Friday, August 26, 2011

Adalyn... 4 months?

My favorite face...

I've been attempting to write an update for the past 4 months. I feel somewhat ashamed, but then I remember how crazy life has been these past 4 months. I've loved every second of the craziness.

We do everything we can to take in each moment with Addy, but the moments go by faster than I ever imagined they would. My maternity leave is such a blur. In some ways, it feels like Addy has been with us forever, but other times we are in shock that we have a 4 month old. Words can't begin to describe the joy she's brought to us. Every time she giggles, coos or smiles, I get tears in my eyes.

It's going to be hard to keep this a short update, since it's 18 weeks overdue and all, especially when I'm talking about MY baby. I could talk about her for hours to a tree if no one else was there to listen.

Okay, here goes... BIG BREATH

- She smiles, coos and giggles all the time... Especially when her daddy sings to her, looks at her or breathes. She's head over heels in love with him, but more on that later...

-She loves to lay in the floor or on her changing table and kick, kick, kick. This has nearly cost me an arm during diaper changes. She's got some strong legs!

- She loves Disney movies. I started singing songs from “The Little Mermaid” to her at bath time and one night, I was curious if she would recognize the songs if I put in the movie. She lit up and started kicking and cooing and couldn't take her eyes off the screen. Since then we’ve watched her eyes sparkle at Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Cinderella, Enchanted and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Now, we listen to the Disney station on Pandora during bath time… it’s our favorite!

-She loves Dr. Seuss! She’ll sit and let me read 5 books to her. That's pretty impressive considering how wiggly and busy she is.


-She loves Akin concerts. She sat through the entire Homecoming concert at our church. She stared at the stage the whole time and only whimpered once... when the music stopped. Her love of music was inevitable!

-The Bumbo chair is her new favorite. We sit her in it on the table while we eat dinner and she just sits and stares at us. It’s a lot of fun.

- She weighed 13 lbs. 7 oz. at her 3 month check up on August 6th. On August 28th I had to take her to the urgent care clinic (long story, but she's fine) and she weighed 14 lbs. 10 oz.

- Addy LOVES taking baths and she loves being in the swimming pool.

-I love it when people ask if I'm getting any sleep. It's a fun question because then I get to see the look on their face when I tell them that Addy sleeps up to 12 hours at night. We did have a few early mornings when she outgrew her swaddle and learned how to escape from it. She's our little Houdini. But, we bought a different kind and now she's back to getting 10 hours a night.

-She's rolled over once, but no one was there to see it. Grammy laid her on her back on her play mat, left the room, heard grunting, came back and Addy was on her stomach. She's being a little stubborn and won't do it again.

-She is so curious and inquisitive. Nick and I swear that when we are talking to each other, she knows and understands what we are saying. She watches cars go by, plays with toys, and analyzes everything. You can see the puzzled look on her face when she tries to figure things out.

Now I just need a lifetime to tell you how incredible my husband is. But, I'll try to only take a paragraph or four. :)

Addy is without question, a daddy's girl. Nick has been wrapped around every little finger since the moment we read "It's a girl." I wish that everyone had the privilege of seeing them together... it would bless your socks off!

Nick is always looking for ways that we can make memories together and that he can make memories with her while I'm at work. He spent an hour with her in Hallmark, just looking at all the stuffed animals. He rode the carousel with her at the mall and takes her to the park. He knows her better than anyone. He ALWAYS knows why she is crying, even when he is 10 hours away and hears her cry through the phone. He's amazing.

The most challenging thing I've faced in motherhood so far has been going back to work full time. I have THE best job in the world, but it wouldn't matter what I did, leaving that precious girl is the hardest thing I have to do. (And the hardest thing Nick has to do when he has to travel) Nick has done everything he can to make the transition easier for me. He's cooked, bought groceries, and even bought me an iTouch so that we can FaceTime each other and I can see Addy during the day.

Leaving in the morning is so much easier knowing that Addy is with someone that loves her as much as I do. Being a dad came so naturally to Nick. It clicked with him the second he saw her. He’s amazing and I can’t believe that God chose to bless ME with him. I know a lot of people say this, but I'm the only one who's telling the truth... I have the best husband in the world. :) He's my best friend and I love him more than life.