Army Crawl

This is how Ri gets places now. I think it's funny how her arm gets all tangled underneath her.  :)

Smartest Baby Ever

If this is any indication of her hand/eye coordination, I think we're on the right track.  :)

Sweet Lil Sleeper

I thought this was a different, cute angle of Ri sleeping in her carseat.  :)

Say Please!

We've been workin on sign language with Ri for a few months. Tonight, we kept working with her at the table and she really seemed to actually do (her own version of) the sign for "please"...too many times to really think it was all coincidence.

She doesn't do it until the very end of the video - we were working through what appeared to be "demanding" for a good bit . It's like she's scratching herself across her chest. I know it may seem so slight but the fact that she did it so many times tonight really makes me think she may actually be beginning to catch on!

So yeah...not to brag but I pretty much have the smartest baby ever.

Swinging!

This was her first experience in a swing. I think it's safe to say she enjoyed herself.  :)

My mom said I was potty trained using "swing time" as a reward. I wonder if we can do the same with Ri.

Cheeser

I was tryin to catch Mur Mur doin his sign language for "please". But as soon as I turned the camera on, he turned into Mr. Cheeser. Love him!!

Whenever somebody has food, he will do his please sign so much you'd think he was going to rub a hole right in his shirt! It makes me laugh.

If you look closely, he also does the sign for "more". His is a little different that it's supposed to be. It's when he takes his pointer finger on one hand and hits his other hand open-palmed.

I'm hoping to teach Ri sign language too. :)

Growing Up

Ok, I don't think you understand how big of a deal this is for me That's right, me.  Not Ri.

If you know me at all, you know I'm horrible with change.  My mom is horrible with change. My grandmother is horrible with change.  I guess you could say it runs in the family.  Or maybe it's just a girl thing.  Regardless, I am.

I blogged a while ago about how I hadn't given Ri any solids yet when she was 7 months old. Then when she turned 8 months, I thought, "Shoot, this is going so well let's go for 9 months!"

Then the other day, I was eating a fresh cucumber from our garden in front of Ri.  She reached out for it.  So I let her suck on it a lil bit.  She made a funny face and that was the end.

A few days later, I let her taste the cucumber again.  She never swallowed or chewed any of it, just tasted.

Then today, my mom and I were out to lunch and we had a salad with fruit in it and some bread.  I like her taste the bread like I did the cucumber.  Then my mom suggested I let her try a piece of a strawberry.

Instead of just letting her taste it once and taking it away, I actually held it there and let her explore it - both with her mouth and with her hands.  And then, she actually swallowed a small piece.  I'll be honest, all my mind could think was, "There goes her baby-ness - quick, get it outta her mouth before she grows up right before your eyes!" But she loved it!  Every time tried to take it away, she'd grab my hand again.

Yes, she's growing up.  She's getting bigger.  And no, I can't "keep her stupid" (as my dad likes to say) forever.  Oh how my heart wishes I could!  Feeding times have become our time - just us. And as much as we struggled in the beginning, it's SO simple now.  Honestly, I don't even really mind that she won't take a bottle (yes I've tried it in a sippy cup and she doesn't care for that either). I know that limits me as far as where I can go and for how long. But in the long run, it's such a small part of her life that she'll need me like she does now;  and I guess that's part of the reason why I'm having a hard time making the transition.

This is just the beginning of the end.  But I think I'm starting to be ok with that. Although I'm still not going to make solids a huge priority.  After all, her main source of nutrients should be coming from me until she's at least a year old anyway.  But perhaps now, every once and a while, I'll let her explore the fascinating world of solids...slowly, oh ever so gradually, but surely. She's growin up, and so is Mommy.

Fun With Balloons

She was havin a good ol time!

Remembering

Last time I walked down this path, I was headed to the ER. We were camping at Lake Jocassee. I was pregnant with Peanut.

When I went to use the restroom, I thought I'd lost my baby. Our ER visit confirmed everything seemed to be fine. But a month later, we found out everything wasn't fine.

It's hard not to remember when I see certain things here...especially when I made a trip to that same bathroom. I avoided the same stall.

But then God is so gracious. As hard as that summer was two years ago; this summer, I have a sweet girl smiling and splashing in the water.

I'm thinking of you, Peanut...and lovin on your sister!

Ri's Elephant Impression...and some random squeals too

She's been doin this scream-type thing inside her mouth lately. It makes me laugh. I like to think she's imitating an elephant but I think it might just be random baby noises.