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February 15, 2002
Welcome back to Jessie-land! :)
It's been three months and one day since our last update. I feel horrible for not keeping up with this (although I still haven't heard from anyone about moving up to Toddlers Today). Here's an update on us.
Jessica is now sixteen months old. She is as beautiful as ever (make that MORE beautiful than ever)! At her 15-month appointment she was 31 inches tall and about 24 and 3/4 pounds. She is fitting into 18-month size clothing perfectly now, and she also wears some 24-month or 2T. (side note: It's really sad that my 16-month old daughter is already more than half my height! I guess it's safe to say that she will definitely be taller than I am!) She is doing really well. She just got over a bout with some nasty virus (maybe croup?) that lasted about a week or so. She also has a mild case of seborrheic dermatitis on her face, which requires hydrocortisone cream twice a day to clear it up. She has all of her teeth except all four eye-teeth, which are about to break through right now, and one set of molars (she has had the other set for a couple months already).
Jessica's preferred mode of transportation is running! She is so funny.. she yells "Aaaaaahhhhh!" as she runs around the house! It cracks me up, and I think that's why she does it.
She gives kisses to her Mommy and Daddy and big brother and big sister.. but mostly to Mommy (I feel special!). I think she likes to kiss me because she knows it makes me happy. She's such a sweetie.
She says "Uh-oh," "Mama," "Daddy," "Bah" for ball, "Buh-ee" or "Buh-buh" for Budsie (one of our cats), "Oo-ee" for Mookie (another cat), "Eh-ic" for Eric, "Doo" for Duke (our horse), "Dah" or "Dah-ee" for dog, "Uf-uf" for woof-woof.. and that's about it. She doesn't say any of these on a regular basis except for "Daddy" and "Uh-oh." I am a little concerned about her language development, but our family practitioner keeps telling me that it's nothing to worry about.
She does follow simple commands such as "Bring that to Mommy" or "Put that down," "Pick it up," "No," and things like that.
She thrives on routine, which is a huge switch from several months ago.. but maybe that's because I have just gotten into a routine myself. She takes a bath at 7 or 7:30, followed by a bottle (we haven't tried to eliminate this.. I think I'll wait until she gives it up voluntarily like she did with her morning bottle) and then bed. It's so cute because when she wants to go to bed (this is something new too; she used to hate going to bed) she waves "night-night" to everyone. Some nights she goes around and gives kisses to everyone, and she has said "Nah-nah" for Night-night a couple times. Ever since she got sick (about two weeks ago), bedtime is a breeze! She goes down awake, rolls up onto her side, and stares at the wall until she falls asleep. It's like she doesn't even want me in the room anymore when she's ready to sleep.. a total change from before, when she would cry if I left the room. Sometimes, if I'm standing over her crib, she waves to me as if to say "Go away, Mom, I want to go to sleep!" I don't know if this wonderful sleep pattern will continue or not, but I am thoroughly enjoying it while it lasts. I think having a bedtime routine really helps, because she knows when bedtime is coming and can start to wind down before her bottle. A couple nights ago she was so tired that I had to keep her awake long enough to put her pajamas on her after her bath! She just wanted to fall asleep while I was getting her dressed. This is heaven to me, since we have always had problems with her at bedtime.
Jessica still loves daycare. She does cry when I leave her sometimes, and other times she just ignores me or seems like she can't wait for me to leave! It's pretty funny, and there doesn't seem to be any pattern or predictability to it. The daycare center here is so wonderful.. I am so glad that there is this great place where I can leave Jessie while I'm in school. Peace of mind is priceless.
Okay, I think that's all the news on Jessie. I could tell you tons of news about me, but I'll just cover the stuff I'm really proud of. First of all, I got a 4.0 last semester! I was shocked, since there were two classes that I was certain I was going to get a 3.5 in. I also just found out yesterday that I was awarded a $750 scholarship because of my grades last semester. I am so excited.. and proud. Since my education is already more than paid for with Pell and TAP grants, I should get a nice fat refund somewhere in the area of $2000! This will pay for all of Jessica's daycare for the semester with lots left over.
I have a ten-day trip planned for this summer. Two of my best friends are getting married—one on the third Friday in June (in Maryland) and the other on the last Sunday in June (near New York City; I'm supposed to sing for this one!). I am going to go down to Maryland and stay with a friend from Thursday night until at least Saturday and sometime during the following week head up to New York. I will probably end up getting a hotel room in New York for that weekend, since my friend's family will probably have a full house and I don't know anyone else down there anymore (I lived there until I was nine years old). Anyway, I am very excited about going on a little vacation with Jessica this summer, and I've started planning details already.
School is going fairly well for me this semester. I ended up dropping four credits (Chorus and U.S. History), so I am now taking 14 credits (Art History, Intro to Middle and Secondary Education, American Literature, Environmental Geology, and Computer Applications in Middle and Secondary Schools). I hate all of my Tuesday and Thursday classes (Art History and Education) and love the rest of them. I am fairly certain that I will not be getting a 4.0 again this semester, because Art History and Geology are basically test-based grades, and I don't do very well with memorization. We will see, though. I did surprise myself last semester! :)
I went with a friend to see Eve Ensler's Vagina Monologues last night (on campus). I won't get into it here, but I highly recommend seeing it or reading the book. It was really interesting—a little explicit (definitely not for kids), but the message was clear and powerful. Ninety percent of the proceeds went to the local Renewal House and the other ten percent is going to support the cause of women in Afghanistan (I don't remember the name of the organization). So I saw some good entertainment that was enlightening and thought-provoking, while at the same time helping out a good cause.
I discovered FlyLady! Her website is www.flylady.net. It's a wonderful program for disorganized people like me to get their houses and lives in order. I love it. It was working really well until this semester started, but I don't have time to do the routines now. I really need to find the time, because my family needs a clean house. I do keep up with it on weekends, when I do all the dishes and laundry and clean up most of the rooms in the house. Anyway, if your house is a mess all the time, check this system out. It works for a lot of people.
I guess that's all for this update. I'm sorry it is so long, but it has been a long time since I've written. I'll try not to subject anyone to this kind of torture again. Hehehe.
Until next time...
Diana Elena and the most beautiful girl on the planet: Jessica Elizabeth.
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