Happy 6 Month Birthday, Mollie!

It is hard to believe that our little Mollie is 6 months old today! For her celebration, she hosted some of the babies from our birth class and their parents. Emmy and Elena were lots of fun. The three girls played with Mollie's play kitchen and sported matching Valentine's headbands.

They enjoyed cake and party hats. I take that back- they enjoyed watching the cake and wearing party hats. :) I don't think the three of them were awake at the same time for more than 15 minutes!

After our company left, Mollie sat for some photos. She is doing so much better with sitting up! After about 30 seconds, she topples over, but she is getting stronger every single day. We are all convinced that Mollie will have her lower left front tooth any day now. It is almost visible under her gums. Anything is fair game for chewing these days! Her hands are her favorite chew toy!

Yesterday, when I wrote my blog, I wrote a about a lot that had changed. Upon reflecting on what I wrote, I realized that I didn't write very much about what we had GAINED. I wrote about things we had lost! I hope I didn't sound too negative because we have gained so very much with our little girl in the past 6 months.
We now have...
A snuggle bug,
A laugh machine,
An audience for singing, jokes, music, puppetry, and dance theater,
A friend for the pets,
A dinner guest,
A conversationalist,
A member of the Osborne reading club,
and
Someone who can always make us smile.

6 Months Ago...

It is almost impossible for me to believe what happened 6 months ago. 6 months ago, I was sitting on a purple birth ball with my hands on my belly bouncing away by the door to our porch in the moonlight. I had just taken a walk down the street with David in the August humidity, and I was convinced that "this baby" was "never coming out." Hours later at 3:12 AM, I sat up in bed, and my water broke. 10 hours of natural labor, 10 hours of unnatural labor, an attempt at a vacuum birth, and a c-section later, we had our precious Mollie Rose in our arms.

I cannot believe how the time has flown by. It hasn't just flown by- it has zoomed by! It is almost like the time moved as quickly as a space ship in a sci-fi movie when it goes into warp speed. You know- when they hit a button and the stars start shooting by like white streaks.

In 6 months, we have gone from:
Going out to eat way to much and lingering in the restaurant until we felt leaving,
Laying on the couch watching absolutely nothing on t.v. for absolutely no reason,
Sleeping on the same floor of the house,
Never going upstairs,
Driving to Atlanta and other locations on a whim,
Going to church and staying in the pew until mass was over,
Singing/Playing in the choir every week,
Making meals together,
Going on dates a lot,
Going to movies when we felt like it,
Loathing the midi-esque music that accompanies children's toys,
Watching an entire t.v. show uninterrupted without getting up,
Playing with the dog without picking things up from the floor,
Both riding in the front of the car,
Going on shopping excursions,
Taking naps,
and
Going to sleep around 9 or 10 and waking up for work at 6 or sleeping in until 10!

TO...
Going out to eat 3 times in 6 months and picking up A LOT of carryout,
Sitting on the couch to nurse a baby what ANYTHING that is on t.v. and liking it,
Sleeping in different rooms since December (weaning to Daddy),
Going up and down the stairs all the time,
Driving more than 30 minutes away twice since July,
Rarely sitting in the same pew together for more than 15 minutes at a time at church,
Playing at one wedding at church in January,
One of us cooking/eating at a time,
Going out twice since Mollie was born,
Going to a movie once (see above!),
Finding the music on Mollie's toys "endearing",
Watching "Lost" on Hulu in 1.5 hours, in 15 minute intervals,
Playing with the dogs outside/hiding Mollie's squeak toys,
Getting used to riding in the backseat and communicating through the rear-view mirror,
Going shopping at the mall once alone, once as a couple, and once as the three of us,
NAP? What's that?,
AND
Going to sleep at 10 or 3 or 8 or 11 or...
Waking up at 4 or 3 or 10 or 5:45

You know what though? I wouldn't trade the last 6 months for ANYTHING. They have been the most difficult 6 months, the most challenging 6 months, the most amazing 6 months, the most life-changing 6 months, and the most loving 6 months. They have been pure joy. What a gift.
Happy 6 month birthday, Mollie Rose!

Scary Mama Moment

Yesterday morning, David came in and woke me up with Mollie. He said "I've got good news and some kinda scary news. The good news is that Mollie slept all night in her crib." My head was swimming with ideas of what the "scary news" could be. I immediately thought that she had managed to get her swaddle over her face while she was asleep. Then he said, "She slept on her stomach." I felt ill. I had no idea that Mollie was able to roll over in her swaddle, and I was well-aware of the danger that this poses for infants. Babies who can roll onto their stomachs must be able to roll back over in case they are in distress. (can't breath, etc.) David said that Mollie was laying there perfectly swaddled and asleep. He was scared too.

The risk of SIDS has terrified me since Mollie was born. She slept in our room until she was about 4 months old. Then we started alternated sleeping in her room upstairs with her. I have been very cautious about keeping things such as blankets and pj's away from her face. David is the master of a tight swaddle that can't budge. I don't let her sleep in bed next to me- even though she would love that. (So would I!) We tried to get her to sleep with a pacifier for awhile, I breastfeed her, and I don't smoke. There is a humidifier next to her crib, and we keep her room a cool 70 degrees with pj's that keep her warm but not too hot. We always place her on her back to sleep and don't use wedges. All of these precautions help reduce the risk of SIDS. Last night, after my day of freaking out about our sleep slip-up with Mollie, the news had a new SIDS report. New research has shown that babies who die from SIDS have been found to have a seratonin deficiency, causing them to have a hard time rousing themselves in a time of distress. In other words, if a baby is having trouble breathing on his stomach, he won't wake-up to roll over. This is so scary! They have no way to test for this deficiency so far.

Nothing in the world terrifies me more than losing my sweet little baby that we tried so hard to get. I hope we can all pray for these little angles as they lay peacefully resting in their beds.

Last night, our little Mollie went to sleep in a sleep sack. She slept for 15 minutes and woke-up. This went on a few times before being relocated to her bouncy seat. No swaddle equaled less sleep for all involved, but a safer sleep for Mollie. I gave in and fed her around 1:20, finally getting about 3.5 hours of sleep for myself. I wonder how long it will be before she sleeps through the night again- she did it once in her crib!

My little baby is 5.5 months old now. It seems like yesterday when she was just one day old, sleeping in my arms in the hospital.

5 Months and All Things New

On the 14th, Mollie turned 5 months old. How on Earth did THAT happen? I can think about all of the things that we have done with Mollie, and it adds up to a lot. But it is so hard to think back to when she was smaller. She is already almost an entire head longer than when she was born!

Everyday seems brand new with a baby in the house. We have new adventures all the time! Mollie screams at music on a daily basis. Right now, David is singing her "What a Wonderful World", and she is letting out piercing shrieks. She loves kicking her floor tom drum with her feet when she is laying on her pack 'n play listening to David sing. She also loves her little maracas. What a little musician! Every night, she and David do about 45 minutes of music time. Needless to say, David's guitar playing has gotten quite good!

Mollie has been eating solids for about 5 weeks now. We have gone through all the traditional foods: bananas, sweet potatoes, peas, apples, squash, carrots, and pears. She loves them all. We've decided to stay away from prunes for the time being. :) Mollie has a pink sippy cup that she loves holding after she eats. She takes a few sips of water. Very refreshing!

Last night, Mollie cracked us up. She was in her tub on the counter in the bathroom playing with a little terry cloth duck. She plopped it in the water, and at the same moment brought her left arm (which had been hanging out of the left side of the tub) up. Her fist was overflowing with about 5 cotton balls. She didn't even look at her hand. It just floated up with cotton balls in it like they were supposed to be there. So silly. Then she preceded to shriek for about 10 minutes after her bath.

Mollie is determined to walk. She has been trying for 2 months already! By holding her under her arms, she will stand. She can even hold onto the table or her exer-saucer and stand for about 10 seconds on her own- or until she gets distracted and reaches for something across the room! She likes to "step step" towards the dog or cat. Her feet start prancing in place. It is hilarious. It is especially funny after a bath, seeing a nude little baby trotting across the bathroom floor. In the past few weeks, her wiggling steps have grown into actually leg lifting and moving forward. That child will walk soon, and we are IN for it.

Last Monday (Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday), we took Mollie to Memorial Park for the first time. The day before, she rode in the stroller like a "big girl" for the first time. No infant carrier. So, we thought it would be fun to go to the park. No reaction to the zoo- she had no clue that she was looking at alligators or owls! So, we went to the pond. Mollie saw a few Canadian Geese. I quacked like them, and she cracked up. A couple gave us bread that we fed them too. We then went to the play area and tried a slide together. No reaction. In her defense, it was a pretty dinky slide. :) She then went on the baby swing, which she loved! Her eyes were twirling around watching all the kids playing. (I think 4 of whom were my students.) She rode on our laps on a swing, and then rubbed her hands all over the painted bulldog statue. Lysol, anyone?

Quack! Quack! Quack!

Daddy quacks better.

What's so great about that?

Okay, now this is fun!

Pretty blue eyes!

We are having the best time with our baby! I'm smiling right now as she coos, and David wiggles Mollie's hand in her mouth, producing the sound: "uh- bub- bub- ru-la- bub".
Mollie and "Habib" from the Monkey Store. (I'm sure you know who's idea that was.)

Holiday Fun

This year was BY FAR the best Christmas of my life. Never has it meant more to me than it has this year. We were able to really feel the meaning of Christmas by having our baby girl in our home. I could have cared less about the gifts- we had our gift! Mollie! (We did love and appreciate the gifts though!) We loved seeing the day through her eyes, even though they were just a little over 4 months old. Merry Christmas!

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...

A morning chew.

Ready to open presents!

What's that fun thing?

I like this whole present thing!

Paper? What's this all about?

Our musical baby!

We gave Mollie "The Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly".
We sang it to her while she turned the pages.

A librarian, perhaps?

Yes, I put a bow on my baby's head.

Silly face!

Mollie's "big" gift from Mom and Dad: the Baby DJ Walker, of course!

Daddy shows Mollie how to really mix a song.

Christmas breakfast.

Christmas smiles!

Mollie hunts for something in her stocking that my Mom made her.

Mollie knows that her Uncle Matt is crazy!

Checking out her Aunt Heather.

Family Photo!

Photo time with Grandpa and Grandma Carow.

Mollie loves hanging out with her Great-Grandma Bombino.

So cute in her gingerbread dress! I got it at the YMCA consignment sale.

Santa Baby!

Mollie looks a little wild in her Santa suit!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Everyone!
May you enjoy countless blessings this holiday season.
Love, David, Rachel, and Mollie

Blessed

I am warm.
I have a roof over my head.
I have a loving husband.
I have an angel for a baby.
I have a great family.
I have food.
I have clothes.
I have a great doctor.
I had my baby in a wonderful hospital.
The tree is lit.
The gifts we have we are given to share.
Share love and kindness this Christmas.
Let's all find a way.
What would happen if we all found a small way to do that?

The stereo is playing Claire de Lune, and my baby rocks safely in her swing. This song will forever melt my heart when it comes to Mollie. It was the first song she heard after her birth- the first song we heard as a family. It probably played a hundred times in my hospital room. I am so lucky. Christmas has never meant more to me and my husband. We are so blessed. To think how long it took- every moment was worth what we got in return. We have a little slice of heaven to love.