DOC Band... two weeks

here we are - two weeks in!

I have to say - you can really tell a difference with her head - which totally excites us!!

it still doesn't bother her, which is good, and it's funny... when we take it off it's like 'where's my hat mommy???'  she is a trooper for sure!!!

we finally decided to decorate it.  we went to hobby lobby and bought stickers - I was excited to get my creative juices flowing!  well - you know there's a difference between a ford vs cadillac... well... it was all about the ford!!  creative juices weren't as sweet as one would think!  so we ordered decals from bling your band and they arrived yesterday!

before & after

and here's my little cutie with her new 'bling'

what a difference it makes!!

it might not be the 'cadillac' but it sure beats the dreary white!!

what's new?  she's been sitting on her own for almost a month now and LOVES it!

she's finally figured out how to pick up a cheerio and put it in her mouth - but she still doesn't understand why when she picks up her sippy cup nothing comes out... hopefully she'll figure out she has to raise it up soon =)  still loves her fruits and veggies... we introduced meats... chicken noodle, turkey and gravy... seems to love that as well!

crawling - poor girl!  she already hates tummy time... well, not that she hates it but she's lazy.  when she's tired she'll just lay her head down on the floor and chill.  her little legs are on the right track - she can get them up on her knees and kick but her arms just don't cooperate.  it's like she doesn't have the strength in her arms to start moving.  so... we've been trying to build her strength!  she loves her bouncer - enough to where when she's in it she bounces like no other - I was scared the other day that she would bounce herself right out of it!!!  so no worries with the strength of her legs!!

all the updates I can think of for Miss B.

yes, we are still packing.  I've managed to pack 8 boxes and yet it still feels like I haven't even put a dent into anything!  hopefully I'll start seeing some progress soon cause it can really be discouraging!!!  happy packing!!!

Emotions...

here we are - 6 days into the band.

why emotions?  after we got her band last Thursday they tell you to take it off every 2-3 hours to check for redness - if it doesn't go away after an hour then stop use.

well - we noticed a red spot on her right side above her ear that just wouldn't go away.

of course, it was over the weekend but I called first thing Monday morning and they told me to come in.  sure enough (thankful I called) they told us to leave it off until the spot goes away.

this was Monday afternoon.  it was off on Monday night, all day Tuesday, Tuesday night and this morning.  after her morning nap I thought it looked great so decided to go ahead and put it back on tonight... so... she's upstairs, sleeping like the baby she is and I'm down here praying there's no red spot in the morning!!!

why emotions?  a part of me was like put the band on for the longer she stays out of it the longer she'll have to be in it... the other part of me was like my poor baby's head is red and I don't ever want to put the band back on again.  

I'm not going to lie - I greatly enjoyed her out of it the last few days.

what I enjoy most is her hugs, her rubbing her head on my shoulder and face when she's tired... feeling the plastic helmet in my face isn't the most comforting!  so believe me, I've gotten in all the hugs and cuddling I could before putting it back on!

why emotions?  am I doing the right thing?  am I putting it on right?  am I hurting her head more? does it fit properly? the last thing I want to do is shape her head the wrong way and we're in this thing for the next 6 months!!!  I guess I'll have to believe that all will be okay - that faith will lead us in the right direction - that I'm a good mommy for correcting this now - I pray for strength each and every night and I pray for my beautiful little girl to get through this... (and her mommy!)

here she is on the couch - she woke up early from her nap so we came downstairs to sit for a bit before feeding.

here she is playing and mommy trying to get a picture of her TWO teefies!!

and here we are last night before bed - we were so happy!!

... and sleepy!!

here's to emotions... and getting better!!

DOC Band and teething...

day 5 with the DOC Band.

funny thing - it definitely bothers me more than it bothers her!

certain times of the day are worse - not really crying - more of a whimper and I'm

thinking it's about the teething and not the 'hat' she's wearing.  I'm trying my hardest not to take it off and make sure she wears it for the full 23 hours... but man, it's hard!!!

the one red spot is still there - don't like it - so we've been putting cortisone cream on the spot when we take it off to see if it's heat related - the last thing I want to do is hurt her skin!  I'm definitely going to call our specialist today to see if I should come in to have them look at it or just wait till our scheduled appt on Thursday.  I have a feeling they may get sick of me calling :)

our routine is pretty much still the same.

4 hour schedule with a little nap in the evening.

as soon as she wakes up in the morning I take it off to feed her - let her head get some air and to do her stretches - then it's right back on.  I haven't decorated it yet - we did go buy some stickers and mod podge to do it but I haven't felt the creative itch just yet!

of course, every time I take it off I examine her head to see if I can see ANY changes... I think I do... for example, I'll look at her from the right side and it doesn't look as flat... but she's still got a few 'lumps' on the back so I'm only hoping that just the band beginning to work.  

I'm not gonna lie - I did so much research before we got it - all stories were positive - and yes, I know our outcome will be positive - but what I didn't read is how the parents are really coping with this change.  am I the only newbie who feels this way???  wondering if it fits right, if I'm doing the right thing, if I'm cleaning it right and making sure not to get any lotion on it or get it wet.  

the one message I wish I could get out to all the parents who are going or will go through this is TRUST YOUR INSTINCT!!!  as I mentioned, our ped won't refer until 6 months BUT the specialist at Cranial Technologies said the best time to start this is around 4 months... do they just not talk to each other???  I know, I need to get past this but for whatever reason I just can't.  maybe I should become a spokesperson and go around to all the ped's offices and say REFER at the first signs of plagiocephaly and/or torticollis!!!

so... here we are taking it day by day.

am I stressed - to say the least!!

we have a DOC band

we are teething

we will be moving at the end of February

we have to pack

funny really - I remember (back in 2006) everyone told me I must be crazy to...

get a new job

get engaged

get married

build a house

ALL in one year!!!

it feels like 2006 all over again...

6 mo old in DOC Band

selling a house

buying a house

packing

moving...

who does all this at ONE time... oh yea, ME!!!

hey - what doesn't kill us makes us stronger (well then, I must be a super hero!! :) )

no pics this time (sorry) but promise I will post some of her soon!!

my little girl is growing up and I will say - (even though I know babies are resilient) - I hope that she handles everything thrown at her in life as well as she's handled this change!!!

xoxoxoxo

the DOC Band arrival

our journey has begun:

she seemed to do okay yesterday - she was a bit cranky last night but... is it the fact she has a new 'hat' she has to wear 23 hours a day or... the fact she is now cutting TWO teeth???

guess only time will tell!  she slept through the night last night which mommy and daddy were very thankful for - I was already prepared for a night of running up and down the stairs to soothe her.

so - all early signs point to... we're okay!!

actually - she looks pretty cute in her new bling.  can't wait to put stickers and decorate it!

I will say - I cried on the way home yesterday.  I kept looking in the rear view mirror - my baby with her little white helmet - she just looked like she couldn't get comfy and for that reason alone, it broke my heart!!!  

she grabs at it sometimes - she's so use to rubbing her head and now all she feels is a hard surface - yes, I know she'll get use to it.  but will mommy??!!??

so here we are... today will be our first full day... I'm preparing myself!

my hope is this time will pass quickly and we (mainly I) will be able to look back and say 'now, that wasn't so bad - and now look at our beautiful babies head!'

time will tell...

We have a tooth...

last Thursday - started like all days do

I did notice she was a bit cranky which isn't like her

and oh my... the drool... she's gotta be dehydrated!

we played like normal - momma, of course, doing everything she could

to soothe her - and we were just waiting till daddy came home that evening from

being gone all week... as we're sitting on the couch playing with some toys... 

she took my finger and started sucking on it... yes, she's done this before... but... never had she

bit down and something hard caught my attention pretty quick.  of course she wouldn't

let me open her mouth so I did what any mother would do... I took her in the bedroom to roll

around on the bed to distract her and whatdya know... there was the tip of a tooth...

ok, not the most clear pic but momma had to hurry up and take the picture!!!

so I welcome myself to the wonderful world of teething... OH MY... when does this end???

I'm sure it could be worse - she is more cranky but I can still get her to laugh!

I can't wait to see what she'll look like with her toothies!!!!!

Big Week

we've had big changes this week - and got a lot of stuff done!

4 hour schedule - here we are.

it's a transition but feel she's adapting well.  

new formula - still debating!

we tried regular formula when she was an infant but she broke out like you would not believe and we realized she had a milk allergy - so we put her on a hypo-allergenic formula nutrimigen (otherwise known as 'gold' )  of course she had to have the most expensive formula out there =)

against our ped's recommendation to not switch formulas until she is 9 months old (as you know, our ped is not on my 'good' side right now) we went for it.  it's been about 4 days of straight new formula and so far I think she's okay - very little breakouts (I think the main reason for it is due to dry skin so we're lathering her up with aquaphor!) so we're hoping it continues - believe me, it will save us LOTS of money and for that - daddy's happy!!

why all the changes at once...

our lives will change a week from today.  yep, we get the DOC Band.

I didn't want to make so many changes all at once - I figured the band would be change enough!

every day that goes by - closer and closer to the day - I get nauseated.

why?  it's just something I don't want to do but know it's best.  I do feel confident all will be okay and know with her personality she will do just fine - again, it's momma who's worried!!  so we've had a busy week of change!  isn't change good?!?

I've been keeping myself busy - it's amazing how many times one can clean a house!!!

nope - no more Juana - it's just me!  with our house on the market I felt it was easier for me to maintain the house daily - it's been a transition but in all honesty, I've enjoyed doing it but shhhh, don't tell hubby!!  it's also amazing how many cosmetic changes one can make to a house when it's for sale - things you wouldn't think about doing before - like touching up the paint, re-painting the base-boards - oh.... and re-staining the garage doors!!

before...

after...

wow - what a difference right?!?!

I mean - at the rate we're going and all the changes we're making it may be easier to just stay here!!!  I will say all the 'home improvements' have been great for me and have helped me get by and take my mind off of next week.

another big step... we're going to Houston the weekend of Feb 10th and Nana will be coming in to babysit.  first weekend away from Bryn!!!  dray's use to being away with work but this will be my first time away from her for more than a few hours... can I do it???  yep, I can - it'll be tough but know she'll be in good hands with Nana!!

duty calls... so I'll leave with a few pics of my sweet little girl -

doing our floor stretches and playing...

and these I just thought were cute...