Joanna is teething big time these days! She is constantly drooling and gnawing on her hands. No teeth poking through yet-- I know it could be a while for that. We are just unpacking from our vacation and trying to get back into our routine again!

This week we are in Arizona visiting my family. Joey got to meet her Papa Sam and Uncle David and Aunt Megan and family for the first time! It is so sunny and beautiful here! We've been all over the place this week-- the zoo, the botanical gardens, a coffee shop, and many more places! Joey has been such a trooper. Its been so wonderful to be able to let Gia play outside. My mom made a beautiful quilt for Joanna and this feather fabric was part of it. I had to go to the fabric store where she bought and get some for myself! Not yet sure what I am going to make of it, but I bought 2 yards. I don't think it translates very well in pictures but it is absolutely beautiful. Aside from being awesome for her first plane ride, Joey found her toes AND rolled over for the first time!!! Yay baby!

Joanna had to get some shots this week, as you can see by the band aids on her legs. We are doing a delayed shot schedule so Joanna has been going every month for one or two shots as opposed to receiving 4 shots at one visit. I am not anti-vaccine-- I believe they are very important for babies. I also want our children to be able to travel the world and possibly live overseas with us some day. So vaccines are critical to their health. However, I've chosen not to give her any of the combination shots and to spread them out more than usual, so as to not overload her little body. Polio and other disesases have been eradicated in our country (because of vaccines) but they are still prevalent in many other countries, including nations where Sean and I could potentially see ourselves living or visiting some day.

Joey and Gia actually both got shots at the same appointment, and let me tell you-- that was a mistake. Gia had some pretty traumatic hospital experiences when she was younger and she is terrified of/obsessed with the doctor. I thought we had prepared her pretty well for this appointment, as we constantly watch Daniel Tiger and Doc McStuffins. She even said she was going to be brave then tell Joey to be brave. But when it came down to it, the whole ordeal was a mess. She got hysterical and I had to hold her down with all my might, she started crying so much she almost puked, it was just awful. Sean is most definitely coming with us to the next shot appointment. Joanna handled them like a champ. She cried for a few minutes then slept for 4 days!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I had some fun ideas for St. Patty's day things to do with Gia, but didn't really get around to working them all out. But I did get these fun shirts made for the girls (see pic below)! Shortly after I took the pics, though, Joanna had a blow out and ruined her. Glad I took the photos as soon as I got them dressed this morning! As you may be able to tell by the light in the pictures, it is another dreary, gray, cold, ugly Indiana day. I'm getting pretty weary of this! But, there were a few days of sunshine this past week. In fact, Tuesday was so nice that we all got out to a nearby state park for some hiking and campground site scouting. Gia loved mucking around in the mud and puddles. I made a rookie mom mistake-- no change of clothing for either girl! Gia had to ride home in just her diaper, but it was 65 degrees outside and she didn't seem to mind. It was so nice to get some fresh air! Joanna experienced her first time at the Children's Museum this week, too. It was definitely tough with two kids... I feel like poor Gia didn't get to do as much there as she wanted to/normall does because I had to keep stopping to nurse Joey or change her diaper or something. Next time we go I'll definitely need a wing man to hang out with Gia when I need to tend to Joey. Also this week, Joey has gotten much better at reaching for toys and actually grabbing them for brief moments of time! She's been a bit fussy this week (and by fussy, I mean crying a little, which is more than usual but she's still such a great baby!) but I think its because she's in one of those infamous "wonder weeks" where lots of change and growth is taking place. We still don't have a great schedule, except for our nighttime routine. I'd really like to get a better routine going through out the day for her naps and stuff, but so far, no dice. We tried Gia in a big girl bed but she wasn't too thrilled so we let her get back in her crib. I'd really like to move Joey out of our room since she's sleeping 8-10 hours straight at night. But, we need the crib in order to do that! Gia's also been wanting to use the potty a lot more this week... that's a good thing except we'd finally decided to wait until we get back from a trip to Phoenix next month before we get hard core about potty boot camp. We may not have that luxury! We shall see....

This week more than any other so far, I really think Joanna looks like Gia. Not so much even in their 10 week comparisons, but as I was editing this photo I just kept thinking it was Gia! Crazy! Sean was really busy with work this week, and had a lot of meetings and extra obligations he had to tend to. We are going stir crazy with the cold weather still lingering about. How dare it stay this long into March! Hoping the next week brings some reprieve and we can finally introduce Joanna to the sun! We are trying to get Joey to take a bottle, but so far haven't had any luck. I need to try to borrow a few different types of bottles to see if there is one she prefers more but we really, really, really want her to be able to take a bottle. Gia never did, and it was quite draining. Literally for 14 months, I was the only source of milk. It got better around 8 months when she was eating enough table foods that she wasn't nursing as much but it would still be really nice to get a break every now and then. 

Joanna had her two month check up this week! She weighs 10 pounds, 3 ounces and is 23.5 inches long. Although I do think she's long, that measurement might be a little on the exaggerated side. There is one nurse at our ped's office whose measurements always seem to be a bit generous in relation to all the others'. Either way, baby is growing! And miraculously, she is still sleeping 6-8 hours at night routinely. She is starting to get a bit of a flat head in the back, though, from all that time lying down. I'm trying some new positions, like on her side, so that it doesn't get bad. We are doing a delayed vaccine schedule again with her (like we did for Gianna), so she only got the Rotavirus oral vaccine and the singular (not combo) DTaP shot. She didn't seem to have any adverse reactions to either, thankfully! Sunday was the Oscars! One of my favorite days of the year. Joanna was a great companion for watching the Red Carpet stuff.  She cooed at all the right dresses. :) Just today, Joanna seems to have discovered her hands!! She held them up in front of her face while I was changing her diaper and just stared at them as she moved them around. She still prefers sucking on her fist as opposed to a pacifier.