Ildri is Four Months Old!!

It's fall, and Ildri is four months old.  We can't believe how much she's growing.  Here's what's new:

• She can roll over from front to back, and back to front.  It truly shocked me when she did this for the first time!
  
• When she's on her belly, she likes to push herself forward - not crawling or creeping yet, but she's getting a handle on movement.
  
• She just got a Jumperoo!  She loves to rock from side to side in it (don't worry, video is coming). 
  
• She's almost on a consistent nap and nighttime sleep schedule.
  
• She's still the love of our lives!
  

Mmm...feet

Recently, Ildri realized that she could get her feet in her mouth.  It appears that she could pursue this activity for hours, if we would let her.  It's hard to catch the toe-chewing on camera, but you get the idea.

Ildri Loves Her Bath

Our daughter is in love with her nightly bath.  She has a set of four rubber duckies, and she enjoys kicking them and sucking on them.  David usually does the bath, but Mom is always there to watch - I can't resist!

Ildri and her Daddy

Ildri's Great-Grandfather

Ildri's Great-Grandfather, John, passed away on September 13th.  I have always looked to him as a shining example of how one should live their life.  I could go on and on about my Grandfather, but I will try to be brief.  I would just like to point out some of Grandpa's qualities that I hope to have as a parent.

• He always made me feel important, no matter how young I was.  Every one's voice was always given equal weight at my Grandparent's home.
  
• He loved his wife, Jane, so dearly and made that clear to her and everyone else.  I have long admired their marriage and hope that I can always treat my spouse with the same adoration and respect that Grandpa and Grandma treated one another with.
  
• He made his family his first priority.  
• He spoke with honesty and sentimentality.  He had conviction behind all his words.
• He had passion for life - not only his own, but for each person he encountered.  I think this is why he made such an impression on people.  He truly cared about his fellow man.

Again, I could continue on for pages with my admirations for my Grandpa.  But I'll leave it at those observations above, and a promise that Ildri will hear Dr. Seuss's "Happy Birthday To You" at each birthday.  And whenever she wants to hear it.  And I will do my best to follow his example in a passion for life so that I might share that joy with my daughter.

Babbling Baby

Ildri is really working on her vocalizations.  She's becoming quite a little talker, just like Mom and Dad.

Rolling Over

She's working really hard on rolling over onto her stomach.  Problem is, she has no idea how to return to her back.  It's fun to watch, though!

Working Out Not Working Out

In my quest to lose the baby weight, I purchased a dvd that shows you how to work out using your baby as a weight.  Sounded fun!

Four weeks after buying it, I finally got around to trying it out this morning.  Things were going well - Ildri loved the parts where she got pushed up high above my head and gave me lots of smiles.  I got down on the floor with the baby sitting on my belly for pelvic tilts and was the lucky recipient of what Dave has dubbed "the white tidal wave" of baby spit-up.  

New outfits for all!  Next time I'll have to give her more than an hour post-feed before swinging her around.