My Addiction

I was never a big shopper. I didn't like hanging out in malls, and I hated window shopping. The same is still true now...except when it comes to baby clothes. And not just any baby clothes. I am addicted to Baby Gap. I would say it's due to the fact that I have a girl, and it's just so much fun to dress up little girls. But I think even if I had a boy next the problem would be the same if not worse. Cool boy clothes are hard to find. I mean look at this. Doesn't every little redheaded toddler need this dress?

Can you just picture little Harper with her pretty red hair in this green sundress? My mom gave me a gift card to Gap for Harper, so technically I could buy it with that. But I just can't bring myself to spend money on regular priced items. I keep thinking of all the clothes she's going to need in the next size, and I just can't justify it. This dress alone would be more than half the gift card! So I will wait, ever so impatiently, hoping it will go on sale before summer. And another new item that I want to start stocking up on...the 2 piece pajamas. I love the way she looks in all her footie pajamas, and I still want her to wear them. But my mom got her a 2 piece set before she left, and it makes Harper look so big in a really cute way. This one is also a regular priced item on Baby Gap's website, so it will also wait. I refuse to pay $22 for pj's that she will only wear for a few months. But dang, it's pretty cute!

Yeah, I Know It's January

I know it's late, but it's such a great picture I just had to share it. They both look so jolly! Especially compared to the picture of her and Santa at our camp Christmas party...

My Toddler Isn't Toddling Yet

Harper is almost 13 months and she still has yet to take her first independent steps. Actually, she won't even stand without holding onto something. I'm not worried, she actually has the strength to do it, because she has done it a few times without realizing it. Every now and then she'll be so occupied with something that she'll stand on her own. But it only takes a couple of seconds for her to realize. Then she makes this kind of panicked face and starts to squat for balance, and depending on what's around her she'll either grab onto something or very slowly fall down. So the strength is there, it's just a confidence thing. We've been advised to give her a stroller or toy that she can push around the house. Yeah, she has 3 of those and she loves them. She can walk with those like it's nothing, and she's great at cruising. She just has to be touching something. I was researching tips online to help her, and one website said that it's perfectly normal and you just have to wait. It also mentioned that since I may have to carry my toddler around for several more months, I should try wearing a fanny pack to act as a "shelf" for her to sit on. Yes!!! I've always wanted an excuse to wear a cool storage compartment around my waist.

You Moms Are the Best!

I want to say thank you to all you moms who read my blog and leave comments. I think any blogger enjoys reading comments, to know that people out there want to hear what you have to say. But it's so helpful to hear what my friends are experiencing in their own parenting journeys as well. Isn't it crazy how we all started so in the dark? I mean, even if you were a nanny and you babysat every day of your pre-mom life, having a baby for the first time is pretty scary when you finally wake up and realize you have no idea what you're doing! And then the maternal instincts that God has blessed us with kicks in and we just do it and make it happen. I feel like I've learned more in this last year than I've ever learned in one year of life. And having the support of family and friends makes all the difference in the world.

Most of the women from our camp family and some other friends

Come On Already!

Harper has seriously been teething since like 4 months old! Of course, I am a first time mom, so I could have been wrong, but I read a TON and she was definitely showing signs back then. Her poor little gums have been so swollen for so long. Her top two gums have been swollen off and on for a couple of months, and now some of the molar spots are swollen. Also, the tooth right next to the two bottom on the right side. That's a lot of action with no results as of yet. I'm not worried, I know it's not a bad thing for them to be coming in late. Actually, they say it's better for her teeth the later they come. I just want the discomfort to be over for her. Hopefully they'll start breaking through soon. Tooth count as of today:  still 2.

Very Fortunate Woman

In addition to having the best baby, I also have the best husband. Chris is my best friend, the person who knows everything about me, the one who always knows how to make me laugh (although I think he can make just about anyone laugh!) He's a great leader. He has had to overcome a lot in life, and yet he stays positive and tries not to dwell on the bad things. He has a very adventurous spirit. Since we've been married, we've been to 44 states and 7 foreign countries. Had it not been for him I don't know if I would have ever lived in South Africa. He was the one to give me the courage to go. He is incredibly artistic and talented, and he's the one to call if you need ideas. He's a wonderful musician. He is passionate about missions and is responsible for getting many of our friends involved in missions. He is strong, and he is the strength of our family. He is such a great dad, and I am so happy that Harper has him to lean on in her life. I'm so happy that I have him to lean on. He loves God and has committed his life to serving Christ. I couldn't ask for a better man. I love you Chris, and I love our life together!

My Latest Cake

FOR MY FRIEND'S BABY SHOWER
CAN'T WAIT TO MEET YOU LITTLE BAILEY!

Her Dancin' Face

When the music starts playin', she starts movin'!

Violet

Harper's Nana and Papa Holohan sent us a Christmas/Harper's Birthday package from Illinois that just got here a few days ago. It got lost in the mail, and we all thought it was gone for good. But it luckily showed up. They sent us some great gifts, but Harper's favorite by far was her new purple dog Violet. It's one of those toys that you plug up to your computer and download different things like your kid's name, favorite color, favorite food, etc. She loves stuffed animals anyway, but this one is probably a close second to Eeyore (which was also a gift from her grandparents...what can I say, my father-in-law has some skills when it comes to picking out toys for the babies!) She loves how it says her name and asks for hugs. Here are a few pictures of Harper enjoying Violet on Daddy's lap.

Harper listening to Violet

Harper giving kisses
(she always kisses dogs on the nose...even our danes)

Hugs for Daddy and Violet

The Decision

I thought I would give a quick update regarding this extra job of mine. I'm going to keep working at World Market. It provides some really nice Daddy/Harper time, and it's really good for both of them. Tonight Chris showed pictures of siblings to Harper and apparently she loved looking at little kids with little babies! Hmmm, may need to work on that. I tried putting up a fun picture or video tonight, but blogger is not cooperating. Hopefully tomorrow.

On the Mend??

So maybe I spoke too soon? The little red bumps are almost completely gone, and we have now gone 3 nights in a row of Harper sleeping straight through the night...no puking and no sore gums. (Did I mention she has like 4 teeth trying to come in amongst everything else?) So here's what I'm thinking: high fever in the beginning due to vaccinations (almost a given), and throwing up was actually a stomach bug that she caught (due to the fact that the next day my mom was sick and the day after that I had a very high fever). The mystery is the small red bumps that lasted a day and a half. Maybe food allergy? The only dairy she's consuming right now is formula, which I put her back on recently. Next week I'll slowly re-introduce dairy foods and then whole milk after that. The only new thing she had that I can think of was the tiniest little tastes of my chocolate ice cream. We're talking bites smaller than her pinky fingernail. But still, if she's allergic to chocolate, maybe that's the culprit. Thanks to everyone for the prayers, advice and well wishes.

Where's House When You Need Him?

Ever since Harper's 12 month check up on the 6th, she's been having issues. She got 4 immunizations that day, and I'm starting to think everything could be related to that, but I'm not sure. And since we took her to the pediatrician yesterday who basically said she has no idea what's wrong with her, I still have no answers. So here you go readers. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Obviously I'm no doctor, and neither are most of you, but moms tend to know quite a bit through experience so I'm all ears.

January 6: 4 immunizations (including MMR which I'm thinking could be the culprit?)

January 6-8: High fever over 100F

January 11: Vomiting started after her afternoon nap. Probably about 8 times. Woke up happy next day.

January 13: Vomiting started after she went to bed. About 4 times. Woke up happy next day.

January 15: Vomited once after she went to bed.

January 16: Spent the day in Phoenix. She didn't sleep well on the ride at all, so very tired that day. Not eating normally. Kind of picky and not her usual appetite.

January 17: Very fussy, I'm sure mostly due to the lack of sleep the day before. Still not much of an appetite. 3 little red bumps on her belly that looked kind of like mild bug bites.

January 18: Same 3 bumps when she woke up that morning, no change. Still less of an appetite. After she woke from her morning nap, belly covered in many more bumps, and it started spreading to her arms and neck.

The doctor said that if it were chicken pox it would have been white yesterday (at least the 3 that showed up the day before). And she said that all of the symptoms combined don't make any sense at all. She's thinking possible milk allergy. But since Harper's been throwing up, I've cut out milk and gone back to formula. Other than the milk in the formula, she's been off dairy since Saturday. I'm going to keep her off of it this week and re-introduce it next week, but we'll see. She hasn't woken up yet this morning, so I'm interested to see how the bumps are today. When they weighed her yesterday she had lost a little weight. It wasn't much, but she doesn't have enough to lose in my opinion, so I don't like that at all. I just want her to get better.

Our Friend the Marathon Runner

Our friends Jim and Erin Warne are in town visiting, and today we all drove down to Phoenix, minus Chris due to work, for Jim's first marathon! It was really exciting watching thousands of people preparing to accomplish such an amazing feat. And I was of course proud of our friend for what he achieved today. We started early, getting up at 4am and leaving the house at 4:30...Harper being the only lucky one still in pj's. We got down to the valley around 6:30 and headed to the start while finding our way around the massive lines for the porta-potties.

Once Jim started running, Erin, Harper and I headed to IHOP. I know, the classic picture of health. Harper wasn't too impressed, being that she didn't sleep well last night and slept maybe a total of 20 minutes in our 2 hour trip down the mountains. Not a great start to her day. She was completely exhausted. After IHOP we went to Target for a few minutes, because for those of you who don't know, Prescott has the smallest Target in the nation. Uh huh, we're that lucky. On our way to Ikea, Harper finally dozed off, so Erin and I sat in the car with her in the parking lot waiting for her to catch up on some much needed sleep. After drooling over the merchandise and buying an overpriced (and mis-labled) stuffed animal, we headed over to the finish line.

It was a long day both for Jim and Harper. Jim for obvious reasons, and Harper for the fact that I believe this day holds the record for the least amount of sleep she has ever had in her entire one year of life. Take a look...

We're so proud of you Jim! Congratulations!! Great Job!

Sick Again

Thursday night Harper was sick again. (And just for historical accuracy, Harper was sick Tuesday night not Wednesday...my bad). Wednesday night she seemed all better, but Thursday night, after she had been sleeping for a few hours, she started crying. When I went in to check on her, she was laying in her throw up. Very sad. So I got my chance. And in all honestly, there was no where else I would have rather been! I cleaned her up, changed the sheets, cuddled with her, and put her back to sleep. I stayed up until around 2am reading a book to keep me awake so that I could get her over the trash can each time. But after the fourth time I was pretty sure she was done just by the peacefulness of her sleep. So I brought in our single futon mattress and went to sleep. Sure enough, that was the end of it. She's been better so far. Last night she went to sleep at 6:00 and didn't make a single sound until 7:30 this morning! Let's hope she's on the mend for real this time.

Regret

Last night Harper threw up for the first time. She would spit up a ton when she was a newborn, but this was full on throwing up...several times...and I wasn't there. I was at work at World Market. I took a seasonal job there for some extra Christmas money, and they asked me to stay on two nights a week. I figured I get to keep the discount, so why not. But I missed it. I missed being here for Harper's first throwing up experience. I know many moms out there will say to themselves, "yeah, well you'll get plenty more opportunities honey." And other people may wonder why I'm sad about this at all. But all I can keep thinking is how Harper must have seen it: "I feel terrible and I want my mommy."

Before I was a mother, I thought about all the usual things I would never want to miss...their first word, first steps, first day of school. Never did I dream about her first vomit! But now I'm Mommy. I want to be the person to hold her when she's feeling great and pointing at everything because it's her new favorite thing, and I want to hold her when she's feeling sick and tell her, even if she doesn't understand my words yet, that everything will be ok. By the time I got home she was finally asleep, and Chris and my mom were exhausted. I went into her room to check on her before I went to bed. I found myself hoping she would wake up just so that I could hold her and let her know I was home. She did wake up around 4:00 am, but she was just thirsty. I gave her some Pedialyte and rocked her for a while. She's all better. It only lasted the few hours while I was at work, which is good. But it just made me think. Maybe I should quit World Market. After all, I quit my great paying banking job at Chase and took a job at the camp so that I could be home if she needed me. I think I have a decision to make.

The Loves of My Life

Thank You Aunt Lenny!

HARPER'S CHRISTMAS GIFT FROM AUNT LENNY. SHE NEEDS HELP GETTING UP THERE, BUT SHE LOVES IT!

12 Month Stats

So her weight's a bit low. And for anyone who's seen this baby eat, you know I can't possibly feed her any more. But the doctor said she's fine and that she just has my body type, which is good since she definitely inherited my appetite! Harper got 4 shots at this appointment, in addition to a slight cold and two teeth coming in. Needless to say she wasn't feeling so great the next two days. She was on Tylenol for the pain and fever, Benadryl for the stuffy nose, and Orajel for her poor swollen gums.

Bed Head

In a Nutshell

Harper had a great first Christmas. I think someone must have let the cat out of the bag, cause she woke up really early on Christmas morning...as if she knew there were presents that needed opening. We had a huge breakfast and Harper got to eat pancakes for the first time. We broke out the video camera and got some great footage of Harper (or mostly mommy) opening her presents.

                                                        
















The next day Aunt Lenny (my sister Lynnae) came to visit, and we had a second Christmas. Harper got to open presents again. It was so great having Lynnae here to celebrate Christmas.

On the Wednesday after Christmas, Prescott got hit with a huge snow storm! It lasted all of Wednesday and Thursday. We got about 18 inches which was pretty fun. But Thursday was the day we had to drive Lynnae to the airport. We had a quick snow fight, and then on the way out, about 30 seconds from our house, our car got stuck in the snow. Good thing we left early!

When we got to the airport, a lady came up behind us and asked if she could get a ride to Prescott. When I turned around, my other sister was standing there with her suitcase! Kelly came as a surprise and got to be there for Harper's first birthday party! We had a ton of people come. The McDougall's came out from California, of course Harper's Nana and Aunt Kelly were there, and a ton of friends from camp. I made 3 cakes that day...kinda crazy. But her monkey cake turned out pretty good I think. Before we opened presents or gave her the smash cake, Chris thanked everyone for coming and prayed for Harper. It was really special. All in all, the party was a success. Happy first birthday baby!

We have had a very full 2 weeks. It actually feels more like 5 weeks! But it's been great spending so much time with family and friends and celebrating some pretty big firsts with the Harpsters.

Nana and Harper

Aunt Kelly and Harper

Aunt Lenny and Harper

HERE'S TO THE SECOND YEAR HARPER GREY! WE LOVE YOU!

Better Late than Never

Hello world. Are you still there? It feels like it's been so long since I've posted a really good post. It may be a little longer still. I've been busy. But here's a sneak peak of the birthday girl at her party. More to follow soon. Hopefully tonight or tomorrow? We'll see if I can keep that promise...