Happiness is...

sweet sleep.

I lie down and sleep;...

and waking up happy!

...I wake again, because the LORD sustains me. 

Psalms 3:5

Wordless Wednesday

This is Why...

I love our dog Abbey.

I was letting Addie watch her fish show, trying to hold off on nap time; and this is what I looked over and found.

This is one of the many reasons why I love our golden Abbey girl!

Just Couldn't Stay Awake

Over the past several weeks, Abbey (our dog) and I have left Paul and Addie for a little over an hour each Monday night while we attended a Novice 1 obedience class. Why? After we lost Mollie in December, I was determine 1.) not to let Abbey get depressed and 2.) not to let her become a couch potato. I can't say that I've achieved #2, but she sure isn't depressed!

Abbey turned 7 in February. Being a larger dog, each year increases her risk for weight gain, hip dysplasia, and health problems. So, off we went to obedience classes to challenge her mind and attempt to keep her active. I'll make sure to report next week whether or not she passes her test.

All that being said, I walked in a little after 8 expecting to hear, "Mamamamamama..." (because that's what I've heard for the past 6 weeks every Monday night)! She loves her Daddy, but she's become a bit of a Mama's girl here lately.

Instead, I found this:

What's so unusual about a sleeping baby?

Well who could fall asleep and stay asleep like this except a baby!

So I scooped her up, changed her diaper and clothes and even got some sweet snuggle time before she fell back asleep.

Kangaroos & Sheep

Kangaroo climbing and sheep counting, that is. Just a few more recent pictures of more recent happenings than what you've been seeing.

Then and Now: Day 2

**Update: Of course Addie proved me totally wrong! She slept until 4:30am this morning! I'll write a post like this once a month if she'll go back to that predictable schedule!

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When Addie was little, we could lay her in her bed sideways, like below, without her feet or head even touching the sides...and she'd never move!!! Now when we lay her in her bed, she can manage to turn herself sideways...but in order to stay that way, she has to prop her feet up because she's too long, like below!

Sleep is such a finicky thing with babies. I know, I know...of course our baby girl sleeps through the night and has since she was 2 weeks old. Right? Not! Maybe a few times, of course; but I don't think that constitutes as being consistent! Now, I'm not saying that some babies don't in fact do that! I know many moms might not admit that their child doesn't sleep through the night! All of us want our babies to...right? In all honesty, Addie was sleeping through the night for a while. Then we started traveling over and over, she got sick, the teeth started coming in...and then all of that repeated itself! One night, we get a whole 10 hours. The next night, she's up 3 times? She is doing considerably better developing healthy sleep habits, especially with napping. So...like I said, sleep is such a finicky thing.

I can't say that I always love getting up with her...but I can honestly say that I am incredibly thankful that we have a baby who's 1.) healthy, 2.) a good eater, and 3.) attached to us! So even in a pure state of utter exhaustion, I cannot help but thank God for our baby girl as I lay her back in her bed at 3 a.m.

I suppose it's really all just good payback...my mom told me just the other day that I didn't sleep through the night until I was in kindergarten. ...it might be a long 5 years!

Napping

Yesterday, I put Addie in the bed around 1:15pm. I wish I could take pictures of what I see on her monitor sometimes.

H.I.L.A.R.I.O.U.S!

Toss.

Turn.

Sit up.

Talk to paci.

Giggle.

Rub blanket on face.

Stand up.

Lay down.

Flop feet down on mattress.

Stuff blanket in mouth.

Roll over.

and I could stand it no more. So I went in and took a picture of this:

I have no idea if you can actually see what she's doing here, but her feet were propped up neatly on the rails of her crib. Paci flipped up. Lovie in hand.

15 minutes later, she was out!

Gosh I love this kid!

Poor Miles

Ok, so this blog is supposed to be about Addie. So here's a picture I took of her right after she had fallen asleep and right before I took the next picture.

A little history: Miles is our almost 15 year old diabetic cat. She takes insulin shots twice a day, requires special food, and more frequent vet visits than the other animals (usually) to check her levels. Overall though, she's a fairly low maintenance, easy going cat! She was our 1st baby!

Well, last night, she started having trouble closing her mouth, her tongue was hanging out, and we were afraid she was having a seizure or going into diabetic shock (or something like that). Well, after some poking and prodding, we realized her top two canine teeth were loose and preventing her from closing her mouth (hence her trying to use her tongue to move her teeth back into place).

Now...I've had my fair share of teeth pulled...4 on the top, 4 on the bottom, and 4 wisdom teeth (but I think those were cut out). As a child, I hated the way the gas smelled, so I breathed out of my mouth (and only got that local shot; yes, it hurt!). Needless to say, when I got my wisdom teeth out, I literally inhaled the gas they gave me! Hmmmm, I'm digressing now...

So...this morning, I called the vet and took Miles in. Dr. Armstrong was afraid to sedate her because of her age (and she's diabetic). He didn't even want to give her a block (I think that's a technical term for a local injection to ease the pain). So...he pulled both of her upper canine teeth out without any anesthesia or sedation. I told Paul last night to just give me the pliers, and I could do that just fine. (much cheaper and just as effective!) But given the fact that I lack both a veterinary and dental degree (and I have to live with this cat), he encouraged me not to.

Well, I decided that at least for now she deserved to be able to stay on Addie's changing table for the night...don't you think?

the many expressions of sleep

Addie makes the funniest faces when she sleeps! I haven't caught half of them on camera yet but here are a few.

so peaceful

something sour...?

yawn...
(and quit messing with me!)

whoa is me...life is so hard!

she looks like she's about to scream...but nothing comes out! (whew)

back to sleep!