She keeps rollin' and rollin'

Alexa is now a total pro at rolling! Every time I put her down, she rolls over! She mostly rolls from back to her left. Occasionally she'll roll from her back to her right. She has not yet mastered rolling from her tummy to her back. I have read that this might take another month or so because she needs much stronger neck muscles to be able to go the other way.

In the meantime, our little roller is having a ball on her tummy! Check out these smiles!

Alexa loves tummy time

Not all babies like tummy time. Or so I am told. By other mommies. Alexa, however, happens to LOVE being on her tummy! She holds her head up and looks around and just has a ball!

MORE Babies! Alexa has so many friends!

Today we had another big play date! This time, it was a lunch get-together with six other current and former AP moms. Our seven babies ranged in age from 12 days to 4 months, including three girls and four boys. Alexa (14 weeks today!) was the third oldest, after Luke and Catherine.

Here are the babies sleeping in their car seats when we first got there...

And now, here are ALL the babies!

Left to right: Will, Catherine, Luke, Alexa, Eli, Brooklyn and Harry!

Below are few close-ups of the older babies...

After all the excitement of the photo shoot, Alexa and Catherine had a good time playing with Luke's toys!

Later, at home, Alexa relaxed on her chair.

Sunday in the Snow!

Today, we did what has become somewhat of a Sunday tradition... We walked to a local brewery restaurant and had lunch while watching football! Alexa usually sleeps through the outing. (She didn't this time... Arg!)

But anyway, since we knew the path would be snowy, we broke out our heavy duty stroller with the sturdy tires. Check it out!

Soon, Alexa will be big enough to ride in the stroller without the infant car seat! The seat reclines all the way down and our pediatrician said that if we use a head support cushion, she could ride in it laying down. We just got this insert from JJ Cole (for only $13.99, which is $10 less than retail price!) So we plan to try it out soon!

Also on Sunday, Alexa practiced her head control! Check it out! Click HERE to watch a video.

Alexa meets cousin Kim and little Amanda!

We had a nice day-after Thanksgiving party at Grandma's house where Alexa got to meet more family. Cousin Kim came over with little Amanda! We had a blast!

Here are Alexa and I with Kim and her daughter Amanda, who is four years old and the cutest little girl ever! She sang songs for us from "Little Orphan Annie" and had Alexa laughing all day.

Amanda also helped Alexa work on her tummy time. See, Alexa? Someday you will be able to do what Amanda is doing!

Alexa: "It's not as easy as Amanda makes it look!"

Here are Kim and Alexa... Kim is a speech therapist and was able to get Alexa to start talking and repeating her sounds! If only Kim could see her in the morning when she is the biggest chatterbox, she talks and talks and talks! Agoo Goo Ga Oooooh! You know, baby talk!

Alexa with Daddy and Aunt Phyl!

Amanda and Samantha with Alexa! (And me, since she was getting tired and didn't want me to put her down... She went down for her nap afterward, and we all got to eat lunch!)

Alexa was all smiles after her nap! She had so much fun with her Oball that I had to take a video... I mean, just look at that motion blur in the second photo! Click HERE to watch her!

Lots of playtime and tummy time!

I got a lot of work done today on thank you cards and birth announcements. Meanwhile, Daddy and Alexa played!

Click HERE to watch a video of Alexa grabbing her rings! She grabbed them herself! Note that she grabbed them with her RIGHT hand. Daddy thinks that means she will be right handed.

Also, since Alexa is such a fan of mirrors, I got her a new toy! It's a pyramid with ribbons and crinkle fabric on it, and also a MIRROR! It's perfect for tummy time! Here is Alexa enjoying it on Sunday morning.

Later in the day, I took a break from the cards and we walked to lunch while Alexa took a nice afternoon nap. I woke her after about three hours to eat, then she played some more with Daddy. We pulled out the mirrored pyramid again for some more tummy time!

Click HERE to watch a video of her. Look at that head control!

Some big developments in Alexa's world!

Every morning, we have been coming downstairs after Alexa nurses so that she can play on the activity mat while I make and eat breakfast. She loves it!

Here are some key development milestones that she is working on this week...

1. Being able to play independently. This is important. She needs to be able to entertain herself. And by the looks of it, she is getting good at it! She kicks at the toys on the activity mat and squeels in delight as they move. It's pretty funny to watch!

2. Practicing her head control. Look at her go! She can hold her head up 45 degrees when on her tummy!

3. More head control work. She holds her head up when being burped on our shoulder and if you sit her up and hold her or prop her next to pillows, she can hold her head up on her own. Look at how adorable she is!

4. Practicing turning over. Look at her hips in this photo. This is the second time that she has rolled her hips over like this... It looks like she is practicing being able to roll over!