Squealer McGee

This kid seriously cracks me up!  Her newest thing is screaming at the top of her lungs.  And then she straightens out her arms and tenses up her face and does it again.  I don't know what it means, but it is seriously funny!  She also now screams when something is taken away from her.  I know, I'm a bad mommy for taking away the DESITIN!  I mean, come on...

Last Saturday a children's boutique in Eau Claire was doing a model search, so for the heck of it, we entered Mya.  The photographer took pictures of her sitting outdoors downtown.  Mya was not at all sure what to make of the rocky cement and so she would lift up one leg and balance her butt on it.  So weird...but she still smiled!  I can't wait to see what the pictures look like!

After the photo shoot we went back to my parent's house to have another mini photo shoot.  However, Miss Mya was way more interested in eating leaves than focusing on the camera and smiling.  I did, however, manage to snap a few smiley ones!

Mya has been scooting around all over the place!  She likes to move on carpet much more than the hard wood we have in the kitchen!  More often than not, in the kitchen, she moves backward because she doesn't have anything to grip onto.  It makes it even more challenging when her feet are covered with pajama footies or socks!

Good things come to those who wait...or something like that.  Mya's sleeping schedule has FINALLY kicked in!  She'll go down around 7:30 and then wake up for good between 6 and 7.  Every now and then she'll whimper in the night, but she quiets back down.  My friend, Kristie, mentioned how she puts tons of nooks in her daughter's crib so that she can find one during the night.  We did it and it worked!  At one point during the night I went in to check on her and she had managed to put one in her mouth.  Thanks for the tip, Kristie!

She's 7 Months Old!

Well, our little girl isn't really so little anymore!  She sure is one hilarious kid!  Each month she seems to come up with new ways to entertain us!

No well-baby check up this month, so when I weighed her myself she came in at 20 pounds and is 28.5 inches long.  Greg and I both think she's getting soooooo long!  It wasn't too long ago when she was all pudge.  Don't get me wrong, she's still got pudgy parts, but now she just seems longer!

Mya sure loves getting around!  She mastered crawling and will follow me in and out of rooms.  Unless, that is, she's tired and needs to stop for a rest!  She is still incredibly attentive and watches everything.  She is curious in what people around her are doing and will quietly watch them go about their business.  Especially when there is a lot of commotion, she is content to just watch!  She is interested when we speak to her, especially when we repeat words like momma or Mya.  She studies our lips intently!  Mya loves when I sing to her, too.  Her favorite (from what I can tell) is a Dr. Jean song called "Bringing Home a Baby Bumblebee."  I sing it to her when I want her attention, like for a picture!  She stops what she is doing and gets a big grin on her face and watches me sing. I hope she's going to be into music, just like Mommy is!

Mya's been better about sleeping through the night too!  She gets tired around 7:30 and goes down for the night.  She'll whimper every now and then, but will more than likely sleep until 5 or 6.  She's also been napping really well at daycare, taking 2 hour naps.  Interesting how she won't take naps for us at home...hmmm.

We continue to introduce big people food to her.  Little by little!  She likes crackers and french fries.  She also really likes Puffs.  Better stock up on those puppies!

Greg and I really are so blessed with an amazing little girl.  She's growing up so quickly and I want to cherish every moment and cuddle I possibly can with her.  I can't imagine life without her!

Busy Little Girl

Well, I've finally been able to capture a picture of Miss Mya's toofer!  Go figure, the next day after I took this picture another tooth popped up right next to it!  This whole teething thing has been taking its toll on her...and us!  Granted, we think it was a cold too, but she had a runny nose, gunk in the eyes, and has been up constantly at night.  She continues to chew on lots of teething toys, so it makes us wonder if there aren't more coming in.

Her crawling has literally taken off!  One day last week she was able to make only 2 or 3 crawling moves.  Now, this week, she will crawl across the room!  Of course, it has to be on her terms!  A lot of times she'll start to crawl and then sit down.  Must be exerting too much energy?

One day after work this week we took full advantage of some nice weather we were having and went for a walk to a park by our house.  It was Mya's first time on the swings and she loved it!  There was a time when it bothered her to have wind in her face...not so much anymore!  She had the biggest smile on her face!

Greg also took her down the slide!  I'm guessing that next summer I won't be able to keep her away from the park!

Mya pulled herself up for the first time last night!  She's been working on it the last couple of days, but couldn't pull her heinie up.  Last night she grabbed onto the ottoman and up she went!  She then thought she could let go and fell, but oh well!  Always room for improvement!

We've been giving her finger foods, she just hasn't shown much of an interest in them.  Last night I gave her some Puffs and she gobbled them up!  It was so cute because I actually heard her crunching them up with her two little teeth!  We'll try some more today!  Guess I'd better stockpile them up!

Mya's First Packer Sunday!

Little Miss Mya has been a busy girl lately!  She eats, poops, and sleeps (most of the time)!  She's been cutting another tooth on the bottom, so she's been a little out of sorts.  Her sleeping pattern has been out of whack and has been waking up several times a night.  Not to mention, she's had a runny nose and so she's been so stuffy at night.  Hopefully it passes soon because Momma loves to sleep! 

Mya and I have still been in Eau Claire while my dad recouperates.  She's up bright and early with us so that she's ready for Grandma Pat in the morning!  No matter what the time is, she's always so happy!

Mya has been spending some quality time with her cousins lately!  She and Nadya are two peas in a pod!  Mya just adores her!  And she thinks Trajan is a hoot too!

Mya even helped Grandma Pat make some nummy apple crisp one day!

On September 8, 2010 Mya actually crawled!  She'll make a few crawling moves and then plop down...like it's so hard for her to continue!  At any rate, she scoots all over the place.  Always on the move that kid is!

On Saturday we went out to my aunt and uncle's farm to hang out.  Auntie Beck and Uncle Doug provided Mya with some fresh carrots so that Momma can make some more baby food for her!  She was intrigued with the pumpkins, and even more so with the pumpkin stems. 

AND...Mya experienced her first Packer game on Sunday!  She chillaxed by playing with toys and taking a small cat nap.  She let out an occasional squeal...of course it was to root on her favorite football team!

Notta Lotta

Well, I was so disappointed with myself this week.  I looked through pictures on my camera to upload to the blog and there wasn't a whole lot!  I blame it on school starting back up and having to be back at work full time!

In any case, I did have some to share!  Mya continues to be a lover of books.  She listens when we read to her and she looks at the pictures on the pages.  So far, she's fairly gentle with the pages (mainly because we've been giving her board books or fabric books).  I'm sure it won't last.

It seriously is getting difficult to take pictures of Mya when she's just sitting.  The sitting doesn't last long...she wants to be on the move!  I remember longing for the days when she would sit up and be more interactive.  Now I'm wondering if this kid will ever stop moving?

Her tricks continue to impress us.  I put her in the pack and play for a little bit while I did some laundry.  She managed to get onto her knees and pull herself up.  I have a feeling that she is going to be one fearless kid!  She loves to be roughed around, especially when it comes to being bounced!

Mya continues to work on her crawling skills.  She'll put her butt straight up in the air and it actually stays there longer now!  She makes the first move to crawl, but is still working on it!!

On the Move!

Last week when we went into the doctor for Mya's 6 month check up, he said to try out "big people" food with her.  He said if one of us were eating a bagel, rip off a chunk and let her have some too!  We tried some watermelon this week, she wasn't sure what to do with it!  I think she liked the sweetness, but hasn't figured out how to manipulate small pieces yet!  Something to work on!

She does, however, continue to love baby food.  I made a big supply of baby food up a while back and she's been gobbling it up.  Sometimes the texture of a food is a little different than what she apparently likes so she'll make the gagging face.  BUT, we've found, if you add bananas to anything, she'll lap it up like a dog!  Not kidding, I've mixed bananas into her squash and peas!  What a gross combination, but she seems to like it!

Well, a couple months ago Mya faked us out with a tooth.  One was starting to come up, but then went back down.  Her doctor said that was normal.  This week she's been more clingy and fussy than usual and we discovered she has a tooth cutting through on the bottom.  She's pretty sensitive about it right now and doesn't like our fingers in her mouth to feel around, but this morning, we think, it's definitely cut through.  Poor kid!

Mya has been doing a lot of visiting lately.  She's been to the hospital tons of times to visit her Grampa Bruce.  We're happy to say that he's doing so well and will actually be released on Friday!

I started back at work on Thursday and so Grandma Pat watched Mya.  It sounds like they were busy girls!  The went to visit Mya's Great Grandma Ruth, as well as the Hull kids.  It also sounds like they went bumming around to Farm and Fleet and Menards!  No wonder she was so tired when she got home that night!

Mya has been in constant motion.  She's making the first steps in crawling.  She gets her heinie up in the air and moves her legs, but still hasn't quite figured out how the arms move along with it.  I'm thinking it's not going to be too long before she's mobile.  And just this morning she grabbed a Rubbermaid tote and pulled herself up on it.  Guess I'd better start strapping all of the furniture down to the floor!

And I'll leave you with my favorite picture of the moment.  I put her on the grass and she just started smiling.  This pose looks like it could be her senior picture down the road!

Six Months Old!

Today is Mya's very first half birthday!  6 months old?  No way!!  It only seems like yesterday that we were bringing her home from the hospital!

Here are some things you might want to know about our little pudge-a-roo! 

*When she's tired and getting her last bottle of the night, she'll put her hands on her head.

*She's an expert at giving slobbery kisses!

*She laughs at the craziest things.  Sometimes nothing at all will make her laugh hysterically.

*When she's sitting, she rocks back and forth with so much force that she'll sometimes get onto her knees.

*She's as calm and mello as can be.

*She is a lover of food and we haven't found anything she doesn't particularly enjoy.

*She doesn't like heat and humidity and gets cranky if she's in it too long.

*She is a people watcher and loves other little kids.

*She likes music and will kick her legs and bounce around when she hears it.

*She is easily entertained with fingers and toes...yours or hers, it doesn't matter.

On Monday we had her 6 month check up.  She now weighs in at 17 pounds, 5 ounces (75-90th %ile) and is 27 inches long (90-95th %ile).  So, Mya continues to grow, grow, grow!  Mya has a new pediatrician and we met him for the first time yesterday.  He gave us a lot of great ideas...like it's okay for Mya to try regular milk and how to get her on a better sleeping pattern.

Mya and Daddy

Mya and Mommy

The before shot picture...

and the after with her battle wounds.

Amazingly, Mya did so well with her shots.  She cried as the needle went in, but then it was just a little whimper.  Almost like it was an attention-seeking cry.  She toughed it out, though!