Braelyn's Baby Laughs

While in the bath tub the other night Braelyn was cracking up from me splashing my hand.  I've tried it everynight since and no deal, but that night it was the funniest thing! 

Braelyn Pulls Up

April 10th is the beginning of the end.  The start of the reality of mobile-ness.  Braelyn was playing on the floor, Joaquin was grilling steaks and I was playing Solitaire.  All of a sudden I look up and Braelyn is pulling herself to a standing position.  I was speechless.  Of course I yelled for Joaquin and he said to try it again and see if we could get it on video and after 10 minutes and 6 attempts at videos we finally got her doing it on video.  Here is my lil girl growing up! 

California Girl- Part 2

So after we got back from Santa Barbara I had to take off and leave Braelyn and Joaquin in CA while I went to a meeting in Utah for work.  Daddy went golfing while I was gone and Braelyn's aunt and her grandma got some fun quality time with her.  I flew back friday afternoon and friday night we had a BBQ over at Mario and Kate's house.  Most of the family was there and Joaquin and I got to see all our nieces and nephews, cousins, and siblings and more importantly Braelyn got to meet them.  It was a really great night and a perfect end to our vacation. 

No not daddy, Uncle Pepe

Are we doing the dishes or bathing the baby?

Grandma and Braelyn

Andy said he didn't know how to hold a baby.  We probably should have started with a baby that doesn't weigh 20lbs.

Meeting cousin Mario

Uncle James

Sleepy baby and Aunt Jeanette

Aunt Judy and Brae at the window

California Girl- Part 1 Santa Barbara Weekend

We took a vacation to California to visit Joaquin’s side of the family and spend a weekend in Santa Barbara.  We took off on Saturday night after Braelyn went to sleep.  She slept almost the entire way there only waking up about 30 minutes before we arrived and going right back to sleep once in her bed.  We woke up the next morning and headed off to Santa Barbara.  Braelyn was amazing in the car and we only stopped once (at the Biggest Outlet mall I’ve ever seen and mommy satisfied her Carter’s fix!).   Upon reaching our hotel we realized the room we had didn’t have a bathtub in it.  After talking to the front desk we got a free upgrade and our little girl got to take her first big girl bath. 

We made it up to the hotel and then took off for Whale Watching!  My lil’ sailor did so well, even sleeping and taking her dinner on the boat.  We saw 7 whales and I was pretty impressed with our experience.

The next day we headed off to Solvang which is a Danish town so Braelyn could explore some of her Danish roots.  We went to the Spanish mission, ate aebleskiver,(it’s basically a Danish pancake rolled into the shape of a tennis ball topped with powdered sugar and raspberry jam) and visited the Hans Christian Anderson museum.

Aebleskivers

Solvang

Windmill

Spanish Mission

Gardens at Spanish Mission

Me and My baby!

Clogs anyone?

Braelyn and Aunt Judy waiting for the guys on horseback

 

The 7th Month Stretch

So at 7 months our little girl is becoming not so little.  She seems in such a hurry to learn as many new things as possible and to grow up.  Her favorite thing to do now is have us stand her up and let her try to stand there unassisted.  On her 7 month birthday exactly, we picked her up from daycare and they informed us that she stood without anyone holding her for 12 seconds.  They were impressed.  Mommy was speachless.  Since then its all she wants to do. 

She is learning to explore her toys more thoroughly and we have moved the majority of the infant toys into storage.  She likes toys that she can pick up and move with lights and colors.  She has a play table, her excersaucer, and a music center that all keep her pretty entertained.  In addition to this she has become very interested in the Wonder Pets.  For those of you that don't watch childrens tv, the Wonder Pets is a show on NickJr about some animals that use teamwork to help other animals.  Braelyn LOVES it.  She will stop what she is doing if she hears the theme song, and sit there and pay attention.  Its pretty funny. 

She has started the third foods which is baby food with small mashable chunks.  She seems to do real well with it, but still is not a fan of turkey.  She is becoming much more aware of food and often tries to reach out and take mommy or daddy's. 

As far as talking the only "word" she has down is ba-ba-ba.  She also learned how to spit or blow raspberries and she does it all the time.  She has formed an attachment with Pinky the Lamb and won't go to bed without it.  So much so that we have one for home and one for school. 

And even though she's growing up faster than mommy would like (I know I know she HAS too!) I still get some cuddle time.  Look at my cuddle girl and the rest of her 7 months bits.

My First Ponytail

So much for all those expensive pacifers mom bought me.

I may decide to crawl after all, getting close!

Mom's gonna have to drop my crib soon! I'm a big girl

Happy St. Patricks Day!!!

The Mall Meltdown

So on Saturday of this last weekend my friend Sarah needed to do some shopping at the mall.  We needed to get out of the house and even though I didn't have anything I needed, a good walk around the mall sounded nice.  We left the house at 2:15pm right after Braelyn had her afternoon feeding.  I knew that she would be tired because she hadn't napped real well that day.  I was right!

We got to the mall and she was fine for a little while but by 3:30 she had lost it.  She was so tired but refused to sleep in the stroller because mommy had forgotten her blankie and Pinky the Lamb.  Everytime I laid her in the stroller she would scream and thrash, the tears would come and I instantly became one of those moms you walk by in a store with a screaming child thinking, "Why doesn't she do something about that?!" There was nothing to do.  I held her, she cried.  I laid her in her stroller, she cried.  I finally just sat her up in the stroller and she made it back to the car like a zombie.  Not 2 minutes in her carseat and she was out.  By the time she finally fell asleep in the car, she had to get woke up for her dinner.  Needless to say she hit the hypothetical pillow hard and slept real good for us!

AZ Ren Fest 2011

I was so excited about going to the Ren Fest this year with our lil munchkin.  It's always been something I have loved going to ever since I was a kid.  Last year I went while I was pregnant and couldn't wait to bring our son (that was the thought I had then) dressed up as a little Robin Hood.  Someday I hope I get to do that (Cue Joaquin with face in hands)!  He told me then that no son of his was going to be dressing up.  He never said anything about daughters!

So this year our goal was to find a costume/ or parts so that next year when she can walk she can be dressed up.  Our friend Sarah joined us for the trip back in time and some other friends Manny and Chesha met us there with their daughter Lorelei.  We had a great day, and despite having a meltdown at the mall the day before, this time mommy remembered her blankie and Pinky.  Napping was not an issue and we got to enjoy the whole day.  Here are some of our favorite pics from Braelyn's First (of many) Renaissance Festival!

She wore this cute hat all day!!!

Lorelei

Don Juan and I have no idea what.  You never know what kind of characters you will see at Ren Fest.

My and My Angel

Joaquins Hero- A Knight in Shining Bud Lite

Braelyn posing for her characature

Final Product!  My lil Angel

SJZ and BEC

We did find Fairy wings for Braelyn.  There a little big so Sarah wore them!

Playdate!

Braelyn really likes other babies.  At daycare we are told she is constantly talking to the other babies.  Since we have so many friends with kids now, we think its important for Braelyn to get to know her circle of friends.  We took a trip down to see Jen and Dustin and their little girl Lauren.  Lauren is about 5 months older than Braelyn.  We tried to get the girls to sit still and smile for us, it doesn't always work out so well.  Especially since Lauren is crawling now.  Check out our attempts



I'm Ready For My Close Up...

Braelyn has become very familiar with the camera.  As soon as you pull it out she has perma-smile.  Her dad and I have actually taken to trying to catch moments of hers without smiles.  It's become a difficult task because even in the middle of a fit, tears and all, if she sees or even hears the camera she immediately turns that frown upside down.  Mostly she recognizes the pose in which you hold a camera, so we have tricked her a couple of times with whatever is handy, a remote, a bottle of lotion, if you hold it sideways she's pretty sure its picture taking time. Here are a couple of her most recent smiley moments as well as some of the ones dad and I have been able to catch sans smiles...Enjoy!

Not a smile.

But as soon as we see the camera!

Having a moment

Camera makes it all better!

One of the rare sad faces

Picture Time!

I'm always ready for my close up!

Rolling, rolling, rolling, keep that baby rolling!

We've learned how to roll! Check it out!

A Very Merry Un-Birthday! 6 months old!

Half a year already!  At her 6 month check up Braelyn weighs a whopping 17lbs and is 26" long.  It really is amazing how you become accustomed to their growing weight.  When Braelyn was 3 weeks old our friends brought their 6 month old over and she weighed about what Braelyn does now.  I remember thinking geez this kid weighs a ton!  Now we carry her around all day!

Braelyn's latest accomplishments include FINALLY deciding she likes food.  She really likes yogurt, strawberries, apples, pears, and bananas.  She'll tolerate peaches but their not her favorite.  As for veggies we haven't found one she doesn't like yet.  YAY!  She's had squash, corn, sweet potatoes, peas, and green beans.  We just started her on meat and so far she really likes chicken but isn't too sure about the turkey.  On deck is ham and beef.  We'll see what she thinks of those. 

She is now sitting up all by herself.  She likes to play with toys and really likes her little lamb, Pinky.  She sleeps with it and anytime you hand it to her she squeals and bites at it.  She has gotten really good at reaching for things she wants and passing it between her own hands.  She spins around her excersaucer playing at all the different stations and causing it to play music constantly. 

She is a full fledged baby now, the infant stage is behind us.  She has her first tooth, which arrived right in time for mommy's birthday.  It's on the bottom, and she is still getting used to this sharp thing in her mouth.  Every once in a while while sucking her thumb she bites down too hard and ends up crying. 

She is learning to play with her sounds and frequently squeals and screeches at the top of her lungs just to hear herself.  She laughs afterwards.  She loves it when her daddy flies her around the room and bathtime is still her favorite part of the day. 

We are having so much fun playing with her and enjoying this time.  It's hard to believe that 6 months is behind us and we are inching closer and closer to that epic 1 year.  The next 6 months will be filled with all kinds of new fun experiences, and we can't wait!

Sitting all by myself!

She loves her excersaucer



Braelyn and her favorite lamb, Pinky