Six Month Check-up / New Tricks

Alia had her 6 month check-up today. It was a little late due to our busy travel schedule. Alia got a great review from Dr. Nash and is growing big and strong! She is now 27.75 inches long (97%), weighs 16 pounds, 6 ounces (54%) and her head circumference is in the 92%. Isn't it funny that we have a tall, skinny little bean?

Alia enjoyed seeing all of her family members on our big trip, but is glad to be home. She was under the weather for a few days, but is feeling much better now.

This first clip is Alia saying "mama". We know that she doesn't really know what it means yet, but it is still darn cute!

Alia is now a ROLLER! Finally! The only problem now is that she loves rolling from her back to her tummy, but doesn't know how to get back. She'll roll over and then cry because she can't get back. We have had to go up and rescue her in her crib a few times. Silly bean!

Last Stop ... Relaxing in Tennessee

The last stop on our great Midwest tour was at my dad's house in Tennessee. Jason and I were really looking forward to some time down on the dock. Alia, unfortunately, was pretty much done with vacation by this point and was feeling a little under the weather. We did still manage to have fun (its not that hard when you are out in the boonies with nothing to do but relax). Alia took her first boat ride. She was a little unsure about it at first but seemed to really enjoy it after she got used to it.

Alia with Debbie ... (still testing out Grandma names for her)

Alia with my Dad and Debbie's friend Gary. She enjoyed pulling his chest hair and wearing his hat ... too funny!

Dipping our feet in the lake

Playing on the dock (check out the sign in the background).

Alia and her Grandpa (my dad)

Kentucky ... Stop #3

The third stop on our trip was in Kentucky. We spent some time with Liz (Nana) and Don (Sir) and with Gaga. We had a great visit with everyone but it sure went fast!

Daddy, Alia & Nana

Great Gaga & Alia

Sitting up like a big girl!

Lots of love from Sir!

Next Stop ... Indianapolis

The next stop on our great family tour was Indianapolis. Alia was baptised on her 6 month birthday (which was also Father's Day) at St. Monica. We were so thankful to have so many family members come from near and far to help us celebrate the special occasion. She had all seven grandparents, three great grandparents, three uncles, 3 aunts and tons of great aunts, uncles and cousins. Alia was amazing! She took a huge nap right before the ceremony and was awake and social the whole rest of the day.

lots of love from the cousins

Alia with Mommy and Daddy and her Godparents, Uncle Monkey and Becky

Alia was a little confused about why she was getting a bath in the middle of the day but handled it all beautifully.

Alia and her cousin Wyatt playing together.

Meeting Uncle Will for the first time.

First Stop ... Michigan

Our first stop on our 11 day, 4 state family tour was Michigan. We drove up to Flint and spent a day with Granny and Lloyd. We also visited my friend Julie and went in to my mom's work and met just about everyone and anyone that walked by. Alia has a very proud Grammy who enjoyed showing her off.

Update

Alia is almost 6 months old now. It is SO hard to believe! Time is really flying by. Just in the last few days, we have started to see much more personality. She is developing her own little opinion. She has favorite toys and books and if you don't get out the right one, she'll let you know about it. She is a big fan of the books Brown Bear, Brown Bear, Barnyard Dance, The Very Busy Spider and Moo Baa La La La. Her favorite toys are her rattles and her rings. She loves to put them in her mouth and shake them and hear the noises they make.

Alia is still working on perfecting the roll. She can easily get from her back to her side and even sleeps on her left side now. She can get from her back to her belly, but sometimes an arm gets stuck under her and it really frustrates her. Not a lot of progress with rolling from tummy to back though. Just a lot of whining about being on her belly in the first place! Another milestone that we are approaching is sitting up independently. She is getting very close. Mommy and Daddy can let go for a few seconds now before she tips over!

We still aren't finding a whole lot of success with the whole eating solid foods thing. Now, Alia just doesn't open her mouth at all. She figured that out pretty quickly. She is, however, very fascinated with the sippy cup. She likes to try holding it and sucking out of it. Although when she does get a little bit of water it surprises her and she spits it out. Goofy kid!

Oatmeal = Yuck!

As you can see in this video, Alia is not a big fan of oatmeal either. Pears were acceptable and she'll tolerate peas if she's in the mood. I think we might have a picky eater on our hands. She probably got that from me .... oops! We are just going to keep trying fruits and vegetables and sneak in a little rice cereal whenever she isn't looking! Ha!

Rice Cereal ... Yummy?

Alia made her first attempt at big girl food this weekend. We started out with some rice cereal. We have about 5 minutes of video from the event, but I cut it down to the first two. I think you can tell by her reaction that it wasn't all she had hoped it would be. I have been receiving the same reaction each morning since. I can't say that I blame her. Rice cereal doesn't look like it would taste that great. I'm not brave enough to try it to find out either.