Let the mess begin!

Calista is ready to eat!

 Here, Mom, let me help you.

Yum?

Half birthday..!

I can't believe it, but it's true. My baby girl is six months - a whole half year! - old. She's growing up way too fast, it's completely surreal. I want her to stay my little baby forever, but grow she must... and some of those side effects of getting older I can't wait for - please, Baby Girl, sleep a nice, solid chunk at night (maybe even the whole time?) again. This month hasn't been the easiest for us. We just got back from Oregon when Calista got pathetically sick. All she wanted to do was sleep, eating wasn't even a big draw for her, which was not like her at all. Thankfully, she's better now and back to being a champion eater, squealer, and smiler.

Pathetic and sick, no? This was actually when she was starting to get better...

Once she got better, she really started to enjoy her Christmas presents, and also started sitting up really well... with some balance assistance.

Playing with the block stacker - she loves it, even if Ikea says it's for 12 months+

She also loves to octopus. It has crinkle legs, legs with rings to suck on, it's soft, and it sings songs if you pull the purple ring!

Can life get any better?

And of course, she still loves to play with the toys she had before.

I entitled the following video "Being Calista" because she's not doing anything special per say, she's just being herself...

and that self is so dang cute!

Really, she'll try and play with just about anything: my cell phone, water bottle, chapstick, books we're reading...

And by "play," I mean "suck on."

Yes, I put a diaper on her head. I also put pants on her head:

Grabbing the toes!

While I would prefer if she was sleeping well, I can't actually get frustrated with her, because then she looks at me with her big eyes,

(like this)

(or like this)

(or like this)

and my heart just melts.

Happy half-birthday, baby girl!

Winning Sucks

In contrast to a previous post, Calista generally succeeds when she wants to get her pacifier back. Here's proof:

I love how much she is concentrating on the pacifier. Her eyes get so focused... Hee. She makes me laugh.

Big Plane Propeller

And, one last remnant from our trip to Oregon for the holidays, sung to the tune of "Popcorn Popping," I present:

Big Plane Propeller

I looked out the window and what did I see?

A big plane propeller staring back at me.

This plane has brought me such a nice surprise:

A big plane propeller right before my eyes.

I could take an armful, but that's not wise--

--Unless I want a good pirate disguise!

It isn't really smart, but it's fun to see,

A big plane propeller staring back at me.

Yes, I sung this, or a rough draft of this, to my 5 month old daughter. I'm a good mom.

Happiness and Cheer

Christmas time is here... and this one is baby's first! There is only one of those in a lifetime, you know... so, of course, we took lots of pictures!

Calista is fascinated with the Swedish chimes. Every time she hears them, she turns to look at them and tries to reach for them.

 The sound can even make her stop crying when she's being fussy, which is definitely a Christmas bonus!



Christmas morning...

Still sleeping, because she doesn't know what excitement awaits her!


There were plenty of presents to open.

Calista, with a little help, got pretty good at opening them.

I'm not going to detail all that was received, but here are a couple of items:

From Grandma May, we got this stylish carrier. Calista seems to like it, yes?

From her cousin Lily, Calista got MegaBloks, and she loves them!

 See?

 Okay, maybe I love them. But I'm sure she will someday, too!

All in all, with the travel, the cousins, the presents, and the fun, it was a good first Christmas for The Wee One. 

A belated Merry Christmas, everyone!

Two babies and one adorable toddler

Over the holidays, Calista got to meet her cousins on the May side, Lilia and Ivy. Lilia was intrigued by the two babies ("two Ivy's!" she said once), and seemed more interested in Calista than Ivy. I guess she's around Ivy all the time, so that's old hat.

Two babies!

Staring at Calista and Ivy.

Soft baby cheeks!


Ivy and Calista were fascinated with each other. It was especially fun to put them together and see what they would do. It was pretty even in the mauling/touching.

Ivy touching Calista.

Staring...

And now Calista trying to attack Ivy.


But it's okay, because Ivy had one more attack left in her.

Hair pulling!

Actually, for real, they didn't hurt each other, but either stared and touched or just ignored each other. Very cute, though.

Neither one looking at the camera...

Calista looking at the camera...

Ivy looking at the camera...

Calista looking again, but Ivy's not...

...and they've both lost interest.

Kyler took and narrated this video.

Ivy and Calista together, plus proof Calista rolls over!

Pictures of Lilia:

Washing her hands in preparation of making cookies.

Christmas morning, checking out what's in the stocking.

Pictures of Ivy:

Tummy time!

With Grandpa

With Aunt Loradona

It's convenient Half-Sized Ivy!

Cousins are fun!