Jane Christina Johansen

Jane Christina Johansen - Cute and Sweet

4.5 Years Old

4 Years Old

3.5 Years Old

3 Years Old  

2.5 Years Old

2 Years Old

1.5 Years Old

1 Year Old

11 Months

10 Months

9 Months

8 Months

7 Months

6 Months

5 Months

4 Months

3 Months

2 Months

1 Month

1 Day

Welcome into our Family, Kaley Olivia Johansen!

So, yeah! Kaley is here!!!! Here's what happened (I feel like Monk right now :))

Proud mommy holding baby Kaley (2 days old) 

After the stripping of the membranes, at 38 weeks, I got more cramps and lost more of the mucous plug but nothing seemed too serious or like labor was really that close. On Saturday, the 29th I thought that I was leaking amniotic fluid but it urned out that it wasn't it so we all went to the baby shower/BBQ that Eni and the girls organized for me. It was a lot of fun and quite a few people showed up. I felt tired and big the entire time so I mostly sat down and had food but I had a really good time. Over night I felt ok but I started feeling more contractions, this time more painful. I woke up around 9am and told Davd that Kaley might decide to make an appearance early. We started timing the contractions and they were not very regular and were pretty far apart (15-20 mins) but they were getting stronger. I tried to get some rest which was a good idea. Laying down did help some and I was able to rest a little bit. By the afternoon though the contractions really started to hurt and they were getting closer together. As we were trying to keep Kaley inside before the 1st of July, for insurance purposes, we thought that lying down would be the best option so I spent most of the day in bed or on the couch. By around 4pm though, even sitting or lying down wasn't helping anymore. Every contraction was so painful that I couldn't talk or walk while it was going. We then decided that it was time to go to the hospital. Picked up the hospital bag, kissed the girls goodbye with teary eyes (I just have a really hard time leaving them, especially when I see them cry and being so sad when we leave) and started walking to the car. hat wasn't an easy task as with every contraction I had to stop, bend over and breathe. We did make it to the car and started for the hospital. Man, was I in pain! Contractions were pretty close together now (about 6 or 7 mins) and each one of them took my breath away. Bangerter Hwy was pretty buy too which didn't help, considering that everyone seemed to just be out for a fun, relaxing, slow drive. We eventually made it to the hospital and David got a wheelchair for me. Even while sitting there and on the short ride to the 3rd floor, in Tower 1, I got a few more horrible contractions. They put me in a triage room and said that I was only about 4cm dilated, which didn't seem quite right since a few days before I was 3.5 and have been having contractions for the entire day. Anyway, the nurse, who we really didn't like because she did not seem very considerate or even even very knowledgeable, said that they would not send me home if I don't show any progress but they would make me walk around and make sure that I was in active labor before they admitted me. After the longest hour of my life, in which I was struggling not to strangle the nurse or break David's hand, the nurse said that I did make progress (I was now about 5 cm) so they helped me get into a delivery room. Walking to the room took forever as I was almost unable to walk, but I did make it and got into the hospital gown and in bed. Sitting in bed didn't help with the contractions but at least it was a little better than standing or walking. After another really long hour of blood tests, monitoring the baby and the contractions and two nurses trying to get an IV in, I announced that I was done with the pain and I would really appreciate some pain relief. The relief came in the form of an anesthesiologist who administered the wonderful invention of our modern days, the EPIDURAL! It hurt pretty bad getting it in, which I didn't remember from the previous deliveries, but soon I started feeling less contractions pain, at least on my right side. The left still hurt and we had to call the anesthesiologist after another 15 or 20 mins to see if he could help me get relief on my left side as well. I was worried that I was going to feel the pain on the left side, like it happened when I was in labor with Jane but the doctor put a strong dose of anesthetic into the epidural which soon started working on the left side as well and soon provided the relief I was craving so badly. So, I got to the hospital around 5pm, was admitted around 6:30pm and received the epidural around 7:30pm. From there things just started to pick up and around 10pm the nurse announced that I was getting very close and that they would call Dr. Merrill to come help deliver the baby. He showed up soon after and said that I was at 10cm and that I could start pushing. Pushed twice and Kaley's head was out but as I was starting to tear up, the doctor decided to perform an episiotomy. I really had hoped that I would not need one this time (the pain afterwards is pretty bad) but I did know that getting one would be better that not, so we did it again. Anyway, I started pushing for the third time but the doctor stopped me saying that he needed to help get Kaley's shoulders out and then she would be all here. Felt a little pulling inside my belly and Kaley came out! She cried a bit (got only a 7 in the APGAR score for the first cry, and a 9 after 5 minutes) and make a big poopy mess on the table where they put her to clean her up a little. Real soon they put her on my chest and I was so happy to see her and feel her little warm body. I held her and even nursed her a little and then they finished dressing her and doing a few tests. While they were taking care of Kaley, the doctor took care of my incision with great detail. He did a wonderful job cleaning and checking that my C-section incision on the uterus was intact and prescribed a bunch of medications for pain and antibiotics in case there was any sign of infection. Luckily, the doctor worked really well and in minute detail, so there were no complications. I did have pain and bleeding but all within normal. Speaking of the doctor, I really like him. He is very careful and nice and also a person one can talk with. When I said that I never got to see the placenta, he set it on a table and proceeded with a small lesson about it. He explained what the different parts were and how it worked. It was way cool and interesting and once again showed me how great of a doctor and person he is.
So, back to the story, Kaley was born on June 30th (screw the insurance! LOL) at 11:05pm at the Riverton Hospital, Salt Lake County, Utah. She was 7lbs 14oz and 19.5in long. She had fairly long, dark hair on her head and some on her back and shoulders (hahaha) and blue-gray eyes. She was really soft and squishy, had a cute, round head and loved to look at mommy and daddy.
Kaley and I stayed in the hospital for two days. She passed her bilirubin and hearing tests and I tried pretty hard to go number 2, which didn't happen with all the efforts everyone put into it. :) I also enjoyed fairly good meals, spending time with Kaley and having David with me the first night after Kaley was born.
We are so happy that our sweet Kaley is here and are excited to see her grow and learn new things every day. We love you baby girl, so very much!!!!

Last few weeks of pregnancy

We moved to Taylorsville at the beginning of June, in a nice 3 bedrooms 2 baths apartment. I like the place and the area is ok. I love having a walk-in closet in our room and our won bath. One challenge we had though was finding a new OB for the last few weeks of pregnancy. There was no one available at the Murray hospital, no doctors who take our insurance in Taylorsville and we didn't know any doctors in the area either. My friend Karina found out about a doctor her sister in law liked and thankfully he did take our insurance and was happy to help us. His name is Robert Merrill and he works at the Riverton Hospital. The Riverton Hospital is a lot smaller than the Provo or Murray hospitals but well equipped and I hope that the service will be more personal and that my needs will be met better there. I like small places and how cozy and personal they make people feel. This is one thing I miss about Springville... For example, I loved the service I would get at the UPS store in Springville. The employees knew me and they were always nice and helpful. You can rarely get that kind of service in a big city.

Back to going to the prenatal visits, even from the first time I went at Western OB, where Dr. Merrill works, which is on the same floor as the Maternity Ward of the hospital, at 35 weeks I was pleasantly impressed. The doctor is a very nice guy who seems to know what he's doing and the staff was very nice and helpful as well. They even had a nurse entertain the girls while the doctor checked me and ran the B Strep test. The test was negative (even though it was positive both previous times) and apparently I was dilated to 1.5cm and 30% effaced. At 36 weeks I was 2.3cm dilated and 60% effaced and at almost 37 weeks I was 3.5cm dilated and the doctor decided to strip my membranes to help things along. My blood sugar is good, my blood pressure is good too and my weight gain is ok. Lost a couple of pounds but nothing of concern. We decided to have Kaley a week early to keep her on the smaller side so that hopefully I will be able to have another successful VBAC. The induction day is July 5th, a Friday. I got a bad cold a few days before week 38 and the doctor prescribed antibiotics and some cough syrup to make sure that I'll be ok in case I go into labor early. Since the stripping of the membranes I've been having some more contractions that are a little stronger than I felt before and are accompanied by mild back pain. I'm loosing a little bit of the mucous plug every day too. First big chunk came out on Monday, the 24h and I've been having low belly cramping on and off since then. After checking today, the 26th, the doctor said that baby isn't ready to come out yet since I haven't had any spotting at all. The truth is that I never had spotting with the first two pregnancies either so not sure if that is a good measurement. I'm definitely in pre-labor but will have to see for how long. This time I seem to dilate a lot faster so, who knows... Will see how this last week goes. 

I'm excited to meet Kaley but I am a little nervous about the labor and delivery and about the postpartum period. I remember how hard and painful it was after I delivered Alyss so I'm trying to find remedies that will help me feel better this time. Hopefully the third experience will be the smoothest of all. 

Baby 3 Progress

Well, haven't written much in here in a while and time's flown by. I'm now 32 weeks pregnant. So far things have gone well. Baby, who we found out is also a little girl, is growing well and is right on schedule. Her heartbeat is a little lower than Jane's or Alyss', at about 138bpm. Doctor Burnett is not worried, as it's still in the normal range. She just thought that we might be having a boy because usually boys' heartbeats are lower. My blood pressure and weight are good too and the belly measurements are on schedule as well. I'm also happy to report that I don't have gestational diabetes. The numbers were high but still in the normal range. This pregnancy's been harder on my body though. My lower back and my hips hurt really bad sometimes, to the point where I can't walk normally. The morning sickness I had for the first 15 weeks has not come back but I still get nausea sometimes and I'm also really exhausted some days. Just a week ago I felt really sick, with stomach aches, diarrhea, chills and vomiting. The doctor was worried that I might be having gallbladder problems but since I didn't have pain when she touched my sides she just told me to let her know if the stomach aches return. I haven't had stomach aches since but my skin started being really itchy. It started on my hands and feet and now it's on other parts on my body too. It gets really annoying sometimes. I read that it could be because of cholestasis, a condition where the bile pools in the liver. It could be dangerous and could cause still births so when I go for my next appointment I'll ask for a blood test just to be sure. I guess this is about it for now. I hope that everything will turn out ok and that these last few weeks will go by fast. I really hate the heat.

Well, since I last wrote I had another doctor visit, at 33 weeks. I've lost some weight but nothing to be concerned about. Dr. Burnett was concerned about my itchy skin, occasional stomach aches and diarrhea, so she ordered some blood tests for me, to check my gallbladder. They came back abnormal so she put in for more blood work and requested a gallbladder ultrasound as well. The results are to follow shortly. 

After the new blood tests and ultrasound we found out that I'm doing a bit better and that it's actually my liver who's not very happy. The following week I had another blood test to check the liver function and also had the baby monitored for a few minutes. Baby's doing great and liver function improved. So, we seem to be in good shape wich makes me really happy. :)

Jane is Two and a Half Years Old

Oh man, I can't believe that only a few months ago Jane still looked like a baby and now she is a miniature child who is developing a personality, can talk, run and act like a child.

Jane, pui mic, cat de mare ai crescut. We are so amazed with how much you've learned. You really are not a baby anymore. Only a few months ago you still looked and acted like a baby and now you can walk, run and talk like a little child.
You definitely are developing a personality. You are nice and kind and a joy to be around. Sometimes you do get upset, sad or frustrated with things and you scream or hit us but we do understand how hard life can be and try to help you work things out.
You can also put more words together now and it's getting a lot easier to understand what you say. You also figured out how to go up and down curbs without holding unto something for support and you also learned how to jump and you enjoy doing it very much.
You like taking care of Alyss, playing with her and helping mommy care for Alyss too. One time we were at the library and this little boy came and took a toy from Alyss and you told him to leave Alyss alone and be nice to her. I loved seeing how much you love your little sister any how you cake care of her. Mommy is now pregnant and will have another baby in a couple of months, a new little sister for you and Alyss and I'm happy to know that she will have two big sisters to take care of her and love her.
Our sweet Jane, we love you so much and are so proud of you. We hope that you'll never forget our love and want you to know that we'll always be here for you, no matter what. Te iubim puiul nostru drag.

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