Paige || 7 months old

Look who turned SEVEN months old this past Friday!  This has been the fastest seven months of my life. It might be because I'm busy all the time and rarely have a spare minute to myself. I forgot how much work a baby is. She is of course totally worth it, but she (along with her sister) wear me out daily! 

One of her biggest firsts this past month was her first overnight trip. She was happy as a lark the entire time and even stayed up almost two hours past her bedtime. She did have some trouble sleeping but overall did well. 

I think Paige has changed the most from months six to seven. She is full of smiles and happiness most of the time.  She has learned all kinds of new tricks this past month. My favorite is clapping. It is so cute to watch her clap. She is also sitting up on her own and prefers to sit up no matter what she is doing. Gone are the days of holding her like a baby. My baby is growing up!  

Height: 

Weight: 

Clothes: Paige is barely fitting into 6 month clothing. Six month onesies are getting a little snug, but pants are still fitting. She seems to be a little on the short side so six month pants right now are just right. She is currently wearing size three diapers but will probably need to move up to size four very soon. She is growing like a weed!

Sleep: Sleep is still a hot commodity around here. I get up once a night every. single. night to feed her a bottle around 1 or 2am. Have I mentioned how I CAN NOT WAIT until I can sleep all night again!? I forgot what it was like to sleep through the night. Paige goes to bed at 6:00pm still and gets up around 6:15-6:45am.  I lay her down awake, and she gets herself right to sleep. I should not complain. She is SUCH a great sleeper besides needing a bottle through the night. I can't remember a night since she has been born that she has cried during the night. She patiently waits until I come in to feed her. 

Eating: I have started incorporating baby food into her routine. It's been about a month now, and she is just now starting to like it. So far she has tried peas, carrots, pears, apples, peaches, bananas, and sweet potatoes. I think her favorite is peaches. She hasn't seemed to fond of anything else, but that won't stop me from trying. I'm not sure if it's the texture or taste she doesn't like, but sooner or later she will get used to it. She takes a 7 ounce bottle every 3-4 hours, and an 8 ounce bottle at nap and bedtime. I have noticed she is going longer spans between bottles. 

Milestones: What hasn't she done this past month!? It has been a big month for her! She smiles, laughs, and babbles. She especially loves to scream and yell when she is happy. She can roll from tummy to back and vice versa and sit without help. She can support her weight with her legs and stand or bounce with help. She can grab a toy and move it from hand to hand and put it in her mouth. She is also teething and drooling all the time. Paige also claps which I pictured above. She was clapping and screaming at the same time!

Likes: There isn't much she doesn't like. Her favorite things right now are phones and remotes. Pull out your phone in front of her, and she will grab it from you in two seconds flat. She also loves to grab the remote. If you take either one of these things away be prepared for arm flapping and fit throwing. I can't help but laugh! She loves baths, being held, playing with toys, playing in her exersaucer, being sang to, watching the dogs and Ella.

Dislikes: Strangers, loud noises, being in her car seat for long periods of time, having something taken away.

Ella and Paige | Weeks 28, 29, 30

Here it is three weeks since my last post that is supposed to be a weekly post. I am getting so far behind. We have been really busy with it being the holiday season, and we have all (except Paige) had a round of sickness. Yuck! I hate cold and flu season! 

Here is what we have been up to the past few weeks

Paige had her six month doctor's appointment, and she is obviously growing like a weed. She is in the 50th percentile for weight and 25th for height. It's not looking like she will be a string bean like her sister!

 I have been trying out different baby foods lately, and she still doesn't seem that into them. She was not a fan of carrots. 

Paige sat in a high chair for the first time at Hacienda. Such a big girl! 

My two sweeties on Saturday morning. They both seem to wake up at the exact same time. They haven't realized they need to sleep in and give me a chance to drink my coffee before they wake up. 

We decked the halls a couple of weekends ago. Paige was too busy looking cute to help decorate. 

She loves sitting up and playing with toys, but DOES NOT like to fall over. It startles her every time. 

I thought it was a great idea to head to Target one night before bedtime. I was wrong! Paige threw a fit the entire drive home. 

Bath time is so much fun!

Hanging out in sister's bed while she was at the circus. 

Ella wrote this at school the week of Thanksgiving. I'm pretty sure I will never eat Turkey again. I don't know how she thought of this. 

Ella before her first grade Christmas program. 

Another "restful" weekend morning. This lasted about two minutes. 

Ella's 7th birthday party

We celebrated Ella's 7th birthday at Skyzone this past weekend. Ella's actual birthday is not until the 19th, but I wanted to make sure to have her party before everyone's schedule is packed with Christmas activities. 

We had never been to Skyzone before, but I thought it would be a fun place for a birthday party. While it was a ton of fun for the kids, I thought it was chaotic and unorganized. It was crazy busy, and there were a ton of other birthday parties going on there at the same time. Thankfully, we had private jump for thirty minutes of the sixty minutes we were given. That cut down on some of the chaos. 
Eleven of Ella's classmates came to the party and a few family members. I'm not sure who had more fun, the kids or adults?! 

After an hour of jumping the kids were sweaty, thirsty, and tired. It was time for pizza, dip n dots, and cupcakes!! I love having her parties at these places, because I don't have to do a thing. It's so nice not to have to worry about cleaning my house beforehand or cleaning up after. 

Ella did not want singing, but the kids ended up singing to her anyway. It was so cute!

It was such a fun (and tiring) party celebrating our soon to be 7 year old. We are so proud of the sweet girl she is becoming! 

Polar Express 2015

This past weekend we went for a ride on the Polar Express in French Lick. I say this every year, but it's the best way to kick off the Christmas season!

This was our fifth year at the Polar Express. If you are interested in reading about past years (or seeing how much Ella has grown) you can read about them here:  2014 2013 2012 2011.
Things were a little different this year brining a baby along. I seriously forgot how much work it is and how much stuff you need with a baby. I can not complain though. Minus losing some sleep Paige was SO good. She was content to do whatever we were doing and was even good on the train. I thought it may be too loud for her, but she did great. 
We headed out early on Friday. I wanted Paige to nap in the car, and she did exactly that. We didn't hear a peep out of her the whole way. We did hear from Ella. She likes to ask how much longer, and then gets irritated when I say "not much longer." God love her!

Luckily, we made it before it started raining. I was bound and determined to get a picture infront of the train (as we do every year), and we got it. It is my favorite picture! 

We headed over to the hotel to see the Christmas decor before going to lunch. 

 The lobby of the French Lick hotel is SO beautiful. 

Paige was pretty excited about her first hotel stay. I bought this outfit after Christmas last year and here she is wearing it now. 

After we checked in and got settled Ella and Autumn decided it was time for a swim. This was the first year they could get in by themselves since they can both swim. It was nice to be able to just sit on the side and watch. 

Paige was taking a nap while they were swimming but woke up screaming after about 30 minutes. I think she was scared since she didn't know where she was so I held her for the rest of her nap until it was almost time to go to the train. She isn't used to sleeping in a pack and play, and it definitely wasn't easy for her. 
We quickly got ready and headed over to the train once Paige woke up. It was raining and unseasonably warm. You never know what the weather is going to be like. Some years we have gotten away with no jackets and some years we have froze. You just never know. Ella and Paige looked super cute in their matching Christmas jimmies. I ordered these this past summer, and they turned out just as I had imagined. 

The hot chocolate song is my favorite part along with the hot chocolate and cookies! I wish I had one right now!

Arriving at the "North Pole"

Aside from it being a little too warm on the train we had a wonderful time! I was so worried Paige may cry, but she seemed to enjoy it too. It was bedtime once it was over, and although she was tired she was still happy. 

Once we got back to the room we were starving. We ended up ordering room service. We kept Paige up almost two hours past her bedtime. To keep her occupied while we waited for our food I gave her a bath in the sink. She had the best time splashing around. Even though it was past her bedtime she still had some smiles left for us. 

Paige was out like a light when she finally got to bed. She slept for about two hours and woke up crying. I held her for awhile while she slept. At  around 2:30am I put her in her pack and play and she slept until 6. It was an exhausting night, but we survived!

Overall, it was a great trip. I was worried about how Paige would do, but I think she did great. We are so thankful to my parents for taking us all on this trip. It's a big expense and something they don't have to do, but gladly do for us every year. You guys are the best!