9 Month Well Baby Appointment

Elijah had his 9 month check up today. Everything went quite well. He only cried for a minute after his flu shot. He is in the 50th percentile for his height and weight... But in the 99th percentile for his head size. That's right, my baby has a big head. 

I don't think Eli thinks it's a big deal. It's just his head.

I'm pretty sure he got this big head, along with his pretty blue eyes and really long eyelashes, from his daddy. I know I didn't give it to him. I just had to birth it.

Dr. Becky didn't seem too worried about it, but would like us to get it checked. We will have to go to Rapid City to see a specialist who may advise a CT scan but as of now everything is okay. I'm trying not to freak myself out but any news like this is scary. He doesn't seem to be behind developmentally but you never know.

How could there be anything wrong with this sweet baby?

Bullet Point Update

• I used to think that people who called their children by the wrong name were a little silly. I can understand if the names are similar (say, Jared and Jason) but when they are not even close, I just couldn't understand why they couldn't get it right. Well, I did it myself today. For the first time, I called Elijah Eric. So I'm done with mocking other people about it. 

• I know Elijah has always been on the bigger end for his age but I never thought of the impact it would have on me. Carrying his 20 lb body around has given me pain in my entire left arm, but mostly in my wrist. I think it has also thrown my back out of alignment (which I have problems with anyway). But hopefully a visit to the chiropractor will help!

• On the other hand, hauling a baby around so much has really increased my arm strength. My left arm strength at least. An example of this: last Sunday I went bowling with our church youth group and throwing a 12 lb ball down the lane is much easier now. As evidenced by my seven strikes and six spares over two games.

• I don't want to jinx anything, but Elijah has continued to be an excellent sleeper. Not only are his nights 11-12 hours long, but he consistently naps twice a day for at least a couple hours. If we're not home in the morning, which is when I try to do our outings, he takes a longer afternoon nap. For never napping the first 6 months of his life, he's certainly making up for it now!

• I don't think it's been evident in the last few pictures I've posted, but Elijah has teeth! His bottom two teeth popped out the week between Christmas and New Year's. Just like everything else about him, they are (excuse my language) frickin' cute. No evidence of more teeth to come anytime soon, but I'm glad he has some!

• In another big boy development, Eli has started his more advanced babbling. Mostly baba, dada, and badabada but it's coming along quite nicely. He loves watching me say lala so I'm sure that will be next, though I'm really pushing mama.

• I don't think I've mentioned it before, and if I have I'm sorry to repeat myself, but Elijah shows an interesting preference for blonde women. He has met women with several different hair colors, but he smiles and giggles and stares at blondes the most. I'm not sure why this is because the most beloved woman in his life (his mama of course!) is NOT blonde but maybe he has inherited his father's fascination with the flaxen haired maidens (which Eric no longer has - of course).

• As it is NFL playoff time, I thought I should mention we are firm Packers supporters. Because they have won the last two games while we were wearing certain pieces of apparel we will be sporting them again this Sunday night. Go Packers!

Caged Animal

This is what I get to see every time I go into Elijah's room when he's done sleeping. Okay, he doesn't pull himself up yet but he IS this smiley. Even if he's been crying, once he sees me (or Eric) he starts smiling. 

I don't want to sound like I'm bragging, but... We have the cutest little boy ever.

The world moves for love. It kneels before it in awe.

Because December was a hectic month for us, Eric and I will be celebrating our 3rd anniversary (12/21) this weekend. I can't believe we've been together for 5 years already. I've learned so much about the world and myself from Eric. It hasn't always been easy, but to be cliche, nothing that is worth it is ever easy. We've had a great 5 years and I'm looking forward to at least 55 more.

2005 - Met, Began Dating

2006 - Engaged, Traveled to Switzerland with my family

2007 - Traveled to Maui with Eric's family, Married

2008 - Renewal of Vows, Honeymoon to Oahu

2009 - Vacation to DC, Traveled to Kansas City for Jared & Sarah's Wedding, Conceived Elijah

2010 - Elijah born, Moved into new home, Vacation to Lake of the Ozarks

2010: A Review

2010 was a crazy year for us. We had all kinds of changes and fun times:

• First, and most important, was Elijah joining our family. He has changed our lives but only in good ways. I've learned so much in the last 8 months of being his mom. I never thought I could love a baby as much as I do. I am blessed to have him.

• The second biggest change in our lives is our new home. We now reside on 5 acres in a beautiful 4 bedroom 3 bath house. Thanks to Eric's hard work we got the landscaping done before the snow set in. It will be a great place to raise our family.

• This year we were asked to be godparents for the children of good friends. We were happy to accept and were able to travel to Omaha to be there for both kids' baptisms. Elijah met his good buddy Sean who is only 5 weeks older than him.

• We also drove to southern Missouri and had a wonderful week long vacation with Eric's family. We spent our days sitting by the Lake of the Ozarks, watching the boats drive by. It was a great opportunity for Eli to spend some quality time with his grandparents.

• I also started participating in Community Bible Study in Spearfish. It is the second study I have done and am thoroughly enjoying it. Not only do I get to study the Word of God but I've met some wonderful women and get a little baby free time. Elijah spent the first two months crying through the once a week sessions but has grown to enjoy his playtime with the other babies in the nursery. I'm excited to attend the second half and finish learning about the Book of Revelation. I plan on being a part of CBS for many years to come.

• Eric revived his love of music by being part of the local production of My Fair Lady. While it sounds to me like he spent more time playing Blokus than rehearsing, I think he had a great time. Elijah and I missed him dearly during his rehearsals and performances but it also allowed us to set up his bedtime routine without worrying about Daddy being alone will Mom soothed the baby to sleep.

• The Nies family was also blessed by a second grandchild this year. Little Timothy Amos was born 12/08/10 and is as cute as can be. He's had some troubles here at the beginning of his life but he could not have better parents to get him through it. We are anxious to meet him and for he and Elijah to become close friends and cousins!

I learned a lot about myself as a woman, a wife, a mom, and a Christian this year. I hope to keep these lessons fresh in my mind and continue growing in 2011.

Happy New Year everyone!