It's been a while..

Wow I haven't been on here in quite a while, 2 months actually. Life has been so crazy. I finished out my semester with a 3.41 GPA. I would just like to say, woohoo for me! Not bad for a mom of a 8 month old who goes to school full time and works!
Mackenzie is changing so much! She still hasn't fully grasped crawling yet and is still doing her little inch worm scoot but not really going anywhere. She loves to stand up and is getting much better at balancing with being held up.
We got her picture taken with Santa at the mall and I was so afraid she would freak out but she did great! She even smiled!
She is such a joy and I am really looking forward to her first Christmas with us.

My wonderfully active daughter

I realized yesterday how much Mackenzie has changed the past few weeks. It is absolutely amazing.
She is now rolling, trying to crawl/scoot, giggling at everything, babbling up a storm, and my personal favorite, putting her feet in her mouth.
What an amazing change from that tiny newborn who slept all day and cried all night.
She sleeps through the night, at last! It's a wonderful feeling to wake up to an alarm clock and not a screaming baby. :)
She just amazes me everyday. She has started banging her hands on her tray while in the highchair and babbling as if she's telling me "food mom, get with the program". She's pretty bossy for a 6 & 1/2 month old.

The Scrapbook...

Ok, so I bought a scrapbook for Mackenzie when she was about 2 weeks old, determined to put it together and keep it updated with all of the wonderful pictures I would have of her. I was going to be better at this than my mom had been, who put all of our pictures in boxes that we would pull out and look at from time to time. We'd get that warm and fussy feeling, and then put them back in the box in the closet. Never used photo albums and rarely hung photos up (mostly because we lived in a camper, military housing or rental property a majority of my childhood).

So, I bought everything that goes with this scrapbooking hobby; stickers, paper, scissors, double sided tape, the works! The only problem... I do not have creative bone in my body.
....
Mackenzie will be 6 months old on Oct the 4th, in 4 days, and I have not touched that scrapbook. Well I've touched it, but it was usually to push it out of the way, move it to another location or to put it in the box where all of her pictures are. (Oh mom, you've rubbed off on me.. :) )
So I decided tonight, that I was going to do this, before I forgot when and where these pictures were taken (if I hadn't already). After about 3 hours of blood, sweat and tears, I pause triumphantly... 4 pages are done, 15 pictures in the scrapbook!

I'm thinking about decorating the box in the closet...

Watch out world, here comes Mac!

It is so suprising how fast Mackenzie has changing. She is now 2 weeks away from being 6 months old. She is eating baby food 3 times a day plus nursing every 3 hours or so. She has quite the appetite, but is still weighing in at only 11 lbs or so, even though she measures out at 23 &1/2 inches. She's gonna be a tall and skinny one, thats for sure. She is finally getting her hair back and it is coming in.... toe head blonde! I guess the Swanson genes are taking over! :) She will be quite the little doll with her blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Daddy is already dreading having to chase the boys away once she goes to school.

We have also had quite the monumental occasion this week. Mackenzie is on the move! She has not quite figured out how to get her arms moving at the same time as her legs, but she's working hard at it!. Currently she looks like a inchworm, bringing her legs up underneath her tummy and sliding her upperbody along the floor. It takes her a little while to get where she's going, but she's getting quicker! It's amazing to see how much she has changed just this past week. God is Good!!!!!
It's hard to believe that this time last year we had just found out that we were expecting. It goes by so fast....

the craziness that is my life

I have been back in school at Ball State since August 20th and have found it very difficult to juggle being an "A" student and being "mommy". There are days I wonder how I will ever survive another week of this. I had a hard enough time balancing being a wife and a mom, but when you through homework and classes in with it, it almost seems unbearable. No matter how early I go to bed, I never feel rested and no matter how good of a mood Mac is in, as soon as i put her down to work on homework, she starts screaming her head off, as if she will die if she's not picked up right now! For a 5 & 1/2 month old, she has quite the attitude.

I know it will just take time for things to run smoothly, it's just hard to leave my beautiful daughter with a babysitter so I can go sit in a classroom where an outspoken atheist tells me that the human race is a product of millions of years of evolution. I just don't see the point.

I would much rather spend my day at home, sitting on the floor playing peek a boo and teaching my daughter how to find her nose.

The first blog!

This is my first attempt at "blogging". Hopefully I will be able to catch onto this little wonder, it doesn't' appear to be too difficult. My hope is that I'll be able to keep those close to my family and myself up-to-date on our busy lives. I'll apologize in advance because I know I will not be faithful to doing this every week. I will do my best though :)

Well Mackenzie is going to be 5 months old on Sept 4th (that is so hard to believe!) and I am amazed by her everyday. She is beginning to reach out for objects, my nose being her favorite thing to grab and squeeze. She has developed so much personality, it is just wonderful to watch her reactions to the things around her.
Today I was holding her on my lap and our dog, Lexi, came up and sniffed her face. Mackenzie proceeded to squirm and squeal in delight at the dog's wet nose in her face and reached out for her. Lexi, in response to Mackenzie's excitement, began licking her hands and face, which made Mackenzie squeal even louder. This was the game we played for about 25 minutes while waiting for my cousin Jocelyn to come babysit so I could leave for class.
I spent my whole afternoon in classes thinking about my rapidly changing daughter. It is amazing to me how intricately God has designed us. Think about it. He has created us in such a detailed way that we are ever changing and growing; physically, mentally and spiritually. GOD IS GOOD! And I thank him everyday for the many blessings I have been given.