25 Week Update - Sitting Up

25 Week Picture

Milestones:

First pumpkin patch:  As a kid, our family used to go to the local Apple Barn/Pumpkin Patch near my hometown every year and pick out our Pumpkins.  I really wanted to start that tradition with my family so I found one nearby.  It's not nearly as impressive as the one back home, but is apparently up-and-coming.  This year, the pumpkins were just dropped into a field, but apparently next year they will be grown on site. Daddy picked out Addison's first pumpkin from the field (scroll down for picture).

Blowing Bubbles:  Addison's newest thing is "blowing bubbles".  She purses her lips together and blows spit bubbles without opening her mouth.  It's hilarious because she really gets into it and makes a babble noises too.  Cracks us up!

Sitting up:  It's hard to say that Addie can officially sit up on her own.  She will sit on her own, but gets bursts of energy and will tense up her legs throwing her head backwards and laying herself out.  So basically, we just can't leave her unattended or without pillows all around while sitting up.


More Pictures from week 25:

Addison's FIRST PUMPKIN!

Mommy's first pun-kin!!

Daddy's FAVORITE pun-kin!!

Nana came for a visit.  Addie lover her Nana!!

Mommy trying Addie's new winter hat out!

24 Week Update - The Cold Shoulder

24 Week Picture

It's been two weeks since our last post.  If you have been following the blog, you already know that things are crazy as heck around the Handley household because of some outdoor renovations going on.  Luckily, it looks like we will possibly be done within the next few weeks.  We still kept track over the last few weeks of all of Addison's milestones and pictures.  Enjoy! :)

Milestones:

Ignoring you:  Addison has done this for a while.  We really weren't sure if it was intentional or not but it was confirmed this week.  When you hold her, sometimes she will turn her head away from yours like she's just looking around the room at things.  We used to pass it off like she was just really interested in her surroundings.  Now, we're thinking she's messing with us!  We will hold her out in front of us and turn her whole body to get her to look at us and then she will flip her head the other direction! LOL! Earlier in the week, mommy tried to get Addie to look at her and she wouldn't.  Mommy started making funny noises in attempt to get her to look up and instead Addison started laughing but kept her head looking away!  

Shy Girl:  This is similar to her ignoring people, only she will be looking right at a "new" person and then bury her face in her blankie or in someone's shoulder and smile.  She doesn't always do it and it's mainly when she's sleepy.

Dreamer:  Lately, Addison has been dreaming a LOT!  Sometimes she whimpers and sometimes she laughs.  She has dreamt before but it just seems like it's every night lately and several times a night.  I can't imagine what a baby would be dreaming about that would make her sad, but it breaks my heart and I just want to wake her up!

Using Hands:  

Using hands to rub eyes/face - Before, Addison wasn't very coordinated about rubbing her eyes/face and usually ended up scratching herself up.  Now, Addie rubs her eyes ever so gracefully with the backs of her knuckles.  I don't know why, but I think it's really cute when she is tired.

Using hands to discover material - From scratching at vinyl in her crib to scratching her daddy's scruff on his face, Addie loves to explore different textures.  If you're holding her, she will often scratch at your shirt and listen to the sound it makes.

More pictures from week 24:

Hanging with nana and cousin Avryl

Visiting with her Grandma Kuntz

She LOVED sitting in this basket!

She just kept kicking her feet and listening

to the sound the basket would make when her

feet would hit the inside.

She has always been a very long baby!

Pulling at her diaper

 Standing on the couch and using

the back cushion to hold onto!

Cheesin' for mommy

23 Week Update - No More Baby Bath

23 Week Picture

Over the weekend, Addison's Great Grandma Raube (Darlene) came to visit us at the lake.  We all had an awesome time.  At one point, Addison was having one of her "kicking sprees" while she was sitting next to Grandma and I was able to get some pictures (see below), it was waaay cute!


Milestones:

Miss Kicks-a-lot:  This week Addison seemed to be on a kicking spree!! Every day she would go through these spurts where she would get a TON of energy and kick like crazy!  It's so funny because she focuses on her feet while she's doing it and nothing else in the room matters.  She has done this before, but for whatever reason this week it seemed constant.

Pooping:  Last week we posted that Addie had not produced a bowl movement in nearly a week.  The very next day, she FINALLY let out a diaper full.  It was bittersweet for mommy :) I was glad she finally pooped, but unfortunately the diaper didn't hold the load.

Solids:  Addison really doesn't seem too interested in solids still, but it seems like this week we made at least a little bit of progress.  For whatever reason, she still does not want the rice cereal but she doesn't act like she minds pears as much.  I'm going to keep working on giving her the rice cereal daily and hopefully by the end of next week she will do better.

Bath time:  Addie has outgrown her "baby tub", literally!  Shane and I decided to start giving Addison baths in our tub.  The only problem is that ours is an oversize jacuzzi tub and very deep so bathtime is a little awkward.  We've been working every night to develop a routine that will make it easier on daddy, mommy AND baby.


More Pictures from week 23:

Addie's playing hide-and-seek...

 All of the Great-Grandchildren

 Laughing at mommy..

 Chilling with Great-Grandma Raube

 Having a "kicking-spurt" with Grandma

 Enjoying the beautiful weather outside the restaurant.

 Smiling at Uncle Dillon and Aunt Joy

 Uncle Dillon and Aunt Joy making faces at her

 The happiest parents in the world!!

 Loving her Aunt Joy

 Laughing at Uncle Dillon's face sneezing

 Hanging out with cousin Avryl

22 Week Update - 5 Months

22 Week Picture

We don't have nearly the amount of pictures that we usually do this week but things have been hectic at the Handley household.  A small home improvement project of adding an outdoor kitchen on our upper deck turned into a HUGE project.  Long story short, we uncovered a dangerous amount of water damage (and wood rot) on part of our deck.  Since we would be needing to replace so much of the rotted wood anyway, we decided to tear down that entire end of the deck and widen it.  This week, we started demolition.  With the INCREDIBLE help of our friend Adam, and the most amazing wood-construction-iron-metal-stucco-jack-of-all-trades worker Dillon (my brother), it is going great!  Lets hope the rest of the project runs smoothly because the weather is getting chilly and the guys are getting tired!!

Milestones:

Pooping:  Addison has not pooped in 5 days!!  Our pediatrition said that it's normal for babies to go days without a "dirty" diaper, but this seems crazy to Shane and I.  Addie's diet hasn't really changed (still breastmilk) with the exception of the occasional "taste test" of baby food.  Despite not passing a bowel movement, she has been able to pass some pretty foul smelling gas.  Lets hope something happens soon, or I'm guessing we will have an angry baby on our hands!

Crib/Sleeping:  Addie has been sleeping in our room at night since birth.  Our doctor said that he suggests all new parents to keep their babies with them at night until 6 months of age.  The only time we would put her in her own room was for daytime naps. Her sleeping patterns would vary at night.  From birth to 1 month, she slept 4-6 hours before waking up to eat.  From 1 month until about 4 months, she would sleep 7 or more hours.  From 4 months until now, Addison has been waking up after around 4-5 hrs. of sleep.  On Wednesday night at bedtime, we decided to put her in her own room.  She fell right asleep and slept 5 hours.  When she woke up, she ate and then fell right back asleep for another 4 hours.  Last night, we tried the crib out again at bedtime.  Addison slept 9 hours!  Needless to say, it looks like Addie is ready to start sleeping on her own at night.

Solid Foods:  Introducing solid foods is not the "picnic" you would think it should be.  Maybe it's different for other parents, but Addison has NO interest in solids.  At one point, I thought we were making progress because she seemed to gag less and it seemed like she was keeping some of the food in her mouth.  Now however, Addison doesn't want the spoon in her mouth even WITHOUT food!

"Scooting":  Crawling is not yet part of our daily routine, but Addison likes to "scoot" on her back.  Wether we are changing her diaper or she is just laying on her back, she likes to scoot backwards using her legs.  It's funny because she almost always will start kicking her left leg up and down like she's "revving up", and then she will start pushing off of both legs.  Maybe this will be her way of getting from point A to point B?? :)

More Pictures from week 22:

21 Week Update - First (mild) sunburn

21 Week Picture

Over the weekend (the 24th through the 26th) we went to Branson, MO with Shane's family.  The trip was a blast and Addie had a great time with everyone.  On Saturday, we spent the day at Silver Dollar City.  We were able to "break in" Addison's new stroller and try her (facing out) in the baby sling.  Addie seemed to love the stroller and passed out in the baby sling!  It was fun to see her reaction to all of the sights and sounds.  The trip was so much fun that we've decided to take another trip to Silver Dollar City in December for the Winter Festival.  The lights will surely be exciting for her and so we can't wait!

Milestones:

Hair:  Addison hasn't really had the full head of hair that so many babies around her have had.  Many of our relatives and friends have daughters that were born with so much hair it looked like a wig, but not Addie!  FINALLY though, it seems like her hair is starting to fill in.  It may be hard to tell from some of the pictures, but it's there! :)

First Amusement Park: Addison's first time at an Amusement Park was on Saturday the 25th.  It was at Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO.  Although she wasn't able to ride any rides, she played her first game and won a really cute furry duck by making a ball land on top of a milk jug (with a little bit of mommy's help).  Addie really seemed to enjoy looking around at all of the people and excitement.

First Sunburn:  Ok, before you brand us "bad parents".........LOL    :) , it really wasn't a burn.  Addie got a little pink on her nose and cheeks and a teeny bit on her arms.  We tried to keep Addison pretty well covered any time we were in the sun at Silver Dollar City, but it was impossible to keep the sun off her completely because it was a GORGEOUS day!  In the end, it actually looked kind of cute on her!

Nails:  If there's a "how-to" book somewhere out there that describes IN DETAIL how to successfully cut baby's nails.... PLEASE LET US KNOW!!  Mommy trims Addison's nails at least once a week and get them as short as humanly possible but somehow, Addie always manages to scratch her face up!  I've tried using a nail file too, but her nails are just to thin....hmmmm!

More Pictures from Week 21: