Pigtails and Jumping

It is safe to say that our littlest babe is out of her "sack of potatoes" stage. She is rolling over, giggling, trying to communicate with us through squeals and little ba-ba sounds, reaching for everything, and is awake and alert for most of the day now.

And what else? PIGTAILS!! Yes, I did...I gathered her crazy crop of curls into the sweetest little baby piggies on Friday and she looked adorable!



I think she liked them too! What she didn't like was us laughing at the aftermath of the piggies...

Doesn't she look like a tank of a baby?!

Leya also tried her Johnny Jump-Up for the first time and last night and I'm sure it was a success thanks to the help of her big brother...

Leya jumping with Landen from Melissa Alcorn on Vimeo.

This morning I set her in it while I made breakfast for the Landen and Lana. She happily jumped for a few minutes and then was quiet. Too quiet. Apparently jumping is exhausting because she was fast asleep! So funny!


She is just too stinkin' cute!

"Just cast an eye in her direction. Oh me oh my ain't that perfection?" The Beatles

Raising Butterflies

If you have never watched as a caterpillar transforms into a butterfly, well then you should. Like right now. Go get some caterpillars and do it. Seriously. It is amazing.

We bought Landen a butterfly kit months and months ago and finally sent away for his caterpillars. His creepy crawly caterpillars arrived in a little cup with their food about 2 weeks ago. Big excitement from Landen. I, on the other hand, wasn't exactly thrilled to have bugs living on my buffet in my dining room at first, but I was happy to see Landen so excited about raising his butterflies. Fun learning projects are always a good thing.

The first few days his hungry caterpillars just roamed around eating.

Then they began to hang upside down from the top to begin forming their chrysalides (cocoons). See the guy on the left has already completed his chrysalide and the one on the right is getting ready to make his.

Once all of the chrysalides had hardened, Neil helped Landen pin them to the inside of the butterfly net/home.

They began shaking and we were sure they were trying to get out.

Chrysalides from Melissa Alcorn on Vimeo.

After some research we found out they were actually shaking as a natural instinct to ward off predators. Sorry butterflies! We didn't mean to scare you, but a small cup is no place for a butterfly.

So we watched...

and waited...

and a few days later Landen's 5 little caterpillars became beautiful butterflies! This was the first to emerge. The rest opened up in the next 2 days.

They are painted lady butterflies, which resemble little monarch butterflies. Very pretty!

Butterflies from Melissa Alcorn on Vimeo.

We have been having fun watching them sip from a flower dipped in sugar water and orange slices. Landen plans to release them in our backyard in a couple of days.

This has been really awesome to watch and Landen will surely be raising more butterflies soon!

"When you sigh my, my inside just flies, butterflies." The Beatles

Leya is 5 Months (and a few days) Old!

As of this past Friday, our sweet baby love, Leya is 5 months old!

This past month she has really gotten a hang of using her little hands. She reaches for all kinds of things...her toys, her siblings, her receiving blankets, our faces...and if she can, crams the things she grabs into her mouth.

I think she is teething since she drools a ton, is almost always gnawing on her toys or hands, her gums are a little swollen, and she is waking up much more often at night. She has gone from once or twice a night to every 2 hours again. *I'm so tired.* I'm hoping this phases passes soon.

She is a happy happy baby. She doesn't get crabby or cranky. Ever. She just gets a bit more clingy. I don't mind. And she is definitely a mommy's girl. She whines for me when I am near and not holding her. She begins to kick her legs anxiously and is starting to reach her arms out for me. She will never know just how much these actions warm my heart. I love how connected we are. I love how my body knows she is hungry or needing me, even if we are apart (which is for never more than an hour).

Oh and don't be fooled...she thinks this sippy cup is a teething toy.

On the subject of eating, per her pediatrician's suggestion, we tried solids this past month. A few days after she turned 4 months we tried rice cereal with breast milk and she ate like a champ. Same story the following few tries at solids.
First spoonful...




Then she had that scary wheezing episode and suddenly the rice cereal made her gag. Oatmeal made her gag too. We tried every few days or so and still no change. Fast forward to this weekend, we decided to try sweet potatoes. Who doesn't love sweet potatoes, right? Well Leya doesn't.
Willing to try...

I don't think she likes it...

We are now not going to push any solids until she is closer to 6 months, which is what I wanted to do in the first place. She just isn't ready yet and I'm okay with that.

She squeals when she is really really happy and excited. It is super cute. Her little eyes light up and she coos and smiles. She is trying so hard to "talk" but presses her lips together so no sound comes out. So funny. She also has mastered rolling over from her back to her belly but still has a hard time remembering how to roll to her back again.

She is a wiggle worm...always kicking her legs. She loves to bear weight on her legs and thus loves to play in her exersaucer.

Time for her official 5 months old with turtle picture...



And some others from this month simply because she is so stinkin cute!





We love you so much Baby Love! Happy 5 month birthday!

"You know I love you..." The Beatles

Take me out to the ball game...

Take me out to the crowd...

Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks...

I don't care if we never get back...

Let me Root Root Root for the home team...

If they don't win it's a shame...

For it's One, Two, Three Strikes, You're Out...

At the old, ball game!


"Let me see you smile again." The Beatles

Breathing

Yesterday morning Leya and I watched the sunrise together. I failed to get any pictures. Know why? Because it was 5:30 in the morning and you know I'm barely functional before 7:30AM. So no pictures because I was focused on my daughter, but anyways it was beautiful, as is my Sweet Baby Love, Leya. The reason we were awake at such an early hour is not so beautiful.

My tiny little girl not only looks just like her big brother, Landen, but she also seems to be taking after him. Three days ago Leya started wheezing, was lethargic, and not her usual happy self. Two days ago we took her to the doctor thinking it might be bronchitis. But she didn't have bronchitis. She has Reactive Airway Disease, which is what doctors say babies, infants, and toddlers who wheeze have because asthma can not be officially diagnosed until the child is around 5 or 6. It is what Landen was diagnosed with as a toddler (he now has been diagnosed with exercise induced asthma and is treated with both a nebulizer and an inhaler). Just like with Landen I was told she may outgrow it as her lungs mature, but was also told to be aware that it has started much earlier for her (not a good sign), I already have one child with asthma (not a good sign), and hers is worse than I have ever seen Landen (not a good sign). But I will pray that she does outgrow it anyway. So for now, what does it mean?...First it means that Neil and I have barely slept the last few nights. Hearing your baby wheeze while asleep is an absolutely terrifying sound to hear as a parent. And so who could possibly sleep through that. And also the nebulizer treatments have a side affect of hyperactivity and sleeplessness (something that never happened with Landen) for Leya, hence the being awake at from 4:30AM to 6:00AM yesterday just in time for the sunrise. Good news is that now that we have cut her dose in half, the side effects have lessened and the treatments seem to be helping so long as we do them consistently every 4 hours. So, now we just have to be ready for what we know might happen: minor colds that most always turn into wheezy coughs, coughs that linger for weeks, and an occasional upset tummy from coughing fits. Please, Leya, outgrow this. So to everyone reading, if you could take a little moment to send a prayer up for Leya, we'd all appreciate it.

Pictures of our little trooper...



Sporting one of Landen's old sleepers...


And some other cute ones just because...

She looks so much like Lana in this one...



And hanging out with big sis. Notice the hand holding. ;)

"She can take the breath away from heaven." The Beatles' George Harrison