FRIENDS!!!!

6 MONTH PICS

6 MONTHS!!!!!

Colbie hanging out. The big kids were playing and she was just watching them.


Lovin her saucer!


This was from a day or two ago. She is able to sit up propped with her hands. Sometimes she face-plants though. But she is getting her back stronger and starting to figure it all out (check out her "focused" face)!


This is her smile. So sweet! Love it!

These are some of the most recent pics I have of her. All from the last couple of weeks. I will take some "official" 6 month pics later today. Colbie is so wonderful. She is a very happy, loving, smiley, content baby. She is so easy to figure out. She goes about her day being held, playing under her play-gym, playing in her crib, lounging in her bouncy seat, playing in her saucer, sitting in her high chair "observing" us eat or sucking on her fingers. She is also very content on her belly to play. Her favorite toys currently - her musical caterpillar, chimes, "pup-pup" (a doggie-blanket-lovie), her Sassy mirror and her black and white Manhattan toy (called Skwish) and anything she can "smack" with her hands that makes noise! She loves drinking out of my water glass (yes, a real cup) and is super good at it. She has tried a sippy cup a few times without a lot of success, but we are about to venture into the world of cereal and sippy cups very, very soon!! She has her check-up next week on Thursday. I expect her to be around 14lbs. (which makes her my peanut still)...

We plan to start cereal after her 6 month check-up. I need to finalize my recipe and make sure I pump enough milk so I can load the cereal with milk for the first several feedings. I think she is ready and will do great with it! Then we will move on to the "first foods." YAY! I am very excited! I can't wait to make her all sorts of yummy foods. On a different note, it is sort of sad! Once she is on food, she isn't a "baby" anymore. I can't believe she is 6 months old. She will also start sleeping in her crib at night soon too. She sleeps through the night 70% of the time(goes to bed at 7:30-8pm and gets up around 7:30-8am [eating at 11pm and 6am typically]). Even when she wakes up at 4am for a feeding so goes right back to sleep afterwards. She also naps at 9:30am, 1:30pm and a short nap at 5:45pm). She loves baths and is a great sleeper. She goes down without crying and can calm herself very easily if she wakes up in the middle of her nap. Rarely do we have to rock her or go in and calm her during her naps/bed. But I do love to snuggle her. She is the kissiest, snuggliest, huggiest most sweet baby (she is more or a snuggler then A or B were at this age). And I love it!

NEW ROOM

Where their beds are (and see their new hooks and shelf). Also their book boxes are behind Averie's bed.


The wall that is the front of the house. New shelf for all big kid toys. Averie's art far to the left and awesome curtains made by Grandma Pam.


The blue and green together... Averie chose the blue and Baylor chose the green!

Averie's "wall"

Baylor's art


Baylor's "wall"

EASTER PICS

HOTEL STAY

Colbie gazing out the window before our swim.


Averie and Baylor playing the Lady Bug game.


Little Miss.

Pool time

Colbie loved it, Averie loved it, Baylor loved it... the pool water was so warm.

We stayed in a nearby hotel a couple of weeks ago just for fun. The hotel had free dinner (they brought in P.F. Chang's) which was included... a pool and hot tub (we were only joined by 2 boys one time, the rest of the time we were alone)... the pool was so warm, Colbie probably thought she was in a large bath. She loved it, just chilled and relaxed in my arms. And free breakfast the next morning. Not just your average breakfast. I'm talking everything... eggs, breakfast burritos, cereal, bagels, homemade waffles, fruit, oatmeal, pasteries, meat, a juice machine... much more then I can list...yum. I love breakfast!!! Ha ha. And one of the best perks was the room. It was a suite so there was a bedroom with 2 beds so we could put the bigs to bed in separate beds and stay up and watch tv and have dessert (we got a yummy slice of cheesecake from P.F. Changs and didn't share with the kids!). The room also had a full kitchen and it was only $115 with tax per night! It was nice to do something fun with the kids and to let them enjoy the pool and practice their swimming skills - which they loved. We will for sure do it again!

5 MONTHS OLD

Baylor loves his sister...

Colbie is 5 months old!!! Woa... where does the time go? Colbie, you are so sweet. You love giving hugs (you hug your Mama all the time!), you snuggle right in when I pick you up and put you on my shoulder. You shriek with excitement too! You are a great nurser. You eat at about 8am, 1130am, 330pm, 7pm, 11pm and about 5am. You occasionally wake up at 4am, but then go til 8am. There have been a few times you have made it from 11pm until 6am and even 8am. You are still exclusively bf and will be for another month or so. We will start cereal around 6 months at dinner first... then breakfast and dinner... and then breakfast, lunch and dinner! After a week of that we will start making food for you.

I am so excited to start that. I have a couple babyfood cookbooks (they are by Annabel Karmel and are so visually beautiful lol) and they have some interesting recipes in them. I don't know how much batch cooking I will do, but maybe a batch here and there. She will mostly eat what we eat (within reason and once she gets through the 1st try of things to make sure there are no reactions...) like when we have sweet potatoes, or any veggie really... and fruit and we will probably improvise here and there too. I am actually getting excited to make food and feed Colbie. Some of the things she is doing --

- - rolling back to belly

- - sleeping on belly 40% of the time

- - sucking on your first two fingers of your left hand (just like Bay and Daddy did)

- - taking 2 long naps and 1 short nap a day

- - going to bed at 8pm and getting up at 8am

- - napping at 10am, 2pm and 6pm

- - shrieking, kicking, smiling and getting excited

- - rolled from belly to back twice during naptime

- - batting at toys, putting toys in your mouth

- - you like to practice sitting up while we hold you

- - you love to stand and bounce

- - you still love your bouncer and pack-n-play to play

- - you take your vitamin in a bottle nipple

You are Mama's little sweetie. You love being held and watching your big brother and sister play and run around. You watch them so curisously. You also will sit in your bouncer and watch Mama cook in the kitchen. I look forward to the spring and summer... you will be so much fun!

BIRTHDAY PARTY HIGHLIGHTS & MISC.

Colbie hanging out with pup-pup!


Averie loving her Dora balloon!


Averie and Baylor. Baylor got her a Plasma car for her Birthday!


The "girls" at the party! It was impossible to get all 5 to look at the camera...

Averie's friends: (starting at the top middle, going clockwise) - Emma, Taylor, Ella, Averie, Baylor, Jett and Jayde. They were all waiting so patiently for cake and ice cream. YUM!

Colbie at the party after one of her "naps."


Averie and her Dora butterfly cake.


My sweet bigs.


Averie's beautiful ring on her sparkly tu-tu.

5 YEARS

5 years old?! How can that be?! What happened to our little baby girl? Wow, Averie, you are so amazing! I just love how creative you are. You love projects and being the leader to organize games and activities you and Baylor are doing. You are a little mama when it comes to Colbie. You keep your brother quiet when she is napping and are gentle and kind to your sister. She loves to smile at you when you sing and talk to her. We have started working on school, you are so ready to start kindergarten! I would say we are well on our way already. We will formally begin once fall comes with more structure and lessons and time together one on one. Until then we work on work books and being creative together. You love doing your “tag” and it is a great “teacher.” You also like your stuffed animals lately and dressing them up and playing Dr. or baby with them. You enjoy going places and “making friends” and I have yet to find us a play group to join (but really want to) so you can make some friends your age and have kids to interact with. I have also entertained the idea of gymnastics. I should start a “to-do” list specifically for you. Being 5 has been super exciting for you this year. You get a big party this year and are very happy about that. If I would have let you it would have been a Dora party, but I had already decided on a butterfly party. I am sure Dora will be there in the form of gifts and accessories. Well, I am not sure when the next update will be but you are a super leader and love reading and learning. You are sweet to your brother (most of the time) and sister (all of the time). We love you sweet bubba-do!

4 MONTHS UPDATED

Miss Averie

Baylor Boy


Sweet Colbie



Colbie's bandaid too... :o)

3 happy silly kids


Poor Colbie's eczema chest. She was so itchy for several days. Now though she seems better, we treated her with special ointment and lots (like 4 times a day) of aquaphor. She would thrash during the night and wake up crying and was just miserable. She has since done better at night, still waking once to eat but has started waking before 10pm... which is such a strange time for her to wake. Last night I got her up and held her a bit and then put her back down. She was soooo angry! She eventually settled back down by sucking her fingers. Just like her brother and her daddy did when they were babies. She has grown over a lb. and an inch since 2 months. Now at 11lbs. 13.1oz. and 24.25 inches. But still our smallest baby! She is a little peanut compared to A and B (both just over 14lbs.!). Awe, I just melt when she smiles at me. She loves her tongue and sticking it out. She does this almost with every smile. Here are some of the things she is doing at 4 months -

-Almost rolling (back to belly)

-Loves her burp cloths

-Loves her play gym and batting at toys

-Napping in her basinet (and pretty much no where else)

-Eating at 8am, 11am, 230pm, 5pm, 730pm(small feeding before bed), 11pm, 5am (sometimes). With her itchy-ness the night time has been off/sporatic, but her day time is like clockwork

-Only nurses on one side at a feeding

-Is very vocal and smiley

-Loves sucking on her fingers (this is happening more and more)

-Gets fussy when tired

-Goes right to sleep when you put her down for nap/bed

-Does not nap well while out and about

-Loves to stand on your legs while you hold her

Hmmm, that's all that is coming to mind right now. She is so sweet and loves smiling and standing so much. Averie is so loving with her and always wanting to make her smile and be happy. She still gets me things that I ask for and will play and talk to Colbie when I need her to. Baylor on the other hand is such a boy with her. He is not rough enough to make her cry, but is soooo not gentle! I guess it is good for her and she will learn to be rough back. He is loving in the fact that he always has to touch her when he sees her. He is always talking to her in his cute voice and she takes it all in! He really is sweet on her. I think that he will always be protective of her and want to make sure she is ok, even if he is a little rough. Whew, well... that post was long overdue. We have a busy day today so I better get moving. More updates sooner rather than later because we have a big (someone is turning 5!!!) day this coming Wednesday! EEEEEEEK. Until then...