"Hurry Come" - Aunt Leanne's message to Josie's baby sister

Well, the baby is officially past due and Leanne is anxious to meet her new niece.  So she decided to email some words of encouragement to help coax the little dear into the world:

Josie hanging on to Aunt Leanne's every word

dear leanne

iam happy for

the

baby maryrome



bannna spilt

straewbeerries

hurry

up

have the baby.

hurry come

emgeaneyl

love

leanne

Kid, I hope you're listening; Aunt Leanne is a source of great wisdom and sound advice. Just ask Josie! You'd be smart to follow her directive and hurry up - PLEASE! Do it for meeeeeeee!

* Leanne actually offers a hint to the baby name we're leaning towards but she botched it pretty well so good luck deciphering it ;-)  Besides, I reserve the right to change my mind 100 times between now and then!  But if that turns out to be the winner, we'll work on the spelling.  She'll at least come close like she does with "Jose" and "Tavis".  If she didn't omit a letter, it just wouldn't be the same. 

Josie is 16 Months Old!

Josie turned 16 months old yesterday but thanks to an Internet connectivity dilemma at our house, this post wasn't possible until today. 

We are so proud of our little girl!  She is learning new things everyday.  She babbles non-stop and has even added some new words to her vocabulary including "book" and "baby"!  I realize I need to capture this on video and upload it but I'm going to go ahead and throw out the I'm-9-months-pregnant-and-taking-care-of-a-16-month-old-in-the-sweltering-July-heat-what-do-you-want-from-me?! card and assure you that the blog content improve dramatically as soon as Josie's baby sibling decides to make her appearance.  She's due tomorrow and we're waiting with open arms, so send those prayers up! And in the meantime, much love to our 16 month old big sister-to-be!  Josie, you are a delight! 

Josie gets a Gait Trainer

Although she's made a lot of progress in the physical therapy department, Miss Josie still has a ways to go when it comes to mobility.  Her wonderful physical therapist, Bea, attributes her hesitation to both her excessively content temperament (she's happy where she's at - no need to rock the boat) and her extreme cautiousness (the kid's not much of a risk taker). 

That's why we were so excited when Bea arrived this week with an extra special gift for Josie: a snazzy red gait trainer!  This little device is designed to promote proper positioning and encourage mobility for kiddos who can confidently stand but need a little extra encouragement taking steps. 

Josie checking out her new wheels

Initially, Josie *ahem* wasn't crazy about this new idea.  To say she resisted would be the understatement of the year.  If she could talk, I'm pretty sure we would need lots of these types of symbols $*#!@* to explain what she was saying to Bea.

@#!%&!

Our physical therapy session quickly morphed into cuddle therapy.  I guess that Bea missed that day in PT school when they were taught how to resist the charming manipulations of cute children who prefer not to practice their skills and abilities. But you can't really blame Bea.  In my lifetime of experience, I can confidently assert that kiddos with Down syndrome are born with a PhD in charming manipulation tactics!

Josie is a card carrying expert

But we finally succeeded in coaxing Josie into the gait trainer.  Josie ensured we didn't get too cocky in our victory celebrations by sporting her most defiant you-may-have-won-this-battle-but-I-am-still-not-amused face, and clinging to the device for dear life.

But if I know anything about chromosomally enhanced folks, the key to conquering new skills and abilities is a willingness to out-stubborn them.  Hence, Josie has been plopped in her new gait trainer every day and she's actually starting to dig it!

Look Ma - no hands!

While she hasn't figured out how to walk forward, she is getting quite good at pushing herself backward.  Realizing that she's leaving the room, she enthusiastically waves "bye bye" and disappears down the hallway!

Atta girl!

Polka Dotted Princess

You may be wondering if our absence from the blogosphere has anything to do with the fact that Josie's little sister is due any day now.  No, she's still in utero.  She likes it there.  If anyone has any suggestions for how to coax her out of there, please leave them in the comments section.  This beached whale of a mama would be very grateful.

I'd like to attribute our absence to the fact that I've been nesting like crazy, busily preparing for the arrival of the new one but that would only be true if "busily preparing for the arrival of the new one" means lying on the couch, mourning the loss of my once-skinny ankles, and making an extensive mental list of the various alcoholic beverages I plan to consume once this pregnancy is over. 

The truth is that our little diva spent the majority of the past week with a yucky virus that made her mama a nervous wreck.  Our first sign of trouble was when Josie's pulse oximeter started alarming, warning us that she was experiencing some respiratory distress.  She then spiked a fever that left her pretty darn miserable and it left mom & dad pretty darn sleep deprived.  After multiple consultations with various physicians and a chest x-ray, we learned that the respiratory distress was just a symptom of the fact that her immunity was down because her body was trying to fight off a virus. 

Poor, sickly baby

So with a little supplementary oxygen, steady doses of Tylenol, a lot of whining, and constant cuddles from mom, Josie's fever subsided and she started to turn the corner.  But the next thing you know, she turned into a polka dotted princess!

Spots McGee!

Being the first-time, neurotic mom that I am, I launched into a full blown panic, imagining all sorts of horrifying possibilities! We immediately headed back to the doctor where we learned that this little rash is a common side effect of a virus in infants and that it's perfectly harmless. My mom, mother-in-law, and every other seasoned mother I talked to already knew this, and now I do, too! Whew!  What a relief!

The spots are quickly fading and Josie is finally feeling better.  Now that that's behind us, we direct our thoughts back to the countdown of the arrival of the newest family member.  We'll keep you posted!

Leanne Blogs

Guest Blogger: Aunt Leanne



i am leanne
today sister speed nghit
joise catfish wit ketchup
went to pool swimming
help for dinner
set table
and steak
bread
corn cob
salad
homedade
dreesing
water
propel
clean  up
do  dishees
pajams
baby
read
the
 book
to baby
tromorrow
baptisem
cllass
starbuck
love leanne

Leanne was very proud of the table she set

Leanne and Josie share a passion for oral hygiene

Leanne reads to Josie before bed

I would be remiss to fail to mention that today is the one year anniversary of Josie's open heart surgery which you can read about here.  We feel so blessed to have the medical advancements that repaired Josie's damaged heart and made it healthy and fully functioning. 

Happy Healthy Heart Day, Josie!  We love you so much!

Guess who stopped by for lunch...

...Mama Hop and Aunt Leanne!  They didn't stay long; they were only passing through.  I use the term "passing through" loosely.  They were "passing through" a whole other state on their way from Point A to Point B within the same state.  Yeah, only Mama Hop can find a way to justify a stop in a neighboring state as being "on the way" when she hasn't seen her granddaughter in a few weeks. 

And of course, she cannot show up empty handed:

Mama Hop attempting to explain that the gift is actually the musical tea set; not the crinkley wrapping paper. 

But Josie reminded her that seeing her Mama Hop and Aunt Leanne (especially Aunt Leanne) is gift enough!

Josie showed Aunt Leanne her new favorite game: Peek-A-Boo!  It doesn't get much more fun than this when you're 15 months old!

Leanne thought the game was ok but the effect it has on Josie's hair do was a little annoying. 

No worries - Aunt Leanne knows how to fix a bow!

Then it was Aunt Leanne's turn to have her hair disheveled by a rousing game of Peek-A-Boo!

It's all in a hard day's work for the beloved Aunt Leanne.  Oh and Leanne made another valuable contribution during her brief visit today: she solved our baby naming problem.  She said "I know what you can name the baby: Josie!  We can have two Josie's!" 

Heck, if one Josie is good, two Josie's are better, right?  Why not?  If it ain't broke, don't fix it.  Brilliant idea, Leanne!  I love it!

Mama Hop and Aunt Leanne continued on their way but they'll be back on Friday so be sure to tune in then!

"Happy" Independence Day!

It's not everyday that we get to commemorate our great nation's birthday with a red, white, and blue photo shoot.  Around here, we take our photo shoots seriously.  A successful photo op is not a solo endeavor - it involves all hands on deck.  Thanks to some key players, the deck was definitely stacked in our favor today:

Stylish patriotic ensemble adorned with the cutest hair accessory compliments of Mama Hop's  dear friend, Ann - Check

Perfect Americana props artfully arranged to make the ideal backdrop compliments of Grammie Deb's front porch - Check

Cooperative baby in a freedom-lovin' mood...

...better luck next year.

"Happy" 4th of July!

Josie learns to sit up from lying on her stomach