Oh, Baby! : Nosefrida and Twilight Ladybug

Two blog posts in a month?! This could only mean one thing: I have a million other things I should be doing right now. Seriously. My house is upside down and I have no excuse. Thanks to the two inches of snow that shutdown the South, I have been at home since Tuesday afternoon. My house should be in pristine condition. Well, as pristine as living with a toddler can get. It is my honest opinion that a toddler deposit is much more necessary than a pet deposit for renters and tenants.

I decided to share/review my two favorite baby items that I am still using to this day. If you are expecting a little one or know someone who is, these are two great gifts that may have been left off the registry list. Neither were on mine! These are my opinions, but I know that I love to research anything before I buy it. Especially, when it comes to Haddie.

Nosefrida

First, we have the Nosefrida. When Haddie was about three months old, she developed a stuffy nose. And honestly, it has never left. She is genetically cursed with nasal/sinus/allergy issues, I am afraid. Being the crazy new mom, we were at the pediatrician's office every other week for answers. She couldn't breathe and had a horrible time with drainage. Seeing a tiny little one struggle so much is horrible. I just wanted a fix. The bulb syringe, saline, and humidifier/vaporizer combo just weren't doing enough for me. I was so frustrated. Finally, a fellow mama suggested that I try the Nosefrida. I had never heard of it, but I was desperate at the point. I did some quick research to see what it was about. It sounds very strange and disgusting, but if you have ever been in my shoes, you would try anything. Basically, you place the tip in the nostril and use the hose to "suck" out the snot.

There are a few reasons why I love this thing. The bulb syringe never had a enough "power." Haddie had a TON of snot and congestion, and the bulb syringe just wouldn't suck hard enough or long enough. With the Nosefrida, you can control both. Plus, I dare you to Google what the inside of a bulb syringe looks like after it has been used for a while. YUCK! You can easily take the Nosefrida apart to clean and sanitize it. Another reason I love this thing is something only a mother can understand. It is kind of similar to the way that you inspect and rejoice over the contents of your little one's diaper. It gave me a thrill to SEE all that gunk that I was getting out of her head.

Now, I will say she was and still isn't the biggest fan of being held down and having her sinuses sucked out. But, I know she has to feel better afterward. I was the guinea pig for the product before I used it on her, and it is painless. The product website says that it is doctor invented and recommended. You can find a video and even more information about the product there. I'm not certain if it is sold in stores. I ordered mine from Amazon. The product itself is about $15, and comes with four filters. You can buy the product and a box of 20 replacement filters for less than $20. I definitely recommend getting the extra filters. I didn't, and I regretted it while waiting for them to be delivered! You can order from Amazon and read even more rave reviews here.

 

Twilight Ladybug

My second favorite thing is the Twilight Constellation Ladybug by Cloud b. I have a feeling we will get lots of use out of this thing for many more years! It is so cool, I would even buy one for my room. Haddie started sleeping in her own room when she was a couple months old. I have always been a stickler about bedtime, sleeping habits, and routines. I wanted her to be able to sleep in her own room and I knew the best way to start was from the beginning. I didn't like the thought of it being dark with only a small little nightlight. I had seen several products from Cloud b, and fell in love with this little ladybug. I read some reviews and thought it sounded pretty neat.

I know there are several other brands and versions of something similar, but I think this was the "original." Some of my Pre-K kiddos have brought the other varieties in for nap time, and I don't think they work as well. The ladybug has actual constellations incorporated into the nightlight, and it comes with a star map. So once Haddie gets old enough, it will even be educational. It also projects very well. Haddie has a decent sized bedroom, and the stars shine clearly on the ceiling and even the walls. You can choose from three different colors to project: red, green, or blue. The red seems a little creepy, so I always have used the green. It has an auto shut-off timer that lasts for 45 minutes. The product also comes in a pink ladybug or turtle version in various colors.

When Haddie was still tiny, I think it was mostly just soothing to have the calming light. She was out like a light quickly at bed time anyway. She may not have even paid it any mind. After quite a few months, the batteries died. I am the worst about keeping new batteries in the house. So, the ladybug was forgotten. Flash forward to a few weeks ago. Now that Haddie is a little older, she plays a little bit before falling asleep. She had started to fuss when I would lay her down, turn out the light, and close the door. Her sound machine has a light and she also has a nightlight in her room, so it was not because it was too dark. I decided to fire up the ladybug again. Worked like a charm. No more fussing. I think it gives her something to look at as she falls asleep. Like I said before, it is pretty neat to look at. Pictures don't do it justice, you just have to try it out.

I have seen these for sale in several stores such as Target and Babies R Us, or on the product website. I purchased mine from Amazon for about $35. You can order your little one a ladybug and read reviews here.

Random Sidenote: If you are getting a monitor, go ahead and get the video monitor. I was trying to be frugal and thought it wasn't necessary to actually see her. When she was teeny and I jumped at every sound she made in the night, I really didn't miss it. But now that she is a little older, the video would be very handy to see if she is just fussing in her sleep or legit awake in the night. I think it will be even more necessary to spy on her once she is in the toddler bed. But, I'm not ready to go there yet! Needless to say, I am upgrading my audio monitor to video very soon.

Once again, these are my opinons. I love a good product and the fact that I am definitely getting my money's worth, makes me a happy mama! Feel free to share you thoughts on these products! Thanks for stopping by.

She is Sick and I am Tired

Wow! It has been rough couple of days, preceded by a few tough weeks. I haven't had the desire or want to blog because I have stayed so stressed out over Little Miss. As a mother, I will start by saying that the statement, "I wish I could take it for you," is completely true! I would take the flu times four to keep from seeing her with a stuffy nose. But then, I would just panic that she would catch it and I would be quarantined from her. So basically, I just wish we could avoid sickness all together. However, my job prevents that: I work in one of the "germiest" fields, and she comes to daycare with me. So, we will tough through and hopefully her immune system becomes tougher than Fort Knox, like mine. I usually manage to avoid most of what goes around at work. Knock on wood.

This all began about a month ago. I noticed that her nose was a little stuffy. It did not seem worse at night and it did not cause her trouble while eating. But, as a new mother, I wasn't playing around with anything that concerned her breathing. We made a visit to the pediatrician. She assured me it was nothing to worry about, just try running a humidifier at night. I stopped to pick up one on the way home. We tried this for a few nights. I did not see any change. Now, it was time to go back to work. I was reluctant to think about what would happen when she was introduced to all the germs at daycare. But, I know that it is now or later. I was hoping that by breastfeeding, my immunities would boost her up and protect her.

At first, things seemed to be going smoothly. However by the middle of her second week, she started to become more congested. We had our Two Month appointment in a little over a week, so I tried to push through. I was 90% sure a trip to the doctor would have resulted in nothing but "keep doing what you are doing. It will pass." So, I decided to try a few new things. We had been using the bulb syringe, but I had read that saline will help to break up congestion. After a visit to the Walmart, I was armed with saline, vapor bath, and baby Vicks. I just knew this was going to bring her some relief!

She has never been a fan of the bulb syringe, but she loathes the saline drops. It is like wrestling a crocodile to suction her nose with them. She screams bloody murder, which only makes her suck the snot farther back. The vapor rub and vapor bath were recommended for three months and older. I decided a few days wouldn't make that much of a difference and tried it anyway. The baby Vicks caused her to break out on her chest. I am pretty sure that is just because of her sensitive skin, so we resorted to rubbing it on the outside of her jammies. Also, the whole "bottom of the feet" trick that everyone swears by, did nothing. She loves baths, but I didn't see any benefit from the vapor bath either.

We were still a few days away from our scheduled visit, but I couldn't take anymore. None of my home remedies were working. She wasn't improving, and now it was beginning to take a toll on her appetite. We got a late appointment and headed to the pediatrician after school. Haddie had not been coughing, but she checked her lungs. They sounded perfectly clear. Apparently, it was all just in her head. When I told the pediatrician we had started daycare, she chuckled and said she was going to check her for RSV. I thought this wasn't a concern, but we received a faint positive. I was shocked. No cough. No fever. The pediatrician seemed to think she was on the downhill slope of it since it was a faint positive. "Keep doing what you are doing. It will pass." Great. She said to watch for fever or cough. Otherwise, there wasn't much more they could do.

Let me take this time to explain my feelings on medicine. I guess you could call me a little "crispy", not "crunchy," when it comes to medicine. I am not completely against antibiotics and only use natural, holistic and home remedies at the first sign of a booger, but I also know that babies and children tend to be over-medicated. Up until this point, I didn't want her to take anything. Our bodies are made to fight things off. But after seeing her struggle so long, I was beginning to want some help of the prescription kind. Needless to say, I was becoming a little frustrated that she was only getting worse. We came home again and kept our routine going: Humidifier, Suction, Vapor Bath, Vapor Rub, Elevated Bed, Steamy Bathroom. Still no improvement.

A few days before her Two Month appointment, she began spitting up again. The Zantac had been helping tremendously, but now here it was again. Upon closer inspection, I noticed there was quite a bit of mucus in it. Apparently, her drainage only goes back, down her throat. I guess I should be positive that I am less likely to have a snot-nosed child, but instead she will just have a belly full of drainage. Fabulous. I tried and tried to suck the snot out to prevent her from swallowing it. No matter what I tried, only tiny amounts would come out. I could hear it rattling in there, I just couldn't get it. Her appetite only decreased. I was beginning to wonder if maybe she had developed an ear infection from the fluid settling in her ears.

Finally, it was time for our scheduled, Two Month appointment. Once again, ears and lungs look fine. I tried to be positive that it wasn't more, but I was still frustrated she wasn't improving. She got her first round of vaccinations, and we returned home to start our Christmas Break. I somewhat expected her to get sicker over the weekend with the help of the shots. To my surprise, she was fine. Never even ran a fever. Fast forward a few days: Here comes the cough. It starts as just a little light cough. Nothing major. I am trying my hardest not to be the overly paranoid mother at the doctor's office every other week, but I can only handle so much. Like I said, I don't mess around when it comes to her breathing. I took note of when and how often she coughed. It only got worse. She still had only a little appetite and spit up what she did drink.

The final straw came last Friday. The night before, she was a little whiney. She had become hoarse from all the coughing. During her bedtime bottle, she started whimpering. It was a pitiful sound. She just looked at me for help. I had decided then I was most likely making an appointment. Friday morning, she woke up with matted eyes. As I was feeding her the first bottle of the day, she began to gag. This time she threw up. Not spit up. The whole deal. Covered me and her. That's it. I called to schedule the appointment. They seemed to try discourage me from coming because there wasn't much they could do. I know this, but at the same time, she is much too young to be this sick! They squeeze us in. This time the diagnosis is double ear infection. Lungs are still clear. We are finally given antibiotics.

Like I said, part of me is elated for her to finally have some help, the other part dreads her starting them out so young. We returned home. I have a some hope she will feel better soon. Over the weekend, her cough only worsens. It breaks my heart to see her tiny body draw up and her face turn red each time. It has to be exhausting. I am scared to death that the cold will settle in her lungs. I just can't see how she can cough so much if her lungs are fine. I started sleeping in her room at night. I had ordered a product called the Nosefrida. It is an interesting, somewhat disgusting way to "suck" out snot. Literally. Since we have been using the Nosefrida, I have noticed I can get much more out. She also doesn't scream her head off. So, I think it is definitely more effective than the bulb syringe. After suggestions from a few friends, we also started using a nebulizer with saline. Much easier than squirting saline up her nose. Between the nebulizer and Nosefrida, we were making some ground.

Monday morning brought a two hour coughing fit. Guess where we went. Yep. If you have lost count of how many trips to the doctor, so have I. I am terrified of it moving to her lungs and I don't want to end up in the hospital. I am trying to be proactive, instead of just waiting for it to happen. Our regualr pediatrician was out, so we saw a new doctor. Once again, after five minutes of listening, he swore her lungs are fine. Her cough is just from drainage. Ok. She was prescribed a short run of Prednisone. If there was any inflammation, maybe this would help. I will say she only got two doses of this. I did not notice any improvement, and it made her wild and hungry. She was only prescribed three doses, so we skipped the last one this morning.

I did not intend for this post to be so long. So much has happened on our road to recovery. She is still coughing. I'm still sleeping in her floor. Her congestion has improved tremendously, but we can't shake this darn cough. She is eating much better, but still occasionally throws up mucus. I am more than ready for her to be well. I must say she has been a champ! We are so blessed with a happy baby. She has smiled through it all. Our Christmas Break has been filled with snot and trips to the doctor, but I am glad that I could devote 100% of my time to her and not worry about missing work. Hopefully, we are on the downhill slope of this. Thanks for stopping by!

A Weighted Topic

2011                                   2005
From One Extreme to the Other

I am sure if you asked every woman you come in contact with about their body, the would have a complaint. I think that is just how we are programmed. Well, not all of us. But a majority. As for me, I definitely am not happy with the current state of my body or health, for that matter.

I started dancing at the age of four. I am so glad that my family sacrificed financially for me to take lessons, drove me to Hixson multiple times a week, bought the dance costumes, and allowed me to perform with my friends in recitals. I am not the most confident person, but when the time to perform, on stage or in life occurs, I am ready. I am also thankful that my parents allowed me to have an active childhood. Because I was active and involved as a child, I will make sure that my children have the same opportunities. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to be one of the psychotic stage mothers who force their children to perform and be someone they don't want to be. But my children will find something they enjoy, and be a part of it, whatever it is. I think that a healthy childhood is a foundation for a healthy life. Obviously, it doesn't always stick, but the chances are much greater.

Because of my active upbringing, I was able to eat like I had a hole in my leg. In high school and college, I was practicing at least three hours a day, four days a week. And, yes, I am about to toot my "band nerd" horn, but if you have never really watched a marching show, then you cant appreciate the work, stamina, and talent that it takes. In case you haven't had the pleasure, I am posting a clip that is worth a look...

Jacksonville State University Marching Southerners

This was at BOA in the Georgia Dome in 2006. Sadly, I am not in this video. I am on the side line in a wheelchair. During warm up, my ankle rolled for the second time that season. The giant hole in the beginning of the kick line is me.....

I hope you enjoyed the show, without me! Now to explain the picture from the top. The left side of the picture is from December 2011. This is when I was at the heaviest weight of my life. The past few months have been stressful. I am definitely a stress eater. I also have developed a nasty habit of eating when I am bored. And with no exercise or activity, the pounds just keep coming. The right side of the picture is from Fall of 2005. I was living in the dorm, on a poor college girl's budget. No stove in the dorm room, so if it wasn't microwavable or from a restaurant, you didn't eat. It got to the point where my body only required a couple pieces of toast a day. I got down to 90lbs. Disgusting. I never want to be at either of those points ever again.  



I have made some changes in my diet and my activity level. I am hoping to see and feel the results soon. I know that I am making changes for the better. I have tried several diets and workout routines before, but something just feels right this time. I will be posting what I am doing, and also, how I am doing on my road the perfect body.....for me! So stay tuned.