Peek-A-Boo!

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Good morning!!  

Maia almost always wakes up in a great mood!

She's recently learned a new trick.  

I believe she figured it out because she has recently started hanging out in her Chicco Pack and Play.  She can see through the sides and loves watching us walk around.  She ESPECIALLY loves watching her doggies and kitty wander by.  Sometimes Budva even stops to give her a kiss through the mesh walls!  

Her crib has bumpers and she can't see through like she can in her playpen.  

But…she's figured out how to fix that problem!!

Here is a progression of photos showing Maia's newest trick...

TA DA!!!

Now every time we go into her room, we're greeted with a nosy little girl peeking over her crib bumper!

I have so many cute photos, I figured I'd just post them all!

She's very proud of herself!

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Mmmmm…Cereal

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Maia loves cereal.  Who doesn't, right?

In her case, the cereal is organic brown rice mixed with Alimentum formula.

Yum.

You won't find a spoonful of that formula anywhere NEAR my mouth!  But she really likes it.  In fact, I think she loves it.  This particular day she was eating her cereal/formula mix and pears.

Take a look at her eating breakfast with her Daddy...

Yep, she loves her cereal!  Don't you wish we adults could get away with making noises like that while we're eating something yummy?  (Although, you might see me making similar sounds next week when I'm in the States and eat my first restaurant hamburger in FOUR years!)  

Haha…you think I'm kidding!

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Jogging Around

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Maia started playing in her Bright Starts Around We Go walker back in March.  At that time, she couldn't even reach the floor!!

Then she started to be more mobile and more active.  She would play, chat, and shriek.

Then, little by little, she started walking around.  Her steps were choppy and slow, but they were steps!  

And now…she JOGS!  It's pretty incredible to watch.  She has so much fun!!  

Sorry the picture is so dark.  I hope you can still see her bopping around!!  I'll have to try to get a picture of her latest trick: she jogs and jogs and then…picks up her feet to coast!!  What a stinker.

This toy is wonderful!!  We all love it!  

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Poor Budva!

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Maia loves her doggies.  Especially Budva.  

Everyone already knows - we've seen her chasing Budva around the house.  It cracks her up!!

Now, she has something else that amuses her: she thinks it's hilarious when Budva gets 'hurt'.

Watch the video:

How cute!  She also likes when she gets to kick Budva in the face.  We hold her and put her feet in Budva's face while making the sound effects.  Cracks her up.

Budva loves the attention now, but she is in serious trouble once Maia is mobile!!  We're all looking forward to that day.  Budva's a sweet, sweet dog…but boy does she deserve everything that's coming to her!!

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Lazy Sunday in Nurnberg

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We have a ton of chores to catch up with around the house, but nothing can be done on a Sunday.  It's the law.  We spent all day Friday and Saturday working in the yard and around the house, so when Sunday came…we were off!!

We decided to head into Nurnberg.  It's relatively close (only 40 minutes away) and we absolutely love it there.  Even though none of the stores are open on a Sunday, we knew we could wander around, get a Starbucks, have lunch, and just enjoy the day.

Romas used to have weekends off and a long weekend every month, but now his schedule is completely unpredictable.  He works more than ever and we hardly have time to just wander around in town and relax.

We walked around a little, went to Starbucks(!), and then walked up to the castle.  Our very first trip after moving to Germany was to Nurnberg and it has been 3 1/2 years since we first explored the city.  It is without a doubt one of our very favorites.  We've been back MANY times but we've never gone back up to the castle.  We hiked up the rather steep hill to get a view from the wall.

It was a beautiful, clear day and we were able to see for miles.  It is such an incredible city.  Here is a picture of Maia and her Daddy looking over the wall.

Generally Maia is camera shy - she sees the camera and immediately stops what she's doing.

Sunday was different.  Maia was in RARE form!  She was posing and chatting it up with the camera!  It was hilarious and we have some incredibly funny pictures to share!!  

Take a look:

Some of those pictures need captions.  I mean, look at the faces she's making!!  She cracks us up.  What a funny little girl!!

Here was my attempt at a 'self portrait'.  I tried to take a picture of the three of us…but, as you can see, I didn't quite succeed.  Sorry, Romas.  And Maia's not even looking.  And I look like a giraffe.  

 Sigh.  Maybe one day we'll actually have a photo of the three of us together.

Maybe.

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6 Month Well Baby - Update

Pin It Maia's appointment went well today.  She didn't gain much weight - only 200g in 28 days.  However she did grow 4 centimeters in length.  Both the doctor and dietitian said that it's normal for a baby to first grow out and then up.  Last month, Maia gained an entire pound, or about 500 grams, and grew 'out'.  She hardly grew in length though.  This month was the opposite: she grew 'up' but not 'out'.  The dietitian said that Maia is getting enough calories each day in her formula and cereal.  As you know, we have also started adding fruits and vegetables once a day.  We now have the OK to start meats and finger foods (like Cheerios) and add fruit to her morning meal.  Meal time is getting exciting!!

Unfortunately, Maia also had to have her vaccines today, too.  She did NOT appreciate the needle sticks!    I don't blame her.  Poor girl already has big red welts on each leg where they injected her.  

She was exhausted tonight but had trouble falling asleep because she likes to sleep on her side.  The nurse gave her the vaccines on her outer thigh…of both legs!!  Poor Maia.  No matter which side she tried to lay on, she was laying on a sore spot!  She finally fell asleep…whimpering.  I don't know who was more sad: Maia or me!

She's wearing her new Hedgehog pj's though - they finally fit her!!  Thanks, Leigh!!  They are soooooo cute!!  She looks like a little kid and not a baby in them!  Romas and I can't get enough of her in her hedgie pajamas!!  I think tomorrow will be a pajama day while Maia recovers from her shots.  A perfect day to lounge around the house in her hedgies!!

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6 Month Well-Baby

Pin It Tomorrow is Maia's 6 month check up at the health clinic.  Part of me is still in a little bit of denial that she's 6 months old!!  And the other part of me is already planning her First Birthday!!  I know it's a little (ok, a LOT) premature, but if the second 6 months goes as fast as the first, I won't have enough time to have everything ready for her!  We need to make sure our little Bee has one heck of a birthday bash!!

Anyway, tomorrow is her appointment so we'll get an update on her weight.  Hopefully she's been gaining steadily.  She's had trouble gaining weight consistently (obviously not a trait inherited from her mom!) and we have always had her on a high-calorie diet to encourage weight gain.  It's been a month since we started her on fruits and vegetables, in addition to the rice cereal she had been eating, and the doctor said we should be able to start meats after this appointment.  Hopefully she'll be starting even more new foods after tomorrow!

We will be seen during the Growing Clinic, which is a wonderful program that is relatively new at our health clinic.  It's an opportunity to meet with all of the different agencies and services available in one appointment.  We'll see the doctor, dietician, and occupational therapist, along with anyone else who stops in our room to check in.  It's a chance for everyone to do an evaluation and make sure Maia (and all the other babies!) is meeting all of her milestones appropriately.  It makes for a VERY long appointment, but it's certainly worth it.

Maia will also be getting her 6 month vaccines tomorrow.  No fun.  For any of us!!  I believe that now she'll be done with vaccines until her 1st birthday, which is a relief.  I understand the importance of (most) vaccines, but it still no fun to put her through the ordeal.

Tomorrow I'll also be picking up all of her records to bring to Boston with us.  We have to hand-carry records to the hospital for her appointment.  Romas and I are really appreciative of the efforts the doctor and her nurse practitioner have made in order to get our appointment approved.  The nurse practitioner went on vacation only a couple days after we initiated the request, but she still emailed me almost daily with information.  She also gave me her personal cell phone number in case anything comes up between now and our appointment on July 5th.  I've never met her before but she said she would be at the growing clinic tomorrow, so hopefully I will have a chance to thank her in person.

I wanted to do something nice for both her and the doctor for all of their efforts.  I recently saw the cutest "cupcakes in a jar" and thought it would be the perfect gift:  yummy and portable!  I went to the German grocery store and bought cute canning jars and came home to start baking!!  You can read about it here, on my baking blog!  They came out super cute - and they taste pretty darn yummy too!!  

We'll keep you updated on the Bee's progress once we return from her appointment! Pin It

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Happy {1/2} Birthday!!

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Maia is 6 months old today.

Where does the time go!??!  How could she possibly be 6 months old already??

I thought it might be a good day to bring out the Pack and Play.  It is a really neat invention, complete with changing table and bassinet.  Maia, however, only started laying flat about 6 weeks ago, so it was really no use to us…

Until now!!!

Ta da!!  

Do you think I'll ever get it back into the travel bag as neatly as it arrived?  

Nah, I don't think so either.

Turns out, Maia LOVES her Pack and Play.  She hangs out in it and squawks and squawks.  

(She's our very own Pterodactyl!)  

She also loves to pet the mesh.  

Do you see her hand on the bottom?

She's even learned how to hold herself up.  She still "tripods" with the help of a hand and falls over after a few moments, but she's been sitting up longer and longer each day.

She has a favorite piggy that her Grandpa sent for Easter this year.  It's a Bright Starts Tug Tunes and plays music.  Well…played music.  It died this morning after only a few short months with us.  I emailed the company because I was so disappointed.  Maia loves her piggy and we love the big hook attached to him.  We can make sure he's secured to the waist bar of her stroller so he can't fall out as she's playing.

Anyway, I emailed the company and, within a couple hours, they had already mailed a replacement!  They also sent me a 10% off discount to apologize.  Bright Starts makes great toys (Around We Go Activity Station) but now I know they also have amazing customer service.  I can't wait to go online to find Maia's next favorite toy (and use my 10% off coupon)!!

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APPROVED!

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Maia has some exciting news to share!

Our insurance has approved her visit to Children's Hospital Boston!!  We are THRILLED!!  The paperwork basically gives Children's free rein to diagnose and treat her.  We'll be in the States visiting family in July and Maia's {wonderful} doctor submitted paperwork to hopefully get her into Children's, instead of Landstuhl here in Germany.  

We now have an appointment in Boston on July 5th with a pediatric gastroenterologist at one of the most prestigious children's hospitals in the world.  

Only the best for our little Bee!!  

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