4 month comparison

I thought it would be fun to do a 4 month comparison of Lauren and Catherine. I think Catherine is beginning to change and look less and less like Lauren. But we'll see... you never know what they are going to look like when they get bigger!  Both my girls are just precious though!!! 

Lauren

Catherine

Lauren

Catherine

Lauren

Catherine

Lauren

Catherine

And here are some funny pictures of Lauren... I think she may have been about 5 months old in these pictures.  But it was her first experience with rice cereal.  My word, the girl HATED it.  I mean, she never got used to it.  I had to just move on to baby food with her because she would not eat any kind of cereal.  We are coming up on Catherine's turn with rice cereal soon.  I'll be sure to document it so we can compare!

Poor baby!

Catherine's 4 month stats

Catherine had her 4 month appointment on Friday...

Weight: 12 lbs 10 oz  (one oz less than Lauren at this age)
Height: 24 1/2 inches  (1/4 inch longer than Lauren at this age)
Head: 15 1/2 inches (I think...  I do know it was in the 10th percentile)

I think she is going to be taller than Lauren.  Which means she'll probably be about average, because my Lauren is so petite.  Lauren will be 4 next month and she barely tips the scales at 30 pounds.  Skinny little thing!

So, Catherine's appoinment went well.  Her shots were awful, but aren't they always?  She cried and cried.  We opt for NO bandaids anymore because taking those things off is almost worse than the shots... even when you soak them in the bathtub.  No bandaids for us.

I talked with our pediatrician at great length regarding 2 issues:  the torticollis "diagnosis" and her flat head.  We both agreed that the recommendation for an hour of Physical Therapy a week for 6 months seems excessive for Catherine.  The PT said her torticollis was mild at best and since she has gained greater head control she does not tilt her head at all to the right.  She holds it up straight.  She does favor looking right when sleeping on her stomach but when I pick up her head to move it facing left she does not resist.  And when sleeping on her back she faces left.  I think she's fine and my doctor agrees.  But we are going to continue our stretches for a few more weeks and re-evaluate.

My biggest concern is her flat head.  It has not show significant improvement and the doctor agreed that it was pretty flat.  She let me know that she would call the clinic that specializes in the helments and head scans to see if they would even agree to see her this young.  I say WHY WAIT???  I hope they don't turn us down because I feel like she needs to be seen sooner rather than later.  I don't see why we would need to wait until she is 6 months old to have her evaluated.  Her head has been noticeably flat since she was 2 months old.  I think waiting would be worse.  So I hope that they agree to at least look at her.  It will give me better peace of mind once she is seen by a specialist.  We'll see what the doctor says when I get a call back this week.  I'm praying they don't reject us... If they do I'm going to have to find a way to be seen by someone. 

Going Bald

Three out of five of us in this family are going bald.  Care to guess who they are?

Catherine

Molly

Me.

Oh, it's awful.  Poor Catherine... all that beautiful dark brown hair she had at birth is falling out.  I think this same thing happened with Lauren, but my memory fails me.  I am having to use a sticky, lint roller on her sheet every day to roll up all the hair she rubbed off in the night.  When I wash her hair at night I'm really just washing her head.  :(

This time of year for the past 3 summers, all of Molly's undercoat falls out.  This is NOT your typical shedding in the heat.  No, no.... let me assure you it's a lot of hair coming out.  In chunks... in the brush or in your hand.  She requires a vet visit to combat this issue because as a result of the itchy skin she develops an infection.  Poor baby is on an anti-fungal medicine, antiobiotic, and a steriod pill.  It's so much fun to give her these pills when you can't put it on meat or cheese due to the food allergy.  Also, I've been directed by the vet to bathe her 2 times a week with a medicated shampoo.  GRACIOUS.

And me.  LORDY.  I'm stressing over the bald spots... After I had Lauren I experienced the large handfuls of hair coming out... but it seemed to be spread out all over my head.  This time I swear it's in two specific locations.  Right above my temples on each side of my head at the hairline.  If I wear my hair a certain way it's extremely obvious I have issues.  I'm hoping the shedding has slowed down and it will begin the re-growth process soon.  I can't wear my hair down all the time!  It's too hot!!!

(I cannot believe I'm posting this picture... AWFUL!  Also, do you see how thick my glasses are?  That is just so SAD.)

Thank goodness Trey and Lauren still have all their hair... at least two of us are normal!



Playing Catch Up

Three weeks is a long time for me to not post anything... even if it's just a simple picture.  Boy, life sure gets in the way of blogging!  We have been busy with work and play.  Just living life, really.

Here are some things we have been up to (in no particular order):

1.  Have I mentioned that Lauren is in a ballet and tap summer class?  It's a good trial run to see if she will enjoy doing it and want to continue in the Fall.  I feel like the Fall is more serious because they have class until recital time in May.  Right now I think she loves it.  She is such a sweet, girly girl.

2.  Catherine is 4 months old today.  My word, this child is growing so fast I can't believe it.  I can't wait to find out how big she is on Friday at her doctor appointment (NOT looking forward to the shots...).  I'm pretty sure she will have caught up to where Lauren was at this age in weight, but I'm almost certain she is going to surpass her in height.  She is seriously long.  Long in the torso, but short little legs. 

3.  We celebrated the 4th of July in Shreveport with family.  We had a great time!  I always love going home (except for the packing and unpacking) and hate having to leave.  We also go to see some great friends and meet their baby girl for the first time.  She is a spittin' image of her Daddy!  But she has her Momma in her too. 

4.  We are trying to swim as much as possible, but right now with the heat, the swimming pool feels more like bath water.  But we still manage to get in there almost every weekend.  Catherine took her first dip in the pool last Sunday.  I think she just didn't know what to think, but she didn't fuss at all!

All caught up... for now!

The many faces of Lauren and Catherine (Head Shots)

Lauren doesn't care to have her picture taken sometimes... until I decide to take Catherine's picture.  Ha!  I try to give them equal time with the camera, but I'm sure it's lopsided at times.
Also, I'm having trouble dividing my time.  Lord, help me.  I feel guilty if I don't spend time with Lauren.  Then I feel guilty if I'm not holding Catherine.  I want to do both things, but I don't want Lauren to feel like it's all about Catherine all the time.  But I want Catherine to be able to get the same snuggle time that Lauren got as a baby.  I can't win. 
Somebody give me some advice.  What's a working mom to do? 

ANYWAY... this post is about pictures... so, here we go!  Keep scrolling... I couldn't decide, so there are a TON!!!

Okay, these are pictures of Catherine's head (obviously)... I'm trying to document it and see if the flat spot is starting to round out... we are nervous because it is SO flat!

Lauren was playing with the mosquito net that goes over the stroller... she was pretending to be married!

Does it look like we just moved in?  Trey was installing the new fireplace logs...

Ready to get OUT of the Bumbo, Mama!!!

GRACIOUS... I love these girls so much!

More head shots... is it me, or is there improvement???

SO sassy.

There's a real smile!!!