Back to Reality.....

My Dearest Itsy Bug,

We got back from vacation on Wednesday morning at 3 am. I had every intention of writing a post before now about our amazing retreat to the sea and the varied accomplishments that you achieved while we were there, including turning 5 whole months old! :) But guess what. I didn't get that done. lol Carole was here at 5 pm Wed. for your therapy and I spent the rest of Wednesday (and part of Thursday too!) putting everything in the house back in order. Then Ayden came on Thursday night and Caleb came on Friday morning. We spent the day yesterday with Grandma, GG Garnet, and Aunt Cheryl; followed by the long awaited meeting of Aunt Ashley, Uncle Joe, Kenzie and Madi, who are visting from Louisiana, with you. :) Aunt Ashley was sooo disappointed when you didn't cooperate and come out while she was home for Christmas and she has been dying to get her hands on you ever since. Thank you for being such a good girl!

Anyway, among all the hustle and bustle, I did not get the post that I wanted to write written because I was having too much fun! lol

Last week, I got to spend a lot of time getting to know you even better than I already did. With this fifth month's passing, you have become even more of a interactive player in our family. There are certain things we can do that make you giggle every time, and you have decided that you like it very much when Mommy calls you Itsy Bug. You have shown a stronger stubborn streak (as indicated by your tummy time woes this week). You have gotten rolling to your stomach from your back down pat now and can hold your head up super high for longer periods of time now. So you lay on the floor, rolled to your belly, pulled in your legs and started them moving with all of your might. Unfortunately, these early attempts to crawl are met with resistance because you haven't figured out that your arms have to be involved too. You also get aggravated if you have to take your hands away from the general vicinity of your mouth.

Your thumb really is your best friend ( you even try to stick it in your mouth while you are eating!), and is constantly a mess of slobbery goo.

 You are VERY proud of yourself that you can hold your head up...and even showed off for me enough that I got some truly adorable pictures of you.....

 

Just look at your sweet face. :)

I have to admit that I was a little nervous about the sleep situation on vacation. I was worried that you would refuse to sleep without your fan, your bassinet, or your home. Yes, you have taken short naps in your playpen but never have you slept there for an extended period of time. You just started putting yourself to sleep, but so far at home you need the fan, the TV, your cuddly blanket (not covering your precious toes of course!) and the confines of your bassinet. You actually slept in the condo in a separate bedroom from us in the condo where we stayed, and I wondered if you would end up in bed with us, or cuddled on my chest on the couch. I shouldn't have worried! Not only did you sleep wonderfully in your playpen in your own room, you decided this week to tell me when its time for bed. You adjust your blankets yourself now, typically nuzzling a corner of the blanket that you have artfully arranged beside your face. You roll around in your sleep and aren't often in the same position that you were when you went to sleep as you are in the morning when I come to get you up. Another sign that you are growing up!

You also get quite the attitude when you get a pair of sunglasses on, even if they don't actually fit........

You sing, in your own way. You have a variety of sounds now that you use to voice your happiness, your hunger, your sleepiness or sometimes even how much we are irritating you. Last week, you figured out how to grunt. And have spent the last week growling at us like you are a cave woman. lol

You seem to enjoy sandy toes....

 

and Mommy's morning commune with the sand and the sea, which I am fairly sure you had no clue about, but which you happily participated in every single morning just the same...swinging peacefully in your swing on the balcony overlooking the sea.

You decided that letting the waves wash up onto your feet is pretty fun, but getting any other part of you wet is completely unacceptable. You enjoy looking at the ocean and listening to the waves, but kindly keep you out of the sun and the heat unless we are prepared to deal with a major melt-down.

You rode a boat for the first time....

where we saw dolphins.....

Well, Daddy and I saw dolphins. You..well, lets just say you decided a boat is a very nice place to watch the backs of your eyelids.

Eh. Who can blame you? It does rock after all.

You rode in the car like a trooper, and were an angel in every restaurant we took you into. Once again, collecting hearts........

including your mama's. :)

Now we're nicely settled in at home again. It was a wonderful break, a peaceful interlude in the midst of the madness that has been the last year. There is still a little madness to come, as your surgery date grows nearer (now just one month away!). But hopefully our little beach jaunt will give all of us the strength and the peace that we need to face whatever comes our way!

Mommy loves you, baby!