6 months and update

 It's been kind of crazy around here the last couple of weeks. Scout has been fighting a cold and congestion for almost three weeks now. She has not been running a fever and the Dr. said it has not moved in to her chest but her poor little cough sounds horrible sometimes. It doesn't seem to be bothering her much except for at night when her nose runs like crazy and she can't breath. She has spent several nights sleeping in her swing in our room just because she can breath better that way. Other than that we are using a vaporizer, vicks infant rub, and nasal spray. Hopefully she will get over it soon...although the drastic changes in temperature have not helped much. Not that I am complaining...the weather this weekend was fabulous! I love running outside in 70 degree weather! I wish it was always that nice out!
      Scout weighed 14 pounds and is 25.5 inches long at her 6 month appointment. We also found out that her heart murmur is benign and she has a healthy heart with healthy blood flow! Thank you Lord! They will probably hear a murmur from time to time throughout her life...but she should not have any problems from it. I am so thankful for that news. I had a feeling it was ok because typically children with real heart issues are really lethargic, and don't thrive as well. She is very energetic and she is hitting all her milestones so far. She is on the small side for weight, 10%  and 50% for height. The Dr. said she is perfectly healthy! She is sitting up on her own now for brief periods of time. She does really well for a while until she spots something across the room, or Knox comes over, or she just starts wiggling too much and then she topples over. She wants to crawl really bad but has not figured that out just yet. Apparently I started walking when I was 10 months old and never really crawled....so she may be the same way who knows. Whatever her mode of transportation ends up being I am sure she will be all over the place. She NEVER stops moving if she is awake. She kicks her feet just as fast as she can constantly!  She loves her baby food and has just started drinking water out of a sippy cup, which she finds extremely entertaining. So other than the annoying cough and runny nose that will not go away...she is doing great!
      So...everyone has a different opinion on who Scout looks the most like. Some family thinks she looks exactly like me as a baby and others say Kris. I can see me in her a lot...but then some days she looks so much like her Daddy. Anyway...I found a few pictures that I thought I would put up. I could only find one of Kris at around 6 months...but she looks a lot like him in it I think.

Baby Kris Akens

Me

Anyway...what do you all think??? What about that awesome car seat I am in. That looks safe! :)

 Last weekend Scout and I went to TN for my nephew Aden's first birthday! I am so glad we got to be there for it. I know we will not get to be there for every birthday, but I am thankful I got to see his first birthday party. There were lots of kids and Scout had a blast watching all the kids scream and play...she was thoroughly entertained :) We had a great visit. She did awesome on both flights. So far she is a great traveler...I hope that lasts :)  I got a lot of really cute pictures. Then last night we had a few people over to celebrate Kelly's belated birthday. I made my Mom's delicious chili, Mandi brought the salad and cupcakes.  I didn't get many pictures because my camera battery was dying.
   Well...I have to be in Garland at 6:45 in the morning for a case so I am going to call it a night. Enjoy the pictures!

Scout with Great-Grandfather Barber

Scout with Great-Grandfather Willis

Great Grandparents (Barber)

The birthday boy, Aden James

Great-Grandparents (Willis) - Scout was having herself a good time :)

Too much cake???

Both birthday boys, Andrew and Aden

Eli and Scout

Uncle Dale finally got a turn to hold Scout :)

Jillian came for a visit

At the Whiskey Kitchen with Molly and Jillian

Soooo Precious!

Sitting up all by herself

She was supposed to be taking a nap :)

Happy Birthday to Aunt Kelly!

Update on Scout

Today was a good day and not so good day.  Scout is doing well, and her 6 month check-up went great.  She weighed 14 lbs. and was 25.5 inches long.  Her cold has not moved into her chest, and the doctor told us to keep doing what we were doing and she would be better soon.  We were supposed to get an EKG after our well check-up, but the cardiologists office said they had no record of our appointment.  The receptionist then proceeded to talk to 3 people on the phone (where Jill and I could hear her) including the office manager that told her to go ahead and do the EKG.  The tech had a personal appointment at 3:00 and didn't want to do it though (mind you, Jill and I are hearing every minute of this conversation).  Since our pediatrician's office is right down stairs, I went to complain to them while Jill tried to get Scout in.  Needless to say, the tech left for her appointment and there was no one to do the EKG so we had to reschedule for tomorrow morning at 7:45.  I still have smoke coming out of my ears, and plan on giving the office manager a piece of my mind tomorrow morning.  Anyways, Scout seems to be doing OK, and Dr. Wallace didn't seem to be too worried about the murmur.  Once we get the results, I'm sure Jill or I will post them on here for everyone.  Thanks for the prayers and we will talk to you soon.

The Last Six Months...

  

 Cailyn Scout is six months old today. The last six months have been the best six months of my life! I will never forget what it felt like to hold our precious angel for the first time and it just amazes me that six months has come and gone already. Earlier today I was going back and looking at pictures of her from months ago and looking at how much she has changed in six months. The photos above are her newborn pictures that I had never posted on the blog. She looks so different now.( I am trying to get a video of her from right after she was born to upload so I will have it here...but it is taking forever to upload!) I can not thank God enough for blessing us with such a wonderful baby girl.  Every day I look at her and fall more in love with her. Her personality makes me smile. I know that one day her personality might make me crazy :)....but I am so thankful that she is so spunky and opinionated! Her facial expressions are priceless...and I could listen to her sweet laugh all day long! She is such a joy and Kris and I laugh at the fact that we have become totally content with staying home and playing with the baby most nights.(ok, pretty much every night)  My, how things have changed! Sometimes I look at her and I just want to cry because I love her so much and I feel so blessed that she is my daughter. Thank you God for giving her to us! She is amazing! 

     Every since Scout was a newborn I have always sang to her. I usually sing to her while I am changing her, giving her a bath...or just generally trying to entertain her. Everyone in both mine and Kris's family sings so I figured I need to pass it on. Anyway, one of the songs that I have always sang to her is "You Are My Sunshine" There is nothing particularly special about the song other than it is a short easy song to sing. For the last two months or so if I start singing that song she smiles so big...even if she is in the middle of fussing...you can start singing that in her ear and she immediately stops and smiles. The best is in the morning...sometimes I have to leave for work at 6:00 a.m. and before I leave I will go get her out of bed...change her diaper and then take her to our room and put her in bed with Kris. When I am changing her she will start stretching and her eyes will still be closed...as soon as I start singing that song she starts smiling...eyes still closed. I love it! It just melts my heart! She is still in love with Knox and if he is any where in her line of vision she will not stop staring  at him. As soon as he acknowledges her she gets SO excited! She can sit up on her own for several seconds until she spots something she wants or something that excites her and then she starts leaning and topples over...we are getting there though. She wants to crawl so bad! When you  put her on her belly she starts "swimming" as fast as she can and then gets frustrated that she hasn't gotten anywhere. :) She smiles constantly  and every time I see her precious smile it is as equally as exciting as the first time I ever saw her smile. I love her so much!!! She is eating baby food regularly now and her favorite is sweet potatoes. She also likes carrots and squash. I am still trying to find a fruit that she likes. She will eat a few bites of bananas and peaches, but does not get that excited about them yet. I hope that changes...I am going to do my best to help her to be a healthy eater. She is growing and developing wonderfully! She is still a little on the small side but it does not seem to slow her down at all. 

    On Thursday I took Scout to the doctor because she has had a bad cough and runny nose. RSV is going around and her pediatrician wanted to rule that out.  Thankfully she tested negative for RSV, but Dr. Wallace did hear a heart murmur that she has never heard before. She said it was common for children to have heart murmurs and that typically they are benign. She did say she was concerned enough about it that she wanted to get an echocardiogram and ultra sound done asap just to make sure all of her chambers are working properly. So tomorrow after her six month check-up we are being sent to a cardiologist to get her checked out. I am not freaking out about it just yet. Scout is growing and is full of energy so we are hopeful it is nothing too serious. My dad has had a heart murmur his whole life and it has not effected him so far. Regardless...keep her in your prayers. We are hoping that tomorrow goes smoothly and we receive good news. Also...Scout weighed 14 pounds and 2 ounces on Thursday. They will measure her length tomorrow. I am very curious about her height because she has out grown a lot  of her 6 month pants (in length) already. Enjoy all the photos and I will post about what the Doctor says as soon as we know something. Good night all!

Just a little light reading

Happy girl

Looking out at the snow

Knox makes her so happy :)

Sporting the hat that Aunt Mandi got her

"You listen here mister..."

"Daddy is so funny!"

"I just love this song!".....hanging out with Ryan and April 

Not feeling too good in this picture...poor baby :(

Dear Scout,

Happy six months baby girl!!! I love you so much and you are such a blessing!

You are a beautiful girl and you make us so happy! You are so smart and so sweet and I am very excited that I get to be your Mother!  I always thought I would have a daughter one day but you are even more precious than I imagined. Your smile makes any day a good day and your personality is so entertaining! You notice everything and I am truly in awe of you every day. I look forward to watching you grow and develop and witnessing all the the new  things you discover. God has truly blessed us!!!  I love you bunches Sunshine!!!

                   Love,

                      Mom