Noel: 3 til 4

Dear Noel,

Wow, girlie, I love you so much. I know you might feel shorted in attention or blog posts or photos or whatever (since you're the middle child and all), but I love you. You are so funny these days. Your most recent hilarity is talking about where all of the food you ate for dinner went: your green beans are in your toes, your noodles are in your elbow, your chicken is *right here* in your tummy, and so on. You call pretzels "kretzels" no matter how many times we correct you. The other day you were so hungry and I told you that you were just going to have to be patient. You looked at me oh so seriously and said, "But my tummy doesn't know how to be patient!" We all bust up laughing at that. And you're just generally silly and funny, which just makes you fun.



You're very sensitive, still, and we're constantly working on teaching you when it's ok to cry. For example, if you answer my question, "Why are you crying?" with "I don't know," then probably, just probably, you are not crying for a good reason. You get very upset when you feel like people aren't listening to you, looking at you when you're talking to them, have hurt your feelings, or have criticized you for something (recently you've gotten very upset when I've told you that your words were not kind and could hurt someone's feelings, even though you were joking). You want so much to be a big girl and to be doing things the right way that you get very upset when frustrated and unable to do something as well as you want.



You, my dear, are so different than Lane in a lot of ways. Lane is incapable of sitting still and being quiet for more than about 30 seconds. You, on the other hand, can lay in your bed quietly for an hour at rest/nap time. The other morning you came out at 6:30 and asked if you could get up and were so disappointed when I told you to go back to bed that I decided to let you lay in the hammock instead. I told you to be quiet and lay down and look for airplanes. And you did. For 45 minutes, without making a sound. On days you don't take a nap you usually fall asleep at bed time within 3-5 minutes, because you actually lay still and close your eyes and then you're just out.



You love to play. You always want to play something and you almost always want to have things in your hands. We have to remind you to put toys down when you're, for example, going to the bathroom or putting on clothes. You are starting to enjoy coloring and drawing and doing "school pages" more these days. You still like puzzles but can end up very frustrated very quickly, so puzzles that are too hard are usually off the table for now. You love to be read to and love to snuggle up and listen to books. You have your favorites, but most any book will do. You know how to write most of your letters, can recognize them all (in capitals), and know most preschool-ish things. I'm exited to officially do preschool with you in the fall when Lane starts kindergarten and to work on some things with you that I just haven't had time to work on.



You are a great sister. You love both Lane and Raye, and frequently give Lane something she wants "just because I love you." This usually does not pertain to toys, but to privileges, like picking the prayer at dinner time or which book to read first. You don't usually want to give up what you're playing with! You love Raye, sometimes a little too much, I think. You get very upset if she doesn't give you "enough" hugs at bedtime, if she doesn't want to play with you, and so on. You want her to want to be thisclose to you any time you decide it's time to play with her. But you are a great helper and are loving and kind to both of your sisters most of the time...you are kind-hearted and like to see others be happy.



You are a much better eater than you were a year ago. The other day you actually ate your three bites of spaghetti with sauce without complaining about them, and while you wanted your other noodles with just butter and cheese, I was so thrilled that you didn't whine over your three bites with sauce! You are generally a good eater (the exception is things with red sauce, but you're much better than you used to be!) and especially love the crunchy things. Your words. Peppers, cucumbers, and anything else that's crunchy is a win in your book. You also love milk and would never drink anything else (except juice, which you don't get very often) if I didn't make you have something else occasionally. You are the messiest ice cream eater I've ever known, and if the ice cream is in a cone and we're on the street, I can guarantee that you cannot finish the ice cream because the bottom half melts and you squish it out of the cone before you can eat it. You don't know how to do it any other way.



Noel, you are such a joy. You're a challenge these days with your emotions, but we're working with you a lot to help you control them and learn when it is appropriate to cry and when it is not. You are usually obedient, although you tend to get very distracted and forget what you were supposed to be doing. You are sweet and love to help and be in on the action, and you love to play with Lane, as long as you can agree on what to play: you do not like being bossed around, but you can also be pretty bossy yourself. I love the dynamic that you add to our family, and I'm so grateful that I've gotten to parent you for these almost-four years, and I pray for many more. I love you.

Mommy

Noel: 2 1/2 Years Old

Dear Noel,

It's been a long time since I wrote you a letter, dearie, so I figured it was high time I sat down and wrote one to you!

First of all, I'm sorry that you don't have all the same cute photos of your third year that Lane has. It's nothing personal. It's not even that you're the second child. It's that we've been in America ever since you turned two and life has just been crazy all around. I really hope to do a better job documenting some of your likes and dislikes and funny things you're doing, but I make no promises. Because honestly, when I have a few minutes to do things like that, most of the time I'd rather spend the time making memories with you than preserving memories. So play time usually wins out. Sorry, sweetie.


Sidewalk chalk! 'Nough said!

But on to the fun stuff. You, my dear, are hilarious. You are so, so verbal and it's absolutely amazing that you can pretty much hold your own in a conversation. You might start your sentence a million times before you find all the exact words you want to use, but you can hold a conversation with anyone. You could probably hold a conversation with a rock as well. But that's neither here nor there. You like to talk. I think you're fighting for attention and expressing yourself so we pay attention to you. Anyways, you say some really funny stuff. Like when we go outside and it's sunny and you want your sunglasses you'll exclaim, "My eyes are hot!" You say "buh-diculous" for ridiculous and "mead" for "need." And one of our favorites is that you ask us to do things with you "for a few whiles." It's like you've confused "a few minutes" with "a little while" and it's just so stinkin' cute. A lot of the time when we ask you a question you answer ambiguously: "Noel, do you want breakfast?" "I fink…" It's rarely yes or no, it's "I fink" or "I fink so." You've started to say, "That hurt my feelings" when you don't like something that someone's said, and just today when I was telling you that you had to eat one bite of spaghetti (you don't like red sauce) you told me, "I don't like those words." Ha! You're a hoot.

You are very, very emotional. You've always been this way, somewhat, but now that you're emotional and two, it makes for a lot of crying around here. You pitch a lot of fits and whine a lot, and you'll burst into tears because you're in trouble, and then five minutes later when you're still crying and I ask you why, you honestly reply, "I don't know!" through all your tears. You are also slow to warm up to people. You don't like crowds of people you don't know, and you don't really like anyone new, no matter how old or young. After you're around someone for awhile and get used to them then you can be best buddies, but until then you will most likely scream and yell, "Mama!" and run from them every chance you get.


You love the carousel!

Lane is your very best friend. You love to play with her, and you girls are actually getting good at playing together. Lane still drives a lot of the action, but you are usually quite happy to play along. Although you also hold your own a lot of the time…you don't let her take toys you're playing with or tell you what to do when you want to do something else. You have a great imagination and can actually be quite bossy when we're playing with you: you know exactly how you want everything to go and if we're playing "wrong" you will correct us. How a second-born child got as bossy as you I have no idea, but I'm glad you're not a pushover like a lot of second-borns are! And you love Raye…you say all the time, "Raye is so cute!" and you love to "pet" her and snuggle her. You can't wait to play with her.

This summer you've been wearing 3T clothes for the most part. You have some 2T things that fit, but mostly you're just wearing all 3Ts. And you're in a size 7 shoe. You were 36 inches tall and 29 pounds at your last doctor's visit (in April). You tell me frequently, "You're my best mommy," to which I reply, "You're my best Noel." Although really, if we have to call it like it is, you're a daddy's girl. You love your daddy and will choose him over me most of the time. I have my moments, but honestly, you prefer him.


You have really enjoyed swimming this summer.

You love to sing. You know all the words to Jesus Loves Me, the Auburn Fight Song, Glory, Glory to Ole Auburn, Auburn's Alma Mater (can you tell that Daddy is starting you young?), Sanctuary, Bless the Lord, and a host of other songs. You love to be read to and currently love our Pete the Cat book. You also love animals, especially any animal that will let you pet them. So you really enjoy petting Mimi and Papa's cat Ty, and any other cat that will have you.

You're a good eater. There are, of course, things you don't like, but you're pretty good about eating a bite or two of them. You've started putting the bite of something you don't like with a bite of something you do like in order to "make it yummy." You like almost all vegetables and most fruits (you're not a fan of cherries or nectarines right now). You love to drink milk and I kind of have to force water into you. You also love juice but you don't get it often, so it's a special treat. You also, of course, love dessert and almost any kind of bread or pasta. And cucumbers. Oh my goodness do you love cucumbers! It's the funniest thing to me just how much you love them!


You colored this in April…you were 2 and maybe 4 months. Impressive, I think.

You're pretty good at coloring and painting and artsy things, although I think you only do them because Lane loves them. If it weren't for her I think you'd just prefer to play most of the time. But we've taught you how to hold a pencil or crayon the right way and you're getting pretty good at staying in the lines. You also are learning how to write your name and can do the O, E, and L with no problems, but connecting the middle line in the N gives you some trouble. But you're doing really well.

You know all your colors, can count to 20 (although we need to work on numbering things while you count them), know all your letters and all basic shapes. You've been potty trained for almost a year now, although you had a lot of accidents up until January or so. You've been sleeping in a big-girl bed since December and you rarely get out of the bed. You still sleep with bunny, blankie, and 'raffie (your giraffe). You hate for me to give you pigtails which is so sad because you're so cute in them. You can put on and take off your pants and undies, and some of your shoes.


Your first time to Florida.

Noel, you're a sweetheart. You're very, very two-years-old these days and pitch lots of fits and demand your own way, but you're also very, very sweet and are fairly compliant and obedient. Every day you get a little more independent and it's fun to watch you grow and develop and learn new things. We are so, so glad you're a part of our family.

I love you,
Mommy

12 Months Old

Dear Noel,

Last week you turned one year old. Girlie, it's been a good year. I cannot imagine life without you, life without chasing you and your sister down, breaking up a fight (usually it's her wanting whatever you're playing with, but you've recently started to pitch a fit when you want what she's got), changing tons of diapers and washing loads and loads of laundry. My life would be so much easier without you, but it's so much more full with you, and that is what I focus on when I'm overwhelmed at raising the two of you. You and Lane just light up my life, and I can't believe that God has been so good to me in giving me both of you. He didn't just give me one daughter, He gave me two. I am so blessed to have you both.



This month has been a fun one. You're walking well now, and you are fast. You're not running yet, but you might as well be, because you can book it and be in another room before we even have a clue that you're gone. You still fall a good bit, but it's usually because you've tripped on a rug, gotten too excited and careless as you're going fast, or because Lane is chasing you and you're trying to escape. =) It's so fun watching you walk around...there are few things cuter than watching you from behind as you waddle along.


    Except maybe you sticking your tongue out. That might be cuter. =)

No more teeth this month, but your bottom two molars are working their way in. Your gums are swollen and I can feel that they'll probably pop through any day now. You are definitely cranky if you don't get some Ibuprofen regularly. Seeing how miserable you are without it makes me very grateful for modern medicine!



You're just about all into 12-month clothes now, although you still have a few 9-month onesies that you wear occasionally. Sometimes I look at all the clothes you have and feel like you have a ton, but you actually wear almost all of them, and I think it's because you're usually wearing tights, socks, pants, a onesie, and another shirt. And maybe a zip-up hoodie, too, depending on how cold it is. I have no idea how much you weigh, really...I need to weigh you with me one day when we're at a friend's house. I know you're bigger than Lane was at your age, and you are by no means a fat baby, but you are definitely healthy! I wish I could plot you on a growth chart, but it'll have to wait until we can see a pediatrician at some point.


    Taken on your birthday. You crack me up!

This month we moved you into Lane's room, so you two are sharing a room now. It's going pretty well...tonight we actually put you both in bed at the same time and there wasn't much fussing or crying or anything. I'm hoping to hear you both wake up tomorrow like I did today: making each other laugh. It was a joy to my ears this morning to hear you both in there cracking up. Speaking of bedtime, you have a blankie and a bunny-blankie that you absolutely love. And you definitely like the paci, too. You have exactly one pacifier, so we keep close tabs on it. Maybe after all your teeth are in we'll try to wean you from it, but for now...it definitely helps soothe you, so we'll be keeping it around for awhile longer.



You're a big fan of table food these days. You still love scrambled eggs, and I still keep some barley cereal around just in case, but for the most part, you'll eat what we're eating. You love soups and casseroles, and you like most veggies, too. You've started drinking milk from a cup, and while you can lift it to your mouth to take a drink, I don't usually let you because you get overzealous and dump it all over yourself. You point to your cup when you want a drink...it's very, very cute. You love dried fruit and crackers with soft cheese, pancakes or toast with peanut butter, baked oatmeal, soup, chicken divan, and spaghetti. You're still nursing in the mornings (and occasionally in the middle of the night these days, with you waking up from teething), but I don't think you'd miss it if one morning I just didn't nurse you. I think you'd be fine, but I'm holding off for a bit because I really do like the fact that it does soothe you if you wake in the middle of the night from teething pain.



Noel, you are starting to love to play. You like to play with all our kitchen stuff, both play food and dishes in your room, and real plastic dishes and pots and pans in the kitchen. You love the magnets on the fridge, a small Minnie Mouse figurine, and books. You've started bringing books to me, saying "buh!" and coming to sit on my lap while I read it to you. You also like balls and have a great time with our blow-up beach balls. You're starting to figure out how to play with Lane (or rather, she's starting to figure out how to play with you), and you girls are going to be friends, I just know it. It might take some work and some teaching you both how to love each other well, but you're going to be friends. I can see it it the glimpses of laughter and smiles that you draw from each other occasionally.


    Playing with Lane at your birthday party...we were having a "dance party" and you were cracking up at Lane dancing around and being silly.

Noel, I love you so much. I'm so grateful for a whole year with you, and while I pray for many more, even I don't get them for some reason or another, I'm grateful for what I've had. You have brought much joy into my life. I love you.

Mommy

11 Months Old

Dear Noel,

Yesterday you turned 11 months old. I still can hardly believe that's it been that long. It seems like you've always been with us. And I like it that way.

This month has been a pretty big one for you. You took your first steps and now are up to 10 or 15 steps before you lose your balance and plop on your bottom. You're a little bit more reserved in your walking than Lane was...a little bit more calculated, but nevertheless, you're walking and I'm not sure I'm ready for it. You particularly love to walk to me or daddy and dive into us instead of taking the last three or four steps to get to us.

You also got two more teeth, putting your total up to eight. You have twice as many teeth as Lane did when she was 11 months old. These last two teeth were awful, too, and you didn't sleep well and were very clingy and grumpy. I think it might have something to do with the fact that you got three other teeth right before these two, and you got five teeth in six weeks, I think. I'm very glad that it appears you might get a small break before the molars start popping through!



We finally transitioned you into a crib, so you sleep in the crib at night in the office and in the pack-n-play in our room during the day. Eventually we'll put you in the bedroom with Lane, but I'll confess I'm waiting until your molars come through...I don't want to just get you girls settled into being together and then you start teething again and not sleep well. So, a few more months of this arrangement and then you'll start sharing a room with your sister.

You say a few words now, which is really fun. Of course you say "mama" and "dada," but this month you started saying "nite nite" and "bot bot" (bye bye). You kind of say "nana" (banana), too, but that one's still iffy. You are a jabber-jaws, though, and I bet you start talking soon.

Noel, you love to eat. I mean, seriously, you love food. You act like we starve you, too, screaming and screeching at us if we're not shoveling it in fast enough. Your favorite foods are toast with peanut butter, scrambled eggs, and grapes. You love, love, love those things. This month you also tried various beans, pumpkin, applesauce, store-bought buckwheat cereal (what can I say, we moved and buying cereal just was so much easier!), soft cheese, noodles, and rice (not ground-up). You're a big fan of almost everything. Actually, you like it all and will eat it all, but you're starting to express preferences as to what you want to eat and when you want to eat it. For example, you will no longer eat bananas if they are cut into small pieces. You want to hold it and bite it yourself and will just throw the pieces on the floor if it's not given to you as a large piece. Stuff like that shows us a bit of your personality and it's fun to see you becoming a little person with likes and dislikes and preferences.



You really enjoy knocking over block towers now. In fact, you enjoy it so much that you rarely let us get a second tower more than two blocks high before you're knocking it over again. You also love balloons. You will shriek in joy playing with them, and have figured out to hold onto the balloon at the knot so that you can crawl around with it. You're really funny. Also, you finally like bath time again. There were a couple of months where you didn't really like the bath...I think due to where we were living and how loud the water coming out of the faucet was. But you are over it and enjoy playing in the tub again, for which I am grateful.

Noel, you are such a gift and such a joy. You are easygoing and laid-back and are very content with life as long as you are fed and rested. I love having you as part of our family and am so excited to see you grow and find your place in our little family. We just wouldn't be complete without you.

I love you,
Mommy

*Sorry there aren't many photos, baby girl. We moved and taking photos has just not been a big priority these days!*

10 Months Old

Dear Noel,

Ten months. Ten whole months you've been in this world, and as each day goes by I can scarcely believe that yet another day has gone by. And each day you just get cuter and cuter. You are such a pleasant baby, happy and smiley so much of the time. You're starting to learn how to actually play and it's really, really fun. You love peek-a-boo and for someone to "chase" you on our hands and knees.



We play this game with you that is just hilarious: we start to fill your shape sorter with shapes and other small toys, and you immediately know what's coming and try to attack it, but we make you wait until we've got it full and the lid on, and then we say "go!" You beeline it for the shape sorter and rip the top off and chuck it and all the shapes and toys out of the bucket and over your shoulder. You don't stop until you have emptied the bucket, and for good measure, also thrown anything else in the vicinity over your shoulder as well. It is so funny.


    Playing.

This month you got some more teeth. You're up to six already. You have your front four teeth, and both of ones to the right of those front four (three on top, three on bottom). You're a teething champ, and while you get a bit fussy, you really handle the whole thing pretty well, especially considering you've gotten two teeth on the same day twice already.



A few days ago you signed "all done" and "more" for the first time, and while your signs are still pretty sketchy looking, it was obvious that's what you were doing, and I'm excited for you to start signing more as you get a bit older. Also, the other day after dinner I said to you, "Are you all done?" and you, clear as day, said "Aw done." We were shocked, but you seem to keep saying it, so maybe you actually have a new word already! You still say "mama" and "dada," and you also say "Uh oh" or "Uh" when we say it. I think you're going to be more verbal than Lane was, at least early on, and that you're going to be a bit less physically agile, at least in the beginning.


    You've watched Lane do this so often that now you want to draw, too!

While you do like to walk while holding onto our hands, you have no desire to try it for yourself, and you prefer to drop to your bottom and crawl after anything you want. You're getting good at squatting and standing back up, and one of these days we're going to see you stand yourself up right in the middle of the floor.

We took you for your 9-month checkup a couple weeks ago, and you're up to 18 pounds and 28 inches long. You love to eat, which explains why you've tripled your birth weight in ten months! You're still fond of purees and still get rice cereal, oatmeal, some pureed veggies, and yogurt almost every day, but you're finally starting to take interest in table food that's not completely smooth. You'll eat scrambled eggs, bananas, grapes, regular oatmeal, raisins, and some veggies if they're very, very soft. You'll also eat quinoa or bulgur that's been in soup and is soft and watery, but you are not a fan at all of regular rice. I also let you have some zucchini bread this month, and you loved it. You ate an entire piece and would have eaten more had I let you.


    You like to put your fingers in your mouth while you're eating and then run them through your hair...

You're still sleeping pretty well, although we've had a few rough nights this month. I think the three teeth you got gave you a bit of trouble and you'd wake up, but would always go back to sleep after I nursed you. You still also usually wake up at 4:00 or 5:00 in the morning wanting to eat, but after I nurse you you'll go back to sleep for another hour or two. I'm looking forward to the day you start to sleep past the crack of dawn on your own! But until then I'll just soak up the early morning snuggles with you. You're finally nursing well and I've enjoyed nursing you this month, a welcome change after the past six months. You take your time now and don't get frustrated, and it's made me much more happy that I didn't give up. You'll even nurse for comfort now, something I never dreamed we'd be doing. I'm so happy that I don't dread nursing you any longer.



Noel, I love you so much. I was talking with your Aunt Rachel just the other day and she was talking about how she couldn't imagine loving another baby (the one in her belly) as much as she loves your cousin Maddox. And I told her that it really is just amazing, that you love the second child every bit as much as the first. Your heart just grows to love someone else, and it really is amazing that God made us that way, capable of loving multiple people every bit as much. I'm so happy that you're part of our family, that God has given you to us. I'm sorry for the times I fail you, but I promise that I'm trying to show you love and to cherish every day with you. I hope you remember that when you are older; not how clean our house was or what kinds of food I cooked for you, but that I loved you with everything I had. Because I do.

Love,
Mommy

9 Months Old

Dear Noel,

A couple days ago you turned nine months old. This has been a really fun month for you. You've become very adept at crawling and it is now your preferred way of getting around. You also started cruising along the furniture, and you can stand on your own for a few seconds, although you don't do it often. And you also learned how to drop to your bottom when you're tired of standing up, for which I am very grateful. All of this newfound mobility has opened up a world of things for you to do, and you have a great time getting into everything. You especially love getting into anything that Lane is doing, and her favorite new phrase is, "No, Noel." She tells you "no" about everything, even if you're not actually getting into anything she's doing, she's still telling you "no." It's hilarious. But she also loves to play with you, tickling you and giving you zerberts on your belly. I'm very excited to watch the two of you play together in the near future...you will surely be the best of friends.

What you can't see here is who you're smiling at: Lane's on the couch playing with you.

This month you got a new tooth! The top right one finally came through after what seemed like forever (but was probably actually only a week) of bothering you. You didn't sleep well and woke up at least once, if not twice, a night wanting snuggles and some medicine. It's finally through, though, and now there are two more on their way. They don't seem to be bothering you nearly as much, though.

Feeling a tail on the "Tails" book.

Cute things you're doing this month: when we go anywhere, you start screeching, "Ah! Ah! Ah!" and Lane usually echoes you, and sometimes the rest of us join in. You started babbling "dadadada" and "mamamama," and although you don't know what they mean yet, it sure is fun to hear you say them. You also have figured out how to softly exhale on purpose and do it when nursing quite a bit. And you like to make funny noises with your mouth, popping it open and closed. You like to stick your fingers in my mouth when I sing to you, just like your sister did when she was your age.

Cruisin' along!

You are fascinated with cords and we're having to tell you "no" now, which you don't like too much. You like to look at toys for .03 seconds before you drop them and go for the next one. And you love to watch television with Lane. I tried really hard to keep you from watching it so early, but now that you're mobile I can't really keep you out of the room that she's in. So, watch, you do.

We're finally settling into somewhat of a routine, as well. You wake up between 6:00 and 7:00 most days and eat. Around 9:00 or 9:30 you nap for 1 1/2 hours. Then you eat again. You nap at 1:30 or 2:00 again for 1 1/2 or 2 hours and then eat again. And then you nurse and are into bed at 7:00 or so. Every now and then you need a third, short nap, but most of the time this is what your day looks like.

Eating: your favorite pastime.

You're still a good eater and are getting really good at shoving Cheerios into your mouth. This month you tried some wheat products (pancakes and toast), some meat, cream cheese, broccoli, plums, watermelon, and cantaloupe. It's been a pretty boring month for you as far as food goes because we've been packing up and I just haven't had much time to dedicate to introducing you to new things. I've started letting you try our table food, though, and while you turn your nose up at it most of the time, every now and then you decide you like something (like celery out of soup, or pancakes). I'm looking forward to making some more things that you can try, as you certainly still are a big fan of food! We're also still nursing four times a day and while I'm so ready to wean you (you are a lazy nurser, girl, and it gives me clogged ducts all. the. time.), I also know that this is what's best for you and that we can make it three more months. You're learning how to drink water from a regular cup, though, and we'll introduce you to cow's milk in two or so months, and I'm glad you'll be able to get it from a cup instead of a bottle.

Noel, this has been such a fun month to watch you grow and develop and learn. It's so different this time around, watching you interact with Lane and not get to be the center of attention all the time like she was. I feel like you make our family a family. I'm not saying we weren't a family before, just that it's like you were meant to be a part of it, and now you are and it's just right. Life is a lot more work now, no doubt. But it's more fun, too. And you're totally worth it.

I love you,

Mommy

8 Months Old

I think you look just like Lane did in this photo.

Dear Noel,

Last week you turned eight months old. This has been a big month for you! You learned how to crawl, although you still army crawl a lot of the time as well. You learned how to get yourself to a sitting position on your own. And you learned how to pull up, although at this point once you get yourself up, that's about all you can do, and then you stand there looking around until you get tired and whine for someone to help you down. You also really, really enjoy climbing all over things. If someone is sitting down, you want to crawl onto their legs, over their legs, around their legs, and so on. You're really, really funny.

You also love to eat. I think that you eat more than Lane did when she was your age, but you're about the same size as she was. An average day for you in food looks like this: 1/2 cup of yogurt and 1/2 piece of fruit for breakfast, 1/2 cup vegetables and 1/2 cup cereal for lunch, and 1/2 cup veggies, 1/2 cup cereal, and an egg yolk for dinner. Throw a bunch of Cheerios, a banana, the rest of your piece of fruit from breakfast, and possibly another 1/4 to 1/2 cup of veggies in there and there's your daily menu. And you're still nursing four times a day, on occasion five times. You are a very impatient nurser, getting either really mad when it gets difficult (if you're really hungry), or just completely uninterested. Most days I think about how I can't wait to wean you, because our nursing relationship is not one that is usually enjoyable for me, and you just seem frustrated most of the time. But we're a little over eight months in and I think we can make it four more. I'll just be glad when you can get all of your food as quickly as you want it.

Showing off your two chompers.

Your eyes are still blue, and they light up when you're excited. You love to give us "love hits," where you smack us in the face with pure delight. You give us big, open-mouthed kisses when we make kissy noises at you at say "Gimme a kiss!" in a sweet voice. You know your name now and will turn to look at us when we say it. You still love your sister and want to do whatever she's doing, which she's not too happy about most of the time. Your attention span is pretty short, though, and you move from toy to toy really quickly. If you had your choice, you'd spend all your waking hours either eating or sitting in someone's lap. Or playing peek-a-boo with Lane. You crack up like crazy when she hides under the blow-up pool and peeks out at you from underneath it...it's your favorite game.

Most days you're a champion sleeper, taking two 1.5-hour naps and sleeping 11-12 hours at night. We're still working out the kinks in moving you from three naps a day to two and it's caused you to get to bed a little too early most nights, and therefore wake up a little too early each morning, but I think in another couple weeks you'll be straightened out.

You have the attention span of a goldfish.

Noel, you are so sweet and it's so fun to watch you interact with Lane. Watching you interact with her, watch her, laugh at her, and try to play with her is so fun and is something we didn't get to see Lane do when she was your age. It's special that we get to watch you do something that she never did, which is to be enthralled with your sibling. We all love you so much and love watching you grow and develop and learn new things. It's been another fun month, and as you get more capable of doing things on your own, you just get even more fun.

I love you,

Mommy

7 Months Old

Dear Noel,

I can't even believe that you're seven months old already...closer to your first birthday than to the day you were born. Time goes by so quickly.

As I write this to you, you are wearing nothing but a diaper and are lying in front of me, pulling yourself around on the floor with your belly squeaking as you drag yourself around. You're hot and sweaty and have fuzz stuck all over yourself from your nap, and you have drool running down your face. You're cooing and smiling from ear to ear, kicking your legs and using your feet to help push yourself around. I think you're the cutest thing I've ever seen.

This month has been so fun. You have learned how to creep and always are trying to get to where everyone (and all the action) is. You're still pretty slow, but I think most of that is due to your belly sticking to the floor, not due to your inability to pull yourself along! You've been pushing yourself up onto all fours for a couple weeks now, and rocking a bit, but you always drop to your belly to actually move forward. I bet you start crawling within a week or two, though.

Yesterday (the day after you turned seven months old) you got your first tooth. And your second one, too. Both of your bottom teeth popped through yesterday, one of them overnight and the other was through by mid-day. You've taken the whole teething thing like a champ and have been a little fussy, but not too much. I actually think you're mainly fussy because it's so hot, not because you're getting teeth.

One of your first tastes of green beans. You weren't a fan, but you love them now!

You, my dear, are a little piglet. You love food. You don't like to feed yourself yet, but you eat an absolute ton every day. I can't wait to take you to the doctor on Tuesday and see how much you've gained this month, because surely you've packed on some weight. This month you've had homemade rice and oat cereals, zucchini, green beans, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and pears. Every day you usually eat 1/2 cup each of oat and rice cereal, a banana, 4 cubes of veggies, and 1/2 a large peach (or that much of another fruit), plus a little bit of yogurt. You are a hungry little girl. You also like to stick your fingers in your mouth while you're eating, which makes for some big messes. I'm not sure what you're doing, exactly, but it sure is funny! And you hate to have your face wiped off...hate it, I tell you.

This month you got to take your first dip in a real swimming pool, and you thought it was pretty fun. You love the bathtub even more now that you can sit up well and play with all the toys. You love it when I sing you "This is the Day," and at bedtime and nap time when I sing you "Jesus Loves Me," you rest your head against my chest until I finish singing and lay you down. You like to bang on the little toy piano we have, and you love peek-a-boo now. You like to pull the blanket off my head and grin really big at me when you "find" me.

All the playing wore you out!

You are still such a great, easy, and calm baby. You get so excited anytime we play with you, smile at you, or sing to you. You're taking two longer naps and one 30-45 minute catnap each day, and are sleeping all night again. I still can't believe you've been a part of our family for seven whole months already...how quickly the time goes.

I love you!

Mommy

6 Months Old

Dear Noel,

Today you complete half a year. Six whole months. Six months ago today I had no idea that you would be part of our lives later that day...I thought you were going to wait a couple more weeks like your sister did, but you wanted here in a hurry! We kind of thought that your personality was shining through in how impatient you were to get here, but you have proved us wrong. You are the most laid-back, easygoing baby there is. You love to watch ceiling fans go around and around. You love it when I read "Brown Bear, Brown Bear" to you and Lane. And you love your sister. You watch her almost constantly when she's around. You have decided that sucking your thumb is old news and refuse to do it these days, preferring your pacifier. I have to say I'm relieved.

Noel, this past month you've learned how to do a lot. You are now a rolling machine. You can roll from back to tummy and tummy to back with no problems. You can push yourself up onto your knees kind of like you're doing a "girl" push-up. You can push yourself around in circles while you're on your belly, allowing you to reach toys that we've scattered around for you. You found your feet this month and enjoy grabbing them while you're on your back. And you can sit up on your own for a bit before toppling over.

You also had your first solid food this month. You ate an entire avocado over the course of a week, you've tried some banana, and yesterday I gave you a bite or two of carrots. You're not the best yet at eating and swallowing, and it takes you a really long time to get a teeny bit of food into your belly, but you really enjoy eating and attack the spoon to get the food. You'd been eyeing our food and trying to grab it for awhile, and you're definitely enjoying eating, even if you're not the best at swallowing yet. You've grown a bit and are up to 14.5 pounds and 25.5 inches long.

Just chillin' at the park.

You also went to the U. S. for the first time this month. You visited Alaska and Texas and got to meet Grandma, Uncle Ben, Aunt Rachel, and your cousin Maddox. You were such a trooper during the traveling and did so well. I hated to force jet-lag on you, but you've recovered pretty well and are almost back to your usual, sleeping-eleven-hours-at-night self. You're napping pretty well during the day, taking three naps, and being awake for about eight or nine hours total of the day. We also moved you up into 6-month clothes this month, as all the 3-month ones are definitely too small now. You're growing up so quickly but we're enjoying every minute of it. I can't wait to see what you're like in another six months!

I love you,

Mommy

Playing with Daddy after two weeks away.

5 Months Old

Dear Noel,

A few days ago (ok, ok, a week ago) you turned five months old. This month hasn't really been a major milestone-achieving month for you, but it's certainly been a fun one! You did learn how to roll from your back to your belly, and you spent the better part of three or four days doing nothing but rolling; even when you were tired of holding your head up you would roll right back onto your belly and start crying for me to roll you back over so you could do it again. Now you've strengthened up your neck muscles and enjoy being on your tummy for 10-15 minutes before you're ready to be flipped over. You're also starting to be able to push yourself around a bit, and I wouldn't be surprised if you start creeping within another month or so.

Sporting your first headband, courtesy of our friends David and Christy.

This month you only gained 240 grams, or about half a pound, putting you up to 13 pounds, 4 ounces, and you grew 3 more centimeters, putting you up to 25 inches long. You're still pretty short and on the lower end of the weight spectrum, but you've got some rolls on your legs so we think you're doing just fine, although the doctor wants us to give you solids this month. We may try some avocado or rice cereal.

You're still such a little peanut, snoozing on the big bed!

You've started to actually like your pacifier, and I think that once you can move around to find it, you'll prefer it over your thumb. Noel, you are such a happy and smiley baby. You just love to be paid attention to, cooed at, and tickled. You're at that stage than another friend dubbed something like, "that happy, smiling, rolling-all-over-the-place stage." It's so much fun to watch you observe everything around you, work on your hand-eye coordination by trying to get things in your mouth, and interact with Lane, whom you love. Every month with you just gets better and better!

Love,

Mommy