Month #7

Christina is 6 month's old!

To start the month off we had Father's Day! HAPPY FATHER'S DAY BEN!
Chris unfortunately had her first illness and couldn't attend church with her dad:(
She had her very first cold--but she's a tough girl and did just fine.

Taken during the Centerville Parade on the 4th of July

This Is

The Face

Of One

Happy Girl!

Sitting Alone!!

Christina with cousin Corbin! After this pic was
taken she started playing with his socks!

Watching a show with cousin Ingrid. Notice the band-aid,
she got her 6 month immunizations this day.

Ingrid and Christina love each other!

 Summary:

Sleeping and eating habits are the same from last month. New solids she tried this month include apple, banana, avocado, and sweet potato--yum! This month she learned to sit unassisted! Wahoo! She has also started rolling to get something she wants (which can make changing her diaper nearly impossible)! Christina now reaches for people when she wants them to hold her. On a few occasions she has given mommy kisses! She is such a sweet girl!

Likes: Watching cousin Ingrid and splashing in the bath

Dislikes: Lying still while you change her diaper

Month #6

We actually started the long trek to UT on the day she turned 5 months old. We drove 6 hours to Ben's sister's house in Columbus, OH. Where we visited with Caroline (Ben's sister), her husband Paul, and our nephew Theo! It was nice to take a little break and see their little family. Which now has a new member Owen Augustus Carruth! Yay another new cousin for Christina! Then Ben and his parents made the long trek back to UT. While Christina and I flew back. Thanks Kris and Christine for all your help! And thank goodness Christina is such a good traveler!

This picture was taken in her bedroom not long after arriving in Utah. You can see her crib in the background waiting to be assembled.

She just loves these tagging blankets! It is so funny when she just holds on to it with her teeth!

Chill'n in her p.j.'s

Summary:

Eating every 3 to 4 hours during the day. Solids she tried this month were rice cereal and oatmeal.
She now takes three good naps a day and wakes up only once at night to eat!

Not long after we arrived in Utah she started rolling over! She can now roll from tummy to back and back to tummy! Christina just started to look at books this month! She now likes to hold the pages, (we always read board books), smack the pages, and try to lick the pages. Sometimes she even tries to talk to the book! haha! She is starting to imitate sounds she hears and can make an mmma sound--won't be too long before she can say mama! Last month she found her toes this month she is putting them in her mouth!

Likes: Feeling mommy and daddy's faces and spitting (blowing rasperberries)

Dislikes: Getting her clothes changed

Ode to PA

Top 10 Reasons I Will Miss PA

10.  The TALL green trees

9.    The way wild life seems all around you even in town. We were always seeing bunnies, hawks, an opossum-(one time), squirrels (which are so common they are annoying), etc. OH and fireflies--they could count as wildlife right?!

8.    The way everyone acts like the sky is falling when it snows
(Literally there will be no eggs, bread, or milk if you go to the store before a storm is forecast. Guess everyone is planning to live on french toast if they get snowed in. Which sits great with me! LOVE FRENCH TOAST)

7.    The way my skin felt (no need for lotion)

6.    Being so close to four major cities: Philadelphia, New York City, Baltimore, and D.C. (mind you we never did get to NYC)

5.    The architecture

4.    WEGMENS

3.    The way you get FOUR DISTINCT seasons

2.    The way your ward (church) feels like your family

1.    The people (WE MISS YOU!)

We are standing in PA... Chris is about 3 months old here.

Month #5

Check out my sweet girl!!!

 Chris found her toes the day after she turned 4 months old!

Just chill'n on mom and dad's bed :)

 Not sure how this could be comfortable...arms straight out like that! Babies

 can sleep in such funny arrangements!

 Christina had her first taste of food a couple of days before she turned 5 months! How weird that must be after having a diet of only milk since day one! She did great for her first encounter with rice cereal!

Summary of Month 5:

Sleeping and eating habits are the same from last month. Solids (rice cereal) doesn't count as a meal since most of it doesn't make it to her mouth! Her bedtime is now 7 PM (she used to go to sleep around that time and then wake up once more before her long stretch of sleep). She found her feet this month (although she has not put them in her mouth yet!) Still a happy, smiling, laughing girl!

Likes: The plastic paper diapers come (that crinkly sound is great) and being on her tummy!

Dislikes: Waiting for me to be ready to feed her (the anticipation is too much sometimes!)

On the Road Again

WE MOVED!!

Goodbye Pennsylvania and hello Utah!

We will miss the time we spent in our beloved PA!

Carlisle Architecture

We LOVED all the old architecture out here! I wish I had taken more photos!
Most of the photos are from Carlisle but some are of surrounding counties.

 

A lot of the barns, we noticed, had decorative holes in the brickwork. Not sure exactly why that is... air flow or to let small winged animals in and out?

 This is the aftermath of our minor tornado back in May 2011. This is the house right across the street from us. Picture taken from our doorstep.

 I love the detail these houses possess

The tree in this picture is still standing it's branches just brush the ground

Most of the homes in downtown Carlisle, where we lived, are row homes. which in the beginning I did not like but they have grown on me. Unfortunately I didn't take any good pictures depicting those homes, instead they are mostly detached homes.

P.S. There are more houses that have something other than red brick or stone but apparently I'm not as drawn to them.

Graduation

The BIG DAY finally arrived!

Ben Graduated from the Penn State Dickinson School of Law on May 12th.

 The event was teleconferenced between the main campus up at University Park and our campus in Carlisle. (Which by the way is how a lot the classes take place).

 Christina, Ben, and Lindsey who attends our Church

 Christina loves her grandma!

Ben, Chris, Tammy, Sarah, Matt, and Shawn

The married student friends

 I'm so proud of you love! Thanks for working so hard!