My sweet Maya

Maya will turn 6 months old tomorrow. The time has flown by and yet at the same time it seems like she has always been a part of our family. She has been such a blessing to us.

Here are some comparison pictures of Maya as a brand newborn and now as a 6 month-old:






It is about time to abandon the infant carseat. Thank goodness...it is getting heavy. (especially when it is snowy and I am trying to hold Jadyn's hand as well!)

When Maya was born, her hair was jet black and her eyes were blue-gray. She now has dark brown hair and steel gray eyes. Sometimes her eyes lean towards green like Dad and sometimes they look more brown like mine. She has also plumped up very nicely!

We will start her on rice cereal tomorrow. She has been very interested during mealtimes lately so I think she will be ready.

Some of Maya's favorite things:

1. Jadyn
I had to put this first because it is the truth. She adores her sister and always looks for Jadyn when she hears her voice. Lately, I have to have Jadyn not say anything while I am feeding Maya or she will not eat because she wants to talk with Jadyn. Jadyn can make her smile/laugh easier than anyone else. I hope they continue this relationship as they grow.

2. Her thumb
Much to my dismay she still likes her thumb. We will deal with that later I guess.

3. Exersaucer
She loves to rock back and forth in her exersaucer. I started to yell at Jadyn one day because I thought she was being rough and rocking Maya. Jadyn gave me a weird look and then I noticed that Maya was doing it all by herself!

4. Being carried in a sling
Maya still loves being carried in a sling. She is getting heavy though so I have two options: buy a better sling for heavier babies or wean her off it :)

5. "Talking"
Lately Maya loves to hear her own voice and "talks" quite loudly. I usually can't stay in my church meetings (too bad I miss Sunday School most weeks...it really was my favorite meeting (read the sarcasm here :) )

6. Bathtime
She has recently discovered kicking/splashing in the bath. She thinks it is so much fun!

Maya dislikes:
1. To hear others cry--especially other babies or Jadyn. It really upsets her.
2. Loud noises....she still startles easily
3. To be in a room alone. She will be fine for awhile, but then she starts complaining. She doesn't demand to be held...just wants to be where we are.
4. The cold. I don't think she minds that we stay indoors most days :)
5. Waiting to eat...she still likes to eat right when she decides she is hungry.

My favorite time of day with Maya is the morning when she wakes up. She is always happy and is so excited to see us walk in and get her. She really is a joy and I have been amazed at how easy she has been. We love you little princess!

Wiggle & Giggle and Beauty Parlor!

We decided to use some Christmas money (thanks Grandma Ann & Papa) to let Jadyn take an introduction dance class. It is a class for 3-5 year olds called Wiggle & Giggle. Jadyn has been so excited to start and was greatly disappointed when her first class was canceled last week due to weather. As we were heading into class today (albeit it a little late...I now understand why people with multiple children are usually running a few minutes behind!), she said, "Let's hurry Mom, I am ready to get my wiggles out!".

She was so cute in the class. There were four little girls. Since Jadyn just turned three, she is the youngest and smallest in the class by far. Her poor little legs can't keep up with the other girls. It was so cute to see her try though! She kept looking over at me for reassurance when her teacher would ask her to do something. She loved the class and can't wait until next week!

Here is Jadyn before her dance class with her hair in a bun and little ballet slippers on.


This afternoon, our friend Alicia and Jadyn played beauty parlor. This is one of Jadyn's favorite activities. In case you weren't aware, playing beauty parlor consists of Jadyn putting as many bows as she can fit in your hair. Alicia fell victim to this today. I was surprised today at how well Jadyn can put the bows in. She has really improved since our last visit to the "beauty parlor". Just watch out if she offers to play with you: I advise taking them out yourself or you may lose all your hair!

This could be dangerous!

A friend (thanks Jennie!) taught me how to make bows. Now, we all know that this could be dangerous given my love for bows for the girls. I feel like I need to add a category in my budget for ribbon, clips, etc from now on. They are actually really simple to make and I hope to make many more matching bows for the girls!

Dresses from Grandma!

Here are the girls in their matching dresses they received from Grandma Julie for Christmas. They looked so cute. Jadyn loves to match with Maya....good thing...because I love it too!

Jadyn's 3rd Year Slideshow

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Well, I am only a month after her 3rd birthday. That is not too bad, right?!! The slideshow is about 4 1/2 minutes...so watch when you have a few spare minutes. Enjoy!

Videos of the day!

This first video gives you a glimpse of how vocal Maya is. She loves to talk. Unfortunately, she was not doing her throaty animal noise....that one is hilarious.

Here is Jadyn singing the LDS Children's Songbook version of "Away in a Manager". We always sing a song before nap and bedtime. Today at naptime, she just starting singing it like this. Her expression when she does the lower part is hilarious. We sang it again tonight at bedtime and Nathan, Jadyn, and I were all laughing so hard. Enjoy!

Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam

Here is my goofy faced (she wouldn't smile without cheesing) little sunbeam before church this morning. It is amazing that I had a chance to snap a picture when we have church at 9 am now. Good thing the girls and I bathed last night....because we barely made it out the door on time!

It was bittersweet to drop Jadyn off in Primary today. Who can believe that this clingy little girl (who only 8 months ago still would not go into nursery independently), didn't bat an eyelash when I sat her down in her little chair. It helps that her teacher, Sister Brown, is a really kind and sweet lady who Jadyn already adores. Everytime Nathan or I walked by today, Jadyn was just soaking it all in and looked like she was loving being in Primary. When I picked her up, Sister Brown said she did just fine. She has really grown so much in the last six months and is a wonderful little girl and companion to me.

I often think back about when were choosing Jadyn's name. Her name is Hebrew and means: "God has heard". Since we had to wait almost 2 years to become pregnant with Jadyn, the name fit perfectly. We prayed for her to join our family for so long, and truly felt Heavenly Father had heard our earnest prayers when we became pregnant.

Her name continues to fit in many other respects. I thank Heavenly Father everyday for my sweet little Jadyn....who despite getting older and reaching milestones such as becoming a sunbeam...will always be my little girl. Heavenly Father blessed me by giving her to me.

Maya is 5 Months!

Here are some pictures of 12-31-08, when Maya turned 5 months old! She is still such a happy baby. We love her so much.