May 4-
I don't know where this month went, but here she is another month older in the blink of an eye!
We celebrated a couple milestones this month...rolling and eating. Julienna rolled from her tummy to her back on April 10 and then from her back to her tummy on April 17. I missed the first roll because I had just turned away to put something in her closet, but I caught it the next time. And the back to front roll she was getting really good at, but the last couple weeks, she has decided that she doesn't want to roll anymore. So, I will just wait for her to be ready again, although I already got it on video and documented it in her baby book!
Because we are not having much luck with the bottle, we started rice cereal. She did okay with it the first time and then didn't have much interest so we added a little bit of banana and she really liked that. We even tried some strawberry, but it was a bit too flavorful for her! Julienna is pretty good about getting the food into her mouth and she likes to grab the spoon from you. I also found a bottle with handles and she likes to play with that while she eats.
I did spend one evening feeding her milk through a syringe. It was successful but very tedious!
Besides the feeding issues, Julienna is a very happy girl! Her smile lights up a room and she is full of giggles! Kingston does the silliest things to make her giggle (hitting himself in the head, saying "boo Julienna", and playing peek-a-boo).
She is in awe of her crazy big brother! And the feeling is mutual. Just the other day, Kingston came into my room when he woke up and told me " I was really quite mom, and I went into Julienna's room, and I was really quite, and I put a flower in her crib so she would see it when she woke up!" So sweet and I love that he made sure to reinforce the fact that he was really quite! Although, his love can sometimes be a little rough so I have to remind him to be gently.
We spend quite a bit of time in her room playing so Kingston will bring some of his toys in or just play with her toys. One day we had a tea party and he insisted that she drink some tea too. He always makes her feel included.
He is also great at keeping her busy during tummy time. She is getting really strong and some days doesn't mind being on her tummy (I might even go as far as to say that she enjoys it). If I hold my hands against her feet she can push against them and move forward a little. Now, she just needs to figure out those arms and she will be off!
Julienna loves her toys. Her favorites are the ball with the bell from Great Grandma Cecrle (or Grandma Rose, as Kingston calls her).
The little rings that connect toys. These might actually be her favorite (they were a Christmas gift from Ms. Suzanne when Kingston was a baby). A flexible ball that she can put in her mouth and chew (it was also a Kingston Christmas present from Nana).
Other favorites are the frog rattle and ruby. That little frog rattle is my life saver in the car when she gets a little fussy.
And, she absolutely loves her "keke". She wraps her fingers around it when she sleeps and when she starts to get tired she will put it in her mouth and suck on it. They are already inseparable....which means I should probably have grandma make me a spare....just in case!
Julienna loves to play peek-a-boo. Even if she is sad, she will still smile when you do it.
Kingston and I took Julienna on her first stroller ride without the car seat this month. She really liked being able to look around. And, the stroller even has a spot for Kingston to sit so we can all go together. It will be nice to not have to carry her around in the pack as much...although we still use it quite a bit.
Jane lent me all of her girl clothes and she has so much cute stuff. I'm always worried that I won't get to put her in it all before she grows out of it. So, whenever I get her all dressed up, I just have to have a little photo shoot!
She looks just like a little doll. Mom actually made this outfit for Molly, but we borrowed some of her clothes too and just had to have a picture in it!
We are getting a lot better about routines. Generally she sleeps from 9-5 (but lately only till 3) and then we are up for the day around 9 am. She eats, plays for a bit and then goes down for a 30 minute snooze. We repeat that until the evening. At 6 pm she eats and stays awake till bedtime. We have her bananas and rice cereal for dinner and lots of playing and a bath. It's probably hard for anyone else to keep her on this routine since she doesn't eat, but it works for me!
Before bed, we read books and she absolutely loves this book from Aunt Linda. The pages are big with bright colored pictures and she has a lot to look at. She likes it when I point to the animals and make their sounds. The donkey and duck sounds are her favorite.
Julienna also discovered her toes this month. Babies are crazy flexible and she finally noticed those little things at the end of her feet. She likes to just hang onto them and try to bring them up to her mouth.
She is really enjoying her bath and it's starting to get really good at making some big splashes. She raises both feet in the air and then brings them down together into the water, splashing water everywhere. It makes her so happy. Kingston likes to "help" her play with her toys and shows her how they all work.
Julienna, you are my favorite little girl and you bring so much happiness to our family. Your personality is just starting to come out and I can't wait to see the little girl that you become. You are figuring out how everything works and are really intrigued by your hands and how you can grab stuff and bring it closer to yourself. You especially like to grab my hair! I just love your smile and your sweet innocence. You cry when I leave the room, but you are so content to just sit and play with your toys as long as I'm there to keep you company. I'm waiting for the day when you will have your daddy wrapped around your little finger...I can tell, it won't be long!
