Laughing with Daddy

I forgot to add this one to the other giggle movie. The other person you hear is Michael. Esther always laughs the best when someone is doing it with her.

Time for firsts

This last weekend Esther rolled over for the first time. I didn't think she was ever going to do it because in the past she has hated being on her tummy with a passion. She would always cry and get so worked up about being on her tummy. Now she does not mind it.

Baby's first christmas

Esther' first Christmas was actually about 3pm on Christmas Eve. Michael had to work Christmas day and if we waited till he got home for presents Esther would either be asleep or ready to go to sleep. So we decided the best time for her would be Christmas Eve afternoon before the family party. She loved the wrapping paper. She actually did try to open her gifts. She got a new blanket from Michael's mom. From Michael's sister and her family Esther got a book, a stuffed bird, I think that is what it is, along with a place mat with all kinds of games attached to it and a soft stacking toy. Michael and I decided since Esther had more gifts under the tree from family than he and I put together that she did not need anymore gifts and we would not get her anything this year. We will have plenty of years to be Santa. We had a great Christmas and hope that so did everyone else.

Rice Cereal?

We tried to give Esther rice cereal for the first time about 2 weeks ago. She had no idea what to do with it. She just spit it out. I guess she is not ready yet. We will wait a couple more weeks then try again.

Sunday after church

Esther was being so cute after church a couple of weeks ago that I thought I would take some pictures. As you can see she is a little tired and ready for a nap.

Sunday after church

The giggle

Here are a couple of videos of Esther just being her cute self.

Sunday Morning

So Sunday mornings are hard for Michael and me. We have church at 11:00 and I don't know why but it is hard to both get ready and entertain Esther at the same time. So this last Sunday I came up with this great idea. She loves to see things above her head and especially if they are moving. So she is on the couch watching rings that are connected together and then connected to the ceiling fan. She has not figured out how to roll over so don't worry she is safe. She thought it was the best thing ever and it just helps so Michael can shower and I can do my hair.

New toy

I couple of weeks ago Esther went through a fussy stage. It took us a couple of days to realize what the problem was. We realized that she just wants to be entertained more. This last month Esther has become way more active. She is always moving her arms and kicking her legs. She also wants to sit up. She can't sit up on her own yet but she does not care. So Michael and I decided maybe we should invest in a new toy. She wasn't quite sure what to do at first but now she loves it. It is still a little big for her so that is why she has a blanket behind her. We wanted to get something she could grow into. Her favorite thing is the flower. Esther loves to sing to it. The only problem is after a few minutes she gets mad because it does not respond back and she ends up yelling and hitting the flower, which then she finds fun. I may have to get it on film and show you what I mean. Michael and I just can't stop laughing when she does it. One of the sides has a little piano that plays music. It took Esther about a week to figure out how to get the music to go on. She figured out that if she hits it with her arm or elbow that the music will start. She is one cleaver child. I am afraid that once she gets mobile, watch out.

Thanksgiving

Michael's family came over to our house this year for thanksgiving. Esther loved having lots of people around; she was held and played with non stop all week. Michael's mom just could not get enough of her. It does not help that Esther has learned to smile just at the right moment to melt your heart. Here she is getting loves from Michael's mom and helping Uncle Thomas on the computer. As far as thanksgiving goes, Esther slept through her first thanksgiving. I should have gotten a picture of her sleeping. By the time the actual dinner came Esther was fast asleep, I thinking watching all the commotion in the kitchen tired her out. Maybe next year she will be more interested.

Winter coat

My sister in-law Melanie gave Esther a winter coat for her baby shower and since the weather is getting colder we tried it on. It is still a little bit big but very cute. Esther was not quite sure what to think. It is heavier than anything she has worn so far. She didn't mind it at first but soon decided maybe not. She may just have to get used to it. She got mad once she realized she could not move her arms.

Esther turned three months at the end of October and she keeps getting more adorable every day. She has started to sleep through the night which has been great. Esther is a very happy baby she rarely gets in a bad mood so it is hard to have a bad mood around her. She is so close to holding her head up I think that in another week she will have it down. She loves to smile and is almost giggling. Every once and a while she will laugh and it just melts our hearts. We can't wait till she is more vocal. She is the happiest right when she wakes up. I love that as soon as she sees me peering over the crib she is all smiles. Esther has found her hand. When she gets hungry she sucks on her hand. I know that she is almost awake when I can hear her sucking on her hand. Since she is so good at sticking out her tongue we now play a game. If I stick out my tongue she will copy me and do the same. I went back to work last week and even though it was nice to get out of the house all I thought about was Esther. Michael is really enjoying his daddy day while I am at work. I am glad that Michael gets to have a day with Esther all to himself. Esther continues to grow like a weed. Everyday I have to put some clothes in storage because they don't fit anymore. I am not exactly sure how much she weighs right now but I would not be surprised if it is not around 15 lbs. Everyday I am so thankful for her and feel so blessed. I know that she will continue to bless our lives.

Esther's first Halloween

It is hard to find a costume for a 3 months old but when I found this cute pea pod costume I knew what Michael and I had to go as. My family does a Halloween party every year so, we all went as vegetables. Michael is corn, I am a carrot, and of course the cutest pea pod you have ever seen. She only lasted about 10 min in the costume but it was well worth it for the picture.

Arizona

The weekend of the 10th Michael, Esther and I took a trip to Arizona to visit Michael's sister and her family. The main reason we were going was because Connor, Jennifer's middle son, was getting baptized. We planned on flying and were supposed to leave Friday morning Oct 10th. I don't know if it was traveling with a baby or just bad luck that morning but many things went wrong and we missed our flight. Which wouldn't have been a problem except every flight leaving SLC for Phoenix was over sold and there was no way to catch another flight till the next day. We were heart broken. The baptism was at 10am and the earliest flight would not get us in till 9:40 which was not enough time to drive to Mesa for the baptism. We were going to miss the reason we were going in the first place. We debated on driving. But between losing money on the plane tickets and the cost of gas it was too expensive. So with no other choices we flew out at 11am on Saturday and missed the baptism. Esther did better than I thought she would on the plane. She was asleep as soon as I buckled my seat belt. She slept most the way and woke up right before we landed. Everyone was so excited to see us but more excited to see Esther. This was the first time that the Kirby family has seen Esther. Ethan, Jennifer's youngest, was the most interested in everything Esther did. He was always wanting to hold her and help put the bottle in her mouth. Every time she cried he wanted to know why she was crying. We had a great time. We mostly hung around the house and played ticket to ride. Even though we missed the baptism it was still worth the trip. There is nothing like taking it easy and hanging out with family. We love you guys and miss you already.

Heather's Birthday Party

It was Heather's birthday on October 10th. We were invited to her birthday party the night of the 9th at Golden Coral. It was so much fun to see Heather and her family and for them to see Esther. This is the first time that we have gotten together since Esther was discharged from the hospital. We got to meet Heather's older and younger brothers along with her two daughters and friends of the family. Happy Birthday Heather.

Heather's Birthday Party

Facial

A couple of weeks ago Esther broke out in a lot of baby acne. While working in the NICU I learned that using Selsun Blue or Head & Shoulders on the head and face like a mask dries the skin and will get rid of the baby acne. So here is Esther in the bathtub with Selsun Blue on her head and face. She didn't mind it too much until she licked her chin and ate some. Too bad this does not work on adults.