9 MONTHS OLD

It seems unreal shayshay is now nine months old. She will be ONE before I know it!





Some things about her:

She can wave "hi/bye"

She loves her sissy the "mostest"

She crawls all over the place now. It is so cute. She is really not "into" everything like I thought she might be. She is checking out the world around her, but in a lazy sorta way. She will crawl around then sit down and look at you. She will follow me when I leave the room. I like it. When I go cook, she crawls in there and I give her a pot to play with. She just sits with me wherever I am and plays.

She pulls up on everything and can walk holding onto furniture

She is using the sippy cup now.

She understands the word "no"

She loves for me to read to her. She just sits really intently and listens so hard. It is so cute!

She loves the Patty-cake rhyme

She is also in a great routine:
8 - 8:30 wakes up and eats breakfast (bottle and cereal)
10 - 10:15 Nap time for one hour
12:00 lunch (bottle and a veggie)
2-2:15 nap time for an hour
3:30 - 4:00 Bottle
6:30 - 7:00 dinner (bottle, cereal, fruit)
8:30 - 9:00 bedtime

This is how my days go by.... like sand through the hourglass...

*On a mommy note: I love this age. I feel more "human" again. She is easy and I can now juggle 5 things at once and not be overwhelmed. This month I started exercising again. (if you read previous posts, I just could not rub two minutes together for myself for the first half of her life.) Many times taking shay and walking the block. Since it has been cold, I have been making good use of my treadmill. I went to the doctor today and I have lost three pounds! Of course, I have been eating healthier too, and less food, so that makes a difference. All in all, I feel good. I feel more on top of everything, which feels great.




































She is standing, holding onto my laundry basket, slowly dumping out the clothes, piece by piece.

alysha sings

Last week Alysha's homeschool girls choir had the opportunity to sing at a right to life rally on the courthouse steps. They did a great job! It was really cold.

Alysha is on the back row, third from left

Shayla was all bundled up in sweats and a jacket with a hood. Her nose was so red.

All the girls did a good job. They sang three songs, including the national anthem.

Daddy does it better

Last week I had the opportunity to work everyday but Monday. My husband was off and I got the assignments, so I took them! I left the house at 6:30 and did not get home until 3:30. This is the first time Jon has been at home full-time with the kids like this. I knew he would be fine, because Alysha can take care of Shay as good as I can. (Jon had never even fed Shay baby food before.)

Everything seemed to be going fine and after two days of being gone, I asked Alysha how dad was really doing. (when daddy was out of ear shot.) She told me he was doing great, in fact, he was doing it better than I did. Better, Better, Better! I could not believe she said that, I mean, nobody does it better than mommy!! As my righteous indignation started to subside, I asked her just how in the world she thought such a thing. Her explanation was simple - He was less stressed.

The more I thought it over, the more I could see just how daddy could do it better. Daddy's one and only responsibility was to take care of Shay. He did NOT have to clean the house, do the laundry, home school alysha, cook dinner, or any other the the million different errands I have to do daily. In fact, all Jon did was lay around and take care of the baby. Sure, he was not stressed, what is there to be stressed about? I, on the hand, run around the house taking care of my family and juggling all my responsibilities - plus taking care of a baby full-time. I can see how daddy-o was less stressed than mommy.

Jon enjoyed himself so much he wants to be a stay at home daddy. He liked it. I wonder how much he would like it if he was required to do all the other stuff that goes along with staying at home........

I got my first blog award! I was awarded by meahl memories. She is a good friend and fellow homeschooling mom where I live. She has four kids and a wealth of homeschooling experience that I tap into often. We see each other at the various homeschooling activities and I know that she is one of the people I will miss when we transfer out (which happens next year!!).

decisions, decisions

I hate making decisions. I am the kind of person who has to weigh it all out and really think it over before I can decide. Quick decisions are painful for me. :) So, when it came time to buy another car seat, I agonized over it. I did alot research on the Internet, reading reviews and stuff. Then I went to stores and looked at all the ones on display. I just could not decide on which one to get - so I didn't. I make things too hard by thinking them to death.

But, Shayla's feet are now hanging over the end of the infant carrier seat, so I decided that I have to decide. I wanted to get a nice one, not a cheap one. After reviewing all I could find, I picked our new car seat. I finally went with a three-n-one. Supposedly, it is the last car seat you will ever have to buy. It is a rear-facing, forward-facing, AND a booster seat. The biggest feature I wanted was for it to recline. I wanted a car seat that reclined because we travel alot and I wanted Shay to be able to sleep comfortably. I also wanted one that was nicely padded.

The one I picked was not in stores, I had to order it and have it sent to the store. I went and picked it up Wednesday and brought it home. It is a safety first all-n-one convertible car seat. It is gray, which I love.

It will be SO NICE not to use that infant carrier anymore. I did not like that thing. It is good for the first two or three months and then it is more of a hassle than anything. I am excited to install this bad boy and get started using it.

shayla shots - 8 months

Sissy thought it was amusing to put post-it notes all over shay. She does not seem to mind.

ROLL TIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We have graduated to the big girl tub. I have put it off for as long as I could. They just grow so fast the first year!

8 months

Shayla is eight months old. I cannot believe how big she has gotten. Her latest achievements are as follows:

She is pulling herself into a standing position. She can do it pretty much anywhere she can get a good hold: the couch, her playtable, my legs, her crib. She is a strong little thing.

She still is crawling - in limited amounts. She does not crawl very far. She is such a laid back baby. She is just not in any hurry for anything. She has never crawled off the big blanket I keep on the floor. She crawls around all over it, but never off of it.

She is in size 4 diapers. FYI - the bigger the size diaper you use, the LESS diapers you get in the pack. Of course, the price is still the same, less for my money.

She can wave at you. It is so cute. Sometimes her hand is turned the wrong way and she is "waving" at herself.

She loves to eat big girl food. She is in size two food. Her favorites are sweet potatoes, squash and bananas. She actually loves that rice cereal - plain. I don't mix anything in it, she likes is plain. It looks like mush to me. She eats three times a day now. We are in a nice routine. (and you know how I like routine)

She now has two teeth in the bottom front. I will say that teething was a hellacious experience. My sweet-happy-go-lucky girl morphed into this fussy-crying-unhappy-inconsolable baby. She just fussed all the time, never smiled and stopped sleeping through the night. This went on for weeks. She seems to be all the way back to normal now. She smiles, plays independently and most importantly she sleeps all night long - twelve hours a night.

She talks alot now. She makes all kinds of cute sounds with her tongue and coo's alot. I like this.

She gets mad now when you take her toy away. Her little personality seems to be coming through.

What a big girl she is!! Pics coming soon!!!