Holiday Recap

Of course the holidays were busy for us. I accepted a new job on November 16, with a start date of December 13. For the last few weeks at my old job, I probably worked 12 hours a day, sometimes well into the night. It was such a relief to start the new job and have very little stress on that front during the holidays. Also, in November, we thought we were going to have to move at the end of the month, but turns out we didn't (didn't find out until Thanksgiving, though), so that was more unnecessary stress and worry. All that said, we did have wonderful holidays (though sadly, none of them were spent in Ohio this year), as we watched Addy experience them for the first time. Here are a few of the moments we captured.

Here is Addy on Thanksgiving, with a holiday-appropriate shirt.


Daddy and Uncle Travis thought it would be interesting to see what she would do with a turkey leg. She really had no interest in it. She enjoyed cranberry relish and sweet potatoes, but not so much the turkey. She has issues with meat and the texture of it.

Uncle J came to Florida in December to see his girlfriend's family in Sarasota, so we got to hang out with him a bit. He had to try and keep Addy out of the freezing gulf for the sake of a few pictures.

Addy started to walk in early December! Here she is with Uncle Gene, who is as proud as any (Tampa) "Grandpa" could be!

We are members of the aquarium here in Tampa, and they had a members Christmas party where Addy got to meet Santa!

On Christmas Eve, Alex's family performs a live nativity, narrated by Grandpa Keith. Last year, because I was well with child, as Mary, Addy and I got to perform together as Mary. This year, Addy got to be a shepherd.

I had a good friend commission his partner to create this picture for Alex for Christmas. If you can't really see it, he and Addy are on a pony, and he has a machine gun. If you ever need any graphic design work done, I'll give you Scott's (the designer) information!

Finally, Christmas morning came, and Addy had a good time with her cousins. She didn't care too much for opening her own gifts, but enjoyed playing around in the mess left behind after her cousins tore through theirs.

Its been almost a year since this little monkey joined us, and it has been an incredible year. We both are pretty impressed with her every move and mumble, and we can't wait for the next year, as she becomes more and more of a little lady. I love this man and his baby.

Oh, and although we made several attempts at a family picture for a Christmas card, none of them turned out well enough (particularly as relates to how I looked in the pictures) for a mass printing and mailing. Alas, you are stuck with the above, and can hope that next year we can all pull it together for one picture.

For your viewing pleasure

Addy took a few big steps last night! And here are a few other recent vids of her cuteness!

Halloween

Some images from Addy's first Halloween. She makes a pretty cute Tinkerbell.


With Aunt Shannon's witch hat:


First piece of candy at Trunk-or-Treat:



Addy and Uncle Gene (Gene's eyes are open!!!)

Addy loves Gymbo

Addy and I have been going to Gymboree Play and Music for a class for about a month now, and she loves it. We go on Saturday afternoons, and she gets to play with all sorts of fun thing and meet other babies and their parents. Alex came with me last weekend, and got to see how much fun Addy has in class. Here we are at the beginning of class. Addy usually crawls away from me to explore, and you can see how excited she is to be able to do so!

In each class there is a parent discussion, and during that time, the babies are given toys, like these balls to play with. Addy always grabs as many as possible and immediately licks them.


The babies are given time to play on the equipment to work on whatever skill is the focus of the class. Addy is a superstar at climbing.



At the end of each class we play on/under this giant parachute and with bubbles. Here the teacher was walking around the class blowing bubbles for each baby. Addy couldn't wait her turn and just went wherever the teacher was going with the bubbles.


I think I said it in a previous post that I wanted to take this class, in part, to meet other adults, but it really has been amazing to see Addy learn and enjoy.

Eight Months!

Addison is eight months old! She is becoming more fun all the time, and it is pretty incredible how much we love this baby. Here are some things of note that have happened since her seven month photo shoot:

• Since she learned to crawl, she is everywhere! She is navigating her way over obstacles, and getting herself into and out of tight spaces.
  
• She cut her two top teeth (for a total of four). She has been biting me quite a bit. Alex says she never bites him.
  

• She does not let us rock her to sleep anymore. This is good and bad for me. Good, obviously because now all we have to do is put her to bed and she'll go to sleep. Bad, because I don't get to cuddle her anymore at bedtime!
• We joined Gymboree Music and Play and are taking a development class with other babies age 6-10 months. I admit, I wanted to start going to this class, in part, for sort of a selfish reason (to meet other adults), but Addy loves it. She is such a people watcher, and is very outgoing. She loves bubbles and playing with all the noisy toys she can.
• Addy learned to clap.
  

• Addy is still the prettiest thing I've ever seen.
  

Recent happenings

Addy went to the Florida Aquarium in Tampa

Uncle Adam came to visit

Addy swam with Grandpa Berger...


...and silly cousins

Addy learned how to pull herself up


Addy learned how to crawl!

Seven Months!

Addy is seven months old! She's far too wiggly to pose safely for a picture on the couch, so we've moved her monthly photo shoots to the floor.


Alex and I continue to marvel each day at how awesome and adorable this baby is. She has several nicknames, the one that has seemed to stick most though, is Babe-O. She responds best to that and her full name, but not so much to Addy. She has consistently been sleeping through the night (bedtime between 8-9pm, wakes up around 6am) for several months now. Alex never hears her, so I always am the one up with her in the morning, and we have quality time watching reruns of The West Wing (she's seen almost the entire series!) while she eats. She does not do so great with napping during the day, and she has a hard time going down on her own. In fact, the only time we ever really hear her cry is when we lay her down to go to sleep. She can definitely tear your heart apart with her wailing.

She is always happy when she wakes up, which Alex always points out is not something she gets from me.

When she's hungry, she whines with impatience, but doesn't cry. She eats her solids very quickly, and doesn't discriminate against veggies. She loves to feel my face or Alex's beard while she takes a bottle.

She is enjoying rolling around and exploring things. She gets up on her hands and knees and rocks a bit, but hasn't yet got going to a crawl.

She is not a snuggler. The only time we come close is in the morning after she eats, she lets me hold her and gives me a few nuzzles before demanding release and freedom. This is definitely one of the best parts of my day. Other than that, she has just recently started resting her head on our shoulders when she is being shy.

Addy LOVES the water. She loves bath time and going to the pool and the beach. We recently went to Honeymoon Island while some friends were visiting, and she was so content to sit in the water with me and play in the sand and shells. She will be happy in a bath even when she is dead tired. I'm excited about this love of hers, and hope it lasts, so that I'll have a beach buddy (Alex hates the beach!).

She had a 6month check-up with the pediatrician last week. She weighed 20lbs 14oz (98%), is 29 inches tall (100%) and her head circumference is 18.11 in (99%). She has outgrown her infant car seat is is outgrowing many of her 6 months sized clothes. We definitely have a hard time getting pants/shorts over her chunky thighs!


What's not to love about this baby, right?! And just for your viewing pleasure, she has recently started doing this, which I find absolutely hilarious. I am so glad I got her to do it on camera! Enjoy!