Well, here we are...my 12 months of photos is OVER! Can hardly believe it. I am so glad that I was able to keep up with these updates. I have 7 months of Brooke's monthly scrapbook layouts completed and I must say that it's turning into one of my very favorite scrapbook albums. (which reminds me that I need to post my latest layouts on here, haven't done that yet either, yikes).
Brooke's birthday fell on a Monday, so we decided to take her to the zoo on the Sunday before that, as a special Birthday treat. We had a spell of gorgeous Spring weather those few days, so the night of her birthday we were able to take her out for a hot dog and some ice cream. YUM. I will hopefully post some pics from those events soon. Even more exciting, was her 1st Birthday Bash at our house this past weekend. We had to stuck to immediate family (we both have big families!), and we still had a LOT of people. I have LOTS of pics from all the decorations. I will have a full post on that coming soon. It was so much fun to make all the Birthday goodies - I think I could do this for a living! LOL!
Here is the last of Brooke's one year updates...thanks to everyone for listening to me do these each month. It really helps me to have these to look back on. I really love having it all documented!
At 12 Months, Brooke:
is a walking FOOL! Walking everywhere now. Pretty steady on her feet when the surface is smooth...we are working on getting over door jams, hills, and walking on grass But overall she is doing great and zooming around everywhere! She started just after turning 11 months...
LOVES to say the word "ball". EVERYTHING is "bah!". If there is a ball in the area, she let's you know about it. Even things that don't remotely resemble a ball, are "bah's"
Also says Mama, Dada, UH OH (when she drops something), and Bubbles ("buh buh") - we were pretty surprised with that last one, but it came flying out when we were playing w/ bubbles on Easter! She has *sort of* said Thank You a few times - we are working on that one.
Loves her green giraffe stuffed animal, and her Elmo doll. We pretty much always have one of them with us at all times.
LOVES to be outside. Wants to go outside all the time (hates it when we bring her back INSIDE)
Is long & lean, weighing just 19lbs. 1oz. and measuring 29.5" long...! I'm not sure where she puts all the food she eats...!
Finally has tooth #2 coming in, right next to tooth #1...!
LOVES hot dogs
Started taking music class and is loving all the singing, dancing and interacting with other kids her own age - I can't get her to sit still when we're there - all she wants to do is bop around and sit on other people's laps...!!
Has her own little mind & personality already. Not much is getting in her way when she wants something (*sigh*). She is very social and does great around other babies - loves watching & playing with them. She's pretty good at grabbing the toys she wants (and holding onto them)
Wow, only one more month of these. She is almost a year old. I am seriously having a hard time facing the reality of this you guys. It's especially hard when I see or do the same things that we did last year at this time. And then I realize that last year at this time I was hugely pregnant and getting ready for this new baby. And NOW she is this little person! ?!! GAH.
At 11 months, Brooke:
- still only has one tooth, but is very cute with her "one tooth smile"...!
- loves to dance along to music, or to songs that we sing to her. She tries to do "itsy bitsy" spider, especially the part where they "wash the spider out". It's her favorite part! We have coined the dance move "washing machine" for when she shakes her arms side to side (pretty much does this to any song that comes on)
- is a Pro at walking around with her wooden walking cart.
- has her first pair of "big girl shoes"...! (AKA early walker shoes from Stride Rite). She needed something with grip on the bottom so she can move around the hardwood floors in our house, and also to play outside.
- Has taken a step but falls or dives onto our laps almost immediately after that tiny step. She's *very* close to walking and you can tell that she would prefer to walk instead of crawl, she's just trying to put it all together.
- waves ALL.THE.TIME. Doesn't stop waving. Waves to people on the street, people who can't even see her - just everyone. It's freaking adorable, LOL.
- had an AWESOME time on her trip to Hawaii. Loved being in her stroller parading around our hotel, waving to everyone & anyone who might wave back
At 11 months, I have to bribe her with items like Mommy' s lens cap to keep her interested in my photoshoots...(whatever works, right?)
This lens cap sure does taste good...
Love you little one, soo very much. Only one more month of being my little baby. Soon you will be a toddler. Excuse me while I go cry now...
I am in denial about my baby being double-digits 10 months old..GAH! All I can think of is how this time last year we were heading into the home stretch. Baby showers, baby gear, putting it all together, finishing touches on the nursery, me stuffing my faces with donuts. HA. Can't believe that was almost an entire year ago...!
Brooke is getting more & more fun each day. She is becoming this little person. It's so awesome. Here is a summary of what's she up to at 10 months!
- still no teeth. I am not even joking on this....! Too funny.
- LOVES food. Eats everything. Mostly wants to feed herself. If we give her something that is super messy, we spoon feed it to her & she is OK with it, but grabs at the spoon & would much rather do it herself. Which we find hilarious...! Someone like to be in control I think, eh?
- waves hello & bye bye. Cutest thing!
- LOVES reading books and looking through them - one of the only things that keeps her sitting still these days...
- crawls everywhere. Pushes aside the baby gate and crawls right through it. Turns around at me & laughs when she does it!
- is starting to understand the meaning of the word "No"...sort of. haha.
- has mastered her sippy cup and LOVES it. Always wants to drink water out of her sippy cup. She throws it back like a champ!
- likes to stand up ALL the time. Pulls herself up and stands without holding on.
- goes to lots & lots of places and restaurants with Mommy & Daddy. She is becoming a pro at eating in restaurants with us - lots of fun!
- Still hasn't taken a first step, but she wants to. She stands there and lunges towards me into my lap!
- LOVES being tickled on her belly and around her neck. She giggles & squeals with delight when we do it. Hysterical.
- is getting LONG. She is out growing a lot of her clothes due to length. These photos above truly show just how big she's getting.
She is still such a happy little girl (as you can tell from these pics!). I am already planning her first birthday party - I will admit that I am excited about all the fun decorating and crafting I will get to do for it
so here we are at 9 months...just 3 months until my little girl is a year old. I cannot believe it. In case you missed my 2 other posts tonight, I am finally getting around to posting month updates for the last few months. I clearly slacked on those..sorry! Time just got away from me. I really wanted to keep doing this though, because I am using this as a journal for when I scrapbook these photos. In fact, I plan on starting that scrapbook soon, so stay tuned for info on that!
So, Brooke is growing so fast and learning more & more everyday. She keeps us laughing all the time...and definitely keeps us on our toes! Only the beginning I'm sure...
OK I have a confession. I am obsessed with her chunk. I could NOT resist this shot. I mean who could? And I will also confess that even though it's January, I sometimes delay putting her clothes on her for a few minutes. Just so I can watch her roam around in her diaper. Because she is SO cute with all the chunk everywhere. GAH. Love it
...and below she is finally saying "ENOUGH with the pictures Mom. SERIOUSLY!!?!"
At 9 months, Brooke:
- is completely, 100% mobile. She is EVERYWHERE. Crawling forward, zooming around, pulling up on anything & everything entirely on her own.
- has stood in place, freestanding a few times without holding onto anything (yikes!)
- is almost walking. Yes, I know. Way too fast. I don't think it will be much longer until she takes a few steps...!
- chats it up all the time. MAMAMAMAMA and DADADADA are a few of her favorites. I'm not 100% sure that she knows what they mean, but loves to say it a lot. It's super cute!
- is a human vacuum with food. Loves anything & everything we put in front of her. She just *sort of* started taking things off a spoon, like yogurt. But prefers to feed herself way more. She LOVES broccoli and American cheese. But for the most part she eats anything we give her.
- still has zero teeth. HA! Every week I think it's going to happen but still nothing yet.
- sleeps great (aside from when she is sick but who can blame her). She still falls asleep a lot in the car and naps great so I can't complain. She typically takes one small nap in the morning and then a longer nap in the afternoon.
- spends time in my crafting room with me sometimes after her afternoon nap. I bring her up there when I'm trying to finish something up & she has a great time. I don't bring any of her toys up there, I just give her a few of my things to play with. She loves exploring and getting to play with new things, and be with Mama of course
- still going to swim class & loving it.
- still smiley all the time, even at total strangers. Love it. Such a happy girl - We are truly blessed!
I've been taking her photos in her playroom lately. We are still working on finishing the room, but I'm sure you can tell by these pics that we sort of tiled the floor with those foam squares. It works out great and adds nice color to the room. I hope over the next few weeks we can get some paint on the walls & add some decorations. I am sure I will do a post about it on here once it's complete!
...and here is my REALLY delayed post for Brooke at 8 months. I promise I will try & keep up for the remaining 3 months of her first year!
my chunky legs...Mama loves them! They have a few bruises from all the crawling around & pulling up I've been doing...!
oh this? This is just another thing for me to stand up on...right?
...right??
At 8 Months, Brooke:
- is *finally* crawling FORWARD! yay! For a while all she would do is scoot backwards, and end up in corners, and get frustrated, haha!
- is pulling up on anything & everything. She is STANDING up people. On her OWN. In fact, she did this before she learned to crawl. It's crazy how fast she picks things up!
- is doing great with food. Has her pincer grasp down totally now. Feeds herself like a champ. We have never fed Brooke solid food - she has always fed herself. It works out so much better that way. She sits and eats family meals *with* us. Whatever we have, she has (as long as it's somewhat healthy!) All in all, meal time is a fun time in this house. Which we like!
- is very chatty. Lots of dahhh dahh dahh and mahhh mah mah muh muh mum mum. We love listening to it...even if it doesn't really mean anything
- is already switched to the lowest level on her crib mattress we had to do it once she started pulling to stand. Just wasn't safe anymore. I admit, I am sad
- has officially pushed us to start babyproofing the house. Baby gates are in, and we are slowly figuring out ways to keep her contained but also let her explore. It's challenging (and tiring!) but oh so fun.
- Loves her Momma and Dada. She is sort of in a "I want my Mommy" phase right now which I hear is typical for this age. It is especially bad if she's tired and I walk by while someone else is holding her. She instantly reaches out for me and Lord help me if I do not grab hold of her. Let's just say she's not happy. LOL.
- She is still VERY smiley and happy. Smiles at everyone! Not many things freak her out - she's easy going and up for most anything.
- Is loving her swim classes and any & all activities or events we take her to. Santa didn't even scare her (yay!)
SO - now that Brooke is over 9 months old, I figured I should post her SEVEN and EIGHT month updates. D'oh!
I've had these typed out for a while but just haven't gotten around to posting them. I really have no excuse (other than the cute baby you see in these pics) - all I know is I have been a slacking slacker who slacks. So without further ado, I will be posting her 7, 8 & 9 month updates. All in one night
...always happy
At 7 Months, Brooke:
- is *almost* crawling. She loves to get up on her knees and rock back & forth! She also scoots all over the place, but backwards. She gets stuck sometimes and gets pretty frustrated!
- loves to eat her puffs & cheerios. She loves shaking the tupperware container that has the puffs & cheerios even MORE though
- speaking of eating, Brooke is becoming quite the pro at feeding herself! We never fed Brooke by spoon - we have let her pickup & feed herself right from the start, and I think she prefers it that way - she is getting really good at it!
- sits up like a pro!
- is STILL putting anything & everything into her mouth. ALL. THE. TIME
- still no sign of any teeth. Certainly the above bullet point would suggest teeth are on their way, but alas, we have no teeth yet!
I am getting bad at posting these on time! Sooo I'm 10 days late. Oh well - I have an excuse
MY BABY IS 6 MONTHS OLD!! ahhhh. How does that happen? HOW?
Brooke has been doing great! She had her 6 month appointment and is right on track for everything. At 6 months, Brooke:
- weighs 15 lbs. 9oz.
- sits up all by herself! Still needs a pillow behind her *just in case* - every now & then she will roll over so we just want to protect her little head.
- is thinking about crawling - just thinking about it. You can see that she wants to, she just hasn't figured out how it all works. I think by 8 months we will have a crawler on our hands. YIKES.
- LOVES THE CAT. Have I mentioned that before? Yea. She is obsessed. They are BFF's. Whenever he is around, she is fixated on him. Laughs, giggles, squeals with excitement just watching him. He lies there & she even gets to pet (grab) him once in a while. It's oh so fun.
- Smiles, smiles, smiles. What you see in the photos I post is not just me catching a moment. It's truly how she is most of the time. When we are out & about - anyone who talks to her brings a huge smile across her face. She is such a little flirt
- Has just started eating real food. She LOVES to be a part of our meal. The highchair seems a bit daunting for her right now, so we throw her in the Bumbo, with a tray & slap some of whatever we are eating onto the tray for her. She totally makes a huge mess, but seems to enjoy it!
- is dressing up as a Strawberry for Halloween.
I thought it would be fun to list a bunch of the things Brooke has already done in her short life. (I plan on looking back at these posts someday & scrapbooking them all, so it helps for me to do this!) We've really tried to take her almost anywhere we go - she is really great about it & comes along for most anything! Brooke has already been:
- to a Red Sox game at Fenway Park
- on road trips for long weekends with us at Nana & Grandpa's
- to the beach several times (stuck her feet in the water!)
- in a kiddie pool a few times (splashed all around!)
- to a 4th of July Carnival
- to Cape Cod (several times!)
- Blueberry Picking
- Apple Picking
- Pumpkin Picking
- to the Big E State Fair
- on the Swan Boats ride in the Boston Public Gardens
- on the swings at LOTS of parks!
- to the Zoo
...I am sure there is lots more that I am leaving out. Overall we are having so much fun with little Miss Brooke and can't wait to enjoy the next 6 months. <3
Sidenote: I get asked a lot where I got those onesie's with the months on them. They are actually just stickers that you slap onto a white onesie. Genius!
Here is the Etsy Shop that I grabbed them from!
This post is super LATE, but better late than never right?
So my little bean is 5 months. (that's what we called her when I was pregnant. "Bean". We didn't know what we were having, so it was just the easiest thing.) I cannot believe we are almost closing in on half a year. It seriously flies by! I can tell you that she gets better every day & makes us laugh on the daily. She is just a happy, easy-going baby. Love her.
Sitting up with some help from Dada.
At 5 months, Brooke:
- is almost sitting up on her own. She can sit with assistance from us or a Boppy Pillow. She is loving her new perspective on life!
- puts anything/everything in her mouth, still She really has the hand/eye coordination down. She's great at putting things into her mouth & not missing!
- reaches for EVERYTHING. Gone are the days I can drink something while holding her without worrying if she will grab it. If it's in my hands, she wants it.
- has attended her first Red Sox Game at Fenway Park! She had a great time & so did we. Lots of the fans at the park thought it was great she was there. We start them young in this house
- LOVES the cat. Love love love. He walks by, she gazes at him & follows his every move. When he lies down next to us, she squeals & smiles with delight. We take her hand & pat him and she just loves it.
- Smiles all the time. Smile smile smile.
- Rolls onto her belly the minute you put her on her back, and stays there. She sleeps on her belly now & sleeps SO. MUCH. BETTER. I love that she's able to roll back & forth now and we don't have to worry about her falling asleep on her belly.
- Sleeps great! Sleeps quite a bit during the day, and also at night. She is still waking up to feed once a night, and I'm OK with that. I'm used to it & it's our snuggle time. <3
OK, and since I can't stop sharing & just love these pics, I had to share 2 more to show you how crazy she is about her Daddy:
makes my heart melt. <3
this post is a few days late but I still had to share. My sweet little girl is 4 months old already! We had our monthly photoshoot and she seemed to be more into this month than last month, thankfully
(for some reason the color in these pics didn't translate & they are looking a little "blah" on here. Not sure why)
my smiley girl...!!
At 4 Months, Brooke:
- is a rolling machine!! The minute you put her down on her back, she rolls right to her belly. She can roll back, but it's not as easy for her so she gets frustrated and I have to roll her back a lot so she doesn't totally freak out. It's cute
- Loves her feet. They are always up in the air, she loves grabbing them.
- Puts anything & everything in the mouth. She is really getting good at grabbing her toys.
- Was sleeping like a champ through the night, but we've been hitting that "4 month wakeful" period so she's been up a few more times during the night. I am hoping it doesn't last too long - but then again, she nurses and goes right back down. And I would be lying if I said I didn't secretly love those late night nursing sessions. It's our special time together
- Is going to daycare 2 days a week and doing great so far! She loves looking at and watching the other babies. I know she is learning a lot and it gives me a chance to work. I am home with her the other 3 days so it really is the perfect balance for us.
- Is starting to belly laugh. We love it!
- Weighs 13lbs, 12oz and is 25.5 inches long. She's a long baby!
- Has officially grown out of her 0-3 month clothing. We are now in 3-6 months...although I do still try to squeeze more use out of some 0-3 onesies. Makes me sad to put them away
Wow, it's officially been a month since I've posted. YIKES. Sorry guys. Truth is that a) I have a baby who takes up a lot of my time and b) it's SUMMER! So in general I don't get to do much crafting when it's this hot & nice outside. We try and enjoy the weather as much as we can. Weekends right now are usually full of BBQ's and road trips to see friends & family
Anyway, in the middle of all this, Brooke is now 3 months. Holy poop! I can't believe it. Anyway, we did a little photoshoot and I have to tell you she was not loving it. It was hot, and she just wasn't in the mood to pose. But I took pics anyway, of course
At 3 Months, Brooke:
- coo's & chats up a STORM! We love hearing her make her little noises and can really get her going when we engage her, especially first thing in the morning
- is officially sleeping in her crib in her own room!
- smiles a TON! Love it. Again, she is happiest first thing in the morning
- eats her fists all the time. She is just starting to grab onto toys a little bit
- loves the bouncy seat w/ toys hanging down. She bats them around and kicks kicks...KICKS a lot!
- LOVES Baby Elmo. Every morning after I feed her I read to her. Her favorite book is "how big is Baby Elmo?". She smiles every time we read it together. I love it.
SO - back to crafting: the good news is that I've created a few things lately! I hope to share here soon. Just gotta take pics of my work. I promise I will do my best to share it here very soon. Thanks for sticking with me while I am the world's biggest slacker
