Five Generations

There was a very specific reason we made the trek up to Utah this summer. I have a great-grandma that is still alive. That means Isabelle has a great-great-grandma. She is 95 years old and lives in Utah. Isabelle is her first great-great grandchild. I was her first great-grandchild. My mom was her first girl grandchild and my grandma is her first child. Everyone in this picture is the oldest girl in the family. When I called my great-grandma to tell her I'd had Isabelle, I promised her I would bring her up to see her. So, that is why we went to Utah.

In my great-grandma's house there is a frame with little pictures in it. They are all pictures of the seven generations of women in our family line. We had to update it while we were there. It still needs a new picture of me... I kind of stick out.

Meeting Brigham

While Isabelle and I were in Idaho my sister in law had her baby. So, Friday night we piled in the car with our take out Chinese food and sat in traffic for 50 minutes so we could go meet little Brigham. All of us were hungry and on edge because of the traffic so we were excited to arrive and have yummy food. (Curt and I are totally on a Chinese food, and especially sushi, kick right now!) Little Brigham was super cute and super tired. We were there for three hours and he was asleep most of the time. Isabelle didn't quite know what to think of him. She just starred. Brigham could care less about even thinking of her...he just fell asleep. :) It was so weird holding a two week old. It really hasn't been too long, but Isabelle is so long and heavy compared to Brigham. Plus Brigham just relaxes in your arms, whereas I'm constantly fighting Isabelle to not grab things or not jump off my lap. Truth be told...I miss it. However, and to Curt's relief, holding Brigham did not make me baby hungry. I still have too much to forget before I can have another!

Isabelle got bored with him just sitting there so she started to teach him her favorite gang signs...

Six Months!

How is my baby already six months old? She's getting so big! On Wednesday we took her to the doctor for her first well child exam. (Don't judge...you wouldn't take your baby if you didn't have insurance.) Isabelle is growing nicely... She is 27 inches tall and her head circumference is 17 inches around. Supposedly she weighs 16 pounds 13 ounces, but since Isabelle was playing with the scales and the nurse never got an actual reading, I'm convinced it was wrong. I weighed her she was 19 pounds. They didn't give me percentages either...which was a little disappointing. However I took matters into my own hands and looked it up online. Her height is between the 75 and 90 percentile. Her head circumference is between 50 and 75 percentile and her weight is a whopping 90 percentile. Man...that's only going to give my sisters more ammunition to call her fat... :(
The whole experience could've been a "Why aren't you here!" moment, but fortunately Curt came with me. Since she hadn't ever received her 2 month immunizations...or any immunizations since the hospital, she had to get lots of shots. She did pretty good. She had just fallen asleep before getting them so the first one was quite the rude awakening. Obviously, with each shot she got progressively more mad. However, once the nurse was done and I took her from Curt she calmed down almost immediately. She really didn't let it affect the rest of the day and she did pretty well considering she ran a slight fever for the next 30 hours or so. She does still has a knot at one of the three injection sites though. Poor little girl.

Here are some tidbits about Isabelle at six months:

• She still loves food. So much so that she doesn't really care to nurse much during the day. It's driving me crazy... I honestly wonder how much longer I'll be able to nurse her at all.
• She loves pear juice.
• I now don't have to watch what I eat at all. I've even had a little bit of beans and it didn't hurt her.
• She's started squealing at a very high pitch within the last week.
• She waves occasionally...at least I'm convinced she's waving. She seems to understand what she is doing too.
• She loves to feel textures. For example, she loves feeling the carpet when she is sitting up.
• She is still fascinated by her hands. Lately she waves them up and down infront of her face...almost like she is doing a gang sign. We tease her about it...
• When sitting up when she leans forward, you have to be really careful because she will push with her legs / feet and fling herself / jump forward.
• She loves books!!!
• Since getting back from vacation this week we've started to lay her down at night without putting her to sleep first. The first night she cried for 10 minutes, the second about 7 minutes and tonight, no crying at all. Once she gets really good at it, I'll start incorporating the technique for nap time too.
• She wakes up between 7:30 and 8:15 just about every morning...regardless of the time she goes to bed. Of course there are exceptions though.
• She progressively gets better and better.

This Would Make Anyone Feel Great

Yesterday we pulled into my parent's driveway right after three o'clock. It was a long trip, but Isabelle did even better than she did on the way up to Idaho. The only times she really whined were when she pooped. It was funny...she didn't really poop at all while we were in Idaho or Utah, but she exploded once on the way there and twice coming home. It was almost like she knew it was the only way to get grandpa to stop the car...and stop the car we did...right on the side of the road. Not only did we have to change her and her clothes but my clothes as well.

When we arrived back at home, Curt immediately wanted his little girl. He practically ignored me and gave all his attention to Isabelle. However, I didn't quite have this reaction either. She was so excited. It was so cute. She would look at me and then at him and smile...feel his face as if to ask, "Is it really you?" and then after being convinced she finally snuggled into his shoulder. So priceless!

T Minus 24 Hours

Texas here we come! We are so excited! Pray Isabelle doesnt scream the whole way. Shes gotten very tired of the car...
P.S. Stay tuned to find out which animal Isabelle rode and which animal tried to eat her...

Vacation Catch Up

Okay, so since I've had a lack of Internet and a busy schedule, I haven't blogged. So, now I want to play catch up. For those of you who really care, you're in for a treat: lots of pictures...and for those of you who hate long posts or who don't have the patience, I'm sorry. Enjoy the pictures. Oh and p.s. the previous vacation posts now have pictures! :)

Wednesday
Wednesday was our last day in Idaho. So most of the day was spent tying up loose ends...making applesauce, laundry, playing with pumpkins, packing and most important, going back to the Ribbon Retreat. :) I am super excited about all the new bows Isabelle will be getting to wear soon.

While we were getting everything together to leave Isabelle learned it is even more fun to play with her toys on the table... So spoiled.

Thursday

Today we spent most of the day hanging out with family in Logan / Wellsville. Isabelle got to play a little with Mason, my cousin, who was born the day before Isabelle was. Mostly, she just played with his toys though. Including a gun...well it may be one of Mason's older siblings toys...but it doesn't matter. Like father, like daughter, she loved the gun. Daddy was super proud too. :)

After hanging out with Mason and Shelayne, we made our way down to Utah State University to catch up with my cousins Rachael and Michael and to also get Heidi signed up for the dorms. (Yep, Heidi will be a USU student come January...we are all excited.) On our way out of Logan before heading to Morgan, we stopped and got some USU ice cream. It was yummy and I have to admit, I let Isabelle have a little. It's those big blue eyes. I have a hard time resisting them.

Friday

My mom is really into genealogy and one of the three things she insisted on doing in Utah is going to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. So today, Mom, Isabelle and I ventured out to SLC. While my mom researched for 3 1/2 hours, Isabelle and I enjoyed the beautiful weather and walked a little around Temple Square, but mostly sat outside the temple on the grass. I enjoyed just relaxing and watching the 2 dozen or so brides take pictures while Isabelle enjoyed the grass and her toys...not to mention entertaining any passerbys. I literally have never talked to so many people on Temple Square. People kept coming up to Isabelle and talking to her, touching her, wanting to take pictures of her, commenting on how cute she is... I need to learn how to say, "Please don't touch my baby." It was however a very nice afternoon. I am afraid to say though that I think Isabelle may have inherited her father's allergies. Whenever we are outside too long, she starts double fist rubbing her eyes. It's cute but I feel bad. Hopefully it is just the wind or the dry weather. Even if the waiting was super boring, it would have been worth it because we went to Cafe Rio for lunch and sat and talked to my aunt Patrice for three hours. Great company, great food!!!

Saturday

Isabelle is surprisingly picky about taking baths anywhere but at our house. Before this vacation, on two separate occations I've tried to give her a bath at my parent's house. Both times she hated it...and this is from a little girl that loves her baths. I was not looking forward to giving her baths on this trip...and with good reason. Her first bath in Idaho was horrible, the second one she whined through the whole thing, but after that I kept her sitting up and she started to do better...but never played, just tolerated it. My grandma Clark offered her new sink for Isabelle to try out and she loved it. Not only did she love it, but my back loved it too!

Later on, Isabelle got to play with newspaper and had a great time. She loved it.

Growing Up So Fast

I feel like time is speeding past when it comes to Isabelle and how fast she's growing up. Since we've been in Idaho, for some reason, Isabelle has been able to take good naps...at least one good nap a day. However, she's been getting up as soon as the light comes in the room. It's driving me crazy. Anyways, today after taking a 2 1/2 hour nap this morning, she only took cat naps the rest of the day...making for a very long grouchy day. My parents were great and would try to help and in an effort of doing anything to get her to be happy, my dad introduced her to an actual apple and gumming on it. She loved that. He also gave her the core of an eaten corn on the cob to gum on. No surprise there, that she loved it too. She loves food.

While sitting outside today Isabelle discovered the leaves that she's been playing with tear. So she enjoyed doing that for a few minutes... (There wasn't really anything today that kept her attention...)

My grandma, mom, Isabelle and I went to The Ribbon Retreat in town. They have an online store that my mom found while looking for good cheap ribbon while planning Heather's wedding. When she realized it was based out of my grandparent's SMALL hometown, we planned on going the next time we were here. It is really just a nice warehouse, but they let you come in a shop with an escort. It was so cool. Ribbons every where. I bought several headbands for Isabelle in colors I've never been able to find. You can never have enough you know. My mom bought ribbon to make Isabelle a Halloween bow. It is SO cute. I can't wait until she gets to wear it. Especially since my mom is going to make an outfit to match the bow. Yes...you read that right, an outfit to match the bow. :) If you know me well, you know that this is not abnormal. I love bows...BIG bows (as I'm sure you've all guessed by what my daughter wears), but I love the outfits the most that match my favorite bows. I love accessorizing! :)

Another Full Day

Much to my dismay Isabelle seems to love dogs. Every time she sees my grandpa's dog, she smiles and gets excited. Even after we came home from the zoo, where she had no reaction to any animals, she got excited for the dog. Today while sitting out in the backyard for an hour (45 whole minutes without falling!), she definitely loved the five minutes when the dog came to sit by us the most. She also loved playing with the leaves. She was so cute.

The weather is so beautiful here. Today we went back to the Idaho Falls Temple to go to the Visitor's Center. We also went to an amazing craft store. There were tons of super cute ideas that made me spend a little money. I can't wait to get home and do my craft. It will be super cute. :)

Another Fun Filled Day

Since we've been in Idaho, my grandma has been able to hold Isabelle for a minute or two here and there, but today she spent a good amount of time bonding with her great-grandma. Grandma hit the jackpot by combining two of Isabelle's favorite things: food and books...she showed Isabelle a cooking magazine. It was so cute.

My parents took Isabelle and me out to the Rexburg Temple today. It was so beautiful and the weather was so beautiful. Isabelle did really well and sat in the grass for a really long time. Between both my mom and myself, we took tons of pictures. There are very few where Isabelle was actually looking at the camera since there were flowers and grass and cars to distract her.

A Day of More Firsts

Today my mom and I started going stir crazy sitting in the house, so we decided to take Isabelle to the zoo. She was not impressed. It didn't matter if the monkey came right up to the window to look at her or if the goat licked her hand...there was no reaction whatsoever. I think she at least cracked a teeny tiny smile at the goat eating from my hand. She also kicked her legs and waved one arm when she grabbed the fence. But seriously, she had the same look on her face 99 percent of the time. She was not impressed...but as soon as we get back to my grandparent's house and the dog comes up to great us, she was all smiles.

We also went to the Idaho Falls Temple. She once again, didn't have any expression changes unless we sang Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes or Five Little Ducks to get her to smile / look at the camera. (Pictures will be forthcoming since I left my camera cord in Texas.) The weather was wonderful and it is so pretty. I just love that the temple sits right by the falls on the Snake River.

I also introduced Isabelle to green beans today. She was not happy about it. She would actually clamp her jaw and I would have to fight to even get the spoon in. After about half or a quarter ounce I gave up and went back to sweet potatoes. She loves them, but after the green beans, it took her a while to trust that it was the good stuff I was giving her and not the gross stuff. She even hit the spoon out of my hands and on to the floor in protest. She was such a pill.