Tallia is five months...

I can't believe it friends! My baby girl is 5 months old today! The past month has brought so much growth from Miss T. She's rolling from her back to her tummy now. She still hates to be on her tummy though. She loves laying on her back, playing with toys. Her favorite thing is to hold a toy, chew on it, and roll from side to side. It's pretty darn adorable if I say so myself.

She's been doing raspberries and licking her lips like crazy. She also will stick her tongue out.

Everything goes in the mouth. We've stopped using the baby gym as much because she was getting frustrated not being able to get the hanging toys in her mouth.

We've taken a huge turn in the sleep department. This month brought a huge regression in her sleep....and I mean Huge with a capital H friends. We've always struggled with naps, but she started having trouble at night. She would want to nurse constantly. We were co-sleeping, so she was snuggled right next to me. I loved the snuggles, but was not a fan of her wanting to nurse all night long. It was pretty exhausting. No one was really getting sleep and we all know Mama needs to sleep to be able to keep the house running smoothly.

I started reading The No Cry Sleep Solution. It was recommended to me by one of you sweet friends. It's been a game changer. I'll write a whole other post on what we did, but for now I'm celebrating sleep. Last night she only got up twice and she slept from 8 am-8 pm. It was magical friends. Babies have a way of making you appreciate sleep. :) We are only on day 3, so we still have quite a road ahead of us, but I am feeling really hopeful. 

She's still Breastfeeding on demand and we don't plan on introducing any solids till after her 6 month check up. I'm hoping to do baby led weaning. I need to read up on it first. Any book recommendations?

She's still in 6-9 month clothes, sitting and standing with assistance, and cooing up a storm. Her squeals are the cutest!! Oh and her sweet little chubby hands are the best!

Oh and she has a serious calf roll. Gaw! She's squishy!! I show it off in this daily vlog. 

I'm working on a side show of her first 6 months for next month's update. I can't wait to share!

Have a fantastic day lovelies!!

XO Danielle

P.S.

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She's Rolling...

She must have known I was talking about her rolling skills on the blog yesterday because that very night she rolled over.  The first time I missed it. I was cleaning up dinner, while the kids and Daddy were in the living room. All of a sudden Jason looked down and Tallia wasn't on her back. She had rolled to her stomach and was squealing. She was obviously very proud of herself. Afterwards we got her to do it again, but I wasn't quick enough with the video camera. I'm hoping to catch it on camera tomorrow. We love experiencing these milestones with her. It is too fun!

XO Danielle

Tallia Renn is four months...

Miss Tallia had her four month check up this week. I honestly can't believe I just wrote that. How has four months gone by. On one hand it feels like she's been here forever and on the other hand I feel like I just had her. Little babies are truly the greatest blessings.

Before she has an appointment, we always guess what her weight will be. We take turns holding her and cast our prediction. This time Daddy guessed 18 lbs. He said that after carrying her at church she felt like an 18 pounder ::smile:: Keagan guessed 17 pounds, Libby guessed 16 1/2 pounds, and I guessed 16 pounds. I ended up being the closest. She's 16 lbs 4 oz and just a smidge over 26 inches.

I just changed over her clothes to 6-9 months. Her 3-6 month clothes were no longer fitting, especially over her diaper butt.

She's rolling side to side. She loves to kick her legs straight into the air and let herself roll to the side. She usually squeals when she does it. It is so cute! She's super close to rolling over. I think in the next week or so she'll accomplish it.

She's very vocal. She coos, squeals, giggles, smiles a ton. She loves being the center of attention, which we all willingly oblige her demands. We're thoroughly entertained by her. I've been sharing some videos of her cuteness on my instagram. 

She has started baring some weight on her legs and she can hold her steady when pulled up to sitting. She is really starting to show off her fun personality.

Oh and her hair is still brown, but seriously balding, and her eyes are dark blue.

She's sleeping great at night, from 8 pm-8 am usually. She gets up 1-2 times a night to eat. She's still doing great at nursing and can now go a wee bit longer between feedings. 

We are still co-sleeping, which is going great. During the day I wear her for naps and at night she sleeps in her crib for the first part. Once she gets up for her first feeding, she then comes into the bed with us. She is such a snuggle bug. 

So there you have it. Our little four month update. This girl is such a sweetheart and we are thankful to have her as a part of our forever family. She's a joy!

XO Danielle

Baby Tallia's three month update...

Alright so technically she's almost four months...but I still haven't posted her three month update. It totally slipped my mind. I blame it on mom brain ::wink wink::

This past month brought lots of new "tricks", as we call them around here, for Miss Tallia. She has found her hands and can't get enough. They're her favorite new toy. She has become very vocal, which we all get a kick out of. Her little squeals are my absolute favorite.

One night hubby and I were watching a show in the bedroom. Tallia was asleep in the bassinet. All of a sudden we heard a huge squeal. We thought she had woke up, but when we checked she was sound asleep. I'm not sure what she was dreaming about, but it must have been good.

We're still struggling with naps, but she still rocks it at night. She goes to sleep around 9:00 pm and sleeps till around 8 am. She usually only gets up once during the night for a feeding.

She's a great nurser, but is starting to get distracted by stuff around her. Sometimes she bites down when she's nursing. That doesn't feel to good. I've noticed she does it if I'm focused on something else...err...like my phone.

She's been getting better on the fussy front too. I feel like our colicky, fussy days are leaving us. She sometimes gets worked up, but we've been able to rock her and she'll calm down. I'm still keeping sugar out of my diet as much as I can. That seems to be helping keep her happy as well.

Whether she's a big stinker who won't take a nap or my cuddle bug at night, we've found so much joy in having this sweet girl in our family. Time is sure flying. She has her four month check up next week. I can't wait to see how much she weighs. I'll try to share that update soon....ya know before she's almost five months ::smile::

XO Danielle

So many emotions...

Oh the emotions of a four month old....they go from happy to sad in a minute flat. 

This morning my little beauty's emotions were all over the place. While at the older kids homeschool PE class she had what we call a "baby tantrum". It's a result of a super tired, very hungry baby, who is having trouble being distracted by everything around her. I ended up feeding her in the quiet of the car. It took about twenty minutes to calm her down, but eventually she ate and slept.

Tallia is my most sensitive baby. She likes to nurse in quiet (quite a challenge with two older siblings), she is very sensitive to everything I eat (I wonder how she'll do with solids in a few months?), and she loves to be snuggled (which I absolutely love). This girl definitely brings a few challenges....just like any new baby does, but she's a lot of fun. We love our squish!

XO Danielle

A fussy baby....

Baby girl has got to be my most high maintenance, fussy baby yet. She struggles with napping (but we're getting better). She had what I think was collic for the first 3 months after she was born. There's a list of foods I can't eat because they hurt her little tummy and baby girl wants to be held all the time. Oh and she can't stand the car seat.....like not even a little bit.

A friend asked me recently if I minded having a fussy baby and this was my reply....

No.

I don't mind at all.

Yes she struggles with napping, but hey she's only three months old. She's still learning and I'm learning how to help her. We're in this together.

Yes she cried most evenings during those first few months. Once 5 o'clock came around, I firmly planted my bum on the couch and would nurse or rock her. That was what helped her the most. I got a lot of cuddle time in.

Yes I have a list of foods I can't eat, most of them being sugar related and that's ok. She's helping me stay healthy. I want to give her the best I can. I know that nursing is a gift not every mama is able to have. I'm thankful I get to provide my little sweet pea with all the nourishment she needs.

And yes she still loves to be held all of the time, but I don't blame her. For nine months she was safely cuddled in the womb. She needed that same love and comfort on the other side. I prayed for years to get to hold another sweet babe. I would kneel and weep. I cried for the baby that miscarriage took away too soon and I cried for the dream of being able to add more babies to our brood.

I've waited so long to snuggle this sweet babe, I certainly never mind when she wants to be held. Yes it means other plans go on the back burner. Yes it meant waiting months to dye my hair, spending some days in yoga pants because she wouldn't let me put her down to get changed, not planning stuff in the evening, or missing out on road trips and I'm OK with that because I get to be with this sweet answer to a prayer.

We've hit the three month mark and I can see things are starting to get easier. She's playing more, kicking more, and smiling a ton. Those first three months were a challenge, I'm not going to lie....but man they were filled with so much unbelievable joy.

I love my fussy baby and the sweet miracle that she is :) We've waited a long time to become a family of five.

XO Danielle

Camera Unloaded...

Morning friends! Today I am sharing a few pictures from the past few weeks. We've had a lot of baby reading sessions. Libby can not get enough of reading to her little sister. She absolutely loves it and little sister loves it just as much. Their sweet smiles melt my mama heart!

There's also been a lot of crafts going on around here. One morning Libby got up, found our glitter, and made fairy wings for her Barbies. Yes the kitchen was forever covered in glitter, but man did those Barbies look good ::wink wink::

Next we have A LOT of pictures of Miss Tallia. We just can't help ourselves. She has some serious rolls going on...like those sweet wrist rolls above. Gaw! She's too dang cute! I also couldn't help myself in the bathroom at church taking a sweet picture of her looking in the mirror. She loves seeing herself in the mirror lately. 

and last, Keagan received the sweetest box in the mail from his Aunt and Uncle in Nevada. They sent it for his birthday. IT is a sunshine box. They filled it with little goodies, like a sticky hand and some of his favorite candies and chips. I loved the idea! I want to copy it and use it for Christmas gifts for family. Imagine the fun you could have sending a box of sunshine to family. Too cute!

What have you guys been up to? Hop on over to the Blissful and Domstic Facebook page. I love connecting with you all there :)

XO Danielle

Tallia Renn's Baby Blessing....

"I am convinced that a husband is never more attractive to his wife than when he is serving in his God-given roles as a worthy priesthood holder."

- Linda K. Burton

On October 9, 2016 Miss Tallia Renn Wagasky was blessed. Her daddy gave her a sweet blessing during church, with our Bishop and his counselors at Jason's side. What a beautiful thing it is to see my husband bless his babies. I appreciate how important it is to him.

He shared a few sweet words about how thankful we are for this sweet baby in our life. He then blessed her with courage to be a continual disciple of Christ. It brought tears to my eyes to think of how long we've waited for this moment. Children are such a sweet blessing from the Lord. The blessing was then cut short. Miss Tallia decided she was hungry and had to eat right now. She let everyone know this by crying quite loudly into the microphone Jason was holding. It made us all chuckle.

Afterwards we came home to a yummy lunch of sweet potatoes and BBQ ranch salad. It was a simple day, but one full of so much love for our youngest. We're all so thankful she's a part of our eternal family.

On another note....

How funny is Keagan photo bombing above? I didn't notice it when I took the picture, but I had a good laugh when I was editing the pictures last night. That boy cracks me up!

XO Danielle

Two months old...

Baby girl is two months old today. I can't believe I just typed that. These past two months have gone by so fast. Miss Tallia is getting so big. She had her two month checkup and weighed 12 lbs and 11 oz. We all had our guesses to her weight, but Libby was the closest guessing 13 pounds. Tallia was 24 inches long.

She's wearing 3-6 months clothes and her eyes are bluer everyday. We thought they were going to be hazel like Daddy's. That's what they looked like when she was born, but they have slowly gotten lighter over the past two months. I think we have another blue eyed baby in the house.

She's getting these adorable little rolls on her arms and legs. I just love all her squish!! She's been smiling lately and telling us all kinds of secrets in her little baby language. She's most talkative first thing in the morning. We all love to hang out in Mom and Dad's room to snuggle and talk with her. It's become my favorite part of the day. She also makes the funniest faces. She keeps us all laughing! :)

She's doing great with her sleeping. Most days we get two naps in, plus some dozing time in the evening when brother and sister want to snuggle her. She gets up about two times at night, but has a really great stretch of about 4 1/2 hours when I first put her down. She's been going to bed around 9:30 pm. We're slowly getting her closer to 8, which is when the older kids go to bed. I'm guessing she'll need a bit more time before that happens.

She still sleeps in her bassinet for naps and when she first goes down at night. I usually bring her into our bed when she gets up to eat. It helps mom get more sleep and I'm not gonna lie, I like having my baby close by.

Nursing is still going great. Baby girl likes her milk and still nurses on demand. The past two months have been amazingly hectic, sometimes overwhelming, and absolutely beautiful. I love this little chickadee to the moon and back.

Oh and did I mention she has found her hands? So stinkin cute...except when she bites down too hard and cries. Then it's sad. Poor thing. :(

There may be dishes in the sink, carpet that desperately needs vacuuming, and piles of laundry to be folded, but we're hanging in there. Life with a new baby is always a bit of a challenge and I've had to let a few things go, as we figure out our new normal, but I wouldn't trade it for the world.

This sweet little squish is a true gift, one we are thankful for every day.

XO Danielle

Tallia's two month check up....

Miss Tallia had her two month check up yesterday and boy was that an adventure. As we pulled up to the doctor's office, it started raining....like a down pour of buckets of rain. I couldn't believe how quickly it came on.

Keagan and Libby got out first and made a bee line for the awning by the office's front door. I shortly followed. I only had one blanket with me, but I wanted to cover the baby in her seat. I ended up using my nursing cover. It kept her mostly dry.

Once we got into the office, paperwork needed to be filled out. Tallia woke up then crying. She wanted to nurse...oh and she had filled her diaper. In a matter of 30 minutes she filled her diaper twice, so that was taken care of in-between filling out paper.

On one occasion, when I went to change her, I had to wait for someone to get out of the handicap stall. That is where the changing table was located. I had to wait for some woman to get off her phone. She was literally on her phone in the stall, as I stood with my screaming baby. Finally she finished her business and got off the phone, but she did not exit the stall quickly...or in any kind of timely manner. She stood in the doorway texting, oblivious to the crying child in my arms. Finally she looked up and it registered that I needed the stall. Oh gosh I was a stressed out mama by then.

Libby and Keagan were such a sweet blessing to me during all of this. I was definitely feeling overwhelmed. Libby helped me get Tallia changed and Keagan carried the car seat and diaper bag. They were an answer to a silent prayer.

We finally got settled in the waiting room, so I started nursing. Not five minutes after I started nursing, they called us back. Poor baby was not happy I had to cut the feed short. This is when brother Bear came out of Keagan. He was too funny, saying Tallia had to eat right now because she was hungry and babies shouldn't have to wait. I had a little glimpse into their future relationship. I have a feeling any future boyfriends will have to go through big brother first. It warms my heart seeing the love my boy has for his sister's.

Once we got back to a room, the nursing was able to continue. We met with two of the greatest doctors. They were so laid back and you could just tell they love their job. That's what you want in a physician.

Miss Tallia was weighed and came in at 12 lbs 11 oz. She was also measured. She is 24 inches long now. Boy my baby has grown.

Baby girl also got her two month shots, which was heartbreaking. I haven't heard Miss Tallia cry that hard. Once we calmed her down and she nursed for a good twenty minutes, she feel asleep. She spent most of the night sleeping and nursing. My sweet baby needed that extra comfort and rest after the whole ordeal. Thankfully the next day she was back to her old self. No fever or discomfort, like I thought she might have. 

The past two months have flown by. We are so thankful for this little sweet pea. She has brought so much joy into our family :)

XO Danielle