Time flys!

I can't believe my little baby girl will be turning one in less than a month. She now has 4 teeth, two up & two down. She is crawling (fast!) and cruising furniture. She LOVES Cheerios, bananas, deli meat and cheese. Her favorite game is to hide her face behind anything resembling a blanket and play peek-a-boo! Lately she's been brave and has finally decided to explore her favorite puppy, Willow, by attempting to crawl on her and whack her with her prosthetic arm! Willow is a good sport about it and will SNEEK a kiss on Addie's face. She has been doing great at daycare, playing with Alona's kids and her buddy Audrey. She's so ticklish, loves going upside down, and bops along to the songs she likes. She makes us laugh every day. I'm counting down the weeks until I get to hang out with her all summer!

A Break Through

After months of wondering, it finally happened. Addisen cut her two bottom teeth this past weekend. It took two long sleepless nights, but she was a happy baby during the day. Good thing we didn't have to work in the morning. And now the last 3 nights she's slept thought the night! That sweet gummy smile of hers is going to start filling in... Just another reality check that my baby is growing up.

On the go!

It was close to bedtime, Adam had just given Addisen a bath and they were playing in her room. Adam calls me in from the kitchen. Addisen is laying on her tummy smiling and looking at Adam. Then all of a sudden she picks that cute little tush of hers off the floor, knees tuck under and she scoots forward! Ahh! It begins! Just days after turning 8 months old, this girl is getting on go! I got a little teary eyed because I can't believe we're here already. That and life as I know it is about to change, chasing this little rug rat around the house! Have you seen her legs kick, kick, kick? We are in trouble! At least now she'll be able to give Willow a run for her money.

The new arm!

Friday was a big day for Addisen... Here's the unfinished version of Addisen's new arm. All the stuff in white will be laminated in the color of our choice after the first of the year. Until then, we have this to use for short incriminates of time to help her get used to wearing it. So far she's not bothered by it much at all... But then again, we just got it yesterday :-) We'll let you know how it goes.

Up on all fours!!

With a little help that is... I tucked her legs under her and she held herself for quite some time. Even threw in a little rocking motion in there. She balanced great on her little arm. I'm starting to get nervous that the days of putting her down in one spot (and her staying put) are coming to an end! Yikes!

Bring on the solids!!

We tried sweet potatoes first, she was not a fan of those. Found out cinnamon makes her skin break out in a red rash. Eek! (Of course we found this out 2 hours before her 6 month picture apt! Good thing it cleared up right away.) Today we tried brown rice cereal and she liked that much better.

The first 6 months...

Addie at 5 months

Wow did they go fast! I had no idea how crazy in love I would be with this adorable little girl of mine. She'll be 6 months old this Saturday and she's growing and changing every day. Girlfriend still doesn't care for the bottle much. She'll take it on her own terms. (Hmm, I'm starting to see more of myself in her more and more. Yikes!) We started solids this week, so that should help when I'm not around to feed her. So far she's liking brown rice cereal, but NOT crazy about sweet potatoes. She started rolling over at 3 months old, sitting up at almost 5 months old and now she's passing toys between her little arm and her hand. Amazing to see her work that little arm of hers, we're so proud! Addisen loves music... It totally changes her mood when you put one of her kid CD's on (thanks Aunt Alecia!). She also really loves her books. She'll even turn the pages with her little arm when she's ready to move on with the story. I'd definitely say she's a girl on the go. If she's moving (riding in the Boba carrier or Moby wrap, car seat, stroller, being carried, or even getting help standing up) then she's a happy camper. Kind of makes me nervous for when she starts to crawl. She finds her puppy, Willow, to be very entertaining and she squeals with delight whenever she comes by.

Addisen started her arm clinic at UofM a few weeks ago. We take her to get fitted for her first prosthetic arm at the end of November, and she should have it by early January! It's crazy to me that we're here already. I feel like it was just yesterday we found out she was missing her right hand and part of her lower right arm at my 20 week ultra sound. Looking at how much she's accomplished and grown despite this little set back makes me feel so at ease with how she'll handle challenges in the future. Nothing stops this girl. If she wants something, she's already figuring out how to use her arm to get it. We've started occupational therapy to help her get strong enough to wear her prosthetic arm. They are amazed at how well she uses her little arm and the strength she's developed this far. She's going once a week now until I go back to work in December.

Speaking work... I'm soooooo going to miss my mornings of giggles and stories with Addisen, but I feel lucky that I was able to take any time off at all. Enjoying every last day I get to be home with her until then.