Here's the word from Babycenter, and right now it's pretty accurate. She took a four hour nap today--must be having a growth spurt and I enjoyed that time to be productive!
"Because of separation anxiety, this can be a tough time to be away from your baby for any length of time. But it may also be hard to travel with your baby right now. He's become used to his surroundings and familiar faces, and he likes predictability. So being on the road can disrupt his sense of security and routine, especially when visiting a new place or meeting lots of strangers.
At this age he doesn't grasp the concept of travel, but he'll realize he's in an unfamiliar place. Be ready for some cranky, clingy behavior and prepare plenty of distractions — picture books, noise-making toys, nesting blocks, hand puppets, and definitely his lovey, if he has one. Schedule plenty of downtime away from all the strangers to let him decompress."
It is very sweet to see her give an extra-tight hug to whomever is holding her before consenting to a pass-off. She doesn't get fussy about it, though. Gilana still enjoy new people, and enjoys exploring new territory at her own pace.
Loving this little girl!!!!
August 17, 2009
9 Months Old!
What a sweet little monster we have the priviledge of hiding from... Gilana loves to growl at us as she chases Daddy and Mommy around the house. She is quite a ferocious little terror (ha!) and we love seeing how fast she can move. Gigi is handling her sprouting teeth with the strength of a little lion cub and rarely complains about those 6 little toothies. Her toothy display is now centered with two on the bottom and 4 on top. She's a trooper!
For my birthday (Tasha), we headed down to Long Beach/San Pedro for a fun romp around the town. Gilana greatly enjoyed the aquarium experience. Byron decided to do it up proper by revisiting the restaurant where he proposed. We reflected on the fact that just a few short years later we were back with a baby and another in the oven. Gilana was a smash hit at our lovely dinner at the Reef restaurant. We were out till 10:30pm, and Gilly-bean spent the evening munching Prime Rib and waving at the other patrons in her sweet pink frock.
Good times!
For my birthday (Tasha), we headed down to Long Beach/San Pedro for a fun romp around the town. Gilana greatly enjoyed the aquarium experience. Byron decided to do it up proper by revisiting the restaurant where he proposed. We reflected on the fact that just a few short years later we were back with a baby and another in the oven. Gilana was a smash hit at our lovely dinner at the Reef restaurant. We were out till 10:30pm, and Gilly-bean spent the evening munching Prime Rib and waving at the other patrons in her sweet pink frock.
Good times!
 |
| From Gilana Public |
July 17, 2009
8 Months Old
Today marks Gilana's eighth month, and what transformations have occured in her!
Here is some information on what her development should look like from babycenter.com
She certainly is discovering things as she "crawls" about the house and moves along on all fours fully extended. She greatly enjoys walking with help from Mommy or Daddy and pulls herself up to stand and shimmy over obstacles, such as the dog. Of course there are quite a few more tears now as she bumps into objects, falls down and gets frustrated about not being able to reach everything she wants to. Gilana has recently been discovering the great mystery of the doggie door and will crawl over to the sliding glass door and knock at us if we are outside. Our sweet girl is also learning to say "hi," and wave a welcome or goodbye.
Here is some information on what her development should look like from babycenter.com
Your baby's newfound mobility means that she's now entering the land of bumps and falls. These are an inevitable part of childhood, and although your heart may occasionally skip a beat or two, try to enjoy watching your baby explore her surroundings and discover her limits.
She certainly is discovering things as she "crawls" about the house and moves along on all fours fully extended. She greatly enjoys walking with help from Mommy or Daddy and pulls herself up to stand and shimmy over obstacles, such as the dog. Of course there are quite a few more tears now as she bumps into objects, falls down and gets frustrated about not being able to reach everything she wants to. Gilana has recently been discovering the great mystery of the doggie door and will crawl over to the sliding glass door and knock at us if we are outside. Our sweet girl is also learning to say "hi," and wave a welcome or goodbye.
July 16, 2009
A tooth, then teeth!
Yesterday Gilana sprouted her first tooth (upper left incisor). Then today she sprouted a second one on the bottom left! She is getting toothy quickly!
July 9, 2009
On the Go!!
Today was the first time I ever called Gilana and she came to me!!!! Also, Gilana discovered the bookcase and the joys of taking items off of it. Yesterday she did a speed crawl across the bedroom (with the help of a water bottle trapped under her toosh). She also decided to walk just a few hours later with some adorable high-stepping action while I held her hands for balance. Poor Byron missed all this while he is out of town working on the Big Bear house, but he will sure see some impressive Baby G progress when he returns! The camera needs some new batteries, so no pics until I find replacements.
June 30, 2009
Sweet One @ 7.5 Months
Gilana can now scoot herself forward while in the crawling position and is becoming a pro at sitting herself up after rolling on her belly. She is trying hard to make new words and is blabbering up a storm. For the last two days, Gilana has been saying "Dada" repeatedly, sometimes with a "Hi" in front! We are so delighted with our little Gigi blessing and daily look forward to what she will do next.
Gilana loves to eat a wide variety of foods and is (for the most part) not a picky eater. Of course one of her favorite things is feeding herself... this can get messy. Today I gave Gigi a bottle of formula for the first time and she wolfed it down.
We have been spending time outside with a blanket laid out in the shade of our backyard. She is enjoying new explorations of the world around her.
My belly is really starting to look pregnant, but I am feeling much better now other than the heat. As of yesterday we are only cooling Gilana's room to save money and not bother with our aged central AC unit. So far so good.
Gilana loves to eat a wide variety of foods and is (for the most part) not a picky eater. Of course one of her favorite things is feeding herself... this can get messy. Today I gave Gigi a bottle of formula for the first time and she wolfed it down.
We have been spending time outside with a blanket laid out in the shade of our backyard. She is enjoying new explorations of the world around her.
My belly is really starting to look pregnant, but I am feeling much better now other than the heat. As of yesterday we are only cooling Gilana's room to save money and not bother with our aged central AC unit. So far so good.
June 21, 2009
Father's Day
Today is my Love's first official Father's Day. He is a spectacular daddy who takes such great care of his little family of almost four (plus the dog!).
Today's plans have been: church, home for lunch and Gilana nap, enjoy some time together, Byron out for repair supplies, plant our "vineyard," prune/tidy-up the garden, and go to the folks for dinner.
I don't have much to give Byron as a gift other than some nice socks (he always seems to need some), continue organizing the contents of our garage, and treat him as though I love him (not hard!!).
Byron noticed a super-cute Gilana moment a couple days ago. She had woken up in the morning and decided to wait on calling us for some attention. Instead, she turned on (!!!) her mobile and was flipping through a soft cover book. She is such a treat!
Oh, and she is almost crawling--so close! Baby-proofing is under way. :)
Today's plans have been: church, home for lunch and Gilana nap, enjoy some time together, Byron out for repair supplies, plant our "vineyard," prune/tidy-up the garden, and go to the folks for dinner.
I don't have much to give Byron as a gift other than some nice socks (he always seems to need some), continue organizing the contents of our garage, and treat him as though I love him (not hard!!).
Byron noticed a super-cute Gilana moment a couple days ago. She had woken up in the morning and decided to wait on calling us for some attention. Instead, she turned on (!!!) her mobile and was flipping through a soft cover book. She is such a treat!
Oh, and she is almost crawling--so close! Baby-proofing is under way. :)
June 18, 2009
7 Months
Gilana is now 7 months and a day old. We are having so much fun with her, watching her grow, explore her surroundings, burst out laughing at our antics, she is too cute! I think this is my favorite time right now, but I am sure that is the case with every baby at every stage as the Lord graces us with such a precious gift of parenthood. Babies are incredible!
Gilana is doing some impressive push-up maneuvers (my dad would be proud!), eats like a fiend, naps well (when events don't ruin her schedule), is a people and crowd loving girl, and as of yesterday, rocks back and forth in the position of crawling. We have to baby-proof!
Gigi was a trooper at my sister's wedding weekend in Santa Clara. It was a long drive up with very little nap time, but our Gilly-bean put on her best face for everyone and tried to steal the show. (Don't worry Tammy, she didn't get all the attention!)
We are so delighted with our little munchkin and have been rearranging everything to fit #2 into the picture. We might find out next month if we will be having a boy or another girl!
Gilana is doing some impressive push-up maneuvers (my dad would be proud!), eats like a fiend, naps well (when events don't ruin her schedule), is a people and crowd loving girl, and as of yesterday, rocks back and forth in the position of crawling. We have to baby-proof!
Gigi was a trooper at my sister's wedding weekend in Santa Clara. It was a long drive up with very little nap time, but our Gilly-bean put on her best face for everyone and tried to steal the show. (Don't worry Tammy, she didn't get all the attention!)
We are so delighted with our little munchkin and have been rearranging everything to fit #2 into the picture. We might find out next month if we will be having a boy or another girl!
May 28, 2009
Prunes and Updates
Our precious little Gilly-Bean has been having some changes lately. She doesn't really notice these consistent changes, but I sure do! Growing up more and more! She went to her 6 month appointment the day after her half birthday. We discovered that she has gained smaller amount of weight this time which dropped her to about the 60th percentile in weight and height. The doctor wants to have her back in so we can monitor her weight and make sure she isn't loosing any.
Weight: 16.6 lbs 60%
Height: 58%
On another note, the doc let me know that prunes can help my daughter in ways that I can't! Poor baby girl turns bright red in the face, tears up, then starts to wail every time. It shouldn't be that hard! Extra fruits in her diet and apple juice hasn't made much of a difference, so on to the prunes.
Gilana LOVES to eat solid food. So much, that she has been calling it "Mama" for the last several weeks. I feel displaced! :) We are now on a schedule of 3x nursing and 3x feeding per day. Yesterday I introduced Cheerios... she wasn't too sure about those!
Gigi has been sitting up like a pro for a couple weeks, diving forward to grab objects and wriggling around 360s. It won't be long till she learns to start using her legs to crawl. Standing has been one of her favorite pasttimes since day one, but we are trying to encourage crawling to help with her fine motor coordination.
Finally, for those of you who aren't aware, the Gilly-bean has a new bro or sis Belly-bean!!! Gilana will be a big sister on approximately December 19; they will be just 13 months apart! The prospect of two very young children is something I have labeled as my "Sanctification Intimidation," being aware of the difficulties involved, but not aware enough to have a truly clear grasp of all it entails. We hope for a break before any other kiddos come into the picture. I am sobered at the thought of another child, but at the same time, humbled at the grace of another blessing added to our marriage. Gilana is such a delight, I am amazed at the coming of another little gift. Pray for us!
Weight: 16.6 lbs 60%
Height: 58%
On another note, the doc let me know that prunes can help my daughter in ways that I can't! Poor baby girl turns bright red in the face, tears up, then starts to wail every time. It shouldn't be that hard! Extra fruits in her diet and apple juice hasn't made much of a difference, so on to the prunes.
Gilana LOVES to eat solid food. So much, that she has been calling it "Mama" for the last several weeks. I feel displaced! :) We are now on a schedule of 3x nursing and 3x feeding per day. Yesterday I introduced Cheerios... she wasn't too sure about those!
Gigi has been sitting up like a pro for a couple weeks, diving forward to grab objects and wriggling around 360s. It won't be long till she learns to start using her legs to crawl. Standing has been one of her favorite pasttimes since day one, but we are trying to encourage crawling to help with her fine motor coordination.
Finally, for those of you who aren't aware, the Gilly-bean has a new bro or sis Belly-bean!!! Gilana will be a big sister on approximately December 19; they will be just 13 months apart! The prospect of two very young children is something I have labeled as my "Sanctification Intimidation," being aware of the difficulties involved, but not aware enough to have a truly clear grasp of all it entails. We hope for a break before any other kiddos come into the picture. I am sobered at the thought of another child, but at the same time, humbled at the grace of another blessing added to our marriage. Gilana is such a delight, I am amazed at the coming of another little gift. Pray for us!
April 29, 2009
Reclaiming Sleep
Several moons ago in the land of Nod, a little wiggle worm named Gilana had the most dreadful time sleeping. Her Daddy decided to take action and teach the bug to sleep through the night. That eve she cried off and on for 2.5 hours, not asking again for food till morning dawned! The next night was quite similar as she was put to bed after a bath and warm milk, Gigi only had a brief struggle in the night and then awakened at 7 am! Eleven hours without food for the first time in her life!! The third night of this sleep trilogy followed the same bedtime routine and alas, Gilana slept straight through the night and awoke happily at 6am with a willing smile and a Cheshire Cat hug for her Daddy.
How did all this come about? Well, after five months of limited sleep, Mommy and Daddy knew they had to do something! So they determined a bedtime routine of:
7:30pm A hardy dinner of cereals and veggies
8:00pm A warm bath under Daddy's supervision
8:15pm Change into PJs and a fresh diaper
8:20pm A last feeding of warm milk
8:30pm Bedtime with a story and lights out
If Gilana had a hard time falling asleep, Daddy would come and check on her, reassure her the sleeping was beneficial, and leave the room to check back at a later time. The little bug also knew where her handy pacifier collection was in the case that she needed a new one during the night.
Success thus far!!
How did all this come about? Well, after five months of limited sleep, Mommy and Daddy knew they had to do something! So they determined a bedtime routine of:
7:30pm A hardy dinner of cereals and veggies
8:00pm A warm bath under Daddy's supervision
8:15pm Change into PJs and a fresh diaper
8:20pm A last feeding of warm milk
8:30pm Bedtime with a story and lights out
If Gilana had a hard time falling asleep, Daddy would come and check on her, reassure her the sleeping was beneficial, and leave the room to check back at a later time. The little bug also knew where her handy pacifier collection was in the case that she needed a new one during the night.
Success thus far!!
April 14, 2009
Spring Happenings
Little Gilana has a couple new updates now...
We have finally gotten her to not only sleep in her crib, but on her back in the crib, not curled up in the Boppy pillow. She is getting so big and we were getting afraid of buying her successively larger Boppy's as she grows older. Imagine an 18 year old curled in a Boppy... it just wouldn't work! Also, our sweet one has giggled (a form of it) since four months, nearly outgrown her doorway jumper (how can we shorten it any more?!), has outgrown her infant carseat, and loves to pet her new puppy, Sushi. Sushi is just two months older than Gigi, and will make a great companion for her as she grows. Gilana also cried upon seeing us departing when we left her at the grandparent's home last Wednesday night. It was so sweet to see, and sad to see all rolled into one.
We are praying for God's direction and beautiful will as Byron may or may not enter into manager training. We should hear any time now what is decided, and know that God is providential in the decisions made. How joyful to rest in the sovereign hand of a perfect and loving God! Other news: Byron will be heading to Uganda this summer on a missions trip. I will miss him terribly but am so excited at this opportunity for our family to serve the Lord.
Attached are some pictures I took of Gilana before Easter.
My tutu doesn't fit so good.
New puppy!
We have finally gotten her to not only sleep in her crib, but on her back in the crib, not curled up in the Boppy pillow. She is getting so big and we were getting afraid of buying her successively larger Boppy's as she grows older. Imagine an 18 year old curled in a Boppy... it just wouldn't work! Also, our sweet one has giggled (a form of it) since four months, nearly outgrown her doorway jumper (how can we shorten it any more?!), has outgrown her infant carseat, and loves to pet her new puppy, Sushi. Sushi is just two months older than Gigi, and will make a great companion for her as she grows. Gilana also cried upon seeing us departing when we left her at the grandparent's home last Wednesday night. It was so sweet to see, and sad to see all rolled into one.
We are praying for God's direction and beautiful will as Byron may or may not enter into manager training. We should hear any time now what is decided, and know that God is providential in the decisions made. How joyful to rest in the sovereign hand of a perfect and loving God! Other news: Byron will be heading to Uganda this summer on a missions trip. I will miss him terribly but am so excited at this opportunity for our family to serve the Lord.
Attached are some pictures I took of Gilana before Easter.
March 18, 2009
4 Months
Gilana is now 4 months and one day old. Yesterday she had her shots and now is suffering from a slight fever 99.7 and crankyness. Poor sweet baby! She cried most of the night and now is having a hard time sleeping. Byron mentioned this morning that we had been up every hour during the night. Yawn!
Other than that, things have been going pretty well. She is a very happy baby and enjoys entertaining us. Month 3 of little Gilana's life was primarily one of coos and babbles. She is really learning how to control her voice and at times surprised by what it says to her! We are training her to sleep in her crib and hoping to get her to sleep about 8 hours (or more!!). Time shall tell.
Her stats now are:
Height: 25 inches
Weight: 15.5 lbs
It is amazing to think that we have only had her for less than 150 days! What a transformation has taken place in her life and ours.
So many blessings!
Other than that, things have been going pretty well. She is a very happy baby and enjoys entertaining us. Month 3 of little Gilana's life was primarily one of coos and babbles. She is really learning how to control her voice and at times surprised by what it says to her! We are training her to sleep in her crib and hoping to get her to sleep about 8 hours (or more!!). Time shall tell.
Her stats now are:
Height: 25 inches
Weight: 15.5 lbs
It is amazing to think that we have only had her for less than 150 days! What a transformation has taken place in her life and ours.
So many blessings!
February 6, 2009
Big Bear
We took a late anniversary trip to Big Bear with Gilana.
My new snowsuit is getting a little small.
This is cozy!
My new snowsuit is getting a little small.
This is cozy!
January 20, 2009
Two-Month Check Up
Gilana had her doctors appointment yesterday afternoon. She has grown! Gilana's numbers are:
Head circumference: 75%
Height: 90%; 23.5 inches
Weight: 90%; 12lbs, 11,ozs
Poor little Gigi got her first shots. The first was a little painful, but soon forgotten. The second barely noticeable, and the third sent her to hysterics. My poor little dear hated the experience and wimpered for a little while afterwards.
The day of the appointment was a little difficult as we were late, Gilana was hungry (though soon remedied), the parking structure was a trap for unsuspecting visitors, and I didn't have enough cash to pay the parking fee (at the nearest grocery store my debit card wouldn't work and all banks were closed due to holiday).
I was glad to be home with her so she could lie beneath the mesmerizing wonder of the baby-mobile from Mopsy!
Head circumference: 75%
Height: 90%; 23.5 inches
Weight: 90%; 12lbs, 11,ozs
Poor little Gigi got her first shots. The first was a little painful, but soon forgotten. The second barely noticeable, and the third sent her to hysterics. My poor little dear hated the experience and wimpered for a little while afterwards.
The day of the appointment was a little difficult as we were late, Gilana was hungry (though soon remedied), the parking structure was a trap for unsuspecting visitors, and I didn't have enough cash to pay the parking fee (at the nearest grocery store my debit card wouldn't work and all banks were closed due to holiday).
I was glad to be home with her so she could lie beneath the mesmerizing wonder of the baby-mobile from Mopsy!
January 18, 2009
Two Years and a Baby
Our anniversary was a fun time to spend together as a family. Byron surprised me by taking us over to our friend Rebecca who cut, colored and styled my hair. I loved it! He and Gilana enjoyed playing around in the salon (we had it all to ourselves) and had some daddy-daughter time together. After that we had some pictures taken by a friend in Jr High ministry who is talented with a camera, and then on to dinner with our friends the Leaghis!
Byron is such a thoughtful husband!!
For now, here is a slideshow of our "photoshoot," I will add some other images when I am able.
Byron is such a thoughtful husband!!
For now, here is a slideshow of our "photoshoot," I will add some other images when I am able.
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