A Girl Named PJ

The drama never stops

July 26, 2012

The last of our family members left yesterday morning, a week after our first out-of-town guest arrived. It was a fun but very hectic couple of days with our parents here to celebrate Levi’s birthday, and I was looking forward to a quiet house and a chance to relax once they all went home.

Naturally, that didn’t happen.

After dropping off my mother-in-law at the airport, I raced over to Levi’s pediatrician’s office for an emergency appointment. JB and I were concerned about a blotchy, lumpy red spot on Levi’s upper right thigh. It was in the area where he had one of his vaccinations two weeks ago, and we weren’t sure if he was having a delayed reaction to a shot or if it was a bug bite-gone-bad.

All of Levi’s medical emergencies seem to take place on Wednesdays, the day his primary pediatrician is out of the office. Go figure! Although the doctor we saw wasn’t able to pinpoint the cause of the break in the skin (shot or bug bite), she did confirm that it was infected. The official diagnosis was cellulitis. Levi was prescribed his first antibiotic, and I began to panic. “Cellulitis” doesn’t sound so scary, but “staph infection” does, and there is a good chance that the bacteria causing the infection is staphylococcus. (It also didn’t help that I had just read post on Domestic Reflections about the blogger’s daughter coming down with MRSA.)

Thankfully, Levi had not been showing any serious signs of infection like chills, shaking, fever or a general ill feeling. He had actually been acting perfectly happy and full of energy! His only symptoms were a tiny sore, some redness and inflammation and bit of tenderness in the affected area. I’m so relieved that JB and I decided to not wait any longer to bring Levi to the doctor, although part of me wishes we had brought him in even sooner.

He’s had three doses of antibiotics, and I think the inflammation seems to be going down. Or perhaps I’m just seeing what I want to see. We have a follow-up appointment scheduled for Monday, although the doctor told us to come back right away if his rash extends past the border of a circle that she drew in pen on his leg.

Nothing is worse than when your child is sick. Please think healthy thoughts for us!

{iPhone photo taken 7/26/12}

Levi’s first 1st birthday party

July 25, 2012

Little Levi was lucky enough to celebrate his first birthday three times! My parents hosted a small party in NJ for family and close friends the weekend before he turned one, we went out to eat on his actually birthday, and JB and I threw a backyard bash in Omaha for friends and our parents this past weekend.

Here are some photos taken at Levi’s first 1st birthday party. I was not-so-secretly relieved when my mom offered to throw Levi a birthday party because I was feeling anxious about my baby become a toddler and about wanting to throw him a memorable (and Pinterest-worthy) affair. This “pre-party” was an opportunity for me to enjoy Levi’s big day without the self-imposed pressure of having to be the “hostess with the mostess.”

It was also such a treat to be able share Levi’s big milestone with his two great-grandmothers plus my aunt and uncle. One of JB’s college buddies (who was a groomsman at our wedding) and one of my oldest friends and her fiancé stopped by the party, and it was so much fun to catch up with them, too.

But the highlight of the afternoon was serving Levi his homemade smash cake. Strapped into his highchair wearing just a diaper and a “Birthday Boy” bib, Levi was surprisingly hesitant about digging in, so I let him taste a little bit of the frosting off my finger. I was so totally focused on encouraging Levi to eat his cake that I was caught completely off guard when JB decided to mush a mini cupcake in my face! Everybody in the kitchen was hysterical, but I had them laughing even harder when I surprised JB with a cupcake to his face. (I can’t believe he didn’t think I would retaliate!)

I’ll be sharing photos from Levi’s Omaha birthday party very soon. It was a scorcher!

PS: Have you entered to win a large blabla’s classic doll yet? Click here to enter!
here to enter.

Giveaway: Blabla’s classic doll (CLOSED)

July 24, 2012

One of the first gifts I bought for Levi while I was still pregnant was Socks the Fox. I was charmed by the handmade quality and overall adorableness of this tie-wearing knitted doll from blabla and–bonus!–he perfectly coordinated with the nursery’s color scheme.

My favorite of Levi’s stuffed animals, Socks the Fox was an easy choice when I was looking for an object to place next to Levi in his monthly photos. Socks has played a supporting but very important role in all twelve of Levi’s chair portraits; posing Levi with the same toy really helped to illustrate his month-by-month growth. Some of my favorite outtakes feature Levi squeezing, sitting on or chewing that silly orange fox!

In celebration of Levi’s first birthday, blabla would like to offer one Bunny & Dolly reader a large Socks the Fox doll or any large doll of their choice! Blabla knows how much Levi loves his classic blabla doll and wants your little one to have his or her very own knitted companion, too. Hooray for blabla! (Can you tell that I’m absolutely giddy about this giveaway?)

Here’s how to enter:

Visit blabla’s website to check out their collection of classic blabla dolls and tell me which large doll you would like to win in the comment section below.

For BONUS entries:

“Like” Bunny & Dolly on Facebook and leave a comment below.
Share this tweet on Twitter: “I just entered to win a @blablakids doll on @bunnyanddolly!” and leave a comment below.

Deadline to enter is Sunday, July 29th at 11:59pm CST. You must include a valid email address with your entry! One winner will be chosen by random.org and announced on Monday, July 30th.

I hope you’re all as excited about this giveaway as I am! Good luck!

UPDATED: Congratulations to the winner, Catherine V! Please contact me to claim your prize!

Levi’s monthly photo (12 months old)

July 23, 2012

Dear Levi,

You are 12 months old! Actually, you have been 12 months old for over a week and a half already. For some reason, I had a hard time writing this month’s letter to you. I’m not sure if it was because I was feeling extra emotional about this particularly milestone – after all, you are now officially a toddler and no longer a baby – and when I’m dealing with a whirlwind of emotions, I have a very hard time concentrating. Or maybe I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to properly express how I feel about you turning one, and I let my obsessive-compulsive tendencies get the best of me.… READ MORE!

On my mind

July 19, 2012

Every day this week, I sat at the computer and attempted to write my monthly letter to Levi. He has been one year old for a week now, and I still don’t have a milestone post worth sharing. My words are jumbled; my sentences, confusing. Why is this month’s update so much harder to write? Is it because talking about his last official month as a baby is too emotional for me? Perhaps. Is it because I’m less prepared, having not taken as many notes as I took for other months? Maybe a little bit.

No, I think the main reason why I can’t write a monthly letter worth reading is because I’m too distracted. I can’t quiet all of thoughts running through my mind, and I literally can’t hear myself think.

So instead of posting a half-ass letter to Levi, one I would surely critique harshly later on, I’ve decided to share with you everything that’s on my mind. Like a brain dump or a virtual therapy session.

In no particular order, here’s what I’ve been thinking about lately:

Levi’s one-year portrait session is schedule for this evening, but will it be too hot to shoot them outside?
Should I reschedule for early in the morning on another day?
But what if we can’t find a morning that works and Levi is 13 months old by the time we can reschedule?
If we do them tonight, what will we all wear?
I have so much laundry to do.
I have to clean the basement because JB’s mom is arriving to Omaha tonight and will be sleeping downstairs.
I really want to redecorate the basement.
Maybe I can rearrange furniture and hang some art on the walls this afternoon.
I need to get a manicure this afternoon, especially if we are still taking family photos.
Should I cancel Levi’s midday playdate so that I have more time to run errands?
I need to go to the supermarket.
What are we going to serve for lunch at Levi’s birthday party on Sunday?
I really need to count the RSVPs and decide whether we need to borrow/rent tables and chairs for the backyard.
I hope it doesn’t rain on Sunday.
Should I make or buy a cake for the party?
Or should I serve cupcakes?
Normal-size cupcakes or mini cupcakes?
I really need to get organized for this party.
What should we do with Briscoe during the party?
I need to write more posts for Lifetime Moms this month.
I can’t forget to submit my hours for my copy editing job today.
I can’t forget to RSVP for a wedding in September that we were invited to. The deadline was yesterday.
I want to take new head shots to use with my freelance writer byline but I can’t afford $300 for them.
How can I make more money?
I need to finalize plans for a trip to NYC in August.
I’m nervous about going to a blogging conference.
Is it even worth investing time and money into this blog?
Does anybody read Bunny & Dolly?
Maybe I should quit blogging all together.
Maybe I should just go back to bed.

Another reason why I’m so anxious to post Levi’s 12-month-old photo and monthly letter is because I have an AMAZING giveaway to go along with it. Maybe the most exciting giveaway yet. But I can’t tell you about it until I post his milestone update, and I can’t post his milestone update until I’m able to think clearly. Let’s hope that happens quickly.

{cell phone cover image found here via Babble}