Much going on

There's been so much going on in Miss Rylee's life in the past few weeks-so there's a ton to update on. Today is my last day home with her before going back to work, so unfortunately I'm not going to spend time on here updating. I'll post later this week after we get acquainted with our new schedule. Rylee has had her first overnight trip, been to see Santa again, had her first Thanksgiving, been baptized, had two professional photo sessions and seen much of her family in this past week--I'll post details and pictures later this week.

In the picture above, Rylee is being held by her big cousin Megan--notice the smile on Rylee's face.

Rylee and Santa

Here's Rylee with Santa tonight at Northlake Mall. I'm glad she didn't pee on his lap like her Mommy used to do!

Lots going on...

Well, Grandma left us on Friday and again we were sad. Rylee did get to go see her Daddy at his work on Friday afternoon, and he got to show her off. Of course everyone thought she was so cute (don't we all?!?). Amanda came into town Friday night and spent the weekend with us until Tuesday morning. Saturday Amanda, Mommy and Rylee went to Lacinda's house, a friend Mommy's had since college. After returning home, Mommy and Amanda got a night out on the town while Daddy got some good quality time in with his baby girl. Sunday was the day of rest for all of us, as Mommy and Rylee took a 2 hour nap together during football.

Monday was Rylee's 1 month check up at the pediatrician. She weighed in at 9 lbs., 12 oz. and 22 1/2 inches long. Mommy can't believe she's grown 1 1/2 inches in 5 weeks. Dr. Jayne was very pleased with Rylee's growth and development. However, she wasn't so please with Rylee's loud breathing and decided to send us to a pediatric pulmonologist. Of course Mommy was scared to death of what that could mean for Rylee as there was talks of her having to have a scope test done.

Mommy and Daddy took Rylee to see the pulmonologist on Tuesday afternoon at 1:30. He was a great doctor! He was very good with Rylee and very thorough. He explained everything to Mommy and Daddy as this was all very new to them. It has been determined that Rylee has what they call Laryngomalacia--sounds a lot scarier than it really is. From what Dr. Ashe tells us, it's floppy, immature cartilage of the upper larynx that collapses inward during inhalation, causing airway obstruction. It is common in infants, mostly premature infants-but most outgrow it by 6-8 months of age. Dr. Ashe says that Rylee's loud breathing will get worse before it starts to get better because her lungs are getting bigger and she's bringing in more air to accommodate them. But she is a perfectly healthy 5 week old baby girl and she should be just fine with time. Dr. Ashe told us all the signs to look for that the Laryngomalacia is actually getting worse, which he doesn't see happening in Rylee's situation. He gave us all the pointers on how to help Rylee with her breathing, and to help her to not choke or gag. Our feeding techniques had to change and seem to be helping her tremendously. So, for all you who will soon visit and feed Rylee by bottle, don't be surprised if over-protective Mommy tries to give you a lesson on feeding Rylee (she even showed Daddy). We're still trying to figure out the best position for nursing, it's a work in progress. Rylee has been taking to severely arching her back and pushing her head back and up when she sleeps at night. We asked Dr. Ashe about it and he said it's fine for her to be on her side, sleeping in that position. She's found that that position is the best for her to get optimal air, allowing all airways to be elongated and open--I knew I had a smart kid!

On a more positive note, Rylee really seems to be making some developmental changes. She's been smiling a lot more lately, especially when Mommy and Daddy play with her. She coos a ton and loves talking to the lion and giraffe on her wall when being dressed or changed. She enjoys being read to, especially at night before bed. She's been getting play time on her rainforest activity mat and has begun following moving objects with her eyes. She's starting to turn her head at the sound of voices or the calling of her name. A girl after her Daddy's own heart, Rylee really enjoys listening to music of all kinds too!

Rylee continues to sleep through the night-as Mommy thought the first night was just a fluke. Mommy and Daddy have been trying to start a bedtime routine with Rylee beginning at 7 pm and hopefully getting her in her bed, starting to doze off to sleep by 8 pm. Rylee was staying up until about 11 pm and sleeping until 9 am, which is great why Mommy is home from work, but will soon have to change when Mommy has to go back. Again, still a work in progress, but Rylee has been adjusting rather well. Now she wakes up between 5-6 am to eat, which will be perfect when it's time to start daycare and Mommy goes back to work.

Today Rylee is going to the mall with Mommy and Daddy to see Santa for the first time. We'll be getting a picture done, so hopefully we can post it at a later date. We're hoping to get some family portraits done in the near future.

Happy One Month

November 11th, one month since Rylee's birth. Things are still going well and it seems that Rylee has been changing everyday. Although we don't know her weight, we imagine by the way she's eating that she must be over 9 lbs by now. She's really smiling these days and listening intently to whomever is speaking to her. She loves to be read to or sung to, even though it's only Daddy who has the good singing voice in this family.

Grandma and Pa came into town on Friday and enjoyed their alone time with Rylee while Mommy and Daddy enjoyed a night out. Saturday we all drove to Raleigh to visit big cousins Madeline and Megan. Rylee did great in the car both ways, sleeping the entire time. She enjoyed her time with her cousins and her Aunt Catherine and Uncle Michael. It seems that Rylee also hit a milestone on Saturday, becoming a nursing champ and has continued to do so since. Pa had to leave this morning to go to back to NJ to work, but Rylee is very excited that her Grandma is staying with us for another week.

Last night was Rylee's first night of sleeping through the night. Mommy and Daddy enjoyed their straight sleep, although Mommy did wake up several times to make sure there wasn't any problems. When Daddy woke up for work this morning, he said "of course she slept through the night, she drank a gallon of milk before bed." Not entirely true, although Rylee is up to about 7-8 ounces of milk at a feeding. Sometimes we only get about 4-5, but we're ready to go again within an hour for a little dessert.

For Miss Rylee's one month birthday, we took a trip to Sears to get some portraits. Rylee did great, hanging out the entire 3 hours we were there. Little did Mommy know that it was Veteran's Day and everyone was out of school getting their Christmas Portraits done. With several poses done, Mommy and Grandma picked 3. We also picked out an outfit to wear when Daddy and Mommy take Rylee for her first photo op with Santa next week and a fancy dress to wear when she visits Santa in Raleigh with her cousins Madeline and Megan.

Grandma leaves again on Friday morning to return to NJ to get some more stuff done, but Amanda comes to town Friday afternoon. We're all so excited to see her and to spend some good quality time with her.

Rylee has her one month check up next Monday and then Mommy and Rylee will be on their own for the week. We're excited to see what kind of trouble we can get in to!

This picture was taken this morning before our Sears photo session. The outfit was bought for her by her Uncle Eddie and Aunt Jen. Doesn't she look so cute in her grandma sweater?!?

Where does the time go?

So, we've passed our third week with Baby Rylee being in our lives and we couldn't be happier. She's been such a joy for us all to have around and we're enjoying each moment we have with her. She's over 8.5 lbs now and still growing daily. We've battled a little bit of constipation this week, but Rylee has been a trooper through it all. Mommy tried to do all she could to get a poop, but nothing seemed to be working. We did learn that Rylee loves Mommy's bath tub, smiling and kicking her feet the whole time she's in there. It seems that she gets such a work out in the big tub, she falls hard asleep as soon as she's out and dressed for bed.
Rylee had her first Halloween on Friday. Although she didn't get dressed in a costume, she did get to wear her Candy Corn sleeper and she got to Trick or Treat with her cousins Haley, Natalie and Joey. She enjoyed it so much she slept for the entire walk. After her exhausting walk, she got to spend quality time with her Mimi. She got to watch as everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to Aunt Noelle, and then came home to settle in for the night with Mommy.
Grandma left us on Friday to return home to take care of some stuff in NJ and Rylee and I got to experience our first days of being together alone. Miss Rylee also got to spend some quality time with Daddy, as he has taken some days off of work this week (the first days since she's been born). Rylee also enjoys snuggling in bed with Daddy in the morning, except when she gets a whiff of Daddy's dragon breath or armpit smell.
Mimi will be over tonight to have a crack at her first babysitting gig while Mommy and Daddy go out for a nice dinner. It's been a while since they had a dinner out alone, so they're really looking forward to it.
Grandma and Pa will be returning from NJ on Friday afternoon to spend the weekend with Rylee. Rylee will get to spend some quality time with Grandma and Pa as they get there next shot at babysitting while Mommy and Daddy go to a concert for the night. On Saturday we'll all take a trip to Raleigh to visit with Rylee's cousins Madeline and Megan. It'll be Rylee's first long car ride, so we'll see how she does.
I'll update with pictures soon, as I've been trying to take some everyday. I hope you all are enjoying the blog, as I'm enjoying writing it--if nothing else, its a good site for me to keep note of all the big things that happen in my little girls life!