The Cahill Family: Half way there!

I cannot believe my little girl is half way to her 1st birthday! I cannot really focus on that (makes me sad to think of her not being a baby any more), so I will focus on all of the fun things she has been doing lately. Everyone says this is a fun stage and it really is. Every day she learns something new, makes a new noise or facial expression and, if you can believe it, gets sweeter every day. *Disclaimer about our monthly picture: we had to go up on her onsie size (18 mo) so she has not gotten smaller as it looks a little looser :) Also, Paul was helping me out by getting her to smile. As you can tell, she only has eyes for her Daddy!

Here are some new things she is doing:
- sleeps completely through the night, from her last feeding at 7:30 until 7 the next morning
- sitting in her big girl convertible car seat (still facing backwards :)
- she can sit in high chairs at restaurants and sits in the front part of the buggy at the grocery store
- she finally got those toes in her mouth!
- sitting all by her self (although we still keep pillows around)
- eating cereal - a work in progress
- her babbling is starting to sound more like consonants, the most popular being "dadada" and "ahda." I keep trying to sneak some "mama's" in there...
- she loves to play sitting up and loves to play by herself with some toys
- when I pick her up out of her crib, she wraps her arms around my neck and shoulders and burries her face into my neck, with her mouth wide open :) I think that is her way of hugging me and giving me kisses :)
- she is starting to grab things with two hands and pass them back and forth between the two
- she loves to pat your arm or shoulder while you're holding her

"Hey, where is that Daddy going?"

Some of you who don't get to see her often have asked me what her personality is like. She is SO sweet and affectionate. She is usually a happy baby and smiles a lot. She can be stubborn (as evidenced by her not taking a bottle) and, as Paul likes to say, particular. She is definitely a little girl who knows what she wants and lets you know if you are not doing just that! She is an observer for sure. She likes to take in new situations quietly, but as soon as she is back into a comfortable spot, she starts going like a little chatter box! She is also in that explorative stage where she is using her five senses to explore EVERYTHING! Thankfully for us she isn't moving yet! She loves to touch everything, look at new things and hear new noises. She has definitely learned the sound of Maggie scratching her collar or coming down the hall. Anything she picks up she tries to put into her mouth, except the bottle! I hope that gives you a good picture of our sweet little lady!

We go back to the doctor on Monday for her six month check up and I cannot wait to see how big she is! I will update with her stats then. Until then, enjoy these pictures of Miss Mary Frances!