Rose's stroller came today!!! I did A LOT of research on a stroller for Rose...I had my list of requirements: a reversible handle stroller, fully reclining seat, really large canopy, a long handle so Justin can push it without whacking his feet, and easy to maneuver (whichever way Rose is facing). I was unable to find my top pick in a local store, so I had to just order it and hope for the best ;)
Well it is totally awesome and I definitely feel like I went with the best stroller for us.
Rose is helping daddy assemble....
Ah, finally together and ready for Rose!
Here is is fully reclined...she didn't love that so much tonight.
Merry Christmas Rose! You definitely had an AWESOME day with your family. You decided to start the morning at 4:30am, but were agreeable to going back to sleep until 7:30am after we begged you not to start this as a Christmas tradition :)
We started with Christmas at home...
Mommy and daddy didn't go crazy with presents this year...we got you a couple stocking stuffers and a big girl stroller which is on order...
Check out your cute first Christmas outfit :) Mommy loves shopping on Etsy for you!
Then we went down the hill to Nanna and PaPa's to celebrate with Uncle Bruce and Aunt Kate. We had Christmas breakfast and then you dove into opening your presents.
You got some SUPER cute baby Uggs from Uncle Bruce and Aunt Kate (I got some too and LOVE them!)
Papa got you a motorized train...so far you sit really well on it and let us take you around for rides. I am sure you will soon figure out how to make it go all on your own and chase Tahnee around the house :)
You also really like the stuffed dog that dances...you like to grab him and bite his forehead...you are probably trying to give him kisses.
After a quick trip home to unload your haul and a nap we then headed back out to Grandpa and Grandma's for another round of Christmas with Aunt Kate, Uncle Matt, and Uncle Josh.
As you can see Rose EVERYONE enjoyed shopping for you from Christmas! you got lots of really fun toys and I am sure you will enjoy playing with them, especially as you get more mobile.
Now we just have Christmas with Aunt Laura and your cousins this week and then no more Christmas until next year....
(ok, I don't know what she was thinking here, but I LOVE this pic)
Well baby girl, I think this is the last holiday one of your milestones will land on...You were born on Easter, celebrated 2 month on our 5 year anniversary, last month you were 7 months on Thanksgiving, and now you are 8 months on Christmas Eve (if you did the math there, that also means Justin and I have been married 5 and 1/2 years!!).
So 8 whole months....and no teeth :) I really love that gummy smile and apparently you are in no rush to change that either, so while grandma keeps assuring me that she *knows* there is a tooth, I don't see it ;)
However, we are both pretty sure you said 'hi' this month so I am going to give that one to you and count that as your first word...anytime you want to say 'mama' would be great!
Even without teeth you love to eat. Your latest new food was yogurt and you LOVE it! We are looking to start trying another new round of foods this month, so we'll see what you like. On a mommy note, we have now made it 2/3 of our goal for you to just have breast milk your first year....
You also keep flirting with crawling. You push up and even sometimes get your knees up and scoot backwards, but nothing forward yet. Though you have started walking....
BUT you still need to crawl! There is some research about the input you get from crawling being linked to your ability to read, SO more floor time for you!
Little Rose, you are also starting to insert your personality...I am sure there are some 'drama queen' years in our future. You have definitely learned how to show your like and dislike of things. If you are happy you are all smiles and giggles, BUT if you are not pleased then you turn on the tears and your little lips frown :( it makes mommy very sad, so of course, I make you happy again :)
You are also not sleeping so super this month... We try to put you to bed between 7-8pm and would really like you to sleep until at least 6am, but lately it's been 5:30am...this is just too early for mommy and daddy, but you start talking and talking and talking and there is just no convincing you to sleep. I am also not sure what we are going to do about swaddling you, we still are...because you seem to calm down and sleep so much better, but at some point it'll have to end...I am kind of nervous about that.You also are taking about 3 naps a day, ranging from 30 minutes to over 2 hours...soon you'll probably cut back to about 2, so we'll see how that goes.
You still love to be out and about. You do such a great job on shopping trips and everyone says how cute and pleasant you are, because you are pretty sweet and adorable (although not at 5:30am, did I mention you need to sleep a little later?). You also still really enjoy your bath time. I think you would stay in there for hours if you wouldn't turn into a little prune baby :)
So that's where we are at 8 months...
Earlier this week Lena's mom (Andrea) asked if Rose would like to borrow some of Lena's favorite toys; that, at the very old age of 1, she has now outgrown :)
I brought them home this evening and Rose really likes them too!
Rose really loves anything with lights and music, so this toy is a HUGE hit. Andrea, you were right, these songs aren't too annoying ;)
Ah, did you see that? If you press on the lamp it changes colors, Rose is such a smarty!
Lena, Rose will take very good care of your toys so you can share them with other little kids (maybe a sibling! hehe)
Ahhh, this day is one of those days that Justin and I will always remember, though, not fondly like our wedding or Rose's birth. December 10, 2007 we were woken in the early morning to pounding on our front door by a neighbor because our home was on fire...
Justin and I bought our first home in Womelsdorf, a twin that we spent all our free time and money renovating, to start our lives together. Many friends and family also contributed to the remodeling of our home and we have so many happy and fun memories :) We also had TERRIFIC neighbors in the home next door to ours, the Mays Family, who we still get together with for dinner and card games.
While it was a horrible experience for us, it also brought some positive changes...
We sold our home and moved to Blandon, we hadn't planned on moving so soon, but as it turns out that was probably good timing. Our new home was just ready enough for the arrival of Rose and we are now only 15 minutes away from our family.
Today, December 10, 2011, we spent completing out Christmas shopping (BIG SIGH!) and spending time together with our baby girl. We lost things in that fire 4 years ago, but we are so grateful for all our blessings!
On a REALLY happy note, it looks like Rose is getting prepped for crawling :)
This past week we started getting Christmas...this year is SUPER special since it will be Rose's very first Christmas :) So far she loves looking at lights and playing with ornaments. Lucky for us this year she is not mobile so we don't need a gate for the tree. Rose is so fascinated with shiny things :) She also REALLY loves paper, so no matter what she gets for Christmas as long as it is wrapped in paper I think she will be pretty excited with her first Christmas.
We even decorated the outside of the house for Rose! Ok, so it's a start, next year we will do something with all the windows too...maybe....
