Little Ladybug

Serena was a ladybug for Halloween, though we didn't go Trick-or-Treat-ing. But her costume was a big hit at church tonight! :)

Today was special for a couple other reasons, besides the fact that it was Halloween. For one, Serena turned 3 months old! How quickly the time has flown by, and how indescribably wonderful and utterly priceless it has been! The other special event of the day was that it was Serena's grandma's birthday! So, to mark these milestones, I took a short video of Serena tonight:

Beggar's Night

Tonight is "Beggar's Night" in our city. I had to run to the store today and figured that I might as well grab a bag of candy while I was there just in case any little 'beggars' decided to stop by our door. I didn't really think we'd have many, though, so I only got a small bag. As it turned out, we've had a bunch of kids come by! They're so cute! Jordan is the official trick-or-treater-greeter and finds out what the kids are supposed to be dressed up as and then hands out candy. It's been kinda fun! :)

And here's our little beggar!! :)

Thirty-Second Thursday

I just can't get enough of these sweet sleeping baby pictures!

Two video installments today!

A little tummy time

When Serena is getting tired, she first starts to get a little red around her eyes and gets a little whiny. She LOVES her paci then! It's so funny because she likes to 'hold' it in her mouth with her hands!

Smiley

But, seriously, who wouldn't be smiling when they have candy corn socks on????  ;)

Pink Hearts

Fast Asleep

Another Slow and Relaxing Sunday

Today was another very low-key Sunday. I'm starting to like these a lot! :) Although, Serena's not so much about sleeping in anymore these days, so I didn't get to do that. :P She used to stay in bed and sleep as long as I wanted to. But now, she usually wakes up between 7 and 8 (which really isn't that early, so what am I complaining about?!) and will not shut up! And she's just so stinkin' cheerful about it!!! And while I may be able to tune out her delightful cooing to catch a few more Z's, it is difficult to ignore her kicking, haha! So, I got up around 7:30 this morning and took the happy little Miss Serena downstairs with me so Daddy could sleep a little longer (he's been sacrificing sleep in the name of hunting, so he was understandably tired this morning). This afternoon, Jordan took Macy out to some public hunting land to do a little exercising/practicing for pheasant season, which is quickly approaching. Serena and I didn't do much at all. She's been sleeping a lot the last couple days (growth spurt, maybe?), and today was no different. I did a lot of reading and even got to paint my toenails. (Even though no one will see them now that it's cold outside, it makes me really happy to see pretty painted toenails when I'm taking a shower, haha!) I made an apple pie late afternoon, about 1/3 of which has already been consumed. ;) I also mixed up some cookie dough. I'll bake the cookies and freeze them tomorrow; I'm planning to bring them to next week's small group gathering. So, that pretty much sums it up! Enjoy the pix!

When Jordan got home from working Macy, he gave Serena his hat to wear while he went upstairs to take a shower. Made for some cute photo opportunities!

This is her "Mommy-I'm-Tired-You-Can-Put-Me-Down-For-A-Nap-Now" face. She only takes her paci when she is getting tired, and then she likes to hold her hand (sometimes both!) over it. But, when she gets like this, I can wrap her up and put her down and she'll be asleep in about 2-5 minutes!

Cute little side-glance!

Kinda sleepy still!

This 'n' That

The many faces of Serena...

For the last few weeks, Serena has been all about putting her hands in her mouth. And if something happens to be in her hands, well, then, all the better! ;) For the first couple weeks, she only sucked on her right hand. She has since discovered that she has a left hand as well, and Oh! The many wonders of having two hands! Notice the top middle picture...that's the last one I took tonight after all the videos and everything, haha!

Daddy obliged in this photo shoot of Mommy with her baby girl :)

Serena wore shoes for the first time today!!! SO adorable! Up till now, her feet were too short or too narrow to fit into any of her shoes. She looked SO CUTE!!! Of course, Jordan was all, "What does she need shoes for? She can't walk!" And I was all, "Shoes are a very important part of any girls wardrobe, no matter her age! What do boys learn in school?!" ;)

And I took this video just because...seriously, do we really need a reason to take videos of this adorable little munchkin?! In this video, there's plenty of "Gggghhheewww" and "Ggggghhhiiiiieeee" and such. Also, the other day, Serena was sitting in her Bumbo and Jordan blew in her face. Her reaction was so funny! So, in the last bit of the video, Jordan blew in her face so you guys can see it. :D

Tummy Time with Macy

Click on the picture to enlarge it.

Thirty-Second Thursday

Today's video turned out to be a little longer than the normal thirty seconds. I took a bunch of videos throughout the day, but couldn't decide which one I liked best; so I decided to just string together my favorite parts from them. Then, I put a couple outtakes at the end because even coughing and burping is cute when you're a baby, haha! ;)

And a parting shot from Macy....

Enjoying some 'Tummy Time,' haha :D

Sleepy Little Bug

Daddy Has a Birthday

Today was Jordan's birthday. He didn't have to leave for work right away this morning, so we slept in a little and then had chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast (a family favorite, haha!). This evening, we had a pizza and then went to the mall for a little while before coming home to a yummy pecan pie. So, I guess it was a pretty fun day for us all! :)

The Birthday Boy with his girls

Serena and I ran errands this afternoon while Jordan was at work. She fell asleep in her car seat, and just looked so cute clinging to her pacifier. When she's tired, she wants her pacifier and then she holds onto it with her hands. Pretty funny since she all but refused it for the first week and a half that I tried to give it to her!

A Warm Fall Day

It was so nice to have a warm day again! It got up in the 60's today, so we opened the windows to let in the fresh air. So pleasant! In the afternoon, we took a walk in the sunshine. I know, those last two sentences sounded so cliche, but it really was nice and we tried to enjoy it to its fullest!

Serena all konked out in my lap as I rocked her

Just look at those round cheeks on that profile!

Just got back from our walk

Fluffy Blue Dress

Julia gave Serena this fluffy blue dress. It's SO cute!!!! It is sleeveless, so I had to put a sweater over it today, but she still looked like a doll all dressed up for church this morning! She especially looked like a doll all cuddled and sleeping peacefully in Jordan's arms basically the whole time we were at church! Awwwe! (I played piano this morning, so I had to be at music practice before the service, which meant Jordan was basically in charge of Serena from 9:45 till 12:15 or so!)

Apparently, spending the morning in Daddy's care left her in a good mood!

Serena, Macy, and I are hanging out together this afternoon because Jordan is working

A Conversationalist

We spent the day at Grandma and Grandpa's today. Serena was cuddled and loved by all, of course! I'll be posting more pix on my regular blog. She got especially talkative whenever Grandpa talked to her! It was so cute! Wish I'd gotten some of their 'conversation' on video!

Look at how her belly is sticking out! Haha! So funny!

Going to Grandma & Grandpa's

Resting up for a big weekend

Enjoying the trip!

Thirty-Second Thursday

Tummy Time for Serena

Delicious Baby

Anyone wanna come over for dinner?

Napping in the swing

Of Bare Bottoms and Superheroes

Serena and I ran errands today. We went to Bruegger's, the library, and (of course) Wal-Mart. Shopping with a baby is like an open invitation for perfect strangers to strike up conversations with you about your baby, their baby, babies they know/have heard of, child-rearing, and even child-bearing, haha! Today was especially fun because Serena was feeling particularly amiable and handed out smiles liberally! She totally made the day of the old lady re-shelving books at the library! ;) When we got home, I took a few minutes to catch a couple shots of Serena:

One of Serena's favorite onesies...Aunt Julie sent it up from Texas

I couldn't resist!

Happy Columbus Day!!

Diapered Darling

Today was such a nice day. We went to church last night, so today we had nowhere to go. Jordan took Macy out in the morning to 'work her' at some public hunting land and then he went out hunting in the evening. I am all caught up on housework, so I decided to really take it easy today and just enjoy my baby. Normally I try to be productive with my time at home when Serena's not nursing or needing to be held or changed, haha! But today I held her practically all day long, just for the sheer enjoyment of it. I did relinquish her to Jordan for a little while in the afternoon when she was napping and he and Macy were also napping on the couch. So, it's been a wonderfully unproductive day of lazy cuddling on the couch, with an occasional trip upstairs to change a diaper. Speaking of changing diapers, Serena LOVES getting her diaper changed (unless she's already upset because it's time to eat or something). As soon as I put her on the changing table, she usually starts smiling and talking. I think it's because she knows she's going to get some good one-on-one time with Mommy! We always chat it up while I'm changing her or dressing her. Or maybe it's because she's on there like 10 times a day to get her diaper changed, so it's like 'home base' to her, haha! ;)

Call me sentimental, but isn't there something just so loveable about a babe in a cloth diaper with those great big diaper pins sticking out?! Mmmm...give me some of that sweet baby-ness!!!!

Yep, there's her "I'm-on-the-changing-table-again!" grin!

Thought I'd try to get a 'bottoms up' picture, but she wouldn't stop kicking her legs and picking up her head to look around, so I couldn't get the really classic butt-in-the-air shot. :P Oh well, I love my naked baby, haha! I just want to squish her arms and legs and pat that cute little rumpess!

Church Night

I just got carried away tonight, I think! I had Serena all dressed up in this ADORABLE dress that Julia gave her (not to mention that way-too-cute hat!) for church, and when we got home I went a little crazy taking pictures for today's post! I had over 40 pictures to go through, and with this dinosaur of a computer, that is no easy (or quick!) task! :P At least the material was cute and fun to look at! Haha! I managed to whittle the pictures down to 6 of my most favorites:

Sometimes it seems like it won't be long till she's able to push herself up with her arms! She's getting so strong!

Just look at that silly grin!

She looks like a doll in this one!

Pretty face

Squishy cheeks :)

Enjoying her Bumbo seat

Sleepy Serena

Just look at those tired eyes!

Tiny angel