Iyla's Friends

We have been having SO much fun watching Iyla enjoy her books & toys lately. One of the cutest things is how she "talks" to her different stuffed animals. I will take them out one by one to hold above her, making them talk to her & putting her arms around them to hug. She LOVES it. Lots of coos and babbles & smiles!

I also discovered an awesome new way to attempt Tummy Time yesterday (something Iyla always hates). Using the My Breast Friend nursing pillow (hooray for finally finding a use for this!), I've been propping Iyla up to face her stuffed animals. Yesterday was our first time trying this, and Iyla wanted to tell her friends all about it:

"Let me tell you how I REALLY feel about Tummy Time...."

Today's session saw Iyla actually lifting up her entire upper body with strength I didn't know she possessed! It was hilarious because it totally exhausted her... after holding herself up for a couple of minutes the fussing started & she was immediately ready for a nap.

This little lady is also having an amazing run with bedtime... the past 3 nights I've gotten an 8, 8.5, and 9 hour first stretch of sleep respectively! And last night after the 9 hours (7:45pm-4:45am) she nursed & immediately went back to sleep until 7:45. This allowed me to get up ahead of her and actually shower & get ready for the day without her yelling at me from the bathroom bouncy chair (she ALWAYS starts fussing when it gets time to put on my mascara. ALWAYS. I think she prefers her Mama au naturale).

We also met another friend out this morning for breakfast. It is my dear friend Lisa's birthday today, so a Bouldin Creek Cafe coffee date was in order! Iyla did awesome- we took turns holding her, and she even graced the birthday girl with lots of smiles.

Iyla and her Auntie Lisa

In other news, BC and I have decided to take a 2 week road trip to the Midwest this June (where we are both from), when Iyla is almost 7 months old. We figure driving will give us a lot of flexibility with bringing all of our baby loot, and it will also allow us to visit so many friends and family! We'll be making stops in Oklahoma City, Kansas City, Minneapolis, Madison, Milwaukee, Chicago, and then 2 more TBD stops on the way home to Austin. We may be a little crazy to plan this, but we can't WAIT to hit the road and introduce Iyla to all of our loved ones. 

**As a sidenote- If you've ever road tripped with an infant, any tips & advice are welcomed!**