Checking in...Elissa, Matt and Taylor

Hi all! It's been a while since I've posted...been busy with work, baby, being sick and life in general! Here's some updates on Taylor:

The crawling vs. walking race is neck in neck as Taylor can get herself into a crawl position and scoot backwards and is now letting go of our fingers and standing on her own. We'll see which one wins! Some favorite toys of Taylor's are baby dolls, a rubber whale and big bird. She's weighing just over 18 pounds and wearing 9mo tops and 12 mo pants. When playing on the floor, she loves to roll around and pull herself up. Taylor's favorite song to sing to her is Tom Jone's "What's New Pussycat" and smiles and "sings" along every time! Taylor is just talk, talk, talking all the time and loves to point at things and have us tell her what it is.

She's having a great summer and loves swimming in her froggy pool (thanks, Aunt Kelly!) and going to the dog park.

Taylor loves swimming in her froggy pool

At the end of May we had a little scare with a virus both Taylor and I got. I had been sick for a few weeks and started feeling worse and then Taylor got sick too. Mostly fever, aches, sore throat and some congestion, so we took her to the doctor. Taylor is usually happy even when sick, so the doctor was concerned to see her not being herself. She was negative for strep and no ear infection, but since I work in a very public setting, our doctor sent us to have her tested for none other than the swine flu! No worries because the test came back negative. We both, however had an awful virus and I ended up missing a week of work. I now know how difficult it is to get healthy yourself when you're taking care of a sick baby all day and night. But we got through it and I'm hoping this is just a super boost for her immune system!

Getting tested for the piggy flu...
like the masks?

Aunt Kelly, Uncle Paul and their little dog, Lily came to visit Memorial Day weekend and we had a great time! Lily and Sampson are fast friends and endless entertainment for Taylor who loved to walk right into them wrestling around, just laughing and laughing! Paul's mom, Karen joined us for a day and we all spent a beautiful afternoon outdoor shopping. Taylor remembered Kelly and Paul and even gave Kelly kisses she usually reserves for mommy.

Taylor loved her visit from Aunt Kelly and Uncle Paul

I've been working a small side-business of making and selling baby headbands. When Taylor was born the only ones I saw were pokey or tight, so I made some for her and a store picked them up! I have a website now and starting on getting them into a few more stores. Right now it's been slow going since I have a full-time job, but I'll keep you posted on my progress! For now, you can check out my website at www.brightbabybands.com that my good friend, Michelle (www.elledesignsinc.com) put together for me...yes she somehow managed to find the time even with her new baby!

Here's the latest videos of Taylor: Taylor on YouTube (my favorite is probably the one of her giggling)

And we just had new family pictures taken!

I have a blog for Taylor, so if you would like to view "Taylor's World" just send me an email (elissawiles@gmail.com) so I can send you an invitation (it's a private blog).

love, elissa, matt and taylor