A foot of snow and another tooth!

What a great week we had! Auntie Kate was on J-term break so she came over Tuesday night to catch up with us and spend some quality time with Phoebe.

It was also the night we got over 12 inches of snow. We were really kicking ourselves for not getting that snowsuit for Phoebe that we saw on clearance a couple of weeks ago. Seriously, I think we've gotten 5 inches all winter long so it just didn't seem worth it. If we'd only known! We spent Wednesday inside. With the office phone forwarded to the house, it wasn't exactly relaxing, but it was nice to not have to go anywhere!

Recently, we've found that Phoebe will get into any and everything. However, she has a strong desire to get into Daddy's toys. Namely the PS3 and his XBox - there's just something about seeing a disc eject and then go back in. And oh, the controllers...

Thursday was back to work as usual but we had YiaYia, Uncle Steve and Auntie Kate over for dinner. They stayed through bathtime and got to witness the terror Phoebe turns into after her bath is over. She starts crying about the time you dry her hair. She crawls away while we're trying to get lotion on her and screams when it's time for a diaper to go on. It's seriously a battle of the wills. Once she has her pjs on, she's fine. But getting there, that is the challenge!

Today we ran a few errands and picked up a few crates to stow away more of her clothes that she can no longer fit into. We had a huge blow-out at dinner so bathtime came a little earlier than usual so we had some extra time before we needed to head upstairs to bed. She was just everywhere so I think Ryan found a way to "contain" her. Ha.

Then Ryan showed me this...oh well, at least we didn't close the lid on her.

We're praying she gets back into the routine of sleeping through the night. For the last week or so she's been getting up around 11:30 and then again at 3:30 and 4:30. We did discover that she's not cutting three teeth up top, but four! She's also still not interested in stage 3 baby food so we've got back to stage 2 and are trying new flavors/textures instead. She likes cinnamon bagels but doesn't like cooked carrots or mac and cheese. I have a feeling Ryan's picky tastes are going to be quite evident in Phoebe's eating habits. Maybe it won't be so bad - here's hoping!

Eating & Teething

There really hasn't been much going on that's post-worthy so mostly, this will just be pictures of the Phoebes. She's getting three teeth up top all at once and has been a champ through most of this teething process. Friday was a bit rough - she ran a fever and was much whinier than usual. However, we got out of the house with YiaYia and that always makes things better (for Phoebe and for Mommy!) - and she got to experience her first ride in a shopping cart - there's no doubt about it, the girl likes to shop!

We've been trying to introduce her to stage 3 baby food but she's just not interested in a chunky texture (any advice out there would be MUCH appreciated!). She likes yogurt, but it's smooth - give her a scrambled egg, she throws it on the floor! She tried cheerios tonight for the first time and gobbled those right up. I don't know if it's the teething or if she just doesn't trust us since we've been trying to introduce new textures but she's not been very interested in eating the last few days either. We're hoping this is all just a phase and she'll get back into her old ways of being a good eater and a good sleeper for that matter!

She's getting into any and everything. She discovered Pita's dog food but seems to have forgotten about it the last couple of days. She loves to stand and isn't content to just crawl anymore. I think walking will be achieved long before her first birthday - I'm not sure we're ready for that!

I just couldn't resist this picture. She may only be in the 20th percentile, but she's got some healthy legs! By the way, do you see what she's standing on?! That's right - the stairs! Watch out world, she is definitely on the move! I think it's time we invest in some baby gates...

We've been lucky enough to spend the last two Sundays at YiaYia and Papou's after church. There's nothing like a meal cooked by your own mom, so it's been a welcome change. Uncle Steve has even joined us and is working on teaching Phoebe to use her words and learn the piano - he has high hopes for the kid!

9 Months Old

It's hard to believe Phoebe is 9 months old today! What a whirlwind it's been so far! We went to visit her pediatrician and it was NOT a fun visit. We walked into a very busy waiting room only to find out they didn't even have us scheduled for today. Luckily, they were able to squeeze us in 20 minutes later. We just had to keep her entertained which wasn't hard to do.

She had to end her visit with a flu booster so we didn't get to leave without any shots. As you can see from the picture, she's not a fan of the doctor's office so getting her to lay still to get her length and sit on the scale to get her weight were near impossible. We think she's 27 1/2 inches (50th percentile) and weighed in at 16 lbs. 13 oz. which put her in the 20th percentile. The doctor said he wasn't worried about her slow weight gain but we did talk about supplementing her diet with formula...I'm excited to start her on some new things like yogurt and eggs and see how she does.

She fell asleep on the 5 minute ride home and is still sleeping soundly over an hour later (her normal nap is 20-30 minutes so I'm thrilled!). She's pulling up on things and into everything. And after this morning, that now includes the toilet - who does that!? She's definitely keeping us on our toes! We certainly couldn't imagine life without her, that's for sure!

Happy Birthday, Ryan!

Happy birthday to the love of my life (so it's a bit late since he turned 32 on the 7th, but I wanted to have pictures to post and we didn't really celebrate til this weekend)! It's hard to believe we're not just 30 anymore but well on our way into our thirties... I just want to take a brief second and mention just how much I love him. He's patient, kind, funny beyond words, thoughtful, honest, romantic, loves the Lord, loves my family, loves me, adores our little girl...I hope his 32nd year is by far the best he's ever had and I promise to do my part to make that happen for him. I love ya, honey!

And with that said, on to our latest drama, which isn't truly drama, really. With all of Phoebe's moving around now that she can crawl and LOVES to pull up on everything, I'm sure battle wounds are bound to come. I just didn't think they'd start in her crib! I took a shower on Saturday while Ryan was out running errands and left her in her crib to play. Of course she cried the entire shower (so no conditioner and a very quick shave later...) I go to her room and she's got snot running all down the side of her face and this hideous blip on her eye, so we both cried! She must have hit it somehow because it's a deep purple today - anyhow, I felt just awful and vowed to never shower again unless she's better occupied.

Saturday night we got together with the Taylor's and Nolan to celebrate. We went out to eat at Buffalo Wild Wings and then headed back to their house for a little play time and a Dairy Queen blizzard cake for dessert (yumm-o!). Here Phoebe is with her Uncle Matt.

And here's Nolan posing for his picture to be posted on Facebook...

They had picked out all kinds of age-appropriate toys for Phoebe to play with but just like at home, it's the ones that aren't meant for her that she goes after...

I think Maddie misses having a little sister to play with!

Today, we went over to Mom & Dad's after church to celebrate. Katie couldn't make it down from Ft. Wayne (they got over 6 inches of snow this weekend) and Steve ended up having a work deadline of 4:00 on a Sunday (really?!) and that left us with just Mom & Dad. But it was nice and relaxing (as it can be with a near-nine month old...) Ryan asked for homemade fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy and corn. She made green bean casserole too, just so there'd be something green on our plates. Can you guess who is starting a diet on Monday!? Phoebe got to taste mashed potatoes for the first time and is really enjoying her puffs.

She also made him a carrot cake that was oh-so-sinful!


He got all kinds of goodies, including wireless headphones to play videogames after Phoebe goes to bed, a jig saw, the Bible Experience and gift cards to Michael's, Dick's and my all time favorite, Chick-fil-a!

Christmas

I found a few shots I'd taken before we headed down south and wanted to post them since they're so happy.

Ryan insisted on capturing this moment on film - I guess it's something he used to do when he was younger (which explains a lot...). I have yet to see her do anything that I can claim as something she got from me - except for the way she arches her back in protest when you try to put her in her carseat. I have a feeling we've got a strong-willed child on our hands...

And although she looks tired in this picture, she's got the bluest eyes...

While visiting pre-Christmas in Anderson, I learned to take videos with my camera (not our videocamera which I'm still trying to figure out how to share) so that I can upload them. Here's our first attempt - although not monumental, you can see Phoebe in action.

I honestly don't know how people with multiple children get anything done, let alone those of us with just one. We're just exhausted! We left last Tuesday after work for Georgia on icy roads (praise the Lord we didn't have any problems!) and made it in around 1:00 a.m. Phoebe finally got back to sleep around 3:00 a.m.

Here's Ella (2 1/2) who powered through a double ear infection over the holidays. She was so fun to watch. Her Uncle Brent came in from Chicago and was certainly the highlight of her Christmas.

She shared her presents with everyone.

And oh the dogs! Between us there were two dachsunds and three pomeranians. Thanks to Mike and Carrie who left their two at home! We had such a fun time and even got to enjoy some warmer weather and sunshine while visiting.

We got back around 11:00 Sunday night and by 10:00 Monday morning we were at my family's home to celebrate Christmas with them. They'd refrained from opening any presents till we arrived so Katie was especially anxious for us to make it home.

Phoebe didn't quite get into the whole opening presents thing but still made out pretty well. Although her attention span is pretty short, we now have a plethora of toys to distract her longer!

Ryan got a new tripod for Christmas so we had to break it in with a family picture.

We hope everyone enjoyed the holidays with family and friends. It's so hard to believe 2008 is behind us and we're facing a brand new year. May you all be truly blessed in 2009, may love and laughter fill your homes and true Joy fill your hearts.