Merry Christmas Baby!

Christmas was a glorious time in the Wells house. Christmas has always been a fun and joyous time but experiencing it this year through the eyes of a child was amazing!

 

It's crazy to think how much life has changed since this time last year!

Here is Blakely (and me) last year at Christmas time and Blakely this year!

Here are some pictures highlighting our life during this first season of advent with Blakely.

Hanging of the Greens and All Church Potluck that kicked off our Advent celebration.

Blakely spent a lot of time with Nana this evening as mommy and her friend Jolene are in charge of this event and were very busy!

Blakely with her GREAT Uncle Tim

Blakely wore this hair bow many times through out the season!



a very rare Blakely and Mommy Picture

Blakely as Baby JESUS

Every year our church has the children of the church dress up to reinact the Manger Scene and they hang the pictures in the sanctuary foywer. Miss Blakely was asked to play the part of Baby Jesus. Needless to say this canvas will be hung in our house every advent season!

Christmas Eve Service at Church

 

Christmas Morning at Home.
We woke up at our house Christmas morning and spent the first few moments together, just our small little family.

Early Morning Family Picture

Mommy reading Blakely her Christmas Book. We hope to make this a family tradition!

Momma is still a little tired!

Daddy is still a little tired too!

Christmas at Nana's
After we opened presents at home we got ready and headed to Shawnee to eat breakfast and spend time with Nana, Papa and Uncle Ronnie. We had our tradional Ebelskievers (Danish Pancake Balls) and exchanged gifts.

more interested in the packaging than the actual gift.

Papa got Blakely her first KU basketball. No Pressure, Beemer ;)
ROCK CHALK!

Her Bib says "Who needs Santa, I have Grandma"
This Christmas proved that saying true!

Everything goes straight to the mouth!

 

Blakely opening her new buddy Violet.

Christmas Evening at Home
We went home after breakfast so Blakely could nap in her own bed. That afternoon Noah's parents and sister came in town and we were able to celebrate Christmas evening with Nana, Papa, Uncle Ronnie, Uncle Eric, Soon to be Aunt Kaitlyn, AND Grandma and Grandpa Wells and Tia. It was so much fun and Blakely was SPOILED!



She is now a pro at opening gifts

I know she is thinking "I want to put this in my mouth!"

Blakely got her first set of Prince and Princess from Gma and Gpa Wells.
Little People's version of Jasmine and Alladdin.
Momma the EC Teacher loves her some Little People Toys!

Fancy hat from Tia that she got on her semester abroad at the Famous WIMBLEDON Tennis Tournament.

Where did Blakely go?



getting a kiss on the head from Dear Uncle Ronnie
 

Perfect Ending to a Perfect Day

Thank You God for sending babies...
Baby Jesus and Baby Blakely.
We are truly blessed!

Santa Baby!

Blakely met Santa for the first time! My school does a fun winter event where you can come up to school on a Saturday morning at meet Santa, drink hot chocolate and watch classic christmas movies!

We were glad because Blakely got to meet Santa without waiting in an insane line at a place like Bass Pro Shop. She did really well. I was terrified she would pull his fake beard down and ruin Santa for everyone else but she didn't! Whew, chrisis adverted!

She loved him and enjoyed it all! Who knows if this will be the case next year ;)

Thanksgiving in Garden City

We had an absolutely wonderful time in Garden City for Thanksgiving. It was wonderful for be surrounded by family and introducing Blakely to many family members that hadn't met her yet.

We pulled into Garden City late Wednesday night after an evening of traveling. Blakely did amazing well on the way there. She didn't sleep in the car much but was happy and content in her seat.

On Thursday many of Noah's family members from his dad's side came over for Thanksgiving Dinner. This incleded a few babies that are the same age as Blakely. We took a picture that includes me and Blakely (4/20/13), Noah's cousin's wife and their daughter Harper (4/17/2013),  Noah's other cousin Rachel and her daughter Ari (4/7/2013). We even included Noah's other cousin Derek's wife and their daughter Braelynn who was born in early November. It will be a fun picture to show the girls when they are bigger!

On Saturday we traveled an hour west to Leoti, KS where Noah's grandparents live. We had a get together with ALL of his mom's side of the family to celebrate his grandparents 60th anniversary. It was so inspiring and precious to see all the people that are in this world because of the loved they share. Noah and I both look up dearly to his grandparents I can only pray that someday Noah and I will be able to celebrate our own 60th anniversary surrounded by our children and their spouses, grandchildren, and even a few great grandchildren just like they did.

Blakely, GREAT Grandma, and GREAT Grandpa looking at the quiet book GREAT Grandma made.
Love everything about this picture. So much love and heritage.
A picture truly is worth a thousands words.

We had a great time and hope to make it back to Garden City sometime in the near future!

Looking pretty with Tia in her tutu thanksgiving outfit!

Getting lovin' from Auntie

the cutest



8 Months!

They say time flies when you are having a good time and we definitely agree! Blakely is so much fun right now (not that she wasn't before). She is a non stop talker and is such a happy happy girl!

Weight

I am guessing a little over 15 lbs, we have an officially dr appt next month

Height

Not sure but she seems to be getting taller

Head Circumfrence

still seems large :)

Size

We are officially out of 3 month clothing. 3-6 month clothing fits the best. 6 month clothing is a little baggy but we are wearing it because most of of our 3-6 month clothing isn't winter appropriate and her 6 month clothing is. We weren't expecting to have an 8 month old who is too small 6 month clothing :)

Social

She is quite the talker. She makes noises to get your attention (especially when she wants more food) and loves to talk to anyone who will listen.

On the Move

She is sitting independently, still kind of wobbly, but sitting none the less. She isn't crawling yet but is a rolling machine. She loves to stand while holding onto your fingers or something in front of her however she hasn't quite gotten the hang of taking any steps. 

Food

This kid loves to eat. seriously, she can pack the food in....I am not sure where she puts it cause she is still so tiny. I take that back, I do...she poops, like 3-5 times a day. It's crazy. But enough with the poo and back to the food. Her favorites seem to be sweet potatoes and bananas. She loves to chomp on frozen bananas in this little net thing we have. We have discovered she is definitely allergic to green beans but peas are ok. I need to be careful and integrate more greens in her diet so she doesn't turn orange. We are going to try spinach and asparagus soon.

Sleep
Blakely is finally start to sleep better again! In fact last night she slept from 8pm- 6 am! Typically she is going to bed at 7:30-8 pm and sleeping til 11ish when she wants nurse but then she is sleeping midnight til 6:45-7 am when I wake her up. I like it because I am getting a full 6 hours of interrupted sleep!

Likes
Right now she is loving life in general but some of her favorite things in life are: bananas, sweet potatoes, rolling to and fro, bath time, talking, and playing peek a boo!

Dislikes
There isn't much in life she dislikes right now, she is such a happy girl. I am happy to report that tummy time is no longer a dislike. She is a rolling machine and will roll herself on her tummy and push herself up and bear weight in her arms....both of which are two of our therapy goals, so that is exciting!

She dislikes when her food runs out a meal time and she is still hungry. She will squack and kick her feet til we give her more. However, other than that she is loving life!

Max the "pony"

sleeping at Aunt Kissa's and Uncle RyRy's

Love.Her.

Classy girl with her birdcage hair piece.

could they be more related???

Creative with bath time.
Too big for laying in baby tub but too small to sit in big tub.

Say What? My kid is big enough to drink from a sippy??

She loves her daddy.

wrestling with brother. He is a good boy!

 

6 Month Pictures

Took me a bit to get these uploaded but here they are! As always, our photographer (Kim Joyce Photography) did a great job. Here are just a few of our favorites!

Wells Family Photos

When we were in Garden City for Thanksgiving we had some professional pictures taken so we could update Grandma and Grandpa's pictures to include Miss Blakely.

She did a great job and was quite the ham :)

Love this little family

Love these family

notice...she is kicking off the boots! 

pure joy

be still my heart

Blakely loves her Auntie and Uncle

Blakely loves her Tia

Seven Sweet Months!

The babe is 7 months old and getting so big! She is eating food, rolling around, blowing raspberries, reaching out to people and stealing more and more of our hearts each day! She can even sit on her own if her hands are out in front of her!

7 months isn't official doctor appointment month, however we had to go to the doctor the day before her 7 month birthday because little miss got sick! She had a yucky cough and sure enough it was croup (severe cold). However she was quite the trooper...no temperature and she was her normal happy self!

Weight:
14 lbs 5.5 She gained almost a pound this month!

Height:
Not sure

Head:
Not Sure

Sizes:
She can still wear 3 month onesies, but even those are getting a little short and 3 month pants are definitely too short! 3-6 month labeled clothes fit the best, with only a little room to spare and we can fit into some 6 month clothing.

Social:
She is definitely a social butterfly and craves interaction with others. She loves to jabber in the backseat while I am driving and many mornings I can hear her happily babbling when she first wakes up. If she is unhappy she is usually consolable with a song or talking.

On The Move:
She is so close to independently sitting! She can sit for a bit when her hands are out in front of her (she looks like a puppy with her paws out in front!) She is trying hard to crawl and can pull her feet underneath her in tummy time. I am definitely ready for her sit independently, crawling is another thing; we still need to get our carpets cleaned and baby proof the house!

Sleep:
I am one discouraged and exhausted momma! Sister has not been sleeping well at all! She hasn't slept through the night since October 19th (not that anyone is keeping track or anything). I don't think it would be as bad if it wasn't for the fact that she was sleeping so well before. I mean from month 3 to month 6 she was sleeping 11 hours straight, getting up only once to eat, if that. In Blakely's defense it has been a rough month filled with shots, time change, THREE teeth, and a bought with a bad cough and croup. But let me tell you sister, the cold is gone and so are the nights of lost sleep. Tomorrow I am reading the "sleep regression" chapter in Baby Wise and its on like donkey kong. We are jumping back on the sleep train!

Luckily she has continued to nap well. She takes a morning and an afternoon nap, each one usually 1-2 hours in length.

Food:
This chick LOVES to eat. Carrots, Squash, and Sweet Potatoes are some favorites. We have also tried green beans and peas. However, she might be allergic to one or both of those. She broke out in a rash around her mouth and didn't pay attention to it at first because I thought it was because of all the drool and cold weather. However, halfway through trying green beans I thought maybe this is from food so we eliminated green veggies and sure enough it went right away. I called Dr. Nash and told her and she said to try and reintroduce the veggies again in a month a see if it happens again.

We are moving to fruits and taste tasting them all! We have yet to find a food this girly doesn't like! This weekend I am trying my hand at making baby food for the first time, I am super excited!

Likes:
Life, overall she is a generally happy happy girl!

Dislikes:
Sleeping through the night :)

Noah reading "Goodnight Moon" to Blakely and her cousin Keagan. 

Cuddling with Daddy

Early morning picture with my babies

6 month pictures are hard work!

Cuddles for mommy 

Playing with Daddy

Tummy Time

New Favorite Toy: exersaucer!

independently prop sitting!

fell asleep in momma's arms at momma's school auction.

having a serious conversation.

naptime cuddles

you lookin' at me? Yeah, I'm cute!