Week Thirty-Seven

It snowed on Sunday ... it was beautiful ... and Ellie spent the whole day with us ... we had so much fun playing together ... which I am getting much better at ... we had a little yoguart party and everyone sat and had their own yoguart ... we listened to music and read books ... played in my room ... it was fantastic ... I had so much fun I zonked out early ...

since I didn't get to play in the snow on Sunday mommy left work early ... bundled me up in my snow suit and I got to go play with some ... although mommy said it was really just ice now it was still fun ... she said next time she will take me out while it is actually snowing ... I can hardly wait ...

I figured out the crawling thing this week ... mommy was right everything just clicked ... I'm not fast or anything but I can go forward now ... a couple of paces at a time ... I do love to lay on my tummy ... sit up ... lay back down ... sit up again ... I move around in a circle like that ... and of course mommy gets a big kick out of it ...

I also can totally hold my bottle and get stuff out of it ... I figured out it had to be tilted ... I don't feed myself all the time ... sometimes I still want mommy or daddy to do it ... but I do it a lot of the time now ... I love it ...

Most nights this week it has been really cold so daddy builds a fire in our fireplace and we hang out down there at night ... it is fun cause I can practice my crawling and it is so warm and pretty ...

today we are going to the zoo ... I can't wait ... it will be my first time there ...

Week Thirty-Six

I haven't quite gotten the crawling forward down ... but I can move backwards ... not fast but it is a steady snail pace ... Mommy says she can tell by the look on my face that I am working on going forward but it just hasn't happened yet ...

I started holding my bottle this week ... but I still need a little help sometimes drinking from it ... can't seem to tilt it up high enough to get anything ... but mommy and daddy ohhhhh'ed and ahhhhhh'ed watching me hold the bottle ...

I got to go to work with mommy for a little while on Monday ... daddy had a really early job near mommy's work ... so she took me with her and he came and picked me up ... I worked on my crawling while I was there but my jeans were so cute no one noticed the crawling ...

Mommy keeps saying any minute now everything is going to click ... I'll be feeding myself and chasing Kramer on my hands and knees ... I can't wait for that to happen ...

Week Thirty-Five

Well today is a VERY big day ... not only am I 35 weeks old I also turned 8 months old today ... mommy and daddy can hardly believe I am already 8 months old ... that is the same lenght of time I was in mommy's tummy ...

So to mark the big day I went on my first trip to IKEA ... wow what a wonderful store ... I understand why mommy calls it Mecca ... thay had the greatest stuffed animals ... and I got to ride in the little IKEA shopping cart made just for kids ... I had so much fun ...

This week was pretty fun too ... I got to try stage 3 baby food and boy do I love it ... so far my favorite is the lasagne with meat sause ... I gobbled up the whole jar ... mommy thought it smelled just like spaghetti-O's ... but it didn't matter to me ... even without any teeth yet I still "chewed" the pieces of food ...

Mommy also bought me my own yoguart this week ... since I was taking so many bites of hers she decided rather than share I could get my own ... and unlike mommy's mine has all the fat in it a growing baby needs ... I shake with excitment when I see mommy get a container of it ... and she says she can't feed it to me fast enough ...

The heater in daddy's car is broken so on Wednesday I got to stay home with him because it was so cold he just didn't want to take me out for the long drive ... I was happy about it because I love hanging out with daddy for the day ... and when mommy doesn't have to drive all the way out to pick me up I get to spend more time with her as well ... so it works out great for everyone ... while I was napping daddy actually fixed his own heater ... he is so cool and so handy ... he can fix/make/improve anything ... when I am big enough I am going to be his helper ... just like mommy was her daddy's helper when she was a kid ... this morning daddy got a table saw but I am guessing it will be quite some time before I am allowed to help him with that ...

Daddy said on Monday I looked sad about going back to school after having two whole weeks home with him and mommy and grandmommy and aunt Jenny and Ellie ... but I still had fun during the week ... I mean there is a buggy at school ... and other kids to make me laugh ...

I'm still not crawling yet but I can get into position really easily now and I do rock back and forth very well ... I am still sleeping through the night ... once in a while I wake up when I can't find my binkie but I go right back to sleep ...

Soon I will be able to crawl and I'll catch that cat of mine ... he won't be able to escape ... hahahahahaaaaaa

Week Thirty-Four

This was a pretty exciting week for me ... I stayed home from school again so I got to do all sorts of fun (and not so fun) stuff ...

Unfortunately mommy had to take me to the doctor again first thing Saturday morning ... I had finished my antibiotic but was really fussy Friday night and tugging on my ears so first thing Saturday morning we were in the doctors office ... she said my ear infections looked better but they hadn't totally cleared up ... and she was concerned about that ... so they gave mommy the name of an ear, nose and throat doctor (ENT) and said she should give him a call ... especially since I have basically had 4 ear infections (in both ears) in the last 2 months and they have never completely cleared up ...

this time the medicine they gave me I only had to take for 5 days ... instead of the 10 for all the others ... and mommy thinks it is helping because this week, every single night, I slept through the night ... the first time since the middle of October ... which is when she suspects I got my first ear infection ... mommy is such a happy person when she gets so much sleep ... and it turns out I am too ...

Daddy was really sick over the weekend, some sort of virus so mommy and I let him rest ... we ran errands and hung out reading books ... both Daddy and I were asleep before midnight on New Year's Eve ... so mommy taped the ball dropping in Times Square and we all had our own New Year's Celebration on Monday morning ...

Mommy was off from work all day on Monday so we played the whole day ... it was great ... I love when mommy is home for the day ... this week I also started getting up on my hands and knees in the crawl position ... rocking back and forth ... and mommy came into my room Monday morning and noticed I was up on my hands and knees and grabbing my mobile ... so that afternoon mommy and daddy lowered my crib to the bottom hole ... it is like I am a big girl now ... next step a big girl bed ... although I assume that won't be for quite some time now ... but I love the crib how it is now ... I am able to see more of my beautiful butterflies and mommy and daddy coming in because the bumper doesn't block my view being down so low ... it is fantastic ...

Tuesday I spent the whole day with Daddy ... he wasn't feeling very well but since I have been on so many antibiotics I could hang out with him ... we snuggled and snoozed on the couch a lot ... it was GREAT ...

on both Wednesday and Thursday I got to hang out with Grandmommy ... it seemed like it had been so long since I had seen her since she had been in North Carolina for Christmas ... but before I could go to Grandmommy's house on Wednesday mommy took me to see the ENT ... and I was sooooooooo good during my appointment ...

They had to do all sorts of tests ... but I have kind of gotten used to some of them so I stay much more still ... like when they look in my ears ... I sat on Mommy's lap in a really cool chair and she held my hand while the nurse checked me out ... then they took me to this cool little room where they took a picture of the inside of my ears ... then gave me a hearing test where this stuffed pig and bird on opposite ends of the room kept calling my name ... then the doctor came in to see me ... and he checked out my ears ... I got a little fussy when he cleaned them a bit but overall I did a pretty good job ...

Since I am currently on an antibiotic the doctor said he wanted to see how I did on that ... but he too said my ears were still a bit infected ... he also told mommy I had about a 15% hearing loss but he didn't think it was permenant ... that once the fluid was out of my ears I would be good as new ...

The bad news is that when I go back on January 31st is when they will make the decision of if I have to have tubes put in my ears or not ... mommy and daddy are really scared ... although everyone has told them the surgery is harder on the parents than the child ... and that I will feel 100% better immediately ... so they are starting to think it might be a good idea ... but they will wait to see what the doctor says at the end of the month ... he did say there is a chance I could burst into a high fever again before the 31st which would mean I have another acute ear infection and that I should see my doctor and get another antibiotic ... but they are hoping soon I won't have to take so much medicine ...

On Friday mommy took the day off and we got to go to Washington DC ... we had dinner with mommy's friend from High School Amy and Melissa and 4 of their 5 kids (Melissa had a baby 9 months ago who stayed in California with his daddy so her 2 older sons came and Amy's son and daughter) ... it was so much fun ... especially for mommy ... she hadn't seen Amy in about 15 years but it was like nothing had changed even though they were now all mommies ... and I even stayed awake past my bedtime and did great ... I loved playing with Payton (Amy's daughter) ... she was so sweet to me and we were even both wearing Ugg boots ... mommy and daddy decided on the way home we were going to go into DC more often ... especially once it gets warmer ... I'm so excited because I thought it was fantastic ...

And it seemed like the first Friday night in a long time that Mommy wasn't planning on taking me to the doctor first thing Saturday morning ... woohoo ... yea for me ... and yea for everyone in this house that I am now, once again, sleeping through the night ... lets just hope I didn't jinx it writing about it ...

Week Twenty

I've really started getting a grasp on my toys ... I can pick them up and hold them ... throw them across the room ... stick them in my mouth ... it is so much fun ... I'm really starting to move all the toys in my exersaucer too which makes it much more fun sitting in there ...

Saturday was a rough day for mommy but a fun day for me ... mommy single-handedly put all the boxes away from the fireplace room ... I hung out and entertained her when she rested and of course I was a good baby all day so she could get it done ... I know it is something that has been bugging mommy and daddy (especially) for some time now and since it is clean mommy cause use the room as our new photo studio ...

She bought back drops from a company online and on Sunday morning taped the white one up so we could take pictures of me ... they came out beautifully and mommy has put a new link up on the site for all our photo sessions ... cause as you can tell mommy can't seem to take enough pictures of me :) She did two separate sessions on Sunday because we had so much fun ... I am sure it is something she is going to do often now ...

I was supposed to go to Grandmommy's on Monday morning but since daddy had the day off he decided we would spend the day together ... we cuddled on the couch and watched movies and he talked to me all day ... I love spending the day with daddy and wish I got to do it more often ... he is good at making funny voices and faces and really gets me giggling ...

Tuesday and Wednesday I got to spend the day with Grandmommy and Aunt Jenny and Ellie ... I have so much fun when I am over there ... Grandmommy goes on and on about what a good baby I am ... and she cuddles me all day long ... I think she coos more than I do when she holds me ...

Thursday was a really big day for me ... first thing in the morning I went with mommy to her doctor's appointment ... everyone in the office wanted to see me since they had been the ones taking care of mommy before I was born ... and they all couldn't get enough of me ... of course I was super good ... mommy brought in my Bumbo seat and I just sat there and enjoyed all the attention and loved seeing all the new stuff to check out ... everyone kept commenting on how alert and good I was ...

Then I went to work with mommy ... which of course everyone was excited about ... I get so much attention at mommy's work ... Marianne took me on a walk and took a whole bunch of pictures of me ... and just kept kissing on me all day ... Mary even brought me to her office and played Sponge Bob videos on her computer for me which had me talking up a storm ... they could hear me all the way in the front office ...

People daddy work with even stopped by the office ... Phoebe and Sydney were loving all over me too ... I think they even fought over who got to hold me ... they were pretty funny about it too and had everyone laughing in the office ... I just loved that so many people wanted to cuddle with me ...

After work mommy and I headed to the airport to pick up Aunt Heather ... she was here while mommy was still pregnant so this was the first time she was going to meet me ... and boy was I excited ... I got to sit in the airport and people watch for half and hour which was GREAT ... there was so much to look at ... I was talking up a storm and so smiley ... there was a little boy sitting next to me that couldn't take his eyes off me ... I think he was trying to figure out what I was saying ...

When Aunt Heather got there she immediately picked me up and snuggled me ... she also started signing to me which I love love love ... I can't take my eyes off her when she is signing to me ...

It was storming pretty bad on the way home so Aunt Heather drove since mommy hates driving in storms and I fell fast asleep in the back seat ... once we got home I just snuggled up with Aunt Heather till it was time for bed ...

On Friday morning bright and early mommy and Heather set up the "photo studio" and took a whole bunch of cute pictures of me ... then I hung out and talked with Aunt Heather ... we watched one of my Signing Time videos and talked in sign language ... I'm starting to move my hands and fingers when people sign to me ...

In the afternoon I got to have some real food (well as real as I am going to get right now) ... I had my first taste of sweet potatos ... I think I had mixed feelings about them ... I made faces like it was a weird taste but then would still eat the whole spoonful ... it is exciting getting to try new foods ... and I am sure as I get better at the whole "eating thing" I will have much more fun ...

Later Aunt Heather watched after me while mommy filled out all my paperwork for day care and got all my stuff together ... then we all went and picked up my paperwork at the doctor's office and headed to the day care ... it was my first time there and I just lit up when I saw my room ... it is beautiful ... lots of toys and decorations and stuff to look at ... and everyone was so very nice to me ... it is going to be a great place to play ... I can't wait for Monday morning ...

After that we all went and hung out at Starbucks and talked ... mommy and Heather had coffee while I had a bottle ... it was a fun afternoon ... then we went to visit Grandmommy and Granddaddy ... we got to see Ellie and Aunt Jenny too ... it feels like I have seen 100 people in the last two days ... by bath time Friday night I was exhausted ... (well not too exhausted to kick and play in the tub) and fell asleep curled up in Aunt Heather's arms ... I'm excited she is here for two more days ... there is just so much more to do!!

Week Nineteen

On Saturday Mommy and I got up really early and were out of the house by 10:30 AM ... we went shopping at Kohls where mommy of course bought me some stuff ... and then we ran errands like the bank and post office ... she got me a new exersaucer to keep at Grandmommy's house ... we even stopped at Starbucks and hung out on the patio while I had a bottle ... we finished the day at Target and didn't get home till 4:30 PM ... Daddy was home from work before we were home from running errands ... I had a good time and Mommy kept telling me what a good baby I am ... she said she can take me anywhere ...

On Sunday we just hung around the house ... mommy did a lot of laundry and a lot of cleaning and we did a lot of playing too ... then mommy was sad cause once daddy got home we had to go give Granddaddy's car back ... she had been driving it for several weeks and just loves it ...

Grandmommy and Granddaddy got home late Monday night ... I was excited because I was going to spend Tuesday with Grandmommy ... I had a feeling she was going to cuddle me all day and I was right ... I always have a great time at Grandmommy's ...

Mommy and Daddy took advantage of me being at Grandmommy's house and went to visit a day care center after mommy got off work ... even though I like my nanny mommy and daddy think it would be better to have me in day care, and they are right ... I want to play with other children like when I am with Ellie ... and the hours are better for everyone's schedules so in the end I will get to spend more time with mommy cause she can go to work earlier and pick me up earlier ...

They put their name on the waiting list and all night Tuesday mommy kept saying, "I wish they would call ... I wish they would call" (even though they told mommy they probably wouldn't have an opening until January) ... so on Wednesday morning mommy put a funny picture of me on a card and wrote a thank you note to the director for showing them around ... Thursday afternoon they called to offer me a spot in day care starting October 2nd ... so in a week I start day care ... I'm so excited, so are mommy and daddy ... they had to let the nanny go which wasn't easy but in the end it will be good for everyone ...

On Thursday night I set a record ... I slept from 9:30 PM until 8:00 AM ... mommy was a bit bummed she couldn't sleep in too but she had to be up early for work ...

Friday I got to spend the day with Grandmommy again and had a great time ... even though daddy forgot to put me in my cute outfit that mommy laid out and took me over there in my PJs ... it was still a fun day ... mommy and daddy came over after work for Uncle Jason's birthday dinner ... they all had lasagna and cake (which I was jealous of) while I sat quietly in my swing and watched everyone ...

Overall it was a great week ... I love seeing mommy and daddy so excited about day care ... mommy already picked up the paperwork on Friday and has started getting my "bag of stuff" together to take to the center ... so until I start daycare I get to spend Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with Grandmommy next week and then go to work with mommy on Thursday ... fun stuff to look forward to ... :)

Week Eighteen

This was a big week ... I turned 4 months old on Wednesday!!! Time is just flying by ...


My 4 month photo

On Saturday while Daddy was at work Mommy went to CostCo with Granddaddy and Uncle Jason ... I got to stay home with Aunt Jenny and Eliana ... it was a lot of fun ... I of course ate some and slept some but I also got to listen to Ellie read to me which I loved!!! I couldn't take my eyes off her ... I also had a tea party with Ellie ... it is going to be soooooo funny when we can play together ... and before Mommy took me home Ellie gave me a bottle ... it was a REALLY fun Saturday!!!!

On Sunday we hung out at home and played a whole bunch ... I am loving my exersaucer more and more each time I use it ... I love that I can stand up in it and the toys are becoming more interesting to me ... I can spin the butterflies around and the noise makers ... it is supposed to be a great toy for Mommy to use so she can get things done but she loves to sit and watch me ... and that is fine by me ... I show off all I am able to do ...

I went to work with Mommy again this week on Tuesday and Friday ... unfortunately I started getting my first cold on Tuesday ... I was sneezing a lot and had a runny nose ... by night time I even had a little cough but no fever ... so mommy figures it is just a cold that will help me build up my immune system or I could be teething ... I guess only time will tell ...

Berthe was with me for 3 days this week ... we went on a lot of walks ... played with all my toys and everyday she dressed me up in cute outfits for when Mommy got home ...

A couple of nights this week my cough woke me up in the middle of the night (4:00 AM) which is really hard on Mommy cause she gets up at 5:15 so by the time I finish eating she can't really go back to bed ... but the older I get the more I sleep ... and I am really good at getting myself to sleep each night when she lays me down ... lately I have been sleeping from 9 or 9:30 until 7:30 or 8:00 (when my cough isn't waking me up)

Next week Grandmommy comes home ... I know she really misses me and is looking forward to me being at her house ... I'm looking forward to it too!!!