Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Not so nice to meet you, Seperation Anxiety.

Or should we rename it: Living Hell. That sounds more appropriate.

My sweet, sweet girl has cried more this week than she's cried since she was a newborn. It all started Friday out of the blue. Day care called around lunch to let me know that Lily had been crying an awful lot all morning long. I rushed up there thinking she was in pain or sick. When I walked through the door I saw my girl red faced, crocodile tears pouring down her cheeks. I ran over and picked her up out of the highchair. Instantly, and I mean INSTANTLY, she was smiling and laughing. I played with her for a good 10 minutes or so and tried to set her in one of the jumparoos. Not happening. The second I bent down... before her feet even touched the thing... she was wailing. I stood back up. Smiling. Bent back over. Wailing. WTH?

I decided to take her home with me, since obviously it was that mean ol' day care that was making my babe cry. Boy was I wrong. I did not set her down PERIOD unless she was: 1. In a deep sleep and I put her in the crib, or 2. I had to shower at some point. Other than that... she was literally attached to my hip. She didn't want Jack, she didn't want Papa to even look at her, she wanted me and me only. Cute in theory, but not so cute when you can't eat or blowdry your hair or even pee without a 20 lb. baby in your arms. My body feels like I've run marathons all weekend.

I feel confident in saying I *think* we're making progress so far this week, but I pray this is just a short little phase she's going through.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Wordless Wednesday

This is her "Could this be any more BORING?" look. :)
10.17.10

Friday, October 15, 2010

So you want to make your own baby food?

No problem! I decided during pregnancy that making Lily organic purees was important to me, especially when I noticed the expiration date on the back of the baby food jars was 1-2 years away! Talk about preservatives!  I'll admit, I was a little overwhelmed by the thought of spending hours in the kitchen each week (on top of what is already spent there making our own dinner) slaving away to create little concoctions for the babe. I must say, the anticipation is MUCH worse than the action in this case.

When her 6 month birthday was approaching, I started researching different recipes and storage ideas. I came across this amazing website that's been a lifesaver. Wholesomebabyfoods.com has these great charts for different age groups, showing which foods to introduce at what time. Of course, always follow your pediatricians advice over these websites, but I've found these charts to be almost identical to our pedi's recommendations. There are TONS of great recipes, explanations on how to prepare and store each food, and loads of information regarding food allergies and what to watch for.

Here's a list of supplies that I use:

  • Normal pots/pans and baking dishes, depending on the food.
  • Blender (nothing fancy. I think I paid $19.99 at Walmart for mine and it works perfectly.)
  • Ice Cube tray specifically made for baby food. After I puree in the blender, I pour in the little cubes and let it freeze overnight. Then just simply pop them out and store in a freezer bag for up to 3 months!

  • This book from Buy Buy Baby. I haven't really used this a lot so far, since she's still on simple one food purees, but I'm excited to venture out soon and incorporate some spices and different flavors!



We started Lily on single grain oatmeal at 6 months exactly. (We skipped rice) She tries a new food every 4-5 days, so I'll make and store 2 new foods per week. So far, she's had:
  • Squash (doesn't like)
  • Sweet Potato (baked - hates)
  • Carrots (baby carrots, boiled - LOVES!)
  • Green Beans (frozen kind, boiled - not too fond of them but she'll tolerate.)
  • Peas (frozen kind, boiled - likes)
  • Avocado (raw, mashed - doesn't like)
  • Banana (raw, mashed - loves)
  • Pear (raw w/out skin, pureed - on the fence about this one.)
She eats 2 1/2 tbsp of oatmeal in the morning (up from 1/2 tbsp on her first feeding) mixed with 1 oz. of breastmilk. She has a 6oz. bottle (of BM) with breakfast, another 6oz. bottle around 12:30 and 3:30, nurses at 6, has 2 cubes of baby food, usually one fruit and one veggie, around 6:45-7, nurses to sleep between 7:30 and 8, and wakes once or twice during the night to nurse. She's a big baby, so of course her BM intake is high. Our pedi recommends anywhere between 18-26 oz of BM per day until she's around 1, and she's usually closer to 30 oz. a day. She likes to eat. :)

If you're thinking about giving this a try, I highly recommend it. It takes me roughly 1-2 hours a week to cook, puree, and freeze everything she needs for the week. The website above will answer many of your questions, and you can always ask me. :)



Thursday, October 7, 2010

7 months

Yes, I said 7 months. This month is going to be exciting, with the beginning of beautiful fall weather, football season in full swing, and Halloween, of course! I've started making her costume, but I think I'll wait and surprise you with what she's going to be! ::snickers::

Here are the updates:
  • She's taking solids twice a day. Oatmeal in the morning and a fruit or veggie at dinner. We'll probably increase this to 3 times a day in a month or so.
  • Our little porker is completely out of all 6 month clothes, and doesn't fit in the majority of her 9 month outfits. She's wearing some 6-12 month, some 12 month, and a few 9 month outfits.
  • She's getting closer and closer to crawling. She's on all fours constantly, and can now go from sitting to all fours like it's nothing. She's learned to move her hands forward but hasn't managed to figure the legs out yet.
  • Still no teeth! I've been expecting a tooth since around 3 months with the way she drools and chews on everything.
  • She's going through another "mommy phase". I can pass her off for about 2 minutes before she starts wimpering and reaching for me. Makes cooking dinner or making her food a little difficult. :) And don't get me started on her stranger fear. If she isn't around someone every day, she cries when they talk to her. I've heard this is just a phase... I sure hope so. That poor child is scared of everybody!
  • She's started trying to pull up on things. My leg, her baby piano, anything she thinks is sturdy. I have a feeling her mattress will be moved down within a few weeks.
  • We're still waking up twice a night. She varies though. Some nights it's 2, then around 4 or 5. The past week it's been more around 11:30, then 4, then she doesn't want to go back to sleep. We're working on that.
  • The carseat has become her worst enemy! I don't know what happened! She used to love it. Now, she cries crocodile tears the minute she's buckled in. She's got her toys back there, her paci, a mirror, we sing songs... nothing works. We end up pulling over and the second we open the back door, she giggles and smiles! She's got us trained.

7 months

Trying to eat the pinestraw. Silly girl. ;)
7 months

7 months

7 months

7 months

7 months

7 months

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

The Corn "Maize"

Fall has officially arrived in Georgia with beautiful mid 70 degree highs and crisp, cool 50's at night. I love it! I'm a summer girl through and through, but after this past summer and it's never-ending 100 degree days, I'm completely ready for some beautiful fall weather. With the new change in season also comes a whole list of new things to do, new experiences to share with our sweet girl. So we started our list this past weekend with a trip to our area's newest attraction: a 5 acre corn "maize" complete with hayrides, beautiful scenery, herds of cows, and lots of little stations for kids to play. It just screamed "fall".

Lily loved it! She has a new fascination with goats. I think she thought one of them was her BFF Marley, because as soon as she saw him (or maybe it was a girl. Who knows?) she sounded off her high pitch shrill like she does with the dog. She wasn't really interested in the corn maze, which we expected, but she did manage to fall asleep sitting up in Jack's arms!

Corn Maize

Corn Maize

Corn Maize

What she thought of the corn:
Corn Maize

Corn Maize