Holy Crap - Josie is 6 months old!

Consider this a letter to my daughter:

I can't believe it has been 6 months since God graced us with your birth and man has it been a whirlwind! There have been ups and down...but the ups are so high that I forget there are ever downs. One toothless smile from you and it seems that all the worries in the world fade away.

You are sitting up now...smiling all the time and whatever you get your hands on - especially your own hands - goes straight into your mouth.

Today you went to the doctor for your check up...You weighed in at 19 lbs 9 ounces - which puts you in the 97 percentile - and 27 and 1/4 inches - 90 percentile. You aren't small, but as the doctor put it politely you are proportional :)

Now let's get to how we celebrated you half b-day...it wasn't so much a celebration as much as it was enjoying our lives...it was a great family weekend. On Saturday we went to a pumpkin patch/petting zoo in Ellicott City, MD...You weren't you same excited self, but you sat there patiently - all be it emotionless - while we took pictures of you in your flower costume sitting amongst the pumpkins...You did enjoy the petting zoo...and got up close and personal with goats, chickens, ponies and even sheep! Then we went to the Brills' where we hung out with friends...it took you a while to warm up, but once you did...You wowed the crowds with your smile!

Mom and I went in to the weekend dreading it because we were going to start sleep training...but as the weekend wore on...we didn't really have to train you much...You slept perfectly...once a twice you needed a peaceful pat on the back, but you never cried it out...Let's hope it stays that way...

Sunday was just a peaceful...after church we did chores while you napped...then you watched football with your parents and we took a late afternoon walk...It was AWESOME! You did however have more costume changes than Lady Gaga..as you went from Eagles gear to a Cowboys onesie to Phillies PJs!

So after 6 months...I want to tell you how much I love and thank you for the lessons you teach me every day...Your simple smile and warm embrace are the perfect cure for whatever is bothering me.

I love you little one! even though you aren't that little anymore!

The Cousin Summit and Feelin' Icky!

I am a little late, but last weekend we had out first Cousin Summit. Cousin Elliott came to visit from Oklahoma and her parents came too...



It was a great weekend of fun...Elliott is 14 months old so she has about 8 months on Josie. Watching them together is funny...They aren't sure how to react and mainly paw at each other. Elliott loved her cousin, but was at times a little jealous of the attention she got. She would often cry if my sister held Josie too long or try to take toys Josie was playing with...but by the end of the weekend...Everyone was getting along swimmingly...



We even went to the zoo one day...Josie loved petting the cow...Elliott wasn't too impressed since her parents own a heard of them at home...So good news Jos...You can pet as many cows as you want when we visit them on Oklahoma :)



I hope these two grow up loving each other...I call them Country Mouse and City Mouse since Elliott is growing up in Chickasha and Josie lives in suburban Washington...They will grow up in different worlds, but with the same values so it should be interesting to watch...



But over the busy weekend...Josie must've caught a little bug...she is suffering through her first icky period. She has been stuffed up and her nose running for 4 days now. It doesn't seem like much, but when you don't know to blow your nose and you can't take medicine - little things take a toll.



We have been giving her saline drops and using the nose sucker and amazingly she has taken to both pretty well...In an interesting side note...I was discussing this with my mom who said she hated to use the sucker because we hated it so much so she made my dad do it!



Thankfully Grammy (Tammy's Mom) was in town this week so Josie was able to stay home with her, but the nose situation has made sleeping difficult.



The poor little thing just can't seem to get comfortable. She will get clogged up and then a big snot bubble will wake her up...Making things tough on baby and her parents.



So here is to you little one...I hope you get better soon!

Great Weekend!

I never thought a weekend where I was sick and only left the house once could be so awesome, but it was...Why because I got to spend more time with my daughter! We took a walk and Josie basically slept the whole time in her stroller, but this in itself was a break through because she never sleeps unless being rocked...until now...

Also she went from sort of being able to sit up by herself to being our little weeble wobble...She may wobble, but she won't fall down :) She will sit and play with her toys, reaching for things and laughing.

Tammy's parents also come to visit with our nephew Kai. It is great to see Josie interact with other kids...She is so curious...She will look at Kai constantly, reaching for him occasionally. She also smiles at him a ton and he gives the love back. He gave her a couple of sweet hugs and always wants to make sure she is happy and has enough toys to play with.

It was a lot of fun! The only downside was because I had a bit of a cold, I couldn't hug and kiss my daughter as much as I wanted!

Here is a personal note to Josie: Man you are awesome! It was a rough go to start out...but in the past few months you have developed into the happiest, most friendly baby. When you are awake - you smile and laugh and babble endlessly. You only really get grumpy now when you get tired.

I know have repeatedly said I am going to blog more...but I am now going to make a true effort. I want to remember these moments so I can share them with Josie some day!

The Road Princess fueled by Rice Cereal

Where do I begin...It has been a crazy month in Josie's Journey.

Thanks to two planned vacations and two power outages (thanks Pepco!) she spent 19 of the past 31 days in New Jersey. This little road princess become quite a good traveller...I am pretty sure we could turn off the GPS and her cries could guide up The Shore!

These trips to the OC did lead to a few other firsts...Josie can now rollover from her back to her belly (she hasn't mastered the opposite just yet) and she made her first trip to the beach and put her toes in the ocean for the first time. She loved being on the sand, but when her toes hit the water...she made a sounds none of us had heard before. It was a combo squeal/cry...I am sure she will grow to love it.

I am glad after a crazy month to have both may favorite ladies back at home -where they belong.

Since their return, Miss Josie has also become quite an eater. I had the pleasure of feeding her rice cereal for the first time on August 18th (Tammy had done it several times before)...It is a learning process for both us us, but we made it though and I think half of the cereal ended up on her bib...a quarter on her face and a quarter in her belly. Since then though Josie has moved on from just rice cereal to start tasting other baby food favorites like squash and bananas. While she liked both - it appears the bananas don't like her back. She has tried them twice and each time gotten a little rash. It doesn't take a CSI detective to realize that she might be allergic to nanners...We are hoping this will change.

Then there was sadness in the Brown household over the past few days as we prepared for this morning...Josie's first day at day care. She seemed to take it all in stride...It's her parents who are sobbing messes. I am thankful that my in-laws came down to help and ease us into the new routine.

That being said...When I walked away from Josie this morning and she was in some one's arms other than Tammy's it was tough. I love that little girl more than she will ever know!

They say it gets easier...I hope they are right!

Sleep Roller Coaster

It is the second most important thing to a new parent. 1) Health of the baby 2) Baby's sleep habits because their sleep habits are your sleep habits. And our sleep schedule has been a roller coaster ride.

About a month ago Josie slept thru the night for the first time. This creates panic and joy in a parent's mind. Your first thought when you realize you've been asleep all night is "Oh My God - The baby must be dead!" Once you realize that she slept thru the night a feeling of unbridled joy comes over you, especially because everyone says it's like a switch...Once they sleep thru the night, they always sleep thru the night.

Well, Josie is not one to follow the trends so we haven't found a sleep schedule just yet. This week is the perfect example...

We tried "big girl pajamas" for a few days, but she kept waking herself up with jerky movements...so it was back to the Swaddler...But that still didn't work...so we put her in her electric swing...

She slept thru the night and Tammy and I were so excited you would've thought we found the cure for cancer. We were convinced this was the answer...swaddle and swing...

Just 24 hours later...we were on the down side of the sleep roller coaster. The swaddle and swing miracle was over faster than it began...Josie was wide awake basically from 11pm until 5 am...Now I can't complain too much...My saint of a wife spent most of this time with her so I could get some sleep before going to work...

We were concerned she might never sleep well again...I was searching for answers on the internet while Tammy was struggling to make it thru the day...then another miracle..Josie took two good naps...I came home from work and Josie was in a great mood...She went to bed at 8...but was back up at 11...fear was setting in...we gave her another bottle and went back to our new favorite savior...the S&S...after eating she was asleep by midnight and didn't wake up until 7:30am...

So will it stick...only time will tell...the sleep roller coaster is always unpredictable!

Better than watching TV

So I admit it...I am a TV junkie...I will stare at the talking box for hours on end...It is how I relax...



But lately something...or I should say someone else has my attention... Miss Josie!



I come home from work and instead of turning on the tube...I watch her...It is endlessly entertaining...Whether she is on the floor playing on her mat...or just sitting in her little chair...Every day she make more facial expressions...make new noises...learns to play with her toys...It is awesome to watch her discover the world!

She is my new way to wind down and relax!



Now I have to be honest here...Tammy will also be taking part in this blog...however...she hasn't yet because I just told her about it... :)



Now that she knows...I will start spreading the word to others...So...I hope at least a few people will check this out from time to time...and if not...it will be a great place for Josie to visit one day so she can see exactly how weird and crazy her parents really were!

The Beginning!

Well after much prodding from friends and a desire to remember the journey our family is beginning...Tammy and I are starting a blog...

We are a little behind...She turned 6 weeks old yesterday...

But I will update it as often as I can so consider this the spot for all of your late-breaking Josie News!

It should be fun!