Hi, friends! Hope everyone is staying warm and safe on this icy, freezing day! I am secretly hoping that there is at least SOME accumulation of snow so that H can play it in a little, but so far it just looks like it’s going to be ice. Oh, well. :)

Now that little miss is 13 months old, I think it’s time to change up the “updates” a little. For starters, I’m going to go to trying to do monthly updates in an effort to force myself to write them to have some sort of consistency. Also, I’m going to try to change up/add/get rid of some of the categories in the update to change with our growing girl! So, without further ado… her 13 month update!

Weight/Length: She had her official 12 month checkup with the pediatrician about 3 weeks ago (I know, total slacker on posting about that), but her official stats are: 20 lbs, 4.5 oz (33rd percentile), 30.5 inches long (86th percentile), and head circumference 17 3/4 inches (48th percentile). No big changes in her percentiles, except that she is getting longer and leaner (supermodel?! haha). Her checkup was great, and I got a lot of answers to questions I had. She did have to have some shots (4 sticks plus a finger prick!), which was, as always, tougher on me than it was on her…but it wasn’t TOO bad. Anyway, the basic gist of the appointment was that she is right on track with her growth and development. We couldn’t be more happy or proud. :) 

Sleep: No changes here. Still bedtime of 9-9:30 and sleeping until 9:30 or 10. And still two naps (usually), each around 2ish hours. She definitely fights them some days, and I don’t push it too much if she just isn’t sleepy…we kind of just go with the flow around here. :) I think this category can probably be dropped from now on unless there are any major changes.

Feeding: This is another category that I think I can probably drop…or maybe I will just change it to “favorite foods”? Anyway, no big changes, she is still eating whatever we eat (with some extra fruits/veggies added in when we don’t have the healthiest of meals) and doing great. She has started trying to feed herself some with a spoon, but so far, more of it gets ON her than IN her, but she is enjoying learning. :) 

We officially weaned on December 31 (a little over a week after her first birthday), and while it was super hard on me emotionally, it really couldn’t have gone smoother. H didn’t miss a beat, and only really tried to nurse just a few times after that. It was hands down the best experience for me in our whole first year together. I feel so lucky and blessed to have been able to be here and exclusively nurse the whole year. I can only hope that my experience with our future children will go as great as it did with Hadley. :)

We introduced cow’s milk shortly before weaning, and H wasn’t really a fan of it at first (I don’t blame her…yuck!). But, I found that if I warm it a little, she will drink it…so that is still what we are doing, before her afternoon nap and before bed. Some days she will drink it (from her sippy cup) no problem, and others she wants nothing to do with it. I talked to H’s pediatrician about it, and she said, and I quote: “cow’s milk is for cows. I don’t care if she drinks it or not…there are plenty of other ways for her to get the vitamins and calcium she needs.” (Have I mentioned how much I love this doctor?!) Anyway, she calmed my worries and on days that H wants nothing to do with the milk, I just make sure she gets some foods with extra vitamins and calcium in them.

Her favorite foods right now are: blueberries (hands down favorite), cantaloupe, bananas, cheese, crackers, pizza, and chicken pie!

Developments:  H is a pro at walking now… even running some, too! Probably right around New Year’s is when she began exclusively walking, or walking more than crawling. She is all over the place and loves to explore everything around her. She is also an expert climber…in the last few weeks she has mastered climbing to the top of the steps in about 5 seconds…and she climbs on our kitchen chairs, tries to climb onto the couch, into her toy box…etc. Monkey!

She is talking more and more, too. (See new category, “words” below!). For the last few months, she has been repeating tons of words we say…but just in the last 6 or 7 weeks have I noticed that she is actually understanding the meaning of words and will point at things and say what they are, rather than just repeating what we say. It’s crazy how fast she picks up on things. It took only about two days for her to learn to point to the various parts of her face when I ask her “where’s your ___?” (nose, head, teeth, mouth, and ears, so far). And just the other day, she stumbled and fell down and immediately said “ouch” (emphasis on the “ch”)…which I haven’t necessarily taught her, but I have definitely said in front of her several times. She is a little sponge!

She loves to give kisses, to anyone and anything (seriously—the floor, her high chair, the couch…but especially to Ralph and to me!). I don’t ever want her to stop wanting to give me kisses!! Hugs, too… she is great at throwing those little arms around my neck and squeezing with all she has. Cue heart melting. :)

She has been teething in FULL effect this month. She got 6 teeth (4 molars, and 2 more on the bottom front) in 10 days…and handled it like a CHAMP. She woke up two nights crying, but went right back down after I went in and soothed her a little (and gave her some tylenol). She may have been a little fussy for a couple of days, but definitely nothing too bad. She is a trooper!

She does great at entertaining herself… She goes from toy to toy and room to room just exploring and discovering new things! And when she wants my attention, she will bring me a book or a toy and we will play together. :)

I’m going to stop there with the “developments” and move on to another new category… her favorite things!

Favorite Things/Activities: Her bears (and any stuffed animals)—she is obsessed and carries them around everywhere. Giving kisses and hugs. Being outside/going for walks. Ralph. Bath time. The Sesame Street theme song. Her “Little People” toys. Books. Running with Daddy (I HAVE to get a video of this soon). Being silly in general (mostly with Daddy). Running from us while we “chase” her around the house. Pulling anything and everything off of every shelf and out of every drawer that she can get her hands on. Being cheered for (she’s a total ham when we clap and cheer). Eating. Sleeping (she is her father’s child!). Her grandmas and aunts. Talking/singing/babbling to herself and others. Getting dressed (especially putting on shoes—“soos”). Her ball popper. Refrigerator magnets. Rocking in Meemaw and Pop’s little rocking chair. Rocking her bears in any rocking chair. :)

Words: Like I said, she will repeat pretty much anything, but the ones I know that she really knows are: Bear (she uses this for pretty much any stuffed animal). Ralph. Dada/Daddy. Mama (still only sometimes). Bekah. Kyle (“i-kull”). Heather. All done. Thank you. Cracker. Bye bye. Hello (especially when she is playing with a toy phone or one of our phones—she will hold it up to her ear and say “hello!”). Hey. Cantaloupe (“canlo”). Bunny. Quack quack quack (when she sees her duck book). Nose. Head. Water. Drink. Read. Book. Cheese. Ouch. Whoa. Wow. Those are the ones I can think of right now!

Firsts This Month: Hmm. I know there have probably been a ton, but I am drawing a blank! I guess I will say that this month is when she started really using words and knowing what they mean… does that count? :)

Also, on a sad note, H got her first black eye this week. :( She slipped in the tub and hit her eye right on the side of the tub… bless her little heart! She was fine after just a few minutes, and I am positive that it hurt her Daddy (who was bathing her) more than it hurt her…though she did (still does) look pitiful!! The swelling is all gone now, and people who have seen her say it looks like she is wearing eye shadow on that eye, haha!

The black eye did give us a chance to use our boo boo bunny, which is so cute, but H did NOT want anything anywhere near her eye, so trying to use it was kind of a fail! Hopefully we won’t have too many more incidents where we NEED to use it, though! ;) 

Nicknames: There are still so many. We like to call her: Ma’am, Ma’amy, Jams (by Daddy), Little Miss, Haddles, Jenks, Jenkins, Jenkers, Stinkins, Stinks, H, Sweet Pea, Sweet Cheeks, Beautiful, Hadley McGee, Sugar, Shug, Honey Bunny, Missy, Shorty (by Pop), Darlin, Baby Doll, etc. etc. etc.!

What I’m Thankful For: I have probably said this at least 359082305823 times in these updates, but I am so very thankful that I get to be here every day with our girl. I cherish every single minute and am loving getting to be here for everything—small and big. I have just been feeling extremely blessed lately. (When did I become such a sap, seriously?)

What I’m Looking Forward To: Lilly’s (Hadley’s BFF) first birthday party tomorrow! Some fun photo sessions coming up (and hopefully squeezing in a 13 month session of H sometime when it’s not so COLD!). 

Next Pediatrician Appointment: Her 15 month appointment is April 2nd.

So…I have a confession. Ever since our “365 days of Hadley” project has been over, I have been a TOTAL slacker as far as taking pictures of H. I promise to get better about it, I’m not sure what has happened to me! I will say, though, that I have approximately 236509826 videos of her on my phone, because it is nearly impossible to get her to stay still enough to get an in-focus photo these days! Anyway, here are the pics that I do have from this month. :)

That last one makes me laugh…she was squealing at the top of her lungs. ;)

On that note, I’m going to play with my sweet girl and wait for Jon to get home. I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!

-S

Dear Hadley,

I apologize for being a few days late on this letter this month. As I’m sure you will soon come to realize, your birthday falls at the absolute busiest time of the year! Anyway, just four days ago, you turned ONE. One. year. old. How is that even possible?!?! It truly seems like just yesterday that we were bringing you home from the hospital, wondering how in the world those nurses let us take you home since we had absolutely NO idea what we were doing! ;) 

I have had a few days now to reflect on our year together. To be completely honest, in probably every other year of my life, I would be able to list off close to an equal amount of highs and lows…but from this year, thanks to you, all I can think of are highs. So, here is just my short reflection of what has definitely been the best year of my life (again, all thanks to you) to date.

We have been so incredibly blessed with a whole year of perfect health for you. Not even a runny nose! I know that cold and flu season is upon us, so I am preparing myself that our lucky streak may soon end. But, you are tough and I know that we can get through whatever may come!

Like I mentioned earlier, when your Daddy and I left the hospital with you, we felt like we knew nothing. I am not exaggerating. In the hospital, it was great because we had nurses helping us and guiding us… but after only two short days, they turned us loose with you. I have never felt so unprepared in my life (and I know your Daddy felt the same way). But, guess what? We learned. And I feel like we did a pretty dang good job, if I do say so myself. ;) We grew up and learned right along with you, of course with plenty of help and advice from our parents, family and friends. Learning to be a parent has been the most fulfilling job of our lives and we are still learning something new every day.

It was especially amazing for me to watch your Daddy with you in those early days… he was so nervous that he was going to break you, or do something wrong. But instead of just deferring the duties to me, he took the reigns and made sure that he learned, too. He even took over as “chief bather”—his special one-on-one time with you every day. Sometimes I will stand outside the bathroom door and listen to the two of you during bath time. He is so silly and you LOVE it…there are always tons of giggles. I swear I fall more and more in love with him every day, just from watching him with you. He loves you so much, and anyone around you two can see that.

I can’t talk about the high points of this year without at least briefly mentioning what a great sleeper you are and have been. From the very beginning, you slept 6-7 hour stretches, which quickly became 9-10 hour stretches… and then (and still now) 12-13 hour stretches. Naps have also been a breeze for the most part—you really just love to sleep (you most DEFINITELY get that from your Daddy!). To say we have been lucky with you being a great sleeper is the understatement of the century. So thank you, baby girl, for making that part so easy on us!

One of the most special times came just a couple months after you were born, when you flashed us that first smile. Talk about heart melting. It sort of felt like confirmation that you were indeed happy…and that you loved us as much as we loved you! I can also say that even now, a year later, those smiles still make me melt inside a little. And then there were the giggles. When those started, we became infatuated with making you laugh. Still now, whatever we find that makes you laugh, we will do over and over and over because it is the BEST sound in the world. You are such a sweet girl!

One of my favorite memories from your first year is when we went on your first beach trip with the Aldridges—we got to spend a whole week in Cherry Grove with your Mamaw and Papaw, Aunt Heather, and Great-Grandma and Grandpa Aldridge. I am not sure who enjoyed it more, them (getting to spend a whole week with you), you (having someone to play with you 24/7), or us (having SO much help that we started feeling guilty that we weren’t having to do anything!). Anyway, you loved the beach and we all loved getting to spend such precious time with the family. I know that the photos from that trip will be some that we look back on with the fondest memories. 

Speaking of grandparents and great-greatparents, watching all four of your grandparents and all six of your great-grandparents with you has been the sweetest thing. They all ADORE you, little miss. There is no way I could ever adequately explain it, but I hope that one day when you look back on the photos of you with them, you will be able to see the love and adoration. We have tried to make a conscious effort to make many trips home to see everyone and to invite them up to our house to see you…but hopefully it won’t be too long until we will be back “home” (just somewhere closer to our families) and you will get to see them even more. It is so important for us for you to grow up knowing the importance of a close family…and you are beyond blessed to have one of the BEST (though sometimes crazy, haha) families there is. 

I could talk about your physical developments all day, but I’ll try to keep it short. Life changed a lot for us shortly before you turned 6 months old, when you learned to sit up on your own. Play time changed drastically, since you were able to sit and play with your toys. And then (it seems like it was almost overnight) came the crawling, and pulling up to standing. This made me nervous, since you would pull up on anything you could get your hands on, sturdy or not. You got the hang of that quickly, though, and soon began exploring the world around you. You are SO curious about what everything is, how it works, what it tastes like… you are happy as can be when I just let you roam free and let you check everything out. Most recently came the walking! You are still learning and getting better at it, but you show little to no fear, which of course triggers the fear in me (so many corners, ah!), but I am making an effort to let you go and explore, even if it means the occasional bruise or two. I want you to grow up to be independent and tough, which you are already proving to be.

The most recent exciting development is just how extremely aware you are of everything around you. You have an excellent memory, and are learning several new words every day (most recently “bear”, “Ralph”, “Bekah”, “all done”, and “whoa”), and it is SO MUCH FUN! If we ask you where your bear is (only one particular bear, though), you will go find it, and you know who Ralph, Mama, and Dada are and will point to us if we ask you to. The sweetest thing you have learned lately is to give kisses. You will kiss anything/anyone if we ask you to (Daddy hopes this isn’t a problem later…), and you will do it a lot even if we DON’T ask you to (your bear and I receive the most kisses, for sure). I can’t even imagine how it will feel when I hear the first “I love you too, Mommy”… just the thought brings tears!

Finally, the biggest “high” I can think of from your first year is simply how we have grown as a family. We have started traditions that I hope to carry on for many years to come. We have determined what things are important to us as a family, and what ideals and morals we want to stand for and instill within you and our future children. Most importantly, your Daddy and I have fallen more and more in love with each other and with you with each passing day. I hope that you will always feel the love coming from us and that you will grow up to love others and God with your whole heart and without reservation. I also hope you know that your Daddy and I will always be here for you no. matter. what. and that we will always be your biggest supporters. You are the light of our lives and by far the best thing that we have ever done! 

I have said it over and over again, but I still can’t believe that you are one year old. Happy birthday, and thank you for blessing us by just being you, sweet Hadley Jo. I love you to the moon and back, and cannot wait to see what the next year brings us—if it brings half as much joy as the first year, we will be the luckiest little family in the world. 

Love,

Mommy

First off, I want to wish my bestie Sarah a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY today! Loved spending the weekend with you and hope you have a fabulous day today! xoxoxo

I have been needing/wanting/meaning to write a weekly update for WEEKS… bad mama! Life has just been so. crazy. lately. I feel like I barely have any time to stop and sit down at the computer and when I do, I need to be editing photos (the new photography business is definitely keeping me busy and I am l-o-v-i-n-g it!). Anyway, excuses, excuses. This really should probably be called H’s “one year update”, however I am currently still in denial that my baby turns one on Saturday… so 51 weeks it is! ;)

Sit back and relax, because this is gonna be a long one, folks. In fact, I think I will just break it into two posts because that seems easier for me to tackle than one gigantic one. So, I’ll head straight to the stats. 

Weight/Length: I’m gonna hold off on her official one year stats until her doctor appointment, but my guess is around 20 lbs and 30ish inches long. She is getting longer and longer and is continuing to slim down—she is long and skinny! She is wearing all 12 month or 12-18 month clothes now, and still in size 3 diapers.

Sleep: The only real change here is that recently, we have transitioned to one 3 or 3.5 hour nap a day for most days, unless she just seems really tired and then she will take two shorter ones. She is back to sleeping late again…bed time is around 9:30 or so and she sleeps until somewhere around 9:30 or 10. 

One sleep-related thing to note is that just a few days after my last update, (I think at around 10.5 months?), H decided she no longer wanted her paci to sleep. Up until that point, she used it only at bed time…but she took it upon herself to get rid of it, which was fine with me because I was planning to take it away at a year old anyway. ;) Anyway, for a couple weeks after she gave it up, she would fuss and sometimes cry a little bit (sometimes for 10-15 minutes) when going down for naps and bed time, but she got over that pretty quick and now will just play in her crib until she is tired and then she’ll lay down and go to sleep. Couldn’t have asked for an easier transition as far as that goes… I was nervous about it, though!

Feeding: I sure do miss the days when she would just eat anything and everything I put in front of her. She is still a pretty good eater in that she loves pretty much all veggies and definitely ALL fruits, but she is weird with some textures, and she is just very moody about it! I can give her the same thing 3 days in a row and she will gobble it up…then try to give it to her the next day and she acts like she is gagging and throws it all on the floor which is part of the reason Ralph has gotten so fat. It is sometimes a struggle, but I am trying to be persistent in making her try things a lot of times (I read somewhere that it takes 7 times of trying foods to develop a taste for them?) even if she just spits it right back out. 

One thing to note is that I am AMAZED at how much the child can eat for breakfast. I suppose it is because she goes so long between meals from bed time to breakfast, but she seriously eats more than I ever could for breakfast! A typical morning meal for her is: a banana, blueberries or cantaloupe, oatmeal or multigrain cereal with fruit mixed in, a mini bagel or piece of toast, one egg with or without cheese, and a cereal bar (she LOVES Trader Joe’s cereal bars). Seriously. I don’t know where she puts it. Or how she doesn’t weigh 40 pounds. Guess she inherited my metabolism, ha!

We are down to nursing once or sometimes twice a day, still aiming toward weaning at a year old. (Which is only 5 days away. WHAT?!) I have not had any problem saying that I am planning to wean at a year… but now that it is so soon, I am definitely starting to feel sad about it. I find myself enjoying every second of our nursing sessions now, and I am trying to take it all in and remember just how precious those moments are. It is just so hard for me to admit that H really isn’t a baby anymore. I will say that nursing her for this year has been one of the most fulfilling, amazing parts of her first year for me. It hasn’t always been easy… but it is one of the best decisions that I made. Now… who has advice for me on weaning completely/introducing cow’s milk? I am not really sure how to go about any of that!

Developments: Whew. I don’t know where to start with this. It seems like EVERYTHING has changed since my last post, which was only 6 weeks ago! 

I guess the biggest development is that H is officially walking (I think the most I have counted is about 17 or 18 steps)! She took her first steps just last week, but it is crazy to me how fast she is learning! She is still wobbly and learning to catch her balance…and usually once she loses her balance and topples over, she will just crawl to wherever she is trying to go to. It won’t be long though, I know, before walking is her main means of getting from place to place. Just in the last few days, she is walking from place to place on her own (without encouragement from us, which is the only way she would do it for the first week). This makes me very nervous, because like I said, she is still very wobbly and susceptible to hitting her head/face on so many things! Now more than ever, I feel like she can’t be out of my sight for a second!

Hadley still loves books. ANY books. She especially loves to turn the pages. I am excited about her getting some new books for Christmas/her birthday…and I know she will be, too!

She is repeating more and more sounds/words that we say. She says “dall done” (all done), “walllph” (Ralph), “byyyeeee”, “hi”, “hey”, “da da”, “yaaay”, “yuckkkkk” (emphasis on the kkk), and drumroll…….FINALLY “mama”! It took her long enough! And she normally really just says it when she is crying and/or fussing, but at least she is saying it, and I know that she knows what it means. ;) I think I have remembered most of the words, but I’m sure I will think of more after I post this.

Pretty much her favorite activity of late is finding any cabinet, shelf, or drawer that she can get to and completely clearing its contents. This keeps her entertained for hours each day… it also keeps me extremely busy, making sure that she isn’t getting into things that she shouldn’t and of course, cleaning it all up! She just loves to explore and to examine new things…I can see her wheels turning as she checks everything out.

She loves to go for walks in her stroller, or rides in her car. She generally just loves being outside, so we try to go for at least one walk or trip out a day. She LOVES grocery shopping (lots of things/people to look at), especially at Trader Joe’s, where many of the cashiers know her by name. :)

A seriously cute/sweet development is that H loves to give hugs and sloppy, wet kisses now. Mostly to me, but sometimes to Jon, too, if she is feeling particularly sweet. There is no better feeling in the world than her wrapping those little arms around my neck and then slobbering all over my face.

The last “development” I can think of is that my sweet girl unfortunately now realizes when bows are in her hair, and she is not having it. :( She pulls them out immediately…and if I try to distract her and/or force her arms down so she can’t take them out, it only takes a few minutes before she pulls it right out. :( Whoever told me that if you start them young with wearing the bows, then they will be more likely to keep them in when they get older…you lied! ;) We will keep trying, though!

Firsts This Month: First trip to cut down our Christmas tree! First steps. First time in big girl bathtub. First time meeting Santa Claus (fail). This is all I can remember for now, but I will come back and update if I think of more later.:)

Nicknames: The nicknames are really out of control lately. I don’t know if she even knows her real name! We like to call her: Ma’am, Ma’amy, Jams (by Daddy), Little Miss, Haddles, Jenks, Jenkins, Jenkers, Stinkins, Stinks, Chunkster or Chunks, H, Sweet Pea, Sweet Cheeks, Beautiful, Hadley McGee, Sugar, Shug, Honey Bunny, Missy, Shorty (by Pop), Darlin, Baby Doll, etc. etc. etc.!

What I’m Thankful For: One year of perfect health for Hadley. (KNOCK ON WOOD!!!) We haven’t even had a runny/stuffy nose. Praying this continues and thanking God every day for our happy, healthy girl!

What I’m Looking Forward To: The holidays (3.5 days until Jon is off work until after the new year)! And H’s first birthday party with our family this weekend. I love this time of year!!

Next Pediatrician Appointment: Her 12 month (!!!!!!!) appointment is January 3rd.

So, I started going through all the photos from the last 6 weeks. There are a LOT (shocking, I know). So, here are the photos from November… I will post the ones from December either tonight or tomorrow. :) Without further ado, here’s what my sweet pea has been up to!

Whew. That was a lot. More to come soon, I hope! ;)

Happy week before Christmas!! 

-S

Happy Election Day! But I’m not going to blog about that because it makes my blood pressure go through the roof and I really just want to love everybody. Just ready for it to be over and to know the results. :)

Soooo it has been OVER a month since I wrote an “official” update. Like I said in my last post, I’ve been a bit busy with launching my photography business…oh and with keeping up with a 10.5 month old who is FAST AS LIGHTNING and into everything! 

As usual, a lot has happened since the last update. The most notable being that I feel like Hadley has grown from a baby to a toddler in just a few short weeks! She is definitely not a “little baby” anymore, and this makes me both sad and happy: sad that she’s not so little anymore, and happy that she is growing and loving her little life!

Weight/Length: Bad mama, but I’m not really sure. I weighed her at some point last week and per our scale she was just under 20 lbs (19.8), but I am not sure if that is reliable. She was 28 1/2 inches long at my last post and I know she has gotten longer, because she is getting too long for her 9 month sleepers now, so I will guess she is around 29+ inches long. :) She is definitely outgrowing quite a bit of her 9 month clothes and is moving to some 12 month stuff now…but her 6-12 month stuff is still fitting quite nicely which is good because there are about a million things in her closet she hasn’t worn yet!

Sleep: No changes here… so thankful for a good sleeper. I was just telling someone the other day that I don’t think I realize JUST how lucky we are, but seriously since H started sleeping through the night (6 or 7 weeks I think?), she has literally never woken us up in the middle of the night. That is not to say she hasn’t woken up in the middle of the night, but when she does, she doesn’t cry or fuss to wake us up. And that is also not to say that we haven’t had a couple mornings where she has woken up abnormally early, but for the most part she sleeps for ridiculously long stretches and we are so. lucky. Everyone tells me to enjoy it because the 2nd child will probably not sleep until he or she is 2! ;) 

Daylight savings time threw her for a little bit of a loop (much earlier bed time and much earlier wake time), but I think we are back on track now with a 9:00ish bedtime, and she sleeps until 8:30 or 9 each morning. Still taking two naps a day, around 2 hours each (sometimes a little shorter or longer, just depends on the day). 

Feeding: The girl still loves to eat. Anything. When she tries something new that she likes, she gets REALLY excited and I can’t give it to her fast enough. I would estimate that she is eating 75% finger foods (feeding herself) and 25% purees (I just have so many in the freezer that I need to use up!). Her current favorites are bananas (yep, they are her favorite now even though she despised them at first), cheese, turkey, any type of bread, edamame, apples, green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, pizza, cheeseburgers, chicken… really the girl likes everything. I really, really, REALLY hope that she will continue to be a great eater even through toddlerhood!

We are still nursing 4 or 5 times a day, but I think we will soon be cutting back to 3 times a day. She isn’t nearly as interested as she once was (she gets extremely distracted by anything/everything) and we are moving toward weaning at a year old (which is sooo close, sigh!). I am having mixed feelings about weaning; I have loved (almost) every minute of breastfeeding and it is hard for me to believe it has almost been a year. I love how close it makes me feel to her and it has definitely been an amazing experience. 

Developments: Like I said, Hadley is still all over the place. She is ridiculously fast at crawling, and she cruises all around everywhere holding onto the furniture, her toys, etc. This week, we bought her this push toy with her halloween money (yes, Hadley’s grandparents and great-grandparents sent her “halloween money”…spoiled girl) and she LOVES it! She caught right onto what she was supposed to do with it and now is walking all over the place pushing it. In fact, I snagged a video of her using it the first day we got it:

I don’t know how long it will be until she is walking by herself, but it’s crazy to me that she is big enough to even be walking behind something now. She can stand up by herself now for 20-30 seconds at a time (before she sees somewhere she wants to go and sits down, starts crawling and is off!). 

In teeth-related news, she now has 6 teeth! I think the last time I updated, she had 4 (2 on top and 2 on bottom), but 2 more have come in on the top. They came in much like the others, with little to no indication that they were coming in (except maybe a day or two where she fussed a tiny bit more than normal). She has a gap between her front teeth as of now, and I have nicknamed her Michael Strahan, and Jon tells me I am being ugly…but I think it is seriously cute!! She uses those cute little teeth to chomp down on food, and I have been calling her a little rabbit. :)

She is mimicking more and more sounds/words that we say. She will say “all done” when she’s finished with her food (my mom told me I should not be teaching her bad grammar, that I should teach her “all finished”…whatever, Mom ;)). She says “hi” and “hey” and “ba ba” (“bye bye”) when she feels like it, but not necessarily whenever I ask her to say it for other people. ;) She is also still a big fan of giving high fives and clapping. 

Her absolute favorite thing to do these days is reading! Well, being read to, I mean. :) She will crawl over to her bookshelf, pull down several books, and push them to me while crawling, then climb into my lap and will sit there as long as I will read. I have read Ten Little Ladybugs and Where is Baby’s Belly Button (along with about 10 other Karen Katz books, they are the best!) at least 5 million times. The lift-the-flap books and any books that have textures and things to touch/feel are her favorite. As soon as she sees the flaps she is grabbing to open them. She also loves to turn the pages and if you turn one without letting her do it, she will turn it back just so she can turn it (I am already foreseeing hearing lots of “I do it!”). I am so happy that she loves books and I am looking forward to her getting lots of new books for her birthday/Christmas. 

P.S. THANK YOU for the farm animals book, Laura!! It is one of her favorites, she loves the animal sounds!!

One hilarious discovery she has made this week involves the bathroom. Specifically, the toilet. I had her in the bathroom with me while I was getting ready one day this week. She was sitting on the floor happily playing with a toy, so I turned my back for literally 5 seconds to brush my teeth before I heard splashing. Yep, baby girl found her way into the toilet water! After washing her hands AND rubbing hand sanitizer all the way up to her shoulders, I sat her back down and started to dry my hair. It was this time that she discovered her new favorite obsession…the toilet paper roll. I am not sure what the fascination is, but she is seriously obsessed. I have to watch her like a hawk or she is trying to crawl to each bathroom and get her hands on it and start unrolling it!

Firsts This Month: First time walking behind her push toy. First trip to the pumpkin patch. First Halloween (no trick-or-treating because she is obviously too young for candy, but we had a good time hanging out with our neighbors in the cul de sac and walking around and seeing everyone’s costumes!).  First time on NC State’s campus (I think she loved it)… I’m sure there are plenty more but I just can’t remember!

Nicknames: Little Miss, Haddles, Jenks or Jenkins, Stinkins and Stinks, Chunkster or Chunks, H, Sweet Pea, Sweet Cheeks, Beautiful, Hadley McGee, Sugar, Shug, Honey Bunny, Missy, Shorty (by Pop), Darlin, Baby Doll, etc. etc. etc.!

What I’m Thankful For: Being able to start my photography business and do something that I love (while still being home with H). I still have a long way to go and a lot to learn, but I am loving every minute of it and can’t wait to see what it brings in the next few months. 

What I’m Looking Forward To: The holidays. Last year this time was full of excitement and anticipation of H’s arrival, and this year it is full of excitement and anticipation of H’s “first” holidays (technically last year was her first Christmas, but we feel like she got robbed since she was only 3 days old!).  Also looking forward to H’s first birthday party with our family… we aren’t doing a huge shin dig, but it will still be great to get everyone together and celebrate little miss turning one!

Next Pediatrician Appointment: Her 12 month (!!!!!!!) appointment is January 3rd.

Ok, now for the part that most of you probably scrolled down to find, anyway… the pics from the last month! Warning: this is extreme photo overload. Like even more than usual. But I am determined to get them all on here!

Whew. Finally caught up!! Now the Aldridges are headed out to watch the election coverage with friends. Happy Tuesday everyone!

-S

Dear Hadley,

You are officially into double digits! I can’t believe I am the mom of a 10 month old.  I probably think or say about 5 times a day, “can’t she just stay this way forever?” or “does she HAVE to grow up?!”. The stage you are in right now is SO. MUCH. FUN. I never want it to end!

Literally the day after I posted your 9 month post, you started full-out crawling (as opposed to the hybrid army/spider crawl you did for a while), and you have not looked back since. You are lightning fast, and if I walk from one room to the next even for just a second, you are right behind me…my little shadow! You continue to pull up on everything within your reach, and are really “cruising” (someone just told me that is what it’s called)—walking around everything while holding on, going from the table to the couch to the chair to the jumperoo to the recliner. You do a great job walking while holding on to our hands, and it is one of your favorite things to do. You are also standing by yourself now for short periods…and you get so excited when you do it that you start clapping and that makes you lose your balance and have to sit down. Pretty darn cute. :) No signs of taking any steps yet, but I feel like you are getting closer and closer… I am not sure I am ready for that! Again—time: please slow down!

You are (knock on wood…) a great eater. Even the two foods you had earlier decided you weren’t a fan of, bananas and avocados, you love now! The only thing I can think of that you do not like are tomatoes, which you just tried for the first time last night. Your face was hilarious…but we are going to keep trying them! You love meal time, and those are my favorite times of each day. You are so happy, so curious to try each new food, and you love to feed yourself (AND Ralph…….) and get excited when you try something that you like. You have decided that you are pretty much over all the million purees I have made you…but I am still trying to feed them to you to use them all up! You usually only put up a fight for a few seconds and then give in; you just keep trying to grab the spoon and feed to yourself. Miss Independent…just like your mama!

Your favorite word is (still) Dada. You say it all the time. To your Daddy, me, Ralph, the pizza delivery guy…whoever. We have this conversation at least 15 times a day: 

Me: “Hadley, say Mama.”

Hadley: “Dada.”

Me: “No, MA MA MA MA”

Hadley: “DAA DAA DAAA DA.”

Me: Sigh.

Your Daddy finds this hilarious. One day soon, can you PLEASE just say it for me? Pretty please?! :) You also will proudly say “all done!” when you are finished eating, and it is seriously cute. “Heeeey” is another favorite, and “bye bye”, both while waving (though you never do it when I ask you to say it to someone… only when you want to!). You love to repeat sounds or noises that I make (all but Mama, of course) and I love to hear you having conversations with yourself. Whatever you are saying, you are saying it with conviction! I love hearing you discover your voice and new noises you can make!

Lately, tons of people have asked me, “is she always this happy?!”. I always say, “I hate to say it, because what if I jinx it, but yes!”. It’s true, sweet pea…you are one happy girl. You grin, clap and belly laugh for everyone you meet—I can’t tell you how many people have told me “she just made my whole week!”. It is so sweet to see you lighting up so many others’ lives the way that you do ours. People also always tell us how expressive your little face is! You know how to work those little eyebrows and come up with the cutest, most hilarious expressions. You keep us laughing all the time!

I never knew that being a stay-at-home mom could keep me so busy (and tired)!! We are having a blast, though, and I wake up each day excited to see what new thing you do or what way you are going to make me smile and laugh. You bring me so much joy, I sometimes feel like my heart is literally going to burst…I am in a constant state of euphoria with you. You are my best friend, already! (And I would say I am yours, too…though you sure do have a special place in your heart already for your Daddy). I am so proud to be your mom and I cannot wait for our relationship to develop even more as you grow.

We are almost to a year (!!!) old. I don’t know where the time has gone, but I don’t want to blink, because before I know it my baby girl is not going to be a baby anymore! It makes me tear up just to type that. I am so proud of the sweet, beautiful baby girl you already are and I can’t wait to be here for every step of the way as you continue to grow into an amazing little girl!

Happy 10 months, gorgeous. Your Daddy and I love you to the moon and back!

Love, 

Mommy

P.S. We did your 10 month photo shoot yesterday on NC State’s campus. Your Daddy and I had so much fun taking you around campus to all the places we used to go during our time there. In fact, the belltower right behind where you are sitting in one of the pictures above is where your Daddy so nervously sweetly asked me to marry him almost exactly 6 years ago. As we walked around, we talked about how much we were sure things would change “before Hadley goes there”… you are going to want to be a fellow Wolfpacker, right?!?! (I promise we will love you no matter what! ;-))

Just a VERY quick post tonight to say that I know I’ve been somewhat MIA and that I will probably stay that way through the weekend. After this week, I have a WHOLE new respect for single parents. Jon has been working VERY late (10 pm or later…and he’s still working now) all week so I have been completely on my own. I LOVE my little miss, and we have had some great days together, but it has been seriously exhausting to not have any help this week. I don’t know how the single parents do it, or those with spouses that work crazy hours and aren’t always around to help. I have so. much. respect. for those people!

I am not at all resentful or annoyed with Jon, because he would obviously never CHOOSE to be working at 11 pm on a Thursday. It has instead made me so thankful for all that he does on a regular basis: feeding H her dinner, cleaning up after our dinner, giving H a bath and getting her ready for bed, and any other chores that I don’t get to during the day. Not to get sappy, but I know I don’t thank him enough for all he does around here. I love him and am so thankful for how hard he works for us!

On a better note, my parents are almost here…they are spending the night tonight so that we can (hopefully) get up early (all depends on how late Jon is at work, I suppose) to head to the beach for a long weekend. I am SO. READY. for some time away and to actually get to have a little bit of family time after a crazy week.

With that, I’m headed off to drink a BIG OL’ glass of red wine and relax for a few before my parents get here. I’ll be back with tons of updates after our beach trip!

-S

Dear Hadley,

You are officially 3/4 of a year old! This has been the fastest 9 months of my life, no doubt. And the busiest…from trying to keep up with you! In fact, I think the more accurate “9 months” photo would be this one:

That photo probably sums up the last month the best of all…you are into everything! In the last month, you have mastered: crawling (if you can really call it that…it’s more of an army crawl than a “real” crawl), pulling up on everything (seriously if it’s within your reach you will pull on it until you’re standing), and clapping (this one is so cute!).

On top of all that, you even popped two more teeth this month! Much like the first two, there weren’t even really any signs of them coming…they just appeared one day. You really couldn’t make this any easier on us, and I don’t say that to brag—I say it almost in disbelief! I am not sure what we did to deserve such a sweet, easy baby, but I thank God every day for you, sweet girl!

Your personality continues to blossom. Your Daddy said to me tonight, “You can really tell now that she loves us. We love her so much, and now it’s obvious that she loves us, too.” It is true! You light up any time you see me or your Daddy. Talk about melting our hearts…sheesh. You are starting to act bashful sometimes when people talk to you; you will bury your head in my shoulder and then peek over and smile at them. I can’t wait to see if you grow to be more outgoing or a little shy—your Daddy and I can be both at times. One thing is for sure…you know how to flash that little grin at the perfect times, and no matter what we have going on, everything else melts away…..

You are really the happiest these days when you are on the move. No more sitting still and playing quietly…you are on the go ALL the time! I am not sure when you will start walking (I am not in any hurry for this), but I can tell that when you do, you are going to run me all over the place! I already can’t turn my back on you for a second because that’s all it takes for you to be into the next thing. ;)

The next thing to note from this month is that you absolutely love listening to music. We listen to music every morning while you eat breakfast, and just recently you have started “singing along”: “baaa baba baaa and laaaaaa la la la” and just squealing and clapping. You love for me and your Daddy to sing to you, and we make up silly songs about whatever we are doing—changing your diaper, getting you dressed, eating, Ralph…you name it, and you love it as long as we’re singing. I still have my fingers crossed that you inherited the Kirby pipes!

You continue to surprise me and prove me wrong in situations where I’m sure that you’re going to have a meltdown or not cooperate.  Just last week, we went to our first MOPS meeting (yay for new friends!), and I was nervous all week about how you would do because I knew we would be there during your normal morning nap time, and I was sure that you were just going to fuss the entire time. I dropped you off around 9:15, and when I picked you up at 11:30 the ladies told me that you had slept for an hour and played the rest of the time—you didn’t so much as fuss one time! And when we went to your first NC State football game last weekend, I worried about how you would do with the heat, the noise, the crowd, etc., but you were pretty much perfect the entire day—even napped for about an hour and a half in the car! Thank you for the reminder that you are able to adapt to situations even when I think otherwise. :)

The most exciting bit of news from this month is that I am OFFICIALLY home with you now! It was bittersweet for me to leave my job, but I can honestly say that I already know it has been the best decision I have ever made to be here to soak up every minute with you. Each day brings something new and more exciting than the last… even if it’s just the “little things”, I am trying my best to remain cognizant of the fact that one day I will look back and they won’t seem so little; these will be some of the best days of our lives. And those times that you finally give in and decide to snuggle with me until you fall asleep? I breathe you in, and enjoy every.second. of it. I realize that these nine months have flown by so quickly, and unfortunately there is no stopping or slowing time…so I am doing my best to remain present in every moment.

So happy 9 months, Jenks (as much as I fought it…the nickname has stuck. Blame your Daddy!) Thank you, sweet girl, for another amazing month. Thank you for lighting up our lives and so many others’, without even knowing it. You are our precious gift, and your Daddy and I love you more with each passing day!

Love, 

Mommy