Okay, I suppose you've waited long enough

I suppose it's been too long since I've written much about Julie, or put up any pictures (especially for the grandparents and the greats). I've been enjoying my phase of actual writing, which I hadn't done in awhile. I guess I need to work on finding a balance.

Julie, Julie, Julie. Where do I start? I think I'll just start listing things as they come to me.

• She is such a mild-mannered child. We keep joking that we can't have any more children because none could be as good as she is. She has her father's calm and patient temperament. Last week, I went to a friend's house in the evening for a dessert night. Ben and I had a miscommunication when I left...I had fed Julie, but not as much as usually right before bed, and I thought Ben was going to just put her to bed anyway. He thought I was going to be home in an hour or an hour-and-a-half, then come home and finish the bedtime routine, albeit late. Thinking Julie was tucked in bed, I stayed out with my friends for two-and-a-half or so hours, chatting and having fun. When I got home, Ben was on the couch with a still awake and still hungry Julie. He said that she had only cried once, and it was only about 10-15 minutes before I got home. She was mostly just waiting patiently. (Total side note...my husband is amazing. As upset at me as he was that night, the first words out of his mouth when I got home were "Are you okay?" before he showed his irritation or gave Julie to me.)

• Julie is also a very happy girl. She smiles all day long, and is in the habit of giggling quite a bit, too. It's wonderful. We're very happy.

• She's making so many sounds, and loves blowing raspberries. The three of us will be driving down the road going somewhere, and it will be quiet in the backseat for several minutes, when suddenly Ben and I will hear her sigh loudly, coo, and spit. It's funny.
• The worst part of my day is putting Julie to bed. It's not because she cries, or wants to play, or hates her bath. None of those is true. Okay, sometimes she wants to play/be social while she's eating, but that's beside the point. It's the worst part of my day because putting her to bed means that I won't see her again for 10 hours. I know it sounds pretty cheesy, but it's true. As glad as I am to have quiet time, and time with Benjamin, I hate to put her to bed.

• Julie finally discovered her toes. She's played with her feet for several weeks now, but this week she finally discovered her toes. And yes, she likes to put them in her mouth.

• I'm doing a lot more "tummy time" with Julie lately. I'm trying to help her roll over. She's done it twice now, tummy-to-back, spread about three weeks apart between the two times. When she's on her tummy, she seems much more interested in trying to figure out how to get her hands and knees under her to crawl that she is in rolling over. Ever since she first rolled over, I've tried to capture it on video. She never does it, of course. So now I have this collection of videos of Julie not rolling over. I think it's amusing, but it will probably be pretty boring to most of you. Enjoy:
  
  
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• Julie knows her name by now. She responds to both 'Julie' and 'Jules.' She recognizes our faces, and looks for us when we leave the room or she can hear us even though we may be out of sight.
• Julie loves to watch the ceiling fan. I don't know if this is something most babies like, but she is just fascinated by it.
• She decided this week to start taking a pacifier again. She hasn't taken one in close to three months or so. I guess it's true what they say -- it's a woman's prerogative to change her mind (even a miniature woman).
• Our favorite thing about Julie right now is that she's learning how to cuddle. When I hold her vertically against my chest, she will often tuck her head into my shoulder/neck area and stay for a few seconds before pulling back to look around again. It's usually when she's tired. It's just the greatest feeling in the world.

Here's our silly girl: