Fall = Fun and More Firsts!

October seemed to go by so much faster than September. This was partly because we went about 10 days without seeing the outside world as we all caught the dreaded H1N1. Putting that experience beside/behind us, we really did have a fantastic month.

It started off with Sophia visiting her first apple orchard/pumpkin patch with Aunt Rinnie, Mia and Pop Pop. She got a kick out of seeing the apple bushels and was in awe of the big orange objects that were all around her.

The fun activities continued and of course centered around our budding toddler. (Did I just use the word 'toddler'?) Like most babies her age, Sophia loves playing "So Big". We have tried to turn this into "Touchdown Wahoos". (See picture below in her Halloween costume practicing for the game against Duke.) She also loves peekaboo and continues to love razzing and babbling. Actually, most of our laughs have come with Sophia combining these tricks into her own interpretation of "Simon Says". The game goes like this. Sophia razzes. We razz. Sophia does So Big. We do So Big. Sophia does a razz and So Big simultaneously. We do a razz and So Big simultaneously. She then figures out a combination that is just too challenging for us to mirror and thus she wins the game. Laughter by all promptly follows.

She also cut her first tooth this month which means she is no longer "The Toothless Wonder". I was beginning to become concerned that she hadn't cut any of her teeth as a 9 month old. I'm still not quite sure why I wanted her to have teeth. As we're quickly learning, having teeth means she has to go through the "teething" ordeal... not a fun time for anyone...

She's taken her first independent steps this month too. She is cruising and transferring pretty steadily these days. Just today we watched stand on her own for a good 5 seconds.

Not really a first, but fun to watch, is Sophia surrounded by all of her books. She seems to be taking after her Aunt Rinnie as an avid reader. She often chooses to look through a book rather than playing with other toys. (See pics below).She loves being read to and has learned to turn the pages of all her books. She loves the classics "Go Dog, Go." and "Are you my mother?"

And the final obvious first you'll see is her first trip down a slide. She couldn't get enough!

We're looking forward to what firsts we get the joy of experiencing in November.

Months 8-9: Crawling, Climbing, Clapping, and Almost Cruising

I can’t believe it’s already been a month and a half since my last posting. There’s so much to catch up on so I’ll try to touch upon the highlights. In the beginning of September, we had a fantastic visit to California for Uncle Stephen and Aunt Jessica’s wedding. Sophia enjoyed meeting all of her relatives and even made it through the ceremony and part of the cocktail hour! She certainly wanted to participate in welcoming Jessica to the family by adding her own coos and razzes during the ceremony. Unfortunately we were so distracted by the weekend events that we didn’t capture many photos.



Sophia is quickly learning that moving around is much more interesting than staying still- she is crawling around everywhere and just beginning to grasp the concept of cruising. Long gone are the days that we could put her down and trust that she would stay in the same place… (audible sigh). She has particularly come to like crawling outside in the grass. Her teachers at school have mentioned more than once that “one minute she is playing in plain sight and the next she is no where to be found”. We laugh with them that this is not exactly what you want your child’s caregivers to be sharing with you. They respond by saying that she is just one of the more active babies in her class. No surprise there, I suppose.


Another activity she enjoys now is climbing stairs. She figured out how to climb up the first step and it was only up from there. We’ve since outfitted our upstairs with a baby gate and a unique safety glass banister to protect her from our loft area. However, we are quickly realizing that we need to have a gate for the bottom too. Who knew that would be important?? The things you learn as a first time parent. She is also a big fan of playing “So Big”. Mia and Poppop not only enjoy but encourage her So Big marathons. We are hoping she can learn “Touchdown UVA” this fall too, but we have come to the reconciliation that we might have to settle for “Touchdown Steelers” until UVA starts playing like we know they can. The combination of her learning to clap and experimenting with the “let’s see how many times I can drop a toy and have mommy pick it up game” has also led to some pretty amusing moments lately. Let’s just say she’s picking up on the concept of cause and effect  And last but certainly not least, Mike and I are convinced that she is starting to learn to dance. Granted it’s certainly her version of “interpretive dance” but it is dancing none the less. She has two token moves: the head bob and the chest pump. Both are hilarious. She has a great range of musical taste, as well with her two favorites being my version of the “Hokey Pokey” and Survivor’s version of the “Eye of the Tiger”. We can’t wait to see what the next few weeks bring.

Brooklyn,NY

Sophia and I had a big adventure this past weekend. We took a flight up to the Big Apple to visit Aunt Rinnie and Uncle Edward. The weekend couldn't have been better.
Sophia did great on the flight, sleeping soundly from take off to landing. I'm sure the other passengers were just as pleased as I was. Uncle Edward navigated the BQE to pick us up at JFK and escort us back to their apartment in Brooklyn. Mia (grandmom) was able to spend Thursday night with us as she had a "summer Friday" the next day. Sophia and I spent that day learning the neighborhood and helping Mia find an apartment for her and Poppop. We found a great one with a fantastic view of the Statue of Liberty and the Manhattan Skyline. Not bad. Aunt Rinnie had a great itinerary laid out for us for the weekend. We did some shopping, some picnicking in the park, and some great eating. It was sad to have to leave on Sunday but I'm sure we'll be back to visit. The other photos are of Sophia and her new favorite toy. She has essentially figured out how to get from her belly to standing and is now quite independent. Watch out world!

It's Official

That is right, she is crawling. She also pulled to stand this weekend. Had to post it. A rare father posting.

Summer Fun

Sophia had a blast at the pool. Her dada first took her in the wading pool and then decided she was ready for the big girl pool. She went up to her neck and seemed to enjoy it. The rest are pics from the Albemarle County Fair. We were sad that there wasn't an oink oink to see, but she enjoyed petting the duckling and staring down the moo cows.

Eating, Creeping, Babbling, Sleeping

The title says it all. Sophia has had a great couple of weeks as she is almost 7 months now. Her "Aunt" Christa and I made homemade Sophia food a few weeks ago with organic produce from the Farmer's Market. Sophia really yummed it up. The spatula in the picture is layered with carrots. Admittedly not one of her mom's favorite foods but it may make Sophia's top three purees. She has figured out her own way to creep around the house too. Her method is part army crawl, part reach forward and push. Although it may look awkward to the trained eye, it's extremely effective from her point of view. So much so that she can make it from our bedroom to the living room in no time flat. While she is experimenting with ways to get her hips up I have a feeling the traditional crawl is still a few weeks away. She's also starting to babble much more these days too. We heard her this morning babbling to herself in her big girl crib and I can say that she did say "Dada". Now whether she was making the association to call Mike to come fetch her is a whole other matter. The other very exciting thing is that she is now sleeping a good 7 hours at a time. She is consistently going down for bedtime at 7:30 pm and wakes for a early morning (2AM) snack but then goes right back to sleep until 6 am or so! Way to go Sophia!!! Mia and Poppop bought her a pool last weekend. I opted to not share the naked baby pics on the public blog but have some for her album. She had a blast kicking and splashing in the water. Mike and I are hoping the weather clears up this weekend so we can take her to one of the public pools in the area. It's really an excuse for us to hang out in the chlorine as Sophia would do just fine in her 6 inch pool at home. Once a water baby, always a water baby ;)

6 Months- 25 1/8 inches and 15 lb 4 oz

These past two weeks have been full of exciting things for Sophia. She visited Atlantic City for the first time and dipped her toes in the ocean, participated in her first costume party as Baby Lindberg, learned how to creep from the dining room to the kitchen, and survived her first week of day care. I think she did better than I did at the last one. She seemed to make friends easily and is eagerly watching what the older infants are doing.


Sophia in her itsy, bitsy, teeny, weeny, pink polka dot bikini!


The Annual 4th of July Costume Party in Ventnor, NJ
Theme "The 1920's"
Charles, Anne and Baby Lindberg
(Mia and Poppop as Annie Oakely and The Great Gatsby in the background)