Month Seven

This wasn't as much a month full of firsts as last month. However, you have been eating a lot more interesting things. The cost of our grocery bill has been significantly offset by your job. "Baby food tester extraordinare." We've tried mac & cheese (nasty), oatmeal with fruit (ok), yogurt fruit juice (yummy but weird) and infant water. Not sure why I would buy water for my infant, but we tested it nonetheless. Thanks for stepping up and contributing to our family budget needs. We appreciate it fully.


You are SO close to crawling. I was sure that you would skip it entirely in favor of walking but with a little bit of help, you are pulling and pushing yourself forward. That or you're practicing your yoga.

Here we have "up dog" and "the cobra."






Not only are you almost crawling, you spend most of your time trying to climb. Up us, mostly.

This past week you got to meet some more of your Great-Aunts and spend time with Gramee, Papa & GG. Anytime you are around people you have gotten so that you are super happy and smiley. I'm afraid you'll be bored when it's just the three of us and there are no extra people to give you all of their attention! You just love people.




Ahhhh, the pool.







If it is something to do with water, you are all about it. You love your swimmy boat and splashing up in the air. If only we had a pool at home, we would be in it every single day. You'll have to content yourself with your little kiddie pool. The boat won't fit, but you can sploosh and splash to your tiny heart's content. We're pretty sure you are going to refer to water as "splooshy."




We've only gotten to the beach once so far this year, but it was a beautiful day and you got to play in the big waves and dig in the sand. The textures were so interesting that I had a hard time keeping the sand out of your eyes! Thank goodness for the binx so you didn't eat any of it... It is amazing all of the places that sand can creep into. And impossible to get it all out.




Silly little bucket-head. You haven't figured out yet how to put this on or take it off. So I get to do silly things to you and they just stay there cutely. Heh heh.






You may not know for years how blessed you are or how much people love you, but Mama is so thankful for some of your friends who are willing to watch you while she works. You love your buddy Alina who plays dress up with you and plays with your toys with you and distracts you during a change and pats your head and gives you endless hugs and kisses. You will sit and play for hours with her. Or maybe it's that you sit and let her play with you. You are such a cute little baby doll.





You are going to miss Alina and Jean so much. But I'm sure we'll get set up on Skype quickly so that you can still see them as much as possible!






I can't stop looking at your sweet face. I think I say this every month, but you get sweeter every day. Every morning I lie in bed and listen to your chatters as you wake up and then go in to get you and am rewarded with your beautiful smiles. Even when you are messy or grumpy or exceedingly poopy you are my favorite little person in the world.



You love to play with hair and it often soothes you when you're grouchy. Your Dolly Mama doll has the perfect little mass of hair to twiddle. Smaller toys are the most fun as they fit perfectly in your little hands. Especially the Little People pirates. We can't wait to teach you to say "Avast, ye scaly-wags!"




If there was an Olympic sport of raspberry-bubble-making, you would absolutely win the gold. You didn't drool much while teething, but when trying to blow berries, you can fill a swimming pool. And speaking of Olympics, I'm pretty sure you have been watching far too much TV this past week. Basketball seems to be the most entertaining, but you have been seeing all kinds of records broken lately, and I'm ok with it. We'll turn the TV off next month. (except that next month is all the season premiers, but that's after you go to bed so it doesn't count)

We love you baby girl. You kill us with your cuteitude.

There Will Be A Winner! (Or Two)

But not until next week.

Why? You may ask? Well, because I'm going on vacation.

Where? You may ask? Well, Iowa, of course.

Why? You may ask again? (geez, all the questions...) Well, because there is a pool, obviously.

In the meanwhile, I want to give away another bag next week. Therefore, there will be TWO winners announced when I come back.

But not for nothing. Oh no, not for nothing.

Your challenge is to give me topics. You may have noticed that I don't post as much as I used to. Also, while my child is endlessly interesting to me, it would behoove me to write about something else once in a while. Interspersed with adorableness and cuteitude.

Whoever comes up with the most interesting topic or question for me to write about or answer will receive their very own fabulously, lovingly handcrafted shopping bag. That way one is given out randomly (last week) and one is given out thoughtfully (this week).

Let's have it folks. Break out your creativity (or just plain silliness) and let me have it.

Happy August. It's going to be a scorcher. Will you be at the pool?

Also, for your viewing entertainment, click here. And here. You won't be sorry. Don't forget to cast your comment-vote.

Things I Love Thursday - Better than Baby Einstein

We received a set of Baby DVDs from a friend at church recently. He works in the Christian music industry and is always passing new stuff on to us.

I'll be completely honest, Praise Baby had me super skeptical at first. I imagined that it would be the usual cheesy song production with the usual 12 year old girls singing along.





(For the record, this type of production and vocal tracking drives me insane. To the point that, when we record a kids album, we tend to specifically include a few tracks of kids who are not on pitch just so that it sounds like real children.) /end rant


The vocals were exactly what I expected them to be but the visuals were stunning. This, for me, made it all ok. If I'm going to plop my kiddo in front of the tv for 5 minutes so I can go to the bathroom, it had better be in front of something good. There is great footage of babies and toddlers and kids playing, interacting and laughing. There are stimulating images of black & white and other high-contrst colors that babies just love to look at. Intriguing, even for a grownup...

The other bonus is that in the menu you can completely turn off the vocals and have just instrumental tracks playing. Ahhh, now that's better.


Before you worry that I am allowing my tv to babysit my infant, know that she is only amused for about two songs worth anyway and then we'll play again. This was, however, very good for a distraction last week when she was sick and not feeling up to much of anything other than snuggling.

Did Someone Shout Giveaways?

I hear around the bloggy blogosphere that this week is a big ol' giveaway week.

This means I had better get in on the action. This also means I might be up late tonight. Grab your coffee, ladies, it's time for some fun!




I'm going to be giving away one of my proven hard-working grocery bags. You may not yet have joined the cloth grocery bag craze, but you should. Get rid of those yucky plastics and reduce, reuse, recycle! Plus, lots of stores give you $$ back for using your own bags.

My bags are patterned after a plastic bag but I have made them a little bigger to hold even more. They are also lined to be approximately 10 times stronger than plastic.




At the end of this week, one of you who have commented & linked will be chosen at random for one of these fabulous bags, and you will even be able to choose your own from a fabulous selection!

Happy Shopping & Blogging, friends!

*Note: if you don't win and are interested in a bag, email me and we'll set up a lil' ol' sale.

Worst Morning Ever (note: hint of sarcasm)

Mornings always make me especially lazy.

Especially lazy after a night spent trying to train Baby not to wake up for a 4 am feeding. She did pretty well for her first night at this. The crying is sadder just because of the fact that it's not loud and wailing. Just sad. And a little hungry. Hopefully, she'll get the idea soon enough.

Anyway, this morning we all had a hard time pulling ourselves out of bed. After Baby finally went down for her morning nap, we flopped onto the couch with our laptops (Dad has Mondays off--hooray!) and whined about how I had to plug in my computer and his was across the room and had to be fetched. What a pain...worst morning ever...until I knocked my entire cup of fresh yummy coffee off the table and onto the floor. Now it was official.

We console ourselves with this pile of cuteness. It will all be ok. Plus, my second cup of coffee is safely in a to-go mug.

In the Quiet

In the stillness I wait.

I take a sip of my coffee and wait.

I look out at the trees and my hammock and the flowers and I wait.

I heave a relaxed sigh. Maybe I'm not really waiting. Waiting indicates forward action in a sense, a moving ahead. Or at least, a wanting to move ahead.

These quiet moments when everyone in the house is napping. Rather than scurry about to finish cleaning or a project, I sit and enjoy the quietude. I check my email, read my blogs, play a game on Facebook.

Later I'll worry about the laundry or the sewing or the garden. There's plenty of time in the day for it all. Right now it's all about the quiet.

My Little Helper

At the advice of a friend, I signed up yesterday for The Grocery Game. The past few months I have been more diligent about clipping coupons and looking for deals as prices for everything has been rising.

With a free month to try it out, I'm loving this site after only one day. It matches up your local grocery store's sales with weekly coupons to find you the best deals. All from sitting on your couch with your feet up. The thing I love best is that it even tells you the percentage you are saving. So if three different brands of the same thing (usually toilet paper) are on sale, you can easily see which one is cheaper without pulling out your calculator.

Baby Girl has been helping me sort and clip coupons so I'm all ready to go shopping. Granted, her method of sorting involves a lot more crumpling and chewing on the coupons, but she's really trying to be helpful, I'm sure.

Month Six: Happy Half Birthday!

This month was packed full of firsts. I can't believe how big and how grown up you became this month. You found and chewed on your toes--with your brand new teeth! I haven't really been looking for teeth but last week you were a little fussier than usual and I thought I'd just check. Lo and behold there were pokies in your mouth. You currently have two good-sized teeth and hopefully we are past the worst of your pain. At least until the next few decide to work their way up. You've been a tough little cookie and I've only put on the orajel for you a couple times. Cheerios, anyone?

I've been hesitant to start you on solids because, well, I just don't want you to grow up so fast doggone-it. But I've been able to tell that you are still hungry at night before bed so I figured it was time to break open the box of rice cereal. You gobbled up the whole bowl with no problem at all with probably only 30

percent on your face. Ok, maybe more.

You've been sitting up great for at least a month now and can play all by yourself with a basket of toys until you've pulled every one out. Nothing better than a good game of "Take the Toys out of the Basket." We just got a box of blocks so you can start learning your letters...we'll have you writing within the year. Right? After that we'll hit philosophy and the meaning of life.

And of course, we are pretty sure you're already a virtuoso. You can pound in what we like to call "artistic harmony." You usually stop to listen to daddy pound a little more gracefully, but as soon as he's done, you add in your own melody to his. It's lovely.

We went to two birthday parties of your friends. Of course, you don't really know yet that they're your friends, but that's ok. You like getting all dressed up, meeting new people and we like all the food, friends, cupcakes and party favors, aka bottles of bubbles. You are now a big fan of watching us blow bubbles into the wind. Summer is the best time for bubble blowing.

Ah, the crib bed head look. It's totally all the rage right now.

Some days you seem to keep every sip of milk down and other days you barf up half of it all. You are such a mess sometimes. But darn it, you're adorable. Let's just get a washcloth before any kisses, m'kay?

This month we finally got a bike trailer to pull along and go for bike rides with you. You had your shades, some fun rings and after being strapped into your car seat you held on for dear life. However, I was the one driving, so we couldn't really go too fast. Next time we're going to make Dad pull.

You can't pull yourself up or get into a sitting position from lying down, but you want to stand up all day long. You're starting to take steps with us holding you up. It's exciting, but at the same time it sure is handy to be able to leave you in the saucer while I make dinner or plunk you down with your basket of toys and a pillow and know you're not going anywhere. Oh the mischief you will get into when you're mobile! Stay little and stationary, my sweet.

We're still working on finding a way to make you like tummy time. We try new tricks every day in hopes that something will make you happy. Propping you up on a boppy pillow in front of an activity center and helping you play with all the wheels and knobs. Lying you on one of our chests and making faces. Flying you up above our heads or hovering you over the floor. The pool was the newest one--you had to hold your heavy little head up or it would get all wet! Fortunately, you did really well with that one. And you do love your pool.

We're starting to discover a few of your favorite things. A couple favorite books, your bunny blankie and, of course, your kitty. She is getting more patient with your hands grabbing for her soft fluffy fur and pulling her ears.

It was a good month, baby girl. There's a lot of junk in this world. A lot of frustration and heartache and pain for a lot of people. But when you put your tiny little arms around my neck for a hug it's all a bit better for a while. At least it is after I pry my hair out from between your fingers.

Gross-out Moment of the Week

After feeding the baby at six in the morning, I'm about to put her in her crib and stumble back to bed myself when she barfs right down into the front of my shirt.

Fabulous.

Pics from the 3rd / 4th

Fabulous traditional party across from the fireworks. Posing for a family picture.








Having fun during the parade this morning. Baby loves to fly up in the sky.








She has been sitting up for very long periods of time the past few days. Her favorite game is "take all toys out of the basket." It's pretty fun.







We had a fun photo shoot outside in the grass today. This kid is too darn cute.

My Old Man

This past Monday we celebrated Andy's 30th birthday. His best friend also turned thirty this month so his wife & I decided we should have one big bash and call it their 60th Birthday Party. Man, those guys are old.







After a day of prepping salsa and hummus, making cupcakes & drinks then marinating several pounds of chicken, I got to be the grill master for the evening and spent some time flipping the juicy birds and hot dogs for the kiddos.




Of course, I did a bit of playing with my baby when I wasn't grilling. She's just so darn cute and fun!



There was tons of food for all, (including a fabulous noodle salad, corn biscuit casserole, cookies and more cupcakes from my party-mate) Frisbee, hillbilly horseshoes, and a rousing game of croquet which all the dads played while carrying their tots. I have no idea who won. Anyone else know?






But they all looked super studly out there with their babies and croquet mallets.








We have always loved living close to downtown, but also half a block away from our local zoo and beautiful park. We call it our back yard with the bonus that we don't have to mow it and there are plenty of picnic tables at our disposal.






With 20 adults, 15 kids and 1 dog it was a beautiful evening and a huge success!








Hopefully, his next 30 years will be just as much fun as his first 30! We're just hoping we'll still remember where we put that birthday candle.

My Baby? You Decide.

The other day I was sorting through a few items in my daughter's baby book and found her birth certificate. I looked inside and notice that they had stamped her feet in it after she was born. Awww.

My baby book came with a special little "clean" stamp pad where you press the baby's foot onto the top of the pad, which is covered in plastic, and it makes the print on the paper below.

In looking at the prints I had made of my baby's feet, and the ones done in the hospital, I noticed something strange.

They are nothing alike.

Those footprints on my child's birth certificate? Not my child's feet.










See for yourself. They are not the same. Totally not the same. Not to mention the fact that the ones taken two weeks earlier are bigger. Huh.

Do I do or say something about it? The small print on the bottom of the page says that they are not a legal document and are a memento. Ok, sure, but not a memento of my kid.

Andy says that they did it right in the birthing room. Apparently, after they took the card away, they filled out some other kids' info on it.

Baby 5.5

(She is now five and a half months old. I kept missing and then putting off writing her five month post. Apparently, she was also neglected this month as she has very few pictures. But she's got lots of fun video. It just needs editing. A very time consuming project.)




This month you seemed to make so many changes! Not only are you getting bigger every day, (and always cuter) but you really seem to be learning new things. I still have a hard time distinguishing whether you are doing something intentionally or accidentally, but it is starting to move more often toward intention.





You love to grab. Anything and everything, but most especially people's faces. Noses, hair, eyes, lips. Your toys hold new interest for you and you can play with a toy for a lot longer now. You notice the textures and the movements and you are more concerned with all their different sounds.





It's possible that you've started teething as you can go through your whole pile of bibs in a day with your drool. The binkie seems to keep some of it in, but you can leak all over in mere moments. I have been making waterproof bibs so you don't have to change your clothes as many times.





You now love to stand up. You can only handle lying down or rolling around for so long before you want to stand. Sitting is only a means for you to be closer to standing. I think we may need to buy some more sticky-footed socks so you don't slide all over.

We still try to enforce tummy time as often during a day as possible, but you are not a fan at all. You will tolerate it, and our silly shenanigans for about five minutes until you have had enough. I have a bad feeling that you are going to be a walker long before you crawl.

Joining In: WFMW

I don't usually do a daily post or a "scheduled" topic, but today I was specifically thinking of a few things that worked for me today.

Craigslist. I don't know if you have a craigslist community near you, but you should definitely check into it. I sold a ton of great stuff yesterday and am steadily purging my house of things I don't need, hardly use, and am completely sick of. Plus, I am building up my home improvement fund for remodeling the attic & the basement this winter.

Paying my car insurance premium semi-annually instead of monthly. With our last car, we only had the minimum insurance coverage and the premium reflected this. I was easily able to pay it up front and didn't have to see regular bills. I have been saving up enough lately to pay the most recent one altogether and am looking forward to not having to pay it again until December! Why shouldn't I collect some interest and avoid the (albeit small) monthly fee? Plus, it just makes me feel much more on top of things to get this done.

What doesn't work for me on this beautiful, sunny Wednesday? The piles of laundry to put away, the dishes, the garden to clean and move, the luggage still sitting out, the odds and ends and junk around that needs to be returned to rightful places. All in due time, I suppose. Reading a book and being back in the cottage on the lake would work for me a whole lot better I think.

At the Lake

Growing up, we would go to the lake several times during the summer. My grandparents owned a small, cozy cottage on Lake Chautauqua in Western New York. We'd spend the day in the shallow, rocky water searching for mussels to try to pull apart or roll on the gentle waves in our inner tubes.

Fishing was a given. Gramma was an avid fisher who not only could fillet a mean perch, but could catch one just by winking at it. If you went to the cottage, you had to fish. It took me years to learn to string my own worms, but still never had the courage or ability to get the fish itself off of the hook.

I loved sitting and staring lazily at a red and white striped bobbin riding the waves. Waiting until it came in too far past the best fish spot and reeling it back in only to throw it out again immediately into deeper waters. It wasn't about how many or how big; it was just about the soothing, relaxing time of fishing with Gramma. She'd show you the best way to cast the line and where it was easiest to catch a fish. She knew when a shiny little minnow would catch a bigger fish and when the little worms were better.

Far too often Pop would have to get his waders on and walk into the water to dislodge my hook from the rocks in the shallows. He never complained, just chuckled that it was only fifteen minutes since the last time.

It wasn't really summer unless we had spent time at the cottage. Eating macaroni salad, chicken barbecue and chocolate chip cookies while sitting on the dock. Laying for hours on the green cloth hammock stretched tight on the poles while staring up at the clouds floating by. Laziness was a virtue at the cottage.

Last year they sold it to their long-time neighbors. Most of the family has moved far enough away that we didn't always make it up even once a summer. The new owners have renovated it beyond recognition of it's original style. Instead of dark paneling, piles of old magazines and the musty smell of a too-long-closed-up room we arrived this week to find a fresh, airy, light vacation getaway. You can still see the original walls, but that is about all that has survived the transition.

The deck which used to sit off the front and face the water is now completely enclosed and a new deck added. The kitchen, with its ancient appliances and cramped cupboards has become a bright new room with updated everything and a beautiful, chic stand-alone island. The whole place has a feel of sunshine, pale blue water and summertime instead of a dark, cold fishing cabin hiding in the woods.

I loved the old cottage. I loved the musty smell, the coziness, the familiar piles of old games, books and knick-knacks. I loved hearing the easy-listening channel on the radio all day. I loved sitting with a pair of binoculars and looking at the boats sailing or speeding by. I loved digging through the closet to see what random junk could be found for play. I loved meeting the whole family for a day of talking and laughing and eating, fishing and swimming. There were years of happy memories stored up in that cottage.

I also love the new cottage. We'll still only be able to come up here once a year, but it feels more like a vacation now with the added benefit of modern conveniences. Instead of musty, it smells like fresh water and just plain clean. Instead of fish heads nailed to the boards on the porch, there is framed artwork inside. We don't have to haul in a bucket of water to flush the toilet and the shower has continual hot water. We can watch movies on the HD flat screen and still listen to the waves crashing on the shore. We can cook and bake and grill and eat with brand new appliances.

We are the first customers this cottage has ever lived with. It seems fitting that we get to gently break it in and give it some new memories.

The old was good. It was very good. But the new is good too. Maybe the new is even great. See for yourself.


Cottage from Anne on Vimeo.