Christmas Card

I finally got our Christmas cards sent out this week. If you didn't get one and hoped you would or you did get one and hoped you wouldn't I apologize. We love to get cards but don't expect them from everyone. I never really know who to send them to except immediate family members. If we missed you in our small head count of people who would care then please accept this as the Christmas card that won't clutter your refrigerator and you won't have to decide whether to keep it or trash it. Plus you can always come back and admire it here when you need a little joy. :)

front

back

We got them through snapfish and it only cost us like $29 and included free shipping but the quality was not the best. They actually printed out darker than we expected. We ended up taking them at my  parents' house because their tree is prettier and my mom has more decorations. These are the pictures we originally took and chose from. We took like 200 pictures but majority were all the same pose as these but imagine blurry or unflattering lol.

Lillian must think Papa and Santa are the same person because this is very similar to her santa picture 

Lillian's 39th Week/9 Month Dr. Appointment

39 weeks old!

Eating: Trying new things when we can, eating table food, nursing, and a few purees everyday.

Sleeping: Lillian did awesome this week with sleeping at night. She slept through the night every night! She did however wake up most mornings about 6-6:20 am. Most of the time since Daddy was already gone to workout I just put her in the bed with me and she'd sleep for another 30 minutes. I have a feeling though that this coming week will be like the few weeks before because I think she is starting to cut another tooth. She has been drooling more (swallowing it and then spitting it back up) and yesterday and last night her naps and sleep weren't as great. She would wake from her naps fussing pretty badly. It was like a "i'm still tired cry but I'm in pain and can't go back to sleep" cry. So I would move her into her swing and I did give her Tylenol at night and she fell right back asleep.

Doctor Appointment: Today was Lillian's 9 month well visit. We ended up having to wait 45 minutes before we were even called back. That was the first time I have ever had to wait and we found out our poor doctor was having an allergic reaction to something so he was running late this morning. I didn't mind waiting because Kevin was there too but unfortunately because we did have to wait Daddy couldn't stay the whole time and it was quickly getting close to feeding time for Lillian. She had to have blood drawn to check her iron. They pricked her toe and she made a face but didn't even cry while they kept squeezing her toe to get blood. Blood came back great for iron so no worried there. They also did some kind of vision test with this old school looking camera thing. She did have too shots today; flu vaccine and hep B. This was the last thing they did so by this point we were 25 minutes past her eating time. she cried for both shots but luckily I had a small bottle and gave that to her and she was fine while we drove home then I nursed her and she has been great since. Here are her "stats" for this check up.
Weight: 19.2lbs - up 2.3lbs since her 6 month check up.
Height: 28.5in. - up only .7inches since her 6 month. Her carseat height limit is 30in. so I have a feeling we will be starting the new year with a new carseat.
Head: 17in - up from 16.5in.

The doctor said she was almost underweight for her height the last few visits but is starting to average out now. I'm surprised because she has always seemed kind of chunky to me but as long as she is healthy that's all that matters. We came out to the car though to see that a careless driver didn't care to think how poorly they parked may affect others. Luckily I didn't have the carrier with me or I wouldn't have been able to get it in the car. I was able to open the car door just barely enough for me to squeeze through to buckle her in. It was very frustrating.

Other Happenings:
- Lillian had her first babysitters this week that weren't grandparents. Kevin and I had a Christmas party to go to and even though they had babysitters there I figured Lillian would do better being at home. Thankfully my cousins Emily and Amy are always gracious to play with Lillian so it worked out great. Lillian did great until she was eating her bottle and only ate about half and then had a melt down. We think she was just super tired and she doesn't really like other people feeding her. She has even fought daddy on it before. But they said they put her to bed and she fell right to sleep. Always good to come home to a good report. So thankful to have them here willing to babysit. Here are a few pictures from our Christmas party. We did some caroling hence the awesome hats.

The Ladies

and the Fellas

- We had a great week all around and took lots of different pictures. If you haven't already seen them on Facebook enjoy.

such a ham

"Santa Baby"

- We also saw Santa this week and had a fun time at our Christmas playdate where we got to make reindeer cookies!

Santa's Village

Last night Kevin got home early from work and surprised Lillian and I with a night at

I hadn't even heard about it until we got there. If you are local and don't already know about Santa's Village it is located in downtown Huntsville at Alabama Constitution Village 109 Gates Ave. Huntsville, AL 35801. It is open Nov. 29- Dec. 23 5pm-9pm and cost is $5 for anyone over the age of one. Plus parking is free downtown after 5pm.

We really enjoyed going and there were lots of photo ops.

Professional pictures with Santa were free. Photographs are available online for private viewing and you can purchase single photos or packages. We obviously took our own camera and got some great shots. I really liked how Santa was dressed. Lillian did awesome and didn't cry! She however didn't smile either. The lady helping direct the line was all in Lillian's face right before the picture which scared her a little so Lillian wasn't all giggles with Santa. None the less we got some great pictures.

This picture truly reflects Lillian's inquisitive nature. She stared at his beard and glasses for majority of the pictures

This is my favorite. The photographer was great at directing Santa for that perfect shot.

They had elves, a penguin, mouse soldier, frosty and a gingerbread man. I wasn't sure what Lillian would think of them but she seemed to be okay.

We got to decorate a gingerbread cookie in Ms. Claus' kitchen. Lillian enjoyed sharing the gingerbread man with Daddy. 

 We also got to see the different rooms where the elves sleep, and see two of Santa's reindeer.

There was also a magical garden with lights that lit up to the beat of Christmas music.

bad picture from my phone but Lillian's face cracks me up. 

We didn't stay long because it was cold (hence Lillian zipped up in Daddy's jacket) but there seemed to be a lot to do for the price. I was so glad Kevin surprised us with a fun family outing. But that wasn't the only surprise... 

that's right we took advantage of the #dayofthedozens at Krispy Kreme and got a dozen glazed donuts free with the purchase of a dozen. (We are preparing our stomachs for all of the goodies coming up this month)

Gaylord Opryland Hotel/The Stones Visit

Some of our good friends from New Mexico were going to be on the east coast this weekend so we headed up to Nashville for the weekend to see them. Brandon went to school with Kevin and I at Harding and married this awesome gal Christian. We don't get to seem them often since they live so far away! but it's always a fun time when we do see them.

Saturday night we wanted to get out to do something and someone suggested checking out the lights and decorations at at the Opryland hotel. It was fun but not what I expected. Maybe we didn't see everything or maybe just too many people to enjoy it but we got some good pictures none the less. 

Panoramic view of the lights outside

Christian is due in February and her and Brandon are going to be awesome parents! Lillian loved staring at Brandon all weekend. 

This was right after she punched him for being a dork probably. :)

Baby Stone aka Pebble as Brandon called it (I say IT b/c they aren't finding out the gender)

Awesome Friends! We missed Jordan's Wife Erin but she was busy relaxing in Cancun :)

Lillian's 38th Week

38 Weeks old today!

We got a new lens (50mm) as a family Christmas gift and it is amazing. The quality of pictures is significantly better (no photoshop done on these except cropping) but it makes it more difficult for me to catch Lillian smiling and laying flat on the floor when I'm high up on the bed and still can't get her whole body in the frame. We may be doing sitting up pictures from here on out.

P.S. I love those little sweat pants I got her. They aren't as cute as some little leggings or jeans but they are way easier to get on and off while we are relaxing at home!

Eating: Nothing new here this week. Still nursing and doing solids about twice a day, if Momma is on the ball.

Sleeping: Lillian did great this week once we were back in town but then we went out of town over the weekend and just did okay. She was in her pack n play and she wakes up more often in it. I think it is because of the material on the sides and the bottom make so much noise when she moves around it wakes her up. She also turns around in circles on her belly and she doesn't have much room in the pack n play to do that. Needless to say we are back home again and doing great. Still trying to wean her off of the swing but Momma has been better at letting Lillian cry it out if she wakes up too early from her naps.


Other Happenings: 

-It has been cold and rainy this week so Lillian and I snuggled inside quite a bit. We tried to watch a movie together but she was disinterested after about 15 minutes.

-You may have already seen this picture I posted on Facebook of Daddy letting Lillian help him brush his teeth. 

 Well she is so interested to I pulled out the little toothbrush that came in her first aid/safety kit and let her try it out for herself. Check out Lillian brushing her teeth. Its just a wet toothbrush no paste but she seems to love it plus it probably feels really good on her gums.

- Lillian can stand up on her own if she is holding on to something or someone. 

- Lillian is in size 9 month clothes but has worn a few things that 12 month and anything 6-12 month fits really well. I don't understand how a 6 month old and 12 month old are the same size but at some point they fit well.

Lillian's 37th Week

37 Weeks old today!

It is getting harder to get her smiling while laying down. If I finally get her to smile she moves.

Eating: Doing about the same as far as eating goes. Lillian does get distracted easily and has only nursed on one side a couple of times in the afternoon, not sure if she just isn't as hungry or if she just wants to get moving. She got to try some new things at our thanksgiving dinner. She had sweet potato casserole and seemed to really enjoy it. Neither Kevin nor I like sweet potatoes so I bought some in baby food form to keep her getting to enjoy it. I wouldn't even know the best way to cook it normally. I have gotten better about making sure she is getting more veggies. I don't think she has actually disliked any food we have given her yet but fruit is still a favorite. I do give her yogurt  and was wondering if yogurt generally irritates the stomach. I think it is giving her more gas but I can't figure out if it's the yogurt or something I am eating. So much going on it hard to remember what all she eats when.

Sleeping: This week we were out of town visiting family the whole week so she didn't get the best naps or night time sleep. She was very clingy and fussy the beginning of the week (due to her second tooth coming in) and would wake up a few times at night. A couple times I would feed her or give Tylenol and that helped and by the end of the week she was doing much better and may just wake once before 6:30 am. Since we have been back home she is doing much better. She has still woken up a few nights around 4 am. I put her paci in or move her to her swing and then she goes back to sleep until her normal wake up time. Not sure why she is waking at 4 am but it has become consistent. I cannot complain how easy it still has been with her teething. Yes I have to wake up more but I feel like it is nothing compared to what some parents have to go through. (granted I say all of this now that she is sleeping better, I didn't quite feel the same in the middle of the night :) ) I am working on getting her to sleep in her crib for naps more. She falls asleep great but doesn't seem to sleep as long as if I lay her in the swing. She has too much space to move around in the crib. Her morning nap has always been the longest (2 1/2 hrs typically) but since being in the crib she will wake up after about an hour. Stay awake for 30 min+ or more then go back to sleep for another 1hr+. If she sleeps her normal times she is getting about 14-15 hours of sleep each day. Seems like a lot but she is so happy when she is awake I let her sleep as long as she needs it.

Other Happenings:
- Started pulling up this week and now climbs on everything. Here are a few pictures to capture the moment and a video ignore all the ruckus in the background.

- Lillian gives kisses now! Sometimes on demand. They are the sweetest kisses ever even if they are open mouth. :) 

- She is talking so much again and randomly laughing. She has also started mimicking people when they laugh. 

- She found her teeth with her tongue and makes this face a lot. 

- I am not a dog person. Big ones use to scare me and I think they all smell. lol Kevin's family all has dogs and Lillian was all about them when we went to visit. I'm fine with her playing with them. I'm glad she gets to experience them and not be scared. I just hate when they lick her face. yuck! All of their dogs are well trained and generally sweet with babies. She would crawl towards them and just follow them around the room.

Lillian eyeing Bandit

- Mommy fail for the month: I always seem to forget baby soap when we go out of town so I tried using our shampoo because she really needed a bath. Not even thinking what I was doing I poured water on her head to rinse out the shampoo and poor thing went crazy. I forgot that the shampoo would burn her eyes. I washed it out as quickly as I could and kept using a wet wash cloth even after she was dressed to help with irritation. Her eye was red for a good 30 minutes after. Mommy learned her lesson and luckily Nena had baby shampoo at her house so we just bathed her there.

- This was her thanksgiving outfit. You would think since I have an embroidery machine she would have some cute turkey/Thanksgiving applique shirt but I just didn't find time. She looked so cute in her military jacket and skinny jeans though.