Little Fish

Siena in her new swim suit :)

Ready for Swimming

Siena started taking swimming lessons and loves it. We go once a week for half an hour. It is really convenient because the pool is literally across the street from where we live. She was quite the litte fish over the summer at Yaya's pool but I wasn't brave enough to put her under.

Under the supervision of the instructor, she goes under about four times a class. For only going twice so far, she has caught the hang of it rather quickly. She is good at kicking and splashing but not so fond of floating on her back. She will learn. I am really glad we signed her up because swimming is a good thing for her to learn early. And, it is a really special activity for us to do together.

Thanks Yaya for the cute suit!

Where's Waldo ... I mean Siena

Happy Halloween!

Siena was invited to a Halloween party with some kids from the neighborhood. We picked up her costume at the last minute, and while I had my doubts, it turned out really cute. I was so surprised at how much fun she had. She was happy, smiling and laughing the whole time we were there. She is quite the social butterfly and was really friendly with everyone. It was also a fun way to celebrate her turning seven months today :)

Admirning her costume. She was fascinated by the tulle skirt. It seemed like she actually enjoyed wearnig the costume and didn't even try to take her hat off.

I took this picture as soon as we arrived. She was so excited to be there.

A group picture (even more kids came later!) Can you spot our little one? She blends right in with the other kiddos but she is easy to find because she is posing for the camera - such a ham!

All partied out! She fell asleep as soon as she got in the pram. What a good day!

Tounge Tied?!

I don't think so! At Siena's six week check-up, the general practioner told me that Siena was tounge tied and may need to have her tounge clipped. I was surprised because she can stick it out pretty far. It hasn't caused her any problems feeding so I am going to wait and see if it interrupts her speech. But I'm going to say that she's ok. Lately, she is very oral and plays with it all the time. How she managed to stick out her tounge and smile at the same time is beyond me!

Siena at 5 Months

Thanks Aunt Angela for my adorable new bow!

Here are some of the things Siena can do at five months:

- Smile for the camera ... I'm serious! She almost poses now when she sees that I'm going to take a picture with the iPhone.

- Roll over. She has been going from back to tummy for some time now but she just started to go from tummy to back.

- Turn the pages in a book. I know this may not sound like much but it demonstrates that she is showing more interest in books. She can recognize (and LOVES) the book "Guess How Much I Love You".

- Eat solid foods. She has tried: rice cereal, apples, pears, sweet potatoes, carrots, zuchinni, swede, and green beans. She's a pretty good eater, which is nice.

- Twirl her "hair" while she takes a bottle. She doesn't really have any hair but she tries. It is so cute! She takes a bottle of forumla now - yeah!

- Laugh and make your heart melt.

Thankful

Did you ever wake up in the morning and just feel like you are the luckiest gal in the whole wide world? I did today. Not too sure why. Maybe it's because Siena slept through the night. Maybe it's because she is a constant reminder of God's love. Or maybe it's just because I am lucky. Whatever the reason, I am thankful.

Sometimes I don't feel like I deserve all the great things in my life but I'm going with it. I just continue to thank God for it all and try to do good with it. Here are a few things that I am especially thankful for.

Trials and challenges. For the past few weeks, Siena has been waking up every two hours at night. Besides being exhuasted, I was also frustrated because she used to sleep fine. I didn't know what to do and felt helpless.

It wasn't long before I realized that this wasn't just a challenge for Siena but also for me. I prayed to God for guidance and He gave me the answer - "let her cry it out and I will help". So we did. She woke the other night at 2:30 am and cried for two hours straight. I went to her every so often to rub her back and try to calm her down, without picking her up, of course. Then, I would go back to my bed and pray that God keep her safe, bless her with peace, and help her to learn to self soothe. I also prayed that He help me resist temptation to cuddle her and remind me that it was for her best. She finally fell asleep and slept until 8am the next morning. Last night was Day 2 and she did even better. She wimpered and was restless from about 3:30-4:30 but I didn't have to go to her and she fell asleep on her own. Hopefully, this is the beginning of a new learned habit.

None of this would've been possible without the help of God. Besides Siena sleeping better, I also learned a new level of patience and perservence, the first intents of disciplining with love, and how parenting can make a marriage stronger. So while it hasn't been easy, and I am sure the sleeping battle isn't over yet, the challenge has brought more good than harm.

Pret A Manger Coffee. This is my favorite coffee in London. It's amazing how much a skinny latte can brigthen my morning :)

My job. Being a full time mom has been one of the most challenging and rewarding jobs I have ever had. For the first time, I feel like I am doing what it is I was meant to do. I find such joy and purpose in being a mother and taking care of the "family business". (Even though, sometimes I think that agency life was a walk in the park compared to this!) I am not saying that I will be a stay-at-home mom forever but for now it is where I need to be. (My life mantra is: "It's not forever, it's for now.") I mean who has the same job their entire lives anymore anyway? While I will always be a mother, I am sure there will come a time when I will long to do something else, too. And, I will.

My health. I have always been thankful for being in such good health. These days it seems like I am always hearing about someone who is sick, having surgery, or been in an accident. Getting sick isn't something you can prevent and you never know if or when it will happen to you. That's why you have to be grateful for every healthy day. I am also thankful for my family's good health. I guess eating well, excercise, and a little madness does a body good :)

My family. There aren't words to express how much I love my family. They are the best friends, support system, and source of encouragement I could ever have. They are also good for some good laughs and lots of drama :) I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband with whom we have started our own family. I am eternally grateful for him and our little Siena.

Nap time! Not for me but for Siena. We are concentrating on getting the night sleep sorted out first, then we will move on to day sleep. Siena is starting to nap during the day, which is great because it gives me time to do things like update my blog! The catch is that I have to take her out for a 15 minute walk in the pram so she can fall asleep. Then she just naps in there when we get home. I know it's not the best solution but it works. She is going on an hour and 15 minutes right now!