Happy Easter !

This past Sunday was Easter, and Auntie Rose and Cousin Connor came up to visit for the weekend. Mommy and Layna stayed at the hotel with them to keep them company. Saturday morning, Auntie Rose, Connor, Mommy and Layna went swimming. Layna loved the pool ! She would sit on the edge and kick her feet in the water. Mommy would hold Layna on her belly and say "kick" and Layna would kick her legs like a frog. Also, Layna blew bubbles in the water really well too !

So, Sunday was Easter. The Easter Bunny visited and left baskets for Layna and Connor. Layna got a Disney Princesses basket and other presents... the Easter Bunny had to make up for Christmas. Layna also did VERY well for her first Easter Egg Hunt. After finding a few eggs with Mommy, she quickly caught on and found the rest herself !

Daddy got Layna her first basketball hoop and (bubble) lawn mower for Easter !

The other day Layna got a VCUG test done, which is a test that they insert dye into her bladder to see if she has reflux or not, and she doesn't. This should be the last thing ever for her kidney. Layna didn't appreciate being held down at all for the to clean her and insert the catheter. She was screaming and crying, and pee went flying right into the doctor's face ! (like a boy !!) Mommy was in shock and apologized right  away and laughed silently with Daddy. The doctor didn't appreciate it, but realized she's just a baby...

Today Mommy, Grandma and Grandpa Robidoux had a yard sale. It was a cool day, but a good handful of people showed up. Not much of Layna's baby clothes and stuff got sold, but some other stuff of Mommy's and Daddy's did. Grandpa Robidoux made some money too.

Layna's Easter Basket 

drinking Mommy's strawberry smoothie.
once she has one sip, there was no getting it back !

first eggs she spotted by herself !

someone lost some eggs....

Mommy & Layna

Shooting hoops !

trying out her bubble lawn mower

                                   like mommy, like daughter

Tooth Number 9 !

Miss Layna has another tooth ! The bottom right tooth appeared in the gap. Mommy is not sure when, probably when she was having those diarrhea diapers and odd poops (TMI, sorry!), which was probably a two weeks ago.

Ooh Splinter...

Layna got her first splinter today. Something to cheer about ? No, but something that can be noted. Mommy didn't even notice the giant thing in her itty bitty hand until Layna put it in Mommy's face a second time to kiss better. Mommy got it out, but the tip remains in... Mommy had a feeling that would happen... now what do we do? wait to see if it falls out?? sure...

Here's a video from March when Mommy dressed Layna up in her tutu and brought her outside to play. Wait until the end... This video makes Mommy laugh every time, hopefully you will get a smile on your face too !

No More Bottle :)

My almost 16-month-old no longer gets the bottle... YAY!  Layna has been doing SO well without her bottle. Mommy has been trying on and off to give Layna less milk every few days, but that has no been working. Hence, Layna still wanted her bottle. This past week Mommy has stopped giving Layna the bottle when it was time to go to sleep. Usually it is the bedtime bottle that goes last, but Mommy made it the first one to take away. And then the next day, Layna didn't get a bottle for naps. She will cry for about 5 minutes just because she is fussy, but sometime she will go down without a sound. Mommy has been sleeping on the couch for the past week, also, so she wouldn't be able to hear Layna wake up expecting a bottle and probably cry. Layna has been successfully sleeping through the nights. Mommy is so very proud of Layna and hopefully this will continue on for forever.   :-)

Also, Layna's sippy cups have been leaking more and more recently, so Mommy needs to get new ones. She has seen ones in OneStepAhead (a parenting catalog) that are very much like "big people" cups; they don't have a spout so the child has to put her/his mouth on the cup and tip it up. I think Layna will do good with these, so we will be trying these !

Mud Face

Today Mommy and Layna went biking with Grandpa and Grandma Robidoux. It was another warm spring day (60*). The bike trail wasn't paved, just a dirt trail in the woods. Some parts were wet and muddy and there was even still some snow !  On the way out, Layna behaved and enjoyed the ride. However, on the way back we decided to open the plastic cover so Layna could have some fresh air. This was a bad idea. Grandpa (who was pulling the trailer) decided not to slow down through the mud and wet areas, and when Mommy caught up and got a glimpse of Layna, she found one muddy-faced baby !

"uh oh"

enjoying her bike trailer from Grandma and Grandpa Robidoux

A quick Hi.

Mommy and Layna saw Daddy for the past couple of days. The visit was good, but went by quick. Layna doesn't sleep well at all at Daddy's house though. She wakes up crying with tears rolling down her cheeks. The poor baby obviously wakes up confused and doesn't know where she is, and then from there on she wakes up about every hour or hour and a half within a 5 hour span. Mommy loses even MORE sleep than normal. At least Layna sleeps well at home, which allows Mommy to sleep well... on the couch.

This past week, Mommy made some summer clothes from Layna Bayna: two dresses and a romper. Cute. Quick. Simple. (photos will be posted when they can be taken....hopefully soon)

Pillow Case Dress

Mommy made Layna's first pillowcase dress ! It isn't from a pillowcase, it is from a sundress Mommy had in 8th grade and couldn't get rid of ?!  The dress isn't complete, but Mommy thought she would share some photos. Layna will be definitely getting a bunch more of these dresses made for the summer. They are SO simple to make and cheap, so cute, light and airy for the summer and roomy enough to play in. 

wasn't feeling like getting her photo taken

decided to smile

yep, whatever is on TV is better than Mommy

Little Ballerina !

Last week... or two weeks ago, Layna had two appointments: 1) her 15-month-old well-baby checkup. Layna is 24 pounds and .... 30 3/4" tall, and 2) the follow up to her ultrasound with Dr. Ellsworth. She said everything looks great and now we have to do the VCUG or whatever it is to make sure she has no reflux. Mommy cannot wait until these trips to Hasbro are done !

Mommy can't think of anything that has happened for those two weeks in between but....

this morning, Mommy stood Layna on the floor and took her hands and danced with her. And now, Layna will start going in circles laughing and saying "daaa...da..daaaaa" (as if it were music) ! Mommy will try to get a video of this along with her animal noises/recognitions, and cheerleading skills. When Mommy says "heel stretch" to Layna, she stands on one leg and puts it behind her. She doesn't know the difference between "heel stretch", "aerobasque", or "scale" yet... but she is learning ! She is learning that when something smells it is called "stinky" which is when she pinches her nose ! hahaha Layna has started to say "oink oink" for pig while scrunching her nose also along with scrunching her nose and moving her mouth open for "rabbit". hahaha

Oh! Dr.  Reynold's (Layna's pediatrician) said "no more bottle". It's hard because Layna never got the bottle to fall asleep and Mommy gave in when they moved into Grandma and Grandpa Robidoux's house. However, Layna has been doing pretty well with this sleep training and getting rid of the bottle. She has finally slept through the night, and if not sleep, soothed herself back to sleep without the bottle. She has only needed the bottle a few times. However, when we go to visit Daddy, Layna's sleep gets all messed up, but once we our back home, she knows the drill now. Since, the midnight snacks are gone along with 2 bottles of Layna's - Mommy threw them out: "out of sight, out of mind" - it is time to start getting rid of the "go to sleep" bottle. She has only been getting about 4-5 ounces (which she technically doesn't need... she wants. Mommy has to teach her the difference. haha), and then she plays or relaxes in the crib until she falls asleep. Mommy will try to put her down with probably half of that this coming week. Grandma Robidoux has been doing a little bedtime routine/sleep training when she watches Layna when Mommy is at work, which has helped the whole process :)

Layna has been eating a lot better. Mommy realizes snacks fill her little belly up quickly ! A couple of crackers and some juice or water pretty much replaces lunch. When Mommy isn't giving out crackers like they are going out of style and doesn't let Layna's sippy cup chill around the house, Layna eats better when it is meal time. She  does get a little snack sometimes around 3 if she seems hungry. Her favorite snack is a banana, which she doesn't like to share with Grandma Robidoux anymore and prefers to hold the banana...also, she won't eat a banana if it isn't in its peel. In addition, she is doing better sitting in her high chair...specially when she is fastened in. Who would've thought ?!

The weather has been nice lately, so Mommy has gone for some walks and let Layna play outside. However, it IS snowing right now in the beginning of April. (just had to record this unusualness for Layna).