Alexis' First Christmas

Our first Christmas as a family was great! Timothy and his mother had to work during the day, so we had dinner at 5 and then began opening presents. Alexis enjoyed the dinner that Mommy made for her and the cheesecake she had a few bites of for dessert.

Alexis was very blessed in the present department. Timothy and I purchased gifts that Alexis would use long; so she got a swing for outside, a big lego dump truck (in pink of course), a mini Dora sofa, band instruments, ABC blocks, a huge coloring book and crayons, tub crayons, and books, of course. From Tim's parents, Alexis received a shape sorter cookie jar, a new learning phone, a doll and stroller, Wonder Pets DVDs, and a book. Alexis also received seven books from Aunt Nicole, Uncle Daniel, Hailey, and Alistair. Alexis loves all of her new toys, but her favorite gifts were the books. She opened books first and we literally had to hide them from her to get her to open other gifts.

In addition to receiving gifts, Alexis also "gave" some gifts to Daddy, Maw Maw, and Paw Paw. Daddy received a beer mug that had a picture of Alexis crying on it with the quote "Daddy drinks because I cry." Maw Maw and Paw Paw got books that they fill out about their lives and give to Alexis when she's older to learn about them. Also, Maw Maw received a beautiful Grandma quilt with pictures of all three grandchildren; Paw Paw got a coffee mug with pictures of the three grandchildren with the title "World's Best Paw Paw".

Now that Christmas is done, it's on to Alexis' first birthday. It's about 36 days away. We can't believe that she will be a year old in just over a month! She is growing before our eyes and she seems to get smarter every day! Her walking is going great; she's a pro now. She still falls down from time to time, but that's to be excepted. We are also trying to wean her off of bottles, but that is not going too well! Mommy is ready to give up on this endeavor and just get rid of the bottles when we switch to cow's milk!

We hope that you all had a lovely Christmas and will enjoy the new year! We love you all!

Where did the time go?

Alexis is 10 1/2 months old and she's growing like a weed. Her walking is coming along great. She walks all over the house now and hasn't fallen quite as much. She still hasn't taken to walking around outside of the house. She's also becoming more and more able to entertain herself, and is learning where her boundries are. It doesn't feel like I say, "No, Alexis" as much anymore. We are definately looking forward to Christmas next week. All of Alexis' presents are wrapped and under the tree. There are new photos on Alexis' site, so check them out! We love you all and hope that you're having a great holiday season!

Does she have to do something cute every day???

Tim's mom and I have been practicing identifying body parts with Alexis. Last night, after bath time, Alexis was lying on her changing table, naked of course, chewing on something. While I was rubbing her lotion on her legs, I asked "Where's your belly?" She immediately placed a hand on her tummy. It was surprising and cute. I tried again after cheering for her and she again resonded in the same way. So, I called Timothy in and had her show off a few more times. It was so neat and adorable!

Hurricane Alexis!

This is usually the aftermath of a day at home with Alexis. We have affectionately nicknamed this situation Hurricane Alexis. Well, tonight we made a breakthrough. Since Alexis learned to put objects into containers last week, I decided to enlist her help in cleaning up before bedtime. I handed her toy after toy which she put into her toy box while I sang an impromptu song about cleaning up to her. After most of the toys were stowed away, she grew tired of the exercise and just watched. But for the most part, she did an awesome job helping clean up her mess! Daddy will be so proud when hears about this!

Walking

I just had to upload a video of Alexis walking. She wasn't as cooperative as I would have liked; she can usually walk longer, but she was entralled with my keys. You can still she her at work though! Enjoy the video! Oh, and ignore the Blue's Clues going on in the background :)

Thanksgiving, Santa, and More!

We had a great Thanksgiving with Timothy's parents! Alexis got to eat some turkey, sweet potatoes, and a roll. I also buckled and gave her a small bit of pumpkin pie. On Friday, after the doctor's appointment, we went to the mall with Timothy's parents to see Santa. She did great and took about five good pictures before she started crying. Here are a couple of pictures with Santa.

Alexis also really took to walking yesterday and today. I stood her on the ground near a toy and she just took off. It was amazing to see. We love to watch her toddle along. In addition to walking, Alexis has become a big girl in one more way. She parted with her pacificer this week. It's been a bit rough, but we'd rather deal with a few tears now instead of fighting with her later on. We will be weaning her from bottles starting at the end of December.

We've posted more photos on Alexis' photo site today. So check them out!

Check Up

We took Alexis to her 9 month check up today; she will be 10 months on Tuesday. She weighs 19 lbs 8.5 oz which is between the 25th and 50th percentile for her age; so she gained about 2.5 lbs in the last three months. I'm surprised she didn't gain more. She loves to eat! She was 30 1/4 inches tall (in the 95th to 97th percentile for her age) and had a head circumference of 44 cm (in the 25th to 50th percentile for her age). She's getting so big now! She also had to receive four shots one of which was a dosage of her flu shot. Alexis was none too happy with the shots!

The doctor was very impressed with her development. She took her first independent steps around 8 months and she's getting much better at walking lately. She still prefers to use furniture or people for support but the doctor said that's just a mental block that she'll lose soon. She can also point which is so adorable and she learned to put items into containers this week which is advanced for her age.

We had a great time celebrating Thanksgiving yesterday with Timothy's parents and we will be visiting the mall to see Santa this afternoon once naptime is over! We'll post her pictures with Santa tonight. We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Photo Session

Yesterday afternoon, Tim, Alexis, and I went to have our first family potraits taken professionally. We did holiday backgrounds mainly. First were the pictures of us together. Alexis did great and had some cute smiles for the photographer. Then, we did some of just Tim and Alexis and just me and Alexis. These also went well. After the group pictures, the photographer decided to try to get some of Alexis by herself. I immediately imagined Alexis crawling away towards all of the cords that she could chew on. The photographer got out a white wicker bench and put Alexis and a Christmas teddy bear on it. She wanted Alexis on one end and the bear of the other. Yeah right! Alexis just wanted to play with the bear. However, Tim stood behind her and helped to keep her sitting up and we got a couple of cute shots. Then, the photographer decided to put Alexis on the ground with fake milk and cookies as props. She wanted them behind her back. Again I thought "Yeah right!" Alexis of course started to steal the milk and cookies. We got cute shots of her playing with the cookies, but none of her actually looking at the camera. After a few minutes of futility, we put Alexis on a small wooden bench and got a couple of cute shots. Then, we had to call it a day. She was fading fast. All in all, we got some adorable pictures and as soon as they come in, we will be sending them out! I've posted a picture that we didn't have printed as a sneak peak! Happy holidays!

Babies are funny!

Alexis' personality has really been developing recently. She has started throwing tantrums, getting rhythm, and accomplishing new tasks daily. Monday night, Alexis and I were having dinner at Tim's parents' house. I gave Alexis her sippy cup during dinner, and she proceeded to bang it on the table. When I told her, "no," she started crying and threw the cup on the ground. David and Jackie told me that she was acting just like Tim when he was her age. It's good to know that she doesn't get it from me :)

Here is a picture of her crying because I wouldn't let her get into a cabinet. How dare we stop her from doing something dangerous!! I've read that crying when told no is developmentally appropriate, so I guess we're doing something right :)

Alexis has also learned about shaking and banging to make noise. She will bang anything including her head to make noise. Last night, she was playing with her Leapfrog maraca when she accidentally hit herself in the head. We both started laughing. So then she decided to try tapping me with the maraca. This was evidentally even more hilarious as evidenced by her hysterical laughter. Now, she loves to get the maraca close to my face and watch my reaction.

In addition to her new discoveries, Alexis has been making some developmental leaps. Last night, I saw her stand up all by herself without the help of something to pull up on. This was immediately followed by a flop on the bottom. I was amazed nonetheless! Also, Alexis has learned how to wave. She will wave hi to everyone and everything including me and Tim, the dog, and the baby in the mirror (don't tell her that it's her. I don't think she's figured it out yet). And, Alexis and I are learning the fundamentals of playing ball. I roll the ball to her and she somehow smacks, kicks, or brushes it back. It is too cute!

We love each and every day with Alexis even the ones when she's cranky! It's amazing how much she changes from week to week!

Busy weekend!

Our first major holiday has come and gone. We had a great time taking Alexis out trick-or-treating. She dressed up as a spider and was so adorable. We went out to a neighborhood that is very busy with trick-or-treaters and we even went to a little haunted house. Alexis was not scared at all! We are already excited about next year when it will be even more fun for her. Here's Alexis on Halloween.

On Saturday, Alexis and I went to Orlando to attend Niki's bridal shower. We had an awesome time and Alexis stole the show. Sorry, Niki :) After returning from the shower and Alexis having a nap, Tim surprised us with tickets to the county fair that night. Alexis got to see a pony and all the fun of the fair. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to ride any rides. Daddy did win her a stuffed tiger.

All in all, we had a wonderful weekend. It's hard to believe that Alexis is 9 months old today. Also, I've uploaded additional pictures on Alexis' photo site. Check them out!

We have a talker!

Alexis is "talking" up a storm these days. She can say ba-ba, ma-ma, da-da, and pa-pa. She talks quite a bit when she's tired or hungry. In a meeting a work the other day when she was visiting, she kept saying ma ma over and over again. I finally decided to give my co-workers a break and left the meeting. I guess now it's only a matter of time before she starts talking back.

She is also working on her walking skills. She took her first two steps on my birthday (Oct. 12). Since then, she has been taking steps one or two at a time and falling to the ground of course. But, she is becoming more and more brave. We think that by Thanksgiving, she will be giving us a run for our money!

It's hard to believe that Alexis is almost 9 months old, but it's true. We are looking forward to the holiday season. Alexis is going to be a spider for Halloween. I'll be sure that I post pictures. We hope you are all doing well and hope to see you soon!

Welcome to my blog!

Well, thanks to Joyce's daughter, I have decided to start my own blog to keep everyone updated on my life as a mother. Alexis is changing and growing up each day. I love being her mommy and I want everyone to know about the accomplishments she is making! Keep tuned in to stay updated on our life!