Catching Up

Well, we didn't get our camera back until 2 weeks after Leila turned 4 months, so we're going to use one of her July 4th pictures as her 4-month-birthday pic.

We had a wonderful 4th. Leila loved the fireworks. I was concerned that the noise would bother her, but it didn't phase her a bit!
On July 3rd, we went with Nan and Poppy to see the fireworks in Addison's Kaboomtown...

Notice her onesie? Ryan and I got that when we spent a couple of days in Granbury last summer. While there, we went to Dublin and toured the First Official Dr. Pepper Bottling Plant. If you've ever met Leila's daddy, you know that he'd be happy to survive on Dr. Pepper alone, if it was possible. We bought a couple of cases of Official Dublin Dr. Pepper's, and this onesie for the baby we knew would soon be coming into this world. We did NOT expect her to be able to wear it so soon (as it is a 6-12 month onesie), but we did think that it was perfectly fitting that her first time to wear it was to celebrate her very first Independence Day. I mean, how much more American can you get... Dr. Pepper and the Fourth of July?!

She fell asleep in her outfit that night.

****

Last Saturday, Sunday, and Monday was spent at Nan and Poppy's helping them get some paint on their new house's very white walls. Leila was able to break in Nan's new crib and baby monitor. She also got to meet a member of the family she had not seen up close, yet.

Leila was spending some time on a blanket on the floor when Pico decided to come up and sit right next to her, just like he belonged there. It was so cute! But, the camera didn't snap the picture fast enough and we lost it. :( I'm sure it'll happen again and I'll have to make sure I'm faster next time.

We also went to Deedee and Grand father's on Sunday night and had dinner with them, Aunt Renae and Uncle Brent, and Great-Grandma and Papa Watson.
Leila spent a little time on her tummy with a new rattle Grandfather bought her from Barney's...

(Aren't we lucky that Grandfather has such good and expensive taste? :)

Leila's bedtime came while we were there and Aunt Renae, being a very experience day-care worker, is always adept at doing whatever is necessary to make Leila happy, or to get her to go to sleep. After falling asleep with Aunt Renae, Leila slept on Deedee and Grandfather's bed. She cracked me up when I came in and saw her sleeping like this...

She's officially a finger-sucker. And, no, I didn't mean to say thumb-sucker. She constantly sucks on her two fore-fingers. It turns out that this is a normal thing (says the pediatrician), but I didn't even know babies ever sucked on anything other than their thumbs or pacifiers!
****

On Thursday, Leila spent some time playing with her new cow that her Aunt Christina brought her from Switzerland.

****

Grandfather and Deedee came over on Friday, when Leila wore one of the outfits they'd given her for the first time.

She also enjoyed playing with Deedee's pretty bracelets...

They taste yummy and make fun noises when thrown on the floor!

I watched Leila roll from her back to her tummy today. It was on the monitor and she was in her crib. But, I did get to see it happen! Yea!

4 Month Update

Well, we had our 4-month old well-baby visit today...

Leila weighs 13 pounds, 13 ounces, and is 24.8 inches long. For her weight, she is in the 50th percentile, and she is in the 75th percentile for her length.

She permanently sleeps in her crib, now. We've had 2 days without crying... at naptime or at night. She does still fuss some when she's put down, but she doesn't scream any more. (Yea!)

She can yell really well (and not just for crying - sometimes just for fun)

She is on a pretty consistent sleep schedule, with 2 naps each day and a bedtime of 7-7:30 at night. (Sometimes this makes her daddy sad because there are nights when he works his extra jobs that he doesn't get to see her before she goes to sleep. But, being the good daddy that he is, he understands that a Leila who sleeps well is a happy Leila.) She usually wakes up around 1 a.m. to eat, and then again around 5 or 5:30 when she'll go back to sleep until 7:30/8. So, after a few very restless/sleepless days, we're doing much better.

We were pretty sure we'd be coming home from the doctor's office with the go-ahead to start feeding Leila rice cereal (I already bought some over a week ago in anticipation), but the doctor said that new studies are showing that there are health benefits to waiting until 6 months... even for the cereal. She made it clear that it is our decision, but we, of course, want to do what's in Leila's best interest. So, even though Leila grabs the syringe and puts it in her mouth in order to drink her vitamins, it looks like we'll still be waiting on the cereal.

On the other hand, we were told that it is now a good idea to use an exersaucer. So, I'm going to be on the lookout for one! If anybody has any ideas on which ones seem to be the favorites or a place that I can get a good one at a good price, I'd love to hear about it.

She seems to respond to her name. Often, when I call her, she will turn and look at me. She doesn't always do it, but she does do it often enough that she has me convinced.

She's very good at grabbing things and is really enjoying plaing with some of her toys.

She loves bumbo time.

She still hates tummy time.

She inconsistently rolls from her tummy to her back.

She consistently tries to roll from her back to her tummy.
Sometimes, in her crib, she will try to roll over, but her "noggin nest" pillow gets in her way (not to mention the side of the crib!) and she doesn't make it, so she settles for sleeping on her side. I think we will soon be removing the bumper pads from her crib. :(

She seems to like singing. When I sing to her, she often either smiles at me or starts making noises back at me. I like to think she's singing, too. :)

Still Missing My Camera

So, I'm still missing my camera. Deedee and Grandfather were nice enough to leave their camera with me until I get mine back, so I do have a few pictures to show.
(Sorry, Aunties. It's hard to keep up a blog made up of mostly pictures when I have nothing to take pictures with!)

Last Thursday, Leila wore a pajama gown to bed that I got for Christmas last year from Nan. (It matches a nursing pajama set that she got for me.) The gown itself is cute, but it also came with an adorable matching sleep hat. I knew Leila would never actually make it through the night in the hat, but I had to put it on long enough to get a picture.

Doesn't she look like a little elf!?

****

On Friday, Deedee and Grandfather came over and spent the day with us. They've been doing that lately, and we've enjoyed having them.

Deedee and Leila love reading together

And they always bring presents (something that Leila doensn't quite appreciate now, but will in the future! :)

This is Leila playing with one of her gifts - a new rattle

Spending time on her playmat

And, this is the newest addition to our collection of teethers. It is also the only one Leila will actually chew on. Her name is Sophie, and the first time Deedee and Grandfather found her was when they were in California last summer, the same we week we found out we were pregnant.

They didn't get her then, but have seen her several times since then and have almost gotten her each time.

When they came over on Friday, I mentioned that I had spoken with another mom who told me that Sophie was the only teether her son would use when he was teething.

I decided it might be worth spending the extra money in order to get Leila a teether she'll actually use.

And I mentioned to Deedee that I thought we were going to have to break down and buy Sophie.

But, we didn't have to do that after all, because Grandfather went right out to find her on Friday.

And came home with her for Leila to try. I would say she is, indeed, worth every penny!
Thank you very much Deedee and Grandfather.
Here's a video.
****
Saturday afternoon, Leila was fussing while she was supposed to be sleeping in her bed. I glanced at the monitor and found her hanging out on her tummy, raised up on her elbows! Since then, she has been very good about trying to roll over from her back to her tummy every chance she gets. (I don't really understand why, since she hates being on her tummy, but whatever.) No one was there to see her the first time she performed this feat, and we have yet to see her do it again. But, we did get some video of her trying.
****
Saturday night, we went to Nan and Poppy's for dinner.
Leila got to "eat" at the table with us.

Then, she spent some time with Poppy.

And Nan used her magic touch to put Leila to sleep again

That night, I was finally able to print off my patterns, so I came home and got right to work on Leila's dress.
It only took about 2.5 hours from the time I start pinning the pattern to the fabric to the time I sewed the last stitch.

It's far from perfect, but it was a good first try. I've started working on making another one (using the same fabric) for more practice and it's already going smoother. This one will also be longer than the first. 
I'm excited to keep working at it and getting better!

Next on the agenda is a ruffled diaper cover to match!
****
Yesterday, Leila spent a little time in the swing while Ryan and I ate dinner. For some reason, Leila thought it was hilarious when Ryan went from watching TV to looking at her. Here's the video. (Please forgive the movement of the camera. It was on a tripod and we were both eating, so we're not quite sure why it's moving. Weird.)

Last night, I was getting Leila's bath water ready. I laid her on our bed while she waited. When I came in to get her, this is what I found...

I guess we need to move bed-time up a little!

First Fourth of July Fireworks

Okay. So, I left my camera at Chad and Heather's house on Sunday, and still don't have it back, which means I don't have any pictures to post. I haven't even been able to take Leila's four-month-old picture yet! I should be getting it back tomorrow, and will have some pictures after that. I do have some video now, though, which will have to suffice for all of you family members out there.

On Saturday, we tried to get Leila to take a nap in her big girl bed. You know... working slowly up to a full night there. Unfortunately, it didn't quite work out as we had planned.
Here's the video.
If she didn't know how to yell before, she certainly does now! (Btw, she's looking at her mobile.)

That night, Leila went to see fireworks for the first time. I was worried she might be afraid of the noise, but she didn't mind it, and she loved the lights. Here are some videos of that.
Video 1
Video 2
Video 3
And, if you just want to see some fireworks for some reason, here is a video of the finale. It was pretty good!

On Sunday, we tried another nap in her bed. When I came to check on her, I found her like this...
Video
If you're wondering what the pink thing is, it's called a Noggin Nest (made by Boppy) and is supposed to help with flat head syndrome. We haven't had it very long, so we'll let you know if it helps with the slight flat spot we've found.

That night, we went to eat at "Aunt" Heather and "Uncle" Chad's house. Here's a little video from that.

After dinner, we went to shoot off fireworks at Chad's parents' house. Leila was outside for a while, until she started getting sleep and the fireworks were keeping her awake. So, Nan took her inside the house, which is where this video came from.

Videos of Fireworks
Video - The neighbors putting on a show that always shows us up every year
Video - Us shooting off fireworks
Video - We had a couple of shots that seemed to have short fuses and blew up close to the ground
Video - Ryan shooting off a 6+ year old bottle rocket (it worked!)
Video - Our Finale

Ryan did some more yard work on Monday, this time in the back yard. In this video, Ella is helping him.

Leila rolled over again on Tuesday. I got it on video.
I tried to get her to do it some more, but she wasn't very interested. Here's a video of her hanging out.
Then, Ryan came home, and she finally rolled over for him. It was the first time he's seen it! Here's that video.

She rolled over again several times today, too, so it looks like she's starting to get the hang of it.

    Leila has also permanently moved to her big girl bed. It makes me very sad to see the empty hushamok at night, but it was definitely time. Not only was she constantly sticking her feet out, but she discovered that she could pull the bedding up to cradle her head by pulling up on the sides of it.
    We knew this, and that's why we were slowly making the transition over. But, the transition was quickened Tuesday night, when Leila actually pulled the bedding up and covered her face with it. She was perfectly fine, but it scared me to death.
    So, she was plucked out of her comfort zone and plopped right into the deap end. She cried for an hour before she finally fell asleep Tuesday night, and the same thing happened for her nap yesterday. But, last night was better, and we trust it will just get better from here on out.
   It was definitely time to make the change, but it's still hard on me to be far away from her. I can't believe how much she's grown. Please pray for me, that I'll be able to handle the growing and the changes wisely. I know this is just the first of many.

First, we'll say Happy Anniversary to Nan and Poppy! We love you!!
And, we miss you Aunties and Uncle Jesse, and hope you're having lots of fun! Enjoy all of the history for us!

On Monday, I had a cake tasting to get ready for, so Leila spent some time playing in her bumbo. I learned quickly last time that it works in my favor if I put the bumbo on a clean blanket so that the toys end up on the blanket and not the floor... because, either way, they're going down.

Here are videos of Leila playing while I worked in the kitchen - here and here and here.

She also spent some time on her playmat. Watch a video here.

****

On Tuesday, we were having our air conditioner worked on, and Ryan didn't want Leila and I to be at home alone, but Aunt Rebecca was leaving for Europe, so Deedee and Grandfather came over to spend the day with us. It was quite a bit of fun.
Leila was playing with one of her favorite toys (the one in the above picture on Leila's left) when she got her first self-inflicted injury. She hit herself in the forehead with it! She cried just a tiny bit, and then shook it off.
This is a picture of the injury. If you look closely, you can see a red spot over her right eyebrow.

****

On Wednesday, Ryan came home and found Leila napping like this...

****

Yesterday, Leila and I went up to Ryan's work to see some of his co-workers and then go to lunch. When we were getting ready, I laid Leila on the chaise while I fed the pets.
When I laid her down, it looked like this...

When I came back in, I found her like this...

Can you tell the difference?

She's getting so good at grabbing and pulling things, now. The pillows didn't stand a chance!

Also, please look at the length of her pants. They started out as boyfriend jeans, but are starting to look more like bermuda shorts. They still fit in the waist, though, and they look cute either way, so she's going to keep wearing them!

Here are some pics with some of Ryan's coworkers.
Another civilian contractor - Carmen. She's the one who organized our baby shower for us, which we really appreciate!

Another civilian contractor - Patty. She works in the same department as another friend, Mr. Steve Harbers.

Ryan and Leila doing their balancing act

She seems to constantly drool and chew on her hands now, so we've taken to wearing bibs, in order to avoid her clothes getting soaked. (Please note the short-pants, again.)

Leila's first time to see her daddy's office.
You can't see it, but he has multiple computer monitors on his one desk...

She fits in well, doesn't she?

Then we went to lunch. We thought it would be fun to take Leila to the sandwich shop we were at when we got the call that we were pregnant last year. It wasn't until we were seated (in the same booth, of course) and eating, that Ryan realized it was around this same time last year that we found out about our pregnancy. I looked it up in my phone, and we happened to have gone to eat at the same place, on the same day, at the exact same time as we did last year when we got the call!!
For those who don't know, Ryan and I had some trouble getting pregnant that required medical help, and we couldn't have been happier or more surprised to find out we were actually pregnant after our first attempt. I remember the feeling of surprise and elation. Needless to say, the sandwich shop now holds a very special place in our hearts.
We asked an employee to take this one picture. It isn't great, but we're all in it.

Here she is, our little miracle baby...

When we got home, Leila spent some time talking with her daddy.

Here are videos 1 and 2.

And then tummy time before bedtime. I always try to take pics early on, before she gets frustrated and starts to cry!

****

So, last night was the best night we've had so far. Leila was in bed, asleep, at 7 p.m., woke up to eat around 1 a.m. and then again this morning at 7 a.m.!! It's amazing how different the amount of rest I get is between a longer night of sleep broken up by 3 or 4 feedings vs. a 6 hour night of uninterupted sleep! I'd be so pleased if we had more nights like last night.


Here's some new information about Leila from this week...
-I heard her make an "l" sound for the first time.
-She's napping in her hushamok, now, with little-to-no fussing. We haven't quite gotten a schedule down, but we've got time to work on that.
-She is also going to sleep much earlier - around 7 p.m. each night! (The only issue I have with that is now we've gone from her practically sleeping through the night, to waking up 2 or 3 times to eat - 9 p.m., 1 a.m., and 4 a.m.!)
-She has discovered that she prefers chewing (and sometimes sucking) on her thumb, rather than her forefingers or her fists.
-She's still drooling like crazy, but we have no teeth buds.
-We're starting to wear 3-6 month clothes - mainly for 2 reasons... 1) the 0-3 clothes are getting too short and her dresses are starting to all look like Shirley Temple dresses, and 2) I'm ready for her to have some new stuff to wear! We haven't actually worn any of it yet, so I think we'll try something today and see how it goes. We'll let you know.