This journal is a week by week account of what is going on in Elizabeth's life. As this is going to be made into a book, and bound for her first birthday, it is written to her.
Enjoy!
We had so much fun this week. Your dad and I went on a shopping spree and we purchased some new toys for you. They had lights, sounds, buttons to push, knobs to turn, and rings to stack. It was so much fun watching you learn and explore.
Well, I finally relaxed a little and let you try eating Cheerios. I am so happy I did. You loved reaching out and touching them. It was hard for you to grab them at first, but you soon were getting a few to your mouth. You couldn’t get enough of them…I think you must have eaten 20 or so the first time. You were getting so big!
It’s official, you have your first tooth! It just started to poke through, but I can say that one could definitely feel it. We were sitting and playing as usual, and you put my finger in your mouth, as usual, but instead of soft gums I felt something sharp. At first I thought you had put something in your mouth…but it was your tooth. I was very excited.
I guess I missed the memo about it being milestone week. No sooner than your tooth had come in that you started crawling…I mean really crawling. You had taken one or two “steps” recently, but not like this. You were up on all fours going where you wanted to go. It was amazing to see. You were climbing on this as well. I turned my head for a moment to fold some clothes only to find you climbing up on your bouncy chair. I realized very quickly that some of your older toys had to be retired.
This week we went to see your Great Grandma Mary. She was so happy to see you. It was really fun to see her face light up as she looked at you and reached out to you. As you were older, mobile, and smiling much more, she only had praises for you. Remember when I told you to take what she said with a grain of salt? Well, this is what she said to me while looking at you, “She doesn’t look anything like you…she’s so pretty!” You can put your fears aside, you are no longer the “Mean Hunchback.”
You also celebrated your first Labor Day weekend this week. We, and our friends the Sitterdings, went to Woods Canyon Lake on Saturday. It was nice to get out of the hot weather and relax in the mountains. Your dad went fishing with Weston and Brian. Rachael, you, and I rested and relaxed for the day. It was a lot of fun.
It seemed as if our weeks were either very eventful or very restful…but never somewhere in between. This week was an eventful week.
Now that you were pulling up on things one thing was for certain, it was time to lower your crib. We didn’t want you to pull yourself up and then go up and over the side of the crib. We lowered your crib about nine inches. You didn’t seem to mind, but it did make putting you down a little trickier…especially while you were sleeping.
This week you had your first finger food: spaghetti. I wanted you to start learning how to feed yourself, but wasn’t quite comfortable with the idea of anything too hard, so spaghetti sounded perfect to me. It was so cute watch you squish it between your fingers, break it apart, and eventually eat it. You just loved it.
On Saturday, we had dinner at Grandma and Grandpa’s house. You walked along with Grandpa Chris. You were showing him how talented you were. You held onto his hands for support, but you walked and walked and walked. You were so cute. I do have to mention that you were wearing a dress that your Aunt Linda gave you…it was hard to believe that you were getting so big that you were fitting into your cousin Ramona’s old clothes.
This was a sweet moment with you and your dad before dinner....
Once again, we had a quiet week. However, we did have guests over…our playgroup! This h ad become a highlight for us. For you, it brought playmates, and for me, it brought adult interaction. This month, only two other babies came to our get together: Jayden and Ethan. You were the only girl. The three of you played very nicely together.
This week you began pulling yourself into a standing position. You pulled yourself up on anything you could. The cutest was when you pulled up on a package of paper towels. You were so determined and were quite happy with yourself once you succeeded. It was really neat to see.
As we had a party at the end of the week, we stayed at home most of this week. We did run errands here and there for the party, but nothing more than that.
On Monday, we went to your 6 month well baby check up. I was excited to see how much you had grown in the two months from your last appointment. You were my petite little girl. You weighed 13 pounds 7 ounces. You were 24 ½ inches long! Dr. Gentile said you looked great. That made me really happy.
We did spend a lot of our time reading together. It was fun. You liked looking at the pictures, touching the pages, and trying to get the book into your mouth. We spent a lot of time reading Pat the Bunny. The book had different things to touch, smell, and look at on the pages. On one page was a mirror and I couldn’t resist taking a few snapshots…you were so cute.
On Saturday, we had our annual Turkey Dinner in summer party. We would invite our friends to a potluck style dinner. Your dad and I would make the turkey and stuffing, and our friends would bring a side dish. We always had a lot of fun. You, of course, looked adorable. You were wearing a brand new shirt with some cute jeans. Everyone thought you were just a doll!
For the most part we stayed at home this week. After so many busy weeks, it was nice to relax.
On Tuesday, you turned 6 months old. Oh how quickly the time has gone by. The first few months seemed to go by a little more slowly, but the last few months have raced by. In the past 6 months you have learned to: smile, laugh, “talk”, roll over, sit up, and army crawl. It is hard to believe all the change that has happened in such a short amount of time.
This week you started playing on your own. Up to this point, you wanted me to be right beside you at all times. Even if you could still see me, you wanted me within an arms reach. However, this week you began to be content on your own for short periods of time. Although I never let you out of my sight, I was able to get some chores done around the home.
Sunday was a very special day. You went into the church nursery for the first time. It was a little traumatic…for both of us. I was called once during service because you wouldn’t stop fussing…but after a few minutes of holding you, you calmed down and were fine for the rest of the service.
This week you figured out that you didn’t have to stay in one spot…that if you wanted something, you could go and get it. Up until this point, you rolled over and over if you wanted to get somewhere. Sometimes, you would be on your belly wanting to move, kicking out your limbs, but not move. Well all that changed this week.
This week you perfected your army crawl. It looked like you were swimming on the carpet. You would throw your hands out, pull yourself forward, and kick out with your feet. You seemed very happy that you were now mobile. Now I had to keep an extra close eye on you. You tried to get into everything. Your favorite thing to play with was the dog’s water bowl. You thought it was such a fun game to dump out their water. Speaking of dogs, now that you could go after them you were very happy.
On Saturday we went to Dylan’s first birthday party. It was a lot of fun. There were so many other babies to look at and play with. You were the cutes of course. Later on Saturday, we went to see your Great Uncle Jim and Great Aunt Sandy. While we were visiting them you rode your first horse…I mean dog. His name was Duke and he was such a sweet dog. At first you didn’t know what to think of him, but he was so gentle that you soon were just tugging on his ears.
You were getting awfully close to crawling this week. For a few weeks you had been getting up on your hands and knees. You didn’t usually go anywhere, but you would get and then plop back down over and over again. Well, this week you figured out how to inch along. You would start by lying on your belly. Then, you would put your head down and get your knees underneath you. After that you would lift your head and lean forward until fell forward. You would only do this once or twice in a row, but you looked like a little inchworm. With your inching and rolling combined, you were moving all around the room and I would find you in the oddest places…like half under your bouncy chair. It seems only yesterday you were a newborn.
This is how you inched along...
You and I drove up to Page on Thursday because your Aunt Sarah’s bridal shower was on Saturday. It was a good drive. You were becoming a good traveler. On the way up we stopped in a park in Flagstaff so you could spend some time out of your car seat. You seemed to like being outside and seeing all the people passing by. You also were very interested with the grass…you pulled at it quite a bit.
The party on Saturday was fun. You got dressed up in a pretty dress with yellow flowers on it. You napped for awhile, but you really wanted to be a part of the party. You sat in your bouncy chair for awhile, and then played on the floor with a toy, but you really liked the ribbon off of Aunt Sarah’s gifts. It was a fun day.
For the most part, this week was spent recuperating from our vacation. Your sleeping schedule had been way off, and it took a few days to get back to normal. However, our trip was more than worth it.
On Monday we visited with some friends. The other babies you saw were Dylan, Jackson, and Luke. In the last year, all of our friends had given birth to little boys…so that made you the only girl in the bunch. Even though you were born 6 weeks before Luke, it seemed like it should have been the other way around. You liked visiting them and I could tell that as soon as you were mobile, you were really going to start playing with them.
Then, on Friday we went over to Brian and Cyndi’s home. We had a barbeque dinner and then we went swimming again. It took you a little longer to get acclimated to the water this time, but you still did a very good job. You even went underwater! That part you seemed to enjoy much more…well, at least you tolerated it. I am sure you are going to love the water.
On Sunday, we decided to go fishing at Groundhog Lake. Grandma Lindsay packed hamburgers for lunch while your dad, Grandpa Bernard, and Uncle Greg packed the car with chairs, fishing poles, and tackle boxes. Once we arrived at the lake, you were quite content to sit in your bouncy chair and look around at what was going on around you. You even “fished” a little. You tried watermelon for the first time…you really seemed to like it. We had a fun day, even though the fish never went after the bait…not even one bite! At least we saw some wildlife…we saw many deer on the ride home. Later that evening as we got home, we noticed there was someone waiting for us…well, I should say waiting for you. It was your Great Aunt Mary. She was very excited to see you.
Monday was a quiet day. We relaxed around the house with Uncle Greg and Aunt Kelsey and then altogether we drove around town for awhile. That evening, the five of us went out to see family you hadn’t met yet. We went to Great Uncle Bill and Great Aunt Vonda’s home. Your second cousin Kelli was there too! They thought you were just the sweetest little girl…and I must say that I agree. Your Great Popie and Nana were there for dinner as well. At first you didn’t know what do around all the family…I think it was a little intimidating, but you soon relaxed and let everyone cuddle you and pass you around.
The next day was a fairly quiet day. We started by having breakfast with your Grandpa and Grandma Williams. They had been driving across the country and happened to be in Colorado while we were there. We had a great time. After breakfast, Grandpa and Grandma Havran, your Aunt and Uncle, your dad and I (and you as well) went to Mancos. You slept almost the entire afternoon while we were cleaning the house.
Wednesday was the fourth of July! How did you spend your first Independence Day celebration? Well, you went to the Pick n’ Hoe of course! We enjoyed an amazing barbequed lunch followed by walking around in the shade of the trees and then we purchased some water weenies. However, the highlight of the event was the pig chase. You didn’t participate, but your dad and uncle did. It was quite a sight to see. After the last pig had been caught, we left the festivities to visit your Great Uncle Bill on the farm. He was both surprised and glad to see us.
The following day you added to your list of firsts: you went on your very first camping trip. We drove up to Lizardhead and camped overnight. We found a beautiful spot hidden in the trees but with gorgeous views all around. Since we were at 10,000 feet, it actually got cold enough for jackets. Jackets in July? Yup, that’s right. That night we had a large fire and roasted marshmallows. Mmm. The next morning you dad went fishing at the break of dawn. He came back beaming, wet, and fishless…but he had a good time nonetheless. He did sit down and explained to you his love for fishing. I think you may like it as much as he does.
After we broke camp, we went to Trout Lake so the men could fish some more. The views were breathtaking. For awhile we thought that the men would be skunked again as far as fishing went, but just before we left, your dad caught a fish. After the fishing things were put away, your Aunt and Uncle got into our car and we drove up Ophir pass. It was a very bumpy road, and in some places quite narrow. You were not too happy about the road quality, but soon you fell asleep. I must say, the view from the top was amazing and worth the ride up. The rest of the drive home went smoothly and the views were gorgeous.
Saturday came all too quickly. We spent the morning packing our car and getting ready for the ride home. We did get some group pictures before we left. What a wonderful time we had.
On Monday morning, as I was putting you on your back, you kept straining forward…like you wanted to sit up. You couldn’t quite lift yourself, so I helped you into a sitting position. You couldn’t quite keep your balance so you leaned forward and supported yourself with your hands. You looked so cute! As I looked at you, I realized you were weren’t my little newborn anymore and to top it off, you would be 5 months at the end of the week. Time has gone by so quickly…
I should mention that feeding you solid foods had become quite an experience. You were now eating rice cereal, green beans, and sweet potatoes. You loved eating and sometimes when I didn’t get food onto the spoon fast enough you would start to fuss a little. You would then reach for the spoon and try to pull it into your mouth…most of the time you just got the food all over your hands, face, and bib. It was especially cute when you started chewing on your hand while to spoon full of food was still in your mouth. You were very excited!
Friday evening, we drove to Cortez, Colorado to see your Grandpa Bernard and Grandma Lindsay. Even though you were much happier riding in your car seat, we thought 6 ½ hours was still a long way to drive so we drove overnight so that you could sleep most of the way. On Saturday, we were fairly tired from driving the night before, so we spent the day resting and relaxing.
This week was relatively quiet. We stayed around the house, relaxed, and didn’t really go anywhere. It wasn’t until the weekend that we were on the go. Saturday, Aunt Sarah came to town to go dress shopping with us for bridesmaid’s dresses. It was a lot of fun. You liked looking at all of the different colored dresses. Aunt Kelsey was there too, as well as one of the other bridesmaids.
Aunt Sarah was very glad to see you.
Sunday is when things really started happening. You were on your tummy, playing on the floor as usual. You were trying to move around, but as you couldn’t crawl yet, your arms and legs were moving a mile a minute to no avail. Well, out of the corner of my eye I saw it. You had pulled yourself onto all fours! It was very exciting. You would get up, wobble a little, and fall back down. You kept trying though. It won’t be too long until you are crawling around!
I know it is hard to believe, but I think you are getting cuter and cuter each week. This week you discovered your feet. You were on your blanket, playing on the ground when it happened. You lifted your little feet into the air and reached up towards them. When you finally grabbed them you seemed very pleased with yourself. You held them and looked at them for a few moments and then you rolled over and smiled.
On Thursday, we went to another play date. It was with the same group of women and babies that we met up with last month. There were some new faces too. We had such a good time, eating, comparing stories, and laughing. It wasn’t until we met with everyone that I realized what a little girl you were. When we went out, I always got comments on how you looked like a little porcelain doll, but I never paid too much attention... No matter, I still had the sweetest, most beautiful baby there. (Left to right: Stella 1/17/07, Autumn 2/10/07, Elizabeth 1/31/07, Logan 1/4/07, Mikayla 1/23/07, Ethan 1/2/07)
Sunday was Father’s Day. We had a fun, relaxing day. We went to church, then came home and relaxed for a little while. Grampa Bob and Gramma Kathy came into town and we visited with them for a little while. Then, we went to Grandpa Chris and Grandma Ramona’s house for dinner. We had a lot of fun.
This was an eventful week. On Monday you went to your four month well baby check up. I can’t believe how quickly time has gone by. It seems only yesterday your dad and I were anxiously awaiting your arrival. Dr. Gentile looked you over and said you looked like happy and healthy. You weighed 12 pounds, 9 ounces. You were in the 25 percentile for weight and the 75 percentile for height…long, lean, and perfect. You also had your four month shots. It was a little traumatic…more so for me than you. It was hard for me to see you upset. You did feel better the moment I picked you up.
The pediatrician said that you could start solids now that you were four months old. This was very exciting! We started with 2 teaspoons of rice cereal. Your dad and I sat you in your bouncy chair and started feeding you. At first you weren’t too sure about letting me put the spoon in your mouth, but you quickly got the hang of it. You even smiled a few times. I thought it was going to be harder, but you seemed to love it.
On Friday, we picked your dad up from work and went to your Uncle Greg and Aunt Kelsey’s house. We were carpooling to Page. We had a fun weekend. On Saturday, you met your Great Uncle Jim. Great Aunt Sandy was there too. Uncle Jim had wanted to meet you since the day you were born. He even joked that he didn’t think he was going to meet you until you were graduated from college. Needless to say he thought you were just the sweetest little girl. You weren’t too sure about him at first, but after a few minutes you relaxed and let him hold you. We visited him at the family store a little later and you tried on a pink cowgirl hat. You were such a cutie!
Later that day we went to your dad’s home church for the open house. You see, his church finally had a b uilding to meet in and this was its dedication weekend. Sunday morning we went to church and then went back to Grampa Bob and Gramma Kathy’s home. We took a few pictures and then we were on our way home. We stopped in Flagstaff for dinner.
Monday, May 29, was Memorial Day. Our friends, Brian and Cyndi, invited us to their house for swimming and a barbeque. It was such a good day for swimming and eating with friends. Your Grandpa Williams bought you a little swimsuit while he was on vacation in Hawaii. It was blue and had a grass skirt and lei sewn onto it. You were quite the sight. When we first got into the pool, you didn’t seem to be so sure about it. However, you didn’t cry or fuss. I am sure it felt good to cool off…I know it felt good to me. You even went underwater! You really didn’t like it the first time, but after you had done it a few times you were fine. You never even coughed! That means you were holding your breath…what a natural!
The weather had been getting very hot and so on Sunday, your dad and I made a spontaneous decision to go to the mountains. We just wanted to get out of the heat. We decided to go to Mount Lemmon just outside Tucson. It was perfect…it wasn’t too far to drive to and we could have lunch with our friend Kira. We had so much fun! The scenery was beautiful and the temperature was just perfect…a cool 68 degrees. We walked around for a little bit. Later that evening, we met our friends, Jim and Sarah, for dinner and games. It was a perfect day.
There was a lot of coming and going this week. Your dad went out of town on Wednesday evening to go fishing with his grandparents, Nana and Popie. You were still too little to take on a boat, so we stayed behind. I never liked being home alone, so while your dad was away, we stayed at Grandma Ramona’s house. Late Thursday night, your Rivas relatives came into town. It was a lot fun with all of us there. We saw Great Grandma Mary on Friday. It was her 85th birthday. She was happy to see all of us.
On Saturday we visited our friend Rachel from our church group. She just had her baby girl, Josie. She was so cute! Josie was just four days old. I couldn’t believe how small she was...and I couldn’t believe you were ever that small. At birth, Josie weighed 1 ounce more than you and was 1 inch shorter. It was so sweet seeing you both next to each other. The age difference between the two of you is about the same as that between you and Ramona.
Later on Saturday, we picked Great Grandma and Grandpa Williams up from the airport. They were so excited to see you…and me too. We went back to our home and rested for a little bit. Then Juan, Linda, and Ramona came over. It was fun to watch how you and Ramona interacted. Now that you were rolling over you wanted to see what was going on, to be part of the action. Wait a minute, did I say rolling over? Of course! I have to mention that you seemed quite determined to roll from your back to your belly. You had been very close, but hadn’t done it just yet. Then, on the floor in front of everyone you finally did it! We were so excited! You seemed so proud.
After we visited for awhile, everyone went to dinner at Joe’s Farm Grill. It was so good. We ate outside on the picnic tables under the citrus trees. It was such a nice evening…one of the last of the season.
You had your first cold this week. You had been sniffling for a few days, but by Monday evening you were fully congested. It was sad hearing you breathing a little raspy. Other than sneezing occasionally you didn’t seem to mind all that much; however, you did not like it when you dad and I used the aspirator. It made us feel better though because your breathing sounded so much better after we cleared your nose.
On Tuesday around lunch time we went shopping. After awhile, I wanted a snack and so I went to Paradise Bakery. It was there that I met four other moms and their babies…all of which were born in January of this year. It was so much fun spending time with other moms. All the babies were well behaved and oh so cute. I must say, you were by far the sweetest and cutest baby…not that I am biased or anything.
I never knew how sweet the sound of laughter was until I heard you laugh for the first time. Your dad was playing with you while you were lying on your back. He was blowing raspberries on your hands and feet, making funny noises, and tickling you. You were smiling and making all sorts of cute sounds when all of a sudden you laughed. It was so sweet and afterwards you smiled like you knew you had just done something special. We tried to get you to do it again for the camera, you didn’t cooperate, but we did get some more big smiles.
On Monday evening you officially rolled over. Why do I say officially? Well that is because your dad and I had found you rolled over in your crib many times, only we hadn’t seen it yet. We were still unsure if you were doing it all by yourself, or if you needed to push off the side of the crib. Well, all doubts were lifted away when you, while playing with your blocks on the ground, rolled over all by yourself. I was so excited! I clapped my hands and praised you and made a big fuss…and do you know what I did next? I put you back on your belly and ran for the video camera. I wanted to catch this amazing event on video. So after you rolled over a few more times (for the camera,) I called your dad. After I told him the news he joked, “Did she roll, or did you push her over?” I was shocked that he would say that and I quickly laughed back, “I am not Juan! Besides, I got it on tape!” Then we both laughed and your dad mentioned he couldn’t wait to see it for himself. (I feel that I must say that I was referring you your cousin Ramona’s dad. You see, the jury is still out on whether or not he “helped” Ramona roll over for the first time. You can ask your aunt Linda for specific details.)
This week we took a comparative picture. Of course we knew that you had grown, but we wanted to see just how much. So…I remembered that when we had first brought you home, we swaddled you and propped you up in my nursing pillow. We have since started using that pillow for tummy time. Once we put the pictures side by side, it was hard to remember you ever being so small. What a difference from two days old to three and a half months old.
Grampa Bob, Gramma Kathy, and Aunt Sarah came to town this weekend. On Friday everyone had dinner, Uncle Greg and Aunt Kelsey were there too. We were celebrating Greg’s birthday.
Sunday, Mother’s Day, was a quiet day. We went out to breakfast. We took some pictures and then all our guests went home. The rest of the day was spent relaxing at home.
I had always wanted to try cloth diapers. While your dad and I were expecting your arrival, we had quite a few discussions on whether or not to use cloth diapers. I did some research but was a little overwhelmed with the amount of information I found. We decided to use disposables. Well, after visiting your cousin Ramona (who was in cloth diapers) I realized how simple it was so I ordered cloth diapers and we made the switch. I must say that I am happy we did. I learned several ways to fold your diaper and the fold that worked best for you was called the jelly-roll fold. I still needed to perfect it, but it worked wonderfully!
Your dad and I discovered that you had cradle cap. Cradle cap looks like yellow, flakey skin on your scalp. Many babies get it and it usually doesn’t bother babies, but if it becomes a more severe case, it may itch. One morning we noticed a few dry flakes in your hair and you were pulling your hair and seemed to be trying to itch your head. Once we examined it further we realized that you had a fairly bad case; it covered the entire top of your head. We felt bad that we had not caught this sooner. We bought a cradle cap cream, gave you a few extra shampoos this week and it cleared right up. At least you didn’t hate your baths anymore, and besides you looked really cute in your in hooded towel…
Your night time sleep pattern had become quite erratic. It seemed as if you were awake more than you were asleep. When you were awake, you were tired and not happy. Your dad and I just knew that if you went to sleep you would be a much happier baby. I called your pediatrician and asked what I should do. He told me to try the Cry it Out method. He said we should let you cry for a little while to see what you would do. He said we just might be picking you up too quickly. Your dad and I agreed to give this method a chance…but we were nervous about it.
We had to decide on a bed time and a routine to follow each evening. So we put you in your sleeper and I nursed you just before bed. You were definitely drowsy, but your eyes were still open when I put you down. (You see, I couldn’t put you to bed asleep anymore.) I left the room and you didn't fuss at all! That was at 9:00 pm.
You woke up at midnight. I looked at the clock and let you fuss; you started to cry very hard after two minutes and just as I was getting up, you stopped. After eight minutes of crying you were asleep! We repeated this at 2:30. When you woke up at 4:30 I changed your diaper and fed you. I figured 7 1/2 hours was a long time. After your feeding, I put you to bed drowsy and just like the beginning of the night you didn’t fuss! You slept until 7:15.
That evening you slept from 9:oopm until 7:15am with only about a half of an hour of awake time. Your dad and I were excited to have had some sleep again. When you woke up you gave us big smiles. We think you were just as happy after a good night sleep.
Also this week, it was such fun watching you play with your hands. You are using them more and more each day. Now, instead of just batting at toys, you seem to really play with them. I loved watching you play with your horse. At one point it was falling and you caught it.
You also began to talk a lot more this week. It was fun watching you coo and gurgle to your toys. So sweet.
On Sunday, Uncle Greg and Aunt Kelsey watched you for the day while your dad and I went to a wedding. You had so much fun with them. You smiled and played. It was nice to have a date with your dad. I must say though, halfway through the day, your dad and I ready to be with you again.
We had so much fun this week. Your dad and I went on a shopping spree and we purchased some new toys for you. They had lights, sounds, buttons to push, knobs to turn, and rings to stack. It was so much fun watching you learn and explore.
I guess I missed the memo about it being milestone week. No sooner than your tooth had come in that you started crawling…I mean really crawling. You had taken one or two “steps” recently, but not like this. You were up on all fours going where you wanted to go. It was amazing to see. You were climbing on this as well. I turned my head for a moment to fold some clothes only to find you climbing up on your bouncy chair. I realized very quickly that some of your older toys had to be retired.
