8 months!

Dear Zoe,

You're 8 months old! What a fun 8 months it has been.

Guess what you're doing now?! You're CRAWLING baby girl! And you've also figured out how to pull yourself up to the sitting position from your belly or from the crawling position. Back to crawling...initially you started out with a cute combat crawl and one day you figured out how to support your body weight on your hands and knees (well, one knee). Your crawl is absolutely darling. Instead of crawling on "all fours", you're crawling more like on 3 1/2's because you drag yourself forward on your left knee and right foot. It's so cute! You're so cute! In addition to crawling, you're pulling up on every thing! You really love standing. Daddy is convinced you'll soon be walking; I'm not ready for that.

You love blowing raspberries, Zoe. And you especially love to blow them with a mouth full of sweet potatoes, peas, oatmeal, you name it. I try not to laugh when you do this because I don't want to encourage bad behavior while eating, but it's hard not to laugh. Even when I have peas speckled all over my face. Speaking of food, this month we added butternut squash, sweet potatoes, prunes and peaches to your menu, all of which you love. Daddy and I really enjoy making your food. It's wonderful knowing that you are getting healthy, organic food without the preservatives found in jarred food. And it's homemade especially for you with lots of love.

You're still taking your swimming lessons and you're doing well at it. You continue to go under water without any trouble and you've even started to kick your legs a bit when "swimming" toward Daddy.

Your personality is starting to come through more and more. You've become somewhat tempermental and you seem to yell at us sometimes when we're not moving fast enough for you or when we don't pick you up on demand. I hope this is just your frustration at not being able to talk to us to tell us what you want as opposed to something that will remain.

You give the sweetest kisses, Zoe. Mostly you kiss Daddy and me when asked, but you often will surprise us with spontaneous kisses. Mommy likes to jokingly say you give "french kisses" because you like to kiss mommy by sucking on my bottom lip. It's pretty funny and oh so sweet. I could kiss you forever. In fact, I will kiss you forever, even when you all grown up and think it's embarassing. :-) Okay, maybe not...

Zoe, you're developing object permanence. When we hide objects under things like throw pillows, you will start looking for the object we hid. Mommy and Daddy recently played a game with you where Mommy was hiding behind Daddy. You were trying to look over Daddy's shoulder to find Mommy. Although it sounds simple, that really warmed our hearts.

This month Daddy and you went on your first playdate together. You met up with one of the Gy.bore.e mommies and her daughter, Sasha. The four of you went to the Dallas Ar.bor.etum. Daddy reports that you all had a great time. Hopefully this will be the first of many playdates for Daddy and you.

Zoe, your two favorite people in the world continue to be Mommy and Daddy. That works for us because you're our favorite little girl! You also still enjoy being held a lot. While some parents would find it burdensome, we love cuddling you because we know that one day you'll outgrow it and we'll miss these special moments. You've developed stranger anxiety in the last month, so you cling onto Mommy and Daddy extra tight when unfamiliar people are nearby. Although we want you to have a healthy awareness of strangers, we hope you'll soon outgrow some of this.

Zoe, we love you so much! Not only are you adorable, but you are lovingly adored. You make every day special and better. We love you!

My love always,

Mommy

8 month photo

(these pictures are getting more difficult to take now that Zoe's so active)

Random Photos

7 Months

Dear Zoe,

You're 7 months old! Months feel like days now that you're here. Mommy and Daddy are having the time of our lives with you.

During the last month your personality has started to shine through more. You are such a happy little girl, Zoe, and you love to smile and laugh. Your smiles melt our hearts. You are very ticklish just like Mommy, so we love hearing you laugh when we tickle you. I truly don't know if there is any part of you that isn't ticklish.

You started eating solids a few days after your 6 month birthday. With the exception of cereals, all of your food will be homemade with love by Mommy and Daddy. Also, all of your food will be organic. Daddy was so impressed with the first batch of food Mommy made (peas) that he decided he wants to share in the fun by making your food as well. So far you've eaten brown rice cereal, oatmeal cereal, peas, avocado and green beans. Avocado was an adventure (we'll have to try again), but you have taken well to everything else.

You still love to blow raspberries, even in the middle of church and while eating peas. Who cares if you do it at the most inopportune times?! You're only a baby once, right? :-)

You're sleeping much better these days, and you're even taking naps a little easier....emphasis on "a little". It's a work in progress, pumpkin. Also new this month is that you enjoy sleeping on your tummy. Sometimes you even hike your butt in the air as you sleep. It's pretty funny.

On a big developmental note, you finally decided to roll both ways. This makes your play time even more fun, and you're all over your crib at night. Mommy and Daddy are convinced that you'll soon be crawling, but we're not rushing it because that means we have to baby proof the house (yikes!).

Zoe, we are so honored to watch you grow. We don't take it for granted, not for one second. You are such an amazing miracle in our lives; we are in awe of you. Thank you for lighting up our lives with your sweet presence. We love you so much, sweetness.

Love always,

Mommy

Adventures in Eating

Cereal - not too bad

Peas 1 - Zoe 0

Avocado - YUCK!

Modeling her new shoes

Will the shoes pass the taste test?

Zoe attended her first wedding....she was a complete doll! Here she is with Mommy and Daddy.

Bottoms Up! (Zoe getting her sleep on)

6 months

Dear Zoe,

You're 6 months old, sweetie! A whole half year old! Where is the time going? It's crazy to think that we'll be planning your first birthday party soon.

As you grow, you're becoming more fun and interactive. You love to explore and discover new things. When we sit you in your Bu.mbo, you immediately scan your immediate surroundings and literally grab and lunge toward everything within your reach. Also, you absolutely love playing with magazines, paper bags and sheets of paper. You enjoy the crinkling sound they make. Everything you touch ends up in your mouth. The experts say that babies love to explore through touch, and babies also like to feel and taste things with their mouth; all of the above apply to you.

This month was challenging with respect to your nighttime sleep. You just didn't want to sleep for more than a couple of hours at a time. As a survival tactic, Mommy and Daddy started putting you in the bed with us. This is the only way we were able to get decent sleep, and you sleep like a dream next to Mommy. But because I'm posting this late, I'll let you in on a little secret....you're overcoming your sleep challenges and getting back to sleeping through the night. More on this when I give you a 7 month update.

Naps are a horse of another color. You are so alert and active that you just don't have time to nap. You don't want to miss a thing, Zoe! You apparently think naps are so juvenile. The great thing is you're not fussy from not napping. But we know you need the sleep, so we're trying different tactics to get you to nap more and better. I hope to have good things to report in your 7 month update.

The most exciting development this month is that you started sitting up! It took you four days to master it, and now you're a pro! It's so exciting!

Mommy and Daddy love you with all we have, sweetness. You are an amazing little girl. You're so happy, and you love to laugh. Your smiles are infectious. You are absolutely the light of our lives!

My love always,
Mommy

What do you do the 2nd day your baby can sit up on her own? You put her in a high chair, of course!

A visit from great auntie, Colette

Having Fun!

Christmas in July. Great-auntie Colette had to get a picture in the coat she bought you, but you never got to wear. What a shame because the coat is darling!

When and Why Does it Change?

Zoe started solids last Sunday. As any mommy of an exclusively breastfed baby knows, when you add solids, the poop changes. Boy does it change! No longer is it a consistent color and virtually odorless. Every diaper change becomes a new adventure. What color will it be? How will it smell? Will she even have a dirty diaper today? So far I've managed to escape the really bad diapers, but Trevor told me about them. He says they are VERY different! It's amazing what a big change a little bit of rice cereal can make. Why is that? Anyway, this new development made me think about how much we change from infancy to adulthood. When and why do the following change:

- when and why do we lose that amazing limberness that babies have? I would give anything to be able to lay on my back and pull my toes into my mouth in one smooth and painless motion. Heck, I'd even take the pain if I could even do it at all.

- when and why does it become socially unacceptable to poot (or toot as others call it) in public? It's so cute when Zoe does it....right now. One day it won't be. In fact, it will be downright embarrassing.

- when and why do we lose that amazingly soft baby skin?

- when and why do we even care what people think about us? Ah, to be oblivious to the world around you....

- when and why do we lose that sweet baby scent? Even when you haven't had a bath in two days....

- when and why do we stop celebrating weight gain? I REALLY want to know the answer to this question! LOL.

- when and why is it unacceptable to suck on your fingers and drool? It looks so relaxing.

I'm sure other things will come to mind in time. To be a baby again....not a care in the world....

Zoe See (or Hear), Zoe Do

Zoe mimicked me for the first time yesterday. It was so cute. I was trying to give her some water in a bottle (something new now that we've started her on solids!), and she started to cough. After making sure she was okay, I mimicked her cute little cough. Zoe smiled and coughed again. So I coughed again, and then she coughed again. We went back and forth about four or five times. It was absolutely adorable. Unfortunately, true to her form, Zoe stopped this little activity as soon as Daddy pulled out the camcorder.

Day 3 = More Difficult

Well, today is more difficult. I got home around 6pm last night and thoroughly enjoyed my time with Zoe. She started getting sleepy around 7:45, so we were upstairs starting her bedtime routine around 8:00. That's when it hit me. I only had 2 hours of quality time with Zoe! 2 hours!! How awful is that?! Although we had a little time in the morning, it wasn't the same because I had to get dressed and out of the house.

This morning Zoe remained asleep when I got out of bed. She finally woke up about 15 minutes before I had to leave, and she was in such a happy mood, thus I left in 30 minutes and got to work later than I planned. And today is her 1/2 birthday....6 months old already! I must have kissed Zoe 50 times before leaving the house. I just wanted to stay home with her to play, snuggle, etc.

On my way to the office I called to check my messages, and I had a message from a partner in our D.C. office. He needs my assistance with a new merger that has a short time frame. I'm hopeful that the workload will be manageable so that I can enjoy my evening with Zoe (all 2 hours of it....sigh) and my weekend with her.

I don't know if I can REALLY do this????!!! :-(

Breathe. One day at a time....

I'm a Working Mom Now: First Day Reflections

My first day back in the office went surprisingly well. Of course, I was very tearful yesterday morning (as well as the last six weeks). I cried three times before leaving the house, thus I didn't wear any mascara because I didn't know how I would hold up during the day.

Arriving to my building felt strange. When the elevator opened on the 42nd floor, I thought I was on the wrong floor due to some aesthetic changes to the floor during my six month leave. I made my way to my office---still as I left it. It was weird not having a secretary or colleagues to say good morning to. (My sec'y is on vacation this week, and my colleagues are gone---one retired, one resigned, so that leaves only me in my section in Dallas) The minute I walked in my office I had this strange sense of peace come over me, and I suddenly knew it was going to be a good day.

Trevor brought Zoe up for lunch, which was great! We went to a nearby restaurant, and I experienced my first moment of conflict between being a professional and being a mommy. You see, Zoe was very hungry (she only ate 1/2 an ounce all morning after I left), so she needed to be nursed. I'm typically not shy about nursing in public, but yesterday I was. Something felt fundamentally wrong, and dare I say embarrassing, about nursing my baby in the middle of a restaurant full of professionals. There were Blackberries and navy blue power suits everywhere. Pulling out my nursing bib, pulling off my jacket, and lifting up my shirt just felt....wrong. We ended up moving to a table tucked in the back corner of the restaurant, and I felt better. I fed Zoe, fed myself, and all was well.

The next awkward moment came when it was time to go pump. I had my pump in tow as I rode down the elevator with my family to say good-bye. (They came back up with me when we returned from lunch so I could attempt to nurse Zoe one more time in my office) When the elevator door opened on the lobby floor, a partner that has been chomping at the bit for me to return was standing there. I introduced him to my family (he feigned interest), and I awkwardly kissed Trevor and Zoe good-bye. (Are you supposed to kiss your family good-bye in front of a partner? Who knows, but I did!) So I rode the elevator back up with the partner, with my pump on my shoulder, as he asked if I had time to meet. I didn't want to say "um, I have to go pump." But I DID need to go pump. My right boob was about to explode! LOL. So I just said I had to make a stop and would have to talk to him later. (Are you supposed to blow off a partner to go pump? Who knows?!) I went to pump, stored away my milk, packed up my bag, and headed back to my office.

The entire day was quiet. I didn't receive a single work related phone call or e-mail. I guess my section is slow??? Having a quiet day helped with the transition, but I know everyday won't be (and can't be) that way.

I left my office at 4:45 and was pulling out of the garage by 4:50. (This will be my daily goal due to my long commute. I will just work after Zoe goes to bed to finish up my work.) I made a quick stop at the grocery store and Babies R Us and was home a little after 6pm. When I walked in the house Zoe was crying, right on cue, so I rushed in and nursed her. I was finally exclusively a mommy again, and I could nurse my baby girl freely and openly. I held Zoe all night, played with her, and just soaked her up. She didn't sleep well, so she ended up in bed with us. I especially enjoyed cuddling with her as she slept like an angel.

Day one complete....