Hattie is 5 Months Old!

Well another month has come and gone and our little Hattie is now 5 months old!  Since we can't slow time down, we might as well enjoy all the new fun Hattie has discovered!  A few weeks ago, we had her 4 month check up and she's doing great!  She was 14 lbs. 6 oz and 26.5 inches long.  She's in the 50th percentile for weight and the 98th percentile for length.  She seems long to me, as well, so I'm not surprised she's taller than her peers.  She's even begun wearing some of her 6 month sleepers... but some are still too long, which makes me happy!

We're quite enjoying the phase she's in, which is the smiley and happy phase.  I'm not sure if it's a phase or if she's really just a content personality.  Gracie was always a happy baby, but then again, who wouldn't be happy when your Momma and Daddy have all the time in the world to tend to your every need.  Hattie, on the other hand, spends time on the floor or in one of her many jump-jump toys more often than I'd like her to, simply because I've got lunch to make or faces to wipe or any number of other things that need to be taken care of.

Along with her smiles, Hattie has also continued to work on her giggles.  I'm not sure if she's a tough cookie to crack or if she's still working on remembering how to laugh, but sometimes she makes me work pretty hard to get a laugh out of her.  Another funny thing about Hattie is that she likes to study people's faces, especially if they're wearing glasses or have facial hair.  She gets really serious and furrows her brow.  Usually the person is working really hard to get her to smile, which is usually easy to do, but Hattie doesn't even seem to notice.  It's pretty funny to watch!

It's been to pull out some of our big baby toys for Hattie this month.  She loves spending time in her "Jump Jump" which Natalie refers to as her "Drump Drump".  The kids like to push her in it like a swing, but we've talked about how that's not the safest way to use it.  She also likes her pink car walker that Santa brought for her, although she hasn't figured out how to put it in Drive yet, she can only Reverse.

Probably the biggest first for Hattie this month was starting solids!  I spent 2 days making baby food for Hattie with help from Gracie and Kia.  We made apples, pears, peaches, acorn squash, butternut squash, green beans, sweet potatoes, and peas.  I was hoping to also make plums, but there are none to be found in stores this season.  As it turns out, Hattie's favorite food so far has been acorn squash, although now that she's learned how to eat, she pretty much enjoys everything!  When we first started, we tried avocado.  She wasn't the most interested and she acted like every bite was straight lemon juice.  She made the sour face all the time.  But as a few days passed, she figured out how to swallow and how to enjoy the flavor, too!

They're both eating sweet potatoes!

Homemade baby food is the way to go!
25 cents per ounce and so, so healthy!

Another first for Hattie this month was rolling over from her back to her belly!  She's been able to roll the other way for a while, although not it seems she doesn't use that skill anymore.  She much prefers to be on her tummy to watch the world go by!  Here's a video of her first day rolling back to tummy.  Once she learned how, she did it at least 25 times in a row!  Go Hattie!

My most favorite first this month was starting Sister Bath Time!  I'm pretty sure Hattie's favorite time of day is bath time, but bath time with Gracie sends her over the moon!  She knows it's time when we head into the bathroom and start undressing her.  Hattie will just kick and smile knowing the fun is coming!  Once the bath begins, both girls splash and giggle and I just have the best time watching them.  Our whole bathroom floor is soaked when they're done, but it's worth the mess to see them playing together!

Hattie is a total joy to our family.  She has brought out the best in all of us.  When Hattie is around, Gracie's nurturing and loving side comes out.  I love listening in on their conversations.  Gracie will tell her, "You're so cute, Hattie Bear.  I love you so much and I never want you to get big!"  When Daddy walks in the room, Hattie's smile gets wider and that makes Ryan grin from ear to ear.  She loves the sound of his voice and just waits for him to come and steal her away.  When I'm around Hattie Faith, I love to sing and tickle, trying to get a giggle, but mostly I just want to eat those sweet cheeks every chance I can!  We all love Hattie Baby and we're so grateful God chose her to be ours!

Sucking her thumb!

Who can be upset about bottle feeding when your baby is as sweet as this one?!