Sledding and Standing

Last week Neal had Monday off (for Presidents day) so we decided to go sledding at a nearby hill in Bountiful. Neither of us had gone in years and of course it was the first time for Lydia. We went with Neal's brothers (Bradley and Dallin) and had so much fun! There was finally enough snow and the weather was perfect. Although the hill wasn't very steep I was a bit hesitant taking Lydia down. I shouldn't have worried though, she loved every minute!

Ready, set, sled!

Coming back up for another ride.

Neal and Lydia making their way back to the top.

Lydia having lots of fun.

Lydia also loves to stand at every opportunity. She can even stand by herself if she is holding on to something (the couch, her playmat/ jungle gym, etc). She does get a bit shaky after a while, but she is getting stronger and stronger each day. We'll see how much longer until she starts walking.

So proud and happy to be standing by herself.

Practicing her ballerina pose.

Lydia hits 6 months!

Today I took Lydia in for her 6 month checkup. I can't believe it has been half a year already. Where did the time go? Lydia is generally a very sweet and happy baby. She will play by herself for a few minutes, but is really happy when people are talking and interacting with her. She is our social butterfly and loves to be the center of attention. She sits really well by herself but also loves to stand. We recently bought her one of those jumpers you hang from the ceiling and they can stand and jump in because she loves bouncing and jumping. She likes it as long as she is happy when you put her in, and if she has a toy to hold in her hand. She especially gets into it and thinks it is funny if we stand next to her and jump up and down while saying, "boing, boing, boing." Outside is still one of her favorite places to be and she loves every chance to go out; going on stroller rides, getting the mail, taking the garbage out, watching the birds, or whatever else is going on.

Having fun in her jumper.

Dr. visit stats:

- length was 26 3/4 in (85th percentile)

- her head measured in at 16 3/4 in (60th percentile).

- Lydia has always been in the 90th percentile for her weight, but I think all her activity is catching up with her. Today she weighed in at 16 lbs 4 oz (she was 15 lbs 15 oz at her 4 month). That is only the 60th percentile. We did change doctors and our new pediatrician wondered if the two scales are slightly different, but she said to bring her back in about a month just to check and make sure her weight doesn't continue going down. Lydia is still very happy, still eats a ton (plus is still loving eating her solids), so I am not worried at all. I think she is just a lot more active now.

Lydia loved riding on this cute little horse when we got together with some friends.

Moving and an Update

Our new home

About a month ago we moved to Bountiful. We have been very blessed with the opportunity to house sit for an older couple as they are serving an 18 month mission. We were sad to leave our friends and neighbors in American Fork, but are so excited for our new adventures! We love being in a home with a yard. The upstairs is plenty big for us, so we only go downstairs when we watch an occasional movie. We live down the street from Neal's parents and are loving having family so close. Plus, my best friend from college (and her small family) moved in a few streets away (but still in the ward) and that has been so fun! We love to get together anytime we can and it is really nice to trade babysitting (and have family here to babysit).

Don't worry, we remembered to pack everything important!

Yes, life is amazing right now and we are very happy and very blessed in so many ways. Neal continues to work hard and support our family. Because he works in Sandy, his commute is about the same as when we lived in American Fork, but now he drives from the opposite direction. He has a co-worker who also lives in Bountiful so they are able to carpool, which has been very nice. Recently Neal was recommended (by the President of the company) for a job opening in a different area of the company. He is excited for something different and to learn some new skills. I am loving staying at home with Lydia. I can't believe how much she continues to grow and learn to do new things. I won't write more now, because I am going to do a separate post on her 6 month mark.

Big girl!

Last month Lydia finally got to sit up in her stroller for our daily walks. Because we have a travel system she usually just sits in her car seat and I attach that to the stroller. She felt like a big girl and loved that she could see everything so much better!

I can't believe how big she is getting and how much she is learning to do. She is such a smiley little girl and I love spending each day with her. She also started sitting by herself around Christmas time, but she is getting a lot better at staying up now. She loves to sit up and just play with her toys- as long as she doesn't have to play alone for too long. She is definitely a people person and loves all the attention she can get! She still loves her solid foods and has now tried; oatmeal, carrots, butternut squash, plums, sweet potato, and avocados. She loves everything she tries and is a very good eater.

She LOVES to chew on everything!

Playing in the box with her toys.

More holiday updates :)

I have let myself get really behind in posting again. We'll see how far I get today. As I already mentioned, we spent a lot of time with family this holiday season, which was great. Neal's brother, Kevin, came home from his mission December 30 and Lydia and I met him for the first time. We weren't able to go to the airport but met up with the whole family that evening for dinner at Olive Garden. Afterwards we went to Temple Square to enjoy the lights. It was a wonderful evening and it was so good to finally meet Kevin. It was also a really warm (well, for the wintertime) night and was much nicer to be out looking at the lights than when we had gone with my family.

Neal and I at Temple Square

We were able to spend more time with my family as well. My sister, Christine, and her family flew in from Alaska the beginning of January. Melissa and her girls were still visiting from Hawaii and my parents drove down from Idaho again. We had quite a few fun get togethers while they were all visiting. Unfortunately I forgot my camera most of the time, and didn't take many pictures when I did have it. We had some family dinners, a birthday party for my niece (which was awesome! Thanks Sara!), went to the new children's section in the church museum, visited, and more! My parents even watched the kids and babies while Christine, Melissa, Jen, and I went to the Provo Temple. I love spending time with family and it was so good to see Melissa and Christine again. We had all of the family here except my brother Cliff and his family.

I did get a better picture of the girls again : Lydia, Kaitlyn, and Sadie

Oatmeal Cereal!

Leaning forward so she can get closer to the food.

Lydia has been trying to eat our food for quite a while now. Everytime she sees us eating something, she looks at us, licks her lips, and starts chewing. She also grabs at our plates and food, just trying to get some into her mouth. Everything about her actions seem to say, "Where is my food? I need some of that too!" Last Monday (January 2) we finally went to the store and bought some oatmeal baby cereal and some rubber tip spoons. She loved it! She couldn't get enough and kept leaning towards us so she could be closer to the food.

Hey, I'm not done eating yet, where is my food?

The video clip I wanted still won't upload. This video was a few minutes into eating already, but she is still loving it!

Christmas 2011

We had a wonderful Christmas this year and were able to spend lots of time with our families. I am really not in a blogging mood, but I would like to get some Christmas memories recorded. This will probably be a very long post, so grab a snack and get comfortable. :)

My sister, Melissa (and her three daughters), flew in from Hawaii December 23rd. It was really fun to see them again and meet Kaitlyn (her youngest, who is just 2 weeks older than Lydia). My parents drove down and all of my siblings who live close were able to get together. We went to Temple square to see all the Christmas lights, but didn't stay very long as it was FREEZING outside! Afterwards we went to my sister Rhonda's home for dinner and visiting.

The morning of the 24th we had a Swalberg family party where we had lunch (pizza and soup), visited, played basketball, and had a white elephant gift exchange. Around 1 pm we headed down to Provo where Jen and Jeff (my sister) were blessing their daughter, Sadie. My parents and a few of my siblings were also able to be there and we enjoyed more time with family. Melissa, Jen, and I are the youngest 3 in the family, and we all had baby girls within 3 months of each other this year. We tried to get some pictures of Kaitlyn, Lydia, and Sadie together but they were all hungry and not being very cooperative. Hopefully we can get some better ones next time we are all together. :)

Sadie, Kaitlyn, and Lydia

Lydia and I, Sadie and Jen, Kaitlyn and Melissa

We ended the day with driving up to Neal's parents home in Bountiful. We had a wonderful dinner and family devotional, where we watched movie clips about the Nativity and the Christmas story (the new ones on lds.org) , shared testimonies, and sang songs. It was a great end to a great day.

As Christmas was on a Sunday this year, we decided to wait until after church to open presents. Sacrament meeting was great, though it was strange to go home afterwards and not have the other meetings. It was Lydia's first Christmas and she loved all the attention she got as well as some fun toys to play with, but she really wasn't into much yet this year. She did enjoy pulling off some wrapping paper, but that's about it. I'm sure next year she will have more fun and understand more of what is happening.