I've been trying to get this blog going for a while now and with the help of a friend here it is! Thank you Lindsay! I had every intention of starting this when Joanna was born, but here we are almost 4 months in, and this is my first post. I'm hoping to post 2-3 times a week to keep my family up to date on what's going on with baby girl. Joanna is doing so well and has, of course, had many "firsts" up to this point. I take so many pictures (hundreds!) that are never seen, so I plan on posting some of those here as well as updates on milestones met, funny stories and the like. Like Melissa, I plan on using this as a memory book for her when she's older. I love that especially since I have no interest at all in scrapbooking. Beth and I have talked about how we love to look back at past posts about Aaron on The Crabbe's blog. Since I'm so far behind with the first 4 months of Joanna's life I'll hit on the highlights. Below are some memorable things that have happened over the past 4 months complete with pictures!
Joanna Elizabeth Thomas was born on October 25, 2011. She is named after my Grandma Ruggles and my Mammy. October 25th was also our 3rd anniversary. I have a feeling her birthday will always overshadow our anniversary, but that's ok with me! Beth was able to come Augusta to be with us the night before and the day she was born.
This was us just before we headed to the hospital.
Joanna was 8lbs 9oz and 20 inches long. She had light brown hair, which she has since lost!
My parents, sisters and brothers in law got us a photography session so we could document the fleeting newborn stage. These are my favorites.
Her first smile social smile was at 4 weeks old. This picture is at about 6 weeks old but it's the first real smile I was able to capture. I LOVE this picture.
She has been a really good baby! Once we learned that she really only cries when she's tired, we were able to remedy that for the most part. There have been times when, no matter what we've done, she's continued but usually when we put her down, she's out. What a blessing! She started sleeping through the night at 9 weeks old on New Year's Eve! She's consistently slept 8-9 hours a night since and we are SO thankful especially since going back to work and having to get up at 5:30 am. Thankfully I'm only working Mondays, Tuesdays and occasional weekends.
My friend Meghan and Lindsay gave me onesies with each month appliqued so we could photo document how she's changed each month. We've not yet reached 4 months so I'll post that picture in a couple of weeks. Below are her newborn, 1, 2 and 3 month shots.
She was not very happy with me during the 2 month session. Probably because the onesie is WAY too tight. She cried most of the time except when her thumb was in her mouth, which is something she started to do around 8-9 weeks old. I have given up hope that she might use a pacifier, especially now that she's found her thumb!
She rolled over from her stomach to her back for the first time on January 28th just over the 3 month mark. I'm trying not to overanalyze things and am proud of the fact that I haven't looked at my pediatric notes at all. I know she's fine and looking at markers for milestones will only make me crazy. All babies are different and reach these milestones at different times.
It's been such a blessing to have her! The first 2-3 weeks were a challenge because I wasn't prepared for how different life would be with her here. I'm certain nothing could have prepared me! Since then I think we've learned each other and it's been such a joy to have her with us.
