Heeeee, he, he...look what I just did!

Well, here she is. In all her "I finally pulled up to standing in my crib" glory. I literally screamed when I walked into her room to see why she was making so much noise! She was so very proud of herself! She looked a little taller than we had expected (I'm standing right there guarding her, so don't worry all you over protective grandmothers and aunties!) so we moved her crib mattress down. Luckily tonight there were no shenanigans and she went right to sleep!

The poor little girl is still sick!!!! I know she doesn't look like it in the video, but that was a good section of the day. I've decided that's how babies are. They are either in a "I feel fine" mood, or "I am totally miserable" mood. At least that's how Maggie is--there's really no in between for her. She'll have a good afternoon, and then all of a sudden she'll be super fussy and having horrid coughing fits. I didn't call Dr. Ally on Friday, because I thought for about the fourth time she was starting to feel better. Guess I was wrong.

I'm calling Dr. Ally in the morning. I'm sure she'll want us to come back in (which is kind of frustrating since her 9 month well baby is Tuesday--those co-pays add up quick!). I'll keep everyone posted.

Yummy, yummy!!

Here's Magnolia first experience with finger feeding herself!!! This was awhile ago, but I thought everyone would still like to see it!! She's a pro now!!

Getting the puffs onto her hand--pretty handy that they stick!

Chewing, chewing, chewing.

Look, I did it! Delicious!

5 AM

Magnolia's been sick again this week. It started with fussiness and a runny nose on Sunday, and now we are to Wednesday with a fever of 102 degrees. We headed in to see Dr. Ally, just to make sure we wouldn't be spreading anything too serious to her friends and to check her ears. Dr. Ally was sure it would be another ear infection, but her ears were completely fluid free. Hopefully it's just some viral bug that's not too big a deal, and she'll be better soon. If she's not better by Friday Dr. Ally is probably going to catheterize her, and check for a possible UTI. So lets all hope she gets to feeling better soon!!

Here's Daddy and Maggie at 5am. Daddy is trying to stay awake and Maggie's trying to get her fever down with a cold cloth and some fluids!

Here's a few more cute Maggie pics! Look at those cheekies!

So Little Miss Climber/Stander is all over everything. This would be the moment she discovered how fun it is to climb in and on the laundry basket.

Silly Face!!

Maggie has been enjoying some big kid baths recently. She loves swimming all around, kicking her legs and splashing with her hands. I told her to make a silly face, so here it is. She also decided she'd do a cool trick with a backwards hand apparently.

Maggie's been eatin' up lots of new foods lately. She's been really, really enjoying feeding herself finger foods! It's so cute to watch her work so hard to get those little pieces of food in her mouth.

She seems to be getting a little bit of a cold as of yesterday, so she's been extra "mommy clingy." Autie Sara, Uncle Brad, Grandma Tara, Gramma-Gramma, Great Auntie Julie and Henry came over for dessert this evening and she was pretty excited, she sort of forgot she wasn't feeling well and just decided to have fun.

Her big milestone this month is learning how to protest. I know, I know, most of you are saying "well she already protests every time we try to hold her," but you haven't seen this new advanced form of protesting. She's getting plenty of opportunities to use this new skill, like every diaper change, getting dressed, undressed, getting her nose wiped, when you redirect her to something she can touch, etc. We are getting lots of "ahh, ahh, ahh, AHHH, AHHHH, AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Then real quick roll overs, and trying to escape from us with a big smile on her face.

Oh, she's also pulling up to standing--yep...I know.

What great fun---Mommy and Daddy are exhausted!

The Magnolias Have Bloomed!!

We've moved...back outside!

She's all into music now! She was making beautiful music for the neighbors.

She likes eating in her booster seat outside because when she throws her cup off the side, she can just reach down and get it.

Boston, Daddy and Maggie enjoying the sun!

So generally when you live in the Northend you accept the fact that you probably aren't going to have much square footage. I refer to our modest house as a cottage. Cottage living is great, but living in such as small space, especially with another member of the family now, can kind of wear on you over the winter months. We have a great yard and as soon as the weather warms up we head outside. This is the best part about living in the Northend--we have huge trees to provide us shade, we have all sorts of birds, squirrels, and other animals, our neighbors are out as much as we are---it's great. We eat outside, we play outside, we pretty much only go indoors to sleep and use the restroom when the weather is nice. So today we got to move back outside. It was beautiful! Maggie discovered the little furry creatures that Boston likes to bark at, which would be squirrels, and she also loved watching all the birds. She was very content playing outside, and she ate dinner outside as well. What a glorious day!

I Love...

I love how her eyes light up every time she smiles, like she's actually smiling with her eyes. I love how she curls in her little toes or uses them to balance herself when she's reaching for something on her tummy. I love her big open mouth kisses that cover my whole face. I love those giggles that inevitably always end in hiccups. I love it when she reaches for me, then buries her face in my shoulder. I love it when she looks for her daddy every time he leaves the room, and then smiles soo big as soon as he returns. I love it when I greet her in the morning and she's at the very corner of her crib waiting for me, just kicking her legs in contentment. I love it when she knocks over a big tower of blocks then looks to me and smiles--so proud of herself. I love it when she sees her dog and starts bouncing up and down and reaching for her, like she's the best toy ever! I love it when she grabs at her spoon or cup and communicates quite effectively that "I can do it myself!" I love it when she curls up next to me for a nap, and wakes up all sweaty. I love it when she pats her mouth to make that cool "ahh ahh ahh" sound. I love listening to her explore all her new sounds while she lays in her crib, like "dadee" or "ma" or "dadadada" or "babababa." I love it when she hides her face in the bed then pops up waiting for a "boo." I love watching her wave at anything and everyone lately, as she tries to figure out this new social gesture she's learned. I love her first little tooth, that one there on the bottom right in front. I love watching her sleep all curled up on her side. I love watching her work so hard to get something out of reach, and persisting until she gets it. I love it when I see her after we've been seperated and she looks at me like, "I've missed you too mommy."

Most of all, I love waking up every day just knowing she's going to give me so many things to fall in love with all over again.