Week 20 & 21

I really, REALLY don't intend to only do updates every two weeks. In fact, I even had last week's pictures downloaded and ready to go last week when everyone (except Elena) got viciously sick. So I spent all night Friday puking, all day Saturday feeling like I'd been hit by a MAC truck, and Sunday was the Super Bowl and church. Then, this week has just been crazy busy at work- twelve hours of meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday. So, anyway, that's my pretty lame excuse at why I'm doing a combined post...again. But, at least you had the laughing video to keep you company!

On to what's really important! Besides being really busy, the last few weeks have been really fun with Elena. She is getting so interactive! She really smiles and plays now, she loves rattles and her little mirrors. She reaches and grabs for things (sometimes toys, sometimes my hair- I can already feel the "Mom cut" coming on). She can roll over front to back and back to front now, though she doesn't do it often. She is trying really hard to sit up, too. She can't quite manage it on just the floor, but if she's got something to lean on just a bit she'll sit up for a long time. They said at the daycare that she's started sitting in the table now, which made me sad- only the big babies get to sit at the table! We started feeding her cereal again, oatmeal this time because Dr. Garb said it would be less constipating. Next week she will turn 5 months old, and we're going to celebrate with a nice helping of yellow veggies! I am so excited to start feeding her more foods. Rest assured, there will be many, many pictures! I keep trying to think of all of the neat things that she does now, and it's hard to remember them all. I'm so glad I keep track of what I can in here because otherwise I know I would forget everything!

Anyway, she's really a joy to be around. She's a happy baby, unless she's hungry (she got that honest) and she is growing like a weed. It's impossible to remember what life was like without her! I mean, there were whole days when the camera didn't come out! Now there are two cameras, plus a video camera, and none of them are more than a couple feet away at all times! That being said, here are some of my favorites from this week...

Truman has gotten used to Elena... he recognizes an accomplished napper when he sees one...

Clearly, he has no trouble laying on top of her like he does the rest of us!
WOW... check out the hair. You'll see similar hair if you ever see her Daddy (or her Grandma Looten) first thing in the morning.
She has discovered her toes! Which makes diaper changes very interesting...
She thinks she is much too big to lay down in the tub anymore! Unfortunately, she's still too little to really sit in it. But the little hammock that she used to lay in is perfect for sitting in now- it gives her just enough support. She likes to play now in the bath, too, which is fun, and it wears her out faster (always a good thing).
We finally caved and brought the last giant baby toy out to totally take over our living room. She loves this bouncer, even if she spends most of her time chewing on the edge of the frog seat. She bounces like crazy, even though...

her feet still don't quite touch the ground! She still makes the music go and the lights turn on, and seems to be having a great time! Now our living room is packed with baby stuff- a bouncy seat, a bouncer, a mat, a bumbo, a car seat-- and that's just the big stuff that lives there! Oh well, I wasn't ever very good at decorating!
We went to the Wild Game Dinner (I know, I know, no Wild Game for me!) and Ruth was taking Elena to get dessert for everyone. Well, Elena decided the whipped cream icing on the cake looked pretty good, so she grabbed a big handful of it (remember what I said about grabbing?!). The look on her face when she accidentally got some of it in her mouth was pretty priceless!
Nothing sweeter than a baby napping... look at the rosy cheeks!
So, there was this potato in the bag at Mom's birthday party, and we laughed because it was bigger than Elena's head. We went to take a picture of her with it, and she leaned forward and started gnawing on it. I was wiping dirt off her mouth for the rest of the night! But it's a pretty cute picture!

Well, that about covers it for the last few weeks. I will really try to do another post next week for week 22 all by itself, but work is very crazy, and I'd rather spend my extra time with her than in front of a computer screen! But there will at least be a post for 5 months, probably with some pictures of the yellow veggie introduction! So, stay tuned! Love you all!