3 Months

I absolutely cannot believe my baby girl is 3 months old!  I feel like when you have a newborn it's hard, yet wonderful, and when it's hard the 3 month mark is like this magical place that you look forward to.  It is when your baby is officially past the newborn stage.  And I really can't believe I'm here.  Hannah is such a joy!  She is a very happy baby who does not like to take naps....and about the only times she cries are when she is overtired and I'm trying to get her to go to sleep.  She has learned that wrapping her up in the blanket and turning on the sound machine means time to take a nap, so she usually lets me know that that's not what she wants to do!!  Other than that, she smiles and coos all the time!  I love watching her.  She has several different smiles, and I think my favorite is one where she halfway sticks her tongue out.  It's so cute!!  She is trying to make new sounds all the time.  And when she talks, you can see her thinking.  She has begun to tolerate tummy time more and more.  She has begun to move forward (not purposely) when on her tummy. She can get up on her knees but hasn't figured out the "hands" part yet.  I think we are on our way to regularly rolling over!  She did a couple times over the past week, but did it twice in a row on Sunday (the day after her "3-month birthday").  I had assisted her the first time, and then she did it twice completely unassisted.  She loves to be held but has gotten very good at entertaining herself for periods of time while I get things done.  She likes the bouncy seat and the playmat with a tweeting bird overhead.  Hannah still loves to sit outside and watch the cars go by, and she loves to be warm.  I'm not sure what she will think of outside now that it's starting to get chilly here in Indiana!  She really is the joy of my life.

Since I last wrote, Hannah has spent a weekend in St Louis hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa.  We had a great time, it was lowkey and wonderful to spend time with family.  Matt's mom was diagnosed a little over a year ago with Ovarian Cancer, but has been off chemo with no signs of cancer since before Christmas.  The doctors found a small mass in her abdomen and just after our visit, she went to get it removed and we all feared that it was the cancer returning.  On Tuesday morning, we got great  news!!!  It was a tiny "water sac" possibly scar tissue, but it was nothing to be worried about!  So we are all thrilled and thanking the Lord for answering our prayers!!!  We are so thankful.  We also got to introduce Hannah to many of Matt's friends.  One day she went to meet Phil and Erin Jones.  And then we went to a party at Brian and Lauren Simpson's house, so she met them and Paul Paul.

Hannah also spent a weekend in Phoenix, AZ adding state number 8 to her list!  Our baby girl is quite the traveler!  She did great with the time change.  We pretty much just let her go to sleep on eastern time, and luckily she would keep going back to sleep in the morning til we were ready to get up around 7 or 7:30.  We visited our friend's John and Ali Carter and their little girl MacKenzie.  While there, we also went to the Mizzou vs. Arizona State Game.  Although Mizzou didn't win, Hannah enjoyed sleeping through her first football game!  We had a great time and are so thankful for John and Ali's hospitality.

And then last weekend our good friend Joel came to visit!  He had been in Chicago and met up with Matt there while Matt was traveling, and then came on down to Indy for a visit!  Hannah loved Joel and it was so fun to hang out with him!  We look forward to the next time we are in Atlanta to see him again and to also introduce Hannah to his lovely wife!

I guess I haven't really written how I'm doing.  But I am really doing great!  Hannah is such a good baby. I sometimes have a hard time getting things done during the day because she has not been good at taking naps, but that is getting a little bit better.  Getting into the swing of things being a stay at home mom has been the most difficult transition.  I love hanging out with my daughter and taking her on walks, but I also know that I need to do chores around the house and do things like fix dinner, etc.  Matt has been back to traveling since late July, and we are doing okay with it.  We miss him like crazy when he's gone, and if Hannah has been particularly fussy, it's hard not to have a break or someone to help in the evenings.  But we are so thankful that his job allows us the ability to be a one income family.  And when he is home it's wonderful because we see him occasionally during the day and then he's usually home before 5 on the days he's in town.  It is a trade off, and there are some lonely evenings, but we are so thankful for all of his hard work!  I am still really liking Indianapolis and am slowly getting to know people.  I am getting involved in a MOPS group this year and am hoping that this helps me get to know people better, and that I build some good relationships through the group.

Hannah with Phil

Meeting Paul Paul

Ready for the Mizzou game

Our attempt at a family picture....it was about 6:00, which is 9:00 eastern and Hannah was ready for bed!!!

Hannah slept even with the loud cheers of football fans!!

Here I am being a big girl on my tummy time mat (thanks Ali!!), Hannah can push up this high even without the wedge to help, but on the wedge, she really gets up on her knees too!

Hanging with Joel