Posts Tagged ‘Nora Faith’

That’s right friends… our babe is already 5 months old! 

I feel like I’ve been writing these monthly updates on a WEEKLY basis, but maybe that’s just because I’ve been trying so hard to take lots and lots of pictures throughout the month!

Isn’t she cute — and SOOOO full of energy! 

Nora’s milestone this month:

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Nora is growing and learning new things every day — and I’m doing my best to capture them all on camera. However, I’m getting a bit “lazy” and just uploading the photos right from my phone to my blog — without editing them at all. So, many of the photos are a bit blurry because Nora never stops moving. Also, many of the photos are a little dark because they were taken in the evening… good thing she looks so cute in her PJ’s!

If you’re interested, you can see lots more real-life photos of Nora during our Spring Break “Staycation”!

1. She grabs her feet. 

It’s become quite a challenge to change her diaper because she’s always grabbing her feet. So I try to hold her legs down with one hand, wipe with the other, and somehow manage to quickly shove the fresh diaper underneath. Then I have to take her feet away from her again so I can velcro the diaper in the front.

I also had to get different socks that were tighter around the ankels because otherwise she pulls her socks off every chance she gets!

2. She grabs EVERYTHING! 

The girl grabs everything — paper, rattles, kitchen utensils, toys, blankets, her pipe, food from our plates, cups filled with liquid, my phone, hair and jewelry — so yeah, we’re trying to be more careful with what we leave in her arm’s reach!

{again, it’s blurry because she was shaking the rattle like a crazy baby!}

3. She can almost sit up

Of course, stubborn Nora wants to be able to sit up “by herself” but she can’t do it quite yet. She can kind of sit up with the Boppy pillow (one of my favorite pieces of baby gear) but get’s antsy after a while and then lays down again.

Of course, she can sit perfectly fine with pillows wedged on either side — and she LOVES sitting on our bed, looking at our chandelier!

4.  She “crawls” backward.

The other day, I was in my office working and she was happily playing on her mat (up there by the spatula). When I went to check on her, she was no longer on her mat, and had “crawled” backwards almost 5 feet! Of course, her new thing is to scoot around backwards!

5. She’s jumping! 

Nora moves constantly — which is one of the reasons I can’t fathom how she goes all day with only a couple 15 minute naps {lots of energy like her mama I guess}. Thankfully, we found a Johnny Jumper for $5 on Craigslist and just borrowed an ExerSaucer from a friend!

6. She’s more content to just lay around.

I can’t even tell you how thankful I am for this! Even though we’re still working on the whole napping thing, she is often content to watch Baby Einstein or even just lay on her play mat for 20 minutes at a time! Hallelujah!

And yes, she likes to awkwardly lay on her stomach on our laps!

I’d be lying if I said it was easy; but there is a dim light at the end of the tunnel. After 5 months, we’re slowly starting to figure our “puzzle” baby out…

Of course, she couldn’t just give us a break and be an easy puzzle. No, she’s one of those enormous 3D puzzles with the tiny pieces that requires 20 different tries before you find the one that works.

Give us a few more months… we’ll figure her out!

Happy 5 months Nora Faith!

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I know I’ve lamented the fact that Nora already seems to be so strong-willed and stubborn {like refusing to take naps!} but the other day, Dave and I were joking about how Nora is actually SO much like me!

Yup, I’m strong-willed and stubborn too… and once we started thinking about it, we came up with a whole list of traits and characteristics that are strikingly similar between my daughter and myself

{thanks for the cute shirt Grandma!}

Physical Traits:

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We both have a pug nose.

We both have dimples on our right cheeks. And when we smile really big, we both have them on our left cheeks too.

We both have extremely long torsos — however, it looks like Nora got Dave’s long legs too so she won’t be as “disproportionate” as I am!

We both have almost non-existent toenails — they are like little slivers.

We both have restless legs {my mom and grandma have this too}

We both drool in our sleep

We both have crazy morning hair  – just ask Dave

Character Traits:

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We’re both morning people

We both like taking our shower/bath in the evening

We both have sensitive ears and noses {we don’t like overly loud noises or strong smells}

We both prefer bare feet to socks or shoes

We are both claustrophobic — if you want to hear her scream, try swaddling her!

We’re both light sleepers and sleep much better with a fan

We both are horrible “nappers”

We both get really cranky when we’re hungry and we eat regularly all day long

We both have a lot to say and like to be heard

We both have very unpredictable daily schedules but still need an over-all sense of routine

We both love staying home and would rather just “lounge around” than be out and about

We both like to stay busy, busy, busy.

Besides the fact that she has the biggest blue eyes {I have green squinty eyes} and the longest eyelashes I’ve ever seen, it seems we are more alike than I thought!

So the next time I moan and complain about my child who refuses to sleep and eats every 2 hours… you just remember that she has to get that from someone… and it sure isn’t Dave

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Nora is 4 months old… and it’s hard to believe that last year at this time, she still wasn’t even a thought in our minds! I do remember feeling extremely tired last March, but I figured it was because of all our extensive home renovations and the fact that I was out-of-town twice in one month.

Little did I know that a year later, we would have a 4-month-old baby girl! 

Nora is one crazy cat — we call her our “bi-polar baby” because she can be happy-as-a-clam one minute, start screaming uncontrollably the next, and then all smiles the next.

She’s also easily scared by loud noises, quick movements, unfamiliar faces… and pretty much anything else.

We still haven’t quite figured her out yet, but we do know that she LOVES to eat, she LOVES to move, and she LOVES to make noise. And I suppose if I’m honest — I could say all the same things about myself!

She still doesn’t do well with naps, but she’s sleeping much better at night… so I’m thrilled.

She also seems to be much more content by herself. Even if it is only for 10 or 15 minutes — it’s SO nice to be able to put her down, eat my lunch or respond to a few emails in peace, and then switch my attention back over to her.

Oh, and she absolutely adores her mama 

Here are a few of Nora’s “milestones” this past month…

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1. She can roll over on her own — but only from back to front — so I spend a good part of my days rolling her from front to back so she can then roll from back to front on her own. And don’t try to help her — she can do it by herself!

2. She has totally figured out how to suck her thumb – and boy does she love that thumb. However, we still can’t go anywhere without her pipe — so who knows, we might be lucky enough to have a baby addicted to BOTH her thumb and a pipe!

3. She giggles — kind of! She’s been “talking” non-stop since about 2 months… but the last few weeks, our house has been full of Nora’s many sounds. Recently, if we tickle her in just the right spots, she’ll giggle. However, she usually startles herself when she giggles and then starts crying because she’s scared! It’s still cute though

4. She holds her own pipe – as I mentioned above, she loves her pipe… and has now figured out how to grab it, pull it out, and push it back in again. Of course, she still cries for help when she’s feeling too tired or “lazy” to do it herself — and sometimes, she’ll even put her thumb inside the hole of the pipe so she can suck both at the same time!

5. She’s teething — seriously, she’s way to young for this… but the girl has little tiny teeth that look like they are starting to come in up front.

6. She sits at the table– well kind-of. She’s still a little small for the portable highchair I got… but it’s nice that we don’t have to hold her all through dinner anymore.

7. She grabs EVERYTHING — and of course, everything she grabs goes into her mouth. She loves feeling different types of fabrics, and since ribbons are just the right size for her tiny hands, I made an extremely cheap “toy” and simply tied a bunch of ribbons and long fabric scraps on her bouncy seat… she was thrilled!

And although this post obviously accentuates the positive… it’s still SO hard.

People keep asking how they can help, but I honestly think the only way anyone can really help is by letting me have one week {or even one day} “pre baby”. Just one chunk of time where I don’t have to think about or worry about Nora — which would only be possible if she wasn’t born yet.

I know that sounds ridiculous, but it’s true. I’m physically tired from lack of sleep, I’m mentally tired from trying to multi-task and plan so that everything gets done each day, but I’m emotionally EXHAUSTED from all the ups and downs, the screaming, the guilt, the wondering IF I’m doing things right, the pressure TO do things right, the lack of schedule, and a whole new level of unpredictability that my over-planned soul just can’t handle.

I think I need a week at a spa… Dave thinks I just need a couple drinks

Happy 4 months sweet Nora — Mommy really DOES love you! 

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Our baby is already 3 months old… as of yesterday!

Some days, it seems like these past weeks just flew by, other days… it feels like I’ve been doing this for years! Although she is the cutest baby ever {small bias here} these last few months haven’t been all roses and butterflies.

Motherhood is hard work! 

But things are getting better… she is smiling all the time and her personality is really starting to shine through!

She is starting to sit up {in her Bumbo seat}, learning to play with a few small toys, trying to roll over, scooting around on her stomach {think army crawl}, “talking” like crazy, and ALWAYS moving!

And once we get her to stop crying at night, she is super cuddly and just snuggles right into the crease of your arm.

She still refuses to be on any type of schedule or to take naps… but she IS sleeping better at night. Hallelujah!

And since she’s sleeping more at night {which I’m not complaining about!} she is eating a lot more often during the day. Her frequent eating along with her lack of schedule makes it almost impossible to go anywhere… so we sit home… a lot!

But I’m OK with that.

{it’s almost scary how blue her eyes look in this picture!}

Thankfully the weather here in West Michigan has been wonderful and we’ve hardly had any snow {of course, the year we decide to pay for plowing service!} so Nora and I have gone for many afternoon walks in the  sunny weather. She loves walks — and will often fall asleep in the stroller!

I can tell that things have already gotten a bit easier this past month — maybe it’s because she’s more independent and doesn’t require constant attention, maybe it’s because she is sleeping better at night, or maybe it’s just because I’m finally getting used to Nora and all her crazy ways.

Whatever the reason, I’m happy! 

Here are a few more pictures from this past month.

{with my grandpa at her baptism}

{tummy time on her bobby pillow}

{trying to suck her thumb…}

I’m guessing things will start to get much busier around our house once she starts crawling and moving around more… but I also think she’ll be much happier when she becomes more mobile. And if she’s happier… Dave and I will be happier too

I’ve been told the best is yet to come!

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26 years ago…

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we took this four-generation picture the day I was baptized.

Yesterday…

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we took another four-generation picture for Nora’s baptism.

We both wore the same dress, we both were cute as a button, and we both had the privilege of Godly mothers, grandmothers, and great-grandmothers.

It was a good day!

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Nora turned TWO months old yesterday… and seems pretty darn excited about it.

For her one-month photo shoot, we had to take so many pictures because she was either sleeping or crying… this month, we also had to take a bunch, but it was because she was moving SO much!

Nora is really long and skinny {thanks to her dad} so she has already outgrown all her newborn clothes and most of her 3 month clothes. Good thing we got so much of it for free or for pennies at garage sales!

She is even wearing a few 9 month sleepers because otherwise her legs can’t stretch out!

She has gained about 4 pounds… and is getting nice little potbelly!

A few more picture from the last month:

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She just LOVES laying on her back and looking around the room.

But she’s apparently not that interested in Sunday afternoon football

She loves her blanket and teddy bear.

And she’s even starting to get the hang of sitting in her Bumbo seat.

Although she is super cute in these photos, let me just assure you that she has a pretty good set of lungs… and she’s not afraid to use them!

She’s also still being a stinker about taking naps and going to bed “on time”. But since she’s cute, we’ll keep her around!

Happy 2 month Birthday Nora!

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I’ve been getting lots of emails and comments about how Nora looks so much like me… and I have to say I agree!

And the other day, as I was looking through my old pictures {on our portable hard drive}, I came across this picture of me — crying in my bouncy seat.

I have an almost identical picture of Nora crying in her bouncy seat…

What do you think? Does she look like her mom?

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