Five months old!!!!

Miss Esme Jean is five months old!

We went to the doctor and everything is looking good! I am still exclusively breastfeeding and the doctor said there is no reason to start solids yet- she is content and happy and not begging for more food when she gets done nursing. My goal is to exclusively breastfeed for 6th months (that is what is recommended) and then introduce solids. FUN!

Here are her measurements from her 5 month appointment:

Height: 26.5 inches (90th percentile)
Weight: 16 pounds 8 ounces (75th percentile)

She has met all of her milestones (rolling over, reaching for things, putting things in her mouth, bearing weight on her legs, "talking") and the doctor said she is a healthy, happy girl!

Another exciting thing is that Ez didn't even cry when she got her shots this time! She got two shots (DTaP and HIB) and did not shed a tear. She didn't even notice the first one! She almost got upset on the second but I popped her binky in her mouth and she was fine! This is a massive improvement from what usually happens (a ten minute screaming fit!)!

Art 5 months, Esme...

LIKES

Smiling and Laughing at everything and everyone
Her bouncer
Avent Binks
Being held (upright)
Having lotion applied
Sophie the Giraffe teether
"Talking" and shrieking
Walks
Car Rides
petting cow cat


DISLIKES

Putting clothes on (especially onesies)
Being strapped into her carseat
non avent binks
Tummy Time
mean black cats

We have had a lot of new things going on the past few weeks. Grandma Julie had to go home to help Grandpa Gordy. Grandpa Gordy had heart surgery and Grandma Julie wanted to be there to help him around the house and with his race car. We really miss Grandma Julie.

We have had a nanny come and take care of Esme while I am at school. It is a really nice benefit that Stephen's work offers that we just found out about! We get 20 days of emergency nanny care per year and we can either take her into a daycare center or have someone come to our home and look after her. We decided on in home care for several reasons and we only have to pay $6 an hour! Stephen's work picks up the rest of the bill! Esme's nanny's name is Annalisha and she is great with her. Ez really seems to enjoy their time together.

My last finals are on Monday and Wednesday of next week and then I have a month of online courses. I am still debating on whether or not I am going to attend the second session of summer school.

Esme's first trip to the zoo!
Stephen and I took Esme to the zoo for the first time. It wasn't a very exciting zoo (the most exotic animal they had was a tamarin monkey) but we enjoyed walking around and looking at the animals. It was a beautiful day out! I even took a tumble and have lovely bruises on my elbow to show from it. We did the entire zoo in less than an hour...but I think that is pretty good for a zoo that had a common crow in a cage on display!!

The entrance to the zoo


Daddy, Ez and the sleepy porcupine.


The family



I was combing Ezzy's hair today and I noticed that it is now past her shoulders! She has lost a bit in the back due to rubbing while she sleeps but the sides are really long! I can even put them into pig tails now! I just need to get the correct rubber bands for her hair (mine are too big!).



My attempt at pig tails with my pony tail holders (not a happy girl!)


A few of my favorite pictures from the past week or so...

Way behind!

So, once again, I am way behind on my posts!

Esme has grown a ton in the past few weeks and on April 29th she rolled over for the first time! I didn't catch the first roll on video (I tried for a long time!) but I did get some good footage of her trying to crawl! I also caught her fake cough on camera- finally! It is soooo cute!

She seems a lot more interested in trying to crawl than rolling. Here is a video of her lifting herself up and trying to crawl- if only she could coordinate those little arms!



Here is a video of her fake cough. She loves making noises and especially loves to cough. We don't even know where she got it! None of us have been sick, so we are baffled! Our best guess is that she just like to hear herself.



Esme Rolling over...


We have been having amazing weather this spring and try to make the best of it. We like to go on the walks around our complex. There are stunning views of the city and Staten Island and we like looking at all of the different birds. We also took a stroll around the 9/11 memorial at the end of the peninsula we live on. It was donated to the USA by Russia in honor of those who died in the attacks on NYC. It is very beautiful, especially on a sunny day!

A heron (I think?) on our walk.


Peeper Jean in her summer outfit!


The beautiful golf course by our apartment complex


The view of NYC on our walk (smoggy but nice)


The 9/11 memorial (you can see the financial district where the WTC was through the crack with the tear drop)






Another new trick of Esme's is sucking on her toes. She is teething and will suck on anything she can get her hands (or feet) on!



My first Mother's day!

Brent flew in to visit my mom and we have been enjoying his company. He is staying for a week and absolutely adores Esme Jean.

I spent my first mother's day with Esme, Stephen, my Mama and Brent. We travelled to Hershey, PA and went to the chocolate factory and the amusement park! We had a really great time and I can't wait to go back someday!

On Sunday (actual Mother's day) we wen to an Amish Village in Pennsylvania. It was really interesting and we learned a lot about a culture we knew little about!

Chocolate World (Sounds like a dream come true to me!)




A view of the coaster tracks


Esme's first carousel ride!!!




Hershey is a beautiful town and we fell in love with it. I think we should move there so that I can get a job as chocolate taster! The park was extremely well maintained and was not too busy. We really enjoyed ourselves. I got a pretty good sun burn too!

A beautiful amish village on a beautiful spring day! I even got a wave from an amish family in a horse and buggy as they drove past! It reminded me of my childhood visits to Michigan and all of the amish buggies I would see during Christmas time.



It was nice to see another breastfeeding mom on Mother's day! ;)


Daddy and Ez in an amish buggy


Esme in an amish bonnet. Hilarious!


Stephen the amish school master


The weekend was brilliant but this is a sad week. My Mama had to fly home to help Grandpa Gordy out. He had to have 3 stints put in his heart and needs to rest. It was a close call but they think they caught his heart issues before he had chance to have a heart attack.

Brent and I drove my mom to Philadelphia International Airport today (tickets were half price from Philly) and she should be back in Seattle around 8 tonight. We really miss her already and hope that she comes back soon. In the mean time, we will have a nanny from Stephen's work come to our home and look after Ez. It makes me a little uncomfortable having someone I don't know looking after my angel but I only have a few more days of school left and then I have a month of online classes and I can look after her.

Here is a great video of one of Esme's new tricks- she chews like an old man with his dentures out! Too funny!



Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the past weeks:

Mad hair (after a day with her first "whale spout")










I spent a day making flower headbands for Ez. They are really expensive in stores so I thought I would be creative. They didn't turn out as great as I would have liked but they are still fun!