OVERWHELMED.

I must take a short break from productivity for Ellen and to release some anxiety through the written word.

Monday morning Waverly had her nine month appointment.  She weighs 22 lbs, 7 oz and is 29 inches tall. Wanna know how I got back into shape once she was born? Weight-lifting my child. Not really, actually I've worked really hard to get back in shape; however, carrying around my chunk of love has sure helped!

Anyway, we've kept her alive for this long, but I'll be honest, I'm going to be REALLY impressed if we get through the next few months. I knew when I first got pregnant that I was fully capable of raising her through her baby months; now I'm just freaked out.

She's starting to eat more adult-type foods. I told Chandler that my penance for not breast feeding is preparing her food and ensuring that she has a healthy, wholesome diet (yes, I sometimes still feel guilty for not breast feeding). So far it's been super easy because she was eating simple, pureed fruits and vegetables, no citrus fruits. Now we're moving on to meats and dairy, finger foods, crackers, and actual meals and I may have a nervous breakdown.

She's also going through a bit of a personality change. What I mean is, she is getting an opinion and an attitude. I'm not ready for this. I don't know what our "discipline philosophy" is. We've tried smacking her hand when she's into something she shouldn't be, but she picked up on it and started "hitting" when we disciplined her. We cut that pretty quick. Now, I'm not sure what we'll do until she's old enough to understand discipline. How do you explain anything to a baby? Anyway, that's what we're doing: telling her "no you can't (insert misbehavior here) because (insert explanation that she won't understand here)". Oy vey.

On a more fun and encouraging note, she's in the beginning stages of standing on her own and walking. Chandler and I "finger walk" her from one place to another sometimes and she'll stand for a few seconds at a time when we help set her up. She knows what a dog and monkey says, where her feet and toes are, and often tells Fenway to "go, go, go". I taught her that one figuring it would be the best defensive phrase she could know when it comes to the dog. Waverly also tries to snap her fingers. True story. She mimics finger snapping and throws in a tongue click every once in a while. It's crazy.

I'm loving every stage of her development, I'm just overwhelmed at how quickly it's all happening; so much so, that I'm just not prepared with the tools I need!

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Waverly met jolly 'ol Saint Nick this afternoon. Don't let this photo deceive you though; she melted down about 2 seconds after it was taken, literally jumping out of the big guy's arms. He caught her. Santa has the third most dangerous job in the world behind crab fishing and ice road trucking. I don't know that for a fact, but my hat goes off to him. 

PLUG!

The first year of a baby's life is so full of, well, "firsts", including our first family Christmas card! I've spent a few hours sitting at the computer, picking the perfect card and the perfect family photo to go with it. Shutterfly has so many holiday card styles and it was difficult to choose. I created four different projects before I settled on the perfect one.

Shutterfly is so versatile, I can create more than just Christmas cards. I cannot wait to take all of the pictures from Waverly's first year and create a photo book of memories. I enjoy looking at family photos from when I was a baby; however, those photos are starting to fade and the albums are getting worn.  By using Shutterfly to make custom photo books, I can choose the photos, page layout, font, and captions; not to mention, the photos are part of the pages and are printed at a very high quality, helping me avoid the photo fade.

Not only do I enjoy taking photos of Waverly every step of the way, I write everything down from the first night she slept all the way through to her first tooth and the first time she laughed.  Following her first birthday in March, I will make a photo calendar in which to record all of these memories as a keepsake.

In the past, I've mainly used Shutterfly to order prints because they always have such GREAT deals, but now I'm excited to turn all of the photos into keepsakes and memories.