Easter Celebration for All!

If I get this published and it is still Easter, it will be a miracle.  I am always super behind on posts, especially holiday posts.  I am going to try and get this written and published today though.  We shall see.  I still have a bucket load of stuff to do…

We spent Easter morning with my nun friend Sister Delia.  Ivan had to work a few hours in the morning, so we postponed the egg hunt until after church.  We went to mass at the Motherhouse (principle house for my nun friend’s order), which was filled with a lot of older nuns who loved Evan.  He was a hit.  The chapel was decorated with so many beautiful Easter flowers, so we took a picture.

After mass we decided to hit up Panera for a little brunch.  Sister Delia wasn’t feeling so hot and so she didn’t want to eat too much and since it’s Easter, brunch is like the most popular thing in the world.  And for some reason, brunch is always $30 a person on Easter.  Not worth it.  So, I figured Panera wouldn’t be too crowded and we could all get a little food.  It was the best choice ever.  We ate, caught up, told stories, passed Evan around, and called it a day.  Evan wanted to drive home but I said no.  Pacifiers and driving do not mix.  He thought that as long as he had his seatbelt on, he was good to go.  Sorry bud.

When we got home, I made Evan and Ivan go look for Easter eggs.  I (or the Easter Bunny) hid the eggs and two Easter baskets (one from us and one from Evan’s Mimi).  Since Evan is too little to look by himself and Ivan was sleeping when I hid them, I figured they could look together.  It was the cutest thing ever.

Evan was actually quite good at grabbing the eggs when Ivan pointed them out.  Then he tried to eat them.  They were plastic though, so not too tasty.

Finally they found the first Easter basket!

They had a hard time finding the second though….

It wasn’t under the bed…

It was behind the suitcase!

Then Evan got all excited to open it up and see what was inside.

Dolce wanted to see what was inside too!  Mimi did a much better job of filling his Easter basket – it had fun stuff like toys, clothes, and books.  The one I put together had a book, a chocolate bunny (which he can’t eat), and plastic eggs filled with candy (which he can’t eat).  So, basically he got a book.  Yeah, I am not very creative.  I need to think harder about these things.  I just couldn’t think of what to put in there and then didn’t have time to go get stuff.  Luckily his Mimi came through and put together a great Easter basket for him.

The rest of the day was spent cleaning (Evan’s Godmother is coming over to watch him tomorrow and Ivan wanted the house to be spick-and-span) and cooking.  And trying to get Evan to nap.  Napping didn’t really happen.  Evan has decided that he wants to roll over like a maniac so it makes it impossible for him to lay still and get comfortable…so he just cries out of frustration.  It is making for long days and even longer nights.  Not my idea of fun.

Easter was a hit in our house – church and the Easter bunny, good times for all.  I love Easter and I loved Easter growing up, so I’m hoping Evan learns to love it too.  I think Evan had fun hunting for Easter baskets with his Daddy!

five question friday!

Happy Good Friday!  Or just Happy Friday!  I have off from work today and I am thrilled!!!  A three-day weekend is the best.  And it’s Easter on Sunday, so that’s exciting.  I can’t wait for Evan to get his little Easter basket (filled with chocolate for me…).   We are spending Easter with my nun-friend and she hasn’t seen Evan since he was two months old – so that will be fun.

I decided to participate in Five Question Friday again.  Remember, if you want to participate, just head over Five Crooked Halos!

1. How often should adults have birthday parties?
   As often as they want?  When my husband first moved here we had birthday parties for him every year (so two – he’s been here three years and last year Evan was born right before his birthday so we didn’t have a party).  It’s not like it was a themed party with goodie bags or anything, but usually a BBQ with people over.  Any excuse to have a party and hang out is fine by me!
   
2. What was your room decorated like when you were a child?
   Nothing spectacular.  I grew up in the military and we moved around a lot so we always rented houses or lived in base housing.  We couldn’t paint any of the walls so pretty much I always had plain white walls, some pictures hung up, and a bedspread.  I remember I had a dog bedspread when I was really little and then when I was in middle school/high school I had a floral bedspread.  Like I said, nothing spectacular.
   
3. Do you have any traditions for Easter?  If so, what, and do you have a why behind that?
   We had traditions when we were growing up.  The night before we’d decorate Easter eggs then we’d wake up and hunt for the eggs and our Easter basket.  There would be hardboiled eggs and plastic eggs hidden around the house and then a bigger Easter basket that would have a chocolate bunny and a small gift.  Then we’d go to church and come home and eat ham.  Now I usually go to church on Easter Sunday and we are starting Easter baskets with Evan but he’s so little he won’t know what’s going on.  I’m not cooking ham – we’re going out to eat…but not at one of the fancy brunches that cost $30 a person.  We are just going to a small diner.
   
4. Do you get Good Friday off?  If so, any plans?
   We don’t get “Good Friday” off, but we get a Spring Holiday that is always on Good Friday.  A lot of the people in my office are Jewish, atheist, or agnostic, so it wouldn’t make sense to have Good Friday off.  However, it is Spring Break in a lot school districts so every year we vote on a floating holiday and it always happens to be Good Friday because so many kids are out of school.  So, I’m off today!  No plans – just relax and get some stuff done.  Hubs is going golfing and I’m playing with Evan – and maybe taking a walk.
   
5. Did you wear hat and white shoes to church on Easter (or is that just in the South)?
   No, I did not.  I may have had white shoes to match my Easter dress but it wasn’t because I had to wear white shoes.  And I never wore a hat.  But a lot of other people did/do.  There are always women with big hats on Easter – I was just never one of them.  I always had a new Easter dress when I was little, but that’s about it.

 

Your turn!!!

What are your Easter traditions, if you have any?

Is it ok to have a bday party when you are an adult??

Avocados, Carrots, and Broccoli

We are unsuccessfully trying to get Evan to start eating food.  It is not working.  The pediatrician said to start with green and orange vegetables.  That seemed easy enough.  I thought I’d start with avocados, since they don’t have to be cooked and are a super food.  This was his reaction:

(Sorry, the picture is blurry.  My husband is the worst picture-taker ever.)

Yeah, he looks so happy.  And it only got worse.

The pediatrician said not to force him to eat and if he didn’t want any, to just stop and try another time.  He is obviously not enjoying this.  So, we quit.  And when he realized he won, he was quite pleased with himself.

I then read that it takes kids about ten times before they like a new taste, so I thought I would try avocado again, thinking that maybe it was just strange for him to have food instead of milk.  We also bought a highchair (used for $34 – very happy about that) and I thought that that would make him feel grown-up and ready to eat.  Look at how happy he is!  All ready to eat on St. Patrick’s Day! 

 

Nope, he was completely uninterested in eating, although he loved playing with his new plate that his Mimi bought him (with an adorable tractor on it and his name engraved on the side).  He did not grow an appreciation for avocados though.

So then I got my sister’s BabyCook and decided to make some carrots for him.  They are a bit sweeter and still orange.  And the BabyCook is awesome!  It steams the food and purees it in the same little device and makes it super easy to make baby food.  This is the little basket that you put the chopped up food into to steam it.

Then you put it all together and it steams it all up.  Nice and easy.

And then we have some nice, yummy carrots for Evan!

And he hated them.  Look at that grumpy face!  He is learning to hate eating time.

Yet again, he is happy when I call it quits.  Notice how much carrot he left on his face.  I was kind of hoping that if I put some by his mouth, he would lick it up.  Nope.  He just pursed his lips shut and didn’t budge.

I also tried broccoli, sweet potatoes, bananas, and applesauce.  He wasn’t interested in any of them.  However, when I tried to eat my mashed potatoes he seemed quite interested in those.  So, I gave him the tiniest bite and he ate it right up.  Of course mashed potatoes have milk, butter, and salt – so who wouldn’t love them (but seriously, who doesn’t love mashed bananas and applesauce????)!  I know that some new studies have come out showing that it might be a good idea to introduce things like peanuts, milk, and fish to babies, rather than hold off, but I’m not so sure yet. 

I have a feeling that if I made mashed potatoes for Evan and tried to feed him, he would refuse.  He seems to only want to eat my food.  So, maybe if I put a bunch of food on a plate and sat him in my lap and pretended to eat, he’d want to eat what I have?  Who knows.  I am about to the point of trying that though…he’s gonna need to eat something soon!

I am thinking about trying baby-led weaning, but we’ll see.  I am a bit terrified of choking…

 

What baby food do you remember loving?
I remember my older sister and I LOVED to eat the jars of mashed bananas.

Any suggestions on how to get Evan to eat???

Did you do baby-led weaning?

chores, early Easter, snow, and more randomness

This is what I woke up to this morning:

Are you serious???  Just to be clear, I live in the DC area – not Canada, Minnesota, or Vermont (where snow the end of March might be acceptable).  Umm, it is almost Cherry Blossom season – not snow season.  And I thought Punxsutawney Phil predicted an early spring????  It’s beautiful anyway – and so thick and wet.  And it’s still snowing….

As for my weekend, I got some of my chore goals accomplished.  I cleaned the bathrooms, did some laundry, went grocery shopping, and cooked some food (Pollo Guisado for hubs, lots of baby food for Evan, and mac and cheese for us).  I didn’t quite get Evan’s clothes put away, but I did fold them and put them in the laundry basket.  I also folded and put away hubs’ and my laundry from last week, towels from last week, and our darks from this week.  I did not get to the socks/underwear nor the light-colored clothes.  I also didn’t get a chance to wash our sheets or towels (although I did switch them out and put clean sheets on the bed and clean towels in the bathroom).  So, I think I made some decent progress.

I also went on a nice walk with Evan and Dolce, like usual.

He looks really happy in the above picture but about halfway into our two-mile walk he got really tired and started crying.  I forgot his paci so I didn’t have anything to console him.  Because it’s awkward walking with a screaming baby in the stroller, I ended up taking him out and carrying him for part of the way (yes, imagine me carrying Evan, pushing the stroller, and holding on to Dolce – it was definitely a funny sight).  Dolce loved the walk the entire time.  He never tires of going on walks and is as happy as can me!

He will love his walk today even more because of all the snow.  He LOVES snow and tries to spend the entire time eating it all.  It’s annoying because he literally walks with his face on the ground trying to get as much snow as possible for ever step he takes.  It them makes the walk pointless because ten minutes after you get home he has to pee again because he ate ten gallons of snow.  But he’s happy!

This is my newest find at the grocery store: Ben and Jerry’s Greek Frozen Yogurt. 

It is soooooooooooo delicious.  Last week I tried Pineapple Passionfruit and it was the BEST.  This week I bought Strawberry Shortcake and it is also yummy.  Next I want to try Liz Lemon. 

I would also like to show you this ridiculousness:

Umm, do you see that???  I bought 4 apples for $8.22.  Is that not a ridiculous amount of money for apples!!!!  Yes, they were organic, but still.  I only kept them in my cart because I was buying them to make applesauce for Evan (more on Evan and solid foods coming soon) – otherwise I would have put them right back.  No wonder I can’t keep my grocery bill below $100 a week!

On Sunday we celebrated Easter early with my sister’s in-laws.  They had a HUGE Easter egg hunt (and by huge I mean over 300 eggs hidden – eggs with candy, not hard boiled eggs), had Easter egg dying, and then an Easter dinner.  It was Evan’s first Easter and although he wasn’t really old enough to partake in the activities, he still had fun.  Don’t you love his Easter basket?  I bought it from Jen on Etsy.

Here is is “looking” for eggs.

And isn’t my niece so adorable in this little Easter mask!

Fun times were had by all!  I’m not sure about our Easter plans for next week.  I am hoping my nun friend hasn’t made plans yet and we can spend the day with her (that’s what we’ve done for the past few year). 

What are your Easter plans (if you celebrate Easter)?

What was the last thing you bought at the grocery store that seemed WAY too expensive?

FIVE question Friday!

Thank goodness it is Friday!  I had an extremely long week.  I had to go to the office four days this week (I know – that sounds so pathetic) because I had a Congressional Briefing on Wednesday, my usual work-from-home day.  The briefing went well though, so that was nice.  It sure made me tired having to get up early four days  in a row though.  Boo.  This weekend will be busy, I can already feel it.  Let’s hope I can get something done.  On my list are: putting the rest of Evan’s clothes away, cleaning the bathrooms, laundry (as always), grocery shopping, and cooking.  Along with fun stuff like spending as much time with Evan as possible, taking lots of walks, and going for a run with my sister (and Evan).  Yay for the weekends!

Today I decided to play along with Mama M at My Little Life for Five Question Friday.  I haven’t done this for a while and I always find it fun.  I love answering questions!

Five Question Friday

1. What advice would you give a newly married couple?
   That is hard.  I’m trying to think of the advice I got and what I found useful.  Maybe the best advice I would give would be to have fun and treat each other with respect.  Marriage is hard but wonderful at the same time.  The first year Ivan and I were married I felt like we fought about everything.  We’d never lived together and we’d been living in two different countries for three years prior to getting married.  It was hard to adjust to living together, it was hard for Ivan to adjust to living in the US, it was hard for each of us to adjust to the other person’s culture, etc.  After the first year things were a lot better.  However, it’s easy to become selfish and to think only of your own wants and needs and to forget that your spouse is a person too.  Oh, and maybe read that book about the 5 Love Languages – I haven’t read it but from the little I have seen, Ivan and I have completely different love languages.  Ok, so I don’t have great marriage advice…
   
2. Who does more laundry around your house?
   Now, this is an easy question.  ME.  I do ALL the laundry around this house.  Ivan will sometimes fold clothes if I leave them in piles all over the place for a really long time.  Except he folds clothes weird so then I want to re-fold them anyway. 
   
3. What items, if any, do you prefer to buy organic or make yourself?
   I buy as many organic items as possible.  I try to stick to the “Dirty Dozen” as much as possible but sometimes it’s hard to find organic potatoes without going to a specialty store.  I also buy organic dairy: milk, yogurt, cheese, eggs (for eggs I actually buy humane, not just organic/cage free). 
   
   As for foods I make at home – I try to make as many things from scratch as possible.  I make Evan’s baby food, I try to bake cookies instead of buy them, I make my own mac and cheese, I make my own hot chocolate, things like that.  Of course I buy some processed stuff like oatmeal and chips, etc., but I try to make as much at home as is reasonably possible (I do work full time, have a 6mo old, and take classes at night…so I don’t have time to make my own applesauce and things of that nature).
   
4. What book/TV series would you recommend for a friend on bedrest?
   Book series: Harry Potter, Twilight, Stephanie Plum books (by Janet Evanovich), Girl with a Dragon Tattoo series, Child 44 series.
   
   TV Series: Parenthood, Gilmore Girls, Friends, NCIS, Sex in the City.
   
5. So they say it’s spring, what does your “spring” look like at this very moment?
   Spring is 33*F and sunny.  No buds on the trees, a few flowers are pushing through but since it got below freezing last night they all looked very sad this morning.  Cherry blossoms are suppose to be blooming soon in DC but I haven’t seen any evidence that they want to come out yet.  At least we didn’t get a foot of snow like my parents did!

 

Now it’s your turn!  Answer any of the questions in the comments below!

I need more time

I don’t have time for a long post today, it is late and I still haven’t finished my chores from the weekend.  Yes, I realize that it is Wednesday so they are super late, but that is life.  My weekends are so filled and I am realizing that there just isn’t enough time for everything.  So instead, things like laundry got done but then it stays in a huge pile on the floor in our closet.  Waiting for someone to fold it.  That hasn’t happened.  I was kind of hoping some little elves would come and fold it but that doesn’t seem to be the case.  I think I’ll leave it there a little bit longer, just in case they are backed up.

I did manage to get these clothes sorted out.  The ones in the blue basket are Evan’s 3-6 month clothes.  They are too small now, for the most part.  So I washed them all up, folded them, and put them in storage containers.  Then I took out his 6-9 month clothes (the piles on the floor), washed them, folded them, and put them in his drawers.  I probably should have took them out a bit earlier because there are some 6 month clothes that are almost too small. 

Evan played on the floor while I sorted.  He was really helpful.

I then had a ton of diapers to wash, stuff, and put away.  This is a small fraction of what I had – these were actually from Friday.  There was another load in the washer. 

Those are actually part of the pile in the closet waiting for the elves.  I have only been stuffing enough to get by – four for my sister for the day and one or two for Ivan for the afternoon.  I just haven’t caught up yet. 

I then did a bunch of cooking.  I made Crock Pot Sesame Honey Chicken, which was really good, and Tortilla Chip Casserole.  The chicken was amazing – so yummy.  We had it over rice the first night but I have been taking it to work every day for lunch and topping a whole wheat tortilla with cheese, cabbage, and the chicken and it’s amazing.  The casserole was good too, but not amazing.  I have had it every day for dinner.  Every day.  It’s still good though.  This is what the kitchen looked like afterwards.

And please excuse the ugliness of the kitchen.  The people who own our condo don’t care a bit about it so they haven’t updated anything.  That has to be the original kitchen cabinets – and they are so hideous. 

Luckily my husband has remembered how to wash the dishes, so he washed all of these.  I was so happy.

But that is pretty much every weekend in a nutshell.  It’s crazy busy with chores and catch-up.  And this week I had to go into the office four days because I had a Congressional Briefing on one of my work from home days.  Boo.  I am exhausted after waking up so early four days in a row.  I am so happy I am able to work from home normally.  It is a life-saver.

Here’s hoping this weekend is a bit calmer!

Exactly Where I’m Suppose to be

This post is a little serious so I’m gonna post so adorable photos of Evan and Dolce to lighten it up….

^^Does he have enough bones within his reach?

Last week at church during the homily the priest talked about being satisfied with where you are in life.  I don’t usually talk much about religion on the blog because not everyone is religious and not everyone believes what I believe – but I’m gonna break a bit from tradition and talk about this homily.  It’s amazing that I can remember the homily because one of my biggest challenges is paying attention during the homily and readings.  I’m not sure what it is – maybe I don’t learn so well when people are talking or it’s hard for me to pay attention unless what they are saying resonates with me.  Or maybe I have some kind of strange mental block when it comes to paying attention at church.  Usually what happens is a word triggers some thought and then the next thing I know the reading or homily is done and I have no idea what was said.  I have been working on this flaw for years but to no avail.

^^This is a horrible photo but since I don’t have many photos of Evan and me, it will have to do.

However, last week the homily resonated with me so I remembered it.  It centered around The Prodigal Son.  It’s not important to know the story, but just in case you really want to read it, you can click the link.  Anyway, the priest related that story to us.  He said that sometimes we get sad/upset/jealous/mad/frustrated/etc. when something we think we deserved doesn’t happen (or something happens to someone we think doesn’t deserve it).  For example, you worked really hard and your boss gave your colleague a raise instead of you.  Or you go to a job interview that you think is perfect for you and you don’t get the job.  The priest’s main message was not to worry about it, that you are exactly where you are suppose to be (according to God or some higher being).  That if you were meant to get that raise than you would have gotten it.  I don’t really like to leave things to “fate” and say that everything is planned.  I think we have a say in our decisions and the outcome of our lives (my husband believe the exact opposite and doesn’t plan for anything without saying “If God wills it…” – that is for another conversation), but sometimes I feel like small aspects of my life have a little extra guidance or something.  It’s hard to explain.

^^This is my husband’s cousin – only in Honduras do they put babies in hammocks!

However, for some reason that homily gave me a little relief or peace of mind.  Sometimes I get caught up in entitlement – like I am entitled to a raise or a promotion or a winning lottery ticket.  Really I’m not though.  And maybe if I don’t get that raise or job or whatever, it’s because it wasn’t the right time or place.  And I should just relax about it.  I shouldn’t spend my time and energy being bitter because things didn’t go the way I thought they should or the way I felt like I deserved.  I should work on being happy with what I’ve got and keep faith that things will work out for the best.  That as long as I work as hard as I can and I am honest and keep my integrity – that life will work itself out.  This is a hard philosophy to have, but I am trying my best to stick to it. 

These days with the sequester really making me nervous and my friends who work for the federal government getting their salaries cut by 20% – it is hard not to worry (20% is A LOT – my salary got cut 2% this year with the Social Security increase and it was hard to recover from that…20% would be devastating).  Yes, my job is secure for now.  However, my grant is up for reapplication in April and my current funds run out 1 October.  There is a chance that my project will be cut or the budget decreased significantly.  It is not a big budget to begin with – there is not a lot of cutting room.  It’s scary thinking about what might happen – I kind of need my job to pay the bills and support my family.

^^That’s me as a three-week old baby – don’t I look a little like Evan?

So, thinking that I am where I am suppose to be, doing what I am suppose to be doing is a little comforting.  And it helps me to not worry incessantly about something I can’t do anything about.  It would help if Congress people would realize how they are affecting people’s lives and how so many people count of the federal government for income and sustainability…but I can’t do much about that except call my Congress people – which I do.

So I am going to try and relax and enjoy the present – without worrying too much about the future.  And maybe working extra hard so that the government thinks my grant is too important to cut….

 

What do you worry about on a daily basis?

Do you feel like you are exactly where you are suppose to be?

Do you have a problem paying attention in church?

 

P.S. I was not overlooked for a raise or promotion or something of that nature – it just worked best for the example.

The inaugural Bob Run

First, I’m really proud of myself for spelling inaugural correct on the first try.  I hope that I did, but I guess my spell check could be broken. 

How do you like Evan’s hair in that picture.  He has this patch of hair that always sticks straight up in the air, a bit like Alfalfa.  So adorable!

Anyway…

Last weekend I took my first run with BOB and Evan.  And it was great.  I have been waiting and waiting until I felt like Evan was big enough to go on a BOB run and the day finally arrived.  I have been taking a lot of walks with BOB, but hadn’t tried a run yet.  So, last Saturday (I know, it took me a long time to get this post written and published), I told the hubs that I was going on a run that morning.

I said it out loud and with force so that I would actually do it.  It is tough getting out of bed early on Saturday when I feel like I am so sleep deprived all week.  And there just isn’t as much time in the afternoon/evening to run and it’s hard to organize with Evan’s erratic nap schedule.

I decided that I would combine my run with a visit to my sister.  Her house is a little over a mile away, so I figured I would run to her house, read her girls a few books, and then run back.  I love reading her kids books.  I love reading books to whoever will listen actually.  So, I put a few books in the bottom of the BOB and headed out.

I forgot that her house is pretty much all uphill.  And the BOB is a bit heavy.  It was tough!  And the day before I had done some strength training.  I decided to break out my workouts from Tina and try to lift a few weights again.  Her workouts are great and the next day my arms, abs, and legs were sore.  And then I went on an uphill run with BOB and Evan.  I thought my arms might fall off – they sure wanted to.  I made it though.

Then I took a long break and read a bunch of books to my nieces.  We read Little Blue Truck Leads the Way, Llama Llama Misses Mama, and I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More.  They were all great books.  We took the Llama Llama book home to borrow for a while.

Then it was time to head back.  I convinced my sister to change into her running clothes and run 3/4 of the way back with me.  I don’t think I’ve ever run with my sister.  She isn’t really a runner, but she’s determined to start and has already signed up for a 5k race in May.  We have plans to run together every Saturday.  I am much slower with the BOB and I haven’t been running much so we are fairly evenly matched.  Her ultimate goal is to run Disney’s Princess Half Marathon in February 2014.  I kinda said I would do it with her.  I am not worried about the half marathon – but I am a bit worried about the cost of the entire event.

When I got home and dragged the stroller up four flights of stairs, this is what I saw:

Apparently running in the BOB really tuckered him out.  He actually slept like this for 2.5 hours.  One of his longest naps ever.  I thought for sure he’d wake up sweaty and hot, but nope, he was nice a comfy.  I was a bit worried that I had given him a concussion or something, but he was totally fine.

Then my husband fell asleep waiting for Evan to wake up.

I was the one who woke up early, ran 2.5 miles pushing a heavy stroller with a baby inside and I was making shopping lists and doing laundry while everyone else was sleeping.

Figures!

Evan is six months old!

I can’t even believe the title of this post.  Did I really give birth an entire six months ago???  Where has the time gone?  I remember when I was waiting for clearance to run, it felt like 6 weeks was forever.  And now my baby is 6 months old?

So, I thought I would recap a few of his favorite things to do and play.  And my favorite things too.  He is like a little person now, it’s crazy.  He used to be a blob that lied around on the floor doing nothing (and he was a quite loveable blob too).  Now he’s a bundle of personality and joy.  It’s so fun watching him grow into himself. 

These days Evan loves to sit.  He can sit for a while by himself but eventually falls over.  And sometimes he throws himself back on purpose.  Because of this, it’s not really safe to let him sit unattended.  However, if we surround him with the mombo, he can sit all by himself and play with his toys.  Don’t worry, we are always super close.  He can also watch Dolce chew his bone!

We also love to go on walks, and for this we both love the BOB Revolution.  Well, Evan hasn’t said he loves it yet, but he doesn’t cry so I feel like that translates to love.  Dolce loves the walks more than anyone.  He gets all excited when I start to put Evan’s snowbunny suit on.  I’m not sure what it is, but walking the dog with Evan is 10,000 times more fun than walking Dolce alone.  And it’s gonna be even more fun when the weather warms up!

His newest favorite thing is the Bounce Bounce Baby.  It took him a while to figure it out but now he loves jumping in it and twirling the monkey around.  We use this now instead of his Infant to Toddler Rocker.  I’m sure we’ll use the Rocker when he’s a bit older and can get in and out of it by himself, but for now he’s all about standing.

Evan is also a huge fan of books.  Ok, so maybe I am a bigger fan of reading to him, but he does seem to enjoy them.  He’ll sit through a few books at a time at certain times of the day.  I have found that the best time to read to him is in the bathroom, right before his bath, with just his diaper on, sitting in my lap.  Yup, he has the best attention span under those circumstances.  That is actually where we do a lot of things – Skype with Mimi, participate in family book club, practice tummy time.  I’m not sure what it is about the bathroom, but it’s his most calming location of the house.  His favorite book is Pete the Cat and his Groovy Buttons.  This is a GREAT book.  This is the current selection of books we keep in the bathroom for reading time:

His other favorite thing to do is play on the floor.  He rolls from his back to his front really easily but is still not super great at getting from his belly to his back.  He can do it, but he hates his tummy so much that he usually gets mad the second he finds himself in that position.  We are working on it, but I have a feeling he’s never going to be a fan of tummy time.  The pediatrician says he looks like he’s about to start crawling/scooting soon, so we’ll see.

We are going to start sleep training soon, so we are on the look-out for a good method.  I have read The SleepEasy Solution by Jennifer Waldburger and Jill Spivack.  However, our pediatrician recommended The No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantly.  I am going to get that book and give it a try.  If it works, great!  I am not a fan of letting Evan cry himself to sleep, so we’ll try the no-cry method and see how it goes.  We have succeeded in getting him to sleep sans swaddle and on his own.  No more rocking – he just goes down in his crib and off to sleep.  Here he is, fast asleep in our bed!

His favorite sleep-aid is his Cuski.  Cuski is awesome.  Supposedly it absorbs a mother’s scent so I slept with Cuski for a few nights before Evan was born.  Now when he hunkers down for a nap or bedtime he usually puts Cuski by his nose and nods off (don’t worry, he can’t suffocate with Cuski; it’s very breathable). 

He also loves this puppet my mom made.  When he wakes up from his nap I crawl on the floor and have the puppet peek over the crib and say hello.  He thinks it’s the funniest thing in the world.  He just giggles every time he sees it.  I think it’s the orange ears.

Some of my favorite things for Evan are this coconut oil.  It is AMAZING.  First, I love to eat it straight from the jar.  I know, people think it’s gross, but I think it tastes sooooooooooo good.  My friend bought it for me initially to use as nipple cream when my nipples were sore and cracked from breastfeeding (coconut oil has natural antibiotics in it).  I then moved on to using it on Evan after his bath.  It’s all natural and great for any skin issue he has – redness from diapers, from the folds in his skin, from too much drool, etc.  It is perfect.

And last, but not least, I like this California Baby Shampoo and Bodywash we use.  It’s all natural and doesn’t have any phthalates or other bad chemicals that are so often found in lotions and body washes (for babies and adults).  Phthalates are scary, especially since I have a boy and they seem to cause all kinds of hormone problems so I try to stay FAR away from them…much to the chagrin of my hubby who would like a few air fresheners in the car. 

We also liked the Burt’s Bees Baby Bee Shampoo and Bodywash, but we used it all up.  It smelled really good and was chemical free too.  We also use the Baby Bee Nourishing Baby Oil – which smells wonderful too.  I use their Radiance Facial Cleanser and Radiance Day Cream every day too – since I’m still breastfeeding I don’t want any of those nasty phthalates to go from me to Evan either.  I would use more of their products but they are so darn expensive – that day cream is $18!  So pricey!!!

I also just bought The New First Three Years of Life by Burton White. Janae recommended it and I thought it looked pretty decent. I didn’t have any books on child development and kept having all these questions about what were good games to play and toys to have and what was normal and when would Evan do certain things, etc. I was fine playing most of it by ear and instinct, but now that he’s getting older I felt like I should educate myself a bit more. I like the book a lot because it goes through each stage and gives suggestions for activities. It also has discipline suggestions for different age groups (i.e. since Evan is so young all he recommends is keeping him occupied and interested so he doesn’t develop the demand cry). 

Ok, I think I’ve just about covered everything.  Sorry this is so long and probably not all that useful unless you have kiddos of your own!

 

Are there any baby things that you love?

Would you eat coconut oil straight out of the jar?