18 months...going on 16 years.

I see I have two blog drafts sitting in my inbox that I still haven't posted.  One from Lucy's first birthday and another from 15 months.  Is this what parenthood will be like forever?  Even with summer break, I can't seem to finish a single blog post.  How sad and what a poor display of my ability to multi-task.

Lucy had her 18 month check-up today.  She is still a tall, lean cookie - measuring 33" in height and a "whopping" 23.7#.  I feel like she's gained so much weight but we aren't even up to 25# yet!  We will be moving into size 4 diapers, finally, to accommodate her growing tummy from all the food she eats.
She drinks like a camel and eats like a pig - all helping her grow tall like a weed.

Two weeks ago she solidified her ability to deliver the infamous toddler "oh oh".  Her mouth puckers like a fish prepping to kiss it's fisherman and she says it with such gusto, you think something might really be wrong.  Turns out, she's dramatic.  Between her "oh oh's" and temper tantrums, G & I have a constant smirk on our faces.  Sometimes we can't help but laugh - we try really hard to turn our cheeks so she can't seem our humor but I'm sure she sneaks a peek.

As much as we try to guide her up and down staircases, she snuck down a set on her own this week.  We were both very surprised she managed to do it all of her own and without bumps or bruises, because after all, she is our child.  It was the same day we went on our first Burley bike trailer ride.  We opted for starting short and going across the street to the cul-de-sac and back but she requested more and more.  We took her for a short 3 mile bike ride to the community center and back.  She LOVED it.  And, she even didn't mind her helmet once we were on the road.

This past month we also learned that small wee children have quite the reaction to a simple mosquito bite.  After 12 hours overnight, she looked like Sloth from The Goonies.  Luckily, she was still in good spirits despite her deformation.

Also, as of this week - she's solidified her ability to cover her eyes and say "boo".  Again, with her flare for the dramatic, it's quite the site to witness.

We've also been excited that Lucy has shown an interest in potting training.  She's tackled the #1 & #2 so far and indicates when she might want/need to do.

She's great at telling us exactly what she wants.  Whether it's water in her sippy cup or her specific water bottle - she lets us know.  That, or she has a temper tantrum.

I love this stage.  I love all the cuddles she still gives when she wakes up from her naps or is sleepy.  I love how energetic she is and wants to find new things to do.  I love she tries to tickle us until we giggle or climbs all over us like a jungle gym.  I love to watch her curiosity blossoms in this world.

I can't wait to see what else is in store for us!

11 months + 1 week

They, as in EVERYONE, says the time flies.  And it's completely, 100% true.  While some days feel long, the past 11 months have been a whirlwind adventure.  Every time I update a blog, more than 2 months have passed by.  And every time, I think to myself that I will be better about blogging more often.  Posting pictures of Lucy growing into a little human.  Providing details about our new little family we've created.  And every time...I find myself, two MONTHS later, saying the same thing again.

I feel a little guilty.  I'm not sure if she'll be our only child and I really wanted to capture all of our moments as a family and of her moments as a baby.  But, at the end of the day, I'm exhausted and just want to sit down or just go to sleep.  As Lucy has gotten older, it's been getting WAY easier and less exhausting.  I've even found myself having enough energy and time to start to plan her 1st birthday party.  I realize it's a month off but rather than scrambling the week of the party, I wanted to get everything done early (aside from the food).

She said "hi daddy" just last week and we were filming a short video message to send to her daddy who was away traveling for work until midnight.  This, for me, might have been one of the coolest things I've witnessed her do yet.  She for sure understands words like "milk" and "bath" and we are still working to understand what "no" means.   We know it's time for her to start the evening routine when she starts getting a little fussy around 6 or 6:30 pm.  We ask her if she wants a bath and she scurries down the hallways with her speedy crawl.  If we don't ask her, sometimes she'll just go straight to the bathroom door and start knocking.  The girl loves her bathtime.  When she doesn't get what she wants or is frustrated she throws herself onto the floor to cry and pout.  This doesn't bode well for us already but it doesn't last long and she's onto something else.

She LOVES cheerios.  She loves them so much she grabs a fistful and then tries to take more.  She is so close to walking on her own.  In the past week, she's taken a step or two towards G or I and is great about maneuvering around any and all objects while standing. Often, she just has one hand on the coffee table and she's doing laps to try to find anything she can throw off the table or put back on it.

It took 11 full months for Lucy get sick.  She had this ugly, ugly cough and was running a fever at night and it would go down lower during the day.  She wasn't wheezy so every night when we called the nurse line, they said just to monitor her and bring her in if she still has a fever for 72 hours.  It was a long 72 hours.  Finally, on Saturday Grant thought she sounded "wheezy".  I still didn't but those were the magic words to get us an appointment at the pediatrician on a Saturday morning.  And, it turns out, she was rocking a double ear infection and bronchitis.  Go big or go home, right?   After a couple of days of antibiotics she seemed to be sleeping better but still had a cough.  Finally, after a week - the cough went away and she's the fun little girl she was before the mega-illness.

Once I get back to my computer at home, I'll have to upload some pics of the lil' Popeye!

And then there were....6.

Boom.
Month 8 has been an EXPLOSION of activity, growth and development!

Just like that, in a matter of two weeks, Lucy's wide 2-tooth grin went from two to six (6!).

Lucy started to make the first motions and movements of crawling on Thursday, November 6th as I was trying to clean up her room.  We went up with G to the lake that weekend and left mommy all alone.  When she returned she felt a little bit more comfortable making the motions but still wasn't zooming around.

Within a week, she was fully crawling and beginning to pull herself up.  It was all but a few days after she figured out how to pull herself up that she began to pull herself up in her crib.

So she's pulling herself up on everything, including trying to climb over an inverted laundry basket.

Sleeper?
We've been fortunate that Lucy has slept through the night for the last three nights in a row!  We are not accustomed to this at all so naturally, that first night, we thought we were waking up rested at 1 am.  Turns out - it was 5 am!  At this point, we figure she now less uncomfortable with cutting 4 teeth at the same time, making for a longer night of rest.  

Exploring Food.
This month we've added blueberries, plums, parsnips & turnips.  Tonight for her first Thanksgiving, we'll give turkey and mashed potatoes a try.

Giving thanks.
Today is Thanksgiving.  We are so incredibly grateful for our healthy little girl.  She is quite a blessing.  She might be the only thing that has helped me to slow down from my whirlwind of activity to simply enjoy being her mom.

7.5 Months Strong!

I finally have found some time to update the blog because G and Lucy are visiting Grandma and Grandpa up at the lake and I have uninterrupted free time this weekend!  Do you know just how much you can get done when there is no cute baby distracting you from your never-ending list of chores?  A ridiculous amount.  Which for someone like me, means I can get a MILLION things done.

Our little Lucy has grown by leaps and bounds in the past two months.  She is still rocking two front teeth though she knaws on her hands like it's a steak bone.  While she didn't a fan of using a pacifier for sucking, she loves to chew on them just long enough to coat it with saliva and drop it on the floor (which I've come to steam at least once a week).

As she grew into her 6th month, she was starting to sit on her own.  This picture was snapped just before she tumbled over, planting her face in the wooden puzzle pieces.  Scary enough to produce tears but not traumatic enough to prevent her from trying to sit up again!  At 7.5 months now, she's an old pro with sitting up

6 months, 1 week

That weekend, we figured we'd give the ExerSaucer a try too.  Not too surprising, she enjoyed being in the kitchen with us, watching us work and prep meals or do dishes as she entertained herself with the fun activities surrounding her.  This exersaucer is actually a gift from Grandma and Grandpa Wilson to little Sammy who is turning 5 years old today (November 13th)!  It's crazy to remember when they received this as a gift 5 years ago and recalling little Sammy enjoying it just as much as Lucy is now.

She is now mobile.  Now an old pro at sitting up, she would get so bored and frustrated with not being able to get to the things that she wanted.  Once she figured out she could roll over to get something - she was doing it all the time.  So much, in fact, that we put up the baby gate at the top of our stairs on the off chance so chose to roll over there while we went quickly to another room.  

She quickly learned that she could go from sitting to laying to sitting to scooting.  And then she figured out how to get into the cat-cow position (all fours).   She would scoot around but as of November 6th, she started to figure out how to coordinate her arms and legs enough to actually begin crawling.  She might be an inch worm but as fast as time passes us by, I'm sure she's be crawling to get into things she should not.  

7.5 months, LOVING this bucket!

If there is one thing Lucy loves - it's food.  So far we've tried a smattering of delicious fruits and vegetables - sweet potato, brown rice, zucchini, carrots, pears, mangoes, peaches, strawberries (not a big fan yet), banana, etc.  I even made baby muffins - using apple sauce and breast milk.  She would probably eat an entire tray if we would let her.....or maybe it's more like she would like to play with an entire tray of muffins, discovering the texture.  I think we are excited for her to be introduced to meat pretty soon and she'll finally be able to start eating some of our go-to fall/winter dishes such as pot roast!

Frozen Mango-Pop

I do love the Baby Bullet!

   

I have enjoyed the transition from newborn to a more playful, less moody infant.   We really have been so incredibly fortunate with her health so far so I'm just grateful for a little babe who is healthy and happy and so far sick-free (except for some sniffles here and there).

Lucy first experience the the joys and sounds of crackling, dry fall leaves at Big Pine Lake.

G + L

Lucy's First Halloween: Mini-Mouse