Crawler #2

    McKenna has been crawling for quite some time now.  We have had a theory that Owen is feeling very left out because sometimes, McKenna will crawl towards something or pull herself up on the "baby jail gate" and Owen just whimpers.  Its almost like he wishes he could join in! Sweet Bubs...
    Until tonight!!!  He had been rocking and pushing himself backwards for about a week and then....lo and behold...he crawled!!!

   McKenna was in a mood so she wasn't happy that she had to be kept hostage!  So we now officially have TWO crawlers.  Lord Help Us!!!!

Pimp My Helmet...

     ...get it, like that show "Pimp My Ride"...

     ANYWAY...I knew when we found out Owen was going to have to get a cranial band (affectionately known as the helmet) that it simply couldn't stay that boring, plastic, white color.  I went to Pinterest and looked for ideas, went to blingyourband.com and skimmed 100's of stickers and decals and what I decided was...its a lot of work!  So, I googled "decorate your cranial band" one day and found a very cool organization called Wrap Buddies (wrapbuddies.com).  They wrap cranial bands with the same materials and technology they use to wrap cars, RV's, boats, trailers etc. and they do it for free!  I immediately sent in an application and they got back to me BUT, they couldn't get Owen in until the end of October.  Hopefully, by the end of October we will nearly be done with treatment so I declined because I want to leave a spot for someone who will be at the beginning of their band journey.  On their website they have free templates for the bands and they mention that most places that do wraps can do the cranial band wraps too but they may charge you.  I gave it a shot and emailed Rockwall Wraps and told them our situation and patiently waited for an answer.  The next day, I received a response from them stating that not only would they OF COURSE do it but that it was "on them".  I was over the moon!  So after Owen's fitting appointment where we got the helmet for the first time we headed over to Rockwall Wraps so they could take some measurements and we could discuss ideas.  Mason and I had been throwing around ideas and we settled on the Coast Guard.  My dad, Owen's Pappoo, is in the Coast Guard Auxiliary.  We decided we wanted Owen's helmet to be a tribute to him!  So, I told the wrap guys that I wanted it to look weathered and worn like a ship and have the seal on it somewhere.  I shook their hand and they promised to have me design proof by the next week.  Fast forward to the following Tuesday when they sent me the proof...I.was.ECSTATIC!  It looked amazing!  Mason approved so we scheduled a day to come by and get it put on for Owen.  It took a little under an hour and afterwards Owen was blinged out to the max!  I made sure mom and dad came over that night just to "say hi" and dad was so excited and touched when he saw Owen sporting his favorite thing. Our Bub is rocking his Coastie helmet now!!!

Back View                        Front View

One PROUD Pappoo!!!!!

Fixing My Flat!

     When Owen and McKenna went in for their 2 month checkup Dr. Waw mentioned that Owen had a very large flattening on the back of his head and if it didn't get better by 4-5 months we would need to discuss a cranial band AKA a helmet.  Well, I took him in for something else right after he hit 4 months and despite tummy time, tummy sleeping, and more holding and less laying down it was still very flat.  We scheduled a consultation for the next week and sure enough, when we went in he met the criteria for a "moderate to severe" head deformity.  I was really very shocked it was that bad...I knew it looked "off" but severe???  My poor baby....

   When he went for his consult they put a panty hose like cap on him so they could hold down his hair etc. and get a really accurate picture of his head.  I mean, he's still the cutest baby with a stocking cap on I have ever seen!!

  

    These pictures did help me to see the "deformity" a little better and he was approved for treatment with the Cranial Band. Our next step was going through insurance, which, thank the Lord Baby Jesus covered it at 80%.  We scheduled our fitting appointment for the 28th and the day arrived.

    They warned me it would take an hour for this appointment so I took a half day from work and he and I headed to Cranial Tech.  When we got there they had me put him up on the table on his belly and we tried it on him.  

  

Mommy's Handsome Boy!

  

Side Profile...Hey mom!!!!

  When they first placed it on him I held my breath...I was just WAITING for the screams and cries and irritation.  Absolutely.Nothing...he was completely unphased by the entire thing. They asked us to "play" for a little while...roll on the mat, lay on his belly etc. so they could see if it rubbed or needed to be trimmed up in any way. So we headed to the play mat...

   Clearly, he was not bothered by it.  He laid there and played and rolled and stared at me.  Not one tear.  Afterwards, we got back up on the table and he had a few red spots so they shaved a little of the foam off on the inside.  They told me he would really sweat in it for the next 3 days and that was normal and also that it would make him pretty hot most days because it will trap the heat that normally escapes through his head.  We have to clean it every day with Isopropyl Alcohol and he can only have it off for an hour at a time.  It calmed me so much to see how well he tolerated it and made me think this next 9-10 weeks may not be as bad as I built them up to be. Perfectly round coconut...HERE WE COME! 

152 Days

    …since you were born!!!  That’s 5 whole months since you turned our world upside down (in a good way)!  What a busy month you have had.  You started solids, rolling over like crazy, babbling and talking up a storm, blowing raspberries, and taking a bath in mommy’s tub!  You went to your first Farmer’s Market on the square, celebrated your Nana’s birthday, and finally had multi-night stretches of sleeping through the night.  You LOVE your exersaucers and have all but stopped using your bouncers and swing…you are growing up!  You have tried green beans, peas, squash, sweet potatoes, pears, peaches, oatmeal cereal, rice cereal, and your favorite things at dinnertime…MUM MUMS!!!  I give them to you in your high chairs while I get your baby food ready and you just gnaw and chew and gobble them up.  This month also marked mommy going back to work for the first time in your little lives and it was a difficult transition for us all…ok, just me really.  But we have found a wonderful lady, JuJu, who keeps you everyday and she loves you like you were her own.  This month was also a tough one in the illness department.  At one point all 4 of us were sick. Sister, you had a double ear infection, Bub had a bad cold and we think a sinus infection, Daddy had bronchitis, and Mommy had a sinus infection…it was a bad deal!  Then the stomach bug hit us and Sister you got the worst case of diaper rash I had ever seen.  You cried through every diaper change and mommy cried right along with you.  We must have spent over $100 trying different cream concoctions, prescriptions, special bath soaks etc. trying to make you more comfortable.  After a few days of letting you play without clothes on (oy) it finally passed and you were back to your happy, jolly self!  

    Owen and McKenna, you are getting to be so much fun!  When I open the car door to get you out in the mornings and I start talking to you, you both smile and coo back at me…makes going to work tough some mornings. On the way home from JuJu’s in the evenings you both just sit in your carseats and talk and make noises and shake whatever toy I have given you to play with.  I call out your names and I can see you turning your head trying to see where I am!  One of my favorite times of day now is after your baths at night.  Daddy bathes one of you and I bathe the other but then after you are both clean, dry, lotioned up, and in your PJ’s we lay you on our bed and you both roll and talk and touch each other and we tickle and kiss all over you.  Then we give kisses and put you in your beds.  It is the perfect ending to my day!

     Mommy spent so much of the start of your life being sad and depressed.  Not because of you but because of all the changes that were happening.  But I feel like we are settling into that “new normal” everyone told us would happen.  I now look forward to the weekends because you are getting into a routine and take better naps.  I can’t WAIT to pick you up in the evenings!  Thank you for making me a mom…for helping me realize the capacity I have to love…and for being the most precious, adorable, happy babies on the planet!

                                                                                                              

                                                   XOXOXOXO

                                                               Mommy

   

Owen is helping daddy feed Sister!

Watching Mickey!!!!

Playing with Bubba's Nose! 

Bathtime in Mommy and Daddy's tub!!!

Our First Farmer's Market Trip!

(We were there for 10 minutes...it took us longer to get out of the car and in the stroller than it did to walk around)

Those eyelashes....

Happy, smiley, baby girl!!!!

Happy Birthday to Nana!!!!!

 

Daddy and his "Mini-Me"     Auntie Em and her McKenna!

Sister helped Nana blow out her candles...

1/2 of the Dynamic Duo...(he looks thrilled)!

My sleeping loves...this was "mid" nighttime bottle...didn't even make it all the way through!

 

This is what our living room looks like most of the time now...backs of heads fixated on Mickey!

Owen is mad he got stuck in the pink towel!!!

 

(I might have forgotten to turn off the flash...sorry Bub!)

And finally...the outttakes from our "We are 5 Months Old" photo shoot!!!...

(Could she be ANY jollier????)

 

This is the evolution of Owen's eventual meltdown!!!