9 month stats & 9 month foot checkup

Height - 27 inches (12th percentile)

Weight - 17 pounds, 10 ounces (9th percentile)

Head Circumference - 17 inches (26th percentile)

Good bill of health from Dr. Taylor. We were a little worried about your coloring, but Dr. Taylor reassured us that we were just giving you foods with too much beta - carotine. So we'll cut those out.

I was very nervous for your appointment with Dr. Tuck - it had been three months since we last saw him and we had a few very rough patches. I was determined to get you to 60 degrees and was successful two weeks ago and you adapted VERY well. Maybe if we had it there all along we wouldn't have had so much trouble...

Your appointment couldn't have gone better. Clubfeet levels are ranked by points. 0 being perfectly corrected feet, 6 being the worse. Both of your feet are at 1/2 point. They aren't good - they are excellent for a 9 month old. We go back in three months. Dr. Tuck was telling me how he just discharged a 6 year old - I can't wait for him to release you.

If you are wondering, Levi will be in the snowboard (12 hours a day) until he is 2. No compromise. Think of it as a retainer after braces on your teeth. It's to prevent relapse. We're almost half way done :)

9 months in...9 months out.

Providing for you when you were in my belly wasn't hard. I did have to make a few adjustments (drop the wine, increase the calories) but generally speaking, I had a very easy pregnancy. Providing for you out in the world - well, let's just say it's been one of the most bumpy, emotional, rewarding experiences I've ever been through....

At first, you didn't latch on. I tried to stay calm, but was panicking inside. Once you latched, you didn't want to let go - to the point where it become extremely painful. I would cringe the second the clock struck feeding time. The agony (and I'm not exaggerating) was more than I could bare. After speaking to the doctors at one of the very early appointments, she suggested I pump one feeding to give myself some relief. So I did, and I never looked back. I pumped for a month straight. I got sick of cleaning bottles and parts, so we tried again and you latched right on (you were a PRO!). I got mastitis. I healed. It came back with a vengeance. But we made it through....and we never looked back.

Looking back it was one of the best decisions I've ever made.

We got the hang of it - and soon (just as the woman told me at the first breastfeeding class I ever went to) you were latching on yourself without me having to do anything. I went back to work in September and began pumping three times a day (9am, 12pm & 3pm) at work in a bathroom. I pumped driving to meetings, I pumped sitting outside of buildings. I pumped at a lunch break in a bathroom stall at a restaurant in Gaithersburg.

As you began to eat solid foods, I noticed a drop in my supply and started to get worried. What if I can't keep up? I rarely would leave you on the weekends in fear that my supply in the freezer would dwindle to nothing. As your 9 month birthday fast approached, I realized that almost every day I had to pull from the stash to make sure you had enough milk for daycare. I knew it was time.

There is something about being the only person that could provide you the milk that you needed - something about our evening routines where it's just you and me and I watch you drift off into a dream. While I know there will still be these nights, my heart is sad that we're done with our breastfeeding journey. It's a feeling I really can't put into words beyond this explanation. It hasn't been easy, but I wouldn't change a second of our bumpy road that ended with smooth sailing. I know you'll need me in many other ways throughout your life.

9 months in...9 months out. I've enjoyed every second of it and can't wait for what's in store.

My New Years Resolution...

...is to update the blog. When I first went back to work it seemed nearly impossible to even eat dinner let alone sit down to update you on Levi's happenings. We were so busy after work but now we have gotten into a routine and I like to consider myself a pro at this "working mom" thing.....

Levi has had a really good three months. Here is a short recap....

He LOVES his daycare provider, Mrs. Feny. Levi is one of two kids that is at daycare. The other child is Mrs. Feny's son, Kaysan, who now considers Levi his brother. Michael and I feel extremely lucky to have found such an amazing daycare provider. Feny provides us with a daily log telling us when he ate, slept, pooped and anything else that went on during his day. Reading what he did all day is the best part of my day (other than seeing his smiling face when I get home). When I picked him up before Winter Break started, Mrs. Feny said to Levi, "Bye Levi! I'll miss you so much - please don't forget who I am!" She wrote us a sweet note that expressed how much she enjoys having Levi every day and what a good baby he is. We couldn't be more proud. One day when I picked him up, Feny opened the door and here is what I saw:

Mr. Cool having so much fun! Kaysan is really into music and we have found that Levi REALLY likes listening to music and when we sing. Maybe he'll take after his Uncle Eric & Uncle Daniel and be a musician!

Levi's feet are doing extremely well. He still wears his snowboard every night for 12 hours. We do have nights when he fights it, but Michael and I have a united front to take charge and make sure he's in his brace as often as he can stand it. Levi had an excellent checkup with Dr. Tuck at his 6 month appointment. One important point for us to watch is to make sure his heels don't turn in when he stands on his feet (well, stand on his toes - he doesn't stand flat on his feet yet). So far so good. We have exersaucer time every day - which Dr. Tuck says is a really good exercise to loosen up the tight tendons in his feet. Here is a recent picture of Levi in his brace right before bed time. He is much more aware of the snowboard...which is probably why he still isn't sleeping through the night....

Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hannukah, Christmas & New Years were a blast! It was so great to be with family and to start traditions with Levi. While some points of the holidays were a bit overwhelming for him (omg, the presents!), he was super excited to participate in his first holiday season! Here are some fun photos....

Levi the Lion - we went to Todd & Erin's Halloween Party as the Tin Man, Dorothy & the Cowardly Lion...it was a hit!

Levi & Isaac at the "new" kids table at Thanksgiving!

Celebrating Hannukah with Mommy & Daddy...he LOVED the flames!

Opening presents at Christmas....at times, he seemed more interested in eating paper than the actual gift!

Party animals at Uncle Eric & Aunt Erika's house for New Years.

Isaac outlasted Levi by 3 hours....Levi was down for the count at 5:30 pm and Isaac at 8:30 pm. The REAL party was the next morning when the boys were up for good at 8am...after their Mommies and Daddies partied into the wee hours of the morning.....

2010...you were too good to us. You brought us the most amazing little gift on May 23rd. Our lives will never be the same, and we will never forget this year. Happy New Year (and hopefully you'll be hearing from me again real soon!)

Love,

Stephanie

Levi's First Haircut

Stephanie has been trying and trying to get me to agree. "But look at it! It's all over his face. He can't even see!" I still didn't want to cut it. It's falling out everywhere else but the very top. Why cut it off when there's only that one patch on top?

But over the past week or two, several random strangers have made comments about our cute little "girl." The straw that broke the camel's back was the guy at Great Beginnings calling him a "princess." That's enough. Time to trim the troupe.

I would love to make a slideshow displaying the evolution of Levi's hair...but right now I don't have time. However, at 4:00 today we will be broadcasting LIVE from Levi's house for his first ever haircut. If you want to witness this momentous occasion, just click on this link a little before 4:00 today (November 14).

www.justin.tv/midoggett

I've been waiting for this!

When I was younger, I used to be a huge Dave Barry fan. His witty yet painfully corny humor kept me laughing for hours. A while ago, for Father's Day I think, Steph bought be Dave Barry's newest book, "I'll Mature When I'm Dead." In a letter to first-time-dads-to-be, Barry describes a very special experience that every father has with his son.

"It will happen when your baby is around three months old. He or she will be lying on his or her back, making random baby movements and sounds, as though communicating with invisible space aliens. Suddenly you and your baby will make eye contact, and something will pass between you. Then you will lean over and -- as millions of fathers have before you -- you will place your mouth on your baby's belly and blow in such a manner as to make a sound like a musk ox breaking wind. This will have a profound effect on your baby. This will strike your baby as the funniest thing that he or she has experienced in his or her entire life. Your baby will laugh, and it will be the purest and best laugh you ever heard. You will laugh, too, and you will have no choice but to re-flatulate the baby's belly, and your baby will think it's even funnier the second time. So you'll do it again, and again, and again, and it will get FUNNIER EVERY TIME. You and your baby will be laughing and drooling like a pair of morons. Which you are, but in a good way."

So needless to say, I had been waiting for this moment. And finally today, Saturday, October 9 it happened.

Grandma Jean

Levi is a very popular guy. He's a superstar on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Yahoo, etc...everybody wants a piece of the little guy. I'm thinking about scheduling some autograph sessions for him.

But one of his biggest fans is his Great Grandma Jean. She follows Levi wherever he goes on the interwebs. Recently, she saw a video of him and immediately called my cell phone. The voicemail she left me was too precious not to share. I'll transcribe it word for word:

Michael, this is Grandma. I just cant stop thinking about that little Levi David. He is the cutest thing on two legs. That last video of him rolling over and you two exclaiming and clapping and joyful and he looks up at you and says "what the hell is going on?" with that quizzical look in his face. He is so adorable I just could eat him up. And I just love you taking all these little videos for me. This is just such a delight I just love that little thing!

Anyway, I just had to tell you I can't stop thinking about him. He's so precious. Aight, take care. I hope you're both well.

I love you,

Bye

Grandma, this blog post is dedicated to you. And here's another video for ya!

A letter to my little guy....

Levi David,

16 weeks ago you entered my life and turned it upside down. I could have never imagined loving someone as much as I love you.

This is our first turning point - you'll be in daycare full time and I'll be a full time working Mom. Right now, I can't think of another time in my life that I'll have 16 weeks to be home with you.

I've enjoyed every second. You are my world.

Love,

Mommy