Riley's 3 Month Update

I cant believe my little girl is 3 months already on 2/24/09! It seems like yesterday that she was just arriving on that Monday evening...

At 3 months she is

~Talking and cooing like crazy. She loves have converstations with everyone, especially her Aunt Elisa and Grandpa Donny

~She trys to hold her bottles, although she doesnt get the concept she has quite the grip!

~She is into the TV and watching all the movements and lights~especially Monster trucks!

~She rolls from her tummy to her side while doing tummy time

~She watches her feet move around

~She constantly has her hands in her mouth, either sucking or chewing.

~She sits w/assistance and is getting great at holding her head up

Im sure there are many other new things she is doing, but Im not going to bore you with the whole list!

Here are some recent pics!

Im Still Here!

Just a quick post to let you all know that Im still here, but just havent been able to keep up with blogging. Last week was busy, and this Monday I started back to work full time, so my evenings are spent spending time w/Riley and going to bed when she does, because Ive been exhausted. I'm sure once we are in our routine, I will be able to get a few things done after she goes to bed, but Ive been crashing too! Im going to do a post this evening for Riley's 3 month update and pictures! Hope everyone reading is doing well!

My Scarpbooking "Nook"

Just thought I would share my new scrapbooking space. Since its cold out, we choose not to waste heat, heating the Florida room, so I needed a little area in the warm part of the house to do my scrapbooking, somewhere where I can leave everything out and go back and work on it. So I found a little corner in the living room and brought up an old desk from the basement to use. Hopefully this will motivate me to get some pages done for Rileys album...before her first birthday!

This was only accomplished while the above baby was naping this afternoon!

Another Movin Monday

Just as the Mondays in the past few weeks, this one was very busy! This Monday started early around 10 am to meet Stephanie(my non-blood cousin) her husband Peter and baby Donovan for a visit. Donovan's first birthday was yesterday so it was neat spending his birthday with him! I cant believe he is a year old already, he is taking a few steps and mastered stair climbing while at my moms!! It was so nice to catch up in person, as they live in Albany and we usually stay in touch via phone and email. But I think in the upcoming years more visits will be on the docket because Im sure Riley and Donovan will enjoy playing!

I actually had a stuffed dog that Stephanie gave me when I was little that was hers, she had gotten from the speedway when she was young. All these years Ive kept "Mitzy" around, not sure why, but I just couldnt part with it, so I decided to pass it down to Donovan. Of course when Stephanie opened it, she started crying(this is very normal for her), but it was a very cool moment, and hopefully Donovan will hang on to Mitzy to maybe pass down to Riley some day!

After the big boy had lunch they packed up and left, and I headed out to meet Jen for lunch. My last lunch with Jen before going back to work. Which Riley slept the entire time, so Jen and I had a great lunch and a lot of girl talk. Then it was off to the Thrift Shop which always has awesome kids clothes, I ended up getting Riley 8 different things, all name brands, Old Navy, Gap, Carters and Childrens Place for $15!!! Cant beat it, especially when they grow out of everything so fast and this stuff is BRAND NEW condition!

Just when I thought I would head home, I realized that Roo probably needed a feeding and diaper change, so back to Grandma and Grandpas! They are the usual stop for this, as their house is on the way home to ours. So she ate, I ate dinner with the fam and chatted w/my dad and brother while her and Grandma played. It was nice having dinner as the old family! Finally at 8:15 I pulled back in our driveway after a day of being out and about. Its nice getting out of the house, but I was exhausted by the time we got back, but I am enjoying these days since they are numbered and wont be happening when I go back to work in less then a week!

Riley in her Valentines Day shirt

My Dad, Riley, Donovan and Steph

The big boy, mastering the stairs!

Steph and Donovan holding the stuffed dog!

Lunch w/Great Grandpa

Yesterday Riley and I went and visited Great Grandpa Ed and went to lunch! Before we left his house, I had her out of her car seat to feed and change her and we played for a bit. We decided to show Grandpa how good she was at tummy time and holding her head up, and while she was doing it she rolled onto her side!! It was pretty amazing to watch her facial expression. She wasnt sure how she got there, but was excited about it! We also watched cartoons that Grandpa turned on for us and took a tour of his house and showed her where Mommy used to play! We wore her out so much she slept right through lunch!! But we had a great day and enjoyed Grandpa's company. He just loves her to death, and Im so glad he got to experience being a great grandparent!

I also got to visit the scrapbook store that I drive by a few times a week and use my $50 gift certificate that Kennie got me for our first anniverysary (yes I know, Im bad...its over a year old!) I picked out a few things to get started on Rileys album and only spend $18, so Im very excited about going back and spending the rest, maybe a good day for Daddy to stay home w/Riley so I can focus on what I want to get!

The newest toy of the week...the jumperoo! Although her feet dont touch the ground, she loves the thing. She sat in her swing the first night I had it and just stared at it, so we decided to put her in it with a pillow under her legs. She loves all the toys!! Yes, she is playing with toys already, where does the time go!

A Road Trip to Buffalo

Last Tuesday Riley and I set out for a trip to Buffalo to visit Shannon, Frank, Tuscan, Cenzo and Matteo. I was very leery about how Riley was going to do on the ride, about 2 hours, but she did amazing. We made the trip in 2 hours and I never heard a peep from the back seat!!

When we arrived, we met a very excited 2 year old Tuscan, who skipped his nap time to greet us. He was so excited to hang out with "liley"...he even set up the pack and play for her to sleep in and was about to fill it will all of this stuffed animals before the adults stepped in! The twins were close to follow after their nap time. They both seemed very curious about Miss Riley, but were more interested in fruit loops at that point! We finished off the evening with a great dinner made by Frank..shrimp scampi (my fav!) and a great bottle of wine, and of course Tuscan Garlic Bread from Wegmans, and apple pie for dessert! Riley seemed to be very entertained by the boys, so much that after a bottle, she was sound asleep by 7:30!! Although Shannon and I probably could have stayed up all night chatting and having girl time, we were both exhausted and headed to bed, I knew it was going to be an early morning, and I wasnt sure how Riley was going to be sleeping in a different place! She did well, but was up a few times, so I was pretty tired by morning.

Wednesday for breakfast Shannon made her cinnamon apple waffles, which were amaszing! We enjoyed breakfast with the twins, Tuscan and Riley, while Im pretty sure the twins ate more then Tuscan and I put together! Then we spent the rest of the day playing, doing my hair and taking Riley to Olan Mills for a quick free picture! Riley was defiently the hit of the house, the boys were very good to her, and seemed very accepting to a new baby in the house!! After our photo shoot, I grabbed a quick bite and hit the road, of course with a truck load of new toys for Riley that the boys had grown out of! I cant wait for Riley to use the exersaucer and jumperoo!! Im go blessed to have a friend w/hand me downs, although I did bring her back 3 totes of boy clothes that I cant use for Miss Riley, so we will only be sharing toys and neutral outfits from here on out! I made sure she had a bottle and was in her jammies for the ride home, and although the weather wasnt that great and the traffic was bad at first, it ended up being another good ride. We got home about 9, with a anxiously awaiting Daddy and Grandma waiting to smother Miss Riley!

It was so great to catch up with Shan and see the boys! They are growing like weeds!! I'm glad Im breaking Riley in to road trips to Buffalo early, because there will be tons of them in the future!

***pics from Shannons blog too!

A group shot before we left

Matteo and Vincenzo hanging w/Riley

Tuscan giving Riley a kiss, he covered her up w/his blankie and lil dog

Our picture from Olan Mills...I love the smile!

Riley's 2 Month Check Up

This post is out of order, but in the craziness of my life, I forgot to post about it!

Last Friday 1/30 Riley had her 2 month check up. She was 11.6 pounds, and 22 inches long, so she is growin fast! She is right on track with her growth and motor skills. The Dr did hear a small heart murmur, so we have an appt at the cardiologist to just check on it. Nothing to panic about the dr said, she just wanted to get the expert check and rule anything out, she doesnt think there is anything major going on. She also has a little muscle in her neck that isnt getting used enough because she favors that side of her head, so more tummy time and neck exercises are in the books! She was supposed to get 3 shots and 1 oral vaccination, but because of the risks of autism and everything Ive heard, we decided to split her shots up. She got her hep B and the oral vacc, then we will go back 2 more times for the other ones she needs. I just think its a lot to load a small body up with all that at once. She did well with the shot, she screamed when she got it, but calmed down rather quickly. She also didnt have that whole not feeling well stage after the shots, she never got a fever or was cranky that evening. I know that all the shots probably dont cause autism, but its just something that bothered me, and since she did so well, I dont think it will be a huge deal to go back and split up her shots! So she was a great girl, and I will update you on the cardio appt in March when we go!

Just a random cute picture from last week, all cozy in her handmade sweater

Sledding Sunday

The weather was actually in the 40's on Sunday...so we bundled Riley up for her first sled ride. In true Riley style, she was a happy camper until the sled came to a stop! But she loved it, and we plan on more sled rides soon! Even Long Dog enjoyed the trip around the house!