I just LOVE this picture! She looks so grown up! Which also makes me a little sad, but then I look at that beautiful smile and the sadness goes away. She's growing and changing so much lately. Lailey is beginning to interact with her environment and play with toys. She grabs my hair, my clothes, my jewelry, and she checks out everything. It's really fun to watch her discover. She will hold toys a lot longer now without dropping them, and she likes to shake things like links and rattles.
Lailey (4 mos.) with my first teddy bear from my Dad
I originally created this blog just for Lailey, but I have to brag on my wonderful husband again. He has taken it upon himself to help me with EVERYTHING now so I can spend more time with Lailey in the evenings when I'm home. On Thursday, he called me and told me he was cooking dinner. He took Lailey with him to the grocery store, bought the ingredients and cooked me one of the yummiest meals I've ever had!
And I'm not just saying that. It was really good. He made grilled chicken marinated in A1 with provolone cheese, fresh garden tomatoes from his Granddad's garden, and vegetable kabobs, all on the George Foreman grill. He even got me to eat zuccini, which I'm picky about. Mmm, this is making me hungry again. Thank you, Davey, for being the most amazing husband in the world.
AND the best daddy too.
****LAILEY'S FIRST SOLID FOOD****
Okay, I have been hesitant to rush solids, being patient to wait until she's ready. The doctor said we could start them at 5 months old, which would be 2 weeks from now. Well, this past week, Lailey has been waking up earlier than normal in the morning, acting REALLY hungry, and I started thinking she may be ready before I thought. So, after considering it a few days, I took the plunge. We tried rice cereal last night for the first time.
Lailey made some funny faces, trying to figure it out, but she seemed to really like it. And my gut instincts were right: she slept longer this morning than she ever has = 10 hours! If there are no problems, we'll give it a go tonight again around dinner time. I have to admit, it was so fun and messy!
Lailey is not quite rolling over yet, but I don't think it will be too long. Honestly, she appears to be more interested in sitting up than rolling over. When she lies on her back, she tries to "crunch" up by lifting her head. She is so much stronger on her tummy now, pushing up to straighten her arms out. She can get her knees under her, but not at the same time as her arms. So she's halfway to crawling. She looks like a little frog.
As far as naptimes, Lailey is getting so much faster at falling asleep on her own. Sometimes she doesn't fuss at all, she just goes to sleep like a big girl. Nighttime is usually when she does this the best. I can't even remember the last time I put her in her crib at night when she cried. She is so sweet and adorable.
We got a new stroller (thanks Dad!), and Lailey really likes to look all around while riding in it. Her other stroller was a Snap 'n' Go that her carseat fit into, but she faced backward so we could see her. I'll have to take a picture of her in her big girl stroller. It's made by Britax and it's called the "Blink." If you're looking for a stroller, go check it out. I LOVE it. It's an umbrella stroller so it folds compactly, but it has a lot of good features of a bigger stroller. It reclines almost flat, so she could easily take a nap while riding around. It's not super light, but I can actually lift it and put it over my shoulder with one arm. And we all know I'm SO strong, let me tell you. Ha!
Okay, I feel like I've rambled a bit, but hopefully you've enjoyed the Lailey update.
My sister Amy and her husband Tim are coming today to stay overnight, and I'm SO excited! Tomorrow we are dedicating Lailey at church, so look for some pictures sometime...if I find the time to do it!
Playtime
Bubbles!
This was just cute
While our pastor prayed for Lailey, she just gazed up at him like she knew exactly what he was saying about her. It was adorable. And yes, I was peeking during the prayer.
Our little family
Me and Lailey
Grandpa, Davey, Sarah, Lailey, Amy, and Tim
Thank you Amy and Tim for coming to spend the weekend with us. We had a blast! We need to do it again soon and grill shish kebobs again. Yum!
I originally created this blog just for Lailey, but I have to brag on my wonderful husband again. He has taken it upon himself to help me with EVERYTHING now so I can spend more time with Lailey in the evenings when I'm home. On Thursday, he called me and told me he was cooking dinner. He took Lailey with him to the grocery store, bought the ingredients and cooked me one of the yummiest meals I've ever had!
And I'm not just saying that. It was really good. He made grilled chicken marinated in A1 with provolone cheese, fresh garden tomatoes from his Granddad's garden, and vegetable kabobs, all on the George Foreman grill. He even got me to eat zuccini, which I'm picky about. Mmm, this is making me hungry again. Thank you, Davey, for being the most amazing husband in the world. 
AND the best daddy too.
****LAILEY'S FIRST SOLID FOOD****
Lailey made some funny faces, trying to figure it out, but she seemed to really like it. And my gut instincts were right: she slept longer this morning than she ever has = 10 hours! If there are no problems, we'll give it a go tonight again around dinner time. I have to admit, it was so fun and messy!
Lailey is not quite rolling over yet, but I don't think it will be too long. Honestly, she appears to be more interested in sitting up than rolling over. When she lies on her back, she tries to "crunch" up by lifting her head. She is so much stronger on her tummy now, pushing up to straighten her arms out. She can get her knees under her, but not at the same time as her arms. So she's halfway to crawling. She looks like a little frog. 
As far as naptimes, Lailey is getting so much faster at falling asleep on her own. Sometimes she doesn't fuss at all, she just goes to sleep like a big girl. Nighttime is usually when she does this the best. I can't even remember the last time I put her in her crib at night when she cried. She is so sweet and adorable. 
Lailey really enjoys being carried around in a Baby Bjorn carrier (thanks Jen!). However, it's the perfect height for her to suck on the rim of it! If you look closely at the picture, the top of it is soaked. She has a very strong sucking reflex, so this keeps her quite happy. This particular evening I was packing for us to go out of town for the weekend, and I got everything done thanks to being able to carry her around like this. My back was tired afterward though. She's not so little anymore.
Yay for new toys! I saw this while out shopping the other day and thought it would be perfect. My sister and I liked our Johnny Jump-ups when we were little, and I think Lailey is going to feel the same way. This one is a "Jenny Jump-up" I guess 'cause it's pink. Whatever. It's cute. She kind of just sat in it at first then starting sucking on the edge of it (reason for the blankets draped over the sides), but now she's figured out how to turn around using her feet. Only problem? She's PERFECT dog-licking height! Ahhh! Rudy is actually much better now at not licking her face, a behavior that I strongly discourage. I love my dog, but seriously...gross. 
Davey and I have been putting Lailey in a baby seat at the dinner table when we eat now. It's fun to include her in praying for our food and eating, even if she's not eating real food yet. I snapped the above picture today while she was grinning at me. I just love her smile. And her toes...
She has the sweetest tiniest little feet! She might take after the women on my side of the family with little bitty feet.
I took this today of our sweet 4-month-old with her seahorse (best toy EVER! Thank you, Debbie!) taking a lovely nap all by herself. Recently I posted about having trouble getting Lailey to take long enough naps or only naps in the swing. Well, God answered my prayers and he did it through Davey. On the days he has kept her while I've been at work, she's gotten SO much better at going down for naps in her crib, by herself, with minimal fussing, AND she's sleeping a long time! Let me just brag on Davey and say how proud I am of him for doing an amazing job, not only at naps, but everything while I've been working. He is the best daddy in the world. Everyday he tells me about all the wonderful things they do together, and it just makes me so happy. We think the reason she's going down so much better and sleeping longer is that he doesn't let her get overtired. She will appear to be awake and happy, but if you wait too long then bam, it's meltdown time, making naps that much harder. Of course, as all the parents out there know, this napping success could change at any moment, but we'll take it for now and praise God for it. 
Don't even ask about the "song" Davey is singing to Lailey. He makes up the weirdest things that get stuck in my head ALL day. Grrr. But, it makes Lailey laugh so whatever works, right? I hope this makes your day like it does mine!
Lailey's personality is coming out more and more. She's usually pretty happy, but she can be quite dramatic when she gets hungry or overly tired. The interesting part is, there's often not much warning, just 0 to 60 in a few seconds! We're getting better at anticipating her moods. She is learning to fall asleep on her own, but still will only take 45 min. naps (unless in the swing) and wake up crying. Any advice, anyone? I'm hoping it is something she'll just grow out of and adjust to taking longer naps later. For now, it will work.
