4 Months!

Dr. Parsons had it right when she came in for Edyn's well-child visit. The first thing she said "What happened to the little baby?" My thoughts exactly! I am still amazed on how fast our little girl is growing! Didn't we just bring her home and she was just super-duper tiny??


Here Is What She's Doing
*She can grab onto things
*She can hold her head up

*She can sit in her Bumbo
*She can 'talk'
*She laughs - first time: May 23
*She can roll from tummy to back - June 3
*She can smile - first smile: 3 Weeks

*She can steady herself on her legs being held up
*She can roll from back to tummy - July 1
*She can rotate herself around in a circle - on both tummy and back
*She has a sort of an inchworm or frog movement. She pushes her legs in and out and moves forward.

Edyn now rolls quite a bit - however still haven't captured it on video! She also giggles a bit more! It's totally adorable. She enjoys playing in her playmat, kicking her legs, standing and sitting in her Bumbo. I have recently brought down the walker for her to try out. Not b/c I want her to walk (she can't even reach the floor), more so just so she can have a new view. She has become quite the observer! She loves watching what other people are doing. She usually moves her head back and forth if she's watching Strummer or Bosco. She is still a 'chatty cathy' and talks even more than before! She is very good at grabbing things (watch out if you have long hair!) I love it when she is laying down and you have your finger near her, and she takes her little hands and grabs onto your finger! <3


We don't quite have her on a schedule. I am now in the midst of trying to get her on a regular schedule. It seems that she takes a nap for every 2 - 2-1/2 hrs of awake time. She is eating about every 3-4 hrs. She is also sleeping through the night regularly! Hurray! She has her nights where she'll wake up when she's hungry...and very rarely she'll not go back to sleep in the middle of the night after eating....but for the most part - I am happily sleeping like a 'normal' person again! :o)


Another new thing we are doing is having her sleep upstairs for everything. For naps, we usually start her in the swing, then move her to her crib. Once she's in a regular schedule, we won't rely on the swing to get her to sleep. She is also sleeping at night full time in her crib now. We are still working on Strummer staying asleep when she wakes up, but I'm sure it'll be fine. We will get it figured out!


Her 4-month appointment went surprisingly well (b/c she was very cranky that morning). We had to wait quite awhile for Dr. Parsons. So she had fun scrunching up the paper on the bed. She also did well w/her shots. The same round from her 2-month. This time, only Amy (the nurse) gave the shots. Last time, there were a few nurses doing it. Edyn cried a bit, but calmed down after a few minutes. I was telling Amy we were heading to Ames afterwards, so Amy was calming Edyn down by telling her about going shopping - which appeared to make her happy!
Dr. Parsons said everything Edyn is doing is right on track! She also said if we would like, we could start on her solids if Edyn seems interested. However, I think we'll wait a bit longer b/c she really hasn't shown to much of an interest in our food.
It's crazy that afterwards I scheduled her 6-month appointment! 6 months?? 1/2 a year?? WOW! It reminded me of when I was in my last trimester and we scheduled all my appointments until her due date. Thinking that far ahead is just nuts!

Edyn brings us more joy each day! She changes all the time! She is a delight w/her sweet smiles, giggles and all-around happy baby!


As usual, here are some pics for you to enjoy!

Weight: 13 lbs - 10 oz

54%

Height: 25 - 1/4 inches

91%

Waiting to be called and hanging onto her links

Pic w/her stats sticker

Getting comfort from her blankie-bear

This is why they say you shouldn't leave babies unattended with blankets. She was playing w/her blankie-bear and multiple times, she covered her face. (you can also see how she was squishing up the paper)

We waited so long, I grabbed her elephant from her car seat so she had something else to play with

Kind of a strange pic - but here she is at home w/her 'battle-wounds'

If you're curious on how Strummer's 4-month Update compares, click here!

For those who thought Strummer looked like Brad...

Think Again!! As he gets older, he's starting to look more like me. Here are some old pics that I found and some pics of Strummer. Take a look!!  (PS - the old pics are from the EARLY 80s...so please disregard the awesome attire we are wearing! hee-hee-hee)

Mike (7) and I (6 months?)

Me: I'm guessing over a year old

Mike (9), Me (2), Erika and Sara (1 or 2 months?)

Edyn is already 3-1/2 months!

It's crazy how fast kids grow! So fast - I forgot to blog about it 2 weeks ago when she turned 3 months! Ahh!!

She is starting to sleep through the night a bit more often. It's not every night, but I would guesstimate at least 3xs a week. It all depends on how hungry she is.

She starting rolling about 3 weeks ago. She just rolls from her tummy to her back. She's done it 5xs or so. She's been very close to going from her back to her tummy, but doesn't quite have it yet. She is still talking like crazy! Sometimes it seems she'll 'speak up' when there are other people around her talking. I guess she just wants to be heard! Pretty Funny! :D

She has a bit more head/neck control. She can't completely hold her head up 24/7, but she does a good job of keeping it up most of the time. She's not a fan of tummy time. She has to be in a 'good mood' to stay there and work her muscles! As of a week ago, she sucks her thumb. She's been sucking on her fingers for awhile, but she has now turned into a thumb sucker. HOPEFULLY it's just a phase she outgrows fairly quickly. However, right now, it's pretty cute!

She doesn't use her pacifier as often anymore. She only seems to need it if she's super fussy!

She is very good a grabbing things and holding on. She is also starting to know the cause and effect while playing in her play-mat. For instance, if she hits the big flower - it will make noise. If she pushes of the toys, they will move back and forth. It's fun watching her learn new things!

I'm still feeding her on demand. She is now sleeping in her crib part of the time. She seems to be able to stay asleep in her crib! If it's super hot, we have her sleep in the bassinet, since the upstairs does not have A/C and we just use a fan to keep it cool.

She is still fitting in 0-3 clothing, however, I've pulled out some of her 3-6 clothes - just to mix it up a bit! However, her 0-3 pants fit her in the waist, but are starting to become a bit to short!

Things she doesn't enjoy

*Wet/Dirty diapers (sometimes)

*Cold Water

*Being Hungry

*Being Cold

*Being tired - at times she'll fuss for no reason - that's when we know she's trying to fight it! :P

*Bosco's LOUD barking - it wakes her up (like when he's 'announcing' someone is at the house)

Things she does enjoy

*Mommy

*Daddy

*Brother

*Bosco

*Family

*Eating

*Sleeping

*Music (sometimes it seems she starts 'dancing' when the music is on)

So - here's her run down of the accomplishments thus far

*She can grab onto things

*She can hold her head up

*She can sit in her Bumbo for a bit

*She can 'talk'

*She has laughed (just once - even better, she laughed at her bro!) - May 23

*She can roll from tummy to back - June 3

*She can smile - first smile: 3 Weeks

*She can steady herself on her legs for a bit if held up

That's all for now! If I forgot something, I'll put in my 4-month update! Now - here's a comparison pic for you!

Edyn at 2 days old!

Edyn at 3 month old!

Happy Mother's Day - A bit late...

I really need to keep up w/my blogging! It's crazy to think that last year was my First Mother's Day w/a 6-1/2 month old and now my Second Mother's Day, was w/an 18-1/2 month old and a 2 month old! It's just nuts on how much can change in a year! God is FULL of surprises!!

Strummer and Edyn got me a card, a balloon and flowers. Strummer even brought me my card and balloon this year! He's growing up so fast! It however wasn't to 'relaxing'. When your husband is a teacher and it's towards the end of the year, he's really busy. So he was busy grading papers and I watched the kids all weekend. :P

I am so thankful to be a mommy to 2 of the greatest kids on the planet! I thank our Heavenly Father for our precious little miracles!

Unfortunately, I do not have a pic w/both kids for this Mother's Day. Maybe next year! :o)

Here are a few pics of my fun gifts!

My balloon

Pretty Flowers!

A chocolate covered apple from The Chocolate Season.

I also received some awesome hand lotion, but take a pic of it.

My mother's day gift from my mom!

Thanks mom! It was delicious!

Pretty-Pretty-Princess!

Yes - I am that mom who decided to pierce my daughter's ears w/out asking how she feels about it! Oh, and Brad didn't care, so that also helped! :P

I heard from other friends that if you are planning on getting their ears pierced, it's best to do them really early (at 2 or 3 months) or you should wait until they are a lot older (like 6 or 7) so they don't fiddle around w/the earrings or else the piercings will more likely get infected!

So - since Edyn had her 2-month appointment on Friday (May 7) and had her shots, I made an appointment for her to get her ears pierced the next day. I did quite a bit of research and asking around to see where to go. I ended up going to ANUDU in Boone. I called them to make sure they do infant piercings and I was told they have done quite a few.

So on Saturday, May 8 at 10AM we went to ANUDU to get Edyn's ears pierced. They had 3 different earrings to choose and I chose the diamonds for her! Once they were ready, Edyn and I sat in the chair, then they needed to mark her ears on where the piercings would go. This took awhile. The girls wanted to get it just perfect! One of the girls told me Edyn had good ears for piercing b/c she had a natural crease where they should go! Once the ears were marked, I held Edyn facing out - I tried to have her keep her pacifier in, but she wouldn't b/c she didn't need it during that time. Then there was one girl on each side and they said 1, 2, ready - and when they were both ready, one of the girls said 'go' and the piercings were in!

It's nice that they do both ears at the same time, that way it's just a one-time deal. It's just like getting her shots. Edyn cried for literally one minute - about the same as her shots, and then she was fine!

After we left, we headed to DSM for Crystal's baby shower! It was fun showing everyone Edyn's newly accessorized ears! I even told Hannah that Edyn has pretty ears like she does!

If you live in the Boone area and want to get your girl's ears pierced, I recommend going to ANUDU. They are super-nice and the piercing (which is free), the earrings and the cleaning gel was only $13! I guess it's less expensive when you go to a local place instead of chain store in a mall! :D

Just arrived at the salon

(It was super-cold! I'm so glad I bought the adorable coat and hat at Sarah's garage sale!)

Right afterwards

No earrings (at her doctor's appointment the day before)

Earrings!

Pretty Ears!

2-Months Old!

It's hard to believe Edyn is now 2-months old! She seems to change everyday! Her doctor appointment went well and she took her (3) shots like a champ! Just cried for a few minutes and she was asleep by the time we left the clinic! She now weighs 10 lbs 12 oz (50%), is 22-1/2 inches tall (67%) and her head was at 15 (39%).

She has thus far slept through the night 3xs! It all depends on when I last feed her. She only wakes up to eat (which is what she's been doing from the beginning), so that's awesome!

She's getting better at her head and neck control. She'll hold her head in place for a 5 sec or so at a time. Which is what she's suppose to be doing. She will also support herself on her legs every so often - more often if she's upset and has more momentum :P She is a mostly happy baby, all though a bit more fussy than what Strummer was. I'm guessing it's a 'girl-thing' and she's a bit more emotional :D

She is still sleeping in her bassinet next to our bed. It has been very convenient when she wakes up to eat. I just grab her, feed her, then put her back to bed.

She also seems to be close to rolling over! It seems very early, but now I'm more careful when she's on the couch...just incase! Every so often she'll get herself on her side! Pretty crazy!

Edyn has also developed quite a grip! She hasn't really grabbed onto any toys yet, but if she gets ahold of your hair! Watch out b/c she won't let go! :P

She is 'talking' more! I think she's going to be a good babbler like her brother! She started smiling when she was 5 weeks old and is starting to smile a lot more often now. Strummer seems to make her smile! It's so adorable!

We love our little girl and are so happy that God 'surprised us' when I found out I was pregnant! She's such a blessing! :o)

Length Chart ~ 67%

Weight Chart ~ 50%

Waiting to be called

Strummer found things to stay occupied during sister's appointment

All smiles b/f Dr. Parsons arrives

Getting her oral shot (it's a liquid drink)

Right after her 3 shots - poor girl!

Ready to leave! All better! No more tears!

18 Months Old!

Mr. Strummer is growing so quickly! I can't believe he's already 1-1/2 years old! He seems to do new things every day and becomes more independent everyday. All though he still loves snuggle time! He's now 33 inches tall and 28 lbs. Big Boy! :P You can be assured I have extreme bicep strength when I have to carry him in one arm and Edyn in her car seat in the other! hee-hee-hee

At his appointment they did something new that I wasn't ready for! They weighed and measured him in the hallway instead of in the room! If I would have known that, I would have taken my camera out for his first experience being weighed on the big scale and being measured with the height adjuster!

He says a lot more things that you can actually recognize! He apparently also said his first sentence during Easter. I unfortunately didn't hear it, but he said it 2 times! Once Brad heard it then Sara heard it. He said "I Love My Momma"!

As far as starting to potty train, he knows what the potty is, he knows what he is suppose to do on the potty, he just hasn't done it yet. We're not forcing him, it'll just be a gradual learning experience. It was pretty funny one time. I found a Elmo Learns to Go Potty video on You Tube. We watched it and when it was over, Strummer ran into the bathroom, grabbed his potty seat, put it on the potty and took his step stool so he could 'go on the potty' :D

He has learned how to wash his hands in the sink. He is also getting better at using silverware, but still prefers his hands. I'm sure there are more new things he has learned, but I can't think of them right now.

Strummer loves being outside! I think he would play all day if he could. He loves going to the park and running around the jungle gyms! He also just doesn't walk, he usually RUNS everywhere!

He's also started to show a sign of the 'terrible 2s' already. If he doesn't want to do something or if we tell him no to something he wants, he lets you know how he feels about it! We've seen a few tantrums already. Not extreme, but lets just hope it doesn't get worse! I guess it just comes with the age! He'll have to learn about a 'time-out'!

Overall, he's our sweet, easygoing, lovable little man, that is usually full of smiles and giggles! :o)

72% for height

77% for weight

Sliding down the slide at the 'Fish Park'

Running across the field at Page Elementary Playground

Being his goofy self!