Akinya Kate @ 5 Months

Tuesday marked the start of a new month...and another "birthday" milestone for Akinya!  5 months!  Already!

Just a year ago, we told our family and our very closest friends that we were expecting.  The following day happened to be April Fool's Day and even though it hadn't crossed my mind, all of a sudden, some of our friends asked if our news from the day before was a prank.  No joke, here!  And a full year later, it's crazy to think we already have a 5-month old baby!

Here are some of Akinya's "accomplishments" from the past month...

-She weighs close to 20 pounds and has moved out of her infant seat to a convertible car seat

-Though rice cereal has been offered, no interest.

-She's starting to "recognize" people and lights up when she sees those she's frequently around

-Babbling...lots of it!  Akinya is constantly babbling; she now does it to put herself to sleep and a lot of times, we find her "talking" in her sleep!  She's also started "singing" for the daycare ladies and she has found a love for squealing!

-Her mouth is her way of exploring the world

-3 days after her 4-month well baby appointment, Akinya rolled over for the first time!  She's now able to turn herself around in the bouncer, stands with support, is very close to sitting up on her own and when on her tummy, has everything in place to crawl.  She's still just not going anywhere!

-Akinya's signature head full of hair is starting to become wavy (and not just when wet)

-The 6month clothes are being replaced with their 9-month counterparts

-She's back to sleeping through the night!  After several weeks of waking up numerous times to give her her pacifier, we're relieved that she no longer wants the crazy thing!

-She also had her first overnight stay at Cousin Marcella's house

-Akinya can hold her bottle for brief periods of time

-Daddy bought Akinya her first pair of "stunna shades" and a sunhat for walks...now, we're just waiting on warm weather, sunshine and NO wind so we can take the long overdue walks!

-Speaking of Daddy, Justin gives her "airplane" rides and Akinya absolutely loves them!

-Akinya also loves, loves, loves the dog.  She reaches for Mitzi and is always trying to pet her.  All was good until one day Akinya pulled, instead of petted, and thank god Mitzi just ran away.  Now, Mitzi's a bit more careful about letting the baby pet her ;-)-

AK & Mitzi at 5 month

AK & Mitzi at 1 month...BIG difference (in Akinya's size; not Mitzi's glare)!

-The other thing Akinya loves?  Kisses from Mommy!  A kiss on the cheek is guaranteed to make her smile, if not laugh.  And this little girl LOVES to laugh!  The other night, I popped out in a workout DVD for the first time in months and guess what she did???  She started cracking up--and I mean, belly laughing, cracking up--while watching me try to work out.  Guess that means I need to work-out more often!