Magic helmet time!

Since her birth, we had noticed Abby preferred to look to the right but didn't think too much about it. We finally asked the doctor at her 4 month appt and found out she has torticollis. That's a shortening of the neck muscle on the left side, which pulls her ear to her left shoulder and causes her head to tilt. The doctor feels her positioning in utero prevented that muscle from developing correctly. So, the end of August we started physical therapy to stretch it out. After 6 wks, we have noticed a big difference! She still has a slight tilt but therapy will eventually correct that and she'll be good to go.

Because of this (and also my positioning of her in her crib), she slept almost exclusively on the right side of her head. And, developed a flat spot. So, we decided to start helmet therapy to round it out. We took her to Rochester last Tuesday and picked up her "magic helmet".


Here is her "before" picture:


Over 4 days we slowly increased her wear time and now she will wear it 23 hrs/day for the next 13 wks. She doesn't seem to mind it much but it does break my heart a little to see her in it. I know it's for the best and is just a small inconvenience in the grand scheme of things. We'll get her fixed right up in no time!

My little morning sunshine

Anyone who really knows me knows that I'm not much of a morning person. I like some time in the morning where I can wander around and find my "happy face." Well, I don't have to look to far anymore to find it! I usually awaken to Abby "talking" to herself in her crib somewhere between 7 and 7:30am. When I go in to get her, this is what I'm greeted with when I come into her nursery...


Abby LOVES mornings! It immediately puts a big smile on my face and starts the day off right.

Little leopard

Here's my sweet little Abby looking adorable in her leopard outfit...

Favorite pics of Sept

Here are just a few of my favorite pics from September. No special occasions or anything, just some I took here and there while hanging out at home...Love this little sweetie!

1st haircut...

Abby got her 1st haircut yesterday! I took her to my stylist, Lauren, for the big event. She was fresh off a nap and bottle and really enjoyed herself. Here is the "before" picture with her long bangs clipped to the side:


She had her little hands in her mouth pretty much the entire time. But, it did help her sit still!




We all laughed at how cute she looked. It was a fun day and I made sure to keep some hair in a little baggy for her baby book. Here's the "after". What a sweetie!

Uh oh, she's getting mobile!

This morning I set Abby down on her back and went into the kitchen to make tea. She got awful quiet and when I looked over at her, this is what I saw...

Before


After


After my initial shock, it really made me laugh. She really worked hard and fast to get so far in just a minute. I guess I'd better not take my eyes off her anymore!

Baptism Day!

Grammie and Papa arrived last week for their annual visit and we decided to have Abby baptized while they were here. Pastor Nate is really wonderful and agreed to do it on a Monday night (since Sundays are currently tied up with football games). Abby wore the same dress that my cousin wore in 1968 and my sister wore in 1973. My niece also wore it in 2001. I was baptized when I was 8 years old so didn't quite fit! Abby looked so adorable on her special day:



Our good friends were there to support us and share in the celebration. It was a small but very meaningful ceremony...so glad we did it!