Lauralyn is One!

Weight:  A little over 19 lbs.
Height:  29 inches
Shoes: 3
Diaper: 3
Clothes:  12 month

What a wonderful year it has been with Lauralyn.  She amazes us everyday with her little personality.  Her birthday was November 4th, so I'm just 10 days behind on this post :)

She's walking, climbing, driving Lawson's cozy coupe, and into everything!  One of her favorite things to do is try to put lids on things. It will keep her entertained for a while!  She is one tough little girl.  She takes spills all the time, mostly when she is climbing or playing with Lawson, and usually just gets up like nothing happened.

Her nightly routine changed this month.  She started hating the bottle at night and would cry the instant I took her to her room to give her a bottle and put her to bed.  So we tried milk in a sippy cup and let her play and drink it until it was time for bed.  She loved it and usually doesn't cry when we put her to bed.  Either her daddy or I take her to her room, sit in her chair and sing her a couple of songs while she drinks her milk, and then put her in her crib at a little after 8:00.  It has been wonderful!

She loves her milk in the morning and at night and is still eating everything she can get her hands on.

She is constantly trying to talk, but says mama, dada, bubba or byebye (not sure which) very well.  She is also signing "more"  which makes meals a little easier than before.  Before she would just scream when she wanted something.  Lawson likes to try to get her to sign "more"  and it is absolutely precious.  She and Lawson are playing better and better together as she gets older.

It hurts my heart when I think about my baby growing up, but it truly is so much fun to see her grow and change and become a little toddler.

Lauralyn 11 Months Old

Weight: 19 lbs
Clothes:  Still mostly 6-9 and 9 month, some 12 month but they are big
Shoes: 3
Diaper:  3

Can it really be possible that my baby will be 1 in a month?!?  She is standing and taking steps and gets from one piece of furniture to the other very quickly.  She has mastered multiple steps at a time, but does a lot of nose plants still!

She is fearless.  She climbs on everything....the ottomon, on top of her toys, on top of her brother...and has no fear of falling.  Her poor head has already had quite a few bumps and bruises.

She officially is over having a bow on her head.  It is a constant fight to keep it on.  Usually I just take it off and don't worry about it.

She loves to eat and still eats anything we give her.  We have cut one bottle out, so she now has a morning, night and mid-day bottle.  The only one she really wants his her night time bottle, so I think we will be phasing the others out soon.

Still sleeping like a champ.  We are so thankful for that because her brother is getting up during the night every night!

In a month I'll be typing her one year post.  I can't believe it!

Lauralyn 10 Months Old

Weight:  Probably around 17 lbs.
Clothes:  6-9 months
Diaper: 3

I have been terrible about keeping up with monthly posts.  I have been good about taking pictures though!  At least I've done one thing I wanted to do!

At 10 months Lauralyn is pulling up, cruising, and letting go to stand without holding on.  When she stands up without holding on she gets soooo proud of herself and grins from ear to ear.

She eats pretty much any and everything that she is able to chew.  She loves to eat and if someone is eating something, she always thinks she needs a bite.

She is still a feisty little girl.  If she doesn't get her way she squeals!!

She is now exclusively drinking bottles.  She fully weaned at the end of summer when I had to go back to work.  She did great with it.  I did okay with it.    I still get sad sometimes thinking about how big she has gotten and that those sweet moments of her nursing are gone forever.  I'm NOT sad about saying good bye to the pump!  Good riddance :)

Lauralyn sleeps great at night, but takes very sporadic naps.  That is partly because we were on the go a lot this summer and also partly because she doesn't want to miss anything.  And her brother can be loud sometimes.  Speaking of her brother, he still loves his sissy and she adores him.  He tries to pick her up, he likes to play with her and will even drag her into the tent with him.  They really play well together and it is too sweet.  He likes to tell her "no, no sissy" if she is doing something she shouldn't be doing.  Life with two is busy, but there are so many sweet, special moments that make it worth it!

I guess in 2 months, I'll be writing her year old post!  Can't believe it!  

Lauralyn 9 Months Old

Weight:  Probably around 17 lbs.
Clothes:  6-9 months
Diaper: 3

Lauralyn is already 9 months old.  Time is flying does not adequately say how fast it is going.  She changes and grows more and more every day.  And our love for her changes and grows with every day.  She is the light of our life and of her brother's life.  The more she grows, the more he loves to play with his "sissy".

She is finally crawling on all fours.  I'm glad just because she was wearing her shirts out by scooting on the floor.  She started scooting really early, so it was funny that it took her so long to get off her belly and crawl!!

She is currently nursing and taking bottles.  The plan is to have her weaned before I go back to work for the year.

Lauralyn is completely off of baby food.  She pretty much eats whatever we are eating.  She is a natural at using a sippy cup.  Pretty much any cup we give her she can use.  The same was with finger foods.  She always feeds herself and is really good at picking her food up.  She also is drinking through a straw with no problem, except she gets to big of gulps and spits it out.  Jarrett and I like to joke that are kids are advanced eaters!!

Lauralyn 7 Months Old



Am I really already writing her 7 month post??  I have so many mixed emotions with Lauralyn growing up.  It is so funny with Lawson I wanted him to reach his milestones fast and couldn't wait for him to do more and more.  With Lauralyn, I want her to stay my baby forever.  Too bad she has different plans!!

She is on the go!  She is up on all fours and is scooting everywhere. 

She will stand at the ottoman and at her toy table and play.  Her little legs are really strong.  She is smiling and talking and laughing and just melting our hearts all the time.  She loves to play with toys and likes to lay on the floor and just play for a long time.  She seems to like this more than anything else, especially her exersaucer. 

She is still sleeping through the night, yay!!  She goes to be about 7:45 or 8 and doesn't get up until I get her up.  She has started sleeping on her tummy with her booty in the air and it is so cute.

She really got into eating between the 6 month and 7 month mark.  She gets excited and wants more and wants if fast!  She has also started eating mum mums and seems to like them, but doesn't go crazy over them like Lawson did.  She gets mad if I try to feed her something she doesn't like, such as she decided she does not like green beans ands she throws a fit when I try to feed them to her.  She is a messy eater because she wants to hold the spoon and actually does a pretty good job with it! 

And she got two teeth this month!  Her two bottom teeth broke through without us even really realizing the first one.  They came in right after she turned 6 months. 

She cracks us up because most of the time she is such a happy baby, but when she gets upset she is VERY dramatic.  I guess because she is a girl!

Lauralyn and Mikah 

Lauralyn 6 Months Old



Weight: 15.1 lbs
Height: 26 in.
Diaper: 2
Clothes: 6 months

It has been half a year since Lauralyn was born and although it was the most exhausting half a year of my life, she has brought more joy to our family than I could have ever imagined.  It is so amazing to watch my little girl grow and to see her and Lawson interacting more and more every day.

She has started really sleeping through the night almost every night.  I nurse her at 8:00 and then she sleeps until I get her up at 5:20 to nurse before I get ready for work.  I do hear her in the monitor in the middle of the night, but she usually just rolls over and finds her pacifier and falls back asleep. 

She still eats baby oatmeal at supper and has also tried green beans.  She made funny faces, but still seemed to like it. 

She still rolls and scoots like crazy.  And we have to watch her around the fire place, ottoman and any room that has a hard surface she could bump into.  She isn't sitting up on her own yet.  She is close, but wobbly and usually falls over reaching for the closest toy, remote, shirt whatever she can get her hands on!!

Lauralyn 5 Months Old

Weight: 14 lbs.
Diaper: 2
Clothes: 3-6 and 6 month
Shoes: 0

Our baby is 5 months old!  A few new things happened this month.  The biggest thing is that she started eating some baby oatmeal.  We started her out at around 4 and half months, but it wasn't until she was closer to 5 months that she really started getting into it.  She is a messy eater and likes to blow raspberries with food in her mouth.  She is only eating one solid feeding, and it is at dinner time. 

I can't remember if she was doing this at 4 months or not, but she is rolling everywhere!  I can put her on one side of the living room, walk away, and she is on the other side of the living room when I get back.  She mostly sleeps on her tummy now because she rolls over after I put her down on her back and gets comfy on her tummy.  She also pulls her legs up under her and scoots to get to things.  This is crazy to us because Lawson never did this, at least not at this age. 

She still smiles and belly laughs a lot and her sleeping is getting better.  She even occasionally sleeps through the night!!  I get sad every time I realize how big she is getting.  Most likely she is our last baby, so each new milestone is bittersweet.  She is the perfect little addition to our family.  I can hardly believe that next month she will be half a year old!

Lauralyn 4 Months

Clothes: 0-3 months
Diaper:  Just moved up to a 2
Weight: 13 lbs.
Height: 24 inches
Shoes: 0

Lauralyn is still a happy little baby.  I will say she is our "high maintenance" little girl.  She likes things a certain way!  She doesn't like to be wet or poopy, she likes it quiet when she eats and sleeps.  She gets a little temper when she doesn't get her way and it is too cute!  She is sooo different from her brother, and it may just be the difference in a boy vs. a girl.  I've finally come to terms with the fact that she is not the great sleeper her brother is. She's not a bad sleeper....its just that her brother LOVES to sleep and sometimes asks to go night night. 

She did great at her 4 month dr. visit.  Didn't even cry on the first shot, but did on the second one.  He said she looks great and is developing perfectly. 

She is such a joy in our lives.  She loves when her daddy or brother talk to her, her whole face lights up.  And she has started belly laughing.  I've found her ticklish spot right under her chin and love to make her laugh!  I look forward to continue watching her change and grow over the next few months.  We love our little girl!

3 Months Old

Weight:  Over 11 lbs

Clothes: 0-3 month

Diaper: 1

Shoes: 0

Still our little smiley girl!  And still not our great sleeper!  The biggest change this month is that we moved her to her crib.  It actually wasn't as hard as I thought it would be on me, I think I just knew it was time.  I've tried everything in terms of her schedule for bed time, and have found what works best for now.  She gets a bath at around 8 or 8:30 and then between 8:30 and 9 I nurse her and put her to bed.  She does great until about 2:00 am.  She gets up, and since I'm up I go ahead and nurse her.  Sometimes she goes back to sleep, sometimes it takes an hour to get her settled.  To say I'm exhausted at 5:00 am when my alarm goes off is an understatement!  And actually she sometimes wakes up at around 4:30, so that is usually when my day starts.  Oh well, I told Jarrett the line "I can sleep when I'm dead" keeps running through my head!  I'm hoping she will get used to be in the crib soon and will start sleeping better. 

I will say that her smiles and cuddles make all the lack of sleep worth it!  She is very happy and content and for the most part an easy baby.  She rolled from her tummy to her back the day after she turned 3 months, which is crazy because I never put her on her tummy, I just happened to do it that night.

I've started putting her on a blanket on the floor more, and Lawson loves to lay beside her.  He has also gotten big enough to hold her for a few seconds and he ALWAYS likes to give her kisses.  He has gotten really good at trying to take care of her and putting her pacifier back in.   

Here is a little comparison of her and Lawson at about the same age.

2 Months Old

Clothes:  Newborn

Diaper:  Newborn

Weight: 9.4 lbs. 

Height:  23 in.  (I think)

Lauralyn is our little smiling girl.  She smiles at everyone and everything!  Her first huge smile was at around 6 weeks.  Night time is gradually getting better.  She usually is wide awake late in the evening.  I've started feeding her around 9:30, wrapping her in her blanket with her arms out and then laying her in her bed.  We've found she will put herself to sleep only if it is completely dark in the room.  She still sleeps in our room in a pack and play, and I'm not looking forward to moving her to her room.  She wakes up at least once in the night, usually at around 2:30, but a few times it has been 4:00.  She is getting better about eating and then falling back asleep in the night.  I'm not sure how much she is eating right now, but I know she wants to eat a lot less often than her brother did.  Let's see....at 2 months she basically eats, sleeps and poops and as long as all those things happen, she is pretty content and happy! 

Lauralyn 1 Month Old

Weight: Around 8 lbs
Diaper: newborn
Clothes: newborn

It's hard to believe a month has already passed.  Lauralyn has been such a sweet little blessing to our life.  She has gotten on a pretty regular sleep/eat schedule.  In the evenings she will eat at 7:00 and 10:00.  Then she has been sleeping until at least 2:00 and then again until anywhere from 4:30 to 5:30.  She is a great eater, but has a tendency to overeat and then spit up a little.  She nurses during the day about every 3 hours.  Right now she has a head of dark brown hair, blue eyes and dark skin.

I'm not one to stay home all the time, so she has been out and about since 6 days old.  That was the first day we took her to the mall.  She has been out to eat several times and even went to Canton Trades Day this past week.  She is so easy when we go somewhere.

Lawson hasn't really had to adjust much to his sister being here.  It's almost like she has always been around.  He loves her already and tries to give her a paci, blanket, toy anything he thinks she might need.  He is actually a big helper even though he's only 20 months.   He is able to throw her diapers away in the garage and can get pretty much anything we tell him that we need.  The biggest thing for him was learning that you have to be gentle with little sister.

Here are side by side pictures of Lawson and Lauralyn at 1 month.