Dear Sweet Nan,
You are half a year old now. I knew it was coming, sneaking up fast on us. But it hit me hard the day it happened. Maybe because you turned 6 months the day your big sister turned 6 years. That was hard to take.
This last month you pretty much stayed how you've been. Rolling around on the floor makes you happy. But you also love more than anything to be held while we walk around. You are finally able to balance well enough to sit up. When we are out and I need to put you down for just a moment, I can set you on your tushy and you stay happily reaching for all that is in front of you.
But in just the last few days you army crawled across the floor. I was your first goal and that makes me happy. The very morning you turned 6 months, I was in the bathroom getting ready to take Gwennie to school, and you were on your tummy. I looked away to do something and when I looked back you were there sitting up, pleased as punch at your new accomplishment.
You have found your voice, and you use it. Though, as Daddy likes to point out, your screaming cry isn't shrill like Gwennie's was. In the car you often babble to yourself, and you have started practicing your consonant sounds, B, D, G. M only comes out when you are hungry and want to nurse, you suck your lips into your mouth and say "Mmmmmmmm" not like "Mmm that was delicious" more like a cry. But you don't do it all of the time.
I have started signing with you, using the signs for milk, more, all done, cat, dog. I don't know if you get any of them yet. But we'll see.
You want to be ready for solid foods, so I will plop a small pile of food in front of you while we eat. Often this is rice, pasta, quinoa, bread, something like that. You play with it and attempt to move it to your mouth. Most of it ends up on the floor which is perfectly fine with me.
Last weekend we went on an overnight family trip to Flagstaff. While we were there you tried out a swing for the first time. I placed you in it and you smiled very big. I pushed you slowly and you were still happy. Then Rhayn came over, she pushed you big and you did not like that. Your bottom lip popped out, you looked terrified. I had to tell her that it was your first time in a swing and you weren't yet sure of it. She felt like a bad big sister for that, but we all do those kind of things and regret them.
I can not believe how big you are getting and how much fun you are to watch. It won't be long before we really have to put up all of the baby gates and other childproofing things to keep you out of places we don't want you to be.
But I will enjoy this part, holding on to you tightly before your wings unfurl and you flit away from me.
~mama
and a sweet little puddin' pie.
(And an additional picture of a pie I made when Rhayn was in kindergarten and am so excited to see that it's still in use!)
My happy baby, I miss her.
Until then,
We headed out of town to check out the property. The house was almost exactly what I want, but it was also more than we can spend. The girls loved the property but I think they cold love any property, and we all pictured Lily running wild on the 8 acres. Gwennie was disappointed when we told her that there was a chance we wouldn't buy that house. She has already picked out which room would be hers and was planning how much fun she would have outside. Rhayn was planning her chickens, since there was already a chicken coup.
While there we became acquainted with the biggest GRASSHOPPERS ever. The ground crawled with them.
The next morning we took our time getting up and going. We headed out of town and went to a Paleo-Indian excavation site. There was a small canyon that we had to climb into where you could see the layers of time.
After leaving Murray Springs, we went to the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area. We saw the biggest cottonwood trees we had ever seen. In fact one of them was on the Arizona Register of Big Trees (it had a small plaque). This would be an ideal spot to take family pictures eventually.
I love this area. The San Pedro River has so much to offer. No, Sierra Vista has so much to offer. Its lovely there.
After we left the San Pedro we headed back to the apartment. We all had gotten too much sun, though we all wore hats while hiking (even Will, who ended up wearing the tropical little kid hat since Gwennie wanted to wear a camouflage hat.) For dinner we had KFC and then we went to the park because the girls wanted to play on the merry-go-round again. I used to love merry-go-rounds. You don't see them often so this was a special treat for us. It was awesome to sit at the park as the sun set watching the girls have a wonderful time playing.
As the sun set we got ready to leave. We rounded up the girls and as we were standing there a bat flew right over out heads (scared me!) which was pretty cool.
We pulled up to his apartment complex and I parked by his truck. I called him because I forgot to write down his apt. number. He came out and the girls and I all hugged him gladly. We hadn't seen him in weeks.
We left the park and grabbed Subway on our way to a picnic on base near this bridge. It was amazing. This creek ran by us, and we were able to watch an Acorn Woodpecker bury his acorns in an old tree. The girls made friends with some girls who live on base and whose dad is currently deployed. Will and I looked at rocks and plants and just enjoyed being outside together. 
On Wednesday we sat at the park
And finally this. 
Dear Sweet Nan,
But in just the last few days you army crawled across the floor. I was your first goal and that makes me happy. The very morning you turned 6 months, I was in the bathroom getting ready to take Gwennie to school, and you were on your tummy. I looked away to do something and when I looked back you were there sitting up, pleased as punch at your new accomplishment.
You have found your voice, and you use it. Though, as Daddy likes to point out, your screaming cry isn't shrill like Gwennie's was. In the car you often babble to yourself, and you have started practicing your consonant sounds, B, D, G. M only comes out when you are hungry and want to nurse, you suck your lips into your mouth and say "Mmmmmmmm" not like "Mmm that was delicious" more like a cry. But you don't do it all of the time.
You want to be ready for solid foods, so I will plop a small pile of food in front of you while we eat. Often this is rice, pasta, quinoa, bread, something like that. You play with it and attempt to move it to your mouth. Most of it ends up on the floor which is perfectly fine with me.
I can not believe how big you are getting and how much fun you are to watch. It won't be long before we really have to put up all of the baby gates and other childproofing things to keep you out of places we don't want you to be.
