Half a Year

I blinked.

Six months and you are so far from the little newborn I brought home from the hospital.

I am already kicking myself for not savoring the time more but I have learned my lesson for the future.

17 lbs 14 ounces and 28 inches of sweet baby goodness.

You are still above the 95th percentile for height, I wonder if this will continue.

I always measured large as a baby and height isn't really on my side anymore.

Everyday with you is so much fun as you are learning to explore your world.

You are grabbing anything within reach and if we give you the opportunity it goes directly into your mouth where your two teeth and gums munch on it.

You are really giggling and all Dad and I do is try to make you laugh.

Momma spent her first night away from you to go to a friend's birthday in San Diego.

It was awful for her but Daddy did such a great job with you.

I mastered pumping and driving. It was about as hilarious as you can picture it. You're welcome.

You fight sleep so badly now! If we even dare to venture near the rocker when you are drowsy you throw a serious fit.

Sometimes you are happier to just be laid down in your crib without rocking. 

That makes me so sad - you are growing up and getting independent!

We love to put our faces really close together and make each other laugh.

You think it's hilarious to try and put my nose in your mouth and it is actually pretty hard for Momma to get around it - maybe because you are tightly holding onto my hair on both sides.

You were fascinated by The Kentucky Derby and considering how much you love your pony rides on Daddy's shoulders, we are thinking you may be our little equestrian.

But truthfully, we hope not because it is expensive and dangerous.

You are sitting up and this seems to please you very much.

You are also sitting in highchairs at restaurants and this also makes you very happy.

We have had some close calls with you grabbing plates and threatening to toss them on the floor but up to this point we have managed to prevent them all.

You don't mind your car seat anymore and I think it's because you know you get to go somewhere.

I have never met a baby more well behaved in public.

You are truly our party girl and people watcher.

6 months? 6 MONTHS? 6 of the best months of my life.

Now please stop growing.

Thank you.

The Beast is Done

Three months ago I was inspired to sew a quilt for Rivers. I got the whole quilt top assembled and then stopped because as a novice quilter, I was unsure of the next steps. I read blogs online, I consulted books but something about the process still intimidated me and I just abandoned the project. The quilt top sat draped over the back of a chair in my sewing room, looking quite lovely, but forgotten. Then last week my friend Stephanie posted an entry about her quilting group and then Sherry from younghouselove posted her first quilt she had finished for her daughter and I thought to myself....it's time. I was off from work on Wednesday, so Rivers and I headed over to Beverly's looking for some fabric that would make a cute quilt back. We were uninspired in Beverly's so we bought some batting and then headed next door to Village Grill to eat some pancakes and say hello to my mom. After the grill, we decided to stop by Strawberry Patches on the way home. Even though their fabric is expensive, their selection is wonderful and we quickly found the polka dot fabric that would serve as our backing. Back at home, I trimmed the batting and backing to the size of my quilt top (which I should mention was not quite proportionate as I didn't use a pattern for my quilt and simply made things up as I went along).  I started to do some topstitching when I ran out of thread. I thought about abandoning the project for a few more months but instead I loaded up Puddin Buns and we went to the quilting store that I remembered existed about a mile from our house. From this point on, I was a machine! I was dedicated to my project and could focus on nothing else (thank goodness Rivers loves her jumper, bad momma!). I was working on the bias tape until late in the evening and was about to sew it on when the instructions no longer made sense to my tired self. I called it a night and went to bed already dreaming about Friday when I could finish my project. Which brings us to today, Friday. The quilt is done! It is far from perfect, in fact it's a hot mess in many locations, but it is complete and hopefully, like the quilt from my grandmother, Rivers will find it very special one day. For now, she seems content to lay on it and even expressed her approval with an ounce of spit up - which if you know her, is her marker of anything good - clean clothes, people's carpet, her Dad. And because you are riddled with suspense.......

Ralpherson can't be left out of the action.