Did you just hear what I just heard?

Sorry I haven't posted much! Life with an active infant is well active! I don't have time to type unless it's while I'm feeding, and then I can only type with one hand. Most times I am on facebook is when I am feeding or naptime, just in case you wonder if I am lying! :)

This weekend was Christmas and this year we spent it up in Washington with my (Kristine's) parents. We stopped along the way to my great uncle jack and great aunt ruth's house because my parents were visiting there, and we don't have a key to get into their house without them. Jenna had a good time meeting uncle jack and aunt ruth. They both got to hold her for a bit, which was nice. I got a picture of my aunt ruth holding her. :)

I think I might cut to the chase in case Jenna wakes up while I am writing. (This seems to happen a lot...) I was holding Jenna in the family room of my parents house and we were visiting with my brother Adam. I let Jenna walk up me and she was doing her normal cooing. Lately she's been REALLY watching how I speak to try to replicate it. Well as she was walking up me, I was talking to her and I said,"Hi Jenna" and she said, "Hi!" in response! I was in shock and asked Adam if he had heard what I just heard. He did! She cooed some more and walked up and I thought hmm... this might be a fluke. Later on in that day she almost said Hello and different versions of hi that weren't as clear.

The next day I was visiting in the same room with my mom. I had Jenna walking up me (cause she loves to climb and walk up me) and I said,"Hi" and she responded,"Hi". I asked my mom if she heard what I just heard, and she did! Jenna again proceeded to say versions of hi, but they weren't as clear. :)

So yes, I think I can count her first word as,"Hi" at three and a half months because she said it twice in context. She's definitely a thinker and tries very hard to figure things out. She might not use clear words on a consistent basis yet, but they are coming!

Month Three Letter to Jenna

Dearest Jenna,

My this past month flew by! Momma almost forgot to write a letter to you about this past month. Sometimes it's hard to remember all that's happened. So I might start with what's happening lately in our lives.

Right at your three month mark you found out that you could grab your feet. Not only that, you figured out how to pull your feet into your mouth! Daddy and I have been working hard to help you get more mobile. We realized that we hadn't been doing much tummy time with you, and when momma tried it, she saw you wanted to move, but your arms weren't strong enough. So Daddy decided to start helping you pull yourself up to work those arm muscles. He lets you grab onto his fingers and moves you forward to help you sit up. Momma just started working more from that and helping you stand up on your own too. It's been fun to watch you get so excited to pull yourself up to a standing position! Once you are in a standing position, Momma or Daddy grab under your arms and help you walk.

You've become quite the walker lately too! You are so excited to walk all around the house. We just let you lead us where you want to go. One day you walked from your room into our room and found your little teddy book on the table and walked right to it! You waited for momma to pick it up and listened while I read it to you. It was so sweet! We hope to get a walker thing for you for Christmas so you can move around to your little heart's content and we can save our backs!

Speaking of backs... lately one of your favorite things to do with us is to walk on our stomach/chest while we lay on our backs. It's so sweet! You smile and grin and lately, as of today, you've started to actually laugh! It's so cute to hear you laugh. I can't wait to hear when you start to giggle some more. You try to talk more lately too and love it when I whisper to you. You sometimes try to whisper back. I am amazed at everything you are learning!

I saw a friend's baby video on the internet and realized that we hadn't done much tummy time this month. But I had a feeling you were having good head control. So Momma put you on your tummy and you could hold your head up! You only tolerate it for a little while, then it's back on your back.

This month we also got our Christmas tree! You weren't very excited to go pick it out since the sun was directly overhead and in your eyes the entire time. But now that it's decorated, you really enjoy looking at it. The other day I had you feel it with your hands and you thought that was the coolest thing. You also loved looking at the blinking snowman your great aunt and uncle gave you. It's a year full of new traditions for all of us! Momma even made you a stocking. We decided as a family to donate money from this year on, every year to a charity of choice. We want you to know how important it is to give to others above yourself. So this year we picked out some gifts on the MAF giving website to donate to MAF. You may not know about it much this year, but we hope as each year passes that you'll understand more and more the importance of giving. We also are starting something this year we hope to continue with only giving each other one or two presents under the tree. They can be meaningful presents, but only a few as to not cloud why we are celebrating the holiday. Mommy hopes to buy a children's Christmas story book soon so we can read it together. Yes, we have the bible, but I want something that will spark your interest with pictures at this young age. :)

What else to say about this month, well you were sleeping great up until you turned three months old. A couple of days before then, you started to not want to take naps or to go to bed at a normal time. Instead you want to stay up late. Momma is trying to figure out a good sleep plan for you, but it'll take some time. With Daddy having a cold, it's all momma can do to get some good sleep herself too!

I am sure there are other things I am missing, oh yeah...Thanksgiving! You had a great time with your uncles and grandma and grandpa cromie. You slept great in the bassinet, although we are working to try to figure out how to get you sleeping earlier and how to give you a nap there. It'll be an adjustment for everyone come Christmas!

Momma better get this letter out so that she'll have time to figure out what to write for the next one. We love you baby girl and love seeing you grow up, even if it seems a little fast. Some people say not to encourage you to walk so soon, or do things so soon, but we are beyond excited to help you reach life's little milestones so eventually you can become a strong independent woman who knows Christ and loves those around her graciously. Blessed are we three.

Love,

Momma

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Learning how to be a domesticated momma

As I write this, I am sure Jenna will start to cry and need me....(yep) Okay...hours later here I am. I've had some sort of revelation this morning, I need to stop complaining. I am transforming into a domesticated momma and it's a painful transformation. It's all about learning how to completely care for another and changing my old ways of doing things. This includes my ways of thinking as well as how I do every day tasks that seemed so easy to do before.

I used to be able to clean a room within minutes. Now my cleaning takes most of the day because I am also caring for a little baby. I used to be able to take my time to cook an elaborate meal. Now I have to figure out the quickest way of cooking something healthy for my family. I used to be able to go out easily with friends. Now I've got to figure out how to take care of my little one while visiting and having a meaningful conversation. I used to do a lot of things, now those things are changing and it's a hard transition, but a necessary one.

Phillipians 2:14-15 says," ¹⁴ Do everything without grumbling or arguing, ¹⁵ so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.”^{a]" style="line-height: 0.5em; ">[a]} Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky" This is what I must do. Yes, it's hard to care for a baby all day, clean house, do laundry and make dinner. BUT this is what I am called to do right now. I know it seems old school for some of you in the new generation, but right now I am called to be a wife and mother. My life is consumed by it and I've gotta be the best wife and mother I can be. This means taking care of the baby completely, taking care of the house the best I can, making sure my husband knows he's loved and making sure there's food made for him and the bills are paid.

It also means that I am raising my child up to know important values and gender roles. This is the old school part I was talking about. She'll see daddy go off to work during the week and see mommy doing her best to be a good wife and mother by taking care of things at home. It also means daily teaching her about our values pertaining to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Every day I try to read to her out of her little bible. I'm starting to pray with her more and we sing little songs together. I want her to know the hope that I hold so dear. To understand how I am able to do what I do, the driving force behind it. The one that gives us life and life to the full. This is perhaps the most important task as a mom. As she grows I'll help teach her how to treat others with respect and kindness. She'll see how a man is supposed to treat a woman by the love between her daddy and I. Also the love her daddy gives her when he comes home from work. All these things work together for the good.

Now, while I say gender roles, I don't think it's bad that women have to work sometimes. Or if daddy is the one that needs to stay at home. There are all types of families. But I want her to know and see the respect I have for her father for working so we can have food on the table and a place to live. I want her to see and know that I don't mind doing things because I love her and her father. The love and respect part is key. If she wants to grow up to fly airplanes or be a doctor or make things for a living...that's her choice. All I can do as a parent is instill values into her so that she can make smart informed decisions about her life.

This is the process I am in now. Learning how to be a domesticated momma who doesn't complain, doesn't argue, but loves life and loves helping her little girl grow up and her husband look forward to being with his family after work. I look forward to the next chapter that potentially includes us serving overseas so that we can show her more what it means to be a servant and how to show others love and respect in Christ.

Sorry it's been a while

I am so behind in blogging it's not even funny. But when you have a VERY active two (almost three) month old, it gets hard to take the time to write out a full on blog post. I'll get better over time, because this is how I keep a record of her achievements and our life. Maybe by saving in-between and continuing when I have time, it'll get done. (Case in point, she's crying right now while Eric's changing her and I'll feed her soon after....)

*A few days/week/ I can't remember later.....

Okay here I am back again and determined to make a post. Things have been quite busy in the Reed household. To recap, we've got a Christmas tree now. We went last Sunday to get it from Century Farms in Oregon near St. Paul. We love going to that place because essentially all you have to do is point to the tree you want and they cut it down, put it on a tractor, take you back to the shed/barn area, shake it , bail it and put it in your car...all included in the price! It was the perfect place to go when you have a little one because it's hard enough wrangling her!

Jenna did great at the Christmas tree farm. I had her in my front pack with the fleece cover on it to keep her warm. It was sunny and VERY bright out there. Kinda the blinding sun that's on you wherever you go. I don't really like that sun, and neither did Jenna. I had to try to hide behind the shade of trees to appease her. It took us a while to find the right tree, but we finally did. It's a Noble Fir and just the perfect size for our house. I'll post a photo of it fully decorated soon.

In other news, Thanksgiving in WA went well. Jenna met a ton of family and friends and did relatively well considering she was tossed back and forth from person to person. It was quite tiring to momma, but we were blessed that she decided to sleep through the night there as well. I was very afraid she would be up every few hours. I still was kinda freaking out the first night because she was in the pack and play and since they didn't have a sheet, they put a bunch of receiving blankets down and of course she crumpled them up all around her. So halfway through the night when I fed her I pulled out all the blankets except one and I felt better about that.

She enjoyed meeting my best friend Sarah's little girl Elena and niece Valerie. She REALLY loved meeting my best friend Lael. She was so happy and smiley!

She slept in the car all the way from Keizer-Chehalis (where I fed her), then from Chehalis to Gig Harbor...then we stopped near Port Orchard so I could feed her. On the way home we stopped at Nikki's house so she could meet lil' Jenna. Then we went from there the back way. It was snowing and the roads were kinda sketch, but we made it to Shelton and I fed her there. Then it was to home through heavy snow, so we took our time. We were ahead of the storm until we stopped in Centralia where it caught up with us again. We made it home safely though!

Thanksgiving in Oregon....not so much of a great time for Jenna. We changed docs to one in town and got Jenna her shots the day before Thanksgiving. I had moms tell me how hard it was to see their kids in pain, and I didn't think it would be that hard for me until it happened and man...that was hard! Especially since she had to get poked three times! THREE. In those three injections were a load of shots. It was super hard to watch her in pain and I nursed her afterwards. That didn't help much and she cried most of the way home. Later on that day we had to go to Eric's family for Thanksgiving, not a good idea.

She had been doing fine until we got there. I think it was just too much for her to handle with her little body hurting. So she cried and screamed and cried and I finally decided it was time for tylenol. Only...we didn't have any! Oops. Eric went out and got some while I sat holding my baby and had his family staring at me. Now, I can't go into detail here about what I was feeling, but if you want to know... feel free to ask me. :) Eric came back with the tylenol and that seemed to help a little after a while, but she still was crabby. Long story short, that night we went home later and came back the next day for a do-over. She was a much happier baby then and we had a better Thanksgiving with his family. If you want the full story, ask me some time. It's a doosie.

It's been one roller coaster of a month. I was feeling down about myself for how I was looking. I am kinda frustrated that I have to wear glasses again. My right eye just isn't accepting contacts like it used to, so it's back to glasses for another month or so until I can get in to get it looked at. Then my hair was a mess....which didn't help things either. Sometimes it felt like why try you know? So to help my mood, I decided to get my hair cut. Something I hadn't done in almost a year! I couldn't believe it'd been that long.... guess I was too pregnant and then busy with a little one to notice. But I got it cut and I feel much better. I have a cut that looks good with glasses so I can feel a little better about myself again. Yay. :)

I figure in the next week or so I can go into depth about Jenna and her milestones since she'll be turning three months soon! I can't wait!

Okay, that's about all the time I have to spare to blog! It's a good thing I type fast! I have a feeling she'll be waking up soon.

Blessings and Love,

Kristine

Jenna's Two Month Letter

My Dearest Jennavieve,

It's been two whole months since you've been born! Time sure does fly! These days you're sleeping a little more at night, smiling a little more during the day and paying attention to everyone and anything you come into contact with. You LOVE your daddy and can't wait for him to come home so you can spend some special time with him. He loves holding you, talking with you and doing things to make you smile. He does this thing where he shakes your legs and makes a motor sound and you think it's the funniest thing ever.

You love seeing your grandparents too. Grandma and Grandpa Cromie came down to visit and you had the best time with them. You loved resting in Grandma Cromie's arms and listening to Grandpa Cromie talk to you. Grandma Reed came to visit us and even though you were sleeping most of the time, the time you were awake you seemed to enjoy her. We've visited Grandma and Grandpa Reed a few times too and you seem to like them as well. Grandpa Reed held you again and you thought that was pretty cool. We did too!

You are growing a bunch too... you are close to 11lbs now! You can track whatever you are focused on for a little bit and are starting to get better control of your hands! No more little fists all the time, instead you are using your fingers to try to grasp things. Instead now you are using your little fist to suck and chew on and drool all over. You also try to suck and chew on blankets and clothing as well my little drool monster. :) Lately you've really liked chewing/sucking on your play plastic keychain. You even try to hold the keys to bring them to your mouth!

Lately you've been paying more attention when Momma speaks and reads you books. Every day momma tries to read you from your little Animal Touch book and your little bible. Sometimes you decide to touch the pages when momma does. I hope to read to you every day. I have you on your tummy a little every day too. You don't tolerate it very well and kick your legs a lot, but you're learning a little bit to hold your head up high. You have also decided that you like your bouncy chair! Yay! You look at those little toys and sometimes bat them as well. We also do a lot of standing. You seem to LOVE to stand up with help and pretend to walk, someday you'll be able to walk for real! Every day I also try to give you a little time to yourself, because sometimes you need a break from momma. You last for about 5 minutes, then you're ready for me again.

When we go out you've decided you don't like your car seat, instead you want momma to carry you around in the front pack so you can face out and see the world. You love looking around and seeing everyone. You like chewing on the front pack, but also love chewing on my fingers as we go from place to place. Momma doesn't mind getting drool all over her. She likes that you are tolerating being out a little more, it's good for both you and momma!

I picked out some cute fabric to make you a stocking for the mantle. Soon I'll make it and hang it on the mantle when we put our other stockings out. This month we're going to go up to Washington to visit your Uncle Andrew, Uncle Adam, Grandma and Grandpa Cromie, Great Grandma Cromie, Great Aunt Patsy, Great Uncle Rich, Miss Sarah, David, Elena and your cousins Nikki, Mike, Sierra and Savannah! It's going to be quite a big trip! It'll take us 4 hours to drive up there. I am sure along the way we'll stop to eat and get out and stretch our legs. Unless of course you decide to sleep the entire time.... I wouldn't be opposed to that! We're going up to visit them for thanksgiving, it should be fun.

I am sure I'll update this letter a few more times, but we are so happy to have you in our lives little Jenna! Daddy and I love you so very much. We hope to work hard to help you succeed in everything you want to accomplish!

Love Always,

Momma

Jenna