September/October

Laney as a giraffe on Halloween, and my cousin Steph carved a giraffe in her pumpkin.

She discovered the tail :)

Matt & Shelsea brought this outfit back from their Hawaiian Honeymoon for Laney

Laney and her Minnie Mouse pumpkin

My pumpkin & Laney's

Crawling around means that mommy needs to baby proof!

Pumpkin Patch with the cousins!

Yep, she loves her books!

The signature Laney face.

Those BIG blue eyes, melt me!

Tummy/side sleeper now.

Her new bath and bath toy.

Laney turned 6 months on September 6th and I was very emotional, because I was heading back to work full time. We decided to get family photos done to remember this special milestone.

September 8th was my first day of school and I survived, but not without tears. The first few weeks were tough! Once I was at work I had so much to do and I was so busy that I hardly had a moment to think about missing Laney. It was just hard to leave in the morning and I remember laying in bed a few nights sobbing and telling Jordan that I can't handle being a mommy and a teacher. I guess being off those 6 months I had forgot what kind of a job teaching really is. You just can't understand unless you have done it, and I forgot how much I take home and that it is not a 9-5 job. I am blessed to have a wonderful staff and team, and one of the girls on my team has a little guy that is about 10 weeks older than Laney and we kept joking about working part time. However, just talking about doing it made me feel better. I am doing fine now, and it just seems like it is our normal routine. I think working a 3 or even 4 day work week would be ideal. I just feel like I can never get caught up with grading, shopping, and cleaning. Being a working mommy has really made the moments I have with Laney SUPER special! I am never frustrated when she isn't sleeping or when she is fussy. The times we are together are so special and we have so much fun together. However, I am having a hard time leaving Laney for anything else. Since I am working full time, I hate to leave her for any other reason.

At the end of the month Laney started scooting just a few inches and she is always full of smiles and giggles. She is now enjoying many fruits and veggies. I have still been making some of her food, but I was having a hard time balancing that so I have been purchasing food lately. Laney has also began sleeping on her side or tummy. This was VERY nerve racking for me, but she just got too big for her sleep positioner. I started finding Laney in a different position every time I went in her room, and she began to play with the sleep positioner. Well, as soon as I took that away she had a hard time putting herself to sleep like she usually does. So, I had a rough two weeks, but she is finally use to it, and she sleeps so much loner now that she can get comfy any way she wants to. Laney also visited the Puyallup fair this month, and we sponsored a little girl in Africa who shares Laney's birthday.

October was a big month for Laney, she is scooting and rocking on her knees. She is ALL OVER the place. It is so fun watching her move around and try to grab every little object that is on the ground. She loves eating her solid foods and her favorites are applesauce and sweet potatoes. She has protested beans, and even puked some up...oops! I guess gets that from her daddy. She is pulling up on things, standing by herself if she is holding onto an object, and she is clapping her hands! It is just too adorable. If you say YAHHHH or if you sing, "If your happy..." she starts clapping right away. I think it is just adorable. Some of the things Laney really enjoys at this age are:

1. She LOVES her books.

2. When mommy reads to her at night Laney pats her book as she is falling asleep. It is just too cute.

3. She loves making LOUD growling sounds. I think she picked these up from our dogs. She is also enjoying screaming as well as whispering. It is too cute to listen to her change not only her volume, but her tone. She has a very soft quite voice, it sounds as if she is talking to a newborn one moment and then it sounds as if she is screaming at a teenager the next!

4. She has really started to get more excited when daddy walks in the room. Every time she sees him her face lights up!

5. She LOVES peek-a-boo. For some reason, she giggles so hard when Grandma plays this with her.

6. She loves her activity center that she can stand around and her favorite part of that is the piano.

7. She loves to JUMP in her jumperoo.

8. She loves finger foods like puffs and mum-mums (rice cakes)

9. She LOVES water. If you give her a cup she will drink from it! It is too cute, she tips her head back and everything. After she fulfills her thirst she begins trying to blow bubbles with her water.

10. She wants to eat and drink EVERYTHING that we are. She enjoys pretending to chew as she is watching mommy and daddy eat at the dinner table.

11. She LOVES snuggling in bed with mommy and daddy. When she wakes up super early I have been bringing her in bed with us, and she falls asleep in my arms almost instantly. I know this is a bad habit, but I cherish these moments and I just love watching her sleep and feeling her warmth next to me.

12. When someone holds her the first thing she does is feel their face.

13. She loves cellphones.