9 Months!

Nine months. Nine long, exciting, grueling months. That's how long I waited to meet this sweet babe of mine. I never did have much "morning" sickness during that time. After the first trimester, it was easy breezy compared to other mommas (I'm talking about you, Ellen Hurt). Yeah, I had to pee every hour on the hour in the middle of the night, and I waddled for a solid month before she made her debut. But those nine months seemed like a lifetime. From the moment I saw the "Pregnant" on the (fourth) pregnancy test, all I could think about was holding her in my arms. She was going to be mine. I made her. Sure it's nice having the nine months to prepare for this new life, but man is it cruel. 

And now she's here. And somehow this nine months has flown by at warp speed. One day I was staring into the eyes of a sweet sleeping babe, brand new. And now she's cruising around and standing on her own and climbing up on me watching my every move. 

Right now, Harper's favorite game is pulling every book off the shelf. Every. Single. Book. She loves any 'touch and feel' book and can find the patch of fur/felt/hole on each page, no problem. Pat the Bunny is her favorite. She likes playing "catch" and rolling the ball back and forth. She's fascinated with my iPhone already (yikes!) and loves watching the videos of herself on it. She's branching out into more exciting, real food. She can not be contained at Baby Bounce, but it's so fun watching her approach the other babies. She weighed 16 pounds, 10 ounces and was 27 and a quarter inches long. She's the happiest baby I know, and is a magnet for strangers drawn to her sweet smile and excited demeanor. 

It's been a tough month for me with Neal's busy season keeping him working late most nights. However, the early spring weather we've had recently has provided lots of fresh air and time spent outside which is an easy cure for the blues. 

During the nine months that I was pregnant I could not have imagined the daughter that God has given me. She is amazing in every way. I am in awe of all of her daily discoveries. Her excitement is contagious and even I smile and clap at the little things now with a new appreciation. I can't wait to see what new things she'll discover next.