happy birthday, baby

november 2015

Please hold your applause for the November update actually coming the day after November ended.  It's pretty impressive.  (Literally still have so many pictures; these are all from my phone.  No camera updates yet).

matching mom  //  running forever  //  leaves forever

pint sized skeptic  //  selfie stick with dad  //  selfie stick with mom

matching dad  //  swinging before it is too cold  //  haley visit

snuggles with grandpa  //  tess visit  //  corks forever

waiting with grandma  //  matching with tony  //  matching with grandpa

dad jumping the car  //  snuggles with jackie and derek  //  running again (because she is always running...and because I accidentally did the same picture twice)

october 2015

When your daughter loves leaves more than most people love pretty much anything, October is a good month.

family pic / visiting grandpa at work for his birthday / trench coat in the leaves / strawberry halloween baby

more leaf fun / nora takes youth group / snuggles with gg / even more leaf fun / selfies with aunt jackie / sleepy snuggles on uncle derek

september 2015

September was a big month for Nor (8 months old)...she took her first steps! She was about a week shy of her 9 month birthday and now she toddles around like a pro.

cousin zoo fun

more lake time

aunt jame and uncle bill came for a visit

nora discovered the fridge

always happy if she's outside

very first steps!

oakstone fan club

august 2015

As previously mentioned, Mom Life is insane.  Here's what August looked like (Nora at 7 months):

burrow beeleys looking spiffy for derek and jackie's wedding

grandpa is perhaps nora's biggest fan

shannon taking excellent care of nora on my first day back to work!

sometimes you try to hug your cousin at her birthday party and you accidentally tackle her instead.

dress your baby like a greaser. no one can stop you.

dress your baby like harry potter.  no one can stop you.

two year anniversary for these babes.

very important giggles.

next up: september...maybe someday pictures from my actual camera and not just my phone.

in explanation of my hiatus, or: what it's like to have a 'spirited' baby

Obviously I've done a terrible job updating the blog for approximately four months, and even before that, it was pretty spotty.  All I can say in my defense is that parenthood is no joke, especially when you have what is called in most holy-moly-help-me-anybody-help-me parenting literature as a 'spirited' baby. 

Don't get me wrong: I love Nora and I love her crazy personality, but it is just that: crazy.  This child never stops moving.  I know that you think I am exaggerating: I am not.  It takes us at least 90 minutes to get her to bed.  She wakes up between 3 and 7 times per night (some amazing nights have only been 2!...some not-so-amazing nights have been 10).  She learned to walk at just over eight and a half months.  She wants constant interaction.  Today, she is ten months and she toddles around everywhere, stands up on her own without anything to hold, and climbs everything.  The other day she dove into the banister on the steps, cried for a minute, and then tried again.  She has exactly zero chill and it's hilarious, but it's also exhausting.

Here's a list of other things (besides updating the blog) that I have not done since she has been born, strictly because I don't have the time when I'm chasing her around everywhere:  

-opened any mail within 3 days of it arriving

-shower regularly (disgusting, but some days it just doesn't happen #momlife)

-cooked dinner more than twice a month

-edited pictures within two months of taking them

-exercised (that doesn't involve making sure Eleanor stays alive)

-slept more than a few hours at a time

-watched a movie

 

So, without further ado, let me catch you up as much as I can over the next few posts.  Here's a brief look at July (Nora at 6 months):

 

pool parties with cousin Mary and Aunt Amy

first tiny fam vaca! we went to the lake for a few days, just the three of us.

then Travis, Blythe, and the Malone boys joined us and this happened.

Nora showed her Hufflepuff pride.

Nora INSISTED on walking everywhere.  Crawling is for suckers.

We literally did this for 2 months.

Loved walking on her own in her Joovy Spoon.

Still amazingly stunning.

Loving on Dad.

     Next post: August...

nora's friends: summer 2015

Just some very important pictures of Nora with her best buddy, Brandon.  

burrow baby's favorite things: 0-6 months

Subtitle: How Mom Survived the First Six Months
These are Nora's very favorite things.  Some of them she knows are her favorites, some of them just make her life easier and she has no idea how much stress they relieve her.  Descriptions/links below!

1. JCrew jammies.  Okay, I know how this sounds...not only do I shop for my baby at J.Crew, but I buy her pajamas from J.Crew?  The only thing I can say in my defense is that we only own one pair, I waited until they were on sale AND I had a coupon code....and that they are 1000% worth it.  Once Nora started kicking, she always got her feet stuck all the way up in the body of her pajamas...which woke her up.  Which woke me up.  Multiple times per night.  These pajamas are amazing.  The material is lightweight and stretchy, but it still clings to Nora and she cannot get her feet out of them no matter how hard she tries.  I want a pair for myself.
2. Step2 Swing.  Okay, so technically this is for 9 months and up, but we've been using it since six months and Nora is obsessed with it.  It's easy to hang anywhere, sturdy, and baby/mom approved.
3. Mommy's Bliss Gripe Water. Nora gets the hiccups kind of a lot.  Some days, she gets them six or seven times.  This stuff makes them disappear nine out of ten times! It's magical and I have no idea how it works.  Bonus: it's all natural!
4. Mam Pacifiers. I am not exaggerating when I say that we tried 8 different brands of pacifiers (because we're insane new parents and Amazon Prime makes me do crazy things).  These are literally the only kind she keeps in her mouth.  They come in 3 sizes: infant, 3-6 months, and 6+ months.  I'm partial to the dinosaur themed ones.
5. Extra Car Seat Base. We actually have two extra bases (for a total of three).  One stays with my parents, one in my car, and one in my husband's car.  These things are a pain to get in and out, so not having to switch them saves lots of time and makes transferring the baby much easier.
6. Dohm Sound Machine. When Eleanor was an infant, we read The Happiest Baby on the Block and learned (among other things) the magic of white noise.  We keep one in our room (she still sleeps in the pack n' play in there) and one near her crib.  Because I'm insane, I can tell you that she sleeps 34% longer with white noise than without.
7. Miracle Blanket Swaddlers.  Another thing we learned about in The Happiest Baby on the Block was the magic of swaddling.  From birth to about 3 months, Nora loved to be swaddled.  It calmed her down almost instantly.  She sometimes struggled during the actual process of swaddling, but once she was in it, she was content.  These swaddlers have a design that allows you to adjust how tightly you swaddle and allow room for baby to grow.  We have 3 different kinds of swaddlers, and these are the best.
8. Gerber Soothe. These are called "colic drops", but they're actually probiotics.  Nora was extremely fussy (binding her legs up, screaming, going rigid) from week 3-week 7 and as soon as we started giving her these every day, she was in a much better mood every day.  5 drops in her morning bottle and she's good to go.
9. Aden + Anais Blankets. By far our favorite blankets, these are light, cozy, easy to swaddle, and fold up nicely for traveling.  My husband loved them so much that I got him an adult-sized one for his birthday.
10. Comotomo Teether. Nora's Aunt Amy told us about these.  I'm not sure if it is the shape or material or ridges, but they are easy to grab, and they feel like a finger on baby's gums (which are Nora's favorite things to chew).
11. Bright Starts Monkey.  We got this from someone, and for the life of me, I cannot remember who.  Eleanor has loved this monkey since she was only a few weeks old.  She would stare at it and try to talk to it when she was tiny.  Now she loves to grab it and bite it (the crinkly ears are her favorite part). We named ours Elton, because he's a tad overly accessorized.
12. Baby Advil. For teething, belly aches, and shots, this is essential to have on hand.  I recommend ordering the three-pack so you have a back up supply and can keep one in the diaper bag.

What did your baby love in the first six months (or beyond!)? What made life just a tiny bit easier?

VERY IMPORTANT BABY GIGGLES

"We have one of those YouTube babies." -my husband

eleanor jayne, still playing catch up

I appreciate Blythe's effort to find Nora a fancy skirt that isn't too girly/hot pink/etc.  I think she looks like she is in an old timey saloon, as babies often are.