Monday, July 23, 2012

"Sisters"

Way before Adelaide came along there was Lily.  It's no secret and everyone knows that we love her like a family member, not a pet.  I remember us making a big deal to Lily (she obviously had no idea) about someone else joining our family.  We were hoping and assuming she would get along just fine with her because she seemed to love all the kids she had been around before.  So naturally, when Adelaide arrived, everyone wanted to know what Lily thought of her.  When we brought Adelaide home from the hospital we very excited for Lily to meet her "little sister".  We held her down for Lily to sniff, which she did, and that was it.  She really didn't seem to be fazed by our new addition.  When Adelaide would cry or make sounds she would sometimes look her way but didn't seem to be bothered by it.  A few times she would come up to her and lick her feet, very sweet. 

This has pretty much continued even though Adelaide is mobile now.  Adelaide LOVES Lily. She smiles at her when I can't get her to smile. Lily just has to walk by and Adelaide will most likely grin. Lily follows us everywhere in the house so she is always around and Adelaide is well aware of that. With Adelaide's new mobility, Lily has learned to be a little more patient. Adelaide will cruise over to where Lily is lying on the couch and reach out for her. Most of the time, although not all of the time, Lily will simply get up and move to the other side of the couch or the chair. Lily really does well with her and I can see that they have bonded in their own way.  Here are some pictures of the "sisters" in action.



First meeting




Ha!



Whoa!


Surprised?









She's not detered from the clanging.


See what I mean?  They are always together.  We love them and the sweet relationship they have!

Monday, July 16, 2012

9 Months

It's that time, time to say that I've known you longer on the outside than on the inside.  Seriously?  Seriously.  There are times when I feel like I'm super new at this whole being a mom thing (maybe I will always feel that way?) and then there are times when I can't remember life before you.  I remember hearing others saying that before you joined us and thought that kinda seemed crazy, and I'll admit that it does, but it has a lot of truth.  What in the world did we do before staring into your precious face?  What did we do before hearing your giggle echo from room to room?  I mean, don't get me wrong, your Daddy and I had some good times in the years before you were born.  But, ultimately, something was missing.  That something was you sweet girl.  And boy am I glad we "found" you.

Now about your 9th month.  You were growing and exploring so much this month.  Funny to look back at things from the beginning of the month that you started doing and we were blown away by.  By the end of the month, it's old hat with you.  I guess that's how you grow, day by day.  I had mentioned before that all you wanted to do was to stand.  Well standing became the old thing and cruising started.  You simply cannot get enough.  You started walking behind your activity walker like you were an instructor.  We bought you an activity table and it didn't take you long to figure out how to push it all around the house.  And with all this walking talk, let's not forget that you are officially crawling.  I will call it June 11th as the day you were crawling.  It's still a belly/army crawl but you are getting where you want to go.  You're funny to watch as you use your right foot, specifically your big toe, to push off. 

June 11th was a big day for you because that was also the day that I remember seeing you wave for the first time.  At first I was second guessing myself that you had just waved, but then it became apparent that you were doing just that.  I wave to Lily each morning when you see her as we tell her good morning and Daddy's waves at the owls on your quilt each night before you go to bed.  You finally picked it up and started doing it yourself.  Its, mostly, that cute little backwards wave that babies do and we love seeing you do it.  As time has gone on, we can sometimes get you to do it on command when we are telling someone goodbye.

You love to stick your finger into holes on toys and other objects.  Many times it's the holes where the screws are.  You really seem to be developing your fine motor skills quite well.  This actually started earlier, but I have forgotten to mention it.

Your naps are a little more predictable at 2 naps a day for the most part.  You normally go for about 1 hour 20 minutes in the morning about 2 or so hours after you wake up and again in the afternoon around 2-2:30 for close to another hour and half.  You seem to be a happy girl so this nap schedule seems to be working for now.

You had a 9 month well-check doctor's appointment.  It went well and we got your stats again.  You weighed 15 lbs. and 6 oz. which is the 9%ile.  Your height is 26 1/4 in. which is the 8%ile.  Your head circumference is 16 1/4 which is the 3%ile.  You are still a little peanut, obviously.  You are wearing 6 month clothes and I've still been able to use a few smaller ones.  I love summer clothes, they are super cute and fun!  You're into size 3 diapers even though we may could have used size 2 for a while longer.

Your eating is pretty good, but has room for improvement if you ask me.  You aren't the biggest fan of food in general.  I mean, you eventually eat what you need to grow and stay on track with your growth curve, but you sure don't get super excited about it.  We are still working through this and trying to get you to try more things.  Hopefully you will get more into it in the near future.

Let's do a fly-over with this month's pictures.
We went camping in Pisgah National Forest for Memorial Day.  You were just getting over your sickness and were pretty clingy to us while we were there.  Here you are hanging with Daddy around the campfire.

Lily and you are going to be too much to handle before too long.

Silly face


Swinging on a Saturday afternoon.  We love it when Daddy is home with us!


Beautiful, happy girl


On June 15th, Aunt Danielle and Uncle Ben got married!!  This is moments before the ceremony began.  You were lucky and got to sit on the bride's lap.

Being silly with the cousins, minus Ryan.

Family picture after the ceremony.

Daddy/Daughter look-a-like contest... just kidding

You met your Great-Grandma Popp!  She enjoyed squeezing on you and we were so glad she finally got to meet you.


We came home from Asheville on Father's Day.  So after the drive home we hung out a little and then had dinner at a new place called The Flying Burrito, Daddy's choice.  You gave him a flag/flagpole, some candy, a framed picture of you, and some artwork that you had finger painted.  I must say that you have the best Daddy a girl could ask for.  He is there for anything you (or I) need and he is so gentle with you.  He treats you like a little lady and will be the example you need later in life when looking for a husband.  You light up when he walks through the door from work and it makes my heart so full.  I can't wait to see you grow and come to love him more and more, just as I do.


That's right, you're a traveling girl all of a sudden.  From the mountains to the coast.  We had one night at home before heading out again, east this time.  Daddy had to go back to work but we enjoyed the ocean with Granny, Uncle Matt, and Haydyn.  We spent June 18-21st down there and loved our time by the water, but missed Daddy for sure.

First few steps in the water.  You really seemed to like it.

Sweet cousins

Playing in the sand wondering what in the world it was.

This is your "not sure of what to think of that sticky, gritty stuff" look.  Makes me laugh!

You weren't the biggest fan of being placed in the hole they dug out for you.


After a long Sunday with only 40, yes 40, minutes of napping we decided to head to the pool.  It was your first time in and you seemed to like it as well.  Thank goodness you're a water baby!

Pooped after a little while.


Beside Miss Sock Monkey!

We love you, Adelaide.

Friday, July 13, 2012

Pebbles?

We can't handle the cuteness!

Friday, June 29, 2012

Southern Summer Lunch

Yum... and I didn't even take a picture of the fresh blueberries!

Monday, June 18, 2012

Beach bums!!

Adelaide's first beach trip and she loves it

Sunday, June 10, 2012

8 Months

Another month, and my how you're growing!  This month was full of fun and excitement.  See below, haha!


Let's see what are you doing these days. You are no longer content to simply sit and play with your toys. You would much rather pull up on us to stand and do a little dance. You absolutely love to stand and sometimes making you sit doesn't always suit your fancy. We can stand you up at the ottoman and you are oh so happy. You aren't quite cruising down it on your own, but will cross back and forth between it and us or the couch. All those early days of tummy time sure don't make you like it any better now. Perhaps that's why you aren't really crawling yet? At this rate, once you can keep your balance, you will be walking on your own before too much longer. You will love that. And speaking of loving, you really love walking while holding our hands. You want to walk so much like this that it wears us out!

As far as sleeping goes you are, sometimes but not always, stretching out your naps to 2 a day about 1 hour and 20 minutes or so each one. Your length of your first nap often dictates how many you take that day. Bedtime somewhat depends on when you wake up from the last nap but you are normally ready for the routine to begin around 7:30. Most nights you sleep all night until 7-7:30 the next morning without a peep. Thank you child, and Praise the Lord!

As far as activities go... Gram and Grandpa came to visit again and Grandpa taught you to bang balls together. We didn't get any action shots, but you both enjoyed it. Trust us.

It was a super month for celebrating. It was Mother's Day, Daddy's Birthday, and our 6th Anniversary.



On Mother's Day we dedicated you at church.  What a sweet time to do it.  Granny, Papa, Uncle Matt, and Haydyn came.  I wanted to include a little of the responsive reading so we will never forget our commitment.  "Do you come today to commit yourselves to be godly parents whose lives will reflect the glorious joy of knowing the Lord God through Jesus Christ, His Son?  We do.  Do you come to place this child in the strong, loving, secure arms of your eternal Father, entrusting your child both to His care and His service?  We do.  The prayer of Hannah for her son, Samuel, gives us an illustration of the extent of this dedication:  `I prayed for this child, and the Lord granted me what I asked of Him.  So now I give him to the Lord.  For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.` 1 Samuel 1:27-28.  Is this the commitment you are making in the dedication of your child unto the Lord?  It is."  Daddy helped you make a stepping stone for me as a Mother's Day gift.  Apparently, you both had an interesting time making it and I think it's priceless to have your semi-handprint in stone.


Daddy's 28th birthday was a fun day. We went to breakfast at Brigs and then ate cake around lunch. Cousin Josh got married later so you went to stay with Uncle Chris and Aunt Kim. I hear you had fun playing with Isaiah and Lily. Yay for Daddy being another year older!

Our anniversary was a bit of a different one than in years past. We stayed around home and had Boston Market for dinner with you as our centerpiece. Different for us, but wonderful because we have you in our lives now.

This month also brought on your first real bout with sickness. I woke up the Monday morning after our anniversary and you were still snoozing hard. I thought you were just catching up from an off schedule day at church the day before. About 2 hours after you normally wake up you started talking. I went in there to get you and you had a runny nose, alarming but you'd had one before. Then I picked you up and you were so hot. I checked your temperature and it was 102.8 (The highest it got was 103.1, ugh). I felt so sorry for you. You felt awful and, therefore, so did I. It truly is tough watching your baby so sick. I gave you some medicine and took you to the doctor that afternoon. It was a cold so there was nothing to do but ride it out. And ride it out we did. You quit eating your baby food and I became worried, but the doctor's office said that as long as you were nursing good then you should be fine. Wednesday you started nursing less and I got more worried so I planned to take you back in Thursday morning. Finally, your fever broke Thursday morning so I waited to see if you nursed better that day. You didn't so I took you in Friday morning. From Monday to Friday you went from 15 lbs. 3 oz to 14 lbs 7 oz... lost 5% of your body weight. The doctor said that if you were not nursing and/or eating better by Tuesday to bring you back in. Finally on Sunday night you ate a few spoonfuls of bananas from Daddy while I held you. I almost cried. One week without you eating any food was hard to take. Thankfully you were on the mend and have slowly started eating better, but still not where you were before your sickness. We are still working on that. Praise the Lord for healing.

Okay, now on to happier events.
This is what happens when Daddy gives you a bath, silly!

More jumper, yay!

Our girls

Sweet sleepy time

Smiley!

Funny face picture!  You voted and have the sticker to prove it.

Pulling things out of the basket is still one of your favorite activities.

Hanging outside with Daddy.

Whew, I can barely stand it.

Peek-a-boo, I see you.

First time you scooted far backwards and were in a total different place than when I left you.  Progress!

Infectious laugh

Loving to stand

Playing with Henry

and with Kailyn

and with Graham

First time trying a snack, a baby Mum Mum.  You immediately pulled it away and gave a funny face.

Miss Adelaide with Miss Sock Monkey!

You were insistent that the sticker should not be on your clothes, but in your hands.  Look at that concentration.

Then into your mouth.

Look at that satisfied grin.  We love you so much baby girl.