A Christmas Cold...

Katerina has her first real cold. She had one back in October, but that was just the sniffles, this is a real COLD: runny nose, cough, tearing eyes, etc. Because she's congested, it has been difficult for her to sleep, and consequently her parents are not getting too much sleep either.

Mike also has a cold and this morning I woke up with a scratchy throat. It's probably only a matter of time.

Katerina has been pretty miserable too, especially when she first wakes up. I feel so bad for her. In order to keep her content she needs lots of distractions. Well at 5:45am in the morning, after having been up with her just a hour before, I decided I needed some coffee first, so I broke down and put on the Baby Einstein DVD. Katerina layed on the bobby quite contently for a good 15 minutes--bless that DVD. I figure when you're sick, the no TV rules get thrown out! :)

Celebrating the Holiday Season

The last couple of weeks we have truly enjoyed the holiday season. Last weekend we went to pick out our Christmas tree. It was a 30 degree day, but the sun was out. Katerina seemed to enjoy herself. We found out tree fairly quickly, and as we did, it started to snow...it was picturesque!

Then, we were at a holiday party at church this evening and Katerina met Santa Claus. Everyone was wondering if she would cry--but she didn't. In fact she was completely intrigued by him.

Finally, the last two nights after Katerina went to bed, Mike and I made cookies. Next year, Katerina will join us...I can't wait.

7 months old!

I can't believe Katerina is seven months old. She is becoming such a little person! And she never stays still...I tried several times to take a picture of her and Mickey ...and this is what I got.

Here is an update on her recent milestones.

She has a tooth that is almost completely in, and a second one on the way.

She does an "army crawl" to get a toy she really wants. She can also crawls sideways a few steps.

Her crying has become quite sophisticated. If you take a toy away from her she starts to cry. If you set her down and leave the room, she starts to cry. Ms. Heather from school said, "Welcome to the world of an older baby."

She ate some avocado for the first time the other day. I thought it was disgusting, but she loved it.

She has begun to improve her fine motor skills with the help of cheerios. Grandma gave her some during Thanksgiving, and so we've been practicing at home too. She doesn't get too many in her mouth yet, but she's learning.

Katerina can sit up by herself now. Occasionally she still falls backwards, but not too often.

Finally, she has discovered the wonder of hard surfaces. She loves to scooch over to the wood floor in the family room so that she can bang her hand on it over and over again. She also tries to do the same thing at daycare!