Tooth and a Tree

It was an eventful weekend.  Fi's first tooth finally popped through on Saturday!  I feel like she has been teething forever, so it was nice to see one of those sparkling whites finally made an appearance.  Now that it has come through, she seems to be enjoying it.  I can see her running her tongue back and forth over it and sucking on her pacifier in unusual ways.  I'd say that the tooth will help her eating, but she has been doing fine without teeth.  This weekend, she gummed a pickle down surprisingly far.  I love letting her try whatever she wants (I don't want her to be a picky eater like I was through college).  My only concern is that she has a knack for sucking pieces of food that are a bit too big for her.  She's also gotten really good at feeding herself the little Gerber puffs.  The first time we gave them to her, it was just fun for his to watch her try to get the puffs in her mouth (and as they get wet and stick to her hand).  Now, she gets them to her mouth amazingly quickly. 

  

Because the weather was looking questionable for Saturday morning, we decided to pick out a tree at the fire company Friday night.  It was cold and rainy, and Fi wasn't that into picking out the tree, but we got it done.  We brought the tree into the house Saturday, and I expected Fi to be sort of amused having a tree in the house, but that didn't strike her fancy either.  It wasn't until Sunday morning, when she woke up to see the tree fully decorated with lights and ornaments, that she seemed interested.  She really liked touching the snowflake ornaments that Nana made a long time ago.

 

We squeezed in some holiday photos too.  Fi was very accommodating.  I gave her the Christmas rattle ornament from the Cornelison's, and she played contently.  I decided not to share the photos we are using for the Christmas card (there are some cute ones!), but here she is with Tim under the tree.  

Thanksgiving festivities

Thanksgiving came and went in a flash.  We kicked off celebrations in Maryland with the Bulle Rock Turkey Trot Thursday morning.  It is the fourth year Tim and I have run it, but it was Fi's first time.  It was a crisp morning so we bundled her up in her Patagonia, put on her knit turkey hat, and strapped her into the jogging stroller.  She was awake and content the whole ride, either enjoying the new scenery or all the people running around her.  The turkey trot at Bulle Rock is pretty rough because it is so hilly, so I was glad that Tim was pushing the stroller, especially when the winds kicked up.

Dinner was at my parents so we spent the rest of the day prepping for the meal.  Fi fell asleep shortly after the guests arrived, which included a good mix of family: mostly Shelley's, two Grenko's, and a Krantz.  We told her she should have napped earlier in preparation, but she didn't listen.  She woke up at the end of dinner and enjoyed some turkey and potato filling though and a little bit of football too.

Friday started with coffee with the girls (me, Fi, and Kendall) and ended at the Shore with her Grenko / Olivard cousins.  She saw Santa being rescued from the roof of Ocean City City Hall by the firefighters, although she was really more interested in the crowd around her.  

 

Saturday was Thanksgiving part two.  She expanded her palette to include some cranberry sauce with her turkey and potato filling dinner.  The weather was nice enough for a few good walks on the boardwalk in between games of peek-a-boo.  

        

Thanksgiving weekend ended back in Maryland since I have a work trip out of BWI on Monday.  We stopped by to visit Mom-mom, Aunt Tadpole, and Uncle Mark and that cool little dog Dash to round out family time.  It was a nice but exhausting holiday weekend.  I can't believe Christmas is only a few weeks away.  There really should be a movement to add a few more weeks between the holidays. 

Winter is here

Winter is here in the Pocono's.  Saturday morning wasn't too bad, but later that evening the cold weather blew in quite literally.  Here is Fiona wrapped up in bunting made by Tim's Nana.  It was good for our walk to church, but when the wind whipped in and snow flurries started, it didn't cut it.  We held her tight and walked home as quickly as possible.  She was a little trooper.

Fi has a new favorite thing--glasses.  She grabs at mine, my mom's, and Tim's.  Generally, she just wants to yank them off your face and put them in her face, making them as smudgy as possible.  Tim decided to pop them on her today when she got her hands on them, and as a result, we got this gem of a photo.  There are too many caption options!  "Can you say hipster?" "Professor Poopy Pants is here."  "Do these glasses make me look too Mr. Potato Head-ish?"

7 months old!

 

Fiona is 7 months old today.  It is hard to believe how fast time passes.  I felt like I was just writing her 6 month post.  At 7 months, Fi is great at sitting and chewing on things.  Everything goes in her mouth, including her 7 month sticker.  She has to be cutting teeth soon.  She still isn't much of a veggie eater but she loves butternut squash.  It's late, and I am tired so not much else to add other than we are very lucky parents.  What a sweetie.

Smiley girl

Everyone tells us we are very lucky to have a happy baby, and looking back on the week of photos reminded me of that.  Example one is from her helping me fold laundry.  She enjoys playing a game I call "Where's Fiona?"  I start folding clothes on the bed while she sits with me.  Every now and then I throw something on top her (covering her head completely) and say, "Where's Fiona?"  She is normally able to pull the item of her head and gives me a triumphant smile.  But even when she struggles to do it herself, I get a big smile when I reveal her face.  She could play this game endlessly.

The second example is from shopping at Ikea.  She spent about half of the trip in the stroller, but we sprung her loose in the kitchen center.  The kid's section blew her mind.  I think it was a combination of the bright colors and other kids playing that hooked her.  She stared open-mouthed through the entire section.  Then she had a ball in the marketplace trying to put everything we picked in her mouth.  She and Tim were playing a gentle game of tug of war, which had her giggling away.

And, yes...we like the hoodie up covering her mostly barren head.  She's getting some wispy hairs though!

Another leisurely weekend

Fiona and company had a nice leisurely weekend.  In part, I think we need to thank Nana, Grace, and Maddie who spent the day with Fiona on Friday.  They must have kept her quite busy because she crashed hard Friday night and slept until nearly 7am on Saturday.  I highly recommend them as baby sitters!  Plus, I know they gave her lots and love.  Before they left, they were siting on the floor with her taking turns giving her hugs.  

It was a pretty nondescript weekend with little photo evidence.  Fiona is now sitting up on her own and rarely toppling over, so Tim and I joined her on the floor Saturday morning for playtime and Sesame Street.  We also took her out to the flea market in Saylorsburg on Sunday, and to the library where she hid behind my wallet (in between chewing on it).  My favorite moment from the weekend was when we bathed Fi Saturday night.  She was babbling like crazy and it reminded me of the nonsensical gibberish of Bill Cosby (ayb-ba yab-ba yap-pa dap-pa).  Our little comedian. 

6 month check up!

 

Fiona had her 6-month check up today.  She is staying on her curve weight-wise at 14 pounds 4 ounces, which is again in the 11th percentile.  Fi only grew .25 inch in length since last time though, measuring in at 25.75 inches, so she dropped in percentile from 82nd to 39th.  Tim wants to remeasure since she was really wiggly when they checked her height, and it is very un-Grenko of her to not lengthen up.  She got a clean bill of health and seems to be doing great.  The doctor warned that we should start some basic child proofing soon, which we have realized ourselves these past few days.  For instance, when Tim and I put her down to nap in the crib the other day, she managed to roll out of her bumpers onto her belly and reached up to turn off her monitor.  Our indication was when the monitor with us showed that it had unlinked.  What a stinker.  She is doing a terrific job sitting up and grabbing for anything nearby.  Here she is sitting pretty and loving her boots

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