Pulling Up

Keira is not only crawling, she's also pulling herself up to standing. And she loves it! This was her very first time.

"Look Mom, one handed!"

Everyone says she looks just like Chris. Someone today even said she looks like a Cabbage Patch Doll. Whoever/whatever it may be, she's a cutie!

My First Mother's Day

Well I think Mother's Day is my new favorite holiday. (Especially if next year Chris tells me or gives me a card or something that says he thinks I'm a great mom. ;-) ) I had such a wonderful day! I truly believe that being a mom is the most important, fun, rewarding, and best job I could ever have. And I am so thankful to have that opportunity. I'm also so thankful to be a full time mom and only have to work part time. And although it's been a little challenging financially and for me to have all of the responsibilities of a stay at home mom in addition to working part time, the choice to work part time is something I will never regret. I LOVE being a mom!!!

Keira LOVES crawling and is alllll over now! And into everything! She can keep herself entertained for much longer, however you have to watch her like a hawk to make sure it's baby appropriate things. She's much more interested in anything but her toys.

Giving herself kisses. ;-)

On Mother's Day Chris came home from work in the morning with flowers. And then I got home from church and he had made delicious crepes and bacon. Yum!

The next day he took me on a Mother's Day date. It was great! We went to a Japanese restaurant and had delicious sushi. And then went to Cold Stone for dessert. Yum! What a wonderful celebration!

Crawling!

Well today is the official day that Keira started crawling! Her cute little body scooting along is the cutest thing! She was getting awfully close last night, but it was made official when Daddy came home from work and she surprised him by crawling across her room. It really is the cutest thing ever! I hope I can actually consider it crawling. She's only on one knee and one foot. Probably because she knows it's more efficient. ;-) She really got it down quickly.

Click here to see a YouTube video of her this morning. I wish I would have taken some photos also.

She is SOOOO happy! Actually, I think part of the reason she has been a little "high maintenance" is because she was bored and frustrated. Now she's as happy as can be!

Blooming

I LOVE SPRING!!! And it is finally here! It seems like it comes later and later every year. I LOVE when the flowers start to blossom and the leaves come back and the grass turns green. I am realistic and realize that you probably don't care to see pictures of all of the flowers in bloom in our yard. But I am sooo excited, and every year I wish I had taken pictures, so this year I did! The beauty only lasts a couple of weeks and I love it when it's here! I really need to learn how to garden so that I can actually have flowers in my yard more than just for a couple of weeks in the spring!

Our apple tree. Last year the apples were barely edible. So hopefully this year they will be better!

Not quite in bloom yet.

And yes, we even have lots of these flowers this year. They're Keira's favorite- a little more attainable.

Keira, Jason, Kena, (the dog and cat) and I enjoyed our first picnic of the year in our backyard. It was wonderful! Maybe something we should do everyday. And maybe one day it will be more appealing to Chris than his video game. ;-)

Eight Months!

The time has come once again. Keira is another month older. I must say, I have LOVED every new stage in her development! I can't even think of my favorite. They've all been so wonderful in different ways. She is becoming so much fun! Her personality is definitely starting to show. And to be completely honest, I'm hoping to shape it a little. I believe parents are a huge influence in rearing and guiding their children. :o) It might be just a stage and not her personality. But lately she has been a girl who knows what she wants and tries to get it. She throws a little fit when you take away something she's not supposed to be playing with. For whatever reason, whenever I lay her down to change her diaper, dress her, or after bathing her she throws a little fit. Laura says that she's becoming a bit "high maintenance." And I agree. It seems like she needs almost constant attention and interaction. She's not happy playing by herself now, or maybe she's just bored and tired of her toys. When we give her something new to explore she loses interest much quicker than she used to. It's like she has a constant eye on me and if she sees me leaving her sight for a moment she starts to cry. But I have realized that even a week from now I'll forget about everything I was "supposed to get done" and will remember and treasure all of the memories with my beautiful baby girl.

Overall though, she's still such a happy and good little girl. I am so thankful for this wonderful blessing in my life. She is becoming so talkative and loves making new noises. She also enjoys making high pitched little squeals. She's starting to imitate us a little, especially with tongue clicking and lip smacking.

We're still working on food. I just started giving her yogurt and cheese, which she LOVES! Actually I think part of the problem is that she realizes how bad of a cook I am. If only Chris would make her food! ;-) As you can see, we're still waiting for teeth. I do think it's pretty funny how I thought she might be starting to cut them when she was like three months old! :o)

Keira loves standing! The above photo was the first time she stood supporting herself without having someone hold on to her.

Leashed

Today there was no doubt that Keira loves her mama. She had me on an arm's length leash all day. She also had this super vision where even if she was happily playing, paying no attention to me, if she saw I was headed more than a few feet from her she would start crying- crying as if she had just broke her arm. Or if she did somehow miss a departure, within seconds she could SENSE I was missing. Whew, hopefully it won't always be like this!

I love my baby girl!

My Sleeping Beauty

The start of Keira's nap.

The end of Keira's nap.

Keira's next nap. I had tried to put her down before Jason's bath but she wouldn't sleep. Before I let him out of the tub, I sat her up in the crib so she wouldn't get all wet and hairy and he wouldn't run her over, and within about five minutes she fell asleep!