Sand Dollars and Sunsets

Here are some pictures of Lua and LauraDawn at Manressa State Beach.  Lua really enjoyed being held and looking at the sand dollars that we found on the beach.  LauraDawn and I really enjoyed the walk and the sunset.

What beautiful weather for January!

At Manressa State Beach

Lua and LauraDawn

Looking at a sand dollar

Sunset at Manressa State Beach

Lua's First Christmas

For Lua's first Christmas, we flew back home to see our families on the East Coast.  It was such a wonderful trip!  Lua grew so much during her time in California (from 6 weeks to five months), so it was exciting to bring her home and show her off.  She'd become a real little person, with a personality and everything!

We spent a total of ten days on the East Coast.  The first four days, including Christmas Eve and Christmas morning, we spent with Dan's Mom in New Jersey.  The next two days, including Christmas afternoon, we spent with Dan's Dad and the rest of his family.  Our last four days were spent with my family in Pennsylvania.  The whole trip was a whirlwind of commotion:  hugs, dinners, chats, games, and people holding Lua.  Looking back, it's all a big blur.  

The bottom line is-- It was so, so nice to be back home.  It was so nice to share Lua and watched her be admired and loved.  It was nice to go on a date.  It was nice to have babysitters and grandparents and great-grandparents and aunts and uncles all around.

I find that I miss the East Coast more than I thought I would.  Though Dan and I were perfectly content to live halfway around the world for two-plus years without our families-- that was before we had a baby.  Now that Lua's here, I find the distance to be painful.  I miss my mom more than I ever have in my life.  I miss my grandparents!  I miss Dan's mom and dad and my brother and my sister.

So while we're thankful for Dan's position in grad school--  while we're so thankful for warm winters and new friends here in California-- this Christmas also taught us to be thankful for our wonderful family.

Lua and Pop-Pop (Dan's Grandpa)

Dan's Mom, Lua, Dan, and Pop-Pop

Dan, Lua, and Grandpa Bob

Slinging Lua into her carrier

Dan, Grandpa Bob, Lua, Caitlin, and Ryan on the beach at Atlantic City

Grandpa Bob and Lua on the beach

Grandpa Bob, Lua, and Mimi

Dan, Lua, and Grandpa Bob

Caitlin, Lua, and Ryan 

Caitlin and Lua

Mimi, Lua, and Grandpa Bob

Dan and I were there, too

Dan and his father's family in Atlantic City, NJ

Nate and Vicki in Mountaintop

Mom, Lua, and Dan in Mountaintop

Playing charades with the family

Lua opens presents!  She didn't understand the concept at all, but she definitely wanted to eat everything right away.

Aunt Amy

The siblings (in Mountaintop)

Lua plays with her new toy car

Lua meets the Christmas tree

Lua and the tree

Lua, Dan, and the tree

Lua reads her new book with Grandma Doralyn

Sisters

Amy, Lua, and Lisa

Family portrait:  Lua's learned to stick her tongue out!

Dan, Lua, Lisa

Lua with Grandpa Jim at the breakfast table. 

Actually,sitting on the breakfast table

Lua in front of the Christmas tree

Haha.  Just making noise!

Smiling!

Making more noise!  With Grandma Doralyn

Grandma Doralyn and Lua

Family portrait:  All tongues in

Four generations!

On our last full day in Mountaintop:  So tired!

Merry belated Christmas, everyone!  We miss you all already.  

5 Months

Lua is five months old!  

She's a pretty big girl, weighing in at around 16 pounds (that's a ten-pound gain since birth!).  She's starting to get taller, too-- at her last doctor's visit, she was in the 87th percentile for height.  She can now stand in my lap and look over my shoulder, or sit firmly on my hip.  From her shrieks, to her smiles, to her purposeful grasp, it's clear that she's no longer a newborn.  She's now a full-blown baby.

It's been fun watching her grow in this past month.  She's becoming so independent!  She can now play by herself, at least for a few minutes at a time.  She tolerates tummy time, and is just starting to push herself up with her arms.  She likes to reach for toys, grip them, and drag them slowly and inexorably towards her mouth.  She laughs easily, and smiles at everything.  She loves songs and, when left alone, makes a low, droning whine that we assume is singing.  She babbles and groans and chatters constantly.

She's still a little slow in terms of physical development, but that's okay with us.  She has yet to roll over, which is something that I attribute that to her contented (read: lazy) nature.  If her toys are out of reach, she seems content to play with her hands or feet, instead.  She just kind of accepts her world as being either face-up or face-down, and makes no effort to change that.  

Dan and I joke that we are in a temporary and miraculous window of calm.  Our girl is old enough to play by herself, but still doesn't move from where I put her.  She has no teeth, so she can't bite, and she's too young for solid food, so her breastfeeding sessions are simple, predictable, and easy.  I don't expect all of this to last, but I'm grateful for this period of relative calm.

I can also happily say that Lua and I have hit a groove in our stay-at-home relationship.  We're getting out more and more often.  We go hiking several times a week, and have been to a few play groups.  I feel like I'm finally making Mom-friends, and I'm more and more comfortable in my role as a stay-at-home-mom.  

This past month has been our best month yet, but it's also been crazy, hectic, and insanely busy.  I'm getting out every day, and Dan is working between 50 and 60 hours a week.  We're so, so happy, but it all comes at the expense of the blog! Thanks for standing by as I work to get up-to-date.  

And now, here are Lua's five month pictures!  

She's getting so big!  And exuberant!

Lua, laughing at Daddy

Five months old!

Posing, realistically.

I love this little face!

Going...

Going...

Gone

Note:  These pictures were taken a few days early, as we were getting ready to leave for the East Coast.  Lua's wearing her new Christmas dress!  She isn't quite sitting on her own yet in these photos, but on Christmas Day (at exactly five months!), she learned to sit all by herself.  What a big and exciting milestone!

Grandma Peggy

I'm glad that Lua and I flew down to Georgia in September.  It was a difficult trip, but absolutely worth the time and effort.  I got to spend time with Dan's family, and, most importantly, Dan's grandmother got to meet her great-granddaughter

This trip now feels especially meaningful, since Dan's Grandma Peggy passed away just before Christmas.

Lua with her Great-Grandma Peggy (taken at the end of September, 2014)

She was a sweet and positive person, and very selfless and kind.  Dan and I cared for her very much.  We're sorry that she's gone, but we're so thankful that she got to meet and hold Lua.  I know that meant a lot to her.

Because she was an active correspondent, she sent many letters and cards throughout the years.  We have a small bundle of letters and photos set aside and saved for Lua.  We also have tons of nice memories from various trips to Georgia.

Here's to a positive spirit and a loving soul: Grandma Peggy, you are missed, loved, and remembered dearly.