whitmans' sampler

lilah's 9-month check-up

2011-05-16T15:43:00.004-04:00

Lilah had her 9-month check-up today, and she's growing like a weed! She's 18 pounds, 11 ounces (50th percentile), and 28 & 1/4 inches (75th percentile). (For comparison, Libby was 16 pounds and 27 inches as her 9-month visit.) She also has an ear infection, which is her fourth in less than 2 months (third in 4 weeks), so we got a referral to the ENT. That's scheduled for May 31st with the same doctor at Children's Hospital that did Libby's tubes. Looks like Lilah's headed down the same path, which is actually a relief, because these ear infections just make them miserable. Antibiotics knock out the infection but not the fluid, so that fluid just gets re-infected as soon as we stop the antibiotic.

Lilah's been a busy girl lately. I was filling out her baby book this weekend, and it seems like I was writing down "8 months" for every milestone.
• She has 2 bottom teeth and seems to be working on the upper ones from the way she's sucking on her lips, chewing on teething rings and drooling.
• She's eating three good solid meals and day, and loves Puffs for a snack. We're going to introduce some other finger foods very soon.
• She waves enthusiastically, especially at Daddy.
• She babbles "dadadadada" all the time, and "mamama" sometimes.
• She's crawling everywhere, although still with her belly on the ground.
• She can get in and out of a sitting position by herself.
• She can pull up to a standing position by herself, her new favorite activity!

She's delighted by Libby and all her dancing and silliness. They're starting to play together and it's awesome to hear them laughing together. She's also in love with Miss Kimmy, her primary caregiver at daycare. We recently found out Miss Kimmy babysits on the weekends, so we're going to have her watch the girls for us so we can go out soon, and hopefully make that a regular thing.

happy half-birthday, Lilah!

2011-02-17T20:24:00.002-05:00

Sweet little Lilah turned 6 months today! Here's what's going on in her world:

• Her cute habits include kicking her legs whenever she's excited or sees you coming, rubbing her head when she's sleepy and blowing raspberries. She loves the jumper that hangs from the doorway, Sophie Giraffe and TV (we don't turn it on for her, but she sees what Libby is watching).

• She started eating rice cereal about two weeks ago, and we added applesauce this week. She still mostly spits it out, but she'll get the hang of it soon. We're going to try sweet potatoes this weekend and see if she takes to them better.

• She has her 6-month appointment on Monday, but unofficially she weighs about 16 pounds. She has the cutest little roly-poly thighs (Helen says they're juicy, tee hee). So we're not sweating the fact that she's not really eating solids yet.

• She's been rolling both ways for about 6 weeks but isn't sitting up unsupported yet. She reaches for toys and rakes things toward her when she's on her belly, a good precursor to crawling.

• She's not really digging her pacifier lately, so we're going to try to just stop offering it and see if she's cool with that. I'd love to not have to keep track of and wash those, and it will be nice to not have to wean her from them later on. She sucks her thumb a little.

• She's still getting exclusively breastmilk. My goal is to nurse her for at least a year, like I did Libby. I'm very proud of this.

• We started sleep training her this week using the Ferber method, which we've used very successfully for Libby. It went pretty well Tuesday night and great last night. She just started fussing again tonight, so we'll see how it goes. Even if we have to go in there several times to soothe and reassure her, it's wonderful to have both girls in bed by 8. There's not a lot of free time for two working parents of a 2.5-year-old and a 6-month old.

I'll post her official stats after her appointment on Monday.

neighbor girls

2011-01-23T08:24:00.004-05:00

We are so fortunate to have a little girl just 2 weeks older than Libby living right next door to us. Even better, Ariella has super nice parents, so it's fun to have play dates with them or just socialize in the driveway. The week before Christmas they invited us over to bake holiday cupcakes. The decorating didn't last too long, but they loved it, and I think they enjoyed eating their cupcakes even more.

Yesterday we took the girls to Joseph Beth Booksellers to see a little preview of the Cincinnati Ballet's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," and Ariella was there, too. Libby and Ari are both really interested in ballet and love to dance. They were both smitten with the older dancer dressed as a fairy and had their pictures taken with her. Libby went back a second time just to give her a hug.

So enjoy some photos of Libby and Ariella (and Lilah) as their friendship blossoms!

pre-christmas activities

2010-12-24T14:03:00.003-05:00

Yesterday we took the girls downtown to see the Duke Energy train display and to see Santa at Macy's. The line was way long for the train, and Libby isn't really a train-enthusiast—just a big Polar Express fan—so she was satisfied to peek through the window. Then we walked across Fountain Square so Libby could watch the ice skaters on our way to Macy's. This is the third year we've taken Libby to see Santa there, and it's the same Santa every year, which we love. Plus, there's nothing for sale—you see Santa, take your own photos and get a candy cane. You can even write a letter while you wait. And we did have to wait a while this year, but Libby was very, very good in line. Lilah slept from the time we left the house until it was her turn to sit on Santa's lap, then went back in her stroller and fell asleep again. She's a super easygoing baby! As you can see from the photos, Lilah grinned away on Santa's lap and Libby told him exactly what she wanted this year: "presents." More specifically, "two presents." I suppose we should appreciate her lack of specificity for now because I'm sure it will only be a year or two before she has a list a mile long with princess this and princess that on it.

When we got home we baked cut-out cookies and plan to decorate them tonight. We'll also be partaking in our annual Christmas Eve dinner of all appetizers and snacks. We'll post cookie-decorating photos and Christmas morning photos soon. Until then, Merry Christmas to all!

lilah's 4-month stats

2010-12-15T10:20:00.003-05:00

Lilah had her 4-month check-up today, and she's growing like crazy! She weighs 13 pounds, 13 ounces and is 25.25 inches long. That's the 75th percentile for weight and the 90th percentile for height! You can definitely tell she's chubbier and taller than Libby was at this age. Lilah has long arms too, and she's outgrowing her sleepers sooner than Libby did. Libby weighed 12 pounds, 6 ounces and was 23.25 inches long at her 4-month visit, so Lilah is a pound and a half heavier and two inches longer!

Lilah looked great and was smiling and laughing at Dr. Z the whole time. And she only cried for about 10 seconds when she got her 4 shots. She and Libby both have little colds (our new constant reality), but no fever or chest congestion. I'm hoping we can all stay relatively healthy through Christmas and New Year's this year. If so, it will be a first since Libby was born.

play date with maddie & sydney

2010-10-29T15:04:00.007-04:00

We had Maddie & Sydney—my friend Melissa's little girls—over for a play date this morning. Libby ADORES Maddie, who is 4, (and Maddie adores Lilah, lol) and she loved swimming with the girls at their grandma's pool this summer, so we thought we should host. It's hard to get posed shots of two 2-year-olds and a 4-year-old, but here are a few and some candids from our fun morning!

little mama

2010-10-29T13:56:00.007-04:00

Libby has been very into mothering her dolls since Lilah was born and has been mimicking everything we do to care for Lilah, including changing their diapers in the pack n play (we have to keep the diaper ointment out of reach) and "nursing," which mostly involves using the Boppy pillow to feed her babies bottles. Here's a pictorial of "daycare" with Libby.

fingerpainting

2010-10-11T08:54:00.004-04:00

It was 80 degrees yesterday, so I decided it would be fun to take Libby outside and introduce her to fingerpainting. She was super excited about the Crayola "art dress" I bought for her to wear. When I first squirted the red paint onto the paper plate, she happily exclaimed, "ketchup!" I think her favorite part was mixing the colors together on the plates. It was a quick project, but I think she had fun because first thing this morning she said, "Mommy: color outside. Get shoes on!"

pre-painting snack

testing out the "ketchup"

hard at work

all done and ready for more snacks

Libby's masterpieces

welcome lilah

2010-08-21T16:14:00.002-04:00

Here's a video of Lilah's first moments in the world.

And here's another with Libby's first moments with Lilah.

introducing lilah grace whitman

2010-08-18T14:38:00.002-04:00

Our latest addition arrived yesterday morning. Lilah Grace Whitman was born August 17, 2010 at 9:27 in the morning, weighing in at 7 pounds, three ounces and measuring 21 inches long (another string bean).
Mother and baby are doing fine, recovering well in the hospital. Libby is having a blast hanging out with Pop Pop & Grandma Whitman, so I'm sure she hardly misses us. We're looking forward to coming home on Friday so "our girls" can meet for the first time. Here are a couple of photos to wet your appetite, but check back often at our Mobile Me Gallery (see link on the right) for new photos and video. Cheers!

toddler tunes

2010-08-07T18:02:00.005-04:00

I babysat Casey and Morgan (and Libby) for a few hours a couple of weeks ago while Kevin and Katie helped move my mom into an apartment down the street from us. (We're excited to have her so close by now instead of all the way up in Middletown!) The kids love the piano, and it's hard to keep them all in one room or chase them around while I'm pregnant, so I broke out the piano rolls and lined them all up on the bench. They loved playing along to the music. Here are a few photos and a short video. Enjoy the performance!

fifth third day at the zoo

2010-06-28T14:49:00.004-04:00

Fifth Third held its annual picnic at the Cincinnati Zoo this year. We skipped the picnic lunch because it fell during Libby's nap time and the hottest part of the day, but we took advantage of the 2 extra hours the zoo was open just for Fifth Third employees in the evening. It wasn't crowded at all, so Libby got to see lots of animals up close, including several big cats, which is usually a challenge from her stroller-bound vantage point. There were lots of zookeepers out with animals, so she got to pet a baby crocodile and meet a real bearcat. We also went to Lorakeet landing where you can feed the birds seeds and nectar, and they'll land right on you. Libby LOVED this part, including the bird that sat on her head and tried to steal her barette, until a bird actually landed on the stick she was holding and she kind of freaked out. After that we rode the train, fed some goats and sheep in the Children's Zoo and played on the brand-new playground. We had such a fun time and, even though we have a zoo membership, it was well worth the price of our picnic tickets to enjoy the extended hours!

swimming

2010-06-07T20:33:00.005-04:00

Last weekend Libby kicked off summer with 2 days of swimming. On Saturday, we broke out the awesome inflatable pool Daddy got on clearance at the end of last summer that has not one, but two flower sprinklers! Libby loved splashing in the pool and getting sprayed! On Sunday, Libby went to Sydney's 2nd birthday party and got to swim in a big pool for the very first time (at the Carusos' house). She loved floating around in the little inflatable boat with Daddy. She can't wait to swim with Sydney and Maddie again this summer!

getting sprayed!

flower power

having a blast

pimped out for the pool party

not so sure about getting in the water but her suit sure is cute!

of course, she loved it

posing with daddy

refreshment break!

goofy grin

2010-06-01T13:03:00.003-04:00

If Libby looks a little goofy in this latest chair photo, it's because we told her to smile and she gave us her first-ever fake one. The chair photo has become a bit of a challenge, so we were just happy to have her cooperation. It seems she's suddenly able to connect an action with a consequence or reward, so we finally got her to sit still for a quick snap by telling her that she could go to Sydney's birthday party and swim after we were done. Of course, when we start taking chair photos of her little sister, she'll probably try to sit on top of her just to have her own photo taken. She has a bit of a jealous streak!

butterfly show 2010

2010-05-30T09:42:00.004-04:00

photo potpourri

2010-04-29T10:40:00.003-04:00

We're long overdue for a blog post, but we have some good excuses: Kevin has traveled Monday through Friday 4 out of the last 5 weeks, the hard drive on our one-and-only home computer died last week, and I'm pregnant and tired. So I thought I'd do a quick workday post of some photos from the past week. There's also a new Watch Baby Grow pick to the right, and we'll add Libby's 20-month chair photo next week. Enjoy!

Little Shopper

Shopping in Mommy's Shoes

Strollin' in Style

Silly Girl

Kickin' Back for Some Sesame Street and Snacks

table & chairs

2010-03-28T16:09:00.004-04:00

Libby got lots of new, fun things last weekend. Sunday, Kevin, Libby and I made a trip to IKEA and got her a table and chair set. We thought it would be nice for her to have one for snacks and art projects, and for when other kids her age come over for meals. She seems to like it, as you can see here. We also got her potty chairs for the bathrooms. We're not planning on potty training her until she's 2, since there will be so many other changes going on between now and then (new daycare, transition to toddler bed, new sibling, holidays), but she's started to show some recognition when she poops in her diaper and is signing "potty." So her doctor said we should go ahead and get a chair so she can check it out and get used to it.

IKEA is sooo kid-friendly, by the way. We ate lunch in their cafeteria, and they offered your choice of 3 kids items for $2.50, plus they supplied high chairs, bibs and kid-sized silverware. And they offer free Huggies diapers in both the men's and women's restrooms in case you're out.

Katie and I also went to a "Mother's Swap" at Lakota High School on Saturday. Basically it was a big, very organized yard sale inside the school. I scored lots of very gently used toys, including a Fisher Price Little People Farm (without the people), a Fisher Price Little People Plane (without the people), a Fisher Price train track/train station set (with most of the people and accessories), a Melissa & Doug wooden Noah's Ark, a Fisher Price ride/pull toy for outside, a Matchbox Car race track, and "The Aristocats" (on VHS), all for $25! I don't really mind that the people are missing from the Fisher Price sets, since the ones we already have work with these sets too—and we paid $3 for the farm instead of $40. They have these sales a few times a year, so we definitely plan to go again. They also have lots of clothes, but it was all summer stuff at this one, and we're pretty set for summer.

it's a girl! again!

2010-03-27T16:55:00.006-04:00

I'm sure most of you have heard the news by now, but we found out on Tuesday that we're having another girl! I can honestly say I don't know when I've seen Sarah get so visibly excited -- if she hadn't been laying down, I'm sure she'd have been jumping around the room during the ultrasound. I honestly didn't have a strong preference, but I'm very happy that Libby's going to have a little sister and I'm always going to have "my girls." (And I'm happy that Libby's adorable bedroom won't have to be "neutralized" by sharing with a boy.)
Here are a few shots from the ultrasound, I'll spare you from the creepy frontal face shot and the very personal shot that proves we're having a girl, but I thought these were too good not to share.

tiny hand...

...tiny foot...

...perfect baby.

libby at the library

2010-03-12T19:52:00.005-05:00

Last weekend we discovered that they have story time at the downtown library every weekend. We weren't sure how Libby would do, but we decided to give it a try. She loved it!
They had a big saltwater aquarium and she loved checking out the fish. When we walked in to story time, she squatted down, looked over at the little boy next to her and said, "hi!" She was certainly the most animated, but overall was very well behaved (pardoning a few awkward moments where she'd stand in front of another kid and just stare at them).
After story time, we looked at a few books (see photos and video below). If we had let her, she'd probably still be there. Taking a book off the shelf, walking over to the table, opening one page of the book and returning to the bookshelf for another book. Over. And over. And over.
Because she had so much fun, we're heading back tomorrow and meeting up with our dear friends the Whites for a little story time followed by lunch at Lavomatic, one of our favorite weekend restaurants.
Here's to enjoying our city now that it's finally thawed out!

watch baby grow

2010-02-27T10:38:00.002-05:00

Now that I'm starting to show, we're going to post a baby bump photo on the right-hand side of our blog each week, as we did with Libby. I'm not going to wear the same outfit every week, though, like I did last time. That was such a pain and, although the continuity was interesting when we looked back at the group of photos as a whole, most of you thought it was pretty boring and requested photos of cute maternity clothes. So, you got it!

how to tell a 17 month old she's getting a sibling

2010-02-20T10:45:00.009-05:00

Daddy: Libby, come here. We have something to tell you.
Libby: *blank stare*

Daddy: Libby, you're going to be a big sister!
Libby: K!

Daddy: There's baby in Mommy's belly.
Libby: bee...

*Mommy shows Libby her belly*
*Libby kisses Mommy's belly*
*Libby kisses Mommy's belly*
*Libby kisses Mommy's belly*

*Libby kisses the dog*

libby is going to be a big sister!

2010-02-17T13:32:00.003-05:00

waving to us

abdomen and head (the dots going up on the left-hand side are the umbilical cord)

obligatory creepy face shot (sorry baby!)

We want to officially announce that we're expecting Baby #2 August 21st, about a week before Libby's 2nd birthday (and 2 days before Libby's expected due date of August 23rd)! I'm 13 weeks pregnant and just started my second trimester. We've had a couple of ultrasounds, the most recent one at 11 weeks, and everything is looking good. The baby has a strong heartbeat (161 bpm), and we could see his/her little hand waving at us during the ultrasound. We'll find out whether it's a boy or a girl at 20 weeks, around the first of April.

Everyone keeps asking if we've told Libby yet, but I think she's too young to understand. She's recently starting mothering her baby dolls—kissing them, dancing with them, feeding them with their bottles and her sippy cups, wiping their noses—so all signs point to her being a very good big sister!

I'm posting our most recent ultrasound photos here. Feel free to share the good news, and we'll try our best to post updates here and on Facebook!

three more movies

2010-02-15T19:40:00.004-05:00

I told you I had a lot to catch up on!
Here are three more movies from our lives over the last several months.

Libby's First Recital

Libby + Gus (and I'm not too thrilled with how forward she can be with the boys)

Feeding a Giraffe at the Zoo

christmas in february?

2010-02-15T15:35:00.007-05:00

Like Sarah had mentioned in a previous post, we were waiting on a new external hard drive to have enough room for all of our videos. Now that we've got that, I've been waiting for a free day to get caught up on video editing. And since today I'm doing everything I can to avoid going out to shovel the snow I'm actually getting some things done. Here's a video from this Christmas. We didn't have a lot of video footage, so I supplemented with some photos.
Merry Christmas!

valentine cookies & gilmore's birthday!

2010-02-14T22:05:00.008-05:00

It's hard to believe that our little puppy is five years old today! We love you SO MUCH Gilmore!!

Today, Libby helped us bake some Valentines Day cookies. She was a very good helper, but I think she thought she was in charge. Here's a little instructional video she put together.

computer complications

2010-01-24T11:38:00.002-05:00

I intended to blog about all of our Christmas festivities, but our computer has been buggy, especially iPhoto, where we keep all of our images. Turns out you take a lot of photos and movies when you have a kid, and they take up a lot of hard drive space. We're maxed out on storage, and our computer has been very slow. We've ordered an external hard drive to store movies and photos on, so we should be back in business soon.

We really haven't been very busy since Christmas. We've spent the past few weekends hunkered down at home. We've done a few projects and just hung out in our PJs. We did have a full day yesterday. Kevin went apartment hunting with Liz in the morning. Then Keith and Kathy stopped by on their way home from Florida in the afternoon. And we had an impromptu dinner out with Doug, Sue and Gus, then had them over for dessert. It was fun to finally see some friends!

I'm sure our social life will pick up soon, though. And once our computer is working optimally again, we'll update our Mobile Me Gallery and our blog with more photos and videos. Libby is changing a lot. She's starting to try to say a lot more words. And she's definitely developing strong opinions about what she does and doesn't want to do! Oh, and the kid eats like a horse, but still only weighs about 20 pounds! She must have a killer metabolism. I'm eager to learn her actual weight and height at her 18-month appointment in February. Six months is a long time to go between appointments.

I hope everyone is having a happy January!

awaited

2010-01-10T11:44:00.002-05:00

On December 19th, we went to see "Awaited," the Christmas program at Crossroads church. They had the lobby set up like a Christmas village, and Libby loved running around and looking at all the decorations and other people. Plus, she got a cookie! And we had our family photo taken before the show started. The show was so well done—powerful and engaging! Libby absolutely loved it and sat still the entire time, first on Mommy's lap and then on Daddy's. Auntie Liz and Tyana were both in the choir, so it was fun to see them and to see Liz's family. Libby, ever the social butterfly, reached out for Liz's sister—who she doesn't know at all— to hold her. Maybe she thought she was Liz; they do look alike. But is was very cute!

cookies, cocoa and caroling party

2010-01-10T10:02:00.006-05:00

Brandon & Callie

Liz & Libby

Kevin, Casey & Cameron

Tyana, Callie & Sarah

Katie, Libby, Sarah & Morgan

Kevin showing his Christmas spirit

Libby all dressed up to party

We had a very fun and busy December. So busy that we didn't have much time to share photos and news on our blog. So I thought I'd catch everyone up with a couple of overdue posts.

Our first Christmas celebration was a "cookies, cocoa and caroling" party. We recently got our player piano—which my dad bought in 1982—repaired and tuned, and we have several Christmas piano rolls. So we gathered a small group of friends—folks that Kevin knows from college and my sister—for a late afternoon get-together. We provided hot chocolate, homemade marshmallows and popcorn, and everyone brought a batch of cookies to share/swap. We were initially bummed that several folks couldn't come. But we quickly realized how full our small house becomes when you put 5 kids in it, and the group we had seemed to be the perfect size. The kids loved the piano and the snacks, and we ended the night with pizza. Such fun!

ho, ho, oh no!

2009-12-21T16:02:00.005-05:00

2008

2009

Libby loves the stuffed Santa ornament on our Christmas tree. She's learned to say "ho, ho, ho," whenever she sees Santa (actually, she says "oh, oh, oh"—so cute). And the girl hardly ever meets a stranger; she's such an outgoing, easygoing kid. So we were optimistic that she might actually like sitting on Santa's lap this year, unlike all her 1-year-old peers. We were wrong.

As soon as Kevin handed her to Santa, she started wailing. She settled down pretty quickly, as you can see from the photos, but she never really warmed up to Santa. Last year, at 4 months, she was oblivious, just chillin' in Santa's lap. And I'm sure she'll be Santa's biggest fan next year. I guess this year's tears are just a rite of passage!

hats

2009-12-12T14:16:00.002-05:00

Libby has been really into hats lately, which is great since it's so cold here! Her favorite is the straw hat Dad and Candy gave her for Easter. It was a little big then, but it fits perfectly now. She also likes to put the cardboard wrap from Kevin's yogurt drink 4-packs on her head. And she's fond of the winter hat Katie bought for both her and Morgan. Here's a little montage.

happy holidays from the whitman family elves

2009-12-03T17:39:00.002-05:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

digging in

2009-11-27T20:01:00.004-05:00

Here, Libby demonstrates the proper way to eat Thanksgiving dinner (standing on a chair with someone else's spoon in hand, eating off yet another person's plate).

greats

2009-11-27T19:54:00.003-05:00

Gran, Libby and Morgan

Grandma Marie and Libby

Libby got to see two of her four great-grandmothers this weekend. Her great Gran came to our house for Thanksgiving yesterday, and we went to Uncle Bob's today to see great Grandma Marie. She lives in Florida, so Libby met her for the first time today! We'll see Daddy's grandmas at Christmas when we go to Edgerton. Miss Libby is very lucky to have these four great ladies in her life!

thanks, grandma!

2009-11-21T11:32:00.002-05:00

Libby just wanted to thank Grandma Whitman for staying with her this week while Aunt Katie had her tonsillectomy. Mommy and Daddy will be home on vacation next week while Aunt Katie continues to recover. We're very thankful for our family!

pigtails

2009-11-10T21:28:00.004-05:00

Not the best light for photos, but Daddy did a bang-up job with Libby's first pigtails!

halloween 2009

2009-11-09T20:27:00.003-05:00

Gimme a break!

We're ready to roll!

This is pretty fun, don't ya think, Gus?

Suckers are waaay better than pacifiers!

Libby spent Halloween trick or treating with her buddy Gus, and we hung out with Gus' mom and dad, Doug and Sue. They live on a much quieter, much flatter, much more kid-populated street than ours, so we trick or treated at their house in Madeira. Gus wore his grumpy Pooh face while it was light enough to take pictures, but he really was having a good time and became his usual smiley self a little later. Libby was Miss Congeniality, as usual. She and Gus kept swapping unwrapped candy so they could chew on it, and Libby kept chucking her trick or treat bag out of the wagon. My favorite moment was when she received a sucker from the firefighters and carefully set her pacifier down in the middle of the street so she could eat the candy. We spent nearly 2 hours strolling the neighborhood, and our little girl was tired. But she couldn't have asked for a nicer first beggar's night.

signs and sounds

2009-11-06T15:01:00.002-05:00

Libby's signing vocabulary continues to grow, so we added a list of the signs she knows on the right-hand side of the blog. We also have a list of the words she's saying. The latest is that she can both sign and say "bird." So cute!

P.S. We promise to post Halloween photos this weekend!

baby signing time

2009-10-26T16:05:00.004-04:00

Libby is obsessed with her "Baby Signing Time" DVDs, which feature a lady singing songs and demonstrating sign language with babies following along. Every morning--and all day long--she makes the sign for "baby" to indicate that she wants to watch one of the two videos in the series that we own. We've been working with her on some signs, but she's picked up a few more that we've never demonstrated, directly from the DVDs. She now can sign eat, more, drink, water, milk, cracker, sleepy, hat and book. It's really great that she can communicate with us in this way since she's not really speaking yet (a girl can't get by on "cat" and "more" alone). And it's keeping Aunt Katie on her toes! Libby can also identify her mouth, ears, teeth, belly and nose. I don't have any photos of her signing, but here's a shot of her and Gilmore watching the DVD together. Gilmore has not picked up on any sign language yet, unless you count tapping people with his paw and staring at them intensely.

fall fun weekends

2009-10-12T19:47:00.006-04:00

Sarah, Libby and I have been busy these past two weekends. Fall is our favorite time of the year and my work travel has slowed down so we took advantage of the great weather these past two weekends to get out and take it in. Last weekend we went to Neltner's Farm in Camp Springs, KY with the Whites and this weekend we went to HallZOOween with the Hoods.We also managed to sprinkle in some walks with Gilmore, brunch with our dear friend (and new Cincinnati resident *YAY*) Liz Truitt, and an impromptu dinner party with some of my oldest friends Jason, Michael, Liz, & Tyana.
Below are pictures from our trips to the farm and the zoo. As always, several more are available in our Gallery. I've also added a couple of videos at the bottom showing just how excited Libby & Maddox were to be playing together at our house last night. Maddox was maybe a little too excited to give Libby a kiss goodnight, but I've got my eye on that boy...

So as the leaves are just beginning to turn down here, we're looking forward to several more beautiful weekends together over the coming weeks.
Happy Fall to All!

Libby & her goat friends

Giggly Gus

I'll just take this tiny one

Our Family on the Farm

Two cuties checking out the animals

Two Silly Monkeys

Daddies and monkeys

Mommies and a monkey

Hanging out with Big Boy

Picking the perfect pumpkin

birthday video

2009-10-03T20:26:00.003-04:00

I know. It's been a month in the making, but here it is -- our video from Libby's First Birthday Party! She may have seemed a little overwhelmed by all the love and attention she got, but she had a great time! Trust me.

thirteen months

2009-10-02T13:07:00.002-04:00

Just wanted to point out Libby's 13-month chair photo. We'll be updating this feature monthly instead of weekly now, so look for it each month around the 27th.

It's crazy how quickly Libby has gone from baby to toddler in the past few months, but we're enjoying every minute of it. She's exploding with personality and activity.

She has 4 teeth now, and is getting 2 more. She's walking really well and hardly crawls anymore, although she is an expert at walking on her knees, which she still resorts to occasionally. She says a second word now — "more" — but it comes out more like "mo." Katie thinks she's trying to say "bird" too. And she now does the signs for milk, water, more and eat.

Oh, and one more milestone: We spent our first night away from Libby for our 5-year anniversary last weekend, while Grandma and Grandpa Whitman stayed at our house. We really enjoyed the time away, and Libby did just fine. Thanks Keith and Kathy!

five years

2009-09-29T17:21:00.004-04:00

Believe it or not, Sarah and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary this weekend!
Look at these two kids. So young and in love, if they only knew what life had in store...
Five years is one of those things that seems like forever and five minutes at the same time. I think we're both just so excited to see what the next five years holds for us, and the rest of our lives for that matter.
But here's to my beautiful bride, I love her more every day.

dress up

2009-09-24T15:00:00.001-04:00

As you saw in a previous post, Libby loves putting underwear on her head and wearing them around her neck. She has expanded her wardrobe to include a grilling apron, which she wears as a cape, a pink scarf, and a bracelet from her Fisher Price Pretty Learning Purse. It's soooo cute to watch her take her little bracelet out of her purse and put it on! She's just fabulous.

chowhound

2009-09-23T21:49:00.004-04:00

Although you couldn't tell from looking at her, Libby loves to eat. She's eating finger foods almost exclusively, except for the yogurt we feed her for breakfast and the baby food we use to round out some meals. Luckily, she likes a wide variety of food and she hasn't shown any sensitivities or allergies. We introduced peanut butter last weekend, the final food on the "highly allergenic" list, and she loved it. Her favorite foods include cheese, berries, bananas, grapes, veggie dogs and crackers. She's also drinking milk out of a sippy cup really well now. I feel quite lucky that it's not a struggle to get her to eat, especially since she's kinda teeny tiny. She can really pack it in!

this little piggy

2009-09-18T19:52:00.003-04:00

Libby has learned how to insert the plastic coins into her Fisher Price piggy bank, and as her mother, I'm just amazed. She went from fumbling with one last night and pushing with all her might while holding it a little crooked, to putting every single one in with ease tonight. We're just so proud of our little banker. Thanks, Art & Pam, for this great Christmas gift!

weaning

2009-09-15T10:48:00.010-04:00

I wasn't aware of it then, but I think Libby nursed for the last time this week. But let me start at the beginning of the end.

My goal was always to nurse Libby for a year. As the year mark approached, I decided that I would keep nursing her when she woke up and at bedtime, but wean her from her two mid-day feedings, which were also my two workday pumping times. I was so tired of pumping and wouldn't have the time to do so in the middle of the day during the HOW conference I was scheduled to host in Washington, DC two weeks after her first birthday. And I wanted to make sure she would take cow's milk from a bottle. Otherwise, I was actually going to have to ramp up the pumping in order to have enough breastmilk for her while I was gone (she'd always had breastmilk exclusively, so I didn't want to introduce formula at this point). So two weeks before her first birthday, we introduced cow's milk twice a day with no problem.

With that worry behind me, I phased out the pumping but was determined to nurse her in the morning and at bedtime until she was ready to wean. I figured breastfeeding was still healthier, easier and cheaper, and I genuinely still enjoyed nursing her. About a week after her first birthday, she started getting her upper two teeth and, consequently, biting me while she nursed. I tried to reprimand her without making her cry, but I wasn't having much luck in getting her to actually nurse, especially at bedtime. A few days later, I left for the HOW conference with my pump in tow. Kevin had frozen breastmilk to give Libby in the morning and at bedtime, and cow's milk to send to Katie's house. The morning feedings went OK, but she wouldn't take the bottle at bedtime. Since she eats dinner fairly close to bedtime, we decided to give her a cup of milk during dinner and to cut out the nighttime bottle. Meanwhile, I pumped at the conference to keep my waning supply up, hoping she'd be over the biting and would nurse willingly after not seeing me for 4 days.

She was already in bed when I got home from my trip Saturday night. When she woke up Sunday morning, she was so excited when I went into her room to get her up. She nursed eagerly without biting. I was sleepy, but I was more focused on her than usual since I had been away and missed her so much. I talked to her a little, studied her little face and hands, stroked her arm. It was a lovely experience that both of us seemed very "present" for, the way it should be, the way it all began.

And that was the last time she nursed. I've given her the opportunity to nurse the last two mornings, but she's started to suckle then burst into tears, and I've had to make her a bottle. So I have a bottle ready for tomorrow morning.

I really thought that "the last time she nursed" would be a big, emotional to-do, that I would really put my heart into it because I knew it would be the end of perhaps the most important and intimate time we'll ever share. I thought I'd concentrate hard on it, trying to soak it all in. I thought I would cry. I'm so grateful that I didn't have to force all of that, that it came so naturally, that I unwittingly paused to savor what had become so routine one last time. I think nursing may be the most important gift I ever give my daughter. And I think giving me that one last sweet, relaxing moment early Sunday morning was a gift from her.

my day at the zoo

2009-09-14T14:21:00.003-04:00

Mommy and I went to the zoo today with Amanda, Maddox, Katie and Morgan. It was such a pretty day, and there was hardly anyone else there. Lots of animals were out and about. I got to see almost all the cats, including the baby Bengal tigers and lynxes, so I got to use my favorite word (cat!) a lot. The baby gorilla was playing with his dad, and the Sumatran rhino was taking a bath. A peacock even strolled right by us and took a rest a few feet away while we at our lunch at LaRosa's. But I was more interested in the wrens who gathered by my stroller to catch the Goldfish crackers I dropped. I liked the fish at Manatee Springs, too. And I even got to feed a giraffe a cracker, although I didn't really want to let go of it, so Mommy helped me. It was a very fun day. Thank you Aunt Katie for organizing it!

happy grandparents day

2009-09-12T15:41:00.004-04:00

I love all of my grandparents so much! I am such a lucky girl.
I hope you have a great day!!!
~Love, Libby

Make a Smilebox slideshow

libby's birthday pics

2009-09-08T20:01:00.003-04:00

I'm still working on the video, but we thought we should get a few pics on here from Libby's birthday and her party. There are lots more in Our Gallery, so check them out too. I hope to get the video up by the end of this week -- I hope I'm not building too much suspense, it's not all that thrilling...

libby stats

2009-09-01T16:14:00.004-04:00

I know we haven't posted anything about Libby's party. Kevin is working on a video (there's a lot of footage to comb through), and we'll get some photos posted soon. I just wanted to give you all the scoop on her 1-year check up, which was yesterday.

Our little string bean weighs 17 pounds, 11 ounces, and is 29 inches tall. That's 10th-15th percentile for weight and 50th for height. The doctor has no concern about her weight. She's trending well on her own curve, and she's gaining steadily. She's just long and lean, as always.

Little Libbs got 4 shots yesterday and they had to squeeze 2 small vials of blood out of her tiny finger to test for lead levels and anemia. Needless to say, it was a long 2 hours at the doctor's office. I'm just not used to her crying uncontrollably, and it was 2 hours past her nap time, so she was a mess, and Kevin and I were drained. She's running a little fever today, probably from the shots (one was a flu shot), but she's doing splendidly overall!

Also, a footnote: She is not cooperative at all for her Watch Me Grow chair photo anymore, so now that she's a year old, we're only going to take it monthly. Although you may be disappointed, you should also be in awe of us taking that photo 52 weeks in a row! :-)

happy birthday, libby!

2009-08-27T18:32:00.002-04:00

Just wanted to publicly wish our little Olivia a very happy first birthday. This has been the best year of our lives, thanks to you, darling girl. We love you!

libby's take on laundry

2009-08-24T15:10:00.003-04:00

our toshie girl

2009-08-20T20:46:00.005-04:00

I was not expecting to make another one of these so soon, but here's my tribute to our little toshie girl. We miss her so much already.

first steps!

2009-08-14T19:30:00.003-04:00

This must be the week for firsts.
Libby took her first steps tonight!!!

first word and blowing kisses

2009-08-10T22:06:00.001-04:00

Here's a quick video of Libby showing off her skills at using her first word, "cat" and some advancing attempts at blowing kisses.
I love her.

pool time!

2009-08-10T06:43:00.002-04:00

One of my big yard sale finds this year was a Mr. Turtle sandbox that we decided to use this year as Libby's kiddie pool. Now that we finally have some hot weather (and no rain) we pulled it out yesterday to see what she would think of it. This was also her first chance to wear her first bikini -- thanks Aunt Susan! Here are a couple of photos and a short video from her day at the pool.

two new videos

2009-08-03T06:19:00.001-04:00

I know it's been a while since I posted any new videos, but I think these might be worth the wait. Here you get to see two distinctly different sides to Libby's personality. Enjoy!

first word!

2009-07-28T15:49:00.005-04:00

Aside from the universal "mama" and "dada," which I don't think really count, Libby has spoken her first word: Cat.

We spend lots of time identifying Toshie and Gilmore, so this isn't a big surprise, but I personally thought "dog" would come before "cat." A few weeks ago we asked Libby where the dog was, and she pointed to Gilmore. Then she started making a "doh" sound. But that was about it.

Then, this weekend, Toshie walked into the room, and she pointed and said "cah!" The next morning, she was looking at a book and made the same noise; sure enough, there was a kitten on the page. Then she pointed to a vintage poster of 2 cats in our living room and said "cah" again. And the deal was sealed when my mom brought her a tiny little Gund cat that meows when you push its belly Saturday night (she's holding it in this week's chair photo). She loves this feline friend and now goes around saying "cah" all the time. And she's still working on "dog."

With our love of animals, I guess it's pretty fitting that our kid's first words would be "cat" and "dog." We'll try to take video and post it soon. It's too cute!

happy birthday daddy!

2009-07-25T11:01:00.002-04:00

Kevin's birthday was yesterday, but we're celebrating all weekend, starting with an ice cream cake and yummy take out last night. He and Libby just left for the mall and a little retail therapy, and we're going to a party tonight (Nonnie is babysitting Libs). And Libby and I plan to indulge his love of going to open houses tomorrow. Happy birthday weekend!

finally caught up

2009-07-19T13:24:00.005-04:00

We've been running way behind on getting our pictures edited, sorted, captioned, and uploaded to our gallery, but I've got it all caught up. Take a peek at what we've been up to when you have some time.
Here are a couple more recent shots for a preview.

Libby & Mommy at Grandma & Grandpa Whitman's

Libby wearing the jacket and hat that I wore as a baby.

Swinging at Aunt Katie & Uncle Matt's.

A little practice walking at Grandma & Grandpa's.

Happy 4th of July!

happy birthday sarah

2009-07-11T13:27:00.003-04:00

Thirty four years ago today, one tiny little girl came into this world.
And while she's always been small on the outside, her heart couldn't be any bigger.
I love you so much, Saree.
Happy Birthday.

miss independent

2009-07-04T10:31:00.004-04:00

In honor of our nation's Independence Day, Libby has decided to declare her independence from getting her photo taken. For ten months, we've been able to get her "chair photo" with little difficulty -- this week was a different story. Here are a few of the shots that didn't make the final cut, but did make us laugh out loud in the moment. We're still not thrilled with this week's final selection, but we didn't have much to choose from.

Happy Fourth of July!!

a visit from grandma & grandpa

2009-06-29T10:23:00.003-04:00

Grandma and Grandpa Whitman came for a visit with Libby this weekend. They brought their new Airstream camper down and stayed at Greg and Linda's house. Friday, they spent the day with Libby while Mommy and Daddy worked, then we had a cookout that night. Saturday, we grilled out fish and steak for lunch at Greg and Linda's. It was delicious, and their yard is beautiful. You can see some of the gorgeous landscaping in the photo of me and Kevin. Grandma and Grandpa headed home Saturday night, and we grilled out again. And again on Sunday! We even ate outside twice this weekend. Libby loves to be outside, so she was a little angel.

Libby wasn't feeling well earlier in the week, so I took her to the doctor and found out she had a virus causing blisters in her throat. She seems to be feeling fine now. We just gave her lots of Motrin and TLC. The only bummer is that we had to miss Gus's first birthday party on Sunday because she was still contagious.

She's doing new things almost every day again. Just this weekend, she started shaking her head "no," although she doesn't always use the gesture appropriately. She also started pointing and making a "duh" sound when we say "dog." She gets around so easily, moving from one thing to another on her feet, that I can't imagine she won't be walking soon. And she's eating so many things and loves to feed herself. She also took her first sips from a straw yesterday.

Kevin also hit the jackpot for Libby at a yard sale on Saturday. He got 40 items of clothing for her for $15, and a Mr. Turtle covered sandbox for $10! Most of the clothes are 18 months, which is the size we're guessing she'll be in next summer. We've been buying 12-month things for the winter when we find really great sales. She's just now squarely in 9 months, and she's still in some 6-month pants and onesies.

favorite toy

2009-06-25T10:09:00.003-04:00

When given the option to play with any of her toys, what does Libby always choose?
This one!

happy father's day

2009-06-21T19:25:00.005-04:00

I just wanted to say Happy Father's Day to all the dads in our lives. And especially to Kevin on his first father's day. Here's a little photo series from our lunch today at El Rancho Grande, taken on my new iphone. Enjoy.

my nephew -- a teenager!?!?

2009-06-16T21:21:00.005-04:00

I can't believe that my nephew Kraig is going to be a teenager tomorrow. Surely, I'm not old enough to have a teenage nephew! Well, it got me reminiscing, so I thought I'd share a few pictures of my favorite teenage nephew.
Happy Birthday, Kraig! We love you!

Uncle Kevin & Kraig's First Christmas

Kraig and his new "Sis"

Flyin' High! I don't think we could re-create this moment today.

Kraig's Queasy Bake Oven -- Bugs and worms in mud, delicious!

My Junior Groomsman

Kraig & Libby's First Christmas

reading the paper with grandpa

2009-06-08T21:43:00.003-04:00

These photos are a couple of months old, but I just came across them and thought this series of Libby reading the paper with Grandpa Whitman was priceless.

big girl

2009-06-07T18:44:00.003-04:00

Today we went to the outlet mall. Libby rode in her big-girl car seat. And she sat in a big-girl highchair at Chipotle.

Dipe-n-Wipe Go Bags

2009-06-03T20:57:00.004-04:00

My sister's mother in law is selling these adorable crocheted bags for diapers and wipes on Etsy. Check them out if you need a mini bag for these baby essentials or if you need a cute little baby shower gift! I saw my sister's, and it's really nice and super cute. She'll do custom colors too.

libby's 9-month check-up

2009-06-01T15:55:00.004-04:00

Today we had Libby's 9-month visit with Dr. Z. Only 1 shot today! She weighs 16 pounds (25th–50th percentile) and is 27 inches (50th percentile)—a little string bean. She's a little on the light side, but the doctor isn't concerned at all since she gained almost 2 pounds since her last check-up. Plus, she's been super active since she started crawling 2 months ago, which is probably keeping her lean. She started cruising—moving along and between furniture while holding on and walking—a few weeks ago, and she's standing up and sitting down like a pro now. Friday night I even turned around and caught her standing without holding onto anything. I'm guessing she might be an early walker.

She's finally eating baby food from a spoon after 2.5 months of trying without much success. Her appetite seemed to just take off about the time she started standing and cruising. She now eats oatmeal and fruit for lunch, oatmeal and a veggie for dinner, plus some other finger foods (and nursing is still going very well). She really likes feeding herself, and she's head over heels for Puffs, these little flavored puffed cereal treats that pretty much dissolve in your mouth. She thinks it's funny to try to feed them to Gilmore, who gladly cleans up the mess when she's finished eating. She's consistently signing "more" now. We were afraid she thought it was just the sign for Puffs, but she signed it yesterday when Kevin was tossing her in the air, and she signed it last night when I was feeding her peas. It really is a very helpful communication tool because I have no idea how much she wants to eat otherwise. Oh, and her second bottom tooth finally popped through this weekend, a whole month after her first one.

Even though she's becoming more independent and strong-willed every day, she's still a ton of fun. She loves to clap, wave and bang things together to make noise. And she's really interested in Casey, Morgan, Gilmore and Tosh—"people" about her size. We were having some sleep issues for a few weeks, but we seem to have those straightened out. We were really coddling her, thinking that she was teething, having separation anxiety, reaching new milestones—all things that can cause sleep disturbances. But she got to the point where she wouldn't nap at all, and she was up half the night. Once we determined that she could get herself down after standing up in her crib and that she wasn't "stuck," we tried the Ferber sleep training method again and it was miraculous. It took one night and she was back to her two-hour naps, and she's even been sleeping through the night for a week now. It's like we hit a reset button!

That's pretty much it for little Libs. She's beautiful ("Those eyes," we hear all the time), healthy and happy. Enjoy a few recent photos as a reward for reading my long post!

a graduation party

2009-05-30T21:06:00.006-04:00

We celebrated my brother Michael Seth's high school graduation last Sunday with a cookout at our house. It was a lovely day with beautiful weather and family fun. Congratulations to my little bro!

libby's latest accessories

2009-05-26T17:05:00.006-04:00

For Christmas this year, Santa got Libby some really cute hair clips and now that she's actually getting enough hair to need them, we realized that most are still a little big for her.
I checked with Santa on where he got them and they're from this great little site on etsy* called mia et gigi. It's a mom who makes all of them by hand. I emailed her and asked her to make a few smaller custom clips for Libby and here's what she came up with.
Needless to say, Libby is very excited.

*If you haven't heard of it before, etsy.com is a great little website that's basically an online craft show with some really cool hand made stuff. Check it out!

summer sweetie

2009-05-17T15:28:00.004-04:00

This morning we went out to get Libby's nine month photos taken!
We started out with a sleepy girl who didn't quite know what was going on. But after a few quick tears, she turned it around and did a great job.
Then we were reviewing our choices and the power went out in only half of the studio. Lucky for us, it was the other half so we were able to continue choosing our pictures (never an easy task). By the time we left the power was back on, so we went over for breakfast at IHOP and a quick trip to the Carter's Store (big sale this weekend, we got some steals!!!) and were able to pick up our pictures right on time.
Then we headed over for our friend Melissa's daughter Sydney's first birthday party. Libby was clapping and screaming as we sang Happy Birthday. She also took a few notes since she'll be center stage in just a few months.
Here were our top picks from the photo shoot. If you'd like any of them, just let us know. As usual, we got tons of pictures, especially wallets. Don't bother trying to print these lower resolution versions. Trust me, we have plenty to go around!

Sun-Bathing Beauty

Standing Tall

Big Floppy Hat

Happy Clapper (see my tooth?)

Stick Out My Tongue

Cutie Crawler

libby update

2009-05-15T10:36:00.005-04:00

Libby is changing daily, it seems, so I thought I'd share a few of her recent milestones and preferences.

She's pulling up to a standing position by grabbing onto lots of different things now—her crib, the sofa, her toy organizer, her music table, the dog's collar. She's also still really into waving, and she loves clapping. Now all you have to say is, "Yay," and she smiles and claps her little hands together. Yesterday, we were sitting on the front porch, waiting for Daddy to come home from his second business trip in the past two weeks. When his car pulled up and she registered that he was inside, she let out a really loud squeal, and started clapping and saying, "Dadadada." It was so incredibly sweet. I don't think "Dada" could ever ask for a better welcome home.

She's also (finally!) eating off a spoon willingly. As I hoped, it just clicked one day when I was feeding her pureed spinach, and she's been opening up for bites ever since. She really likes to feed herself, too, so I've been trying to give her more finger foods, including small pieces of banana, cantalope, even waffles. This has made my life so much easier and was a wonderful Mother's Day surprise.

Libby is also developing some clear opinions about what she likes and dislikes. She likes toilets, dog food bowls, Casey, waving, clapping and biting me with that sharp little tooth when she's done nursing. She dislikes having her diaper changed, taking medicine, having her nose sucked out or wiped and being confined.

Grandma Whitman is down for a visit with Libby today, so hopefully Libby isn't giving her any trouble. Kevin and I are supposed to go on a date tonight while she watches Libby—the first time we'll have gone out alone since our anniversary in September, so I'm crossing my fingers that they have a good day together and that bedtime goes off without a hitch!

a lovely weekend

2009-05-12T20:24:00.003-04:00

Kevin and Libby did a great job of making sure I had a wonderful first Mother's Day weekend. The weather was unexpectedly beautiful on Saturday, so we went to the zoo (we bought a season pass this year). We also got take-out from two of my favorite places for dinner Saturday and Sunday night—sushi from Mt. Adams Fish House and burritos from The Comet. I even got homemade Belgian waffles on Sunday. And the three of us just spent lots of time together.

They also gave me the perfect gifties: the video Kevin posted here; a framed chocolate brown silhouette of Libby on a pink background; a new robe (you'll notice I'm always wearing one around the house in photos); and a children's book called "Someday" that's so sweet it makes me cry (even in the middle of Target, where I first read it).

Monday, Michael Seth, Katie and I took my mom to lunch. It was nice for just us "kids" to get together with her.

All in all, it was a perfect weekend. Thanks, my loves!

happy mother's day!

2009-05-10T10:02:00.005-04:00

To all our moms out there, birth moms and those who have played a "motherly" role in our lives, we love you and appreciate everything you do for us.

In honor of her first Mother's Day, Libby & I put together a little video for Sarah with a look back at her first year of motherhood.

Happy Mother's Day.

lunch lady

2009-05-05T20:34:00.004-04:00

Libby and I were upstairs sorting some of her memorabilia yesterday and I put her standard issue hospital hat on her head. My how her noggin has grown! The hat now looks more like a hair net, so I started calling her Lunch Lady. She also has a knack for crawling along with toys dragging underneath her, for which I call her Street Sweeper. By the way, you can see her little tooth if you click on the close-up.

cover girl?

2009-05-03T20:41:00.003-04:00

With much urging from my mother, we've entered Libby into a few baby magazine photo contests. Don't worry, we have no intention of getting her on Toddlers & Tiaras, but we think she's pretty cute so we thought we'd give it a shot.
Click here to go to her page on Parents Magazine's site. You can take a look at the photos we entered and even rate them and add comments.
We also entered her for a contest at Parenting Magazine.
The "cover" above is just a fun feature they have on the Parents website, not the real thing. At least not yet -- we'll see!

a stand-up girl

2009-05-01T12:27:00.002-04:00

Libby pulled up to a standing position on her own twice this morning! Once when I left the crib rail down and left the room for one minute (lesson learned for Mommy). And again at Katie's using the Bumbo seat (lesson probably not learned for Libby). Unfortunately, the Bumbo isn't very stable, so she toppled over right away, but didn't get hurt. Then we started clapping and saying, "Yay Libby," and she put her hands together like she was clapping too. So cute!

toothy tuesday

2009-04-28T19:31:00.002-04:00

I had an impromptu dentist appointment today to fix what I thought was a cavity but ended up being a cracked filling. But way more importantly, Libby got her first tooth! She was uncharacteristically cranky for Katie today and took a super long afternoon nap. Then we were playing with her this evening, and Kevin shouted out, "She has a tooth!" Sure enough, there's a little white bud sprouting through on the bottom left. We're very excited, but I'm also a bit apprehensive since I'm still nursing her! (So you were right, Aunt Christy.)

This has actually been a big milestone week for Miss Libby, who turned 8 months yesterday. On Thursday she started saying "mama," and it has become her distress call. "Dada" is still her favorite choice for cheerful babble. She also slept through the night really for the first time last Wednesday and Thursday (she did this a few times around 4 or 5 months, but in hindsight it was a fluke). I was worried that her excellent napping and sleeping habits would be derailed by our trip to Edgerton this past weekend, but she napped easily and slept through the night in Grandma and Grandpa's pack and play—even in her own room! And although she's been sitting unsupported for a few months, she hadn't been pushing herself from a crawling position up into a sitting position until today (we were sure she could do it; she just always had somewhere else she wanted to go). She's also pulling up onto her knees more and more every day. I'm sure it's only a matter of days or weeks before I go into her room one morning and find her standing up.

Now our little one is conked out in her crib, full of milk and Tylenol, and tired from all her excellent hard work. She's growing up so fast, but it's a blast to watch her!

photo hodge podge

2009-04-21T19:58:00.004-04:00

Here's an assortment of photos from the past few weeks. You can see lots more in our gallery.

catching up

2009-04-17T20:54:00.006-04:00

We've been so busy the past few weeks that I'm woefully behind in posting photos and blogging.

Two Sundays ago, we had Casey's second birthday party, which ended up being a very fun family gathering.

That week, Dad and Candy came to visit. We spent lots of time together, including trips to IKEA and the zoo.

Last Saturday, one of my best friends/college roommate Susan came to visit with her daughter Katie. It was a short but very nice visit.

And last Sunday, we had a lovely Easter dinner at Art & Pam's (my sister Katie's in-laws).

Tomorrow is Maddox's first birthday party, and next weekend we're traveling to Edgerton to visit Kevin's family. What a busy, fun-filled month April is turning out to be.

There are many photos in Our Gallery, but I thought I'd share a sampling here over the next few days (I'm having trouble uploading all the images I want to show in this post). Stay tuned!

an evening with libby

2009-04-16T06:13:00.003-04:00

Here's a peek at a typical evening at the Whitman home these days.

HAPY EASTER!

2009-04-12T09:51:00.003-04:00

From our own little Easter Bunny.

trapped!

2009-04-05T11:51:00.005-04:00

This morning Sarah put Libby in her play yard so she could get some things done around the house. Apparently Libby found a new way to entertain herself -- making goofy faces against the side of the mesh wall.

Whose kid is this?

this little piggy...

get me out of here!

very funny.

crawling all over

2009-04-03T20:16:00.002-04:00

seven months and crawling

2009-03-28T13:41:00.005-04:00

Last night and this morning Libby took her first few leaps forward into the world! She's not all over the place (yet) but she is definitely able to start getting where she wants to go. I'm not sure that she's setting her sights very high yet, last night she was crawling to get one of Gilmore's bones and this morning she was going after her Mommy's slipper.
Grandma Whitman came down to spend the day with Libby on Friday. I'm sure she'll have some pictures up on Kathy's Online Scrapbook soon enough, but I thought I'd post a few of her from the last week or so. They'll also be in Our Gallery for libby month seven and libby month eight.

ready to crawl

2009-03-18T20:26:00.004-04:00

Lately Libby has been exhibiting some signs that she is ready to start crawling.
She loves her "tummy time" and has been pulling her legs up and rocking back and forth like she's ready to start moving. Tonight she had her legs going, but she needs to get her arms on board with the process. While we're very proud of her for getting close to this milestone so early, we're sure we'll be eating our words when we're chasing her all over the house!
So here's a little video clip of her most recent attempts along with an example of the tongue clicking that she's become pretty prolific with lately.

happy st. patty's day!

2009-03-17T10:23:00.002-04:00

green goddess

2009-03-11T20:02:00.002-04:00

Libby tried her second solid food tonight—fresh avocado. I mashed it up with a little breastmilk, and she seemed to like it. She didn't clamp her mouth shut, and she actually opened it a few times. Maybe she will get the hang of this eating thing afterall.

While I was fixing myself some dinner, I gave her a wooden spoon and showed her how to hit things on her exersaucer with it. She just wanted to chew on it, though. I was afraid she was going to poke her eye out or give herself a tonsillectomy, so I had to take it away from her. Maybe we're not quite ready for kitchen utensils yet.

big girl weekend

2009-03-09T11:16:00.004-04:00

Libby had some big girl milestones this weekend. First, she tried her first solid food (besides rice cereal and oatmeal), which was sweet potatoes. The first night, she hardly ate any because she wouldn't open her mouth. This is a new problem--she clamps her mouth shut like a vice whenever we try to put food, vitamins or Tylenol in it. Last night, she did a little better. I gave her her own spoon to hold and, whenever she shoved her own spoon in her mouth, I snuck some sweet potatoes in with it. She actually seemed to like them better than the oatmeal, so I'm hoping she'll eventually willingly open up. We were going to start with avocado because I've read that it's similar to breast milk in taste since it's creamy and buttery, but the one we bought wasn't ripe. That's next on the list!

We also bought Libs a sippy cup, just so she could play with it and start to get a sense of what it's for. Clearly, she doesn't grasp the concept yet, but she's interested in it. Sometimes I take the valve out of it and tip it back in her mouth so that water flows freely out of it. I'm hoping that will help her understand that she has to suck on it like a bottle to get liquid out of it. Right now, she just likes to chew on it, and not just on the spout, as you can tell from the photos.

Yesterday we ventured out to our new Target, and Libby sat in the cart big-girl style for the first time. I forgot the camera, but she was all cushy with her shopping cart cover, blankets stuffed all around her and all her toys. She's still a little small for it, so she needs a little propping, but she did great and seemed to like getting out of the house.

two peas in a pod

2009-03-07T14:38:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago we snapped these cute photos of Morgan and Libby in the same outfit. Aren't they sweet little cousins! Check out our gallery for more.

Also, there are lots of pictures in the gallery of Libby's 6th month and Grandma Whitman's visit!

thanks grandma!

2009-03-02T19:18:00.004-05:00

We can't thank Grandma Whitman enough for coming down last week to watch Libby for us while we were at work. It was really nice having you here and I think Libby had a lot of fun with you.
We didn't get much video time in while you were here, but here's a little something of the two of you and a few photo highlights from the week.

happy half birthday olivia!

2009-02-27T09:35:00.004-05:00

Our little Libby is 6 months old today! Although I can believe half a year has gone by since we met the little love of our lives, I can't believe how much she's changed in those 6 months. She seems so big and grown up, especially in comparison to her new cousin Morgan, who's only 5 months younger than her. Libby is celebrating by spending the day with Grandma Whitman. She's staying with us this week and watching Libby while Aunt Katie takes her last week of "maternity leave."

Libby had her 6-month check up on Monday and she's doing great. She weighs 14 pounds, 4 ounces and is 24.25 inches long. Dr. Z gave her another A+ and noted that she has a 4.0, lol. We decided we better get serious about starting solids, so we tried oatmeal Wednesday night. She seemed to do a little better with that than the rice cereal. She still doesn't have the swallowing thing down pat yet, so we'll probably stick with oatmeal for a week or so, then introduce a veggie. Any suggestions on which one to start with?

This day also marks a personal milestone: My goal is to breastfeed Libby for a year, but a smaller goal of mine was to get through the first 6 months without having to supplement with formula at all, which I've achieved. I have nothing against formula; I'd just rather not fool with it if I can meet her needs with breastmilk. So I'm very proud to have made it this far, and I feel confident about keeping it up for another 6 months.

Another positive: Libby is sleeping through the night now and taking 3 naps a day in her crib. We used the Ferber method, where you put them in their crib drowsy but awake and when they cry you go in at progressively longer intervals to reassure them, but you don't get them up. The idea is to teach them to go to sleep by themselves, in the right place, without any crutches. By going in their room periodically, you reassure them that you haven't abandoned them, so it's not exactly the same at the "cry-it-out" method. After 5 nights of this, Libby started going to sleep on her own, without a pacifier, and sleeping 10-11 hours. And she's been doing so for the past 2 weeks. She sometimes wakes up once in the night to nurse, but that's still reasonable at her age. Katie used this method on Casey with much success, and some of my friends are trying it now.

So, things are great with Miss Libs and with us. We've come so far in 6 months, and it literally gets better and better each day. She's so much fun!

my week with libby

2009-02-20T10:58:00.003-05:00

Since our daycare provider (aka Katie) is currently on "maternity leave" I took vacation this week to hang out with Libby. I knew that I would probably go crazy if I had to stay in the house all week, so I planned a couple of outings for us. Monday we were home with Sarah, so that felt more like an extended weekend and Tuesday we stayed home all day and I got a good feel for Libby's "routine" which is still a pretty loose schedule.
Wednesday was a big day, we went out to lunch with some of my old friends from college, Sarah Mitchell (who's expecting a little girl in April!), Tyana Owings, and Amanda & Maddox Hood. It was really nice to all get together and I haven't seen Sarah in several years. After lunch we went over to the Carter's store and stocked up on some winter clearance for next year. Then Libby and I went to Ikea for a walk around the store. I'm pretty proud of myself for only buying a few food items and some batteries -- impulse buying is a bad habit I've been trying to break. We did learn that Ikea has a bottle warmer in their restaurant area, which was really nice as I did have to feed her while we were there. I also learned that if we miss our afternoon nap, Libby can be a little clingy in the evening, but she went right to sleep at bedtime.
Thursday we went downtown for lunch with a few of my coworkers and then we met up with Matt & Maddox Hood to go to the Cincinnati Auto Expo. This is always one of my favorite things to do and we had a great time, but I have to say it was a little underwhelming this year. I suppose with the current state of the economy and the auto industry I shouldn't have expected much. They really didn't have any concept cars on display, it was more like a huge auto dealer convention. And those dealers were hungry for sales! We got approached at nearly every car we looked at. But I had fun trying to figure out what we should get next and Libby was perfectly behaved, of course.
Today I think our busy week has caught up with her, she has been napping for about two and a half hours this morning, but I think she might be getting up soon. But I'm glad she's resting up, tonight we're planning to go over to the Hoods to hang out with even more old friends from college. And I think Libby and Maddox just can't get enough of each other!
But this week has been an adventure and I am really going to have a hard time going back to work. But Grandma Whitman is coming down to help out next week and I'm sure she is very excited -- Libby is too!

walking wiener dogs

2009-02-18T19:33:00.004-05:00

Well, we're not actually walking wiener dogs, but we are walking, for the American Heart Association 10K Heart Walk. I've joined a team with some of my co-workers (my boss has a dachshund, hence the team name) and we're going to be walking Sunday, March 29th. I wanted to let you know about it, because along with walking, we're trying to raise money for the American Heart Association. As a team, we're each trying to bring in $50, but I'm setting a personal goal of $100. And donating is easy, just click here! I'm also posting a link to my donation page and if you're in the area and would like to join us, let me know. The more the merrier.
Thanks for considering and anything you can do would be greatly appreciated!

a silly dog (and a bad kitty)

2009-02-15T20:11:00.002-05:00

Libby is all laughs when she's hanging out with her favorite pets.

valentine sweetie

2009-02-14T17:53:00.002-05:00

Today we made some valentine cookies. I'm not sure what's sweeter, Libby or all these cookies.
Oh, who am I kidding, nothing could be sweeter than my Libbs!

happy day!

2009-02-14T07:37:00.004-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

Happy anniversary, Dad & Candy!

Happy birthday, Gilmore and Valentine!

say what!?!?

2009-02-12T20:22:00.002-05:00

A minute with our talkative little girl.