I'm a Big Kid Now

Not to be trite or cliche, but time does really fly quickly. Kate hit her seven month birthday last week and has crossed a few milestones off her to-do list in the last few weeks.

J flew home from his annual "guys weekend" in Vegas yesterday. On the plane, he sat next to a seven week old baby. When he got home, he told me about the baby and said, "I know I said I wasn't going to miss that age, but he was so cute and little. I miss that." He has since wised up and changed his tune a bit once he saw all the exciting things Kate is doing. Every day seems to be something new and fun and we are anxiously awaiting the day when she begins to crawl. So far, she has managed to scoot backwards and roll around a lot, but we have yet to see any forward progress.

Fortunately, though, we have a few new things to share.

My mom and sister were down for the weekend and Kate decided, to Grandma K's delight, that it was now time to start "talking" incessantly. They had a very nice, albeit loud, conversation. I will try to get a video in the next few days so that everyone can get a feel for the nonstop noise and motion.

Kate has recently started holding her own bottle. Although this doesn't seem like a big event, it is nice not to have to hold her bottle constantly for her. Though, I do sometimes feel that she is needing me less and less. It'll be just a blink of an eye and she will be driving herself places and moving out to go to college.

Kate has always been a really strong baby and she was able to stand fairly early on. Although she isn't crawling, we thought we would try her walking legs out just a little. More importantly, you can see how tall she is. At our last check up, Kate was significantly above the 100% line on the growth chart. We fully expect her to be tall like her Daddy and, hopefully, the next Kerri Walsh winning an Olympic gold in volleyball.

It seems like Kate has been teething since she was about three months old. We were sure that she was going to be an early teether based on her constant need to chew on everything she could get in her mouth. Four months later, she has finally gotten her first tooth. It has come with it's share of teething fun (runny nose, fussiness, and drooling) but she is sporting a new pearly white. You do have to look closely as it just barely broke through her gums on Friday. I'm guessing the other one will be following very shortly.

Kate has been going to daycare every other day since January. We are thrilled with the experiences Kate has while there. We love that she is able to play with other kids and that she gets used to spending time with someone other than us. She has yet to show any signs of stranger anxiety and loves meeting new people. Most importantly, Kate is cuddled, loved, and cared for as well as she is at home. Every so often, Kate tries out her artistic side while at daycare. Here is her first attempt at finger painting.

I always figured I wouldn't be one of those parents who got all excited over every piece of artwork done by my child. But I was so excited to proudly display her first painting; maybe because it is her first one, or maybe because I actually am that parent.

It's amazing how fast they grow and change. I know we have many years ahead of us, but every new change is so fascinating and makes us so happy and we look forward to sharing all of them as a family and with you, our family and friends.