Britta: NINE MONTHS OLD

RICHLAND, WASH. -- Lots of updates for little Britta lately. Yesterday her first tooth FINALLY popped through on the bottom! Finally. I was beginning to wonder if something was wrong with her teeth! She also waived at me for the first time this past week. And she also started giving high fives! We are on a roll with this little ball of chub! 

I came into the kitchen one day last week, where Britta was sitting in her high chair, and I waved at her and she gave me a huge smile and waved back-- with those weak, floppy hands of hers. Her cute little hands just flopped back and forth in a clear effort to wave at me. I'd been trying to work on this with her for a while, always making her hand wave at other people to say hello or goodbye. So when she did it on her own, I cheered for her so loudly, I probably scared her. Every time she can do something new with those little hands of hers, I am amazed. And so, so happy.

Nine Month Old Stats:

• 21.13 lbs. (93rd percentile)
• 29" tall (92nd percentile)
• 18.27" HC (97th percentile)

Sleeping: Starting to phase down to just one nap. Giving her a morning nap was starting to get tricky trying to go anywhere or get anything done, otherwise I'm sure she'd still love to go to sleep much sooner. She sleeps from about Noon to two or so and goes to bed at seven. 

Wearing: 9-12 month clothes. Sometimes 18 months. 

Interesting tidbits: Of note, her head circumference is now below the 99% mark! This is the first time this has happened in her life. ha!

Her physical therapist sees improvement every week, which makes me so happy, and thinks she'll be "commando crawling" really soon by the way she's been positioning herself when she tries to reach for things. Though she's still about as flexible (aka floppy) as they come, she is gaining more muscle control. 

Britta loooooves her sisters so much and lights up when they come near her to play or give her hugs or kisses. She babbles to them all the time and giggles whenever they're around. Sometimes, when I am feeding her in her rocking chair, she'll arch back to look at the door, I'm pretty sure she's hoping to catch a glimpse of them or hope that they'll come into her room. 

Wearing a smocked dress that Grandma Candrian made

Wearing their princess pajamas. 

Matchy matchy. 

Meeting a few of her cousins in Portland. Michael insisted on holding her.

Labor Day weekend boat ride. 

BRITTA: Eight Months Old

RICHLAND, WASH. -- Our little girl is getting stronger every day. We adore her. We spent the beginning of the month in Texas for a family reunion and she loved playing in the water and being smothered with hugs and kisses by everyone. 

I think this might have been her first swing ride. She was just "eh" about it.
and not quite sturdy enough for me to push her with any force. 

EIGHT Month Old Stats:

• none this month

Sleeping: Starting to phase down to just one nice, long nap. I put her down for the nap around Noon and she goes to bed at seven.  

Wearing: 9-12 month clothes. Sometimes 18 months. 

Interesting tidbits: She's getting stronger and can push herself back up now when she falls over sitting up. 

She constantly amazes me with how good natured she is. We sat for two hours the other day at Paige and Marin's ballet lessons. She didn't even cry once. 

The ladies at the gym (in the kids zone (aka babysitting area)) are constantly doting over her and noticing how much stronger she's getting too. I love going to pick her up after a work out, and they tell me how much they love her. It's nice to know she's in good hands for an hour or so. 

She loves her sisters so much and lights up and laughs when she sees them. They can make her laugh like no one else. 

She loves splashing in the water. 

Still no teeth. It's a mystery. 

PAIGE: Three Years Old

RICHLAND, WASH. -- This past year has been filled, and I mean FILLED, with Paige's personality blossoming. I also recently re-read her two-year-old update and how I basically thought her sweet, innocent, pre-two-year-old-self could do no wrong. Well, the second this sweet, innocent girl turned two, the terrible two's snuck right on in... Two-year-old Paige was a mischievous, wild, energetic (sometimes crazy), lovable, naughty, messy, CRAZY (I mentioned that, right?) little thing. But oh is she cute. I never want to forget our little Paigey's sweet little voice and her genuine laughter and love for life. 

She's been Marin's inseparable side-kick and playmate this past year and she couldn't wait to turn three. She's taken on the role of a big sister with ease and can make Britta laugh like no one else. Actually, she makes us all laugh like no one else. The girl likes to be "silly" and make people laugh. She'll say the most odd-ball things to get a laugh, goofily dance around, and use silly voices to turn heads. She's the queen of playing make-believe and she and Marin could play dolls and any made-up game or imaginary scene ALL DAY LONG. If she's absent a doll, she'll find anything around her and bring it to life. She'll often use her food to talk to each other, or personify my make-up brushes while I'm getting ready. Her play objects have no limit. She loves playing with dolls the best and pretending  to be princesses. If Marin isn't around, she'll bring me a doll and say, "Mommy, make it talk." (I hate playing pretend, by the way, so it takes everything I have to make a doll talk for a few minutes). 

Paige and Marin could also spend hours performing for each other. We'll often find them standing on the fireplace ledge, which is their stage, saying things like, "Now announcing my favorite sister... MARIN...." and then Marin will proceed to the stage where she'll perform something and then announce Paige up on stage. It's quite darling and very entertaining. 

She loves to sing and dance and anything related to music. When Isaac plays his saxophone, she'll often run to his feet to sit and listen to him play. She loves dancing with Isaac and having him dip and spin her around. When Marin won't go run errands with Isaac (she's a big mommy's girl), Paige will jump at any chance to go somewhere with him.   

Soon after she turned two, we put her in a "big girl bed." And something happened. My sweet little girl, who has ALWAYS (even as a newborn) been a good sleeper, decided she did not like sleeping through the night. On top of that, she also stopped napping (or at least it was impossible to keep her in her "big girl bed" for nap time, so we just threw them out the window). Besides a handful of nights this entire year, Paige has NOT slept through the night, often waking up two, three, or sometimes four times. You can imagine what this will do to a person, night after night. I'm pretty sure it has aged me. I've often looked at myself in the mirror this past year and thought how "haggard" I look. Oh, it's the worst. Every time she wakes up, she comes down to our room and will tell us she's thirsty, wants me to hold her, or some other random thing. She generally goes right back to sleep once we take her back to her room, but it's made this past year a little rough on me. I'm usually exhausted, snappy, and very low on patience. Add a new baby into the mix (who actually sleeps very well, thank goodness), and I feel like I most certainly wouldn't win any mother of the year awards. I'm hoping this third year of life for my little Paigey can somehow produce excellent sleeping. At least she tells me it will. She's very aware that I'm not a fan of her nighttime wakings, and always tells me she "will sleep through a night." ("tonight" is "a night" to her. "Mommy, I want you to sleep by me a night.") Ah... one day. One day, I'll miss it. Right? 

  

Paige wanted a strawberry cake with rainbows, so that's what she got. Kind of. 

This cake was a group effort. Isaac even helped me frost it. Compared to last year's watermelon cake, I'm very proud of how this one turned out. It was A LOT of work. 

THREE YEAR STATS: 

• XX lbs. (67%)  

• XX (67%) 

EATING: She's such a good eater. She'll pick an apple, peach or orange over a cookie any day. It's quite remarkable. 
SLEEPING: You likely read my rant on this in the above paragraphs.   
WEARING: 3T. 
INTERESTING TIDBITS: She has an attachment to a little gray fuzzy blanket she got when she was born. One side is gray and white polka dots, the other side gray and white plaid. It's been washed a million times and is no longer even that soft, but she can't sleep without it (she has... but it's not our favorite thing when she wakes up in the middle of the night without it). 

-Last night she came down to our room approximately five times. The second time, we hadn't even gone to bed yet ourselves and Isaac came into our room to find Paige curled up on the rug on our bedroom floor. She somehow snuck by us in the family room and came into our room and fell asleep. 

-Paige sometimes gets the names of colors mixed up. She has a hard time with green and orange for some reason. Tonight I asked her if she wanted a sandwich or a quesadilla for dinner (I usually ask them if they want white or orange cheese, but didn't this time), and she responded, "I want a quesadilla! With green cheese!" ha ha

BRITTA: Seven Months Old

RICHLAND, WASH. -- Britta started saying "Ma and Dada" over the last few weeks, so that's pretty big. 

The first time I knew she really meant me was when she was sitting in her high chair while I made dinner one night and she was so mad I had put her down. She was screaming and finally belted out, "MAAA!" And I knew what she meant.

The last week or two she's been chanting "da da da da" over and over again. Isaac wasn't so sure she was actually trying to say dad, but after a phone conversation with him on speaker phone today, she babbled "da da da" when she heard his voice. So there we have it. We have a talker on our hands. Kind of. At least she's attempting more sounds. 

She's getting pretty good at sitting up now too. But leave her in a sitting position too long and she'll hunch on over or tip one way or the other. But goodness, the girl tries!

She also had her first boat ride last week, if that counts as a milestone. Probably not. 

Here's this chubby little thing in all her cute glory...

SEVEN Month Old Stats:

• 20.31 lbs. (94th percentile)

Sleeping: She's finally decided she's a normal baby and will wake up once (sometimes twice) in the middle of the night. Still naps twice a day for about two hours each. 

Wearing: 9 month and 12 month clothes. 

Interesting tidbits: 

• She's still getting weekly visits from the physical therapist, Darlene. She's gotten pretty used to her play sessions with her and used to be relatively fine with me observing from a few feet away. But the girl is developing a lovely case of separation anxiety and doesn't like me to veer more than a few inches away or she'll cry. And her cry sounds like she's dying. 
• Separation anxiety is also manifesting itself at the gym in the baby play area while I workout. On Tuesday she cried the entire hour I was gone. 
• She loooooves her sisters. Marin can make her laugh and smile so huge. Paige likes to love on her a little too much.
• We got her one of those bouncy chair things, to try and help her work on strengthening her legs. She pushes off the ground with her feet and plays with all these cute toys on the bouncer. I think it's helping (at least a little). She's finally starting to put weight on her legs when we pick her up and set her feet not the ground.  

Marin: Four Years Old

RICHLAND, WASH. -- Okay, okay, so Marin actually turned four SIX months ago. December was a busy month (you know, giving birth to a new baby and all) and I never got around to posting Marin's stats or anything cute about her. So, I'm a bit behind, but better late than never, right? Man, I sure love this girly girl. 

FOUR YEAR STATS (technically 4 1/2 years): 

• 42 lbs. (84%)  
• 3 feet 7 inches tall (90%) 

EATING: Still picky. But she is trying to make an effort to eat "healthier" and often chooses water as her healthy portion of her meal. ha  For instance, when I ask her what she wants for lunch she'll say, "I want a grilled cheese sandwich, chocolate milk, string cheese, and water. Is that healthy?"  

SLEEPING: In bed usually by 7:30 and gets up around 7, sometimes later. Long gone are the days of naps.  

WEARING: 5T. She's tall. 

INTERESTING TIDBITS:  

• She started a preschool group in the Fall with all the kids her age from church. We took turns "teaching" the kids at our homes. It was more like a glorified babysitting job some days, but she LOVED it. Actually, loved was an understatement. 
• She has been taking a pre-ballet class (includes ballet and tap) since September and it's her favorite thing. She loves to perform and was so excited to perform on the big outdoor stage for her recital last week. She wasn't even nervous one bit. 
• Every night when we put her to bed, she asks what we are going to be doing the next day. She likes a very detailed plan, and if I only list one or two items, she'll ask, "Then what?" Knowing there is a lot more day to fill than just what I've outlined. I'm not much of a planner, so this has been fun. :)
• Marin has really thrived in her role as a big sister. She likes to help Paige and Britta with whatever they need help with and generally she and Paige play well together. They could play make believe with their dolls and toys ALL day long if I let them.
• Isaac has been doing reading lessons with her in the evenings. My favorite moment yet from them (early on in the process) went like this... Isaac: "Marin, sound it out. What does C-A-T say?" Marin: "C-aaaaa-T." Isaac: "I'll give you a hint, it's an animal." Marin: "Elephant!"  She's made a bit more progress since then but I wouldn't call her a "reader" quite yet. 
• She thrives on playing with other kids and structure. She loves being around kids and having things scheduled. 
• Her Sunbeam teacher at church told me a few months ago that Marin was the brightest in her class and he couldn't believe all the answers she knew and logical reasoning she could give for activities they did in class. He ended the conversation by saying, "She really is something special." It made me feel good to hear that. You never know how your own children are behaving and presenting themselves when we aren't around. 

BRITTA: Six Months Old

RICHLAND, WASH. -- We spent about a week in Utah with my parents and cousins this past month, and the night before we left, which so happened to be the day before she turned six months old, Britta sat up by herself for the first time! We all cheered for her! 

Every time she reaches a milestone, I can't possibly imagine how she'll have the strength to reach the next one, and she keeps surprising me. I couldn't fathom her ever rolling over (now she does it endlessly), and to think of her sitting up was something I thought was so far off, and now here she is doing it. This little girl is a miracle on display. Truly.

For the Memorial Day weekend, we headed down to Utah so little Britta could finally meet her Grandpa Candrian. He'd tried to meet her a few times before, but it kept not working out as planned. The first time, he came over Thanksgiving weekend, hoping she'd be born, but she was a tad late, so he had to go back to work. Then, their scheduled trip to see us in March had to be cancelled because he had to go in for an unplanned knee surgery, and then he's been homebound ever since, basically. So... finally. It happened. And it was the sweetest thing watching him hold her for the first time. She starred at him for a second and then leaned right in to cozy up. It melted me.  Luckily Brittany got it on camera. 

Six Month Old Stats:

• 19.8 lbs. (94rd percentile)

• 27.5" tall (96th percentile) 

• 17.91" HC (>99th percentile)

Sleeping: Still sleeps better than Paige, though there have been a handful of times this past week when she's woken up crying in the middle of the night. It's pretty unusual for her. She's also been waking up at like 5 a.m. (but then again, so has Paige) but after I feed her she'll fall back to sleep. Thank goodness. 

Wearing: Some 6 month clothes, though 9 month clothes are fitting her much better these days. 

Things I Don't Want to Forget/Interesting tidbits: 

• She's seeing weekly visits with a physical therapist whose been coming to our home. Marin and Paige like to pop in and out of the hour sessions to "help" and see what's happening. Today during physical therapy, Paige and Marin came in from swinging outside and when Britta heard them, she quickly turned her head around and started thrashing wildly with excitement to see them. 
• Even in just the week she's started sitting up, she's been making progress and can sit up for a little bit longer periods of time. 
• She's always happy and smiling. And we can usually get a few giggles out of her. Marin is probably the best at it. 

When do thunder thighs stop being cute?

Sometimes I leave her alone to roll around. And sometimes she falls asleep.

Matchy matchy. 

Meeting Grandpa Candrian for the first time. It was very heart warming.

Her cousins fell in love with her.

Picture with Grandma and Grandpa Candrian and the cousins.

Family photo.

Visited Temple Square

Letting Grandpa and Aunt Brittany entertain her.

This little girl was a major trooper on the entire road trip. Hardly cried 

Hanging out with Grandpa.

Sharing yogurt with Paige.