9 Months

9 months baby! Time has gone by so fast and my baby is getting so big! I hate it!

He has started crawling! I love that he can get around and entertain himself a little better but it also means he isnt my little tiny baby anymore. He is mobile. He has also started to pull himself up to a kneeling position at the side of the couch. So he can pretty much get at what ever he wants.

This month I could tell that he was teething. He wasnt super cranky but wanted to chew on everything and was drooling a ton. Finally by the middle of the month he had his first little tooth poke through! It was the bottom middle left.

Leo still wont touch the store bought baby food which is fine with me! I love making his food and knowing exactly what I am putting into his little body. He still loves his avacados. He tried broccoli for the first time and hated it! But because I made a ton of it, I have been hiding it in his carrots and sweet potatoes and he doesnt seem to notice. He has started self feeding himself but can only manage the baby puffs. Anything else he gags on.  

Leo's 9 month stats:

Height: 29.5 in (91%)
Weight: 22 lbs 8 oz (90%)
Head Circumference: 18.5 (95%)

8 Months

Leo has started to develop more of a personality. He babbles and talks all day long. If he is sad and I walk right by him without stopping to pick him up, he loses it. If Lilly takes a toy from him or she gets up into her personal space, he screams. He is still an amazingly chill and patient baby but he now knows how to tell us when he doesn't like something.

He is becoming WAY more active. If he wants a toy, he will roll, scoot, and army crawl until he gets it. Its so fun to leave him on one side of the room and come back to find him all the way on the other side. He is slowly becoming more active than Lilly was at this same age, which is a little frightening! It is such a struggle to change his diaper or put on his clothes. He needs to be moving constantly. I never thought I could have a more active child than Lilly but Leo might just put her to shame!

Leo has started to get into the sitting position by himself. He is still a little wobbly but can do it all by himself. He is also getting better at grasping things and getting them into his mouth. He is slowly becoming a pro at putting his own binky in his mouth.

He is absolutely loving his baby food. I have made all of his baby food right from the beginning, but along the way I have bought a few jars of things when I run out of the homemade. I started noticing that he never ate the jarred stuff as happily as the homemade. And now he wont eat anything that comes in a jar or pouch. The tasted difference must be huge because there isnt much this boy wont eat! He loves avacados, carrots, green beans, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, apples, pears, peaches, bananas, mangoes, and quinoa. His favorites of the month are avacados and butternut squash. He will eat and eat but as soon as he sees his bottle he cries and wont take another bite until he gets it. He definitely loves to eat!

Everytime I pull out my camera, Leo smiles. He knows that is what you are supposed to do. It is the cutest thing ever! And makes for some amazing pictures!

I know I have said this a million times but, I am SO in love with this little boy! Everytime he smiles at me I have this overwhelming sense of gratitude and love. I still look into his crib every night, sleeping so peacefully, and I have to catch my breath. After all the years of heartache, he is here, he is healthy, and he is so darn precious.

Leo's Stats:

Weight: 21lbs 4oz (80%)

 Height: 29 in (90%)

7 Months

Leo hasn't changed a whole lot from 6 months to 7 months. He is still working on sitting by himself, he eats baby food twice a day, and he loves to laugh and smile at anyone who will look at him. He loves to flirt with everyone at church and random old women or even men in the grocery store. He is such a happy little guy. He is also very chill. When I am out running errands or shopping at the mall, he just hangs out in his car seat, never fusses, and takes it all in.  

 He has started rolling over more than once and a few minutes after I lay him on the floor I will find him on the other side of the room. He has also started taking naps! This has been huge progress for him. He takes 2-3 naps a day for about 1/2-3 hrs each. This is amazing compared to his 4, 20 minutes naps everyday! I can actually get things done around the house now!

His main source of entertainment is still his sister. He loves to watch her bounce around the room. He is very patient with her rough cuddling and violent hugs. He just sits there and takes it like a man. Even though Lilly can be loud and rough, he still loves all the attention he gets from her!

6 Months

I cannot believe Leo is 6 months old already! It is so crazy! 

I love this age. This is my very favorite age. HE can smile, laugh, interact with others, he NEEDS me, he loves to snuggle with me, he is so fat, he is finally letting me get some good sleep, and the list can go on and on. This was my favorite age with Lilly as well. They are just so fun and sweet. 

Leo's Stats:

Height: 28 in (75%)

Weight 19 lbs 5 oz (80%)

Head Circ: 44.5 cm (81%) 

In addition to his hands, Leo has found his feet and can often be found sucking on them. He is not sitting yet but can roll both ways. His head is looking less and less flat which we are very happy about. We did not want him to get a helmet! He can pass toys back and forth between his hands. He is extremely loud just like his sister. Whether he is happy or sad, he is yelling and babbling and growling, which can be quite the challenge at church. He loves to blow bubbles with his mouth and suck on anything he can get his hands on.

He is still such a happy baby. He smiles and laughs constantly! He is such a fun baby.  

 

Leo is SO in love with his sister. Lilly just walks into the rooms and Leo lights up. I can make him laugh but he laughs hysterically for Lilly. Its so sweet to see the love that they already have for each other. I am so happy they have each other.

 

We all love this little boy so very much and are so happy that he is in our family!

5 Months

Leo is growing like a weed and I want it to stop! I want him to stay tiny forever. He is such a sweet happy baby. He really only cries when he's hungry or tired. He will just jump in his jumperoo or lay on the floor or swing in his swing and talk and of course suck on his fingers. He makes it very easy to love him. He is also such a smiley boy. All you have to do is walk by him and he smiles at you. I love it!

The weather has been amazing so we have tried to get out as much as we can before the heat and humidity hit. Most mornings I push Leo around the neighborhood in his stroller while Lilly follows on her scooter. Leo loves taking it all the new sights and sounds.

We started Leo on solids at about 5 1/2 months. He was drinking way too many ounces of formula and the pediatrician recommended we start him on solids a little early. He has loved it! When Lilly was a baby she wouldn't touch baby food. We just waited and went straight to finger foods. But Leo downs it. I have been pureeing my own fruits and vegetables and then freezing them in ice cube trays. So far he has loved: avocados, butternut squash, peas, sweet potatoes, green beans, carrots, bananas, pears, and apples. So really he loves it all!

Leo finally loves toys! We were getting worried there for a while, but he came around. He has his favorites which include; a light up tiger (Lilly bought it for him before he was born) and a few farm animals that make sounds. Even if he is crying, you show him one of those toys and he will immediately smile. We sure do love this little boy!

4 Months

This little boy is so precious. Whenever he smiles or coos or even when he is just sleeping, I just have to look at him and it makes me get teary. I love this little boy. I'm not sure if its because it was such hard work to get him here or maybe because when I look at him I see my two little boys up in heaven. I don't think there is a baby that is more loved than him.

 His 4 month stats are:

Height: 26 1/2 in - 86%

Weight 16 lbs 8 oz - 74%

Leo is the happiest little man. Ever since we started him on acid reflux medication he has been one happy boy. He smiles at everyone and everything. His whole face lights up when he smiles. Most day when he has woken up from a nap he will stare out the window and talk and talk. Even if he wakes up sad, when I go to him and he will stop crying and give me a big smile. There have been many times while feeding him in the middle of the night that he will stop eating for a minute and give me a huge grin. He is such an easygoing baby.

One morning while I was feeding Leo he sneezed with a mouthful of milk. It sprayed all over both of our faces. He looked up surprised and then gave me a big smile.

He recently found his hands. It is so fun to watch him look at his hands like they are the coolest things ever. He is constantly chewing and sucking on them. He has also started drooling a ton. I have to change his clothes 3 or 4 times a day because they are soaked in drool.

Lilly loves her baby brother so much. She loves to hold him, feed him, kiss him, bathe him, and even change his diapers. She really is a great helper and is gentle most of the time.

Lilly turns 5!!

On October 18th Lilly turned five years old. Its crazy how fast they grow. 

Lilly had returned home from her trip to Utah with Grandma Henshaw and I had just been released from the hospital 4 days before. I was so happy to be home right before her special day. Lilly helped grandma make her birthday cake and decorated it with strawberries. 

She received tons of clothes and two pairs of shoes from Grandma Henshaw. My mom gave her a double doll stroller. Gus and I gave her The Lion King DVD, a board game, necklace making kit, a puzzle, and a necklace engraved with her name. It was hard shopping for her this year. She had no idea what she wanted which made it very hard for me.

5 Year Well Check

Lilly has gotten so big in the last year! Here are her Stats for her 5 year well check:

43 lbs - 65%
46 in - 95%

The Doctor was impressed that she had grown 3 inches in a year. She is one tall girl.

She was very chatty with the doctor. He kept commenting on how "spirited" she was. I just laughed. Spirited doesn't even begin to describe Lilly. After the doctor checked her he said, "Alright, you can put your clothes back on." Lilly looked appalled and with way too much attitude said, "Um, a little privacy please?" I'm glad he found her amusing.

Lilly had to get 2 shots while we were there and as you can see in the video, it doesn't phase her one bit.

While we were there, Leo also had his 2 month check-up. He had to get a vaccine that was taken orally. As the nurse was squeezing it into his mouth he started to choke. Lilly looked at the nurse and said in her sassiest voice, "Um, did someone go a little too fast?" The nurse was not amused.

Halloween 2011

This is a post that is long overdue. I guess nine months on bed rest has left me with a lot of catchin' up to do.

Lilly had a wonderful Halloween in 2011. She was able to do so many fun things.

This year Lilly did not have a birthday party with her friends. I had just gotten out of the hospital and Lilly had just returned home from her one month trip with Gus's mom to Utah. So my mom and Lilly put together a Halloween Party for all of her friends.

She invited Genevieve, Brielle, Braden, Emi, and Emerson. They played Pin the Nose on the Pumpkin (which Lilly drew herself). They also decorated sugar cookies, made Halloween puppets, had a scavenger hunt, and played Ghost, Ghost, Witch. Lilly had such a fun time with all of her friends!

At Lilly's preschool they had a costume parade. All the children paraded around the school grounds while the parents watched and took pictures. It was so cute!

Lilly holding hands with her best friend, Genevieve. It was a little bright outside!

For our ward Halloween party, Lilly wanted to dress up as something different. She knew all of her friends would be princesses, so she wanted to be one too.

On Halloween night Lilly decided that she had enough candy and just wanted to stay home and hand out candy to the trick-or-treaters. Between knocks at the door, Lilly scraped all the insides out of her pumpkin. Then Gus carved it while we watched Charlie Brown Halloween. It was a great night.

Easter 2011

Another post I should have done a long time ago...

Lilly was able to go to the White House Easter Egg Roll last year. Her Aunts MJ and KA scored some tickets and asked if they could take Lilly. It is a once in a lifetime experience and I am so glad Lilly was able to go. She had such a wonderful time with her favorite aunts!

The Easter bunny also came this year. I was in the very beginning stages of my morning sickness/Hell. So it was a good thing I shopped a few weeks before!

Christmas 2011

So, this past Christmas was our first year not traveling to Utah and Idaho to be with our families. I was sad but I didn't want to travel with Leo for fear that he would get sick. Besides, it was a good opportunity to make some of our own traditions.

Since we missed our old ward and new ward's Christmas party I took Lilly to see Santa at the Mall. When I told her we were going to see him she ran upstairs and put on her favorite red shirt and headband. She wanted to look her best and was SO excited to see him. He was seriously the cutest Santa ever. He interacted so cute with Lilly. She said all she asked for were new earrings. She also told Santa that her little brother was too young to ask but that he wanted a Bumbo. So cute! 

Lilly sang Christmas songs constantly during the month of December. She loved serenading her brother and anyone else who would listen.

We started the Elf on the Shelf tradition last year. It is so fun to watch Lilly get excited as "Elfie" is in a new place each morning. It also helps her to obey because "Elfie is going to tell Santa if your naughty!" I wish we could keep him up all year!

On the 23rd we went and saw the Temple Christmas lights. They aren't as spectacular as the SLC Temple but the weather was way warmer than SLC will ever be in December. On the way home we got ice cream. It was a fun family night.

On Christmas morning Lilly didn't wake up until 9:00! It was amazing to be able to sleep in on Christmas morning. She came into our room SO excited.

Just before going downstairs to open presents

Lilly was just as excited to see Leo's presents. She helped him open them. She is such a great big sister!

I loved the way Lilly arranged her nativity set

Trying out Leo's new Bumbo

Its crazy how we scaled way back on the presents this year but she still ended up with tons!

Lilly decorated the gingerbread house on Christmas day. We usually buy the $20 Costco set. But this year we went with the $4 IKEA one and used up our old Halloween candy. We will be doing this every year!! 

Although we missed our families terribly we still managed to have a wonderful Christmas this year!