Happy Halloween

What a fun and exhausting day!  Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays and I have been looking forward to today for several weeks now.  Since Amelia cannot weigh in on the costume decision, I am allowed to decide what she will be without opposition.  I must take advantage of this while it lasts.  So this year I made her into Salmon Sushi!  It took a moment for some people to get it, but then we got some giggles after they realized what she was.  I didn't realize that there would be some people who have never had sushi before and wouldn't get it at all. 


We started the day off at the Houston Zoo for the annual Zoo Boo.  Lots of kids and fun costumes.  Amelia's buddies met us up there and we had a great time.  Then we went to another friends house for trick-or-treating.  Now that Amelia knows how to walk, she wants to take off regardless if Martin and I are with her.  I fully understand the importance of child leashes.  She did a lot of walking and some riding in her wagon.  And she fully understood the importance of getting candy in her bag - that's my girl!


Enjoy the photos!

Baby Sushi ready for the zoo

Mommy and baby sushi

Notice the ginger, wasabi & soy sauce packet on her head:)

The Gilbride Quads in as Pirates  - how cute is this?

Baby Gaga - aka Ava.  She's mad at her manager for not delivering raisins fast enough.

Baby Hermit Crab - aka Josh

Super Girls and Mermaids - aka Lela, Emma, Hannah & Katie

It's a seafood buffet!

Baby Gaga and her press manager

The result of parents torturing their kids.

Josh and Amelia ready for their night out on the town in search of sugar.

A Night at Dell Children's Emergency Rom

Thursday night we had our first serious scare as parents.


I planned to take Friday off of work to visit daycares in Austin. So Amelia and I set off from Houston at her normal bedtime (so she can sleep most of the way in the car) headed for Austin. We arrived around 11pm and Amelia was wide awake. She was in a playful mood and was very excited to see Martin. We got inside and she played for a while before I tried to get her settled for bed. Around 11:30 I was changing her and noticed her lips were blue. Then all of the color drained from her face, hands and feet. I felt her feet and they were ice cold. Earlier that evening she had a slight fever but I attributed it to the multiple teeth she's cutting right now including two molars and I treated it with some Tylenol. Then, almost instantly she started shaking vigorously. Immediately Martin and I freaked out and called 911. The fact that we were not sure where the nearest emergency center was, made the situation worse because we had to rely on an ambulance. The 911 operator kept us calm and kept asking for updates on her condition while we waited for the ambulance to arrive. During the phone call, her color returned to normal and her shaking went to a mild shiver. Still, we were panicked by the episode. The EMT's arrived and they were unbelievably great. Both had young kids of their own and observed Amelia but kept us calm at the same time. Her fever at that moment was around 101. They attributed all of the symptoms to febrile seizures (seizures induced by a high fever), but they weren't sure. We took the ambulance to Dell Children's Medical Center - the Austin equivalent to Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. When we arrived at Dell Children's, the nurse's assessed the situation and took her temperature which had gone up to 103.6. They gave her some Motrin and sent us to the waiting area. Once the Motrin kicked in, Amelia was up and about trying to get into everything. She was in such a good mood we almost considered leaving thinking it was just a fluke incident. But we stayed because we felt it was something more serious. We were in the waiting area until 3am before we got a room and a doctor. When we got to the room they took her temperature again and it was 101. The doctor came in and asked us about what had happened and we retold the story. She explained that the blue lips, loss of color in Amelia's face and extremities was called shunting - it's when the body brings all of the blood to the center of the body to protect itself.  And the shaking was febrile rigors - just like when you have the flu and your body shakes violently.  She was convinced it had not been febrile seizures since she had remained attentive to us the whole time without losing consciousness but she was going to seek a second consult from a more seasoned physician.  At this time we noticed Amelia was getting very warm.  Her temperature had spiked back up to 103.8.  The doctor was concerned and wanted to rule out any possibility of illness so she ordered chest xrays.  To get a toddlers chest xrays the child has to be strapped into this clear vice with their arms straight up in the air by their ears.  And it's freezing in the room!  It was so sad to see our little girl in this acrylic vice, shivering and crying.  The xrays came back negative for infection or pnemonia.  Next, they had to rule out a urinary infection.  Since you cannot command a 14 month old to pee in a cup, they have to catheterize them.  The doctor reassured me that they do this all day long on very small infants and the nurses are quick and efficient.  First nurse was unsuccessful but she recognized that she couldn't do it after the first try and spared Amelia any more grief.  Meanwhile, Amelia is crying uncontrollably and I'm also on the verge of tears.  We decide to give Amelia some cold water to help the process.  Next nurse comes in and gets it on the first try - thank goodness.  Luckily that test also came back negative for infection which meant her kidneys and bladder were clear.  Since all areas had come back clear, it was determined that she had a viral infection and all we can do is make her comforatable and dose with Tylenol and Motrin every 3 hours.  At 6am Friday morning we went home.  And Martin got in the shower to go to work and I went to sleep with Amelia.  Unfortunately we did not get to do daycare tours.

What a crazy night for us.  I am so thankful to God that everything turned out to be ok.  And that we had wonderful medical care from the staff at Dell Childrens and the EMT's.

The Dell Children's ER waiting room.  The Motrin had kicked in and Amelia was on the move.  Meanwhile, Martin and I need toothpicks to keep our eyes open.

Funny stories to report

Beyond the walking that has recently started, not a lot is new.  But there are some funny stories to report.


There is a boy in Amelia's daycare class that really, really likes her.  His name is Max and he's adorable.  We walked into the room the other day and upon seeing Amelia, Max started smiling, laughing and stomping his feet in excitement.  The teachers have also told me that they are starting to separate them during the day because Max likes to hug Amelia and won't let go.  Amelia doesn't like the hugging so much and starts to get mad.  Martin will be having a sit down talk with Max this week:)


Amelia is starting to get more defiant when I try to discipline her.  Recently she started giving me her "mad" face.  She was doing something she wasn't suppose to, so I told her "No!" in a very stern voice.  She stopped what she was doing, looked at me, tucked her head down keeping her eyes on me, she jetted her bottom teeth out and then raised her eyebrows up and down repeatedly while giving me an evil stare.  I almost peed on myself it was so funny!  I will try to get it on video, but it's hard to capture those moments.


Halloween is coming up, so this year I've decided to make her costume.  She's going as a piece of Salmon Sushi!  Don't worry - I'll post photos as soon as possible.


Here are some new photos I hope you'll enjoy.

After a morning walk in Austin

Showing off her new skills

Caught playing in the closet

In her San Francisco Giants gear for the Championship game

First Haircut!  I just trimmed the ends.  Notice Yo Gabba Gabba is on to distract her.

Don't worry, I'm a professional!

Baby & Daddy!  I love this pic.

At Dewberry Farms looking at all the animals

Petting the donkey.  And then sanitizer afterwards.

Hi Donkey!

Hayride to the pumpkin patch.  These hayrides don't have any hay due to complaints about allergies!

A Nilla Wafer calms the meltdown we had right before this photo.

Mommy & baby:)

Family photo in front of the tractor!

Austin Bound

I'm sure you've heard that we're moving our little family to Austin, TX (ATX).  And we're pretty excited about it.  However, in order to achieve our ideal lifestyle, there are many sacrifices we are having to make right now.  The most difficult part is that Martin is living in Austin while Amelia and I are living in Houston.  Martin got an incredible job with a new company and had to move right away.  I'm staying behind to finish up at my job and it offers me some time to find employment.  Luckily Austin is only 2.5 hours from Houston and it's easy to go back and forth on the weekends.  We have been enjoying our weekends there taking long walks, going to Barton Springs and being immersed in all things Austin.


Some updates on Amelia - she's walking almost full time now.  Still crawling when it calls for quick transportation.  She has developed a serious attitude (or maybe she's had it all along) and she'll let you know if she disapproves of something.  She also bit another friend at daycare last week - same boy twice!  The teacher told me that Amelia doesn't like anyone in her space!  What do they say about the apple not falling far from the tree?  I'll leave it at that.  Our little girl is growing up and it's so amazing to see.  We laugh constantly at little things she does or cute faces she makes.  We are so blessed.  



Here are some cute videos.  Mute the player at the bottom to get the full audio effect.  Or you can always go to our YouTube page - link on the right.


Amelia reading





Walking and standing