Katherine Ann: 6 Months

My Dearest Katherine Ann,

You are...

Six Months 
Half-a-year 
Twenty-Six weeks 
185 days

As I write this, my brain comprehends the numbers, but my heart is having a hard time accepting the reality. Katie Ann, you are six months old! It truly is something to celebrate. Thank you for giving us six months of smiles, giggles, and cuddles mixed with hundreds of diapers, numerous outfit changes, and many sleepless nights...none of which we would trade. Your daily diaper changes give us time each day to giggle and play. Your numerous outfit changes allow us to model all the cute clothes your family sends. And the sleepless nights give us precious time to pray over you as we rock you back to sleep. 

We have seen so many changes in you over this past month; starting with the biggest accomplishment...the roll!! One morning I walked into your nursery and there you were, rolled over up on your arms with a great big smile on your face! I ran to get the camera and sent a picture to your daddy right away. He was so excited! You and daddy had been practicing the roll over for a couple weeks. You also are starting to sit up on your own. It doesn't usually last more than 10 seconds, but you are getting stronger and more confident each day. This month you also found your voice and you love it. We think you might be a soprano one day because you can reach some extremely high octaves...and the louder the better in your book! We love talking with you and wish we knew what was going on in your little head. 

Your favorite toy this month is a yellow duck puppet. It makes you laugh and smile more than any other toy! The best part, it only cost a dollar. This is just another confirmation that you truly are my daughter. Dutch babies know how to appreciate a good deal! 

This month you and I traveled back to Iowa. You had a wonderful time playing with your cousin, snuggling with Great Grandma, visiting Papa at the fire station, and shopping with Grammy and Aunt Angie! Your great uncle and aunt from Georgia were also in town, so you got to play with them too! The time went too fast, but we made wonderful memories.

Our dear friends from Alabama came to see you this month. We were blessed to call them neighbors and friends for 3 years while living at DTS! They were excited to see how much you have grown and changed since June.

Football season kicked off this month. You will learn very quickly that your daddy loves football; especially football of the Ohio State genre. Needless to say, he wanted you to have plenty of Buckeye gear for you to wear on game days. Your Auntie Stephanie and Grammy Kreger took care of this with the cutest dresses! Although you have napped through most of the games, your daddy is convinced you already like football and he is quite proud of your catching form...as seen in the photo below. Your daddy also loves baseball and we attempted a Ranger's game for his birthday. It was this time last year we announced to our family and friends you were on the way with a picture we took at a Ranger's game. So it was extra special to be with you at a game one year later. 

Precious little girl, you are truly our biggest blessing and sweetest gift. We thank God for you each day and we are so grateful we get to be your parents. The past six months have been filled with more love and joy than we ever thought possible. We love you today and always!