Alexis is 6 months old!

Six MONTHS OLD!  1/2 a year!  WHAT?!?!?!

I am in shock that we have a soon to be three year old boy and a six month old baby girl!  I didn't think it would be possible that Alexis could have brought so much joy to our lives over the past six months.  What can I say other than we are all head over heels in love with this bundle of giggles.

At 6 months old Alexis:

• has her very first cold and had to get on antibiotic eye drops for the first time 
• wears size 6-9 month clothes
• wears size 3 diapers
• has 2 teeth (bottom front)
• is sleeping in her crib instead of the pack n play (starting tonight)
• can pick up and grab objects
• is gaining more control over all her movements
• can sit up on her own for a long time unassisted 
• is slowly getting interested in eating solid foods, so far just carrots
• can lift most of her body up when laying on tummy
• can roll from side to side and has rolled completely over a few times
• LOVES her feet and fingers
• has the longest hair on a baby i've ever seen
• has the most beautiful blue eyes, just like her brother
• smiles and laughs when you tickle her
• talks all the time
• puts every thing she touches in her mouth

Alexis, 

You are such a joy and bring such happiness to our lives.  We are blessed beyond measure to have you as our daughter (sister, granddaughter, niece...).  Watching you grow and seeing your personality blossom is so fun.  You are the sweetest most lovable baby on earth.  Unfortunately, you recently caught your very first cold along with the rest of the family.  You seem to be doing much better than every one else though, so that's good.  I am a little sad that the past six months have gone by so fast, but look foraged to every tomorrow.  :)  WE LOVE YOU ALEXIS, you beautiful funny baby!

Love,

Mommy and Daddy 

Hudson's First Day of Preschool

This morning I woke up extra early to make a very special breakfast for a VERY SPECIAL little boy.  Today was a BIG DAY for Hudson!  It was his very first day of preschool!  We ate breakfast, then I cleaned Hud up really well so we could take first day of school pictures.  Hud was not all that interested in getting his picture taken, but was exited about his "very own" new blue back pack.  :)

The ride to preschool was oddly quiet and Hud didn't make any sounds walking into the building either.  When we got to his class room he stayed by my side and watched all the other boys and girls sitting in their seats playing with play-dough.  Some kids were crying and I think it made Hud a little nervous.  He never once cried, and as soon as I got him to his seat with "his stuff" he quickly forgot I was there.  I kissed him and slipped out of the room while he was grabbing for cookie cutters and other utensils to use on his dough.

When I went to pick him up in the afternoon, he was playing cars with other kids.  He saw me and instead of getting excited and running toward me, he said "NO!!! I don't want to go home!  I'm playing".  Nothing feels better than your child NOT wanting to go home with you.  Seriously though, it is wonderful that he wants to be there with his teacher and friends.  It makes me happy that he is independent and confident enough to be away from me.  Hopefully he will always have a love (or at least like) of school.  That would sure make Jr. High School and High school so much better if he actually wanted to go.

All in all, Hudson had a wonderful day.  He got Chocolate milk and apple slices as a special treat after his fun first day of school.  He still refused a nap, but crashed hard at bedtime.

Total SUCCESS and ZERO TEARS!

Alexis rolled over!

Roll Over, Roll Over!

Alexis rolled over for the very first time this afternoon!!!  She is growing so fast!

the prayer

At prayer time before bed, Hudson said his very own prayer all by himself.  It was so sweet and beautiful.

He thanked God for each of his family members (including Sadie and Milo), health, safety, trains....  It was too cute for words.  Hud prayed for 5 minutes strait as tears were streaming down my cheek in the dark.  Every few minutes he would say "dear Lord" and continue talking to God.  After he said all of the "proper prayer content" Hudson started talking to God about how much he loves his trains and how the train cars connect.....  haha it really was funny.  "Jesus is coming to save us"!  Amen to that.

I love that little boy so much.

Alexis Grace is 5 months old!

At this exact moment 5 months ago, Steve and I were at the hospital anxiously awaiting our precious baby girl.  We knew absolutely nothing about her, other than her approximate weight and that she was perfect.

It's so hard to remember life without her.  And there was life before Alexis.... 28 years of life before she came along.  But, some how all those other years have been blurred and the past five months with both Hudson & Alexis have been the best months of my life.

Alexis is growing and changing every day.  She can now sit up for a few seconds and holds her head up really well.  She can almost roll over, but not quite.  She still doesn't enjoy tummy time.  Not that we have gotten to have tummy time much.... Things are a lot more difficult with two.  Instead of tummy time, we put alexis in her bumbo sitter or her jumper so she can look around and see what's going on.  She LOVES her jumper.  I don't know when we first put Hudson in it, but Alexis has been using it for a month now and thinks its just great.

As of now, Alexis is still sleeping in our room.  Hud slept next to our bed until he was 6 months old, but I think Alexis is ready to make the transition.  It will be so weird not having her right there, hearing her cute sleeping sounds.  I don't know that I'M ready to not have a baby in our room anymore.  It's just another phase we are transitioning out of and I don't know that we will ever be in that phase again...  does that make any sense.

We are pretty sure that TWO is our magic number, so every milestone, while exciting, is a little sad because not only is that child growing up, but we will never agin use the newborn clothes or bassinet.

Anyway, At 5 months old our beautiful baby Alexis:

• has 2 teeth
• wears a size 2 diaper, but we are transitioning to size 3
• wears 6-9 month clothes
• sleeps all night long (8:30pm-6:00am)
• takes one long nap and one short nap each day (usually)
• enjoys playing on her activity mat
• laughs and smiles a lot
• can sit up with some assistance (bumbo or pillows)
• loves bath time
• hates being cold (after a bath)
• rarely cries unless she is hungry or tired
• can intentionally grab things with her hands and pull whatever it is to her mouth
• loves Hudson
• likes to know where everyone is and what's going on
• has started trying to copy sounds and facial expressions
• tried rice cereal, but didn't care for it.  We will try again soon.
• sits at the table with us in her special seat while we eat dinner
• goes to the church nursery every sunday
• loves the staff at the YMCA and they adore her
• thinks Hudson is hilarious (and he is)
• drools a lot
• laughs at mommys singing and enjoys being sung to (wheels on the bus, patty cake...)
• is still nursing really well (no biting yet), but will also take a bottle without problems

Our whole family has fallen in love with the newest addition to our family.  Her Grandpa Frank has even given her the nickname "mini mouse".  I can't say I know why, but it's really cute.  Over the past five months, she as filled everyones hearts with such joy and love.  Each day with Alexis is a happy adventure.  We can't wait to see what she discovers next.  Alexis Grace, we love you more than words will ever be able to describe.  You are the most perfect little girl and we are blessed to be your parents.

Love,
Mommy