Girlie's Fifth Month

While the grins and giggles have continued to brighten our everyday, the fifth month has brought major physical growth and development. Her head and neck control has really strengthened. She's able to push her upper body off the floor during tummy time and hold her head steady when carried or propped up. She rolled from her tummy onto her back at the beginning of the month and is on the verge of rolling from back to tummy at month's end. I have been calling Robert to "hurry and come see!" all week long, because she can get herself rolled all the way to her tummy except for that right arm that gets stuck underneath and launches back over onto her back. She has also found her feet. My oh my does she love those feet. She gets frustrated when she can't get both of them in her mouth at the same time. She can quite literally fold herself in half to play with those cute little feet of hers. Many of the pictures I took she was either folded in half or trying to roll over. She's ready to move!
She outgrew her Moses Basket this month. We moved the Pak n Play to our bedroom from the family room. We're doing a modified co-sleeping. She starts off the night in the Pak n Play, previously the Moses Basket, then moves into the bed when she wakes up. However, since she's still largely sleeping through the night, she tends to stay in one place. If she's not in the bed, I like for her to be right next to the bed, so I can tend to her immediately. Anyways, all this to say, I can't believe my baby girl is too big for the Moses Basket! She's growing so fast!

Girlie's Fourth Month

She gave us a little chuckle at the end of last month, so this month has been all about getting our baby to laugh! Hearing her giggles or squeals of delight have been so rewarding. We've spent the month making funny faces, making silly noises, talking in goofy voices, tickling her, anything we could think of to hear her laugh! Her other skills have been developing right along this month. She's grabbing at hanging toys, holding on to rattles and ring toys, guiding toys (and blankets, burp cloths, clothes, anything) to her mouth, bringing her hands together, holding up her head, lifting her head and chest during tummy time, and making many new sounds of her own. She is even "singing" herself to sleep by making a continuous vowel sound when she gets tired. It's quite fascinating! Her self soothing abilities are astonishing! During her second month, she slept through the night. She found her thumb and soothed her self to sleep the third month. Now, she's singing her own lullabies! At least I still get to rock her and sing "Hush Little Baby" and other lullabies to her before she goes down each night.
She still enjoys our walks and other adventures. She's happy to hang out in the Moby as we go grocery shopping or explore the local farmer's market. Sometimes, she can stay awake for an entire walk. She especially enjoys walks in the evenings. With no sun shining in her eyes, I can pull the shade back on the stroller giving her a more expansive view. She stretches out her little neck, turning her eyes skyward as she tries to see everything. It's so cute!
She spent lots of time with her Daddy on Father's Day weekend. We went galavanting all over town, and she was a delight (other than the one exploded diaper that resulted in a mad dash back to the house so Mommy could shower). We went to a restaurant for Father's Day dinner with her Aunt Rachel and cousins and her Grandpa McGee. The following weekend, her Grandpa Barry and Li Li drove down from Nashville to spend the weekend with her.

Here comes the yawn... And we're done!

Suburban Deer

I love watching all the deer and other wildlife in our new neighborhood!

Girlie's Third Month

This month, she is happy to give big, gummy grins when we talk to her, smile at her, change her diaper, and especially when she first wakes in the mornings. She is making lots of new sounds and loves to hold little "conversations" with us. She is such a good baby! She only cries for feeding, when her diaper needs changing, or when she's tired. Though I might add, she really hates a wet diaper. She is a delight to take to different places. After spending the day at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens with her Daddy's Uncle Fred and Aunt Lee, Uncle Fred commented that even her cry is polite. She also did an excellent job at her first Braves baseball game! On Mother's Day this month, she met many of her Daddy's family, including her Great-Gramma. Her Aunt Shannon also came for a short visit near the end of the month. She is always so curious on our walks. They always end up putting her to sleep, but when she's awake, she is all eyes! She is still sleeping well. She's even found her thumb and can soothe herself to sleep (depending on her level of sleepiness) or back to sleep.

She found her thumb!

She's using those lips to make all kinds of fun noises!

Long legs!

So Expressive!

Girlie's Second Month

She smiled at us early this month. She also amazed us by sleeping through the night starting about halfway through the month. Her new sounds are like little squawks-a step away from a cry-but definitely communicative in a different way. She had a long conversation with her cousin, using those little squawks, while he made his big 5 month old boy noises. It was very cute! Her Aunt Erin and her friend, Sean, came for a long weekend to visit her earlier in the month. She has definitely stolen her Aunt Erin's heart! Her Gramma and David came to spend the weekend with her later in the month. She's the only girl out of 5 grand babies, so she currently holds that special spot on her Daddy's side of the family. She has grown more responsive and interactive. We love waking up in the mornings, propping her up on a pillow, and listening to all she has to say. We are often delighted to be greeted with her beautiful smile.

See How Our Garden Grows

The benefits of having a mild to nonexistent winter can be found in the garden. Though I'm sad we never were able to see our house blanketed by snow, I'm grateful that I am able to walk around the garden with our daughter.
The snapdragons I planted in the fall are prolific in their blooms. The pansies are still full of colorful blooms. The irises, which didn't bloom at all last year, are flourishing.

Girlie's First Month

Well, we have come through our first month together as a family with a newborn. Girlie is a delight, and we fall in love with her more and more each day. We are learning all the subtle nuances of parenting as well as all of her little cues. We've experienced many of our "firsts" (first car ride, first night home, first day home, first doctor's appointment, first sponge bath, first exploded diaper, first family outing, etc.) and have learned something from all of them. Here's to many more firsts with our beautiful first child, celebrating her first month of life!

The Beginnings of a Smile