Warning: Lots of Peanut Pictures

Little girl is growing up. Here she is with Daddy's hat, thinking that "life is sooo tough" after eating, and hanging out outside while Daddy is practicing his archery. She still loves the jumperoo and the bouncy chair AND she is even tolerating the swing... as she grows up, she is more willing to put up with things she may not like as much... well, until she's tired, and then anything we do could set her into a whining fit ;)

She has so many fun facial expressions! She takes after me that way... the other day, at a going-away party, she even did an Elvis expression. Silly girl :)

One night, Grizz went to a free Christian concert with friends. Peanut was already having a rough day, so I wasn't going to drag her to a concert on top of that... so, it was a walking night for Peanut and Mommy. She loves to be outside. She will calm down the moment we bring her outside. We think she just gets bored inside and loves to look at all the interesting things outside. Sometimes, if we don't feel like walking during fussy evenings, we'll just put a quilt out on the balcony and sit with her out there. She loves it!

We have tried some oatmeal cereal here and there after her 4 month appointment. She doesn't fuss (surprisingly!), but she doesn't swallow much either. I think we'll try some veggies soon.

Bathtimes are getting even more enjoyable! She seems to be loving the water more and more. I finally bought her her first bath toy... a rubber ducky of course! She loves to suck on it while we scrub, scrub, scrub... Drying her off is her least favorite part. She will try to roll to her tummy the entire time we're trying to dry her. Of course, as soon as we let her roll over, she's happy again.

Since we're moving soon, we've been trying to get out and enjoy all that this city has to offer. We've been out for a few jogs on the bike trail. We really do have a lovely bike trail along the river... perfect for evening or morning runs!

For awhile, she would stay on her hands and knees if we put her down like that... then she'd fall to her tummy and push up with her hands. Such fun exercise! Well, now she can get up on her hands and knees by herself! She may not be moving like this (although she is starting to squirm her way toward things she wants), but I'm sure she'll be crawling soon.

It is fun to see her playing with her feet. She has tried to eat them once, but other than that, she usually just grabs and pulls on her socks a bit. If you recall, she always refused a bottle, so now we are trying to give her a sippy cup every once in awhile. She can get the milk out easily - we have the kind of cup where she kind of has to bite and suck, but then she just lets it fall out of her mouth! Sometimes she'll look at me with a face that clearly says "why is that coming out of this chew toy!" I'm sure she'll get the hang out of it sometime. She loves to chew and suck on our water bottles, too :)


Sorry for the overload, but if I don't share and comment on the pictures, I'm sure I'd forget the details soon! Time flies!

A Bit Past 5 Months

 Smiley girl is a couple weeks past 5 months. She's growing, growing, growing!

She is getting so much more coordinated... well, you know, coordinated for a 5 month old :) She's turning and reaching for things she wants and she's getting up on her hands and knees! I just know that she'll be crawling soon!

Finally, we got a decent picture of her little teethies that have been in for over a month now! Now, we are just biding our time until the next ones want to make an appearance :)

I know I usually have a list of tidbits about what Peanut is up too, but this month I'll be doing it in pictures... that post will be up on Thursday! (Until then, I'll be packing and cleaning - we're moving on Friday!!)

Insta-Baby-Friday

Just a few Baby pics from Instagram :)

 A few Sundays ago, we headed out to the mountains. Grizz needed to set his game cam, and Peanut and I just hung out near the vehicle. It's always nice to get out in the fresh mountain air!

 Just hanging out with Daddy and trying to eat her entire hand...

 ... we prefer her chewing on a teething toy over her hand!

A jackrabbit on the mountains! (Go Jacks!)

 Grizz's new trick :)

 My brother's wife had a conference in a nearby (3 hrs away) town, so my mom flew in to spend a few days with us.  Then, we drove to see my sister-in-law and spend the night in her hotel room. Here we are picking her up at the airport - Peanut thought she was sooo funny!

And she also really liked Auntie's hair :)

Have a happy weekend!

4 Months - 4 Months - 4 Months

 Time Flies! Our little Peanut is 4 months old :) She may not be growing as quickly, but her brain has definitely been ticking with how much she has learned this past month!

 We have our doctors appointment later this morning, which will include her second round of shots. I'm a little nervous just because on top of the shots, she's teething! I suspect we'll have one sleepy and cranky girl this afternoon...

But here's the scoop:

• She can tolerate the swing, but it definitely doesn't rock her to sleep.
• She enjoys helping Mommy put away clothes (OK, really, it's more like I can happily tote her around and she'll just lay where she's put while I put things away or pick up the apartment)
• She loves to smile - and will even laugh sometimes! She's still a chatterbox, and has learned to do some high-pitched "screams" - she likes it when Mom and Dad squeal right back at her.
• In stores, she prefers to be swung in her carseat rather than being placed in the cart... or better yet, we should hold her or put her in the Baby Bjorn (the carrier works well if she's about to fall asleep).
• Teeth. Yes, we have an early teether on our hands - her two front, lower teeth are poking through! She does not know what to think of them, but she is definitely not enjoying the teething process. The early teething definitely comes from Grizz's side - his older sister got her first teeth when she was about 3 months!
• She still likes baths, and even if she doesn't, she will quiet right down when it's time to brush her hair - she's like her Daddy who likes his head scratched :)
• Rolling over! She would roll from her tummy to her back every once in awhile starting way back at her 2 week appointment... well, now she is rolling from her back to her tummy! It just goes to show how much she dislikes being on her back - anytime we put her on her back, she rolls right to her tummy! Anytime we put her down on her tummy, she stays put.
• She will spin in circles while on her tummy but she hasn't scooted forward or backwards yet - even though she's trying to! She usually has her feet kicking, but she just hasn't quite figured out how to scoot.
• She loves standing with assistance - she prefers that to sitting on our laps.
• Naps are a little hard to come by (she'll fight them!), but she still sleeps really well at night... waking only once (or not at all) to eat and then fall right back asleep.
• She loves putting things in her mouth, but she hasn't quite figured out how to keep things there to chew or suck on. This fact hasn't helped the teething process.
• Nursing is still going well!
• Cloth diapers are also going well - I have to wash every day or every other day, but I don't mind... we were in Missoula for a few days earlier this week, and I just kept her in disposables for the entire trip... I couldn't wait to get her back into cloth once we got home!
• She's almost grown completely out of her 0-3 month onesies, but she can still fit into a few. She's comfortable in her 3-6month onesies.
• We haven't even tried a bottle in several weeks - she just doesn't like them! She doesn't take a paci every once in awhile... even if it's just to chew on it :)

Ok, that's all the updates I can think of... sorry for such a long post, but it's mostly to help me remember her likes and dislikes once she grows older!

August Goals

I cut and pieced these blocks in June (I think... or was it May?!). Anyways, they now need to be sewn into rows and finally into a twin-sized quilt top for Peanut!

The blocks are 6 1/2" square.

The mini squares were cut at 2 1/2" to make the nine-patch blocks.

All of the fabric came from Grizz's mother who is trying to decrease her fabric stash (I'll never turn down fabric!)

I'm linking up with "A Lovely Year of Finishes" with Melissa and Shanna. 

...and with Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday...

 However, I can't just sew during nap time and Daddy time... I also *get* to pack. Grizz's parents took a lot of our stuff home when they visited a few weekends ago, so now I am packing up the things that didn't fit. The pictures above show the 2nd bedroom which has now been converted back into a sewing room - it's also the packing and storing room!

We're moving in September!!!

Peanut's things are now in the "dining room," our couches were sent home, so we're sitting on the lone lazy boy and a mattress :) The big TV has been replaced with it's miniature little brother and Grizz gets to study for his Professional Engineering exam on a desk made of boxes, milk crates and the filing cabinet. 

Grizz's parents kept saying that we're "camping" in our apartment until we move back... all I can say is that we now have a lot more room :)

Someone is 3 Months Old Today!

Someone is getting bigger! Peanut is 3 months old today. It's hard to believe it has been three months since this little one has joined us, but then I remember back to the countless hours of walking with her and bouncing her and feeding her and then I think... maybe time hasn't gone all that fast :)

 Comparing to her 1 week, 1 month and 2 month pictures. 

Grizz thinks she grew more between 1 and 2 months; all I know is that pretty soon she won't fit inside the coiled rope!

• I have integrated all of her 3-6month clothes with her 0-3month ones; soon, I'll have to take out all of the smaller ones, but for now, she can wear both sizes.
• The swing is still her least favorite activity. She has started to like her bouncer chair more - it lets her kick, kick, kick in the seat - and the jumperoo is definitely her favorite! She has started to be able to calmly lie on her back more than what she used to... we watched her bat her hand at the hanging monkey as she was lying on her activity gym today!
• She still is fussy when she doesn't get long enough naps during the day, but she continues to sleep through the night most of the time. Last night was the first time I had to wake up around midnight for a feeding in a long time (before that, I can only remember a 3:00 and a 4:00 feeding throughout the last few weeks!). I used to be acclimated to waking up in the middle of the night for her to nurse, but now that she sleeps through most nights, I'm not used to it anymore! 
• Prefolds/covers are still working great as cloth diapers. However, the pocket diapers are still giving us leaking issues. More research and experiments needed!
• She's a little chatterbox when she's happy and content! My favorite is a "ohgh" sound she makes :) She still loves playing airplane with both Grizz and I!
• No bottle yet.
• Still "gurgle-butt"-ing once a day or two. We appreciate knowing when she goes!
• We took out the infant insert out of her carseat today after reading the instruction manual again. Supposedly, we were supposed to do it a month ago once we found out she weighed more than 11lb. We're guessing she's around 13lb now.
• Coming up this month: I'm in a wedding up in Glacier in two weeks, and my mom is coming out around the same time that my sister-in-law has a conference in a nearby town, so we will have fun exploring/window-shopping/antiquing together. Other than that, we continue to plan our move back to SD!! 

Happy Three Months, Peanut!

A Win and A Peanut

Just a quick share of something that I won! Jodi from Pleasant Home was a part of "A Quilting Life" Blog tour and I won! Sherri's "A Quilting Life" (blog) just arrived yesterday, and it was so fun to browse through the projects and dream about the time when I'll have time to do a few! I went to bed thinking about the fabric I could use for the patchwork tote and one of the quilts in the book. Sigh. Someday :) 

And, just for good measure, here's a pic of Peanut's cute cloth-diapered-big-butt. She's wearing a pocket diaper from Softbums that arrived a few weeks ago. It was a gift from a married couple that I went to high school with - so sweet! As Peanut grows, the diaper will stretch out some, and her butt won't look so big. But until then, when she wears them, Grizz and I just smile at it :)

PS: the pink blanket is not covering Peanut's mouth; it just appears that way in the picture. I always make sure there's nothing covering her nose/mouth during naps and nighttime!

Trip to San Diego

Even before I became pregnant last summer, my family had been planning on traveling to San Diego around Memorial Day. My oldest brother lives there with his family, and we've never taken a trip where the ENTIRE covey visited them at the same time... so, Grizz and I waited until Peanut was born to determine if we could actually travel with her via plane when she was so little. Our 14 hour car trip back to SD when she was a month old helped us realize that yes, we could take the plunge, buy tickets, and travel with a 2 month old to California :)

She spent some quality time with the grandparents and her aunt and uncle that she met in SD, and she got to meet her aunt, uncle and two boy cousins! Well, actually, she was a tad fussy while we were there, so she spent a lot of time in my arms, too... but it was worth it :) She ate in a restaurant for the first time ;) and took a stroll on the beach... she also got to show off her smile to grandma and grandpa!

Here's the morning stroll on the beach! Grizz and I actually got to go on two short runs together, since Grandma was there to watch her!

We all got to spend some time on the beach (how many birds does it take to put up a beach tent?).

Peanut's cousin S still doesn't like the water touching his feet that much! We stayed three nights at a duplex cabin on the Navy base on Coronado - right on the beach! (My brother is in the Navy and is doing his surgical residency in San Diego.) It was nice to stay right on the beach, so Grandma could watch the napping kids, while we all played in the sand and water (thanks grandparents!).

 The boys took one afternoon to go deep sea fishing - 3 out of the 4 got sick. Grizz has determined that he doesn't have to go again. The fish tasted good that night, though!

 We spent one night in a hotel on Miramar since their house isn't big enough for all of us - I never thought I'd ever eat a continental breakfast at a Navy hotel! Other highlights were just being with family, seeing how much the nephews had grown, seeing a cousin and her family for the first time in about six years and learning that traveling with Peanut isn't all that scary after all :)

10 Weeks

 Yes, our little Peanut is growing up. She was 10 weeks old yesterday. She has survived a long road trip and a trip via airplane. She even survived her first hike in the mountains for Father's Day! 

At her 2 month appointment, she weighed 11lb 4oz and measured 23in. We were quite happy with those measurements! 

•  She still doesn't tolerate her swing, and the bouncy seat only lasts a little while (I think it makes her lay back too far; she doesn't like being on her back for very long!). However, Grizz put together her jumperoo on Saturday and she loves it! She looks around and slobbers on the seat; I cannot wait until she is ready to actually play with the toys on it! 
• She's still in her 0-3 month clothes, although, Gerber runs small so she is wearing a few 3-6 month onesies. 
• She sleeps on her tummy, and tolerates naps alone much better now - which explains why I haven't blogged in awhile... I can actually clean while she sleeps in the pack-n-play instead of just holding/rocking her! 
• She can sleep between 5-8 hours at a time at night and will usually fall back asleep after a changing/feeding. Naps during the day are usually between 30min-2hours. I am really trying to focus on not letting her stay awake too long, as I can tell this adds to her fussiness.
• Yesterday (Father's Day), we took her to church, the mountains and to a friend's BBQ. She had screaming fits multiple times in the carseat, and she didn't have one normal nap - she only had a few catnaps - one each in the carseat, in the Baby Bjorn, during the sermon and with one of our friends at the BBQ. Thus, it was her first 8hr sleeping session last night. 
• Because of her fussiness, the Dr. prescribed Zantac to see if that helps with some Silent Reflux. When I'm feeling lucky, I don't give it to her just to see how she does without it. Today, she has done well, but then again, she has slept for most of the day :)
• She smiles... oh, her smiles make me so happy! She likes to "talk" when she's awake and content (these time periods do seem to get longer as she gets older).
• She has started pooping less often, but when she does, she does! Sometimes we call her "Gurgle Butt" due to the noises that let us know that she finally pooped :)
• She hasn't taken a bottle yet (we've only tried about 4 times) and she has only truly taken the pacifier twice (in San Diego while she was screaming in the car!).
• She rolled from her tummy to her back at each of her Dr. appointments, but she finally did it for me a few times at home. She doesn't do it every tummy time, but she can do it!
• I have started venturing out with her more often. She went to two craigslist pick-ups last week, plus on Friday she went to Walmart in the morning and to the mall in the afternoon (Grizz needed a dark blue shirt for the Patriotic Cantata he was in that night).
• We are loving the cloth diapers, even though we've had a few leaking problems with the pocket diapers. I figured out today that these leaks were due to the diapers and the inserts repelling moisture. Really, I squirted water on them and the water just beaded up and fell off. I researched and think it is due to using Tide powder as a laundry detergent. The prefolds have been fine since they are a natural fiber, but the pocket diapers/inserts are microfiber and the detergent has just been building up. Thus, I need to strip them and start using a different detergent. I ordered Soap Nuts and hope they arrive soon! Until then, we'll use the prefolds and disposables (we're up to size 2 now!).

I don't usually let Grizz take pictures of me with Peanut... I'm usually in sweats with my hair in a messy ponytail during the day. I was very happy that she was smiley after church one day, so I could finally get a good picture with her! I think Grizz took at least 15 pictures of me with her and they are all so cute! We are very blessed to have each other and to have Peanut. Smiles all around :)

Sewing Time... Finally!

Peanut is slowly allowing me some sewing time... aka, I don't always have to hold her for her naps anymore! In appreciation, I'm sewing her a twin-sized quilt... yeah, yeah, yeah, I know she's only 2 months old, but I believe in using time wisely. I don't know if I'll have time to sew her a quilt for her big-girl bed when the time comes, so I might as well sew it now! Plus, I need to get rid of fabric :)

Cutting... the fabric is all from Grizz's mom... fabric that she didn't want anymore!

 Piles for nine-patches...

 Pinning the nine-patches...

And sewing the nine-patches! I still have lots more nine-patches to sew, followed by squaring them up and finally adding in the solid squares to sew the quilt top!

Progress!

Until next time... aka, next nap time ;)

Linking up with Freshly Pieced on WIP Wednesday

Car Seat Strap Holders Tutorial

Last weekend, we were lucky enough to take a trip to SoCal to visit my brother's family. Since they have a 3 year old and a 1 year old, they pretty much had all the baby gear we needed - we didn't have to check any bags, carseats or strollers while flying! Anyways, while using their old carseat, we noticed a stretchy, buttony contraption on each side. After asking Sister-In-Law about them, she explained that they are used to hold the straps... what a great idea!! We had just been trying to place the straps to the side while placing Peanut in the seat, but we would still have to dig for the straps underneath her - this sometimes lead to a disgruntled Peanut. With these contraptions, the straps are held out to the side, making strapping Peanut it much more enjoyable!

See the difference? The contraption holds the strap to the side, instead of letting the strap just sit there in the way of a baby.

So, without further ado, here's a small tutorial so you can make them for yourself or as a great baby shower gift! Please realize that different car seats might need different lengths of cording and different lengths between knots... if you have a car seat, make sure you guess and check a little to make sure it fits!

You will need an elastic cording - I used the "beading cord elastic," but I'm sure the "round cord elastic" would work just as well. I was in a rush in Walmart when I picked these up, so I grabbed both just in case :)

You will also need two buttons. I used to have my collection in a large canning jar, but I sent that home in a craft tub... we're slowly trying to relocate our stuff 14 hours from here in preparation of moving home! Someday, I'll be able to put my collection back in the jar; until then, a baggie will just have to work.

 Pick out two good-sized buttons. Here is the size of mine compared to a $5 bill.

 Cut a 24" length of the elastic cording and fold it in half.

 Place the folded end through through one of the holes in the button - from the back to the front.

 Then, place it back through another hole - from the front to the back - and pull a good length though (this is when guess and check works really well!).

 Knot the end! (Again, guess and check!)

This is when I thought I was done. Then, I had an idea. Buttons and babies don't always go over well - choking hazards and all. So, I created another step...

Place a knot between the button and the folded end. Then, if Baby somehow gets the contraption off the car seat handle, at least there's a knot on both ends and the button can't fall off... it may not be a perfect fix, but it's enough for me. I really don't see it being a problem, but it's an easy step toward being a tad bit more safe :)

Don't forget to follow the same steps to make the second one! You need two of these holders!

 Now for the fun part! Loop the folded end around the handle and pull the button through...

 ... then, loop the knotted end around the strap and hook it on the button.

 Place the second one around the other side of the car seat handle, and you are ready to place Baby down without having to dig under him/her for the straps. Yay!


Linking up with Sew Much Ado at We Did It! Wednesday...