I don’t want to jinx us, but the past few nights have been GREAT when it comes to sleep – as long as we stay on our schedule. Last night, our Peanut fell asleep at 8:45, woke up at 11:45, and we had to wake her up at 6 this morning to get her ready! Excuse us, right!? ;0) I’m convinced it’s the baby food + rice cereal combo. She ate half a jar last night, and was QUICK about it, too!
I love this girl, and just as much, I love being a mom.
Oh, what a night we had last night! First, Lily and I spent the day at my parent’s house. It was so nice to get a chance to spend time with everyone without an agenda; we had a GREAT day! Lily practiced sitting up and can now successfully sit with her hands in front of her before toppling over! I love it.
So, last night rocked. I put Lily in her crib for some alone time (She really does want her alone time each day!) and decided to hang out for a few minutes and watch. Boy, am I ever glad I did! She’s been into putting her bib over her face to block the light – while the lights were off in her room at the time, there was light coming in from the television in the next room and from her aquarium on her crib (Yes, that little bit is enough to cause her to cover her face.). I didn’t think much of it when she covered her face, and I said the typical “Peekaboo!” when she uncovered her face. “Peekaboo!” will normally get a giggle out of her the first few times, but that’s been the extent of it. Well, last night changed that! When she uncovered her face that first time, and every time over the next 20 minutes, “Peekaboo!” brought huge laughs from her! She completely controlled the game; she covered her face, then uncovered her face to see us, laughing hysterically every single time! It was AWESOME!
I’m certain my heart grew at least 100 times larger last night. Every day with this girl is a blessing, and I only wish I could spend every waking moment with her.
I’m still here, people. And this will be a quick update! Seems things have gone crazy lately. Really. Busy is a fair understatement. 
If you’re awaiting an e-mail, phone call, or other, forgive me! I’m still the same ol’ “off” self I’ve been for the past few years, and it seems this funk is going to last forever. Oh well, many things have changed, most of which have not been good and driven me further down, but it is what it is. Anyway, onward …
First and foremost, our girl. Lily is growing like crazy. While she hasn’t done anything totally new lately, her skills are getting better by the minute! She’s rolling from one side of the room to the other, passing things from one hand to the other with little effort, responding to her name, and starting to inchworm with the best of ‘em.
She’s started real food every day! She’d had some here and there, but I had a hard time figuring the best time to feed it to her each night. Until she’s eating multiple times a day, it’s something I’m not willing to let our daycare provider do; I may be a working mom, but I’m still a MOM, and that’s my #1 job – thank you very much. Anyway, I was determined to make it work. When she was seriously hungry wasn’t good, but it didn’t seem to be working out when we first got home, either. We’ve got it, though, and she’s successfully enjoyed over a week of sweet potatoes, carrots, and just last night, tried and liked squash!
I also started her in her high chair last night, and thankfully, she loved it! She’s sitting up with help, and I’m hoping this helps her along in that area, as well. Yep, she’s sitting up with help! She’ll go a few seconds by herself, and makes some serious effort to remain upright, but just doesn’t have the strength yet.
Otherwise, things are the same. We’re looking forward to Halloween – three costumes should make for an interesting few days, huh? I’ll check back in soon!
These Alphabitty Moments layouts are so much fun! MamaBear at 4 the Love of Family kicked off the fun to keep record of the little things our children do. She, along with the other weekly participants, have some amazing ideas and cute memories … you really should check it out!
I really struggled with something for the letter G. Because Peanut is only 5 months old, there’s often little she’s learned or done thus far. Watching her last night, it came to me, and it’s just perfect! So … this week, the letter G is for grip! That little girl has been grabbing, gripping and holding on to everything lately! I love watching her hands work as she learns to pick up, hold and pass things. This is such an awesome time – one that I don’t want to forget!
Psst …
Want to see all of the Alphabitty posts together? They can be found here …
Want more information on these Alphabitty Moments? Yep, it’s awesome! That information is here …
Categories: alphabitty · blogging · lily · parenting
Tagged: alphabitty
These Alphabitty Moments layouts are so much fun! MamaBear at 4 the Love of Family kicked off the fun to keep record of the little things our children do. She, along with the other weekly participants, have some amazing ideas and cute memories … you really should check it out!
So, without further ado, F is for … the fair! We ventured out to two local fairs this year – one was a local fireman’s carnival, and the other was our county fair. We had fun at both, and I’m sure the coming years will be much, much more exciting!
Psst …
Want to see all of the Alphabitty posts together? They can be found here …
Want more information on these Alphabitty Moments? Yep, it’s awesome! That information is here …
Categories: alphabitty · blogging · lily · parenting
Tagged: alphabitty
These Alphabitty Moments layouts are so much fun! MamaBear at 4 the Love of Family kicked off the fun to keep record of the little things our children do. She, along with the other weekly participants, have some amazing ideas and cute memories … you really should check it out!
So, what’s the theme for this week (Eh, I’m a few weeks late …)? E is for expressions! That girl makes some funny faces, and they’re getting funnier as every day passes! Some of our favorites made this page, though we have so many more!
Psst …
Want to see all of the Alphabitty posts together? They can be found here …
Want more information on these Alphabitty Moments? Yep, it’s awesome! That information is here …
Categories: alphabitty · blogging · lily · parenting
Tagged: alphabitty
We just got back from an amazing weekend in Pittsburgh – nothing special, really, but it was nice to get away and not worry about anything!
On Sunday, little miss celebrated her 5 month birthday and gave us this awesome pic:
That’s my girl! We truly are blessed – she’s so happy and simply amazing! I don’t think there’s anything new to report at month 5. She’s trying to sit up when we hold her, but is not doing so on her own. Seems we have taken two steps back at night – while she was only waking up once a night for a while, she’s going through some kind of “bottle on demand” phase and thinks she can eat whenever she wants. Needless to say, sleep training is ON in our house! Seems sleep training is harder than the regular sleep deprivation of constant feedings, but if the outcome is good, I’ll take it!
Fall is such a busy time, and the coming weeks are certainly no exception. We have some fun things planned over the next few weekends, so we’ll be sure to update with photos. I’m falling behind on lots of things I’m supposed to be keeping up with, so forgive me – while this new life is SO full of rewards and heart-warming excitement, it’s also terribly draining and hectic … whew!
Happy Monday!
Categories: blogging · family · lily · parenting · photography
Tagged: 5 months, infant, pittsburgh
This is one of those, “you just have to know about it because I love it or hate it” reviews. I bought LeapFrog’s My Pal Scout from Target last week and have been in love with him ever since. 
First, he’s adorable! Believe me, once he’s programmed, he’s even more cute! His, “Hi, Lily!” greeting melts my heart every time!
Scout comes with a USB connection; you download LeapFrog Connect and plug him into your computer. From there, you can add your child’s name, favorite color, favorite animal, and favorite food. You can also change Scout’s songs – he comes pre-programmed with 5 daytime songs and 5 nighttime songs which you can swap out for 30+/- other options.
My Pal Scout is rated for children 6 months to 3 years. Lily is just under 5 months, and she loves it! Most of the time we have to push the buttons for her, though sometimes she does it herself. She laughs at the light when the bone on his collar lights up, and she talks while he sings and talks to her. I can see her hanging onto Scout for a long time. She’ll “grow into” him for sure; once she has a favorite food, color and animal, we’ll be able to personalize. She’ll also be able to learn from Scout. According to LeapFrog’s website, My Pal Scout teaches:
See, there’s laughing with Scout (He must be a funny guy!)…
… and talking to Scout (Could he be a good listener?)!
If you’re looking for a cuddly, interactive companion for your child, I’d recommend My Pal Scout. Don’t be surprised if you’re singing along within hours – he’s sweet, addicting and oh so cute!
Note: Again, I am merely sharing my opinion on a product I purchased on my own. If you want to know more about my thoughts and policies on product reviews, go here.
Categories: lily · parenting · review · shopping
Tagged: educational, infant, leap frog, leapfrog, my pal scout, toddler, toy
Aah, I love this week’s letter, too!
These Alphabitty Moments layouts are so much fun! MamaBear at 4 the Love of Family kicked off the fun to keep record of the little things our children do. She, along with the other weekly participants, have some amazing ideas and cute memories … you really should check it out!
I couldn’t decide on what to do for the letter D until I asked a few friends … and they knew just what I should go with – doggie!
When we first brought Lily home, and for probably the first month and a half, where Lily was, Cody was. Seemed he was never more than a few feet away. And if she cried, he wouldn’t rest until one of us got her. As soon as she’d start, he’d come to let us know. We thought he’d be a huge problem because he’s typically very jealous, but overall, he’s taken the addition very, very well. We really couldn’t have asked for anything better! G-pa’s theory is that he knew she was on her way long before she actually arrived. I’ll take that theory!
Notice in each of the pictures of Lily that Cody can be found either discovering his new friend or in the background – it’s like Where’s Waldo!
So, without further ado, I bring you the letter D, which is for doggie!
A note on the background – I used this tutorial to create the background for this layout – it was easy to follow and fun to create! If you enjoy this sort of design work and want to create something similar, I’d highly recommend this tutorial!
Psst …
Want to see all of the Alphabitty posts together? They can be found here …
Want more information on these Alphabitty Moments? Yep, it’s awesome! That information is here …
P.S. – Don’t forget … if you want to win your very own copy of A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life by Donald Miller, jump over here and leave a comment – any comment by Friday, 9/25!
Categories: alphabitty · blogging · lily · parenting
Tagged: alphabitty
I’m a day late … sorry!
These Alphabitty Moments layouts are so much fun! MamaBear at 4 the Love of Family kicked off the fun to keep record of the little things our children do. She, along with the other weekly participants, have some amazing ideas and cute memories … check this week’s out here!
So … as soon as I started brainstorming on what I would do for the letter C, I knew immediately – catfish face! Though she doesn’t do it anymore, when Lily was really little, she’d make this face that we swear looks just like a catfish! (The best are the two images from June 14th.). Seriously, you can’t say they don’t have a striking resemblance to the catfish illustration!!!
I don’t ever want to forget her catfish faces (Nor the fact that we called her “Catfish Lou” for quite some time …), so I dedicate the letter C to forever remembering catfish face!
Psst …
Want to see all of the Alphabitty posts together? They can be found here …
Want more information on these Alphabitty Moments? Yep, it’s awesome! That information is here …
P.S. – Don’t forget … if you want to win your very own copy of A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life by Donald Miller, jump over here and leave a comment – any comment by Friday, 9/25!
Categories: alphabitty · blogging · lily · parenting
Tagged: alphabitty
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