Lately...

Lately there are days that I feel silly for ever posting this piece about high maintenance babies.  It seems that the more independent Lyla becomes, the happier she is.  Barrel rolling across the living room led to scooting around to reach her toys which led to crawling to other rooms in the house and now pulling herself up to stand and lean against furniture (or to reach off-limit items such as the remote control, DVD player, my shelf full of cookbooks...).

She pulls herself up on anything at arms height...

She giggles with delight as she crawls full speed towards an object that catches her eye across the room.  She shrieks with joy when she finally gets her sticky baby hands on said object.  She certainly keeps me on my toes, but high maintenance?  Not really... 

Playing with a bookmark she pulled out of one of my cookbooks...naughty baby.

But then come the hard times.  Naps still spent in my arms (I'm telling you--she barely touches the bed and her eyes instantly pop open) and nights spent waking every 2 hours on the dot to nurse.  Her knack at getting her way is also now reflected in her newfound independence.  She crawls (or should I say claws...) up my leg and onto my lap when she wants to be held.  Oh, and did I mention she now says "Mama"?  Gets me every time.

Oh, that face!  Who could say no to that face??

The other night Lyla was awake from 12 a.m. to 4 a.m.  My frustration escalated the longer we were awake.  I finally laid her in her crib (we co-sleep, so normally she's in bed with us) and let her cry.  "We're not having any more babies" I proclaimed.  But we finally got her to sleep (snuggled next to me in bed of course) and I woke up to a smiling little lady.  It's funny how that sweet morning baby makes the evil nighttime baby seem totally worth it.

So that's how things are around here lately.

xo
Jayme

Lyla, lately

Lyla's 6 month appointment/update is right around the corner.  But I just wanted to share a little of what she's been up to lately.

The past couple of weeks she has really got her "rolling" down.  She can barrel roll across the room.  This means a couple things--
1. Our [tiny] living room has been overtaken with baby toys and our floor is now covered with a comforter that belonged to my husband since middle school. Practical, yes.  Attractive, no.  So please just ignore the 90s, plaid backdrop of these photos.
2.  If I leave the room for more than a minute it is very likely that I will find Lyla either halfway under the sofa or on the verge of rolling off the edge of the blanket onto the hardwood floor.  Fun stuff.

Lyla's other new trick?  Trying to crawl!  She gets herself into push up position, and either bends her knees or rocks back and forth.  She can scoot backwards and once she figures out how to work those arms she will be well on her way to a full-on crawl (how is this all happening soooo fast??).

As for me, I'm feeling a bit stir crazy lately.  Ready for our summer vacations to start (we're visiting Amanda next weekend!) and to get off this couch I seem to be glued to.

xo
Jayme

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Aurora on the Move

(Yes, she IS a cutie.)  Aurora is seven and a half months tomorrow--it's been a little while since I shared an update.  She is learning new things everyday. She's constantly making me laugh--and cry (tears of joy!).  I'm preparing to be a lot more active, as she's figured out how to maneuver herself around and across every room (still wiggling on her tummy, but crawling is not far behind--we predict it will be happening within the next week or so).  She's also finally getting a little pudge on her bones (thanks to a combination of formula, rice cereal breakfast, and a healthy dinner appetite).

 She's starting to recognize and "pose" for the camera.

 in her Madonna onesie and Crawler Covers ( baby legwarmers!), having a snack

 This is one sweet face, ladies and gentlemen.

 On the move--in another pair of Crawler Covers (a gift from my dear friend Amy!)

 I love how proud she is when she gets a toy she wants (or something she shouldn't have, like a cord. Time to childproof around these parts!)

 Look at that little belly!

Already hammin' it up for the cameras...

Every day is a joy and a challenge.  I put covers on the reachable electrical outlets last night and have started the process of researching baby gates for our stairs.  When she was tiny, these things seemed so far away, but now they're here.  I had a tearful Mommy moment the other day--she is definitely doing the "Mmm" sound and often says "Ma-ma-ma-ma."  Who knows if she understands it, but she does it when she wakes up from sleep/naps and when she falls and wants to be picked up.  I was changing her diaper and she looked right at me and said, "Ma-ma-ma-ma" and smiled.  I got all teary and kissed her, picked her up and said, "Yep, Mama! Ma-ma-ma!"  I think she knows.

I can't wait to see all the amazing things she'll do next, though I can't help but feel those inevitable I wish she'd stay like this forever feelings.

xo,

Manda

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