Kayla had another milestone this week. She is walking on her own. She had taken a few steps on her own when Bobbie and I were waiting at the other end in the past few weeks but now she is walking a few steps at a time all on her own. She is still a little hesitant and still crawls when she is in a hurry. But she will stop and stand up and take a few steps here and there. It is a very exciting time.

Well, Kayla had a crazy week last week. She started the week off being sick and missing daycare. To make matters worse, Mike was out of town. So, Grandma C flew down to babysit her for a few days and keep an eye on her. Wednesday we took her to the eye doctor for a followup visit on her blocked tear duct.

Well, she definitely remembered her prior visit there and started wimpering as soon as we entered the room. Then, they dilated her eyes and she must have screamed and cried for 15 minutes, poor baby. Unfortunately, her tear duct is still blocked so Kayla is going to go to the hospital for surgery at the end of September. They'll try to put a stint in it for 6 months and that should be able to keep it from being blocked. I'm looking forward to that being over.

Later that night she ended up with a 101 fever again. So, Thursday we headed off to the pediatrician. Good thing we did because as it turns out she had a double ear infection and lots of wheezing. So, 4 prescriptions later.... Kayla seems to be doing better. She's on steroids and antibiotics. Let me tell you, the steroids had an interesting effect. She was a bit manic at first but seems to have adjusted to them. The heavy steroids only had to be taken for 5 days anyway.

By the time the weekend came, Grandma C flew home and Grandpa P flew in. They got to spend time together at the park and the beach and Kayla recuperated enough to return to daycare today.

Here's a picture of Kayla in the dog days of summer in Florida. She's just chillin out with her sippy cup in the front yard.
She had a good (full) week at daycare last week and ended with water day on Friday. They said she loves water day! We send her in her bathing suit and flip flops and they spray her and put her in a little baby pool. She's doing very well at daycare and they keep her busy with music, art, reading, and playtime. They say she eats and sleeps really well. She's always been one of the best nappers there!! They get to sleep from 12 to 2 every day and they say she's always one of the first to sleep and last to get up.
Although she made it through the week, she did seem to have a mild stomach virus and tonight we noticed she has a slight fever again! Will it ever end? I can't wait till she stops getting sick so frequently. I've done a lot of worrying this past year!

We're about 3 weeks late, but we made it to the doctor today for Kayla's 12 month checkup. Here are her statistics: Weight 20 lbs (25-50 percentile) Height 28 3/4 in. (25-50 percentile) The doctor and I were a little confused since the weight was actually down from her 9 month check up. They weighed her a couple times on different scales today, so the weight is correct. But, I think it may have been recorded incorrectly at 9 months. Unfortunately, she had to have 2 shots (MMR and Varicella) as well as blood drawn for a CBC and lead test. She was talking up a storm and moving all over the room until the shots. They gave shots in both thighs and took blood from her finger on her left hand. Luckily this left her right hand free to suck on her thumb after crying loudly for a few minutes. Poor thing. Luckily it's over and she was ready for bed early tonight. I'm also posting a few more pictures from our trip last week.

Kayla flew to Ohio for the 4th of July. This was her 4th time flying and she was a champ. She is however getting a little more vocal and restless on the plane trips. While we were only gone for less than 3 days, she had a very busy schedule meeting with all her fans! She saw Grandma and Grandpa Ciochetto, Aunt Bonnie, Aunt Bette and Uncle Don, Aunt Kristi and Uncle Ed, and many more. The first picture above is with Aunt Bonnie and the second picture above is with the cows on Uncle Don's farm. She thought it was cool to actually see cows up close and not just read about them! The third picture is with a bunch of new friends she made at one of our outings. She's now a little over a year and very close to walking on her own. She's taken about 6 steps on her own a couple of times and she gets a big, surprised look on her face every time. It'll be any day now. Mike and I are still in no hurry for her to walk on her own!