We did the weekly Bumpdate of Brittany’s belly, so naturally we had to get on a consistent schedule with our photos of Willow as well! We hope you enjoy the monthly photos of our precious little girl, and we would love for you to leave a comment with any tips (or encouragement) on what we should prepare for in the months that follow…remember, we’re new at this whole parenting thing!

In her first month:

• Willow is breastfeeding like a champ!
• She likes short walks around the neighborhood…
• …and long walks on the beach! Just kidding…but she did go on her first beach trip (more on that soon!).
• Willow experienced her first airplane ride and she did GREAT!
• We were so spoiled to have Kelsey Malicote do a newborn shoot of Willow.
• Our girl hiccups and sneezes all. the. time.
• Momma discovered that she can’t eat things that are tomato-based because it upsets Willow’s tummy (goodbye pizza…how ironic!).
• Willow started sleeping through the night (for around 6 hours) at 4 weeks old (thank you Jesus!).
• Daddy got his first smile from Willow. Heart melted!
• Despite our best efforts, we conceded that Willow hates taking a paci. Crazy, right?!
• She got to meet sooooo many dear friends who already love her to the moon and back.
• Willow attended her first church service and got to participate in the annual baby dedication service!

In her second month:

• Willow started going on runs with momma and loves it!
• She loves listening to Lauren Daigle music (but who doesn’t?!).
• This child is still doing an awesome job with breastfeeding.
• The cooing and babbling has started and her voice is sooooo cute!
• She is still sleeping through the night (and we are progressing in hours)!
• Willow finally fits in newborn clothes. She was only 5 lbs. 13 oz. at birth, so we had to scramble to find preemie outfits!
• Spit bubbles are apparently “in” when you’re two (months).
• Our sweetheart absolutely HATES the car and car seat.
• Her smiles are more frequent and getting cuter by the second!
• She got to meet our awesome Colorado friend + photographer, Jennifer Morgan, for a fun photo shoot at Keeneland!
• Willow still won’t take a paci…
• …but she found her hands (which have found her mouth).

In her third month:

• This girl is pretty much smiling on command…it’s the best!
• She absolutely loves her Daddy and gave him her first tiny laugh (we caught it on video + will share it soon!)
• We traveled to Lakeside, Ohio for the long Fourth of July weekend. Willow totally slept through the fireworks!
• Our little jet-setting beach bum had an awesome week in Seaside, Florida (this will be a separate blog post).
• She loves being outside (and so do we), so we think we’re going to keep her.
• Willow is still sleeping through the night (gimme allllllll the praise hands!)
• Her personality is really coming out and you can definitely tell when she doesn’t like something.
• She LOVES her hands!
• Willow has started to grab and hold on to things (pretty soon she’ll probably want Daddy’s wallet).
• Thankfully, she is getting a little better about car rides but is still a bit suspect of her car seat.

In her fourth month: 

• Now Willow smiles ALL the time (except around bedtime).
• She is starting to laugh at things we do…It’s precious!
• The obsession with her hands continues (is anyone really surprised?).
• Willow is still breastfeeding and taking the bottle well.
• She loves bath time…
• …but on the way to the tub she has peed on Daddy a couple times!
• The girl “talks” all the time…she has some pretty elaborate tales!
• She usually gets vocal when you lay her down on the changing table and talk to her.
• Willow is a pro at taking 30 minute naps (but not a minute longer).
• She loves holding on to her little bunny (we named her Winnie).
• Her preference is to be facing out when you’re holding her. She has people to see, ya know!
• She’s so great to take on walks (and usually falls asleep).
• She loves looking around and definitely enjoys any time outside, but she hasn’t experienced winter yet.

In her fifth month:

• She is the happiest girl around! Willow is almost always smiling or “talking.”
• Our little girl L-O-V-E-S bath time.
• Breastfeeding has become a challenge and the weaning process has begun.
• She has been trying lots of different foods, but of course she prefers the sweeter ones (just like her momma)! Willow has had apples, sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, peas, green beans, pears, avocado, prunes, bananas, peaches, pineapple, and even had a little taste of peanut butter. Out of all of these things, pears and bananas are her absolute favorites!
• As soon as she learned to roll over in her crib we transitioned her out of her sleep sack, so now this girl just sleeps in her onesie at night!
• She absolutely loves her exersaucer and loves bouncing, bouncing, bouncing the day away!
• Willow started paying attention to the dogs a lot more this month and is following them with her eyes and smiling at them. The dogs are appreciating the increased attention…haha!
• This little one took her first trip to Knoxville (where Brittany’s parents and sister lives) and Willow did AWESOME in the car!
• She was invited to a birthday party at Evan’s Orchard and got to take home a pumpkin with her name on it!
• She’s officially a belly sleeper. Momma may have cried the first night she slept on her belly in her crib…it was so nerve-wracking!

In her sixth month:

• Willow suddenly loves being on her belly and is rolling all around reaching for anything she can get her hands on. She’s pretty good at scooting backwards, too!
• She loves books (this makes her literacy professor Momma happy!).
• Willow tries to reach for the dogs and sometimes gets tickled by them.
• She can sit up on her own for about .05 seconds. She’s close, we know it!
• Willow is obsessed with her Daddy! You can’t wipe the smile off her face when he’s around. It is SO stinkin’ precious!
• She’s getting the hang of our Sunday afternoon nap time (thank you, Jesus)!
• No teeth yet, but there’s tons of drooling going on!
• We’re in our final days of breastfeeding.
• She got the CUTEST Halloween costume! Stay tuned to our Instagram feed to see it later this month!
• Willow had her six month photos taken by the one-and-only Kelsey Malicote and y’all…they are the sweetest, plus she got to hang out and get some snapshots with her BFF, Myla Malicote! We can’t wait to share them with you soon!
• Her smiles and blue eyes melt our hearts right into a puddle.

In her seventh month:

• Willow can sit up on her own. Woah.
• Our big girl is into yoga. She has the downward dog position down pretty well. We’re waiting any day for a summersault.
• Momma and baby have officially stopped breastfeeding. It was a very bittersweet transition.
• Our girl celebrated her first Thanksgiving. She thoroughly enjoyed trying pumpkin pie for the first time (but who are we kidding, it was really all about the Cool Whip. Sorry, pumpkin pie!)
• Willow is starting to eat solid foods and LOVES squash.
• Peanut says “Dada” and “blah blah” ALL the time. Dada is responsible for teaching her the “blah blah”…but still no “Momma!” She is quite the babbler now!
• She clicks her tongue typically when she is happy about something.
• Rook > Runner. Glad the old man is getting her affection while we love on our Golden girl. 🙂 Thankfully, Willow loves both the pups (but definitely prefers Rook).
• Willow is Miss Independent and loves doing things for herself (especially holding her own bottle and spoon when eating).
• There are still no teeth in that little mouth of hers, but she’s got drool for days!
• Her mode of transportation is by way of rolling all over the place. This happens most often when you try to change her diaper. Little stinker!!!
• Our sweet Willow Rose was the star of our first family Christmas photos. Have we mentioned how grateful we are for Kelsey Malicote?!

In her eighth month:

• Willow crawled for the first time! At first she lunged. Then she did the Army crawl. Now she’s really starting to get the hang of it!
• Just a couple days after her first crawl, she pulled herself up (on Dada, no less!).
• She is trying more food and enjoys eating at the dinner table with Momma and Dada.
• Our baby girl is SO observant. Willow studies the room (especially if there are new people) before she’ll warm up to you.
• Willow has mastered the use of a straw and loves drinking cold water from her sippy cup. She also is a big fan of eating puffs.
• She started banging her toys together to make noise.
• She’s a daredevil in the mornings…look away for one second and you’ll find her attempting to climb out of her rock and play in the mornings as mom and dad are getting ready for work!
• Willow had her first kiss…she totally leaned in and planted one on her little buddy, Will. This happened during our life group in front of two dozen witnesses. It was precious!
• She loves playing with Daddy and LOVES when he gives her zerberts on her belly. 🙂
• No sign of any teeth yet for our sweet little Peanut, but she loves “chewing” on all the things.
• Willow Rose continues to melt our hearts in every way and we love her more with each second that passes! Thank you, God, for our little miracle!

In her ninth month:

• Willow is going places!!! She is crawling everywhere, especially to wherever she finds Rook (our 14-year-old lab).
• She is pulling up on everything and LOVES to play a game where Daddy acts as a mountain and she climbs over him.
• We had to lower Willow’s mattress since she started pulling up in her crib.
• Willow has said “momma” a few times, but “dada” still wins as her favorite “word.”
• Eating puffs and drinking water are still two of her favorite things.
• She’s learned to clap her hands together when you say, “Yay, Willow!”
• Willow loves playing Pat-a-Cake and Peek-a-Boo!
• She went to the nursery at church for the first time.
• Our Peanut survived a week away from momma and dada while they were in NYC + Mexico on a quick vacation.
• Willow spent her first Christmas in Tennessee.
• Our baby girl got to spend New Year’s Eve with two of her besties, Will and Alison. They had a special 6:55pm New Year’s countdown and made it to bed right on time!
• Willow Rose is still melting our hearts every minute of every day!

In her tenth month:

• Says momma allllllll the time now!
• She LOVES books, especially her book about Sophie the Giraffe and her book about babies and doggies.
• She grabs her walker and strolls around the house any chance she gets!
• Willow is climbing stairs (eight is her record so far!) and can crawl sooooo fast.
• She has two bottom teeth popping out and more on the way!
• This girl is crazy about some mandarin oranges.
• She loves to look outside and “talk” to the neighbors.
• Willow adores Rook (our 14-year-old pup) and loves on him every chance she gets.
• She would win the Miss Independent pageant. She definitely wants to do things her way!
• Daddy is still her #1 favorite person! She is so smitten with him (and the feeling is clearly mutual!)

In her eleventh month:

• She frequently calls out for “momma!” or “dada!” (especially in the mornings).
• Says “baba” when it’s close to bottle time (and when she sees it!).
• She can stand on her own for about 30 seconds, but only when she decides to try.
• Gives kisses…wet, slobbery ones!
• Can sign “more.”
• Her favorite song is “How Much is that Doggie in the Window.”
• Loves swinging and riding in shopping carts.
• Gives high fives like a boss!
• Bath time is her absolute favorite.
• She LOVES drinking water (definitely takes after her momma)!
• Her favorite books are the Alphabet Book and Dada (by Jimmy Fallon).

In her twelfth month:

• Willow finger yodels like it’s her job (ask her to do it the next time you see her…it’s a hoot!)
• She took FOUR steps all by herself!
• New words in her vocabulary include “baby” and “dog.”
• She has an absolute meltdown when you tell her “no.”
• Her favorite book is the Ear Book by Dr. Seuss.
• Give her a phone and it goes straight up to her ear. She’s so smart!
• She went to her friend Will’s one-year birthday party!
• Willow visited Disney’s Magic Kingdom (and slept thru It’s a Small World…so sad!).
• She spent Easter in Toledo and got to celebrate her birthday with family a week early!
• This girl LOVES snuggling on her heart eyes emoji pillow (“Lovey”).
• Mac + cheese is one of her new favorite foods.
• Daddy made a very special video of her first year…watch it below!
• Willow got to celebrate her first birthday with family and friends…our heart is so full!