SHE'S CRAWLING!!!

If there was any shred of doubt that our commitment to family chiropractic care was paying off, this morning's appointment erased all doubt.

I'd been feeling concerned that Susannah wasn't sitting up independently or crawling, so we started seeing Dr. Tony once or twice a week to go after the problem. There had been good progress before today: Zannah was pulling herself into a sitting position and - as our last update told you- pulling up on the furniture. But the crawling wasn't happening yet.

Dr. T put our baby girl on the table, wiggled here her and pushed on her there. "Hmmm, that's interesting," he mumbled under his breath. One more small adjustment. Then he put on on the floor and...

SHE CRAWLED AWAY.

The entire office heard me squeal with delight.

Here's a quick sample of her new mobility:

Did I say she wasn't standing yet?

I had just posted the last entry when I looked over and saw this. I think she's trying to make a liar out of me.

Her smile in that second photo is so undeniably Susannah. More of a smirk, really. You can just tell how pleased she is with herself. I love this girl!

The birthday countdown begins!

It's totally impossible that we're just a month away from the big birthday. I still think of her as a little baby, but she's clearly speeding towards toddlerhood. Check out the new skill she learned today:

She's climbing up on everything now - the couch, the train table, the dishwasher... She doesn't pull up onto her feet yet, but as long as she can reach whatever object she's after, she's a happy camper. Poor Aaron is having to find a new spot for his treasures. He used to be able to put things on the train table a know they were safe from Susannah's reach, but that's no longer the case. I think we're in for some lessons on sharing. :-)

And just for my own memory, we weighed her at Dr. Tony's this morning: 17 pounds, 10 ounces. For being such a chub in her first few months, she's really turning into a skinny-mini! By comparison, Aaron weighed 19lbs on his 1st bithday. Tony commented this morning that he thinks she'll be tall, too. Her legs are getting loooong. We've made quite a few trips to his office in the last two weeks, trying to get her left hip working well. She's still not crawling on hands and knees, and I was beginning to worry. But she's making good progress, and will now sit up to play with a toy as well as bend her left leg more while she scoots across the floor. Won't be long now and she'll take off!

30 days to go! I'd better start planning a party.

Chef Aaron

Aaron's third birthday has come and gone, and he was gifted with some REALLY wonderful presents. One of my favorites was an apron and chef hat made by Auntie Rebo. I just LOVE the fabrics she chose. Isn't it cute?

I emailed this photo to her so she could see her handiwork in action, and, of course, she made a scrapbook page about it. Wanna see it? And wanna see the one I made? Head over to Rebo's blog today to see what happens when two scrappers use the same photo and the same supplies to make two very different (cute!) pages.

Susannah's official ten-month portraits

Happy 3rd Birthday, Aaron!

Dear Aaron,

When Dad and I welcomed you into our family three years ago, we had absolutely no idea what we were in for. No idea that the sweet little baby face we stared into that night would grow into a bouncing ball of energy that could not be contained. No idea that you would so quickly learn the art of temper tantrums and parental manipulation. No clue that it would be such a battle to train you to listen and obey what we asked of you. We also had no idea how wonderful it would be to hear you call us Mama and Daddy, and to watch you grow into such a  spectacular little boy.

I asked you a few questions after dinner last night in an attempt to capture Aaron at three. Here's what you said:

• My best friend is: James and Eli and Jakey and Tyler and Myles and Molly and Sam...
• My favorite food is: Mastacolli and mapyle syrup and pancakes.
• My favorite color is: blue
• For fun, I like to: cook and play guitar
• My favorite song is: Get Back Up (by Toby Mac)

And as I though more about the things that make you you, here's the list I made:

• You love diggers and dump trucks and anything else that's big and has wheels.
• Your sense of humor is second to none. Your giggle alone can make me laugh, but when you're doing silly dances or making up your own funny words, you can get the whole room rolling with laughter. 
• Spicey Cat is your sleepy time friend, and you're still "borrowing" your sister's pink blanket, plus a white one of your own.
• You're a super fast runner, and athletics, like most everything else, seems to come easily to you.
• You have more energy than we know what to do with.
• You love his sister like crazy. It's been a big transition for you this year, going from only to oldest, but you have surprised us all with your genuine affection for Susannah and the way you care for her. You're an AWESOME big brother!

There are so many special things about your three-year-old self that I would like to bottle up and keep forever, but I know that I can't simply describe you with a laundry list of your likes and habits. You have a spark, Aaron, and I see it every time you smile and your eyes light up. There is something deep inside you that's just beginning to take shape, and I'm so very excited to have a front row seat to watch you grow.

You are loved, little Bear, more that you can ever imagine. Being a super sentimental mom, I know I'd better stop now before I get all weepy over this birthday. I am so thankful for the privilege of being your mama, and excited to see the adventures that await us in the year ahead. Happy Birthday, Aaron!!!

Susannah update: ten months

You'll have to forgive my "just-the-facts" post here. I'm trying to get some of this down before I forget, but there's no time today to be witty. If you can hang with my stream-of-consciousness, I'll reward you with a cute photo of the sweet girl. :-)

It's been a big month for our Princess Peach. She cut her first tooth on Labor Day, and a second quickly followed. She's getting up on her hands and knees, and I know any day now I'll look down and watch her crawl away. Her vocabulary is now up to two words: mama and baby (what a wonderful pair to start with!!) And it became painfully obvious she'd outgrown her co-sleeper last week when she climbed right out of it. She's now graduated to a bigger bed, but still sleeps in my closet. We're joking that we've turned our 3 bedroom into a 4. Ha!

I weighed her yesterday and found she's still trimming down: 17 pounds on the nose (down about 1/2 a pound from last month). This is no cause for concern, as she came into the world with some - ahem - extra, shall we say? As she gets more mobile and is better able to regulate her body systems, she's shedding the superfluous poundage. The upside is that she isn't flying through clothing sizes quite as quickly. It's been nice to have her wear some outfits more than twice before outgrowing them!

"She's just a beacon," our friend Dr. Tony said when he saw her earlier this week, and that's a perfect way to describe our gorgeous girl. She has a sparkle all her own, and it's a lot of fun to see her personality unfold. She's playful and opinionated and so easy going. She's a lovely girl, inside and out.

She's playing with her baby and I'm playing with mine!

Daddy sure loves his girl. She's soooo kissable.