T-R-O-U-B-L-E

My little beauties are absolute angels, of course. However, occasionally, they have to be rescued from themselves. A few days ago I finally got Josie's new "big girl bed" set up in her room. With the double safety rails, it looks a little like a hospital bed. Oh well. And the room isn't set up in its final configuration, as we still have the crib in there. Every time I ask her where she wants to sleep, she points to the crib. That is where she sleeps, after all. And changing her routine is going to be a challenge. I have a feeling we're going to have to do a baptism by fire to teach her to sleep in her new bed (by simply removing the crib as an option). For now, she considers it a new toy. Her favorite game is walking along the edge like she's walking on a beam ... around and around and around. She's definitely got a little gymnast in her!

Eleanor, bless her heart, isn't quite crawling yet. But man does she get around! She has this completely undignified army crawl / finger pull / toe-push thing going. It isn't pretty, but it gets her around. And she is already getting into everything. I'm finding myself constantly moving her away from all the trouble she finds. I'm dreading the day she's really crawling and can easily get around my relocation efforts.

Chewing on the tag in Josie's pj's while holding her basket like a purse.

Getting into the cords under the TV table.

The minute I had finished making the bed, she climbed in and said "night night!" But, for her, its still just a game, not a place she would actually sleep. Apparently, that's a preposterous proposition.

Oh yeah, that's more like it.

baby around the house

"Noisy Nelly"

Mmmmm, teething biscuits

Happy girl

Hiding under the desk in her room (she ended up there mostly by accident)

Teeth!

You want me to eat what??!

she's 7 months old!

OK, so its been almost two weeks since she actually turned seven months. But I only just got around to taking her picture. She refused to do much smiling for me this time ... which is actually really unlike her. She loves to smile! She's just the happiest kid there is, and immediately brings a smile to everyone she's around. She's super close to crawling, which means we're super close to more trouble. Even just scooting around on the floor ... she's into everything! She's also cut her first tooth, and more seem to be close behind. She's sleeping better and better (though she tends to get her legs stuck between the slats in her crib, which usually results in a lot of yelling and interrupted sleep). We love our little chunky monkey!

Superbaby!

1st birthday

On Sunday we celebrated Josephine's first birthday. She had a great day, though we discovered she's not too keen on cake and having 20 people sing to her. Our little one-year-old is as active as ever, climbing up and down the stairs, eating anything you'll put in her mouth, working on tooth #4, and still sleeping fantastically. She is such a joy to have around and we're enjoying every day as she discovers and learns new things. Walking is just around the corner, and then we're really in trouble! Here's a few pics from the birthday celebration.

It was a lovely day for an outside birthday.

The birthday girl with her Aunt Amy.

Ready for cupcake!

Dominic resting comfortably (and dramatically) in his Uncle Caleb's arms.

10 months

I know I say this every month when I post Josie's monthly pictures ... but I just can't believe how fast she's growing! The last few weeks have been quite eventful, too, as she's popped her first tooth and learned to crawl. She's making all kinds of fun new noises and she's pulling herself up to standing in her crib. She's taking fewer naps, but longer ones, and still sleeping at least 11 hours every night. (I love that she's such a great sleeper.) She is so aware of the world around her, wanting and pointing and everything that catches her eye. She's still the happiest kid I know, and she is SUCH a joy to have around. We are enjoying every moment as she grows and learns. Here's a few pics from Easter Sunday. She was so cute in her new dress we decided to make these pictures her 10-month photo shoot.

As usual, I had a hard time choosing between the many shots we took. These are pics I took, but you have to take a look at the ones Caleb took, here and here.

Yes? Did you have a question?

Our happy girl.

Our pensive girl.

Our beautiful girl.

a new hat

My cousin Darcy had a baby (her fourth!) a couple weeks ago, and in honor I decided she (Chamberlyn Shay, 6 lbs 9 oz, 19 inches long) needed a new hat. Doesn't every baby need a new hat? I scoured my books for something suitable (translation: I could finish in a day), and found this oh-so-cute number. I had great soft cashmerino yarn in my stash and an excuse to go buy some gauzy ribbon. I finished the hat just a couple hours before the shower: Mission Accomplished! I had Josephine model it before I gave it away.

I had to add a green stripe because I didn't have quite enough ivory yarn. But I think the green actually turned out quite cute!

I just LOVE the ribbon detail in this hat.

I cast on and knit 240 stitches, and then did a row of k3tog to get the cute ruffle around the edge.

After the photo shoot, I decided I'm going to have make one for Josephine, too.

nine months

One of these months we'll get Josie's monthly picture close to the actual monthiversary of her birth ... this post SHOULD read March 6, not March 24. But hey, life is busy, right?

At Josephine's 9-month doctor's appointment she got glowing reviews. She's 17 pounds 1 ounce and 27 inches long, 25th percentile in height and weight. Of course, in head circumference she's a true Weston/Hammer. The nurse had to measure her head twice, just to get her on the charts. In the end she measured in the 85th percentile. Its a wonder she can even hold it up! She was doomed, though, as she comes from several long lines of big heads.

My theory is her head is so big to accommodate what must be a pretty thick skull. As she's learning to crawl and stand up, she falls a lot and bangs her head several times a day on everything around her. But it rarely seems to bother her much. Even if she cries, it only lasts a minute or so, and then she's right back to playing. She's a tough little kid, that's for sure.

She's also getting her first tooth! She's started chewing on EVERYTHING and loves to move her tongue around her gums to feel the bump growing there.

I can't believe our little girl is just 2 1/2 months from one year old already. The time is really flying. But we're doing our best to enjoy every minute of it. Here's a few pics from the photo shoot ... which took a bit of coaxing to get her to cooperate for.

This is how the photo shoot started out ... not even Cookie Monster could make her happy.

She's warming up to it now ....

There's that tongue, playing with her gums ...

She's been scratching her face up a bit, despite my attempt at keeping those finger nails short.

I think she's tired of the paparazzi.

5 months old!

I can't believe our baby girl is five months old already! Her actual five-month milestone was Friday, November 6. She's growing up so fast. The most fun new developments in the last month have all been about her personality. She has the greatest laugh ever, giggles at everything. I can't wait to learn more about who she's going to be. Whatever it is, I have a feeling she'll think its funny. She's starting to use her hands more and more, grabbing at things you put in front of her, or just at whatever's closest ... which is often my hair or neck. She's also starting to really put on some weight, which is so fun. Its the one time in life its not only OK, but even super cute, to have several chins and wrinkles in your thighs. She wasn't in the best mood for this month's photo shoot, but we caught a few good moments anyway. Enjoy!

I love her eyes! She gets those, and her long eyelashes, from her dad.

She loves her fingers.

I think she might be trying to fit all ten fingers in there at once...

And .... we're done with the photo shoot.

This month's wardrobe provided by:

Polka-dot Sweater: Grandma Hammer

Pants: Friend Melanie

Cowgirl socks: Reno cousins

White T-shirt, pink bow and Stuffed Lion: Mama

a few pics from the pumpkin patch

We went to the pumpkin patch today with my brother and sister-in-law, their daughter Maddie, my sister Amy, my parents, and our friend Jaime. It was a great day for photo ops!

first time for everything

Well, Josephine has come down with her first cold. Its so sad to hear the congestion in her breathing, and with her eyes watery all the time, she looks like she's in a constant state of sadness. Fortunately, she's dealing with it pretty well. She was smiling and laughing at me as I was getting her ready for bed tonight ... even while she sneezed and coughed. Poor girl. What's worse, it seems I've come down with it myself. Caleb is just getting over it, so he's somewhat well enough to care for both of us ... the poor man. He's not gonna get any work done this week. Hopefully this will be a short-lived illness for us all.

planning ahead

I finally finished the double breasted jacket I've been making for Josephine. Its actually been done for a while ... I just had to sew on the buttons. It came out a little bigger than I'd intended, but that's not too big a deal, since she'll grow into it ... eventually. [Used Lion Brand Cotton-Ease yarn (50% cotton, 50% acrylic)]

she's four months old!

Josie officially turned four months old on Tuesday. My, how time has flown! She had her four-month well-baby check up on Wednesday and all is well. She's 24 inches long, 11.5 pounds and her head circumference has come down to the 70th percentile. In the past week she has learned that her thumb works almost as well as a pacifier and she's started putting herself back to sleep when she wakes up too early from a nap (yay!). My absolute favorite development, though, has to be the laughter. Get her at the right moment and tell just the right joke, and she will look you in the eye and give you a heartfelt baby belly laugh. I should record it and put it on iTunes ... it would quickly become a #1 download, I'm sure of it. Here's a few pics in honor of the four-month benchmark.

The "I know I'm cute" look ...

The "But I'm really modest about my cuteness" look ....

"Pleeeeeeeease???"

The supermodel pose

After the photo shoot and letting it ALL hang out