Quick Post

So, I don't actually have any pictures from this month (except for Carly's visit). I guess that means I'm slacking. Pretty bad, but sometimes life just happens. I will have to take a few pictures before the month gets away though.

I pulled a few pics for you from the beginning of July. Here she is loving her (mommy's) smoothie. She sure does enjoy the smoothies I make on the weekends (because that is when she gets to have some of it). I do not put her in the Bumbo anymore, it seems that the high chair is much easier to deal with these days (she can't move that around like she can the Bumbo on the counter) and it leaves the counter space for things like our plates and the food.

And I just love this shot of her walking off exploring on her own. Not quite sure why but I think this picture is very cool.

As for an actual update, huh... Well, her "L" tooth (refer to chart) is starting to come in and the "I" tooth is in for those in limbo. Her hair is coming in thicker these days. She loves the outdoors. She loves to feed Max (and I've kind of let this be one of her daily chores before dinner - I feed Max before work during the week, so she only gets to do morning feedings on the weekends). She is a helper when it comes to laundry (not the folding so much, but putting clothes in hampers or the washer and dryer). She knows where to put something when you tell her it is trash. She will clean up and put her toys away, especially if it means doing something else she wants to do (like eating or going to bed or feeding Max).

Other stuff... I'm 12 to 13 weeks now and I have an appointment tomorrow. Everything looks normal and it is confirmed to be a real baby growing in me. Nothing new other than that. I've been trying to bake a few things recently too. I've made strawberry bread (think banana bread, but with sliced strawberries) and I've made some darn good bran muffins. I also tried my hand at making tomato soup. Not bad, the last time I tried it was horrible. (Yes, I have begun to eat tomato soup, sometimes, and I still do not eat other soups.)

Boating

So, my dad had gotten this boat from somewhere, last year I think, for free (pretty sure it was free). It had a few problems and was not titled or register or something to that effect. Anyway, he had to put a little elbow grease getting it running and time into getting it register and "legal" (or whatever that means - Dave could explain a lot better than me because he actually knows).

So, for whatever reason, Dad and Becky have decided to sell the boat. Dave, his brother Andy, and his brother-in-law Ritchie have decided that they would like to go in together to buy the boat.

You see, I do not think Dad and Becky have used it as much as they would like to "justify" keeping it (along with maintaining it for the little bit of use). I also do not think that any of us will be able to use this boat to "justify" owning it out right individually, hence the reason (I think) the boys would like to go in together to own it.

So, Dave wanted to know how Julia would react to being on the boat. And on a spur of the moment on a Saturday, when we had a million and one other things that "had" to be done, Dave decided we should go boating. And, luckily, Dad and Becky had time to take us out. We had to run to Walmart to get a life vest for Julia. She was not fond of it or wearing her hat.

Later we went back to Dad and Becky's and swam in the pool. Julia did more playing on the side of the pool with the bucket and toys, but very much enjoyed herself. Dave also did some maintenance on one of the company vans there also. (This was a few weekends ago.)

Distance Relatives

So, here are some relatives who live, generally, quite a distance from us, and we don't get to see on a regular basis.

First up are some Florida folks. Julia got to meet her Papaw finally, in June, just before her first birthday! She also met a few of her aunts (Aunt Donna is in the picture below) and uncles at that time too (since they were all up in Maryland for my dad's party).

Aren't they just an adorable pair?

That same weekend, we got to meet Tristan John, (my little cousin) Tiffany's new little baby. He was born in December (and I can't remember what day right now).

And here are the Lee girls (and Tristan) with Maw Maw. Four generations together.

And the weekend of Father's Day (and Julia's birthday) Great Granddad was up from Florida taking some vacation time off from work.

And here's the whole family with Great Granddad.

And Ashley (one of my other little Lee cousins - she was pregnant in the June picture) came by this past weekend to introduce the newest family member Carly Nicole, born July 6th, to Maw Maw and me.

And Julia was a little jealous, but overall very much enjoyed the new baby. (She even trying to roll on top of her, but she was really just trying to snuggle up against her.)

And Julia wanted Carly to sit in a chair, just like her (so we had to prop Carly with the blanket).

And that is it for now. Julia is just getting bigger these days. She walks everywhere and she's pretty quick. She enjoys her reading book and cards, but more on that later.

Primary Teeth Chart

Here is what I've come up with. I'm not sure if this is how the dentists label baby (primary) teeth or not, but I think it's close. I know they use numbers for the permanent teeth and those charts are easy to find. I think they use letters for the primary teeth and I hope this is right. (Someone will correct me if I'm wrong, I think.)

Also, here is a link to the actual ADA Primary Teeth Eruption Chart. This tells roughly when the primary teeth should come in and fall out. The chart also tells what teeth are what.

Here is Julia using her chompers on some tasty watermelon.

So, her teeth so far have come in, in the following order: P, O, D and G, E, F, Q, S, N, B, and I is trying to make it all of the way out now. (I'm pretty sure S came out before N, which I think is kind of odd.) The molars have actually affected Julia with their eruption. For most of the other teeth, she drooled a bit, so we knew she was teething, but not much bothered her.

Kraft Comfort

And I came across this yesterday. Seeing as I really am a sucker for the blue box myself. (I'm a "weird" adult who prefers the blue box to any other kind of mac and cheese.) Cut and paste I did...

We all recognize that blue box full of Kraft macaroni and cheese, right? You know the one. Most kids in America have probably seen their mom or dad reach for that box when they needed a quick meal. But we know that not all kids are so lucky. Kraft has joined Feeding America with the goal of donating 1,000,000 boxes of mac and cheese. You can help by going here. Each “click” donates another 10 boxes, and you can visit the site every day. Way to go, Kraft!

{Please feel free to cut and paste to your heart’s content and pass along the information. The program runs through 7/31/09. Let’s share the comfort!}

She's Walking...

So, at 12 months, she did not walk. She took a step or two, here or there, but no walking. By 13 months, I think she prefers to walk rather than crawl. Look at how well she does...

More updates and stuff when I get time. I hope to actually go through pictures one day soon too so I can upload some.

(Note: Both the crawling video from yesterday and the walking video today are from this past Saturday.)

Crawling to Soon Stop

This is how fast she crawls, when she does.

She has ten teeth now and I think another one is coming soon. I hope to have a little diagram to explain them all, since I can't get a picture of them all anymore.

She has changed her sleeping pattern a bit for a couple weeks now. It used to be 9-9:30 pm bedtime. Wake up enough to nurse at 6 am (before I got ready for work, usually). Then wake up around 9 am, I think. Usually a morning nap close to 11am to 1 pm and an afternoon nap around 3:30 for half an hour to an hour (sometimes later for this). Getting ready for bed would start 8-8:30 usually. Now she is asleep by 8-8:30. She wakes up earlier in the morning, by 8, I think. She still takes a morning nap most days, just usually around 10-10:30, but has been boycotting the afternoon nap. Then she is bit cranky in the evenings. Especially if dinner is not ready by 6 pm (which we usually always tried to do by 6:30 anyway).

Her Stroller

Ok, so the attempts at adding another video for you failed a lot, so maybe this video will work better.

For the faithful few...

Post with actual words and real information to come later. Quick, quick update: she has nine teeth now and can walk (just not really her choice of transportation most of the time quite yet - and not just with her stoller).

Update for Grandpa...

Since Paul has repeatedly requested an update... here's a cute picture to tide him over.

She went to the doctor's yesterday and got 3 shots. She weighs 17 pounds something and is like 25 inches. I'll double check the exact stuff when I get home.

Correction 7/13: She was 17 pounds 12 ounces and 29-1/2 inches tall. She is in the 5oth percentile for height and head circumference. She is a bit lower (but still in the normal range) for weight, and the doctor said she is just fine.

We're expecting again, too.

One Year Old

Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday Dear Julia!

Happy Birthday to you!

These two pictures are from her birthday party last Sunday. She very much enjoyed her cake and did manage to get a few gifts (we had asked for none). Thanks to everyone who came by! I'll be uploadings some more party pictures later.