Light up the Sound

Last night, out of nowhere, Xander grabbed his guitar and started to make a song. He then grabbed some paper and wrote down the song.

After that one performance, Josie wanted in on that action. Xander freaks out because she is replacing the word 'sound' with 'sun'.

Getting Around

For those not in the know, Hannah is finally walking. She showed an interest before she turned one but then had the nasty mystery fever virus for a week and she just wanted to be carried for another week after that. So she spent another month showing interest in walking and finally has it down (as much as a 13 month old can have walking down).

She totters and wobbles, falls and then scoots along on her knees. I find it funny that she seems to walk better when clutching a toy, usually the doll that is about half her size. 

Now she thinks walking is the bee's knees. She laughs and giggles and smiles. She's become our little ball of sunshine (unless she is throwing a tantrum, but that is a post for another time). 

(Oh. My. Word. I have been trying to upload this video for two weeks and it kept giving me trouble. I finally set up a youtube channel (which I'm not going to share) to get it here. Grr. Argh.)

1st Birthday Party

The thing about having a birthday girl in February is that it is cold outside here. So while our June and September birthday parties can spill into the back yard, no one really wants to wander outside now. So Hannah's invite list was a little smaller than previous 1st birthday parties. Add on to that the surprising fact that some people don't like to travel  in the cold weather and our small list became even smaller. So Hannah's birthday was a nice little affair with some friends and some family.

That didn't stop me from getting all fancy with her birthday cake! The giant cupcake was white with candy melt to make the 'wrapper' and buttercream icing. The smaller cupcakes were all chocolate with buttercream. And they were all fabulous, oh I want more just looking at the picture.

The birthday girl was having none of it though. I mentioned in a previous post that she had been sick the week before. Fortunately, she managed to kick the fever a couple days before the party. However, she was not recovered completely. Or at all. Okay, she was grumpy and tired and clingy. 

And she wanted nothing to do with cake. Seriously, whose child is this? Turning down cake!

But then....then came the presents. I recruited Xander, Josie and a neighbor to help with opening the gifts and, one-by-one, they were presented to the birthday girl. And slowly her demeanor changed. "What is this offering that has pretty sounds and twinkling lights?" you could all but hear her say.

Then it happened. A final gift that had one piece of jewelry. Her godmother slid it on her arm and it was as if the clouds parted. The birthday girl was finally happy. (Chris, on the other hand, had to deal with realizing he had another girlie-girl for a daughter.)

6 months and 3 years

Both Josie and Hannah have been in for well checks in the past couple weeks and have both been declared healthy. Yay!

Hannah at 6 months:

Weight - 17 lbs, 12 oz (82 percentile)
Height - 27.5 in (96 percentile)

Yeah, she's a big girl. But she's not chunky (except for those adorable chunky thighs), she is just outgrowing her clothes faster than I can plan for. Fortunately we still have all of Josie's old clothes and some are the appropriate size and season.

We have started Hannah on some solids. Xander and Josie have helped me to make 'mushy peas' and 'mushy carrots' which we froze in an ice cube tray and are stored in the freezer. I picked up a few containers of vegetables that I don't keep around the house or find hard to make into baby food. Feeding Hannah seemed to go well at first. She's been watching us eat and opening her mouth so I thought it would go well. Unfortunately, Hannah does not have swallowing solids down and has repeatedly gagged and vomited up her dinner.

Here is her first bite of solid food with commentary from Xander and Josie. (sorry for the small video, you'd think after two years I could hold my phone correctly while recording)

Most people say that Hannah looks like her brother, though I am hearing that less nowadays. Let's compare 6 month pictures, shall we?

Hannah at 6 months

Josie at 6 months

Xander at 6 months

The only thing I see is that Hannah still has a chance of getting curly hair since Josie's hair was still straight at that age.

And now for Josie's stats:

Weight - 30.8 lbs  (46 percentile)
Height - 37.5 inches (or 3' 1.5") (51 percentile)

So Josie is pretty middle of the road. Except for the hair, which is always mentioned. I try to always remember it's a compliment and not to be snarky with people who comment on it. I may or may not have video of her on a swing and another of her jumping around just because her hair is so fun. I won't bore you by posting them.

Back to the doctor visit. The doctor was impressed with Josie being totally potty trained, even at night. Believe me, I'm thrilled about it too. Josie did a great job doing what the doctor told her with the excpection of the Shy First 5. I just made that name up. For the first five minutes she always acts shy, hiding behind me and clutching my leg. Then she takes off to play. I think it's a game to her but I could be wrong.

Other than that I was given a hearty "keep up the good work" and sent on my way.

Ready to play Hockeyball