5 months old

Today Ansley is 5 months old! I always think the next month will be so much different than the last but not much has changed....we're still working on the skill of flipping over from back to stomach. We REALLY want her to learn this so that when she is in bed she can flip herself back over and go back to sleep. She still gets in the crawl position but just kind of flops forward or backward. So she scoots around but just inches, so my floors can remain dirty. :o)

And the latest on our growing girl:
She eats anything we give her....from peas to papayas. But unfortunately she still spits up quite a bit and we're constantly soaking and scrubbing everything she comes in contact with. It's always great when you're out and about and your baby spits up all over you...or down your shirt.

She loves her exer-saucer and spends lots of her time eating all the toys on it... She has found her feet and loves to grab onto them...she just can't quite get them into her mouth (because of those rolie polie thighs) so she looses interest in her feet quite quickly.She has learned how to grab hair now and then pull it so that she can suck on our faces. That's always fun to have baby slobber dripping off your face. I'm glad, right now, Ethan thinks it's funny.

She has figured out how to use her voice and can scream like no child I have ever heard. And right now she is perfecting the whine....we'll have to nip that one in the bud. She has also got giggles that make us all laugh along because it is just so stinkin' cute.

She really enjoys the car now so sometimes we just make up errands to run just so we can go ride in the car.

We're excited to see what the next month will bring. Time is flying...although some days feel like an eternity. :o)

exercising

Ansley has mastered the skill of jumping jacks. She does jumping jacks on her stomach, on her back, when you're holding her, while she's eating (she's almost kicked her food right out of my hands many times) and when she's riding in the car. Like I said in a previous post she is an energetic little girl...I guess she's just trying to keep up with her two older brothers.

smiles

Although Ansley is quite the hand full, she does give us plenty of smiles and giggles.

splish splash

This was Ansley's first bath in the bathtub. She is not a docile little girl and the baby bathtub baths in the kitchen sink were turning into water war zones. I was tired of having to change my clothes and clean up a soggy kitchen every time she got a bath. So for time sake we decided to put all 3 kids in at the same time...a bit too crowded. But Ansley hardly moved (her face pretty much looked like that the whole time) because these two hoodlum's were so entertaining.

Jesus, Lover of My Soul

It has been a few weeks since I've been to church, due to sick kids or baby issues. So although I missed most of the church service today (due to a little girl who likes to squeal), I did get to catch a couple of songs and a bit of the sermon. So I wanted to post this hymn because of the struggles of my heart lately...this was exactly what I needed to be reminded of.

Jesus, lover of my soul,
Let me to Thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll,
While the tempest still is high.
Hide me, O my Savior, hide,
Till the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide;
Oh, receive my soul at last.

Other refuge have I none,
Hangs my helpless soul on Thee;
Leave, ah! leave me not alone,
Still support and comfort me.
All my trust on Thee is stayed,
All my help from Thee I bring;
Cover my defenseless head
With the shadow of Thy wing.

Thou, O Christ, art all I want,
More than all in Thee I find;
Raise the fallen, cheer the faint,
Heal the sick, and lead the blind.
Just and holy is Thy Name,
Source of all true righteousness;
Thou art evermore the same,
Thou art full of truth and grace.

Plenteous grace with Thee is found,
Grace to cover all my sin;
Let the healing streams abound;
Make and keep me pure within.
Thou of life the fountain art,
Freely let me take of Thee;
Spring Thou up within my heart;
Rise to all eternity.

~Charles Wesley 1740

drawing

Ethan has really been into drawing lately. He loves to use his 1-2-3 Draw book which teaches him what shapes to use when drawing animals, cars, etc. Before he would get frustrated because he couldn't quite draw it right or he would ask for my help. But now he has gained confidence in his drawing abilities and drew this picture all on his own, without my help. He drew this picture and said it was for me. It's great isn't it?

Look at the detail in the butterfly.

baby food

I can't believe we are at this stage already and at the same time I am so glad we are at this stage already. Most moms dread the solid food stage but I count down the days until I can feed them solids. My babies just seem happier and more content with solids in their bellies...well except this little Ansley of ours. She keeps us on our toes and makes sure she never does anything twice. Makes this "I like order, I like predictability" mom quite frazzled a lot of the time. I am curious to see what this little girls personality is going to be like...it's already quite different than either of my boys. I think she actually has a little bit of both - Ethan's excitement for life and Jude's laid back tendencies...with a little kick of feistiness. I don't know where she gets that from. ;o)

little tidbit of info: I do make my own baby food. Not because I'm an all organic, all natural kind of mom...but because it saves SO much money. I bought this no sugar added applesauce for $3.50 (blended it a bit to make it a little more smooth) and it makes an equivalent of about 18 jars of baby food. Two jars of baby food go for $1.19 here in Hawaii...such a savings! Which is good because once again I have a child that eats anything I put before her. I was making carrot baby food yesterday and I gave her a little taste. It was a new taste for her but she still ate it and wanted more. She is quite the spitter-upper so we might wait a little while before we introduce orange food....oh the stains that will create.

we've got a mover

It looks like we've got another baby that is eager to get moving. She is going to follow in her brother, Jude's footsteps. She gets on her hands and knees and rocks forward until she flops...but thankfully she ends up in the exact spot she started out in. I'm thinking though it won't be long before we need to start putting all the little Lego toys, marbles and any other small piece toys up out of reach...and I will need to keep the floors a little more clean than what they are now.

hot days

Lately it has been stinkin' hot...not just warm but unbearably hot...and for some reason air conditioning is not a common thing to have in homes here. I don't get it. This is typical Hawaiian summer weather but it's ONLY May. And the summer's here last until December. So all this to say that I'm not enjoying Hawaii right now. Heat = cranky for me. So once again this is a great lesson in contentment...I just tend to be a horrible student lately. Anyway, this blog was not meant for rants, so now I will post a couple of pictures on how we try to cope with the heat:

We were baking cookies last night (which doesn't help with the heat by the way) and I had to laugh...sometimes it's just cooler to not wear shorts.
Our friends let us use their pool. I think their exact words were "use our pool anytime". So I hope they were being literal because we are going to be there EVERY day....maybe we'll just move into their house. Ansley got to wear her first swimsuit. Makes you want to just squeeze her doesn't it? I love having a little girl.

the beginning of a toothless smile

Ever since Ethan's friend, Sam, told him that you lose your teeth when you turn 5, Ethan has waited for the day when his teeth would start to get loose. Well it took a few months past his 5th birthday but today he lost his first tooth. He was so excited....after he got over the fear of actually pulling it out. Since then he hasn't stopped talking about it. Now he's working on the other loose tooth right above it. Do I really have a kid that is old enough to start loosing his teeth? Crazy how fast time flies.