Allergic reaction

Hannah had her 1st allergic reaction Tuesday night to Wednesday. We think it's from a little piece of peanut butter sandwich she had. My friend R brought Hannah to me at the new house Tuesday night and said Hannah got a bit puffy around the lips and nose after eating a piece of wheat bread with a tiny bit of pb on it. We went through what Hannah had eaten all day, and the only new food we could identify was the pb. She didn't seem to be having a severe allergic reaction, so I nursed her and watched her. We hung out a bit at the new place while waiting for ppl to return and she was clingy and non-exploratory. She usually walks around the new place and explores the kitchen, etc.

On the way home back to the apt, she fell asleep. Daddy took her upstairs to her bedroom. She woke up after a bit. We played - Cristy dropped by briefly and hung out with us, and I observed that Hannah's eyes were really really red and watery. She'd been rubbing them a lot. There was a slight rash on her cheeks. Daddy bathed her, I nursed her, and put her back down.

In the morning Wedesday, I noticed that she was really congested, more so than the past few days. When she woke up, her face was a little swollen. Her eyes were red & puffy. Her cheeks were red and puffy. It didn't get better. I took her to the doctor. We decided to try a new Family Practice a friend recommended. We actually met with the doctor (which was nice), Hannah was not enjoying the visit though, very fussy and cried a lot. She got a beanie baby bear for comfort from the nurse (which I think she thinks is a dog b/c she keeps on doing the dog sign at the bear). Anyways, he prescribed Zyrtec (which we already have) and Benadryl Allergy. I just bought some Children's Benadryl OTC, and gave it to her. It sorta helped with some swelling & puffyness, but she was still red, the histamine reaction was still going - tears in the eyes, streaming down her face, tons of mucus in the nose and some in the eye. It did help her to sleep though. We continued to give her Benadryl. I tried to help her rest on Wednesday.

I hope her reaction goes away soon. I feel so bad for our baby. She seems happy though and not too bothered. I tried to feed her baby food, but alas, she didn't want stuff from a spoon. She happily gobbled up peas for dinner though.

So I'm up because I fell asleep with Hannah, and she was fussing and tossing around 3am, she didn't nurse well, I couldn't figure it out in my half-asleep state. I finally fully woke up and changed her diaper (it was super full), and she fell back asleep. I hope that her little body is doing much better today. We'll see... She's fussing now, so I'm going to go see what's up.

In the midst of moving

We are in the midst of moving. Hannah's been holding up pretty well overall. She's been rather good and not getting into a ton of stuff. She was at a friend's the day before, but yesterday she was with us. She's taken to the new house a bit, she wanders around it

We haven't taken any photos during the move so far...but I guess I can remedy that later today. It's been really busy and each day has been super duper full. Hopefully later today (Thursday) we will be moved over to the new house.

We are grateful for all of the help we've received. We're super grateful for the Lord's hand in everything also! We've been so blessed! And our prayers have been answered at every turn - from finding the house, to buying the house, to sub-letting our place, to buying a fridge and more!

Even though this is Hannah's blog, I'm going to now digress into other non-Hannah moving details - though it IS our family's moving experience. So for the non-detail oriented, you've been warned.

Everything has fallen into place, albeit a tiny bit behind the "planned" schedule. We didn't close on Monday as anticipated due to some paperwork hold-ups from lender to title co, but it all fell into place on Tuesday. But that meant some other time-table shifting around. So Monday, daddy went to work anyways which was good. We didn't get to pack as much as needed b/c we were on the phone or waiting to hear word for most of the day and many things were on-hold. Later in the day we ended up fridge searching a bit and also had to change the delivery date of our new dining table (from Tuesday to Friday just to be safe). We ended up also doing a bit of furniture browsing at the end of the day.

Tuesday, I went ahead and made an executive decision and did the final walk-thru with the builder even before we knew when we were going to close(who's totally sweet and on top of things). Our friend R was nice enough to watch Hannah for the day. During the walk-thru, we finally heard word of closing time, and we went home to continue packing and get to closing at 2. After 2 hours of signing our life away on a tall stack of papers, we received our keys, and we are now new home owners! Our realtor was super sweet and gave us a moving gift. She's totally been on top of things and kept us updated at every turn and almost every hour.

After closing, I convinced dh to go back to the furniture store with me to consider a sectional. We'd been considering it since the day before...and considered it also since buying the dining table a month ago. The owner of the place offered a really great deal the day before... and we decided to buy it. Though dh's dream sectional is sitting at Macy's...or rather not made yet, needing to be special ordered from Italy. I figured we can get that one after the kid(s) reach the less-messy age. I'm glad we got the current sectional & ottoman for the deal.

Then it was off to home to meet people who were going to help us move b/c they were already scheduled from Sunday (though we weren't packed, were running a bit late, and I ended up getting a speeding ticket on an unfamiliar service road with a speed limit of 40). That aside, the next 2 hours were the most stressful for me...that said, I was grateful for the help.

The next day, Wednesday, or yesterday, dh took off from paid work and did a ton of moving-work instead. And moving-wise it was much better for me (b/c I was caring for Hannah & other "to dos".) Hannah stayed with us, napped a lot, but didn't get into too much stuff. I took care of the water/sewage/garbage with the city and apparently we have to provide our own trash container for the curb? Anyways, in the late afternoon, we went to Lowe's in Aransas Pass to search for a fridge. So grateful for prayer. We found an absolutely GREAT deal! We were able to get a "clearance price" on a Whirlpool model sitting on the aisle applied to a new one in a box in back, toss in a Whirlpool deep freeze (for our new utility closet), a Whirlpool rebate on appliances, rebate for "free delivery", a kitchen/bath promo - $100 per $1000 spent, a Whirlpool water cooler/heater (which we've both always wanted), a new 4-prong cord for our dryer, with the 10% Lowe's moving discount on our entire purchase, we came out really well. Total after tax it was less than the sticker price on the middle-of-the-line Samsung french-door fridge we really liked and contemplated getting.

Wow. I love deals.

Self sufficient Hannah

Mommy left for a few hours yesterday and daddy had the wonderful opportunity for one-on-one time with Hannah. Unfortunately, we are in the process of pulling teeth, I mean moving. So I spent most of the day packing books and canned food, and Hannah was left to her own device. Because I was slightly distracted, I set out some food and left her sippy cup full of water. She got to choose when she wanted a drink or if she wanted Cheerios or peas or peeled, cut tomatoes to eat. Hannah walked about getting into things, looked to see what I was doing and played with everything. After lunch, I started packing up the canned food from the kitchen and thus didn't have a clear line of sight on her at all times. The next thing I knew, I saw her at the baby gate holding something in her hand, a green tomato. She had gone on the porch and harvested a tomato all on her own. With all the intelligence of a loving parent, I asked her to give it to me. She turned and ran toward the corner. Realizing she had no where to run, she turned toward me and stared up at me. I sat down so I would have better arm range to retrieve the tomato from her grasp. Our cute little daughter knew just what to do, she turned and promptly sat on daddy's lap and confidently ate her tomato.

Daddy's coming home

today! We're going to get him this morning. Yay! It's been a strange week without daddy. We're so glad he's going to be home!

We're grateful for Aunt Cristy whose come over, and happy for our friends & the projects that have kept us very busy and occupied this week.

Hannah had a hard time last night and she hurt from teething. Mommy fell asleep with Hannah again last night. Then woke up at 5-something b/c Hannah was fussing and fussing not able to be comforted. Hannah finally fell back asleep, and mommy was able to get up and start being productive.

Daddy's flight from PHL is delayed and arriving late to IAH. I wonder if he'll make his connection to be home on-time? We will see...

We're supposed to go to the botanical gardens today...run errands...and start packing...and go to the blue & gold banquet tonight.

another tooth!

so now she's on tooth #7! it's just barely poking out on the bottom right. so all of the fussing the past few days due to teething now has fruit! she's been absolutely chewing and gnawing on everything! my friend rebecca noticed it last night at enrichment. hannah was going over to her and wanted to be on her lap. it was cute.

she hasn't been drooling so much. she did start having a runny nose last week. the congestion increased, and then we dragged her with us travelling this weekend, a cough developed, and now the congestion is even worse. she's been good overall. she was waking up over the weekend at night and wailing, but Motrin did the trick (after we realized the problem). the 8-hr stuff works great! it helps her to sleep through the night.

yesterday evening she was rather clingy...but it was probably b/c she didn't nap well in the afternoon b/c we stayed at a friend's after I had my primary mtg and she wanted to play with Stanley. i tried to put her down, but she didn't sleep. eventually we got up and i just held her and cuddled with her. she's very cuddly now when she's tired. she'll lay on your tummy or cuddle up to you. she also will just lay on the ground and look at you, it's rather cute.

when i was getting her out of her carseat for enrichment, she was half-asleep. but then at enrichment she perked up and got really independent. she got up off my lap and wandered around the room exploring, pulling pens & keys out of people's purses. she's was curious and alert. she was the only baby there, and she was just so cute. she'd waddle here and there, smile, move on. i fed her grape tomatoes to keep her happy - she loves tomatoes. the carrot sticks from the refreshment table also kept her occupied. she would walk around the room gnawing on the baby carrot, periodically dropping it, picking it up. i am now okay with her picking recently dropped food off of the floor and putting it in her mouth, though it has to be a relatively clean floor, and preferably dry food vs wet food that gets stuff stuck on it. i never thought i'd be one to let my kid eat stuff that'd been on the floor.

wee hours of the morning

so i fell asleep with hannah putting her down...and since dh is gone, there was no one to wake me up...i woke up on my own around 3:30am in a haze after some strange dreams, which i don't remember anymore since i've been up. i need to go back to bed...

she's done well sleeping the last 2 nights thankfully.

Start of the week w/o daddy

Daddy is gone this week on a business trip...we already miss him. There's lots to do, and he helps out so much! This is the week before we move. I'm going to have to organize all of Hannah's stuff and pack a lot of it that we don't regularly use.

We took him to the airport today after our walk-thru of the house this morning. We got a friend to just come over to the house b/c Hannah was still asleep. She's been sick, and also teething, so she wakes up at night wailing in pain. She woke up to nurse around 7:30am, and went back to sleep. She's needed her sleep, and I hate waking her. When I got home around 10:30am, Hannah was still asleep. She woke up shortly afterwards around 10:45am.

We had a very sick auntie C yesterday and a sick Hannah. Mommy stayed home to care for Hannah. We (3 girls) did manage to go on a walk at Sunset Lake in the evening, enjoy the nice weather & outdoors, and take some cool photos. Daddy was busy with HT & service.

Hannah & I are going to go to dinner & FHE at the Kimmel's tonight, so that'll be fun & so we won't be so lonely w/o daddy.

Hannah is 1 year old!

We're so glad that family came down this weekend for Hannah's Birthday! Thank you! We enjoyed having you here!


Hannah really great at communicating with us, whether it's by signs or verbally. She's learning so quickly and picking up on things fast. Hannah learned to say A-ma on her bday. A-ma taught her. A-ma loves her sooo much!

Happy 1st Birthday Hannah!

You are now 1 year old!
You are such a blessing to our life!
Your birth and life is a miracle!
It's amazing how much you've developed and grown.
You bring joy to our hearts, and we love you so much!

Happy Chinese New Year

from us to you! Welcome to the year of the rat.

It's Hannah's second lunar new year! The first one was last year after she was only a few weeks old...and when I ended up back in the hospital... She barely made it into being born in the year of the dog - otherwise she would have been a boar/pig like her aunt C and my aunt J. Instead she's a dog, like her daddy and her A-ma. I'm a dragon like my A-ma (Hannah's A-zo). Random tidbits of information, eh?

We're excited for her birthday party on Saturday! We went shopping for party & cake stuff on Tuesday and borrowed some more cake decorating stuff yesterday (b/c mine's somewhere in storage and up in the DFW area). I'm planning on making her a cake...a fish, aquatic theme. We got coral reef themed plates & cups. I need to buy more stuff today and get the place decorated.

Hannah's A-ma, aunt C & uncle N are all coming in town to help celebrate. Yay!

Last night Hannah had ONLY big people food for dinner. We fed her little bits of assorted peas (black-eyed & green), carrots, and avocado. She even had a little cherry tomato picked fresh from our "garden"...she's been wanting them for awhile. She likes them a lot. When she first bites in, her face shows surprise at the juicy burst of flavor. She spits it out, plays with it in her hand, and then puts it back in.

The other day she had already helped herself to a cherry tomato that was on the counter. We only realized afterwards when we found some remains of it scattered on the carpet - she doesn't like the skins. We fed her green peas the other night too after she refused to eat "baby food" from a spoon. She pops the peas out of their skin, eats the inside, and leaves little green pea skins lying all around. Daddy picked them off of the floor for us.

Chipped tooth

I just noticed that Hannah has a chipped tooth! I feel so sad!!! It's her top right tooth (on her right). The enamel is chipped off of the corner! I have no idea when it happened! probably from her gnawing on lots of random things. Good thing it's one of her baby teeth and not the permanent ones. I still feel really sad!

I need to take her to the dentist for her 1st visit...need to find a good dentist and one that's good with kids.

Her drooling has reduced. No need to wear a bib today or yesterday. . Last week and this weekend she was a salivating mess.

She likes to feed mommy & daddy. Last night and today for lunch - she fed me peas and cheerios. We'd feed her, she'd feed us.

And I found this video about the importance of a 5-point harness carseat.

Between the video, Hannah's chipped tooth, and finding out today that my mother has breast cancer, I'm feeling a bit weepy.

SHE's playing peek-a-boo

with me! Sunday night while in the car seat, she pulled up the blanket up above her head, and put it down, and giggled at me (sitting next to her). She then did it again, pull up blanket over head with both hands, put it down, and smile really big. I'd laugh hysterically when she put the blanket down and she LOVED it! It was really fun to watch her have fun playing peek-a-boo with me.

Last night while putting her down to bed, and this morning during the 6am nursing, she did it again. She pulled the blanket over her head, put it down, and she started laughing. Such a cutie!!!

Hannah's Birthday Invite

So I finally got around to doing her invite in the wee hours of this morning when I couldn't sleep. Of course it's edited for the web... The photo of her was taken yesterday at the aquarium. We had lots of fun at the aquarium with friends!