9 Months!!

Felicity seems so much older than she did even just a month ago. She crawls like an expert now, pulls to stand everywhere, takes little steps while holding onto something, and babbles all the time now. Her most frequent babble is "dada," which her daddy is so very proud of. The other day it sounded like she said, "yeah dad." He liked that one too.

Sleep is still going well. It got a little tricky when she first learned to pull up. She would stir a little, wake up, pull to stand and just stand there crying for a really long time. She is now used to the new skill and does not feel the need to stand up in her crib every waking moment. I was thankful it was just a phase. 

 I can also tell she is getting older by how she falls asleep these days. Previously, she would always cry for a few minutes before going to sleep if I laid her down awake, but all of sudden she no longer cries when I lay her in the crib! She just calmly watches me walk out the room and talks herself to sleep, which I must admit, is much more pleasant for all of us. 

Felicity also has four teeth now. She has both her front top and front bottom teeth. She was a trooper getting them in. She was a little fussy here and there and lost her appetite for a few days, but the whole ordeal was not too bad.  It would be great if the rest were as easy. I think seeing her with teeth is part of what is making her seem so old these days! 

I have heard a few people say that nine months is their favorite age and I am starting to see why. She is picking up on little games and her laugh is just contagious! Brady and her started playing chase the other day and I uploaded a sweet video of them playing. So cute!  This morning I was crawling on the floor chasing her and she would turn around and laugh so hard at me. We would just sit there laughing at one another. We are just so in love with her! 

I celebrated my first Mother's Day as a mommy this year! I told my mom that morning that I felt like I had earned a Mother's Day this year, and she reminded me that I will earn it EVERY year. No doubt that is true. I was remembering as a child I would ask my parents why there wasn't a "kids day." They would say, "Everyday is kid's day." I never really understood that then, but now it is perfectly clear. :) Everyday is most definitely kid's day. 

We had a really nice Mother's Day at Brady's parents house. My parents joined us there and we all had brunch together. Reilly, Felicity's cousin, was so cute and wanted to feed Felicity during brunch. We got a cute video of below.  I think I have written this before, but Reilly is Felicity's favorite. Felicity was acting like she didn't want to eat anymore until Reilly started to feed her. Felicity proceeded to eat and eat and eat as long as Reilly held the spoon. It was cute! 

I like my books. 

Don't let static stop you.

I have one front tooth and the other is about to pop through!!

"Mom and Dad got me a swing." 

"It's okay... I guess. They really want me to like it."

Reilly feeding Felicity. 

I like to empty this cabinet. 

Playing with Dad. 

I'm Waiting, Mom and Dad

Felicity is pulling up to stand everywhere these days. After she began crawling things have gotten pretty adventurous around here. She is keeping us pretty busy. She is not too stable yet and doesn't always pick the safest looking places to explore. The other day I walked in to her standing in her crib after her nap for the first time. I just thought she was so cute that I just had to capture it on video. This is now the routine whenever she is awake in her crib, no matter the hour morning or night. 

Felicity's Photo Shoot

We had pictures taken of Felicity last weekend. The photographer, Briony Hope Photography, did an awesome job! We couldn't be happier with how they turned out! 

Briony was offering a stellar deal on photos about a year ago and we went ahead and booked her thinking we would do newborn photos of Felicity. Then she was born and photos were the last thing on my mind.We finally just got them done at almost 8 months old and I am so excited about them! In two of the photos, the fist two below, Felicity is wearing dresses that were mine when I was a baby. My mom did a great job of being sentimental by keeping these little keepsakes! So even though she seems to only really look like her daddy, she is at least wearing my old clothes. :)

8 Months ~ Sweet Girl Learning to Crawl

Felicity is getting mobile. For all intensive purposes I would say she is crawling, she just isn't very good at it yet. It takes her a while to get somewhere and is a little clumsy still. But, my prediction is that she will get getting around pretty freely in a few weeks. The video below is her one afternoon making some strides! I love the loud breathing and little sounds she makes in the video.

This month was her first Easter as you could see from a previous post and her first trip made on an airplane to visit her Great Aunt Susan and Great Uncle Stu. They live in beautiful Beaufort,  South Carolina. We had a wonderful time getting to see them, their home and the town, as well as having them get to spend some time with our little girl.

Felicity did way better than I expected on the plane ride. We had a layover on the way out and two on the way home. Felicity slept on every single plane except one, which was only a 45 minute flight. The guy next to us on our last flight commented on how she was the best baby he had ever seen on a plane! She did so great!

Felicity with Mama and Aunt Susan.

Felicity with Papa.

Felicity looking at Uncle Stu.

I would say Felicity's cousin Reilly has officially taken my place as favorite. Auntie Calee took some cute photos of them a couple weeks ago. Felicity was LOVING having her cousin hold her. She thought it was just great. I am not sure the feelings were mutual, but Reilly was a good sport.

Felicity 's First Easter

He is Risen indeed!! What a wonderful Easter we had this year! Brady and I had fun dying a few Easter eggs using an Eastern European technique, homemade dye and leaf imprints on the eggs. We think we may have a new family tradition. This year I also found myself thinking about future Easters and how as a family we will focus on and teach our kids the true meaning of Easter. A friend wrote on her blog about how her family focussed on Christ and the sacrifice he made for us this year. I thought this was a really wonderful idea to do with Felicity when she is a bit older.  

The weather was beautiful which isn't always the case here on Easter. We went to church in the morning and then spent the rest of the day with family and friends. Felicity wore her first Easter dress which was actually my first Easter dress. My mom saved it and gave it to us a few weeks ago for Felicity to wear this year. What a little darling she was in it. I love the little bonnet. I was remembering being pregnant at this time last year and looking forward to dressing Felicity in her first Easter dress. Time really flies by! Felicity will be 8 months old next week!!  

Cousins checking out their Easter eggs.

First mother daughter Easter picture. 

Our little family!

Funny Girl!

Felicity thought I was the funny one a few weeks ago. I won't be telling or showing anyone how I got her to laugh like this. It is just between me and my daughter... way too silly. :) I apologize for the sideways video. Apparently I do not know how to hold a flip video camera. If your on  a lap top and want to watch...just turn your screen.

Brady and my favorite part is the beginning...she starts out crying and it quickly turns to laughing.

P.S. Please excuse our messy room.  

Seven-The Month of More Sleep!

I am glad that when I was pregnant nobody told me I would have to wait seven months before the month of more sleep. I think it might have freaked me out a bit, but surprisingly, 7 months of no more than 4 hours of sleep in a row isn't that bad when your greeted by a sweet baby each time. Do not get me wrong though, I am more than ready to be able to lay in bed for longer than 4 hours at a time!

Felicity is still waking up at night, but I have recently stopped going in her room when she wakes (which I probably could have done a while ago, but I just wasn't ready). It is still new for us all, but she has been putting herself back to sleep without too much difficulty for about a week now. So here's to hoping it continues!

One nice thing about more sleep at night is that it means more sleep during the day too! For a long time Felicity was religiously taking 30 minute naps. I truly could have set a timer for thirty minutes and she would wake within a minute or two of the timer, but her sleeping better at night has turned those 30 minute naps into an hour to an hour and half. (Praise Jesus!) This has been so nice for her mom especially, because I recently picked up a very part-time, work from home job! It basically just fell into my lap and we are so thankful it did! Every little bit helps!

This is has been another fun month watching our little girl learn and try new things. We introduced solids to FV this last month and it went over very well! She couldn't get enough of her rice and oatmeal cereal. We have now ventured onto a handful of other homemade baby foods and she has responded pretty well to them all...well after a couple tries each. :) We have captured a few moments of new foods below.

Having her eat meals with us has been a fun change. Her dad has also really enjoyed getting to feed her too (we gave up on the bottle). Felicity has also started using a sippy cup. She can put the spout up to her mouth and suck, but she needs some help tipping it so she can get something out. She looks like such a big girl with it. Bitter sweet.

Felicity is looking like she is on the verge of crawling too. She can get up on all fours now and move a bit, but she usually ends up going backwards. It is pretty cute. I don't know how long it will be before she figures out how to put the whole thing together but it is so fun watching her learn!

In other exciting family news, Felicity is going to have another cousin whose birthday could be on or within days of hers! She loves her cousin Reilly who is only one year older and now she will have a second cousin one year younger. I have started watching Reilly a few hours once a week. Felicity loves to watch Reilly play or do anything really. Felicity will squeal with delight as she watches Reilly do nothing. The rest of us do all sorts of things to try and get her to giggle...but her cousin simply has to be in the same room. So cute!!

My cousin and I just chillin'

Staring contest. 

mmmm...rice cereal

What the heck was that?!?!!