As usual, I am a little late on this, but our little sweetie turned 5 months old in SPAIN!Clothing size: Her 6-month items are starting to get a little tight (especially around her puffy diaper). I tried a 9-month pair of jammies on her last week, and they aren’t ridiculously big, so I guess it’s about time to move up! I’m a little sad to pack up her clothes again (how is she growing so fast?), but I’m grateful she’s putting on weight and thriving. Keeping it real, she wears jammies 99% of the time these days because it’s just so easy to keep her warm in these cold winter temperatures.

Eye color: Very bright blue! When we took her to Spain this month (more on that below), everyone commented on her beautiful eyes everywhere we went. “¡Que ojos!” was heard very frequently! 🙂

Hair: It’s so FLUFFY! Especially after her bath. I love kissing that fuzzy little head of hers. New hair is growing in, and it’s definitely lighter than what she was born with. I’d say it’s light brown right now. (Nella really wanted the baby doll in this picture!)

Teeth: I can’t believe it, but still NONE! She’s been chomping on everything and drooling all over the place for months now, so I thought she’d have something.

Nursing: We’re still typically at 2-2.5 hour stretches. Sometimes, she’ll only eat on one side, and despite my best efforts at encouraging her to eat more, she won’t, and then she’s hungry again an hour later. Rarely, she’ll have a random 3-hour stretch between feedings.

Sleep: She’s giving big sister Kaelyn a run for her money in this category (read: Kaelyn was not a good sleeper as a baby, and Eve isn’t doing so great either). I started trying to get her on a schedule this month, and then we took her to Spain, and any semblance of a schedule was wrecked.

We’re trying to get back on track now, but the most challenging part is getting her to stay asleep. She doesn’t go down easily (usually she wakes up soon after I attempt to put her to bed around 8:30 pm), and when she wakes up upset, nothing calms her except being held and rocked/nursed back to sleep. I get up a lot to put her pacifier back in her mouth, and once or twice a night to nurse her. Usually we end up falling asleep in the recliner together.

I was still swaddling her at up until a few nights ago because it seems like she sleeps better that way, although she gets pretty grumpy about her arms being tucked in and always tries to bust them out. If her hands are free, she scratches her face up during the night. She is also still sleeping in the bassinet in our room.

Favorite things: Cuddles, getting all the attention, milk, her family, and when her sisters are silly with her. Pacifiers are still a must-have item at all times.

She was an “only child” on our trip to Spain, and obviously, she really really loved it. Undivided attention around the clock! She sobbed when we arrived home (probably just because her sisters were loudly screaming with excitement, but we were joking it was because she remembered she wasn’t the only kid, ha!)…

Dislikes: She spent so much time in the Ergo carrier on our trip that she really grew to loathe it (she’d start crying as soon as we’d start to buckle it). She’s content a lot of the time, but the moment she needs something, she starts shrieking and screaming as loudly as possible, so I’d say she’s not a fan of waiting! She doesn’t seem to mind her bath anymore, so that is off her “dislike” list.

Nicknames: Evie, Evie Bedeevee (like Amelia Bedelia), Lovie, Fuzzy, Boo.

Milestones, etc.: -She took the biggest trip any of our kids have gone on thus far… to SPAIN! Michael was speaking at DockerCon in Barcelona, so Evie and I tagged along to do some sightseeing. She was a complete angel on the planes, and she was so good at just rolling with the changes in our schedule and all the “out of the norm” activities. I really couldn’t have wished for a better-traveling baby!

-She was really popular at DockerCon! Michael posted this photo of Evie with all his conference swag to Twitter, and she became known as the “famous baby”. People were asking for selfies with her at the party. Pretty sweet!

-She finally rolled over!!! She’s done it a few times now. So adorable.

-She’s actually somewhat close to being able to stay sitting up on her own. She’s certainly trying hard!

-I just put her in the Exersaucer for the first time a few days ago, and she LOVES it so much.

-She found her toes this month, which is great, because now she has built-in entertainment wherever she goes. She can play with her toes for 10 minutes straight without getting bored!

Dear Eve,

You are suddenly SO BIG! Well, you’re really still little, but you are much more aware of everything going on around you, and you’re certainly trying to act like a big kid. It was almost as if, one day this month, you woke up to the world. You’re so interested in absolutely everything, and you want to grab, mouth, and watch anything you can.You light up the world with your smile! Everyone who meets you instantly loves you. I’m so grateful for your joy.

I keep thinking back to last year at this time, when you were still so tiny and growing in my belly, and how sick I was. All I can say is this: you were more than worth all the physical trials I went through to get you here. Seeing the love and happiness you create in our family is the greatest reward.We love you Evie!

Love, Mommy