CafeMom Tickers

Thursday, February 21, 2013

{10 Months}

I feel like every month I'm completely shocked that my baby is another month old.  I mean I've already ordered her first birthday invites.  STOP growing!!  I'm truly trying to cherish each moment with her, especially our bedtime routine.  Don't get me wrong it can be a struggle to get her to sleep sometimes, but once she's a sleep I just want to hold her for a bit longer before putting her in her crib.

Stella is definitely on the move these days!  Basically any activity is difficult.  Changing a diaper takes way more than two hands. And don't turn you head even for a second because she will be into the next room or climbing on something!  She's crawling like the speed of light (she loves to crawl towards the bathroom or Brodie's bowl--she turns to see if anyone's watching then goes ahead! Cute but mischevious all the same)  She loves to cruise--holding onto the ottoman, entertainment center or her babydoll stroller.  She loves her stack toys and is beginning to learn how to stack them back.  The toys have become musical instruments when banged on the hardwood, tile, or air vent!  She thinks its the funniest thing.  She's even climbed one stair (with us hovering over of course)

We've started a new daycare.  Our happy go lucky baby has sailed right through the transition.  She once again is one of the youngest in her class, which has lead her to want to do what the big kids are doing!  She quickly cut out a bottle and is now eating 3 "meals" and 4 bottles.  I think we will work on cutting out another bottle soon.  Also she is eating lots of finger foods: puffs, cut up fruit, cheese.  She loves yogurt too!

She finally said Mom/Moma a total of 3 times!  Mind you she was sick but it still melted my heart (she hasn't said it since though boohoo) Jabbering nonstop most days.  Teething--that top left tooth should be showing itself any day now.  We've been battling a bit of sickness-pink eye and ear infections.  The first antibiotic didn't  completely clear the infection so unfortunately she was sick for a long time!  But she's much better now thank goodness!

Stella is growing!!  At her sick visit she weighed 20lbs 2 oz!  She's wearing some 6-12 mos and 9 mos, but mostly 12 months (onuses, etc)  She has short legs, long fat torso so dressing her is a bit difficult but all the same still fun! Still size 3 diapers.

Sorry no time for pictures...as I'm a little late getting this posted!  More to come later (we've been busy)

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

3/4 of a year ALREADY!!

{FROM STELLA'S PERSPECTIVE}

I'm such a big girl these days!  Mommy and Daddy can't believe how much I've grown and changed over the last few months!  I just experienced my very first Christmas (and first SNOW)..more on that later:)

I have officially mastered crawling and quickly moved onto to bigger things! {no more army crawl--truly up on all fours and FAST}  I love pulling up on any and everything that I can get my hands on.  Despite lots of new toys I still love the entertainment center--I enjoy looking at myself in the glass, pulling on the knobs and pulling up on the table.  I'm not sure why Mommy and Daddy have put these things on the doors that keep me from opening them!  I also enjoy racing across the kitchen floor to the table.  I use the chairs to climb up too.  I often play with the picture frames on the end tables too.  I really like seeing Grandmoma and Grandaddy:)  I can easily go from laying/crawling to sitting and have even figured out how to transition from standing to crawling.  My favorite game is Peek-A-Boo!

Every aspect of my day has become more and more entertaining!  I'm starting to enjoy bath time more-splashing around and playing with all my toys and bath books.  I still love books, but don't really have a favorite.  I really like it when Mommy and Daddy sing to me and I often try to sing along! I'm being to get the hang of this eating thing and get so excited when its time to try new things.  I'm currently eating cereal with apples (or other fruit) in the morning and 2 servings of veggies at night.  I've also tried yogurt recently and liked it!  My favorites still are butternut squash and apples YUMMY!  I love that Mommy makes all my food too:)

I'm all over the place in clothes.  Mommy's having a hard time keeping track:)  I'm wearing anything from 6-12mos, 9 mos or 12 months.  I wear a size 3 diaper.  I've been trying new brands/styles of diapers too.  My favorite (Mommy's fave) is the Huggies Pure and Natural BUT I seem to leak now that I'm on the move so much.  Next favorite would be Huggies Little Snugglers but they don't make them in my size and I'm not a fan of the Little Movers.  So we've been testing out Pampers.  Still haven't found a favorite.  All the ones for moving seem so thin and uncomfortable!

I'm still such a good little sleeper.  Sometimes on the weekends I like to take a 3 hour nap too!  I go to bed between 7-730pm and wake up on my own around 7.  I have been known to sleep til 8 or 9--I think Mommy & Daddy enjoy that too much:)  I'm standing up in my crib now so it's been lowered for some time now.  From time to time I've fallen asleep cuddled up to my crib bumper {Oh so cute with her arm up on it or with her head laying on it}

Official stats from TODAY's checkup: WEIGHT 18 lbs, 13.5 ounces (50th percentile)  
HEIGHT 27 inches (50-75th percentile)

Happy Baby at her check-up


Saturday, December 1, 2012

7 & 8 months {long}

Oh my!  Once again I'm behind..I seemed to have forgotten a whole month!!  My oh my how time flies...my little baby is now looking and acting more like a little person.  We've been busy as usual...with nothing too extreme..just seems like LIFE gets in the way of doing things sometimes.  Hoping that gets better with time, but I think just the opposite will be true:(

Anyways, Stella is changing so much EVEN week to week it's crazy!!

Seven months
 At our 6 month check up I talked with the pediatrician about weaning from nursing.  She offered some great suggestions for working moms.  That very day I stopped pumping at work (can we say FREEDOM!) but continued to nurse at night/first thing in morning and some throughout the day on weekends.  Stella made the transition great.  At first, I used my overstock pile of milk from the freezer but BOY did that dwindle quickly!  Inevitably we had to breakdown and buy formula.  We started mixing formula(Earth's best organic) with mommy milk then slowly went to all formula (still nursing at night though!)  Again, no problems!  Stella's such a good eater..no worries!  And now she's eating veggies and fruits all made by me!  I know it seems like a lot for a working mom (believe me I'm all for easy peasy with my schedule) but it's really easy. I usually make a batch of whatever during her naps on the weekend, then freeze!  Her absolute favorite is butternut squash, but apples is a very close second (even Adam liked the apples!)  She's not a big fan of avocado or bananas (I think it's a texture thing)

Stella is growing up!  She now has her two little bottom teeth.  Teething is no joke...she would be fine during the day for the most part but the night time was rough.  Highly recommend the Hyland tablets.  Also, she's sitting up great, reaching for things out of reach.  And starting to get on all fours and rock back and forth---momma's not ready!  We also started swim lessons:)  This is so much fun!  I know she's not going to be swimming laps anytime soon--it's more to get her used to the water so she's no scared down the road.  Like most things she's a little indifferent to the new environment; she didn't smile or laugh with enjoyment but she didn't scream either!  Still babbling lots.  Says "Dada"

Oh goodness does Mommy need sleep!!  Our schedule is nonexistent at this stage:(  We usually have to wake her up for daycare and that's always a different time almost everyday.  We try to do bedtime at the same general time but it usually around her last nursing.  It's so unpredictable as far as how long she will sleep..sometimes til midnight other nights til 5.  Doesn't make any difference whether she had good naps or no naps.  The good thing is that she typically is just up once at night and quickly goes back to sleep after eating.

She now is in size 2 diapers and size 3 at night.  Wearing mostly 6-9 months and 9 month jammies


Loves books and all of her toys.  Starting to really enjoy Brodie too!  Nicknames are still about the same and different everyday. Most common continue to be Stella Bella, Lil Adam, etc


Eight months 

Wow!  Just writing this makes me realize how many changes and advances we've made in the last few weeks:)  Stella continues to amaze me with her laid back demeanor and sweet sweet personality!  She loves to people watch when we are in big crowds and typically has no problems with strangers.  On the rare occasion she has cried when we say bye at daycare but is quickly soothed by her teachers.  When lots of people are around she doesn't nap--I think it's because she's afraid she might miss something HA!  When we sing to her she makes "singing" noises with us (it's one of the most precious sounds)  She still likes to pat our faces or put her hands on our mouths. She's definitely a snuggler

We are mobile!!  She rocked back and forth for so long.  She would move either one arm forward or one knee but never all together for the longest time..I was so afraid I would miss it just by looking away for a second.  Then one night (weekend before Thanksgiving) she just took off...after the remote control nonetheless.  She takes one true crawl step on all fours then does this funny thing where she uses her arms to pull herself around.  My sister described it perfectly as the army crawl!!  Now that she's mobile she likes to pull herself into our laps--pure love

Well, Stella is now on 100% formula.  It's only been about 2 weeks but overall I feel good about my decision to wean.  I'm proud of myself that I stuck with it for so long.  It was hard!  Now I realize that both have pros and cons.  Stella has yet again not skipped a beat...she had no problems.  Although I miss the extra time with her at night I now find other ways to have special time with her.

On that same note, we started sleep training about the same time (Nov 9th). We decided to try the Ferber method after a friend at work recommended it.  The first night was HORRIBLE!!  It seemed as though every time we went in there to comfort her, she would initially calm down but as soon as we left things were much much worse!!!  After about an hour of crying, I was ready to throw in the towel.  I mean seriously how is this any better??!  If I had just fed her then WE all would have been back to sleep by now...UGH! But we stuck it out and eventually after 2 hours she fell back to sleep.  Pure exhaustion--physically, mentally, and emotionally.  I definitely felt like a horrible mother in the midst of all of that.  The next few nights got better and better though.  On the third night we only had to go soothe her ONCE.  Then from then on-NONE!  Now my baby sleeps from 730pm-7am (unless we have to wake her early).  What a difference a little sleep makes--I feel like a new woman!

Stella is wearing size 3 diapers.  Size 9 months clothes and 12 month jammies.  And she was the "Star of the Week" at daycare in November (I realize all the kids at some point or another get this "award" but nonetheless you can't help that it makes your heart full!)  Starting to enjoy and play during bath time more and more.  Loving her bathtime book.



Saturday, October 13, 2012

New Things

Wow!  Once again I am amazed by my little girl:)  We have tried lots of new things these past couple of weeks and she has done great!


  • Probably the biggest change is her food.  We started her on solids on her 6 month birthday!  So far I've made all of her food (it's much easier than it sounds)  We skipped rice cereal and went straight for the veggies!  She's had sweet potatoes, avocado, carrots, peas, and butternut squash.  Her favorites so far are butternut squash and sweet potatoes--she LOVES it!  At first she's a little uninterested in new food but by the second day she's fussing because we aren't feeding her fast enough--it's hilarious really!
Loving the big girl chair!





  • Another new thing is the introduction of formula.  We just started this today and so far it's going good.  I'm still nursing at night (partial wean) but decided to ditch the pump during the day.  I've been using my freezer stash but that is quickly dwindling!  So we started with a little formula today so we can make what little mommy's milk that's left last as long as possible.

  • Stella and Brodie are finally starting to interact!  It's so funny to watch:)  She will smile when he comes close.  Lately while holding Stella we will chase Brodie in the back yard.  Stella laughs so loud and is so tickled by it!!  I need to figure out how to post the video haha

  • We also went to the park a last weekend for the first time.  Stella enjoyed the swing.  She even loved watching all the other kids play!    Melts my heart to see her smile--makes it all worth it:)







Half Birthday

Oh My Goodness!!  It's hard to believe that Stella is already 6 months old:)  I keep reminiscing about how this time last year we were just out of the first trimester and had told family and close friends.  I barely had a bump.  It feels like a lifetime ago and at the same time just like yesterday!  My how things change in one short year or even in just a few months:)

Stella is growing up and her personality is starting to shine through.  She still is fairly laid back and goes with the flow.  She's a very happy baby and has yet to meet a stranger.  I absolutely love her little giggles--she's extremely ticklish just like her daddy!  She usually wakes up happy in the mornings and I love listening to her babble via the monitor.  Every morning I say "Good morning, Sunshine" as I approach her crib and she gives me a big sleepy grin as she stretches!  Now that's the best part of waking up:)

Stella has started sitting up:)  She still requires some assistance here and there but is getting the hang of it!  She loves to sit on the blanket in the living room with all of her toys spread around. She reaches for her toys and of course they go straight into her mouth!  Her favorites are Sophie the girafffe, an elephant and a few rattles.  I got her a stack toy but she hasn't quite figured it out yet!  She loves to play with her paci too-taking it in and out, reaching for it, etc.  I've noticed that she reaches a lot more with her left hand (not sure how I feel about that!)  And she is babbling like crazy and in the midst of her babbles she says a definite "dada"  I tried for the longest time to turn a deaf ear to it BUT  it's so distinct haha!

OTHER MILESTONES:

  • HEIGHT: 26.5 INCHES (75-90th percentile)
  • WEIGHT: 16 LBS 2 OZ (50-75th percentile)
  • HEAD CIRCUMFERENCE: 17.5 inches (95-98th percentile)
  • CLOTHING: 6-9 months mostly.  Some 6 months and some 9 months.  Wearing size 2 diapers (Huggies) Size 3 shoes 
  • MILESTONES:  Sitting up!  Babbling!  Reaching for objects and passing things between hands.  Loves to stand with assistance
  • FAVORITES:  
    • BOOK: My favorites are Guess How Much I Love You and On The Night You Were Born.  Adam's favorite is All about Baby.  We both also love reading her a book called When Stella Was Little.  Stella seems to enjoy all the books but more recently has to have a book to read herself (holding a book while we read to her)
    • TOYS: This was covered earlier..partial to Sophie






    STELLA--A GOOD MIX OF US!
  • LOOKS:   Stella is the spitting image of Adam as a baby, except I think she has my big eyes and lips!
  • TICKLISH:  She is sooo ticklish and giggles all the time--definitely Adam
  • SLEEP: O-M-G This girl can fight sleep like the best of them!  And can fall asleep anywhere--craziness just like ME!
  • EAT:  When this girl is hungry she wants her food NOW (especially when she first wakes up)  This is a little of both of us

Sunday, October 7, 2012

5 months

Wow my baby girl is getting so big!  She definitely is no longer a newborn:(  She doesn't like to be cradled except when taking a bottle. She's holding her head up and rolling all over the place.  Stella is just so stinking cute!!

So I started this a LONG time ago but never had a chance to finish it!  It's going to be short and sweet--just to get the major points down!

SLEEP:  Stella is sleeping great in her crib!  She goes to bed between 8-9pm most nights.  Still swaddled but now with arms out:)  She wakes up at least once during the night, sometimes more to eat but goes right back to sleep.  Her naps are unpredictable but there's no keeping this baby awake when she's sleepy.  Although sometimes she's pretty good at fighting the sleep herself.  I think she gets this from me!

EAT:  Still on 100% mommy milk.  Takes 4 oz every 3 hours during the day.  Sometimes more, sometimes less.

PLAY:  We are rolling over!!!  It's so cute because she is so excited about it too (Well that could be because I do a little cheer each time haha!)  Now she's definitely buckled into everything!  Still enjoying the swing.  Haven't really played on the activity mat lately because not enough room to roll over.  Introduced the exersaucer/bouncer and she wasn't impressed at first, but now she loves it!  She recently moved up to the "Mini Movers" room at daycare and is enjoying playing with all the "big" kids!  She currently is the youngest  baby in that room but loves the interaction.

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Labor Day Weekend Fun!!

We had such a great LONG weekend!!  Nothing really spectacular just an awesome weekend with my little family and my sister's family!

The three of us spent Saturday afternoon just hanging out at the house.  Stella is such a good baby and we loved the extra "nothing planned" time with her.  She's rolling all over the place and giggling up a storm!  Then that evening Adam and I had our first real post-baby date night:)  Now we've left Stella with family to attend weddings and other functions or go out to eat with her in toll but this was a "real" date night with just the two of us.  I didn't know how I would feel about leaving Stella and I still have mixed emotions about it.  BUT  for the first time since having a baby I felt like a WIFE and just a person..not a mommy! It was so weird to be out and about without her or even in the car with just me and Adam.  We went to dinner at Bonefish Grill--delicious (I even had a glass of wine!)  Then we decided to go to the movies.  I can't remember the last time I went to the early movie (don't get me wrong we hit up the matinees all the time on Sunday afternoons), but this was the 7 pm movie with all the little middle school kids!  We saw the Campaign, good not great.  It was between that and the new batman movie BUT mommy couldn't stay away for 3 more hours!! ha!
It's the first time I've missed Stella's bedtime routine:(  But she was in good hands with Nana and Grandpa (Adam's parents).  She, of course, didn't even skip a beat and fell right to sleep for them!

My sister and her family came to visit the rest of the weekend.  It was so great to have some time with Stella's cousins!  They couldn't get over how big she had gotten.  And I think Trent was a bit upset that she doesn't stay still long enough to cradle like a baby anymore! ha  Of course Stella had a massive blowout while my sister was holding her--it never fails!  Stella went shopping with us girls while the boys played golf.   We grilled out burgers and hotdogs even in the rain!  It was the perfect long weekend but we sure did miss seeing GranMomma and Grandaddy (my parents!)

Playing with my cuzzies (Amie & Trent!)

I'm too cute:)

Amie practicing for future babysitting