Ouch! That Hurts!

That is what Brett said after Melanie bit him with her 2 new bottom teeth on Sunday. Now we're waiting for her to bite Allie.

Allison Update

Allie has been doing great. She's doing wonderful at school and being a great big sister. If she would only use gentle hands and kisses. Allie told me the other day, when asked why she was so rough with Melanie, "Oh Mommy, I just love her so much I want to kiss her all of the time". Her vocabulary is growing by the day. The other evening at bedtime, she asked me to pick up her accessories. When I asked what she meant, she named her glasses, necklace, and hat. She then went on to explain they were for the club. I think she needs to stop watching Strawberry Shortcake's Friendship Club movie. People are going to think we're letting her go clubbing in Hollywood.

Melanie's 4-month check up

Miss Melanie went for her 4-month check up this morning. She tipped the scales at 17lbs 3oz, which puts her in the 97th percentile. She measured at 25.5 inches and that puts her in the 89th percentile. To quote the nurse, "She's quite a big girl." We got the okay from the dr. to start feeding her rice cereal once a day. We'll see how that goes. Melanie is sleeping through the night (8:30pm to 6am!) and would rather suck her thumb than the pacifier. She laughs and coos at Allie alot. Now if she could only defend herself against Allie. One day...

Lots of New Photos

We took the girls to Disneyland last week. It was really beautiful all lit up and Allie had a really great time. She even rode the Matterhorn!

Christmas was great, our house was packed with food and family. I've been on vacation, and the rest has been wonderful.

I posted a ton of pictures online, be sure to check them out! (click here)


-Brett

Sisters

Yesterday morning I put Melanie in Allie's room so she could "hang out" with her sister. When I checked on them, I found Allie lying next to Melanie singing and cuddling her. It was so sweet. Now I'm glad that the novelty of her sister hasn't worn off.

Melanie's Hospital Visit

Last week, Melanie gave us quite a scare. She had been sick for a couple of days with a fever and vomiting. After going to urgent care and having urine and blood samples taken, the doctor decided she needed to be admitted. She had an IV in her little hand so antibiotics could be administered. However, on Saturday the area began to leak so the nurses had to put an additional IV in her foot. Melanie's cry made me leave the room. It was the most heart wrenching cry a parent could hear. The doctors also performed a lumbar puncture to test the spinal fluid for meningitis. Thankfully, her tests came back negative and Melanie returned home on Saturday evening. The irony of this whole thing, Melanie did not lose any weight. In fact, when I took her to the doctor on Monday, she weighed 12 lbs 7 oz. She has her 2-month visit on Tuesday to start immunizations so I'm curious to see how much she gained in 1 week.

Melanie's 3 Week Update

Melanie went to the doctor this morning and was I in for a surprise. She weighed in at 9 pounds 8 ounces. That's a 2 pound gain in 3 weeks!! Allie didn't weigh that much until she was 3 months old! Brett pointed out there are women who push babies out that size. That made me thankful Melanie was born when she was still little. The differences between Allie and Melanie are becoming apparent. Melanie eats (obviously) and sleeps more than Allie did at this stage. Allie had better neck movement and control and was very curious about the world around her. Melanie could not care less. She's more worried about eating, sleeping, and making sure her diaper is clean. Allie continues to dote on her baby sister. It's very sweet to hear Allie call Melanie "sweetie" and "punkin". We are adjusting to the sleep deprivation and diaper changes. We forgot how many diapers babies go through in a day!