Turning three

Aaaandd, just like *that* I have a three year old.  She was so ridiculously adorable today that I wanted to savor every minute.  I just kept staring at her.  Her gray-ish blue eyes are so incredibly beautiful, and the white hat and silver coat she wore today just make her little eyes shine.  She wore her new "cute jacket" from Aunt Dee and it was cold enough that she needed her "snow coat" over it.  She was pretty excited to wear both at the same time.



When she got up this morning and was sitting on the potty, I said, "Do you know what today is?"  She got a huge grin on her face and excitedly whispered, "My boh-day!"  I let her climb in bed with me for a "snugga snug" and out of the blue she asked, "Am I gonna die?"  [Whoa.  If this is what 3 is like, Lord, help me!]  Then she asked, "When?"  "Am I gonna go home to God?"  (She mentioned Donna, our neighbor, who passed away last fall.)

She told me she wanted to share her "boh-day" with Hudson.  I think she thinks the term "birthday" means cake or dessert.  :)

We took her to breakfast at Rooster, downtown.  Our waitress was so awesome.  She made a huge fuss over Ellie, and Ellie just ate it up.  Ellie kept telling her, "I'm too spicy to eat!"  (She knew it didn't make sense, but she thought it was hilarious.)  I had brought 3 candles from home, and asked them to put them on her berry-covered pancake.  She got all shy when they came out with it, singing "Happy Birthday."



Ellie had a great time listening to her messages from Aunt Bethany and cousin Eli.  We had to listen to each at least four times.

We went to the science center 'cause Ellie's been obsessed with the dinosaurs she saw there a few weeks ago.  She told me she wants to see the dinosaur that's standing up, but not the Feel Sorry Dinosaur (the one that's laying down and has a "boo boo" on its side).  She asked, "Are dinosaurs persons?"





When we came home we had lunch and I put Ellie down for a nap.  She likes to pile her babies on during naptime: Bunny, Soft Baby, Jammie Baby, Little Baby, Carly Daisy, and about 6 little blankets for them.  After hearing too much noise I peeked my head in and found the light on, and Ellie putting the babies in her cradle.  I told her to get back in bed and she obeyed, but pointed her finger and said, "I'm gonna take a short rest, a long rest, a short nap, a long rest, and a short nap."

I left for work, and when I came home we had dinner together.  She finished her dinner, so she had some "manana bread" from a friend.  After putting Hudson down, she put her own jammies on and climbed up in my bed with me and read "Mommy Hugs" (animal mommies giving their babies hugs).  She told me her favorite page was the last one--the human mommy giving her baby a cuddle.  *Melt My Heart*  I love this girl!

3 month comparison

Big Girl Bed

Last night was Ellie's first night in her Big Girl Bed!

This project was never-ending!! Seriously, it made me a bit depressed at how much was involved: painting the bed frame, buying a mattress, a box spring (which needs to be returned since it made the bed way too high), new sheets, a new quilt, a dust ruffle, shams, and a mattress cover, in case of accidents. (Fortunately, we have very generous family members who took care of most of the expenses!) We've been talking to her about the new bed for probably over a month, but it's taken that long to accumulate everything, and for Currie to find time to paint the bed, which he inherited from his grandparents. So, I am VERY thankful that the ordeal is over.

I not only love how the bed turned out, but I love how easily Ellie has adjusted to it. I was worried that she would keep getting out of bed, but she hasn't once! Last night she cried when we left the room (she goes through phases of doing this/not doing this), but it only lasted about 2 minutes. I teared up too. I think it was partly because I thought she might be nervous/scared of the change, but mostly because it seems like this is the last big transition from being a baby.

Anyway, it was pretty fun to be able to lay down next to her and sing and pray before bed. She definitely needs her own space to sleep, so it's not often that you get snuggles in bed (she wakes up raring to go)! Sweet memories:

So, "Ellie's room" is becoming "the kids' room". Hudson still has one night feeding that we need to wean him of before we move him in there, and I wanted Ellie to have some time in her bed before moving him in. I need to rehang all of the wall decor (don't worry, his side will have some blue in it), but otherwise we're almost done!

26 months

More snapshots of what this girl is up to lately:

*She's been asking "Huh? What?" after everything we say. We've grown tired of repeating ourselves, and realized that it's not that she doesn't hear us. Once we started asking her "What did I say?" she's able to repeat back verbatim what she's heard. Perhaps this is her way to process new vocabulary or concepts? (Any suggestions on how to break this habit are welcome!)

*Her sentences are becoming much more complex. Instead of saying "Ellie hand dirty," she now says, "My hands are dirty, Mommy." She's using 7-8 word sentences and pretty much blows me away every day with her conversations.

*She loves to sings her ABC's and can pretty much sing them on her own. She can identify an "E" for Ellie.

*She can count to 13 (often skipping 8) and her new way of asking for more is to say "four, five, six, seven?"

*In the car she's been asking "Where did --------- go (Trader Joe's, Daddy, church, motorcycle, etc.)? "

*This girl still LOVES to eat. She asks for snacks constantly! Some of her recent favorites are almonds & cranberries, peanuts, grapes, strawberries, and "moo-vees" (smoothies). Plain, European-style yogurt is still her all-time favorite thing to eat. She eats her dinners pretty well, but we do sometimes have to bribe her bite-by-bite with something like bread or grapes.

*She's discovered running, jumping, and is getting more and more confident doing up/down steps independently.

*She likes to use a pen and draw on the back of junk mail envelopes that we use as scrap paper. She says, "I color."

*Ellie is *mostly* potty-trained!!! She rarely has an accident for #1, and accidents for #2 are becoming less and less frequent. Last week I dropped the diaper during naps and her overnight diapers are dry about 1/4 of the time. While I still ask her if she has to go, she's starting to tell us much more often now, and when she says she doesn't have to go, she really doesn't. Yeah!!!

*Current favorite night-time song is "Come Thou Fount". She calls it "water fountain". It's so sweet to listen to her try to whisper-sing along in my ear while I'm holding her during our little bedtime routine. She knows many of the words now. I also discovered that she knows the words to "Jesus Loves Me". I heard her singing it during a time-out yesterday (hee hee)!

*She is such a sweet big sister to Hudson. Sometimes, as expected, she gets a little carried away and is too rough with him (he's already got a scar from her scratching him), but she has definitely included him in the family, often asking as soon as she wakes up, "Where's Hudson?"

Is she cute, or what?! I love this kid!!

23 months

*We've taken potty training to the next level, and Ellie is doing great!! For the last 5 months we've given her "potty practice" and she was to the point of peeing in the potty every single time we put her on it. However, I hadn't had a chance to put her in undies to help her learn how to stay dry in between potty times. So, school ended Wed. and Thurs. we put her in the undies. Day 2 she was in about 8 different outfits, and then days 3-8 (today) she hasn't had any wet accidents at all! We're still putting her in diapers for nap and nighttime, and she doesn't like going #2 in the potty, but otherwise, she's doing great. We've even taken her out this week and she's gone on the big potties in a couple different stores! I'm still reminding her every 1-2 hrs (though she has told me a couple of times that she needs to go), but this is SO much better than changing diapers. :)

*Her vocabulary just blows me away. She is saying 5-word sentences and really communicating, even on the phone w/ grandparents.

*We've begun time-outs, about a minute and a half. It seems to help-- she got one for touching the tree/ornaments and then didn't touch it again.

*She calls us "Ellie's mommy" and "Ellie's daddy" often now, because she recognizes that other kids have a mommy and daddy too. I'll hear her call from the crib "Where did Ellie's mommy go?"

*Twinkle-twinkle is still a favorite song, especially before bed. When she sings along with us she knows many of the words. But, when she sings it on her own, to put her babies to bed, she sings "kinkle, kinkle, kinkle sar, how-I, how-I, how-I kinkle."

*We talk about the baby a lot now. She likes to put both hands on my bare belly and feel it, and will kiss it too. If we ask "Where's the baby?" she will either point to my stomach or her own. :)

*Her sleep schedule is still pretty much the same: 7 pm-7 am with a nap from 2-3:30 or 4 pm. She's still a great eater too and has gotten really good at feeding herself, even wiping up her chin/cheek with her spoon when she gets yogurt on it. I still call her my bottomless pit, and she weighs almost 30 lbs!

21 Months

Here are some of my favorite Ellie-isms lately:

*She's so polite and often says "dak-oo" (thank you) to me even if I'm just walking by and stroking her hair or handing her a drink. She also says "shoo-me" (excuse me) if she wants to get by, or if she burps. :) And, she totally melts my heart when she says "Wuh-loo...Mommy" (love you). I love the little pause in her new "sentences."

*She's obsessed with her new owl jammies. I hear her saying "Hi, Owl!" from her crib in the morning. (Love how she talks to inanimate objects!)

*She is quite the extrovert. Every morning I hear her going through her list of friends (people she sees at church, school, family members, etc.). She's been known to ask "Amy...soon?" at least 50 times in a given day.

*She's been sleeping a solid 12 hours at night (7 pm to 7 am) and most days takes a 2 hour nap (2 -4 pm). Of course, this bliss is probably about to come to a end as we get ready to transition to a toddler or twin bed this weekend (so baby brother can use the crib in a few months).

*She's really into reading lately and often says "Mommy... sit" while patting the floor next to her. Then she'll say "lap" and back herself up into my almost non-existent lap. Favorite books right now are "Nernie" for The Sesame Street ABC Book and "shool-ee" for Grover Takes Care of Baby (which has a picture of a stroller on the front).

*She says "Uuuhhhh, no." Most of the time this is pretty funny, like "Um, let me think about it...no." Unless, of course, she's disobeying and not doing something I asked, then, not-so-cute.

*She sings "Uppa, uppa, uppa, GUY" (translation: "up above the world so high") while rocking her baby to sleep. This video was taken about a month ago, but she can sing the entire tune perfectly now.

*Potty training is going well and I honestly think that if she wasn't in the school nursery 20 hours/week and I could actually try putting her in underwear that she'd be trained by now. Most of the time she LOVES going and sitting in there (chocolate chips = great incentive!) and is now to the point where she's sometimes telling me "po-lly". She pees in the potty multiple times a day, but doesn't yet keep her diaper dry.

*She has conversations with her stuffed animals or babies and I'll frequently hear her say, "Yeah, Oh-kaay," like she's agreeing with whatever they've just "told" her. I also love it when she says "Wooow....pree-lly."

*She started counting "one, two, free!" last week. Most of the time she's gets a bit confused and says "one, two, one" or "free, two, free". We think she really gets the concept of two though because when we give her one yogurt or one chocolate chip, she immediately says "Two?"

Man, I love this kid. :)

20 Months

*Ellie has over 70 words now...I'd been keeping track on a spreadsheet out of curiosity, but now in one day she can say as many as four new words! Yesterday as I was giving her a snack she said pointed into the kitchen and said "working" clear as day--referring to her Daddy who was indeed working in the kitchen. :)

*In the last week she started putting 2 words together. It started w/ "Bye, Daddy", but she's beginning to generalize to other 2 word phrases now as well like "more...cracker".

*Current favorite snack is crackers & peanut butter, or apples & peanut butter.



*She took a 3-wk hiatus from being interested in the potty, so yesterday we decided to give one chocolate chip just for sitting on the potty to renew interest. Lo and behold! In less than a minute she had pee'd in the potty! Then, an hour later, she did it again, and today, again.

*Her current favorite song is the wheels on the bus. She makes her fingers go around and says "whee, whee, whee". My favorite verse for her to sing is the "babies on the bus go wa-wa-wa" 'cause she makes the funniest little fake-sad face. (Still need to catch this on video!)

*She's obsessed with bikes. She also loves cars, vans, trucks, motorcycles, and buses, but she is absolutely infatuated with bikes (she is her father's daughter, for sure!).

*She runs everywhere, with great purpose and is starting to learn how to jump. She doesn't actually get airborne, but she's close! She also loves walking backwards and gets a very proud look on her face while doing so.

Girl or Boy?

Mommy: Do you think the baby is a girl or a boy?
Ellie: Buh.
Mommy: Do you think the baby is a boy or a girl?
Ellie: Guh.
(Notice in each case it was the last thing she heard that she repeated.)
Mommy: Do you think the baby is a girl?
Ellie: Yeah.
Mommy: Do you think the baby is a boy?
Ellie: Yeah.

Hmmm, gender confusion, much? :)

We find out this Tuesday!!!

Random cuteness

* Ellie loves to pretend that she is eating (still her favorite activity). She opens one hand, palm up, and "picks" something from it with her other hand to put either in her mouth or my mouth, saying "ummm" after each "bite". She came up with this all on her own!

* The girl loves to hug, and gives GREAT hugs. She'll wrap her little arm around my neck and press her cheek right next to mine (*melt my heart*).

* She's started "reading" to herself. I'll catch her with a book going "Ah-bit-tib-it-ibah. Yeah!"

* She's had 5 potty-time successes! She's loves just sitting on the potty, and reading/singing/talking for up to about 10 min at a time (great improvement from when we started about 3 wks ago). Mostly the successes are due to Mommy noticing a dry diaper after a nap, or a particular face she is starting to make... but two times she has actually told me she wants to go!!!

* The answer to EVERYTHING right now is "Yeah". "Ellie, do you speak German?" "Yeah." "Ellie, am I the best Mommy in the whole world?" "Yeah." :)
(I realize that soon she will probably go through a "no" phase too, so I'm quite content to hear "yeah" for now.) Currie & I are having fun asking her all sorts of ridiculous questions just to hear her little answer. :)

*She is singing more and more. Last night we had our community group over and I was whispering her bedtime story to her while people shared their requests. Then she started singing "Ba-ba-ba.... Da-da-da...." (her version of Up above the world so high...). Without me saying a word, someone said, "Is she singing Twinkle-Twinkle?" It was the most recognizable she's sung it yet!

18 Months

The ticker at the top of this page says my baby is 18 months old today! To celebrate this milestone, this morning we went for donuts. We gave Ellie her own cake donut with one, pink candle and then sang "Happy Half-Birthday to You". I think we may have to keep up this little tradition for all future half-birthdays.



This afternoon we had her portraits done. They turned out great (which makes it SO hard to choose only the poses our budget will allow)! As per the photographer's suggestion, we took some of her favorite toys: her white bear and her basket of veggies. This helped SO much. It kept her busy and the lady was able to capture some real "Ellie" poses. (The picture below is not one of them, but she is cuddling her white bear.)



I feel like Ellie is doing so much now and gaining so much independence so quickly that I hardly know where to begin! Of course, if I had blogged even once in the last 5 months I wouldn't be in such a pickle. So, settle in for a loooong post, people, in the format of random items that I love about my Little Honey, or just things I don't want to forget. Don't worry though, if you stick with me 'til the end of the post, I'll reward you with an adorable video. :)

*She loves to hold my hand when we pray for our food, and always says mee-maw for amen. Lately she uses the other hand to cover her eye when I say Close your eyes.

*She loves to put on her winter hat! Who cares that there's a heat advisory going on and that it makes her little head sweat while she's playing inside, but she loves the darn thing. Typical Ellie is her with this little hat on, her purse slung over her shoulder, and her white bear stuffed under her armpit. :)



*She LOVES for us to sing The Itsy-Bitsy Spider and tries wholeheartedly to do the hand motions. She's also started singing herself recently and is experimenting with getting louder.

*She points to anything and everything and says Eh! at least six thousand times a day. I have to constantly remind her to say it, or sign it, or I play the guessing game as to what she wants. I think she will be SOOO happy to be able to talk, because she obviously has a lot to say.



*I've been using the family calendar that I made to teach her everyone's names. So far she can say Dee Dee, Papa, Will (W-uhl), Nene, Dan, Addie (Ah-duh), and, by far her favorite one to say of all, Eli (E-ya!!). I have caught her several times leaning on the coffee table, studying it herself. Other new words include water (wah-wer) and apple (ah-pul).

*She's becoming more and more independent in the eating department. We've been reluctant to let her "have at it" because neither of us likes to be messy. But now she can successfully use her little fork to eat sausage & scrambled eggs, she likes to have crackers and cheese in her little compartmentalized tray, and tonight she was delighted to discover that she could dip her fries in ketchup!



*We're in the beginning phases of potty training. We bought Ellie a potty chair and a doll that wets and has her own potty chair, we've been reading books from the library about going potty, we let her run around w/o a diaper so that I can monitor her patterns and so she can figure out what's happening, etc. The first time she peed on the floor she looked down like What just happened?! Why would she know? It always happens in her diaper... She does point to her diaper now immediately when she wants it changed. All good signs!!

*As of today, my baby is completely weaned. I think I would be much sadder if I didn't know that she was completely ready (we were down to just the morning feeding and she's been more and more distracted and ready to play). Also, I know that in 6 months I'll have another little mouth to feed, which makes the weaning a bit easier. Still, I had to really force myself to make the break today and her 18-month milestone was a tangible goal in my mind. (Though writing this is now bringing the tears as I process the finality of the whole thing). Truth be told, I am really going to miss those precious times of holding and cuddling.



*She still takes two naps: 1-2 hours in the morning and about 1 hour in the afternoon (on a good day...sometimes she just likes to skip a nap altogether to keep us guessing). She's still a solid 11 hour sleeper at night, going to bed at 8 and getting up at 7. (This may be changing...this past week she's let us sleep in 'til about 8:15 one morning!!)

And, now, because you've earned it: An Adorable Video:

15 months (& 3 weeks)

Busy, busy, busy! This little girl practically runs from one end of the room to the other, stopping for less than a minute to sling a purse over shoulder, page through a book, explore what's in her diaper bag, or tuck a stuffed animal under her armpit.

She continues to be a little chatterbox, jabbering away in Ellie-ese!
words: hi, bye, baby, dada, mama, papa, uh-oh, ‘nana, boo, and ball.
signs: hi, bye, eat, more, milk, up, all done, bath, thank you, drink/water, help, I love you, yucky, yes, and no.
She points to things constantly and either says "eh" or makes the "more" sign to help us figure out what she wants. For instance, she'll point to her coat, make the "more" sign, and say "bye". Beyond this, she is understanding so much more than she's saying. Last week when we left her w/ a babysitter, we explained what was going to happen and she waved and said "bye" to us on our way out the door (much better than the tears I was expecting)!

Little Miss Chatterbox

I think we're in for it. The last couple of hours went something like this:

It's all happening so fast!

This month I feel like someone pulled a lever that has propelled us into Full Speed Ahead; Ellie is doing so many new things these days I can hardly keep up!

She:
*signs more, eat, up, and all done (the last is always accompanied by taking off her bib)
*has taken a few very timid "baby" steps without holding on (I've seen it twice about a week apart); she can walk just fine holding onto my pinky, but is just very reluctant to let go

*covers her own eyes to play peek-a-boo
*rocks her baby back and forth when I sing rock-a-bye-baby
*can crawl up stairs and go down them backwards (her daddy taught her this)
*is stuck on the word bobby- not sure if she just likes the sound it makes or if she's trying to say bunny or something, but she has said it a hundred times this week!
*LOVES to say uh-oh; I think she purposely drops things so she can have a reason to say it!
*greets everyone we pass in the grocery store with an enthusiastic Hi!!
*has gotten super cuddly w/ me b/c she's hit full-on Stranger Anxiety phase and I just eat it up!
*immediately looks around for Bunny when I get her up from her nap, and then shows her to me, then kisses her multiple times on the nose (*adorable*)
*identified where mommy's nose is for the first time yesterday
and,
*screamed Dada! when Currie walked into the room tonight!

She is such a little munchkin, and I just love her to pieces!!

My One-Year-Old!

It's high time for an Ellie update! Some of these things she's been doing for at least a month, but I'll record them anyway since my posting has been rather infrequent and since I haven't been keeping a traditional baby book:

*waves bye-bye and started saying "bye-bye" this week (especially when I hang up the phone)

*favorite activity has been taking things in and out (and in, and out, repeat ad naseum - I discovered coffee tins are great for this!)
*can put the stacking rings on/off by herself
*can put the shapes into her toy, with Mommy's help to find the right shape first
*says "baby" when she sees her baby doll or another baby; hugs, squeezes, and pats baby

*her menu options increased drastically the week before her bday; now she can eat almost anything we eat (still haven't tried nuts or honey) - this girl still LOVES to eat and doesn't refuse anything!!
*holds her spoon to feed herself, then returns it to the bowl for Mom to fill the spoon again
*uses her whole hand to "help" get food into her mouth (This is the messiest she's every been...normally she is very neat! Doesn't she look pleased. as. punch. in this picture?!)

*reaches out for mommy or daddy (she's been super snuggly lately)
*puts her hand up to her mouth to blow kisses
*gives kisses and leans in to touch your cheek (just not simultaneously yet!)

*starts clapping her hands when she hears me sing "If you're happy and you know it..."
*cruises around the room and crawls to get across the room
*helps to dress herself; pulls her shirt down over her head and offers each arm for her sleeves
*her top left tooth came in (and, she's discovered she can bite, AHEM. Ouch.)

*said "goodbye" to the paci this week; this was super hard for me to let go of, mostly because I feel like she's growing up too fast, and that somehow she won't be my baby anymore, but I do feel we made the right decision for her. Currie has so much trouble with insomnia and remembers hating sleep as a child; we wanted to do whatever we could to prevent her from having difficulty sleeping and we'd heard taking it away sooner will prevent her becoming dependent on it. (Today is day 4 sans paci. Naps have been difficult, but she went to bed no problem last night and tonight.)

*And, finally, a gratuitous picture Just Because.
I cannot resist her adorable dimples in this one!

10 months: wishing I could freeze time

*still loves her bath; funny how sticking this kid in water can make her go from fussy to delighted almost instantly
*pulling up; pretty "mobile"- a hundred times a day I think she's going to crawl for the first time because she gets so close, but every time she sits back down or just decides to lay on her belly, or sit back up
*1st tooth on Oct 7 (8.5 mo); 2nd tooth on Nov 21th (10 mo)
*loves standing and walking with me
*uses her index finger to point and to "lift the flap" on her books
*wobbles her head to "dance"; loves music
*first costume: Ewok (c'mon, even Ewoks sometimes get tired and need their pacis)

*sits up from being on her tummy
*says "ba-ba-ba-ba-by" all the time; loves to jabber
*is learning to feed herself, but only with her spoon- she is not a barbarian!
*sleeps from 8 pm to 7 am, w/ her bunny

*loves people and playing w/ the big kids at the nursery at my school
*favorite toy is currently her musical piggy bank & coins- and books, always books
*first taste of "grains" was grits @ breakfast w/ her great grandaddy

and finally
*loves the beach; she splashed in the waves, banged shells together, and did not protest one bit to be covered in sand from head to toe...
a girl after her mommy's own heart <3 and now, for your viewing pleasure, sounds of a happy baby: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvxQyuYHwhQ

baby book entry: 8 months

*says dada, yaya, bobobob, and (*finally*) mama!!
*scooches backwards off a blanket
*menu options include: egg yolks, banana, avocado, applesauce, sweet potato, peas, carrots, zucchini, yogurt, pears, green beans, cantaloupe, broccoli
*she has started rocking and then tipping herself onto her face from a sitting position, then ends up on her tummy to scoot...I think crawling is right around the corner (yikes.)
*we've figured out that she can roll over, just generally chooses not to :)
*her fine motor skills have improved drastically...she likes playing with my hair band and transfers it between her hands
*she takes my hands in hers and makes them clap
*she likes to bang two toys together
*puts her paci back in her mouth (she's been doing this for probably a month now)
*LOVES bath time, books, and eating
*went through 5 days of intense pain from teething (LOTS of drool & low grade fever), but still no teeth!!
*she'd been sleeping from 7 to 7 until we traveled & she started teething; for the last month she's been waking up at least once a night
*had her first tent camping experience last weekend at the church retreat (while teething!)
*super ticklish on her belly & under her chin
*(very) vague/ideal schedule: wake up 7; nap 9-11; nap 1-3; sometimes afternoon nap or just down time in crib around 5; bedtime 7
*I'm starting to wonder if her eyes are turning more gray than blue
*almost everywhere I go with her someone tells me she looks like a "Gerber baby" (I can't argue with that!) :)

Super Trooper

Well, the Bishops have had a CRAZY summer! Last week I realized that our little Munchkin had slept in about fifteen different locations in the space of two weeks. She's a trooper!

This summer we made it to:
Boiling Springs, NC (Charlotte Mason conference)
Atlanta, GA (my roomie reunion)
Nashville, TN (General Assembly/mini-fam reunion)
Boynton Beach, FL (to see parents, aunts, grandparents)
Dalton, GA (to see bro, sis, nephew)
Lookout Mtn., GA (to see bro @college)
Dalton, GA (to see bro, sis, nephew, & NIECE!!)
Atlanta, GA (Cov friends reunion)

6 Months

I cannot believe this little angel will be 6 months on Fri!!

Here are some snippets of what she's been up to:

*started solids last Wed. Her first food was mashed, soft boiled egg yolk. She loved it! This week we gave her banana and she was practically diving for the spoon. Next will be avocado!
*discovered how to splash in the bathtub last night for the first time, and proceeded to splash for the rest of her time in the tub. SO cute. She also loves to lap at the shower head when we rinse her off; she reminds us of a little kitten.
*found her feet!

*makes a very distinct "ga-ga-ga" sound, especially when she's hungry.
*can move around when we lay her on a blanket, or in bed. Yesterday when I went to her crib, her head was in the same spot, but she was completely upside down from how I'd laid her in there.
*is transitioning out of her swaddle blanket. Most day time naps she sleeps with her hands above her head now...with her Bunny, who she loves very much. She rubs her eyes constantly when she's tired, which is why the swaddle blanket was so necessary for so long.

*likes to turn the pages when we read to her.
*reaches for things, especially my hair! Most of the time she's sooo gentle with feeling it though. She likes it when I let it fall into her face when I'm bending over her so she can touch it.
*transfers objects like rattles from one hand to the other.
*is very verbal; she squeals, and explores her falsetto like a little opera singer. Most of the time this is what I hear on the baby monitor as she's waking up and "talking" with her Bunny in her crib.
*loves being outside, especially on the porch swing.
*watches people, especially when they're talking.
*is not rolling over yet! BUT, she's great at tummy time, and I think that she'll almost be crawling before she'll roll over. She pushes up on her arms super high and scrunches her legs towards her belly to inch forward.

Lovey Bunny