WHAT A WEEK for the Bear!!

What a week it's been (July 12-19)!

Anna continues to grow at a rapid pace - it seems as if she's completely changed in just one week:

1. She FINALLY started crawling

2. She learned how to point

3. Two more teeth came in (the two next to her front/top two)

4. Dropped the afternoon bottle and moved on to three meals a day

It has been so incredible to witness all of this growth, change and transformation. It's like something has "clicked" inside that little brain and she just get it!

Let me start this amazing week by talking about her nine-month check up. Bill and I went to Lakeview pediatrics to see her pediatrition for her well visit. I always love those becuase A) she's always gaining weight, and B) She always gets a clean bill of health. The same was true this time around. The stats are as follows:

22 lbs (90th percentile) my little chunker :)

29 inches long (75th percentile)

Perfectly healthy in every way (We are SO blessed)

The only thing that we need to do (and very soon) is get Anna into the habbit of falling asleep on her own. Up until now, she's been very used to and comfortable with falling asleep on us and we've created a monster. It's "cry-it-out" time :( Ugh.

Moving on to the next part of the week: CLEVELAND!

The Whelan family went on our first major roadtrip with Anna to visit all of our friends in Cleveland (especially the Baran Clan (Scott, Tara, Aiden, Brady and the little one on the way). Anna did so well on the way there and back. She was pleasant the entire time...unbelievable!

We had a wonderful time meeting all of our friends' new children and an even better time putting them to bed while we "partied" around Scott's bonfire...ahhh the good ole times.

While in Cleveland, Anna surprised us all by CRAWLING across the room for the first time! What made her do it? It was Diesel, the Baran's huge chocolate lab. She loves dogs, and now, she loves to crawl. She's all over the place and we couldn't be happier and more excited for her. Right when we got back home to Chicago, Bill and rushed around the house to "fine tune" our baby-proofing. I think we're good to go, but only time will tell.

Things change when babies start to crawl. There is an aire of independence that comes over them. They're excited to explore the world. And, for the first time...they do it on their own. I love seeing her grow - discovering the world and herself, but I can't help feel a little sad. My little Bear doesn't need me for everything anymore. It's a new chapter in her life, so we have to close the old one...the infant one.

I wish time could stand still for our little family.

Everyone always says, "the best is yet to come." I know that is true, and I look forward to all of it. However, these "baby moments" are few and very precious. I want to soak each second in, wrap my arms around all of it and never let her smell, her sounds her feeling leave me for the rest of my life. I love her at every moment and every stage of life - I'm just so blessed to have been there to experience it all.

I know this is a little cheesy (and you know how I hate that stuff), but I can't help think of a song by John Mayer called, "Stop This Train." The lyrics are below:

No I'm not color blind

I know the world is black and white

Try to keep an open mind but...I just can't sleep on this tonight

Stop this train I want to get off and go home again

I can't take the speed it's moving in

I know I can't

But honestly won't someone stop this train

Don't know how else to say it, don't want to see my parents go

One generation's length away From fighting life out on my own

Stop this train I want to get off and go home again

I can't take the speed it's moving in

I know I can't but honestly won't someone stop this train

So scared of getting older, I'm only good at being young

So I play the numbers game to find a way to say that life has just begun

Had a talk with my old man, Said help me understand

He said turn 68, you'll renegotiate

Don't stop this train

Don't for a minute change the place you're in

Don't think I couldn't ever understand

I tried my hand

John, honestly we'll never stop this train

Once in a while when it's good It'll feel like it should

And they're all still around And you're still safe and sound

And you don't miss a thing'til you cry when you're driving away in the dark.

Singing stop this train I want to get off and go home again

I can't take this speed it's moving in

I know I can't

Cause now I see I'll never stop this train

Anna's First Independence Day (at the lake)

It was a packed house up in Lake Geneva for the 4th of July! The entire family, dogs, Rick, Kelly and Sarah all made it up and we had a great time.

There were a few firsts this weekend for the Whelan family: Anna went on the boat for the first time and Billy and I had a date night to our first concert since having the little babe. We went to Summerfest and saw The Fray, while everyone else babysat Anna. We had such a blast.

As always, I've posted a quick video and some pictures of our long weekend up in LG.

Musical Magic

I signed Anna up for a class in our neighborhood that I had heard great things about. It's actually run by a former PR exec that had a child, a change of heart and ultimately, a change in career (sounds familiar).

As it turns out, it is the cutest thing I've ever experienced. What's better than 10 babies in a circle with lots of music, hand puppets, bubbles and instruments? Five years ago I wouldn't have imagined there being anything more annoying in life, but now, with Anna, it's so much fun. I love seeing her socialize (and she is a social butterfly) with other babies, dance to the music, smile and laugh. This class has made me realize just how much of a little person she is becoming and I love being there to share every moment with her.

OH! And, BTW...Anna Bear is SOOO incredibly close to crawling. Anyday now!

Anna's cousin, Brittany, joined us for our second Musical Magic class and I think she had just as much fun as Anna. I've posted some photos and a video of our fun little hour!