One Year Old

So maybe I have been in denial about Leah turning a year old. That must be the reason. I normally look forward to writing about how she is changing and what she has been doing, but it's just been more difficult this time. I just wasn't ready to admit that my baby turned one. Still makes me tear up a bit. I can't believe it was an entire year ago that I held her for the first time. I felt as though life was just beginning at that moment. God filled my heart with a love that I had never known. I remember looking at her as she was on my chest thinking that life could not get any better than this. What a wonderful wonderful day that was. All the waiting, praying, hoping, joy then sadness, emotional ups and downs, and pain that we had gone through over the past 7 years seemed to vanish in an instant. It was like God said, "Here's what you have been waiting for...wasn't she worth it?" Oh, yes!

God, thank you for my little girl. What a joy and a blessing she has been from the moment we first saw her little heartbeat on the ultrasound. Everyday she has filled our hearts with a love that we never knew existed. Thank you for entrusting her to us while we are here on this earth. Please give us the wisdom to teach her to follow and trust in You all the days of her life.

Prior to Leah's birthday, my best friend and I took our girls to have their pictures made in their birthday outfits. AG is just 12 days older than Leah. Since they moved to Dothan, we didn't get to be at the actual parties so we had to celebrate for ourselves. They looked so cute!

So for Leah's first birthday, I wanted to do it all. By that I mean that I wanted to make her outfit and her cake. Now, I'm not saying it was the cutest thing that has ever been done, but I liked it. I decided I wanted to make her a ladybug cake. I don't even know why I chose that. I just liked it. We had family over for lunch and cake to follow. Aunt Sara made some wonderful gumbo. Then we all watched Leah dig into her cake. At first, she gently put one little finger into the icing and ever so slowly licked it off her finger. She did that a couple of times before she really grabbed a piece of cake. After a few bites, she decided that it was much more fun to just play in the cake rather than actually eating it. Once we cleaned her up, she got to open her gifts. My dad repainted my baby doll crib that I had when I was little. My mom made a mattress, blanket and pillow to go in it. Among the many things they gave her was a baby doll. She loves the doll, but most of all she likes to play with its eyes which open and close. She received so many toys, clothes and books. She has enjoyed playing with everything. It was a good day. It was a day that arrived much too quickly for me, but it was fun to celebrate.

The tablescape."Do I really get to eat this?"
"Now this is great!"
Playing with some presents.
Leah thought she should be in the crib.

So what is she doing now? We'll she "talks" a lot. She says mama, dada, wawa (water), eye, buba (bubbles), dut (duck), bye bye, baby, wu-um (worm), no no (when telling Dixie to stop barking), IE (light), and there are many other things that she tries to imitate. She can make the sounds for dog, cow, rooster, horse, owl and monkey. She can blow kisses, call Dixie (clicking her tongue and motioning with her hand), point to various body parts (mostly other peoples', not her own). She loves bath time. She doesn't really have a food she doesn't like except milk straight from the fridge. Yes, I have to slightly warm her milk. It's still cold, just not as cold as it would be. She can tell! We are working on that one. She loves loves loves books! She is crawling and cruising, but not even close to walking on her own. She likes for us to hold her hands and walk with her. She talks to most everyone we meet while out shopping. It seems that she is learning new things on a daily basis. It's hard to keep up with all that she can do. It's just amazing to watch her change. She wears 9 month clothes, but I put a lot of 12 month things on her because there are so many more options. They'll just be a little big for a bit. She wears size 3 shoes which I have learned are very difficult to find especially since her feet are so narrow. Until she starts walking, I'm not sure if she will have shoes to wear!

We are having the time of our lives with her. I look forward to every day that I get to spend with her. I know I don't deserve her, but I sure am thankful God saw fit to make me her mommy. What a year it has been! I sure hope this next year doesn't go by quite so quickly.

I love you, little girl, more than you will ever know!

Keep posted for her 1 year photos. They'll be coming soon!

Eleven months

I'm so far behind on this blog. I'll make this one short since the big one year blog will be coming in a few short weeks. Leah is growing and changing, and there seems to be something new almost daily. She is crawling everywhere and pulling up on everything. I thought she might not ever crawl since she loved to roll so much, but she finally got the hang of it. I think it will be a while before the walking is perfected. She needs a lot of practice. I'll be fine if she decides to wait a while before walking. She is quite vocal and makes all kinds of sounds. She can say "woof", "mmm" (which means moo), and she has a sound for light, but I don't know how to type that one. She loves books and wants to pull all of them out when she can get to them. She is wearing 9 month clothes and size 2 shoes although I usually don't put any on her. We'll start that for the fall. She loves bananas and squash. I really haven't found anything she doesn't like.

We are having so much fun with her. Greg actually took care of her one evening and was able to successfully get her to bed. It was the first time I had not been there at night when she went to sleep. She loves her daddy and just lights up when he is around. It is so great to see them together. Life is so great and busy. We have lots going on for the next few weekends so maybe I can get with it and get some great pictures to share.



Hope you enjoy these few from this past month.

Leah is showing off her leopard print shoes.

I made the mistake of letting her play with the puffs container. She decided to empty them so she could count them.

I wonder if anyone is watching?

Leah picked out the 4 wheeler she wants her Grump to buy her. This was her first trip to the Bass Pro Shop.

She was very interested in all of the animals.

Ten months

Leah is now 10 months. I know I keep saying this, but where has the time gone? Seriously, wasn't I just holding her for the first time? It's just too fast for me! She brings us so much joy. She is so fun to watch. She likes to make us laugh and will keep doing the same things to see us laugh again. So funny how we do the same thing to her. She waves at everyone. It's so cute! She waves with the open/close hand method. When we go shopping she starts waving before people even notice her. If they don't wave back she seems disappointed.

We went back for her weight check last week, and she is barely back on the growth chart. She weighed 15 pounds, 3 ounces. So she gained over a pound. She is still able to wear her 3-6/6month clothes, but is beginning to wear 6-9/9month clothes. She can get onto her hands and knees, and she makes you think she is going to crawl. But she will ever so gently lower herself to the floor and roll where she wishes. She has added the "d" sound to her repertoire, and will say dada on occasion. She likes all of her baby food, and is beginning to like table foods better. I think the change in textures has her a little suspicious. Her pincer grip is getting better, and she enjoys playing with the food even if she doesn't eat it. She is beginning to look at objects when you ask her where it is. Her favorite is the ceiling fan. She can find those in any room.

I love her schedule. She wakes around 6:45-7 am. She eats breakfast and then plays in the exersaucer while I clean the kitchen. She brushes her teeth (with max/total assist...that's for my OT friends) and then gets dressed. She has 20 minutes of play pen time while I get laundry started and clean up a bit around the house. We play, she has her cup of formula around 9, we read books and she goes to bed for a nap between 9:30 and 10. She sleeps 1 1/2 to 2 hours, and we begin again. She takes another nap around 2. Dinner is at 5, bath time at 6:30, last cup of formula at 7, and at 7:30 we read and she goes to bed. She loves the bed. That's good for when we are at home, but not so good when we are out. She will sleep in the car, but not so much in the stroller. Oh well!


Greg celebrated his first father's day, and my dad celebrated father's day for the first time with a grandchild. What a special day for all.

Leah and her dad.

Leah giving her Grump his card.


The past month was full of such fun days. We had our friends Ty, Dana and Addie Grace stay for a few days before they moved. We took the girls to a neighbor's house to get photos of the girls together. This was one of my favorites.

A few days later our friends from Texas came to visit us. It was the first time for us all to meet our girls. We had a great time. We found this bow for Leah during a shopping excursion. I have a friend that says a bow can never be too big. I may have to disagree this time.
Now life is back to normal, but I sure do miss all of my friends. God has placed some very special friends in our lives from each of the towns in which we have lived. We are truly blessed with these friendships.

Here are a few more of my favorite pictures from this past month.

Having some fun with bath time.


Leah is being a ham.

Trying to ride her 4-wheeler.

What a sweet face. Makes my heart melt!

Nine months old and off the charts

We took Leah for her 9 month check up and found out that she is off the charts....literally. She only gained 15 ounces so she isn't even on the growth chart anymore. She was in the 10th percentile or so, but not now. So we have been instructed to start her on formula. We will see how it goes. She weighed 13 pounds 12 ounces. The doctor reassured us that her head circumference was normal so he really wasn't worried about anything. We just have to plump her up some. She is still wearing 3-6/6 month clothes. She continues to roll everywhere. She attempts to get on hands and knees when reaching for objects and then decides rolling is the best way to get there. She has begun feeding herself some fingers foods, but still needs some practice with her aim sometimes. It's so much fun to watch her learn new things. She loves to shake and bang objects together. She babbles all the time, but Greg is still waiting on dada.

She is a great little sleeper. I could still watch her sleep for hours. This is now her favorite napping position. I love the little ruffles!
Leah went to the pool for the first time, but could not understand why she needed to wear her swim suit. As far as she was concerned she was just in a big bathtub. She was more interested in the other kiddos running around than she was in the water.

We finally ventured to south Alabama for Leah to visit Greg's family. She got to meet her cousins she had never met. She loved all of the attention she received. She did well on the trip so we are looking forward to going again.

This is Leah with her grandparents and her cousin who is just 3 months older.

Leah also got to meet Nannie for the first time.

Ready to go for a walk.

My family came over for father's day. Greg had a great day.

Leah is giving her Grump his card.

Eight Months

Our sweet baby girl is eight months old. She is the most precious thing ever (I know everyone says that about their child). We are having so much fun with her. It is such a blessing to watch the world through her eyes.

She still continues to roll everywhere. She can sit unsupported and play for as long as she chooses. She will fall forward or backward so she can start rolling to get what she wants. She will support herself with her arms when reaching for an object, but hasn't figured out how to get up on all fours yet. She babbles ba ba, la la, ra ra, ma ma and what sounds like yum yum. Greg is just waiting for da da. She has started waving, but not always on command. She has so much fun waving at random things...like the fan which she has decided is her favorite thing. She loves to watch it and talk to it.

It is so much fun to watch her with Greg. She lights up and just gets so excited when he comes home.

I have started going to a stay at home moms group. It's nice to get to hang out with other moms. On this day we went to the splash pad. Although she can't run around in all of the sprinklers she had a great time watching. We tried out her new shades. She let them stay on for just a little while. We are going to have to work on keeping them on once we start going to the pool.

We just had to show off this cute little outfit our friend let us borrow. She is still wearing her 3-6 month clothes and has started wearing some 6-9 month outfits. What fun we have dressing up. She loves to look at herself in the mirror especially when she has on a bow. She just smiles and waves at herself.
My first mother's day was great! Greg gave me a necklace with Leah's name on it. It was very special. Mom, dad, my brother and sister-in-law came over to visit and have lunch. What a blessing to have such a wonderful mother who is a great example.

Before everyone came to the house for mother's day, we went to visit Aunt Louise. She is my mother's aunt. She is really more like my mom's mother and our grandmother. She has not been doing very well, and probably won't be with us much longer. This was also her 84th birthday. What a special lady.

Leah's first tooth finally made its entrance. One night she woke up a few hours after going to sleep for the night. This is not like her at all. She was crying the most pitiful cry. After a little snuggle with mom and some off brand Tylenol (thanks to the recall), she went back to sleep. Two days later she had a tooth! Now we practice brushing her tooth everyday. She loves her toothbrush.
We are thankful that summer is here, and we get to spend so much time outside. Leah loves to just be outdoors. We like to take strolls through the neighborhood. It's so fun to watch her noticing new sights and sounds. We are looking forward to the pool opening soon. I can't wait to see what she does.

Seven months

When Leah turned 7 months on Sunday my initial thought was, "Oh! She is going to be a year old in just 5 months." It is just so sad to me. Don't get me wrong, I love every single waking moment that I get to spend with her. She brings so much joy to my life. I just get sad when I stand back and truly think about how much she has grown and how quickly time has flown. I'm sure this is normal. I just wonder why they have to change so much in just a year? I really wouldn't mind if she stayed six months old for a year. I love it! She is our precious gift from God.

She is growing, but is still wearing some 3 month clothes, and she can still wear size 0 shoes. Her little foot is so narrow that shoes just don't stay on her feet. The fact that she loves to kick them off of her feet doesn't help. Thank goodness it is warm so she really doesn't need socks or shoes. She is a great eater! The only food she really doesn't like right now is bananas. She actually gags with every bite. She is making progress using a cup and sippy cup. We have been working with a straw and now she can drink with a straw! She still needs to perfect it some, but what a great accomplishment. This is a big deal if you know what we have been through with the bottle. She continues to sleep through the night, and now she does not have to be swaddled to sleep. She also doesn't bury her face in her bumpers anymore. What a blessing to not have to wake up at night to move her away them. She is sitting up better, but she won't stay there long because she prefers to be rolling. She now has playpen time so that I can actually do something while she plays. Now she can roll around, and I don't have to worry that she is going to hurt herself.

She is a good little baby. She is fun to take out shopping. She will just smile at anyone who will talk to her (provided she did not just wake from a nap). We are having such a good time with my friend whose baby is just 12 days older than Leah. We usually get out at least once a week for some girl time. I am so blessed!

Here are some of my favorite pictures.

Leah's "First Fishing Hat" from her Grump.

Six months

Leah is now six months old. It really seems like I was just holding her for the first time. I am cherishing every moment I have with her. What a blessing God has bestowed to me. I could not have imagined how great motherhood could be.
Leah is still in the 10th percentile. She weighs 12lbs 13 oz and is 24 and 1/4 inches long. She is rolling all over the place and working hard to sit up. She can sit up by herself but doesn't always stay up. She is quite vocal and has learned to scream when we aren't giving her what she wants quickly enough. She has started baby food and prefers squash to sweet potatoes. Her oatmeal seems to be her favorite. She can't take a bite without saying, "um, um, um." She still sleeps through the night, but I usually have to go in once during the night to reposition her. I don't know how she manages to roll onto her tummy or get herself wedged in the corner when she is swaddled. If I don't swaddle her she starts rolling during the night and wakes herself up completely. We have enjoyed a few days of warm weather so that her Gran and Grump (my parents) could take her for strolls around our neighborhood during their weekly visits. She likes to swing at the playground and then usually falls asleep in the stroller. We are all having so much fun with her. She is pure joy to us. She makes my heart melt every time she smiles that big open mouth smile.
We go see Lori for our 6 month photos this coming week. I hope we get some good shots. Until then, here are some of my favorite photos from this past month.

Chillin' with Addie Grace.

Thank you, Ms. Bebe for my hat.

One of my favorite outfits.

Leah just heard about the Easter bunny.

Sweet potatoes rock!

I'm six month old today.

Can someone please rock me to sleep?