Georgia Aquarium

In celebration of Susannah Grace's birthday Trey and I decided to take her to the Georgia Aquarium. We got this wonderful idea from some sweet friends at church. I thought it was such a terrific idea, especially since the weather has been so crazy lately!

Susannah Grace certainly LOVED it!

She was amazed by all of the colorful fish.

She loved watching the Lion Fish with her Daddy.

We walked through a 4 foot tall tunnel and had to take a short break. It was a little difficult to crouch down and help Susannah Grace walk at the same time. We were both tired. So, we stopped in this little nook for a break and photo.

I just LOVED the Sea Turtle! It was amazing to gaze at.

The whales were definitely a sight to see!

These pictures are some of my favorites.

I love seeing their sweet little profiles.

Susannah Grace enjoyed the ride home!

We turned her big girl seat around before we left.

She was able to watch a DVD, which kept her and Mommy and Daddy sane.

Just stretching. :)

Passed out!

All that fun wore her out!

The Park

I was so thankful it was nice and warm the day of Susannah Grace's real birthday! She ate a yummy pancake breakfast, along with some blueberries. Then, we got ready and headed to the park for some fun! Here are a few pictures of our morning and afternoon together. The favorite part of her day was playing with the ROCKS on the playground. It's a good thing mommy made sure she didn't ingest any of these little objects because all she wanted to do was put them in her MOUTH!

One Year Rewind...

My sweet baby turned one on February 25th! What a blessing her life has been to us this year.

Birth

1 month

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

6 months

7 months

8 months

9 months

10 months

11 months

One Year....

And she's one happy little thing!

11 1/2 Months

This baby girl is just growing, growing, growing! I just can't believe what a big girl she has become. It's bitter sweet watching her grow up right before my eyes. Trey and I are so very thankful for her precious little life. I've included some things she's doing right now below along with some pictures from her last photo shoot!

Eating:

3 Bottles 6 oz. or less per feedings (2-breakfast and lunch, 1-before she goes to sleep)

Some baby food + table food (Ian's Organic chicken fingers, lots of canned organic vegetables, shredded cheese, breads, biscuits, waffles, oatmeal, etc.)

Sleeping:

2 naps- morning and afternoon

11-12 hours a night

Personality/ Development

*She's talking lots! She says "dada, mama, bawl (ball), byebye, yah (yay), and no."

*She's CRAWLING! I thought the day of "real" crawling would never come. However, during her last photo shoot she just decided to start. I couldn't believe my eyes. She's definitely become a busy little bee these days.

*She has been pulling up to her knees and sometimes to a standing position.

*She is walking with less effort holding onto my hands.

* She LOVES books. I love watching her flip the pages while cooing and babbling like she is "reading" up a storm.

*If you're not careful baby girl will give you a FRENCH kiss right slab dab on your lips. She is going through this funny tongue phase where she tries to lick you.

*She also LOVES looking in the mirror. It's funny to watch her smile at herself and give herself kisses.

*She's getting MORE teeth. We've got 6 currently and I think more are coming in.

SALMONELLA!

So, I'm a little late posting an 11 month update. Don't worry, I have a good excuse. 10-11 months can be summed up in one word.....

SALMONELLA!

Yes, that dreaded word. The day after Christmas my poor child began her battle with this awful bacteria. To answer the question that goes through everyone's mind (Do you know how she got it?), no, I do not know how my sweet angel got it. She could have gotten it in a number of ways. Unfortunately, she had diarrhea for over 2 1/2 weeks. During the first week and a half her fever fluctuated between 102-104 degrees. She was so pitiful. Many times, she would just fall asleep in our arms while cuddling. This is not typical for her. She very much wants to be put down in her bed to go to sleep. While it was very difficult to see her feel so bad, it was nice to be able to cuddle with her. I will say it was a big life lesson in regard to dealing with the healthcare profession. I almost ate a doctor alive. Needless to say, her former doctor did not listen to my instincts. Therefore, we did not find out what was wrong with her until well over 2 weeks, when we could have known much sooner. I have definitely become a salmonella expert in the meantime. So, I thought I might impart some of this wisdom to those who may come in contact with this terrible bacteria below (GOD FORBID):

Important Things to Know in Regard to Salmonella

• Depending on the type of Salmonella, doctors actually prefer not to medicate children for this bacteria unless they have some type of health impairment (immune disease, etc.). Susannah Grace's former doctor recommended an antibiotic. This can actually make matters worse in some case. We did administer it because her fever was so high and it did help bring it down.
• The only way to determine if your child has this bacteria is if your pediatrician takes a stool samples. It takes several days to hear back from the report. However, if you go to Children's After Hours Clinic the lab work is much faster (it's part of Children's so they get lab results much quicker because they are affiliated with Children's Hosp. lab). By the way, I must sing the praises of both Children's After Hours and Children's Hospital. Both intuitions were very thorough and provided adequate information.
• Salmonella has to run it's course, which for a little baby can take MONTHS! Yes, months. Susannah Grace has tested Salmonella for almost 2 months!
• We were told that Susannah Grace must pass 3 stool samples to go back to her in home care program. However, weeks later we were conveniently told by the Alabama Health Department that Susannah Grace could report back to her normal care facility once she did not have diarrhea any longer. She has passed one stool sample test but all of the others have been positive...so frustrating.
• When we first spoke with her former doctor, we were told she was HIGHLY contagious. We found out later that this is NOT TRUE by the health department. The only way it can be passed from person to person is if another child put her fecal matter in their mouth.

Ways to Avoid Salmonella

• Store and cook food properly.
• Clean with lysol or clorox. I now carry a container of lysol wipes in my diaper bag to wipe down any surface Susannah Grace would touch with her precious little fingers. I especially wipe down shopping carts if I do not have my shopping cart cover with me.
• Make sure your child thoroughly washes his or her hand after touching reptiles (we don't have this issue...yuck).
• Carefully wash raw fruits and vegetables before eating.
• Make sure your pets haven't left any little reindeer dropping around.
• If you take care of multiple children be sure to wash her hands thoroughly in between diaper changes.

***Please feel free to pass this information along to anyone who needs it. I PRAY they don't ever need it. However, I was pretty helpless when my child had this and found that some of the doctors we saw were not very detail oriented in terms of explaining this bacteria and what we should expect very clearly.

New Year's Resolution

I discovered what my New Year's resolution will be as I was reading the book Living a Life of Balance by Marilyn Meberg (a Women of Faith study series) this morning. The chapter I was reading is entitled "Balancing Faith and Works." Basically, the synopsis of this chapter was that faith is dead without works (James 2:20, 2:26). Now, I'm certainly not saying that you can "work" your way to heaven, because that is a lie. However, if we have been saved by Christ Jesus and have faith in who He is, what He's done, and what He IS doing then our faith naturally leads us to good works because of our gratitude and humility. Unfortunately, many believers, especially myself, get caught up in the hustle and bustle of day to day living according the the pleasures of this world and can become unfruitful and self-centered. Since I've had Susannah Grace, I have found this increasingly true in my life. I get up in the morning, get myself and my little one ready for the day, go to work, come home, take care of supper for my little one, play, put her in bed, and then get on facebook, take a bath, and go to bed. Once my head hits the pillow, I begin to think about where all the time has gone. How in the world did I miss out on doing my quiet time and praying? Well, it happens. In fact, I've found myself being increasingly possessive of "MY" time. I've become more introverted and less extroverted with others. I rarely take the time to do things for others because I am SO BUSY! While I do think my family is supremely important, I don't think that God has solely called me to be just a mother and a wife. He's called me to be much more for His kingdom. My goal this new year is to first, "Love the Lord my God with all my heart, soul, and mind" and to "Treat my neighbor as I would treat myself" (Matthew 22:37-39). I want to turn away from being so self centered and take the TIME to help and minister to those around me. In addition to the scripture mentioned, the following quote really helped open my eyes to this struggle I've been facing:

"Just as a road map only does us good if we believe in its accuracy and follow its directions, our faith only does anyone any good if we do something with it. What we say we believe must match up with what we do. Our actions give testimony to a faith that is otherwise invisible."