Five Months

This month has really flown by. Partly, perhaps, because I went back to work, partly because we have been so busy. It seems like everyone we know is either getting married or having a baby. This makes for a lot of celebrations! Clara has attended bridal showers, baby showers, and will soon attend her first wedding. As much fun as we’re having celebrating all of our friends and family members, it will be nice when things slow down and we can relax.

Meeting Trudy

Meeting Ushie (probably spelled incorrectly)

Meeting Kennieth

 Clarita has not seemed to mind that I am at work all day and don't spend as much time with her. Clara absolutely loves my mom and often when I am saying bye to her before work she is more interested in smiling at La Abuelita than saying bye to me. Although it makes me sad to leave her, I'm glad that she has adjusted well and that she continues to love all people. I hope she continues to be super easy going and people loving.

First day back at work :(

But Clara got to stay with Dada! :)

The little Wiggle has really changed a lot this past month. She continues to be really happy and now laughs up a storm. All you have to do is smile at her or make a funny sound and she starts laughing! She has also begun rolling all over. She can really move around the floor by rolling and scooting. Gone are the days of leaving her unattended on the bed or changing table!

We think that Clara has started teething. We still can’t see any teeth, but she has been having fussy spurts which correspond to a need to bite and chew everything. I bought her some different teethers and she really seems to like these and they soothe her.

Pool Fun with the Mimuras

I've started putting Clarita in the Bumbo chair in the shower with me if she’s fussy when I need to take a shower. My friend Denae came up with this great idea for her son Connor. When she told me about it I knew that it would be a perfect way for me to take a relaxing shower (well more relaxing than with Clara crying). Clara loves it! She likes to look up at the water as it hits her. I usually wash her off when I am done and hold her up to the stream of water to rinse her off. She thinks it is really fun and laughs.

Petting Fuzzball with Tio Chino

Riding Fuzzball with Dada

Now that I’m working, Clarita drinks mainly from bottles. I still nurse her when I’m home, but gave her a bottle at a shower last weekend. I didn't realize that she connects bottles to eating until I witnessed her response to the bottle. Upon seeing it, she immediately started reaching for it and whimpering the same way she does with me when I am about to nurse her. It was interesting to watch and realize that she’s learning to associate different things with their functions.

The Johnsons

Happy with Great Grandpa

Clarita's Stats

Weight: 13.8 pounds

Height: 26 inches

Head Circumference: 42 centimeters

What Clara Wears

3 month outfits are getting pretty tight and she’s starting to wear 3-6 and 6 month outfits

Things Clara Loves

Mama and Dada, nursing and bottles, going for walks, getting undressed and having naked baby time, her "soothie" pacifiers (especially her monito and Bevo), snuggling, baths, baby exercises, the miracle swaddling blanket, car rides, the Baby Bjorn, the rain forest play mat, reading books, sitting in the Bumbo chair while mommy and daddy eat, massages, being a baby airplane, meeting new people, ceiling fans, drooling, the exersaucer, tummy time, swimming, people, taking showers with Mommy in the Bumbo, playing with her toys, her teethers, rolling all over the floor

Things Clara Does Not Love

Waiting, going to sleep when she’s overly tired, having a new diaper put on

How Clarita Sleeps

Clarita continues to sleep off and on throughout the day as she sees fit usually with at least one long nap in the morning or afternoon (sometimes both). We stopped swaddling her this month and started putting her in a sleep sack. Sometimes it worked great and sometimes it did not and she cried angrily and took half an hour to get to sleep. A couple of times she woke up in the middle of the night and had to be swaddled in order to go back to sleep (twice I even nursed her because she got so upset it was the easiest way to calm her down). Clara flails so much that she wakes herself up (usually a pacifier puts her right back to sleep) or can’t fall asleep. We’re still working on this problem and hoping she improves. She’s spoiled us with her great sleep that we don’t know what to do with ourselves now that she’s been waking up during the night!

Nicknames

Baby Butter, Clarita, Snugglepuff, Snuggles, Wiggles, Baby/Bebe, Bambina, Sapita, Munchkin, Drool Monster, Birthday Twin (from Tio Chino)

Monthly Exciting Events

August 14, 2013: Clara rolls completely over (back to front to back)

August 11, 2013: Clara's first time hitting a piñata

August 10, 2013: Clara watches her first triathlon

August 8, 2013: Clara rolls over from back to front

August 7: 2013: Clara sits up unassisted!

August 3, 2013: First bridal shower and first FUN DAY!

July 29: Graduates from the bassinet to the Pack 'N Play

July 28, 2013: Clara's first "shower" in the Bumbo Seat with Mama

July 27: First time sleeping in the sleep sack instead of being swaddled

July 22: Mommy goes back to work :( (unexciting event)

Monthly Pictures

Five Months!

She discovered that she can pull her headbands...

See, she's not always happy

Dada's Triathlon and Tristan's Eighth Birthday

Last Saturday Kevin did a triathlon that began with a 1/2 mile swim in Huntington Lake followed with a 13 mile bike to the dam and finishing with a 5k run (it was actually longer) at China Peak Ski Resort. He did a triathlon right before we left for Honduras and has not done one since. This one was not only at elevation (7,000 feet), it was also super hilly and 40 degrees when they started. Kevin had never really ridden on hills and he had only run at elevation once. Needless to say, he still did great! He got seventh place overall and second in his division! Clara and I went to watch him and she thought it was really fun, especially sine there were people to flirt with everywhere! Kevin's friends Brian and Katie and their two kids Tyler and Madison also came to watch. It was the first time they had seen Clara and she loved them!

Waiting for the race

What's this black rubber thing?

Dada ready for the swim

Bike time

Running up the stairs

Katie and Clara (I think Clara's watching Dada speed by)

Kevin insisted on taking Clarita up to the podium to claim his prize and she stole the show! She was so good, especially considering we woke her up at 5:30 to head out. She loved being bundled up, a big change since it's been so hot this summer. Clara said that she can't wait to see Dada compete in more triathlons and that she expects a win next time!:) We are very proud of Dada!

Yay Dada!

Dada got the best prize...

On Sunday we celebrated Tristan's eighth birthday. During VBS I taught Tristan all about themes so he could chose one for his birthday party. When we arrived at his house everything was Angry Birds. When I asked him what the theme was he thought about it and then said, "Angry Birds". Good to know that he was paying attention during our lesson!

Tristan put the figurines on all by himself!

Clara and Teagan apparently called each other to coordinate their outfits and even gave Tristan a heads up on what colors to wear so that they could all match. Tristan had fun taking pictures with the girls, especially once they all put on their angry bird eyebrows and mustaches! Clara thought hers was pretty cool, but Teagan hated hers.

Cousin Twins!

Angry Bird Cousins

Cutest little Angry Bird

Clara got to hit her first piñata! She let me help her, but I think she could have done it alone! She had a good grip on the stick and did not want to let go to give Baby Bubbles a chance. My favorite part of the day was laying the babies on the floor net to each other. We haven't done this for awhile and it is always hilarious! This time was no exception. Teagan was rolling all over the place including on top of Clarita. She kicked her in the eye and Clara laughed. At the end Teagan was crying and Clara was staring at her almost laughing. I am sure that people with twins are constantly entertained because watching babies interact is so funny!

She's actually holding the stick

Teagan trying to steamroll Clara

Clara tried out Teagan's Jumperoo and thought it was pretty fun. Now she wants one! It was a super fun day. I think that Tristan is really enjoying being a big brother and having a little cousin too. He is great with the babies and likes to play with them and take pictures of them. Happy birthday Tristan!

Fun Day and a Bridal Shower

Clarita attended her first bridal shower for Tia Laurie on Saturday. It was given by Russell's side of the family and we finally got to meet all these "cousins' Russell always talks about (most of whom are not actually related to him). Clara was a big hit in her super cute frilly outfit (thanks Tia Biffy!). She was very good and even took a nap while Laurie opened presents. Clara got to meet Russell's sister-in-law, Jenny, for the first time and of course loved her!

Clara loved Jenny

Clararoo

After the shower Clara and I headed home to get ready and pick up Dada for Fun Day! For eight years our friends have been having Fun Day each summer and it consists of games, drinking, and lots of yummy food. Since this was the eighth Fun Day the theme was 80s. Clara was really excited for her first dress up party and decided to be a Cabbage Patch Kid. She wore one of my outfits from the 80s complete with plastic bloomers, and Tia Laurie made her awesome "hair" out of yarn and a head band. Clarita thought her hair was pretty cool because she could chew on it and pull it.

This Fun Day was a little different because for the first time there were a ton of kids ranging in age from four months to two years. In the past, Fun Day has tended to be a little crazy (it usually begins with a beer hunt), but I thought that this year was perfect. It was still super fun, but a little more mellow and without any drama. It was really cool seeing all of the kids and knowing that they are going to grow up looking forward to Fun Day. Pretty soon we're going to need kid events...maybe they can hide the beer for the beer hunt!:)

Blue Team

Green team (Clara wanted to be on both)

For some reason the only other picture I took was of Jon, Reedcito, Sarah,
and baby #2...maybe because Reedcito was so cute in his 80s outfit

Clara was very good, sleeping when she was tired and getting passed around. We finally left around 11:00 PM and she immediately fell asleep in the car and didn't wake up until 7:30 the next morning! I'd say her first Fun Day was a success!

Passed out with Dada

She woke up right after this picture and was obsessed with
Drew's blue nose, she had blue all over her fingers

A Tribute to GG

My grandmother passed away on July 26, 2013. She was 91-years-old and it was her 72nd wedding anniversary. It's almost like she hung on just long enough for their anniversary to come and then let go. Clara was lucky enough to get to spend four months with her great grandmother who simply adored her. I want to dedicate this post to some of my favorite memories of my grandmother as well of some of my favorite memories of her with Clara so that Clara will be able to read them some day.

My grandma was always really witty. My freshman year of college my roommate and I would make the most ridiculous answering machine messages and my grandma hated them. She left me a message once telling me to "call me back when you stop acting silly". The next time she called she left a message telling me how much she liked our message. When I called her back I asked her if she really liked the message and she said, "No I was doing reverse psychology, did it work?". When I was pregnant my grandma referred to me as "baby momma". She would often e-mail me asking how the "baby momma" was doing. I don't think she knew the modern definition of a baby mama but it always made me laugh just the same!

Growing up my grandma was the best grandmother ever! She always made me doll clothes and even made me new hair for my Cabbage Patch kid when I decided that I wanted her to have long hair instead of the short hair that I had initially requested. This hair consisted of yellow yarn pigtails that matched her short yellow hair. She also painted well and my grandpa would build us bookshelves, doll cradles, wooden dolls, etc. and she would paint them. I still have many of the things that they made us and I know that Clarita will enjoy playing with them.

When my grandma found out that I was pregnant she was ecstatic and immediately declared herself "GG". I often took her and my grandpa lunch and she loved watching me grow and patting my belly. She even gave my belly kisses sometimes! I gave her ultrasound pictures and she routinely took them to the beauty shop with her to show off her new great granddaughter. Even before we found out I was having a girl my grandma decided that it was a girl. She wrote "girl" on the back of the first ultrasound and told me it must be a girl because she wrote it down.

My grandma didn't like the name Clara at first stating that it was an "old lady name" (it was quite popular in the late 1800s meaning that my grandma probably did know a lot of old ladies named Clara). However, once she got to know Clara she told me that she had changed her mind and that Clara was the perfect name because the baby was a Clara and nothing else.

Although I assured her to the contrary, my grandma was very concerned that we weren't going to tell her when Clara was born. She called me often in the days leading up to my due date and once when I didn't answer she even called the hospital to see if I was there! She called me hourly when I was in labor asking if I'd had the baby yet each time. My dad brought her and my grandpa to the hospital the day after Clara was born and I have never seen them so happy. My grandma said that it was the best day of her life and that she had never seen a more beautiful baby. She often talked about visiting us that day in the hospital and how much it had meant to her.

I tried to visit my grandma frequently and bring Clara to see her. Each time that she saw Clara her face lit up and she became so happy. Even in the hospital and nursing home when she didn't recognize the rest of us, she always knew who Clara was. She would exclaim, "There's my precious baby!" and proceed to tell all of the staff that this was her first great grandchild and ask them all, "Isn't she the most beautiful baby you've ever seen?" Once she had just woken up when we got to the nursing home and the nurse told her that she had a visitor. I heard her say, "I hope it's Clara!" My grandma would hold Clara and talk to her and Clara loved it. She would grab my grandma's fingers and play with them, always trying to put them in her mouth of course. Even towards the end when my grandma was very weak she would hold Clara and even lift her up above her. It was amazing how happy Clara made her!