Baby's First Christmas

I had to laugh when I was putting up my Christmas tree this year and getting out all of the ornaments... I pulled out not one but two ornaments that said "Baby's First Christmas 2015." Well Lettie had a different plan and didn't come til right after Christmas 2015 making this her very first Christmas! She of course had no care in the world what the presents actually were she just enjoyed the tissue and wrapping paper that they all came in but nonetheless this was a very fun Christmas! 

Celebrated with Isaac's family a couple days before!

We had been trying to take Lettie to go see Santa but with Isaac's schedule and life we weren't able to until Christmas Eve. So we went to Uptown Normal to Santa's Station right when it opened thinking no one will be there, it's Christmas Eve. Well #momfail apparently this is what people do on the eve and after waiting in line for an hour we finally got to see SANTA! #nocries #winning

Christmas morning we had some family time at home opening a few presents, I will have to say the stocking was a hit! She loved pulling out all the goodies in side! 

So serious!

Note: the EOS ball she has in her hand... always important!

Then we were off to my parents! Oh how the holidays have changed, all the kids running around is so much fun!

More presents!!!

Not the best picture, but I'll take it! Love my little family! :) 

11 Months New

Lettie is SOOOOOO Big! She is also 11 months old and wanted to show off her one and only party trick! Lettie is keeping us on our toes and getting into everything and anything she isn't suppose to! Lets just say she is lucky she is so cute! Lettie is in 12 months clothes, size 3 diapers, eating table food and has started drinking whole milk! We are still breastfeeding but she has started to wean herself and now only nurses or gets breastmilk about once a day! #biggirlstatus 

Gobble til You Wobble

We had a great thanksgiving this year! We started it off at my parents and then went to Isaac's parents that night! The picture above is from my parents (as we all know I am awful at remembering to take pictures) but to even my surprise I was the one who took this picture! It was pretty comical trying to get the camera angled just right so that everyone fit and then me jumping in the picture at the last second but all in all I think it turned out pretty good! Two of my moms brothers and my Grandma Loretta were even able to come down and spend the day with us! Lettie is the only one missing from the picture but she was being a good girl and napping, so there is always next year! I even got to sit, uninterrupted, with a glass of wine and talk to Brooke for about an hour, it was heaven! ❤️ #itsthesmallthings 

Lettie's First Halloween

My little lady bug! I won't lie my creative side loved every minute of this Halloween from deciding what Lettie would be to making her costume! I had a fear that Halloween would come and she wouldn't even keep the hat or tutu I made on but to my surprise she didn't mind at all! 

We went over to Aunt Alisha's & Uncle Matt's house to get all of the cousins together and it was so much fun! As you can see from the many pictures it was complete chaos at times but overall every one had a great time! 

  

Brotherly love! 💙

The girls... love watching them grow up together 💗

10 Months New

Lettie is getting quite the personality and is already a baby of many faces (picture case and point).... sorry girlfriend you get that from your momma. She is crawling all over the place these days and simple tasks like baths and diaper changes have become an Olympic sport! She is loving table food and continues to be a great sleeper and only has two bottom teeth! Lettie still only says dada (go figure) but I swear she mimics things we say! She is truly the greatest gift and I am so thankful to be her momma! 

Rader's Farm 2016

We decided to take advantage of the cooperating weather and go to Rader's for some family fun! Between the rain in the forecast and unsure if Isaac would be home I was doubting it all week but everything worked out and we were able to spend the day as a family! It was truly a great morning full of yummy food, an attempted photo shoot and some pumpkin picking! 

I'm not sure what it is about this picture but I love it! Such a simple moment but one that I'm so glad I captured. 

Between her not wanting to sit still and her infatuation with the straw and grass on the ground, it was a struggle to get her to even look up, so this is about as good as it gets! 

My little family ❤️

Lettie was so curious about the pumpkins... she was just starring and rubbing her little hands over them! 🎃

9 Months New

In the last month Lettie has started crawling and in true fashion it really was 0 to 60 in a period of 24 hours! She is no longer interested in her toys and would rather be getting into everything! Oh and I can't forget her love for chasing Gus around, thank goodness he is a good pup and doesn't mind her pulling his ears, tail and climbing on top of him. He normally just looks over at me like "really?" Her curiosity in all things is so fun to watch! She still only has two teeth and is only saying "dada dada", she is in size 3 diapers and is wearing mostly 9 to 12 month clothes! 

Lettie's Measurements

Length: 28 in = 65th percentile (grew 2 inches)

Weight: 20 lb 9 oz = 85th percentile (gained ~ 1.75 lb)

Head Circumference: 17.5 in = 68th percentile (grew 1/4 in)

Big Day!

Lettie started crawling today! (Of course she did this at daycare) As much as I loved my stationary baby I know this is a good thing for her developmentally! I am determined to figure out a way to post a video on here that will actually work, so stay tuned! :)

Daddy's Girl

Even though Isaac is away during the week this little girl has a special place for her daddy! She still only says "dada dada" and she never wants to take her eyes off of him when he is home, which can make for a very interesting nursing session! I love watching these two together ❤️

8 Months New

Ms. Lettie continues to grow like a weed and she truly amazes me every day, she is just the happiest baby! She has two teeth and has started to eat some table food! Her favorite food is still probably apple sauce but she does not discriminate against anything! She has become a butt scooter but I think she will be crawling any day now! She loves going for walks and our new "thing" is having Gus come with us, which she thinks is pretty awesome!

This was the most "difficult" photo shoot we have had yet as she is on the go! As you can see from the photos below....

We will go see Dr. Boe at the end of September for her 9 month appointment and I'm excited to see how much she has grown! :) 

Miller Park Zoo

We went to Miller Park Zoo today with all the cousins: Clayton, Sawyer, Jackson & Oakleigh! I have not been to the zoo in years and I was so impressed with how big it is, I think we spent about 2 hours there! I can't wait to go back with Daddy!

Lettie with the new Flamingos!

Clayton was such a big help today with all the littles!

The boys!

Her smile truly kills me, we were watching the seals and I was able to catch her cheesing this big! Lettie already loves her puppy and any other puppy she sees so I am hoping she is going to love animals as much as I did when I was a child (who am I kidding, I still love animals)! 

Getting the Girls' Ears Pierced

So I have been planning on getting Lettie's ears pierced for a long time so I did a little research and decided I would wait until she was 6 months but after that it was fair game and I of course talked my sister into taking Oakleigh and getting hers done too! Let me rephrase that, there really wasn't much "talking into" she was on board from the get go! So Alisha called me this week and informed me that she had won a gift card to Merle Norman at work so we took that as a sign to go and get the girls' ears pierced as soon as possible! Here are some pictures to document their experience....

Oakleigh has no idea what's coming :( 

"Ouch that hurt Momma!" She really did pretty good... we just waited a few minutes and got the other one done!

J.D. was all smiles, I mean a sucker and Momma's cell phone, what more could you want?! I also think this was about the time we were being judged by a pregnant women in the store! 

Now it was Lettie's turn... again having no idea what is coming!

"I don't know about this!"

"Now that hurt!" Her recovery time was honestly better than when she gets her vaccines so off to the second ear we went!

This was Lettie after the traumatic experience and as you can see she was as happy as can be! :) 

Update: She hasn't minded me cleaning them twice a day and they are healing wonderfully! :) 

7 Months New

 

 Lettie loves to sit up and play. She also loves to eat just about anything but her favorite is probably applesauce. Still no teeth. She is in 6 to 9 month clothes and in size 2 diapers (she should really be into 3s but this frugal momma is trying to use up the 2s)! Our breastfeeding journey continues and I'm thinking at this point if we have made it this far we will be able to make it to my goal which is her first birthday! 

She Gets it from her Momma

Her hair is finally thick enough for clip in bows! 

The best cuddler around. 

Doesn't it look like she is posing? Throwing that shoulder forward, hehe ;) 

Get it girl!

6 Month Appointment

We went and saw Dr. Boe today and Lettie continues to be right on track physically and developmentally. Dr. Boe asked if she is eating any solids yet and I said "Yes and she is loving everything!" His response, "I can see that..." Yes my lil pumpkin is a chunker but I am proud of every roll on her little body! :) 

Lettie was sitting up like this when Dr. Boe walked in and he was impressed with how strong she is and how sturdy she was sitting up. She literally just started sitting up without being wobbly this past week. It's crazy how fast they change! 

Height: 26 in = 46% (grew 1 1/4 in)

Weight: 18lb 13 oz = 87% (gained 3 pounds)

Head Circumference: 17 1/4in = 86% (grew 3/4 in)

Look Alike?

I carried her for 41 weeks and 2 days and she still came out looking exactly like her father! However I was determined to find a particular baby picture of myself so that I could compare Lettie and I and I would have to say that there is definitely a resemblance!

Lettie's First Ozark Trip

I finally got to take my baby to my favorite place on earth, the Ozarks! The Ozarks is a place that I grew up and it's my home away from home and getting to take Lettie girl there was truly something I have always dreamed about! It all started with a late night road trip on Thursday which worked out because it was after Lettie's bedtime so she slept the whole way!

The whole lifejacket thing got a lil dicey but she powered through and dealt with it and loved the boat!

Aunt Alisha, Uncle Matt and cousins Jackson & Oakleigh were down there with us and all the kids did great! As you can see in the picture above Jackson was giving Lettie kisses! So stinkin sweet...

"The girls" I love that I can say that and that we can dress them alike and take pictures of them! OJ and LC are only three months apart and I can't wait to watch them grow up together, they are going to be best friends! It's crazy the difference 3 months makes at this age, OJ (3 months) LC (6 months).

Jackson was teaching Lettie a few things! Getting to take a lil vacation with family and having the cousins together was awesome even if we didn't have the best weather! 

Our one nice day was spent at Redheads! We were the first ones there and got prime poolside seats... truly a perfect day!

Lettie girl giving Mommy kisses!

(Family picture at the marina)
We have had a tough week so getting to be together is truly a blessing and I loved every minute of it!

Oh these two... they truly are two peas in a pod! :) 

What a lil ham!