seven months old

i've been terrible about posting for the last month. there's just been so much going on i haven't had too much free time and i feel really bad about not sharing all the details of little hellie's development. we had her six month check-up in june and she weighed in at a hearty 18 pounds, 3 ounces! she's not crawling yet but she can get herself where she needs to go by rolling, shimmying and sheer determination. she is still the happiest little thing. my mom said it perfectly, she's a little piece of gold.

i gave her puffs the other day for the first time and it appears she's not quite into them yet. she loves sucking on fruit though - apple and watermelon are her current favorites!

chillin with papa

six months old

sweet little helen watermelon turned six months this week and is still just the most joyful, content, lovable thing you can imagine. she's obsessed with her big sister and laughs at pretty much everything she does. it's quite amazing to see the adoration in her eyes at such a young age. i often hear them giggling and playing together and, truthfully, it brings tears to my eyes.



helen started saying dada this month and babbling/squealing a lot, though at a significantly lower volume than her sister had at this age. mealtime is the exception. we started adding veggies and some fruits to her rice cereal and she gets agitated and noisy the minute she lays her eyes on food. the girl can't miss a meal and gets visibly upset and slightly nasty when she's hungry. hmm, i think she gets that from me. she also has a great sense of focus, very much like her sister, and can stay in her jungle or office entertaining herself for over an hour at a time.

my parents are here for a few more days and they are smitten with helen and vice versa. she lights up when they come into the room and flashes her signature grin. a smile that melts my heart on a regular basis.

pad squad

thea, zack and my dad on their way out the door to a sunday afternoon padres game.

excitement

baby boy maulsby mendelson was born this morning! we are thrilled to have another nephew/cousin and wish we were closer so we could see the little guy in person. he's a cutie, congrats lucy and john! name is pending; thea suggested theadora.



helen's six month pictures will be posted tomorrow. we've been having too much fun with nana and papa to sit still for portraits.

sweet ladies

four sisters

these are the only photos of all the girls we have from katie's visit and they are crappy self portraits :(





i had such a good time and it made me wish kat lived here all over again. we made lots of good dinners, spent time with the girls, decorated easter eggs, made a bunny cake, went to the farmers' market, watched the royal wedding [thea is currently obsessed with "princess kate"] and even went to a few yoga classes together. it was such a treat to have her here, i feel so lucky. thank you katty for making the trip!

below is a picture of bunka, the name thea bestowed upon the yummy bunny cake. zack came home a week later and there was still quite a bit left. he said he was worried that thea was so attached to the cake. it's true. she would go into the kitchen and check on bunka so often that i finally had to tell her bunka was napping for long stretches each day.



we are using the leftover jelly beans to bribe [er...reward] thea for successful trips to the toilet. i'll keep you posted on how that goes....

five months old

i'm a little behind posting these photos...it's been a busy stretch and we are all trying to recover from dada's trip to nicaragua and aunt katie's fun-filled visit to san diego.

miss hellie cat turned five months this week and boy is time flying. she started eating rice cereal a few days ago and i completely forgot what it was like to begin the process of teaching a little one how to eat. thea gets a big kick out of the faces hellie makes and the way she half-eats and half-spits out her food.

helen laughs all the time and we often hear her chuckling, "ha. ha ha. ha," to herself which is a crowd favorite. other firsts this month include drinking water from a glass, formula [boo hoo], moving into size three diapers [mostly because she had lost circulation in her thighs with the smaller ones] and sitting up. she only remains upright for 15 seconds or so but i was kind of amazed the first time she did it. i didn't think she had it in her yet. [again, credit goes to her thighs which create an extremely wide and sturdy base.]

she is such a joy to have around, always smiling always cheerful and happy to see us. she greets me with the biggest grin when she wakes up or when i arrive home from work. she stares intently at zack until he makes eye contact with her so she can smile at him too. she's quiet but infectious and magnetic - at least i think so - but she is my kid after all.

i want to eat her up i'm so in love with her.