10 months later...

A little nostalgia right here.  

10 months in......10 months out.

The girl on the left had no clue how much her life was going to change, just 3 days after that picture was taken.  There aren't any words to explain it.  And the girl on the right is the happiest she has ever been.  I had no idea how to be a mommy and thankfully that sweet baby is giving me an education and we're learning together.

Ava Rose at 10 months...

Looking more and more like her daddy...

Ten month facts:

• What a ham, she loves to wave at strangers, play with little people, and be out and about.
• Waving, clapping, and some sign language.  She knows, "milk" and "more" and understands "eat".
• Plays peekaboo, loves to "sing" and "talk" during a conversation.
• Errrrything goes into that mouth, she really loves keys.  Remote controls. And phones - yuck, I try to steer her away from those.
• Oh baby, we can crawl.  And we are starting to pull up on furniture.
• Loves her crib, we will need to lower it this week since she is pulling up.
• We have a tooth!  And then we got another tooth!
• Loves to blow raspberries, coo, and laugh.  

Nicknames: Nuggie, nugget, bunny, little bear, pook pook, oh my we have a lot of nicknames

Weight: no doctor appointment this month so we haven't checked

Length:  We haven't checked but by looking at her pant legs she has definitely grown since her last checkup.

Eyes:  Dark when I met her and staying that way.

Clothes: 6-9 month.  Depending on the brand she is able to wear 12 month pants for length.  She is starting to get a bit long for her footie pjs so we will have to move up to 12 month soon.  We still wear a sleepsack at night but they max out at a 9 month size so our days are number in them as well.

Diapers: size 2 but we wear size 3 at night only because we have several packs thanks to my mother in law.  They fit great.  We had purchased size 2 and we have them at daycare.

Sleeping:  Much, much better, we can get 3-4 hour increments at least.  We had a few bad nights where she woke every 1.5 hours due to teething but most nights we put her down at 8 and she sleeps until 4 am at least.  I can nurse her to sleep until 6-7 am.  Sometimes she wakes up around 10pm or midnight but she can either put herself back to sleep after a few whimpers or we can pat her back and she settles down again.

Likes:  Our happy nugget likes pretty much everything.  Food obviously, sippy cups, eating at the table, exploring on her own, her teachers and classmates.

Dislikes:  She hates being put down or being alone.  She really doesn't care for being up past 8 pm. 

Feeding:  Stage 3 foods, arrowroot cookies, teething wafers, yogurt melts, and puffs are stocked around here.  She mostly eats from our plate at home and gets some "treats" when we are out and about.  She gets 3 bottles, a jar of food, and a snack at daycare.  In a few weeks we will start letting her eat some of the foods the toddlers get at school.  We nurse on demand at home.

Ava's Favorites: Amber teething necklace, Happy Baby teething wafers, my first toothbrush, bandana bibs, saline spray, baby aquaphor, Ruby Love baby book, Little People Doll House.

Milestones: We have two teeth!  She started crawling and pulling up (more like attempting to pull up on furniture), first taste of cake, sleeping through the night regularly, first snow, first New Years celebration, and we joined a church as a family.

Postpartum:  Nothing new to report, other than I'm getting really tired of dragging this pump, parts, and bottles around all the time.  I love nursing so I put up with the pumping side...but I'm not going to miss the latter.  Also not all clothes are flattering over a pumping bra :-/

Want to watch her grow?

Baby Favorites - Part 2 Bath

As promised I'm trying to continue with my favorite baby products months 4-10, truthfully though, we haven't changed our bath items much at all since she was born - unless you count that short time where she took sink baths.  Ava Rose loves the bath!  It's quality daddy time and she gets some playtime in the water before getting scrubbed down, our first favorite is a pretty standard item but it gets a lot of use.

We purchased the Primo Baby Bath Tub and we love it, this was the one tub that could take us from 0-24 months fit nicely into our bathtub.  It gives infant support and grows with the baby, when baby is sitting you just face them in the opposite direction and they have more room for playing.

Our baby has eczema so we switched all her bath products to help her skin to retain moisture, this thick lotion does the trick on her skin.

Aquaphor is the bees knees for taking care of baby skin...we use it on her bottom every night and above her top lip to help with irritated skin caused by constantly wiping her nose.  When she went through her baby acne phase after she was first born, I liked to use it to help reduce the redness in her face.  I keep a smaller size in my purse and the jar at our diaper changing area.

Our favorite body wash...doesn't dry out her skin.  We also use it to wash her hair.

We have so many bath toys - a couple of rubber duckies, bath books, and squirters but her very favorite is her Boon Water Bugs set.

And I can't forget about those new teef, we have the Baby Buddy first toothbrush and it's been great. She loves to chew it and the little nubs massage her itchy gums.

This is probably the easiest of the series, because she is pretty low maintenance at this stage.

Baby Favorites - Part 1 Sleep

So I meant to post my favorite baby items along the way but I took an unscripted, unplanned blogging hiatus since becoming a mom.  And really, this blog is something I enjoy but as far as priorities go, it's not at the top of the list.  I kept track of all the things we loved though, and I knew I'd eventually want to show favoritism to the goodies that helped us get through the rough months. Sleep.  Not something we had much of from the time bunny was around 3 weeks old...then we found our groove around 4 months...then totally rocked again until about 7 months...then another regression...around 9 months we started getting some sleep after we cut our first tooth.  Our baby is not one to need hours of uninterrupted sleep and she still wakes a few times a night, but at least she can put herself down again.  We spent quite a bit of money on trickery that promised a decent night's rest, here are the things that we loved most.

First off...routine is key.  We eat, bathe, book/nurse/pray, and bed every night.  It works for us, she knows what to expect and will start to fuss if we deviate from the routine.

A good humidifer for her room, we bought this Crane ultrasonic version from Diapers.com when they had a 30% off sale.  We love it so much that we may buy another for our bedroom.  Cleaning it is a bit of a chore, it needs to bed emptied daily and cleaned with a water/white vinegar solution daily.

At night we like to play Pandora for our girl, we like the lullaby station but she sleeps better when the music doesn't have words - our favorite is the Piano Guys station.  We also like Baby Mozart.

This bedtime book is adorable, it's called Really Woolly Bedtime Prayers and can be purchased on Amazon, though I'm not sure where our copy came from since it was a gift. Another religious favorite is 365 days of bible bedtime stories - my copy is second hand and we read several pages a night so we are already through it.  We have too many favorite bedtime books to count, I try to pick things that have more words than pictures so she will listen while she nurses.

Cloud B Sleep Sheep, ours was purchased through Pottery Barn Kids. It's nice, there are five different sounds and you can choose how loud you want it.  She likes the ocean sound best.  We used this more when she was still in the bassinet in our room.

Halo Sleep Sack.  We got a lot of use out of these - Ava had two small and two medium ones - we started swaddling arms up the first month she was born and arms down at two months.  We weaned her away from them at 6 months when she outgrew them.  Swaddle weaning was the absolute devil...it made for two miserable weeks of sleeplessness. Three of our four Halo's were purchased at Target, the fourth on Amazon.  Since we used these mostly through warm months we either dressed her in a diaper or a onesie underneath.

The Miracle Blanket, if R and I have another we will likely go this route.  A friend let us borrow hers so I'm not sure where she got it but I know you can buy them at BabiesRUs.  Ava learned how to break out of her Halo around 5 months but you can't break out of the Miracle Blanket.  We were able to use this longer because you can still swaddle the arms down and lay the baby down on top of the flap where a smaller baby's feet would go.  We stopped using all swaddle sacks when she showed good head, neck and back support and when she could roll easily.  Now she wears a regular fleece sleep sack for warmth but will outgrow them soon.

Ava is sleeping in her crib in her bedroom now but for 9 months she either co-slept with us or slept in a bassinet in our room.  We liked our Graco to Go...I'm glad it's down now because we have more space in our room but it was convenient having her close by.  We picked ours up at Buy Buy Baby using a 20% coupon for the best price. Pack N Play sheets can be hard to find, I picked up a two pack from Circo at Target.com and didn't even get to pick the colors.  I can't say she ever cared for the toy bar but the little pouch on the end was nice for keeping her lotions and diapers for after bath time.

Our Levana Oma Snuza.  I have a love hate relationship with this thing.  I feel more confident at night when she wears it, especially since I know someone who had a SIDS scare but when it goes off in false alarm it scares me to death.  If you don't fit it just right on the diaper you may get several false alarms and have to reposition it.  I bought ours off Amazon.  At ten months we are still using this.

The last bedtime favorite is this Summer Infant 5" wide digital color monitor - we purchased ours at Target. I definitely think this is a necessity but there are so many to choose from we had difficulty picking a monitor.  A friend that has twins suggested this one and it has worked out well for us; it travels well and I like the big screen. It picks up even slight noises and I have no problem hearing her alarm or cries, I keep it on the lowest setting on my bedside table and I usually keep the screen zoomed in on her.

This post is one in a series, over the next couple of weeks....as long as she sleeps at night....I'll be able to complete our baby favorites.

Super Bowl Supper

Watching a little football and a whole lot of commercials tonight; of course I'm excited that my team is in the Super Bowl!  I even dug out my old Panthers jersey...old only because Julius Peppers's name is across the back.  Nugget and I had such a great time today which allowed hubs to get in the kitchen and make some delicious snacks for tonight's festivities.  I loved them so much I decided to post the recipes here.

Buffalo Chicken Dip (my favorite go to game day dip)

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers (R's favorite appetizer)

Cheesy Pull Apart Sliders (because this has been trending on my Facebook feed all week)

The first two are standbys but the sliders needed some extra mustard in my opinion, otherwise I'd definitely make them again.  Who's ready for halftime?

#KeepPounding #Panthers

Valentine's Day Planning

Oh I love a holiday, any holiday, and the more corny - the better.  This is our little bunny's first Valentine's Day and who better to spend a day of love with than the two I love most!  R and I don't usually go "all out" on V-Day and we choose to celebrate at home instead of out on the town. I bought a cute new top (big deal since I really haven't bought many clothes postpartum) to wear for my hot date and of course we had to purchase a few goodies for our tiniest Valentine.

1.  Green Toys tea set.  I think our girl will love having a "tea party" with mommy.
2. What tea party could be complete without adorable tea bags and "cookies".  I ordered this set in pink.
3. Who does love a holiday themed book?
4. Real cookies for our tea party.
5. Mommy and Mini matching Willow Crown headbands.  This is our first set but it won't be our last.
6. Dreaming Tree Chardonnay, one of my easiest go to options.
7. Antipasti, our favorite date night meal is a big spread of options. image
8. Don't we all want to get chocolate from our Valentine?

I can't wait until next weekend!  Ava Rose has a holiday party at school and we made little Valentines for her classmates.  R and I have a full weekend of fun planned for us as a family and a little couple time as well.

Ava Rose at 9 months...

What. A. Handful.

Nine month facts:

• Someone is a goofy girl, super social, loves to be around other babies and children.  Loves crowds.
• Waves hello/goodbye
• Claps her hands
• Plays Peekaboo
• Tries really hard to pull herself up.
• Still not crawling but she can scoot.  Doesn't seem interested in crawling but she will play on her tummy.
• Started sleeping in her own room at the end of the month, no more bedside bassinet for this girl.
• Sleeps in a crib for naps at daycare.
• Attends chapel on Wednesdays and gets a snack with the big kids at the "table".
• Still a toothless nugget.
• Talks and babbles all the time, "sings", giggles, and blows raspberries.

Nicknames: Nugget, Nugs, Nuggie, Rootie Toot, Bunny Rose, and Bear

Weight: 16 lbs 8oz

Length: 28 inches

Eyes:  Brown or Hazel, depends on the lighting

Clothes: 6-9 months for length be we still wear a few 6 month outfits.  I love Gymboree, specifically their generous sizing for 6-12 months - I racked up on the end of season sale.  We bought a few things at Belk for next year too.  She's petite so it can be difficult to buy ahead.  She still wears sleep sacks at night and they size out at 9 months so when we are finished with them it will be PJs only at night.  She's in a size 2 shoe and her fleece Zutanos and Sweet N Swag Moccs fit best.  She has a pair of boots and a pair of Mary Janes, but we can't seem to keep her from pulling them off.

Diapers: Size 2.  It's so odd that size 2 and size 3 overlap so much, we are nervous to buy in bulk because technically we can go to a 3 but they would be big on her.

Sleeping: If she's sick (which happens every other week it seems) then we are up every 2-3 hours. The days following Christmas Eve were HORRIBLE, maybe she was too stimulated or maybe it was teething or a cold, or bad luck...who knows?  What I remember from those weeks was sheer exhaustion because she didn't want to sleep for more than an hour without being held, cuddled, rocked, or nursed- R and I took shifts with her at night. We aim for at least 2 naps per day and 3 on weekends - they don't have to be long naps but she needs some sleep or she falls apart.

Likes: Lavender oil in her humidifier, Pandora Piano Guys station at night, playing in the bathtub, afternoon snack time, "circle time" in class - the teacher calls her "the star student" (insert proud mama smile), a plastic sensory bottle filled with jingle bells.

Dislikes: Playing alone, being ignored, when someone doesn't wave back at her (she doesn't understand why the dog and cat don't reciprocate), lentils, waiting for a meal, having her nose wiped or suctioned, and naptime.

Feeding: She wakes around 5 am for first feeding and usually eats twice before she leaves for school.  She gets three bottles during the school day and free feeds in the afternoon and at bedtime. She gets one jar of food during the day and a snack of puffs or yogurt melts at school.  Sometimes she gets a teething cracker or some pieces of banana after school.  We give her another meal at dinnertime - We like Earths Best for baby food but if we are eating something suitable then we will feed her what we are eating. She is on stage 2 foods but we can break up foods that can be easily "gummed" - she likes meat, turkey, chicken, pork, beef, or fish.  And she likes most vegetables and fruits, and yogurt.  We haven't tried any nut butter, pasta, or cheese with her yet, but that's next.

Ava's Favorites: Baby Stella (we mimic feeding and diaper changing alot), Little People Playhouse, felt play food, Uncle Goose blocks, 3 in 1 bounce stride and ride elephant, Nuk sippy cups, bandana bips, Gerber Puffs, and Happy Baby Teether snacks.

Milestones: 1st Christmas (and all those events that I recapped in the last post), 1st New Years Eve, 1st night in her own room, first school pageant/concert, first visit with Santa, learned how to wave and understands to clap when I say "yay".

Most pictures were shared in the holiday post but here are a few extra from the month.  Most of these were taken with a phone so they're blurry but I love all pictures of my girl, even the blurry ones.

Postpartum: Following a pump schedule, every 3-4 hours when I'm away from Ava Rose.  Just a weird note - I discovered that my nail polish wasn't staying on my nails...fingers or toes.  I gave up on my hands because I wash my hands 100x a day at work and sometimes Ava puts them in her mouth, but I like my toes to stay painted.  I have deep vertical nail ridges and I've never had them before, after doing some research it seems that it is totally common in the months after having a baby from changing keratin levels.  I have to give my nails a good buffing and use ridge filler now before I apply any color for it to stay on.  I'm feeling good, and ready for the new year; now that Miss Rose is getting some independence I'm hoping to get in more physical activity in 2016.