8 months

Happy 2007! We hope everyone enjoyed the holidays and is doing well.
Having Tessie around gave this Christmas a new energy. Santa’s visit was more exciting for us than Tessie, but she will get to know and enjoy family traditions. Although I’m not sure it will always be warm enough to walk to church. We even went to a tree farm to cut down our own tree. I would recommend that to anyone! It was fun and the tree lasted very well for us. Tessie didn’t like the sharp needles at first, but the lure of lights and ornaments was too much and she learned not to mind the poking as bad. Our tree ended up naked on the bottom 2 feet.
Now that Tessie is more mobile, she is getting into a lot more. She is crawling faster and cruising along and between furniture with more confidence. As I write this email it is 6AM- she isn’t awake, so for a moment the house is safe. Tessie is a climber. She has learned how to climb the stairs so yet another barrier was put up- which she immediately learned to climb over. We are working on a new solution. In the past week she has learned how to get herself to standing without help. She can stay balanced for about 5-10 seconds before she drops to her diaper-cushioned bottom.
Tessie is keeping us on our toes. She likes to be chased around the house by her daddy. She sounds like she has a lot to say. Mostly “va va va” but once in a while she speaks her own little language to some new object she finds. She makes a snorting face a lot, too. Again- I think we encourage it by laughing, so she does it more. We don't know if she means anything by it. Maybe it's revenge for taking too many photos. Notice she makes the face on Christmas Day when my perfect photo opportunity comes...
She is trying more new foods. Luckily she hasn’t gotten her mother’s sweet tooth, preferring green beans and carrots over bananas and peaches. We will be starting to splash around a pool at the YMCA when we start a “class” on Thursdays. Maybe it will get her good and tired for Thursday naps with Grampa. ;)

7 months

November was a busy month of visitors and visiting. We were lucky with the weather being so nice that we were able to travel to the Albany area to visit with Tessie’s newest cousin Tristan and her pal (and cousin) Sara Rose. She also got to meet some of the other cousins when they visited to enjoy a Lithuanian meal. She’ll learn how to cook klaitchkes when she gets older…
She is trying new foods. We have been feeding her rice cereal still and gradually starting other new solids. She didn’t enjoy the sweet potatoes at first, but she’s learning about new flavors. We will be trying peas on her next. We’ll see how she does with that. I think we fear her diaper more than her reaction to new foods. She is growing so fast. Almost 16 lbs and 25 ½ inches long.
Now that she knows how to pull herself up to standing, that’s all she wants to do. Stephen says he can tell where Tessie has been from her “snail tracks” (drool that she leaves behind) as she moves along the furniture. Still no teeth yet. I think before the end of the year that she will have one. We have gated the stairs and have other temporary set-ups to keep Tessie safe. Once she sees something she likes (usually something that’s off-limits), she can crawl pretty fast.
Tessie is learning to imitate small things we do, so we really have to watch ourselves now. She makes raspberries and a lip smacking sound. We still don’t know if she is trying to tell us something when she does it. She tries to clap her hands only she hits the back of her hand instead of her palm. She will sometimes hit your palm if you hold it out to her too. She raises her hand to wave but not all the time. She loves it when people wave to her though.
Tessie’s first Thanksgiving was a success, traveling to Grampa’s in Walpole and to Auntie Cathy’s in Wilmington. She had fun seeing everyone and playing with her cousin Molly. We look forward to Tessie’s First Christmas.
We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Safe New Year.

6 months

We are 7 days away from Tessie’s Half Birthday. She is growing so fast and it seems like she learns so much every day. She has been eager to get moving this month. She is already bored of sitting and learning to crawl and has taken to pulling herself to standing by using people and furniture. She is getting a little too daring though, trying to stand without support. This has lead to her nickname of Thumper because she often has tough landings.
In October we have started getting out more locally, despite my broken ankle for three weeks. We visited friends and family and started going to a story-time/sing-along at the Burlington Public Library. She is the loudest baby of the bunch and has a blast when she’s there. Halloween was a big event of course. We have scarred her for life as proven by the attached photos. She still loves us though. She is starting to show us that she actually knows who we are by making sad faces, reaching, or crying when we leave the room. Don’t let that fool you about her ability to socialize. Did I mention that she is a loud chatty baby? Still waiting for her to say “mama” or “dada”…
Enjoy our little chicken!