margo: four months

Margo is a 1/3 of a year old!! This month came with several exciting milestones and we're loving every second of it! We go to the doctor next week, so I'll update the official weight and length then, but for now our bathroom scale says she's weighing in at a whopping 15 pounds!

**Doctor visit update:
Margo weighes in at 14.8 pounds (58%ile), measures 24 1/4 inches long (36%ile) and her little noggin is 39cm (3%ile). The doctor is going to continue to monitor her head growth, but for the time being she is cognitively and developmentally on track or a little ahead, so there is little concern. **

This girl is a happy baby and I am so thankful for that. She has such a sweet personality and I love getting to see it come out more and more everyday. This month she has started smiling on demand, sitting up (supported), rolling belly to back, giggling when we make silly noises, grabbing at toys intentionally and putting everything into her mouth.

I know every stage of her life will bring a lot of new excitement as well as some set backs, enter the dreaded 4 month sleep regression. We had a rough few naps and nights, but I think we're going to come out stronger. I reread Baby Wise, Googled everything I could, polled all the moms I encountered and gave sweet Margo a bit of a talking to ;). She is now consistently napping, in her crib after her 1pm feeding (she goes down around 2:30) and wakes up between 4 and 5pm. Her morning naps are a little less structured, but she does sleep after her 10am feeding (falling asleep at around 11ish). I usually run errands, meet friends for coffee or work in the mornings, so she naps on the fly. I'm sure at some point that will stop, but for now this mama's got to get out of the house. Nighttime is getting better every day. We've started putting her to bed earlier at night so she's sleeping about 10-12 hours (mostly) consecutively.

Our daily schedule is:
7am- eat, play, cat naps--usually in the stroller when we go for a jog
10am- eat, play, sleep
1pm- eat, play, sleep
4-5pm- eat, play, cat naps--in her swing or in our arms
7-8pm- eat, bedtime

Enough of the details of our daily life, on to pictures from the last month!

Our second wedding of the summer

This girl wakes up so happy in the morning- it makes getting out of bed a lot more fun!

She loves the pool- we've been twice and are looking forward to taking her while we're on vacation

I may or may not love polka dots...

A girl has gotta have options

"Push faster mom...no pictures please"

She sat in her highchair with us at dinner and talked the whole time

because I can

Alex and I are unashamed in our love of the wizarding world of Harry Potter. As such, most of Margo's toys that have names reference a character. We have a long way to go until every character has a toy to represent it, but we had to start somewhere...

So far we she has Fluer the fluttering butterfly, Ron the red haired giraffe (Margo's most prized possession), Luna the little lady and finally Fawks the fox (haha-I'm pretty proud of my cleverness with that one).  If you know nothing of Harry Potter...ahem Becky...click the characters name for a quick bio. We also have a rubber duck that tells us if the bath water is too hot, so Mr. Weasly finally has his answer. 

father's day

Today is Alex's very first Father's Day. He's been a dad for all of 114 days and he's been amazing! He's a diaper changing, lullaby singing, stroller pushing, baby wearing, awesome dad. I have loved watching him become the sweetest and most gentle dad. Margo and I are lucky and proud to have him!

Happy Father's Day Alex, we love you!

mr & dr tolliver

Last week Margo, Moose and I headed to Salem for Amanda's wedding week! It seems like just yesterday Amanda and I were making silent movies for my mom while our sisters were doing homework, but alas she's a married woman now!

We started the celebration weekend with a girls night out on Thursday. Megan, Amanda and I headed to dinner and then capped off the evening with some Margo snuggles before she went to bed. It was so good for the three of us to hang out and catch up again before the festivities all started. I love these girls and I hate that we don't get to see each other as often as we'd like, but I'll take what I can get.

Friday night was the rehearsal and dinner and Saturday was the Big Day!! We started early Saturday at the salon and then the day whizzed by. Amanda was a stunning bride and of course the maids were pretty spiffy too! It was so fun and special to be part of Amanda and Patrick's day and I wish them years and years of love and happiness.

margo: three months

This sweet girl is getting so fun! We won't go back to the doctor to get the official weigh in until she's four months but according to our scale she weighs 12.5 pounds.

Margo is such a content little babe, she's certainly spoiling us. She's started smiling much more freely and coo'ing up a storm. It is so sweet, I love to hear her sweet little voice. She still prefers to be worn or go for walks in her stroller over sitting in the swing or bouncer. She has started looking around for us if she hears our voices which is pretty heartwarming. Her favorite song this month is "My Girl" by The Temptations but we switch the lyrics my girl to Margo...try it, it works! Her favorite book is One Bear Extraordinaire  and she prefers to hang out with her best friends at the coffee shop.

We subscribe to the eat-play-sleep routine and it works well for us. Our days start at 7am and she eats every 3 hours (she eats at 7am-10am-1pm-4pm-7pm and 9:30 or 10pm). Her most consistent naps are from 11-1pm and 2-4pm in her crib, but she sleeps like a champ in her carseat while we run errands and of course she loves her mama and daddy's arms. This month she's started sleeping through the night- 9:30pm (or 10) to 7am which is life changing. Sleep is more important to me than food (except dessert) so I am quite pleased to be getting 8+ hours of continuous sleep again!

This sweet little grin melts my heart

Margo insisted on a Mother's Day selfie

This girl loves to go to work twice a week!

Father/Daughter dance at Amanda & John's wedding

She was the victim of partying too hard...couldn't keep it together 

long enough to do The Wobble

#BerthelsBeWed

Amanda and I have been friends for about three years, but as is true with most close friendships, it feels like much longer! We got to know each other in community group and then started serving in Trailhead Students together and now if a week goes by that I don't see her at least three times I feel like something is missing! Last summer John started serving in Trailhead Students with Alex, Amanda and I and that's when the meddling began...

Amanda liked John and John liked Amanda...they just needed Brian (the youth paster) and I to encourage them to get to know each other. When they finally started dating, their love of Jesus was the forefront of their relationship and so exciting to watch.

After almost 5 months of planning, their wedding day was perfect. We started the morning early by getting our hair done and then the day flowed seamlessly with getting ready, pictures, the ceremony and the reception. It was such a fun day and I am so thankful that we got to be a part of their wedding.

under the weather

That may be the truest statement ever. I hate being sick and I'm usually a pretty healthy lady, but last Thursday I started feeling bad and I still can't seem to shake it. I talked to my doctor and I'll start a round of antibiotics today, so hopefully that will get me over the hump and back to normal. 

Being a mama is making being sick even harder. I'm trying to make sure I'm not getting Margo or Alex sick and still giving her the attention she needs...I'm not winning any awards this week, but she still coo's and smiles at me, so I know I'm loved. Hopefully modern medicine will be the fix, because giving it time didn't do the trick. 

mother's day

Mother's Day holds a whole new meaning to me since Margo burst into the world. She is the most amazing, wonderful, fulfilling little person and I am so thankful that God chose me to be her mama. But 10 weeks in there is no way you could call me an expert...I'd say novice or amateur would be generous. I can't discern her cries (is that a myth or should I be able to know what her cries mean?!), I can't swaddle her with a normal blanket (the velcro swaddles are the best), I take forever to dress her and I don't know the words to lullaby's (I make up words to the tune of most lullaby's). Thankfully I have several amazing mama's to turn to when I need help and reassurance- here's looking at you Becky, Libby, Kacey, Linda, Andrea, Kassie, Melinda and so, so, so many more!

I am so thankful for my mom, now more than ever. I hope that I can be half as good of a mom as she is. The other day I called her three times...before lunch. My mom is quite possibly the most generous, loving, kind, gracious woman on earth. I cannot even begin to express how much I love her and how thankful I am for her. Happy Mother's Day Mama!

Thankfully I have an amazing mother-in-law and not an Everybody Loves Raymond situation! I am so glad to have Sue (and Eric) living just a block away and working with us at the office. She has the biggest heart and is the most genuinely kind person I know. I am so thankful for the man she raised Alex to be and that she and Eric modeled marriage and parenthood so wonderfully for him. Happy Mother's Day Sue! 

We are so blessed to have the best moms and hopefully Margo likes me enough to smile today ;)

margo: two months

This girl is quite possibly the cutest human on the face of the planet. She has changed our world in the most wonderful way. She goes to the doctor for her 2 month check up on Monday so we'll get the official weight and length then, but for now according to our scale she's weighing in at a whopping 12 pounds!  

**Doctor's visit update (5/2/16)**

Our scale must be off at home because at the doctor's office this morning she weighed 11.2 pounds (54%ile), measured at 21 3/4 inches long (25%ile) and her little head was 36 1/2 iches (6%ile).  She was a champ for her shots and cried for a while but calmed down quickly. Thankfully Alex was there to hold her, because I am a wimp and sat in the corner. Other than that, her appointment went well and she's growing great and the doctor has no concerns. 

Some of her favorite past times are long walks in the stroller, taking baths, riding in the Moby wrap and shopping at Target. She has started sleeping for longer stretches at night 5 to 6+ hours in a row. Naps are a little more inconsistent, but she's getting there and her swing is a lifesaver. She is eating every 3 hours during the day and most days start promptly at 7am. She has started smiling, but you have to work for it and after diaper changes, she coo's happily on her changing pad. I am back at work twice a week for a few hours after her 10am feeding and she usually sleeps while I'm working, but if she's awake her daddy and grandma Sue are happy to entertain her.

Before Margo was a twinkle in our eyes, I saw this onesie-in-a-bag at the toy store and had to buy it. Mysterio predicted that Margo will be: 

 

I hope to pass on my love of polka dots, thankfully she looks good in them :)

We got a Wubbanub on the claim that they help the pacifier stay in the baby's mouth. So far it works as advertised...except when Moose takes it from her. He's only taken it once, but he always seems interested when it's close by.

It's hard to believe that May is rapidly approaching and she is two months old! I can't wait for this summer with her and to see how she continues to grow and change.

opening day

Happy Opening Day! In St. Louis baseball is more than a past time, it's a way of life and we're all excited to welcome the Birds on the bat back to Busch! I can't wait to take Margo to her first game and for our first 2016 game of the season. Go Cards!