Growing Up - Miss E., 9 months

Life with Elly at 9 months:

You eat a lot of table food, and a little baby food. You LOVE to feed yourself!

It would probably be easier to say what you don't like than what you do, so you're not a big fan of cooked apples, cheese...and I'm hard pressed to think of anything else right now ; )

You still wear a size 3 diaper, and size 12 mo clothing. You can still get into a couple 9-12 month things, but not too many.

You are a horrible napper, but usually a great night sleeper. This past week you've been getting up in the 4 a.m. hour, so I'm hoping we've just hit a growth spurt!

You crawl EVERYWHERE. I swear, if I didn't already have a shadow, you would be it!

You've now started to pull yourself up to everything also. You've started to cruise the furniture, so I feel pretty confident that you'll be walking soon(ish)!

You've still only gotten the two teeth.

When we go out, we get comments all the time what a great baby you are, and how happy you seem. Ha! If only these people could see you at home. You are definitely discontent in the evenings for sure. During the day you are pretty happy to play at your leisure and don't express your grumpiness for the world (me) to hear, but...oh, boy. I don't think we'll have to teach you to use your words.

When you are happy, girl you are a cutie. You have the best laugh, The Best.

You are turning into a Daddy's Girl. I won't lie, I don't hate it ; ) I won't lie, I don't think your daddy minds!

You love to play with your brothers toys. Max doesn't love it so much. We're all coping.

You also love water. Bath or shower, as long as it's warm you are good to go.

You have an insane amount of nicknames. Elly Belly, Sugar Lips, Cutie Pie, Pumpkinhead, Bright Eyes, Elly C....there are more. Even Max calls you by them sometimes!

We love you more and more each month my Bonnie Bluebelle.

Reflections

With permission from Bella K Photography, for your viewing pleasure here is Max's First Year Milestones:

Photos and design by Krisi Stephens

I can't believe how far he came from preemie to 1 year old! And where we are now from then? WOW.

Growing Up - Mighty Max, 2 1/2 yrs.

Life with Max at 2.5 years old:

Things you love...

• Mommy : D you are a total mama's boy.
• Your blankets! Fortunately you don't have one specific blanket you are attached to, as long as it's soft/fuzzy you are good to go.
• Chocolate : )
• Mints (tic tac's specifically)
• Staying in your jammies all day.
• Pancakes (you see a syrup bottle and freak out!)

Things you dislike...

• Vegetables!
• Having your picture taken : ( unless I'm taking a crazy # of pics of Elly, then you want in on the action
• Having your diaper changed.
  
  
• You are in a size 5 diaper. I am hoping potty training goes better soon because it pretty well isn't going anywhere right now and I'd love to stop buying your diapers!
• You are transitioning to 3T clothes.
• You have a very broad vocabulary, and are pretty clear in your diction. Or maybe that's just me since I hear it all the time : )
• You are still a huge fan of going outside, and can now unlock the door so that you can get yourself there. Some scary moments result from this!
• You still DO NOT sleep through the night. Agh!
• You recently went to your first haunted house. Daddy says you did well. You woke up screaming two nights later though. Not your usual.
• You love flying. Or rather pretending to fly. Buzz Lightyear, airplanes, helicopters, fairies, dinosaurs...all of these things fly and therefore are imitated multiple times a day.
  Speaking of imitating, almost everything you see you try to do yourself.
• You are fearless. You are the kid parks were built for. There is one particular park that has a toddler area vs a big kid area (5-12yr); you have already conquered the big kid area. My heart stopped while you were climing...you were above Daddy and out of his reach! All by yourself!!!
• You are a great big brother! So kind to Elly and always wanting to make sure she has everything she needs. Your toy sharing could use a little work, but I suppose that will come in time.
• You are just an all-around great kid. most days Daddy and Mommy look at each other in awe and amazement. (we have days we look at each other and wonder what were we thinking too!)

We love ya kid! Stop growing up so fast, would ya?

Growing Up - Miss E., 8 Months

Life with Elly at 8 months:

• You have your two bottom front teeth!
• You love to eat solid food, especially with the teeth : ) You still eat regular baby food because you don't seem to quite fill up enough without it. It's two jars at lunch and dinner, and puffs for breakfast. You also will have rice husks, cheerios and other edibles for snacks in the a.m. and p.m. You are also still nursing like a champ ; )
• We have to sing to you while you're eating supper or it's almost a continual whine between (and during) bites. I totally do not get this.
• You are crawling! You love to go! go! go! (on an adventure...) You also pull yourself up to stand anywhere and everywhere. You are happy to have us hold your hands and walk from object to object too! (nooo!!!)
• You officially wear a size 3 diaper.
• You are still in size 6-9 month clothing, but I think we'd be okay to move you to 12 month clothes...especially sleepers.
• You're napping needs a lot of work! But your bedtime routine is magical : ) 7:30 every night you are ready to start winding down and are ready to be down for the night just after 8. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate this!!!!!

• You love to blow raspberries : D
• You are pretty much over the baby toys that your brother loved for so long. If it's not something Max or friends will play with you don't want to have anything to do with it. I cannot tell you how much I wish you were entertained in the activity jumper!
• You are talking more and whining less, although there is still a lot of room for improvement here.
• I think your eye color is pretty permanent : D When you wear denim, they are so dark blue, but when you wear purple they take on this lovely lavender hue. I love it!
• You have really started to imitate those around you! SO entertaining!

We ALL love you SO much!

(hoping this shows off the teethers a bit better!)

Elly moment: I was watching her crawl today. Obviously this has occured before, but I am usually on the floor with her, or watching her from farther away. Today I was standing just a couple feet from her as she was crawling towards me. It just struck me how small she is, (no, not really...she's right on target) or looks at least, as she's doing these big girl activities. I don't remember Max seeming this small as he worked his way up the skillz ladder. It was such a proud/sad moment. And now it's memorialized.

Pumpkins in Patches

We took our first ever, and now annual, trip to Patches Pumpkin Farm. It was a BLAST and I'm thinking we'll actually be going back this year just for some more cheap Fall fun. The pictures don't capture all the fun we had, but they do it more justice than words, so enjoy : )

See a pumpkin.... pick it up!


So big, and so mad!

Say it ain't so!

A great little petting zoo, and Max wouldn't touch any of them!

(he actually was more interested in the fake horse -not shown- than any of the real animals)

Max, Celina and Jack ready to head to the pumpkin patch.

BREAKING NEWS: Just the 6 of us.

(not funny? well, it's late for me and I'm not that into you ; )


How come the kids never want to cooperate when we have a family photo op?

Elly is IN LOVE with Celina. And of course all the kids love Mike!

Thanks to Anna, Jack, and Celina for helping us make this trip the success it was!

Soup, Salad, and...

BREADSTICKS!

Also, because I think they are so stinkn' cute, Elly's 6 mo photo session is up for viewing here. Password: hanson. Only available for viewing for a month : )

Growing Up - Miss E., 7 Months

Life with Elly at 7 months:

• Everyone who sees you compares you to a cabbage patch doll. Okay, not everyone...but it is darn close!
• You gabber a good deal, but so far you prefer grunting to get your point across ; )
• You started sitting last month, and boy have you mastered it! The only time you fall over is when you are getting tired.
• You have started to "crawl" from your sitting position. You'll reach for something until you fall forward into a crawl position. You can't really get anywhere, and you can't get yourself sat back up so this has become a bit frusterating for us all.
• You love to pat. I love when I pick you up from your nap or diaper change and you just pat my shoulder or back : D
• You are a piggy! Veggies and fruit twice a day, and if you would stay awake you'd get breakfast too!
• You have also started to drink from a sippy cup. I don't know if you love getting the drink or the opportunity to gnaw on something new more.
• You LOVE to be outside. I'll carry you in the wrap and we'll follow Max around many afternoons and you think it is all for your entertainment! The laughs you share with us are great!!
• You've moved into size 6-9 month clothing, right on target.
• You still wear a size 2 diaper, but soon we'll have to move to 2-3 or 3!
• At your last appointment you weighed 16lbs 13 oz and were 26 inches long. I looked up your brothers stats from the same time in his life and he was a pound heavier and an inch longer! I guess it's all going to the cheeks ; )
• You got to meet Aunt Mel for the first time this month. I think you have another fan : )
• You tried table food this month, too. Meat loaf, baked potatoe, ribs, mashed potatoes and a deluxe grahm (from grandma!) are the things you've sampled so far!

HELP!

I'm not a good decision maker. We are FINALLY finished painting, and now onto haning our pictures. But appointing the place to hang remains to be decided. So, HELP! Let me know what you think in the comments. I'd put up a poll, but find that the blessed nap time is over ; ) And...THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP : D

First

Second

Third

Growing Up - Miss E., 6 Months

Life with Elly at 6 months:

• You are a little piggy! You started eating cereal just a week or two into your 6th month, and have already progressed to eating a serving of veggies too! You're a good, clean eater, the main mess maker is me ; )
• Your cheeks seem to get pudgier every month! I guess it's a good thing, people seem to adore them : D
• You officially sit up now. Your balance is better every day, and you're so much happier now that you can do it yourself....and play with toys on your own.
• You love to stand! I don't think there will be much crawling in our household this time around either.
• You're verbal skillz are growing...but we seem to be branching into an area your daddy and I would prefer to leave behind...WHINING. You spend a great deal of the day doing this!
• You are straddling the line between 3-6 and 6-9 month clothing, it won't be long now!
• We recently had to switch you from Huggies Snug and Dry to Huggies Lil Snugglers because you were leaking through! Now Mama's considering a switch to clothe. We'll see.
• You're smiles and laughs continue to highlight our days : )
• You love to watch Baby Einstein's Baby Neptune. This is my sanity saver when you keep scooping the loop in Whineyville.
• You love to dance with your family. I hope this is a love that lasts a lifetime!
• You love to look at yourself in the mirror : ) If I were as pretty as you, I guess I would too!

Jump, Jive, and.....

Those crazy kids can dance! The parents aren't too bad either ; ) This past Saturday was National Dance Day. This is something that is common in our house every weekend, but recording it was a little tricky, and a little embarrassing!

We Love Cheese

Wheel or wedge...

On a toothpick, with fruit...

Sliced or shredded...

Baked...

....and in many other forms and flavors. But our favorite, our absolute favorite, is this:

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It's a classic for a reason; Ham and cheese ; ) Notice how his hand is up in both pictures? It's becuase along with the "cheese" comes the camera click!

Captivating

I think I mentioned that Elly likes to be read to. Is this not the cutest thing!?

Growing Up - Miss E., 5 months

Life with Elly at 5 months:

• You're eyes are still blue!!!!
• You are still chewing on everything you can, but no teeth to show for all your effort! I think we've just about exausted all our teething avenue's w/o finding you much relief : (
• You love to grab at things now that you've figured out how to *kinda* hold on to them. Tonight you took Mommy's water bottle away from her!
• You are finding yourself and your brother HILARIOUS.
• We have finally moved you into a size 2 diaper; with that change came a change in your diapering demeanor.....meaning you no longer like them! I blame Max.
• You've figured out how to roll from your back to your tummy, but for some reason you don't like to show this new talent off!
• We've started some Baby Einstein videos and you are slowly starting to pay a little attention; you are finally playing more independently for longer periods of time too! (Yay for macro breaks!)
• You've really discovered your voice and love to exercise it before bedtime : P
  
• You're hair is starting to get noticebly longer (to me anyway!) and I've started to daydream about hairbows : )
• You are liking to be outside a little more now; I think you figured out the scenery changes more frequently!
• We cannot take you anywhere without at least one person mentioning your cheeks! I confess, I love to kiss them!
• You cheered the ICubs at your first baseball game ; )

At your last well baby appointment (6.29.10) you weighed 14 lbs (75%) and were 25 inches (80%)=combined 50%. I took you in a week later for an ear check and you had already gained an additional 6 ounces and grew another 1/2 inch!!!!! WHAT!

As a side note...this is our/my 100th post ; ) It took me almost 2 years, but here we are. Hopefully we'll be adding to that count considerably more often in the near future. Tell me, how do the other mommy bloggers do it??? I can't seem to find enough time to sit down and put a post together between my two (and I will not be making a habit of doing it at 11 pm as I have tonight!).

Bird Watchers

There was an untended baby bird in my parents front yard this week while we were visiting. Max thought it was pretty cool to see a bird so close. Tweet tweet!

Elly wasn't as interested ;)

An Update in Pictures

Father's Day

Getting ready to paint!

This picture makes me want to sing, "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine..."