18-Month Checkup, trip to OK, more illness & Easter

What is it they say about when it rain, it pours? Certainly the theme at our house lately regarding our illnesses! Took Shelby in for her 18-month checkup this month~she was a wopping 28lb/11oz and 34 inches in length. She got her last vaccination shot according to the schedule she's on and won't need her next ones until she's 4. Hooray! Unfortunately her ears were still infected, so we had to try another antibiotic. She was on the mend from that and then came down with strep throat, which we found out after we arrived in Oklahoma. In addition, Drew & I fought colds at the same time, so needless to say we have all been a bit miserable the past few weeks. Shelby & I did manage to go to Oklahoma to visit the family for Spring Break. Our visit was fun once we finally got her fever broke and it was really nice having the extra help to take care of her since I was still recuperating myself. Grandma and Aunt Kellie were SO sweet to read Shelby books and play with her so I could get a little rest (Grandpa was pretty busy working, it's tax season! Just a few more weeks to get through!). Aunt Kellie also gave me & Shelby haircuts. I was a little sad because it just reminds me how grown up she is getting! But her hair looks so cute, no more mullet! Drew was quite happy about this~he'd been on me for weeks to get her hair cut. We came home for Easter weekend and I enjoyed a spa day on Saturday~it was awesome, the works~massage, facial, mani, pedi. It was actually my b-day present from last year and I just now got around to using it, one week before this b-day! So, Drew was on dad-duty all day while I enjoyed a very stress-free day. Then back to reality. :) It was a bit chilly here for Easter, but we enjoyed the church service and a nice day as a family. We've got some busy weeks ahead in April~we're going to try and attend some of Uncle Russ' barbeque competitions and hopefully see Aunty Meena & Zara in Tulsa. Drew & Russ are headed off to a Jeep/camping trip this weekend, so it will just be us girls! Shelby is going to Abby's house on Sat. while I host a baby shower. I'm sure she'll be excited, she loves going to "Abba's house" as she says. Well, that's about it for March!!

I am sitting so still for this fabulous haircut~I am going to be stylin!

Cousin Jaylee came over to play~isn't she adorable?!

Mason & Jaylee playing with the race car track.

One of the few Easter pictures that turned out.

I don't really want to sit here & be still...think I'll work on getting down...

Ok Momma, get a picture of me in the hat! (I managed to get a couple)

Lots to catch up on!

Well, there is much to catch up on, what a year so far! Unfortunately this winter we have really struggled to stay healthy. In late Jan., Shelby came down with a viral bug called Roseola. She was miserable for about a week, running temperature and then had the rash afterwards. Needless to say we were not getting a lot of sleep because she just could not get comfortable; and Drew had to go to DC for a few days for his Iraq debrief, so it was just me & Shelby. I felt like I had a newborn again the way we were up every few hours. We got over that cold and enjoyed a few healthy weeks, and then came down with croup & an ear infection this past week. Boy what a doozy that has been. This is Shelby's 1st ear infection and I don't wish to repeat this experience anytime soon. She did not sleep at all Tues. night, we were literally up with her all night until 8am Wed., when I think she just finally gave out from exhaustion. She'd have sleep spurts throughout the night of 10-20 minutes, but then wake up crying & in pain. We had no idea it was her ear until we saw the Dr. on Wed. No wonder she was so miserable. Today (Fri.) she is feeling much better and eating some. Her ear seems to be much improved & she is sleeping better too, which means I'VE been sleeping more as well. We are very much looking forward to warmer weather, hoping that will improve things on the health front.
For Valentine's Day, Leslie & I took the girls to the Dallas Aquarium for a little field trip. They really seemed to enjoy it! There were lots of things to see and I thought it was all great except for the snakes. Could certainly do without those (since I am phobic). So, Shelby & I just went past those glass aquariums really fast. Drew & I also traded date nights with Brian & Leslie and actually went out to dinner by ourselves. Boy, was that nice! Actually had some conversation and could eat dinner together, at the same time, instead of one of us feeding/tending to Shelby. It was really nice and we look forward to doing that again.
Let's see, what Shelby is up to these days....well she is finally coming off her strike from foods that she had just stopped eating for awhile. She is doing well with her fork & spoon, especially with things like oatmeal & pudding that stay on the spoon pretty well. Her favorite toys are puzzles, stackable cups, alphabet blocks, and her baby doll. of her latest words are gross, Shelba, Abba, house, baby, turtle, frog, mouse, sleep, sheep, and bird. She has also been saying two-word phrases recently such as bye-bye momma, da-da sleep, Abba's house, baby sleep, and nigh-nigh da-da. It is so fun to hear her picking these things up and in a sense begin to communicate a little more with us. But we still have a lot of pointing and grunting from her when she can't quite tell us what she wants or needs. We're looking ahead to a busy March and hopefully warm weather very soon! Hope everyone is doing well!

Hmm, pudding!! My favorite dessert!

Forget the snack cup, I'm just going for the whole box! Yum!!

At the Dallas Aquarium...ready to see some fish!

Momma & me in front of the waterfall. I was quite fascinated with this.

Our two little maestros at the piano...a favorite thing to do.

Here Da-Da, let me help you work on this Jeep for Mr. Winn.