Atlanta

It is so nice to be close enough to drive to Atlanta!!!  We hit the road early (3:30!) one Thursday morning and headed south!  It was Hannah's first trip to my parents house and she was able to add 2 more states to her list (making it 9!).  We left super early so that Hannah would hopefully sleep until we were past Nashville, and it worked!  She snoozed until Nashville and woke up just on the other side.  We stopped for breakfast for us, to feed and change Hannah, and fill up on gas.  Amazingly, this was our ONLY stop!!!  I had brought a bottle and fed Hannah in the carseat as we got onto 285 just about 30 minutes from my parent's house.  The trip could not have gone any better, and we were at my parents house by noon!

On Friday we went to see our good friends' Beth and Sy.  They were so sweet to have us in their home, and we got to try out their yummy red beans and rice that they had been cooking all day for their tailgate Saturday.  We also went to lunch with Chris, Jen and baby Phoebe.  Phoebe is about 6 weeks younger than Hannah, and just a hair bigger than Hannah was at birth!  She is a sweet, petite, and very happy baby!

On Saturday, Hannah got to spend the whole day with Grandma!  Matt and I headed to Athens, GA to watch the Bulldogs pounce on the Auburn Tigers.  It was so fun to be back in my college town after 3 years of being away!!!  We stopped by Beth's tailgate and that was a blast!!!  We also met up with Matt's boss for his tailgate and then went the game with him and his family.

Sunday was a VERY busy and fun day!  We started the day off with brunch with the Pratts!  They had not seen Hannah since she was 5 weeks old, so it was fun to show them all of her new skills!  She had a great time seeing her Aunt Lauri, Uncle Ron and many cousins again!!  Then, we headed back to my parents house where Hannah finally got meet Uncle Eric and Aunt Melissa!!!  Eric got married 1 day shy of 2 weeks before Hannah was born, and being a 9 hour drive away, we were not able to attend the wedding.  It was so fun to see them!!!  Also, the Goforth girls came into town and Hannah had a blast with Aunt Catherine, Abby, Caroline, and Molly Ryan.

We got to spend all day Monday with the Goforths and it was so fun!  The girls are so sweet with Hannah and just love her so much!  Caroline and I hung out in the car a little while Hannah was sleeping before going into a restaurant for lunch, and she told me that she thought I would like some company.  She also told me that she wanted to do what I used to do when she grows up, "tell kids about their surgeries."  I just love being an aunt!!!  I had no idea she even knew what I used to do!

On Tuesday, I got together with Amy and Ellery.  Amy was a good friend from Boston who moved to Atlanta back in August and I used to watch Ellery when she was about Hannah's age.  It was so fun to see them in my hometown!!!  Ellery is super cute and sweet, I can't believe she's 2!!!

On Wednesday morning, Hannah and i went to see my childhood friend Beth and her sweet little boy Rylan.  When Rylan was born, he couldn't breath on his own, and the doctors have been unable to find the cause.  He is about 6 weeks older than Hannah, and had to have a tracheotomy and is on a ventilator.  He is just the sweetest little thing!!  Beth and her family are so strong.  I can't imagine what they have gone through and will continue to deal with.  It was so wonderful to see her and have the privilege of meeting such a sweet, strong little boy!  Since seeing him, he learned to sit up!!!  This is a huge accomplishment for him to hit this developmental milestone on time!!!  We are so thankful for the ways he continues to grow and learn new things!!  Then on Wednesday afternoon, we went to see my one of my best friend's from college, Kristen!  I hadn't seen her since her wedding back in March, and I loved to be able to catch up face to face and have her meet Hannah!

On Thursday my mom and I drove up to my parent's lake house that they are renovating.  It was my Grandmother's house and it was so neat to see all of the changes they have made.  It is not finished, but it looks awesome so far!  I'm excited that Hannah will get to build memories in the same house I built such great memories as a child!!  Then we went to the RUM (Reformed University Ministries) office to pick up one of my other good friend's Emily to take her lunch.  I also hadn't seen Emily since March when she through me a shower at her house.  I love introducing Hannah to my friends and seeing them love on my daughter!  We had a lovely time at lunch and went into the office to see a few more people (another Emily, and just happened to see a lady who goes to my parent's church!).

It was a busy week, but we had some good downtime in the evenings with my mom and dad.  While there, Hannah really figured out how to roll around!  She had been rolling over for a while, but wouldn't really move much.  She had such fun in the evenings rolling around my parent's floor!  And we had fun watching her!!  She was really funny!! Hannah and I drove back Friday, leaving at 4am.  We made a few stops and got home about 2pm just in time for Daddy to get home at 3!  It was such a wonderful week with family and friends!!

Enjoy all the pictures!!

Hannah with Beth

Phoebe not so sure about Hannah's interest in her

This is the best "family" picture we have atleast of Matt and I :)

My dad and I before the game

Uncle Eric!!

Hannah with Caroline

Hannah with Abby

Molly Ryan and Hannah

We didn't get one of Aunt Melissa with Hannah, so here she is reading to Abby and Caroline

Hannah with Amy and Ellery

Kristen and Hannah

Emily and Hannah

4 months!

Hannah is now about 4.5 months old and she's still the light of our lives!  She is so social and active.  She seems to have a very inquisitive nature and is busy looking around all the time!  Because of this, we definitely do NOT have a snuggler!  The rare moment that she is laying into my shoulder if she's a little sleepy is so precious.  She has the most precious laugh!  She loves it when I make new sounds and clap or snap my fingers.  She also seems to really get a kick out of the Itsy Bitsy Spider.  This month, she has really gotten interested in toys.  Hannah's two favorites are both elephants!  One is a small, silky blanket with an elephant head and the other is an elephant holding a teething ring.  She especially likes to suck on their noses if she can find them!  She is rolling over back to front like a champ.  It's easier for her to go to her right, but I've seen her roll left a few times.  She still doesn't like to go from her front to back very much, though she is capable!  A few weeks ago Hannah started trying out baby food!  She is not so sure about it and spits everything out, but we've been told that you just keep letting them taste it and one day they like it!  We decided to start this because she holds her head up very well (which is one sign of readiness) and she has been much hungrier throughout the day and has begun to wake again at night to eat.  Our doctor said that all of this is very common for 4 month old breastfed babies, and especially for a baby of Hannah's size, it might be time for her to learn to eat!  I'm trying not to stress about the fact that she doesn't actually eat any of the food offered, but it's hard when I think about the potential for her to sleep all night again!  Hannah has gotten better at being in the car, but I also have started timing trips when I know she's a little bit sleepy.  That makes things much more pleasant for the both of us!  She really gets up on her knees, and looks like she wants to go!  Fortunately she hasn't figured out how yet, but I'm afraid it won't be long before I need baby gates!  She is in size 3 diapers and is officially in 6-9 month clothes.  At her 4 month check up she weighed 16 lbs 7 oz and was 26.25 inches long.  I've been keeping track of her percentile chart at home, and until now she has been slightly above the 95% on weight and just at or slightly under the 95% for height.  This month, she is sitting right on the 95% for weight and has shot up above for height!  It's interesting to look at her growth chart form, but we definitely don't have to worry about her health!!

Since I last wrote we went for a weekend trip to St. Louis so Matt could go to the Mizzou football game, and of course so we could see family.  We had a wonderful time!  I had the opportunity to spend the day with Matt's mom.  We had a nice lunch and walked around a really cute consignment store.  It was a bit overwhelming but I did find a few good buys!  Hannah and I also had another visit to the pumpkin patch earlier in the week.  I am involved in a MOPS (Mother of Pre- Schoolers) group through our church, and we went on an outing the pumpkin patch.  I rode with my friend Rachel and her son Jay.

Hannah was a tiger for Halloween.  It's the same outfit that all of my nieces have worn on their first Halloween's, so that was fun to keep up that tradition!   The costume was VERY hot, so Hannah really only wore it so we could snap a few pictures!  We seem to do that a lot!!

Enjoy the pictures!!!

I'm 4 months old!!

Not so sure about this rice cereal stuff!

Hanging out with my friend Jay

Cute little bloomers!

Scarecrow Hannah 

I'm 2 feet tall!!

Chillin at the pumpkin patch with Jay

BOOOO, scary tiger!!

Grandma and Grandaddy come to visit!

We had an awesome visit with the Branen grandparents this past weekend.  They flew in on Saturday and left Tuesday evening.  Hannah loved hanging out with her grandparents.  That first day, she just stared and stared at them!  I always love having my mom and dad around, and it was so wonderful for me to spend time with my parents!  We spent most of the day Saturday watching sports and just hanging out.  Hannah showed off her skills of rolling over!  On Sunday we went to church and then up to a Pumpkin Patch!  It was the first time I had ever seen actual pumpkins growing, and Grandaddy found the PERFECT pumpkin!!  It was a pretty sunny day and we never really could get Hannah to smile at the camera, but atleast she wasn't crying!!  We picked some apples too!

Daddy helping Hannah reach some apples!

Not sure what I think about the pumpkin patch

Just chewing on my fingers

Our awesome pumpkin!!

Monday was Grandaddy's birthday, so we took him to dinner at the Weber Grill.  It is an awesome restaurant that cooks your food on actual weber charcoal grills!!  We all enjoyed awesome steaks!!  During the day we explored Indy a little bit by eating lunch at City Market and strolling along the canal.  Hannah was a bit fussy on Tuesday before they left, but we still had a good time out to lunch!

Hannah with Grandma and Grandaddy!

A cute one of Hannah and Grandaddy.  We actually got a smile!

Just hanging out on the trunk of a Wooly Mammoth

Hannah up on the tusks!

Feet

Look who found her feet!!!

I love using my cousin's play mat!  Thanks Goforths!

I also LOVE chewing on my hands! 

Here I am around my 3 month birthday, the shirt is a little big, but I'm close to being able to wear 6-9 month clothes!

Here I am with a BIG smile on my face.  It must be the awesome sweatsuit from Josh and Jenny and the super cool sneakers from John, Ali, and Mackenzie!

Each new development is so fun to watch!!!  Anytime Hannah is laying down, she grabs her feet.  It is super cute....as you can see!  She still doesn't regularly roll over, and still doesn't nap very well.....but there have been some better days of napping than last time I wrote.  Also, I never wrote about her 3 month stats!  At 3 months Hannah was 25" long and weighed 15lbs 12oz.  She has gained exactly 6 lbs since birth!!  Her 4 month check is coming in just a couple weeks so stay tuned!!

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

2 Months

I can't believe my baby girl is over 2 months old!!! We went to the doctor on her 2 month birthday and she weighed in at 13 lbs 10 oz (officially in 3-6 month clothes!) and 23.5 inches long! She is staying right along the 95th % for height and weight. A few days after she turned 2 months we left for her first plane ride! We went to St. Augustine for a week at the beach with my family, and my extended family who lives down there. Hannah did awesome on the plane ride! We got several compliments at how good she was. We had a great time at the beach as well! Hannah loved the water, but mostly sat under the shade sleeping or looking around. She took a few naps in her baby tent which was great! Mommy and Daddy had the chance to get in the water!!! I loved taking her pictures on the beach I grew up going to and at all the sites of St. Augustine that I've visited since I was a baby. Hannah also loved her time with her cousins and meeting all of my cousins and aunts and uncles. This week also marked the beginning of regularly sleeping 10 hours at night!!! It doesn't happen every night, but we are getting more and more consistent!!! We got home from the beach on Saturday and this week Hannah has been doing an awesome job at taking naps!! She still doesn't sleep very long, but has increased from 30 minutes to 45 minutes, and no fussing when laying her down!!! She likes to sit up all the time, and definitely thinks she is a big girl! It will be wonderful when she can sit up on her own so I don't have support her sitting all the time!!! She is much happier spending time not being held, which has really helped me get more things done and eat meals without a baby in my lap!!

Hannah's first concert "Thompson Square" at the Indiana State Fair

2 months old!!

Loving hanging out with her cousins, Caroline holding Hannah, Abby in the back and Molly next to her!

Hannah loves Aunt Catherine!

Hannah's first dip in the water!

This was Hannah's beach time napping spot.

My cousin Jason started up a restaurant called The Black Molly, it's awesome! This picture is of all the Hamilton cousins, except Eric....we missed you!!!

Hannah got dressed up for cousin Jason's restaurant

Daddy and Hannah in front of the oldest wooden school house in the USA

Daddy and Hannah in front of the old fort!

The whole family, again, we missed Eric and Melissa a lot!!

The last full day of our trip, Hurricane Irene was off the coast of Florida creating some pretty rough surf. In the afternoon we got several sudden downpours, I'm guessing from the outer bands of the hurricane. Around 6 we were still hanging out on the beach when the biggest and worst downpour happened. We ran back to the condo (I had Hannah under my coverup and a towel wrapped around me) and then when the rain ended we saw this awesome double rainbow telling us the rain was over! It was so beautiful, and the first time I'd ever seen a rainbow over the ocean.