The other day I really noticed how precious tiny hands are.
I love when they hold my fingers or press against my skin as I rock you to sleep.
I love their curiousity as you explore your new world.
I love the perfect new skin that hasn’t seen the trials of the world yet.
I love the way they reach for new possibilites.
Curious, strong, beautiful, tiny tiny hands.
Hello world, I am finally ready to share my chili recipe. Yes it is delicious. Yes people are going to like it. Yes you will be a hero in the kitchen for the day. But most of all, it will be EASY. Enjoy, modify, or do as you please.
1 package of ground turkey or beef
1 cup of chopped onion
1 tablespoon of chili powder
1/4 tablespoon of ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper
1/4 tablespoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon of minced garlic
1/2 bottle of beer
1 1/2 cans of kidney beans (measure to scale)
1 can of diced tomatoes
a thickening agent (corn starch)
Cheddar cheese and saltines crackers to garnish
Brown the meat with the onions and minced garlic. Transfer the mixture to a crock pot. Add beans, tomatoes, and spices. Cook on high for 4-6 hours. An hour before serving add in a little thickening agent to thicken it up.
Serve with cheese, crackers, or your favorite topping and ENJOY!
I swear I did not pose you like this (baby model)
February 22, 2012 – 8 months old
Weight: around 19 lbs
Milestones: Holy cow where do I start. Your acid reflux is finally getting better so you are rolling all around now that it doesn’t hurt you to be on your tummy. You are so ready to start crawling and getting closer every day. You roll all around, scoot, and you can go from laying down to sitting up all by yourself (strong boy!). I put you down in one place, and I turn around and you are somewhere else. Baby on the move (hello baby proofing). You are talking all the time (SJ language of course), and you love to make lots of fun noises with your mouth. You are so smart my boy.
Teeth: You are in the process of getting 2 top front teeth. It breaks my heart to see you in pain while they come in, but man you are going to look adorable with a toothy grin.
Foods: Finally back on solids – yeah! Also since your acid reflux is getting better you have been taking down the food (and retaining it, no more massive spit ups). Pears, bananas, mangos, cheddar cheese, and today you had avocado! You also like to lick Dad’s popsicle and then chew on the stick afterwards.
Favorites: Being thrown up in the air, you love that! Playing with your tools, playing with my hair, your exersaucer (amen for this), and Max’s tennis balls.
You get more fabulous every month kid.
Love you to the moon and back,
Mom
I think everybody has published some format of their newborn essentials. It is funny how everyone has an opinion on this matter. When I was pregnant, new mommies would always submit their words of wisdom on baby gear. I actually didn’t mind it though, in fact I often went in search for these lists and advice. I liked to read other mommy’s reviews, thoughts, and opinions and I would always take it into consideration before buying my gear. So in the interest in hopefully helping other mommies out there, here is my list. This is what saved me when SJ was a newborn.
1. Ergo baby carrier Whatever you do, DO NOT get the baby bjorn. I had this one originally and it screwed up my shoulder and neck pretty bad. The ergo distributes baby’s weight evenly between your upper and lower back, making it much more comfortable.
2. Aden and Anais Swaddle Blankets SJ didn’t swaddle, he liked to be free as a bird, but we used these multi-use blankets for everything else. Specifically they make amazing burp clothes. SJ is a spitter, so it is nice to have something more substantial than a tiny little burp cloth to keep around. This is a staple in the diaper bag.
3. Chicco Snap and Go Stroller This will save you when you are on the go I promise!! (By the way I highly recommend the Chicco Keyfit carseat, it is the safest one by my research). We also have a bumble ride stroller that is good for walks or longer outings, but when you need to get in and out of the grocery store with an infant you don’t need a big bulky fancy stroller. This is lightweight, fits easily in any car, and can open in one hand. You just put the car seat directly on it and you are done and ready to roll. It is seriously so easy and sometimes you need that as a new mom.
4. Boppy Changing Pad Liners These I stumbled across on Amazon one day and they ended up saving me. Listen, babies will make a mess of your changing table – especially boys. Even if you buy 1 extra changing pad cover it isn’t enough and it is a pain to always have to wash those every time (which could be multiple times in one day) baby gets it dirty. These are easy and lay right on top of changing pad cover. It is about $12 for 3 of them which is a lot cheaper than buying a bunch of back up covers at $20-30 a pop!
5. Fisher Price Rock n Play Sleeper Holy amazing. This was hands down the best baby item I purchased. We actually used it instead of bassinet. SJ ended up having colic and acid reflux so it was great to have him at an incline to make him more comfortable. This is portable and moves from room to room which is awesome. Also, spring for the snuggabunny model, the cheaper model doesn’t have enough padding and can make babies head a little flat if they are in it too much (so I have heard). SJ lived in this thing for 4 months and we have no problems with his head (except that his hair is growing in patchy ha!)
6. Aquaphor My pediatrician recommended this and we used it for everything. It is the best for diaper rash, dry skin, eczema, rash, you name it. This should be a staple in your house.
7. Diaper Dekor This one is not pictured above but I thought I would throw in a bonus for ya! This is the best diaper pail. It masks the smells much better than all other diaper pails. Worth the extra money on this one.
We went to Carmel-by-the-sea for the night yesterday to take advantage of this 3 day weekend. We ate some great food with family and had a fun, low-key time. SJ and I didn’t sleep a whole lot since he has boycotted the pack n play, so we slept together on a couch. He made up for it though when he woke me up at 7 am by playing with my face and tugging on my hair, and when I opened my eyes he just stared at me with the biggest smile accompanied by a giggle. Priceless.
This morning before heading back home we stopped at the beach to let the dogs run around. SJ enjoyed the sand as you can see above. Love a little impromptu family fun!
Happy President’s Day everyone!
Not the best picture, but hey we were in the moment
It is so hard in the busy lives we live to remember to be present. Lately, I have realized that SJ has been begging me to be more present. When I pick up my phone to multi-task writing emails while feeding him a bottle or playing with him, he screams. When I put down my phone or whatever else I am doing he is happy as a clam. I suddenly realized that he is telling me to be present in the moment. What a sweet child to teach me such an important lesson.
Admittingly it is hard to always be present in the moment. For me I feel like this is especially difficult being a working mom. I am trying to do it all; work for my family, raise a baby, and keep a home. It is impossible to do without multi-tasking. I feel like I am so busy trying to make sure that everything is done and everyone’s needs are met that it is easy to forget to just sit and be there in the moment no matter how crazy that moment may be. It even makes me a little sad that SJ had to remind me of this. I don’t want him to think I am an absent parent, I want him to know how much I love him and all the little things he does. He needs to always be the priority.
Sometimes our children are teaching us just as important of lessons as we teach them. I guess what I am learning, is that time is going to fly by and I need to stop and enjoy it sometimes. The dishes will get done, the laundry will get folded, and the emails will get answered. I might be up until 11:3o at night doing this but it will happen.
So thank you baby boy for making me remember what is important. For teaching me to enjoy our special time together. You are a pretty amazing kid.
SJ trying to stay positive amidst the worst flu ever
Ug. This flu season has been running rapid in my house, attacking sweet baby SJ the worst. It is terrible. Nothing is worse than having a sick baby. They just scream and cry and you feel so hopeless. He can’t tell me what is wrong and he doesn’t understand me telling him it will be okay, he is just scared and I don’t blame him.
We went to the doctor finally yesterday, and she said besides H1N1 this is the worst flu season she has seen. I mean SJ has completely lost his voice, I can barely hear him cry it is just a scratchy little horse echo.
I can not wait for this flu season to head out-of-town (or at the very least my house), but in the meantime here are a few things we have been using to help baby.
God’s little gift to sick babies and the mamas that care for them. Seriously this stuff is amazing. One minute SJ is hysterical, give him a little of this and then 10 minutes later he is smiling and happy. AMAZING. This is also WAY better than infant Tylenol. My older sister said it best; “There is a reason Tylenol is the only thing you can having when you are pregnant, it doesn’t do anything.”
2. Nose Frida
I know this seems disgusting. I was very weary of it when my friend first told me about it but I swear the snot will not ever come near your mouth. Here is the thing, SJ hates when I wipe his nose. Hates it. He screams and cries and looks at me like I am peer evil. At least this gets it all out quickly, so I only have to be evil once in a while instead of every 5 minutes.
3. Boogie Wipes
For when I do have to wipe his nose these are great. They are moist with saline solution so it is a little more comfortable for him. He actually holds his breath and then breathes a sign of relief when I use these. It is down right adorable.
4. Humidifier
This is helpful for babies and adults.
5. Lots and lots of love and cuddles.
This is the one redeeming part of having a sick baby. He usually isn’t huge on the cuddles but when he is sick he can’t get enough and it is what makes being a mommy so worth it.
Stay healthy!!
This is a little tidbit of what SJ was up to last weekend.
He started carrying this hammer around and wouldn’t put it down.
So Dad went out and bought him a legit tool set.
He took a break on Sunday to read the paper.
And of course he found a mailer for a sale on tools.
Happy Thursday from the happiest baby in town!
I am a very busy working mom which leaves me very little free time to do things like shop. Also, I like to spend the little free time I do have with my baby so I have taken up the wonderful world of online shopping. The one thing I don’t purchase online, is groceries which I either buy on my lunch break at work (if I take one) or on the way home with baby. Sometimes we make it a family outing on the weekends which doubles as family fun. Multi tasking I like it! Here are a few sites that make my life a little easier.
1. Amazon
I started becoming an Amazon advocate when I was preparing for baby. I got all our nursery furniture and baby necessities here. I mean talk about convenient having a crib dropped off at your front door! (If only they assembled it). You can pretty much buy anything under the sun on Amazon but right now I order all our formula from here on their subscription service (SJ has to have the most expensive formula and Amazon offers an additional 5% discount for doing subscription yes please!). I have also upgraded my membership to Prime which makes things even easier! No sales tax, competitive pricing, and free 2-day shipping – sign me up.
2. Diapers.com
Wow- love. Some things on here are a little more expensive but to me ordering something and having it show up at my door the very next day (usually for free) is totally worth it. Literally anything you can find at babies r us is on here plus more and you don’t have to leave your house!
3. Soap.com
The sister site to diapers.com. This is great for all household items: toothpaste, dishwashing detergent, etc. The greatest part is that you can shop across 6 brands (diapers.com, soap.com, wag.com, + more) to reach the free shipping threshold. They all operate off of one cart. This means I buy my baby lotion, hand soap, and dog food all at once for free next day delivery. Doesn’t get any easier than that.
4. Wag.com
Mentioned above. Great because without this my dogs would be eating Cheerios for dinner every night. The pet store is so out-of-the-way these days.
5. Ebates.com
If you don’t already have an ebates account you are missing out. This is literally sooo easy. They have almost every online store listed with individual cash back rewards and coupons. All you do is sign up and go to ebates before all online shopping. If your store is listed click-through and that is it. Ebates will send you a check at the end of every quarter with your cash back!
I also buy a lot of clothes, accessories, home decor etc. online. I am the queen of the deal sites and will have to dedicate an entire post to just this.
My sweet boy you are 7 months old today. Wow. My heart just melts for you more and more each day. You are seriously the cutest. You talk up a storm and we love it. So much to say. You are quite determined and I think you may finally attempt crawling one day soon. You flip your body around and have been getting a little more tolerant on your tummy. You especially do this in your crib. I put you down for bed and you use the slates to climb up and flip yourself over. You are a talented one little boy.
You have always loved to be a nakE baby, but recently you get mad when I try and put clothes on you. You throw a mini fit, but kid you have to wear more than just a diap out. By the way, lately you even try and take your diap off too. Kid you are something else. Quite talented.
You play so well with your toys, especially this morning. You were so quiet I was getting worried but there you were in the bed, just holding your toy smiling. I wanted to freeze frame that moment forever.
If anyone takes a toy away from you though, watch out. A screaming fit can be heard a block away! We will start working on sharing sweet boy.
Sometimes its not even a toy. You will stick anything in your mouth, dog toys, Dad’s id, silverware, the remote, anything you can grab goes in the mouth! Speaking of the dog toys, you LOVE to play tug a war with Max dog. You think it is hilarious and laugh and laugh. It is adorable.
You have become very aware of mommy and daddy and want attention when you know we are near.
I love you to the moon and back,
Mom
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