Our strong little girl

First I should start out that we have so much to be thankful for. God is truly watching over us. We haven't posted in sometime as we had a sick little girl on our hands and needless to say it was very stressful and scary for both of us. You do everything you can to take care of your bundle of joy but when they get sick, you feel so helpless. A few weeks ago Hailey had a slight cough and some congestion and we thought it was something that all babies get after spending time in day care. Fortunately for us we had a planned doctor's appointment for routine shots scheduled soon after she developed the cough so naturally we had the doctor check it out. After a quick examination (this was on a Tuesday mind you) the doctor concluded Hailey had a case of bronchiolitis. The doctor went on to say it most likely started out as an upper respiratory infection but moved to her lungs. Apparently its not uncommon for infants to catch such things at daycare. With her being so young there wasn't much we could do but let it run it's course. With all of the flu cases running around, you might imagine how concerned we were. All we could do is watch her closely and maker her as comfortable as possible. We checked her temperature often (probably more often than we needed to but can you blame us) and did everything we could to make sure it didn't get out of control (think multiple late night luke-warm baths). By Thursday her cough seemed to get worse and her fever wasn't going away so that's when the nurse told us to bring her back in. After another quick examination, the doctor concluded she had full blown bronchitis. Again being so young, all we could do is try and make her as comfortable as possible as her poor little immune system tries to fight it off. We were told we needed to get x-rays to make sure there wasn't something more serious like pneumonia that could potentially pop up. Now for anyone who has ever had to witness an infant getting chest x-rays, you'll know what we had to go through. Needless to say it was heartbreaking. We were also taught how to give Hailey breathing treatments and were sent home with a prescription for a nebulizer that we had to administer every four hours. Friday was probably the toughest as we simply sat around and watched her rest while we said prayers. We probably made 10 calls to the on-call doctor because of her fever spiking. Imagine every time you take a temperature and you pray inside it reads normal. By Sunday we started to see consistent normal temperatures and we were just so thankful that the worst of it was behind us. And the funny thing through all of this is you wouldn't have known she was sick by the number of coos and smiles she gave us between her bouts of coughing and breathing treatments. We took her back in on Monday and the doctor said we had a fighter on our hands as the congestion was 90% improved and she was good to return back to school. Below are some of the brighter moments we had during our first sickness as a family.

Here we thought was just a routine visit for shots. She was such a trooper.

You can tell by this pic she's asking Frankie "Do I really need to get shots?"

She took the breathing treatments like a champ.

We couldn't tell if the was the treatments that made her sleepy or the fact that she was doing all she could to fight off the infection. Either way she looks cute in this picture.

Through it all, she had a smile on her face. It was as if she was telling us she was going to be ok and that we didn't need to worry so much.

I had to go back to work after our Thursday doctor visit so Frankie's parents came over to help out while Frankie went out and got all of her medicine. That wasn't all he came home with.

With her bronchitis all but cleared up, we were able to do more fun things like reading books in bed. Hailey loves to read.

Her first day back at school and she's worn out. Tummy time and reading can take a lot out of a person. Thanks to everyone for all of your prayers. We know God is watching over us.

How is it possible?

To love someone so much? We're been trying our best to capture every moment we can with Hailey so today's post will be a collection of some of our favorite pics over the last week.

What could Frankie have possibly said to make her laugh this hard?What a sweet little girl.

This is what happens when I ask Frankie to watch Hailey for a minute while I get bottles ready.

We love it when Gramma and Grampa come by!

Hailey's newest outfit from Gramma Schuman

Looks like it's time to move to the big girl bed. This little girl squirms all over the place!

My new shopping outfit!We took these in succession and we're not sure what point she was trying to get across.

Here she is again trying to say something really important.Such a long day. Can't even stay awake to let out a little burp. Night, night.

Hailey's first trip to Oklahoma

Last weekend Amie, Taylor, Hailey and I decided to take a trip to Okc to visit family. Getting Hailey all packed for our trip took longer than I thought and I had to pack a lot more stuff than I thought. Once we got the girls secured in the car we headed off for our 3 hour trip. Taylor was such a big help getting Hailey's pacifier for her, stealing her blanket and at one point even holding her hand. So sweet. Here are a few pictures from our trip.

Hailey is starting to talk more and more. We're not quite sure what's she's saying but it's the cutest thing ever. She purses her lips and makes a noise that could melt anyone's heart. She really gets going when she gets home from day care. We think she's trying to tell us of all the fun things she did at school. Below you can almost hear the stories she's trying to tell.

Look at the concentration on her face. Too funny!

Here is one where she's telling Grandpa about her day.

Time for night night.

Texas State Fair's newest treat!

Forget fried butter, just look at these cheeks! We could charge 10 coupons for a chance to come up and bite these cheeks!

Smile factory

It's hard for me to think of any words to describe the feeling you get when you daughter looks at you and smiles.

Of course this is Frankie's favorite pic. She's trying to get those little fingers to do hook'em horns.

So much to talk about, so little time

Where do I begin? Life has been so fast and hectic lately that it's hard to find time to sit in front of the computer and write down my thoughts. This will be a longer post than normal since I have so much to cram in.

Since my last post Hailey passed the 2 month mark and I can already tell she is growing up too fast. At her 2 month check up she weighed 10lbs./2oz. and gained a few more inches. It also happened to be the visit where she would receive her first round of shots. Frankie wasn't too worried but I knew it was going to be emotional for me and Hailey. Our nurse was so sweet and reassuring but I was still a little nervous for Hailey.

The calm before the storm. Such a sweet girl.

Prepping for the shot.Now this is where even Frankie starts to get a little upset at the site of his little girl crying. I could tell he wanted to pick her up so badly and take her pain away.Mom's there to make her feel all better.

I only had to work an half-day after the doctor's visit so rather than drive to daycare and drop her off, I decided to let Hailey come with me to work so my co-workers could finally meet her.

She was a big hit with Kobi.

I think the shots made Hailey a bit sleepy. She fell asleep in Mary's arms.The good news that came out of the doctor's visit was that Hailey could now go the whole night without us having to wake her up to feed her. No more 2:00 feedings...yay!

Hailey seems to like it too. And she loves her Miracle Blanket. A must-have for newborns. Thanks again Amie!

Now Saturday mornings we can sleep in a little. I went to go get her a bottle and when I came back, Frankie already has her watching ESPN.Frankie had a tee time scheduled so I thought it would be a good chance for me to take Hailey on her first trip to the mall. I think I may be in trouble as it was my goal to find some new work clothes for me but I ended up buying Hailey 12 new outfit for next summer. Hailey just got out of the bath and Frankie thought her head might be a little cold so we got out her cap she wore in the hospital. After she ate she was out like a light.I know it's hard to tell from the picture but Hailey likes to coo and smile whenever we play together. She melts our hearts every time. People tell Frankie to watch out not to let her wrap him around her finger but I think she already has.