Starting solids!

First time...

My first spoonful... a little nervous...I survived!

A few days later...

I love rice cereal!I still love my fingers more though!Mom, clean me up!Hey, let me try!Spoon + fingers + leftover rice cereal on bib = mess for mommy!
All done!

Last Saturday, 3/27, we gave Taylor her first serving of solid foods. She had 1 tablespoon of rice cereal mixed with 2 oz. of breastmilk. It was very watery and hard to keep on the spoon! She didn't quite know what to do but got the hang of it quickly! It took a few days but she's now eating about 1 1/2 tablespoons with 1 1/2 oz. of breastmilk and she loves it!

4 Months Old!

Our little burrito!

Getting ready for bed with daddy!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! (I'm Irish today only, purely for the cute outfit!)

Smiling for the camera!

Meeting Jack for the first time... they couldn't figure each other out!

Mom, why aren't you helping me sit up?

Finally, tummy time has become productive!

My exersaucer is still my favorite toy!

Where does the time go? Taylor turned 4 months old on Wednesday, March 24th! We had her 4 month checkup yesterday, and here are her stats:

Height: 24.8 inches (71%)
Weight: 15lb 8oz (88%)
Head Circumference: 41.9cm (77%)

She is completely healthy! The flat spot on her head on the left side has rounded out, and she has excellent head control. Our doctor gave us the green light to start sleep training her, which we started last night. It went great! We put her down at 7pm, and it took 11 minutes initially to cry herself to sleep. She woke up at 7:30, and it took 6 minutes to cry herself to sleep. She woke up again at 10:30 and it took 12 minutes. Then, we didn't hear a peep from her until 5:15am! She woke at that point, and I fed her, and she is still sleeping (it's 8:10am!). Our first night was very successful, but she also had her immunizations so we are prepared for a tougher night tonight!

She has been SUPER smiley lately, and has been "talking" like crazy! She is a very social baby and will smile at anyone. She will try to mimic your facial expressions, and has laughed and squealed with delight a lot lately too! She drools a lot, and chews on anything that goes near her mouth, which makes us wonder if she's begun teething. She also can reach for objects and hold them in her hand - her favorite is mommy's hair! Ouch! She still loves her exersaucer - she could spend 45 minutes in it sometimes! We are going to set up the Jumperoo this weekend because we think she'll enjoy that just as much! Her tummy time has become much more productive - she can lift her chest up off of the ground, and she is SO close to rolling over!

Tomorrow, we are going to start her on solids! Our doctor said she seems ready for rice cereal. We will try and get some pictures and post them soon!

3 Months Old!

My 3 month picture - look at my dimples!This was the closest thing to a smile that we could get...

Taken on my 3 month birthday by mommy!

I love the exersaucer!Who are these people and why won't they talk to me?

So much fun!

Daddy's little sportsfan

Hi everyone! Taylor turned 3 months old last Wednesday. We didn't have a well-visit this month, but we had taken her to the doctor 2 weeks ago and she weighed 13 lb 6 oz. We're pretty sure she's probably close to 14 lbs by now! She started off her 3rd month with a bang - she spent all of last week not napping, not eating, waking every 30 minutes at night, and crying relentlessly! The doctor thinks it is a growth spurt. The week before that, she had slept through the night 3 times, and now it feels like someone hit the "reset" button on her! She is doing better this week. She's napping and doesn't cry every time we put her down. She's still a little fussier than usual, and hasn't been sleeping the greatest at night. Hopefully next week will be better, since I will be going back to work!

Her newest accomplishment is the discovery of her hands. She loves putting her hands in her mouth, putting her hands together, and grabbing at my clothing. She also rubs her eyes now when she's tired, which is a nice indicator for us when she's ready for a nap! She loves being in her exersaucer now. She stares at the king and queen on the side, and plays with the multicolored fabric. She could spend up to 30 minutes in there sometimes!

She has developed a distinct "fake cry" when she wants our attention. She does this a lot at night. Sam and I are trying to decide if this means she is ready for sleep training. We think we're going to wait until at least 5 months though.

Baptism and Other Events!

Showing off my bracelet from Grandma Pavelka

I was the only baby who didn't cry!Godparents were Uncle Gus & Aunt KimTalking to Grandma and Grandpa ForstEnjoying a visit from my friend Quinn! My first walk outside with Maya and Roman. It was COLD!Relaxing in the bathtubSmiling for the camera!Beautiful blue eyesMy new favorite position in the swing! Mommy tries to adjust me, but I go right back to hunching over!I love practicing sitting up!I'm quite the flirt already!The pacifier is never out of reach!

Hello everyone! It's been quite a while since my last post. Taylor is almost 3 months old already! We had her Baptism on February 7th at St. Ann Catholic Church in Channahon. It was a wonderful ceremony shared with friends and family. Taylor did a great job - she didn't cry once, not even when she got the hiccups! She loved the attention at the luncheon afterward, and even slept through the night that night! My future sister-in-law Krystle took some amazing pictures - you can see all of them if you click on the link on the right.

Taylor has been growing and developing every day. She discovered her hands recently, and can't seem to keep them out of her mouth! She even tries to put them in her mouth when she's eating or sucking on her pacifier. Hopefully she learns soon that those two don't mix! She's also so much more aware of the things around her. She is fascinated by fabric and colors on people's clothes. This is also a distraction sometimes when I'm nursing her - she will stop eating just to play with my clothing! Her new favorite activity is to practice sitting up. She loves sitting up in the Bumbo chair, and also being pulled up by her hands. Tummy time is still a struggle, and she is nowhere near being able to roll over! She is sleeping through the night sometimes - at least once a week now. But she is still having some bad nights here and there. All in good time!

She has been having a little tummy trouble lately. She is back on her reflux medicine, and I have stopped eating dairy, broccoli, tomatoes, onions, and chocolate (so sad!) to try and ease her tummy. It seems to be bothering her enough to wake her up at night and during naps. We are even considering giving her rice cereal early to see if it helps. Hopefully it's just a phase - I definitely miss my dairy!

Taylor and I have been enjoying our time together, especially since I will be going back to work in less than two weeks. No offense to my wonderful coworkers, but I am really going to miss being home with her. I'm very grateful for the time that I've had at home with her, and even more grateful that summer break is only a few months away!

Think warm thoughts everyone! Spring is right around the corner!

2 Months Old!

First time in the exersaucer......Not quite ready for it yet!!

Relaxing with daddy

She loves watching football with daddy!

We had Taylor's 2 month checkup on Monday - I can't believe she is already 2 months old! Her doctor said that she is right on track with her milestones. She coos and "talks" frequently, and smiles just as often. Her neck is very strong - the doctor was impressed! She said we can start putting her in the Bumbo chair and exersaucer, but when we tried, she was very uncomfortable and cried almost instantly. Maybe in a couple more weeks! Here are her latest stats:

Height - 23.5 inches (88th percentile)
Weight - 11 lb 13 oz (76th percentile)
Head Circumference - 38.7 cm (50th percentile)

Our tall little chubster! Her pediatrician said that since she is breastfed, she is going to gain a lot of weight in the next couple of months, and then it will slow down as she approaches 9 months to a year. She also said that length isn't an indicator of future height until about 2 years old.

She received 3 immunizations, and was traumatized by them! She cried louder than we ever heard her - it was so hard to hear her in pain! That night, she slept from 9pm-4:30am, and 5:30am-8:30pm!! It was wonderful! The following night was back to normal, so we think that the immunizations and infant Tylenol really knocked her out. At least we know it's possible for her to sleep that long - there is hope!

Taylor's Likes and Dislikes...

Her new crib toy - a lifesaver for mommy and daddy!

Laughing!

I am definitely a morning person! This is how I greet mom every morning!

My sad face... doesn't it melt your heart?

Staring at the window - my favorite hobby

Good morning mom!

My tummy time is not very productive...

Playing on my playmat

Talking to my "friends" on the playmat

Taylor has been so much fun lately! She finally is sleeping better at night - not through the night, but at least in longer stretches. She has more wakeful playing time during the day, and her naps seem more productive in getting her rest. Here is an updated list of Taylor's likes and dislikes:

Taylor likes... taking a bath, playing on her playmat, waking up in the morning, listening to music with daddy, the sound of running water, swinging in her swing, smiling, "talking" to mommy, "talking" to the stuffed animals on her playment, batting at toys, looking at windows and bright lights, staring at her Aquarium crib toy, getting her diaper changed

Taylor dislikes... having the hiccups, anything that goes on between the hours of 7-8:30 at night (her fussy time!), being overtired, burping, tummy time, being in her carrier (before the car starts moving!), getting out of the bathtub

A Day in the Life...

Hanging out with Aunt Kim

Relaxing with daddy

Troy, I stole one of your pictures from Facebook - I love her half-smile, and how drowsy she looks in this picture!

Taylor is 7 1/2 weeks now - I can't believe she is almost two months old! We haven't done much in the last couple of weeks because it's been so cold! This week is supposed to be nicer out, so I might take her out for a walk in the stroller. We're getting anxious to get some fresh air! She did spend some time with Grandma and Grandpa Forst last weekend, and had a lot of fun! She also got to see her Grandma Pavelka, Uncle Mark, Aunt Colleen, and her cousins last Friday. She loves visiting with family!

She has been starting to get somewhat of a schedule, although it varies daily. We have noticed that she goes to bed around 10:00 at night, has a feeding at around 2:00, goes back to sleep at around 3, and wakes up around 6:30. This is definitely more tolerable than her previous nighttime habits, which were very sporadic. Of course, we still have the occasional bad night (last night was one of them!) but at least we know that most nights I can get a good chunk of sleep.

One thing that has helped with her sleep time has been our nighttime routine, which we have been trying to stick to as much as possible. We usually give her a bath, play a little bit with her in our bed, and then give her a bottle of expressed milk and rock her to sleep. We noticed that when we give her a bottle before bed, she sleeps a little bit better, probably because she doesn't fall asleep before she is full, like she does when I nurse her.

When she gets a good night's sleep, she is so happy in the morning! We think that she is going to be a morning person like her mom! She usually gives me a huge smile when I come get her in her crib, and is smiley for about a half hour, until she remembers how hungry she is! I've been trying to get a picture but haven't been quick enough! She is very alert, and we've been able to get in more playtime during the day - she loves her playmat, but hates being on her tummy. We still put her on her tummy for at least 20 minutes a day to try and help her strengthen her upper body.

Sam was sick with the stomach flu earlier this week, which threw Taylor's schedule off completely. I think she knew that something wasn't right. Sam is so happy to be better - he missed holding her and giving her nighttime bath.