Sweet Dreams

Well, it's that time of year, and I am heading back to work tomorrow (the kids start the day after Labor Day.) Grandma Sharon will be providing her with much love, attention, and affection, but I am going to miss her like crazy :o(

Sweet Dreams Abbey Rose...tomorrow is a whole new beginning for us!

Ups and Downs

Abbey and I went to the zoo with a fun group this Friday. Abbey got to share one of her favorite places with Uncle Donnie, Great Aunt Karen, and cousins Ben, Dolores, Benny, & Zach. There were some definite ups and downs for Abbey. Well, really just one down. The rest of us saw all sorts of great stuff, from kangaroos & giraffes to little children riding in the basket part of strollers!

Abbey's favorite part...the underwater tunnel of the Arctic Ring of Life (or the submarine part as little Ben called it.) We spotted the polar bears hanging out outside, but the seals were in the pool and swimming around over our heads in the tunnel.
The location of Abbey's meltdown...the train! It was Abbey's first train ride, and she was loving life as we boarded the train at the Africa station. The train started, and all was fine for a few minutes; she was curious and looking around in amazement at everything moving by so quickly. I think the noise and the fumes got to her, though, and suddenly the smiles turned into cries and burying her face in my shoulder. Poor thing. She was over it quickly, thankfully.

What a fun day for us all!

Working up an Appetite

After spending a lot of time just hanging out in the Jumpe-roo and playing with the toys, Abbey has finally discovered the jumping aspect of the toy. She finds it hilarious when she jumps, which is so fun for me to watch. She apologizes for the shut eyes in this photo; she isn't used to the red eye reducing flash on our new camera yet!

All of that jumping should make her hungry, and she is getting slightly better with eating. We have added sweet potatoes with moderate success, although last night's dinner resulted in an immediate bath. Each day is an improvement. She is extremely curious about the whole process, so she constantly is trying to touch the bowl, the spoon, the food, her face, my hands, etc. Now I know why they make high chairs with wipeable fabric...

Last Game

Ryan played his last game of the season today. Unfortunately, they lost in extra innings after the other team broke the 14-14 tie. We have had a lot of fun at the ballpark this summer and are excited to see everyone again next year. All of Ryan's fans will be happy to hear that his floppy, taped cleats are in the trash; he will be debuting new shoes next season.
Abbey was pretty patient during the game. She and her friend Will were fascinated by Grandpa Don's Gatorade bottle and spent some time rolling it back and forth (with the help of GPa Don and Will's mom Beth.) It is kind of crazy how much both of the babies have grown this summer. They couldn't have sat by themselves and played at the beginning of the season.

The Two Abbeys

We went to a family party in Brighton this weekend to welcome Ben, Dolores, Benny, and Zach back to Michigan for a visit. Our Abbey met the Abbey from the other side of the family, and our Abbey was absolutely enthralled by the other Abbey.
Little Abbey just loved big Abbey! She immediately started talking to her, cooing and her, and reaching for her. Honestly, she couldn't keep her eyes off her. Big Abbey was wonderful with our Abbey, playing with her and not even minding little Abbey's drooly fingers. Little Abbey even got to sit in big Abbey's pink chair for a little while. I think it was the highlight of our Abbey's day to meet such a special friend.
Another highlight of the day for Abbey was checking out the Curious George pinata. Cousin Dolores introduced Abbey to George, and Abbey enjoyed checking him out, pulling his tail, and trying to chew on him (imagine that!)
Benny, Zachy, and Abbey enjoyed taking turns whacking the pinata, but it took Dolores and Donnie to help them out, with Ryan finally delivering the final blows. The kids had a great time discovering the candy and toys scattered by Ryan's killer blow.

Lunch with Grandmas!

Grandma Sue and Grandma Sharon came to visit us on Friday. Ryan was off for the day, so the five of us went to lunch. Abbey had a wonderful time playing with her grandmas, and they even took her for a walk later in the day!

Take Three

Abbey's third experience with cereal might not quite be "third time's the charm," but at least it seemed like she actually ingested some of the cereal instead of just letting it run down her bib. Of course, she has decided that the cereal itself pales in comparison to the spoon.
In an effort to keep her interested, I let her "help" every couple bites. It definitely takes longer, but it also kept her from getting bored as quickly.
She does a pretty decent job getting it to her mouth. She only hit her nose once! Hopefully that means she will have Ryan's hand-eye coordination.

Blogging

Abbey likes sitting at the computer desk lately. She is interested in the mouse and the keyboard, but she is also happy just looking out the window next to the computer.
She wanted to show everyone that she is the creative director of her blog, even if Mommy has to do the actual uploading & typing.
Hmmm, maybe I can teach her to e-mail so that we can keep in touch when I go back to work :o(

I'd Rather Eat My Feet

Abbey is now 6 months old, and we just can't believe she is growing and changing so much! She had her 6 month appointment on Tuesday, where she weighed in at 14 lbs, 14 1/2 oz. & 26 3/4 inches long.

We are starting cereal with her this week, and of course decided to document the experience for all to see. As you can tell, the trial run didn't go so well. She basically glued her mouth shut and wouldn't eat after the first spoonful or two. A lot of cereal ended up on her chin & bib, though! I tried again with her this morning, and she opened her mouth and ate a little bit, but her expressions made me feel as though I was spooning battery acid into her mouth. Either she hates the taste or is quite the drama queen. Hopefully she will like her veggies more when we move onto those in a few days.

Girls Night!

Laura is home from China for the summer, and I was lucky enough to celebrate my birthday with the four Girls' Night girls together again! Abbey joined us, and you can see that the excitement was a little much for her.
Thankfully, someone was able to coax a few smiles and laughs out of her.
She is absolutely enthralled! Is she looking at Laura? Kathie? Colleen?
No! It's Paul, Laura's wonderful husband! Paul is always welcomed warmly, but Abbey especially loved his unrivaled baby whisperer skills. Abbey loves silly faces and sounds, and Paul pulled some great ones out tonight.

My New Book

GMa Sharon & GPa Don bought Abbey a new book for her six-month birthday. Well, she will not actually be six months until tomorrow, but I decided to bring out the present a day early. We think (hope!) that she is teething, and she has been a little cranky the last few days. The book was just the thing to provide a little distraction and some smiles. Thank you GMa & GPa!!

Abbey likes all of her books, but this one is special, because it is cloth. There are all sorts of different textures throughout the book, and it makes nice crinkly sounds when Abbey reads it. You can see that Abbey is enjoying her book very much. It also seems to be quite tasty, as Abbey spent some time chewing on it after reading it!!

Talking up a Storm

Abbey and Mommy have spent some time this summer going to Daddy's baseball games. Abbey likes going, because she gets to spend time with Grandma Sue & Grandpa Ray. She also gets to hang out with her friend Will, whose dad plays on the team with Daddy. She loves chatting with everyone, as you can see here.

Another Trip to Brighton

Abbey took her second road trip to Brighton and had a wonderful time. There is so much to observe in their beautiful back yard. Looking at flowers...
Looking at the ducks & geese...
Going for a walk...
Laughing at GMa Sharon

Hanging out with Grandpa Don

Abbey spent some time at GPa Don & GMa Sharon's house. She had a great day, taking a walk with Mom & GMa Sharon, then playing blocks with GPa Don.
She got a little tired...
...so GPa Don took her for another walk around the neighborhood. Ahhhhh, this is the life!

A New Seat

As Abbey gets closer and closer to trying food, we decided it was time to set up the high chair. She seems to like sitting with us at the table while we're eating! Hopefully that bodes well for our transition to solids, which we will start sometime this week.

New Things

Abbey is starting to sit on her own. Well, she can't pull herself up, but she like to be pulled into a sitting position to play. This is her new toy choo choo that she likes.

Unfortunately, she can't stay balanced for too, too long.

"Well, since I'm down here..."

She takes full advantage of any chance she gets to leave the rug and crawl on the wood floors.

ANTM

ANTM is America's Next Top Model, one of Mommy's guilty pleasure TV shows. Abbey is demonstrating why she will never be a reality TV star. (Well, we hope!) We were reading a book on the chair, and she looked pretty cute, so I got out the camera...

So, I'm NOT supposed to eat the wardrobe?

I'm still cute, right? Even with a giant drool stain on my clothes? Right???

I can be serious...but I still like chewing on my clothes...

What? I should be looking at the camera? But the light is so pretty!

Pictures are funny!!

On the Move

Abbey is on the move, but she's working in reverse! She has fun until she realizes she's not getting any closer to her target, and then she gets frustrated. For example, in this picture, she started on her gym and wanted to get to the blanket in the corner.