A scoot here, a scoot there

I know everyone wants to watch a 3 minute video of me scooting around on the floor (backwards and in circles) and talking, so here it is. At 2:06, I say mama and mama's heart melted. The rest of the time I'm mostly saying baba cause I'm hungry! Mommy didn't want to take the camera off me cause she knows one of these days I'm going to go forward and she'd love to get it on video. Mommy has a knack for getting all my "firsts" on video so far.

ENJOY...especially you, Aunt Beth!

Happy 9 month birthday!

Happy 9 month birthday, Little Princess!!!

It was 9 months ago when you met Mommy and Daddy for the first time. Mommy went to the hospital because she wasn't feeling your usual morning kicks and when the nurses put monitors on Mommy's belly to hear your heartbeat, they were surprised to find that your little heart was beating ever so slowly...not the usual 160 beats a minute that we were used to getting from you! Everyone was wondering what was going on inside of Mommy's belly and the only way of telling was to get you out of there. So Mommy went to sleep while Daddy nervously waited in the hallway to hear your screams as you entered this world. They say you cried when you came out, which was very good. But then you had some trouble breathing and they had to give you oxygen. Good thing Mommy was asleep during this because Mommy would have been so scared! By the time Mommy got to see you, the doctor's had you well-situated in what would be your home from the next month.

Unfortunately I don't really remember this moment, but here is Mommy's first time seeing you. Boy have we both changed since then!

On that day, November 27, 2007, had people told me that you would be where you are today I might not have believed them. But you have surprised us, in true Addison style, and have progressed by leaps and bounds. You have mastered the task of sitting and playing with your toys without falling over. You are also very close to crawling (we think!) You scoot around on your belly a lot, but mostly backwards and in circles. You'll get there soon, baby! You just have to learn to pull along all 21 pounds with you. Yes, 21 pounds! Good job, BIG GIRL! Again, a huge surprise to all of us, including your doctors.

You eat pretty well, still mostly pureed foods. Though the other day we gave you a teething biscuit and you totally went to town! And today, you tried Wheat Puffs for the first time and chewed it up just like you should. You still love your bottle. You have learned how to hold it but still prefer that Mommy hold it for you. You have also learned how to drink from a sippy cup, but you'd rather drink from Mommy's water bottle which usually makes a big, wet mess!

Bath time is still one of your favorite parts of the day. You especially love to have your teeth (or gums, rather) brushed. You kick your legs and flail your arms in excitement when you know it's that time. You are so silly! Your bedtime seems to be getting earlier and earlier. You go to bed around 6:15 now. You sleep close to 13 hours every night and still take a couple good naps throughout the day. You love your sleep, just like Mommy!

You are trying to learn how to wave bye-bye. You usually squeeze your hand open and closed but don't raise your arm while doing that. Silly girl!


Oh, there is so much that I could say about your 9th month here with us, but that entry alone would need its own blog! Just know that Mommy and Daddy love you sooooo very much. We think that you are absolutely incredible. We thank God every day for blessing us with such a precious, beautiful, and healthy baby girl....our Baby Addison! We can't wait to see what the next 9 months hold for you! We love you sweet angel. You will always be our little princess.

You have got to be kidding me. It's time for photo studio again?

Okay, I'll smile for you...just this once.
Just being cute.
Oh Bubba!

Refusing to look at the camera.

Maybe if I just don't look, she'll stop taking pictures.

I don't even have to smile for Mommy to think I'm gorgeous.

How much longer do I have to sit here, Mommy?

It's getting old and I'm trying to make that clear by screaming.

Or would rubbing my eyes be a better sign?

Sorry everybody, I just can't do this anymore. It's my nap time.

Eating Wheat Puffs

Here I am trying wheat puffs for the first time. Not so bad!

Playdate with Ariana

Ariana and her mommy came over to play and celebrate my 9 month birthday with me and my mommy this afternoon. I always have so much fun with Ariana because we are just about the same age and do a lot of the same things. She totally gets me, if you know what I mean. :)
Thanks for playing with me today, Ariana. Here are some pictures my mommy took of us.

Hey Ariana, whatchya doin' down there?

Consoling Ariana. Not really, but that's what it looks like I'm doing. :)
Playing the drum with Ariana.
Letting Ariana play with my drum.
Ariana is letting me play with her telephone.

Sharing the ball like nice girls...or are we? No, we are. We love each other!

9 month pediatrician appointment

First of all, happy "adjusted" 7 month birthday to me!! That sounds crazy, doesn't it? I know it's easy to forget I'm a preemie based on how big and smart I have become. Sometimes I even forget that I used to look like this:Mommy always gives me extra birthday kisses (I mean lots and lots of them) on my adjusted birthday and tells me what a miracle I am. Then we pray together and thank God for giving me the strength to pull through those first few tough weeks. Here are Mommy and I praying together the day after I was born. I wasn't much bigger than her hand.

Anyway, it's nice having 2 "birthdays" because I love kisses! Tomorrow is my "actual" 9 month birthday. I'm so excited for our monthly photo shoot! Hmmm, what to wear....

Today was my appointment with my pediatrician, Dr. B. I love Dr. B. I usually just sit there and stare at him while he talks. Mommy says I'm so observant because I am eager to learn. Dr. B said I am doing wonderfully and he can't believe I am a preemie (which is a good thing!) I told him that would be thanks to my Mommy and Daddy for working with me so much to help get me up to speed with other 9 month olds. Tomorrow, Mommy will update you with all my new tricks but for now I wanted to tell you how big I am. You'll NEVER believe it!!!!!!!!!!!! Ready???? OKAY, here goes!!!!!

21 pounds 4 ounces (75th percentile)!!!!!!!!!!!!!

27 inches (45th percentile)!!!!!!!!

Oh, and my big old noggin' is 17 1/2" (65th percentile)!!!!!!! Mommy says I need a big head to hold my big brain!!!

Stay tuned for another 9 month update tomorrow!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EMILY!!!!!

We love you so much and hope you have a great day. Mommy and Daddy (and Bubba) can't wait to see you this weekend and then I'll see you 2 weeks after that. YAY!!!!!

Stephen and Carrie's visit

Mommy and Daddy's friends, Stephen and Carrie, came all the way from Maryland to visit for the weekend. I had such a good time playing with them and showing them what a big, smart girl I am. We had some neighbors and friends over, cooked out, held a corn hole tournament, went jogging, Daddy and Stephen hung a big piece of art while Mommy and I supervised (thanks Stephen!), went shopping, and so much other fun stuff that I can't even remember. Come back and visit soon, Stanleys, and...Happy 1st wedding anniversary!!!

Stephen was twirling me around and making me laugh up a storm!

Carrie and I played pat-a-cake.

And she let me bounce all over her legs.

Hair

Look how long my hair is getting. It's almost to my eyes. My mommy is jealous that my hair is longer (and blonder) than hers! By the way, thanks for the onesie, Aunt Julie, Uncle Josh and Cousin Noah!

Visit with Aunt Beth

My Aunt Beth drove almost 4 hours round trip to see me today. Boy, I must be really special to her. Aunt Beth is in medical school (1 more year, Aunt Beth!!) and has 2 weeks off so she decided to spend a whole entire day with me! She got to our house around 11:30am because Mommy told her I would wake up from my nap around 12 or 12:30 and we could go out to for lunch and some shopping. 12:30 rolled around and Mommy told Aunt Beth "Well, she's been asleep 2 hours now. She should be getting up any minute." The clock hit 12:45 and Mommy said, "I better go check on her. I'm surprised she is still sleeping." In a panic, Mommy opened my door and got close enough to see that I was still breathing. Whew...sigh of relief. Okay, I'll just make a long story short here. I slept until 1:45! That's over a 3 hour nap. I haven't napped that long since, well maybe since never!! This is on top of a 13 hour night plus a short 1 hour nap pretty much right after I woke up this morning. I really do like my sleep! Anyway, this is what I looked like when I woke up from my nap.

Yes, ladies and gentleman, that is urine. Now that I sleep on my tummy, my urine goes to the top front of my diaper. Either Mommy didn't put the diaper on tight enough or Pampers Cruisers aren't very absorbent (we just switched to Cruisers because I outgrew my Swaddlers.) Not to mention I had 9 ounces of milk in me and pee a lot in my sleep!

We were able to salvage my dress, but changed my bloomers. Then Aunt Beth and I played for a little bit in my room.

And Aunt Beth gave me kisses.

Oh yeah, that's the sweet stuff.

And I rolled all over the place, making sure Aunt Beth was watching me the whole time.

After playing, we headed out to shop. Mommy and Aunt Beth got some cute clothes from Anthropologie, BCBG, JCrew, and The Gap. Mommy said someday she'll pass all those clothes down to me. She said in 30 years, they'll be in style again. :)

I love shopping!

Mommy, those shoe are to die for!

I was able to stay out for a record time of 3 hours because I didn't need to go down for my afternoon nap since I combined both naps into one. We got home around 5:30, took a bath, read a book, got my bottle and I was asleep by 6:15. Gosh, it was a good day. Thanks, Aunt Beth, for visiting me. Let's do it again real soon! LOVE YOU!!!

Laughing at Mommy and Wrigley

When Mommy and Wrigley play, whether it be when Mommy throws the ball to him, chases after him (or him after her), makes him dance on his hind legs, and so on, I just laugh and laugh and laugh. Mommy gets a kick out of it!

Little Drummer Girl

I am really getting the hang of this drum thing. I now hit it hard enough so it actually makes sound and the best thing about it is that I am learning the alphabet while playing! I LOVE IT!!!

Visiting Mommy during chemo

Today I went to visit Mommy at the hospital while she had chemo. This is the first time it's worked out for me to visit her. All of Mommy's doctors and nurses have been asking Mommy for months and months to bring me in. She always brings in new pictures thinking that would suffice, but it's never good enough. They wanted to see me in person!! Today was one of Mommy's "long days" at the hospital and also unique in that Daddy stayed home from work to watch me, so Daddy and I thought it would be nice to pay Mommy a visit. We brought her some lunch and sat with her while she finished up chemo. Mommy thinks I might be a doctor when I grow up. I loved all of the equipment. I was very interested in the IV coming from Mommy's port. I almost yanked it right out. Ouch, that would have hurt! I also really liked Nurse Carmen's stethoscope, Nurse Denise's pink ribbon lapel pin and all the other stuff that was dangling from the nurses necks! As a matter of fact, I not only loved the gadgets, but I loved the nurses as well. One of them stole me and took me around the building to show me off while Mommy finished up her chemo. Once all the tubes were gone, we took a couple pictures.

Me and my mama.

This is me, my mama and 2 of mama's many nurses. Carmen (on left) is the oncology nurse practitioner for Dr. Shapiro (Mommy's wonderfully super duper oncologist) and Leslie is a surgical oncology nurse for Mommy's surgeon, Dr. Farrar, who is great not only because he's a nice man, but because he took the bad stuff out of Mommy's body. Mommy says all the time how lucky she is to have such wonderful doctors and nurses.

Mommy found these pictures online and thought everyone should see the 2 doctors mainly responsible for making Mommy all better.

Dr. Shapiro

Dr. Farrar

Army crawling backwards

Hey, it's a step in the right direction...or is it a crawl in the wrong direction? Hehe!

Nectarines

Call me weird, but I'm not too fond of fruit. Maybe it's all too tart for me, I don't know. Don't you think that's what this face indicates?

It got better once Mommy mixed it with my cereal.

Welcome Raegan Kay!!

Mommy and Daddy's friends, Abby and David, had their baby yesterday. At 6lb, 13oz. and 18 inches long, she is a beauty! We can't wait to see them when they get home from the hospital. I am so excited to have a new friend in my neighborhood! Congratulations, Abby and David!!

Weekend in Cleveland

Mommy, Daddy and I went to Cleveland this weekend to visit some of our favorite people of all time...Aunt Julie, Uncle Josh, and Cousin Noah and 2 of mommy and daddy's best friends, Aunt Kye Kye and Uncle Ben.


Friday we went to Aunt Julie, Uncle Josh, and cousin Noah's. Our daddy's went to the Indians game while our mommy's played with us and spent the evening together after we went to bed. Oh, did I forget to mention that Wrigley came along? He pretty much goes everywhere with us, so I just didn't think it needed to be said!

The next morning, we headed over to Aunt Kye Kye and Uncle Ben's new house. Mommy and Daddy used to live across the hall from them in the condo but all of us have since moved to houses...us in Columbus and them just a couple miles from the condo. Their new house is BIG and BEAUTIFUL. It was so homey and well decorated and put together. You would have thought they had lived there for years...not just 1 week! I took my morning nap and then we headed to the Feast in Little Italy (the old neighborhood). The Feast of the Assumption festival takes place every year celebrating the Feast of the Assumption, a Catholic holiday commemorating the Virgin Mary's assumption into heaven. Aren't I so smart? Anyway, we parked, I was strapped in the stroller, and we headed to the festival.



At the festival, there was live music, carnival games, casino games, carnival rides, and booths featuring shops and of course restaurants from around the neighborhood. Mommy and Aunt Kye Kye really enjoyed their Ciabatta pizza!




Then us girls strolled around while the guys stopped at pretty much every food booth. They ate Italian sausage, pizza, fried dough and fried almonds. Italians eat very well!



Of course we had to stop a man on the street to take a picture of all of us in front of Mommy and Daddy's old church, Holy Rosary.



After we had stuffed ourselves silly and Daddy had won a little money gambling (it's okay, proceeds go to the church. Of course Daddy didn't leave the church with any proceeds, but we can at least pretend Daddy was playing for a good cause), we walked a block to the good old, dearly missed condo. This is the front of it. Uncle Ben's daddy was the architect. Isn't it pretty?




And this is...er was...our condo - top floor in the back. Those 3 windows on the right was Mommy and Daddy's bedroom. Let's see, I was conceived at the end of April 2007....Mommy and Daddy moved at the end of May 2007....you do the math. :) The last month Mommy and Daddy lived here (and me too, since I was in Mommy's belly) was a really tough month, but it didn't take away from any of the great memories they made up there. We miss that old place. If we were rich, we would live there and in our house in Columbus. :)



At the condo, we visited with some of our old neighbors. Dick and Carol are very special to us. Carol is a breast cancer survivor like my Mommy. She was the one who took Daddy to see Mommy at the hospital when Mommy was diagnosed. Daddy didn't have a car because Mommy had it and when Mommy called him crying, Daddy didn't know what to do. He was going to get a cab, but ran down the hall to see if Dick and Carol were home. Of course Carol didn't hesitate one minute to drive him to the hospital to be with Mommy. Shortly after Mommy was diagnosed, she went on a walk with Carol and Carol told Mommy that she was going to survive and grow into a grandma, just like Carol! Thanks, Carol, for making Mommy feel better that day. :)

Okay, so Carol has a granddaughter. You'll never guess her name. It's Addison! Mommy first met Addison when she was just a little baby. Now she's a big 3 year old! Addison loved my doggie, Wrigley. She used to run after him in the hallway and giggle, then run over to hug my Mommy. She is one of the reasons why Mommy and Daddy like the name Addison so much.

Addison, meet Addison.

Awww, what a sweetie. Big Addison just couldn't get enough of little Addison.

The Addison's go head to head for the title of "Cutest Addison in the world". It was a tie!

Tickle, tickle.

After we left Little Italy, we headed back to Aunt Kye Kye and Uncle Ben's house. I took my afternoon nap and then swung on the swing set in their backyard.

And had such a marvelous timejust laughing and smiling at the adults.

The guys saw how much fun I was having and decided to swing themselves on a big tire hanging from the tree.

Once we all had our fair share of swinging, the adults decided to play some Bocce ball.

I sat on a big blankie and cheered them on. And the doggies watched. That's Aunt Kye Kye and Uncle Ben's doggie, Mina, on the left and my Bubba on the right. They're girlfriend and boyfriend!

I continued to watch the excitement going on in the Bocce game (that Mommy and Uncle Ben won).

Soon enough, I was bored of Bocce and decided to eat my Taggie ball.

Then as a second course, I ate my green ring.

And finally for desert, the ring holder.

It was time to go in and start getting ready for bed, but first I stopped for one last picture with Aunt Kye Kye. That pretty much concludes my weekend in Cleveland. We had to leave early Sunday to get back home. Thanks for the fun weekend Aunt Julie, Uncle Josh, Cousin Noah, Aunt Kye Kye and Uncle Ben. We can't wait till next time!!!