Brown County

A couple weekends ago, Lydia went on her first Stegman Family Vacation to Brown County, Indiana. Unfortunately, the weather was cold and damp, but Lydia was able to find some handsome guys to keep her warm as we scurried from shop to shop.

The baby backpack I found for $10 at a rummage sale this fall was worth every penny! And the guys were FREE! What a deal!

Lydia was so comfy, she fell asleep!

While on our weekend get-away, Lydia confirmed that she likes Uncle Zak's beard...

...and she loves Aunt Krissy's silver purse.

Cute pics of Lyd...

The "VEST" Family Portrait No. 1

The "VEST" Family Portrait No. 2

Already looking forward to next year!

Exploring autumn leaves...

...but not for too long, because Lydia kept trying to eat them!

Lunch with Jill

Back in October, Lydia and I went to have lunch with Aunt Jill. I just now got copies of these pictures on my computer, and they are just way too cute not to post for everyone to see.

Lydia wore her custom made shirt that reads "I love my "GREAT" Aunt Jill". It was a big hit!

We ate lunch outside, and there was a little bit of a breeze, as you can see in this photo...

Aunt Jill had a surprise for Lydia in her office...


...Her very own pumpkin!...with ribbon!!!...and her name on the back!!!

In this picture, Lydia is wondering, "Where's daddy?"
It was a fun day!

Cold Toes

Lydia's new favorite toy is actually not a toy at all, but her socks. She can be surrounded by toys that make noise, light up, vibrate, and some are even cold from being in the fridge. These days, she ignores them all and instead pulls off her sock.
After a thorough investigation......she pulls off the other sock.
I fear it will be a cold winter for her little piggies!

Election Day

On election day, Lydia wore the shirt that Melissa got for her when she went to Washington, D.C.

After Lydia was appropriately dressed for the day, she went to the park and had lunch, which consisted of bananas.

Then Lydia did one of her very favorite things ~ SWING!

She was surprised to see that G'mama knew how to swing, too!

There's Aunt Cass...

and mom!

What Lydia is eating these days

On Lydia's six month birthday, we gave her rice cereal for the first time. Josh fed her, I was video taping, and so we ran out of hands and didn't take any pictures. But, these pictures were taken the next day, which was the second time she had ever eaten rice cereal.

Lydia was definitely ready for baby food. She opened wide, and even though the texture was a little weird, she ate up the cereal.

So far, Lydia has had sweet potatoes, bananas, carrots and apples. This is what Lydia ate last night for dinner:

Apples, rice cereal, and for the first time (drum roll, please)...green beans!!! Yum! Doesn't it look delicious?!

Lydia likes it best when her dad feeds her. When he is feeding her, she always eats all of her food. Last night was no exception.

6 months old

Before Lydia was born, I bought these outfits for her. The one on the right is size "newborn". I bought this one first knowing that I wanted to bring her home from the hospital in this adorable, yet comfy, little outfit. The one on the left is size "6 months". I found this outfit on sale at TJMax for just a few dollars, and although it's the exact same outfit that I had already bought for her, I justified my purchase because of the bigger size (and of course the price!). I packed the outfit on the right in our suitcase to take to the hospital, and I hung the outfit on the left in Lydia's closet, thinking that it seemed so big, I didn't know how she would ever fit into it.

Lydia arrived a week past her due date on April 27. She was 7lb 15.8 oz and 21 inches long. She was so fragile and delicate, and the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I couldn't believe we had a little baby girl. I was overwhelmed by all the information I received from the countless hospital staff, and I remember joyfully, yet anxiously, bringing little Lydia home in her new red outfit, hoping that I would remember all the right things to do to keep her healthy and as happy as her parents.

Fast forward 6 months...



It seemed as though Lydia grew out of her little newborn outfit the moment I took it off of her. All of the sudden, she was wearing her six month outfit. And then, as Lydia approached her half birthday, I realized that the outfit I thought was so big she'd never fit into it was now too small! All day I kept trying to pull down her pants legs as I was in denial that my little baby was growing up. Knowing it would be the last time Lydia would wear this cute little red outfit, I took some photos of our baby that has changed so much in 6 months. Now she is 17 lb 11oz, 26 inches long, sitting up, rolling over, eating baby food, watching and exploring everything around her, and developing her own personality. All this rolled up into one little girl whom I love immensely.