Splish Splash

Time for the real tub!  I had water covering the entire counter and the floor.  And I even found a few stray drops on the stove.

Six months old!

Our "little" baby is six months old!  It's been so much fun!  I have my days when I really, really wish I could be anywhere but at home, but about 95% of the time, I am so happy I get the opportunity to spend all my time with her.  She is so fun to have around and really, I've pretty much forgotten what life was even like before her.  I lose track of time just watching her and her little brain in action.  It's so fun because she still has to plan every single move she makes.  She stares down an object and then moves toward it with such intention and determination...I just love it!  I even love it when she gets frustrated and just lets out a scream, only to start her mission to grab her...rattle, teether, nuk, again.

Her 6 month check up was yesterday and she weighs 15lb. 10oz. (42nd percentile) and is 26.125" long (60th percentile).  Her shots went much better this time around and she barely cried.  Which means that I didn't even cry!  Woo hoo!  First time for me.  Anyway, I thought the day was going to go well after her shots went so well, but I was wrong.  She slept for 40 minutes instead of 1 and a half to 2 hours in the afternoon and didn't take a little catnap at all at the end of the day.  Which means, this is what she looked like after only 3 ounces of her last bottle.

Of course, this is cute.  Not so cute was one full hour of uncontrollable crying that preceded this cuteness.  And that was with me holding her and after taking baby Tylenol.  Yeah...it was one of those days.  But, today is a new day and I can see her rolling around in her crib and practicing her vocal skills.  I'm thinking she feels better.  

So, here's a rundown of Evie's new talents.

Rolling from back to front and front to back.  She's been able to roll from front to back since she was 2 months old, but it was more of an accident than anything.  She just kind of tipped over.  Now she does it on purpose and it's pretty consistent.  This just started over the weekend.  As far as her rolling from back to front, well, it took me three whole days to finally see that for myself!  Honestly.  Darin saw her right away though.

Eating oatmeal and now peas.  The oatmeal went much better than the rice and the peas are going well also.  We'll be adding another new veggie this week...carrots!  Oh, the anticipation is just killing me!  She's quite intent on "helping" in the feeding process and holy moley, is she a mess!  She also hasn't quite gotten down the method of eating off a spoon.  She still sucks it like a bottle.  Kinda funny, but it really adds to the insane mess.  We now just strip her down and feed her in her diaper and bib and then immediately give her a bath after she's done. I'm really hoping she improves on these skills quickly because I'm really not looking forward to cleaning up that mess in the morning and eventually afternoon too.

Evie vs. Oatmeal...the oatmeal won.
This is what she looks like when dad feeds her!

In her new highchair!  She doesn't like the Bumbo, so we've moved on.
This is what she looks like when mom feeds her!
(And this is about a week after she started eating.  Guess she is getting the hang of it!)

Scooting.  As soon as she mastered rolling over, she moved right on to scooting.  She isn't officially scooting anywhere yet as she has absolutely no hand involvement at all, except to reach out for the object she's going after, but she gets her little legs underneath her and pushes off.  She only moves about a centimeter, but she seems pretty excited about that since it's an actual mode of "transportation".  Anyway, she does it over and over until she reaches the object she wants to grab.  It's exhausting.  To think we all started out this way sometimes just blows my mind.

Teething...we think.  Her mouth is like a faucet.  I am not kidding.  I'm worried she isn't getting enough fluid to keep up with the amount of drool coming out of her.  Unbelievable.  And also, unbelievably gross to catch a hand drenched in spit in the eye or ear.  Ick.  I can feel a bump on the bottom gums, but so far, nothing other than that.

Swimming.  OK, so she doesn't swim, but she makes her floatie look good.  We took her to the pool a couple weeks ago and she acted like it was something she does all the time.  No big deal.

Had to throw a pic with the whole ensamble on here.
Dang, she's cute!

We're having a great time down here!  She just gets more and more fun every day.

Photos: 6 months old

Darin and I decided to just go to JCPenney and get Evie's 6 month pictures done.  We think they turned out pretty good!  But, considering the cutest baby in the world (to us, at least) was in them, it's not surprising.  And just in case you've wondered what Darin would look like in a pink sailor suit, now you know!

Please note the rolls on her knees.  Love them!

I'll be the first to admit how cheese-tastic this picture is.
But perhaps not as cheesy as Darin's "on bended knee" version.
See below.

Told ya.
But, I have to admit, it's a good picture of both of them.
I'm a lucky lady.

Our favorite!

Her toes kill me!
And if you know me, you know that's not a phrase that comes
out of my mouth regularly.

So pretty!  Like the little angel she is.

Pros and Cons

We have officially been in Houston for over a year now.  Seems like that went by in the blink of an eye...until I think back to living in the apartment for the first six weeks down here.  That dragged on and on and on.  As I've been thinking about our life here in Houston, I've realized that along with the things I really dislike about Houston (and really, Texas in general), there are quite a few I do like.  Sometimes it helps to write them down to realize living here isn't as bad as I sometimes make it out to be.

DISLIKES:
1) Being so far from home.  After three years in Texas you'd think I'd miss Minnesota less.  I don't.  I wouldn't say I miss it a ton more, but since having Evie, I miss it in a different way.  I mourn the relationships that aren't being built.  And I know it'll be harder and harder to build solid relationships between Evie and her grandparents and aunt, uncle & other extended family the older she gets.  When her own busy life takes over any and all free time.

2) Summer starting in February.  And I'm not really kidding.  It's been in the 70s and even 80s since February.  February!  I keep hearing how unusual this is, but I kinda doubt it's that unusual.  Josie, Boomer & I were about carried away several times by mosquitoes.  Evie was still covered up in the stroller, but the pups and I were out in the great outdoors with no covering (well, OK, I was wearing a tank top and capris) and apparently a scent that said "Fresh blood!  Eat up!"  And eat they did.

3) Summer.  The real summer.  I have come to realize that I hate the extreme heat more than the extreme cold.  And this revelation kinda ticks me off because I really love summer.  But, when it's freeze-your-nose-shut cold in Minnesota, it lasts for a week, maybe two.  It doesn't normally last longer than that, although it can.  But either way, it's not for three straight months.  It gets super cold, and then creeps back into the 20s or 30s and then eventually dips again.  Winter in Minnesota consists of bundling up and heading out.  Summer in Houston consists of wearing the same thing you wear in the winter, only the minute you open the door you're sweating.  Last summer it was in the high 90s or 100s from June until September.  When the "heat broke" in mid-September, it was in the mid-80s.  Completely uncalled for.  Honestly, it pisses me off just thinking about it.  I'm so dreading summer.  At least this year I won't have a bun in the oven cranking up the heat!

4) The sun.  Hear me out on this one.  The sun has to actually go away in order to appreciate seeing it.  When you see the sun 365 days a year (maybe I'm exaggerating a bit; it could only be 360) it gets a bit redundant.  Variety is the spice of life--even when it comes to the weather.  Just yesterday I woke up to a fabulously grey and rainy day only to have the sun come out around noon.  I mean, really.  It was totally unnecessary to see the sun yesterday, but there it was, shining high and bright.  Ugh.  Really put me in a funk!

5) Houston, the city.  It's just kind of a dump! Ha!  I know how awful that sounds, but really, it has no zoning and it's just...not a great city!  There's no other way to say it.  It has a ton of great restaurants and  things to do for entertainment, but it doesn't make up for the fact that the super nice restaurant you're eating at is very likely one block away from houses with knee-high weeds, broken front doors and bars on the windows.  And then, to be honest, across the street from those houses are gorgeous houses.  It's just so weird.

LIKES:
1) October-May.  Well, as much as I hate summer, it still leaves the other 8 months.  It is pretty nice to have 70 degree days in November, December, January, February and March.  I like the fact that it's gorgeous out in Houston and I don't have to worry about warming up the car (although I do have to cool down the car...), shoveling (although I like shoveling--don't judge me), the roads being slippery, getting stuck while running errands, etc.  I love the fact that I can go for a walk almost every day of the year.  I really appreciated it when Evie was born and 10 days later we were out for our first walk.  I just kept thinking how cooped up I would have felt in Minnesota where chances are pretty good it would have been a little too chilly to take a newborn out for a walk.

2) The year around flowers.  I love it.  I don't think it'll ever really get old for me.  I absolutely love going for walks and seeing flowers in the flower beds in January.  It puts me in such a great mood.  I mean, really, how cool is that?

3) Our proximity to the ocean.  We may not get there often, but I love knowing it's only an hour and a half away.  I don't care if that sounds stupid either.  I do like it.

4) Our neighborhood.  I really love where we live.  It's close to everything (except not quite close enough to the freeway, if you ask Darin), it has sidewalks on every street in the subdivision, two pools, lots of parks, a school right next door (if we're here long enough for Evie to use it)...I just really like it!  I feel like we picked a great neighborhood.

5) Trees and water.  This has to do with coming from Amarillo where there are none.  I would appreciate the trees and lakes just as much in Minnesota, but since I'm not in Minnesota, I appreciate them here in Houston.  I still think about it too when I'm out driving and there are trees everywhere.  Seems so simple, but you don't know how much you miss it til it's gone.

Anyway, this is my list.  There are things to add on both lists (honestly, a few more to add on the "like" list than the "dislike" list) but these are the ones that come to mind first.  I guess I can stick it out for a while longer....