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Saturday, 30 July 2011

Making Plumples!

Posted on 13:57 by Unknown
Today I set out to make plum puree for Colin... but I ended up with something a little bit different after some experimentation.

Here's how my most recent baby food making escapade went down.

First, the plums. Yum! Had to do a taste test first, of course.


I chopped them into smallish pieces, and decided to leave the skin on. Then I transferred them to my ugly well loved Pampered Chef microwave cooker and added a little water.


As I nuked my plums, I remembered I needed to wash some bottles.


And then the microwave beeped. Two minutes was all it took.


They came out looking like this. I tossed them into the blender,
liquid and all.


Oops.... I realized I'd made some lovely plum juice. Too thin. I diced an apple (an Empire, I think, not that it really matters), microwaved it for a couple minutes, and threw it into the mixture too.


You can't really tell from the picture, but the texture was much better with the apple added.


And there you have it. Plumples! Get it? And isn't that a lovely color?

I tasted the finished product, and it's a little bitter. Hopefully Colin won't mind... or if he does, Mommy might have to eat these plumplesicles (ha!) and do some more experimenting.

I'll post the verdict once my little dude has a chance to try my little concoction.

More to come! ♥
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Oh my goodness!

Posted on 05:07 by Unknown
I took this last night with my cell phone...
looks like we have a sitter!!!

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Friday, 29 July 2011

Coming Next Week - Kidding Around Friday {link party}

Posted on 10:22 by Unknown
The lovely Amanda from Growing Up Gardner and I will be hosting an all-things-kid-related link party starting next Friday!





{Kid}ding Around Friday will be the place to share your
favorite kid-related posts about:

Crafts, Milestones, Homeschooling, Kid-Friendly Food, Decorating, Photography, Great Deals, Organization and more!

{To Join the Party}

1. Follow your hosts, Katie & Amanda.
2. Link to a specific kid-related post.
Up to 3 entries each. No giveaways or shops, please.
3. Grab our adorable little button - seriously, isn't it darling?
4. Enjoy reading through some of the other posts and make new friends!

Each week we will feature 3 of our favorite posts
from the previous week.
By submitting a link, you are granting Katie and I permission to use the photos from your post.

So get your post ready to link up next Friday. See you then.

~ Amanda & Katie

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Wednesday, 27 July 2011

Assumptions vs Reality

Posted on 12:46 by Unknown
One of the biggest lessons I've learned in becoming a mom for the first time is this: Every pregnancy is different, and every baby is different. You have very little control about both of these things, and you will be surprised - often - in both pregnancy and parenthood.

Now, this wouldn't bother me if all the surprises were good ones. A lot of them were, like finding out we were having a boy, and spontaneously going into labor a little early, but still full-term.. stuff like that. But some of them weren't so great. Here are some of the assumptions I had made prior to becoming a mommy, and the realities that surprised me.

Assumption: It might take a while to get pregnant once we started trying.

Reality: We conceived in our third cycle TTC; we were very lucky in that respect.
____

Assumption: Pregnancy = morning sickness and feeling gross for at least the first trimester.

Reality: Again, I got really lucky here. I had an almost symptom-free pregnancy and LOVED being pregnant.
____


Assumption: I'd deliver my baby vaginally. If you have your heart set on it, you can do it, right? "I am woman, hear me roar!" and all that.


Reality: 21 hours into my labor, Colin was born via emergency cesarian.
____


Assumption: Recovery wouldn't be too bad. I'd be feeling more like myself after a week or two.

Reality: 21 hours of labor AND a c-section took quite a toll on me. It HURT for months. Like, really hurt. I could hardly take a shower on my own or stand up for five minutes at a time without feeling sore.
____

Assumption: I'd breastfeed at least until Colin was 6 months old.

Reality: Uh, yeah... you can read about my short-lived breastfeeding journey here and here.
____

Assumption: Most babies sleep through the night by 6-8 weeks.

Reality: SO not true for us. SO not true. We're just now getting decent sleep at 6 months.
____

Assumption: I would love my baby so much I'd hardly be able to stand it, and I'd almost explode with joy every time I snuggled him close.

Reality: Oh. Well.. yeah, that one turned out to be true. :)
____

More to come.

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Wordless Wednesday: Colin's New Party Trick

Posted on 05:12 by Unknown


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Monday, 25 July 2011

Toddle Along Tuesday!

Posted on 17:54 by Unknown
Your hosts for this blog hop are Mama G at Growing Up Geeky and Kristin at Our Growing Garden.  Each week we'll have a featured blog, randomly selected from the previous week's links. 

This week's featured blog is The Froggy and the Mouse. Tottums has two adorable little boys in one little house! Hop on over and see for yourself :)




[More cuteness from my own sweet boy coming soon!]

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Friday, 22 July 2011

Do I seriously have a 6 month old?!

Posted on 05:22 by Unknown
Yes, yes I do. It feels like just yesterday I was snuggling my little peanut for the first time. And now, he's all grown up. Okay, not really.. but sometimes it feels that way. At six months old, Colin:

*can roll over like a champ
*loves to eat from a spoon; I've lost count of the foods he's tried!
*drinks anywhere from 6 to 8 ounces of formula at a time
*smiles ALL the time, with a huge grin that takes over his whole face
*loves to be tickled and to laugh
*can almost sit up on his own
*is a total snugglebug and loves to "hug" his mommy and daddy
*babbles when he's happy
*has said "mama" a couple times
*tries so hard to scoot across the floor on his belly
*now has a blankie, which he is very attached to :)
*looooves taking baths with mommy, and to splash in the water
*enjoys being read to and looking at books
*is the cutest thing EVER!

And now, for the official stats!

Weight: 21 lbs, 3 oz
Height: 28.5 inches
Head: 46 cm

According to Dr. G, he is in the 95th percentile, pretty much across the board.

My baby is a giant!

Mommy loves you so much, sweet baby boy!



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Wednesday, 20 July 2011

Wordless Wednesday: So much love in one photo :)

Posted on 05:09 by Unknown
[Clockwise: Aunt Callie, Grandma Joy, Momma & Colin]

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Tuesday, 19 July 2011

Posted on 05:18 by Unknown
Today I'm linking up with the Toddle Along Tuesday blog hop!



Your hosts for the hop are Mama G at Growing Up Geeky and Kristin at Our Growing Garden. Each week we'll have a featured blog, randomly selected from the previous week's links.

This week's featured blog is The Stauffer Shenanigans. Ashley has two beautiful daughters Brooklyn and Emily, and her blog is full of adorable pictures of them. Go say hello! :)

Sorry, no "real" post from me today - work has been busy and I've been spending some awesome quality time with my mom and sister while they're in town. Here's a cute picture of my little 6 month old baby man to tide you over until I can update again!



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Friday, 15 July 2011

How long can I claim to be postpartum?

Posted on 06:10 by Unknown
Other than awkward hospital pictures during labor,
this is the last photo taken of my pregnant belly.


I took this at work on a Thursday... Colin was born the next Monday. When I was big pregnant and waddling everywhere, I loved my body. Yep, it's true. I adored my belly and would constantly touch it. When I got home from work each night, I'd lay back and watch my baby boy kick and roll around in there. It was great.

And then, he was born, and suddenly I hated my body.

Without a baby in there, my belly became loose, saggy and awkward-looking. My stretch marks seemed to be even bigger and more purple. Oh, and my lovely c-section incision didn't help, either.

Now, here I am, nearly six months postpartum, and, well... I'm still not in love with my new shape.

During the 37 weeks I was pregnant, I gained about 23 pounds. Within the first 2 months after his birth, I lost all but 5 pounds of my baby weight. Since then, I've gained all that weight back, and maybe a couple pounds extra. This, I am not proud of. I'll be honest: it's hard to put good meals on the table when you work full time and have a little one at home, and have a marriage to maintain. The relationships in my life are so important to me that I'd rather throw something together in five minutes and have more time with my boys, than to spend forty-five minutes preparing a nice meal and another fifteen minutes cleaning the kitchen up afterwards. As a result of our recent lifestyle, both hubby and I have suffered in the weight department.

Okay, okay. I don't hate my body anymore. The first time I looked in a mirror after having Colin, I did. I'll fully admit it: I thought the big, ugly incision was horrid and my squishy belly looked appalling. I wondered how I managed never to think about that stuff until after he was born. How had no one prepared me for the way I might look and feel after the blessed moment of my child's birth? I figured that either: 1) I was the first person to ever look this bad postpartum, or 2) It was one of those things moms didn't usually talk about, because they didn't want to burst the bubbles of blissfully ignorant first time mommies-to-be. I think I'm going to go with option #2 on this one. It's one of those lovely things you get to find out for yourself once you have your first baby. I'm discovering that there are quite a few of these little bits of wisdom that tend to be kept "hush hush" around a pregnant woman. No one wants to talk about the fact that breastfeeding HURTS and can wreck your nipples, or the fact that labors can last a full day, or that Pitocin is the devil... or that postpartum bodies aren't so cute.

Sorry if I just scared any first time expectant mothers. Trust me, all the craziness is 100% worth it.

Anyway, long story short - hubby and I both decided it's time for a change. We both downloaded the "Lose it" app on our iPhones, and have started tracking our calories and working out regularly. He, at the gym with his brother, and I, on our stationery bike at home and with hand weights. I also get a constant "mommy work out" from carrying around my 20 pound little linebacker, too. Ha!

I'm not ready to share numbers as far as my weight goes, but let's just say I have over 40 pounds to lose before I get to my goal weight. Let's see how this goes!

Oh! On an unrelated note.. my mom and sister are coming to visit us this week, all the way from beautiful Michigan. I am beyond thrilled to see them! They'll be here tomorrow. So.. I'll post about Colin's 6 month stats and check-up, but don't expect to see too much of me this week. :)

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Thursday, 14 July 2011

A Day in the Life of Colin (& Mommy)

Posted on 05:52 by Unknown
In case you've ever wondered what a typical day looks like for us, here you go!



As you can see, Colin has a pretty rough life.
Sometimes I wonder if he'd trade schedules with me.Ha!

I didn't include the hours between 11 pm and 6 am, because they're still pretty unpredictable in this house. Last night was a good night, though! Little stinker man only woke once, at 12:45, and went right back to sleep without eating - he just needed a little comfort. We were up bright and early - around 5 - but got some sweet snuggle time in before I had to get ready for work. Gosh, I miss him during the day.

Of course, our weekend schedule is much more fun.
It involves copious amounts of snuggling, playing and kisses. :)
Is it Friday yet?!

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Wednesday, 13 July 2011

Wordless Wednesday: Happy Baby!

Posted on 06:09 by Unknown


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Monday, 11 July 2011

Avocado Baby Food Tutorial (with Pictures!)

Posted on 19:05 by Unknown
Hooray, it's Toddle Along Tuesday! Your hosts for this baby blog hop are Mama G from Growing Up Geeky and Kristin from Our Growing Garden! Today's featured blog is... hey, it's me! Welcome, Toddlers, to my blog sweet blog. :)


For those of you who are unfamiliar with my blog, I am the proud mommy of an incredible almost-six month old boy named Colin. As a first time mom, I've been doing a lot of experimenting to find what works best for us as a family. One of my latest adventures has been in making homemade baby food. One of Colin's favorite foods so far (even though it can't touch his beloved pears and peaches) is avocado puree. I love that he loves it, too - it's so easy to make (no cooking required. Sold!) and it's so good for him. You can read about the benefits of avocado on this website. Here's how it's made!


First, get thee to the store and buy yourself an avocado.


Next, open that bad boy up. Ooh, pretty.


Remove the pit and the skin (it peels right off),

break it up into smaller pieces, and throw it in your blender

(or food processor, or whatever you have handy)


Add water as necessary. First, I added about 1/4 cup...


...but I didn't quite get the texture I wanted, so I added 1/4 cup more...


There we go, muuuch better. This is what we like to call a puree.


Pour your lovely green puree into an ice cube tray -

this decent sized avocado made 12 cubes -

and freeze. When frozen, just pop 'em out

and store them in a labeled baggie.


Easy peasy! A warning, though: If your blender is as loud as mine is, be sure to have your husband close by to entertain and distract your little one when it's time to make baby food. :)

Do you make your own baby food?

What are your baby's favorite foods?

Thanks for stopping by!
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Friday, 8 July 2011

Please don't make me do that again

Posted on 07:04 by Unknown

Since our sweet Colin boy hasn't been sleeping as well at night, we thought we might give the Ferber method a try, to see if he could put himself to sleep. The theory behind that thinking is that if your child can fall asleep on his own, when he wakes up at night he'll self-soothe and go right back to sleep.

Sometimes Colin falls asleep on his own anyway, so we thought he'd be ready.

First we followed through with the bedtime routine. Warm bath, lotion, jammies, story time, bottle. Laid him in his crib awake, turned on his white noise, said goodnight, left the room.

Commence screaming.

I don't even think I made it the full five minutes. I went in and offered a paci. He spit it out and continued to scream. We went through this ritual two or three times, his screaming gradually getting louder and louder, before I finally picked him up and snuggled him with tears in my own eyes.

He fell asleep on Daddy in the glider a few minutes later.

Yeah, we're not ready to sleep-train just yet.

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