Five Months

I have honestly been avoiding doing this blog because month 5 of Hensley's life has been so crazy and she's done so much that I am exhausted thinking of everything!

I just love her dimple on her left cheek!

Big girl sitting up by herself. She rolled forward a second later like a baby rolly polly!

 Had to give credit to her Aunt Katy for the fabulous bow! Mommy tried to make them and they looked like turd, so we'll leave bow-making for the pro.

 Then she found the camera. Life got instantly harder when she realized her magical hands can grab whatever she wants. Toys, neck "flubber", remotes, any drink in your hands, eyeballs...you name it!

The fifth month has been the busiest for develpomental growth. She can roll from belly to back and back to belly, but she only does it when she wants to and not when you want her to. Some days she flips like a pancake, and then she doesn't do it for a long time because she knows I have my camera ready to capture the moment that will never happen! :) She is sitting up very well and it seems to be her favorite position right now. As previously discussed, she is very good at grabbing things now and passing them between her hands. She is OBSESSED with cell phones and t.v. remotes! Hensley is also still obsessed with Bruce the dog and giggles like crazy when we throw the ball with him outside. She enjoys peek-a-boo and will giggle with Jon and I when we tickle her, and will bust out in a crazy grin if we so much as look in her general direction! She also found her toes and can entertain herself for quite some time sucking on them. Also, she has figured out her exersaucer and now can make so many laps around it and work all of the buttons and toys. She still looks for me or Daddy when music will play because we will dance and look completely obnoxious for the enjoyment of our little girl. Whew! I'm sure I am missing other things, but she is doing so much that it is hard to keep track.

My silly and sweet stories are a bit more tame this month, with no potty humor...I will save all those gruesome stories for another day.

My silly and sweet stories are all part of Hensley's napping/sleeping routine. She is still quite the champ sleeping at night, and I don't mind at all waking up once in her 11 hours to feed her- so impressive! Unfortunately, she still believes in 30 minute power naps during the day. I have tried nearly everything I know to extend them, but the only way she will take a long nap is laying in our bed with me holding her hand or laying right next to her. I love it and know this time to snuggle will not last forever so I end up indulging her!! With short naps, come a messed up schedule and often we are struggling to keep her awake until bedtime. Here comes the good part. Our two ways to entertain a tired, fussy baby and keep her awake just a bit longer is to take her outside or to stroll her around in her stroller. One of my favorite memories of month five is when I was cooking dinner and Jon was in charge of keeping Hensley awake. He ended up putting her in the stroller and making laps around our house. Poor guy was making me dizzy! On one of his laps I gave him something to throw away in the trash.. and this is the point when the singing began. Let me give you a bit of background and tell you that when I (politely!) ask for Jon to help me around the house, he will burst into the "Cinderelly" song. This day was no different, and sure enough his soprano version of  "Cinderelly" began and the lyrics were changed "...throw the trash away, make a fire, stroll the baby...". Who asked him to make a fire??? I can't help but giggle.

The sweet story is after I put Hensley down for bed, she will sometime wake up a bit later and need her pacifier to fall back asleep. Jon is sweet and always takes this so I can relax. I normally watch on the monitor and have a happy moment every single time I watch this because when he gives her pacifier to her, she reaches up and grabs his hand or arm and holds onto it until she is ready for bed again. If you don't know Jon, his hands and arms are massive compared to little Hensley. Seeing her baby hands grab her Daddy just makes me thank God every time that we were blessed with such a happy, sweet baby that perfectly completes our family. It also makes me appreciate the Dad that Hensley will always have. Her Daddy might be silly (and often dramatic) but he loves her more and more every day. Now that I am bawling and super emotional, I hope you enjoyed her fifth month because we certainly have. xoxo

Early Bird Special

So, in our (almost) five months as parents, Jon and I have adjusted our schedule to work with a baby. One of our adjustments is our dinner time. It is now around 5:30. Seriously. I'm pretty sure my grandparents don't eat that early- no offense Nana and Papa! :) We are that sad little couple that eats this early so we can both have a hot meal, otherwise, I am eating at 9:00 at night and that is no good for Mama. I have recently become motivated to prepare yummy meals and be the "Super Mom" I have always wanted to be. I had no idea that to become this "Super Mom" that it would require meal planning, extensive grocery shopping, long periods of time on my feet, way more dishes and many more fun-filled side activities. All this said, I'm still stubborn enough to try to make it work, and tonight I planned to make Spaghetti and Meatballs from Pioneer Woman's wenbsite. Thank you to my sis for hooking me on this lady and her delicious recipes... no thank you for getting me hooked on her Malted Chocolate Chip Cookies! I truly believe that if I were to meet Ree (yes, we're on a first-name basis), then she would want to be best friends with me and we would giggle and make scrumptious food in her kitchen. I've thought about this a good amount, but until our friendship becomes a reality, I will stick to following her amazing comfort food recipes.

Yum. Eating this early has perks and now we can all play together and call Hensley's precious Grandpa Bee to celebrate his birthday today. Happy Birthday Bee! We all love you so much!

Hensley Eats Food!!

We were so excited to give Hensley her first taste of real food, and I think we might have built it up to be way more fun than it actually was. It started out fun, then went downhill super fast. She has no idea how to swallow, so this mysterious goop that appeared in her mouth was very disturbing to her! I was not ready for her to be LIVID when something went in her mouth, but we have really worked all week and she is getting better but Mommy and Daddy have to clap and act like she cured cancer after each bite. Seriously. It is about the most adorable thing in the world when she smiles and is so proud of herself, but every bit of the bite oozes out of her mouth. She is so cute it hurts!!

We didn't think to get a happy picture...sorry!

The video wouldn't download on here, but if I figure it out, I promise to post it later! xoxo

4 Month Appointment

We had Hensley's four month appointment last Friday, that way we would miss all those gross kids getting back to school. I was able to ask a thousand questions and seem like the most ridiculous mommy with my notepad, but I was reassured that our little girl is as healthy as can be! She weighed in at 16 pounds and a little over 25 inches. She is now so curious about EVERYTHING around her and wants everything to go into her mouth...including the nurse's stethoscope when she wasn't watching! She has a bit of excema on the back of her shoulders- she gets that from her momma. She got two big shots and I (of course) started crying when she did. She was a little sleepy that day, but mainly in pain from those horrible shots. We cuddled quite a bit and spoiled her rotten while she felt bad. The big news was that we got the green light to give her rice cereal. Hopefully, it will help her sleep longer for those power naps!!

4 months old

 Do I even need to apologize anymore for these being late! :) It seems I am two weeks behind in life, so this blog is one more casualty in my ever-hectic life. She is now four months old, and it is so bizzare how each stage of her life I seem to enjoy more than the last. She is a happy girl and loves to smile and play with us, and we are wrapped so much around her little baby finger! She has found two new best friends in life: her reflection and our dog, Bruce. Her first giggle was when she was sitting on Daddy's lap outside and he would throw the Kong to Bruce and when Bruce brought it back, she would crack up! Here goes my sweet and silly moments from month four:
Her silly moment is her squeal. It is loud, it commands the attention of all who can hear and she knows how and WHEN to use it. That little turd waits until quiet moments and lets out this high pitched squeal that I'm sure makes people think I just pinched my child!
I have a confession to make, and I fear that all of you will judge me...and might not want to associate with me anymore. I am fascinated by Hensley's boogers. I feel it is a great accomplishment when I suck one out of her tiny nose with her aspirator. The worst part is that I think they are almost cute and I want to keep them forever. To add insult to injury, I like to wipe them on innocent bystanders...like Jon. Poor guy has to watch out for flying diapers and the occasional booger swipe. I didn't use to find so much humor in gross things, but that is pretty much my life and I have decided to enjoy it and giggle the whole way.
My sweet moment is baby kisses. She has perfected how to put almost everything in her mouth, and my favorite one is when she grabs my face and kisses me on the lips. Jon thinks it is hilarious and giggles like a little schoolgirl when she gives him baby kisses! She looks at us and recognizes our faces instantly and it is so much fun when she smiles and wants to play when she sees us. Watching Henz with Jon is adorable because his voice automatically changes to this soft, calm voice that only she gets. I hope to at some point write down the lyrics to the songs he has made up for her, but actually hearing him sing it and watching her face respond and love him is something I will forever remember.

She has discovered her piggy bank and wants so badly to put it in her mouth!

Giggling at Daddy

This is one of Jon's childhood toys and she LOVES it!

Had to get a picture of her shoes- thanks Mia!!

Now becoming a tradition to get her screaming picture. It only took about 3 minutes to get to this point..

Love you and Hensley sends her hugs and drooly baby kisses to you all!