Alyss is One!!!

Alyss loves to eat! :)

Wow, Alyss, I really can't believe that you're one already! You've grown so much and learned a lot of things. You're really close to walking by yourself. You crawl everywhere and are really fast and good at it but you also stand up while holding unto things. You've been standing like that and walking along furniture since you were 9 months old but your most favorite way of 'walking' for now is still crawling.
You also know how to say lots of words and even short phrases, like 'up'n down' that you learned from Jane. You love doing everything Jane does and saying what Jane says. It's so cute seeing you talk and it's pretty amazing that we understand you pretty well.
Some things that you like doing are going on walks, going to the park and to Burger King and eating. You eat everything and you don't really want the baby purees anymore, but the real food that mommy and daddy eat. You like playing with Jane and by yourself and you get so excited every evening when daddy comes home from work.
Your birthday party was really cool. You had a Tinker Bell cake and you got it all over your face and body and had a lot of fun eating it. Everyone at the party brought you nice gifts that you really enjoyed opening. What a nice party with good friends!
Our sweet Alyss, we love you very, very much and always will be here for you. We love your sweetness and your maturity and how fearless and always wanting to try new things by yourself. Never give that up and you'll discover wonderful things in this world. Te iubim din toata inima, puiule drag si mic!

Not afraid to sit on Jane's car

Happy first birthday, Alyss!

Trying to walk 

First Doctor's Visit for Baby 3

A couple of weeks ago I finally got to go to the doctor to check the progress of this pregnancy. The doctor was kind of weird but she did a good job making sure that I was ok. My blood pressure and urine were good and so far I haven't gained one pound (16 weeks)! I probably lost a couple with all the nausea and throwing up. Well, I haven't thrown up that much but definitely more than the first two pregnancies.
They drew a lot of blood and we even had a small ultrasound to confirm how far along I was and since the ultrasound was close to 16 weeks, we decided to keep the original due date. So, the official due date is July 11. The doctor said that as far as she could see in this quick scan, the baby looks good and healthy. She couldn't tell me the gender even though the baby kept showing its bum and legs and not much of anything else. We had a hard time putting the cursor on the heart to measure the heartbeat (it was good when we got to it) and even to measure the circumference of the head. Such a little squirmer, the doctor called so I guess this is mommy's little squirmer.
This week, on the 9 of February I really started feeling the baby move - the earliest of all (18 weeks) and I'm really happy. I missed that feeling :) So, on the 20th we'll have the full anatomy scan and hopefully we also find out if we have another girl or a boy. We love you little squirmer!

Merry Christmas 2012!

Jane, David, Dahlee (+ baby 3) and Alyss

Another year coming to a close... Many things have happened; some we welcomed and others we wish took their time to show up, but overall we had a good and fruitful year.

David’s major accomplishment was to get a new job with the Jordan School District as an IT professional. We are all happy for this new job that provides experience, insurance and a step in the right direction. He is also working on publishing a book on the iTunes store, which will be used by the teachers of the schools where he works. Another thing that David got really good at is being a father. He takes good care of our two girls and helps out around the house a lot, especially with laundry and dishes. He’s also become an expert in making peanut butter cookies. Everyone loves his cookies and asks for them whenever they get a chance. J

Jane is a busy two year old. She now runs and is getting pretty good at jumping, which she’s been practicing for a few good months now. Her talking skills have grown quite a bit too. She talks, asks for the things she likes, wants or needs and knows how to express herself pretty well both in Romanian and in English. She is a good big sister too; gives Alyss her binky or bottle and lets us know whenever Alyss is crying. Jane knows seven letters, “Itsy Bitsy Spider”, “Old McDonald” and, “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” and can count to 3 by herself and to 8 with help. We are also working on potty training and are being pretty successful. She forgets about it sometimes while other times she herself brings the potty to us. One major accomplishment is the fact that she now sleeps through the night, which makes us really happy. She loves Toy Story and has a pretty big crush on Buzz so of course we know what the major theme of this year’s Christmas gifts will be.. We love our baby girl so much!

Alyss is now ten months old. She was born in February and was 7lb 10 oz and 19 in long. She loves to stand up all by herself. She loves to play with Jane and does everything that Jane does. She claps and says ‘bye bye’ and ‘bravo’, loves music and dances a lot and loves food. She eats everything that we eat. She is a clam baby and usually cries only when she needs something. She plays with Jane’s toys and observes everything we do. She is such a sweet little girl who gives really nice hugs. I just love it when she looks into my eyes and touches my face.

As for myself, I am really busy staying home with the girls. It’s a full time job that doesn’t give you any vacation time but it does provide plenty of benefits. I love being home with the girls and watch them grow. I learn more about being a mother every day and it’s wonderful. We go on walks a lot; go to the park on nice days and to the library. The girls like our walks and enjoy being outdoors which makes me happy. A piece of news some of you might not be aware of, we are expecting our third baby in June or July. This pregnancy’s been a little harder on me so far; more morning sickness mainly, but other than that I’m feeling ok and can’t wait to find out in about ten more weeks the gender of our new baby. We love having girls so, another girl will make us very happy, while having a baby boy would also be wonderful. In a couple of weeks we’ll have the first ultrasound and I’m excited for that as well. Seeing the tiny baby move inside my belly always makes me happy and even more excited for the new arrival.

We are all thankful for the good year we’ve had and are looking forward to more adventures the year to come. Happy holidays and Merry Christmas and a new year with love, health and many accomplishments!

Johansens 2012

Baby 3!

Baby 3 is here!

Well, I can't believe that I've been pregnant for over two months and haven't posted any updates in here.

So, yes, we are expecting baby 3. What a joy! It's a pretty cool story how we decided to have another baby this soon. It happened in September-ish when we started talking about this baby name. One day, later that week, I just couldn't stop myself from thinking about the name. When David came home from work, I asked him what the name was, since I couldn't remember to save my life. He told me and he said that he's been thinking about it a lot that day too. We both felt like that was pretty much the call for a new baby. About the same time I was still wearing an IUD so, birth control was still in place. I went to the clinic and asked how much it would cost to remove it and I was told that it would be $165 - too much for our tight budget. While all this was happening I was also experiencing some pregnancy-like symptoms. I would get terrible motion sickness immediately after getting in the car, I was being nauseous at times and also lightheaded. On October 4th though my period came. This time didn't have spotting the couple of days before, like in the previous months after Alyss's birth, and the period was light and really short (a couple of days). Didn't pay much attention to it even though a lot of people who knew me kept saying that I acted pregnant. I couldn't be though, since I just had a period and an IUD in place. Well, at the end of the period I researched about pulling IUDs out and I decided to give it  try. Please, no judging. So, I gave it a little nudge and it came right out. After that I pretty much knew that I was going to get pregnant since it only takes us a few times usually to conceive. And I was right. Next period never showed and the pregnancy test was positive.

As of right now, I haven't consulted a doctor yet and will wait until we are about 12 weeks along (in January). The first sonogram will tell us for sure when this baby was conceived and if I was already pregnant when I had my last period. If so, the baby would probably be due in June. If not, then July will be the month. I can't wait to find out and also to see what the gender of the baby will be. I won't disclose in here the name (or gender) we think that the baby will be. We will be happy with either and actually have names for both. Of course, twins would be awesome, one of each, but I'm 99% sure that it's not going to happen.

We are very happy and excited for this new baby and even though this pregnancy so far's been a little harder (quite a bit of morning sickness, more cravings in the beginning and tiredness - which I actually experienced in the first trimester with the first two pregnancies as well) I'm enjoying it just as much and I can't wait to see that first picture of the baby. We love you baby 3!

Another 'Well-child' Visit Done for Jane and Alyss

For this one I went all by myself with both girls. Alyss had to go for her 9 months check-up and Jane for her 2 year's one. It was probably funny to watch me and the nurse trying to hold one baby while taking the vitals of the other. Alyss was pretty easy, as she still didn't fully understand what was happening but Jane put up a pretty big fight. She did not want to stand on the scale so we had to use the scale for infants and measure her the way you'd measure an infant too. Both girls' stats are excellent though. Alyss, as usual, is in the 50th percentile for everything and Jane, just as usual for her, is in the 90th percentile. They are both very proportionate and healthy and the doctor was happy with the way they look. I told him that Alyss didn't sit up until almost 7 months but he wasn't concerned. She also still doesn't crawl, just scoots everywhere but he wasn't concerned about that either. She does get up on her knees and rocks back and forth and even pulls herself up on short things around the house, to the point where she would be standing next to whatever she is leaning up against, but she doesn't want to crawl. We are not forcing her in any way; not that we could do that anyway, and are sure that she will get to the next milestone in her own due time. She is more laid back than Jane was and is just content the way things are right now. She is a talker though. Says and waves 'bye-bye' and claps her hands while saying 'bravo', she waves hello, dances on music and loves "Itsy bitsy spider". We went to Christmas around the World, the show put up by the folk dance department at BYU, and Alyss sat very attentively and quietly through almost the entire 2 hour show. Jane just wanted to be outside and run around but Alyss loved to watch the dances. I was pretty impressed with how good she was. I remember Jane being ok and sleeping through movies when she was little but we never took her to a concert at that age so don't know if she would have been as interested as Alyss was. It was fun watching Alyss and it made me proud and hopeful that she might like music and dance. Another thing that Alyss loves is to eat our food and would not even touch baby purees anymore. She still eats breast milk and I'll do my best to have her on that at least until she's 10 months old, if not up to one year. Jane on the other hand only wants to eat a handful of things: bananas, grapes, apples, pasta from soup, cereal, milk, cheese and fries. She also loves pizza and gummy bears. I'm happy that at least she takes her daily multivitamin since it is in the shape of gummies. For the past couple of months Jane has started talking quite a bit. She uses both English and Romanian so far and man, does she have a personality. She just yells at us or Alyss, points her index finger and just says 'no'! She also scratches, pushes or hits Alyss if she is upset with her or just plainly upset. I have to put her in time out a few times a day but she still doesn't seen to get it. I would be telling her not to do something and she would look me straight in the eye and do it anyway. She's quite a fighter. I hope she will learn to channel that strength into useful things, which I will try to provide for her. She is not a bad girl, though. She helps with Alyss, gives her a bottle or the binky when she cries, brings me Alyss' diaper and wipes, covers her if she is asleep and covers her lips with her index finger saying 'shhh', and calls her in the sweetest voice 'baby Alyss'. I just love how she says that. I gotta record it because it melts my heart whenever she says it.
Well, I'm glad that my girls are doing so well and growing healthy. I sometimes think about how only a year ago Jane was just like Alyss, a baby, and now she runs and talks and tells me what she wants or needs. I think about Alyss, being already almost 10 months old and about how in another 7 months or so another little one will join our family. It's a little overwhelming to think about all these things and about where our life's taken us. We are so happy though. We have beautiful babies and we have each other no matter what. I love my family and I don't envy other families one bit because I pretty much know and feel that my family is the best thing that could have happened to me.

Jane, a Two Year Old Busy Bee

2 Years Old

Our sweet Jane, you just turned two years old today. What a great time of your life! I hope I will always remember your cuteness and sweetness. You are just such a wonderful little girl! You love to help Mama with everything she does. You bring diapers and wipes for yourself and Alyss, you give Alyss her binky or bottle when she cries, you throw away stuff in the 'guynoy' (gunoi). I just love seeing you grow up and learn so many things every day. You love to sing and dance and you play with Alyss and tickle her.
We like to go on walks every day and do you know what your favorite things to do are? You love going to 'coocookik" (Burger King), to the 'pak' (parc) and to the 'ahbey (library). At the park you enjoy the 'aghan" (leagan) the most and you also like to 'pay' (play) with 'coopee' (copiii). I love seeing you run around, push the swing, climb on the play-set and talk with other kids. At the library you like playing with the choochoo train and you also like pushing chairs and trash cans around and checking out books. You know what buttons to push on the computer screen and you're really good at it. Wanna know something funny that you like doing? You would take a trash can, push it to where the CDs are and fill the trash can with CDs! Who needs CDs nowadays anymore anyway? :)
Of course, you are a little toddler so you also get upset easily and sometimes throw yourself on the ground or  like to hit whoever is close to you. Sometimes Mommy needs to put you 'la colt' or take your favorite toys away for a little bit. Mommy really hates doing it but I do it because I love you and want you to know when something is wrong.
Other things you know right now are the body parts, you know your name and also how old you are. You also know how to say 'thank you' and 'excuse me'. You are so cute and tender when you kiss and hug us. We love you so much! Sa fii sanatoasa si fericita, puiutul meu mic. Te iubesc mult!

Alyss Months 7 and 8

Finally sitting up at 7 months

A short post about our cutie pie, Alyss, who is now 8.5 months old. Well, she has the right little tooth on the bottom gum, she tries to crawl and she scoots everywhere. She is quite fast. I like to call her 'boomerang baby' because you push her to the side and she just comes back really fast. She is still a very good baby. She likes to be on the floor where she would play for quite some time. It's really cute how Jane sometimes joins her and they scoot together to the kitchen or bathroom floor where they start tapping and making noises with their little palms. I just love seeing them play together. Jane gets really excited to see Alyss sit up (she finally managed it at 7 months) and I think they will have a wonderful time playing together when Alyss will be able to crawl and later on walk. On Halloween, Jane taught Alyss to say 'bye bye' and to wave when she says it and now Alyss does it all the time. She also says 'mama' especially when she is sad or upset and she says 'baba' when she is about to take a bath. I'm amazed of how much she talks. She seems to understand the meaning of the word 'no' and when she doesn't get picked up right away or we take something away from her she cries and gets upset. Sometimes she even pretends to be crying just to get what she wants and it's pretty funny to see her scream and then get quiet as soon as we pick her up. I just love this little girl so much. She is developing such a cute personality and am excited to see her grow and turn into a toddler in not too long.

Sad Alyss...

Sweetie Pie

Well, this is kind of a sad and worrisome post but I'll write it anyway to have it in our records. I'll start with Alyss' 6 months appointment. Everything went great and the doctor said that she is very proportionate and healthy. She was in the 50th percentile for everything, weighing 15lb and measuring 26in. We haven't had many problems concerning her health since she was born. She had some colic when she was 2 months old and a couple of mild colds that pretty much gave her a runny nose but other than that she's been mostly healthy and happy. She's only had breast milk which is the best food for babies and protects them from bad stuff too. At her appointment she got her shots as part of the shots study. She did really well but that evening she ran a pretty high fever of 103. She had a fever at after her 4 months shots but it went away and she felt much better even the day after. This time though things didn't get better the next day when she started vomiting and not being able to keep anything down. All she was able to drink was Pedyalite. The next day I took her to the doctor and he told me to keep giving her Tylenol and Advil and to keep taking her temperature. With the medication the fever subsided and went away only to return about a week later. In the mean time she also had diarrhea for a couple of days but thanks goodness I had the Pedyalite which seemed to help her stay hydrated. The day the fever returned Alyss started crying really bad soon after she woke up int he morning, and after about two ours of it I took her to the doctor once more. He said that she has a sore throat and gave her some antibiotic and more Tylenol. She got better after a couple of days and finished the treatment in 5 days. Even though I didn't think she was 100 percent better, at least she wasn't as hot and fussy as she was before I took her to the doctor so I thought that she was finally getting better. At the beginning of September David got pretty sick, after him Jane started having a temperature, coughing and not feeling well and eventually it caught up with Alyss who got a high fever again and started not eating. Tried giving her Tylenol and she threw in up so I decided to give her FeverAll suppositories which helped almost immediately. The next day her fever went down a bit but I could tell that it was still there because whenever the effects of the FeverAll went away she would feel hot again. Today I took her to the clinic to get her blood drawn for the vaccine study and while I was there I decided to ask the nurse about the symptoms Alyss's been having. ONe of the doctors said that she is available to look at her and after checking her lungs, heart and ears said that nothing seems wrong but that she might have a Urinary Tract Infection, which gets passed over many times by doctors even though is pretty common in little girls. So, she inserted a catheter to get some urine and said that the initial results seem to point to a UTI. There were white blood cells in her urine and the Ph was a bit higher than normal. We still need to wait for 3 more days for the culture to grow and in a way I hope that the result is a UTI and not something more dangerous, like an immune system compromise, that the doctor mentioned as a possibility. Don't know why she would have an immune system compromise or a chronic infection of any kind...
Update: she took the antibiotic and her fever went down, she is not fussy and is just happy and as cute as can be. The doctor said that she didn't have a UTI. We'll see if she gets a fever again without a reason and if she does than we'd want to check her health more in depth.
I'm so nervous and I get pretty scared whenever her fever goes back up or when she just cries and is not happy. I want to make it all better but it seems that she is in a bit of a bad place right now. I'll write more in here when we find out the results and the course of action. Let's hope that our little sweetie pie is ok and healthy. We love you so much Alyss and really hope that you'll feel better real soon. Te iubesc mult puiul meu mic si drag.
Update: Alyss hasn't had a fever since. She is healthy and happy. She had her two flu shots at 7 and at 8 months and she did really well. She didn't cry much and she didn't get sick at all. I'm a bit nervous for her 9 months shots but I hope that her little body is stronger now and will fight off the bad stuff. Sanatate multa puiutule drag!

Alyss has a fever

Alyss is 6 Months Old!

Time just flies! I can't believe that our little Alyss just turned 6 months. She is such a cutie pie and as happy as she can be. She talks all the time, loves to play with Jane and screams in a really cute way when she's left alone or if she wants to be picked up. She is a really good baby though and doesn't cry much at all.

At the 6 months doctor's appointment she weighted 15lb (50%) and was 26in long (50%) - very proportionate. She got the last round of vaccines in the vaccine study which she took really well. She even made $40 from it! :) However, that evening she started vomiting and had a fever of 101F. The next day we went to the Seven Peaks pool and she was ok all day but in the evening she got really fussy and started vomiting even more I took her to the doctor the next morning and he said that her temperature was still high (101.4F) but she didn't find any infections. So, he recommended infant Tylenol and Advil and plenty of Pedyalite. After drinking it for a couple of days her vomiting stopped and her fever went away but she was left with a pretty nasty, foul smelling diarrhea, which we're still fighting. Every ounce of milk she drinks comes out so only Pedyalite seems to be working at the moment. At least she stays hydrated but I know she's not getting enough nutrients. We'll try some rice water and little bits of breast milk in between and hopefully she gets better soon. It's been 5 days since she started being sick. She looks happy but we just need to get rid of the diarrhea now. 

On a different note, we just got an envelope in the mail saying that Alyss also won a prize at the Springville Baby Contest for Best eyes. She got a $10 Walmart gift card and a $15 gift certificate to a place that does baby hand/foot prints. I wanna make an appointment for both Jane and Alyss and have them use their gift certificates. It will be so cute to have their prints together.

Best Eyes Award

She got a hold of Jane's crackers :)

Jane and her Twin Bed

Yes, you read correctly. Jane has her own twin bed and loves to sleep in it! We put the bed in our room, got her Tinker Bell sheets and put pictures on the wall. The first night she slept in it she woke up a couple of times and came over in our bed but after that she only cries a little around 4am when David gives her a bottle after which she goes back to sleep. We figure it's more for comfort that a need that she still asks for a bottle at night but we're ok with it. She'll stop when she's ready.

We are excited that she likes her bed and that she's growing up and becoming a child more every day. She's grown taller since she was 18 months and her legs have gotten slimmer. She has all her teeth and molars now, knows how to blow her nose and does everything she sees us do. She also talks a lot. Most of it is still hard to understand but there are words and phrases that we can make out. It's interesting that she understands both Romanian and English but many times she would use English unless she only knows the words in Romanian. I'm still determined to speak Romanian to the girls but will not yet enforce Romanian only in our conversations.

Other Jane updates: she practices jumping and going up and down the stairs without using handrails, sings the alphabet song, still dances when she likes a song, loves to play in the water and go to the pool and is very friendly especially to adults but to children as well. Whenever she sees one of our neighbors she smiles and says 'hi'. Everyone thinks she is really cute and pretty. And speaking of pretty, Jane won the 2012 Springville Baby Photo Contest and a $50 Walmart gift certificate. Way to go princess! We love you and love watching you grow and turn into the beautiful girl that you are.

People's Choice Award

Alyss - Months 4 and 5

Well, got pretty busy and didn't find the time to write in here but here's a little update on sweet Alyss. At her 4 months appointment she weighted 13 lb and was 24.5 in long. She was in the 50th percentile in all her measurements and the doc was pretty happy with how she looked. He suggested that I start feeding her cereal and fruits and veggie purées and even to let her drink from a sippy cup. I gave her cereal when she turned 5 months but haven't tried anything else yet. She still drinks breast milk and is happy with it. We'll continue with it as long as I can provide it. I think it's the best food an infant can have. At the doctors she also got her shots (two again, one in each leg) and a $80 check for being in the shots study. She's already earning her keep. Hahaha! After the shots she got a bit fussy and her right leg hurt a bit and even got a red hard bump that didn't go away for a month. In August will have the last round of shots in the study and after that just the regular shot schedule.
At 5 months Alyss is such a good and happy baby. She cries when is left alone (I think she might be getting separation anxiety) and when she is tired or hungry but otherwise she just plays, talks (she says "ba ba" and "ma ma", she gargles and blows and says the sounds 'p' and 'f') and smiles a lot all the time. She rolls over on both sides, holds her bottle and puts her binky in her mouth and is very curious and alert. I LOVE it when she looks at me straight in the eye and grabs either my face or my neck or even my arm if I'm feeding her. She likes to play with everything Jane plays with and loves to put everything in her mouth. She sleeps well but cries a few times every night to ask for a bottle. She drinks at least 10 oz per night and another 15 oz during the day. She's gotten pretty chubby and even cuter than she was before. Up until July 11th bunica took care of Alyss a lot and even had her sleep in the same bed with her a few times but since bunica left we've been sleeping her on the mattress that Jane used to sleep on and gave Jane the twin bed that bunica used to sleep on. Jane loves her new bed and Alyss loves hers. We all sleep in the master bedroom like a big happy family. :)
Jane's gotten more used to having Alyss around even though she still gets jealous and upset when I hold Alyss or tend to her. That's being a toddler for you. She's happy and tickles or plays with Alyss one minute and scratches her or pokes her in the eye the next. She does help me change Alyss' diaper or feed her and sometimes out of the blue she just comes and kisses Alyss on the head. I love watching them interact and play with each other. You can already tell that Alyss adores Jane. She looks at her a lot all the time, smiles and even laughs and squeals when Jane talks to her. She wants to play with everything that Jane touches. This annoys Jane sometimes, especially when she doesn't wanna be touched, but they manage to get along with some help from me. I hope they'll be good friends.
At the beginning of July we went to California and visited Disneyland and it was the first time for Alyss to go on a big trip, to meet great-grandma and great-grandpa Barlow and great-grandma Johansen, to go to the beach and in the ocean and to go to Disneyland. She enjoyed it all and was very good and only cried when she was really tired. She was also really good during the car ride there and back.
Great grandmas Barlow and Johansen and grandma and grandpa Jo when they came by to visit were very happy to meet Alyss this summer and loved to hold her and take care of her. They all marveled at how good of a baby she is.
Forgot to mention that Alyss won the Springville baby photo contest for "best eyes" in the 0 to 6 months category and a $10 Walmart gift card. She sure has beautiful, sparkly eyes.
We love you so much little Alyss and are so happy to have you in our family.

My first 4th

Huntington Beach - First time at the beach

Holding my bottle

Bunica and Alyss

Happy Alyss at 3 Months

Just a short post about how good of a baby Alyss is. She smiles at everyone A LOT and talks all the time. She also loves to eat and sleep and prefers to fall asleep on the bed, not in someone's arms. She also likes to lie on the bed or floor and just play with her hands, suck on her fingers and kick her legs. She is just the cutest baby and so easy to take care of. We love you little Alyss.

Alyss wearing her new earrings

Jane at 18 Months

Where does time go? Jane, you're already 18 months old and a happy and very active toddler. You love to play, run and talk. You imitate everything we say and know some words too. You love to eat 'nanas' (bananas), recognize 'appus' (apples) and 'cakeks'  (cupcakes) in pictures and absolutely love to play with the 'ipu' (iPad). You like to watch mommy's 'how to crochet' videos and play daddy's 'Infinity blade' game. You know how to use the iPad, turn on and off the TV and are even starting to learn how to use a mouse on grandma Lucy's laptop. One thing we love to hear you say is 'Aysh' (Alyss). You always let us know when Alyss is awake and crying and try to help by giving her the binky or her bottle. You are such a helpful and loving older sister. Alyss loves to watch you and smiles when she sees you around.
Some other things you know are giving kisses, saying 'hi' and waving 'goodbye'. You are very friendly around other children and people and always give them big smiles. Everyone thinks you're really cute and pretty. We don't need anyone to tell us that though. We love you very much and are really proud of you. You are smart and intelligent and a joy to be around. We love you our beautiful Jane!

Stats from the 18 months doctor's appointment:
- Weight: 27lbs - approx. 80%
- Height: 32in - approx. 80%
The doctor said that you're very healthy and proportionate and repeated lots of times that he is very impressed with how good of a job we're doing as parents taking care of you :)

Two Months Old Alyssuca

Alyss at 2 Months

Our little Alyss is already two months old and as happy as she can be. She eats a lot (about 3.5oz at a shot) and loves to sleep. If you interrupt her sleep she will make sure to let you know how unhappy she is. :) She is also really smart. She smiles a lot and when she sees videos of herself moves her arms and starts to talk. She talks quite a bit, especially when anyone looks at her and talks to her. She's grown 3.5 inches and gained 3 pounds. She weighs 10.6 lbs and is 22.5in long (50th percentile) which is great and very proportionate. The doctor said that she looks very happy and healthy and he also said that he didn't notice any clicks in her hips. We'll have to do another ultrasound at 4 months to be sure but until then he said that we shouldn't worry because he thinks that she's fine and healthy. I'm glad that my instincts that told me not to worry and that everything will be ok proved to be right so far. Even though my brain told me to worry, I never felt that she needed to be put in a sling and I had a feeling that she is ok. I hope that the ultrasound will confirm that.

Alyss at 2.5 Months

Since her 2 months check-up she had a runny nose but didn't upset her too much. We've been breastfeeding full time and she loves mommy's milk. We also have a lady friend who shares her baby's milk with us to supplement when mommy doesn't make quite enough. I hope to be able to keep this up at least until she's 6 months old. Another thing that she does that amazes me is that she moves a lot in her sleep. I put her on her back and she turns on her side and snuggles next to me. She sometimes lifts herself up on her elbow in her sleep too. We co-sleep, which I love and so I can take notice of everything she does. She goes to sleep for the night around midnight, after an entire day of sleeping most of the time, feeds a little bit around 3am and then sleeps until 8am when she feeds again in her sleep and sleeps until 10am. I love how good of a sleeper she is and I hope she keeps it up at night. 

Outside, in grandma Lucy's arms

At her 2 months appointment Alyss had her first round of shots and we're participating in a study where they combined 3 vaccines into one so she only got 2 shots instead of 3. She reacted really well and didn't get sick. She was a bit fussy the day of and got a small lump at the injection site but it all went away within a day. It was a little sad to see the nurse draw blood from her little arm and to see her and another nurse stab Alyss with a shot in each leg at the same time but it all went away pretty quickly and she calmed down almost immediately after I picked her up in my arms. 

Cute smile

I love to feel her little body close to mine. I love to kiss her round, chubby cheeks and her perfectly round head. I love to see her serene smile and to hear her coos. I love to see Jane look at Alyss with a lot of love in her eyes even though sometimes Alyss' cries upset her or she gets an little jealous when David or I hold Alyss. I love to see David hold Alyss and Jane in his arms or on his legs. I just love my cute family and my adorable babies. I'm so blessed to have them and David and I wouldn't change my life for anything. 

Updates

Alyss is such a tiny, sweet baby. She eats a lot and sleeps almost all night long and during the day quite a bit, and occasionally has some colics which make her cry but go away when I give her Cocyntal herbal drops. She is very alert and happy. She likes to be held and cuddles next to me in her sleep. We breastfeed but because I don't make too much (about 3.5oz every 4 hours) we also use milk from a friend who has a 4 months old baby and is kind enough to share her milk with us.

I feel better too. The episiotomy's healed more and doesn't hurt as much. At the 6 weeks check-up I received an IUC (IUD without hormones) which I can keep in as long as 10 years but can take out any time we want to try for another baby. I love not having to worry about birth control. I was pretty scared before I went in but even though the doctor said that I might be feeling pinches or pressure I didn't feel a thing and I sure was happy about it.

Having my mom here is wonderful and a lot of help. She takes care of Alyss a lot so that I could spend time with Jane and take naps during the day. We have a great time going on walks, eating at Burger King and watching Romanian television on her laptop. :)

Jane's gotten a lot better about accepting Alyss. She gives her the binky and the bottle even when ALyss doesn't want them :) and calls Alyss by name. On occasion she still gets upset but doesn't cry uncontrollably or throws huge fits any more. I really hope that they'll be best friends when they grow up.

Too many chocolate eggs :)

Alyss' First Easter

Cutie pie

Alyss's First Doctor's Visit at 2.5 Weeks

For Alyss's' first doctor's appointment we went to Dr. Tayler. The visit was pretty short and he said that Alyss is healthy but he had a couple of concerns. First, she only weighed 7.11lb, only 2 oz over her birth weight so Dr. Tayler suggested that I should try pumping more to make more milk or supplement with some formula. I've done more of the pumping and a bit of supplementing and hopefully she's gaining more weight. We'll recheck her weight at 3.5 weeks. Another concern he had was that he felt a click in her left hip so he sent us to the Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake to have an ultrasound. The ultrasound did show that her hip bones are shallow and underdeveloped (this is called hip dysplasia and apparently is pretty common) and the doctor said that we might need another ultrasound in a couple of weeks to see how things progresses and we might also need to see a Pediatric Orthopedist who might put Alyss in a sling for a couple of months. Dr. Tayler said that it doesn't look like she needs surgery but he does want her to be seen by an Orthopedist as soon as possible to take care of this problem. The rest of the visit went well but I was pretty shaken up by Alyss's loud cries when the nurse drew blood from her heel for the mandatory test that checks for some genetic diseases.
I've been feeling some weird feelings after this visit. With Jane everything went so well and smooth and she had no health problems. This time, even in the hospital the ear doctor was concerned after the first exam and wanted to recheck her hearing. Fortunately it all turned out ok and she has no problems but it already scared me a little. Now, it seems that Alyss needs to be put in a special sling to keep her hips in the right position so that they develop correctly. It really scares and saddens me and I've been thinking how hard it must be for parents of really sick children to see them suffer. I felt really sad and anxious when the nurse drew her blood or when the ultrasound tech pushed on her hips to get the pictures. Doctors and nurses seem so heartless. They all do their job and had to act as if they don't care that the baby is in pain and scared but I just have such a hard time watching them and not being able to help Alyss in any way, just try my best to comfort her. I really hope that Alyss will turn out healthy and okay and that both her and Jane will grow healthy and happy.

So tiny 

In her bear suit

I'm the big sister

Little sister

My baby and I

My other baby and I

New Baby in our House

Well, when we decided to have our babies close to each other in age we thought that even though it would be hard having little ones at the same time, it wouldn't be impossible to deal with. The first couple of days after Alyss and I came home from the hospital seemed to try to prove the exact opposite. The first day, Monday I asked David to stay home and help me even though my mom was here and very willing to help. I needed him to be with me and to help me go through the baby blues, the pain from giving birth and having an episiotomy and really swollen hemorrhoids and the huge adjustment that having a toddler and a new baby might've required. So, even though that day wasn't the best day of my life, it wasn't too bad either.

The next day though David went to work and possibly the hardest day of my life was just about to begin. Jane woke up crying and never stopped throughout the day. Alyss was being as good as a newborn can be, just fussing whenever she needed to eat, but because of the extra tension and Jane's crying she decided that she should be crying as well. On top of this craziness I was in really bad pain. The episiotomy hurt, my bottom hurt, I had cramps, my breasts started making milk and were heavy and painful, my nipples were sore from breastfeeding and I was pretty constipated and really needed to get some relief. Well, It took me almost all day to find the relief I needed while having Jane with me in the bathroom crying and throwing tantrums, holding unto me wherever I went and screaming uncontrollably every time I held Alyss to feed her or to change her diaper. Never thought that Jane was going to have such a hard time accepting Alyss  but she seemed to feel really lonely and abandoned. I kept crying and feeling so sad for her. I wanted to reassure her that I still loved her. I kept telling her that but she didn't seem to hear me. I thought that she really hated me for bringing Alyss home.

At the end of the day when David came home I was such a mess that I burst into tears and couldn't stop for a long while. I felt that things were never going to get better, that I was going crazy and that I just wanted to go to sleep and wake up realizing that all of it was just a nightmare.

Since then, things have changed quite a bit. Jane is now more accepting of Alyss. She pats her head sometimes and gives her the binky. In the beginning she wouldn't let Alyss close to her, she wanted to sleep on top of her when we put Alyss in bed with us, and she even tried hitting her a few times.
Things are still crazy and I still feel sometimes that I reached my limits but I love these two so much and I really want them to be happy. I sometimes feel sad that I don't get to spend as much time with Jane as I used to and that I can't give Alyss as much attention as I gave Jane when she was a newborn. I believe now that I can deal with this new situation, even though it isn't going to be easy and I really hope that I will be able to manage my time well and also be able to enjoy life and the excitement of having two beautiful and sweet baby girls.

The Perfect Birth Experience - Alyss Lucy Johansen

Alyss Lucy Johansen

Holding Alyss for the first time

Daddy introducing Alyss to Jane

During the third trimester I've been really contemplating the idea to VBAC and started going to a clinic (Valley OB) in Provo to get ready to deliver at the Utah Valley Medical Center.
So, after a great second pregnancy the time has come to give birth to our baby daughter. My desire to VBAC was taken into account and when we went to the doctor for the 39w2d appointment, he decided to strip my membranes (ouch, that really hurt) to hopefully start labor early. He also suggested that we should be induced before 40 weeks to keep the baby small and hopefully easier to deliver vaginally. The induction was set for Friday, Feb 17th. I did get some more bloody show and some contractions but they were irregular and didn't really start labor.

We showed up at the hospital at 7am and sat around for a couple of hours before the doctor came and broke my water. I was having some contractions on my own before he broke my water but they were not strong or regular so I was given oxytocin to help with the contractions and the dilation. After I was given the oxytocin and my water was broken I started getting stronger and more painful contractions to the point where after about two hours I asked for some pain medicine. I was given a narcotic that took the edge off the pain and helped me get through contractions easier. However, even with the narcotic, after another hour I felt that I really needed the epidural, which was administered around 11am. It felt really good when the epidural started working and I could relax a bit and get some rest. At this point I was 6 cm dilated. Since I was pretty sleepy I tried to sleep a little but after about another 30 minutes the doctor came to check up on me and announced that I was dilated to 10 cm and it was time to take me off the epidural and have me start pushing. Both David and myself were really surprised that I progressed so quickly (it took 10 hours for me to get to 10 cm the first time). So, we started pushing (I was at stage 0 at that time) and immediately the baby's head started showing. After pushing for about 20 minutes and needing an episiotomy (thank goodness that I was numbed up and didn't need any other shots for that) Alyss Lucy Johansen was born and David got to cut her umbilical cord. The entire birth took 3 hours and 50 minutes!

Alyss weighted 7lb 10oz and was 19in long. After the nurses cleaned her up a little bit and put some drops in her eyes they brought her to me and put her on my chest. I was so happy that I was able to deliver her vaginally and that she was so beautiful, healthy and perfect. They took her away to get her really cleaned up and run other tests and I was left with the doctor to finish sewing up my incision. After I was moved to another room to recover Alyss was brought to me and I nursed her. Even though my belly was hurting and my episiotomy started to hurt as well whenever I held Alyss I felt better and forgot of all the pain. We stayed in the hospital for 2 days and went home on Sunday.

From start to end this pregnancy and birth were exactly as I always dreamed. I don't feel sad or unaccomplished when I think back at Jane's C-section birth but I'm very happy that I was able to experience a natural birth and was awake and alert when Alyss came into this world.
We love you very much little Alyss and are very happy and so excited that you joined our family.