In one end, out the other?

This week we began introducing Cassidy to rice cereal with a tiny amount each night after her evening meal, and she's doing great. Last night, during her second attempt, we took some video to remember the moment, and got more than we bargained for.

(Notice the color change to Cassidy's face and her expression! I think it was much more obvious in person than in this video)

My favorite part is the funny shiver at the end!

a look at month 4

Here's a quick look at the last month. Cassidy is starting to sit up on her own, and within the last week, has really discovered that her hands are for more than sucking on. She's started playing with her toys and reaching for anything that catches her eye, including mommy's hair, daddy's goatee, and anything we try to eat or drink while holding her. We've decided to hold off on introducing solid food even though our pediatrician gave us the okay at last month's checkup; we're pretty happy keeping her on breast milk and formula for now. She's had one cold after another since christmas (got to love daycare for building that immune system!) but even so, she's still her normal smiley self the majority of the time. She's continuing to sleep through the night from around 10pm until we wake her at 7:15am, with the occasional exception when she wakes up briefly and then falls back to sleep with some cuddling and rocking.

Cassidy is enjoying the greatest toy ever ... on loan from Jeremy and Jamie.

We looked everywhere for one of these things after seeing how much Sydney enjoyed it when we visited Wisconsin, but with no luck. So Jamie shipped it down to us for Cassidy to enjoy until she outgrows it. Thank you so much J & J! It makes us smile every time she goes crazy kicking!

Mom and dad had some visitors from Wisconsin and enjoyed showing them around New Orleans ... and showing off their grandbaby! Thanks for coming Pat and Joe ... I know mom and dad miss you a lot! This weekend, my aunt and uncle drove in from Florida to see New Orleans for the first time and to meet Cassidy. Mom and Dad showed them around the french quarter today, and we all enjoyed dinner at our house this evening.

It's absolutely amazing how much Cassidy changes from one week to the next.

Christmas with the K's

We traveled up to Minnesota for Christmas with Jeff's family this year.

This was quite an ordeal for me, as I've been reluctant to even leave the house with Cassidy, though I've been steadily improving on this over the past month or so.

Cassidy did great on her first airplane ride ... we even had comments from nearby passengers at how good she was since she didn't cry at all. I was also pleased with myself as it was the first time in about 15 years I've traveled without taking dramamine, and I didn't get airsick!

We stayed with Jeff's parents for a week, and enjoyed visiting with his sister and brothers and their families, who stayed at Jeff's parent's home also for varying amounts of time.

There were a lot of people around most of the time, which Cassidy seemed to enjoy, as she spent most of the week being held.

Jeff went sledding, ice fishing, and even bowling with the family.

Me? I was content to stay in the nice warm house with Cassidy most of the time. I caught a sunrise one morning when I woke up early ... the view from the front window is gorgeous.

Jeff's parents also threw a baby shower for us while we were home, which was really nice. Cassidy now has a lot of toys! Before our trip, she had all of one toy... a small rattle we had bought her when she started to hold on to things better. We also received several baby books, which we have been reading to her, and several cute outfits.

We were able to get together with Jeremy, Jamie, and Sydney, who were in the Minneapolis area visiting family at the same time.

We went out for some sushi, and enjoyed getting to know Sydney, who we had only met once when she was about 3 months old.

Overall, it was a great trip and a nice Christmas.