5 Months of Good Times!

Has it really been five months? It is amazing how quickly time goes by when you have a little one around. Over Christmas break I started on Chloe's scrapbook and was astonished with how much she has changed since the day she entered our lives. She is learning to sit up on her own and is making new noises that sound more and more like words. On Christmas day her little gums started getting ready for the appearence of teeth so for the second week of break, we were fighting the evil teething fairy. We haven't seen one of the white treasures yet but it isn't too far away. With teething has come the inability to sleep so Barrett surprised us with a Glider for the nursery...quite possibly one of the greatest inventions ever. I felt like goldilocks switching out every chair in the house to help get our little Bug asleep but Daddy brought us one that was just right. Bless him.

Chloe is in the awkward clothing stage where 6 months is too big and 3 months is too small so everything looks funny on her. She is so cute that she can pull it off. I am kind of in that stage too though...pre pregnancy is still a little too small and pregnancy is HUGE...why can't I be as cute as Chloe?

Chloe now has full function of her hands and grabs everything. Nothing is safe from her grasp. She also leans to grab something she really wants, especially phones and remotes. OH NO TECHNOLOGY IS TAKING OVER MY BABY! Just kidding; she likes the colors and lights. She rolls over with ease now, tries to sit up on her own, tries to hold her bottle by herself, chews and sucks on everything, holds her hands and feet together, and plays with her hair and rubs her eyes when she is sleepy. Chloe also refuses to lay down or sit if there is an option to stand and jump around. She is a mover like her daddy and a sleeper like me. The best of both worlds.

Well, that was a lot of information to say that Chloe is happy and healthy and we are enjoying everything minute of watching our little miracle. Thank you all for your prayers! Much love!

Merry Christmas

I know it isn't Christmas quite yet but Buggy really wanted to say MERRY CHRISTMAS to all of you! As you can she, she has become even more active over this past week. In fact, not only is she spending more time on her belly, but she is making a new sound, almost like a motorcycle with her lips. She is now a beatboxer! Not sure if she is a Matisyahu yet but she can use her lips and hum at the same time. Kid's got talent! Chloe is also standing flat footed in her exersaucer and reaching to touch her toys. I think walking is in her future, as crazy as that sounds...and creepy. Not sure if I am ready to see that tiny person walking about my house. Can you imagine her sneaking into your room at night and making that lip/motorcycle sounds? "Barrett...did you hear that?" "That wasn't me Kerry." "I didn't say it was...THAT; did you hear that?" "Shhh...It's next to the bed." "Barrett, what is it? GET IT!" AHHHHH!!!!! (a swishing sound, a laugh, lights flash on, Chloe now giving Barrett a huge hug). Sorry, got carried away in the senario. But truthfully, Bugs is growing like a weed. Happy Holidays to each of you and may God bless you during this Christmas season! (don't let the bed bugs bite) ;)

TUMMY TIME!!!

Just a quick pic to say...HELLO! She is seriously the happiest baby in the world. She wakes up laughing, smiling, and talking to her room. And just when you thought she couldn't get any cuter, she goes to Cindy's and laughs and plays all day. She is so much fun right now. Her laugh is booming and her noises keep getting louder and louder. She grabs her bottle and tries to feed herself. When she plays, she looks at you first and smiles then jumps and goes crazy. I swear if she had a theme song it would be "Get crazy, get loud" and everyone would jump and laugh. Sometimes I wish my students would take some notes from her and then I realize, that's why they drive me nuts. They get crazy and loud sometimes...they are just a bunch of grown babies. You got to love them!

It's getting COLD!

In the past couple of weeks, Chloe has had a lot of firsts. In the picture to the far left, you will see Bugs enjoying her first Christmas tree shopping experience. We went to Boone and supported Blowing Rock Baptist's Youth Mission Trip to the Dominican Republic. It was freezing and snowing but Chloe didn't seem to mind...anything. She was asleep the whole time. Our friend Teresa got Chloe hats for the winter and she is sporting them in these pics. Chloe loves the gloves and so do I...it keeps people from touching her hands. What is it with people touching babies' hands? Do they not understand that their germiness will be deposited right into their mouths? The picture on the right was taken at our church's Alpine Village Outreach. Not the best pic of me but Chloe is always the star anyway. Along with this being Chloe's first Christmas, she also rolled over for the first time. It was AWESOME! I think she was surprised at how loudly we cheered. We also got snow in Lenoir and she got to feel BIG snow flakes on her cheeks. Pics will come soon. We love you all!

A Week of Photographic Memories

I can't help it guys! It seemed like every time I turned around, Chloe was having a photo worthy moment. We can't get over how much she is changing on a daily basis. Last night I looked through photos from the past four months and was in awe of how much she has changed...and how much prettier she has gotten. I thought she was pretty in the hospital but I was wrong. Bless her heart; I guess all babies are a bit strange looking when they first enter the world. Chloe laughs and smiles so much. Sometimes she whines but now we know that she only does that when she is tired and is about to crash. Believe it or not, she sleep all night. We are talking 9:00 to 9:00 if we let her. This morning I had to get her up at 6:30 so we could leave for work and she was so tired. The Chloe zone out is precious. We have our four month appointment on Friday and I can't wait to see how much she weighs. It won't be long before she tries to crawl. She loves to stand and play and dance. Her legs are strong. Enjoy the pics and we will update you with the doctor info later in the week.

The Sweetest Sight

Barrett can calm Chloe down faster than anything I've seen. Chloe loves to sleep but sometimes she fights it during the day because she loves to play so much. Last night, for the first time, as an experiment, we did not feed her at 12:00...we let her sleep, hoping that she would make it through. SHE DID! 9:00 pm until I woke her up at 6:30, she was dreaming about rainbows, the beach, and chocolate...oh wait, that was what I was dreaming as I slept all of those hours. Thank you Jesus for a baby who loves to sleep and for a husband who loves to cuddle. Chloe is coming up on four months and is not far from having her first cereal bottle and sitting up without my help. As I look forward to these milestones, I reflect on where we were four months ago. Barrett looked at me last night and said...wow, I love her so much. That warmed my heart! I think it is easier some times for a mom, who carried the tiny one for nine months, to look at the child and say that but Dads have to warm up, have to see the personality and smell their little heads. My husband is officially smitten with our little daughter...watch out boys...he's going to be a tough one to get by.

Pictures!!!

It took a long time but the Exersaucer finally came together...literally. As I put everything together, Chloe watched with what was either excitement or a poopy. It is amazing what kids get to play with these days. When I was growing up, we played in the empty diaper boxes. We had a lot of fun...I need to start saving Chloe's. At her rate we will have a diaper box castle. Chloe is talking more and more. She has also realized that her tongue moves when she talks so she sticks her finger in her mouth to feel it. It is hilarious. Watch the video. Enjoy the pics! She is growing so fast.