Please Forward To: The Stanforths: April 2011

Monday, April 25, 2011

6 Months

So now that P is 7 months, I’ve finally found some time to blog about her 6^th month of life(hey, I’m only one month behind)! She spent most of her time in the States. 2 weeks in Colorado, and 1 week in Michigan. During this time she developed new skills. She has mastered sitting up and she is now able to hold her own bottle! Yay! She also started eating delicious baby food. Aunt Lorri made her sweet potatoes-yum yum.

On a sad note, she also developed her first ear infection. Poor baby girl was miserable. She only stopped crying when she was sleeping, which she did a lot of. It was horrible not being able to comfort her. The doctor put her on antibiotics, and thankfully she recovered quickly.

Penelope had loads of fun with family. Our original plans didn’t include visiting Michigan so it was a great surprise for everyone. I didn’t bring her carseat so we borrowed from Graham(in CO), and from Henrik(in MI). Thanks to all for sharing!

While we were in Michigan, Penelope was able to go to a play group! She had tons of fun watching other babies. As soon as I put her down on her blanket and pulled out her toys, two little girls came crawling over and wanted to play with her things. Nellie was so in awe of them that she didn’t seem to care that one of the girls took her pacifier out of her mouth and used it as her own. It was fun to watch. Those little ones are very entertaining.

I was nervous about flying home by myself with a 6 month old. The older she gets, the squirmier she becomes. It’s about a 9hr flight, and the plane was supposed to be full, but one of the flight attendants saw that I was by myself so she found me an aisle seat with no one sitting next to me! I was very grateful. I was able to set her down for a few minutes while I ate. J Like always, Penelope did great! There were no meltdowns, or unnecessary screams or cries.

When Devon came to pick us up, he was so excited to see us, and amazed at how big P had gotten. He was especially impressed that she could hold her own bottle!

Now it’s picture time!

6 Months!

I can feed myself!

Bath time...

Trying new food-sweet potatoes!

Sunny days in CO

Brannock loves Nellie

Gymboree class

I love Graham's exersacer!

Michigan lovin'

Back in Grandma's arms

Uncle Jordon :)

Playin' with Pops

Hi Aunt Angi

Officer Bob!

Skype date with Baby Andreus :)

Loving all of Aunt Lynn's toys

Play date

Going for a walk and wearing her make shift hat!

Aunt Laurie and Dana came to visit

Back in Germany waiting for Pops and Oma to arrive

Monday, April 4, 2011

La da di dada America!

We made it to Colorado! After a 9 hour flight to Detroit, a 4 hour layover, a delayed departure, a turbulent 3.5 hour flight, and lost luggage, we finally made it to our final destination, Denver, Co. My sister, Lorri met us at the airport. It was such a relief to see her after such a long day. After I reported my lost baggage(super annoying), we left for her house in Colorado Springs. I requested that we stop at McDonalds because I miss it(yes, they have McDonalds in Germany, but none are near us). You may be thinking gross, why would she want to go there? The answer simply put…I love me a Micky D cheeseburger! Always have, always will!

Because my luggage was MIA, I had to borrow some of Alex’s sweats for pajamas, and Penelope had to borrow Graham’s pjs, diapers, and bottles. No biggie. Thankfully it only took 23 hours for our luggage to be returned to us. Phew!

We only had 2 weeks to visit so we tried to get as much accomplished as possible. For those of you that have not heard, Penelope and I will be spending the entire year here in Colorado Springs, while Devon is deployed. This way we can be close to family and still take advantage of our military benefits. Ft. Carson is in Colorado Springs-AWESOME! So we had 14 days to accomplish some important tasks: apply for a Colorado driver license, find an apartment, and purchase a car(and register it, etc). It was essential that we get these tasks done as soon as possible so that I wouldn't have to rely on my sister and brother-in-law for help when we return to CO in August, especially since P and I arrive 2 days after they’re due to having their second baby.

This trip wasn't just business. We made time for fun too: Gymboree class for the babes, visiting Kaylee and Maddie(Devon’s cousins that live in Parker, Co), and shopping! That pretty much sums up the first week of our trip. Sadly, week two was less fun. Graham was getting over a little cold, Lorri had bronchitis, Nellie got an ear infection, and Alex and I also had a bit of a cold! Yikes! Even though, we weren't feeling well, we still made sure to take lots of pictures. Here are some of my favorites!