2008 IN REVIEW

Filed Under Bailey's Birthday, Christmas, Cloth Diapering, Daddy, Disney Vacation, Eighteen Months, Eleven Months, Fifteen Months, Firsts, Fourteen Months, Hair, Halloween, Nineteen Months, Play, Professional Pictures, Seventeen Months, Sixteen Months, Ten Months, Thirteen Months, Twelve Months, Twenty Months | 4 Comments

We were so blessed with a wonderful year. No major catastrophes, no deaths in our families, a daughter who has stayed healthy (with the exception of a few colds) and continued to grow and learn and amaze us… Here are the highlights of our year.

January- please note her lack of hair, compared to now

February- and Bailey is walking!

March

April- happy first birthday, Bailey!

May

June

July

August

September- Jonathon and I went to Disney World

October

November

December

Happy New Year!

Oberweis

Filed Under Bailey's Birthday, Eleven Months, Firsts | 3 Comments

Bailey had Oberweis ice cream for the first time tonight. We took her to celebrate her birthday with just Mommy and Daddy. She had birthday cake ice cream and really liked it. For about 1/4 of a kids size bowl, then she refused to open her mouth again. I tried it and it was really, really sweet so I think it just got to be too much for her… which is good because she doesn’t normally eat much dairy OR sweet stuff and I was worried about her little tummy. The girls at Oberweis loved her and gave her the ice cream for free, and also a free balloon. She ran around the store with her balloon for a while after she finished eating.

I realize I posted about a million pictures. But these are my last pictures of my child before she is a year old. Yes, I am getting sappy. Tomorrow I will post her big 12 month/one year post.

Forgot to mention

Filed Under Complaining, Eleven Months, Sick | 1 Comment

Bailey has a yeast infection on her legs. How the heck does that happen. I thought it was heat rash behind her knees. I didn’t even think about it being yeast because it’s not on her… um… girl parts. There is a tiny bit way over on the side of her bottom, though, so now we are busy bleaching diapers and doing laundry and smearing her with Lotrimin.

Also it is supposed to rain on the day of her birthday party, and the day before, and the day after. Isn’t that awesome? Gah.

Another day at the zoo

Filed Under Eleven Months, Outings | 3 Comments

Just wanted to share some pictures from our day at the zoo yesterday. Bailey and I took my mom and my grandma with us. The weather was a little cool in the morning but warmed up and turned out to be a nice day.

Hugging her new stuffed penguin

I can’t remember the last time she fell asleep in her stroller. Honestly, I think she was about five months old. I didn’t even recline it because I didn’t expect her to go to sleep. We were on our way out to the car and I looked down and she was all slumped down. She took a LONG nap after we got home, too!

Bailey’s 4th Word

Filed Under Eleven Months, Talking | 1 Comment

Her pediatrician said she needed to have two words by her first birthday. She has been saying Dada or Daddy and Mama. Sometimes she will quit saying them for a few days but then it comes back again. Also, she says woof when she sees or hears a dog. If I ask her, “What does a doggie say?” She says “Woof!” Now just within the last few days she has started saying “Babyyyyyyyyyyyyy” only it has absolutely nothing to do with a baby. Apparently, that’s her word for raisins. She points to the cabinet and yells “baby baby baby baby” and signs and hopes that I will give her more raisins.

Little Drama This Morning

Filed Under Eleven Months, Into Everything | 5 Comments

Bailey got herself stuck in our bedroom… without me The closet door and the bedroom door are in the same corner of the room, and in the past the ex-cat has gotten them wedged against each other just right so that neither will move- like the doorknobs get caught. You can probably guess where this is going. Bailey and I were in my room this morning while I was getting ready. She looked so cute wearing her new big girl tennis shoes (not Robeez) for the first time. Because it was raining outside.

I went to get the camera to capture her cuteness, and when I came back she had pushed the closet door all the way open and trapped herself in the room, and me out of it! The bedroom door was only open about 1/4 of an inch, at most. I couldn’t get it undone for almost 20 minutes. Meanwhile, Bailey was alone in our room, with access to everything under the sink and in our drawers (which is not entirely child-safe, because she is NEVER in there alone). Never say never.

It wasn’t just the doorknobs being caught this time. The closet door was completely wedged against the bedroom door. There is a little rubber stopper on the back of the door where they bump (you can see the scrapes on the door) and it was caught on that rubber thing, I think. I tried to “recreate” it afterwards so I could get a picture of what happened.

And it got worse. Jonathon had me get a butter knife to try to put under the door and pry them apart. Well Bailey grabbed the knife and had it in the room with her. She probably could not have cut herself on it as there were no sharp edges, but I was afraid she would fall with it or something. I was a total wreck, crying and freaking out. Finally I guess she started playing with the closet door again and pulled it just far enough that I was able to get the door open.

The lesson in all this? Every area of the house should be baby proofed whether she “plays there alone” or not. Anything can happen. And it will, if it involves us and our child.

Here are those pictures of her in her tennis shoes. The pictures that caused this whole thing.

Sign Language

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Someone taught Bailey sign language. I know that sounds weird, but honestly, it wasn’t us. She signs “please” and “I want” which is really her own variation of the sign for “more” but she uses it to mean that she wants something.

Last week I kept noticing that Bailey was patting herself on the chest with both hands. About the same time that I noticed, she consistently started doing this sign: She holds her right hand flat with the palm facing in, and uses her left pointer finger to tap her right palm. Here is the real sign for more, which we are guessing maybe a nursery or Sunday School teacher taught her:

That night, my friend Kelli guessed that she was trying to do the sign for more, but she means I WANT THAT! It’s so funny, any thing she sees that she wants, she will point to it and then start doing her “I want” sign. I am glad that she can communicate like that with us. It makes things easier.

Then Steph said that the chest-tapping looked like the sign for please (which is supposed to be rubbing the chest). Which would make sense, because she will do something like hand us a book and then sign that.

The Wedding- last weekend

Filed Under Eleven Months, Family, Travel, Weddings | 3 Comments

Here are some pictures from the wedding we went to in Nashville last weekend. The drive was about six hours, so it was much better than the drive to Oklahoma but it still had its moments. Thankfully, on the way home Bailey slept most of the way, except for maybe an hour or so.

When we got into Nashville we went straight to the rehearsal dinner, which was at Buca di Beppo (which I guess is a chain of Italian restaurants but I hadn’t heard of it before). The food was all served family style so that was kind of fun. We sat at a table with Jonathon’s parents and his Aunt Grace and Uncle Marvin. We had a nice time at the dinner and then afterwards we went to the church for the rehearsal. I had never been to a rehearsal where the dinner was before the church part. But Bailey had a great time running up and down the aisles as fast as possible. They slanted downward toward the front of the church so she would get going faster and faster and then crash. She also liked chasing after the two flower girls, who were amused by her at first and then I think they got annoyed.

Saturday morning, Jonathon drove me around Nashville to show me where he used to work and live and stuff like that. We let Bailey take her morning nap in the car since we weren’t sure how it would work at the hotel. Also we found Cadbury eggs on clearance for 12 cents each at Walgreens! Then we went back and got ready for the wedding (and I had to iron all our clothes!) and headed to the church. It was raining and the parking lot was so full by the time we got there, so Jonathon dropped us off and then met us inside later. Bailey made it through the wedding long enough to see the bride come in and then for about three minutes after that. I spent the rest of the time wandering the church with her and then I found the nursery and took her in there to play.

The reception was at the church right after the ceremony. It was really the first “cake and punch” reception I had ever been to. They had all kinds of hors d’oeuvres and desserts and stuff too. Here are some pictures of the bride and groom, and then everyone at our table (Jonathon’s parents, aunt, uncle, cousins).

Once again, Bailey had a great time running around. She helped rearrange some chairs and also tried to get everyone’s attention. She got lots of compliments. She was a very good baby all day and I was so impressed. Especially since she completely missed her afternoon nap!

That night met up in the groom’s parents hotel room for leftovers (from the rehearsal dinner) and to visit with Jonathon’s family. They are all so normal, except for his parents. They really sat there and didn’t say much the whole time. I wonder if they feel like they don’t fit in, or if they just don’t have anything to say. Sunday morning we were going to spend more time at Opryland but we were just kind of anxious to get on the road and get home. Plus we thought that way Bailey would take her morning nap in the car instead of at The Grand Ole Opry!

Filed Under Baby Gear, Eleven Months | 2 Comments

When we were on our trip to Nashville, Bailey did really well playing in her Pack N Play in the hotel room. She would let us just sit her in there and she’d hang out for at least 20 minutes or so, just reading books and playing with toys. The Pack N Play usually stays at my mom’s house unless we need it to go somewhere, but we thought since it worked so great as a playpen on our trip, that we should bring it home. We set it up in the kitchen so that it wouldn’t make dents in the carpet- I am really freaky about carpet dents- and we have tried putting her in it a few times with some not-so good results.

Here she is playing for the first few minutes and being somewhat content.

Then I was trying to get her to like it again by peeking through the sides at her, but she didn’t seem too impressed

And once that quit working, she just wanted OUT! We have tried this several times but it doesn’t seem to be as exciting as it was on the trip. It works if I need to contain her while I pull something out of the oven (ha, you know I don’t cook that often, we’re talking about frozen pizza here) or run to the bathroom, but that’s about it.

I know I still need to post pictures from our trip and the wedding but I have so many and I am waiting for a time when I can sit down and do it all at once. Hopefully tonight or tomorrow.

Also, don’t forget to enter my AVON GIVEAWAY. Today is the last day to enter and I will draw a winner tonight

One of those days

Filed Under Being a Mom, Difficult Stuff, Eleven Months, Shopping | 4 Comments

You know, the ones where your child refuses to sleep? Yep, that was our day today. This morning was fine. Bailey slept in a little later than usual, and then we went to the mall to pick up her amazingly cute 11 month/Easter/spring pictures.

We met my friend Sarah there and ate lunch. If you have ever eaten at the mall food court with me, you know what I ate. Subway- I alternate between a veggie on wheat and a Subway club on white. Either one gets toasted. Bailey and her friend Andrew (who is about 14 months old) shared raisins and picked at a few other things. I am pretty sure Bailey could exist on raisins alone if we allowed her too. Although, I am wondering- if she doesn’t chew them and they come out whole, does she get any nutrition at all from them?

Anyway, after lunch we took them to play at the play area. This one weird little girl who was two or three kept following Bailey around and touching her/pushing her/grabbing her face. The girl was with either her grandma or nanny or something, and this woman watched her but never said anything. So I was trying to be polite and say stuff like, “Be nice to the baby…” but finally we were around the corner from the caregiver-lady and the little girl started being grabby. I looked at her and made a stern face and said, “You leave her alone!” I just hate when people don’t watch or stay involved with their kids when there are other little ones around. It shouldn’t be my place to deal with someone else’s kid when they are right there, and it’s awkward to try to figure out what to do.

I returned something at Gymboree and looked quickly at the Children’s Place sale racks, but nothing interesting. I am having a hard time finding stuff for myself lately so I didn’t really even look. A lot of the styles now look like maternity clothing, and like my friend Nicole just wrote about, I am afraid people will think I’m knocked up again

Once we got home, Bailey did her new trick of pooping in bed. I am pretty sure she has it figured out that I will come get her and change her diaper. Then just about the time she was falling asleep, stupid Laclede Gas started drilling down the street from us For like an hour. Once they were done Bailey was still so ticked off that she cried for like an hour and nothing would console her until we just drove around aimlessly in the car.

It was just a frustrating day, and then once I got home from working childcare at church tonight, Jonathon got on my case about a million different things. I was practically begging him to help with Bailey because I was so tired of dealing with her (13 hours straight with not even a break for nap) and I thought it would have killed him to help with her bath. I know he was at work all day, but then he had almost three hours to himself after work before we got home. And sometimes momma needs a break too.

Wordless Wednesday- When babies drink too much…

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Easter, long overdue

Filed Under Eleven Months, Family, Holidays | 5 Comments

I figured I should get around to posting all the pictures of Easter and writing about it before I post the new pictures from the wedding this weekend. So here it is…

We got Bailey’s Easter basket ready the night before, so that it would be there when she woke up… but then we decided not to give it to her before church when we were rushed. Also I was yelling at Jonathon at the moment, so it was better to wait. But here was her basket, before she dug into it:

Obviously she can’t do candy or little toys yet, but I knew the Puffs would be just as good. The animal crackers were something new, and the eggs were an idea that I got at Parents as Teachers. We I put different items in each egg to make
shakers, and then hot glued them shut.

Easter was a weird day, weather-wise. It was actually snowing, big fat snowflakes, off and on during the day. So Bailey did not get to wear her sandals that I had searched the entire world for In fact the dress we had for her to wear, was sleeveless and seersucker, so she had to wear tights and a sweater with it. There was not a chance of going outside for an egg hunt, but we weren’t really planning on doing one anyway.

We got ready in the morning and went to church for Easter service. I tried to get a few pictures of Bailey in her dress, but she was not cooperating. My mom held her while I took some, but I still didn’t get any great ones. She does not seem to want to look at the camera anymore, and she tries to run away. She’s just too busy. I just liked this first picture because you can see her sparkly shoes.

Here she is in the nursery; another attempt at taking a good Easter picture.

After church, we went home and Bailey took a nap, while Jonathon and I finished getting things ready for the big meal over here. I got a ham at Honeybaked Ham and it was really good! Although I have to say that for $35 for a mini ham, I should not have had to pick a speck of fat off. Those things are overpriced for what you get, I think. When she woke up from nap, we let her open her basket before everyone arrived. I know they wanted to watch, but I figured it would just get too crazy and then she wouldn’t care about it. You can see what she grabbed for first…

I just love the look on her face here…

Here is Bailey with my parents. They gave her a sparkly Easter egg with money for a Grant’s Farm season pass in it. We love Grant’s Farm and can’t wait until it opens in April!

And doing what we do, sitting around and watching Bailey…

And just because this is one of the least icky pictures I’ve seen of myself lately, I thought I’d share

Wordless Wednesday- Fun In the Tub

Filed Under Eleven Months, Wordless Wednesday | 4 Comments

Playing in the bathtub- it’s so much better now that she has a tub mat and doesn’t have to sit in her infant bathtub anymore!

Havin’ a Ball

Filed Under Cloth Diapering, Eleven Months, Play | Leave a Comment

Har har. Guess what this post is going to be about? Bailey and her new favorite toy- balls. She has been so into playing with her big green Winnie the Pooh ball. She continues to love the small plastic balls that go in her ball/track/toy thing. She especially likes to carry them around and bang them together. She has started understanding about “playing” ball. She likes me to roll the ball to her. Then she hands it back to me so that I can roll it to her again. I try to get her to let go and roll it back to me, but she won’t. Not sure when they’re supposed to start doing that.

Also you can see her new diaper stuff in these pictures. It’s the Bummi cover with a prefold under it.

I know this isn’t the greatest picture but I like that it shows her walking skillz!

She had to take a break and pull her socks off before she could continue playing…

Just wanted to post some pictures because I realized I have tons on my computer that I haven’t shared… and you know how that kills me… once B wakes up from her nap the family is coming over to celebrate Easter so I’ll post about it later if I have a minute! Happy Easter!

11 Months

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My little muffin,

It’s time already to write your monthly letter again. I feel like you were born, then I blinked, and here you are walking and about to turn one. Sometimes I want to wish us back to your little baby days when I could just hold you as long as I wanted to. But then you walk up to me and give me a kiss (soggy, on the mouth) or say “Mama” and I realize I love every stage of your life even more than the one before it.

Eleven months. We are already planning your birthday party. We bought you a Little Tikes slide and climbing equipment. You haven’t figured out how to climb up, but you love to crawl through the tunnels underneath or hold my hands while you slide. You have no time for crawling anymore, unless you’re really tired. You now say “Mama” and “Dada” and “Daddeeeeee” on a regular basis. And of course, “Woof.” I can’t wait to hear what other words you will learn this next month.

Your personality is emerging more every day. I can tell you are going to be a leader. You are strong willed and aggressive. Not aggressive in a mean way; you just know what you want and you are determined to get it. I am the same way, and I know that isn’t always an easy personality trait to manage. It’s hard to find a balance. I pray that you will always be kind and that your determination will help you do great things. You also love to be the center of attention. Like at music class last week? You didn’t care what everyone else was doing. You stood in the middle of the circle and clapped your hands while we sang. Then you spent time passing out koosh balls to the other babies, then collecting them and redistributing them. You were definitely doing your own thing and enjoying it, though.

You continue to love animals. We took you to the zoo for the first time last week and you had a great time. The penguins were your favorite. You are so curious and it’s so fun to see you look at everything for the first time. You were so excited and energetic the whole FOUR hours we were there! You also ate a sandwich for the first time that day. Your Grammy and Grampa were with us… you sure do love them. It’s so great to watch you with them. Even though you will push anyone else away to get to Grammy. We try to understand

Speaking of solid food- it’s still hit or miss. Some days you really love eating food “like a big girl” and other days you seem a little lazy and want to be spoon fed your pureed baby foods. Your favorite finger foods right now are green beans, Ritz crackers, pears, and Gerber cheese puffs. You still nurse well in the morning and at bedtime. During the day, it’s really more of just a comfort thing if you get hurt or get too tired. Otherwise, you’d rather have a bottle so that you aren’t too tied down. My busy little bee.

I am so glad that you are so busy. It makes you hard to entertain sometimes, but I am glad that you are so full of life and personality and energy. It makes being with you so enjoyable. Never a dull moment. In fact, I think I have about two minutes until you wake up from nap, so that’s all for now, sweetie.

I love you more than life.

Mommy