I heart Skype! Today I got to talk to a friend in Germany for about 20 minutes...it was so awesome to catch up with her...it almost felt like I could give her a hug.
I have now run 22 dissertation participants, and have acceptable data from 19 of them. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I will be able to stop early...I'm supposed to run 67, maybe I can stop at 40?
My abstract was accepted for the Sleep conference in San Antonio in June. It looks like my sister is going to be able to meet me at the conference and take care of Fiona during the day, which is great. Fiona will be 9.5 months old in June, but I'm hoping that the separation anxiety won't be too bad.
I need some running motivation. I've been running a couple of days a week, but it's not enough. I've loaded up some new music on my ipod, but that only goes so far...suggestions welcome!
Monday, February 8, 2010
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Highlights
- Fiona survived yet another trip to Phoenix, yay! The following weekend, I drove up and back in one evening by myself since I didn't have to pick up the equipment the next morning. That went much more smoothly for all involved. I cannot wait to be done collecting data for my dissertation!
- Fiona likes vegetables! Sweet peas and carrots are both hits! She also apparently likes corn on the cob...
- Fiona can now roll across the room, so fun! We definitely need to stay on top of the vacuuming now!
- I have been working full-time for a month. I've been seeing clients for the last two weeks, and I will be seeing 11 next week in the two days that I'm there (7 are ongoing, 4 are initial assessments). I'm delivering a new therapy that I've never done before for some of my clients - Interpersonal Therapy for Depression. I'm curious to see how much I like doing therapy when I have back-to-back clients all day for 2 days/week. I think that I'll be tired initially, but hopefully it will be good! I still miss Fiona a lot when I'm at work...I'm so thankful that I can have one weekday off with her. It's also amazing how well I can now get by on 5-6 hours of sleep.
- S's 45th birthday was today! We are going out to dinner to celebrate (thanks T!) in a couple of weeks. Fiona got him a sweet card ;-)
- Fiona and I hosted Sara and Drew's shower this past weekend, and everything went well! There were no culinary disasters or forgotten beverages (did I mention that I've been way too anxious lately?). Poor S had to work a horribly long day and couldn't be there. I can't believe that Sara and Drew's baby boy will be here in less than 3 months!
- Fiona likes vegetables! Sweet peas and carrots are both hits! She also apparently likes corn on the cob...
- Fiona can now roll across the room, so fun! We definitely need to stay on top of the vacuuming now!
- I have been working full-time for a month. I've been seeing clients for the last two weeks, and I will be seeing 11 next week in the two days that I'm there (7 are ongoing, 4 are initial assessments). I'm delivering a new therapy that I've never done before for some of my clients - Interpersonal Therapy for Depression. I'm curious to see how much I like doing therapy when I have back-to-back clients all day for 2 days/week. I think that I'll be tired initially, but hopefully it will be good! I still miss Fiona a lot when I'm at work...I'm so thankful that I can have one weekday off with her. It's also amazing how well I can now get by on 5-6 hours of sleep.
- S's 45th birthday was today! We are going out to dinner to celebrate (thanks T!) in a couple of weeks. Fiona got him a sweet card ;-)
- Fiona and I hosted Sara and Drew's shower this past weekend, and everything went well! There were no culinary disasters or forgotten beverages (did I mention that I've been way too anxious lately?). Poor S had to work a horribly long day and couldn't be there. I can't believe that Sara and Drew's baby boy will be here in less than 3 months!
Saturday, January 9, 2010
A Recap of the Last Month
Fiona survived her first trip to Phoenix. She slept most of the way there, which was great. She cried for one hour after I left (unfortunately for S, it was in the hotel room), and then slept in the pack'n'play from 7:40 PM to 5:00 AM.
My brother came out for a visit midway through December. This was his first time meeting Fiona, and he had a lot of fun with her. He read his favorite childhood book, Goodnight Moon, to Fiona and accompanied us to the Zoo.
Fiona had her eye specialist appt. and her 4 month pediatrician appt. at the end of December. The pediatric opthalmologist wants to consider surgery for her right tear duct if it doesn't clear up by 9 months, but we plan to take the advice of our pediatrician and give the eye one year to resolve itself. Fiona was in the 99th percentile for height and weight, and in the 50th percentile for head circumference. The pediatrician gave us the go ahead to start solids.
Fiona's first Christmas was a blast! We dressed her in adorable reindeer pajamas, and had a mellow day at home. Fiona was able to rip three of her presents open, and she enjoyed playing with some of her new toys. We visited with our families via Skype.
Although we initially planned to wait until 6 months to introduce solids, we decided to start at 4 months since Fiona showed multiple signs of readiness. Fiona watches us intently when we eat, and will often try to grab whatever I'm eating (salad, banana bread, whatever) and bring it toward her mouth. She is also very close to being able to sit unassisted. We decided to introduce sweet potatoes on Christmas Day. Sweet potatoes were not the hit that we predicted, but Fiona does enjoy pears.
On January 4th, I went back to work full-time and started my new position as a Clinical Psychology Program Extern at a local behavioral health provider and resumed my job as a Graduate Research Assistant at the UA. S took care of Fiona that Monday, and they had a great day together. On Tuesday, I had to take Fiona to her daycare provider. I cried the whole way there and the whole way to work. Fiona cried for less than one hour after I left, and had a great day after that. The next morning when I dropped her off, she was happy. C, her provider, is great about filling me in about how Fiona's days go, and what activities she enjoys. Fiona loves to go outside and watch the other two kids (ages 2 and 3) run around in the backyard.
Finally, the big news of the day is that Fiona rolled over for the first time! This morning, when I went to get her from her crib, she was on her stomach! Later in the day, I saw her roll from back to tummy twice!
My brother came out for a visit midway through December. This was his first time meeting Fiona, and he had a lot of fun with her. He read his favorite childhood book, Goodnight Moon, to Fiona and accompanied us to the Zoo.
Fiona had her eye specialist appt. and her 4 month pediatrician appt. at the end of December. The pediatric opthalmologist wants to consider surgery for her right tear duct if it doesn't clear up by 9 months, but we plan to take the advice of our pediatrician and give the eye one year to resolve itself. Fiona was in the 99th percentile for height and weight, and in the 50th percentile for head circumference. The pediatrician gave us the go ahead to start solids.
Fiona's first Christmas was a blast! We dressed her in adorable reindeer pajamas, and had a mellow day at home. Fiona was able to rip three of her presents open, and she enjoyed playing with some of her new toys. We visited with our families via Skype.
Although we initially planned to wait until 6 months to introduce solids, we decided to start at 4 months since Fiona showed multiple signs of readiness. Fiona watches us intently when we eat, and will often try to grab whatever I'm eating (salad, banana bread, whatever) and bring it toward her mouth. She is also very close to being able to sit unassisted. We decided to introduce sweet potatoes on Christmas Day. Sweet potatoes were not the hit that we predicted, but Fiona does enjoy pears.
On January 4th, I went back to work full-time and started my new position as a Clinical Psychology Program Extern at a local behavioral health provider and resumed my job as a Graduate Research Assistant at the UA. S took care of Fiona that Monday, and they had a great day together. On Tuesday, I had to take Fiona to her daycare provider. I cried the whole way there and the whole way to work. Fiona cried for less than one hour after I left, and had a great day after that. The next morning when I dropped her off, she was happy. C, her provider, is great about filling me in about how Fiona's days go, and what activities she enjoys. Fiona loves to go outside and watch the other two kids (ages 2 and 3) run around in the backyard.
Finally, the big news of the day is that Fiona rolled over for the first time! This morning, when I went to get her from her crib, she was on her stomach! Later in the day, I saw her roll from back to tummy twice!
Friday, December 4, 2009
First Road Trip Tomorrow!
Tomorrow will be Fiona's first road trip! We are driving to Phoenix so that I can collect dissertation data. It's also the first real data collection that I've done since Fiona was born. I'm hoping that she'll sleep some in the car, but not so much that it will keep her from sleeping at night. I'm certain that I'm going to overpack for our first overnight adventure, but better to be overprepared, right?
Fiona is getting stronger every day. She can scoot around on her back, and I sometimes find her completely turned around in her crib or playmat. She's also holding her head up higher during tummy time, and can do about 3-5 minutes in the bumbo or exersaucer before she begins to slump. She also tries to do crunches whenever she is placed in a semi-recumbent position, so we have to be more careful where we place the bouncy chairs.
Fiona also "talks" frequently. I love it when she talks herself to sleep...it's really cute! She's also teething, as evidenced by the nonstop drooling, swollen gums, and placement of her fingers and toys in her mouth. We have been giving her Humphrey's teething strips and occasionally Tylenol when we are able to rule out all other sources of discomfort.
Fiona is nearly 16 lbs (!) and wearing 9 month clothes. I had expected her to plateau at some point in the last month or so, but she is still on the up and up! She won't last much longer in her infant carseat (it goes to 23 lbs or 30 inches).
Fiona is definitely interested in food. On Tuesday, she actually lunged to try to grab my banana! On Wednesday, she was definitely coveting my fish taco. I am planning to breastfeed her exclusively until 6 months (unless she cuts a tooth before then), but it may turn out to be a challenge to keep solids from her until then.
In other news, my brother is coming for a visit in 8 days, which is super exciting! He hasn't yet met Fiona.
I'm doing the December runathon, which is an event that my triathlon club organizes every year. Basically, you have to run at least 2 miles per day every day in December. It's supposed to bring consistency to your running and help stave off holiday poundage. It's hard to believe that we got pregnant during the first week of last year's runathon! Time flies!
I was reading an article in one of the parenting magazines about the characteristics of happy families. One of the attributes was gratitude. In the spirit of Thanksgiving (yes, I know I'm a few days late), I've decided to list a few of the things that I'm thankful for:
1. Fiona's health and safe arrival
2. Having a great partner who I love
3. Our family and friends
4. Having 4.5 months mostly home with Fiona
5. Our jobs
Fiona is getting stronger every day. She can scoot around on her back, and I sometimes find her completely turned around in her crib or playmat. She's also holding her head up higher during tummy time, and can do about 3-5 minutes in the bumbo or exersaucer before she begins to slump. She also tries to do crunches whenever she is placed in a semi-recumbent position, so we have to be more careful where we place the bouncy chairs.
Fiona also "talks" frequently. I love it when she talks herself to sleep...it's really cute! She's also teething, as evidenced by the nonstop drooling, swollen gums, and placement of her fingers and toys in her mouth. We have been giving her Humphrey's teething strips and occasionally Tylenol when we are able to rule out all other sources of discomfort.
Fiona is nearly 16 lbs (!) and wearing 9 month clothes. I had expected her to plateau at some point in the last month or so, but she is still on the up and up! She won't last much longer in her infant carseat (it goes to 23 lbs or 30 inches).
Fiona is definitely interested in food. On Tuesday, she actually lunged to try to grab my banana! On Wednesday, she was definitely coveting my fish taco. I am planning to breastfeed her exclusively until 6 months (unless she cuts a tooth before then), but it may turn out to be a challenge to keep solids from her until then.
In other news, my brother is coming for a visit in 8 days, which is super exciting! He hasn't yet met Fiona.
I'm doing the December runathon, which is an event that my triathlon club organizes every year. Basically, you have to run at least 2 miles per day every day in December. It's supposed to bring consistency to your running and help stave off holiday poundage. It's hard to believe that we got pregnant during the first week of last year's runathon! Time flies!
I was reading an article in one of the parenting magazines about the characteristics of happy families. One of the attributes was gratitude. In the spirit of Thanksgiving (yes, I know I'm a few days late), I've decided to list a few of the things that I'm thankful for:
1. Fiona's health and safe arrival
2. Having a great partner who I love
3. Our family and friends
4. Having 4.5 months mostly home with Fiona
5. Our jobs
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Fiona's First Adjustment
And by adjustment, I mean chiropractice adjustment. And no, she did not get "cracked." Why, you ask? Fiona has been less than enthusiastic about tummy time for the past several weeks, and she went from spontaneously picking up her head and turning it from side to side to crying upon being put down onto her tummy. Also, she was refusing to nurse on my left side about one day out of week, which was getting to be a painful problem if it happened while we were out of the house. S had wanted to take her to the chiropractor early on, but I was skeptical until Dr. Michelle came and spoke at the baby group last week. She works on a lot of babies, and she described the things that we were noticing as cervical spine problems. Some of the other moms had already taken their babies to see Dr. Michelle with good results. I took her today, and noticed an instant improvement in her range of neck motion. When I put her down for tummy time later in the day, she was happier, and was picking up her head and trying to push off her feet into a roll! It was a dramatic change!
Edit: She also slept 10.5 hours last night!
Edit: She also slept 10.5 hours last night!
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Getting the hang of it...
I finally feel like I am getting the hang of being a Mom. We're all getting sleep, and most of my day is spent having fun with Fiona. She's becoming more expressive and interactive. She babbles, smiles, and giggles. I'm getting better at anticipating her needs and setting reasonable expectations for what can be accomplished in a given time frame. I also feel like I'm living more in the moment, which is always a good thing.
Fiona had her first non-family babysitter this week! S was supposed to come home early on Friday so that I could go to Mary Carskadon's talk and reception, but he was having an awful day at work and was not going to be able to make it home in time. I called Sara on the off chance that she might be available to watch Fiona, and she was! They had fun together bouncing on the exercise ball and playing on the floor.
Fiona went to her second party this weekend. The first party that she attended was Bethany's 1st birthday several weeks ago. The most recent party was Illy's warming party (pics coming soon!).
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Snoopy bandaids
Fiona got her first round of vaccines yesterday, and two pink Snoopy bandaids on her little thighs. The nurse held her legs and I held her arms, and I cried with her when she got her shots. It was rough. :( They stopped giving Tylenol at the same time because it supposedly blunts the immune response, but the pediatrician said that I could give it to her later if she was fussy. We did, and it seemed to help.
Fiona's 2 month appt. stats:
13.04 lbs
25 inches long
I had my 6 week (more like 9 week) postpartum appt this past Thursday. Everything has healed well, so I've been cleared to resume all of my pre-pregnancy activities. Thankfully, Judy just laughed when I told her that I'd started running at 2 weeks. Speaking of running, my long runs are now up to 5 miles. I've been running 3-4 times per week, and swimming once per week. I'm now reasonably convinced that I could finish a sprint triathlon if I had to. I'm still wondering if it was a good idea to sign up for the Tucson Half Marathon in December, but it certainly keeps me motivated to train!
Fiona's 2 month appt. stats:
13.04 lbs
25 inches long
I had my 6 week (more like 9 week) postpartum appt this past Thursday. Everything has healed well, so I've been cleared to resume all of my pre-pregnancy activities. Thankfully, Judy just laughed when I told her that I'd started running at 2 weeks. Speaking of running, my long runs are now up to 5 miles. I've been running 3-4 times per week, and swimming once per week. I'm now reasonably convinced that I could finish a sprint triathlon if I had to. I'm still wondering if it was a good idea to sign up for the Tucson Half Marathon in December, but it certainly keeps me motivated to train!
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