There's no way you can even begin to understand the love you feel for your child. I thought I could maybe understand a bit, but after meeting Isla, I honestly had no clue the depth of that love. She lights up my world. I was so worried about how hard it would be to alter my whole life to meet her needs and instead it was the easiest thing to accept - she makes me want to change everything to be the best mom I can be for her. It is a honour to be able to make a home for her that she will feel safe and cozy and happy in. My whole life has honestly changed and I would never go back or have it any other way. Being a mom was always my biggest dream for my life since I was very little and I am just so grateful to see this dream come true. The joy that has come with any of my other accomplishments for myself doesn't even compare. The love of a mother sure runs deep.

Isla is really starting to come into her own personality. It's really fun as the days pass on to observe little snippets of who she is start to surface. She is so very observant and loves to learn. She is super silly and social. She is very particular about how she likes things but is also widely accepting and easy going in general. She really is not a fussy baby - she knows what she wants and communicates that well so it's easy to make sure she is happy. The proudest moment I think I have had so far is to see her watching with a complete awe struck expression the light dance on the wall in my bedroom.  Sometimes I catch her staring out the window watching the leaves blow or watching the snow fall. It makes me emotional because I was kind of a weird kid and I *loved* observing light and nature as they moved - it always touched me deeply and was the foundation that made me want to get into photography. When I see that artistic side of her mind working away and she watches curiously and with wonder, my heart just melts.

As for milestones, Isla has rolled a few times but I think it's just a desperate attempt to get out of tummy time which she has never been a fan of. She doesn't have any teeth yet though you can now see them forming under the gums so they are making their arrival soon I am sure. She will get up in a crawling type pose but doesn't move at all to indicate she may start crawling soon. She is very chatty and loves to talk, loves to suck on her lips and facecloths...and is just about to start trying real foods! We decided to hold off until at least 6 months and I am glad we did. Since we cloth diaper, we will now have to start using the diaper sprayer and it adds a whole lot of work to my routine to make her food since we are also doing all homemade baby foods. I am excited to get this new routine going but the timing is definitely right - the craziness of fall has slowed down when all our weekends we spent in other towns and never home. We are now getting way more into organizing ourselves here for winter and I find myself a lot more eager to cook and bake and enjoy myself at home so it's really the perfect timing to start all this new stuff for Isla.

We are super excited for her first Christmas next month. I am fully aware she doesn't really have a sweet clue what's going on but she loves the Christmas tree and I am sure will love scrunching up wrapping paper and trying to eat everything so it will still be adorable and fun nonetheless. Initially I talked about not worrying about gifts for her because she seemed too young but she is really starting to interact with toys and understand their functions now - pushing buttons, turning things, lifting stuff up, etc. so I think it's time to get her more toys (she really didn't have many). I also may have bought her a rocking unicorn cause how could I pass that up!? lol

I have to say one of my saving graces has definitely been my momma group on FB that I was added into when I was pregnant. It has a bunch of women who were due around the same time as me from across Canada and it has been the support I never knew I needed but don't think I could have lived without. Especially because I live an hour from any of my close mom friends, having this group to talk to literally 24/7 has been amazing. We have a private chat that a handful of us joined, we are doing a secret santa exchange, and we even had a GTA meetup at a pumpkin patch where I got to meet some of these awesome ladies and grab lunch with 3 of them afterwards. It really has been so invaluable to connect with all these women and overall I would say that is my number ONE tip for an expectant mom - find a group of ladies to connect with online. At 3AM when you're losing your mind, guaranteed there are at least 5 others up looking for company too. It was the best to never feel alone or lonely - to always know someone understood what I was dealing with. Even when Milo passed away, my momma friends were the people to check in most often and make sure I was coping. I honestly feel like I have made friends for life and we support each other even beyond motherhood - with our jobs, relationships, and stresses and grievances. It really is wonderful and I can't recommend finding something like this for yourself enough!

Three weeks ago, our renters (and three of my best friends) moved out of our house. This now means our house which once housed 6 extra people is now "empty" of renters. What a weird transition, but I am finally getting into the groove and used to the extra space and the silence. The girls rented the back part of our house on the second floor which had their own driveway, back entrance and stairs which would have once been the servant entrance/stairs. In their living quarters were two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a open space with a kitchen, livingroom, dining area. We have now reclaimed this space as our own and moved our stuff into it, though the two bedrooms still sit completely vacant. We have great long term plans for all of this space but in the meantime, the bedrooms will be a guest room and an office/studio space. The old dining area is now Isla's play area and the living room is our TV room. It's working really well for us! We definitely have enough room to grow our family here but are also trying to make the space as well-used for now as we can.

I promise promise promise once my house is clean and in order that I will finally do another updated home tour - it has changed sooo much in the three years since I did an update.

Well that is the 6 month update! Despite always having its challenges and hurdles, life is great. Isla is a little peach and we can't wait for Christmas with family.