Merry Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas! We braved the crazy people and the traffic at the mall and took Mia to meet Santa. She was absolutely perfect. We waited in line for about 20 or 30 minutes and she never once protested.



We went to church on Christmas Eve morning with Papa and Rhonda. It was a first for Mia and I believe a first for Clay and I as a couple. Mia and I spent most of the time outside listening to the music, singing and sermon. She was awfully tired and could not get comfortable sleeping on my shoulder.



After church we went to MeMe's and Mia had a good time with her cousins Erin and Reagan. She slept through the present opening but loves all her gifts.



Later that afternoon we visited Grandpa and Janice. Mia spent most of the time on Janice's hip and was all smiles. Janice gave her sweet potatoes during dinner and Mia gobbled them up. She also gave her a little taste of the yellow part of a deviled egg but Mia didn't like that too much at all. She was awake for the gift opening this time and shortly thereafter the day caught up with her and she was tired!



I gave Mia a bath and then Clay read The Night Before Christmas. We had bought the book for her and are starting a tradition of reading it every Christmas Eve. Mia loved the illustrations and between the pictures and watching her daddy read, I am not sure which one she liked the most!



We woke up Christmas morning to see what Santa left for Mia. It was so exciting! Santa left her a sweet Build-a-Bear named Claire. She is so soft and sweet and was wearing white satin bloomers, a red sweater and a white fuzzy hat. Mia loves the sound and giggles that she makes. He also left her a set of sippy cups to try for the first time and a cute teething toy that lights up and makes cute boingy noises.



After opening presents we headed to Papa's house. More excitement, delicious brunch, and more present opening. Mia missed the present opening again. All this Christmas excitement was wearing her out. She had a 2-hour nap at Papa's and she really can sleep through anything!



Mia had a great time seeing her Papa, Rhonda, aunts, uncles and cousins. She was showered with lots of attention, hugs and kisses. All the grandkids made handprint ornaments for Papa's tree and also drew pictures to make their very own Christmas plates. Clay did Mia's for her and it turned out so nice. Her little handprint looked adorable and I can't wait to see it on the tree next year.



That afternoon, GranE, uncle Danny, Emily and the kids came over for more yummy food, family time and present opening. It was nice and crowded! Joshua wanted to help bake apple pie so badly and there just was not enough room in the kitchen. Clay was helping me in the kitchen and I was quite impressed with his apple pie making abilities.



Mia slept through dinner and missed half of the present opening because she was hungry. Everyone in the whole family was very thoughtful and Mia got lots of toys, clothes, books, and very special Christmas ornaments. There's no way she can get bored, that's for sure!



In none Christmas related news, Mia is eating more rice cereal. We started feeding her twice a day and she is actually swallowing it all now. She tries to grab the spoon and feed herself and makes lots of Mmmm noises and shows that she is very pleased with the new grub. She recently tried applesauce and at first made a sour face but took to it immediately. I am very excited about making her food now.



Mia LOVES to play with her feet and as you can see she also loves putting them in her mouth. She cracks me up. She is so funny! She's a very happy and comical baby. She loves to laugh and squeal and is even rolling over a bit more. She's still getting stuck on her arm but with practice she'll "get" it. The other morning I went to check on her and she was sleeping halfway rolled over. She amazes me everyday!

20 Weeks Old

Mia now has a SECOND tooth! I saw it last night and could NOT believe it! I didn't expect the second one so soon, but then again, this is all so new to us! Tuesday was MeMe's birthday. We celebrated by meeting her and Aunt Toni for lunch at Wild Wings. Afterwards, Mia and I went shopping at Wally World. She was a perfect angel and had me laughing all over the store. She is such a little comedian.


It's been a very busy week for me at work. Our department moved to a different building and I have been busy unpacking. I love my new space. I have 3 BIG windows and a lot more privacy. It's very nice and I'm even more productive! Clay and I have pretty much run out of time on finding a new sitter. GranE and MeMe have been a huge help but unfortunately they cannot watch her every week. I really don't want to put her in a "big" daycare. I am going to first try to find someone that will watch her in our home. That would be my ideal choice next to quitting my job and concentrating solely on her. I am not that worried about it because I know it will work out in the end.


I can't believe I nearly forgot to mention that Mia tried rice cereal for the first time on Monday. She seemed to like it okay. I thought it tasted kind of nasty but I did mix is with breastmilk so it would be a little familiar in taste. I'm not sure how much she actually swallowed but it was fun trying it for the first time. I'm excited about trying real food eventually!

19 Weeks Old

This has been a busy week for Miss Mia. Last Thursday, while she was staying with GranE, she rolled over for the very first time. I almost cried when I heard. Clay and I did miss the first time but she has rolled over for us since and it's so amazing to see her do that. This morning we were playing on the floor and I noticed that her first tooth has popped through as well! Our little gummy bear is getting teeth!!! That almost made me cry, too. It is amazing children can change your priorities in the day-to-day routine and show you what is truly "important" in life.

18 Weeks Old

Somehow I missed posting for Week 17. I guess I waited and posted the 4 month in its place. Anyhoo...Mia has been staying with her GranE while I am at work and is having a ball everyday. Too bad GranE can't retire early. She's been teething and handling it very well, I might add. I'm sure her little gums are sore and achy but she is such a tough little girl. She makes me smile just to think about her and she truly is my purpose in life right now. I take one look at her and know what is truly important in life.


Clay and I went to the annual HBA holiday ball last weekend and had a very nice time. It was fun shopping for a dress and shoes. Not much to add right now. Been very busy.

4 Months Old

Our little Mia Pia is 4 months old today! She's growing up so fast and changing every day. I feel like she is going to roll over at any time now but it still might be weeks before she does that, only she knows! She is tolerating tummytime more these days and when I remember to put her on her tummy, she is holding her head up higher and looking around instead of just munching on her arm. I am teaching her to stick out her tongue at people and she's catching on pretty quickly. LOL!



We took her to the doctor yesterday for her 4-month check-up. She is now 25 1/2 inches long and weighs 15 pounds, 9 ounces. She's very smart with a nice round head circumference of 16 inches. Dr. W said we could introduce real food starting with rice cereal mixed with breastmilk or water and eventually move onto fruits and veggies. How exciting is that! I'm looking forward to seeing her reaction and making baby food for her.



Yesterday also included those dang shots. Of course she cried but this time it wasn't a you-hurt-my-feelings cry, it was a I'm-pissed-off cry. She was mad, to say the least, but I was surprised to see that once she was picked up she pretty much stopped and was fine. That precious child just does not seize to amaze me. Such a little trooper.



Her first Thanksgiving was so much fun. We started the day off by going to Papa's to fry turkeys. Mia met two of her cousins, Ronni and Heather, for the very first time.



We made our traditional trip up to Charlotte to Auntie Kim and Uncle Hiram's. Mia travels very well even though she isn't a fan of car rides. Maybe her mommy sitting in the backseat next to her had something to do with that this time. :) GranE rode with us and we had a ball as usual with no shortage of laughter. Cousin Trey is really growing into a nice, cute young man. He's like Mia, changes everytime I see him.



For dinner we had smoked turkey, fried turkey, the infamous cranberry "Jell-O" mold, GranE's best-ever dressing, sweet potato casserole, green beans, mashed potates, bean salad, and 2 kinds of cranberries. I think I'm forgetting something. Just talking about it makes me want to eat it all over again! Let's not forget the desserts. Auntie Kim made the most awesomest carrot cake, an oreo cheesecake and a pecan pie. Yum-E!





The long weekend was nice, too. I went into work for a little while on Friday to do some packing for our move and Mia stayed with Daddy. We went shopping for a new (PRE-LIT) Christmas tree and found a very nice one that we were both pleasantly surprised with once we got it up. We chose colored lights thinking Mia would like that better than just white. I think we were right. Mia loves to lay on the floor next to the tree and just stares at the lights and talks to the ornaments. The house is all decorated and we are just waiting on Santa to bring us some presents!



I can't forget to mention the Carolina-Clemson game this past weekend. Go cocks! Here's a pic of Mia and Daddy watching the game. Yes, the Gamecocks won!

Just because....

16 Weeks Old

Despite the new bald spots on the side of her head, her hair is getting longer on top. It's downy-like and now sticks up some when you rub the top of her head.

The tear duct is opening up more in the right eye. Yay! We are so happy about that. I am so tired of torturing my baby girl every morning trying to get the gook out.

We dressed Mia up in her cheerleader outfit and went to visit MeMe and watch the USC/Florida game last Saturday. Boo, we lost.

We have to find a new sitter for Mia. I'm really hoping maybe Clay can work at home a couple of days a week instead. That would be IDEAL! We have about 3 weeks to do something. GranE is going to be watching her a couple of weeks. I know she is looking forward to that!

We are all getting very excited about Mia's first Turkey day. We are making our traditional trip to Charlotte to visit Aunt Kim, Uncle Hiram, and Cousin Trey. :)

Have a good weekend!

15 Weeks Old

Rattle time

Mia has been spending a lot of time in the floor playing. Mommy has really been keeping her in the floor so much to encourage her to roll over. I'm not in a huge hurry but it did occur to me that she can't accomplish things like that if we are holding her all the time. As much as that pains me to say, I'm trying to give her some space to grow. She's getting a little more comfortable with tummy-time. I'm getting really excited about Christmas. Clay and I have decided that we want to get her some books and Baby Einstein DVDs and even one of those doorway jumpers. I think Mia will have a ball in something like that.


Just chillin' in front of the tube

Clay and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary this past Sunday. We had a nice dinner at home with our Mia Pia. I cooked shrimp and scallops in a brandy cream sauce with bacon wrapped asparagus and garlic bread. It was yummy and I got to light it on fire! It was fun and I managed not to burn the house down! For dessert we had the top layer from our wedding cake. It was just as delicious as it was a year ago. Yes, we have been eating cake all week, too. :)


You talkin' to me?

It's been a good week with the exception of one incident. I've only lost a 1/2 pound since my last weigh-in. I really need to step up the walking and cut out the cake!

Playtime

We have playtime on the floor everyday and Mia grabbed her rattle so I had to start recording in case she decided to do something else! This video is about 10 minutes long but oh so cute!

Make photo slide shows at onetruemedia.com

14 Weeks Old

ESPN was in town last Saturday for their College Gameday show. Papa bought Mia her very first USC cheerleader outfit and she is so adorable in it! We dressed her up and took her down to the stadium and she actually made it on TV. You have to know what you're looking for but it's so cute. One of the guy's, Chris, is talking and all of a sudden Mia pops up over his right shoulder. So cute! Of course, daddy recorded it and we will be keeping it to show her one day. Clay and I went to the game that night and also made it on TV. A bunch of celebrities. Hee hee.


In the last week Mia has really been into sucking her thumb. It is the cutest thing. She can get her thumb in her mouth on her own and it really seems to soothe her so well. I like it much better than the paci. At least with the thumb it will never get lost and never get dirty from falling on the floor. She has also started drooling this week. Not a lot really, but it’s starting and is supposed to be a sign of teething. I’ve read that teething symptoms can start months before any teeth pop through but she hasn’t even rolled over yet and we’re talking about teeth!


When I was pregnant and right after Mia was born, Clay and I used to joke that we hoped she took after both of us and loved to sleep. Well, there is no doubt she LOVES to sleep. Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining about sleeping through the night at all, but the first few days this week she has scared me. When we picked her up on Saturday night it was after midnight and we ended up waking her up while trying to get her into the car seat. By the time we got home and I nursed her and got her back down it was about 2:00am. She slept until 10:00 that morning. Sunday night she went down around her usual time, 10:30 and slept until 8:30am, was up for an hour or so and was back down for a nap that lasted from 10:00am to 1:30pm! Monday night she fell asleep around 9:15ish and didn't wake up until almost 9:00am Tuesday morning! She slept straight through the night every time!!


Mia had a visit from her "Aunt" Elissa. We both wish she would visit more often. Hint...hint...hint. She also went for a visit to daddy’s office and got to see Papa and Uncle Howey and a visit to her other Uncle Danny's house on Sunday!


Sometimes I really think Mia would like to just completely skip rolling over and crawling and go straight to walking. Whenever she is in her swing, bouncy or car seat, she does this thing where it looks like she’s trying to get up and out of whatever contraption she’s in at the time. Either that or she is doing stomach crunches!



I just love my little stinker. She is such a JOY

Mia Pia Pod

Happy Halloween! The baby girl's first Halloween. She was such a good sport and went along with our dressing her up and hauling her to the door every time the bell rang. Of course, everyone thought she was a cutie and one little boy even commented on what a "good-looking baby" we have. It was great to finally get trick-or-treaters. The last 2 years not one single person rang our bell on Halloween night. It was a lot of fun.

13 Weeks Old

Daddy and Mia - Baby's First Boo

It seems strange to say she's 13 weeks old when the 28th is tomorrow and she'll officially be 3 months. My little girl is going to be 3 months old! Wow! She is growing so fast and changing every week! I noticed when I picked her up from the sitter's yesterday that she seemed to change in the few hours I was away from her. I have this fear that she is going to do all of her "firsts" at her sitter's house and not ours. When I put her in the car seat to take her home she started sucking her top lip. Barbara pointed out that she was sucking her top lip AGAIN. It was the first time I had seen that. It was cute as pie and sad for me at the same time because I missed that "first".


Ooooh, I'm so scared!

Mia had a visit from Aunt Sandee and Uncle Gary on Sunday. They brought her a present which was a cute footed sleeper (I just love her in those things) and a sweet little stuffed animal named Hope. On Monday, we met Daddy and MeMe at El Chico’s for lunch. Otherwise, it's been a fairly quiet week. We were only able to get out one day this week for a walk.


Aunt Sandee and Mia

The Gamecocks are playing Tennessee tomorrow and ESPN is going to be in Columbia for Gameday. Clay wants to get down there early tomorrow morning and try to get Mia on TV. Hee hee. We're going to the game that night while Mia stays with her GranE. Other than that we have a pretty quiet weekend ahead of us.


Daddy and Mia sleeping late on a Sunday morning

I know I said that I would only be getting on the scales every other week but I couldn't help myself this morning. Again, I felt like I had gained weight because my pooch seems to be getting bigger and my hips are definitely wider. Pregnancy has really changed the shape of my body. Well, I was surprised to see that I'd lost another 2 pounds for a total of 43 1/2 pounds. I never in a million years would have imagined that I would have lost that much weight at this point. I've always been one of those people that HAS to exercise to lose weight or to maintain my weight. It's definitely a result of breastfeeding. It has to be.


Tasty thumb

A new exercise place just opened up down the street from our house that I’m thinking about joining. I really wish we had the room at home to purchase an elliptical machine or a treadmill but we do not. I’m not quite sure when I would have the time to go but I would like to start making the time. I think it will benefit me a lot to do some strength training. I have been having a lot of trouble with my back aching and even my hips are achy. I’m sure a lot of it is due to leftover hormones in my body and my body trying to get back to its old self again. At least that’s what I HOPE it’s trying to do!


Talking to Mr. Turtle


Bathtime with Mommy!


I'm so silly


Have a great weekend!