One and a Half Minutes...

of pure vocal talent. She's going to be a rock star. Well...she rocks out to praise and worship music anyway.

Dear Little Peanut,

You are TWO MONTHS old today!! I can't believe it. Life without you seems like a million years ago, yet I feel like we've only had you for a minute! Your Dad and I love you so much. You get tons of snuggles and kisses every day, and for right now you like it and let us without complaint. I am cherishing this stage where your favorite place to be is in our arms and you can't run away :-) We are so proud of you and can't wait to see what adventures you create for us. This is our last month at home together, and I am so sad I will have to leave you to go back to work. But no matter what happens, know that I love you and my favorite place to be is in the nursery playing and laughing with you.

Facts about YOU:

- You had your two month appointment and got a gold star on your report. You are 10 pounds 12 ounces and 22 1/2 inches long. You also got your first shot. Your face got all red and you CRIED...for, like, a second. The moment I picked you up you stopped crying, smiled at your Nana, and feel dead asleep. So really it was more traumatic for me. Here's a pic of your first bandaid:

- You are still in size one diapers, but they are getting a bit snug. But I'm going to try to keep you in them for a while longer because we have a million.

- Your 0-3 clothes are getting too small! I thought I had one more month of you in them, but it looks like we'll be bringing out the 3-6 this week.

- You love to smile and giggle, and lately you LOVE to talk. Even though you're not saying real words, we have long conversations all the time.

- Your favorite toy is the monkey on your playmat. You talk to him a LOT, and even yell at him sometimes. You also love your mirror and will stare at your reflection for a while laughing at yourself.

- You love to watch the TV when Daddy has you in his lap. I don't allow this most of the time, but once in a while you two will watch a show together.

- You are enthralled with ceiling fans. Sometimes when I'm getting ready to go somewhere I just put you in the middle of our bed and you talk to the fan.

- You love sucking your thumb and fingers when you're going to sleep. I'll let you for now, just know that you're not allowed to be a thumb sucking teenager.

- You go to bed at 9:30 and wake up hungry around 3:30, and then start your day at 7:30. On days I'm feeling lazy I'll bring you in bed with me after you eat in the morning and we'll nap together until 9.

- You love to nap and hardly ever cry when I put you down. And you almost always wake up smiling.

- You're getting a lot more hair, and it is still brown but getting lighter. Your eyes are EXACTLY the same color as your Daddy's.

- You spit up all. the. time. Usually on a clean outfit. Or on my shoulder, down my back, and on the floor.

- You had your first trip to Nana and Grandad's house. You did amazing, which is a relief. You're so laid back we can pretty much take you anywhere.

In summary, you are an amazing daughter and we love you more than anything.

"Every good and perfect gift is from above..." James 1:17

There are Things Moms Should Teach Their Daughters

Like how to take a picture of yourself and your friends without cutting any one's head off or getting the mile long arm look. So we practiced this morning. Please disregard my left over makeup and disheveled hair. Or the fact that peanut and I are still in our PJs.

She was a bit skeptical at first...

...but she got into it after a few tries.

And here are a few more of the Peanut solo. I just can't help myself. She likes when I tickle her sides...funny cause I HATE that.

Tummy time. It's not her favorite but she'll humor me for five minutes or so.

I just love this girl!!

I'm not sure if you can tell from the pictures, but her rash has returned a bit on her cheeks. It's only been there a couple days, so I've been racking my brain for the cause. Because it has to be something I ate. But I've been so careful! I even tell restaurants about being dairy free and make them promise my order does not contain one molecule of that nasty stuff. So, just as I'm getting worked up about those lying waiters spiking my meals with poison (aka dairy), I look down at the container in my hand. You see it's morning (ok, early afternoon...not the point) and I'm making coffee. I had been splurging on Starbucks almost every day since giving birth, and the insane expense finally made do the tough thing and...gasp...I now make my own coffee. With delicious hazelnut NON-DAIRY creamer. Did you know NON-DAIRY or LACTOSE FREE means yes, I contain the ingredient that hurts your baby?!?! So, I would like to accept this worst mom of the year award with a special thanks to my caffeine addiction and my inability to read labels. Back to Starbucks I go, and make it a venti soy latte please.

Monkey Talks Smack to My Peanut

And please disregard my high pitched voice...WHY does it always sound like that on video???

Weeks 6 and 7 have been absolutely DELIGHTFUL. And I really mean it. Finally things have gotten less stressful. Not necessarily easier, but I'm really starting to enjoy my whole day with her, instead of just the awake time. Going down for naps is exactly how I imagined it (yes, I know as soon as I type those words we will revert to fuss of the century every time I try to put her in her crib). Right now the magic formula is wait until she gets a LITTLE fussy (usually about an hour after she wakes from her last nap), turn the noise maker on, put her in crib, turn seahorse on (it glows and plays lullabies for 5 min), say night night and close the door. She then finds her finger (yes, still not a champ at finding the thumb) and puts herself to sleep. AMAZING. And you want to hear even better news (yes, I'm bragging)??? She SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT Thursday night. That's right. 10pm to 5:45am. I moved out of her room this week (yes I was sad, but I missed my bed...and my husband). I had been just waking once around 2 or 3 to feed her and then going back to bed. But not anymore!!! A whole nights sleep in my own bed was absolute bliss. I'm hoping we can make this a habit.

P's family came up during the weekend and we had a blast. It was their first time meeting the little one, so I was really hoping she would be on her best behavior. And she was. She basically slept every time we went out since she was coming off of a growth spurt. She had her first trip to the park, which she spent snoozing. And P spent the day playing on equipment that was not made to handle adults.

SIL, BIL, and the cousins...and possibly me peeking in the background...

Isn't my husband the epitome of maturity?

Me and the sleeping babe hangin' with the BIL.

The cousins. Awww, so sweet!

Play time is getting more interactive (like, she talks to monkeys) and she has such a happy personality now! I'm hoping it's a sign of her permanent disposition. I get TONS of smiles for all sorts of reasons. Yay! You're changing my diaper! Yay! You're getting me up from a nap! Yay! I pooped! If only we all could find that much delight in the small things.

And an update about me (I know you are DYING to hear)...I'm back in the running game. Well, kinda. I started out with 2 miles at a SLOW pace. I am now proud to announce I am back to my regular 3 mile loop, however still at a slowish pace. Like, everyone flies by me. But I'm ok with that. The goal is to finish the 10k in April, not win it. I am currently at a stand still with weight loss, which is super frustrating and I'm panicking just a tad. I have to be back to pre-peanut weight before I go back to work. Or else I have to go to work naked. Because we currently have $0 income and I can't afford to buy a new super sized work wardrobe. Any suggestions would be appreciated (especially if someone knows of a magic pill I can take that will drop 20 pounds off my butt immediately...and make me tan...and take away stretch marks...and cellulite).

I'm a Lazy Mom

I'm behind on my weekly update, and yet I still can't find the energy to recap. So...I'll get in two weeks worth of fascinating Peanut facts soon. Today I just want to post pictures. Because I think my kid is pretty photogenic (Ok, I admit it...I have the Mom glasses on and to me, she could be the next big Baby GAP model...isn't she the cutest thing EVER?!?...etc. etc.). So here are some shots I took during play time. Stella decided to play too.

Wondering why Mommy is making funny faces:

Her sassy look:

BFFs:

Yes this one looks a lot like the others, but SHE'S SO CUTE!:

Laughing at Mommy...because I'm ridiculous:

Uh...Mom?

It's FEBRUARY. Why am I in a bathing suit?

Because baby sized bathing suits are the cutest things EVER and your Nana bought you one so I had to try it on you as soon as I could get your little diapered bottom in there. Unfortunately your chubby neck doesn't fit in the halter. Back to Baby GAP it goes.

This week in the life of Peanut:

Mom was with me another week, thank goodness. So the house is still clean and the laundry is done, which is phenomenal due to the number of outfits we go through due to spit up. And poo. I had a WONDERFUL post-baby shower on Saturday thanks to the amazing ladies at church. I brought the little one and she did fantastic. She slept in various ladies' arms the whole time and at the very end woke up and gave plenty of smiles. I think she knew I wanted her to make a good impression. After the shower we took her to Sonny's for the first time which is a HUGE deal to her Daddy (he loves his BBQ). She did great there too, just sleeping away in the Moby (I love that thing and will probably carry her in it until she's 13).

Sunday was her very first Valentine's day, and she had a rockin' hot pink dress (also from Nana). Please ignore my precious daughter giving the camera the middle finger.

It was also her first time at church! Don't worry, I made the dress church appropriate with a tasteful cardigan.

Peanut says boo to modesty. She'd rather be naked.

We gave the Bumbo a whirl, and she did pretty good. She sits up at first and then slowly sinks to one side. She'll get it eventually. P and I think she looks like a Who from the Grinch movie, so we call her our little Whovillian. I'm hoping the nickname doesn't stick for her sake.

She has also mastered sucking her thumb. Ok, mastered is a bit optimistic. She has found it a FEW times. But when she does, she puts herself back to sleep during naps and I, in turn, do a ridiculous happy dance. With fist pumping. Silent fist pumping.

Last night Daddy fed her for the first time, so I had to document the occasion. Isn't he handsome??

I think that's about it for week 5. We are fast approaching the 6 week growth spurt, so I'll leave you in suspense with that one. And I have realized something truly profound at the end of this post. I take WAY too many pictures.

WAAAAAA

I don't wanna nap!! Woe is me!!

How about a dance party instead?? I love JT...

The dance party aftermath...we brought sexy back. Sweet success.