maestro

people have always commented about your arms. you have always had them out and move them in a "conducting" kind-a-way. we always thought it was cute but didn't realize how unique it was until so many people started making comments about them. you move them when you're excited.  upset.  intrigued.  it's an outlet for many emotions.  

craig jessop (former music director for mormon tabernacle choir)

your nemesis

loud, unfamiliar noises. i.e. the food chopper and dad's sneezes. they both bring you to tears.

born in the u.s.a.

well sis, you should consider yourself lucky to be born into this great country we call america. 2008, the year of your birth, was an election year. and not just ANY election year, a truly historic one.  the first african american was elected president. while your dad and i aren't necessarily huge fans of barack obama, we do recognize the history that has been made. it's weird for us to think that you will never know our country as one that hasn't had an african american president.

i hope one day you will take part in your social responsibility to vote.  and will do so with enthusiasm.

muah!

don't get me wrong, i've loved since i first layed eyes on you. but sometimes it just strikes me stronger than usual. like today. you are just such a happy little girl and that makes me happier than you could possibly know. whenever you give me one of your big, over-exaggerated smiles, i can't help but smile and laugh. you make an otherwise normal monday into yet another joy-filled day. xox

snug as a bug

for a couple nights in a row you were crankier than usual.  in an attempt to get you happy, dad tried this little trick ... 

you all of a sudden went from cranky to completely content.  in fact, you were so content, you did this ...  

could you be any sweeter?

as of late

just a few things i think are worth mentioning ...

- you are now successfully rolling all the way over (front-to-back and back-to-front) and have found it serves as a great mode of transportation.

- you've discovered how to scream/yell loudly and choose to do so at random times, like when you're eating. that's typically how you let me know you're either done eating or need to burp. although sometimes you just scream and yell out in frustration then go back to eating as if everything is fine. still trying to figure out what that's all about.

- you are very easily distracted. it's gotten to the point where i can't feed you around anyone else, or even talk to anyone because you'll become more interested in the conversation than in eating. it's this same easily-distractedness that makes napping in public places (i.e. church) next to impossible. there is just way too much to see in this new world of yours.

- as of about a week and a half ago, you eat and love, i mean LOVE, rice cereal. sidenote: your dad is terrible at cleaning you up after. it's not uncommon to find remnants of cereal hours later. in your nose, on your face, ears, arms. you name it, we've found it there.

- something you do and have done for a while is flail your arms and legs when you're excited. whether it's something big that's exciting or just mom or dad walking toward you. it cracks me up and warms my heart every time. love it.

here are just a few pics of you lately ...

stella

you have become quite fond of your puppy, stella. in fact, stella deserves credit for your first belly laugh. in an attempt to get your 'grumps' out one night, dad took you outside and stella happily followed. he sat you down against his legs on the back patio and threw the ball out to stella. every time she came back with the ball, you laughed. hard. we had never heard you laugh that hard before! we've never had to work too hard to get you to smile at us, and you often smile for no reason at all. but getting you to have a good laugh has taken much more effort. you continue to watch her and often look for her when you can hear her coming. we're hoping she returns  all this love and adoration.

(she also loves the boppy and uses it much more than you and i do).

what i'm loving these days

how you smile so easily.

how you try to get our attention by making loud noises.

how when we come near you, you show your excitement by making spastic movements with your arms and legs.

your alertness. dad says you're just like mom ... you don't want to miss out on anything.

4 months old

today you turned 4 months old. i can't believe how time flies. everyone warns you stinkers grow up fast but i had no idea how right they were. you went to the doctor today for your 4-month check-up. you weighed in at a whopping 11 pounds, are 24 inches in length and have a head circumference of 16 inches. as always, you were pretty dang good for the doctor (who calls you "sydster") and took your 4 shots to the legs like a champ. here are a few things about you at 4 months ...

you're a very content and happy baby. rarely fussy for no reason.

good sleeper. take a couple good naps during the day and 9-10 hours at night. yet another reason for your dad and i to love you.

tell the greatest stories in your own little language.

have giggled for us a few times. you smile very easily but make us work a little harder for a laugh.

recognize your mom and dad and always welcome dad home from work with a big smile. he loves it.

while you can't roll over quite yet, you're very good at the side-to-side motion and squirm all over the place. leaving you alone on beds, couches etc. is no longer an option.

constantly get compliments on how cute you are; in particular people notice your skin and big blue eyes.

when excited, your big eyes get even bigger and you flail your legs.

love time spent in the stroller. content just looking at the world around you.

drooling and slobbering are a part of who you are these days. i call you a drool monster. your dad calls you a drool fool.

betcha can't do this ...

mmm ... toes in the mouth. you recently discovered your feet; more specifically your big toe. you've found that while it provides (or will provide) stabilization for standing and walking, it doubles as a great sucking mechanism. your dad is taking full credit for introducing you to your toesies. about a week ago he assisted you in full-on sucking your big (although it's itty bitty) toe, suckling noises and all. and here you are just a week later doing it all on your own. yum-a-rooni!

got it!

just in the last week or so you have gone from just being able to look at your toys to actually holding onto them. i love watching you put full concentration into reaching your hand out and grabbing onto something (and don't even get me started on your cute little chubby fingers wrapped around it). you have also discovered your hands, fists and fingers ... all of which (along with your toys) you lOVE putting into your mouth. love it. love you.

my one of many (previous and future) mistakes

in preparation of giving you a bath this morning, i was changing your diaper. while it was wet, it wasn't poopy. for a moment i debated giving you another minute to work something out but then thought it had already been a while since you'd eaten and maybe you just weren't gonna poop this time. i could NOT have been more wrong. i put your nikid little body in the tub crossing my fingers. moments after playfully splashing around in your bathwater ... yep. you pooped. i took you out and placed you on a towel in your room while i cleaned out the tub. amid my scrubbing i heard an all-too-familiar noise ...

pooped on the towel. to avoid you squirming around and making an even bigger mess, i moved you onto the bathroom rug while i finished cleaning ...

pooped on the rug and tile.

i finished cleaning the tub, filled it back up and put you back in it. surely you should be done with your business right? wrong. in less than a minute you pooped yet again. this time i went for something disposable. i made a nice little blanket of paper towels for you to roll around on while i went to town with the clorox. again. filled up the tub. again. gave you another minute on the paper towels for safe measure then put you back in.

success.

lessons to be learned? if at first you don't succeed, try, try again. and mom, next time listen to that little inner voice.

little miss independent

while sometimes all you want is our attention, other times you want nothing more than to lay down, sprawl out and squirm to your hearts content. many-a-time people have wanted to hold you and take you away from your happy state of sprawling and squirming on the floor. you fuss. they eventually give up and put you back down. you're immediately happy as a clam once again.

becoming learned

as you've become increasingly aware of your surroundings you have loved watching mobils, playmats and most recently books. they'll actually hold your attention for a bit. it's so cute. there is something about watching you as you stare in awe at these things. i know you're learning something ... i'm not sure exactly what it is but the wheels in your head are definitely turning. it's so fun to watch you learn. i could watch you all day.

the tv has you captivated.

dad had something on the computer that held your interest for a long while.

the tv again. i promise we read you books. we just haven't caught it on film yet.

blessing bliss

you were blessed in the farmington 6th ward on august 3rd. we were lucky to have our entire family and a few of our close friends there. they are all so great and supportive and as an extra bonus, they love you. dad gave you a beautiful blessing. i love him so much and feel so blessed to have someone who holds and honors his priesthood and is able to bring all the blessings that come from it to our home. we are very lucky girls to have such a great guy in our life.

my testimony of the love our heavenly father has for his children has truly been strengthened since having you. i liken the pure love i have for you to the love our heavenly father has for us. it is strong, pure, and without limits; just as my love for you is. you have truly brought such an amazing, peaceful spirit to our home. throughout my life, i have often wondered why i have been blessed to have the gospel and the many blessings that come from it. why me? why should i be so blessed? now i know that the reason for my being so blessed is so that i could pass those blessings onto my children. how thankful i am that heavenly father has entrusted me to be a mom. and to be your mom ... i never thought i could be so lucky. we truly couldn't love you more.

all the guys.

dad, grandpa southwick and uncle jed.

proud papa. he is crazy about you.

mom and aunt stacie.

hannah was baptised the day before your blessing so we had to get the two of you together in your white dresses. you're so cute! hannah is gonna be a great babysitter in a few short years.

the guest of honor ...

you looked beyond precious.

little miss chatterbox

in the last week you have become increasingly aware of your vocal chords. you have been good at telling us stories for a while now, but the volume at which you tell those stories has increased. you'll talk for a good while, most often after a good meal. you just love to sprawl out and hear your voice. and you love it when we talk back. dad says you're gonna be like your mom ... i do love to chat.

rub a-dub-dub

you have grown quite fond of bathing. i was worried tub time was never going to be a great experience since your baths during the first few weeks of your life could have easily been mistaken as a form of human torture.

baths before ...

baths now ...

sleep baby sleep

at about 13 weeks you decided it was time to let your mom and dad sleep all night long. it was a glorious day in july and we were vacationing at bear lake. when i heard dad's alarm clock go off to get him up to golf i shot out of bed and asked what time it was. it was 7:00 a.m.! you went to bed at 10:30. i initially panicked and ran to your pack-n-play to make sure you were still breathing. with the assurance that you were indeed alive, i was elated with my good little sleeper and felt like a million bucks with a full 8 hours of sleep. call it luck, call it whatever you like but i like to think that my attempt at scheduling you paid off. that, combined with the southwick genes that make one want to sleep more than others, may prove to be a perfect recipe for a good little sleeper. no complaints here.

this is your favorite sleeping position.

you also love to nuzzle. when you're tired we'll sometimes put a soft blanket near your face and you immediately nuzzle your little face into it. it usually ends up covering your entire head. like so ...

we only allow this when there is parental supervision for fear that you might smother yourself. once we know you're asleep, we oh-so-carefully remove the blanket from your face to ensure your safety. it's so stinkin cute.

for you

well sis, i'm completely amazed at how quickly the last 3 months have gone. i've loved every single minute of your life and truly can't imagine life without you in it. you're growing and changing so much and so quickly i needed to find a way to try and capture the moments of your life as they happen ... big and small. so, this book is for you. this is a place for me to write about all things syd: all your milestones, your scrapes and bruises, your funnies, your naughties, anything and everything. i hope this will be a book that you and i will sit down and read together often. i love you muchly.