Twenty-Eight Weeks

Check out those thighs. Not to mention the pointed toes. I'm not sure there's any stretch left in this girl. Surrey has been a ball of fun this past week (minus today...screaming and shrieking instead of napping), even though recovering from her second go-round with the nebulizer. Her newest things are pulling hair and shaking her head side to side. If you've got any semblance of hair, be warned. She can grab just about anything she can find and pulls you in for the kill - that being a huge face-sucking. I'd like to think she's just learning how to show her affection, and she's got a lot of love to give. The head-shaking is quite odd. I'm hoping it's excitement and not possession. It's funny if you're having a conversation and then she starts shaking her head, as if to share her opinion. Last night we were trying to come up with dinner ideas and were able to rule out several ideas thanks to Surrey. This girl could come in handy.

Penn State Wedding

Jordan, one of my very best friends from Penn State, got married this past Saturday. She was a stunning bride and the weekend was so much fun. There are so many funny, wow-it's-a-small-world connections between Jordan and Dan...and me. They met only a year-ish ago, but we actually went to Penn State with Dan's brother. Jordan is going to be moving to my hometown, where Dan lives. Two of the groomsman went to my high school, one of which I graduated with (and who also is now married to a girl my brother dated...).

All of my college roommates and their spouses were there, too - pure joy! It's so fun to see them and feel like no time has passed and be able to pick up right where we left off. There were also so many other Penn State friends to catch up with. Most of my roommates stopped by to see our place and meet Surrey, which made me so happy. Living in Virginia can be very hard some days, being that our family and closest friends all live in Pennsylvania. I so much want for Surrey to know these people who we love and who love us, and for them to be a part of her life, too. Stupidly I forgot to snap photos of them with her, but fortunately I did succeed in getting one of the six of us.  Not my most shining moment, but what beautiful friends I have.

Getting Crafty

Here are a couple baby crafts I've been working on recently. More to come!
The first few pictures are pacifier clips and the second is a soft toy.

Twenty-Seven Weeks

Poor lady is sick again. Which means we're doing breathing treatments with the nebulizer. Which means every four hours we have to use all of our physical and emotional strength to keep her semi-still and endure the screaming. This second sickness is a bit worse than the first I think. And unfortunately this time around it seems like my immune system just doesn't want to put up a fight. With all the drool and snot and vomit it was bound to happen. Crossing my fingers it's just a voice/throat thing for now. As long as I don't have a red, runny nose for my friend's wedding that I'm in this weekend, I'm fine. Think positive thoughts!
In the midst of it all though, she's a happy girl. She may not eat more than 2oz at a time (ahhh!), but she happily talks through it all instead of crying and getting angry that we're trying to force-feed her. Even though she won't really take a bottle (not even if it's juice), she still loves eating solids. Her first taste of sweet potatoes went well, and even though bananas are a bit on the slimy side, she gets the job done.

Mmmm Solids

Surrey is an eating machine! Several weeks ago when we tried giving her solids she would cough, spit the food out, and gag herself. Not a very pleasant experience for anyone involved. And then a couple weeks ago I noticed her smirking at me while I was eating dinner. The next day she was downright smiling and happy while watching me eat a BLT, and even started air-chewing herself (you know, like playing air-guitar but with chewing). I literally jumped at the chance to give solids another chance, and she loved it. Of course, she was a bit messy, but no coughing and no gagging. Now the child seems to love it. She's graduated to the highchair instead of the bumbo and is so excited to eat she can't put her arms down. Last night I had my first appointment with our Baeba babycook (we had been using Gerber foods that were a gift) and it is awesome. Crossing my fingers Surrey enjoys these homemade sweet potatoes just as much as the bananas with apples and pears. Fortunately, I won't feel enticed to sing that dang apples and bananas song tonight while giving it a whirl.

Birthday Fun

Surrey's half birthday was yesterday and today is Jeremiah's 26th birthday, so of course our family was due for a little celebration. We decided to take Surrey to her first Richmond Flying Squirrels baseball game, particularly because they were playing the Reading Phillies. Perfect timing - thank you minor league baseball schedule-makers. Surrey partied late into the night, meaning she only fell asleep for maybe 20 minutes at the game (but continued being woken up by cheers and clapping) and didn't get to sleep in her crib until almost 10pm. Party animal. We left in the middle of the game, when the Phillies were up 18-1. For the dignity of the Squirrels' franchise, I hope there was some kind of mercy rule that came into play sooner rather than later.

I think Surrey definitely enjoyed herself (as seen in the picture doing her new spitting thing), and I'm pretty sure the chili cheese fries, jumbo hot dogs, and Phillies blowout made for a great night for Jeremiah, too.

Happy birthday to all!

Twenty-Six Weeks

Someone has reached her half-birthday! In honor of Surrey's official six month milestone tomorrow and her dad's 26th birthday on Wednesday, we got a little festive with the fabric. One can't be sure, but looks to me like she sees a cupcake she likes and is going for it. Can't blame her.

More celebratory activities to follow this week!

Ladies Weekend

This weekend, while the men were in Atlanta, we had our own little ladies weekend with a special guest. Grandmom! A couple months ago I asked my mom if she'd mind traveling down to be with us to lend an extra hand and keep us company. Thankfully she obliged, and I'm so glad she did. We had a great time crafting, shopping, and planning for my sister's bridal shower. My poor mom most definitely will need a massage (or something equivalent that doesn't freak her out as much as people touching her) after all the baby floor-playing and lifting that was going on. She may also want to rest her voice after nonstop motherese. Babies are exhausting. But fortunately, my baby was also a lot of fun. Surrey was finally herself, full of personality and smiles and lick-kisses. I'm so glad my mom was able to have an enjoyable couple of days with her.

Thanks mom, you're the best!

Twenty-Five Weeks

This girl is just a week shy of 6 months old. That's half a year people! Wow.

As mentioned in the last post, we traveled up north to the Links' for the Easter weekend. Surrey is a much more fidgety passenger than in weeks passed, but overall still does pretty well. I was forced to climb in the back a few times in order to save us all from the pains for baby screaming during a long road trip. Usually the car is the easiest part of traveling with Surrey, so I began to get nervous for what she would be like once reaching our destination. Fortunately, she was pretty great! She adjusted pretty well to her new surroundings and even gave family the opportunity to not only smile at her, but hold her. A miracle. There were some hang-ups with her Uncle Ben, and I'm beginning to wonder what her deal is with uncles. I was afraid of going overboard with the amount of baby gear we brought, but think I planned just right. Go me. The stand-up bouncer thing was a lifesaver. She loves to stand in there and talk away to anyone who will listen, or no one at all - the ceiling, the toys, and the walls seem to work just as well.

And look, we're beginning to get some movement during these photo shoots! It's rare, but it's movement nonetheless!

Happy Easter

Happy Easter from our little family of three!

I'll let you know all about it when I post her weekly photo, which will be a day late due to traveling.

Twenty-Four Weeks

A little tongue action this week for your viewing pleasure. How fitting it is since it seems that all of a sudden Surrey has connected some major dots in her life - realizing her tongue allows her to make many more (advanced) sounds than just screaming. Jeremiah and I have laughed a lot these past few days while our daughter seems to be holding conversations with anything and everything with these new tongue noises. It's a whole different sound and like a whole new language of hers.

Oh and remember how last week her number was put on the big screen at church because not even the experienced women in the nursery could settle her down? And remember how we thought it was all because I was away and she was thrown off? Welp, looks like we're developing quite a reputation around church, because we're 2 for 2 now. Oh Surrey girl, separation anxiety is not fun. Although it's not a total loss - on Saturday she apparently was wonderful at our friends' house while we were gone for close to six hours at a wedding. That, or they were graciously lying to us.