More "Firsts" for Stelly Bean

The Hartman family has been having a blast lately. We were blessed with an amazingly warm day last week so Stella and I joined our dear friend, Sara, and her boys for Stella's first trip to the zoo. We had a fantastic time, and Stella was such a good sport. She didn't fuss the entire time until we were almost back to Sara's house. She was ready for her afternoon snack. 

Here we are on the train. Sara graciously offered us some of her passes so we were able to ride the train and visit the Children's Zoo. For some reason, this trip to the zoo felt like my true entrance into motherhood. Pushing a stroller through the zoo's gates made me feel like I had officially reached mommy-dom. And I must say, it was a really great feeling.

The following day was absolutely freezing, but it was also the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade in downtown St. Louis. A dear friend of mine's family always has a float in the parade, and for the last three years now, Travis and/or I have participated with them. It is so much fun. I was really unsure of whether or not we would partake this year since the weather was pretty nasty, but at the last minute, we decided to bundle Stella up and go for it! I'm so glad we did. She was warm and cozy enough to nap through much of the festivities, and she absolutely loved looking around. 

She looked so precious all bundled up in her stroller. Everyone kept saying how jealous they were of her cozy getup. 

We got a picture with Fredbird! Notice his sash. It reads, "O'Reilly."  That's the name of my friend's family.

Stella sleeping through her smooch from Fredbird.

Our theme was, "Don't Rain on our Irish Parade." Here we were practicing our "routine."

It's so neat to see St. Louis from the perspective of being in the parade. Such beautiful, historical buildings.

We had a lovely time, and when we returned home, I snapped a few pictures of Stella playing with her toys. Had to show off her cute, green top!

She is so active and fun. And, I must say I was pleasantly surprised with how well she behaved with so much activity the last few days. She is so easy to take out and about and very rarely fusses or cries at all. It is such a relief to have a calm baby. Some of my friends who have been watching her lately may tell a different story, but when we're together, she is typically happy and chill. I just love it!

In other news, Stelly said "ma-ma" last night for the first time. I assumed she would say "da-da" first, but she didn't. Clear as could be after we were practicing with her, she said "ma-ma!" She's almost got "da-da" down, too.

I'll be back soon with some six month photos and an update on how our newest venture, baby-led weaning (or solids as I like to call it) is going. We'll be giving Stella her first tastes of real food later this week! Exciting times at the Hartman House.