Catching up

Let's see... it has been a few weeks since I last posted and we've had lots going on. First of all, Miss Julia continues to grow and grow. She weighed in at 11.5 lbs at the doctor's office last Tuesday and we're already finding her 0-3 month clothes a little snug! Yep, that's our chunky monkey :)

In addition to getting bigger, it has also been so cool to watch her develop. She's very alert, looking around curiously a lot of her waking time. She has discovered the colorful, stuffed pictures that hang above her changing table and she loves to stare at them while we're changing her. In fact, they seem to be far more exciting than mommy or daddy these days, as they can elicit squeals and grins... we seem to be chopped liver.

Okay, that isn't quite true. We have been successful lately in getting some smiles from our little lady. She is starting to enjoy a little game of swish the (clean) burp cloth across the face! It usually lasts for about three smiles and then we're done ;) We've also been trying to get her onto her tummy for a little while every day, which is only interesting for a few minutes before frustration sets in. We have learned that she's discovering her tongue through these efforts, since she leaves a big drool spot on the blanket where she plopped her frustrated head, nose first, and proceeded to lick like crazy.

On the slightly less fun side, Julia has been having a rough time in the evenings. We don't think it's colic, but she's definitely having some tummy trouble. Poor baby, she cries like someone is pinching her for stretches at a time. Thankfully, we can usually get her calmed down enough to fall asleep before midnight. Unfortunately, she's still up about every 2-3 hours, which means we're up again before long. Joe and I have taken "good night" out of our vocabulary for the time being. Instead, when he takes first shift and I go to sleep, we say "see ya in awhile." It seems a bit less painful ;) If anyone wants to come take a shift, we're always happy to have guests!
Finally, I want to make sure to share some very exciting news! My mom finally finished her radiation treatment for breast cancer. GO MOM! We had a great surprise party for her about a week ago, with lots of friends and family. We had about 30 friends and family there, with food and gifts to help her celebrate. It was great! Here's a great family photo from the party - we missed you Roxy and family!!