Baby Wiggles McD

My baby is quickly approaching toddlerhood... which in many ways feels impossible. To me, it's like we brought her home from the hospital only yesterday. Time has flown by! Sure, some nights were (read: are) excruciatingly long (I know why sleep deprivation is a form of torture), but overall, it's all happened like THAT (snap fingers).  These last few months have been a total blast. Challenging too – as all parents know too well, raising your first child ain't easy. And hats off to those of you that choose to have more than one. ;-) Farryn has changed exponentially in the last 3 or so months. It's truly miraculous how quickly they go from mewling, dependent newborns to do-it-all-myself, exploring-independence tots. Only a few short months ago, it was a feat of baby strength for Farryn to pull herself up to standing on her toybox. Now, I am lucky if I can get her to stand in front of her toybox for longer than 0.00005 seconds. This kid is on the MOVE.  Cruising all along...

I know I say every phase is fun. And it remains true – this is phase is super fun! Fae Bae gets more and more fun by the day... she's about 7.5 months now and absolutely full of it.  She's always been a curious baby; seriously, from the day she was born you could see her curiosity. And now, she's constantly investigating everything – from my nipples (milk comes out of here?!?!?!) to Mea's paw hair to the faucet on the sink to the tiniest crumb on the floor... you get the idea. This kid is fascinated with everything. And she will not  be distracted. When Farryn sets her mind to something, WATCH OUT. Do not get in her way. In fact, I think we may have gotten a preview of future toddler temper tantrums. Lord help us. Playtime with Daddy continues to be a gymnastic-style adventure! She loves all the tossing, throwing, topsy turvy games he plays with her. You should hear her giggles of pure delight when she's with Dada! Anytime he walks in a room, even if she's nursi...

 Parenting is a trip. Everyone tells you it's going to be amazing and difficult and beautiful and life-altering and the most challenging thing you'll ever do. And you think you get it. But I certainly didn't. Not until I was given this gift.  Farryn will be 6 months old tomorrow. WHERE DOES THE TIME GO?!? How is she already half a year old? It literally feels like I had her yesterday. And other times, when I'm up in the middle of the night for the gazillionth time, it feels like an eternity ago. That's parenting.  (In way less interesting news, I will also be 34.5 years old tomorrow). She's a spark – she lights up the room with her big smile, mischievous eyes, and curious expressions. Absolutely desperate to be on the move, she loves to stand and thinks the jolly jumper might be the coolest thing ever invented. Crawling still isn't an option, but that doesn't dissuade her from trying. Pushing and grunting and spinning and flipping – she gives it her best...

Our fairy girl provides us with more joy every single day. At 3.5 months (ish), her personality is starting to blossom and it's been a blast to watch her change and grow. Thus far, she's super communicative, exceptionally curious, demands adoration, and clearly shares her displeasure with abandon. We may be biased, but we think she's the perfect blend of both Scott and I.  As everyone with kids knows very well, it's not always baby giggles and luxurious morning snuggles. She went through a HATING car seat phase. And when I say hate, I really mean completely and totally loathed it. She acted like she was being actively murdered when we put her in the seat. It. was. not. fun. It seems to have passed though – thanks to a portable white noise machine, car seat toys... and dumb luck! ;-)  As adults, we want to find a reason for everything – why a baby does or doesn't like something  – and, honestly, I think it can just be totally random. But that doesn't mean I won...

 Farryn is 12 weeks old today! How is that even possible? I can still acutely remember when I was 12 weeks pregnant... when she was a tiny little ball of cells dividing like crazy in my uterus.  Every day is an awesome adventure with this little one. She's an absolute dote... and even when she's behaving like a little terror, we're still completely enamored with her. Experiencing Leap 3 has been interesting – she's been extra fussy and only wants mama most of the time – but it's so fascinating to watch all the progress she is making! She's grabbing at toys with more ease and fluidity ... and she loves using her voice! We spend most of the day "talking" to each other. I love mimicking the sounds she makes back at her. We have a blast. We're hoping she gets Grandad's musical talent – it clearly skips a generation. ;-) The three of us still make it a priority to get to the beach a couple of times per week. It's our little family sanctuary and ...

 7 weeks + 6 days. Whew! Time flies when you're caring for an infant. Between snuggles, feedings, burps, diaper changes, more snuggles, more feedings, more diaper changes... well, you get the picture. We no longer experience time like we used to.  Farryn is a blast. In the last two weeks she's showing way more interest in us – smiling and interacting with the cutest "ooohhh's" and "aaahhh's". She'll be chatting away before we know it! She's happiest in the mornings and I relish my time with her. Whether she's kicking furiously on her playmat and gurgling away at the hanging toys, or nuzzled up close to my face trying to make her mouth move like mine when I say "hello", I am on cloud nine. I have the morning shift and Scott usually sleeps on because he's assigned the second night feeding. But, he's caught wind of her awesome mood in the mornings and is getting out of bed earlier and earlier to spend time with her too. We ...