Five Months Old in the New Year!

Happy New Year! Felicity rang in the New Year asleep while we ordered in some wings and celebrated at home. We hope your year is going well so far! We didn't make any resolutions over here but I am hoping Felicity's resolution is to sleep 8 hours in a row:) We are getting closer. She went 7 hours one night, 6 the next and then five the night after that. It may not sound like much, but that was big step for us! I wish it had lasted longer than three nights, but at least we know she CAN do it. I know we will get there eventually.

This has been a month of firsts for Felicity. We celebrated Felicity's first Christmas with lots of family up at Crooked Creek Ranch in Winter Park. It was perfect like always and even more fun to celebrate with our daughter. She was pretty popular up there, especially with her second cousins, Zoe and Caleb. 

This also marked the month that Felicity got her first flu bug. It was awful and scary. Felicity was throwing up off and on for two days. Luckily we already had an appointment with her doctor for her four month check up the same day she got sick. She told us how to check if Felicity was dehydrated. Thankfully she never got so dehydrated that we needed to go to the hospital, but you better believe her mother was compulsively checking to make sure.

That bug went all the way through the family including two of Felicity's aunts, one uncle, two grandpas, one grandma, one cousin and her mom and dad. Felicity and Brady both got sick the same night. I ended up calling my mom to come over and help me take care of my family that night. I don't know what I would do without her! Then I got sick once they were both better. 

Felicity also started rolling over on purpose this month. She had rolled over quite a few times before, but it is very clear that she is now doing it on purpose. She no longer looks surprised afterwards, but pleased with herself. Tummy time doesn't last long anymore either. She is also really close to rolling over the other way, back to tummy. I think she could if she wanted to, but she has been pretty entertained on her back.

It has also become clear that Felicity loves music. She does not like being in the car without music playing these days. It now happens almost every car ride, she cries until we put on some music. It has started to feel quite comical to us. Felicity's preference for music playing is also starting to be proven true at home. Any activity is entertaining for longer if there is music on.  I think she may be her daddy's daughter! I woke up this morning to the two of them listening to Russian church music. :)

Felicity also got her four month shots. That wasn't fun, but I believe it always more traumatic for me than her. Brady had to be the one to hold her while they did it this time. I just can't take it. She also came down with a slight fever from the shots this time, another first.

Loving being this girl's parents!

Photo shoot with Mommy. 

Out shopping the sales with Mommy and lunch with the girls the day after Christmas! Teaching her how it's done young! 

On our way inside after taking our family Christmas picture.

Four Month Picture

Finally posting little FV's four month photo. It is getting more difficult to get a good one. The little bean is rolling all around and loves her little hands in her mouth. 

Felicity's First Christmas!!

Felicity's first Christmas was so much fun for her parents! She was just a smiley doll! We had fun celebrating with lots of family up at Crooked Creek! Felicity got to meet lots of family for the first time including second cousins Zoe (below) and Caleb. They thought she was lots of fun making for a cute show for all of us adults! 

Four Months and Counting!

We have a four month old on our hands! This month we have started to see some real changes in our girl. Felicity no longer seems like a newborn (tear and sigh of relief). She feels so much bigger when we hold her and continues to mellow. Those truly sleepless nights are few and far between now. The 2am car rides and long days of trying to console a crying baby are also becoming distant memories.

Our little girl falls asleep on her own for both naps and bedtime (so awesome!) and when she wakes up (and isn't hungry) she can put herself back to sleep most of the time. Her naps used to always be about 20-30 minutes max and they are becoming longer and longer. We are so proud of her! Three months ago I wasn't so sure she would ever be able to do these things. I guess all she had to do was get older!

She still gets up a couple of times to eat in the middle of the night, but if I am honest I don't really mind these days. We are usually only up for about 15 minutes and I love starring at her sweet little face. Sometimes I still can't believe she is ours, but can't imagine life without her.

It has been fun watching her develop this month too. She just recently started picking up toys on her own and putting them in her mouth. I never knew I would get such a kick out of watching a baby learn to do something like that, but I also couldn't comprehend how much we would love her! She is becoming a little more mobile in crib too. I am often coming in to find her facing a different way than I laid her down. I believe the impressive part about it that she is swaddled with both hands in and still manages to do it. May be time to start thinking about losing the swaddle. 

Felicity came down with her first cold this month too. I had been fighting off a bug for a little over a week and then my body finally caved in. As soon as I knew I was sick, we knew it was curtains for her. Felicity had a runny nose within a day or two of me. Luckily, it wasn't too bad of a cold and thankfully she was never so plugged up that she couldn't eat. I think her not eating well would have made the whole experience much more stressful for all of us. It is nice to have her first cold under our belt. I was really nervous for the first one and it really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

Felicity was also dedicated at church this month. We were a bit nervous she might have a huge melt down, but she did awesome. I am starting to think those newborn melt downs she used to have may also be behind us, which is fine by me! It was fun getting her all dressed up for the dedication. She wore a little dress that was mine when I was a baby and a special bonnet to go with it. The bonnet was a gift and is actually a folded handkerchief that she can carry with her on her wedding day. I love sentimental things and Brady says with a chuckle that she surely will too thanks to her Nana Jane and me. I hope so!

Baby Dedication

Starting her early. Her dad says she will be taking lessons whether she likes 

it or not. 

aren't I cute?

Morning tummy time.

My daddy is so funny!

Babyzilla...ahhhhh!

Felicity's favorite game with Daddy right now. 

3 Month Picture

Three Months Old

"Seriously?" she says.

We thought that picture of Felicity was so funny and well... adorable! We are definitely biased, but come on! Felicity has brought us much laughter this last month. We are getting to know her little antics (yes, our 3 month old does indeed have antics) pretty well and find ourselves often chuckling about them.

Three months ago today was Felicity's due date. This means that three months ago today I was crying because she hadn't come yet. At the time it felt like she would never get here. Now, it is hard to believe that we already have a 3 month old!

It is also hard to believe it has been 3 months since I have slept more than 4 hours in a row. :) I feel like I am still doing pretty well without more sleep than that, even though most mornings I have a lot of trouble recollecting what exactly took place in the night. When Brady and I get up with her in the middle of the night we do our best to remember how fleeting this time with her is and treasure the quiet moments watching her fall back asleep. I often find myself praying over her as I gaze at her peaceful little face. It is so amazing that she was the one kicking me all those months!

Felicity continues to be at her best in the mornings right when she wakes. I often go into her room in the morning to her just cooing. When I tell her good morning she just gives me a sweet little smile. My heart could just melt! I have really appreciated the blessing of not having to rush off to work in the morning so that I can enjoy this sweet time of day with her.

We recently got to have a little baby reunion with the other couples from our birth classes. It was so fun to see the other babies and new parents. We got to chat and compare notes of life as new parents. It was so nice! There is a little video of the babies at the bottom of this post.

Well we continue to fall more in love with this little girl. Hard to believe our love for her could only continue to grow, but none the less it does!

Brady singing and playing the guitar for his little girl. She just sat and listened for quite a while. And as you can see Margot had to get in on it too.

My first Halloween...I tried to be a mouse, but never made it all the way into my costume. Only got as far as a few whiskers.

Cuddling with my blankie from my Great Aunt and Uncle in South Carolina.

Just relaxin' with Mom and Dad one morning.

Here are the babies from our class. We lined them up for picture time. Felicity wasn't too crazy about the idea... she is the main one crying. :)