents refer to the age of their toddlers in months - my tendency is just to say she's 1. But a 12-month old is very different than a 13-month old, as I've learned - so I understand the need to clarify! We do still call her Silly Baby and refer to her as a "baby" in many other ways - a habit I'm not sure will go away anytime soon.

Baby Steps
Addison took her first steps a few days after her 1st birthday. The first handful of steps she took unknowingly - then, she realized what she had done and it made her nervous. She took nearly a full week off from walking in the beginning of June. During this time she became very tied to her walkers - and got VERY quick pushing them all over the place. We would prompt her to take independent steps, but could just see the nervousness in her face. Low and behold, by the second week in June, Addison took a half a dozen steps on her own. Then, the next day she walked a dozen steps! That seemed to be her limit for that week, but since then she has advanced to walking all the way across the room or down the hallway. She's also now able to walk, bend/squat down and pick something up and keep walking! She also walks and turns around. In the past few days, she has been walking more than she crawls!

Eating
Addison is onto "grown-up" food. For breakfast she typically has pancakes and bananas; for lunch she has fruit, lunch meat, cheese; and for dinner she has a Gerber Graduate meal or whatever we're eating if it's friendly. There's not much she doesn't like - but there's also not much that she always likes. Bananas are really the only staple. Pancakes and grapes were too, but she has gone through phases of pushing them away also. Her eating is somewhat inconsistent, but when she doesn't eat much at a meal, she will make up for it within the next day or so. She almost always feeds herself now if it's hand-friendly. She will feed herself with a spoon and fork too with a little assistance.

Drinking
Addison is pretty good at drinking water throughout the day in her sippy cup. We started transitioning her off of the bottle and have been trying to give her milk in her sippy cup instead. At first she refused, but would simply carry on with whatever she was doing - seemingly not upset that she was missing out on the milk. But gradually we got her used to drinking milk from the sippy cup at least in the morning. At night we've still given her a bottle - we are hoping to nix that this coming week.

Talking
Addison sure makes a lot of noise, and has her own language - even though she doesn't say many actual words yet. She says Da-da all the time, and many times it's not even in reference to Tim. She also says Ma-Ma to people other than me, even though it's what she always says when she hears me open the door when I get home from work. Ga-ga is her newer "word" and over at Auntie Lorie's, it is believed this is her reference to her favorite cousin Isabella. At home, we're not too sure what she's referencing.

Playing
True to many articles I've been reading, the more independent Addison is able to be - the more clingy she has become. Her patience is also, well, non-existent. We're not sure if she just enjoys experimenting with her range of emotions or she's just frustrated in not being able to do exactly what she wants at all times and/or not being able to communicate what she wants to, but it can be quite frustrating when one minute she is laughing and the next minute she's screaming. The temper tantrums have certainly arrived!
Otherwise - Addison's favorite way to play is to be on the move. Crawling, walking, pushing her walkers, walking with us, etc. She's also developed quite an arm in the past couple weeks and enjoys throwing many of her toys. We will need to teach her what things are ok to throw and what things aren't.
She understands what "No" means, but she also understands how to press her luck. She's developed an annoying little charm of when she's reaching for something she's not supposed to have, we'll say "no" and she'll leave her hand on the item, look at me and scrinch up her face in a little smile. It's hard to resist, but I bite my lip and try to keep a straight face. If I don't, we're in deep trouble in the years to come!!!

Coming Up!
Addison's 2nd 4th of July is coming up - and this year we hope she gets to enjoy some of it. There is a 4th of July festival across the street from us that we've never been to. We plan on checking it out and walking around. Addison usually enjoys people-watching so we think she'll enjoy it!

Addison - the 1 Year Old!

No longer a Silly Baby.
Addison has officially entered Toddler-hood! It's amazing how I can still remember a time before I was even pregnant with Addison, and now she is one year old! Her 1st birthday weekend could not have been better - so many wonderful events and memories made.

Let's take a look at Addison's 1 Year doctor's check-up and her lifestyle in this 12th month.

1-Year Check Up
Height 30 1/2" - 90th Percentile
Weight 21lbs 2oz - upper 50th Percentile
Head Size - 17 5/8" - 50th Percentile

This time, Addison got 3 shots in her arm (previously her leg). She sat in my lap and the shot startled her and then a moment later she burst into tears which lasted until a few minutes after it was over. But, then the nurse forgot she had to also prick Addison's finger for anemia testing - by then Addie was quite squirmy so it was difficult and very heartbreaking since Addie was sobbing.
The shots she received were: MMR #1, Varivax, TB Mantoux, ASQ
Overall, Addison checked out well and Dr. Michael gave her clearance to begin drinking cow's milk as well as all foods now (within reason). Addison rejected the first 3 bottles of milk we gave her, but once we warmed it up, she would drink a couple ounces. But by Sunday she was drinking full bottles of milk!

Swimming
Swim classes ended on May 22, and Addison came a long way! She's quite the kicker and really enjoys playing in the water. Our outdoor condo pool opened up this past weekend, so on Sunday we took her out in her new inner tube (birthday present from Grandma Simon) and floated around the pool for a bit. After 20min or so, she got restless so we took her out and she was kicking all around the pool, even more than she ever did in swim class, so I guess those swim lessons really paid off!

Baby Steps
Addison has been cruising and crawling  all over the place lately. She advanced to standing on her own for several seconds to even standing unassisted while clapping or grabbing something. She has been using her push walkers constantly and walks very quickly and in laps throughout the condo. For the past week, we've been trying to set her up to take her first alone steps - but she would get nervous and immediately drop to the ground. Then finally - on Monday, May 31 (her due date) Addison took her first step!!! Actually it was two steps- unknowingly. Since then she has taken a step 3 separate times. Soon, we will have a walking Addie!

Addison - the 11-Month Old!

One Month Left…

…until “Our Silly Baby” becomes “Our Silly Toddler.” A year ago, we thought once she became Addison Grace O’Neill, she would stop being Silly Baby. However, we have continued to call her Silly Baby every day. There are many songs we have made up that we sing to her every day with Silly Baby in it. (“Single Ladies”,“I’m a Little Teapot”, etc). Just last night I was talking to Tim about how we can’t call her Silly Baby anymore. Tim said of course we can, and then I decided I’ll call her that at her high school graduation – I’m sure she’ll love that 
So without further adieu (yes, I realize this is 2-weeks late!) – here is Addison’s 11-Month Report!

Swim Class
Addison is doing well in her swim class. There are 8 children total, ranging up to 4-year olds. Addison is the 2nd youngest (next to the 8-month old). Being first thing in the morning (8:15-8:45) she is pretty docile at that time, but she gets the hang of it. The activities include putting chin, then each cheek, then nose into the water – followed by a full body dunk! Most of the class time is spent working on kicking. We place a toy a few feet in front of her, and while holding onto her waist – I move her closer to the toy as she kicks. If she doesn’t kick, then she doesn’t move! Each week she’s gotten much better with kicking and realizing the cause and effect of her kicks – she gets to the rubber ducky! We also work on jumping in – which is more for the big kids, of course. But for Addison, I sit her on the edge of the pool and put a toy in the water in front of me to allure her into the water. When she goes to lean in the, I grab her and simulate her “jumping” in. Overall, the classes are fun and a great memory with Addison. I’m looking forward to her being acclimated to the pool just in time for summer and our pool to open!

Sleeping
8pm bedtime is still the rule. Story time is dwindling since now as soon as we get her situated in the rocker, she’s squirming all around waiting for that bottle and pushing the book away, etc. Sometimes she is relaxed and cozy after her bottle and I can rock and snuggle with her – which would be a good story time, but Tim always turns off the nursery light as he walks out after delivering the bottle, so too dark to read. Plus, sometimes after the bottle, she is so tired, she’s also squirmy. It is part of her own bedtime routine to roll all around in the crib when we first put her down (think of a cat who has to circle three times before settling down!), so storytime after the bottle may not be a good time either. We will have to come up with a better time for stories, since I read article after article on the benefits of reading to a baby – and I just don’t want to miss out on that educational experience for her.
With dawn breaking at 5:30am these days, Addison has been waking up before I’m ready for work more frequently. So instead of me being all ready for work at 7am and then she wakes up so all attention can be on her until we leave at 8am, she has been waking up right when I get out of the shower or even before I get into the shower on a couple occasions. In those instances, I have just had to change her and put her back in the crib with a bottle while I quickly shower – surprisingly, she did ok with this set-up! Once I’m out of the shower, I just let her crawl wherever in my sight. Typically, she comes into the bathroom with me and sits at my feet.
Her naps remain pretty much the same, although she did have a very sleep week right around her 11-month birthday where her morning nap was up to 2-hrs with another 2-hrs+ nap in the afternoon!


Eating
Addison is getting more and more into just eating regular food with us.
Breakfast: Bottle, Gerber Puffs or Cheerios, Pancake, cut-up fruit (apple, banana, pear) or pureed Gerber fruit cup.
Lunch: Bottle, Gerber Puffs or Cheerios, jar of Gerber meat or chunks of real meat, cut-up fruit
Dinner: Bottle, Gerber Puffs or Cheerios, jar of Gerber meat/dinner, cut-up fruit and a sampling of our dinners.


Baby Steps
Addison is certainly a baby-on-the-move! She has been crawling for almost 3 months now and now that she consistently pulls herself up to stand, in her 11-month she began “cruising” and will move herself all around the coffee table, couches, etc and even let go for a moment to move from the table to the couch and so on.
Even before she could stand on her own, we would her by her hands in the standing position, but now that she is a good stander, every day we “walk her” with assistance by her hands. She can walk at a pretty good pace and a pretty good distance this way. I think it’s harder on us crouching over walking with her than it is for her! We are *patiently* awaiting that first step. During play time, I’ll often let go of her for a moment so she gets used to the feeling of standing unassisted. She sways a little, but I’m always there to catch her.
Also, on that note – she can now successfully get back down to sitting from a standing position, instead of just falling over. So less tears in that category now!

Addison the 10-Month Old

Wow, 10-Months Old! She sure is creeping up to that one-year mark real fast! Every day, she is becoming much less a baby, more and more a toddler! Here’s a snapshot of Addison’s world the past month…

Sleeping



Her bedtime is still 8pm sharp, and boy is she strict about her bedtime routine! She gets a bath every few days that we always do right before her bedtime. We let her play in the bath, then dry her off and lotion her up real good while giving her a massage. Then we read a story and she nurses/has a bottle, then down in her crib. There have been a few instances where around 7 she has a dirty diaper, but instead of changing her, we decide to just give her a bath right away. Then we’ll get her in a PJ’s and bring her back out to the living room to play and she just WILL NOT have it. You can just see the confusion in her face. So yes, humans truly are creatures of habit right from infancy!


Addison has been doing very well at sleeping through the night – until about 7am usually. In this month there were a couple nights where teething woke her up and we had to give her the “tour of soothing” – orajel, bottle/nursing, frozen teething rings, Tylenol/Motrin and of course, cuddles!


She is very good at taking naps at well. Her morning nap is around 9:30am for about an hour. Her afternoon nap is a little after 1pm for at least an hour, but sometimes over 2hrs! She has been on this routine since October.


Eating



The Gerber Diet is coming to an end for Addie. From 6mos-9mos she ate the full-range of Gerber fruits and vegetables, then meats starting around 9mos. The meats went over really well, but around the same time she lost interest in the Gerber fruits and vegetables. She would simply turn her head when the spoon was offered to her and sometimes would even push it away and cry! We just weren’t sure what was upsetting her.


Until one day, over at Auntie Lorie’s –she was refusing Gerber food, but was wanting to leap out of the high chair to get cousin Bianca’s pancake! So Auntie Lorie gave her a pancake, and low and behold – Addison was as happy as can be! So, enter real food for Addie!


So now, her typical daily meals are as follows:


Breakfast: Bottle, Gerber Puffs or Cheerios, Pancake, cut-up fruit (melon, grapefruit, banana, pear)


Lunch: Bottle, Gerber Puffs or Cheerios, jar of Gerber meat or chunks of real meat, cut-up fruit


Dinner: Bottle, Gerber Puffs or Cheerios, jar of Gerber meat/dinner, cut-up fruit and a sampling of our dinners which has included the following:


• French fries, Mashed potatoes, cut up potatoes


• Turkey sausage, chicken, ham


• Corn, peas, green beans


• Mac ‘n cheese, pasta, rice


• Corn bread, garlic bread, pizza crust


On the Move


Addison is certainly a baby-on-the-move! Long gone are the days of just plopping her in her room while I got ready for work. Those days were short-lived, but certainly the easiest. She could sit up independently so I didn’t have to hook her up in the Bumpo, or prop her up in the Boppy or Bouncer (enough B’s for everyone?). But her only mode of transportation was rolling and that was easy to manage and watch from the bathroom.


At the end of February, Addison began to crawl. It began as 3 or 4 crawls at a time – to now all out “running” crawls! So getting ready in the morning has gotten a bit more interesting. Now, Addison likes to crawl into the bathroom with me and sit in between my feet while I’m blow-drying my hair, trying to dump over the trash can, or tooling off into the kitchen or down the hall to the living room – screaming in excitement the whole way. So, yes – it’s entertaining and fun, just not as much when my hair’s half wet and I’m chasing a silly baby down, trying to finish getting ready. Usually, however, she sleeps til 7am, which by that point I’m done getting ready so it’s 100% attention on her!


Standing


Addison is able to stand up against things if we set her up that way – such as against the ottoman or her Leap Frog keyboard. In this month, she has also progressed to waving while she is standing up against something!


She pulls herself up to kneeling often, and is very functional and balanced in this position, and has also graduated to kneeling upright without having to hold onto anything for support!


Addison has pulled herself to stand only ONE time last weekend against our ottoman. She has not attempted this at Auntie Lorie’s yet. A couple times at home it looked like she was trying again, but her foot would slip a little and she would simply give up and move on to something else. However, just last night, she did nearly pull herself up to standing in the bath tub of all places! So that’s quite a feat as I’m not so sure I wouldn’t slip and fall if I attempted that myself 


Talking


Addison’s vocabulary hasn’t progressed too much in the past month. No new official first words yet. However, her little personality has come shining through in the new way she likes to say “mom” – she’ll say it very short and clipped, and stick her bottom lip out when she’s done. And she knows it’s cute!!! She continues to mimic the “k” sound when she sees the kitties walk by. “Da” has become the word I believe she is using to say “here, there, this, that”, etc when she is handing us something, showing us something or wanting to grab something. “Dada” is also highly used.


Playing


Our little Addison is quite the happy baby – and of course, very silly! She is very active and always playing. She really enjoys when we stand her up against her LeapFrog keyboard as well as any of the footrests or our couch. She stands there happily banging on the top! She also likes bringing toys around with her when she crawls, sometimes this involves her carrying a toy in her mouth like a doggy or kicking it with her knees as she crawls! Quite the multi-tasker! Now that she is so mobile and knows she can find us when she wants to, whenever we are in the kitchen cooking, etc. she is out there immediately pulling the little instruction manuals we have for various kitchen devices off of the microwave stand and waving them all around. We’ve decided this means she will be an avid reader 


She has also recently discovered the joys of placing a toy in a bucket/basket/cup and shaking it all around until it pops out, then placing the toy back inside and repeat! Her other new favorite game is a manners game! Yes, she has learned to “share” and passes toys back and forth. She can do this for upwards of 10min or more! However, you have to keep up with her, if you hold onto that toy too long without passing it back to her, she will let you know that she doesn’t like it!


Events

Addison just had a busy Easter weekend along with her cousin Bianca’s 2nd birthday party. Starting next weekend, Addison and I will be taking a “Mommy & Tot” swim class at the Park District on Saturday mornings, 8:15am! Then, for her birthday Mommy & Daddy are taking Addison to her first Cubs game! The next day, May 29th, is her birthday party at the Schaumburg Park District. A busy spring ahead for the O’Neills!

The Neurologist

The Neurology Appointment
Monday, March 15

After six long weeks, Addison's appointment with the Neurologist finally arrived. The seizures, while constantly in the back of our minds, have now become almost a distant memory (thankfully/knock on wood). Two episodes, three weeks apart - with her first cold in the middle - seem like a blur. We tried not to think of it or worry about it too much in this time, and just patiently awaited this appointment.
The appointment was at 6pm, so Tim had the day off and I went in to work early so I could leave at 5pm to get to the appointment in Niles. We sat with the Neurologist and re-told the story of her two seizures, stories that we have repeated over and over again, it feels like a scripted narrative.
Tim told his story, how this also happened to him four times between the ages of 6 months and one year. He was placed on seizure medication until he was 5-years old at which point he was taken off and did not experience any more episodes. He knew this information at the time of Addison's first seizure and that was very helpful to the medical staff and Addison's pediatrician. However, Tim did find it odd that this possible genetic issue began with him - which is why he never thought it was genetic.
Then, we found out that this also happened to Tim's mom twice when she was an infant. So, another piece of the puzzle.
The Neurologist found all of this background compelling and was happy that we have this family history to explain Addison's episodes. Since Addison has already had blood work, an EEG and a CAT scan - all clean, plus the fact that her seizures were not accompanied by a fever, the next steps would be to get her on a prescription and/or schedule her for an EEG. But since the family history has resulted in the seizures being outgrown with Tim and his mom growing up just fine - there is seemingly no need to drug her up or subject her to rigorous testing.
So, in essence this is a closed case. We will revisit if (again, please knock on wood) Addison experiences regular seizures. For the meantime, we still have her syringe medicine to give her in the event of another seizure. But until that happens, we are moving on. We hope that she has outgrown this and that we have put this behind us.
While this is an answer, but not a "cure" and that it can still happen - we are not going to lose sleep over it. We are educated and prepared in the event of a recurrence, but we will drive ourselves insane if we fret over it day and night. Besides, there are already hundreds of fears we are already equipped with as parents!

Thank you all for your support, prayers and concern over the past couple months. Addison continues to grow and learn in so many amazing ways, that everyday we are thankful to witness it.

Addison - the 9 month old!

Addison has officially been *out* of me for as long as she was *in* me! Even though her name changed from Silly Baby to Addison Grace, she is still very much a Silly Baby! So let's take a look at her progress in her 9 month!

9-Month Check-Up

Height

28 1/2" - 90th Percentile

Weight

19 1/2" - 50th Percentile

Head Size

17 1/2" - 50th Percentile

Addison received the first round of H1N1 vaccination and will receive her second dose in a month. The rest of her check-up went well.

Talking

Last week, I decided that Addison officially said "mama." It went from just being a noise she made to being what she would say when she is nursing, or wants me to pick her up, or I walk in a room, or walk her away from her. She does, however, still say "mama" sometimes when in context it does not make sense for it means "mama." In those instances, I think she is saying "more", especially when it involves eating. Which is another good achievement since we have been working on teaching her that word, both by repeating it and using the sign language motion for it when we are feeding her.

Addison may also be trying to say "kitty." Although it will take awhile for her to actually be able to say it. But it is a word we say a lot - every time the cats are nearby we say "look at the kitty!" or "what's that kitty doing?" So she certainly has heard it enough. When the cats do get close to her, she sounds like she is trying to make the *k* sound. Yes, it is probably mostly Mommy reading into it - but hey, it's fun!...And maybe I'm right :0)

Eating

If Addison's height and weight growth are any indication, she is quite an eater! She has now been introduced to Gerber's full line of fruits and vegetables. She really enjoys Gerber Graduates puffs, so we always have them on hand for her to feed herself during meal times. We also give her her own spoon during meal times for her to entertain herself. And, as you can see from the picture, she really does enjoy it - and cute faces like this make it fun for us too!

Now that she has passed the 9-month mark, we will begin feeding her some table foods and the meaty versions of those Gerber foods.

Crawling, Kneeling, Standing

Just one month ago, Addison was rolling all over the place. However, now that she is much better at just sitting right back up after she tips over (and she tips over less often), she doesn't need to roll to get herself back into position. But even more important than that - Addison has learned to crawl!

In just one month's time, Addison mastered the art of the "army crawl" where she would kick her legs out while pulling with her arms. Every once in awhile, she would get up in crawling position, and rock but most of the time one of her legs were still tucked under her from being in the sitting position.

But then early last week over at Auntie Lorie's, Addison took to all-fours and began to crawl. Mommy and Daddy didn't get to see the full-out crawl until two days later, when she took four full crawl-strides in the living room. Just two days later, she was crawling - fast - all the way back and forth Grandma G's family room floor.

Addison has also begun pulling herself up to a kneeling postion when holding onto a foot stool or coffee table. Last week she also advanced to pulling herself up to kneeling, then letting go and being able to stay in the kneeling position!

She does not stand alone yet, and has not pulled herself up to standing except when assisted by us. Sometimes when she is in crawling position, she will pull her leg up so that she has a foot flat on the ground. When I watch her crawling and feel how much she still needs my support when she is standing - it seems that her standing and walking is a long ways away. But as babies go, I know she will be standing and walking before I can believe it.

Addison - the 8mos. old!

So wow! Addison's 8th month was quite the adventurous one. After 7 months of great health, no scares and no worries - we were dealt with a full deck of issues.

ER Visits
On Tuesday, January 5th, Addison had a small seizure. She was in her Bumpo chair while I was getting ready for work. All of a sudden, I looked at her and her head had dropped down to the side and she had a funny look on her face. I crouched down to look at her and her eyes were glazed over, then they started to flutter and roll back in her head and she started to tremble. I rushed and got her out of the chair and ran to call 911.
By the time I was done with the 911 call, the shaking had stopped and she was just out of it. I was instructed to lay her on her side, so I sat with her across my lap on the floor of her nursery. Moments later, the EMT's werethere. They didn't see anything wrong with her, by then she was her usual self. They checked her temperature and her vitals. She was taken to the ER for further tests.
In the ER, they took blood work (from her heel) and checked her temperature and vitals again. Everything came back clear.
That afternoon we took her in to see her Pediatrician who scheduled an EEG for the following Monday. The EEG results came back clean, so still no answers. We hoped this meant the seizure was a fluke and we wouldn't have to worry about it again.
However, only three weeks later, while at Auntie Lorie's she had another seizure in the afternoon. This time, it lasted longer than a minute - long enough for the paramedics to witness the final moments of the seizure. So again, she was taken to the ER. They took more blood work, this time from her arm which was terribly painful for us to watch Addison have to go through. They also gave her a CAT scan. Again, both test came back clear. We went to see the Pediatrician again and he gave us a referral to see a Neurologist. The earliest appointment we could get in Mid-March. After the initial appointment, Addison will most likely be scheduled for an extended EEG - which is a 48hr. EEG. I am not sure how that would work - but we are patiently awaiting the appointment.
In the meantime, Addison was prescribed medicine that we give her rectally in the event of another seizure lasting longer than a minute. We hope we never have to use this, but it is good to know it is there.

The First Cold
In between the two seizures, Addison got her first cold that lasted a little over a week. We wondered if perhaps the onslaught of the cold could have caused the first seizure, since that is somewhat common even though she didn't have a fever at the time of the seizure. She came down with the cold 3 days after the seizure and it was a lot of chest congestion and from what we could tell - a very sore throat. So that meant many sleepless nights for us all, with her coughing and screaming in pain. One day, her fever was 103 while she was at Auntie Lorie's so she ended up taking her to the doctor that instructed us to give her Motrin and Tylenol on a rotating basis for her fever. Tim stayed at home with her the next few days and her fever came and went. Then, her first day back at Auntie Lorie's - she spiked another high fever in the late afternoon, so I took off work early to take her into the doctor again who told us to just keep going with the Motrin/Tylenol and that this was most likely a virus so there was nothing else we could do - it just had to run it's course. Which it did in a matter of a few more days.

IN HAPPIER NEWS....let's review Addison's developments!

Talking
Addison consistently says "mamamamama", "bababababababa" and "dadaddadadadda" and some combinations of those. This does not mean she says "mama" or "dada", although sometimes we like to pretend ;) She does, however, understand when we say "where's mama" or "where's dada" she will look at the appropriate person.

Eating
She is eating more and more. She now eats the following fruits and veggies: sweet potatoes, corn, green beans, peas, squash, carrots, pears, apples, bananas, strawberries and peaches. We've also been giving her Gerber sweet potato puffs that she can feed herself and water in a sippy cup, although she doesn't drink too much of that.
I still nurse her in the morning and at bedtime, as well as through the night when she awakes. But many times we need to supplement a bottle, as I don't think nursing is quick enough for her and she gets frustrated - although she still finds it soothing.

Sitting, Rolling, Crawling
Addison constistently sits up unassisted for long periods of time. She only tips over when she is trying to get something out of reach or wants to roll over. She rolls everywhere now and quickly so the baby proofing has begun. She has some noise-making toys we have set up on the ground for her that keeps her well entertained.
When on her belly, she will push herself up to a crawling position and rocks back and forth, although no progression forward yet.
She still enjoys time in the jumperoo, although more of her time is spent rolling around on the living room floor.
She will be on the move before we know it!