49 weeks old

Love these toothy smiles!

She's really showing off the tooth here!

Who me?

Such a cute pose.

We installed a baby gate separating our dining room from our kitchen...
yay, baby jail!

This picture was taken a half hour before she was supposed to have pictures taken.

I was trying to decide if she should have the headband
or not... we did some of each.

We met Santa this week.
(Without the headband)

(With the headband)

Santa read "The Night Before Christmas" to her. 
She loved it!

Happy Thanksgiving!!
(don't mind the red chin, she bumped her chin on the crib in the morning)

We stopped at Grandma and Grandpa's house on in the evening on Thanksgiving
There were a lot of older people, so it was really hot.
Mommy let me take my dress off.
No pants Thursday!!

 

I love to sit on Aunt Kimmee's lap.
Here, I was playing with Grandpa, making faces or something like that.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  We have so much to be thankful for!  I am so thankful for my wonderful family... both my little family of 3, and also my parents, grandparents,sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, an entire set of in-law family, pseudo relatives.... I am grateful for each one of them.  They have invested in our lives in such an amazing way.  It is such a blessing to think about these people that the Lord has brought into my life.  We hope you had a great Thanksgiving with family and loved ones.

This week we have started to get full swing in the Christmas mood... well, at least as full swing as I ever get.  Anna got to meet Santa Claus and had her picture taken with him.  He was very good with her.  I was impressed.  (Thank you JC Penny for having Santa there.  It was a good first experience.)  Anna especially liked when he read the book to her.  :-)

We had a marvelous Thanksgiving.  We got to see both sides of the family.... and it was fairly warm here too, so at both homes Anna got dressed down to her skivvies.... and loved it!  That girl HATES to be hot!  She also got her first dose of grandma mercy... what do I mean?  We were talking around the table, my mom, my aunt, my cousin and myself... and we looked over only to see Miss Anna playing in what now was a puddle on the floor, that used to be the dog's water bowl.  She was soaked, the floor was soaked... but in the words of grandma "she had a good time."  (And did look pretty cute splashing in her mess...  But even still).

Anna also did well today when we went out shopping... usually I boycott Black Friday shopping, but for some reason this year, I was in the mood to just get it done!  So, we went out.  We practically bought out the Babies R Us store when it came to diapers and wipes.  We went to the the Christian Bookstore... then ran into Grandma & Grandpa Leeper & Aunt Launi... so then we had lunch.  I brought Anna and Jer back so Anna could get a nap, then I braved the mall.  YIKES!!  All in all, it was fine... and I'm pretty sure I'm done other than some odds and ends, and some online gifts that still need to arrive.  Busy, busy, busy.

It's hard to believe that in about 3 weeks Anna will be 1!!  Crazy time... all in the middle of the Christmas season.  December is going to FLY by!!

Anyway, here's the stats.

Anna is roughly 18 pounds... although she hasn't been weighed in 2 weeks.  (maybe 3).  She is still in 6-9 months, or 12 months depending on the clothes.  And continues to wear size 3 diapers (and will continue to do so since we bought a whole bunch of size 3 today!!)

She slept through the night once this week!  Glorious!!  But has yet to repeat it since.  But, she's still just getting up once... although one night this week she got up twice.  (That was not appreciated, baby girl!).

She continues to eat well.  I'm trying to cut back a little on the nursing... but she's a hard sell.  I think we'll get there...Anna still LOVES to eat from those baby food pouches.  Although, this week we've really started to see her little ornery self... as she tries to clear her high chair tray regularly.  (This is met by stern opposition by daddy... and mommy.)

Anna is very active.  She crawls everywhere!  She's gotten fairly fast when she wants to, and can mosey when she wants to as well.  She just takes it all in stride, and loves to call the shots.  Anna is also very silly, and very giggly when she plays.  It makes for a very, very fun day when I get her all day to myself!!  hahaha!!  Giggles are my favorite thing to hear.  Her belly laugh is infectious!

Anyway, I'm cutting this short because tomorrow is family pictures!!!  And I need my beauty rest!  (Besides, the boring stats are really for my future needs anyway... )

Thanks for checking in on us!!

48 weeks!

I said to her, this morning "Smile for the camera!" and this is what I got!!

We tried to wish Uncle Kurty a happy birthday, and this is what I got...
she's such a ham!!  She kept giggling as I tried to get her to sit back on
the couch.  such a silly girl!!

The tooth made an appearance on this 11 month  birthday!!

We went for  walk one day this week.
This is the view I get... she LOVES walks.

Showing her support for her OSU teams...AND teething!

We had a visit from Aunt Kelly last week.

Our silly little girl!  When daddy opened the car door, this is what he saw.
(Of course, Mommy had to take a picture!)

Silly Mommy!  This is mommy's "hillbilly wagon".  It's a
laundry basket with wheels, and a belt!  LOADS of fun!

Happy 11 Month Birthday, Baby Girl!!!

This week has flown by!  We have been pretty busy each day. So busy that when I went to put pictures on here, I was saddened by how many I didn't have.

This week has been pretty good in the sleep department.  Anna has slept in her crib for both naps and bedtime.  Most of this week she has gone to bed between 8-9, but it seems that she is finding a way to get us to make it later and later.  (GRRRR!)  I will probably be playing with her naptimes to make sure we get her in bed between 8-9 still.  I liked it.  (One day this week, she went to bed at 8:30.  It was crazy how much time Jer and I had together!  Also, I found that I went to bed earlier when she went to bed earlier.  So, it's good for us all around!)  Anna still continues to get up once a night... eventually we'll work on that... but for now... I can handle once.

Anna continues to do well eating.  She still continues to like the baby food pouches, as well as anything she can feed herself on her own.  I don't think we've tried anything new this week.  So, it's still the same old, same old.  Cheese still continues to be her favorite food.

This week, Anna has worn more 12 month clothes.  She still fits in most 6-9 month clothes.  I may start fading out the 6-9 months soon... but I have a hard time with it because there are soooo many cute ones that I absolutely love!!  We're still in size 3 diapers too.  She wasn't weighed, so I couldn't even begin to guess how much she weighs.

Do the Ducky Dance!!

While Auntie Katie was up in mid-October for a visit... she babysat Anna for us while we were at our Sunday night small group.  Auntie Katie also took a video of Anna doing her little dance that she does to music.  I LOVE IT!  It's so precious!  Whenever she hears music she insists on wiggling.  Makes me laugh every time... and Auntie was able to catch it perfectly on video.  So... enjoy!!

47 weeks old

I got to see my Great-Gram on Saturday

Every kid sleeps with a snot-sucker at one point or another, right?

Fun time with my Nana
(Please note:  Aunt Jill re-dressed me after she changed my diaper.
It's hard to tell, but she put my onesie on the outside...)

Having a serious talk with my cousin Ella

Smile!

Having lunch... or maybe it was breakfast...

Love the squinty little eyes in the morning.

Hey Mom!

Yummy lunch!

I think.....

Yeah, it was ok...

Love this little wet face from her bath...

She was looking really hard for a toy that she wanted.

This week, our little sweetie graduated to the bathtub without a bath ring.

Mommy insists on putting this hat on me... I look SOO cute, don't I?!
(at least that's what she says to me after she puts it on me.)

 Anna has had a great week.  Although, I've come to determine that all our weeks are great, and continue to improve in their greatness because she is sleeping so much better!!  Praise the Lord.  Who knew acid reflux could be such a terrible, terrible problem.

We had a lot of fun this week.  We were pretty busy... Monday, Anna went to play with her Grandma & Grandpa Leeper while I went to work.  That is pretty much our day... she usually is sleeping when I get there, and we don't leave until she wakes up and I feed her.  (Sometimes we stay and play a little bit too.)  Tuesday we had our swim lessons!!  We still love them!  On Tuesday evening we had an impromptu Thanksgiving dinner with Aunt Jill and Uncle Dawson.  (Aunt Jill has pictures.. but mommy couldn't find them on facebook... so you'll have to take her word for it.)  Wednesday, Anna played with Grandpa C while I was at work... and once again that pretty much eats up our day.  We went out to dinner at TGI Fridays where I was winning over the table next to me with my petite body, and my unsurpassed charm!  :-)  Thursday was Mastering Motherhood at church, and then lunch with Christine from work... home for naps... and well.. that was our day.  Friday is normally our day to take a breather from the busy week, before a busy weekend.  Soo... that's our week in a nutshell.

Here's the normal stats...

We'll start with sleep.  SLEEP has been great!  Anna adjusted well to the time change.  She slept in til "9" even though the clock said it was 8.  hahaha... Another perk to daylight savings ending is that Anna used to go to bed between 9-10... well, she now goes to bed between 8-9.  It's GLORIOUS to have an hour or 2 to hang out, and chill with Jeremy before we go to bed.   I think I'm going to keep this bedtime for the near foreseeable future. Also, since last Thursday we have been setting her in her crib usually awake, and she has been putting herself to sleep.  THAT is wonderful as well.  We aren't fighting with her, trying to get her to settle down any more. She does usually cry, but I think the longest is about 3 or 4 minutes.  This also works well for nap time also.  I love that too.... because she hasn't taken any naps in her swing this week!!  And, she's been putting herself to sleep.  This means that if I take a nap, that I can sleep in my own bed!  It's WONDERFUL folks!!  So as you can see... week 47 has been great in the area of sleep.  Anna still wakes up once a night... but, every now and then she will surprise me with sleeping through the night.

Anna is also doing very well eating solids.  She still likes to eat anything she can put in her mouth, and she's not too keen on eating anything with a spoon.  Although, tonight I did manage to get 4 or 5 bites of yogurt in her mouth... but then she lost interest.  Anna still really likes the baby food pouches, as well as cheese, gluten free bread, turkey, veggie/sweet potato/strawberry puffs, and yogurt melts.  Anna eats 3 meals a day in her high chair, and some days a snack or two.  She still is nursing and/or getting bottles, but those are limited to about 4-6 a day usually.   (Which is a good thing, in my opinion.)

I did not have the princess weighed this week, but I'm sure it's only an ounce or two... in a months time she gained one pound, so.... she has definitely slowed down in the weigh gain department.  Anna is in 6-9 month clothes, but I'm finding a few of the pants to be a little short... or at least ones that ride up too easily when she is being carried.  So, I'm transitioning her to 12 month clothes... they're a lot longer, but it works well if I cuff them.  :-)  As far as diapers go... still size 3.  And, she's still in size 2 shoes (and there's still room to grow!)

Anna is getting stronger and stronger each day/week.  She has been pulling herself up like crazy.  If she sees something she wants, and it requires standing up to get to it... she has no problem.  Anna does a little bit of furniture walking, and a lot of crawling.  Anna isn't a big fan of me trying to get her to stand by herself, and DEFINITELY does not like it when she falls on her little tush.  (Which makes me laugh usually because as I tell her, there will be lots more butt falls over the next weeks/months/years to come... not to mention.. she has a diaper on... this is the time in her life when it will have the most padding!!)  I think it will still be a while before she is walking... and I don't expect it any time before her first birthday... which is 5 weeks away!!  AHHHHHHH!!!

I think that's about it as far as updates go on our little munchkin.  She is the joy of our hearts!  Her daddy and I have a lot of fun with her... she makes me laugh SO much, I regularly have tears in my eyes!  I love her fun personality, and how much she's such a ham!!

Anyway, thanks for checking in on us!!

46 weeks old

New jammies that Aunt T gave her.

On Tuesday, after the terrible storm Sandy came through, Aunt Jill (and family) came to play!

Giving Uncle "Dason" the look!  (This picture makes me laugh every time I see it!)

Aunt Jill wanted to get pictures of me with my cousins.. here is my buddy, Bryant.

Playing, tuckered me out....

Got a picture with my oldest cousin, De

And my other buddy, cousin Valerie.

Apparently they played too hard too... (Thanks Aunt Jill!)

Apparently Valerie was mid-play when Aunt Jill took this picture.

And even cousin Deanna got in on the nap fest.

Trick or Treat!!  (Mommy dressed me up as a cat!)

Well this was a busy week.  We had awful weather, as far as that goes.  Really, it rained all of week 46.  It started Friday, and culminated with the parts Hurricane Sandy bringing devastating rain and winds to the region.  Our little trooper did well though, and since we only lost power a little bit, twice, we weren't really put out.  The winds did howl... and I think it woke her up a few times.  I just played her cd a little louder to help drown out the wind.  As you can see we made the best of the situation, in that we got to see cousins, Deanna, Valerie, and Bryant on Tuesday because their school was cancelled.  It was fun, because Aunt Jill & Uncle Dawson, Nana and Papa came over too!!  And if that wasn't good enough... Daddy got off of work early too!

Anna was a good girl this week.  Her tooth is just comin' on in nicely.  I personally can't wait until it inconveniences her to clinch her jaw when I try to give her medication.  :-)  I am going to work really hard on getting her napping for good stretches in her crib, and put down on her own.... in the next week or so.  We're nearing our big 1st birthday, so.... we can only hope things will work out completely by then.

Anna was weighed this week and weighed in at 18 pounds 2.5 ounces.  That's a pound up from her 9 month appointment.  I think that's pretty good?  This week, I started putting Anna in a few 12 month outfits.  She definitely got her mom's [short] legs. But, all in all, they fit ok.  I think I will be trying to get some of the 12 month sized stash out a little bit.  That way, we can get full usage out of that size.  Anna is still in size 3 diapers... and I think will continue to be in them for a while longer.

Anna is still waking up about once at night.  Although, I'm sure she will be unhappy to find out that her dad and I will probably just start ignoring her when she cries at night... or as a friend suggested, we may try to just "wean" her night time feedings til we're no longer needed them.  I guess we'll have to see... cold turkey or  night weaning... I'll keep everyone posted.  I'm not comfortable with this, since we have her "problem" of acid reflux now under control... or at least improved.

Since I mentioned eating.. Anna is still doing well eating.  She likes to try whatever it is that we are eating  (and I often give it to her if it doesn't have one of the [many] high allergens in it, including nuts, wheat or eggs).  Anna still likes to eat the baby food from the pouch, and has a strong liking for veggies that taste like fruits.  :-)  Smart girl.

45 weeks old

The answer to "Where is your tongue?"

Sporting her baby overalls!

A Johnson & Johnson ad?

She's so happy in the morning.

Surprise!!  The tooth FINALLY popped through!!

The new look she gives everyone!

It was a beautiful day (80 degrees), and she was all worn out.

While Auntie Katie was here, Anna was trying to FaceTime uncle Todd too... She kept getting her little butt right in the way.  It was really funny, and really cute!

All smiles.

We went trick or treating at Breckenridge with some friends

Love her little facial expressions!

Well I'm getting TERRIBLE at blogging... some weeks I do GREAT, other weeks.. NOPE, not so much!  I think I'm 2 weeks in a row of "not so much!"  Oh well... My goal is always before the new week... and it's Thursday, so I made it!

It was a pretty busy week.  I only worked one day, so we spent some of the time out and about enjoying friends and family, as well as just playing and enjoying the nice weather.  My sweet girl and I had a lot of fun!

The biggest news with week 45 is that she FINALLY had her tooth break through.  (Yes, I did call my mom at 4 1/2 months and say "Mom!  I think Anna is getting a tooth!"  So it only took 6 months... but we finally got it!)  I was at Sam's Club with Anna, and low and behold I looked down, and said, what is that in your mouth... sure enough, it was a little bitty tooth.  It's exciting that it's finally here...although I will miss that exclusively gummy smile!

Anna is doing really well eating food.  She really likes to feed herself, and is doing great with those baby food pouches.  She almost always eats 1 a day, sometimes two... she doesn't quite finish a whole pouch, but there isn't much left when she is done!  I do like that she feeds herself with it too.  Although, we do have to take it away at some point because she's playing with it, and that can get very messy, very quickly.

Anna is definitely a crawling machine.  She doesn't crawl super fast yet, but she does get where she wants to go.  I can no longer cook dinner in piece, there is usually a little princess hanging around my feet. (I usually remind daddy that he was supposed to be watching her.  hahaha...)

Anna is still in 6-9 month clothes, and size 3 diapers.  Although, I think I may start trying to introduce the "smaller" of the 9-12 month clothes.  There are so many cute ones.  We have a 12 month jacket, and it's a little bit in the arms, but if we cuff the arms, then she does well with it.  So... we'll have to see.

Sleep is still ok.  Anna usually wakes up once at night to eat.  Although, I've been told by the lactation consultant that she should be able to go through the night without sleeping.  So... I don't know if we're going to have to do some "tough" love with some ear plugs.... we'll see.  However, I am enjoying that the pepcid is helping tremendously.  I can handle once a night, although I wish she would just sleep through the night.... we'll get there, I'm confident.

Anyway, I think I'm going to keep this shorter since I need to start working on 46th week post (tomorrow)... so... thanks for checking in on us, and reading.  We love our little girl, and hope that you have fallen in love with her too this past (almost) year.

God is good!  It is amazing to see how far we have come!!