Lots of new things

Dear Grace,
You are doing so many new things these days!  It is so fun to see what you are learning to do.  A few days ago you waved "bye bye" for the first time!  You now do it pretty consistently.  It is so cute!  The other day I dropped you off at daycare and said "bye bye" and you just kind of flicked your hand at me like you were saying, "fine I'll do it, Mom, but I don't have to like it!"  A couple weeks ago you figured out how to get yourself from laying down to sitting up.  I looked at you and you were on your tummy on the floor and then I looked again and you were sitting up!  Then a couple days later I actually saw you do it yourself.  Now you are a pro and doing it all the time!  I think you are also figuring out how to do "so big!"  This morning you did it a couple times.  It is very fun! 

You still scoot around to get places.  You scooted all the way across the dining room floor the other day.  You are quite fast!  You scooted across the bathroom floor to the door stop thing and had a great time flicking it!  Of course you shut the door first so that you could get at it better.  =)  Here's a video of it:

You also found the shades by the patio door a few days ago.  I was doing something in the kitchen and didn't see you at first.  Then I realized that you had scooted over there, sat yourself up and you were playing with the shades.  I got a video of that, too:



You are very close to pulling yourself up to stand, too.  You are definitely thinking about it and trying.  It won't be long!  It is so fun to watch you grow and develop.  I can't believe you will be 10 months old tomorrow already!  Time sure flies!  I love you, sweet girl!! 

Love,

Mommy

9 months old!

Dear Grace,

It is hard to believe that you are already 9 months old!  You had your 9 month check up today and you are 21 pounds 3 ounces and 27 inches long.  This morning I looked at you and it seemed like you had grown while you slept!  Yesterday morning you woke up and I heard you "talking" in your crib.  You were just happy as a clam when I went in there.  You are developing quite the personality!  You are always so smiley except when you are tired or hungry or otherwise cranky (which isn't terribly often).  You got your flu shot this morning and didn't take a great nap, so you are a bit grumpy this afternoon.  Oh well.  I still enjoy spending my day off with you, even when you are crabby.  I just don't get much done, which is fine.  Those other things can wait!  I love hearing you say, "Mamamama"," even though you don't know what it means yet.  Now we just have to get you to say "Dada"!  Daddy's been trying to get you to say that since you were born! 

Here's a video of how you get around these days.  Not actual crawling, but pretty close!  You sure can move!

I love you, Grace!  Happy 9 month "birthday"!

Love,

Mommy

A letter to my daughter

Dear Grace,
I decided that I would start a blog to better document your life.  I have not been the best at writing down the events of the past 8 1/2 months since you were born.  I have a baby book, but there is not much written in there yet.  Fortunately we have a calendar that we put stickers on for the big firsts or we wouldn't even know when those things happened!  I thought if I did this online, I might be better at keeping track, but we shall see. 
I can't believe how fast you are changing!  It seems like you are doing something new every day.  You are so close to crawling now.  You pull yourself forward with your arms and push off with your feet.  Tonight I turned my back on you for a moment and you opened up the baby wipes and pulled two out.  I don't know if you got a taste or not, but I'm glad I got to you before you had emptied the container!  I know that it will seem as though I turn my back again and you will be walking and then running and then starting school. 
It seems like just yesterday that I held you in my arms for the first time.  Your daddy and I were so excited to finally meet you!  You sure took your time arriving, though!  I was induced for two days and then pushed for three hours and you were finally born by C-section.  We didn't know whether you were a boy or a girl, but we were quite convinced that you were going to be a boy.  When Dr. Antkowiak said, "it's a girl!" I said, "did he just say, 'It's a girl'?"  Now I can't imagine you being a boy.  It is so fun to dress you in cute little outfits.  I love putting headbands on you, but we don't do it very much because daddy thinks they squish your head.  =) 
You've had a rough couple weeks here, little girl, but you keep smiling.  You had a high fever a few weeks ago and had both an ear infection and a UTI.  You started coughing a few days later and have continued to have a cough and runny nose, but it hasn't slowed you down.  Yesterday you had another fever and today we found out that you have another ear infection and possibly a UTI again.  One of your kidneys is a little bigger than the other one, so that tends to cause you to get infections.  It's so hard to see you when you don't feel good and have to have tests done, but you are a trooper.  You seem to be feeling better already tonight.  You have been waving your arms and almost clapping.  You have such a beautiful smile.  You have two little teeth on the bottom right now and it is so cute.  It melts my heart when you smile at me.  I love how you smile at your daddy, too.  You look at him with such an adoring look in your eyes.  He can get you to laugh so easily, too.  We are so blessed to be your parents.  I can't imagine life without you, sweetheart!  I'm looking forward to seeing all that the future holds, but I hope it doesn't go too fast!  I love you!
Love,
Mommy