Lola is 9 months old!

This was the most difficult picture to take, so far!

"I will let you see my 9, but I won't smile!"

"Fine, I will smile, but you can't see my 9!"

"You can't make me sit still!"

Not the best, but it will do!

Month nine has been quite a month. The biggest achievement is that she started crawling and is able to go from sitting to standing and standing to sitting whenever she wants. She is very good at pulling up with the help of tables, couches, chairs, legs, etc. Also, she has finally perfected picking up her puffs and Cheerios... AND putting them in her mouth (see month 8). Now we have to worry about her putting all five of them in her mouth at the same time. A few times, she waved perfectly on command. Once, Brian came home and said "Hi Lola" and she smiled and waved to him. The other time was when I was leaving and when I said "Bye Bye" she waved at me! She's so cute when she's sitting and bounces up and down and claps her hands!

The new, but not so fun things she's doing is spitting her food all over her, her chair, the table and whomever is feeding her. Brian and I have walked away many a time with orange polka dot shorts (squash remnants). It's not that she doesn't like them, she just thinks it's fun. Also, if she is playing with something she isn't supposed to and you take it away from her, she will clinch her fists and scream at you. Ahhh.... I'm sure it only gets better! :)

For Logan!

My nephew, Logan will soon be starting his freshman year at the University of Illinois. Logan was born when I was 12 years old and I can't believe he is now heading to college. I have loved every minute of watching him grow up into a handsome, athletic and intelligent young man.

Brian, Lola and I wish you the best of luck at U of I!

Twins

Melinda and I realized that Lola and Alina had outfits from the same fashion line, so of course we had to snap a photo. (Lola's shorts match Alina's dress).

Lola was a little out of sorts and I couldn't get a smile out of her at all, so this is the best I have. Also, she is still trying to figure out who or what this little person is and why I won't let her swat at her face! :)

Sneak Peek!

We had Lola's 9 month pictures taken on Sunday. Our usual photographer is 9 months pregnant so I thought better of having a nine month pregnant woman laying on the ground in the middle of July. We used Nina Williams from Creative Spark out of Peoria and she shared a little sneak peak of the pictures. I know I'm biased... but I can't stop looking at them!! :)

I bought the pink tutu for her when she was about 2 weeks old and her brown tutu was a gift from her second cousin, Angi.

Standing.... Almost

For several weeks now, Lola has enjoyed standing up when we're holding her. She laughs and claps every time she's on her feet. A few days ago, I stood her up on her own at the couch and despite being a little wobbly, she did pretty good. Today I did it, and she was completely sturdy! She's not sure what to do once she gets there, but she loves that she can stand up 'on her own'! I didn't do a good job getting her feet, but she almost always stands on her toes! :)

Happy 4th of July

Lola had a very nice first 4th of July. We spent the day at my sister, Denise's swimming in the pool and playing Korneman family volleyball... Lola played with Papa Dana and Grandma Paula during the volleyball game. She had already gone to bed when the fireworks started, but I couldn't let her miss her first 4th of July so I woke her up to let her enjoy them. They didn't bother her a bit. She watched them for awhile and then decided she was tired, so she cuddled up to me and fell asleep!

Here is her 4th of July outfit (her shorts had stars on them too)

Logan setting off some fireworks

Korneman Family Volleyball

Lola is 8 months old!

As I write this, Lola is 8 months and about 2-1/2 hours old. Eight months!? I can still remember just about everything about the night I became a mom! With the two new babies around - Parker and Alina, it's so hard to believe she was once that little and now look at how big she is and all of the fun things she does!

A summary of month eight... Lola has learned to wave (although not always on command) and she is a very good clapper! While she has not decided to crawl yet, she has become a great scoot-er / army crawler. She is very good at grabbing a hold of something and pulling herself up to stand. Anytime she stands up, she laughs and claps her hands. She can drink out of a sippy cup (most of the time) and is getting better at picking up the 'puffs'. She can pick them up but doesn't seem interested in putting them in her mouth. And who would really want puffs when mommy feeds her lemon sorbet, grandma Paula feeds her toast and jelly and uncle Darren gives her an occasional taste of Pepsi! :)

The pictures are getting harder to take... she wants to eat, bend or tear the number so I have to act fast!

Lola and Cara

Lola and I drove up to Elmhurst to visit our best friends, Cara and Amanda. The girls had a great time together (and so did their moms)!


Here they are playing together and sharing their toys

And here they are posing for their frame (they have matching pink frames in their rooms for their BFF pictures)! :)

Amanda did a great job of further explaining how the photo shoot went...

http://kidsareonthemove.blogspot.com/2010/06/cara-and-lola.html

Baby Alina

After being held captivity by the State of Michigan for a couple of weeks, our friends - Wes and Melinda - were finally able to bring home adopted daughter, Alina Faith. She will be 6 weeks old on Monday. Lola went to Alina's house on Thursday for their first play date!

Happy Father's Day!

For Brian's first Father's Day, Lola got him a dress shirt and a book. On Saturday night, we took him to Famous Dave's and then to Coldstone Creamery where he got a VERY LARGE ice cream creation!

This picture doesn't quite do it justice, but this week Lola started doing this really cheesy smile. A lot of times, it's almost on command when you get the camera out. CHEESE!

On Sunday, we went to my sister Denise's and celebrated with my family. It was a perfect day for Lola to swim in Aunty Denise's pool for the first time!

Lola and her cousins!




Chilling out in her floaty

... And she's pooped!

Fun on the Swings

During our walk the other night, we stopped by our neighbors and let Lola swing. This was the first time I had put her on the swing, but she seemed to enjoy it!

Brian had her laughing at something in this one!

Lola's New Pool

Brian and I bought Lola this new little pool and I couldn't wait to try it out. She was a little unsure about it at first and the water was definitely colder than her bath water, but she seemed to have a good time with it!

Lola is 7 months old!

Today was Lola's 7 month birthday. I honestly cannot believe she has been with us for 7 months!

This month was the month of screaming and movement. We learned just how loud Lola can yell (happy noises, not cries) and that she can be quite dramatic with her sighs. She has also become very good at rolling. You'll put her down on one side of the room and before you know it, she has moved to the complete opposite side. She loves to suck on her toes, is very good at sitting up and is really trying to figure out this crawling thing. On a couple of occasions, Brian and I have seen her almost get up on her hands and knees. She also started to "tell" us what she does and does not want to do. When I tried to put her in a highchair at a restaurant, she stiffened up her legs and WOULD NOT sit down. I guess it's true... what Lola wants, Lola gets! :)

Lola's New Man

Lola got to meet her new "guy friend" this week when Parker Ryan Kim was born! Her and I went to the hospital to see Parker and Heidi and take some pics of the two together.

Lola's First Dance Recital

Okay... not her first time dancing, but her first time watching!

On Saturday, we took Lola to watch her cousins - Sabrynn and Corinne - dance in their dance recital. We had front row seats and both girls did great! Corinne is such an entertainer and Sabrynn had a ballet number that she looked absolutely beautiful in! And Lola was such a good girl the entire time!

Mother's Day

What a great first Mother's Day! We hosted lunch for all of my family and Brian's parents and grandma. Lola got me a sweet card and a St. Louis Cardinals sweatshirt.

My mom and her kids:

My nephew, Logan went to his senior prom the night before. I helped him pick out his tux, so he wore it to show me! How handsome!!!

Planting Flowers

We took advantage of the beautiful May weather (48 degrees, cloudy, windy) to plant our outside flowers. Brian did the planting and Lola and I watched!

Bathtime Fun!

When I was pregnant, my sister Denise gave me several things she used with my nephew. Included was - I kid you not - 5 different bathtime mechanisms! I could not fathom why in the world you would need 5 different tubs, foam things, hammocks, inflatable devices, etc! (Answer: different bath mechanisms for different ages)

During bathtime earlier this week, I noticed poor Lola's legs were hanging off the end of her tub so I went to the sack o' bath tubs and found what I believe is next in line. I think she had fun playing in her new bath tonight, but it's going to take more practice for Brian and I.... she's a slippery little devil!!

Lola is 6 months old!

Today was Lola's 6 month birthday! This last month has been such a fun month. She started doing all kinds of "tricks" and making all kinds of fun sounds, including laughing more than I have ever heard her laugh. This month has just been full of smiles, giggles and funnies!

She really discovered her voice and loves to hear the noises that come out of her mouth. We've heard growls, high pitched squeals, screeches and these dramatic sighs! The funniest thing is when you can have a "conversation" with her... Brian and her have gone back and forth for a good five minutes making noises to each other!

She enjoys taking walks outside and loves to be barefoot so she can play with her feet and suck on her toes. She is already starting to practice her heel stretches (preparing for cheerleading tryouts)! The other theme for the month is INTO EVERYTHING! She grabs for anything and everything, including the communion at church! Her two latest tricks are rolling over and shaking her head from side to side which is just the cutest thing!

Tonight was a nice night so I wanted to take her outside and get some pictures of her in the grass. She was a little unsure of the grass at first, just lightly touching it; but then she started to play a little bit more. I was enjoying watching her............... until I realized the fertilizer man had just come the day before. Oops! Time to wash your hands, Lola!

Finally...

Lola has been able to roll from tummy to back for quite awhile, but has refused to go from back to tummy. She has been so close, but just not able to get all the way over. My mom writes me notes everyday about Lola's day and today she said that she finally rolled over from back to tummy! I put it to the test tonight (since it doesn't count unless mommy sees it!) :)

I was pretty proud of my action shot!

Busy Weekend!

We had a crazy busy weekend and Lola was a trooper! Friday night we went to Guzzardo's in Lincoln with Brian's parents for Larry's birthday and she did so well. She loves to watch people so she was perfectly content.

Bright and early on Saturday morning, Brian, Lola and I took off for a morning of errands. We went to a cute little produce stand, had breakfast at a quaint little coffee shop, went to the mall and then to the grocery store. Again, Lola loved every moment of being out in her stroller and looking around! We had just a couple of hours at home before we took off again for birthday party in Forsyth for Brian's dad and aunt.

Sunday morning we went to church in Clinton to see my niece Sabrynn be baptized. Lola's Uncle Darren held her the whole time and when she got tired, she went right to sleep in his arms. After church, Lola and I went to a baby shower for Brian's cousin and after that, went to Sabrynn's birthday party. At the birthday party, my niece Corinne was playing dress up as a cheerleader and was shaking her poms at Lola and Lola thought it was hysterical! I've never heard her laugh so much! She even snorted!

This picture was on Saturday when we were home in between outings. We've had the exersaucer for a couple of months, but she was a little unsure about it until recently. Now she really enjoys all of the bells and whistles!

Bananas!

Lola has successfully... um, kind of... gone through all of the 1st food vegetables. She loved her sweet potatoes, squash, carrots and green beans. Peas, we aren't so sure about. Tonight we tried the first of the fruits - Bananas! In typically Lola fashion, we couldn't shovel them in fast enough! :)

Sitting Up!

I had been sitting Lola in the Boppy, but didn’t think she was ready to sit on her own yet… until I saw a picture that mom took of her sitting up perfectly at her house. I put it to the test at our house and sure enough - she's a pro! Maybe now her bald spot will grow back!

Lola's First Haircut

I thought it was time for Lola to get her bangs trimmed. She was getting a little self conscious about the two sprouts of hair that were longer than the rest. So we took her to see Miss Lindy on Monday!

Before:

During (making sure she was doing it just right!)

After (very pleased with her new look!):