6 Months!

Happy 1/2 year Birthday to Gracie!
It's truly hard to believe that 6 months has come & gone already. Looking back there's so much to reflect on and so many milestones and accomplishments to celebrate! This month brought once again many "firsts" for Gracie and she has of course continued to amaze us on a daily basis with all that she does. She is quite observant and requires that she be held in a position where she can really SEE everything. Her eyes are always wide and many times she will appear quite serious in her gaze as she studies the world around her - so much to see & do!
So lets get to it shall we? :)
Gracie's 5th month started out with a camping trip! Steve and I usually tent camp a couple of times a year. Steve decided we should invest in a pop-up camper since tent camping with a baby while do-able, was not something I'd be too gung-ho about. What can I say - the man knows me well. SO - that being said - the pop-up was acquired and the first camping trip planned! I have to admit - we had a blast! It turned out to be unseasonably warm that weekend - so we did spend a fair amount of time IN the pop-up out of the sun but we made the most of it & it gave us a great opportunity to really learn the ins & outs of the pop-up.
This is definitely something that we will continue to enjoy as a family and Daddy's investment will surely pay off. We have big plans for that pop-up...many places to go.
Here are a couple of pictures from our camping weekend:
Tabi had a great time too!

The next weekend (yes, we have plans every weekend - just ask Steve! - ha) was Gracie's first pub crawl! Let me clarify here...our lovely neighbors Kristin & Vanessa are involved with a great group of people who do a pub crawl event every year in Annapolis to raise money for Breast Cancer Research. Great cause - great event! Gracie was hit with the gang and we all had a blast, Gracie maybe had toooo much fun ;)

Then came my very first Mother's Day! Mother's Day weekend started off with a beautiful delivery of flowers to my office that Friday...they were gorgeous! Then, Gracie and Daddy made me breakfast and I got to use a very special mug for my coffee which Gracie made especially with Love for Mommy...
I LOVE IT! We spent the day relaxing and snuggling - it was perfect!

Gracie spent her first night away from Daddy when she and I made our way down to Virginia to see Grandma & Grandpa Noone.
Gracie missed her Daddy but she knew he was hard at work getting things done around the house...

The next weekend was a big one for Gracie! We'd been doing some research on Gymboree classes and decided to go check them out. Gracie spends most days at work with Mommy...

...and some days with Ms. Theresa but we felt like she needed some face time with other children and these classes will provide her with just that - minus the daycare snot & sneezes!
We were impressed with the teacher there and Gracie just loved it!
We signed her up for classes and she will go three days a week. So Fun!


Overall Gracie is doing great! She weighed in at a whopping 16 pounds and 24 inches long at her 6 month visit! Girl is growing! She ranked 50th percentile for height & weight and 80th for head circumference! That's no shocker though - her dad has a pretty good size dome! ;)
She's "talking" a ton more - and making new sounds, M's, D's, & B's. We are spending more & more time outdoors which Gracie just loves and just trying to enjoy every moment.
Next month will bring many more new adventures and fun times with friends and family.
We want to thank you all again for your continued love & support!
Love to all! Ally, Steve, Gracie & Tabi
Here are a few extra pics of our little Lady! xoxo
Gracie & Daddy enjoying the outdoors
SITTING UP!

Sitttin in my Big Girl high chair!

I LOVE bathtime!

ps: videos take quite awhile to upload so I am working on creating an online channel where I will post all of the videos...stay tuned :)

5 Months!

WOW - so lots and lots going on this month! The biggest adventure we have had this month is Gracie starting solids!

So far we've eaten peas, carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, bananas, apples and pears!
We love them all as you can see :) (videos to follow...)

Gracie's first Easter was lots of fun! We went to church and had a great afternoon with our neighbors for dinner. And yes, the Easter Bunny did visit our house - Gracie was WAY more interested in the card than any of the other stuff...haha. All in all it was a gorgeous wonderful day.


Along with Easter came some incredibly beautiful spring weather which allowed for some outdoor fun and cooler outfits :)


We had 4 month pictures done of Ms. Gracie and we were very pleased with the way they turned out and amazed at how big she looks! Such a lady! :)
Gracie spends Tuesdays and Thursdays with Ms. Teresa next door and they have lots of fun together! Teresa took Gracie to the library for the first time! SO much fun especially since they have a special section called Storyville which they built especially for the children. Each section is designed specifically for each age group and she had a blast!
You can learn more about Storyville here: http://www.bcplstoryville.org/storyville_about.html

Nana Spalton came for a visit and we had quite a fun filled whirlwind weekend!
We went to DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival and saw all kinds of fun things and then spent a relaxing Sunday morning strolling along the NCR trail...



After Nana's visit we decided it was time for Gracie's first trip to the big Apple since she seems to enjoy eating them so much...oh - and to meet her Great Grandpa Maxwell & Ms. Jane! :)
Gpa and Jane watched Gracie Saturday night so that Steve and I could get out and enjoy an evening just the two of us - it was GREAT! We were able to fit in dinner & see Stomp! So great to have that time together...Here are some pics of Gracie with Gpa and Jane...

Gracie LOVED strolling around NYC and seeing all the yellow cabs and big buildings. It was so full of movement and motion that I don't think she napped the entire weekend we were there! Too much to see - no time for sleeping!
We were even able to work in a visit with Uncle Rock!
We had a ball!

Gracie is now rolling from back to belly and she's gotten quite good at picking up toys and moving them from hand to hand. EVERYTHING goes in her mouth and she's spinning herself in circles on her mat! Prep undoubtedly for crawling (yikes!) She's growing up fast and we are loving every single second watching her. We are trying to savor these moments and not hurry her along too quickly. She's moving fast enough on her own...heavy sigh. Pretty sure she'll be sitting up here shortly and then after that....ugh. Let's not even talk about it! Too fast for Mom!

We hope you are all enjoying the spring as much as we are! I'll try to get Steve to weigh Gracie at home so we can guesstimate how much she weighs now since she's started solids! She's definitely heavier feeling to us so we'll keep you posted. In the meantime please enjoy yet another collage of Gracie pics... :)
Love to all!