Just the title of this post makes me want to cry.....it is impossible to believe that almost a year has passed and my baby will soon no longer have her age measured in months, but in years. It feels like the time is passing even more quickly with Ruby than it did with Luke. Because Luke was the only baby at home, I felt like we were able enjoy the baby stages a little longer. Ruby is already chasing Luke around as quickly as she can crawl. She seems determined to keep up with him even though he is older- most days she only has one nap like Luke, and will try just about food that she thinks he or anyone else will eat. You can often find the two of them happily snacking on a slice of bread. Ruby thinks Luke is hysterical and often babbles to get his attention and laughs at his attempts to entertain her. Most of the time they are great together, but Luke has already started to tease her, he steals her toys, takes her blanket, and often tries to block wherever it is that she is going - especially if it is my lap. She seems to have already mastered the indignant scream, I think I may be hearing a lot of that in my future.
As far as other milestones, Ruby has started waving bye bye but is pretty stingy and only does it when she really feels like it. She has also learned to clap. Last week we were at the parade and I was surprised when she started clapping along with the rest of the crowd. Little Miss is starting to get into mischief and loves to pull open drawers and their contents, drag shoes out of closets, and shut doors (often shutting herself into a room alone). We may have to lower her crib soon because she is starting to pull herself up onto her knees and I'm sure she will be standing before long. She has only gained a pound or two, but she is growing quickly enough that I wasn't willing to invest in any more size 3 diapers, so she has made the big move up to size 4. Ruby continues to be a happy baby and loves to watch others and catch their eye for a smile. But with strangers, that is as close as she wants to get. She has started to get a little clingy and definitely has a preference for me and Tim. I guess it is about the right time for her age but it has been interesting to see her become so particular. It does though make you feel loved as a mama.
It took a little convincing, but Ruby decided she likes to swim,
She is thrilled to sit between someone's legs so she can splash.
We hung out at the lake and the pool this month and let her practice.
So I had one of the scariest experiences I have had so far as a mother. Ruby has grown and had a lot fun this month, but she has also spent more than her fair share of it sick. She started with a cold while we were camping at Palisade Lake and struggled with a snotty nose and low grade fever for about a week. The longer it went on the more I debated taking her to the doctor, but it didn't seem like it was serious enough to require medical attention. On Sunday the 17th her fever seemed worse, she was fairly lethargic and I started to worry about an ear infection. On Monday the 18th Jesse came over to watch the babies so Tim could go to Lagoon with Brycen. She kept me updated throughout the day and gave Ruby some Tylenol at about noon. I came home about 3:00 and was happy to hear that Ruby was asleep. When I checked on her at about 5:00 she was crying in her sleep (break my heart) and shaking. I got her up and was shocked at how hot she was. I immediately called to make an appointment at the after hours clinic then searched for a thermometer (they all somehow disappear when you need one). I knew she was warm but just stared at the thermometer continued to climb, finally stopping at 104.4. She continued to shake and whimper and for the next hour while I just sat and held her, not knowing what else to do. Turns out that if you find yourself in that situation, you should probably just get in the car and head to the ER. After discussing everything the doctor thought she was having a febrile seizure and I have made myself sick with all the "what ifs" that could have gone wrong.
Once it was finally time to go, I loaded up her and Luke and headed out to the doctor's office where the entire appointment was quite traumatic. Ruby screamed throughout most of the exam, clearly she was not feeling well. The doctor started with the ears but when they only showed minimal infection, she recommended testing for a bladder infection because she was concerned about the cause of the high fever. That required a catheter which I think broke my heart as much as it hurt the girl. Poor Luke was beside himself watching his sister scream and just kept saying she needed a bandaid. When the doctor returned with the test results she was actually quite concerned, Ruby's urine showed extremely elevated levels of white blood cells, protein, blood and nitrates, any one of those are abnormal. She worried that it had moved from a simple bladder infection into her kidneys. The recommendation was to give her a shot that night, return for another shot on Tuesday and then on Wednesday switch to an oral antibiotic. Fortunately she responded well to the medication and so far seems to have healed well. Being a mama is definitely not for sissies.
These next shots were about a week later and may be a few of my favorite.
They completely capture her personality,
And thanks to a little static electricity,
Show that she really does have some hair.
It's tough to get a non blurry shot of her clapping.
As always, lot of time with family,
This girl is loved!
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