One Third of One Year

That's the amount of time we have been blessed to have this cutie hanging out with our family. Like her middle name, she surely does bring us a lot of joy! I am in awe some days that God found me worthy to be her mama. And then there are the days in which she screams pretty much all day, and there is no awe, no joy, no wonder at it all. Ha!

At four months old, Little Miss Sprout weighs about 13 1/2 pounds and is one chunky monkey. She is working hard on maintaining that double chin and her adorable squishy thighs by eating all the time and keeping her mama busy. I am pleased to say that I am still nursing her, which feels like a great accomplishment after failing miserably with both boys.

Her favorite activities include eating her fists and her feet, which she discovered a few weeks ago. She also loves watching her siblings play and enjoys beebopping around in her exersaucer. Daddy has discovered that our newest little is very ticklish, and we get such a kick out of hearing her little cackle. The girl never stops moving, I tell you! Even in her sleep, she scrambles all over her crib and ends up snoring on her tummy. And yes, I know it's "Back to Sleep" but what is one to do when her baby automatically flips over onto her tummy every time she is laid down?

Little Sprout definitely looks interested in the food that I serve up to the rest of the family; so perhaps in her five-month report, I'll be sharing all about her reactions to "people food." Until then, she can slow it down a little! I am in no hurry for my baby to get older!

Tres Cute

Well, the Little Sprout officially turned three months old yesterday. Don't ask me where the time went, but our little sweetheart seemed to turn into a "not-very-newborn-anymore" overnight! I am trying to enjoy every second of this all-too-brief phase in her life.

She weighs in now at a little over twelve pounds; so she is still mostly sporting clothing in the 0-3 month range. The sweet knitted cape in the photos was made especially for her by a dear lady in our church.

We have many pet names for our newest family member, but lately I've taken to calling her "Fuss-Bucket" and "Chunk-Bucket." She can be quite the cranky one, especially at 5:00 pm and following. A few mild cries will quickly turn into wall-shaking screams if she is not attended to immediately. She really isn't happy unless she is surrounded by family that is paying attention to HER. We may have to rename her the "Drama Princess" for blogging purposes. As for "Chunk-Bucket," the poor babe spits up. A lot! She eats and is hungry an hour later because she spit up most of what she ate. We have been having to supplement with formula to help her with this. It took several brands, but apparently Similac Sensitive is doing the trick, at least for now.

As I mentioned in the last post, Little Sprout is now rolling over and doing it all the time. Many times it is to get some toy she can't quite reach. The girl loves her toys, in particular a giraffe rattle and some musical car keys. Although, she is currently shaking her fist at the giraffe and screaming, so I am not sure if that happy relationship will continue.

I love this age, even with the extra fussing and spitting. The smiles and constant baby chatter make it all worth it. happy three months, Fuss-Bucket!

Mind Rush

It's Saturday night. The insanity has settled down. Three deliciously sweet children are curled up in tight corners of their beds. One especially stubborn baby is swatting at the cheerful frog on her new play mat while simultaneously rubbing sleep from her eyes.

I am sitting crisscross applesauce on my bed while gathering children's church materials and planning curriculum for the next several weeks. I am having trouble focusing on the tasks at hand as my mind busily runs through the past week's activities. Around here weeks fly by so fast that sometimes it's hard to be aware of what exactly went down.

I got my hair cut this week in an a-line cut. It's easy and chic and gasp! age-appropriate, AND I still like it several days after the cut, so that's saying something.

Little Sprout startled me one day by rolling over and getting quite a distance across the room in this fashion. I don't remember my other littles doing that before three months old. The Beast keeps asking me now to "make Baby Bean do her special trick."

A dear friend moved all the way back east this past week. We had one last girls' night while our kiddos played together and ate spaghetti. I miss her already but am so excited for her and this new directions in her family's life.

Miss Suzie, the Beast's speech therapist, and an autism specialist came over to our house on Friday morning to conduct an observation and evaluation of our Beast. The results of that evaluation will determine whether or not we will be eligible for more special services. I was a bundle of nerves before they came but thankfully the ladies were able to put me at ease. The whole thing went rather well, considering I had to stop and feed the baby in the middle of it all.

Time to take a deep breath and put the swirling thoughts in my head to rest for another day. I'm thankful for a baby that finally gave up the fight against sleep. I'm thinking I should take my cue from her and get some shut-eye too. good night world.