4 months

This post is late b/c mommy has been battling a bad case of strep throat -- seriously, who gets strep in August?


Maren is now 4 months old and as fun as ever! I kind of feel bad saying this, but Maren is the easiest baby in the world! Addi was difficult, I'll say it, but she had colic and allergies to formula and all sorts of issues that made her sort of, well, perpetually cranky-- but we had no other little person to care for, so we were able to devote all of our time and energy to her. . . happily. Maren is mellow and easy and pretty much happy all the time.

Maren is a great eater, in fact, I think she would nurse 24/7 if allowed. She also seems to already be very interested in big people food. Any time we are holding her while we eat she looks at our food with this really intense stare as if she wants to just grab it and shove it in her face. She also gives us the same stare as she watches our faces while we eat and she even moves her mouth to mimic us. I have a feeling she will be a much less picky eater than her skinny blonde counterpart.

As far as milestones go Maren has been chugging along at a normal rate. She can roll from back to front and has even rolled from front to back a couple of times. When she is on her play quilt on her tummy she kicks her little legs like crazy and can even scoot a bit. She loves to grab at her favorite toys -- Jack the crazy jackrabbit and her soft book with a mirror on the front. She especially loves to look at herself in the real mirror. Addi used to get all wigged out when we showed her herself in the mirror, and we would tease her and tell her that she was looking at her arch-nemesis Madison. Maren on the other hand will flirt with her reflection, giggle, smile and coo as if to say,"hey friend, you are super cute -- wanna play?"


Mare is also a little social butterfly. She loves to smile at anyone who makes eye contact with her and Addi remains one of her absolute favorite people in the whole world -- I think she would trump me if I wasn't the magical milk lady. She watches Addi without even blinking and just soaks up every word and action as though she will be tested on it later. Maren still loves to "talk" to us with her sweet coos, expressive face and whole body wiggles. . . oh, the wiggles. I think she is the most wiggly, wormy little baby on the face of the Earth. She is constantly squirming, kicking, flapping and rocking. Sometimes when she is sitting on someone's knee, she will kick her legs and flap her arms at the same time as though she is swimming through the air.


Each and every day we consider ourselves so lucky to have our sweet, smiley, warm ball of Mare Bear in our lives :)