4 MONTH CHECK UP

Parker saw her new pediatrician today for her four month check up. She is doing great! She weighs 15 lbs 1 oz and is already 25 inches long! Amazing - she is going to be tall! The doctor didn't hear her heart murmur anymore so that is a good sign - we'll see the cardiologist at the end of the month for a follow up. It was shot day - three in her legs and some oral drops. Scott held her and she did great - much better than the two month go around.

The doctor also said that Parker could begin eating cereal anytime, and start some baby foods in about a month if she did okay with the cereal. With hopes that she would sleep a little longer at night we tried it right away. I'm not sure how she liked it - she ate some but I think most of it ended up on her bib and face! She fussed a little after but I'm guessing either her stomach just wasn't used to it or she was tired. Here are some pictures -

I LIKE PUTTING MY TOES IN MY MOUTH!

4 MONTHS OLD!

Parker after waking mom and dad up at 5 a.m. - she went back to sleep at 7:30!

A WEEK LATER...

A week after checking out of the hospital, Parker is back to herself! It is obvious she is feeling much, much better! She is laughing and talking up a storm and practicing her new tricks - rolling over and pulling her feet up to her mouth.

Unofficially, at almost 4 months old Parker weighs 13 pounds and is 24 inches long - she is going to be tall! We are so lucky that our little girl is happy and healthy! Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers!

PARKER'S FIRST HOSPITAL STAY

Let me start by saying Parker has been released and she is at home doing much, much better. I am going to try and keep this short.

Monday morning Parker was not being her usual happy self, but Scott and I both brushed it off as she was just tired. Well, we were wrong. I called daycare about 10 a.m. to check on her and they said she had a temperature of 101 and I needed to come get her. I immediately called the pediatrician's office and let them know that Parker needed to be seen that day. They said they were too busy - I told them that was too bad and that we were coming in. Finally, they said to come at 3:30 and we would just have to wait. Well, we got there at 3, finally saw the doctor at 5:25 and were sent to the Children's Hospital ER at 5:35. Good thing I was persistent in getting us in. The doc was concerned about her high temp, but mostly because her soft spot was swollen (and I mean bulging!). After calling Scott to meet us there, we headed next door to the hospital to wait to be seen. After about 45 minutes, the triage nurse called us in. Parker's temp had spiked to 104. Scott said to the nurse, "what happens at 105? that's where the chart stops?" Obviously we were a little freaked out. After the nurse, they put us in an urgent care room and we saw two of the ER docs. They to were concerned. So, they did a full blood work up - 5 viles of blood they drew and a full urine work up. They had to prick her three times to get a vein that worked, draw the blood, then insert the IV. Watching that was the hardest thing Scott and I have done yet - it was awful to see her in so much pain. Then they used a catheter to get the urine. And, finally, the worst part - they did a spinal tap. The doctors - the pediatrician and the two ER docs - were concerned about menengitis. Scott and I were not allowed to stay in the room for the spinal but you could tell from her swollen eyes that it was hard on her. Finally, about 9 or 10 p.m. we were taken to our room. They started Parker on antibiotics just in case it was menengitis, and those continued around the clock. It was a really rough first night - I think mom only slept for an hour.

We ended up staying for two nights and were released this afternoon. They are still unsure what is wrong with her - she still has a fever - but they have pretty much rulled out the menengitis. Our pediatrician released her, but the hospital was a little hesitant to let her go since she was still running a fever. After much debate, Scott and I felt like she would be more comfortable with the IV out of her arm and at home in her own bed. So we brought her home this afternoon. We'll continue giving the tylenol to attempt to control the fever and hope that she gets the rest she needs. If not, we'll be quick to take her back to the hospital. We see the doctor for a follow up and the final results of the spinal tap on Friday morning so hopefully after that we'll be totally in the clear.

For now though, she is slowly showing signs of getting/feeling better. Papa (my dad - who drove down in a panic Monday night) will head home tomorrow and Suzy (Scott's mom - who drove in Tuesday afternoon) will stay indefinitely since I have to go out of town on Saturday for four days. We'll keep you posted but please keep Parker in your thoughts.

Parker rolled over!

Yes, she did! She actually rolled over... I couldn't believe it. She tried for a while and finally pushed herself over - she went from her back to her tummy, which I think might be backwards. I think they say usually babies go tummy to back first, but who knows!

She is laughing and talking (well, not really but you know) up a storm. I picked her up from daycare yesterday and she was laughing out loud - it was the cutest thing! Unfortunately her sleeping habits STINK! Daycare has really done a number on that - we are back to being up twice a night! YUCK! So, that said, I better try and get some sleep while she's out! She's growing like a weed - I'll post more pics soon!

Parker's first day at daycare

Well, today was finally the day. I dropped Parker off at daycare this morning for a trial run. I go back to work tomorrow and wanted to see how she did for a few hours before leaving her for a full day. I think it was much harder on me than her! I did hold it together until I got to the car, but I cried for sure. It's sad leaving your child with strangers!

I dropped her off about 8:30 and picked her up around 2:30. When I left her she was happy and smiling, playing in the bouncy chair. I tried to keep my mind on other things, I hit the gym, got a manicure and did some much needed shopping for new work clothes and shoes (who knew your shoes wouldn't fit anymore after having a baby!)... of course I thought of her the whole time! And every time I heard a baby cry I felt guilty! So, I went to pick her up. And of course, she was fine! Asleep in fact... she didn't even want to wake up for mommy!

The teachers are great and everyone is super nice so Scott and I both have plenty of confidence that Parker's in good hands while we're at work. That said, we'll see how tomorrow goes when I have to be away from her for a full day!

Parker and Mom

Happy Father's Day!

Parker's new cousin Vivee

Parker loves to travel!

Parker just hanging out

Parker with cousin Taber

Parker and Pa Pa Rich

Parker laughing

More pics of Parker

Parker's first road trip

Parker and I made the trip to Arlington for Scott's games at UTA. Here are some pics from her first hotel room.

PARKER'S FIRST PHOTO SHOOT

My sister Cassidy took some amazing pictures of Parker! Here are just a couple.

OUR LITTLE ANGEL

MISS PARKER HAS ARRIVED!

Miss Parker Lynn Malone joined us on April 9th at 12:04 am, after almost 19 hours of labor. She weighed a healthy 8 lbs 9 oz and was 21 inches long. She is BEAUTIFUL! She's got dark hair now with a little curl in it and blue/green eyes, but I'm sure both of those will change over the next couple of months.

Mom and baby are both doing great and should go home from the hospital today (Friday). Dad is loving it! Some of his players signed their game day lineup card yesterday for her day box - good thing it was a winner! They all said some pretty cute things.

We'll post some pictures when we get home. Thanks for all your kind words and thoughts over the last couple of days, we are lucky to have such great friends!

MOVIN' ON UP!

Well, we had a sonogram and saw the doctor on Tuesday last week... and he moved up the induction! Miss Parker will be joining us on Wednesday, April 8!

At the 37 week sonogram last week, Parker weighed in at 8 lbs 2 oz already. Ouch! The sonogram tech also mentioned what a large head she had... thanks for that! But anyway, there is no more room in my belly for Parker to stay for 3 more weeks. Doctor said that if we waited until my actual due date of the 23rd she would weigh over 10 lbs - no thank you!

I see my doctor again on Tuesday afternoon and he has me scheduled to check in the hospital that evening. All depends on whether or not my cervix is working on preparing itself. The actual induction will begin early Wednesday morning. I am definitely getting nervous - mostly about the pain and the unknown, not about being a mom.

Today was my last day of work and I am planning on spending most of the weekend getting any last minute things done around the house. My parents and Scott's mom will arrive on Tuesday - they are all very excited! Scott will be home all next week (they are playing in Corpus) so that will be great for him, the timing is much better. Parker must have wanted her daddy to be around!

We'll put up some pictures as soon as we can!

It's Official!

Well, after months of debating we have finally picked a name for our little lady!

PARKER LYNN MALONE

We had narrowed our list to three names and continued to go back and forth over the last couple of weeks. Finally, Scott and I ranked them 1-3 and believe it or not we both had the same number 1 so, Parker it is!

This is week 36 - not much longer to go! I am still carrying Miss Parker up high and the doctor doesn't seem to think she'll be coming before our chosen induction date (April 13). But, you never know! He has however cut off my traveling privileges which is disappointing, especially during baseball season. Oh well, just a couple more weeks! For being all of 9 months pregnant, I am doing pretty well I guess. I'm exhausted (but who isn't these days) and the swelling occurs here and there but nothing like many others have experienced. Saw the doctor today and he said everything is good. We are looking forward to our sonogram next week!

34 1/2 and counting...

Saw the doctor again this last week. All is good, Baby M is doing exactly what she should be. She is getting bigger by the day! My friends at work say they can see my stomach growing out now.

The only major problem I've had lately has been the awful heartburn! It has kept me up several nights and even made me sick to my stomach on more than one occasion. So, the doc wrote me a perscription. I finally got it filled yesterday and what a life saver! It was instant relief! Doc said it was safe for the baby so no worries there.

It's every week now for those doctor appoinments! That means Baby M - and no, we still haven't choosen a name - will be here very, very soon!

Pretty face!

Well, we had our 32 week check up and ultrasound this week - wow, 32 weeks! Most of you would say only 8 weeks to go! But, for us, it will only be about 6. We are planning on inducing on April 13. Scott's crazy schedule - who knew the busiest 3 weeks of the season (travel wise) would be the weeks of and surrounding my due date - along with Baby M's size have pushed us to induce. We were leaning that way anyhow, but when we saw the doc this week we picked a tentative date.

Right now Baby M is measuring and weighing a week and a half ahead of where she should be - the doctor called her "super sized"!!! She weighs 4 lbs 11 oz ... on her way to being 9 lbs at birth! Ouch! She is big, but she is healthy. Everything is going good. I am still feeling okay - the end of the week is usually rough, just tired after working all week. Not much swelling to report - only my fingers. No practice contractions, not much back pain ... not yet anyway. It is hard to get comfortable and I am in the bathroom about every 30 minutes but that's to be expected. And Scott is a big help - he does most of the cooking and cleaning, even the laundry ... he makes my breakfast and my lunch everyday! He rubs my feet and my shoulders just about every night, so, all in all I am very lucky.

It's baseball season now and we are constantly busy so the next 6 weeks will fly by for us!

Oh, the pics are of Baby M's face! What a pretty girl!

The Pregnant Ladies

My sister Amber (at 24 weeks along) and me (at 30 weeks).

Shower pictures

Just a few pictures from our baby shower. Lindsay (baseball asst's wife) and Julie (softball coach's wife) were generous enough to plan a great shower for Scott and I. With Scott working in the athletic department, and me previously working there, I think just about everyone was there! We had a great time and Baby M got lots of new clothes and such!

The latest pics at 29 weeks...

Nursery

The nursery furniture is slowly being put together. Scott and a couple guys from his staff have been working hard to put it together. The crib was easy, but it took two hours and three men for the changing table. Wonder how long the armoire (I have no idea how to spell that!) will take?

Update - 28 weeks

Well, here we are at just about 28 weeks and in the third trimester! I can't believe we've come this far, but I can't believe it is still so far away!

Our baby furniture finally arrived and Scott and a couple guys from his staff picked it up this week. The crib is put together and in her newly painted room, with the changing table and armoire to be put together later this week. It's all coming together!

I saw the doctor today and everything was good. Baby Malone is head down, just the way she should be! Make senses since my ribs have been taking a beating lately! All is well with mom and baby. We are contemplating electively inducing because of Scott's hectic schedule, but we'll wait to see how things progress. If we do induce it won't be until I am 38 weeks, and only if the doctor says the baby is ready. We start seeing the doc every two weeks now (guess that means it's getting close!) and I'll have another sonogram in 4 weeks.

That's all for now!

26 weeks and still growing!

Okay, so I've been slacking a little. Sorry...I've been a little tired lately. Not much new to report. As you can see, I am growing everyday! The biggest "growth spurt" probably was the week of Christmas. Even Scott noticed a big difference when I was trying on clothes the week after.

We had a great Christmas, and got to visit with both of our families. We spent a day and a half in Austin with Scott's family and then headed to Denton for Christmas with the McDuffie's. Talk about a full house - 11 adults, 4 kids and 2 dogs! The nieces and nephews enjoyed trying to come up with names for both Baby Malone and Baby Norton (my sister's)!

I had my last check up on Dec. 29th and all was good. Baby M is growing just like she should be.

Just a few days ago, Scott felt her move for the first time. He wasn't sure what to think at first - he thought it felt like a burp! Last night she got him pretty good though... he was pushing on my belly trying to get her to move around and I guess one time he pushed a little too hard and she didn't like it - she kicked him! He jumped back and the look on his face was hilarious! He loved it though. She'll have him wrapped around her little finger!

We head back to the doc on the 27th for our next check up.

Scott and I are celebrating our second anniversary today and we can't believe that time has gone by so fast! It seems like yesterday we were all freezing in Vegas! That said, year three looks to be our best yet with the arrival of our daugther. Thanks to all of you for keeping up and keeping in touch!