Five months

Anna is now five months old! I won't exaggerate and say that time flies...but it is hard to believe she is almost ready to fill out college applications already. Or rather, already reading her way through our board book supply (photo below). We put her into the jumpy-swing this week, and this has been a great way for her to work off some of that abundant energy in her little legs. She can also circle and swing around to see everything that's going on. And, of course, Jonathan can also push her around (causing shrieks of delight).



She has been playing with her feet alot recently, and also reaches to touch people's faces. In general she seems to have become much more content, calmer. She still doesn't usually take more than two half-hour naps all day (which is a bit exhausting for us adults), but she does sleep well at night - and often lays in her bed cooing and kicking (i.e. not crying) after waking up in the morning (between 5 and 6am). And her schedule has become slightly more predictable. The best part of the day for me is bathing her (between 5 and 5.30pm), feeding and singing to her, and then putting her down for night. I also really like that I can take her all over the place in the front carrier, and cook/bake and all those other house-bound things as well. The photo below captures well her interest in the world at large...



Anna is still drinking/eating only breast milk. We haven't weighed or measured her in a few months, but she probably is not in 99th percentile for height or weight (we're aiming more for being on the chart at all). No teeth yet, but lottttts of slobber.

Her most common nickname these days is "B'Anna" - Jonathan's "baby Anna." He also calls her Anita, following the example of our Bolivian co-workers; alternately she is know as "la princesa de CCM."

I've read this in books, experienced it first with Jonathan, and am now re-learning it with Anna: At first you love your baby because s/he is yours, but then you increasingly love him/her because of who s/he is. Such is certainly the case with Anna. What an astounding little girl!


Showing off a little leg in her Old Colony Mennonite dress.