Yogurt Face

I love how happy she is while she eats.

And that she likes to keep one hand in the air while she's eating.

That's all.

California pt 2

We squeezed in one last beach day the day before we left. Sand was consumed in alarmingly large fistfuls, and a good time was had by all.

 

 

Cute little Madeleine enjoying her last few weeks as an only child. I want my nephew to get here pronto!

California pt 1

We went to see our families for the week of July 4th. We did the same thing last year, when I was almost 7 months pregnant and Matt had appendicitis. Good times. Our flight there went fantastic. It was Mariah's 9th flight, just a few days before she turned 9 months old. Baby be travelin'.

 

 We went straight to see Steph, Michael, and Madeleine. It is so sweet to see these two cousins together, 22 months apart, exactly the same as Stephanie and me. I think Mad was glad that Mariah is a little more fun to play with now, but she still didn't want Mariah to get too close to her precious princess dolls. She kept a close eye on her. She calls her "Riah" as in "Baby Riah's eating my princess."

When we went to see the Morris/Murray families, it was the same story with little Rhysse. After she gathered up all her princess dolls in her arms so Mariah couldn't touch them, I asked if she could give just one princess to Mariah for her to play with,  and she looked around the room and then gave her a pillow. When I asked if she could get a toy for her, she disappeared for about 15 minutes then eventually came back with some miniature Barbie sunglasses- probably the one toy she eventually decided she didn't care if she ever saw it again.

We went paddleboarding one morning with my family and the Skidmores, lots of fun. We went to a lagoon just down the road that I had driven by every single day growing up but had never really been to.

 

"Grr. Stop taking pictures and hold me." 

 

 

This picture sums up so many moments on our trip. She is fine and happy when I'm holding her, but the second she senses that I'm going to pass her off she loses it.

That same day, we went to the park with the Morris and Murray families.

Rhysse gave Mariah a wild ride in the stroller. They were both laughing, but I was a tiny bit scared.

Mariah had a rough week. She didn't sleep well at all, she was super clingy and much fussier than usual. I think she had a hard time being so thrown off her usual schedule and being away from her relatively quiet home. She finally started warming up to most of the family by the end of the week.

9 Months

Where is the time goiinnggg??? My work schedule has regrettably increased, so this last month I was out teaching Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Matt has softball and soccer games on Monday and Wednesday evenings, so we basically only have time to breathe on the weekends. Now that we'll be here for awhile, we've been spending some extra time at the Home Depot and trying to get settled, again, for reals this time.


Mariah is extra precocious lately. She crawls around the house like a cuddly little monkey (some days more like a feral chimp), scavenging for food along the way. The teeth marks on her crib railings are like hash marks, a record of how many seconds it takes me to release her from the prison every morning.

She has become a little more fiesty and opinionated, but her giggles are infectious and she is still super smiley. She can pull herself up on furniture fairly easily, and cruises along the ottoman and the couch, and between chairs. Her favorite places to hang out are on the fireplace ledge, or on the houseplant where she can sample the local flora.

Her crawl is...eclectic. She sometimes does the traditional hands and knees, but sometimes she'll only use one leg and drag the other one behind, or sometimes she'll hunch over and do a weird walk/crawl on her hands and feet. That one makes me laugh.

Mariah has a new favorite food. It is- surprise!- whatever I'm eating. Or what anybody else is eating. She has major food-radar and whines and begs for food by your feet until you give her a taste. When you hold out a scrap she guides your fingers into her mouth with both of her hands. Stephanie calls it her tractor beam hahaha. We're transitioning to more finger foods and table foods and less purees. Even though it takes twice as long for her to eat, she's a lot happier feeding herself and making a mess. Lately she's tried berries, scrambled eggs, wheat pasta, yogurt, peas, beans, and bread. Also she likes eating my wedding ring. I keep expecting to have her look up with my diamond in her mouth, like that scene from Robin Hood.

She is mama's girl to the extreme. Separation anxiety is no fun. For any of us. At least she thinks I'm hilarious and gives me plenty of kisses and snuggles. It's a package deal, this motherhood thing.