The Sophia Chronicles
everything i don't want to forget…
11 months…
4/19/12
i will say it again… it has almost been a year since sophia came to us!! it has gone SO fast. i look at my baby girl as she changes & grows every single day & i know that she was given to me, to be my daughter, for a purpose…. she is a gift from above.
right now sophia you really are learning new things constantly & changing every day & i am SO enjoying every second of it!! oh my gosh, you make me laugh so hard that i cry. you are seriously so funny… and you know it… which makes you even more funny. your personality is HUGE & one of a kind, you are so much like your brother.
4/10/12
sophia at 11 months…
1. sophia, you have been protesting sleeping on your own for the past few months & slowly it has become that you no longer sleep in your crib, ever. you sleep with mom & dad in our bed every night & for nap time i make a comfy little nest of a bed for you on the living room floor so i can get things done while you sleep. i have to set up a bed in the living room because even though you are sleeping, you know immediately when i leave the room & you wake up, crying until i come & lay down with you. our thought was that you are our last baby & you are growing so fast & we just want to make sure & soak up every moment with you that we can. we will never again listen to a baby breathing between us or feel soft, little hands reach out & touch our arm or face just to make sure we are both there & when you feel us, you smile big. (in your sleep!!)… however, you need to re-learn how to sleep on your own & in your own room & especially how to self-soothe yourself back to sleep when you wake.
i know that sophia actually sleeps better when she is able to stretch out & roll around all night, which she can’t do sleeping with us. i am commiting to getting her back into her crib in her room in the next week. “they” say it should take only seven days for a baby sophia’s age to learn how to sleep on their own again. it will be a long week but oh-so-worth-it to have sophia as well as shane & i sleeping through the nights.
2. just recently, when i wrap you up all snug in your towel after bath time, you have become so very cuddly & content & quiet & gentle. you have always enjoyed bath time, especially now that you are in the big-girl bath, but this is different… as soon as i wrap you up in your towel you lean in & lay your head on my chest, then you love to look in the mirror & smile & wave to me (& to yourself). of course, now i look forward to this time we spend together & it has become one of my favorite moments of the whole day too.
4/19/12
3. sophia, you are really starting to communicate with us more & when you can’t “say” what you want you get so frustrated. we always know when you are frustrated because you clench your fists & clench your teeth & growl & your face turns red… i am sorry sophia but it makes me laugh every time!! (we say your “going hulk “). you are waving hello & good-bye more. it is the sweetest thing, when you wake up in the morning or even from a nap, you look at me & smile & wave… melts my heart. sometimes when you wave you wave with your hand facing towards yourself… your wave has become opening & closing your fingers instead of waving your hand back & forth.
4. you now have 4 amazing teeth in the front, 2 on top & 2 on the bottom… you are my little bunny. although you have the teeth you DO NOT want to & WILL NOT eat anything but baby food. i have been trying to give you “transition” food that is not as smooth & you actually have to chew it a bit… you cry & cry & protest until i give you the baby food that you love. i just keep trying & now i am mixing the two, to try & slowly get you eating “big-girl” food.
4/9/12
5. sophia, you & i are together 24 hours a day & i think we have a great rhythm to our days…
you get up about 7 a.m., & daddy & mikayla spend a little time with you before they leave for work & school so mommy can wake-up & do a few “morning things”.
you get your morning bottle & then we play until 8:30 or 9:00, when you are ready for your morning nap, usually about an hour long.
mommy showers at 10:00 while you sit in your high chair in mom & dad’s room & watch the bubble guppies, you love the bubble guppies so much.
10:30 is breakfast time, oatmeal & fruit.
11:00 or 11:30 we usually leave the house for whatever we are doing that day or, since it has been getting nice outside, we have been going for walks or just outside to play in the yard.
lunch time is about 2:30 p.m.. if we have gone out i usually pack your luch just in case we won’t make it home in time. sometimes we pick up mikayla & alex at 3:00.
3:30 is nap time. you take a longer afternoon nap, sometimes 2 hours long.
daddy usually get’s home about 5:30 p.m. & you usually go play with him for a bit so mommy can make dinner… or you crawl around the kitchen & try to get into everything whle i cook.
6:30 or 7:00 is your dinner time, rice cereal & a vegetable, sometimes with meat, (sweet potato with chicken dinner is a favorite).
7:30-7:45 p.m. is bath time… which is probobly your favorite part of the day. you have just started going straight forward with your head, putting your face straight into the water then sitting up & laughing hysterically… over & over. i can not believe that you just go straight forward, dunking your face & head under water!! i have been trying to get you to stop doing that because it makes me nervous & you would do it your whole bath-time if i let you.
8:15 p.m. is bed-time. i usually give you your bed-time bottle in my bed & then just lay you down in there for the night.
then we wake up the next morning & do it all over again!!
photos of a typical day in our life…
walking around little lakeside “lake”…
4/13/12
from your view…
4/13/12
playing in the bath…
4/14/12
playing while mommy cooks dinner… (you look like your playing a guitar)
4/19/12
you are so funny when you crawl around with snacks in your mouth…
having fun swinging at the park…
exploring the world around you…
playing with your grammy…
yep, we have a great rhythm to our days.
6. you love going out & being around people & action… but, you are always ready to get back to your living room. i think it is because you feel safe there, you can crawl all around without us stopping you from getting into stuff, because we have set the whole room up for you & your toys are all in there, that room could be your whole world.
4/19/12
7. you love, love, love your dog!! you follow him, he follows you… it is so funny to watch you two together. biggs is so good with you too. you have recently discovered how fun it is to feed the dog from your hand… you eat a bit of your puff snack & then you give the rest to him, so funny. the other day i gave you pieces of turkey & you would feed it to him & every-time he grabbed that turkey from your hand you laughed so hard!!
in this photo you had just given him a bite of your snack & now he wants more & you are in hysterics, laughing so hard…
you have also recently noticed the tags on his collar & we all know how much you love jewelry. now, every time you are near him you grab & hold onto those tags.
sometimes he is happy to get the attention…
4/19/12
other times, not so much…
you also love to be the one to hold onto his leash when we go on our walks, he sometimes pulls really hard though (if he sees another dog) so i have to hang on with you. now i just put the leash on him inside & let you “walk” him around the house, maybe not biggs’ favorite thing but you certainly do love it…
all day every day… you two are never far apart…
sophia, you at 11 months is amazing to watch. you are sweet & funny & smart & learning & grasping new concepts every day.
sophia, these are just a few highlights of things you love & the things you do at 11 months old.
your family loves you so much baby girl.
The Sophia Chronicles 
Gina….it’s 5am and I’ve been reading this and laughing and crying and lost in your world with Sophia Darling’…..what a wonderful way to begin my day! I don’t see you enough I know…I’m sorry but life is a bit of a struggle for me right now and hard for me to go anywhere except to go to Dr appts…get groceries…and go to church. Thank you so much for writing about your days with Sophia, Mikayla, and Jarred…..and of course..Biggs! Makes me feel a bit like I’m still a part of your lives! Love you all so much! MEME