Rollin', Rollin', Rollin'

Almost....

I did it!

Quinn rolled over from her back to her belly two days ago for the first time. She was so proud of herself and has done it a few times since. She has been sleeping poorly for almost a month now, but two nights ago she slept through the night until 6:30. I gave her some teething tablets before bed and had her music on repeat all night. I don't know if either were a factor but I tried it again last night and she slept until 4:00. We are moving in the right direction. I read that around this age their sleep schedule is disturbed when they are ready to reach new milestones. Whatever it is, I pray she is sleeping well when I go back to work. My official start date is August 17th but I am going in the week prior and have a training next week. Time has flown. Daycare here we come.
See how happy I am when I get sleep!

These past two weeks Quinn has been in Parent-Tot swimming classes. She laughs and talks the whole time. She is a little fish. She loves being tossed in the air and swimming on her belly. She tries hard to get the pool water in her mouth. Since she has been loving it so much, I thought we would try dunking. I blew in her face so she held her breath and quickly put her under. She didn't swallow any water but she had the most awful look on her face when she came up. I think we will skip out on dunking until next summer. Today was our last class and it was cold, but Quinn still loved the water. She got her report card and a keepsake photo. She got stars on everything except for blowing bubbles. She just wanted to drink the water. Maybe next year she will have that mastered.

Loungin' before our last class.
Biting my lips is so fun.

My buddy, Henry, holding my hand.

Happy Birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GARY AND UNCLE BILL! HOPE YOU ARE BOTH ENJOYING YOUR SPECIAL DAY.
LOVE YOU.

Happy Anniversary, Gary and Rose!

Make a Smilebox greeting

Some Pics of My Friends

I just realized that maybe the interesting sleep patterns could be due to our busy schedule. This past weekend Quinn went to the Black family reunion in Iowa. She saw a lot of Andy's extended family and got to see my Aunt Jan and Uncle Bill. We travelled back to celebrate Jake's 16th birthday (drivers beware). Then Tuesday we visited with friends from college in Geneva and Quinn met her new friends, Layla and Seamus. Wednesday she visited with another college friend, Cristina, and her little boy, Cohen. Later that afternoon we took a trip the the local farmer's market with her neighbor boyfriend, Henry. Now today is finally a day of rest at home. BUT tomorrow is my cousin's bridal shower, then Saturday is a college friend's baby shower, and Sunday we travel back home. Phew...I think Quinn is going to bored out of her mind at daycare. She is so used to going, going, going.

Playing with my new toys at the reunion.

Visiting with Uncle Bill.

Our furry baby, Hayley, in the middle with her buddies, Riley and Tucker.

Jake with his girlfriend, Sam, on his 16th birthday.

Quinn with Seamus and Layla. We probably would have gotten a better pic if we took it at the beginning of the day. Oh well.

After a hard day of shopping and socializing, Quinn fell fast asleep on Auntie Shannon's shoulder.

Cohen and Quinn sleeping after a long morning of walking.

Quinn and Henry layered with sunscreen before their walk through the farmer's market.

Yum, Yum, Yum!

Quinn has been sleeping poorly at night for the past couple weeks. She sometimes wakes up around 12:30 and again around 3:30. Does this mean our quiet nights are over??? I sure hope not! At first I thought she was sick, then thought it could be hunger, growth spurt, or teeth. We started cereal last Sunday, July 12th. We were supposed to wait until 6 months but I don't think she's going to die. I had cereal in my bottle at 3 months. The box said for the first feeding to mix with a certain amount of milk and its consistency was almost pure liquid. She loved it but got agitated after a while because we weren't feeding her quickly enough. I should have fed her first then gave the cereal. Lesson learned. Since then we have changed the consistency so it is less runny and it is so funny to watch her chew. Unfortunately, the cereal has not helped her stay asleep at night. So teeth it must be. She is drooling like crazy and chomping on everything, but we don't see anything yet. I thought her bottom gums looked a little red but who knows. I was told that Tylenol or Motrin might work to help her through the night, so we might try that soon.

Fortunately, she has been a great little napper again. She goes down without any crying or fuss. We turn on her favorite Rockabye Baby Beatles tunes and she falls fast asleep. I don't know if I mentioned this in another post, but at around 4 months we started having her sleep on her stomach. We decided to do this because of her stomach issues and because she was busting out of her swaddle and then getting startled. She startled herself to the point that her arms were flailing uncontrollably. She'd calm and almost fall asleep and then the startle would return. We took her bumpers out of her crib around that time too. Now we find her rammed up to the corner of her crib in the morning and I am just waiting to see a huge bruise on her forehead. Aside from the lacking sleep, we are loving this stage. She is grabbing for everything and trying so hard to communicate. Her sitting skills are getting better every day and we are still working on rolling from back to belly. She gets to her side and then gives up. I keep trying to capture the first on film, so the video camera is always close by. I'm still working on figuring out how to save our videos on the computer. If we ever figure this out I will post the one of her eating for the first time.

Fun, Family, Friends, & Fireworks

Update: I went to the doctor's on July 3rd, because mommy was worried I had a bladder infection, but all is well. They weighed me and I am 16lbs3oz. I was doing sit ups like this for the doctor. He said I have abs of steel:

Me sitting on my own.

Grandma and Grandpa playing peek-a-boo with me on Grandma's birthday.

Auntie Ali and Me

Stella and Me

My first time in the pool. I was a bit cautious.

Hangin'with my favorite cousin, Claire.
We took a walk to the beach together and played on the floor at her house.

4th of July with my uncles

Goin' for a dog ride. I am not having fun. Can you tell?

I loved snuggling with daddy, while we watched the fireworks. The show was right behind my Great Uncle and Aunt's house. The noise didn't bother me one bit.

Chrissy, Josh's girfriend, and me

Swimming at Grandma and Grandpa's. The real pool was too cold for me, so Grandma made a baby pool.

Dancing with Jacob, after swimming.

5 months old with Bog (my bear-dog) Scroll to the bottom of the page to vote whether you think my blankie is a bear, dog, or both.

5 months old!

Quinn is 5 months old! She didn't have a doctor's appointment but we did our own measurements. She weighs 16.3 lbs (70%ile), is 26 1/4 long (81%ile), and her head circumference is 16.9 inches ( 73%ile). The poor thing has sensitive skin like her mommy and we think it is eczema. She has some on her back and arms. She still has her interesting poops, but the doctor said it may just be normal for her (sorry if this is too much information for you). We are still keeping an eye on it. It may be a food allergy we are unaware of right now. Let's hope she doesn't end up with peanut allergies like my brothers. Other than that she is doing well.

She's becoming a playful little thing and somewhat stubborn. She is scooting around to reach for toys. We are practicing sitting with her. She ends up hunching over so her mouth is in her feet, and then will eventually tip to the side. She is so proud of herself when she does it, and looks around like she is the coolest. Her new obsession is to put her hand in my mouth when she is trying to fall asleep and will grab for chunks of my hair. Jewelry is now out of the question. I can happily say that she went down at 8pm tonight with no rocking or tears. She is back to herself. She loves to stare at herself in the mirror and chomps her gums together as if she is talking. She has mastered using the rattle. She's practicing drinking water from a cup, but there isn't much drinking yet, just chewing on the side. She laughs when we give her belly buzzers or smooches on the cheek. She also likes when we sniff or clap her feet. Her favorite toys are: the jumperoo, her duck-Quacky Jacky,her elephant-Eli, her Taggie doll-Taggie Tina, and Bog (her blankie that everyone think is a bear, but Andy and my mom are convinced it is a Dog). I will post a picture of it so you can decide for yourself.

I decided to go into work today since I have 10 days that I have to work in the summer, and today's weather was bad. Quinn saw the kids in summer school, and loved watching them play on the playground at recess. She was laughing and kicking her feet. I am glad she loves being around other kids. After watching the kids, she napped for a while so I could begin to get myself organized. I started getting into school mode, and now I have to turn off my brain for a few days before I go back. Next time I will leave her with grandma so I can get more accomplished.

I will post pictures later. I couldn't seem to find the camera. Hope everyone has a fun 4th of July!