Harper Five Months

Age: Five Months Old

Weight: 15 pounds 3 ounces (by my measurement on our scale)

Length:  24 inches long (at 4 month check-up)

Size: Harper is in size 2 diapers and in all 6 month clothes and pajamas

Hair: She has a fuzz ball of blonde hair growth

Eyes: She has BIG blue eyes with long lashes that go all the way up to her eyebrows when she bats them!

Health:  Harper has had a perfect bill of health this past month. She got 4 vaccines at her 4 month doctors visit which she was tired from but didn’t seem too bothered by. She has been happy, healthy, hungry and growing this month.

Teeth: None yet but she just loves chewing on her hands.

Eating:  Harper is still waking up for a night time feeding which I typically hold off until after midnight if she wakes up earlier.

Sleeping: Ahhh sleep, what is that? The 4 month sleep regression was in full swing as soon as she turned 4 months old. On top of that I had started phasing out the swaddle at night, then Daylight Savings hit and she got her vaccines all in the same week. Bad planning on this mama’s part! For the first two and half weeks Harper was up every single night 3-4 times a night. Half of the time she was easy to settle back down and just put her pacifier back in her mouth then she would fall right back to sleep or fall asleep on her own shortly after. The other half we weren’t so lucky. She still woke up all over the place, even after only being in bed a short time. The past week and half she has started getting back to her old sleeping habits of only waking up once to eat but will wake up because she has rolled onto her belly and gets mad. Typically I can just go flip her over and put her paci in then she is okay. Then just when you think they might be back to their better sleeping days, they decide to change things up again and wake up all hours of the night again. Maybe this month will be better?! 

Harper’s bedtime is around 7:00pm and wakes up at 6:40am during the weekdays. On the weekends she will usually sleep in to 7:30 or 8:00am if I let her. Naps are starting to get a little better. Daycare tells me she usually takes a good long nap in the morning then a short afternoon nap then is up and wake the majority of the day happy as can be. She usually last eats at daycare around 2-2:30pm and awake the rest of the day. So it’s no wonder when I get home and feed her she sometimes wants to fall asleep while eating. Naps on the weekend look a little different. She usually takes a 45 minute to hour for me in the morning then has started taking a bit longer one in the afternoon. This past weekend Madden decided it would be a great idea to plan in Harpers room during nap time which of course woke her up and she was grouchy. She will sometimes take a short 3^rd nap. Now that she is rolling over, she will sometimes sleep on her belly or on her side/half on her belly. 

Movement:  She’s a rolling fool! She rolls from back to tummy and tummy to back. She is wiggle and roll off her playmat. When I put her down on the floor, she is rarely in the same exact spot. It won’t be long before she is rolling all over the living room. Rolling over in her crib and sleeping on her belly.

Milestones: She is officially rolling over!!! Easter weekend she decided to start rolling from her back to her belly just in time to show off to family all weekend long. She learned how to get over that darn arm but then would get it stuck under her. It didn’t take long once she started rolling to do it all the time now. It seems as soon as I set her down she flips right over and will get mad she can’t go anywhere. She flails her arms and legs like she wants to go somewhere!  Grabs her toes. Just started using the jumperoo. 

Favorite Toys/Activities: Her bouncer - she loves talking to the animals, grabbing and pulling at them to make sound and now she has started playing with them with her feet. She actually really likes getting adjusted at the chiro. She giggles and smiles every time. Likes to play with her Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer crinkle book, lovies, and blankets. Things she can immediately put in her mouth. She loves eating her hands and sucking on her thumb and pointer finger. She still likes to stick her tongue out, baths, watching TV, blowing spit bubbles, blowing raspberries, diaper changes, being naked, playing under the play mat, and smiling or talking to anyone who gives her attention. She so loves her big brother, she watches him all the time and looks around for him when she hears him. She thinks it’s funny when he tries laying on her and “wrestling” her (which he knows he’s not allowed to do!). Boys are rough but it doesn’t even phase her yet.

Dislikes: Naps, still the little catnapper but hopefully, I think (fingers crossed) getting better. She still fights falling asleep, bedtime is usually fairly easy but naps she is definitely a fighter. Falling asleep outside her house or without her mama. Waiting to eat, even at daycare. 

Words: N/A

Sounds: Laughing and giggling. She usually only cries when she’s tired or hungry. She still coos, squawks blows raspberries, and “talks" all the time. She loves interacting with people who give her attention. She has started talking in her crib. I’ve heard her a couple times in the middle of the night talking and eventually will fall back to sleep on her own. And she has started talking in the morning if she wakes up on her own. 

Her new smile! 

Favorite Moments

• Easter weekend Harper decided it was time to start rolling over. Saturday morning after I got done changing her I laid her down on the floor which she immediately just went to her side. Then rolled right over. I thought it was a fluke but letter that afternoon while playing under her playmat she rolled over for me again and then I got it on video again right afterwards. There has been no stopping her since. 
• This past weekend I decided to retire the swing to the basement and replace it with the Jumperoo. Even on the lowest setting she can just barely touch the ground so there isn't much jumping or bouncing just yet. Madden was super excited for her new toy and show Harper how to use it and all its gadgets. He ended up pulling up a chair to her to play with her and then lining up all sorts of toys and additional chairs around them saying "they were having a party" and there was even cake! :)

Monthly Highlights

• First St. Patrick’s Day
• Went to her first parade
• Visited the Malloy’s new house
• Celebrated first Easter
• Went to her first Easter Egg hunt (plus a few)
• Tornado sirens went off at bedtime, spent bedtime in basement
• First Farmer’s Market
• Went to Dexter’s church Annual Pancake Breakfast and Easter Egg Hunt
• Started rolling from back to tummy
• Started rolling over in crib and waking up
• Went on our first walk!
• Had a chiropractor appointment
• Cried for 2 hours straight for Grandma and Papa Dexter while they babysat
• First time being put to bed by anyone beside mom or dad
• First time in jumperoo
• Still Breastfeeding

Easter Shenanigans

Disclaimer: Prepare for a photo overload!!

We started our Easter weekend celebration a few days early with some coloring eggs and making daycare treats. 

This was the first time Madden has colored Easter eggs and he was super excited. He appointed a color for all the eggs for each family member and friend of his. He was very eager to get those eggs colored and not a huge fan of having to wait for them to dry. 

He wanted to eat the eggs right away. He hasn't been a huge fan of scrambled eggs or eating eggs of any kind for the past year so I made sure to explain to him these eggs were real eggs and not chocolate or candy. His response was "I like chocolate!" So we cracked open a hard-boiled egg and each took a bite. I asked him if he liked it, shaking his head yes he said "Yeah I like it" all while giving a disgusted look on his face. He took one more little nibble then gave me the rest of the egg and said "Here mom you eat it!" So funny!

We whipped up a last minute Easter treat for daycare, bunny bait. We mixed Annie's graham cracker bunnies with vanilla yogurt covered raisins and Easter colored M&M's in cute little bunny bags from Target's Dollar Spot!

Saturday morning we headed down to the Freight House and Farmers Market for what was suppose to be some Easter fun. We saw Nora and Brooks from daycare, we always seem to be running into them at events. Great minds think alike ;) The turn out at the farmers market was a bit crazy. The indoor market and activities were jammed packed that we didn't even attempt to find the cookie decorating or crafts. The outside egg hunt was a disaster. Madden and Nora were in the front of the crowd and lets just say neither of them got even ONE egg! There were adults grabbing eggs by the handfuls for their kids, it was terrible and extremely disappointing for the kids. I felt so horrible for taking him to what I thought would be fun. Thankfully a nice mother saw Madden's tears and heard he didn't get any and give him one of her daughters eggs since she has multiples. It definitely helped save the day except the candy inside was a Jolly Rancher, who give 4 and under Jolly Ranchers?!? So mean mommy wouldn't let him eat it. 

We had a big Easter egg hunt planned at my brothers later Saturday afternoon so that saved the day. MJ absolutely loves his cousins and always wants to see them. He really loves playing with all of them. Together they played this really fun game with Harper, that went a little like "Let's all go in a circle and walk over the baby!" And was immediately stopped once one suggested "Let's jump over her". Oh man, Harper's going to have to learn to hold her own being the youngest.  

I don't know how people take pictures of kids, especially more than one because they are all over the place. This was seriously the best picture I could get of these four. Always looking in different directions. LOL

Kiddos had a blast looking for the eggs. Stella was super excited about finding a red egg, she kept yelling she had found it then she threw it down and ran away to look for another one. At the end they were all searching for the very last hidden eggs. Madden ended up finding one more and Stella started yelling at him to put it in her basket. These kids are just too funny. 

Game faces on! The kids sure took their egg hunting serious lol

And of course their favorite part, opening the eggs to find out what's hidden inside. Madden calls them prizes. 

My little cuddly bunnies on Easter morning!

Easter morning both kids slept in and Madden came into our room to cuddle and watch cartoons. We had to remind him the Easter Bunny had came while he was sleeping. He ran to the window to look outside, thinking the bunny left more eggs outside (that bunny might have to do that next year!). Then he ran out to the living room, Dave and I just waited and listened for his reaction. After a minute or two of searching he screamed in delight then came running to our bedroom wanting us to come see the presents and eggs he found. 

All morning long Madden kept telling us how "cited" he was and how "it's so citing" everything was. He continued to put candy back in all his eggs and re-hide them ALL.DAY.LONG.

Huntin Eggs

We had our first official Easter Egg Hunt of the year!

My in-laws invited us to their church's annual Pancake Breakfast and Easter Egg Hunt. The same church we go to for Trunk or Treat. This was our third year attending. Madden has been so excited about hunting for eggs, he has been talking about it and asking when the Easter bunny is coming for a couple weeks now. 

Friday evening I got out one of his Easter baskets to get ready for the event Saturday morning. The moment he saw pretty lead to a meltdown because he could not wait till the next day, he wanted to hunt eggs then and now! AND he wanted the eggs outside. Ahh three-nager!

I eventually talked him into going with dad to pick up dinner so I could put Harper to bed and then I would fill up a few eggs with treats and hide them outside. I only hid them on our deck as it was starting to get dark and by a few I mean like 8. This just made his day! He was so pumped to look for them and then open them up to see what was inside....left over St. Patrick's parade candy ;) He hugged me and said "thank you mommy!" He was ready for Saturday morning!

The church served pancakes, sausage and assorted fresh fruit. Then they have several different stations with crafts, games, magic tricks, and Easter lessons around the gym and gathering space for the kids while everyone is eating and waiting to egg time. Madden's favorite games were Planko and Cross Toss. 

Then it was time to go outside and line up at our age group. Madden moved up this year to the 3-5 year olds. For the 0-2 and 3-5 year old groups they have two gated in areas. They put eggs outside in front of the gated area too. The excited of the kids standing there seeing the eggs and waiting for them to yell "Go" was just too cute. As soon as they were given the green light Madden ran over, picked up an egg them turned around, held it up and yelled "I got one mom!"

After all the eggs were found we hung around to talk and let Madden play. The majority of all the kids left, maybe only a handful stayed around to plan on the equipment and toys. Dave and MJ made one last round looking under all the play toys and Madden ended up finding another egg that no one had found. He was so excited about it that he had to run over to tell us and then go back and show which tractor it was under and exactly where it was under the tractor. It was too cute. 

Next year Harper will be able to participate in all the fun!

Once we got home later that afternoon Madden went outside to play in the yard and found one of the Easter eggs from the night before that must have blown off the deck without us realizing. He came running up the stairs and into the house yelling "I found one, I found one. Look mom the Easter bunny put an egg in the dirt down there". Then he wanted me to put all the candy he got from that mornings egg hunt into the plastic eggs we had at home so he could hide them for me to find. He ended up hiding them only on the deck in all the places I hid eggs the day before in. He would help me find the eggs and cheered every time I found one! 

Madden and his papa's!

Video of MJ emptying out all his eggs. 

Easter Egg Hunting

Hoppy Belated Easter!

We started our Easter celebration a week early at my in-laws church the weekend before Easter. They have a pancake breakfast followed by an Easter Egg hunt which is open to the public every year. We invited my friend Tera and her family for her daughter Violets first egg hunt. Madden and Violet are good buddies and are always so excited to see each other.

Madden loved showing Violet where the eggs where and how to open them to find little treasures inside :)

On Saturday afternoon we went over to Jordan and Steph's for dinner and an egg hunt, these kiddos were counting down the minutes to when the East bunny would come hide some eggs at the house. They were practically beating down the basement door to get a sneak peak :)

Clearly there is a reason for this belated Easter posted via MJ's shirt!

Madden announced the news to Jordan, Steph and the kids when we went over for Easter dinner.

Toddlers LOVE bubbles, these two just crack me up when they are together. 

This video has to put a smile on your face....I think they could have done this for hours!

And of course the Easter Bunny made a stop by our house to drop off a little basket of goodies for Madden. The look on his face was so priceless when he saw all the eggs on the floor and his basket. He was ecstatic and there was no way I could make him wait to get Dave up.