Reese: Seven Months

How Old: 7 months

I'm sorry for the video/picture overload in this post. I had too many favorites this month!

Weight/Height: We don’t have a dr's appointment until 9 months, but I would guess she’s right around 16 lbs.

Baby Clothes: This month I packed away all of Reese’s three month outfits and filled her closet with six month and six – nine month clothing. She’s still in size two diapers.

Milestones: Reese is really good at sitting up. There are still times she topples over and she still likes to fling herself back occasionally, but I’m pretty sure that’s because she thinks it’s fun.

After Reese got over the worst part of RSV we picked up on solids again. She’s tried butternut squash (loves), sweet potatoes (loves), broccoli (on the fence), rice cereal (likes), and avocado (would rather not have to eat it). She hasn’t completely rejected anything yet (except the first oatmeal), but I can tell when she doesn’t like certain things because she makes this face that says “I don’t like it, but I’m going to power through it cause mom is feeding it to me.”

While eating squash

 In the later part of the month Reese started rolling over in her crib. At first, it was just when she was so mad she’d twist and turn until she ended up on her stomach. Later, she was definitely doing it on purpose and a lot of the times would fall asleep there. One week we went four times without feeding in the middle of the night! I know she’s definitely old enough to not have to do that, but I don’t know if I’m ready to completely give it up. :(

Even though she was rolling over in her crib, for the longest time she was still not interested in doing it while playing. The day she turned seven months, I finally convinced her that rolling to get Sophie was a good idea. We’ll see if it sticks.

Reese has definitely been teething this month, but we have yet to see an actual tooth! There were a few nights she was bothered by the pain and we gave her Tylenol. We have also given her teething tablets as recommended by a work friend, which seemed to help.

Special Outings: More like special time at home this month for Reese! Between being sick, grandparents and Aunt in from Florida, daycare being closed for two weeks, and gas leaks…Reese was away from Donna’s and at home for four weeks! I’m pretty sure she liked being at home with whoever was with her for the day, but she seemed to adjust going back to daycare just fine.

I would like to thank my Aunt Carol for all of her help this month! She was so flexible and watched Reese (and Aidan) several times while she was sick and while the daycare was closed. I’m not sure what we would have done on some of those days if she wasn’t here. Thank you Aunt Carol!
While daycare was closed, Reese got to spend a couple of days with cousin Aidan, which she loved! She thinks he's the coolest dude ever. A few times she would be playing with a toy and Aidan would come over and take it from her, but she would just smile, cause he's so cool, and it's ok if the toy is taken as long as it's Aidan who's taking it. I love those two together.

I just love Aidan's face in this pic!

Highlights of the Month: Lots of highlights this month since it was the holidays!

Mid December Mimi Wagner, Papa, Aunt Amanda, and cousin Evalyn all came to Dallas to visit and to celebrate Christmas. Reese had a wonderful time getting spoiled by them. :) She also got tons of toys from Mimi Wagner and Papa and a ball pit from Aunt Amanda. She loooves playing with the all the balls that came with it. (Not sure how we didn't get any pictures of Aunt Amanda, so you should send me some....)

This month was of course filled with lots of Christmas celebrations. The first one was at Grandpa and Cindy’s. Reese had tons of fun watching her cousin Aidan laugh at Brooklyn running around. Again, I just love watching the cousins play together. 

The next weekend we had a Vrla Christmas at Aunt Kelly and Uncle Frank’s. I always love getting together with this side of the family and all the games we play. Reese was spoiled once again with all the gifts she got. (Apparent;y, I didn't get any pictures of the family...what was I thinking?!)

We went to Mass with Mimi, Aunt Becca, Uncle Jason, Cousin Aidan, and Nina at St Thomas on Christmas Eve. Both kids looked super cute.

On Christmas day my mom, sister, brother, and families all came over to our house around 11:00 for breakfast and gift opening. Reese got even more toys. She definitely hit the “I have so many toys I don’t know what to do with them” point. Mommy and daddy plan to ration them out throughout the year. Later that day we went to Papa Joe’s to celebrate with my mom’s side. It was a busy day, but it was we had so much fun with all the aunts, uncles, and cousins!

Baby’s Routine: This month really threw Reese off her routine. With being sick and then family in town her schedule was thrown out the window. This stressed mommy out some cause Reese decided naps are overrated. After all the craziness, daddy and mommy were very strict with her schedule to get her back on it. After a couple weeks things started to get better. It was during this time we also discovered Reese wants to be very warm while sleeping. So, we are back to putting her in a sleep sack, which isn’t bad, I’m just glad she’s taking longer naps than 30 minutes. Here is what is supposed to be her routine.

Wake up: 7:00am
Nap: 9:00 am-11:00 am
Eat/Play: 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
Nap: 1:00pm - 3:00 pm
Eat Play: 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm
She usually wants to nurse when mommy gets home: 6:00
Short nap sometime during this time: 5:45 – 7:00
Eat solids: 7:00
Bath time/play: 7:30pm – 8:30 pm
Feed and put to sleep: 8:30-9:00pm 

Baby’s Favorite Food: I’m still going to go with mommy’s milk, but of all the solids she’s tried I would say butternut squash.
Reese still sticks her free arm straight up in the air when she nurses, but something else she started doing is finding my thumb and putting the tip of her thumb on it, so the tips of our thumbs are touching. It’s really cute. She also likes to wrap her fingers around my thumb as she eats, but that started when she was a newborn.

Baby’s Favorite Activity: Reese loves playtime with mommy/anyone that will get on the floor with her.

Also, this:

Baby’s Favorite Toy: Balls from ball pit, books, and Sophie

Whatever was happening at this moment was definitely not her favorite:

 Big Changes: The biggest change this month was eating solids on a regular basis. It’s so fun to watch her explore all the food tastes and textures. I wish I could capture all the facial expressions she makes cause they are so funny!

With all the sick time and family time this month, Reese got a little spoiled. For about a week and a half if we put her down for a second she would start to scream. It got to be a little silly, so we had to show her that playing by yourself really isn’t all the bad and that you don’t have to be held 100% of the time. Once she remembered all this, it made things like eating dinner a lot easier! I will say it is nice to be wanted though. :)

During her home stint Husbandy finally broke the code to get to her drink out of a bottle! Basically Reese wants nothing to do with you when she’s drinking from the bottle. Husbandy laid her on the couch and made her think she was holding the bottle by herself and she sucked down the milk! We shared the trick with Donna and she’s now officially drinking more during the day than I’m pumping. I really never thought that would happen, so it’s kinda sad seeing our (large) stock dwindle down.

Mommy Journal:
It always makes my heart full when Reese is fussy, but the moment I pick her up she's happy. It just makes a mommy happy when they know their child is calmed by their presence. She showed me this a lot this month.
One night this month daddy went to dinner with some friends and it was just me and Reese at home. I was nursing her before she went down for the night and just as I thought she might be sleeping, she woke up and just stared at me. I stared straight back at her and we just sat there for a couple minutes staring and smiling at each other. I then picked her up and held her in my arms and she just looked at me and put her hands out to touch my face. It definitely made me cry because it was such a sweet moment. I absolutely love moments like these and will cherish every single one I get.

Reese, you are certainly wonderfully made. I can’t imagine life without you. You are my angel and I love you to pieces!

A Year in Photos Week 2

Day 5

Husbandy and I took a trip to the grocery store to get food for the week. Reese was not impressed with our decision. I tried so hard to make her smile, but this is all she gave me. :)

Day 6 

Monday morning was soooo cold! Definitely the coldest it's been in Dallas for a long time. I'm pretty Reese had on five layers (maybe not actually that many). 

Day 7

Reese has lots of fun at GND with her boyfriend, Liam. She may not look impressed here, but I think she was just listening intently to his French, or she was nervous about being eaten.

Day 8

Quick family photo before bed time! Reese was so tired, but look how cute she looks all ready for bed. :)

Day 9

Reese went over to Grandpa and Cindy's house while Husbandy and I went on a quick date to Cedar's Woodfire Grill in Plano. We had never been there before, but the food was good and not too expensive. We were also a fan of the margaritas! After dinner we ended the night with some fro yo. 

Day 10

Just this week Reese has started to roll over during the night and sleep on her stomach. While I'm glad she's showed me she can roll, I'm not sure I like the whole sleeping on her stomach thing. It's really hard for me to determine if she's given herself enough room to breath and I stress out over it. Who's surprised by this?

Day 11

Husbandy and I jump started our day by cleaning the fridge. We took out everything, including the shelves, and scrubbed it down. I'm ashamed to say when the last time this happened, so we'll just say it was overdue.

A Year in Photos

I've decided to challenge myself to take a picture everyday this year and post it on my blog. I'm really hoping to do this weekly, but we'll see if that works out. I'll consider this a new year's resolution to push myself to actually follow through. :)

Day 1

January was not only the beginning of a new year, it was the start of free coffee for a month! A friend at work and I bought our mugs back in December and have been anticipating January ever since. If we're not at our desks in the morning...you can find us at Starbucks.

Day 2 

I was a little behind during the Christmas holiday, so I missed baking Christmas treats. Instead, I decided everyone would be having snack withdrawals by Jan 2nd and passed out this little check mix. Happy 2014!

Day 3 

I woke up feeling terrible. I had chills and my whole body ached. For some reason I stayed at work the whole day, but Husbandy bought me some yummy soup for dinner.

Day 4

Husbandy and I went to our friend, Cindy's, wedding. Everything was absolutely beautiful and we had fun out on the town sans Reese. She got to spend the day with Mimi, lucky girl!

Reese: Six Months

How Old: Six Months! How is it that’s she’s already ½ a year old?!

 

 

Weight/Height: At her 6 month visit, Reese weighed 14 lbs 13 oz and was 26 inches, putting her in the 21% for weight and 48% for height. Looks like she stayed about the same for height, and went up a little for weight.

 

Baby Clothes: Reese can wear anything from 3 month to 6-9 months in clothing. It’s always the length of the clothing that depends on what she’s wearing. She’s still wearing size 2 diapers.

 

Milestones: Reese has begun to sit up. She can’t get into the position by herself, but when we sit her up she can stay there for a while. Though, I have noticed sometimes she will be sitting and fling herself backward. Thankfully, every time she’s done that she’s either sitting on our bed or has the boppy around her, but I’m not looking forward to the day when that’s not the case. She really does like sitting up. When I try to lay her down, she does a little crunch so she can sit. Reese also has some pretty strong legs. She loves to stand while mommy and daddy hold her hands.

 

A few days before Reese turned 6 months we gave her oatmeal. She was not a fan! The faces she made cracked Husbandy and I up though. I know you’re supposed to try solids a few times before deciding a baby doesn't like them, so we tried oatmeal again the next day. Again, Reese just looked at us like, “I see what you people put in your mouth and this is NOT it.” I think it’s pretty safe to say oatmeal is not her thing. It's good we bought a huge thing of it (parenting fail).

 

(kind of long....but cute)

 

Reese got sick a couple days after trying solids, so we took a break as I needed to make sure she was getting lots of fluids. We picked it back up after her 6 months, so I’ll talk more about that later.

Still haven’t seen Reese roll over from back to front on her own. I try to coax her with a toy or by laying on the floor, but she doesn’t seem to love one thing sooo much that she just has to have it. I’ll keep trying though, I know she can do it.

Special Outings: Reese got to meet Kelly, Michael, and Annabelle this month! We were sure to take a picture, cause Reese and Annabelle are going to want that when they are best friends later. :) Husbandy and I were also very excited to see the Michaelis’! We've missed them so much since they moved to Abilene.

After attending lunch with Kelly, Michael, and Annabelle, I took Reese to a wedding shower! She luckily got a little nap on the way and was nice enough to take a bottle pretty well when we got there.

 

My cousin, Kyle, married a wonderful girl named Sarah this month, so Reese got to attend her very first wedding! She did really well during the ceremony, I think her cousin Brooklyn kept her entertained. The reception was a little rough though. She didn't want to take a bottle and was NOT ok with nursing under the cover. That was kinda essential for the nursing process, so it wasn't until later when I asked if there was a private room to nurse that she got to feed. She was then not a fan of the loud music. My family took turns holding/dancing with her in a separate room, but Husbandy and I had to skip out before the fun was over. I’m so so happy we got to go to the wedding though! Everything was beautiful, especially the bride. :)

Highlights of the Month: Husbandy and I made it 6 months! Reese has really been a pretty easy baby, but I think we can still celebrate keeping her alive for ½ a year. :P Thinking back to June, it’s crazy how much things have changed. Reese really wasn't doing much other than sleeping, but now she’s awake, laughing, tummy timing it, smiling, nursing well, and just being a little person. Gosh, I love her so much.

We spent Thanksgiving at Papa Joe’s with lots of family. Reese definitely enjoyed getting loved on and playing with all her cousins. She just stares at them and laughs. I can’t wait until she can crawl around and play too. (Ok, well I can wait. But, that will be so cute!)

 

 

Reese also made it through her first ice storm! This really didn't mean anything but good things for her as both mommy and daddy were home on Friday! It was so fun getting to spend this extra day with her. We didn't take her outside, but we did show her the ice through the window. She seemed to be pretty intrigued by all the white stuff.

Baby’s Routine: 

Wake up: 7:00am

Nap: 9:00 am-11:00 am

Eat/Play: 11:00 am - 1:00 pm

Nap: 1:00pm - 3:00 pm

Eat Play: 3:00 pm - 5:45 pm 

Nap: This nap is usually a little shorter than his morning naps 5:45 - 6:30 or 7

Eat Play: 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm

9:00 pm feed and put to sleep

 

This month things got a little difficult in between the time Husbandy picks Reese up and bed time. She used to be able to take a nap around 7:00, but we realized this month that when she did that she would not go to bed! Due to that Husbandy and I have been trying to figure out what works best for Reese and us. The ideal situation is for her to nap for 30 min – 1 hr starting around 5:45. Some days that works out, but other days Reese doesn't want to go down. Every night is a little adventure. 

 

Baby’s Favorite Food: Definitely mommy’s milk, most preferably from nursing. Reese still does not eat well at daycare. She fights the bottle, but eventually gives in when she’s too hungry. :( I’m not really sure what to do about that. I was hoping solids would help, but she doesn't seem to be in love with that either. It kinda makes me laugh to think at first should would not nurse, but now that’s all she really wants to do.

 

Something I have to remember is how Reese started to nurse this month. Her free arm is always straight up in the air. Typically she’s reaching for my shirt or my hair. I just think it’s so funny, the second she starts nursing her hand is up. 

Baby’s Favorite Activity: Nursing? Haha. She does love playing on the floor with mommy or in her excersaucer. One thing I don’t want to forget is how much she loves when we brush her hair; she just smiles and laughs. She’s such a girl. :P She also really loves bath time. When we squirt water on her she’ll just look at it and try to grab it. Then she kicks and kicks as we clean her. At first, I couldn't really tell if she was liking it, but she is. I’ll have to get a video, it’s pretty cute.
We have also discovered that Reese really likes sounds. If she's fussy I'll usually make a clicking noise with my tounge, or some other strange noise with my mouth, and she becomes very intrigued. She also really thinks it's funny when we say Mama or Dada. It's almost as if she's laughing at us thinking "That's funny cause I'm never going to say it."

Baby’s Favorite Toy: Excersaucer and playmat. We also gave her links to play with this month and she’s really enjoyed playing with them on her carseat and during Mass.

Big Changes: I can’t help but reflect back to six months ago when Reese was just a little 6 lb baby. All she could do was just lay there and be loved on. Now, she can communicate things, and smile, and laugh, and sit, and grab, and roll, and talk; she recognizes mommy and daddy and loves to play. So many things have changed over just a few short months and I know there are so many more milestones to reach in the next six. I've said it before, but I love watching her learn and grow. She’s my little angel.

 

Mommy Journal:

This has been the month of sickness for Reese. It started off with us taking her to the dr for an ear infection. Dr F put her on amoxicillin twice a day, which she hated! Every time we gave it to her she just cried. I’m sure she didn't like that it was cold or the fact that it tasted so sweet. After we were done with the medicine we didn't think the ear infection was cleared, so we took her back to the dr and we were again right. So, back on a stronger medication. Reese liked this round a little better, but I think the amoxicillin made her dislike the sight of the syringe. We finished up this round and planned to get it all checked out again at her 6 month appointment, but 3 days before it we went in because Reese was coughing and stuffy. Knowing a little boy had just been diagnosed with RSV at daycare, I expected the worst. Lo and behold Reese also had RSV. Poor baby, she was so stuffy and miserable.

Reese being sick stressed me out! The ear infection wasn't bad because she was still happy, but there were points during the week she had RSV I didn't think I would make it. I hardly slept at night cause I was constantly worried she couldn't breathe, so I would sit and watch the monitor to make sure this wasn't the case. Reese also woke up more often during the night. The combination of these two things made for long nights for this mommy.

 

I am so thankful for the people I work with! There were a couple girls that really walked me through how to handle RSV and calmed some of my nerves. They reassured me not to worry about work and to focus on my baby, they even went as far as to tell me “Don’t you worry about work, I've done your load before and will do anything you need.” Such a wonderful thing to hear when I'm was so worried about my baby! Reese got the worse on Thursday and we took her back to the dr to make sure RSV hadn't escalated. When I was leaving work, my senior told me not to be at work on Friday, even though I had been at the office for just a day and a half that week. It was such a relief to not have to feel guilty about staying home with Reese on Friday. I am so blessed to work with other working mom’s who have been through it all.

 

Reese, it was a hard month for both you and mommy and daddy, but we made it little girl! While I hated to see you sick, I did enjoy the snuggles. We love you to pieces!

Because I Need a New Wardrobe!

One...ok two...of the blogs I follow are giving away a $500 gift card to Nordstrom!! I'm in desperate need of some new clothes, so I'm hoping to win the drawing.

 

If you don't follow Shay and/or Sheaffer, you should.

 

Here's a link to Shay's blog!

Reese: Five Months

How Old: Five Months!

Get excited....this post has lots of videos!!

Weight/Height: We went to the Dr a few days after Reese turned 5 months for a sick visit (more about that in her 6 month post), but I will say she weighed 15 lbs 1 oz  (with clothes on). So, she gained a little over a pound in one month!

Baby Clothes: Still sporting the 3 and 3-6 month clothing and size two diapers. This month I did pack up an entire box of clothes she can’t fit into anymore. As I was going through them it made me tear up a bit cause I remember some of them being so big on her when she first wore them. We also received three boxes of clothes from SIL. There is soooo much, there’s no way she’ll ever wear them all. I thought about having her wear something and then immediately packing it away.

Milestones: Reese is getting better at grabbing onto things. Not only that but she will reach for toys she really wants to play with. At this point I think she is much better at using her left hand than her right. Sometime I purposely put her on her play mat with the hippo on her right side so she’ll have to practice using that hand. She gets frustrated when things don’t go her way and she can’t seem to grab what she wants.

Reese has also discovered lots of new sounds this month. When she first started making them I thought something was wrong with her cause they were so foreign to me! After I figured she was ok, I thought they were all kind of funny. One of them is this scream/cry/grunt; I think it might be her favorite. She also gave us this treat, I wish this noise was her favorite, cause it certainly is mine!

You won’t believe it, but Reese also rolled from front to back this month! I am so proud of her. She won’t do it every time we put her on her belly, but she’s done it enough for me to believe it’s not a fluke. She has yet to perform her new trick for anyone other than mommy and daddy though. But, we’re tricky cause we captured it on video. :)

Special Outings: We went and ate lunch at my grandparent’s assisted living apartment. I always get so nervous before these types of outings, cause I don’t want her to be screaming the whole time. But, she did great! She even took a little nap so we could eat.

Reese also went to her first Halloween party at Merit. She wore her onesie my sister made that says “Reese’s Pieces” and an orange tutu with orange and black polka dotted pants. She looked pretty dang cute if you ask me. Even though she was tired, she was for the most part happy the whole time. She was Reese’s pieces again on Halloween. We didn't go trick or treating, but we did spend the night with Yoda Aidan, Aunt Becca, Uncle Jason, and Mimi!

We took Reese to College Station for the first time (out of utero) this month! The three hour car ride was her longest yet, and she did pretty well. She got a little upset a few times, but for the most part she slept. We are fortunate to have some wonderful friends in CS and they let us invade their house for the weekend. We had our own room and Reese even had a crib to sleep in. We are so thankful for them and their hospitality! We didn't have tickets to the game, but Reese did attend her very first tailgate. I thought it was going to be sunny and 70s, but it ended up being rainy and a little cool. Reese was in awe over all the people and eventually took a little nap on mommy (which I was of course ok with!) On Sunday, we took Reese to St Mary’s which is where Husbandy and I got married. The priest that said our ceremony is no longer there BUT he happened to be in town saying Mass that weekend! How absolutely perfect. It was so great introducing Reese to him. He is also the same priest who blessed Reese and me when I was 13 weeks pregnant. Overall the weekend was so fun. Can’t wait to bring Reese back next year for a game!!

Highlights of the Month: This month we celebrated the one year anniversary of confirming we were pregnant! I posted the below picture and several people thought I was announcing I was pregnant again. Alas, I was just celebrating our sweet Reese and the fact that I have said one of these phrases in my prayers everyday for a full year now: Baby Wagner, B-Dub, Baby Girl, and/or of course, Reese!

Husbandy and I went to the Stars game with the SIL and BIL one night this month. We had a great time out on the town (even though I was super tired by 9:00). This also meant it was the first time Reese would be put to sleep by someone other than Husbandy or I. I was of course nervous about how it would go, but Mimi did a fabulous job (duh)! Reese ate a ton and slept through the whole night. :)

We of course had to take pictures in a pumpkin patch! We did it very quickly one Sunday after Mass, and I have to say we caught some pretty good pictures. I just love the fact that Reese and Aidan are so close in age, I wish Brooklyn could have joined in on the fun though.

We may have technically found out about this last month, but there is a Baby Vrla #2! I am just so so so excited about this I can’t stand it! I tried to capture Brooklyn telling me she’s a big sister, but she was more interested in looking in the mirror.

Baby’s Routine: No big changes. Reese still doesn't take the best naps at home. I can’t seem to make her sleep longer than an hour, and she usually wakes up after 30 minutes :(.

Baby’s Favorite Food: Still solely breastfeeding. I can’t believe in just a month we can start solids!

Baby’s Favorite Activity: Talking with mommy and daddy. Ever since she found her voice she loves talking. At the end of the month we got better at making her laugh, but we still haven’t found that one thing that ALWAYS gets her going.

Baby’s Favorite Toy: I’m still going to go with her playmat. She’s also starting to like a little pink ball we got her that has holes in it which makes it easy to grab. She kinda plays with Sophie, but isn't in looooove with it.

Big Changes: Around 4 ½ months we stopped swaddling Reese. The whole swaddling thing started to get frustrating for both of us as she would just break out of it the moment we got her wrapped up. I also noticed if we got her to sleep, she would wake herself up by wanting out of it. So, one night, we just didn't swaddle her. There was no transition phase, we just left both arms out, and she slept great! We do still have the swaddle around her bottom half, but it’s mostly for warmth.

Mommy Journal:

Reese made me one proud mommy this month (not that she’s ever done the opposite)! Just when I thought she would never roll (:P), she did it! It was almost like she was configuring in her mind how to do it, then BAM executed it. :) My goals for this next month are working on rolling back to front and sitting up. 

Watching Reese discover new things is the most amazing thing. I love being her mommy and watching her grow. Even though she’s still waking up in the middle of the night, there is not one thing I would change about being her mom. I can’t wait to see what new things she discovers this month. It’s becoming more and more fun as she’s starting to interact with us. It’s crazy to think she was in my belly just 22 short weeks ago. I find myself telling Husbandy how absolutely sweet/pretty/adorable/perfect our baby is all the time (not that I'm biased....)

Reese, you bring so much joy to mommy and daddy’s life. We love you to pieces!