* After weeks of working on it, you can finally get your toes into your mouth.  It is so funny when you chew on them! You especially like to do it when I’m changing your diaper.  You are such a wiggle-worm these days!

* You are starting to fuss when I leave the room sometimes.  You definitely like having your Mama around! I try to take you with me from room to room, but sometimes it’s easier to leave you in your swing for a minute while I switch a load of laundry or something. And you like to let me know that you do not like being left behind!

* I am so proud that you are sitting up! It’s not for very long at a time, but you can do it! You love it too!

* You have tried lots of new foods this month including “Mum-mum snacks”.  They are these little rice wafers that dissolve and you like to hold it yourself and eat it.  It think it helps your sore gums.  You are still not very into baby food.  I just can’t get you interested.  Maybe we’ll eventually just switch to table food and skip baby food entirely!

* You are sleeping through the night most nights, which your Daddy and I love! You usually go to bed around 7pm and don’t get up until around 12 hours later! Some nights you still wake up once, but it’s easy to give you a bottle and then you go right back to sleep.

* Two new teeth popped up this month; your two front bottom ones! They came within a day of each other.  You were a little fussy for a couple days, but nothing too bad.

* You are starting to assert your independence more.  I can’t already see the beginnings of the “Adelaide do it” phase.  I love, love, love to watch your little personality developing!

* Your fine motor skills are getting so much better and you are definitely using them! Your fingers do just about anything you want now, and you love to use them to grab our cell phones, computers, or anything else we are holding at the moment.  Yesterday you yelled at Daddy because he took your foot off his computer.  Haha!

* You are just about the happiest baby I have ever met.  You are giggly, excited, and smiling all the time! You are such a joy to be around!

* You are fascinated by whatever clothing I’m wearing and like to feel the texture in your fingers and either bury your face in my shirt or try to bring it to your mouth to taste it.  Just another way you are exploring your surroundings!

* You are wearing mostly 6-9 month clothing and some 12 month (already!).  You are in a size 3 shoe and still a size 3 diaper.

We love you more than life itself!

Months 1-6:

* You have picked a favorite toy/animal/comfort item.  It is this little blanket with a bunny attached to it.  Every time you see it your face lights up and you hug it and put it right in your mouth! You get more excited about your bunny than any other toy you have!

* You are figuring out how to sometimes put your pacifier back in your mouth.  It’s so neat to watch your hands finally work for you and those motor skills developing. You also know how to take your paci out, and like to do that right when I’m about to leave you in your room for a nap (“Look mom, my paci is gone, come back and help me!”).

* You are now eating 6oz about 5 times a day and wearing a size 3 diaper.  We are still working on the solid food.  You don’t have much patience for sitting there and eating and would rather yell and spit your food all over Mom.  That is so much more fun that eating! Ha! Although, now you are opening your mouth for bites, which is definitely an improvement!

* You have started to really giggle and belly laugh.  It’s so cute! You especially do it when Mom or Dad are making you “fly” above our heads.

* You are still in size 3-6 month clothing, but some items are getting too small.  There are a few 6-9 month things that you are already wearing too.

* You have learned to fake-cough.  You especially like to do it when you are mad about something, combined with spitting.  It is quite hilarious! I love to see your personality growing, even in the form of how you react when mad!

* Whenever your Daddy vacuums, you have to watch him.  You will stop eating, stop playing, turn around, basically do whatever it takes to make sure you can see where that noise is coming from.  But, I sure am glad you’re not scared of the vacuum!

* I think you are starting to recognize your name.  Sometimes when I’m trying to get your attention and get you to look at me, regular noises or words won’t work; but if I say your name you usually look right at me!

* Speaking of names, yours should be Wiggle-Worm.  You are never still! You love to move and don’t like to sit still and snuggle with me anymore.  I think it’s so much fun that you are playing and moving around more!

* One of the sweetest new things you are doing is hugging me.  Sometimes you will give me a huge grin and then give me wide open mouth kisses/slobbers and bury you face into my neck.  It is my most favorite thing in the world! I couldn’t possibly love it more!

* You are doing so good at supported sitting!  I think you will sit up on your own very soon! Your abs are so strong, it’s just your balance that still needs a little work.

* This month we had a couple of social functions to go to and you loved them! At Daddy’s work Christmas party you wouldn’t even stop to eat because you didn’t want to miss anything! You just stared and looked and soaked the new atmosphere in.  I think we need to get out of the house more now that you enjoy it so much!

* You are grabbing and putting in your mouth anything you can get your hands on! A lot of the time that means my clothes, my hair, and my Ipad. Ha!

* We have a toy that you can sit/stand in and bounce and you are loving it! You think you are big stuff standing up like a big girl in it!

Although I sometimes miss my sweet little tiny newborn, I am loving the age that you are! You are such a sweet, fun, precious little girl! You make Mommy and Daddy so happy! We love you!

Months 1-5:

* The best new “trick” you do is yelling! Oh my goodness, you have definitely discovered your voice! You squeal, scream, and yell so loud. You don’t need an excuse to do it either; you may be happy, sad, hungry, tired…it doesn’t matter! It is so funny!

* You also like to talk to your bottle.  Sometimes you spit it out of your mouth and then “tell it a story”! I like to imagine the story to be something like “Oh, bottle, you’re so good…I’m going to eat you!” Haha! You also try to be a big girl and hold your bottle yourself.  But, I still help you keep it in there because sometimes you end up taking it out and getting mad.

* You are now able to bring toys to your mouth to chew on them! And goodness, how you love to chew! You will put anything you can grab into you mouth and gnaw; usually my fingers!

* The poochy-lip that you like to stick out when your upset breaks mine and Daddy’s hearts! Sometimes you combine the lip with some whining that sounds like “ooooo” “ooooo”.  One time, Daddy tried to blow a raspberry on your belly and it startled you.  He almost got teary-eyed when he saw that poochy lip on your sweet little face!

* Those ab muscles of yours have gotten a work out this month! You are trying your hardest to sit up and are constantly doing “crunches” all day long.  Sometimes Daddy lifts you up above his head and you stay stiff and straight as a board.  You are so strong!

* I have officially given up on trying to put socks on you.  You kick them off in about 2 seconds.  You’re just going to have to have chilly feet for awhile.  I am very thankful for footed pajamas!

* You are starting to be more aware of your routine.  Whenever I put you in your sleep-sack to get ready for bedtime you start fussing right away because you know what it means.  You are also starting to fight sleep a little more than you used to.

* I have noticed some new vocal sounds.  You used to just make “ooooo” sounds, but now have added “aaaaahh” and “iiiiiiiiiI”.  You have also discovered you can do a “lip trill” (I had to look up what this was called), where you blow air out of your mouth and make a “brbrbr” sound. So cute!!

*Something you have done since you were born, but I keep forgetting to write it down is: after you sneeze, you always moan like it took so much out of you.  It’s so funny!

* One of the sweetest things that you do, that I really don’t want to forget, is that you like to play with my thumb while you are eating.  You hold onto it so tight and move your little fingers over my nail and it just feels like you are memorizing the feel of my thumb.  I love it and hope you don’t grow out of it any time soon!

* Whenver I kiss your cheeks you get the biggest grin on your face and you move your mouth to where it’s touching mine.  I don’t know if it’s still just the rooting reflex or if you are really trying to kiss me back, but either way it’s so adorable!

* A few days ago we tried giving you solid food for the first time.  You have had some oatmeal and some apples.  I hesitate to saying that you are officially eating solids though, because you still have that reflex where you just push everything back out with your tongue.  So, I guess I would say that you are “practicing” right now!

* You are in a size 2 diaper and weigh around 15 pounds (that’s what our scale says when I hold you), but will know for sure at your next doctor’s appointment.  You are still eating 4 oz about every 3 hours during the day.  At night you usually have a 7-8 hour stretch of sleep and a 3-4 hour stretch of sleep.  You are doing so good!

Every day I am so thankful that you are my daughter.  I could not have picked a sweeter baby and we are so glad that God gave you to us

Months 1-4:

Tuesday: Baked Potatoes, Salad, Multi-Grain Rolls

Wednesday: Spaghetti with Meat Sauce, Texas Toast

Thursday: Orange-Peppered Chicken, Rice (I liked it so much last week, I decided to have it again this week!)

Friday: Scrambled Eggs, Bacon, Biscuits and Gravy

Saturday: Canned Soup, Crackers

Sunday: Voila Meal, Rolls

This post is linked to Organizing Junkie’s Menu-Plan Monday.

Two things are important about these pictures:

1. Adelaide is sitting in her Christmas present from Lance and I.  I found this chair at Ross and thought it was so cute! It has all the colors of her room, and will be perfect for her monthly pictures. I can also picture a cute reading nook when she’s a little older. Good thing Adelaide doesn’t know when Christmas is, and giving it to her early won’t spoil her

2. Her pajamas are very significant. I bought these pajamas when we were struggling with infertility. I have a condition called PCOS and it makes it very hard to conceive.  We tried for almost 3 years before seeing a specialist and then were fortunate to get pregnant with the help of fertility medicine.  There were days where I cried myself to sleep thinking I would never get to be a mom (the only job I’ve ever wanted).

Then there were days where I had tremendous faith that God was going to give me a little girl one day.  The day I bought these pajamas was one of those days. Every once in a while, I used to pull those pajamas out of my sock drawer and hold them, trying to imagine them being filled with warm, chubby, baby-ness.  Now, I get to actually feel that.  I get to kiss my daughter and hold her.  Every day I thank God for giving me the one my heart desired most.  I do not take her for granted. Now our desire is to raise her to love the One who gave her to us.

For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition that I made to him. 1 Samuel 1:27

Tuesday: scrambled eggs, pancakes, leftover sausage, peaches

Wednesday: chili, cornbread

Thursday: orange peppered chicken, rice

Friday: Voila meal, rolls

Saturday: homemade pizza

Sunday: canned soup, rolls

This post is linked to Organizing Junkie’s Menu-Plan Monday.

Orange Peppered Chicken:

3/4 cup water

3/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

2 Tbsp soy sauce

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1.5 Tbsp minced garlic

10 shakes of Tabasco

half of 1/3 cup water

2.5 Tbsp. cornstarch

2 bell peppers cut into thin strips

2 chicken breasts

1. In a medium sauce pan, add orange juice, 3/4 cup water, vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, & tabasco. Bring to a slow boil over medium low heat.

2. Mix the remaining water & cornstarch and set aside.

3. Over medium heat in a saute pan coated with cooking spray, saute the peppers for a few minutes until the skin begins to blister a little. Add the chicken pieces and saute until just cooked through. Turn heat down to low and continue cooking until sauce is ready.

4. Add the cornstarch mixture to the boiling orange sauce and stir constantly until it becomes thick; about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and toss with the chicken & peppers. Serve over rice.

Tuesday: White chicken chile enchiladas

Wednesday: Funfetti pancakes, bacon, applesauce

Thursday: Baked penne, texas toast, corn on the cob

Friday: Chicken and rice casserole, broccoli, apples

Saturday: BLTs, apples

Sunday: Voila meal, rolls

This post is linked to Organizing Junkie’s Menu-Plan Monday.

Chicken and Rice Casserole:

1 can cream of chicken soup (I sometimes use the cheddar condensed soup instead)

1 cup water

3/4 cup uncooked white rice

1/8 tsp black pepper

4 chicken breasts

paprika to taste

1. Mix soup, water, rice, & pepper in a 2 quart shallow baking dish. TOp with chicken. Sprinkle with paprika. Cover.

2. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes or until chicken is done and rice is soft.