Nine Months In, Nine Months Out

Julia, I can't believe it, but you have been out here in the world now for as long as you were in your Mommy's tummy.

In nine months you've gone from this:

To this:

To this:

With every day you grow into a funnier, happier, more complex, more amazing young lady.

You have some issues with sleeping, as in you don't really like to do so more than 4 hours at a time (which is a bit troubling at night) but when you're awake, you're mostly all smiles.

 You love to chase your brother and wake him up. But, you don't like it when he messes with you. That said, the foundation of a great friendship is there, and you guys love each other so much. Aidan asks you everyday "Julia, you want play with me? Okay!"

You figured out how to use your eyebrows and do so liberally.

You love to wave hello, and scoot around everywhere in your walker.

But, you're fast enough of a crawler now that the walker just slows you down. You are fast and determined to get where you're going.

You still love to clap and make silly noises. We even think you're trying to say the "J" in your name...it comes out like blowing raspberries...but that's still pretty dang good!

And, on top of all this, you can stand on your own...without assistance!

You do know your name, and respond to it readily, and with a smile.

You're quick with a smile, but also don't mind just contemplating your surroundings.

You also really like to see the world from different perspectives.

You LOVE the dogs' bowls and we constantly have to race you to their water bowl, which you so desperately want to splish splash in.

You're a sweetheart, and you're funny (and you know it), and you love to make people laugh.

And when you get happy, there's no stopping you. Check out this "avocado inspired happiness" from a few days ago, and see the many faces of a 9-month old you:

You have three teeth (all on the bottom), and your top two teeth have just about come through. They'll be here any day.

You officially weigh 18 pounds and are  27 and 3/4 inches tall.  That means you are the 50th percentile on weight and height. But, you are at the 100th percentile on awesomeness.

You are a super kid, Julia. And your Mommy and I (and your brother too) are so in love.

The 9-month period that you were growing in your Mommy's belly seems so long ago, and seems like it went by so quickly. But the 9 months that you've been here seem like an eternity; you are amazing and I don't remember life before you joined our growing family.

We love you for all that you are- no sleep and all- and you lighten our days with your beaming smile, your curiosity and your spirit.

The journey continues, and I'm so happy that we're all on it with you, you sweet girl.

Check-ups

Aidan and Julia, on Tuesday your Mommy took both of you to see the Doctor. It was Julia's 4 month check up and Aidan's 3 YEAR check up. As silly as it seems to say it, because time is a constant, both of you are growing up so quickly. I can't believe you're almost 5 months old. I SUPER can't believe you're 3 years old Aidan!

The doctor told us that you can start on solid foods now, Jules. Holy smokes, where did the time go?

Jules,  you are pretty average for height and weight: you're 25 3/4 inches tall and weigh 15 pounds 4 ounces. That puts you somewhere between the 75th and 90th percentile for height and weight. You're a growing girl! You're loving your feet a lot now. They must look so tasty!

Aidan, you are twice your sister's weight...almost exactly. With your shoes on you were exactly 30 pounds. But then they took your shoes off: 29 pounds, 8 ounces. And you're just a squidgy over 3 fee tall. Percentage wise? Well, let's not worry too much about those...but basically it puts you more on the Roomiani side for height than the Weinstein side: 10 % for height, 25% for weight. But don't worry, these things have a way of all evening out. And despite these percentages, you still seem larger than life to us!

Good...you already got the whipped cream and a safety hat. Let the celebration of the THIRD BIRTHDAY EXTRAVAGANZA BEGIN!!!!!!!!

Two Months Old! Short and Sweet

Baby Julia,

It's hard to believe, but you are now two months old!

You've grown from this:

To this!




Month 2

 And grown you have! You were born weighing  7 lbs 13 oz. and were 20.5 inches tall.

And today at your Doctor's appointment, what we have assumed for a few weeks has been confirmed. What we guessed has been blown away! I thought you were going to now be 10 lbs and 22 inches tall. But you're now 11 lbs 14 oz and 23.25 inches tall, placing you in the 75th percentile for weight and 80th for height!

What does that mean? It means you're growing! You're healthy! You're sturdy! You're becoming a little girl before our very eyes. And it's happening all too quickly.

You are kicking butt at tummy time, holding your head up for minutes at a time.

You are ruling at sleeping, still sleeping through the night, and sleeping on your Daddy and Mommy for hours at a time as we have you Moby Wrapped.

The other day, you slept on me from 4 pm until 8:30 pm. You slept while I grated a potato, while I cooked dinner, while I ate dinner, while we tucked in Aidan, while I wrote some thank you notes. Then you woke up to be fed, play a little, smile a lot and went back to bed to sleep through the night! We're really getting a hang of this whole Daddy/Daughter thing, you and I.

I really get the impression that you like me. Which is awesome, because that may mean that you recognize me and know who I am versus any old man off the street. This is an experiment we will not be conducting.


You've also been talking a lot more. Reacting to our voices, to our faces, to our kisses.

Cooing and gurgling and giggling. It's too much. Too much cuteness to handle.

 
You're doing baby sit ups now, and really seeming to like those as well!

This post is short and sweet, just to let you know that you, my dear, may have grown taller and heavier, but you are still so very sweet...and just a little less short.

Homecoming, Milestones and Visitors: Julia's first 3 weeks

Julia,

You were born on October 11, 2012 (10/11/12- coolest birthday ever!)

And on October 15, 2012 we finally got to bring you home!

The homecoming was initially very hectic. We walked in the front door and Preston came to greet us and his eyes were all cloudy and blue! Did he go blind in 4 days? Will he be okay? What's wrong with him? So, I unloaded the car really quickly and immediately took Preston to the vet.

Turns out that the Turkey just got into something and irritated his eyes. So I got antibiotics and eyedrops for him and came stumbling home. He was going to be just fine, and his eyesight was perfect.

So, then I got to come home, and Aidan came home too, and we got to enjoy our homecoming night together.

Your brother liked having a car seat in the house again. And swore to protect it with his life.

Over the next couple of days you had visitors galore! We were happy to welcome them, and they were happy to hold you and meet you!

Aunt Nessa:

Henners (Mommy and Daddy's College buddy!):

Mommy's co-workers:

Neighbors too!

Kai and Cole:

Dorothy:

Bryan, Tammy and Luke:

Uncle BJ and Aunt Kari came by again too!

You even got to meet Aunt April, Uncle Taff, Autumn and Addison - they came in all the way from Houston to meet you! Aidan had so much fun playing with the cousins, and you mostly slept, but you will LOVE playing with these guys too!

Of course, you got to spend a lot more time with your grandparents, especially Yaya who stayed with your Mommy and Aidan when I had to go back to work.

 

Now, you didn't think your little brother would have left you alone, did you? No way! A lot of your time at home is spent with your big brother! He wants to hold you, sing to you, read to you, cuddle up to you, talk to you while you're eating (Eat it, Julia! Nipple, eat it, Julia!), kiss you, lick you (yes, you read that correctly), and he really wants you to sleep in his bed. But don't worry, you're safe sleeping in your co-sleeper and cradle with Mommy and Daddy...for now.

With all these visitors and family members, it may seem like your homecoming isn't really about you, but, baby, it is. Everyone wants to just hold you, be with you, meet you and get some of that baby magic!

Being home is the first new beginning. You get to try on and spit up on as many different adorable outfits as you want! Some days you go through more outfit changes than a fashion model! And your Mommy and I do definitely have fun playing a bit of dress up, and adoring you

in hats....

6 days old!

in bows...

5 days old

in pinks...

7 days old! A grab from our photo shoot-- more on this later!

and yellows...

10 days old!

 

2 weeks old!

And these first three weeks have been filled with milestones:

• You had your first bath (with a very concerned big brother watching closely):

• At your 5-day check up we discovered that you had regained birthweight (7lb 13 oz)! 




• At your 14 day  doctor check up you had almost gained a pound and grown .5 inch taller. 8 lbs 10 oz; 21 inches tall- Putting you in the 75 percentile (and putting you in a class of champion eaters and growers: by 14 days, most babies are only expected to have just then regained their birthweight!)



Day 14!

• On day day 19, - drumroll please- your umbilical cord fell off and you started really holding your head up super well!



Look at that cute Belly Button!



Hold you Head up!

• Compared to your big brother at the same age, you're sleeping like a champ! Granted, you have your moments, but for the mos part, we're all getting pretty good sleep. We were the Walking Dead by this point with Aidan!

In some ways, I can't believe it's already been 3 weeks. It sems just like yesterday you were born, and just the day before that we were peering at your sonogram trying to figure out who you'd be.

In other ways, I can't remember life without you, and it seems like you've always been here with us.

You're an amazing little wonder already, and we can't wait to share this road with you. Together, as a family!