June's First Year

 I really really really wish I had been better about writing things down during our first year with June. 

Everyone tells you to, but I just didn't make it a priority. It's a good thing we have about a million pictures, all with memories attached. 

I just want to do a recap so I can start writing more regularly - I keep wanting to write about my day-to-day but feel like I can't until I catch up to where we're at. 

June was a beautiful, hilarious, smart, hard baby.  I remember first looking at her at the hospital and thinking how she had Daniel's nose. I didn't immediately love her - I had to be stitched up & taken care of first - but a couple of hours after she was born, I just wanted to hold her and love her. I remember Daniel laying her down in her bassinet & me telling him "Can I hold her? I just want to hold her!"

The first month or two is honestly just a blur of sleepless nights. Daniel and I took shifts - we put here down around 10 pm when we went to bed, then Daniel took the 2 am shift and I took over at about 4:30. June was actually very happy when she was awake, and she was very curious. She's always been very smart and aware.

We started to get some relief when she slept from 10-5 one night at about 8 weeks. She was a champ from then on and life started to get a little easier. I went back to work (from home) after 8 weeks and luckily Daniel still had a few weeks of paternity leave. We were so spoiled!

I stopped breastfeeding around 4 or 5 months because my milk dried up, but June did wonderful with a bottle all along.

She lover her binky and didn't love initially being swaddled, but quickly changed her mind and would sleep in the same exact, swaddled position for 13 hours a night. 

June always wanted to be held & be engaged with - she wasn't a baby you could just prop in front of toys or TV. Like I said, she's always been very aware and smart.

Her first word was mama, and she knew what it meant. Dada and baba quickly followed.

She tried peas, green beans and sweet potatoes first. HATED peas, gagged. But loved sweet potatoes! For a while, she would eat pretty much anything we gave her.

She had stranger danger very very early, I think because he was just so aware of who was holding her. She was very attached to me and Daniel, but mostly me. She was my little companion who went absolutely everywhere/did everything with me.

She started crawling in August, so 9 months, and she really never stopped. She started taking steps just before Christmas. 

June loved to laugh & make Daniel and I laugh - she loved toys that made her think - blocks, stacking cups, stacking rings. She loved a bath every night. She was very happy once she learned to crawl and get around by herself. She had a few ear infections and covid, which was scary. She is truly the greatest thing to ever happen to us!