Things I don't want to Forget and our latest adventure

So, Sprout and I hopped on a plane and went to visit friends in Nashville, Tennessee. It was a little crazy traveling with her on my own and security was tons of fun, especially when she decided to vomit just as the diaper bag went into the x-ray machine, but we managed and had a great time. She's a little charmer for sure.

1. All she wants to do is walk and she is very particular about how you must help her. She will grab one finger on each hand and you will help her stand up as she walks. Luckily she's very tall, so I don't have to hunch over at all, but that's all she wants to do. She can be distracted by toys for awhile, but as soon as she manages to get someone to play with her, she has grabbed two fingers and pulled herself up to walk. It's pretty funny.

2. She is still mostly army crawling, though she's thrown a few traditional crawls in, too, and is using her knees more (as evidenced by the carpet burns :() I don't think she's going to crawl for very long, though, because she is obsessed with standing and walking.

3. She pulls herself up a lot, but only when she can really grasp something, like her play yard or crib. She hasn't figured out how to leverage herself on furniture very well. She also cruises a bit around her play yard.

4. She's finally babbling "mamamama" in happy tones. She used to only say that when she was upset. I'm also talking to her more and I promise she understood yesterday when I was pointing out body parts. She just got that look on her face, like she was saying, "oh!"

5. We moved her crib down to the lowest setting since she is pulling up now. My little girl is growing up.

6. Today is my birthday and I'm a little overwhelmed thinking about how amazing a year it has been. I'm so blessed to have my little family.

7. DH and I are leaving Sprout with her grandma and heading to NYC this weekend. I'm so nervous about leaving her, but I think DH and I really need the time away. My mom will take great care of her, but it's still tough. I'm also nervous about pumping and I'm scared that she'll like her bottles so much she won't want to nurse when I get home. However, I'm excited about traveling light and having a weekend to just be a couple. I gotta get packed, though!

Things I don't want to Forget and 9 Month Check up

First, Sprout had her 9 month check up, and she's healthy and growing well. 17 pounds, 13 ounces (29th percentile) and 29 inches long (89th percentile). Yay! She's doing everything she should be and her doctor seems thrilled with her progress. I asked him about her eating too many solids and losing interest in nursing. He said that since she's growing well, it's probably just the beginning of self-weaning. So, no worries, just go with it!

So onto the things I don't want to forget:

1. Sprout still loves her swim lessons. We have so much fun in "the big bathtub."

2. She's done a few real crawls and is getting really good at army crawling. No more can we leave her in one place and expect her to be close to the same spot when we return. We really gotta get on the childproofing.

3. She's clapping and waving.

4. She does this thing we like to call the "lizard tongue" where she sticks her tongue out over and over again.

5. She does a funny grunting/heavy breathing thing that cracks us up. She wrinkles up her whole face and usually will happily do it to imitate her daddy.

6. She pulled up for the first time this week.

7. She got to spend a little time with her great-grandma this week who is in town for just a few days. Apparently, she talks about her great-granddaughter all the time. So sweet!

8. She is eating finger foods well - chunks of banana, avocado, watermelon, and whatever else I can think of!

So there's plenty of excitement to go around. And I'm getting pretty nervous about our airplane trip tomorrow with a mobile baby and no DH for back up. Say a little prayer for me!

Things I don't want to forget

It's been a busy week for our little Sprout. She's been so busy that she's decided to skip her naps. Too much to do! Here are some highlights:

1. She is still kissing and fish facing anyone who will look at her.

2. She has learned how to wave and to clap. When she clapped for the first time, it was the cutest thing ever. She did it and DH and I got all excited and then she looked down at her hands studying them very carefully, like, "whoa! That's how it works! I really did it!" Then the whole scene repeated. She was definitely proud of herself.

3. She's almost figured out how to crawl. She has definitely figured out kind of a half crawl that gets her where she wants to go, though it takes awhile. Nothing is safe any longer. She is fearless and wants to explore everything. It's cute and scary all at the same time.

4. She has pulled herself up a couple of times.

5. We had our first swim lessons and she was a star pupil. She LOVES the water (we like to call it the big bathtub). I think she was a fish in her former life. All the moms of toddlers kept pointing to her and saying things like, "See how the baby is floating? Can you put your head like that?" She loves it and is as cute as can be.

6. She's also still got teeth coming in. 2 have broken through, one is about to and another is on the way. When we get through this, she'll have 2 bottom teeth and 4 on top. I'm ready for it to be over, though.

So, it's been an exciting week here, as you can tell! We have our 9 month check-up on Monday, so we'll see how her weight is checking out. I think she's doing fine, but I think I'll always be nervous about it.

Things I don't want to forget

This will probably be a short post because it's been a crazy day. Sophia is apparently on a nap strike. I don't know whether it's her teeth, or she's just protesting on principal, but I think we're going to have some work to do in the next few days to get things back on track. She may be moving to one nap a day, but she still seems really tired at her morning nap time, so I'm not ready to make that jump just yet. We'll see what happens next week when we can stay on a more predictable schedule. We haven't really done that for the last 2-3 weeks, so it's really no wonder she's a little off.

Anyway, today is our 4th anniversary, so we were hoping to at least go out to dinner. We're planning a special trip at the end of the month to really celebrate, but felt that we should at least acknowledge the day. Of course the fact that Sophia is dead tired because she hasn't slept all day should make it interesting.

So what I don't want to forget:

1. Sophia is waving! She's not consistent, but definitely is trying to imitate people waving at her and it's the most adorable thing ever.

2. She's also trying to figure out clapping. It's too cute. She puts her hands together and just moves them up and down like she's shaking hands with herself when I clap. I know she's trying to imitate the clapping, but just hasn't quite figured it out yet.

3. She is trying to crawl. She has a good scoot going on, but sometimes she'll be sitting and she'll lurch forward and bang her head into whatever is there. Ouch.

4. She can easily get herself into a sitting position now. Going to get her from her nap and seeing her just sitting there is a little scary and a lot cute.

5. I put her in the front of a cart for the first time yesterday and she handled it like a pro. I'm seeing shopping getting a little easier!

6. Sophia now kisses or fish faces just about everyone she meets. It's a real conversation starter and has brought a smile to many a grumpy Gus over the last week.

Hope everyone is having a great week!

Things I don't want to forget

So it seems to be falling on Sunday, but maybe eventually I'll get back to Thursdays :)

1. Sophia can now get herself into a sitting position pretty well. It's scary. She's also scooting/commando crawling a good bit and I've seen her get up on her knees and elbows a few times. She pulled herself up to standing this morning on DH. I am so not ready for this, but I'm proud of her!

2. Our niece has been visiting us. She's almost 8 and we've had a lot of fun together, but having 2 kids is definitely hard work. As evidence, I lost 4 pounds this week!

3. Sophia was too cute all dolled up for the 4th of July. I'm annoyed that we don't have any good pictures. She got tons of attention and even seemed to enjoy the fireworks. She just stared at them with her big wide eyes. She was a little frightened at the finale, but was otherwise just fascinated.

4. We've been giving her more finger foods and she's handling them well. She's had puffs, chunks of sweet potato, watermelon, and whole wheat couscous. It's so funny to watch her chew her food.

5. She is still working on her top 4 teeth and is very unhappy about the situation.

6. She is also in full out separation anxiety mode. If I'm anywhere around, she MUST HAVE MOMMY. It's about to drive me insane. I'm trying to treasure the moments, but it's pretty hard sometimes. Plus I feel bad for DH. She's fine with him until I walk into the room. Then she just wants me.

That's all for now because I'm in a hurry. I hope everybody is having a safe and special Fourth of July Weekend!

Busy week and lots to remember!

So, I missed my "Things I don't want to forget" post because I was enjoying a lovely week in Gulf Shores, Alabama. It was beautiful, if hot, most of the week and, until the last day there, we neither saw or smelled oil. Unfortunately, all that changed on the last day when it began washing ashore in little spots. It makes me so incredibly sad, and mad. The beautiful Gulf will never be the same. I'm sorry that Sprout will not remember the beautiful white sand and blue-green water.

But it was a great week, even though staying in a beach house with a bunch of in-laws is definitely stressful. We had our moments, but for the most part, everyone behaved well and had a nice vacation. Now, we are home with my 7 year-old niece who will be staying with us for about a week and a half. She is full of energy and a lot of fun, but she keeps us busy. It should be interesting.

So, to the things I don't want to forget:

1. Sprout got up to a sitting position on her own twice. I went in to pick her up from her nap one day and there she was sitting up (crying). She did it again another time when she was with DH, but we did not see her actually do it. I'm still waiting for that. We moved the crib down a notch. It kind of makes me sad.

2. Yesterday, when we finally made it home, she decided to commando crawl for the first time. Yikes! She is on the move. I predict that she will be onto a regular crawl soon. I am so not ready for mobility, but I guess that doesn't matter.

3. On our first flight on the way home, Sprout was crying when we landed and were waiting to get off the plane. When I stood up, I accidentally bonked her head on the overhead bin. I apologized and felt awful - then I realized that she had completely stopped crying. The passengers around us just laughed. Poor thing.

4. Speaking of the crying baby. We have 4 more teeth on the way. Sprout was teething all week, so she was a little on the fussy side constantly and very clingy. She was a trooper, though, and still managed to have a good time. The two top middle teeth are starting to poke through, and the ones next to them are definitely on the way. Poor baby. I'm also wincing in anticipation. I hope breastfeeding doesn't suffer (or more accurately that the breastfeeding mama doesn't suffer!)

5. Sprout met all 7 of her cousins on DH's side of the family. We had a big family portrait done with his dad, 3 siblings, and all of the grand kids. It was fun, but trying to get 8 kids under the age of 8 (6 of them under 5)to look at the camera at the same time, was definitely a challenge.

6. As you can see by the picture, Sophia has learned a new skill - the fish face. It is hilarious and kept us all laughing. She was hamming it up at a restaurant on our last night in Alabama and all the servers and front staff had to come by and see for themselves. I love that little girl!

I actually could detail our beach memories for hours, but I'll leave it at that. We definitely enjoyed the trip and feel so blessed to have such a good traveler.

Things I don't want to forget

• This afternoon, my little girl babbled "mamama" for the first time! I realize that it's meaningless babble, but I still love it!
• I inked her up to put her footprint in DH's Father's Day Bible and I couldn't get all the ink off. It's still under her fingernails (I tried to do her hand, too, unsuccessfully), but DH hasn't noticed. If he does, I think I'll tell him that it was like that when I picked her up from jail. Must be from the fingerprinting.
• Sprout attended her first wedding on Saturday and she was an angel. She was also doted upon by her aunts and cousins. It was a fun trip, even though the wedding wasn't really my cup of tea.
• New phrase in our household: "How did she get all the way over there?" Can't keep our eyes off of her for a second anymore!
• Packing for a trip to the beach with a baby is stressful. I hope we enjoy it, despite the oil.
• When you shake a stuffed animal in her face, Sprout laughs hysterically. That and bath time zerberts are about the only way to get her laughing reliably.
• She reaches out to me now when I go to pick her up. She's been doing it for a little while, but I don't think I've written it down. It makes me want to melt. And she's either trying to kiss me or nurse on my cheek. Probably the latter, but I'll pretend it's the former.