::Henley:: Seventh Month of Heaven

Weight

We are growing more and more every month! Henley had another visit to the Dr. (more on that below) so we know her weight again this month. She is 18lbs and going strong, she is in the 75th percentile for weight.


Health

This month has been rough for our household on the health scale. If you remember in Henley's six month post she was just getting over a cold. When I had taken her to the pediatrician that week, he mentioned that I probably would also get sick. One week later I had a sore throat and a cough (like he predicted). I didn't really think anything of it and figured it would run it's course.

The following week it was way worse and when I got to work on Monday I went to the clinic--I had bronchitis. The next day Teddy got a stomach bug and was laid up in bed also, we were a sad house. Thankfully my mom came by and took Henley to daycare to allow us to rest. The following few days were July 4th and I already had PTO so I ended up being out that whole week.

Last week we were all at full strength (yay!). However this week has been another trying week. On Sunday morning Henley woke up with a weird rash on her diaper area and thighs. I assumed it was a diaper rash so I put some cream on it and waited to see what happened. Monday morning she woke up and it was spreading so we took her to the Dr. He said it was a rash caused by a virus and it just has to run it's course. He prepared us saying she may get a fever and it would probably get worse before it got better---he was right! Tuesday the bumps were everywhere and raised. She also had a fever a few times and refused to sleep! This week was rough in terms of sleep!

Now the rash is almost gone and everyone seems to be back to full strength!


Sleep

Overall Henley's sleep patterns have been two naps a day, ranging anywhere from 1-2 hours. On the weekends when we are home, her first nap is around 8:30 and her second nap is around 1:30. Her night time sleeping has been changing and really been all over the map. For the most part she is still going down around 7 but she's been waking anywhere from 9-2 and then typically once more during the night.

When she was sick she had nights where she was up from 2:30-5! Talk about exhausting. We have come up with the hypothesis that Baby Tylenol makes her hyper. At one point, she was super sleepy and falling in and out of sleep but had a fever. We gave her the Tylenol and she was wide awake for 4 hours. I'm talking jumping, crawling, chatting, squealing, and so on----wide awake!


Clothing

She's slowly growing out of her 6 month clothes---the two piece outfits last a little longer. She's fully into her 9 month clothing now. I think the 9 month PJ's are good for a month or so but I quickly see her growing out of those, especially since we use huge diapers for night time.


Diet

We are fully into foods and loving it, for the most part anyways. We've had apples (love!), pears (yummy), sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, green beans (hated), bananas (not a fan), avocados, and peas (so-so). It's so fun exploring the new foods with her. We are planning to try pureeing our own meats soon.

She's still nursing like a champ, still every 2-3 hours during the day and a couple times at night.


Baby Gear Love

We got this Lil' Shopper Play Set for our shower and she absolutely loves it. It has lettuce, an orange, a banana, an apple, and milk. She loves the milk and carries it around the room when she crawls. It's so adorable to see her play with it.

She's also stable enough to sit on her own in high chairs and grocery carts so we have been using the Taggies Cart Cover quite a bit. She loves it, it has the little tags all over, and it's great to give a little more cushion in case she topples over.

Another must have for a crawling baby is leg warmers. She was getting all red on her knees from scooting around the carpet and we have been using these a ton!

I'm not sure if I have mentioned this in a previous month but the Jenny Jump Up is a favorite of hers. Those legs go a mile a minute and this is the perfect outlet for her.

New funny faces

I got this little pool for the balcony last month and we are starting to use it more. It's a great way to expend some of her energy on the weekend. I also read some review on amazon where people used it as a ball pit so I ordered some from Amazon this week.

The last thing that she is totally in love with is her giraffe. She gets so excited when she sees it, I think it has something to do with this...

Crying

This little lady is beginning to cry more often when she isn't happy. Some things that have recently caused some tears are getting into the car seat (she hates it) and this week she has started crying at the changing table. This is a major bummer since the changing table has typically been one of her favorite places ever since she was itty bitty!


Social

We celebrated the 4th of July!

Went to the beach

Went for a drive

Hung out at the pool with Grandma 

Played at daycare with Evalyn

Hung out with big cousin Aiden

Postpartum

I've been feeling great overall but I really am ready for a work out norm. I ran once this week but I am hoping all of the sickness stays away and I can get back to it. We have a half marathon scheduled for November and I'd like to start training asap since I am practically starting from scratch.


Milestones

Busy month for milestones over here. We are full blown crawling on all fours and have recently started pulling up on toys and furniture. It's so crazy that she is getting so big so fast!

Here are some other great pictures from the month:

This is a new face that I love!!!

Kisses from Fitzy!

I know I say this every month but it's crazy!! Hopefully this time next month we will be almost in our new home!!!

Mere :-)

::Henley:: 30 Things I Want to Teach Her

Here we are in July and Henley is almost seven months old. In the months leading up to her birth I would have thoughts here and there about what having a girl would mean. If I saw a news story about a girl falling victim to bullying I would immediately put myself in that mother’s shoes. I have pondered what her personality would be like---would she be girly or a tomgirl, ballet or soccer? In all of this wondering, I have thought about things I want to teach Henley, my daughter.

So here it is---a list of 30 things I want to teach Henley, some sooner some later. (in no particular order)

1. How to swim

2. To braid her hair, pluck her eyebrows, and paint her nails

3. How to tie her shoe laces

4. How to bake the perfect chocolate cake

5. How to make croissants

6. That it’s ok to fall in love at 15…or at 30

7. That travel is the most eye opening experience ever

8. To accept everyone no matter how different or unpopular they are

9. That she is beautiful and enough and perfect just the way she is

10. How to sew

11. How to drive (like mama of course!)

12. How important it is to have an opinion (preferably one of her own)

13. To have a passion for life

14. To try most foods, at least once

15. How to budget and save money

16. The importance of working hard for something she wants

17. How to give people the benefit of the doubt while not being too naïve

18. That it’s ok to cry to express any emotion whether it be happy, mad, or sad

19. How to perfectly wrap a present

20. How to climb trees

21. That sometimes the best comfort foods are milk and cookies

22. Go with your gut!

23. Don’t take life too seriously

24. The importance of wearing sunscreen

25. That a bath, a good book, and a big glass of wine can fix almost any problem

26. Never forget to laugh

27. To have something she does that is just for her

28. That having a few best friends is better than a lot of mediocre friends

29. What true love looks and feels like

30. That I always will have her back

Life is tough and there are so many things I am unable to control for her but one thing I can do for her is give her the tools to make the right decisions in her life. I prayed for this little girl to get here in my arms safe and healthy and I still pray for her every.single.day.

Mere :-)

::Henley:: Happy Half Birthday!

We are half of a year old!

Weight

Little Miss had to go to the doctor yesterday due to a little cold (see below) so we actually have up-to-date info on the weight. She weighs 17 lbs 2.5 oz which is in the 75th percentile.


Health

Since Henley was about 4 weeks old she has had one week a month where she is congested. It’s not a cold and never really develops into anything…up until this month. On Thursday night we put her to bed around 7 like normal and went about our normal business. Right when we were going to bed around 10:30 I heard this strange noise coming from the monitor. I went into her room and she was totally congested, to the point where she no longer could breath out of her nose. It was crazy! I couldn't believe how fast it came on, especially since I had checked on her 30 minutes prior and heard nothing.

At the doctor---she loved the mirror

Poor baby doesn't feel well!

 On Sunday, we were eating lunch at Tijuana Flats and we were giving her some of her foods and she was coughing here and there. I was starting to think something was stuck but it continued and got worse throughout the day. Yesterday she was still coughing pretty bad and was actually crying a little every time she would cough so I took her to the doctor. He said her chest and lungs sound fine and it’s probably just a cold that needs to run its course. (boo!) He also was kind enough to let me know that I should expect to get sick within a week or so. :-\


Sleep

I think Henley saw what sleeping through the night felt like and decided it wasn't for her---I think she misses me :-)

How did you get in my bed Silly!

She is still going to bed at 7ish like always but now she gets up typically about once a night. She has been really good about putting herself to sleep when she needs. Sometimes she nurses to sleep and other times she is wide awake when I lay her down. If I lay her down and she doesn’t fall asleep within 15 minutes or so, I usually walk back in there and give her a little rub on the back or whatever and that seems to settle her down.

She was getting up at 2 most of the time, sometimes earlier and sometimes later. In the last week however she has started going until about 4-4:30. Honestly it’s not that bad and I am able to go right back down so if she wants to see me, nurse, and get extra kisses---I’m totally ok with it.


Clothing

She’s slowly working her way into the 6-9 month clothing. I have everything washed and I am slowly noticing more and more 3-6 clothing is too short for her. She’s totally in 9 month PJ’s, those in the 3-6 month range were the first to go.

She is still wearing the same cloth diapers but I am noticing the Small Charlie Bananas are a little too small. We have a few one size diapers that she is now able to wear, I typically am not a fan of the bulk of the one sized.


Diet

This month we finally started solid food---yay! Daycare told us about two weeks ago that Henley has a friend at daycare that is an older baby and she tries to steal her Cheerios. This coupled with her ability to sit up on her own led us to believe she was ready. See my post here for the foods she's been eating. She had pears for breakfast and carrots for dinner tonight and she loved it!

Baby Gear Love

We are finally loving Sophie the Giraffe Teether. She's had this since day one but never really got the hang of chewing on it until recently. She also loves this rasberry teether and this Baby Einstein teether. We are able to see little nubs just under the surface but no teeth just yet.

We also got her the Jenny Jump Up which she LOVES. She gets in it and spins around and jumps. It's adorable. We get the most smiles when she's in there.

Since we started solid foods we have really been using our Graco Space Saver High Chair. It's really easy to get her into and she doesn't seem to mind. It cleans up pretty easily which says a lot being it can't get pretty messy!

We love avocados!

Crying

My little smarty pants is learning what crying means and is using it to her advantage. She has started crying and fussing when we leave the room sometimes. It's really cute that she wants us to stay, I just hope it's not starting a pattern. Once she sees us or hears our voice she is totally fine. 

This week with her cold she has been a little more fussy and crying than normal. Hoping she feels better soon!


Social

On Memorial Day we went to the beach with some friends of ours and their little one Ronan, my sister, and some of her friends. Henley rocked the red, white, and blue.

 After a long day at the beach, just relaxing...

We celebrated Dad's 30th Birthday! She even signed his cookie cake!

Then Henley stayed with Aunt Allie while Mom and Dad had a little alone time!

Last week on Monday Henley had water day at school. She has one of these days every other week. The ladies at Daycare said she loved it!

On Friday Henley had a visitor for Father's Day. She made Dad a tie and they had rootbeer and corndogs for lunch. This picture seriously made me melt at work, I even cried. I love what a great Dad he is!

Happy Father's Day!

Snuggled with Dad a lot on the couch

Five Guys with Mom and Dad

Postpartum

I feel like I am almost normal! Yay! My hair is no longer falling out, most of my stretch marks are gone, all of my postpartum aches and pains are better---finally! It took six months but I am feeling great. Now it's time to get my crap together and work out! I'm so disappointed that I haven't really been on top of it. I just need to bite the bullet and do it, I will feel so much better about myself if I do!

Milestones

We are sitting up unassisted.

We are playing and starting to use a sippy cup. 

We are eating solids.

We are up on all fours.

...and scooting around everywhere (time to baby proof the house!)

We started using a high chair out at restaurants too!

This month has been extraordinary. Each month gets better and better. I cannot wait to see what month six has in store. 

Happy Half Birthday Sweet Baby Girl!

Have a great week!

Mere :-)

::Henley:: Day Care Must Haves

As I was getting everything ready for tomorrow I was thinking that we definitely have this working mom/daycare routine down pat so I thought I'd share what we do. Little Miss has been in daycare for almost three months now and there are some must-have's and tips & tricks that I have come to love that I thought I would put together a post to share!

Every night after Henley goes to bed, I get everything ready for her for the morning. First thing I do is lay out her clothes, diaper, and D drops for Dad. I leave everything he will need in the morning on the changing table (leave no outfit choices for Dad---there is no telling what fashion faux-pas he will make) {love you honey}

Outfit, Bib, Socks, Diaper, D Drops

[Note: on the outfit, we make sure to send pants or Baby Legs now due to carpet burn on the knees!]

After that I get the bottles ready and pack the diaper bag. Most day care providers ask you to label everything you send. I hate labeling her clothing so my compromise is to pack every outfit in a ziploc bag, this also ensure the outfits I put together are what she wears and also provides a bag for them to put any stinky or dirty outfits. 

Every 1-2 weeks I send a pack of diapers and wipes (see my post here about Honest diapers)

Another thing I have LOVED for daycare has been Orbitz bottle labels from Inchbug. For the first few weeks I was labeling her bottles and lids with permanent marker but it came off every night. It doesn't seem like a huge deal but labeling everything each night gets old. I saw these online and I love them! I also got these labels for the lids from Namebubbles. They are stickers that are dishwasher safe. I have it on her lids, the tags on her blankets, sheets, bibs and they have show zero wear. I also recently started putting them on her bowls that I send for her solids now. 

These things are working great for us. Any favorite things you have discovered that work well for you guys?! Please share!!

As much as I love her day care, I'm glad I get my Little Miss all to myself for the weekend!!

Happy Weekend All!

Mere :-)

::Henley:: Nom Nom

Every since I found out I was pregnant I have been very thorough in preparing for each stage in both my pregnancy and in Henley's growth. The next big stage that I have known was around the corner was starting solids. Everything I read said to start at six months and not any sooner. I totally planned on sticking to that but as most plans do, they went right out of the window.

Henley has expressed serious interest in food and is sitting up like a big girl so I decided to try oatmeal last weekend. I found a recipe, took my oatmeal and ground it in the food processor and went to town. I was so excited to give it to her. I got her all strapped in the seat, got the cute little bowl and spoon all ready and nada. She hated it. She was cringing and gagging and overall not a fan! Bummer!

The next day I decided to buy some organic pureed pears to see how she would do (I was curious if it was a texture thing versus a solid food issue). Turns out that is the case! She absolutely loved the pears. She couldn't get enough!

I tried the oatmeal again and got the same reaction so I think it's definitely a texture thing. Since trying the pears, we have tried avocado, squash, sweet potatoes, and carrots. She has loved everything. She loves feeding herself--I think she's going to be Miss Independent (taking after mama!) Here are some pictures we have been able to capture over the last few days of meal times!

The avocado ones are hilarious---I love how gross they look :-)

Before we started solids I had read and researched a lot about Baby Led Weaning. For those who aren't aware of this method of feeding your baby, it's based on the thought that babies feed themselves whatever you are eating. (i.e. No feeding pureed food, just give them whole pieces). I read the book and was very gung-ho about it. Before we even tried the oatmeal, I tried giving Henley a banana a few times. She hated it. She bit a few chunks off, gagged and had some chills. 

Bananas became play time

The book warns that gagging is totally normal and it isn't choking but it is nerve-wracking. 

After seeing how much she loves the pureed food, I'm starting to wonder if the whole solids are just not for her at this time. I love the thoughts that the book promotes (baby should feed themselves at their own pace, no rushed meal time, baby eats at the table with the family). I also thought the book had a tons of great tips and thoughts that I otherwise would not have considered. I am going to try the large pieces of solids again sometime soon but for now, probably just stick to the purees.

Have any of you tried BLW, what was your experience? 

I love feeding her solids but we are definitely taking it slow. At this age she should still be getting over 90% of her nutrition from milk and I'd like that to continue. I always nurse her before feeding the solids and she is still drinking the same amount of milk at day care. As often as I can, I have been making the purees myself using my Beaba BabyCook. Some other things that I have been loving in this process are my Munchkin Suction Bowls with storage lids, Beaba travel baby fork and spoon, and oxo Food Container for when I need to freeze the extra.

It's crazy to think Henley is already to a point where solids will become everyday activities, she's getting so big!

Sorry I've been so MIA lately---life has been crazy, usually in a good way. I haven't wanted to miss one second with my Little Miss but I have a few topics to blog coming up soon.

Tomorrow is Friday folks----one.more.day!

Mere :-)