Great Grandma’s 82nd Birthday

Filed Under Birthdays, Grandparents, Seven Months | 1 Comment

I have some pictures from my grandma’s birthday a few weeks ago that I wanted to post. They aren’t the greatest pictures of anyone, but it was a fun night and so they represent great memories

Great Grandpa with Bailey- he just gets such a kick out of her. I haven’t seen him that happy in a long time. I need to make an effort to stop by more often with her so that they can play with her.

Bailey is crazy in love with Mylar balloons. We had a Care Bear one at our house for like two months that she would play with all the time. She likes to pull the string and watch it float up and down, or pat/slap it with her little hands.


Gram with her cake- I don’t know if I have mentioned this before, but her nickname is Babe. In fact, most people don’t even know her real name. It’s always funny to introduce my grandma and say, “And this is Babe…”

Four generations of women in our family- my grandma, my mom, me, and Bailey… of course we finally take the “four generations” picture and we are all a mess that day!

Jonathon’s Birthday- pictures

Filed Under Birthdays, Cloth Diapering, Seven Months | 3 Comments

These first few pictures aren’t from Jonathon’s birthday. They were the other day when Bailey had on a Happy Heinys diaper and I wanted to get a picture of it. I’m not sure that I like the diaper. It seems to absort/hold okay, but it is HUGE (it’s a large) and the material is really, really stiff. I am kind of glad I only got one.




Blowing out the candles on his ice cream cake… see how three plus two equals 32?? Aren’t I clever. Actually I forgot to get candles…. Oops

I love this picture of Bailey with her Grammy and Grandpa. I couldn’t get a really good “posed” picture of the three of them, but I just love this one!

Mommy and Baby

I told Jonathon to “look cute” before I took this picture. So this is what he did.

Bailey standing up with her new toy- I’ve posted pictures of it before but lately it’s like the ONLY thing she will play with. It’s about her shoulder height and has tracks/tubes that you can drop balls through. It lights up and does some other stuff, but she’s fairly sure that it only exists for her to pull up on and walk around

Now this afternoon Jonathon is ditching out on me to go see I Am Legend with some guys. I am sooo glad I don’t have to see it with him. Isn’t that awful? I would rather sit through a business performance management course than a movie without dialogue.

New Jammies

Filed Under Clothes, Seven Months | 2 Comments

There is just something about babies in footie pajamas… although I love dressing Bailey up in cute clothes and accessories, she is the sweetest in just a pair of pajamas. She’s just so simple, and herself, and I love it. My mom got her these Christmas pajamas a little while back and I couldn’t wait for her to be able to wear them!

Wordless Wednesday- Standing Up!

Filed Under Milestones, Seven Months, Wordless Wednesday | 14 Comments

Fuzzi Bunny

Filed Under Cloth Diapering, Input Needed, Seven Months | 4 Comments

I got my Fuzzi Bunz diapers in the mail on Friday, and got them washed and tried them for the first time today. So far we have only done about 2-3 cloth diapers each day. I only have 8 total so far, since I am still waiting to get a lot of them in the mail/delivered. Plus I have been nervous about putting her to bed in cloth, but today she used a Fuzzi Bun(z?) at naptime and she didn’t leak. Here is a picture of her trying one on for the first time. (The black spot is where I removed our last name from her bottle)

In fact, she hasn’t leaked yet in cloth. I noticed that the leg holes are a little gappy between her legs in the FBs. I have them snapped on the tightest setting for both legs and waist. They are mediums, and she is kind of at the beginning of that weight range still. Is it really bad that they gap a bit like this? Is there something I can do to make it better or is it a matter of her just growing into them?

I tried to take a picture in case anyone has any input.

Instead of a drug rehabilitation I think they need to make a rehab for cloth diaper junkies. I always thought people were crazy for being so into them. I spend way to much time shopping online for them and reading about them.

The Cloth Diaper Experiment- Our First Time

Filed Under Cloth Diapering, Frugal, Seven Months | 7 Comments

Today I got my first order of cloth diapers in the mail. They are some random pocket diapers that I bought (new) on eBay. They said that they went up to 30 pounds, but as you can see in the picture, they are kind of low-rise on Bailey. I think the sizing was a little off and she actually probably needed a large instead. But they will be fine for back-up diapers for at home

So of course as soon as I got them, I had to try washing them. For those of you who are curious about cloth diapering, here is what I did: I did a cold wash with 1/4 cup detergent, then I did a warm wash with a load of undies and t-shirts on warm, with extra rinse. That was with about 1/2 detergent. Dried on medium and took them out as soon as they were dry. The inserts for the pockets took a little longer to dry than the diapers themselves.

Then I ran upstairs and took off the disposable diaper that B had on and put on her first cloth diaper. That’s what she has on in these pictures. I finally got some pictures of her doing her crazy gymnastics moves. That’s why she exhausts me. But back to cloth diapering- I was sooo freaked out with the first diaper that it was going to leak. I checked it repeatedly and then realized that I couldn’t tell whether it was wet by sticking my hand inside, because the diaper pulls the pee into the insert and away from her skin. So I reached down into the pocket and touched the insert, and it was really wet. It lasted about an hour and a half. I probably could have left her in it longer, but I was mega paranoid.

Then I put her in the second diaper, which she wore until bedtime. Again, it was wet, but no leaking. At this point, we are discussing what to do for a diaper pail. Our current strategy is “carry the diaper downstairs and toss it in the washer until laundry needs to be done” but I don’t know how long that can go on! She went to bed in her regular disposable diaper, the size bigger one that we refer to as her Night-Night Diaper. She pees A LOT at night.

And my big event of the day was ordering 12 Bum Genius diapers, a bag for my diaper bag, and some extra inserts. This stuff is not cheap, guys. I just have to remind myself that it will save money in the long run.

And now, here are some more of my little monkey in her new dipes.

Small Crisis Today

Filed Under Ear piercing, Seven Months | 10 Comments

Bailey somehow lost one of her earrings. I looked at her ear this morning and actually thought, “What! There is something wrong with her earlobe” when I looked at the hole. Duhhh, wake up Tara. It took me a second to realize her earring was missing. I can’t find it anywhere, so either it is really lost or she ate it. I put in my starter earrings from when I got my ears pierced in like 1985. They were the first small ones I could find but I know at least they are like 14k gold or something.

Anyway here is the best pic I could get of the new earrings she has on. It was such a battle to change them. Kicking, screaming. I almost let her wear one star earring and one of her old ones. I won’t be changing her earrings voluntarily for a long time.

Pulling Up

Filed Under Milestones, Seven Months | 4 Comments

Just wanted to say that Bailey is pulling up on everything, and today she CRUISED around the outside of her exersaucer.

Nothing is safe. She really doesn’t have any concept of what she should be pulling up on, so like yesterday she flipped a bouncy seat over on top of herself. Also she randomly lets go to reach for stuff, and then crashes.

We have one of those higher platform beds and she pulls up on the comforter when it is hanging down. Thank goodness we don’t have a tablecloth.

I need to get a picture of my big girl standing!

It’s been a while

Filed Under Family, Seven Months | 4 Comments

I just realized I have some new pictures on my computer that I haven’t posted yet. And Bailey is taking a long morning nap, so I have a few minutes to get that done right now. She doesn’t give me much of a break when she’s awake, now that she’s mobile AND teething!

She still likes her exersaucer. Only I have noticed that she won’t stay in it as longas before. Before she could do well over a half hour. Now we are lucky to get about 15 minutes, I think. She is just obsessed with crawling. And now, she pulls up on stuff too. Look out, world.


How cute are these? Mutha brought them back from China for Bailey.

Wrapping Christmas presents with my little helper.


She looks way too grown up No more khakis until she’s at least ten. LOL

These were taken on Friday, when I watched Alison. Bailey and Alison really seem to like each other. They can just look at each other and laugh nonstop. It’s great. They were kind of distracted in these pictures because we were getting ready to go somewhere and I suddenly remembered I had my camera with me.


Bailey and her (Great) Aunt Donna

Bailey with Aunt Donna and Grammy

She’s trying to figure out the handles on her new sippy cup. It takes a lot of concentration.


Checking out the Christmas tree at my parents house

So here’s something disggusting

Filed Under Church, Complaining, Seven Months | 7 Comments

Jonathon went to pick Bailey up from the church nursery and she was sucking on a pacifier.

Um, she doesn’t HAVE a pacifier. The workers claimed that she had it at the beginning of the hour (second service) when they got there. No, she didn’t. I was in there when they all got there, and trust me, I would have noticed if my child had a pacifier in her mouth.

That skeeves me out more than just a little bit. Bailey might not be returning to the nursery until after the holidays except for when I am working in there. I would rather NOT have her share pacifiers and get sick for Christmas. She’s only been sick once up until now, knock on wood

Wordless Wednesday- Funny Baby

Filed Under Seven Months, Wordless Wednesday | 4 Comments

Christmas Photo Bloopers

Filed Under Posing for Pictures, Seven Months | 5 Comments

Last night, we had such a horrible time trying to take Christmas pictures of Bailey that I thought I would share the pics just so everyone else could laugh too. It started out bad and just got worse and worse. I thought it would be cute to get a few naked booty/Santa hat pictures but that didn’t work out so well either. Then at the end, we tried to take some family pictures. Between my three chins and Bailey’s tongue, none of those are going to work. Boo.

Hello, blogland

Filed Under Complaining, Seven Months | 6 Comments

I just wanted to pop in and say hi. I have been kind of blah lately… not sure why. This weekend has been rather uneventful since Thanksgiving. Hung out with my parents and Jonathon some more, and went to church. Tried to take cute Christmas pics of Bailey today and failed miserably. Went to meet some friends at Starbucks, we were running late, paid $8 for drinks for the two of us, and everyone left soon after we got there. Now I am listing some stuff on Craigslist and just took a quick break from that. Do you think women’s lingerie has a good resale value? LOL

Oh, and the bill from Jonathon’s recent doctor stuff came and we owe $450. Merry Christmas. I tore it in half and figure if they want the money, they will send me a bill again next month. And that’s SO not like me, but I’m sick of these bills. If only I was poor and didn’t bother to have health insurance. Those guys who work the system, they’ve got it made.

Anyway, I couldn’t leave you without any new Bailey pictures

Happy Thanksgiving!

Filed Under Family, Holidays, Seven Months | 3 Comments

Hope everyone has enjoyed their Thanksgiving and eaten lots of turkey. We had ham… it was really good! It was just us, my parents, and my grandparents. We don’t really have many aunts/uncles/cousins etc in town, so I am used to small family get-togethers. I always thought it sounded fun to have like thirty people over. Okay, well to someone else’s house, anyway

We had a great day and lots of laughs. I ended up with tons of pictures, so I wanted to share some.

Someone brought this fake bug to dinner and everyone kept trying to scare each other with it. I guess at some point Jonathon thought it would be funny to put it on Bailey’s tray and take a picture.



Attempting to get some pictures in her Thanksgiving outfit, but she wasn’t cooperating very much today. There was a lot going on, she had a snotty nose, and she just wasn’t in the mood for modeling.


I want these shoes OFF, Mom!


Daddy, you’re so funny


Bailey kept getting bread stuck in her snot… gross, I know, but it was worth a picture.

She is getting to be a pretty fast crawler now. My parents put a baby gate up in front of the stairs today. We seriously need to go to BRU and buy a gate. They loaned us theirs to use at our house in the meantime.


Bailey loves doggies. She wanted to follow Koby everywhere and pet him… here they are having a little supervised introduction




Hanging out with Grampa


Bailey is starting to truly enjoy looking at her books. She can turn the pages herself now. Not sure why she has a diaper on her head, though.

The Dutchess of… Virginia

Filed Under Food, Friends, Seven Months | 3 Comments

My friend Sarah came into town for Thanksgiving, and got to visit us in St. Louis for a while before heading to her parents house a little south of here. We went to Red Robin for lunch. If you haven’t had their campfire sauce on your fries, you have to try it. It’s the main reason I go there. Well, that and the fact that I am in love with their burgers and fries!


Hanging out at home later that evening…

It was so good to see her. I wish we got to hang out more than twice a year. I have been trying to convince her to leave the boonies of Virginia and move back to St. Louis. (Not that St. Louis is like this huge glamorous city, but the place where she lives is soooo backwards it’s just ridiculous).

Then this morning, Bailey decided to crawl under the coffee table and explore. Oh, she can now go from laying/crawling back to sitting, so she practices that skill over and over. Here she is, sitting and playing under the coffee table. Please don’t mind the drips on it. I know I need to clean.


I thought this was funny. She moved right as I took the picture