Baby Etta goes swimming

While in Missoula we were able to enjoy the pool at the hotel. Etta really seems to love being in water. Even tries to dunk her own face in every once in a while. I have to make sure that I am paying close attention to her every second! But even after a face dunk she still comes up with her great smile. We are hoping to get swimming lessons for Christmas.

7th Month Annibirthery

Happy 7 months Baby Etta!

Today you weighed in at 16 lbs. 11oz.

Some of your very favorite things include jumping in the Johnny Jump Up, growling, screaming, cooing at and teasing the little dogs, rolling all around and playing peek-a-boo before bed.

You are getting ready to crawl and you are finally back to eating a little bit of solid food.

But you are getting to be such a big girl. We love you so much and are enjoying watching you grow!

Month 7 on the rug



First ride in the shopping cart



First bath in the big tub all by yourself!



Family shot at Festival of the Trees

Giving Thanks for the little things...

...like that I waited to change Etta into her brand new Thanksgiving/Christmas dress until after she pooped so much that it went half way up her back!

Quick Trip

Last weekend we traveled to Missoula, MT for the big CAT/GRIZ showdown. I won't mention the game but...we had a great time seeing my parents and brother. Erik marched in the Cat band. They did a great job. At one point the whole band, minus the low brass - lucky Erik - did the Thriller Dance. Oh yeah, only marching band! Over all it was a quick but very fun trip!

Gramps



Montana Grandma



Uncle Erik

Nothing like Gramp's lap

Etta travels fairly well in the car. At least compared to other stories that I have heard. Surprisingly enough, since Erik (and um, I) can be in full coma in less than two miles, she really doesn't sleep that much when we are traveling. So when we get some where she can be a bit tired. Even at a football game where there are over 26,000 screaming fans...

...she can sleep sitting up and...


...for not-a-belly-sleeper, sleep where ever she is laid!

Like Uncle like niece

I keep telling people that she looks like her Uncle Erik

Comfort and security

Sometimes she just ends up tucked up in the corner of the crib. Maybe she feels safer that way.






And who can be afraid of monsters under the crib when you have your attack kitty standing guard?

She's very advanced

Past and present

Being with Etta day to day really takes the edge off of watching her grow. But when looking back at other pictures you can really see the difference!





A couple of differences:
When brand new her whole torso was about the size of the buckle. Now you can't see the buckle for the blankets.

Her little toes were only about half way to the edge of the seat. Now I live in fear of accidentally breaking one of her ankles as I am hefting the car seat in and out of the car since her feet now hang over!

The shoulder straps were almost too high for her to fit in the seat. Just last week Bob had to switch the straps so that they were in the TOP slots!

Princess Etta Grace

These pictures were taken back in early September (I believe) and I didn't even think about putting them on the blog. When I mentioned it to Montana Grandma she said, "Well, YES you should put them on! Everyone in Fort Benton calls her The Princess". So here is Her Highness.

Thank you

This is a day late. But the gratitude is there.

Thank you for keeping us free and safe.

Hi Montana Grandma!

This is my tie-dyed onesie and my good friend Yotango! We are having fun playing.



Love you and can't wait to see you in a couple of weeks!

To: Uncle Erik

Dear Uncle Erik,

This is a post just for you. (Well, other people will probably look at it, but the pictures were taken just for you.) One I am in my totally sweet MSU bib before I ate cereal one day. The other picture is from today. My mom told me that you were tired of seeing me in orange, looking like a boy. Well, today she put me in a pink onesie and purple pants. Is that girlie enough for you? I look pretty good in pink. Makes my hair look really red.

Can't wait to see you in two weeks in Missoula! Go Cats!

Love,
Etta

Sleeping Beauty

For the longest time Etta always slept like this...



Then one day I went into her room and low and behold...



So then I was able to get a few more "alternative" sleeping shots...

Green . . . beans?

After highly enjoying rice cereal and oatmeal for a month Etta did not respond to green beans quite the way that I thought she would. After studying them for a few minutes, feeling them, looking at them, getting a taste in her mouth, she decided with the first spoonful that she was NOT interested. To the point of throwing them up! I felt really badly, but knew that she wasn't hurt. I did not make her choke down the rest that day. Scraped up a bit to kind of mix in with the rice cereal helping that I made to finish the meal. Tuesday I did two parts rice cereal:one part beans, Wednesday was equal parts and today will be two to one with beans being the main thing. It can take more than a few times to get kids to eat something. I'm not discouraged!

[To those mothers out there thinking, "She should have started with orange vegetables". "She should have started with fruit." "She should have..." Thanks for the advice. Everybody is different. And since Etta gained 9 oz last week(!) I think that we'll be okay in the long run.]

These pictures don't really do the whole thing justice. But when your baby is literally throwing up the last thing on your mind is getting a good picture!

Hmmmmmmmm, what is this?



It looks like poop!



I let it touch my lips mom. That's as far as it goes.

Fall: Bumbo Style

Decided to rake up some of the leaves today as it is supposed to rain the rest of the week. And what a better way to include the baby than setting her up in her Bumbo in the middle of it all? She loved being in the leaf piles, grabbing the leaves, shifting the leaves, eating the leaves...I tried to stay close so I don't think that she got any actual bites.







And this happy Bumbo picture is from just before going on our walk the other day. Etta absolutely loves being outside. I hope that I can maintain enough energy to let her grow with that love. Healthy habits = healthy life!

Fall: A baby's eye view

Yesterday we took a nice fall walk in the beautiful sunshine. I tried to get some different pictures of what Etta sees - when she is in the front pack. Made it a little difficult to get a couple. Hope that you enjoy them all!

Roto-Rooter to the rescue

Last Monday night I needed to do a load of whites because we were quickly running out of burp rags. In goes the load. We settled in to feed the baby and watch a little TV. Suddenly the toilet starts making strange bubbling noises. We weren't really sure what the deal was. I casually mentioned to Bob that he may want to go check the drain next to the washer in case of "flooding". In he goes, and out he comes with a frown and a grumble. Next he checked the shower. Sure enough, water was coming up through the shower too. Great! How much fun is this going to be? He got everything cleaned up and called to leave a message for Roto-Rooter.

The next morning I got a call from the company. "Um, can it wait until tomorrow?" Uh, yeah, I guess. I was pretty much caught up on laundry and we don't HAVE to run the dishwasher on Tuesday...So sometime between 9:00-11:00 on Wednesday a guy was going to come by and check things out. I rushed home from choir practice so that by some off chance he happened to show up at 9:00 I wouldn't miss him.

He got here at 10:00. Started checking things out. Apparently we don't have a "clean out" valve or something so he was going to try a roof vent snake. Um, okay. Amazingly enough Etta slept through the ladder being slammed against the roof - right outside of her window - and the whole snake contraption being run - right outside of her window. What finally woke her up? When they STOPPED to come in to tell me that that wasn't going to work and that they were going to have to take the toilet off...

So after two and a half hours...all in all the guy was super nice, worked as fast as he possibly could, and cleaned up after himself. The whole situation could have been MUCH worse. We were actually truly blessed with the entire situation.

Enjoy a few shots from our adventure of the week...

Race Day

Yesterday I participated in my first "race" since before I got pregnant. I was pretty apprehensive about the whole thing for some reason. Probably due to the fact that even though I have been training a bit I am not anywhere near in the same physical condition that I was pre-pregnancy. But with Christine by my side cheering me on I finished the 4.65 miles strong. (Well, if you look closely I did not finish as strong as Christine...) Etta was sleeping in the car when we first arrived and registered. I was afraid that she would continue to sleep and would miss out on being in her first race. But while we were waiting to start she woke up and daddy quickly got her bundled up and to the start line. Thanks Bob! She slept most of the time as she does during our morning runs. It was a great time and I'm glad that I did it. Thanks Christine for being the support that I needed. On to Missoula!

Waiting to start



Ready, set, GO!



The final stretch. (Check it up close. A look of someone who has been training and someone who obviously has not!)



I'm pooped. Take me home, Bob.