Avocado Won't Make You Fat

Know how I know?

It's one of Millie's favorite foods.

Today at her doctors appointment we found out she lost weight.

What's a post without a darling picture of the star?

So here's the scoop:
Millie weighs 16 lbs 4 oz.  She didn't lose a whole lot, but over three weeks she should have gained.

When I spoke to a feeding specialist a few days ago to set up an appointment for an evaluation she told me to put Millie on almond milk.  We were starting the no-dairy today.

Our new pediatrician said absolutely not.  Almond milk doesn't have enough fat for Millie (since we now know she wasn't gaining weight).  I need to give her two cans of  Pediasure a day and keep putting butter on everything.  She also said we need to apply for WIC to cover the pediasure.  So I've set up our appointment for that, which should take over an hour (they informed me).  Feel free to keep us in your prayers that we'll qualify.

The quick pediatric visit for her synigais shot (yep, we got it!) took over an hour.  She had to have her nose suctioned out (you bet she loved that) on top of everything else.  At least she's in her bed sleeping like a baby.

It is so hard having so many professionals recommending different things for her.  I really like our new pediatrician, but I am desperately missing Dr. Later right now.  We understood each other.  He knew what was a big deal and what wasn't.  I completely trusted him when he told me to try something new.

How do people have four kids, let alone eleven!  How can one Mom possibly keep up with every little detail of each child?  I can barely keep up with Millie's schedule and she is only one year old!

So there you have it.  Avocados won't make you fat.  Even if you want them to.

Teeth

I finally caught a picture of her two teeth!

In this picture she is eating one of her favorite foods, graham crackers.  She also loves:  avacado, eggs, fried rice, buttered noodles, cheerios, chocolate chip cookies, apple sauce, sweet potatoes, oranges, mashed potatoes, and bananas (whole).

I guess dentures are out of the picture now.  Whew.

Millie's Faces

Pardon our dust.  I've started on my blog reconstruction, but haven't gotten very far.  I can't seem to find that article I read!

Millie is still, and probably always will be, afraid of the flash.

(do you see sunlight behind her?)

She's patient with me while I try different settings on the camera.

She very much loves to laugh,

and is so good at the perma-smile!

But she really really loves to be right in her Momma's arms.

It's easier to pull her hair that way.

I feel so busy these days!  I should rephrase that.  I feel like Millie is so busy these days.  The poor girl has to run (crawl) laps all over our tiny apartment all day just looking for something new to chew on.  Her new favorite place to be is right beside my blow dryer.  She recently learned how to be chased, which I think is so funny!  Whenever she sees me walking down the hall towards her she jumps (out of excitement) then starts clawing at whatever she was standing up holding on to (usually our bed) and buries her face while she squeals.

She was getting so great at walking behind her push toy, but darn if I didn't teach her how to be chased!  Now if I try to get her to walk she just thinks I'm chasing her.  So for now, Buck is the only one that can practice walking with her.

I realized after all the feedback on her Synagis situation I really haven't been good at filling y'all in on everything!  Millie gets a visit from a Physical Therapist twice a month through a local early childhood program called PEIP.  The therapist noticed Millie does not copy anything (but we already knew she does her own thing, right?),wave, or clap and thought it would be a good idea to have a Speech Therapist pay her a visit.  She is still as social as can be, she just isn't interested in copying.  So for now, I've given up on sign language.  She likes looking at it, but if she won't even copy me doing simple things I think sign language is out of the picture for now.

I also had a few concerns with her eating (she's eating pretty good and gaining weight, the poor girl just has a time going to the bathroom) so we are also set up to see a feeding specialist.  I just talked to her on the phone tonight to set everything up.  She wants me to try Millie on almond milk for 4 days and note the difference.  She still gets enough liquid every day, and I think enough food, so I'm not super worried.

At this same visit I learned that PEIP has a water therapy program here in Provo.  Hmmmm....wasn't I trying to teach her to swim?  Yep.  Did I shamelessly hint Millie should be in that program?  Yep.  We shall see if anything comes of it.  I even spelled out that she has tons of swim diapers.

I am so thankful for these programs.  We get so much help with every little thing!  I know communication skills aren't little, but you know what I mean.  Hopefully this therapist will come up with some good ideas to get Millie into clapping.  Bless her little heart.  I know she wants to keep up with everyone else, and some day she'll get there.  She's already accomplished so much.

By the way, the PT said to do "Patty Cake" type things with her to practice clapping.  Since she mentioned "Patty Cake" that's the only one I can think of!  Don't you hate when that happens?  What are other rhymes I can clap with her?

We go to the doctor on Thursday, so I'll have an updated weight for you soon.  I doubt she's up to 17 lbs yet, but who knows?  I'll be sure to feed her right before we go.

P-Jams

That's what we call the clothes you sleep in. I'm not sure where the nickname came from. Oh well.

Millie, being a baby and all, has been sleeping in these one piece p-jams since she started wearing clothes.

Once she learned how to rock on her knees, these once piece ordeals posed a problem. You see, Millie doesn't quite fill out the tummy area in any PJ's that she owns. When you have extra space, guess where her little curled up legs end up? When she's ready to crawl or stand? You guessed it. She bursts through them.

That wouldn't keep anyone warm now, would it?

While in Park City this weekend we picked up her first set of two piece PJ's from Carters! (on clearance of course) She loves them, and we think they are pretty cute.

So if you are out shopping (hint hint grandmas) and see some darling two piece PJ's on super sale, know that Millie would love you forever and ever if she got some for Valentines Day, St. Patrick's Day (when she turns "one"), or Easter. It's just a suggestion of course. These PJ's are size 12 month (though she still wears 6-9 month in normal clothes).

For all the non-grandmas reading this: Before you think I'm shameless in my hints, just know they spoil her like crazy and if they were going to buy her something anyways...

Oh and since you are still reading I might as well write some more. We are waiting on the edge of our seat to find out if we get Synagis donated to us for Millie. We switched insurance companies (now on the student health plan that covers zero medications) so there is a long process to plea your case to the drug companies. We're talking about a $2,500+ per month medicine here. It isn't something we could just pay out of pocket. We squeezed in two shots before our other insurance ended, so I won't freak out if we are denied.

One last thing. Millie and I got our plane ticket to South Carolina next month! We are coming into town for my dear friend's wedding. If y'all could be sure and encourage the sun to stick around those 15 days Millie and I would greatly appreciate it.

What a Difference a "T" Makes

Could you tell a little girl was pulling my hair through the last post?

May I share with you the dead give-away? "I should sit in the fridge for three hours..."

Yikes. Please note, when you are making the salad dressing for that amazing salad, the dressing should go in the fridge, not me.

I'm sure that doesn't scratch the surface of my grammatical errors on this blog, but that one was too funny not to share.

Posting while entertaining Millie should provide for some other noteworthy errors, just you wait.

Secret Weapon #1

First, look at my awesome new KitchenAid decoration! It was a Christmas gift from my sister (made with a Silhouette), but the idea was from here.

That was to motivate you to cook.

I have just a few favorite recipes easy to make, and sure to impress I thought I'd share with y'all. I would take pictures, I just don't have the camera or skills to make them turn out great. So you'll have to take my word for how yummy they are.

If you are like me, you occasionally gather with friends or family for dinner. Sometimes I get an assignment. Sometimes it is something I like to make, like rolls or dessert. Occasionally it is a salad. Blah. Chop up lettuce, throw on some veggies, and bring a bottle of dressing? Not my idea of good. So how do you make a good salad? Well my friends, I have one for you.

This recipe comes from my Aunt Karen (wonderful cook!) by way of her friend Kelli. If you were at Millie's birthday party, this is the salad I made. It was a big hit (always is), and I haven't been good at sharing the recipe like I promised.

Secret Weapon #1:

Kelli's Salad

Salad Ingredients:

1 head Romain Lettuce

1 bunch Read Leaf Lettuce

1 regular size carton cottage cheese

1 red onion, sliced

1/2 lb swiss cheese, grated

1 lb diced and sauteed bacon

Dressing Ingredients:

3/4 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup white vinegar

1 tsp dehydrated onion

1/2 tsp dry mustard

1 tsp poppy seeds

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup sugar

First, combine everything for the salad dressing. It should sit in the fridge for three hours prior to adding it into the salad.

Just before you walk out the door, mix the cheese and bacon into the chopped lettuce. Then mix it with the dressing that you pre-prepared.

Easy, peasy. And everyone will ask you for the recipe. Way to steal the show with a salad.

Stay tuned for a few more secret weapons. Just a few though, this isn't a food blog. It's a Millie blog!

Ketchup

Or maybe it's catch up? Oh well.

Truth be told, I'm reading this very interesting book about English and our sayings. I couldn't help myself.

But really, what have the Bagwell's been doing?

For family night (Monday nights around here) we decided to take a look at the Provo Tabernacle. Some of you may have heard about it catching fire. We enjoyed a few programs in that building, and though we'd document the fact that we were here when it caught fire. They won't let you anywhere near the building, so you can't tell how bad the damage is from our picture. Basically the outside is there, and that is it.

We brought in the new year! Buck insisted on waking Millie up to tell her Happy New Year. I'm glad we did. She's much happier here than she was on Christmas morning.

And of course, I'm staying home! So my days look like this:

Millie has started kneeling to drink her bottle.

Her favorite spot in the house is right in front of the space heater! Seriously she loves to have the heat blow in her face, and even sticks out her tongue.

(not sure what I did to deserve these underlines)

I now get to see just how long Millie's crazy hair styles last! She woke up like this, and it stuck around all day.

Look out Millie, you might be ready for a spout.

So that's us playing ketchup! Or maybe catch up?

I love my new job :) and no, I'm not in need of some adult conversation. Haha!

SAHM

That's Stay-At-Home-Mom, folks. That's me!

I've loved my time at home so far (one week down, oodles more to go!) but I feel like I'm on vacation. That does make it hard for me to get things done. With that said, I thought I'd share some of my goals with y'all. I've got high hopes...

1. Exercise five days a week

If you know me well, you know I haven't exercised consistently since before I was pregnant. Millie is nearly 14 months old! Terrible, I know. My plan (that I've stuck to for a week so far) is to wake up before Millie and Buck and head to the BYU gym. Oh how I wish it was daylight and more than 20 degrees at 6:45 AM here in Provo. Can you believe I have to scrape my windows and put down ice melt just to go to the gym in the morning? That is supposed to help motivate those of you that don't have weather obstacles preventing your exercise.

2. Have personal scripture study every day

Eh, I'm four for six. An improvement, yes. Our church put together a calendar with a suggested topic each week. This week, we studied Faith. I learned a lot, especially as I read talks from this past conference. Having the giant screen of the iPad makes scripture study so nice. I'm adding journal writing to this one. I keep a journal for myself and we keep one for Millie. I hope to write at least once a week in both.

3. Teach Millie how to swim

I've been wanting to do this for some time. This goal was actually what I was most excited about once I became a SAHM. I just found out that BYU no longer allows anyone under the age of 5 to swim in the pool! I'm so sad. If anyone has a solution (knows someone that works at a local hotel, has a pool, etc.) let me know. This girl loves the water!

4. Teach Millie sign language

Millie is starting to understand us when we ask her to do something, and I can tell she would like to communicate with us. This seems like a great solution! I'm not planning on going crazy, I just want to teach her a few signs to get us by until she starts talking. Plus I'd love to know I actually taught her something. We get so much help from Doctors and therapists, it's hard to know what is our doing.

5. Cook dinner

I love to cook, but working full time and being a Mom didn't leave a lot of time for cooking. If this past week is reflective of the rest of the semester, I'm busy. On top of that, who wants to haul groceries into the house when there is one inch thick ice on all the sidewalks and parking lot? And don't get me started on not having a dishwasher or counter space. My official goal is to "cook" every night (except when we go out, of course) but only really make things from scratch 3 nights a week. We're trying the "all natural" route with food, so this "from scratch" is the real deal.

6. Start a new blog

I know what you're thinking. I don't update the blog I have enough! Well this will be a different kind of blog. I've loved keeping up this blog (and intend to keep it going), but I'm afraid all of this writing has sparked something in me. I want to write more. I want to write about anything, not just Millie. I know that isn't why most of you look at our blog, so I (along with a dear friend) am starting a new one. We're taking it slow, so don't expect a new blog advertised for a while.

7. Re-do our current blog

I wish I knew blogger like the back of my hand, but sadly I do not. Although we don't have quite the fan base we once did, I'd still like to jazz up this blog for those of you sticking with us. I stumbled across a great article recently that explained some fancy things, so hopefully I can put them to good use. Stay tuned!

There you have it, though I am sure I forgot at least one of my goals. I'm planning on filling my days with all of the things I've planned on doing "some day" regularly along with lots of Mommy/Millie time. I swear I'll never get sick of this girl. She just started dancing to every bit of music she hears. It's adorable. She's as bad a dancer as I am. She also has two teeth, lots more hair, and can stand without holding on to anything. And to think, I get to watch it all first hand. I'm one lucky girl.