Year One and 1st real vacation.

Sofie turned one on September 21st. This year has been full of love, amazement, growth, fear, happiness, tears and so much laughter. I am beyond happy that I get to share this life with my amazing husband and wonderful daughter. They make every single day the best day I’ve ever lived (even the hard days).

Sofie is officially a toddler now. She’s walking unassisted more and more each day, moves around so much and gets into pretty much everything. I’m loving it. It’s fascinating watching her grow up and explore the world around her.

She’s also a dancing machine. As soon as any type of music, song or random beat hits her ears, she starts bouncing up and down. She has some awesome moves!

She loves our animals. One day they’ll love her too. :o) She’ll chase the cats and dogs around with unabashed enthusiasm and when they actually let her touch them she squeals with such delight.

She also loves her daddy so much. It’s an indescribable feeling to watch them together. When he enters the room she screams, laughs, shakes her head and (if I’m holding her) kicks her legs so fast; even if he was only gone for a minute. It’s only the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen.


On to the first real (big) vacation. Just one week after Sofia’s birthday, we were off to the land of Yoopers. She did so well the entire time! We had a 3 ½ hour flight to Chicago, a 3 hour layover, another 30 minute flight to Green Bay and lastly a 3 hour drive into Crystal Falls, MI. I was so proud of how well she reacted to all that change in one day. She had a bit of a meltdown at the very end of the drive, but all in all she did beyond better than anyone expected the entire vacation. There and back.

She picked pumpkins from Grandma and Grandpa’s pumpkin patch.

She walked the trails behind their house, only stopping a few times to try to eat a leaf.

She walked around her great uncle Mike’s house and splashed a little in his lake.

She sat patiently in her sling while we hiked around Horse race rapids.

She practiced walking all by herself around Grandma and Grandpa’s house.

She played so many rounds of chase with daddy that I lost count. J

She studied all the wild turkeys that hung around Grandma and Grandpa’s backyard.

She had such a great time visiting Grandma and Grandpa and just loves them so much! We all cannot wait to come back for a longer visit. I’m excited to think of what new and exciting things Sofie will get to experience throughout the years during our trips to the UP.

Almost 10 months old!

My dearest little munchkin,
You are growing by leaps and bounds every day. You are making me and your daddy so very happy with how brave, tough, smart, funny, cuddly and cute you are! We’re working on helping you gain the confidence to walk on your own. You practically run when you have both of my hands in your hands. You do literally run when we put you in your walker. Poor dogs never get a chance to lie down outside on the patio because as soon as they get comfy, you run towards them screaming at the top of your lungs in shear excitement. Some times your run into them, sometimes you stop short. Either way they’ve learned to move out of your way pretty fast. It’s one of my most favorite things to watch.
The other day you were crawling across the living room so fast that you lost your balance and smashed your face right into the floor. I picked you up and cuddled you close and gave you countless kisses as you cried so hard in my arms. It was heartbreaking for me. Less than a minute later you were still sniffling, but giggling at the funny faces I was making at you. So tough. I put you back down and you took off again without any hesitation. So brave.
Last Saturday was the first time you said “Mama”! It was music to my ears. I was walking away from you and you didn’t want me to leave so you started calling for me. “Mama, mama, mama!” I turned around and gave you the biggest bear hug ever. Now I hear my new name whenever you are hungry, tired, scared or just want me. You know I’ll come right to you and make you feel better. So smart. :o)
Mornings are so bittersweet during the week. When you first wake up you are so snuggly and cuddly. I love the way you lay your head on my chest and rub your sleepy face on my shoulder. But I hate that we only get a few minutes together before I bring you to my car, hand you over to daddy and wave goodbye as I pull away from you two; usually with tears in my eyes.
My sweet little, I just love you so much! I'm so excited that I get to watch you grow up, explore the world around you and figure out who you are.

It finally happened.

After 9 months and 1 day, baby girl had her first tooth pop through the surface. It broke through the bottom in the center on the right side.
Also, tonight she stood unassisted for several seconds! My baby girl is growing up!!

8 months

Baby girl, you're getting so big. Just yesterday (5/31/12) you crawled for the first time. You got around pretty good before, but now that you can actually crawl it's amazing to see what catches your eye. It's usually one of the cats. You sure do like chasing Jack.
You're also getting really good at pulling yourself up from sitting on the floor. You can stand up for a while just by hanging on to the side of the PNP, couch or table.
I just realized tonight that you know what to do when I say " turn off the light". You look around for the light switch, stick your hand out and push the bottom of the switch until it turns off. You're so smart!
You keep amazing us each day. We love you very much!!

My first Mother’s Day.

My husband is an awesome man. For my first Mother’s day, he (and baby girl) sent me flowers, a candle and yummy chocolates to my work. They arrived right after lunch in a very impressive box tower. I had just spent my lunch time with them and had no idea that a gift was heading my way. It was very sweet of him to surprise me like that.

Actual Mother’s day was pretty much our normal (awesome) Sunday. But I did get to sleep in so that was pretty great.

I was woken up by a very wiggly baby girl next to me. Bright eyed and bushy-tailed; she was done sleeping for the time being. Me? Not so much.

A gentle hand on his back and a sweet “baby, can you take her” was all it took to get my husband straight out of bed. He’s not a morning person by any means so the fact that he didn’t hesitate at all was a Mother’s Day miracle and greatly appreciated. I fell back asleep all alone and stayed that way for over an hour.

I woke up to the sound of a tired girl resisting a morning nap, so I gladly got up and brought her to our bed. There, we cuddled back up and fell asleep together once again.

That nap was magnificent. I just sleep better with my little girl next to me. Her steady breathing calms my mind. Her little head in the nook of my arm, snuggled close to my body with her chubby little baby arm outstretched over my chest melts my heart and relaxes me instantly. Sleeping next to my husband like that has the same effect on me. I can’t help but be crazy in love with my family. They are my world.

<3

Seven.

My dear little Sofie socks, you have been a part of our family for seven months now. The strange thing is that these last seven months have gone by so fast, yet so slow at the same time. Sometimes I forget that you’re only 7 months old because I’m so used to referring to you as already 7 months. Also, it feels as though you’ve always been a part of our lives.

Everyone who meets you thinks you’re just the cutest baby ever. Daddy and I cannot argue with them. J

I know I’ve said this before, but you’re always so happy! Just yesterday, you and I went shoe shopping while you were napping. Shortly after getting to the store, you woke up and started laughing. Full on belly laughs. I wasn’t even doing anything besides smiling back at you. It was an amazing high to my soul.

My dear, sweet little Sofie...

You are now 6 months old. Actually, next Saturday you will be 7 months old. Time is flying by now that you’ve joined our family.

I have been back to work for over 3 months now. That’s about how long I got to spend every single minute of every single day with you when you were first born. Why did that first 3 months seem so short and this 3 months seem much longer? Your daddy sure has been taking great care of you while mommy’s at work. Heck, he takes great care of us both even when we’re all together. He’s a great daddy, huh?

I miss some things while I’m at work, but you sure do show off for momma when I’m home. You’re moving around more and more these days. When you see something you want you can actually wiggle around until you have it in your hand…unless you’re tired. Then it’s our job to get it for you. You’ll be crawling around in no time! Daddy and I need to get on that baby proofing thing ASAP.

You’re also laughing so much. All I have to do is look at you with a funny face and I get a belly laugh. Yesterday we were at a store and focused on shopping. You started getting antsy and fussing a bit. As soon as I starting making faces at you, you lit up and started giggling. My faces impressed a couple strangers too because they started smiling (that or they loved hearing your baby laugh).

I need to get better at keeping track of your awesomeness, but I get so caught up in just experiencing it with you that I forget to write things down in one spot. Here’s what you’ve been up to the last few months….

You chew on everything you can get your hands on. Sometimes you even bypass the use of your hands and just go for, say my forearm, with your gums. Chomp, chomp, CHOMP! :o) We wonder when those teeth are gonna break through. No rush though. 
You went from being able to sit as long as we were holding onto you, to sitting totally unassisted. Of course we’re still right there in case you tip over. We don’t want you to bonk your head on the hardwood floors.

You can go from sitting up to getting on your belly without hitting your face on the ground now. J Yay! For using those arms to catch yourself...most of the time.

You can go from laying down to sitting up with very little resistance put on your legs. This makes diaper changes more challenging for sure. Maybe we should stop trying to help you. ;)

You love to bounce on anything (especially mommy’s lap)

You’re practicing crawling, but can use your feet to scootch yourself on your belly to what you want.

You can stand without folding in half or swaying like a drunkard when I only hold on to your hips. In fact, you prefer to stand over sitting. Your little legs and back are so strong! (You’ve been standing for a few months now.)
You flail your arms and legs and squeal in excitement when you see me come through the door after work. Actually, you do this the rest of the night too. Every time I come back to you, you act like you haven’t seen me in forever even though it’s only been about a  minute since I left to go to the bathroom. You do this for your daddy too.

Speaking of squealing….your new favorite thing to do is scream at the top of your lungs. All.the.time. It’s cute, I love it and I wish you would get over this phase soon all at the same time.

Food...

Baby girl sure does love to eat! Look at her feeding herself some smooched avocado!

Lucky in love

We are two days away from our one year anniversary. Sitting here nursing my baby girl and reflecting on the last year of my life, I realize how good I have it. This has been one of the best years I have ever lived. I became a wife and mother all within one year. It hasn't been easy at times, but it has all been worth it. I can't wait to see what God has in store for our future.

Tuesday tootsies

These are my toes.

They used to be naked. Now they are not. If an effort to do more things that are just for me, I gave myself a pedicure last night. I only had about 5 minutes to paint my nails so they aren’t perfect, but they make me feel good and girly. I need a good manicure, but baby girl chews on my fingers. Even without a baby’s help, the nail polish comes off the next day or sooner. I love pedicures because the polish stays on for a while. Plus chances are pretty slim that Sofie will be chewing on my toes.

The same can’t be said for her toes though.

Oh yeah, I also started to exercise in the mornings. We’ll see how long either of these things last.

Mini phone photo dump

Recent(ish) pictures.
I'll probably do more of this so I can make room to take more pictures on my phone.

Happiness *2/16/12

She has my heart <sprinkle> *2/17/12

Loves to eat...anything *2/20/12

<3 LOVE <3 *2/24/12

Escape artist *2/24/12

First Word!

Ok, so Steve and I were both witnesses to what we're calling baby girl's first word. Said today at 4:53pm (yes, just a little bit ago. 5:01 right now) Sofie clearly said Dadda! I'm 99% thrilled and only 1% jealous. :o)

Here's a beautiful pic of the two loves of my life just moments ago.

Basking in first word awesomeness!

Baby’s first party

Yesterday was baby girl's first time at a birthday party. My friend’s beautiful little girl was turning 4 and wanted an all girl, girly-girl party. It was adorable and I’m pretty sure my little had a blast. She was squealing and wiggling with happiness for most of the 3 hour party with just a short nap somewhere in the middle. She loved watching the little girls run around screaming and laughing. When the girls would run past, she’d kick her feet like she was yearning to join them. One day baby girl, one day.

Party pooper :o)

Yummy!!

Once the party was over, we headed to an empty home. Daddy was out having a good time with some friends, so I took this opportunity to spend some alone time and relax with my little girl. (E.I that kid party wore this momma out and I didn’t even do anything. Poor Prisca (o:) I drew us a nice warm bath and poured some baby wash in to add a few bubbles. It was the first time she’d been in that much water (outside of my body) and I think she liked it. She floated around with my help and seemed fascinated by the bubbles. After about 10 minutes she started rubbing her eyes so we awkwardly got out of the tub, dried off, slipped into our comfy clothes and hopped into bed for a nap. Well, that was my plan, but S apparently just wanted to hang out with me. She was “talking” so much; no doubt telling me what a wonderful time she had at the party, and just enjoying lounging around. We ended up staying in bed for a few hours laughing so hard we had to stop to catch our breath and cuddling so much I thought my heart would explode. It.was.wonderful!
I’m already looking forward to our next girl's only day.

1st park trip.

When I got home yesterday, all I wanted to do was cuddle my little girl and relax. It’s been a long week and I still had one more day to deal with. About 5 minutes after getting home, my love says “There’s still some daylight left. We should go to a park.” That thought was the furthest thing in my mind, but as soon as he said it, I was game. I figured baby girl would rather play then to sit and be cuddled. She’s not a newborn anymore, and not quite mobile, but baby girl loves to be moving.

                                               First time in a big girl baby swing!!!

She loved it!

First cold conquered.

It seems like the cold is gone. Baby girl didn’t cough at all this morning or during sleep last night. In fact we slept pretty soundly for 8 hours. It was amazing.

She’s been a pretty good baby throughout this whole cold thing, but last night I could tell she was feeling much better. We had a lot of happiness and laughs last night.

The sound of my baby girls’ laugh lifts my spirits to the highest. I find great joy in burying my face in the side of her belly and making her squeal and giggle. Just tickling her with my hands won’t cut it. It has to be my face. I love every part of it. I don’t even mind when I try to lift my head up to catch a glimpse of her smile, but my gaze is hindered because she has a fist full of my bangs. Sof sure does love momma’s hair. She’s always trying to get her face in it, eat it or just have her hands in it. Silly girl.

A baby foot in my mouth, a raspberry on the back of her neck and a nom-nom on the belly…Ah, the simple things that bring happiness to me and my sweet baby. I love being her mommy.

Belly laughs

After I got home Sofie was pretty much either crying, eating or sleeping. Mostly crying. Poor baby. The only thing that let me know she was still a happy baby was that I got her to give me some great belly laughs. I didn't even need to work hard for them this time. All it took was some belly kisses and raspberries. I've done this a million times over the last 4 months, but this was the first time she laughed at it. And man, it did it make me happy. I'm still not feeling great myself so having a sick cranky-pants baby on my hands was hard. Sof's smiles and laughs washed all that away and carried me through the night.
I love that little girl so much.

4 months

Our little Sofie is already 4 months old! Acutally, this update is a little late so she's 4 months and 12 day old. Her 4 month check up was last Monday. She weighs 13lbs and is 25" long. She's almost half as tall as I am! Poor baby had to get more shots too. Her cries hurt my heart so much. At least she stops as soon as we pick her up. Still sad though.
I was sick last Monday and since I'm always right up in my baby's face I passed on my sickies to her by accident. She started coughing on Saturday. She also has a runny nose, but neither of these things seem to bother her too much. She still eats and breaths fine. I hate hearing her cough though. It's so sad to see her face turn red and her eye water. :( I know this cold is pretty minor though and I'm thankful for that. Being the worry wort that I am I still had her checked out by her doctor. She said it's just a cold and she should be fine in a couple of weeks. We need to keep an eye on her breathing and temp. I hope Sofie recovers quicker than that.

The 18th.

Last night we ventured out to Sare’s house for dinner. We haven’t seen her in a while and I thought it was time to reconnect. Sofie did pretty good while we were there. When she started getting tired we should have packed up and left, but I wanted to hang out some more. I used my secret weapon (I.E. nursing) on Sofie so that bought us more time. It was fun catching up and eating the yummy lasagna Sare made.

Sofie made me pay for that fun later though. We got home kind of late. Once we got in bed, miss wiggle worm would not stop moving her feet and kicking off the blanket. She was so tired, but she would not give in. For well over an hour she’d lift her legs up and move her legs like she was riding a bike and pull the covers down. When she wasn’t doing that she would push off my leg with her chilly baby feet. I couldn’t keep her warm because she kept kicking the blankets off. I only allow the blankets to go up to her belly so she didn’t have to move much to get them totally off, but still. I tried to remind her of how much she likes sleep and it was WAY past her bedtime and she needed to go to sleep, but baby girl had none of it. Finally she started to wind down so I stuck the sound machine right by her ear (again) and she drifted in and out of dreamland. I started to fall asleep too, but I scared myself awake. I had been holding the sound machine over her head and I felt it slip. I didn’t want to hit my almost sleeping baby so I chose to put it down even though I thought she might fully wake up again. Luckily all she did was look up at me for a few seconds before closing her eyes for the night. Our girl sure does love noise.

New tricks.

Uh-oh! Sofie just started rolling over from her back to tummy last night. She's getting more mobile by the day. Before we know it, she'll be crawling all over the place! Exciting and scary. We have baby-proofed nothing.

Sunday, 1/15/12

We slept in. We went to church. We prayed. We went to my parent’s house for a few hours. We came home. I put our girl down for a nap. We got some chores done. We had some wine. We cuddled up. We talked. We watched some TV. We watched our girl on the monitor. We had some dinner. We had a fire going in the fireplace. I got our girl up from her nap. I fed our girl. We laughed when she laughed. We laughed when she grunted. We laughed when she smiled. I gave our girl a bath. He walked the dogs. We got in our comfys. I fed our girl. We prayed. We went to bed one happy family. All in all it was a normal day for us. I’ve never been more fulfilled, happy and in love.

My heart still goes out to the Roth and Marquis families. I wish no one had to feel the pain of losing their child(ren). Their stories have given me so much perspective and have made normal (some would say boring) days like the one described above seem wonderful, amazing and a gift not to be taken for granted.  

...

Tripp went to Heaven on Saturday. My heart hurts for his momma. http://randycourtneytripproth.blogspot.com/

Friday the 13th.

Steve said that it’s casual Friday. That’s why he kept Sofie in her PJs. He’s so silly.

Today marks the last day of my first full week back at work. I gotta say; it wasn’t as long and bad as I thought it would be. I know, without a doubt, that it was easier on me because I spent every lunch with my family. I don’t think I could have made it without them. It makes me so happy and relieved that Steve gets to watch Sofie while I’m at work. I know he loves her just as much as I do so I know she won’t be neglected.

It has been a sad week. Nothing happened to me or our family, but I was sad none the less. It looks like a precious EB baby is heading to Heaven soon. I’ve been reading about Tripp for a couple years now. His momma keeps a blog and said that Trip is going down hill fast. Also, a woman on the message board I visit lost her 3 ½ month old son to SIDS this week. Her beautiful Zackary was born the day after Sofie. This particular woman was very active on the board so I recognized her name immediately. I’m sad for their family. Honestly, her story could be anyone’s story. It’s scary, but it also makes me appreciate every moment I have with my little Sofie. Tripp’s story makes me appreciate having a healthy baby. If you’re the praying kind, please pray for these women and their family. You and I may not know them, but God does.

I hope to never take my family for granted. I never want to be so caught up in daily, ordinary life that I don’t take the time to let my family know how much I love and appreciate them. I wouldn’t be who I am today if it wasn’t for the ones that I hold dear to me. Extended family and a couple friends included.

16 weeks old!

Today at lunch our little Sofie let out a real belly baby laugh for the first time. Just for a second, but it was still a heartier laugh then we had gotten outta her before. Steve and I were so happy she did it while we were all together. What was I doing to make her laugh? Lifting her up over my head (only a little bit since we were sitting in Steve’s truck) setting her down in my lap real quick and bringing her back up for a kiss. I did it a few more times and she just kept belly laughing for a second. I can’t wait for the day that we find something that makes her belly laugh for a long time.

Tuesday, January 10th:

The story from dad is that days are going pretty well for him and Sofie. It makes my heart happy to see the love they have for each other. It’s only the 5^th day back to work for me, but I know things could still be rough. She had skipped her afternoon nap yesterday, instead waiting for me to get home. After a meal and some non-stop snuggles she relaxed and slept for a while in my arms.   

After we got to bed later that night, Sofia and I had a great conversation. When we went to bed she fell asleep pretty quickly, but once Steve came in she woke right up. I tried to get her to go to sleep again, but she wanted to talk to me first. I was all for it since I still missed her because of being fussy and/or sleeping most of the time I had with her after work. With her little head resting on the crook of my arm and her hands wrapped tightly around my fingers she told me the best baby story ever. It had grunts, squeals and soft cooing. I soaked every bit of it in. Her little face is always so expressive when she talks so it makes for an interesting conversation. I let her say what she wanted to say then she let me successfully coax her into dreamland for the night. Oh, how I love my baby girl.

3+ months!

Henry sharing his candy with his baby cousin.

Nanny: That sure is a lot of candy for a baby.

Henry: That’s ok. It’s soft.

<3

How did 3 months pass already? Sofie is becoming more and more aware of her surroundings and toys each day. She’s talking so much more these days too. It’s absolutely adorable. Even when she clenches her fists, widens her eyes, furrows her brows and grunts like she’s frustrated and mad. I’m sure that won’t be as cute when she’s older, but for now it makes Steve and I crack up.

Sofie loves to stand up and show off how strong her legs are. We think she might just skip right over that whole crawling thing. We’ll see about that soon enough. She also is gripping and hanging on to so many of her toys lately. It makes for great hand holding time, or finger holding time in Sofie’s case.

Sofie has had some new tricks up her sleeve that I wanted to get down on “paper”. On my birthday she started holding on to her left foot for the first time. This was when she started holding on to her toys more too. Then on the 31^st she giggled for the first time in response to me jiggling her arms and making her shake a little before kissing her face. Right after that Steve gave her a big smile and she giggled at him too while she buried her face in my chest. It was like a little game between them. Made my heart swoon! Next came a biggie: On Jan 2^nd, our little Sofie rolled from her front to her back!! She did it once, no problem. I got my camera and we set her up to do it again. She fussed and cried through the whole thing, but she did it again for the camera! Even grandma and grandpa got to see her roll over for the first time. It was pretty amazing.

Around the same time as all these firsts Sofie started taking a pacifier pretty regularly. It’s opened up a whole new avenue for her comfort. She still chews her hands, my hands, Steve’s hands, blankets and pretty much anything that feels like a blanket, but she keeps the pacifier in her mouth the longest and can actually fall asleep with it like a real baby. J

The start of a new normal.

First day back to work….not awesome. I tried to really enjoy my time with her yesterday instead of being all down in the dumps. I think I did a good job until bedtime. I cried all last night and a lot more this morning. Leaving Sofie was hard to do. I fed her, burped her, put the pacifier in her mouth, rocked her till she got her sleepy eyes on, kissed her cheek and put her in her swing. She totally woke up and gave me a few giant smiles. Man, that was hard to walk away from. I know she’ll love being with her dad all day, but I feel like I’ll be missing so much. I can’t wait to see her at lunch today. That is all for now. Gotta go so I can stop crying.