Little Valentine

Dan and I are very happy to have a new Valentine this year...we are so enjoying sharing new holidays as a family!  And this month has surely started off with a bang!  Lots of birthday parties for Uncle Matt, Connor and Megan, Mommy and Mamaw Best, has got our little cutie on the move.  Sophia is now more happy on her feet than sitting and we just can't stop her! 

Pulling herself to standing is a piece of cake...and cruising around the furniture is the most fun activity in our day!  But the newest achievement is 6-7 steps...all by herself!  We hadn't tried it in a while and Daddy wanted to see if Sophia had gotten any better...so we stood her up thinking we could get her to just stand independently, but our little mobile munchkin took off and took 6 steps right to us!  We thought it might have been a fluke, so we tried again, and then again...and still she just marched herself right over!  YEAH!  Sophia can walk! Well...just a little!

Even though she hasn't mastered the art of walking just quite yet, she has certainly begun to discover the art of climbing!  Within seconds, she has herself up on a step, or under the table, or half up and half down! 

"I got myself up here...now what?"

Our future gymnast!

 We do love seeing her discover new things she can do, but after a few falls and lots of tears...I'm beginning to wonder how long this stage will last!  She is gaining more and more independence with each day, or at least she thinks she is.  Which leads to more falls and more tears!  But one of these days she will figure it out and will continue to get a little more steady on her feet with each step.   She loves doing things herself but occassionally needs a little help after she gets herself in a predicament! 

I guess at the ripe, old age of 10 months, changes in baby hair occurs!  This month we said goodbye to the "crazy hair" and said hello to our long haired cutie!  It is finally long enough to wear clip in bows, and lays just perfectly when parted to the right!  Isn't she just so cute?! 

Cutie pie

It seems like this month has brought so much maturity to this little girl...her smile is different, her motor skills are much more advanced, her speech is evolving every day, and it seems she is embracing the world with such grace.  Well, not so graceful all the time!  Sophia has discovered her little attitude and begun throwing tantrums! 

First evidence of temper tantrums!

They only last a few seconds, but she is certainly finding her own way of telling and showing us what she wants!  I hope as Sophia continues to grow, that she can keep this new found independence and grow into a strong, self-sufficient, successful young woman! But for now, we will continue to enjoy the new discoveries that each month brings, and try to keep our little girl, "little" for another month!

New Year, New Discoveries

The countdown to the New Year has come and gone, but certainly this new year will bring more and more new things to enjoy in the world of Sophia.  This month brings 9 month milestones, in which our not so little baby is surely becoming a big girl.  She has loved trying new foods including oatmeal, waffles, crackers, turkey, cheese, and many more.  But her favorite seems to be cheese and any kind of cheese will do for this little lady!  It's amazing to watch her gain more and more of her own little personality and become slightly more independent each day!  She is beginning to pick and choose what she "wants" to eat off the plate, instead of just opening her mouth to whatever we give her. 

Along with becoming a little more independent, Sophia has also become more mobile!  She is officially crawling and getting into EVERYTHING!  She is pulling herself up on just about anything and loves to be chased!  Our hardwood floors are slippery, but this little machine manages quite well.  She is laughing and giggling at just about anything...and now we have learned all of her little tickle spots! 

This month has also brought the official sighting of "crazy hair."  No matter what we do, or how we try to style it...her hair ends up like this!  As crazy as it is...I still think she is the most beautiful little girl in the world!  She has also outgrown her infant carseat..and graduated to a big girl seat!  She absolutely loves it and being more upright to see all of her surroundings. 

Another one of her favorite things is playing with some adorable little kiddos...the Miranda's. 

Cooper is just so gentle with her...there will surely be a genuine friendship when these two grow up!  And Connor, Megan and Cole just love taking care of our little sweetie and she loves them right back!

A few of her favorite people!

She is so interested in Daddy's DVD player and XBox and she is instantly drawn to the remote controls.  And not just any old batteryless remote...she wants the "one" that controls the TV!  Needless to say, she definitely has us contemplating new strategic ideas for babyproffing to keep our little detective safe!

This month also included a trip to Muddy Creek Pediatrics to see Dr. Habel for the 9 month well check.  All the stats look good, except our little peanut seems to be a little small!  Her length is great (thanks to Daddy's 6'4 height), but her weight is a little on the low side...only in about the 25th percentile.  So we have to just let our little munchkin eat anything she wants...so you guessed it...more cheese!  Also, her hemoglobin levels are a little low (10.6), which the doctor said is typical with breastfed babies.  But since her weight is a little low, and her hemoglobin is low, we have to start daily iron supplements.  No big deal...just another step in the bedtime routine and she takes the stinky iron like a champ!  But she's not a champ all the time.  Sometimes that cute little body just can't keep up...especially when we get croup!

Croup Day 1

So 1 week after the 9 month check up, we go back to Muddy Creek to confirm Mommy's suspicion that Sophia had croup!

Croup Day 3

Deep, barking cough along with a bad runny nose proved to be a long 10 days, but she eventually kicked the nasty bug and was quickly back to her normal happy, healthy, little self!



We couldn't be luckier to have such a happy little girl.  She loves to jump and swing with Daddy and spend cuddle time with Mommy, and she is simply growing up just way too fast.  She is smiling and giggling all the time...which makes my world turn upside down.  The days go so fast and the months are a blink...sometimes I just need to stop and basque in the beauty of Sophia!