Eden is 7 months

Dear sweet Eden,

Seven months is such an awakening! You notice everything and suddenly the world is an incredibly curious place. You crane your neck to see in every direction and just can't see to absorb enough. This month one of your mos exciting finds are your feet. You grab them and hang on, like an expert Yogi, stretching your little feet toward the sky. The changing table is your favorite place to find them and its there that you are enamored most often with your toes, those little digits that seem incredibly new and exciting to you.

Toes of course are not the only thing you are excited about though, you also love food. You continue to try new things and love nearly all of it. Even though you love it, you still don't have any teeth. We can't quite figure out when you'll get them! You are up to two meals a day now, and your little chunky thighs and tummy makes me think you are packing it away around your little midsection. You are a plump and adorable baby and I love those rolls so much and you love breakfast.

With a full tummy and new toes for exploring, you've also taken to rolling around. Its your current mode of transportation and the only way you know to get from A to B, Its fun to see you roll roll roll toward the things you want, or to try to wiggle your from my arms. Its exciting to see your curiosity turn into movement, but also make me recall how quickly things advance from here- before I know it you'll be crawling and I'll be missing my tiny baby.

And while you are excited about food, moving around, and toes, and new things, we are not super excited about your recent sleeping. Lately you've been going down around 6:30 after nursing,but then seem to be up at 2 or so and its an on and off circus to get you back down, eventually we give up around 4 and stash you in our bed, where you only sort of sleep well, and we certainly don't, leading to not the best sleep for anyone of course. Its not ideal and we can't quite figure it out.

This month was exciting for you because it also was your first Christmas. We celebrated at home, which I appreciate very much and Santa brought you your first dolly and so many clothes, because you are growing like a weed. I made certain to hold onto this first moment with you, as you witnessed your first taste of the magic of Christmas. Your brothers continue to adore you and on Christmas it was extra special. They were certain to show you what you received and were excited for you to open presents, and they took special pride in picking out books for you. It was a fantastic morning.

A week after Christmas we headed to Michigan for the new year to celebrate with Nana, Papa, Cha Cha, Aunt Chris, Uncle Pete, Aunt Faya, Uncle Nate, and all the kiddos.  Owen had his sixth birthday party and you were right in the mix. On that trip you took your 11th and 12th flight, which means you are certainly a well traveled baby! 

This month we also started trying out the Starling. The Starling is basically a word pedometer that we use to make sure we are talking to you enough. Its actually a research tool, but I brought it home and put it on you to see if we could use it to receive feedback- which has implications for my work, but has been fun to use with you too, since you are at such a ripe age to hear all the words.

Seven months also meant a few milestones including your first word: dada. It was the first time I considered it a word when you looked right at him and started the dadadadadada babble. You do adore him so much, and its pretty mutual. You're an adorable duo.

Seven months is all kinds of fun, snuggled between being a baby and the independence of the coming months. We love you so much, baby girl.

love,

Momma and Daddy

Monster Trucks!

Sometimes we win at parenting. Sometimes things are all success, and barely any disappointment. Sometimes we feel nothing but joy and thankfulness in the gifts we were given as small, malleable humans. This was not that day. Or month for that matter. This was something different.

When you have a baby things change. We were totally expecting this change, but our two boys not so much. They adore Eden and really really can't get enough of her. But for a little while there I'm pretty sure they didn't adore us. We were short on tempers, over-tired, working to find our new balance. We were not at our best, to say the least. I'm sure they wondered when they'd get their parents back. I'm sure the were trying to predict just what would be our trigger each day. We were not winning.

When you recognize you aren't doing your best, its hard to find the way back. Usually because not doing our best is a function of some stress, and until that is relieved finding our way back is like wandering in the dark. But, this time it was a baby, not some thing that would wander away and out of our world. So we had to figure out to make our lives balanced again.

As we figured out our lives with Eden, we knew we also had to figure out how to give the boys the attention they deserved again. We were fortunate they were patient with us, and after many weeks of tolerating the adjustments in our lives, we thought they were due for something fun.

Enter: Monster Jam.

It was early December and I noticed Monster Jam would be in town. Just after Thanksgiving I bought Drew and the boys tickets and sent them off. Drew didn't tell them where they were headed, they thought they were off to take an afternoon ride on the light rail. When they came to the USBank stadium Drew told them where they were headed, and they, of course, were overjoyed. 

He texted me photos, and their faces showed pure joy. I love that look on them. So innocent and lovely. I was so happy to see them happy. They enjoyed every moment of it and told me all about the various monster trucks when they returned. 

 And while I can't say that Monster Jam was what set us back on balance, it certainly was a start. I felt like less of a jerk and they could see the light in our lives again as we find the cadence that is our family's happiness. And so, little by little we eeked our way back to the homeostatis of life.

Family Photos 2016

Family photos capture moments in time that years down the road you wish to go back to and hold tightly in your heart. Every year we go through the trouble to take them, and on that day, it always feels like such a mess- someone's not smiling, or someone is getting grass stains, or someone is making faces, and I always leave the photoshoot simultaneously wishing that it wasn't so hard and like the worst mom on the planet for all the yelling that happens in that hour of time to get a few good photos. 

But then a few weeks pass, and I see the gems arrive in my inbox, and each moment of discontent disappears, because these photos capture all that is wonderful and good in my children. Impish grins, joyful smiles, curious wonder, I love each photo for all it reminds me of and all it holds- the best of both worlds. 

So here's 2016, for each moment up to it, I'm grateful and for all the love in these photos, I'll forever capture in my heart. I love these four more than anything else and I couldn't imagine a life without all that comes with our family, the ups, the downs, and everything in between.

Eden is 6 months old

Dear sweet Eden,

I can barely believe its been half a year. It went by so quickly. The saying rings true- the days are long but the years are short. Because you are such a good baby, sometimes I also feel like the days are short too. Especially on days I have to work- I can barely squeeze in enough time to be with you and the boys.  I know you are in good hands though, as Candy, your nanny truly adores you like you are her own grandchild.

Six months means you are getting more and more excited about interacting with us and you are more intentional about what makes you happy and not so happy. You are so very sweet and smile all the time. I recently read something that says babies at 6 months cry up to 2 hours a day. I imagine in a day you cry for a total of 15 minutes maybe?

Our days start around 7:30. You’ve been throwing us for a loop with your sleep schedule and this month, we celebrated Thanksgiving, with 15 family members in our house Wednesday to Sunday. You did not find that exactly appealing as while they were here you were not up to sleeping through the night. We figured it was something to do with your noticing the extra folks in your space and hoped for improvement. It came for a week or so- you were back on schedule, but then became unsteady again. Oh, the fickle ways of your sleep schedule.

Naps though continue to work out super well. You usually take two, 2-hr naps and sometimes a third that is about 30 to 40 minutes. You can sleep in your crib well for these naps, but admittedly, we often hold you and take a nap of our own. We are not supposed to- we are aware. But I honestly can’t get enough of rocking you so long as I am not exhausted. You are such a sweet baby.

After we are up, we head to get dressed, and the moment the boys hear us out of bed they are there to greet you. They continue to adore you, and as I write this I can hear Collin’s voice saying “Hi Eden!” both boys’ warmest characteristics shine around you- they are kind and gentle, loving and quiet. I love seeing it surface in their usual rough-and-tumble routine of 2 boys 18 months apart.

Then we head down to breakfast. You usually sit in your swing, but you are certainly getting too big for it. You can hear the battery struggle to move it as you sit there. You look up at the mobile and catch the stars as they move around. You are content as we get the day started and we narrate breakfast to you. The boys move quickly to get ready for school, and you are gleefully entertained. They always make sure to spend time making you belly laugh, or to hold you and offer you some of the toys you prefer.

At six months you aren’t eating breakfast yet, but you would like to. Anytime I am holding you and I am taking a bite of a bagel or English muffin, you are leaning in, mouth open, anxious to get a taste too. We are holding off to introduce breakfast until 7 months or so, but right before Thanksgiving we did introduce your first food, which as you might expect, you loved. This month at your check up you weighed in at over 17 pounds, in the 64th percentile and you are in the 95th for height.

Your first taste was of sweet potatoes, a fitting first for the Thanksgiving season. At first you weren’t entirely sure about the texture, but once you figured it out you wanted more. You cried the first time I emptied a jar.  And since then, there was no looking back. You have entered the realm of flavors with reckless abandon- enjoying all of them. Sweet potatoes, pears, kale, cucumbers, garbanzo beans, strawberry, carrot, oatmeal, banana, you name a first food- you’ve probably tried the pureed version.

But dinner is a long way away from breakfast, and in our usual routine you seem to know it. You stare longingly at the boys and my breakfasts, daydreaming of the days ahead when you will get your own. After a few songs and breakfast finishes we head upstairs to make beds and get dressed. You nearly always lay on their beds while I orchestrate the routine of getting dressed. You are fascinated with what they are doing all the time.

They get dressed, eventually, and play with you on your play mat while I take a turn at getting ready for the day. In these 15 minutes they dote on you- adoring your smile and coos. You chatter with them, telling them all about your expectations for the day and they play along, narrating all of your sounds with words. Collin always reads you two or three books and when they can, they both try to engage you in play. Lately it has been with the Elephant ball popper, which they find hilarious and you laugh intensely at their wide smiles.

All too soon, I’m ready for work and the boys are ready for school and its time for our day to part- you get lots of one on one attention from Candy, playing again often on your playmat or on cold days in front of the warm fireplace. She talks to you and carries you around in a whirlwind of activity as she does laundry and dishes and floors, and all the other things we are so thankful for. Mostly though, she loves being with you, so we feel especially blessed to have her in our lives.

In this window you take two naps- the first right when we leave, going down around 9:15 and usually it’s a 1.5 to 2 hour nap, and then about 2 hours from when you wake, you take another, waking up to your dad, who also adores you. And the feeling is mutual. Whenever you see him your little face lights up. He’s especially good at talking to you and playing with you and I think he really enjoys that time from 2:30 until 3:45 when you both go to pick up the boys because I haven’t returned from work yet.

At 4 the boys re-enter the scene, and you are always glad to see their faces, as they are yours. Then the chaos of many chores, activities, homework and reading begins, with you at the center. I come home usually around 4:30/5 to join the mix and we figure out dinner. Then at 5:30 you enjoy your dinner and always end up in the bath each night afterward. You enjoy it so much that you find ways to push the spoon across your face and on your arms, and in your hair until you are wearing much of the leftover food.

Baths are still a favorite for you. You love the warm water and you like to watch us pour it from high up as it lands on your hands and wrists. We moved you to a bigger tub last month and you seem to be enjoying the new found freedom to sit up and play while you are in the warm water.

After bath we start to wind down for bed, jammies, stories, snuggles with Lamby-kins. At 6:15 I usually feed you one last time and begin the process of rocking you to sleep. I adore holding your sweet face as you drift off to sleep, as every night I am reminded how lucky we are to have you in our lives, and how privileged our family is to be safe, warm, well fed and nearly worry free when so many other parts of the world are suffering so much. Every night I stare into your little eyes and give thanks that you live in a part of the world that I don’t have to question your wellbeing and safety everyday and that your development is so well protected with all of the fantastic adults who care about you in your life. Then you drift off, and I snuggle you into your crib where you sleep until we hear from you around midnight because you spit out your Nuk. We pop it back in your mouth and cross our fingers you’ll sleep until 4 or so.

This month, aside from our routine, you mastered more milestones. You are able to sit up unassisted now and you can roll to and from something that you desire. You love to chew on your fist, or our knuckles or try to bite our faces in the most innocent way. You love to get your hands on my hair and pull and you would chew Sophie’s face off if you could, I think. You celebrated your first Thanksgiving, where 15 family members came over the river and through the woods to see you and you’ve increased your social interactions so much, you love to watch and try to interact with the other babies at ECFE.

In short, you are a sweet miracle. We love you and we can’t wait to see what 7 months will hold.
Off we go to another month ahead.
All our love
Momma and Daddy