Reflections

So much happens in so little time when you have a little one! I can't believe my baby is 9 months old. We had her well-baby check and she is growing exponentially. She is in the 78th percentile for her weight, and the 92nd percentile for her height. Not sure how that happened, in the first few months she was way above average in weight (89th percentile) and below average in height. Just shows how much babies change in such a short time. But the most important thing that came out of the appointment was just confirmation that she is a happy, healthy baby. And it was also obvious how much she HATES strangers touching her. She really had a hard time when the doctor was listening to her lungs, and she kept reaching for me and trying to rub her face on my arm; so cute.

Recently, we needed to buy a couple new pacifiers, since they have a way of disappearing. We decided to try out a new kind because they're pretty much the same, right? So wrong! I was holding Elena Rose and Jorge brought the pacifier up to her. She opened her mouth and leaned forward as usual without even looking at it, and as soon as she closed her mouth around it a look of disgust came over her face and she spit it out. This happened several times, but we're making progress.

There is also a new little person in the world, April's daughter Destiny, who was born on April 12th. She was over 8 pounds, which just makes me realize how small Elena Rose was when she was born. Here's one of her pictures from the hospital.

I'll never see the world the same way again since having Elena Rose. Having another baby in the family makes me reflect on how my life has changed since having a daughter. Here are the things that come to mind:

• It strengthened my faith


• I count my blessings every day


• My focus is on my family


• My patience and ability to adapt to different situations is tested on a regular basis

Here we are on a walk. We stopped so that I could show her the bright roses. She really liked them. Jorge was in front of us with Ginger and Charlie.

Chewing on a rubber ducky.