First Cold Blues

Sophia almost made it 6 months without getting a cold. It all started last Sunday. My mom and her friend came over for a visit and Sophia was unusually grumpy. I didn't think too much of it because often she doesn't like to nap on the weekends when we're home and sometimes gets a little fussy. Her fussiness continued into Monday with the addition of not wanting to eat her bottle. She was a bit congested and I think it was hard for her to take the bottle because she couldn't breathe. We could get her to eat cereal and veggies, so I gave her an extra helping of that so that she'd have some food in her tummy. Monday night, I put her to bed around 8 like usual. She woke up about 20 minutes later but I was able to calm her down and after a few minutes she went back to sleep. Then she woke up at 10. I stayed up with her for a bit but couldn't get her to go back to sleep, so I broke my rule -- I brought her in the bed with us. She stayed in our bed until around 11, when I decided that I couldn't have her in bed with us. I couldn't fall asleep because I was too afraid I'd roll over on her or my pillow would smother her. So I got up and put her back in her crib. She woke up almost immediately. We decided to let her cry for a little to see if she'd cry herself to sleep, but after about 30 minutes, it was quite clear that was not going to happen. I got up and layed on the couch with her. She fell asleep right away. I sat there with her for about 2 hours until I thought she was good and asleep and wouldn't notice that I moved her back to her bed. That, of course, didn't happen. She woke up right away again and started crying. It was clear that I wasn't getting any sleep that night. So we went back out on the couch; again, she went right to sleep and fell asleep somewhere around 5. When my alarm went off at 6, I woke up and noticed that Sophia was pretty hot, so I decided to take her temperature. 102.6. Great. I'd remembered the pediatrician telling me that babies tend to have higher fevers than adults, but I couldn't remember his magic cut off temperature for when I should call to bring her in. I thought it was 101. So I gave her some Tylenol and decided to see if the fever would break. I didn't want to rush her in to the doctor's office if she only had a little cold. No need to expose her to other germs when her immune system is weak. I figured it was a cold because the week before, I'd had one. She's survived many colds that have come and gone through our household, so I figured maybe it was time that she caught one. I was going to the hospital with my mom that morning for an ECG, so I decided that I would call and check in with the nanny after that was over and see how Sophia was doing. Around 10, Brooke told me that Sophia's temperature was around 99, so I didn't think she needed to go see the pediatrician. Again, I figured it was just a cold and he'd tell me to give her Tylenol and monitor her temperature. Later that afternoon, Brooke called and said that Sophia's temperature had returned to around 102 but that she was still in a good mood and not acting sick. So I asked Brooke to give her some more Tylenol and to keep me posted. Just for piece of mind, I decided to call the pediatrician's office and speak to a nurse. She said that Sophia had probably just caught my cold and to give her Tylenol. She said that if her fever hit 105/106 then I should bring her in. So I felt pretty good. Around 2:30, Brooke called and said that Sophia's temperature had spiked to almost 104 and that she really felt I needed to take Sophia to the doctor. I still thought it was just a cold like the nurse said, but since her fever had spiked that high, I figured I'd take her in. I could also hear Sophia whimpering in the background while I was talking to Brooke and knew that she wasn't feeling good now. We went to the doctor and, just like I thought, he said that she probably caught my cold and to give her Tylenol. That'll be $85 please. He checked her ears to make sure there wasn't an infection and said he saw a little fluid in her right ear, so we went ahead and gave her a prescription for amoxicillin just to be safe. They weighed her while we were there and she was 18.2 lbs, so that meant I could also give her some baby Motrin. A friend told me that alternating the baby Tylenol with the baby Motrin often helps fight the fever quicker, so that's what I did. The Motrin knocked her fever out in about 30 minutes. That night, Anthony stayed up with Sophia since I didn't get any sleep the night before. The next morning, her temperature was back down to 99 and she was already showing signs of improvement. She was still pretty congested, but the fever never came back and by Thursday, she was back to her normal happy self again -- that is, except for the snot! The snot is still with us, but that's it. I am now obsessed with baby snot. The aspirator is my new best friend!

Like Mama Like Daughter

As you all know, I'm a bit of a shoe addict. If I have extra money, I buy shoes. I love them. They make me feel incredible. A great pair of shoes can make a bad day wonderful again! Well for Christmas this year, Santa (a.k.a. Anthony) bought me a pair of Frye Harness boots.

I love them! They're so comfortable and the smell of the leather is glorious! They put me in a good mood just by looking at them. Of course, being the person I am, I want only the best for my daugther.... and how does that relate to my Frye boots? Well, it just so happens that Frye makes Small Fryes!!! That's right, like Mama, like Sophia!!!

Are those not the cutest things you've ever seen?!?! Oh man, I'm in trouble!!! Until next time...

All Good Things Must Come To An End

Well, today's the last day of my holiday vacation from work. I really had a nice week off and loved spending so much time with Sophia, but I have to admit that I'm ready to get back to my regular routine.

Sophia and I had a really nice moment tonight. It was almost as if she knew that I was not going to be with her all day tomorrow. We were winding down for the night, sitting in the recliner cuddling. She leaned back a little, looked at my face and started touching my nose, my eyes, my lips -- just exploring my face and smiling the whole time. I thought it was the sweetest moment she and I have had so far. I decided to also make it a learning session for Sophia: when she'd touch my nose, I touch her nose and say, "nose." Same with the other parts of my face she'd explore. We did that for about 15 minutes. It was a wonderful ending to a wonderful vacation.

I still have one more week until classes start back at USC. Then things get really busy for me. I'm going back to teaching 2 classes this semester, so I won't be getting home until around 7/7:30 every night. It's going to be so hard not getting to see Sophia that much during the week (she goes to bed at 8), but I do get her almost all day on Friday and then we've got the weekends. There's also an additional benefit to me not getting home until late during the week (besides the extra pay check, hahaha): if I'm not home, Anthony is the one who gets to take care of Sophia. Sophia will get a good 2 hours of daddy time Monday - Thursday nights! How wonderful!

So we're sitting here watching a show on the History Channel about Doomsday -- December 21, 2012. All these prophecies are terrifying. Is the world really going to come to an end in 2012? It's very interesting that the Mayan calendar ends on this date, Nostradamus predicted a destructive phenomenon, there's supposed to be some significant solar effect/planetary alignment and even Merlin and a few Oracles have predicted the same thing. Oracles of doom? Ugh. Sophia would only be 3 years old. How depressing.

Well ALL-RIGHT! On that happy note, I'm turning in for the night. Until next time...

Sophia's First Christmas

Let me begin by saying that I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! As you know, this was Sophia's first Christmas. I know this is supposed to be a big deal, and maybe this wins me a MOTY award, but Anthony and I didn't make too much out of it. In fact, we didn't even buy Sophia a gift. We thought about it, but I mean, she's 4 months old. She doesn't know what Christmas is -- heck, she doesn't even know she's getting a gift! So we decided to skip the presents for her this year. In the end, it really didn't matter because her Nana, Nannie & Papa, and Aunt Meredith & Uncle Cory spoiled her rotten! All in all, I'd say that Sophia had a great 1st Christmas! I have to post the pictures of her in her adorable "My 1st Christmas" sleep 'n play and matching robe that my friend bought her last Christmas when I first announced that I was pregnant! Meredith took them on her camera, so I have to wait for her to email them to me.

Here's a picture of our mantel this year. I wasn't going to buy any stockings until after Christmas, but Pottery Barn had their stockings on sale during Cyber Monday with free embroidery and free shipping, so I went ahead and bought them.

Christmas also brought another first for Sophia -- her first taste of green beans!! Simply said, she LOVED them! She'd take a bite and then make this "Mmmmm, mmmmm" noise that was so incredibly adorable! The other night, Meredith and Cory were over at the house and we showed them. Cory took a video with his phone, so if I can get that, I'll post it. At Sophia's 4 month well visit, the pediatrician told me that we need to try and get Sophia to eat 6 ounces of rice cereal a day by the time she's 5 1/2 or 6 months. Sophia is now 4 1/2 months old and is already eating the 6 ounces of rice cereal mixed with a container of baby food every day! She's definitely Anthony and my child!! She's an eater!! Here's a picture of her after her introduction to green beans...

And the last picture I'll share in this post:

This is from this past Saturday (the 26th). We took a trip out to Gilbert to Aunt Brandi and Uncle Chad's house to watch Pitt beat NC State in the Meineke Car Care Bowl! It was around 50 degrees out, so Sophia had to bundle up. I think I'm going to put a hat on her now every time we go out. I know I'm biased, but how cute is my daughter?!?!

So my last bit of chatter for tonight deals with my adventure tomorrow. Tomorrow (December 29th) is Anthony's 32nd birthday. His birthday request was simple: to go to Charleston to have dinner with friends at McCrady's (www.mccradysrestaurant.com) and to stay the night. That's right. Stay. The. Night. Anthony's parents are coming over to our house to spend the night and watch Sophia. I know Sophia will be fine, but this is the first time I'm leaving her for the night. McCrady's is an incredible restaurant and we're doing a multi-course chef's tasting with wine pairings, so I know it's going to be a wondeful gastronomic adventure, but have I mentioned that I'm leaving my baby for the night? Keep me in your thoughts. Until next time...

'Tis the Season

I'd like to begin this post by wishing you all a very happy holiday season! 2009 was such a wonderful year for the Cimino family! I truly can't wait to see what 2010 has in store for us! At this point, I don't think it can get much better! I've come a long, long way these past 4 months. I've blossomed from a terrified and insecure brand new mom to a confident yet clueless Mama! I still feel like I have no clue what I'm doing, but when I look at Sophia and see how happy and healthy she is, and when I look at Anthony and see the pride and love in his eyes, I know I'm doing something right! Life. Is. Good.

Follow Up

As promised, here are the pictures corresponding to my previous post:

She can finally play in her Johnny Jump Up! She doesn't quite know what to do yet -- she sort of just hangs out and drools, but last night she started moving her feet, so I think she's figuring it out!

First attempt at rice cereal.

The second attempt went much better! Now she loves it and is already eating 2 tablespoons of it a day. The pediatrician wants her eating 6 tablespoons a day by the time she's 6 months old. I don't think that will be a problem!!

First attempt at rolling over. This is what I found last Sunday morning when I came back into Sophia's room after grabbing a cup of coffee!

And THIS is what happened last night while she was laying on the dining room table after her bath! She's progressed so much just in 3 short days! She even started pushing up with her arms and moving her legs. I think crawling is going to come early!!!

She's starting to giggle!!!

Eventful Weekend

Like the title of this posts implies, we had a lot going on this weekend! Friday was Sophia's 4 month well visit. She's weighing in at 15.5 pounds (97th percentile) and is measuring almost 27 inches (91st percentile)! The doctor told me to start giving her rice cereal now. He wants her eating about 6 tablespoons a day w/in the next two months. The first attempt at cereal eating was Friday night and did not go too well (I'll post pictures later) but she seemed to like it a little more by Sunday evening. Saturday night, Sophia found her feet! Anthony was getting her ready for her bath and called me in to her room to show me. There she was, laying on her changing table with her left foot in her left hand and a huge smile on her face! If reaching that milestone wasn't enough to make my weekend, what happened Sunday morning definitely was! As usual, I woke Sophia up around 8:30, changed her, gave her a bottle and then put her down on her activity mat while I fixed myself some coffee. When I came back to her room, I found her laying on her tummy looking up at me with a huge smile! That's right -- Sophia rolled over!! I was so excited! Of course, I had to go get the camera (again, will post pictures later). What a weekend!!!! Until next time...