Grumpy Bear

Yesterday (despite the fact that we didn't get home and in bed until midnight the night before) I decided to stick Cora in her Halloween costume and attend the Moms Connection Halloween Party. She didn't wake up until 9, so I figured she might be in a decent mood to visit her playgroup friends and party with some other babies. Poor thing was the quietest I have ever seen her! She lounged in my lap for the entire party (so unlike her) and refused to crack even one smile for the camera. Needless to say, I didn't take too many photos of my little grumpy bear (no worries though...I will take a million on Halloween!). Afterward, we decided to show the little ones off to our friend, Sister Frances Therese, who heads up our Moms & Tots group at church. She was so excited to see the kiddos all decked out in their costumes. I know I am a little partial to my sweet punkin, but I have to say she is just too darn cute in her Teddy Bear costume (I think I could dress her up everyday)! She was so good about the head piece and the paws too...she only tried to pull them off once :). Stay tuned for photos from trick or treating!

No smiling for momma...(at least she sat still with the pumpkins!)

Cora and her buddy Joseph from playgroup
Harrison and Joseph....and my grumpy bear in the backgroundSuch a sweet teddy!
Cora, Joseph and Sister....I just love Cora's expression, always the serious one

Texas fun with family and friends

We took our monthly trip to Texas this past weekend. Cora loves hanging out with her big brothers so much! I know she is little, but the adoration on her sweet face when she sees her brothers lets me know that the plane rides and change in sleep schedules are totally worth it. I just wish we could see them more often. We had a nice relaxing weekend with family and friends....not to mention some yummy Mexican food :)! Most of the weekend Cora spent snuggling with Taylor and Tyler and watching them play basketball in the beautiful Texas weather (all that fresh air also made for some great naps!), but we did get to celebrate our friend Madeline's first birthday. The party was wonderful and we are so blessed to have friends as wonderful as Nikki and Madeline. I think Jason wanted to feed Cora some of Madeline's delicious cake, but I said no (such a mean mommy)...even though I did catch him giving Cora a piece of celery to suck on (no comment). I still can't believe that Cora still has so much changing to do before her first birthday! Cora really missed spending time with her G'Ma this weekend though and I know her G'Ma missed her just as much. Cora is such a little jet setter and she did so well with all the traveling...even on the 10pm flight back to St. Louis (okay, okay that flight was a little rough, but hey at least she fell asleep when the plane hit the runway).

Cora and big brother Taylor

Beautiful weather for a little scrimmage

ah...brotherly love :)

Madeline...really enjoying her birthday cake!

Cora loved all of Madeline's toys...especially this number 9 (it was in almost all my shots!)

Snuggle time with Tyler

I just love when she furrows her eyebrows :)
helping Tyler play the XBox guitar

Jog Stroller, Oh How I Love Thee...

It's no secret that Cora doesn't nap well. I can maybe squeeze three 30 minute naps out of her a day, but for the most part she is to curious with her world to really get a good nap in. No matter how much white noise I play, she will wake to the sound of me doing dishes, Lily's collar or a car honking....through her closed door! She is just such a busy little bee that naps are apparently not that interesting. I have tried letting her play in her crib until she wears herself out, but she will just play...and play...and play. She is just like her daddy! Nighttime is a piece of cake, but this sleeping during the day business is quite a hurdle. That was until the jog stroller came along... I L-O-V-E this stroller! No matter how hard she tries, after about 15 minutes it's snoozeville. Last week she even slept in her daddy's office for an extra 2 hours...while he worked away! I must say, that is pretty amazing for a baby who wakes at the littlest noise. Maybe it is more motivation for me to go out for a daily run too....

Pre run sweet face

All bundled up and ready to go!

50 minutes later...ah, so peaceful :)

Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

I can't begin to express how much I love fall! Everything from the leaves changing, sweaters and the first fire in the fireplace to the family gatherings and pumpkin spice latte at Starbucks, this season is by far my favorite :). Needless to say, when it came time to take Cora to the pumpkin patch for the very first time, I was ecstatic at the very least. I am a big holiday person, so I had to put Cora in the perfect Halloween attire complete with a bow on her head (actually, her very first one!) We decided to head out to Rombach Farms, my childhood pumpkin patch. I still can't believe how much it changes year to year...now they have a haunted tunnel! It was a perfect, crisp evening without the crowds of the weekend, which was awesome and allowed us to take lots of pictures of Cora without having to move out of the way for other families (taking photos of a baby can require lots of shots ;)) We picked out a family of pumpkins...a daddy, a mommy, 2 brothers and a baby one! Oh, and lots of little gourds for inside the house. This will soon become one of my favorite family traditions! Enjoy some of the best photos from the evening, but stay tuned to see how the carving of 5 pumpkins turns out!

Sweet Girl

Family Photo

Such a tiny pea among the pumpkins

Picking out the "daddy" pumpkin

mmm...tasty pumpkin :)

6 Month Check Up & Fun With Rice Cereal

(her favorite activity...spitting raspberries)

Today was Cora's 6 month well baby check up. Dr. Norton was very pleased with how Cora is growing! She happily commented about Cora's "chunky" thighs and how big she is getting. We talked about Cora's desire to be mobile and she agreed that Cora seems to think she is older than 6 months :), but we have to get serious about the baby proofing. (as a side note on the baby proofing - I caught Cora taking her band aids off her legs and trying to eat them...sigh, I am so not prepared) We got the go ahead on rice cereal, water in a sippy and after 2 weeks we can start trying other new foods. Cora is just such a wiggle worm; we had to do the entire appointment with her sitting on daddy's lap. The only downside to the check up were the shots...3 vaccine shots, 1 flu shot and 1 oral vaccine. Needless to say, my lil' punkin was not thrilled with the nurse. Here are Cora's 6 month stats:

Height 27.5 inches (96%)


Weight 16lbs 1oz (54%)


Head Circ 42 (45%)





Tonight we decided to give Cora her first "meal"! I think Jason was hoping for spaghetti and meatballs, but right now we will have to stick with rice cereal. I thought we would have a huge mess, but boy was I wrong. Cora opened her mouth like a little bird after the first initial spoonful and by the end she was trying to put the spoon in her mouth on her own. I guess she is definitely ready to eat off a spoon. She actually was sucking on the clean spoon, banging it on the high chair and squealing when all the cereal had been consumed...I think she wanted more :). Here are some photos from the big event (I took a video, but apparently it is too large to upload and has to be edited...once that is done, I will upload it to the blog).

will ya feed me already?!

hhmmm very interesting...

Hey...this is pretty good!

A BIG Weekend

As I sat rocking my sweet baby to sleep this evening, I realized just how big she has become. My tiny newborn has been replaced with a curious 6 month old (who just happens to be in 9 month clothing) :). I have to be honest, as I thought about this blog, I became a little teary. (I know, I know...being a mom has made me even more sentimental) We just had such a "big" weekend and I don't think I was mentally prepared for all the "firsts" we have had lately. It seems as though everything is happening at once! Two teeth came in, she is working on crawling, she knows to bang her toys together to make noise (beautiful noise), she started making the sound "la", using her tongue to make spitting sounds, smiling for the camera and now the biggest one of all (you'll have to see at the bottom). Okay - enough of the emotional moment and onto our "Big" blog!

This weekend was Cora's first half birthday! I can't believe it has already been half a year since she entered this world. That alone would have made this weekend big enough, but as you read through the blog you will find what momentous event topped the "big" list. Since Jason, grandma and grandpa were out of town, we spent the weekend with Cora's aunt Maddie. We had a blast going to Maddie's volleyball game on Friday and spending every waking moment showing her how badly Cora wants to crawl (she actually moved both knees today before face planting, so I think the crawling will be any day now). On Saturday we went to Babies R Us to by some important "big" girl stuff. The list included: Rice cereal (organic of course), cute bowls for her to eat out of, baby food trays (that's right, I plan to make some of my own), 12 month clothes, bigger shoes and now that she is mobile, some much needed baby proofing supplies. Sunday we went to church and headed to the Wallich's for a play date with our "big" friends, Rosie (3) and Jilli (1). Cora and Jilli played so well together and she really held her own with the big girls. Thank you Melissa for having us over! Here are a few photos from this weekend...(don't forget to scroll down and read the second part of the blog for Cora's biggest moment!)

Cora and Aunt Maddie before her volleyball game

Cora and Rosie
Getting acquainted
Jilli and Cora playing
aww sweet hugs

Ok....the "big" event (at least I consider it big - she only turned 6 months yesterday). Tonight, I sat Cora in her crib to play while I got her bath started. This is usually no cause for concern, but when I walked in the room and saw Cora, I knew we had reached a major milestone. Jason was just talking about how we needed to lower her mattress this week just in case she started crawling. Well, I don't think the crawling is going to be the issue anymore....

Getting in position

Ta Da!!!!!

And one sweet pic to end the weekend

Movin on up (insert song tune here) :)

Well today was very busy for Miss Cora. I decided to take her to our normal baby Gymboree class for one last hurrah before we moved up to the "big" 6 month class. She is definitely ready! All the other babies lay on their blankets while the mommies sing to them, but not Cora. Cora has to be on her hands and knees or rolling all over the place 95% of the time. This means that I am always singing songs to her back while she tries to become mobile. In between classes we went to lunch with 3 mommies from the "small" class and 1 mommy who was going to try the "big" class. Since Cora took a quick cat nap and was in a good mood we went back for more Gymboree after lunch. (I think I am Gymboree'd out for the day :) ) It was a hit! They just started another session and right now it is empty so it was just Cora and Brynn and one big play gym. At 6 months they get to play on all the play gyms, which Cora absolutely loved. She got to go down a slide, roll in a wheel and play on the peek a boo bridge. Today was the first day that she really enjoyed peek a boo. Every time I would jump up she just laughed and laughed - of course she had to have something in her mouth the whole time she giggled so no good photos of that big sweet grin. All the playing must have loosened her diaper (not that it is ever tight anymore since she is such a wiggle worm) and when she rolled over I noticed she had wet her clothes. Needless to say, when I went to put a new outfit on her, my little sassy pants threw a huge fit when she had to leave her toys. Soooo, we spent the rest of the play time in just a diaper and then we had to walk home without any clothes on. Everyone was probably looking at me like I was a looney toon! Here are some shots from today!

Tasting scarves on the peek a boo bridge

Cora and Brynn on the bridge
Trying to get the bubbles
Naked with the beach ball (read post for explanation :) )
More bubbles
Lounging on Gymbo the Clown (it's nice she feels so relaxed)
Practicing her crawl stance
In the middle of peek a boo (she was laughing through the toy)
My fave shot of the day....she just was letting me know she was having fun

Taylor's 16th Birthday and fun with Tyler

I forgot to add one of the most important events of Cora's life so far: her big brother, Taylor's 16th Birthday! Happy Birthday Taylor! His first car is a Nissan X-Terra....sweet ride! He was so excited and surprised. We are so proud of you Tay.

This is the only girl who should be in your backseat :)

Tyler was sweet enough to watch Cora while I got ready. She certainly enjoys playing X-Box with her big brother...or maybe just tasting the controller.

Music together....and a little rockin'

I decided to sign me and Cora up for a music class with our friends Heather and Clive. She loves music and dancing, so I figured I would encourage her musical ability :). I was a little hesitant at first since it is an all ages class, but she really enjoys her surroundings now that she is sitting unassisted. The class is turning out to be a hit! She really loves all the instruments (she likes to taste them more than anything) and gets a kick out of mommy dancing around the room with her. Robert, her instructor is awesome and watching her take in all the other children dancing around is quite fun too. Today we played with the tambourine and maracas. I like to think she is musically inclined, but it's kinda hard to tell when there is a whole room of kids playing different instruments at the same time...to their own tune.

making beautiful music
I think I will taste the maraca now
First try shaking that tambourine
mom...you're always taking my pic
Shakin the tambourine....ah, so talented

Ok...now the rockin part...:)

Cora is trying so hard to crawl, but I can never seem to capture her on her knees rockin back and forth. She always quits right when I pull the camera out. Well, my quest is over! I only got one good shot, but you can get the idea. She is so mobile...rolling and scooting all over the place...from one end of the room to the other. I figure it is only a matter of time before the crawling begins.

Rockin' Rockin'

Dang...you caught me...

I thought I would throw this one in here too. She loves to take the velcro off her puppy. She had this guilty smirk when I caught her on camera tonight. :)