Teething Relief (We Think)

A common look these days...

500 Year Flood

We were out of town when the massive rain and flash flooding hit Colorado. Sadly, we lost Josh's Uncle Lowell 3 weeks ago and were home with family to celebrate and say goodbye to a great man.
While in Washington, we received a call from our neighbor telling us they had about a foot of water in their basement, meaning we did too. Although it has been a huge headache, a lot of work, and an unexpected expense, we luckily did not lose anything irreplaceable and everyone we know is safe.

Pictures sent to us of our basement

We have a lot of people to thank who have helped us with the recovery - our neighbors for ensuring our house and dog were safe while gone; the Sandkuhlers who came over to grab what they could and do our laundry; the Beaujons and the Ballards who although had flood damage themselves, were here doing some pretty dirty work cleaning out the basement; the Dunkins for helping to watch Audrey while we were in the midst of it all. And thank you to the out of town family and friends as well for the moral support and check-ins.  

What we came home to...water had mostly drained back out, but a soppy, smelly, filthy mess was left behind.
(The carpet was white)

We are now just bleaching and drying everything out. Likely, we will take our time rebuilding.  Overall, we feel very fortunate and are taking it all in stride because this was quite the disaster and many people around us were not so lucky.  

Cleaning and tossing

Big Girl

Audrey loves to sit up and play (those thighs provide quite the base). And she is on the verge of crawling - up on all fours and very close to figuring out how to move it forward. 

Five Months Old

September has been a bit hectic so we are a little late on the 5-month update. Our baby girl gets cuter and more fun every day! A little bit about Audrey as she passes her 5-month mark.

• She's REALLY on the move: No longer is there just one roll from front to back. She rolls to get places and within about 5 seconds can get to the opposite side of the room, usually hitting her head (which doesn't seem to phase her) on the way. But she doesn't only roll, she scoots too (backwards only,) and pushes herself up on all fours into a plank. This one is going to be crawling in no time.  Baby gates are on order.
• She's very curious: No matter what is going on in the room, she wants to be a part of it. Constantly rolling over to a toy or a box or a dog and always looking around to process what is going on.
• She's a LOUD talker: She now yells happily at the top of her lungs. Especially when she is sleepy and silly.
• She's a stomach sleeper: When you put her down on her back, she immediately rolls to her stomach. Her favorite position is arms underneath, face flat on the mattress and butt up in the air. We (mostly dad) feel the need to poke her to make sure she is still breathing.
• She's sturdy: It must be the planks, but within the last couple of weeks she can now sit upright all by herself with no support at all. Her curiosity does have her reaching for things which can cause her to fall flat on her face every now and then. But she's tough and not easily deterred.
• She's got a grip: Anything in her reach is up for grabs and gets pulled right into her mouth, including Sark...she'll grab onto that ear and try to get a taste. He could care less. 
• She's teething: So there's a lot of chewing and drooling. Just yesterday, her first tooth actually popped!
• She's happy: She is now constantly smiling and laughing. Earlier this week, I looked down at her in her stroller at the grocery store and she immediately started laughing like it was the funniest thing. I can't help but laugh with her. And every day I pick her up at daycare she's being held because the teacher's can't get enough of this happy little one!

The difference in a month...

New Trick

 Audrey's new favorite past time is grabbing her toes...she has now discovered they can be sucked on just like everything else she plays with. 

And just a cute photo from this week:

Adventures in Camping

First attempt was a little rough. Audrey wouldn't sleep in her Pack-n-Play without screaming, so I held her all night...meaning I didn't sleep. Sark was on top of Josh...so he didn't sleep much either. Wish I would have gotten some photos of the arrangements but at the time that was the last thing on my mind. Maybe it'll go better when she's a bit older. And maybe next time we'll invest in a trailer where we have a warm place for a diaper change. But, hey, we tried!

She wasn't the happiest camper.

But there were some good moments!