Like Daddy, Like Daughter?

One of our good friends, Travis, gave June Anne this hat when she was a newborn. He felt that she needed it since Daddy is such a big hunter. I can't take how cute these two are! Loves if my life, for sure! Thanks, Uncle Travis, for making me like my Daddy!

What am I doing?!

Can I first start out this post by being honest? I have no clue what I am doing most of the time when it comes to being a mom! I have never been as insecure as I am now that I'm a mom. I'm quite certain Jason, the pediatrician, my sweet friend, Kimble, and June Anne's teachers get so fed up with me and my constant questioning! Here's an example for your entertainment..."Do you think she might get hot with a sleep sack? But if I don't do a sleep sack, do you think she will be cold? She'll probably be cold, right? But, I'm worried that she might be hot with the sleep sack." Will she die either way?! No, of course not!!! But, do I want her to be comfortable? Yes! Terrible. This is my life these days. And it seems like every new milestone brings a new case of insecurity along with it. I can remember when she started sleeping through the night..."Do you think I should wake her to feed her?" and when she got her first cold...."Should I give her Tylenol? Or do you think she's ok? Do you think she's warm? I think she may be a little warm. I'm going to take her temperature again. Yes, I realize I just took it! I'm going to take it again to be sure." Now that we have started solids, the questions just keep coming! "What am I supposed to give her? How much? What if she doesn't want it? What about strawberries? Are the really poisonous?"

As with every other milestone, the questions of feeding have been answered by trial and error. And also by guidance from the very people that I drive crazy! We started slow and have now worked up two feedings a day - one around 10 am and the other around 6:00 pm. She's typically a pretty good eater. So far, she has had applesauce, bananas, avocados, carrots, greens beans and cereal. Her favorite by far is green beans! Next on the list is sweet potatoes and squash after that. I've been making my own baby food, and I absolutely love it!!! We were given a baby food maker by my boss after she was done making food for her now 3 year old. I'm not sure I would've taken the plunge into homemade baby food without it. Who knew it could be so easy?!

Sneak Peek!

We had June Anne's six month pictures this past weekend. I was nervous because she was unusually fussy all day Sunday. But, she was a good sport and put on quite a show! Here's a sneak peek photo that our photographer posted online. Love!!! (And love our photographer, by the way!)

6 month check-up

So, the mommy in me hates nothing more than going to these checkups every couple of months...because in the first year, checkup (or wellness visit, as they call them) also means SHOTS!!! No fun at all....for mommy or baby. Luckily, I'm blessed with a happy, happy child that doesn't mind shots so much. She cries for about 30 seconds and then is back to laughing and smiling. I think they hurt me more than her!

We went for June Anne's 6 month wellness visit on Thursday and got a good report from Dr. Miller! June Anne is growing well - 14 lbs 12 oz (25th percentile) and 25 5/8 inches long (40th percentile). Dr. Miller went over her growth curve with us, showing us that she is staying right along her original growth curve. He says that she will always be petite, more than likely, regardless of how much she eats! (This sprung from our conversation regarding the fact that she eats no less than 36 oz everyday! Normal range is 25-35!) I'm sure my petite sweetie will be thankful for that as she gets older! :)

Dr. Miller also instructed us to go ahead and start with solids. We started rice cereal about a month ago, but he wants to add fruits and veggies to her diet. Am I ready for this?! I plan on trying to make June Anne's food. I started with carrots, which turned out all right! She loved them! It's so funny to watch her with the new textures and tastes.

Dr. Miller also commented that she is a happy, happy baby and very social, which isn't so surprising if you know her daddy and me!

I'll leave you with a couple of pictures from out day...hardly looks like a baby that was poked, prodded, and stuck with 4 needles!

6 Months!!!

I say it every month, but I honestly cannot believe my girl is 6 months old. What an amazing 6 months it has been! I keep thinking that it can't get any better, but it does somehow! June Anne is still such an amazing baby. She loves her rest and is still sleeping 11-12 hours a night. Some new things June Anne is doing the past couple of months include playing with her toys (and I'm talking about really playing with them. She knows what she's doing!), eating her feet (I'm amazed by babies' flexibility!), sitting up all by herself and reaching for her bottle and pulling it to her mouth. This last two made me pretty sad, actually! I'm not ready for her to grow up! She's also become very interested in textures and especially loves rubbing her daddy's facial hair (while starring into his eyes, of course). She loves Bruiser and Bella and loves to pet them. The dogs love her as well. Bruiser especially loves to sneak a kiss when we aren't looking.

June Anne got her first serious illness last month. It started out with some wheezing and coughing. After visiting Dr. Miller, we left with a diagnosis of bronchiolitis and a double ear infection. Poor baby! She was pitiful for a couple of days there, getting breathing treatments every 4 hours and refusing bottles altogether. I feel blessed that I am able to nurse, so she was still able to eat. But, she wasn't extremely excited about that either. I'm thankful she ate enough to keep her hydrated. After a few days of antibiotics and breathing treatments, June Anne was back to her sweet, happy self! A couple of weeks later she got pink rye and another double ear infection! We just stopped her second round of antibiotics.

We have started introducing food to June Anne, and she has mixed reviews on the items we've tried so far. She started getting rice cereal at 5 months and took to it instantly, opening her mouth wide and shaking her arms in anticipation. So adorable! The first food we tried to give her other than cereal was sweet potato, which she also loved. We have also given her applesauce and avocado. Applesauce = epic FAIL at first. And by epic fail, I mean tears streaming down her sweet face and refusing to let the spoon near her mouth (even for rice cereal!) for 2 days! She's started to acquire a taste for the applesauce now though. It just took a few tries. We aren't on any specific schedule with the food yet. I'm waiting to go back to see Dr. Miller for her 6 month appointment next week to get his opinion before we move further. I'm excited about her getting started on food, but a part of me is sad as well. My baby is growing too fast!!!! Does it ever slow down?

I'll leave you with a few cute pictures. I'll try to keep things updated more, I promise!!!