Girly girl!

Now that she's bigger, we decided it was time to dress Aberly up in her cute dress for church today.  Look at her and her handsome dad in their Sunday best!

Aberly continues to grow and become a fun little girl.  She loves smiling at us and particularly loves our tongues.  She also is in love with some sprigs of fake branches with red berries on them in our living room, and two small decorative red berry wreaths in our bathroom.  When she sees them, she lights up and smiles like they are live things interacting with her.  It's pretty funny.  Of course, it makes us feel a bit less special knowing she loves inanimate objects as much as us.

With the sun shining today, we decided to take a walk and dressed Aberly in her snuggly body suit.  Cutie pie!!!

Lastly, enjoy this picture of Aberly "passed out" after feeding this afternoon before her walk.

What schedule, Mom?

Yes, Aberly has decided that after two days on her schedule, she isn't so sure she wants to keep it.  She didn't want to go down for her naps on Sunday and so far today, she seems to be fighting it as well.  Ah, the life of a baby!!! :-)

I think it's God's way of keeping me on my toes and not letting me get to hot-headed, which is a good thing!  A few weeks ago when Aberly was sleeping 7-8 hour stints at night, as soon as I bragged about that, it stopped.  After bragging about her schedule on my blog and to friends, that is being tested as well.  At first it frustrated me, but now I take it as a sign to be more flexible and patient.

Today I was skimming my Bible and the verses in Galatians about the fruits of the Spirit jumped out as me.  It reminded me that to be the best mom for Aberly, I need to show her those daily.  Joy, love, patience, and peace!  I know I won't always be perfect, but God calls me to display those.  It also reminds me that I need to pray daily for His help in acheiving that.  "I can do anything through God who strengthens me".  I don't remember where that verse is in the New Testament, but it is one that stays close to my heart.

  

Happier and happier!

Miss Aberly is a growing girl and getting happier all the time.  She has become the queen of smiles and we can tell she is on the verge of laughing.  She is getting stronger and can stand on her legs with our support for balance.  Quite the talker when she wants to be, she is very entertaining.  Oh, and she continues to be very alert and take in the world.  If we are somewhere new, she looks and looks around at everyone and everything.  

Something that has helped this emerge is getting her on a schedule every day.  I realized I wasn't doing a good job of getting her down for a nap when she needed it, and the lack of sleep or delayed nap when she needed it brought on the intense fussiness.  After a this first week of being home with her alone, I've discovered she normally is up for about 1 1/2 -  2 hours and then needs to sleep (indicated by fussiness starting or rubbing her eyes).  After a nap, she'll eat and be happy again till her next nap.

This weekend we are very lucky to have Grandma Elaine visiting from Corvallis.  Last night we went out for a wonderful date while she babysat, and she continues to help out with Aberly during the day.  This morning we went out for breakfast and she was happy and content!

A few new pics

Count down...

We have hit the last few days before Colin has to go back to work.  Like he asked on his Facebook status, "Where have my 8 weeks of paternity leave gone???".  The answer is that he's holding her right now.  Neither of us ever anticipated how much time would be dedicated to Aberly on a daily basis and the lack of things we'd get done.

All in all, the last 8 weeks have been very rewarding and we wouldn't trade them for anything.  Sometimes we'd say we would, but overall, we look back and know they have shaped us both in amazing ways and we have a beautiful little girl to show for it.  We plan to cherish the last three days together the best we can.

10 lbs, 9 ounces

Aberly is a growing girl!

New pictures

Best day so far

I think today had to have been Aberly's best day to date.  She's been happy and calm and very interactive.  Of course she's had her fussy moments when she wanted to eat, etc... but overall, she's been great.  This is greatly appreciated by mom and dad after a rough day yesterday!

Colin and I continue to have our ups and downs as parents.  As much as we love our beautiful little girl, it's hard not to have days when we hit a "wall" and feel overwhelmed.  The loss of freedom definitely gets to you at times!  We know, though, that with time, we will fully adjust to our life with Aberly and what it means to be totally selfless.  We look forward, as well, to when Aberly becomes a young lady and wonder what she will be like.

A few weeks old, here is a fun picture of Aberly with Grandma Elaine over Christmas.

New Year's Day

Although we didn't make it to midnight, we had a great time hanging with our neighbors for New Year's.  Pizza and Trivial Pursuit  made the evening absolutely enjoyable.  Aberly was in bed at 10:30 and we were asleep at 11:30.  Now I'm sitting watching the Rose Bowl while Colin and Andrew (who stopped by for an Uncle visit while in CO) play a game, and Aberly naps in her swing.  Although sunny, the wind is howling outside and rattling the gutters.

Aberly is doing great!  She is sleeping much more consistently and happier all the time.  I think part of the fussiness was her being hungry.  Hunger cues can be hard to read sometimes in a baby and I think I've been missing them.  Today I've been watching much more carefully and I think I'm figuring her out a bit better.  So far the results today have been good!

Not the best picture of either of us, but I have to show off her looking super cute in her overalls!