Leaps & Bounds

It has been a week of milestones and setbacks. This past weekend we traveled to Tampa to visit family for the Fourth of July. While we were there, Eden decided she would show off and pull herself up to standing for the very first time. And this after just last week when she decided to sit up and start crawling. I'm telling you, this little girl is ready to go, go, go!

When we got home, we noticed that her first tooth is also starting to come in. T-bone steaks, here we come! For the time being, I've posted a short video clip below of Eden getting her first taste of bananas. Kendall fed them to her while we were down this weekend.

Ok, so that's the good news. The bad news is that the amoxicillin that Eden was taking to fight off the ear infections in both ears gave her a delayed allergic reaction. When I went to pick her up from daycare yesterday, our fair-skinned little girl had turned into a red bumpy baby covered head to toe with a rash.

I took her to the pediatrician this morning and they said it is not a terribly uncommon reaction to the amoxicillin. Since her ear infections haven't cleared up yet, they put her on Cefprozil, another antibiotic that is another variation of a penicillin derivative. They also gave her some probiotics to clear up some of the other less mentionable digestive side effects of the antibiotics.

All in all, things are good in the Neely household. I've been trying to beef up my Web presence in preparation for the job search this year. I updated some stuff on LinkedIn and Twitter (ufjeff) and am trying to generally get a little more e-socially connected.

In that vein, I thought I'd also shamelessly self-promote my Web page in case any of you want to check it out. It's www.jeffreyneely.com. It's still in progress. I need to update and change a few things, but it's off to a decent start.

Kendall is doing well. She also continues to fight off the lingering crud of back-to-back colds. She seems to be on the mend now, so that's good.

That's the news for now. We'll keep you posted.

Busy summer

Things have been happening very fast here recently. Yesterday was a big day for Eden. It was the first time that we saw her "officially" crawl (i.e. arms and legs moving together in synchronized motion), and she sat herself up all on her own. I guess she just decided that there is a bunch of stuff out there that she needs to check out, so she might as well be on her way. Ah, how it pains a father's heart to think soon she'll have her knapsack packed and be hoppin' some northbound freight train to see what adventure lies before her. Ok, ok... so I'm a sucker for hyperbole.

And you know, judging by her chipper smile and sparkly-eyed coos, you'd never know that she had an ear infection in both ears. Yes, we took her to the doctor on Tuesday because she's had a lingering cough ever since her bout with a virus about a month ago. Like I say, she's been acting so cheery and eating well and playing happily, so I was surprised when Dr. Benton said her ears were infected. She's been on Amoxicillin for the last couple of days, and it seems to be working already, as her congestion seems to be clearing.

Things are extremely busy for Kendall at work right now. They're working with a skeleton crew, as about a third of her staff is out for one reason or another. Hopefully things will get back to normal when they're fully staffed again in August.

I am working on transcribing interviews for my dissertation. Data collection is done, so now it's a matter of analyzing it and getting it written up. I'll also be heading to Denver in August for the AEJMC conference, where I'll be presenting a paper and participating in the job placement "speed dating" meet-and-greet.

I'm also going to start trying to be a little more frequent with posting on this blog. Have I said that before? Well, I'm not making any promises, but I'm going to try.

Anyway, that's the news for now. We'll keep you posted. Here's a few recent pics.

Inchworm

So, as you can see from the video, Eden is definitely getting where she wants to go now. I don't know if it technically qualifies as crawling yet, but I think it may be hair-splitting at this point. She's sure keeping Henry on his toes, and Mommy and Daddy too! She has discovered that innate infant interest in anything that belongs to the family dog - food and water bowls, his dog-slobbery toys, and, of course, Henry himself. Watch out world, she's on the move!

Daddy Days...

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there!

Faith Like a Child

I am learning daily the wonderment of life in everyday experience through my daughter's eyes. Oftentimes when Eden fusses, I will step outside with her for a few minutes and it is like a magic switch turns on. As soon as we walk out the door, she looks around like we have just stepped into Narnia.

It is amazing to see how she focuses with such wide-eyed, quiet excitement at two squirrels chasing each other around a tree trunk, the sunlight that dapples the ground through the leaves, or the feeling of a sudden breeze on her face. As I stood there with Eden in my arms a couple of evenings ago, looking at the sunset, I thought, "Dear God, let me learn how to appreciate your creation the way she does."

This week, Eden also learned the excitement of solid food. Okay, so I'm using the term loosely. She has been getting a teaspoon of organic brown rice cereal mixed with four teaspoons of Mommy's milk. But she definitely knows it's new and she likes it. She looks at that bowl of cereal slushy in much the same way Henry looks at his chicken strips - with concentrated eagerness.

She's getting the hang of the whole eating from a spoon thing too, considering she's only done it three times now. I think we've managed to get at least a few spoonfuls in her tummy as opposed to on her torso. She may not be ready for that fancy ballroom fundraising gala next weekend, but I suppose we can wait for her big social debut.

Another first this week was not so fun. We got a call from the folks at daycare on Wednesday who said she had a fever of 101. Then they called back a couple hours later and said it had risen to 102. I picked her up from daycare and by the time we got to the pediatrician's office, it had risen to a little over 103.

They ran a test for a bladder infection, which involved a catheter and would clearly be no fun for anyone. It was tough for a father to watch, too. Here was my little girl, pinned to an examining table, being poked and prodded, and her eyes full as Mason jars with tears as she cried not a horrid screech of terror, but a low, continuous whimper as if to say, "Daddy, please make them stop this." My eyes got a little full, too.

Thankfully, they ruled out the bladder infection and a blood test determined that it was a virus. So, Kendall's mom came up and watched Eden for the next couple of days, and she was pretty much back to normal by Saturday.

Other firsts this month include Eden's first plane ride - a trip to St. Louis to see her great grandparents and other relatives - her first chance to celebrate Mother's Day and her first birthday present to Mommy - a trip to Build-a-Bear so that they could build their own special bunny together.

Summer is starting to make an appearance here in Gainesville, and with it we are starting to feel the early waves of that sticky, sweltering, swamp mist that pervades every cubic inch of air. I have a feeling we may seek some respite in the grandparents' swimming pools when we go to Tampa for our occasional weekend visits. As you can see from the picture, Eden had a great time in the pool a few weeks ago at Meme and Grandpa's.

Today, however, the weather in Gainesville was actually quite nice. We decided to spend the holiday getting a little exercise and took a walk around campus. Eden enjoyed strolling along, taking in the sights and sounds. Henry enjoying leaving his mark on the occasional tree, bush and street sign.

This is my last year in the Ph.D. program at UF, which means that come next summer, we will almost certainly be moving. Where we will go, only the Lord knows right now. But this much is certain; I know He has a plan for our family and it is better than we can ask or imagine. We'll know what we need to when we need to. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy each day with my family and try to see the world with the same mesmerized wonder as my five-month old girl.

That's the news for now. We'll keep you posted.

Growing Gangbusters

It's amazing how much can happen in four months, particularly in the life of a baby. The little girl that used to do little more than sleep, eat and poop is now starting to really become aware of the world around her and the people in it.


Taken on 4/28/10

Eden now loves to bang on tables, play with her toys, coo, smile, and even laugh occasionally. She is constantly looking around, especially at the TV, which we try to curb, but it's a tough battle to fight. She is rolling over both ways these days, although it still seems more accidental than intentional. However, we have gone into her room on more than one morning to find her lying on her tummy, snoozing away.

We've also found that Eden loves books - not reading them so much, but eating them. I guess it's a start. Daddy has started reading the book of Proverbs to her, as well as other Bible stories. It's never too early, right? Other favorites include Mother Goose, a book of numbers (i.e. numerals, not the Biblical book, which might be a little dry to start out on), and her ABCs and animal books.

Easter Sunday after church

Yesterday, Eden went to her four-month doctor's appointment. She weighed in at 14 lbs 13 oz (72nd percentile) and 25.5 inches long (87th percentile). The length is in her legs. She has actually outgrown some of her six-month sleepers simply because they are too short in the legs.

Eden's sensory project at babyschool (4/8/10)

She also got her second round of shots yesterday, which, of course, she wasn't happy about. However, Kendall and I were both amazed at how quickly she settled down afterwards. After about a minute of crying, she was fine.

The amazing floating baby head and arms trick!

The nurse practitioner told us that Eden meets all the requirements to start solid foods whenever we feel comfortable. So, we're thinking about throwing a pizza and ice cream party this weekend. I'm only kidding, please don't call child protective services. We are, however, thinking we'll start giving her some rice cereal in the next few weeks.

"If I don't get some solid food soon, I'm going to

eat these toes. Is that really what you want?"

We hope all is well for everyone out there. That's the news for now from our end. We'll keep you posted.

April's Update

Well, it seems April has come and nearly gone, and I'm just now getting around to getting a blog post up. Things have been busy, but we're doing well in the Neely house. Eden's first Easter was a wonderful time. We went down to Tampa to visit family. That Saturday we joined my sister and her family, along with Eden's Grandma, for an Easter egg hunt. The weather was great, we got some good pictures, and we all had fun taking turns hunting eggs with Eden.

Eden has also started rolling over now, however, I think it's still more accidental at this point. She still doesn't like tummy time very much (although her tolerance seems to be building), so she'll squirm and shrug until she finally tips herself over. A couple of times she has also just turned right over with no trouble, like it's no big deal. Eden has also started laughing, but so far Mommy is the only one who has heard it!

Daycare is going just fine. She seems to like her teachers Ms. Vicki and Ms. Sarah, and she generally seems happy and smiley when we pick her up. It's reassuring to feel she is being well taken care of and is enjoying her time there.

We recently enjoyed a farewell dinner with our friends Matt and Traci. Matt and I started the Ph.D. program together. They will be leaving next month for Chicago. Matt took a job at DePaul University.

As for me, Kendall and I have decided to stick around Gainesville another year. The job search just didn't pan out this year. So, we were basically faced with the option of either rushing to still graduate this year and finish the dissertation, apply for new job postings, and jump at the first thing that came along, or else take a little more time to finish and be able to have a little more flexibility in finding a job. We also decided that it would be nice to have more weekends to enjoy one another as a family. There's something to be said for still being only two hours away from our families in Tampa as well.

That's the news for now. We'll keep you posted.