Rhys @ 8 months!

Today marks 8 months for little Rhys-ie (her nickname that has just kind of stuck)!

She has been doing all kinds of fun things lately. She is army crawling everywhere!  She has a little inchworm style and it is QUICK.  She pulls herself across the room, investigates the computer cords, explores toys that Natalie leaves out, and the other day I even found her tasting some of Natalie's crackers that she left in her snack bowl.  Now we have to really watch what we leave around and on the floor.  Let the fun begin!

It's funny too, because Rhys will crawl on the carpet, but she also ventures out into the kitchen floor.  Natalie always just stayed with her toys in the livingroom.  I have a feeling Rhys is going to keep us on our toes.

Here's a sample of her tornado path.  Kitchen toy accessories strewn about as she bee-lined for the green bucket.  If you look close, you can also see Natalie scaling the chair in the background. 

Rhys is so easy going and loves to laugh.  Sometimes for no reason at all; she just starts giggling and then can't stop.  It's so darn cute!

Here she is playing peek-a-boo:

Her eyes are changing colors.  We aren't sure if they will stay blue or maybe they will be brown.  I guess time will tell.

The sleep department is FINALLY better.  (Although, I suppose I should be careful of what I type, because we did have an off-night on Sunday...not much sleeping for some reason).  Usual bed-time is around 7 and she'll sleep until 6:30 or 7.  Natalie and Rhys surprised us with a 7:45 wakeup call on Sunday morning; that was a nice treat!

Rhys is getting solid food 2 times a day, and sometimes 3 if she seems hungry or there is extra time in the day.  She even eats chicken!  This is huge, because Natalie always spit it out and even to this day will each chicken nuggets, but no other chicken.  She's been loving most of the fruits and veggies.  Sometimes it takes a few minutes to convince her that she wants to eat, but once she gets going she's good about it.  She is definitely the messy eater of the family though.  We've been using the cloth bibs and go through at least one a day, sometimes one a meal.

She's also been eating Puffs and is getting pretty good at picking them up and getting them into her mouth.

I think her first tooth (teeth?) will be here soon. Her bottom gum is pretty white and she's been complaining a little bit.  That could also explain the bad sleep night.  I'm hoping she deals with the pain well and won't be extra sensitive to it.  Something tells me it won't be that easy...but there's always hope!

And, kind of random, but here's a picture from last month - first time in the grass (2/20/12).  I don't think I ever got around to posting this one.

She still loves her baths and loves to splash.  Tonight David was home alone with the kiddos and decided to throw them both in the big tub (first time without a seat!).  He said that Rhys did good; sat up and splashed the whole time.

I'm going to need to organize the clothes again.  I think we're mostly done with the 6mo clothes now.  A few dresses can double as shirts, but most of everything else is too small.  We're moving into a mix of 9 month and 12 month stuff now.  But, she does seem to have slowed down in the weight department.  Guess all of her activities are burning calories.

Here's a cute picture that I took on my phone yesterday. Ignore the grimy seatbelt strap - I forgot my shopping cover. (I hate touching those gross things, but Rhys is too much of a mover not to be strapped in...but yuck!)

8 month stats:
Height: 26 inches
Weight: 18.6 lbs
Clothes: 9mo and 12mo
Diapers: size 3
Shoes: haven't worn many, but I think size 2

Life is busy!

Rhys
inch-worm crawling everywhere
exploring everything
loves thumb sucking (still mostly the left)
tasting more solids: pears, sweet potato, carrots, peas
sometimes refuses bottles
loves the bath
mostly sleeping at night
generally very happy baby!

Natalie
not-potty-training: usually refuses to try, doesn't seem to care if she is wet or dry, and doesn't seem to care if she gets candy, stickers, or any other treat
talking non-stop
picky eater: only wants to eat chicken nuggets or hot dogs for dinner
loves to be outside
hates going to bed
loves to find her sister in the morning
grumpy & moody and chewing on her fingers, which makes me think she is getting the rest of her teeth
loves puzzles and "playing games" (mostly just takes games out, spreads them around, and then picks them back up)

throw in tax season (me), budget season (David), daycare drop-off / pick-up, grocery shopping, the usual house chores, and refinancing 2 properties, and this sums up our crazy life lately.  No time even to take pictures, but we'll work on that!

And she's on the move!

Rhys is officially on the move! On Friday she decided she could roll over both directions and tried to pull up on the couch, so I knew it was only a matter of time. And today (Monday), she's off and moving. Her little inch-worm style looks like it would be slow, but she's actually pretty fast from point A to point B. Pretty sure we're in trouble now!

Rhys @ 7 months

7 months? somehow the time is just flying by so quickly!

I'm quite surprised that Rhys isn't crawling all over the place.  She has been up, rocking on all fours for quite some time now.  She's definitely getting close; she'll shift her weight to one hand and reach out with the other.  She is SUPER close to rolling from back to tummy.  She could totally do it, but just doesn't quite shift her weight.  She gets her legs all the way over, and turns her head, but hasn't fully rolled.  I'm honestly not in a hurry for her to move, because she seems like such a go-getter, that I think we'll be missing our stationery baby!

She sits up really well.  I can leave her for a few minutes playing with her toys, which is nice.  At the same time, Rhys has gotten kind of cranky if I leave the room.  It seems like she wants me within view and preferably close proximity at all times.

Still dealing with stranger fears.  Some days are better than others, but a lot of time passing her off to someone else makes her cry.

We are finally getting more consistent sleep.  We had a 10 day period or so where she slept ALL night.  Down between 6:30 and 7pm for 12 hours.  And then, we had some more 4am wake up calls.  She seemed hungry again.  So, we've added a 2nd solid feeding, and after a few days, we seem to be back on track - knock on wood! 

 Rhys loves cereal, and we are gradually able to add more foods.  So far we've tried banana, apple, avocado, peas and butternut squash, with squash being her favorite!  She's also had some rice crackers.  I tried banana flavored puffs one night, but she wasn't a fan.  Her general reaction is to:

1. make a sour face
2. spit it back out at you (using the "raspberry method", of course so you are showered with it)
3. if she does NOT like it, she sticks her thumb in her mouth
4. if she DOES like it, she opens up wide and waits to shovel it in!

Rhys also loves her bath these days.  We're still using the infant tub in the kitchen sink. I usually fill it up decently full, but I did that last week and basically ended up with a shower myself!  She kicked and splashed away.  I pulled the drain up to let some water out, but she was splashing faster than it could drain.  So, ever since then she gets less water.  As soon as she is more stable, we can add her to the big tub with Natalie, but I think we are still a little ways out for that.

She is generally a happy baby.  Sometimes Rhys just laughs and laughs for no apparent reason!  It's really cute that she cracks herself up.

Natalie has a lot of fun with Rhys now too.  She can get Rhys to laugh pretty easily, but Natalie kind of keeps her distance because Rhys loves to grab Natalie's hair.

(I think she looks a lot like David in this picture - do you see it?)

We switched over to the convertible car seat this past month.  Much easier than toting around the giant car seat, but at the same time, it takes more work to get everyone in the car and ready to go.  Luckily Natalie stays close by and obeys when we are getting into/out of the car.  Such a tricky few minutes!

7 month stats:
Height: 25 inches
Weight: about 18.4lbs (75%)
Diapers: Size 3
Clothes: 9 mo

Sunday the 19th

First off - Happy 30th Birthday to Auntie Patty!! (pretty sure it's not a secret that you turned the big 3-0 this year, since you had a party :) The girls took some pictures for you this morning! Natalie actually volunteered to sit still and let us take pictures, a bit of a miracle.

Rhys was laying on the floor, and Natalie laid down on top of her. They both thought it was pretty fun.

We were undecided what to do for the day. We wanted to get out and do something, but it was pretty windy and cool. We decided on the indoor bounce house about 30 min south. I texted Kevin & Shannah to see if they wanted to meet us there. Instead, they invited us over! The kids bounced for a bit...

Rhys hung out with Uncle Kevin (and Auntie too, but I never got their picture). (this is her first day with a clippie in her hair!  Finally long enough to attach a barrette.  Not that she needs one, but it's just cute)

Then the kids played trains...

And hugged...

And they played outside some more...

Natalie was actually asking to take a nap. She and Liam laid down for a while, but it was just too tempting to play. Natalie settled for a nap in the car on the way home. Very fun day and nice to be out of the house for a while!

Rhys Jumping

Kevin & Shannah let us borrow their Jumper and Rhys has been having a blast. She spent most of Wednesday bouncing around!

My Valentines 2012

My 3 cutie pies!

We attempted to take a good picture of the two girls, but didn't have a whole lot of luck.  We bribed Natalie with Fruit Snacks, but getting Natalie & Rhys to both look at the camera was tough!  Here's a few good ones.

We hung out in the backyard for a bit this weekend.  Natalie discovered that the Tangerines are yummy and that she can peel them herself.  So, she practiced.

And Rhys just sat and looked cute!

Bedtime routine

Know how guidelines recommend a person do 10,000 steps a day? Pretty sure I get mine in from 8pm-10pm. Walking back & forth to Natalie's room to get her to sleep!

This started around Christmas and has not let up. We put her in bed and she continues to get up. We've tried staying in the room, standing outside her door, not talking with her, giving her milk, changing her diaper, and most other things suggested in books & online. She just doesn't seem tired.

Pretty bad because when I tell her goodnight her response is "don't get up".

Tonight she kept Rhys up. They were both in there giggling. I walked into the room and Natalie was climbing up the side of the crib.

It's just a phase, right? At least that's what I keep telling myself.

Natalie's newest sayings

Natalie has been coming up with some funny stuff lately.  I always think "oh man, I need to remember that" and then it slips away before I can share.  So, I'm writing them down here, before I forget.

Last Thursday night David was at his hockey game, Natalie put on our backpack that we use as a diaper bag sometimes. She managed to get it on all by herself and then she turned to me and said "Bye mama, gotta go!  I go to Hockey!"  She kept saying "gotta go, bye!"

In the morning on the way to daycare we drive through the village and she asks "Santa Claus?" and I tell her, "Remember, Santa went back to the North Pole", and she asks "With Ginger?" (our Elf). Me: "yep, Santa came and brought you presents and then took Ginger back to the North Pole", Natalie: "oh, ok" (in her sad voice).  It's February. And she is still asking about Santa. The guy who she was terrified to even look at.

David points out the tractors to her on the way to daycare and told her once that they were working hard, so now she reminds him in the morning "Tractor work hard!"

If she is getting something she wants she says "Goodie, goodie!"  Guessing she picked this one up at daycare, because it's not something I typically say?

We asked her if she wanted to go see Grandma & Grandpa the other night, and she said "no, I be shy".  That's her newest trick.  I took her to daycare the other morning and I always talk it up on the way there and I asked if she was excited to see Kristi and she said "no, I be shy".  She did this a few weeks ago when we went to see Grammy & Papa too..she wouldn't go inside because she was being "shy" (even though she was talking and laughing and excited 2 minutes beforehand in the car). 

She's definitely learning her emotions.  Shy, sad, and happy are the ones that come to mind.  When someone in a book is sad she says "ohhh...:("  and in the car she asks "Mama, happy?!" Funny how she picks up on emotion.

She loves to point out "Mine!" when Rhys takes her toys...but we're working on learning to share.

No idea where she learned what Chocolate is, but we were watching TV one day and she saw a commercial with candy and she shouted out "Chocolate! mmm!"  Last night I made brownies and she saw them and started getting excited - "Chocolate!"

And, just for fun, a couple of pictures.

Grandma & Grandpa came by for a visit the other night.  Grandpa was reading her The Little Engine That Could and she was being so good paying attention.  Actually, she was about to fall asleep and could hardly keep her eyes open.  She ended up leaving half-way through the story and going to bed.  Not a normal occurrence around here, for sure.

And this is an outfit she came up with all by herself.  When I got home from work one night, she continually put all of her necklaces on and off. Silly girl!

More Rhys at 6mo

Rhys had her 6 month appointment today. 

Official Stats:

Height: 24.5 inches (20%)

Weight: 17lbs 8 oz (80%)

Natalie shared her cold with all of us last week, so Rhys is still fighting that.  Dr. gave her a clean bill of health though.  Glad we were able to roll that into the Well Check and not make multiple trips to the Dr. this week!  She got 2 shots before we left, cried a second until I picked her up and hasn't seemed to notice them since.  He said to watch for teeth in the next few months and asked if she had started rolling over yet.  And boy are we rolling!  Still from front to back and then laying there flailing around, but mostly she is up rocking these days.  Here's a photo series showing her moves and happy self.

This past week, Rhys has slept thru the whole night twice.  Let's hope we are onto something!  Last night, Natalie and Rhys were on the same page and neither woke up.  Pretty sure that is a first.

All dressed up to watch the big game this Sunday!  (I have a similar picture of Natalie in this outfit, but it's on my old computer.  One of these days I'll get them all migrated over together.)  I just love this cutie pie.

Rhys @ 6 months

How on earth 6 months have already passed, we have no idea.  But this little cutie pie is already a half year old!

The sleep department is still in dire need of improvement.  We got the one solid night that I posted about, but unfortunately that was a lone occurrence.  Rhys' typical schedule is:
Up at 7am, eat
Nap at 9am
Up at 11am, eat
Nap at 12:30 or 1
Up at 2:30, eat
Nap at 4
Up at 5, eat
5:30 or 6, cereal
7, bedtime snack (milk)
7 or 7:30 down for the night
10pm - quick snack while still sleeping
Wakeup call between 2 & 5am.

Luckily, she just wants to eat during the 2 or 3am wakeup and then she goes right back to sleep.  I suppose it could be worse!

We started cereal a few weeks ago.  I'll need to go back and find the pictures of that!  I thought I posted it, but now I'm thinking maybe I didn't get around to it.  She mostly pushed the food back at us for the first 2 weeks, but she's getting better at it.  On a good night she takes around an ounce of cereal.  I thought it might help in the sleep department, but it doesn't seem to make much difference.  We have noticed that she is fussing a lot more when we put her down for naps, and she can go pretty long in between, so maybe she is starting to stretch her naps into just 2 daytime and MAYBE that will help her nighttime sleep.  I told David tonight that I'm pretty sure at this point we won't ever get a full nights sleep again.  By the time Rhys figures this out, Natalie will probably be getting the rest of her molars, and after that calms down Rhys will be getting teeth, and then after that...well, I'm not sure but it is always something!

We've also tried Banana, but she hasn't been a big fan yet.  We tried a few times with just banana, and a few times I mixed it with her cereal.  She liked the mixture better, but still gave us the sour face.

Rhys is getting to be quite mobile.  She is not exactly crawling, but she isn't stationary either.  She is up on all 4s, rocking back and forth and then she crashes forward.  She scoots herself backwards, and she is QUICK!  She spins herself in circles and rolls constantly from front to back.  Neither of us have seen her roll back to front yet, and that frustrates her - a lot.  You can tell by the cry that she is laying there on her back.

We haven't practiced sitting up too much yet.  She is pretty determined to reach and grab things, so she usually ends up tipping over pretty quickly. 

(Liam & his mama & daddy came by about 2 weeks ago.  Rhys was watching his every move, and Liam thought she was pretty fun too)

Rhys has been really good about picking things up and getting them to her mouth.  She grabs her paci and swings it around, chews on the edge, occasionally she will actually use it, but mostly she just plays. She likes to grab anything we are holding, or buttons on our shirts, or necklaces...pretty much she goes after anything in reach!

She has such a happy personality.  If you smile at Rhys, you are almost guaranteed to get one back.  And she giggles pretty easily too. I felt like we always had to beg Natalie to smile or laugh, but Rhys is just a happy camper.

Rhys and Natalie are starting to interact more and more.  I'm sure the wars are about to start though.  Rhys always grabs Natalie's hair and that never ends well.  She also grabs Natalie's toys and Natalie grabs it back and yells "no Rhys, that's mine".   Aye. Let the fun begin, huh?

(Natalie wanted to "hold" Rhys.  After I set her up there, she told me "mama, take picture, Cheese!"...so I obeyed and took their picture. Doesn't Rhys look thrilled?)

We have a convertible car seat on order and are just about to make the switch out of the infant seat.  Rhys is getting SO heavy to tote around!!  The tricky part is that she's not really ready to sit in shopping carts.  It also makes it a little harder to get everyone & everything out to the car.  So, we're kind of holding off, but at the same time, I'm ready to get rid of the infant bucket and it's 9lbs.

We just opened our last pack of diapers that we were given before Rhys was born. Such a nice gift from family and friends!

Unofficial stats for the 6 mo mark:

Height: somewhere in the 24-25 in mark. She was awful squirmy when we tried to measure

Weight: 17.5 lbs - seems like she is tapering off a bit

Diapers: size 3

Clothes: some 6mo, mostly 6-9mo

We go to the Dr. on the 6th for her 6mo checkup.