Video: Aletheia "Trilling"

Here's an extended example of the "trilling" sound that Aletheia likes to make. We took this video on Saturday, back when we though the red splotches were the beginning of chicken pox and wanted to record them for posterity. Now I guess we'll always have footage of what the Amoxicillin did to her.

Wildcat

Our alma mater sends alumni who are new parents little "Born to be a Wildcat" onesies with a request that they take pictures of their kid and send it in to the alumni magazine. This is our submission. If they don't print it, we'll continue with our plan to send her to Harvard in 17 1/2 years.

As you can see, the steroid seems to be working. The rash is almost gone today. Also, she's been bench-pressing her crib.

8 Months, 24 Days

Splotchy Tree Dweller

The rash is moving around, but obviously still there. Meanwhile, Aletheia seems to be pointing to something, but I'm not sure what.

8 Months, 23 Days

Scene From a Hospital Waiting Room

Cast of Characters: Older Woman, Younger Woman, Aletheia's Mom

OW: [Yelling across the room] A-lee-thea! Come back here!
AM: [To YW] Your daughter's name is Alethea?
YW: Yes.
AM: My baby girl has almost the same name- Aletheia! How'd you choose that name?
YM: She's named after my friend's grandmother.
AM: You know it's Greek?
YM: Yeah. It means 'faith.'
AM: [Awkward pause.] Um, I think it actually means 'truth.'
YM: [Confused look.] How did you say you pronounce your daughter's name?
AM: A-lay-thea.
OW: Why do you say it like that?
AM: It's the more authentic Greek pronunciation. My husband studied Greek in college and when he learned the word he thought it was beautiful and he chose it as a potential name for a daughter. But, um, A-lee-thea is good, too. It's very pretty.

AM: [later, to me] You know, looking back on it, I think I basically just told those people that we're better than them in every way.

Allergic Reaction

Yesterday morning we noticed a rash on Aletheia's neck and belly. At first we thought it was chicken pox starting because we knew she had been exposed. But as the rash spread over her torso, it became clear that it was something else entirely. So we took her to an afterhours clinic to try to get some answers.

The doctor took one look at her, his eyes got big and he said, "I've never seen anything like this, but it looks terrible." To put it mildly, not exactly what we were hoping to hear. "Take her to the emergency room."

So, off we went. After hours of testing and waiting, the doctor there tentatively decided that Aletheia probably had pityriasis, but he couldn't be sure, and said to come back if the symptoms changed.

Overnight, the symptoms changed. The rash spread to her face (ruling out pityriasis, which rarely affects the face), and her hands and feet swelled. We called a pediatrician and he said, "Go back to the E.R. Now." So, back we went.

This time the doctor was certain. "This child can never have amoxicillin again. That's a definite allergic reaction." They gave her a steroid shot and sent us home with a prescription for an oral steroid to give her this week.

It's kind of hard to look at your baby girl and see her all splotchy and swollen, especially when a series of doctors can't come up with a clear answer. Nice to finally know what's going on.

Cinderella Audition

8 Months, 4 Days

Video: The Many Sounds of Aletheia

8 Months, 15 Days

Aletheia and Her Friend Jack

Aletheia is seriously teething now. One of her bottom teeth has broken through. Yeah, there's baby Orajel, but a little swab of Jack Daniels seems to work much better. And ounce per ounce, it's tons cheaper. Besides, Orajel doesn't mix well with Coke.

8 Months, 10 Days

Aletheia and Grammy

Grammy? Grammie? Grammi? I don't know. Judges, can we get a ruling?

However you spell it, Grammy is Aletheia's paternal grandmother, who flew out for a visit this week, and even accompanied us on our trip to see our friends in Juarez. (Something a lot of grandmothers probably wouldn't feel comfortable doing.) Thanks for making the effort to come out, Grammy!

8 Months, 13 Days

Cross-cultural Communication

Elaine making Aletheia laugh in Juarez.

8 Months, 10 Days

With Clementine

This is one of my favorite pictures in a while. I love the look on Aletheia's face--she has discovered that the baby in the mirror followed her across the border, and seems delighted by that. Clementine, normally a little bit more outgoing, is caught in a moment of contemplation. She really loved holding Aletheia, and taught us some tricks about getting the baby to burp when Allie was having gas pains. Aletheia certainly enjoyed being with Clementine, too.

8 Months, 10 Days

In the Background

Aletheia with her friend Elaine in Cuidad Juarez, Mexico. Elaine is even better at getting in the middle of the shot than Aletheia is.

8 Months, 10 Days

International Pics on Wednesday Night

Hi friends!

We're on a brief hiatus during this super busy time, but will return Wednesday night with picture's from Allie's latest international outing. In other news, the kid is rapidly becoming a mobile baby. She can scoot anywhere and can crawl backward at a pretty good clip. I suspect in another week she'll find forward gear and then all bets are off.

Homegirl II

Homegirl

Sorry for the missed updates. It's been crazy around here. A quick trip to the mountains this weekend, our continuing home renovation, and an evening with The Bills drained our spare time recently.

Latest news: we've officially called "Dada" Aletheia's first word. Her mother testifies that when she says "Dada" Aletheia looks for me, so she seems to understand what it means now.

Also, as you can see in this picture, Aletheia has started holding her own sippy cup and can now give herself a drink of water when she wants one. One little chore handed off!

7 Months, 27 Days

Hole in the Wall

Aletheia near one of the little complications in our pull-off-the-old-dark-paneling-and-fix-up-the-walls home renovation project.

7 Months, 26 Days