McGill Family: September 2010

Monday, September 20, 2010

Big. Big. Day~ "Daddy"

align="left">Mondays are usually rough, but today was a great one:

* Kaitlin had her six month check up and is healthy as can be! :) She weighs 17.13 lbs and is in the 80th percentile. She has slowed down a little (at 4 months she was in the 95th). Poor thing had to have 3 shots, including the flu vaccine...but I'm happy she was old enough to get it before flu season arrives.

* I saw her experience "stranger anxiety" for the first time when the DR. grabbed her to examine her. She looked at me with puppy dog eyes and then got the saddest face, tears in her eyes, and reached out for me. He gave her back to me and she immediately stopped crying. My social little butterfly has never done this before, but then again she is not used to strangers grabbing her away like that...and this is apparently the age they start developing this anxiety. I am not sure I am ready for it...such a sad face.

After her shots...poor baby.

* She drank water from a sippy cup for the first time.

* She had vegetables for the first time...yes I made them myself and my husband called me a hippy. I'm sure Gerber is just fine and she will end up eating it too, but for now I don't think she needs all those preservatives. She also liked them a lot more than cereal. :)

Messy messy.

* AND...saving the BEST for last...she said her FIRST WORD tonight!!! I have been dying for her to say something, and she finally did. She was on the ground and her dad was sitting in the chair. I was trying to take a picture of her and I kept saying look at daddy, and then all of a sudden she just said "daddy." We looked at each other, like did she just say that??? But she definitely did. It was the sweetest voice. As much as I would have loved it to be mommy, it was just as exciting to hear daddy (and it was not "da da" it was "daddy."

Right before she said it.

She is growing up way too fast. But seeing her hit all of these milestones is amazing. =)

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Half a year...

Where have the last six months gone?!?!?! BJ and I got engaged nearly 2 years ago and at that time, we had no idea what path our life would take, but we certainly never expected to have our first baby a year and a half later. Our lives are now centered around this amazing little girl and I have to say that we have adjusted to being parents very well. It is definitely on the job training. All of the parenting books that I read before she was born could not even begin to prepare me for all that I would need to know. Fortunately, there really is a thing called motherly instinct.

At six months, Kaitlin is:

* Very active.
* Rolls all over...including on the changing table, we have to watch her every second. And in her crib.
* Laughs and giggles.
* Plays.
* Smiles all the time.
* Sometimes mimics what we do.
* She can sit up alone...but is very apprehensive about it.
* On the move- ready to start crawling.
* Self soothes herself to sleep. When she starts to get fussy, we lay her down and she is asleep within minutes...And she goes to bed at a decent hour now.
* Is starting to eat solid foods.
* Sucks her middle two fingers.
* Has 2 teeth coming in.
* Lights up when she sees her mommy and daddy.
* Loves her Maddie girl.
* Is very ticklish.
* Laughs when I sing to her.
* Wears 6 month clothes, but probably not for long.
* Can hold her bottle on her own, but prefers mommy and daddy to do it.
* Talks all the time. I think she says "hey" and "hi" sometimes...trying so hard to teach her ma ma and da da. I swear she has said "pook" a couple of times(nickname for Maddie)...but probably just coos.
* New hair coming is blondish.
* Eyes are still bright blue.
* It melts my heart when she smiles at the sound of my voice. She does the same with her dad.
* We lowered her crib a notch because she is starting to try and pull herself up.
* Has such a personality!
* Happy as can be. :)

And how are lives have changed in 6 months:
* Everything, and I really mean EVERYTHING changes.
* Drinking alcohol, even just to unwind, holds little appeal.
* Late nights are staying up past 10.
* 8 am is sleeping in...late.
* Smelling like spit up is becoming normal.
* Taking twice as long to get ready to go anywhere.
* Talking in baby voices is completely normal and does not feel weird at all.
* Feeling like I just ran a marathon all of the time.
* Shopping now involves going straight to the baby section.
* Feeling proud everytime a stranger tells me what a good and/or pretty baby I have.
* Never EVER getting enough sleep...it is amazing what you can accomplish on no sleep.
* Watching cartoons in the morning instead of the news.
* Feeling heartache during the days.
* Worrying about all the bad things in this world.
* Praying that she will always stay sweet and happy.
* Hoping that we can always protect her and keep her safe.

We are learning everyday and I am accepting that I cannot do it all on my own. Thankfully, I have a lot of help. We are fortunate to have her grandmothers watching her, which keeps my anxiety down a lot. I have had a hard time recently with some personal things, but just seeing that little sweet face smiling at me makes everything better. It also makes me realize that as long as I have my family, nothing else really matters. Crazy to think that in 6 more months she will be a year old!!!

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Graduation Party.

My parents hosted a graduation party for Patrick this weekend. Chris and Jessi came in town and it was a fun filled family and friends weekend! Congrats Patrick! :)

Friday, September 10, 2010

Baby teeth!

She loves her two middle fingers. We hope this is a teething phase. I tried to break it, but they bring her comfort so...

Happy girl sitting in her high chair.

Blue eyed baby girl...

Looking so grown up.

Sweet baby girl is growing up way too fast!!!! I swear before I know it she is going to be starting school. I am so excited for all of her milestones, but at the same time I wish she would slow down! Kaitlin is cutting her first two teeth right now (the bottom middle ones). Other than a little fussiness, the teething process so far has not been bad at all. But, I am told it can get worse...so I am keeping my fingers crossed. More pics to come later when you can actually see the teeth. Don't you just want to eat her up??? So precious.

1 year.

This post is over a month late...what can I say, I'm really too busy to update this very often. Also, our anniversary fell right in the middle of an EXTREMELY busy time in our life. Anyway, I have to say thank you to my loving husband for sticking by me and helping me get through this past year. I said last year was the hardest year of our lives, but this year definitely surpassed it. There is nothing like doing everything at once. We got married, started new careers, moved a couple of times, studied for the bar exam, and had our first baby all in one year. However, as hard as it has been, it has also been the most rewarding and best year of my life. I get to come home to the most beautiful child, who is truly a miracle and gift from God. And I have husband that not only is a great father, but also takes good care of me. Life is certainly full of challenges, but as I've learned the most unexpected things can turn into the most wonderful gifts. Although this next year will hopefuly be a little calmer--we are still expecting big changes for the future. :) Here are some pics from our anniversary and some fun ones from the wedding last year. Its hard to believe its been a year!!! What an amazing day it was!

Gorgeous location!!

BJ's mom surprised us at the beach with this cake!

Cake from wedding--ewwww...not so good a year later.

Celebrating our anniversary in Hilton Head.

Celebrating in WV.

Monday, September 6, 2010

End of summer...into Fall.

It is always sad when summer is over, but the fall is such an exciting season. After experiencing a record hot summer, we enjoyed cooler temperatures with bright blue skies for the opening of football weekend. We are looking forward to many things this fall...Kaitlin's first Halloween and Thanksgiving, football, the Mountaineers, and maybe a half marathon in November. Below are some new pictures of Miss Kaitlin. She is almost 6 months old! Enjoy! :)