Announcing - Baby #2

I meant to announce our good baby news on my blog and facebook after the standard 12 week waiting period, but got sick and busy, etc.  So, finally in the 18-19 weeks, we are finally managing that.  So, here is a quick glimpse of my pregnancy so far.  I'm currently at 19 weeks (can't believe it's almost the halfway point) and I'm due on August 31st. 

We found out we were pregnant in December, but weren't ready to share our news yet.  When Naomi's birthday came around, we decided it was the ideal time to tell our family.  We had several family members in from out of town and most of our family would be at Naomi's birthday party and we would be able to tell everyone at once.  At this point, I was about 6 weeks along (my calcs at the time had me at 8 weeks, but I was adjusted at our initial sono).  So, Naomi's first gift to open was from us and was a book, "I'm Going to be a Big Sister".  I wish I had a picture but we were so all in the moment that no one took one.  Reactions included, "Why would someone get her that?", "Did you buy her that?" and finally "Are you trying to tell us something?", to which we replied that yes we are having another baby.  This resulted in a chorus of "Are you serious?" and "Really?" followed by joy and hugs.  (And later, of course, the whole yes we were actually trying - it is me after all - the girl who wasn't sure she wanted one, now having two is a bit surprising even to me.) 

We told our ABF at church next (around the 10 week mark) and continued gradually telling friends we saw, co-workers, Jazzercise peeps, etc. 

First trimester summary:  I was way more sick with this one than I was with Naomi, but no where near as sick as some women get.  I got a prescription for Zofran - helped a lot.  I didn't gain any weight - yay! - really worked hard on that one since I'm still carrying extra weight from having Naomi.  My only noticeable craving was for Arby's roast beef sandwiches which was completely bizarre since we eat there once maybe every couple of years or so.  I'm over it now, but I went more in one month than I have in the past decade. 

Second trimester so far:  The sick tapered off around week 14-16 with a few "going out with a bang" moments.  At my last doctor's appointment, I had officially gained 1 lb. - not bad.  I just started "popping out" quite a bit in the last couple weeks, so whatever extra weight I already had has begun migrating to my belly.  :)  I haven't had any real "cravings" lately, but do notice things tasting good to me that normally aren't really my thing - I remember this from last time too - Brian's babies love salsa and bbq sauce. 

18 week sono:  It's a GIRL.  Her name will be Olivia.  Everything looked good and normal (pic above).  That's pretty much it.  I don't have another appointment with the perinatologist, so we'll see if I go back to her this time around or if it'll just be the OB. 

Will I have preeclampsia again?  I get asked this question a lot, so I figure I'll answer it here in case anyone is wondering.  The answer, in short, is "flip a coin".  There is no way to know and no known way to prevent it since they don't really know what causes it (the blood pressure is merely one of the symptoms and the most easily measured, so simply controlling blood pressure isn't the answer).  So far, so good.  I monitor my blood pressure on a regular basis just to get an idea of my baseline - it eases my mind and it helps the doctor.  Otherwise, they don't do anything special for this pregnancy until something goes haywire.  So we just wait and hope and prepare.  We've thought through the possibility of hospital bed rest and are planning to have the room completed by the end of June (quite the undertaking given the current state of things). 

How long will I be able to teach Jazzercise?  Again, we'll see.  Still going strong and full out.  No need to restrict to low impact yet as I "have a proven cervix" (sorry for the tmi).  So, I'll go until I feel too un-comfortable, make adjustments to my schedule when the time comes, and stop if they tell me that I must.  I taught 4 classes this week, even while dealing with a massive sinus/allergy attack.  I just ordered a maternity support belt to help me as my belly expands over the next couple months.  Keep on dancin' ya'll!  :) 

Baby Bump Pics:  I'm sure I'll take some at some point and if I do, I'll post them. 

More later!

12 Months Old - 1 Year Old!

Stats?
About 18 lbs 4 oz (25%) and 28.5 in long (25%) - petite and proportioned.  :)
She's in size 3 diapers and her 9-12 month clothes.

How is she sleeping?
No change here.  Sleeps from about 7:30pm to 7:00-7:30am.  Naps about 9:30-10:30am and 2:00-4:00pm.  The girl likes her sleep (most of the time, of course, we all have those days). 

How is she eating?
We've been working more on giving her whatever we are eating and she prefers that. In fact, if you try to feed her Cheerios or other snacks while you eat something else, she whines.  I'm still nursing her about 2-3 times a day and we are planning to wean her over the next month (we started a little this month, but I'm taking it gradually).  I can't believe I nursed her a full year; it seemed impossible at first, but I'm so glad that I stuck it out.

Doctor Visit
She checked out great.  Doctor says she's just perfect and is on track developmentally on the whole.  She got some vaccines that weren't supposed to affect her, but they did.  She would not nap without being held all afternoon.  But, she bounced back pretty well the next day. 

What new tricks does she do?
She's all over the place - she continues to cruise really well and her transitions from laying to sitting and standing have improved a lot.
She'll push anything around to get where she wants - chairs, toys, etc.
We've coaxed her into walking one handed a few times, so we'll see how that goes next month. 
She's tried standing on her own for a few seconds here and there and does well until she figures out that no one is holding her and she suddenly gets shaky. 
Verbally, she's still babbling away and we still can't make sense of it most of the time.  We've gotten cat (without the t at the end of course).  We're still trying to teach some signs, but no progress yet, we'll see.

General Observations?
She still has 6 teeth so far, though we suspect 2 more may be on their way.
Her little personality is really starting to shine.  She's friendly, smiley, determined, stubborn, curious, and generally happy. 
This months photo session was tricky; she just did not want to sit still.  We had to give her the book to flip through just to keep her from climbing out of the chair.  She's SO active!
Can't believe it's been a year... time flies!


Until next time... Enjoy!

11 Months Old

Stats?
About 18.25 lbs (?%), ? in long (?%), and ? cm head circumference.
She's in size 3 diapers and her 9 month clothes. 
(We'll have more complete stats at her 1 year well-baby visit.)


How is she sleeping?
At the beginning of this month we noticed she was pushing up on the crib bumpers in an attempt to stand up (yes, I know they're not supposed to be in there), so we removed the bumpers and dropped the crib down to the middle setting.  The one bumper free night was horrible and I came in to find her with her leg between two slats; she moves a lot in her sleep.  So, we put in a breathable crib bumper and that works great.  She can stand up in her crib now, so we'll be dropping it to the lowest setting in the near future.  Otherwise, no change in her sleep as we're on pretty much the same schedule.  


How is she eating?
She's still rocking out the finger foods and sippy cup.  We've been trying more table foods this month.  She's choked a couple of times (which results in barf since she has such a strong gag reflex), but mostly she's done really well.  She's had various types/styles of potatoes, eggs, chicken, tilapia, various pasta/bread products, and various little veggies.  I'm still nursing her about 4 times a day, so we have dropped a feeding.  Around her first birthday, I plan to get her down to 2 a day and we'll go from there.  Sometimes I can't believe I made it this long.  


Doctor Visit
No check-ups until 1 year.  She got her flu shot booster which caused some grumpiness for a couple of days, but that's it.  


What new tricks does she do?
Her army crawling is fast and furious and she has tried standard crawling some.  
She pulls up on things other than Mommy and Daddy. 
She is a very proficient cruiser.  She goes all over the living room and even sometimes into other rooms holding anything she can including walls, etc.  We got her a Dino walker and she has gotten really good at pushing it around and using it in various ways to get where she wants to go.  
Sometimes when she's hungry, she'll grab my hands and walk over to her highchair and then put her hands up so she'll get fed.  
After a summer and a semester of Tiny Tots, she finally shakes her little shaker instead of just eating it, so I'm proud.  
Verbally, she's still babbling away and we still can't make sense of it most of the time.  Occasionally we've thought that we've heard an actual word, but we're not sure if it's just wishful thinking on our part, so we'll just be patient.  We've attempted teaching signs, but she doesn't seem to have any interest, we'll see.  


General Observations?
She has 6 teeth so far - 2 on bottom and 4 on top though her lip keeps them from view so far.
We're planning her first birthday party and it's just mind boggling.  
She is still such a happy and gregarious baby.  She seems to make friends everywhere she goes.  She is such a shining light in the world (at least to us).  


Until next time... Enjoy!  

Ten Months Old!

Stats?
About 17 lbs (?%), ? in long (?%), and ? cm head circumference.
She's in size 3 diapers and her 9 month clothes. 
(We'll have more complete stats at her 1 year well-baby visit.)


How is she sleeping?
The only big change from last month is that we are completely off the swaddle which is really nice.  We started by eliminating it at nap times a while back and took it away overnights sometime in the last month or two.  I'm glad we waited until she gave us signs that she was ready because it went very smoothly.  


How is she eating?
She loves finger foods and I feel that she will be ready for self feeding soon (though I'm not sure I'm ready for the mess that entails). She also loves her sippy cup and can chug down the contents in record speeds.  During the day, it seems that she prefers the sippy cup over nursing, so we probably need to re-focus on nursing again.  We may also be dropping one of the day feedings soon.  


Doctor Visit
No check-ups until 1 year.  She gets her flu shot booster next month, but that's it.  


What new tricks does she do?
She army crawls.  
She's still good at standing and pulling up on Mommy and Daddy. 
She is what I would call "a novice cruiser".  She walks while holding our hands and she will cruise down the length of furniture, but doesn't quite turn corners on the furniture or transition frequently between objects.  Chasing the cats has been good motivation for her walking skills.  
She waves hello and goodbye (sometimes).  
She giggled so much the other day that she snorted.  :)  
Verbally, she's babbling away.  I keep trying to figure out if she's got any speech patterns, but can't tell yet.  She sorta flaps her arms when she's done eating, so I think that's her sign for "all done".  We're working on signs for "more", "eat" and "milk", but nothing yet.  


General Observations?
Her top two center teeth have broken through and the two on either side are coming in quick too.
I can't believe that it's time to get a jump on planning her first birthday party!!
Where did the time go?!?!?!


Until next time... enjoy Naomi's high kick routine!  

9 Month Update - Dr's Check Up

Naomi after her shots, munching on puffs

We finally went to the doctor this past Thursday, so here are the updated stats and general info.  


Stats?
16 lbs 12 oz (20%), 27 in long (25%), and 44 cm head circumference (30%).


Doctor Visit
It went well.  They did a toe prick to check her blood's iron and lead levels which were both fine.  She's still itty bitty, but growing.  Everything checked out physically okay - her previous ear infection has cleared.  Developmentally, he asked about a couple of things and she's doing okay with those.  He seemed impressed that she has already mastered her sippy cup and he was pleased that I'm still nursing her (blessed to be home and be able to do that).  She got her 3rd Hep B vaccine and the first part of her flu shot for the year.  She'll go back in 30 days for a flu shot booster since it's her first one.  Otherwise uneventful.  


That's about it!  

Nine Months Old!

Go Horned Frogs!

Running a bit late with the 9 month post, but here goes...


Stats?
About 17 lbs (?%), ? in long (?%), and ? cm head circumference.
She's in size 3 diapers and her 6-9 month clothes. Will update with more details on this after her 9 month check-up.


How is she sleeping?
Still doing well - no change since last month.


How is she eating?
She still eats solids 3 times a day and nurses close to her regular schedule during the day. She sometimes goes on eating strikes, where she'll only eat cereal and yogurt. Otherwise, she's done well with everything and has tried a decent variety of baby food. She seems to be going through a growth spurt right now; she's eating a LOT. She's made a lot of progress on finger foods. Most of them end up in her mouth and she really likes them. She's also began to master her sippy cup and straws. It's still a bit dribbly, but doing really well. We're very thankful for that as it should enable us to transition her to the sippy when we wean her.


Doctor Visit
I'll update this after we go for her 9 month check-up. I had a little issue making the appointment so she's running a couple weeks late on this.


What new tricks does she do?
She's still not crawling, but is getting close - lots of rolling, scooching, rocking, etc. She's standing really well while holding on to something, sometimes even one handed. She'll pull up onto me (with some extra help), but not on other objects. I can tell she really wants to crawl and walk, but just can't quite figure out how to make her body do that. Poor thing gets so frustrated sometimes. Verbally, she's continued to progress, but nothing definitively new since last month.


General Observations?
We're still waiting on those top teeth and have come to the conclusion that teething is a beating.
She doesn't seem so small anymore, but she's still our itty bitty.
Her smiles and giggles still light up my world.
Tiny Tots and Tunes is going really well this time around. She's starting to interact with the other kids a lot more.
We also started going to story time at our library and then playing with some toys there with some of the other babies from story time. She seems to like that too. She is a very social baby.


Until next time...



Special thanks to Aunt Terah for the pom pom headband and to Cathy and Erica Brown for the cute TCU outfit and bear!  

Eight Months Old

Stats?
About 16.25 lbs (?%), ? in long (?%), and ? cm head circumference. 
She's in size 2 diapers (soon to be size 3) and her 6 month clothes.  
(As always, we'll have more complete stats in months that we have a well-baby visit.)


How is she sleeping?
She's sleeping well and we successfully converted to an arms out swaddle, so hopefully we'll be just in a fleece sleeper by the time cold weather arrives.  We start her bedtime routine between 7:00 and 7:30 and she wakes up between 6:00 and 7:00.  She usually takes a couple of naps during the day ranging from 1-2 hours and occasionally longer; sometimes she doesn't nap long enough and we have to have 3 mini naps. 


How is she eating?
She still eats solids 3 times a day and nurses close to her regular schedule during the day. We've had a bit of a set-back in feeding as she would only eat cereal for a while (up to 3 oz of formula mixed with cereal at almost any consistency).  We've done our best to be patient but persistent and gradually we have had success with yogurt (3-6 oz) and the previously accepted sweet potatoes (1-2 oz).  While she doesn't mind things (namely yogurt or cereal) flavored with small amounts of fruit, it seems that she doesn't like straight fruit.  In the last two days, we've had success with peas (1-2 oz) at lunch time and I did a victory dance for baby girl's amusement yesterday after she ate.  We've let her play with some Kix and she's managed to get one in her mouth a couple of times, but mostly it's just for exploration at this point.  We're working with her sippy cup and with straws when out.  She's always surprised when water ends up in her mouth, but she's slowly getting it (usually dribbling down out of her mouth and down her shirt).  


Doctor Visit?
None this month.  Just a call where we got permission for some Children's Claritin at night which has helped relieve some of the congestion that was disrupting her sleep.  :)  


What new tricks does she do?
She's mastered sitting on her own completely.  She's working on crawling, so we get a lot of inching, rolling, "squiggling", and getting frustrated.  She figured out how to turn around in the exersaucer now so she's much more into it. Her hands are getting much more dexterous and purposeful.  Verbally, we've heard solid ya ya ya and da da da and some other babbling.  She's definitely ramped up how much she "talks".  Cracks me up sometimes.  


General Observations?
Her two bottom teeth are out on display and we're waiting on the top two. She's still tiny.  
Her smiles and giggles light up my world.  
If you take your girl out in a "gender neutral" outfit, people will assume she's a boy.  I wonder if Naomi is tired of wearing pink yet?
Tiny Tots and Tunes starts this week and I'm excited to see how much more she will get out of it.  
Blogger runs much better in Google Chrome than in IE (nothing to do with baby, but this post was much easier to do).  


Until next time...

One without a bow

See My Two Teeth!

Sticking my tongue out at Daddy!

Seven Months Old

Stats?
About 15 lbs (?%), ? in long (?%), and ? cm head circumference. (As always, we'll have more complete stats in months that we have a well-baby visit.)
She's in size 2 diapers and her 6 month clothes.


How is she sleeping?
She's sleeping pretty well. She's still sleeping swaddled, but we got our convertible Woombie this month and are starting to try out naps with one arm out. Hopefully we can wean her off the swaddling in the next couple of months.  We usually end up pat and paci'ing her once or twice a night (though occasionally more). She goes to bed around 7:30 now; she seemed to want to move up her bed time this month.  We have eliminated any feeds overnight, so she eats when she wakes up around 6:30 or so. She usually takes a couple of naps during the day ranging from 1-2 hours and occasionally longer. Our little schedule has been flexing around a bit this month; even as I type this, I swear she's trying to change it again.  And in fact, at time of publishing this, she's been having issues with night-waking.  We think it's due to teething, but really have no clue.  Hoping it goes away soon. 


How is she eating?
She still eats solids 3 times a day and nurses close to her regular schedule during the day. She eats about 2 ounces at breakfast and lunch and about 3 ounces at dinner and is still impatient about it. We successfully did pears and sweet potatoes. Unfortunately, she had some tummy issues (was probably a tummy virus) that reverted us back to rice cereal temporarily (mostly because I didn't want to clean up colored baby barf).  Once we're settled back down, we will again try some new foods. 


Doctor Visit?
We didn't have a regular visit, but we did go to the pediatrician for a look with the tummy issues.  We also found out from the GI doc that her Upper GI did show a sliding hiatal hernia, so we'll be following up on that.  Poor baby is probably going to have to have that test again. 


What new tricks does she do?
We hit a big milestone this month!  We've got a sitter!  I was confident that she could and just wasn't, so we did mommy's "sitting boot camp".  She got put in high chairs everywhere we went and she did lots of practice sitting on her own with the Boppy pillow for cushioning when she fell.   One Sunday evening it just clicked and she started sitting.  Woohoo!  She still stands supported or while holding on to a table.   She does roll around more to get at things she wants and once I found her about 3 or 4 feet from where I left her.  We should probably hop on that child"proofing" stuff soon.  She's much more interested in the exersaucer now, but gets bored after a bit. Still grabbing at everything (especially us), putting everything in her mouth, pressing buttons on her toys, and has gotten better at turning off the light switch.  Verbally, she's been progressing along the same lines as last month - nonsensical babbling.  The two new things she does are to pull her lips in and open/close her mouth and to pull her lips in and concentrate really hard like she's trying to get something out.  Don't know if she's working on a solid B, P or a kissy face, but it's cute and it's progress.  So much fun to watch all the time. 


General Observations?


The teething is definitely in full swing.  We've got two little teeth buds popping through the bottom, lots of drooling, and some extra fussing.  Not to mention she's chomping on everything including mommy.  We'll see how many teeth will be up front and center next month. 


It's dawning on me this month that Naomi is a tiny little girl.  She's always been small, but I'm starting to look around and see those growth chart percentiles in action.  My girl only weighs about 4 pounds more than my friend's 2 month old baby girl.  Not to mention everywhere I go, people are shocked to find out how old she is and instantly comment about how tiny she is.  I just smile and say "yep".  Mind you, I'm not complaining or concerned; it's just an observation.  She's progressed on the growth chart just fine and is very healthy, so it's all good.  Brian and I just figure she's the perfect size for a gymnast (if she's into that).  :)  Admittedly, I've already looked at classes for her (I'll actually even fess up to looking at the classes when we first got pregnant).  We may have to do some mommy and me classes once she's walking.  Who knows... she may hate it.  If so, we'll see what else she does like. 


We signed up for the Fall semester of Tiny Tots and Tunes at church.  I'm excited about that.  We went to mini-camp in June, but she was a bit on the young side to really get into it (even though she still loves doing The Noble Duke of York with me).  It'll be so much fun watching her each week this fall and seeing how much she develops.  She's already so different and I just know she'll like it more this time. 

Oh, and she loves bath time.  Sometimes I just want to bathe her randomly throughout the day just because I know she likes it.  She just splashes around and plays with her toys.  Our couple of swimming times this summer have also gone well.  She seems to enjoy it. 


It's been another fun month.

Thanks Andrew, Jenny and Lily Diederich for the cute outfit! 


Until next time...

Naomi's Baby Dedication

A couple of weeks ago, we had Naomi's baby dedication at church.  For those unfamiliar with baby dedications, it is similar to infant baptism (at least in the Methodist church) except without the water sprinkling.  It is a time when family, friends, and church gather to bless/pray over the baby and commit to surround the baby with Christian love. 

It was very meaningful for us and Naomi was a trooper through the whole thing.  She played with my hair and necklace, which was cute, and was a very sweet girl while Bill held her to pray.  Afterward, we went out to brunch with our family.  All in all a good time. 

We didn't get too many pictures of the dedication, since we didn't have our camera and were standing up front with baby.  But here are a couple that Brian's mom, Emily, took. 

P.S.  Thank you Jacque Swanner for my cute dress.  Love, Naomi!

Just Some Thoughts...

I find myself constantly marveling at the unexpected turns my life has taken over the last couple years and at how much I love where I ended up.  It's truely surreal sometimes. 

When I married Brian over six years ago, we told family that we wouldn't even discuss kids until we were married for at least 5 years.  Brian and I had discussed it though (before getting married) and he knew that I was on the fence, unsure if I wanted to choose that adventure (I loved choose your own adventure books as a kid).  He had faith that we would have a wonderful life together regardless.  Although, I do think it's really beneficial to have a few years under your belt as a married couple before having kids, the 5 year thing really was just something to tell people to end the inquiries.  It just so happened that a few months before our 5 year anniversary, we decided together to choose that adventure.  And as God would have it, it was our time.  Funny how that worked out. 

Then, when I found out I was pregnant, I started preparing for my new life as a working mom.  I started looking at various childcare options.  I thought about my maternity leave, how it would work with my work schedule and job duties, and how I could make that as smooth as possible for my "work family".  We figured we would be doing a lot of pumping and bottling, etc.  Unexpected turn ahead: my company was acquired and practically my entire department was eliminated as the acquiring company absorbed our function.  I found out in my 3rd trimester (probably about a week or so before I went into the hospital on bedrest) and my official layoff date was during my maternity leave.  We ended up deciding that I would be a Stay At Home Mom.  Me, the chick who didn't even know if she wanted a kid, is now a SAHM!  What's even more shocking is how much I love it.  Honestly I sometimes miss working - I miss the adult interraction / my work friends, I miss using my degree, I miss my deadlines, etc.  But, I'm so blessed to be home with her every day watching her learn and grow. 

And here is my big realization.  A lot of people will say that they can't imagine their life without their kids.  Well, I won't say that because it's not true.  I can imagine my life without my baby girl and frankly there is a lot more freedom and a lot more discretionary income involved (and less poop, pee, and baby barf).  However, I will say that I can no longer imagine my heart without her.  At the end of the Christmas story of the Grinch, they say "...his heart grew 3 sizes that day...".  Well something like that happened when we had Naomi and began even as she was growing in my belly.  I love both Brian and Naomi so much it sometimes hurts.  I feel things so much more deeply now (example: I teared up during flashback scenes in Harry Potter of Harry as a baby).  After some initial trials, my faith is so much stronger.  My life isn't quite how I imagined it, but it's exactly how God planned it and as He would say, "It is good".  :)

Six Months Old

Stats?

14 lbs 4 oz (25%), 25.5 in long (35%), and 42.9 cm head circumference.
She's in size 2 diapers and her 6 month (or 3-6 month) clothes.

How is she sleeping?
She's sleeping pretty well.  She's still sleeping swaddled, but we're hoping to phase that out sometime in the next few months.  We usually end up pat and paci'ing her once or twice a night.  She goes to bed around 8 and we usually have an early morning feed some time between 3:30 and 5:30 before she finishes snoozing until around 7 or 7:30.  She usually takes a couple of naps during the day ranging from 1-2 hours and occassionally longer.  We've settled into a nice loose little schedule. 

How is she eating?
The solids are going really well now; she's eating them 3 times a day and she's still nursing.  She eats about 2 ounces at breakfast and lunch and about 3 ounces at dinner.  She's very impatient with eating solids just like she is with nursing.  You have to practically machine gun it into her mouth or she gets upset because you're going too slow.  She now readily opens her mouth for bites and sometimes smacks her lips in anticipation when you sit her in her high chair and put her bib on.  We've successfully done rice cereal and oatmeal.  We tried some sweet potatoes, but I don't think she was quite ready for those, so they are waiting in the freezer for a later time.  I think we'll try pears next and then go back to the sweet potatoes.  For now, I'm making her baby food, but as I get coupons, I'm going to buy some jars too for occassional convenience. 


Doctor Visit?
It went great.  All her percentiles went up a little bit, so she's growing great!  Everything looked good.  We got the go ahead to feed her a wide variety of food and to introduce a sippy cup with a little water whenever we want.  That way she'll be ready for the sippy cup when it's time to wean off the breast.  (She takes a bottle when needed now, but she's not attached to it at this point, so we're hoping to skip any attachment).  He was very impressed with how well she passed the tongue depresser from one hand to the other and back again.  He went over other developmental milestones she should be at and she's pretty much hit all of them.  He said that she is teething, but that we're probably around 6-8 weeks away from actually seeing the tooth break through.  So far, she seems to be on track developmentally and in terms of growth which is such a blessing. 


What new tricks does she do?
6 months really is a neat time developmentally.  She sits really well supported and will sit unsupported for a very short spell but then tumps over.  She loves to stand up.  She stands supported really well especially for her age.  Based on that and the fact that she still won't spend a whole lot of time on her tummy, we are guessing she will skip crawling in favor of cruising in the future.  She has rolled from back to front a few times but doesn't do it regularly - probably partially because she hasn't quite mastered the skill and partially because she'd rather not be on her tummy and hasn't figured out that she can really go places with continuous rolling.  She will play in her exersaucer for a few minutes, but not for long stretches yet.  She has started really grabbing at our faces.  She's become much better with her toys and is starting to figure out pressing the buttons on her music turtle.  We've also been working on getting her to turn on/off the light switch.  She'll always grab at it, but it's hit or miss on actually pressing it down (with no moves to move it up yet).  Verbally, we've got some babbling, motor-boating, smacking, chirps, and a wide variety of shreaks and squeels.  Lots of changes afoot and it's so much fun to watch. 

General Observations?
Not a whole lot new to say here.  She's still a cute, happy little thing who attracts attention everywhere we go.  So far she's doing okay with various childcare workers at church, Jazzercise and the rec center.  Hopefully that continues and she doesn't get horrible separation anxiety.  We can feel some teeth trying to break through.  It seems like the top ones are going to break through first (although, from what I hear and from what the doctor said, it's usually the bottom ones).  We'll see. 


6 months is such an ever-changing and fascinating age. 

Until next time...

First Swim!

I actually started writing this almost a week ago, but picking just a handful of cute pics from the dozens we took was extremely tough - I definitely missed out on some cute ones. 

We finally took Naomi for her first swim and it was definitely a success.  She didn't cry at all.  We didn't get a whole lot of smiles either, but I think it was just because she was so curious about everything.  She preferred to be held rather than in her floaty this time.  She enjoyed sitting on the step in the pool and splashed herself a few times.  She even chewed on her swimsuit for a bit.  It was a lot of fun for us!  (Oh and I think I got some sunblock in her one little red eye - oops.)

Enjoy the pics! 

Interested in the floaty

Family Swim Photo

Swimmin' with Daddy

Hangin' Out with Mommy

Just Splashin' Around

Mmmm.... Yummy Swimsuit

Sittin' on the Step

Miscellaneous Cute Baby Pics

While cleaning off the camera's memory stick and making sure everything was uploaded to our computers, we came across some miscellaneous cute pics of Naomi. 

So here they are in absolutely no particular order!

Just playing on 7/9/11

Grandma's Lucky Charm (St Patty's Day outfit)

Laughing at Mommy...

in my Pretty Like Mommy outfit. 

Um Guys... I'm tumping over here... a little help please.

All Better and Hook 'Em (again)

Learning to Eat

This is mostly just some pics of Naomi's first few trys at rice cereal.  She's gotten pretty good at it now.  We're up to 3 times a day now.  We're also trying sweet potatoes and then pears in this next week.  Very exciting.  She didn't know what to make of it all at first.  Now, she smacks her lips together in anticipation and will frequently open her mouth for each bite. 

We have learned that she's a very impatient eater with solids too.  I feel like we're machine gunning the food into her mouth, but if you go too slow she gets really upset.  Sometimes she trys to grab at the spoon, or motorboats the food, or does any number of other things to make the whole thing a messy process, but we're getting there.  For a while, she would only eat for Brian and not for me, but we've gotten past that (thankfully).  To this day, she is a much more neat and efficient eater for Brian, but oh well.  Sometimes you just have to laugh at it all though. 

As promised, here are a few pics...