All I want for Christmas is...a tooth!

Caroline and I have been asking Santa for her other top tooth to poke through because she (let's be honest--both of us) have been miserable waiting for that darn thing to cut through! I have been so busy watching her top gums, that I didn't notice her bottom! She cut another tooth, and it must have been last night! Here is a picture I took of her around 6pm last night after her bath...

If you look reeeeeeally close, you can see the tiny white just to the right of her bottom teeth. It must have started cutting yesterday. I noticed a tiny bit of blood on her tongue yesterday, but thought she must have bit her tongue somehow! This morning when I was playing with her, she was giggling and I spotted it!

This definitely wasn't the tooth I thought was coming in next! It does explain all of the napping trouble and daytime fussiness. Goodness!

She does have a really cute little lop-sided smile right now. I'll take any teeth I can get! You could ask any parents of babies, and they would agree-- let's get them in fast, and get it over with! Teething is exhausting!

On a completely unrelated note... I finished my Christmas shopping yesterday. For the first time e.v.e.r.... before Christmas Eve! I couldn't believe it! The only logical reason I can find to explain it is that I had to use my shopping time wisely with little bit in tow. Way to go Caroline! Hope whoever is reading this (if anyone? :) is enjoying the Christmas season. It's my favorite time of year. So festive, and it always reminds me of the most important things in life. Not presents, but the fact that God sent Jesus to save us from our sins. What an amazing gift.

If I don't post before next weekend (and that is a possibility), Merry Christmas to all of you and yours. Our love to you for reading this blog and caring enough about us to check in.

Well hello!

Hello friends.

Sorry for the lack of posts. I will spare you the excuses. I thought I'd try a new header on for size. It's not quite perfect, but it'll do for now. Hope you are having a wonderful December... can't believe it's already halfway over. And then we'll be in 2011. Oh my.

Bathtime

Caroline has always loved bathtime. Part of it may be the tub, getting to play, or the warm water feeling good on her skin. I think the majority of it is that she gets to play with Daddy. Daddy has a ritual that he gives Caroline her bath every night (if he can), and he does a great job of staying committed to it. I brought my camera into the bathroom the other day and got some really great shots of our little ham in action. Here is an album of them since there were too many to try and upload! (If the album is being weird, just click on the middle of the picture, and it should take you to the album on the website)

7 months

7 months was as fun as it was exhausting! Caroline cut her first top tooth on November 5th, and I'm STILL waiting for the second one to come through. I keep thinking it's about to poke through, and then it doesn't. Sneaky little booger.

I keep telling people how much fun I am having with Caroline at this age. I can't believe how interactive she is! She seems to learn something new each day.

She isn't crawling yet (which I am totally okay with!), but she is definitely SO close. I really didn't think she would crawl at all. But, I think it will happen in the next month or two. I have had several oh-my-gosh moments thinking she is about to do it, and then she pushes up off of her toes and rolls over to her back. Little stinker!


It's like she wants to skip over these baby steps and go straight to walking. Hmm... Wonder where she gets that from! She can pull up using my help and she can stand up in her crib, but she can't pull up from sitting because she can't reach the top bar yet. She likes to walk around with my help, and loves to jump and bounce. This kid is SO active!
We got her a jumperoo thing-a-ma-jig that you hang from the doorway, and she just bounces and twists and turns to her heart's content. I'm sure you remember my post about having to stop swaddling her? It was just a week shy of her 7th month birthday and I was devastated. Ok, I'm being dramatic, but it was hard going from instantaneous sleep to rolling around for 30 minutes before she fell asleep! She has started to move more and more toward sleeping on her tummy. First, she went to her side, and now, more and more I see this:

She is turning out to be such a beautiful little girl. I know I am a bit biased, but Zach and I both beam with pride every time someone comments on how pretty she is.

Santa 2010

Little bit is not a huge fan of older, unfamiliar men.
Let's hope this is our only year that little pouty lip comes out!

6 month (oops! 7 month) pictures

My plan was to get Newborn, 6 month, and 1 year pictures of Caroline... Well, October was just plain busy, so we were able to squeeze pictures in this past weekend just after Caroline turned 7 months. Oh well! It was a blast!!

Anywho, I love this photographer! She is simply amazing, and has a God-given talent for capturing the most beautiful pictures. Just perfection. She sent me a sneak peek, and I have to say I am utterly obsessed. Can't stop looking at them. At how big my little Caroline is. At how I don't have a tiny baby anymore... See for yourself!

Photo credit to Tyan Jacox of Tiny Bird Photography (http://www.tinybirdphotography.com/)

That'll do, pig. That'll do.

A picture of my ham:

In just one year...

We went from this:

to this:

Big week for Caroline!

This week was a week of constant change!

Caroline started saying her consonants really well and repeating them (more mimic and less babble). Zach about keeled over when she said Dada Dada Dada.

She also rolled over in her sleep again, which means I have to put the miracle blanket away. I am devastated... That thing makes her feel so cozy and she falls right to sleep in it. Now, with her arms free, she takes forever to fall asleep. Mama is not a fan! But, I guess that means she is progressing developmentally, which is a good thing so I really can't complain.

And today, that top tooth started cutting through. Poor baby!

I can't believe how fast she is growing! She is tons of fun!

More Favorite Baby/Mama products... *Possible TMI*

This post has to do with my favorite things surrounding breastfeeding.
For those who don't care about this particular topic, consider yourself warned!
(Note: Click on the picture to link to the site)

Best advice I read/heard from several people is to stick with breastfeeding (if you can and want to--I'm not a breastfeeding nazi) for at least 6 weeks. I also hated when people would tell me it wasn't going to hurt. It does hurt, but it gets better. And, if breastfeeding is what you want to do/can do, you can do it. But, there's absolutely no shame in not doing it. I definitely believe it's the right of the Mother to decide what is best for herself and the baby. I can't make enough milk for Caroline because I have to exclusively pump. It is definitely not easy (in fact, it's pretty hard!), but it's what I chose to do in order to keep breastfeeding as long as possible. It was not what I planned on doing, but that's the decision I made for us. Anyways, I digress...

In no particular order...My favorites:

Lanolin. You will need this for a good 6 weeks if you're like me... It makes a huuuge difference!

The Lansinoh Bra pads are just as soft as medela and almost half the price. (Also goes for breastmilk bags if you are saving)

The Boppy Pregnancy pillow. Yes, this is for when you are pregnant and need some support under your belly when you sleep or lie down. But, it was perfect for breast-feeding. Waaaaay better than the tradional Boppy U-shaped pillow, which I only have used to prop Caroline up.

I only have this particular pump (Medela InStyle), so I can't speak on other pumps, but I can say this one is phenomenal. My best girlfriends bought it for me at a shower, and I never knew how much I would use it. I wasn't planning on pumping exclusively, but when that happened, I was so glad I had a great pump. And, one that can do both sides at once!

Best nursing bra. ever. It is the most comfortable bra I have ever worn. It is well worth its weight in gold... ($50, but like I said, SO worth it!)

Ok. This one has to do with me pumping a lot. So, you may want to wait until you know if you'll be using it. It's a nursing/pumping bra, so you can pump on the go (I pump in the car when we're traveling) and I can sit and do other things on the couch while I pump during the day. It's A-mazing. And only $30!

October...

October was a crazy month!

We went to Dallas, San Antonio, and threw a surprise party for Daddy in Houston. It was Caroline's first time to be babysat while Mama and Daddy got to go play. It felt great!

I felt like hitting the 6 month milestone was going to be fun, and it was! It's a really fun interacting age.

In October...

Caroline got to swing on the swings at the park for the first time...

Caroline ate more food... beyond oatmeal + apples, we ventured out to peas, sweet potatoes, green beans, bananas, peaches, and pears. We keep trying, and she keeps liking! (She must get that from her Daddy! Unfortunately, I was a picky eater until I became an adult)

She was already sitting, but went from just sitting, to bouncing, leaning forward to reach for things, and now to standing from sitting (with help!)

She also decided it was time to move from the Nap Nanny to her crib

She is still teething... I feel like it's been forever since she cut her first teeth, so there were no teeth cut in October. I see a bit of swelling on her top gums, so I don't think those are too far away.

Her 6 month shots just about killed me. Not the pain they caused her, but the reset button they hit! Holy moly! I went from having a good sleeper/napper to a baby who wouldn't take any naps, and would wake up every 1-2 hours in the night. What?!! (We have since fixed this problem, although she wakes up from time to time to put a paci back in her mouth)

She started making this face where she scrunches up her nose at you like she's smiling so big, that she has to do that to smile even bigger. It is too funny! Sometimes she even breathes through her nose when she's doing it and it sounds like she's sniffing the air like a puppy!

She finally rolled over from her back to her tummy (on accident). However, this girl does not like to be on her tummy. I know most people will say, "oh- yeah. Timmy hated being on his tummy... He would just scream and scream...."
No, really... I mean, this girl {hates} being on her tummy. As soon as she figured out how to roll from her tummy to her back (in late August), she will do anything to get to her back if she finds herself even remotely close to putting weight on her tummy. If I'm holding her (upright) and leaning back on the couch, she will push off with her foot and throw her arm over so she won't be on her tummy. I kid you not! So... with tummy time... I still work with her on it, but she won't roll back to tummy on purpose. So, it will be really interesting to see if she crawls or not. I wouldn't be shocked if she didn't (and probably wouldn't be shocked if she walked early either. This girl is re-lent-less. I have no idea where that came from ;) yikes.

So, there is our update for October 2010. What a wild ride it was! November, bring it!

Happy Halloween!

Here are a couple of pictures of Caroline in her Halloween costume...

I got Sadie a "squirrel" costume, but sadly it didn't fit!

Confession...

I have a shameful obsession. shameful. And I don't have a clue how it came about. Maybe because my Mom never bought these for us? Who knows... All I know is that I can unwrap and down a fruit roll-up before you can say, "Hello- you're going to Belize next month. Tone it down."
Anyone else have a shameful obsession, food or otherwise? Please don't let me bask in the glory alone.

Take that, Giants!

(*This is actually a happy face even though it doesn't look like it here. She has been doing this for about 2 weeks and it cracks us up!)

Wordless Wednesday: Yummy

6 months!

Sorry I have been behind on the blogging... Here is a quick picture I took of Caroline on Tuesday when she turned 6 months old! I can't believe it! Ok, maybe two. I love her!! She is so much fun!

What I loved about September

September 2010 and I have a love-hate relationship.
(Ohhhh the teething! And the trial change of medicine....)

I feel like I need to call it the "learning curve month." (not only for Caroline, but for me too!)

It has been amazing to watch Caroline this past month.

The progression was mind-blowing, and SO neat to watch:

1.) Started to use her neck muscles to hold her head up when I pulled her up to sitting by her arms.
2.) Started to be able to sit on my lap or on the ground with assistance.
3.) Was able to sit by herself supported by pillows or the corner of the crib or couch.
4.) Then was able to sit unassisted... a little wobbly, but fine.
5.) She then started being able to keep her balance while moving/kicking her legs
6.) Then started to put her arms out to the sides to catch her when she started to lose balance
7.) Started leaning forward and reaching out to grab things
8.) Leaned forward and grabbed a book that was a good distance away from her and pulled it up to her mouth.


I know this all sounds trivial, but it is so crazy to watch! Most of this sitting up stuff really happened in the past 2 weeks. She is literally changing before my eyes!

I also can't believe I am still swaddling her... I have tried on several different occasions to see if she would sleep without it, but all she wants to do is play with her pacifier and won't go to sleep. Miracle Blanket, I love with you with all of my heart.

Other new things... besides rice cereal and oatmeal + apples, she was able to ride in a shopping cart for the first time and sat in a restaurant high chair for the first time. She loves playing in her exersaucer and I can see her legs getting stronger by the day when she puts weight on them.

I didn't really notice this on a day-to-day basis, but looking back at pictures, she has lost a lot of the hair she was born with. Check it out! The new hair is growing in blonde.





So, September is officially over. I can't believe it. October is going to be even crazier, I just know it. (Side note: October is one of my favorite months of the year! The weather is fantastic. I can't wait to play outside with Caroline all the time! So excited!)

Stay tuned!

Thumbs up for Oatmeal

This week I decided to skip out on rice cereal and try oatmeal instead. I also added a few spoonfuls of apples to it. I think we got a thumbs up. Making progress!!

Tree update

Feel free to form your own conclusions...