Raelye trying hard to crawl! She's going backwards!!!

Couple of things I forgot to mention in the milestones: she loves to put mine & Daddy's faces in her hands (one hand on each cheek) and sqeeze! She opens her mouth and makes funny faces when she does it. Raelye is also grabbing things with one hand instead of both. She switches items back and forth between hands.

Last Thursday, Raelye and I went to Babies R Us in Tacoma. When we were in the mother's room, another lady & her 4 month old came in and sat on the couch next to us. Raelye and the other baby were sooooo excited to see each other. They were both jumping, playing, squealing, and grabbing for each other. It was sooo sweet! Raelye loves to look in the mirror and this time it was 3D!

Sunday was my first Mother's Day with Raelye actually here. I was almost 2 months pregnant last year during it. Raelye & her Daddy made me an awesome card with her handprint on it. We went to Emerald Downs to watch the horses race and she couldn't have been any better! We didn't win any money but we all had fun!

Milestones (4 months 2 weeks)

Just a quick update on a few new things Raelye is improving on & mastering:

She's squealing when she's happy about something, laughing more, & talking constantly. She loves her Rainforest jumper Becca & Tom loaned us. She can spin in it, jump up and down, and play with all the toys on it. Raelye is getting really close to crawling. She's getting her legs up underneath her and her arms moving like she's swimming. I can pick up her belly and she'll move easier. Her sleep is going good but still varies quite a bit. We have a pretty good routine going but sometimes she'll sleep for 30 minutes and sometimes its 5 hours. She went with me to get a haircut (finally its been since Feb) and was really pretty good the whole time. She ate some squash when we got home & drank almost 3 oz from the bottle!!!!!! Going to try to put her to nap with just the bottle in a minute!

Go Horsie Go!

Raelye in her Kentucky Derby gear! Go Horsie Go!

Faster! Faster!

If only Daddy would have bet that $2 superfecta with my Pink horse, Mama & Daddy could have that ranch and me all the horsies I need! (Just FYI: $2 superfecta paid $557,000!)

Gonna get that bird!!!

Raelye loved watching the Derby. She was napping right up until and made it downstairs just in time. We were suppose to head to Texas this week but have decide to move our trip til May 15-18 due to the flu going around. We will be in Snyder for the weekend & Raelye will hopefully be getting her picture made!

Raelye has been doing awesome with solids. She likes squash, peaches, & bananas. The applesauce & carrots were ok. She still chews on her sippy cup, getting a little water from it. I am going to start making her baby food here shortly. I wanted to start her on Gerber then transition her to our own mix. Aaron bought me a new Cuisinart chopper to make it with.

Raelye took a bottle yesterday morning (about 2 oz worth)! When she was going down for a nap, I was able to nurse her for just a moment then switch her to the bottle. She drank a few sips then closed her eyes and went on to sleep! That spells FREEDOM for Mama!!!

4 Month Appointment

Raelye had her 4 month doctor appointment yesterday. She weighs 14 lb 6.5 oz, 24.5 in, and her head is 16.5 in. She has grown 5.5 oz in a week! She's 1 in longer and her head is 1.5 in bigger since her 2 month appt. She is growing perfectly!
The doctor was impressed when she held her out on her arm and Raelye had her head striaght up turning to look at the doctor and to look at me. She had 4 vaccinations in 2 shots. She didn't even whimper on the first one and let out a little cry on the second. I picked her up and she was done crying. Couldn't have been any better.
Dr. Husarik and I discussed the milestones Raelye has already accomplished: eating, sitting up, rolling over completely, etc. I have been impressed and thought she was definately advanced. Dr. Husarik said "if I didn't know any better (meaning her knowing Raelye's age) then I would think she was older." Wooohooo!
We have consolidated naps and it has improved her sleep during the day & night! She slept for 5 hours, 3.5 hours, and 2 hours last night! We're super excited to get to go back to Texas next week. We'll be around for 12 days visiting Ran-Ran then Gabby & Pa.
(By the way: today is mine & Aaron's two year anniversary!)
Til next time~ much love~

Raelye Laughing

Almost 4 months old

Quick update while the princess is napping.
Raelye hit a major growth spurt last week. She had a hard time sleeping for 8 days; barely any sleep at night & minimal naps during the day. I took her to the doctor and the best I got was we both were suffering from allergies. The longer it went on and the more research I did, I found other moms talking about a 4 month sleep regression due to a major growth spurt. The growth spurt at this time really involves mental capacity and basically babies have a hard time shutting down their brains to rest. There was a really good article I found if anyone is interested in reading it: http://www.askmoxie.org/2006/02/qa_what_are_sle.html.
While at the doctor's office, we got a new weight for her: 14 lb 1 oz! They didn't measure her but I'm sure that will come this next week at her 4 month appointment for vaccinations.
We took a trip to Target today and found the cutest little shorts. Raelye got a pair of denim and bright pink knit ones. I had to switch out most of her clothes to 3-6 month clothes. Her 3 month sleepers are getting too short; she's having a hard time stretching her legs out in them.
Raelye is raising her chest up from being on her tummy or on her back. She's getting really strong and able to hold herself more and more.
So far she's ate: rice cereal, carrots, applesauce, and wheat cereal. She's not so found of the wheat cereal. We bought her a few different fruits & veggies today to keep trying more & more. She takes the rice cereal at a pretty thick consistency (just mixed with water). Aaron and I keep working on her taking a sippy cup. We both agree this may be easier than teaching bottle then changing shortly after to sippy cup. She'll chew on it but we're not sure how much she's actually getting from it. Practice, practice, practice!
Well the princess is back up; short cat nap!

Starting Solids!!!

We attempted a little bit of very watered down rice cereal yesterday. It went so-so. We tried again this evening with Raelye sitting in her high chair and she ate 2 servings worth (probably 2-3 oz)! She did extremely well! She would open her mouth with anticipation for the spoon and swallow the majority of it - more as the feeding went on.
Raelye and I had a laughing session this afternoon. She would laugh, I would laugh, she'd laugh harder, I'd laugh harder, it just kept escalating. I called my mom in the middle of it and she got to hear a good part of it.
We just got back on Monday from a 8 day trip back home. We spent 2 nights in Austin, 1 night in Temple, 1 night in Stephenville, and the rest in Rowena. We got to see all Aaron's family and have Kay a surprise 50th birthday party while we were in Rowena, Jadie & Bob were very excited to see Raelye even if only for 1 night as they hadn't got to see her since we left in February. We also took a day trip to San Angelo to see Deepa & Gary and to Eldorado to see Kirk, Kyra, and the kids. She flew very well and only had a hard time with her ears popping when we were landing in Austin.
Raelye is sitting up with some support and holding her position very well. She was on the floor in Rowena and started ooching backwards. She is holding herself up on her arms and keeping her head very steady turning from side to side if there is something she wants to see. She will put her legs underneath her if you lift up her belly. She also turns towards my voice.
Raelye has discovered more toys and has more interest in them. She loves hearing the tiger play music on her floor mat and starts dancing. She is getting more efficient at pulling her butterfly in her bouncer. Raelye will hold onto her rattles and other toys you give her and even shake them sometimes.
We had more visits at the end of April from my mom & grandmother and Aaron's unlce Steve & aunt Mary Lee. We got to visit a few new places such as taking a ferry ride, seeing the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, and Snoqualmie Pass & waterfall.