Hollyn Monroe: 6 Months!

Whew!  I almost missed this one and it's your 1/2 birthday!  Shame on me and poor, sweet 3rd baby.:)

*You are a LITTLE on the spoiled side.  When I say little.....I mean a LOT!  You are a momma's girl through and through and you give the best fuss you can in order to be in my arms.  I'm going to blame it on my new found love for my wrap. ;/

*You are babbling more and more.  "Dada dada" and "baba baba" are your typical coos.

*You weighed 16.5 lbs, 27 inches, and 42.2 for head circumference at your 6 month appointment. You are in anywhere from 9-12 month clothes comfortably.  You are just a BIG baby girl!

*You are the hardest thing to keep still!  Diapers are a major challenge right now because you want to see and touch EVERYTHING!  Some days, I've got to be honest.....I avoid changing your diaper because of the muscle it takes to keep you still.  You are a beast.  One day, you were literally in a handstand position on the changing table with poop all up your back and I had no moves.  It was game over for me.  There was poop everywhere.

*That brings me to the next thing....poop up your back.  You have this mastered.   You wear a size 3 diaper and Pampers are the only thing remotely close to keeping seepage locked up.  It's unbelievable.  We ruin outfits daily.  ;(

*Your smile is contagious and I can't get enough of it.

*You still have a little strawberry blonde tint to your hair and rosy red cheeks.

*You have 2 sweet little birthmarks on the top of your hiney/lower back and I'm not sure that I've mentioned them.  I have one in almost the exact place....we are twinsies.

*We started food!  You have been eating rice cereal, oatmeal, and a little bit of avocado and carrots.  You do really well with them all.

*You love to twist and twirl your tongue!

Hollyn, we love you cupcake.

Hollyn Monroe: 5 Months

Sweet, smiling, Hollyn....we LOVE you so!

*You are eating your toes now!

*You like to chew and suck on everything!  You HAVE to be teething and there's always lots of drooling going on.

*You love to coo and Ansley seems to think your coos are words, which is really funny.  She's always saying, Mom, I'm pretty sure she said "yes" or I think that was "mom".  Did you hear her?!  :)

*You are a jumping bean fein.  It doesn't matter if you're on someone's lap, in the jumperoo, or being held....you are always trying to jump!

*When I get you out of bed, you are usually so excited....you head butt me several times with excitement.  I seriously need a helmet. You are just beyond excited to get milk and it's one of the best times of the day to see how thrilled you are....other than the pain part.  ;/

*You love your tongue. Since birth, you usually have it sticking out.  It's even there when you smile most of the time.  It's so cute.

*Your sister's adore you and LOVE to give you lots of kisses and hugs.  You are twisted, smooshed, and bumped constantly by them, but you are such a good sport about it. 

*I absolutely love this 5 month stage that you're in.  You are really acknowledging the people and things around you and it's so fun to watch your little personality come alive.  You are such a gem.  

Hollyn Monroe: 4 Months Old!

*Our little baby is getting so big.  You weigh 14 lbs. You are in the 98% in height, 79% head circumference, and 56% weight.  You've gone down by 20% in weight since your last checkup, but it's all because you have the wiggles and you're WORKING it off. :) 

*You are such a good snuggler.  You love to be held and you are always so content with just hanging out in someone's arms.  

*You are a biter and I'm not talking about with your toys.  You bite momma!  It is NOT fun, but you smile like a little stinker and I can't even get mad for more than a minute.  Ouch.  

*When you're a little fussy, the only way to calm you is by holding you upright on my left shoulder, holding my hand over your right ear, and shushing in your left ear.  Does the trick EVERY time!

*Your smile.  It's like you sparkle all the time and it's contagious. 

*You are a roly poly!  We can't keep you in one spot ever.  You somehow flip from one end of your crib to the other every night in a swaddle blanket, none the less, and it doesn't phase you one bit.

*It is seriously soooo easy to make you smile and laugh.  It's absurd. :)

*Your little bald spot in the back is hilarious.  

*You are chewing on everything....including your fingers and drooling like it's your job!  You've always got you little fingers in your mouth and you go to town on them! 

*When you're excited you do the funniest inhaled squeal! It's your....I'm more excited than laughing squeal. :)

*You love attention from your sister's and they give you that attention all the time!  They love you so much and their favorite thing by far, is strolling you in their baby buggy.  You love it and they love being little mommas to you!     

I can't say it enough.....you are the sweetest baby, Hollyn.  We are CRAZY about you and every second I can, I want to soak up your sweet little personality.  God is so good!

Hollyn Monroe: 3 Months!

 

Whoa....3 months!  Time flies when you're having fun and don't have time to look at your watch.  Ha! 

 

*You are still smiling all the time!  What a joy you are with your lovely little personality.

 

*You love to talk back when you're spoken to and it's always a happy little jabber.  You have the sweetest little cooing.  We all just melt!

 

*You've started a laugh that just cracks us up.  You love laughing at both of your sisters and they get the biggest hoot out of you laughing with them.  It's precious! 

 

*You are still NOT loving your swaddle these days and you tend to give out a big fuss when you know it's time for a nap.  I don't think you like to miss out on all the action with your big sisters.

 

*You are still taking a paci, which is so great for mom and dad!  We love that it soothes you still. 

 

*You've had some congestion these past couple of weeks and it kills us to see you like this.  It's usually just when you wake up, but we know it's been hindering your sleep. :(

 

*You're rocking the size 2 diapers already and still in 3-6 month clothes.  You are a chunky monkey still!

 

*Most of the time, the first thing people mention is your chunky cheeks.  It is so hard not to smooch them all the time!

 

*You've rolled over a few more times in the past month and when you do....you aren't happy.  It's definitely no fun for you!

*You LOVE bath time.  It's one of your favorite play times!

*We took a LONG trip to Pennsylvania to visit Grammy Booth in December and you were so good!  We couldn't believe how well it went.  You were just along for the ride and loved every second of it. 

 

 We are loving life with you, Hollyn.  You are a precious addition to our family and we can't wait to see how God grows you into a little lady.  :)

 

Charli's potty training adventures!

Well, I think we officially have one less child in diapers.  Woo hoo! A few weeks ago (November 12th to be exact) Charli started going on the big girl potty!  I started the whole process a little earlier than I did with Ansley.  I knew at this point (almost 2.5 years old) that they both understood it, however with Ansley I didn't push it.  She didn't want to go and I didn't really want the hassle of running to the bathroom all the time.  With Charli I felt the same way, but she started telling me that I needed to change her diaper and that she had just gone potty, so I knew it was time.  Plus, we're going on a Disney cruise in April and she needs to be fully potty trained to swim in the pool.  That alone was motivation enough for both of us to get things moving and now she's so proud to tell everyone that she could go to Disney (as if we'd leave her if she wasn't :) ).  She really hasn't had that many accidents, other than a few poops, so I think we're on a roll!  We even made it to Pennsylvania and back without any accidents.  Of course I should mention, we whipped out the potty chair several different times and put it in the front seat for her to go right there on the side of the interstate.  We all stood outside of the truck in the blistering cold and watched her from the windows (as if we needed to give her privacy....?  I still don't know why we did that).  Regardless, she was a rockstar on our road trip for sure!  One of the things that cracks me up is that she is always still so proud of herself when she goes.  The excitement is still fresh for her. 

While we were training her, we bribed her with treats. :) She could either pick 2 M&Ms or 2 Skittles if she successfully went and most of the time she chose the Skittles.

Here's a snippet from one of her first times going. I'm the weirdo that videos that sort of thing. :)



On our way to PA....during one of our many pit stops.

              

Hollyn Monroe: 2 Months!

*She's a little squirmer!  She squirms like a worm in hot ashes to be exact.  Her legs and arms flail when she’s on her back like she’s doing the backstroke. 

*She coos and laughs all the time.  I would say at this point she is our happiest baby of all 3 girls.  She even makes sounds like she’s talking!  Yes, there are some occasional crying fits, but most of the time she is smiling and happy.   

*She has the cutest little crease on the top of her nose.

*She rolled over!  Now, I’m sure this was a total fluke, but the girl wiggles so much when she’s on her back that it didn’t surprise me one bit when I found her on her tummy one morning while she was lying on her activity mat.  The first two weeks of her life, I felt like she could roll off the changing table because of how strong she was.  Not kidding….NONE of my kids have ever seemed like they were even close to rolling over until it was time. 

*She’s in the 97% in height, 88% in weight, and 41% in head circumference.  My tiny little baby is suddenly covered in squishy rolls all over and we haven’t had a baby as high in the height department this early that I can recall.  She’s growing like a weed!

*She was a pea in the pod for Halloween just like Ansley and Charli.  That costume has gotten some good wear!

*She is sleeping anywhere from 6-9 hours a night.  It’s usually around the 7 or 8 hour mark, which at this point I’m happy with.  This momma is tired and those long stretches feel amazing!

*She loves her binky and I’m down to 1 that works.  Yikes!

*The swaddle blanket is NOT her favorite thing in the world.  She’d rather sleep with her arms out and stretched above her head.  She usually gets her left arm free during her naps and is usually sucking away on her fingers by the time I get in there. 

Hollyn, we never imagined we'd have another precious little girl to add to our crazy bunch, but now that we do....we can't imagine life without your sweet face.  We love you so much and can't wait to watch you grow!    

 

For the love of soccer.....

Ansley wanted to play fall soccer again this year, so we signed her up.  We were a little reluctant about this decision, knowing that Hollyn would be arriving in the middle of it all, but we're pretty much a bunch of push overs....so we did it. :)  Little did we know, our little soccer player would be asked to be on the All-Star team.  Don't get me wrong....she is a good little player, but All-Stars?!  We were just a touch confused, but we went with it!  So a 4 week recreational soccer schedule turned into another 4 week soccer adventure.  The tournaments were in Jackson, Perryville, Sikeston, and Cape.  Apparently....none of us wanted to get off the soccer train.  :/ After it is now all said and done, I'm glad we did it!  Ansley had fun and we met a lot of new parents that are lots of fun and just about as competitive as Jason and I are.  Ha!  

These are some of my favorites from rec soccer and All-Stars

   

Ansley usually played goalie for half of the game and then either forward or fullback for the rest

This was one of her spider monkey moves.  Ouch!

Ansley's friend, Lynlee after rec

Macy is Ansley's friend from school.  This is who we all called Grace for the first week of school....Ansley was a little confused. Ha!

Look at that form!

I want the ball please!

Our next soccer star :)

Ansley waiting to play and Daddy there to "cheer" her on.  The Sikeston folks called Jason a goal coach. Ha!

One perk....trophies at every All-Star tournament

That tongue!

I loved their little huddles

The tiny fan club!

And part of the big fan club....Pam was in the car taking care of Hollyn (so she didn't freeze!), so unfortunately she didn't make the picture. 

Hollyn pooped through several outfits during the tournaments.....and it would always be RIGHT after I changed her diaper!  Unbelievable.

Sweet friends

And cookies afterwards!  Ansley's favorite part of soccer. :)

End of the season team pictures.  It was such a fun time!