Monday, April 29, 2013

Week in iPhone Pictures

Good Monday morning, everybody!  Actually, it's kind of yucky here, pouring down rain, and Ruby and I are going into the city at the tail end of rush hour traffic.  Ick.  BUT, we're going to my dad's for some birthday breakfast celebration (mine was yesterday, his was three days before, and Ruby's is this Saturday!).  So not too shabby!

Speaking of my birthday, I've been so focused on getting ready for Ruby's party, that I almost forgot it was my own first.  While I was in the shower, Mr. G left me a trail of birthday cards (from the dog, the baby, and himself), which led me downstairs to find....


A new sewing machine!!!  I'm beyond excited about this.  I've been sewing on my $60 Brother, and while I've gotten probably more out of that machine than most do, it has been pretty frustrating and limiting.  Just this week, I was about to throw it out the window because trying to sew a simple applique on a onesie for Ruby's party resulted in two trashed onesies (and they were good Carter's ones, too).  Argh!  But now I have this beauty, and I can't WAIT to learn how to use it!

Anyway, last week was a good one, and a busy one.  Ruby had a nasty cold still, so we skipped some of our regular activities, but I spent every naptime working on birthday party projects!

April 21-27


Sunday:  Sick, but not too sick to not cause trouble!  Pony-riding time.  For some reason Braidy always lays under the jumperoo if we are in Ruby's room (and she's not jumping).  Monday:  Happy Earth Day  from this cloth-diapered baby!  Can't stand this cuteness - reading Go Dog Go.  Grandma came over, and they read more Dr. Seuss.  Tuesday:  Bedhead and doggie snuggles.  We sent this picture to Mr. G after our hospital volunteer interview with the text, "Dada come home soon?"  Dada came home, and we took a walk in the glorious sunshine we had.


Wednesday: We were busy!  We went to World Market, which is next to Daddy's work, so we saw him too, before heading to Ikea.  Back home, Ruby really dug in to the party planning.  And helped out with the laundry (she really did empty that entire dryer into the laundry basket!).  Thursday:  Loving waking up to that sunshine!!!  We walked to the park with the good swings.   I forgot how steep the first hill is, and how long of a trip (3+ miles), and I was so tired when we were done!  Friday:  Cap'n blueberry beard.  Another lovely walk, wearing what we call her "stunna shades".  Saturday:  Morning snuggles with Dada.  Trying to grab Braidy's tail (Braids was less than impressed).

Monday, April 22, 2013

Happy Earth Day!


This little lady is showing the planet some love by keeping 5,000 diapers out of the landfill!

Curious about cloth?  I'm busy photographing our stash for an upcoming post.  Stay tuned!

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Week in iPhone Pictures

Catching up with the past two weeks in this one.  You know, nothing new.

April 7-13


Sunday:  Backing herself to a wall and getting stuck = what she does best.  Doing a little pointing (and yes, we hung out in jams all day).  Monday:  I did a little birthday crafting during naptime.  Ruby decided that lasagna goes in her eyes, not in her mouth.  Tuesday:  Epic nap (that I actually had to wake her up from, argh!).  Looking really lost at her baby playdate/reunion, since all of the other babies were crawling and walking laps around her...   Oh, you know, just perusing the Target baby ad in shades and no pants.  Wednesday:  Shopping for birthday presents for Mr. G.  Braidy got really into helping unwrap the presents!


Thursday:  Some craaaaaazy bedhead.  Ruby shockingly took a nap on the floor at baby class!  A quick visit to the pediatrician to make sure she's on track.  Friday:  More birthday crafting.  What Ruby looks like after a 3+ hour nap.  Enjoying using her new snack catcher.  Saturday:  ALL she wanted to do was get at those toys.  I did a little spring cleaning of the baby dish cabinet, and realized I could pack up all the bottles that we never used.  Trying to mess up Daddy's computer game.

April 14-20


Sunday:  Being a cute troublemaker.  Monday:  We actually had a playdate at our house and I didn't take any pictures!  Argh!  Ruby tried on her birthday headband that came (and uh-oh, it's too big!).  Having some playtime in the tub.  Tuesday:  Our first day volunteering for the Parent-Baby program at the hospital!  Ruby "helps" by taking out and playing with all of the lost & found toys.  We stopped at Babies R Us on the way home for a bigger fleece sleep sack, since it's still too cold for the cotton ones she has.  Wednesday:  Woke up screaming from her nap because she was on her belly.  Wearing a "big-girl" clippie, and insisting I put on her shoes.  New shoes, take #2 arrived (we ordered these and the wrong size came in the right size's box, erg).


Thursday:  Spending some quality time with our instructor, Wendy, at her last baby class. =(  Ruby, stuffing her face, as usual.  My little fashionista.  The obsession with the dryer continues (and look, no hands!).  Peekaboo!!!  Friday:  Trying to steal my cookie butter - I don't think so, little girl!  Giving the doggie some kisses (I almost died from the cuteness).  Saturday:  She was pretty insistent that she "help" with the diapers.  Costco is exhausting.

Also, on Friday Ruby woke up with another cold.  This one is worse than the last, she has been a total snot factory!  So disappointing because she had to miss her good buddy's birthday party yesterday.  =(  I hope she kicks this quickly, baby girl's got a busy social calendar coming up!

Friday, April 19, 2013

Calendar Girl - Eleven Months

Eleven months, you guys.  I know.  I know.  Someone hold me?  Please?

We were at baby class last week, and another mom asked me to remind her how old Ruby was.  I told her, and she said that her daughter was just a few weeks behind.  Then she said, "Are you getting all... you know... because her birthday is coming up?"  YES.  Yes I am.  It is just SO hard for me to believe that it has almost been a year since my baby girl entered the world.



I think it's safe to say that the eleventh month has been the most fun one yet.  SO much personality is in this little girl!  She loves to play, and makes up her own little games when she thinks something is funny (they usually involve putting something in my mouth).

Also, right back at the beginning of the month, she started clapping with regularity.  She'll also do it if you say "clap claps", or anything that rhymes with clap really.  She also claps when she likes something (especially songs), and if you start singing "All the Fish", she claps because she's anticipating the "bubbles, bubbles, bubbles, POP!" part.

Mid-clap

Around the same time, she started playing "so big!", which is also pretty much the cutest thing ever.  And if you say "sooooo" anything, she'll do so big.

Soooooooo big!

We actually ended up going to the doctor right at eleven months, so I know that this girl has done a fair bit of growing.  She tipped the scale at 18 pounds!  Over two pounds in two months?  Way to grow, kid!  She's also a whopping 28 inches tall, so I guess we should start thinking about getting her convertible car seat, huh?

We can tell she's been getting bigger by her clothes, too.  She's almost completely in 12 month clothes now, even Carter's which seem to last her the longest.  I won't lie, it's pretty exciting to finally have her fit in clothes on-schedule (though I know she'll still be comfortably in 12mo stuff after her birthday)!


So, why were we at the doctor?  Well, unfortunately, little miss is still not mobile.  She actually did figure out how to army crawl backwards (arms only), but she hates it very much and cries every time.  She also always backs herself into a corner and gets stuck.  Also, she still cannot pull herself all the way up to a stand (only gets as far as her knees), and though she'll stand against something if I put her there, she has absolutely NO desire to cruise furniture.

After another class of watching her (mostly younger) peers do laps around her, I called the nurse line to ask if I needed to be concerned.  The nurse decided to have us come in (that day, no less) just to make sure that there was nothing going on with her.  We saw an awesome doc (not our regular one), and he gave her a very thorough work over; checking her spine, her muscle tone, reflexes, everything.  He considered x-raying her hips, but ultimately decided he wasn't concerned enough to radiate her.

At this point, he's not too worried about her.  Yet.  Her spine was good, her hips were good, her muscle tone (which I learned is different than strength) is on the lower end of normal, but still normal.  She doesn't have any other markers for developmental delays, and apparently gross motor is the least important of all.  So for now, we wait.


Ruby did have a "win" for the appointment, though.  Apparently her pointing obsession is about 4-5 months advanced.  So I guess that's just what she's working on?  This kid points at everything.  But the rad part is, it's not random.  She points at stuff she likes, or stuff she wants.  And if she knows what something is, and you ask her where it is, she will point to it.  There were stickers of fish on the wall at the pediatricians, and she and I had talked about them earlier.  So the doc asked her, "where are the fish?" and she whipped around and pointed them out.  He was blown away.  I guess not all eleven month olds can do that!  So, I guess she's a non-mobile, baby genius?  We like to joke that she doesn't need to be able to crawl/walk to sit on her lab stool at Stanford. ;)


Eating is still going just as awesome, which is probably contributing to her growth.  She adorably crosses her feet when sitting in her high chair, points out what she wants to eat next (I still have to ration her food so she doesn't shove it all in at once), and when the meal is over, she carefully inspects the pocket of her bib for "smugs" - pieces of food that have dropped down there, that we say she's been smuggling.  We were at a Thai restaurant one day, and she just poured the contents of the pocket into her mouth.  The waitress saw, laughed, and exclaimed, "she doesn't want to miss a bite, does she?"  Nope, she does not!  She eats pretty much everything, including eggs now, enchiladas, falafel, nori, you name it.  Everything except nuts, strawberries (because I am allergic), and honey.  I hope she keeps this up!  She also has completely mastered all sippy cups, including those with valves, and straws!

She looooves to try to grab the camera!
Sleep, as usual, is kind of all over the place.  Nights continue to be mostly ok, with the occasional wtf night of constant waking.  And most often, if we have a night issue, it's waking several times shortly after putting her down, before finally settling into sleep.  She's often been waking, flipping over, army crawling backwards into the corner, getting stuck, then screams for help.  Ugh.

Then there are naps.  Oh, naps.  She will go a week taking awesomely consistent naps about 2 hours after waking up, that last a couple of hours, and I will think we finally have it down.

But then the next week, no naps.  

I don't get it at all.  She fell asleep in baby class and slept on the (hard!) floor with toddlers running all around and people talking and slamming doors.  But then will have a day at home where she won't nap longer than 20 min, if at all!  Maybe some day we will figure it out, but naps are not the hill I'm going to die on.


Perhaps part of the sleep woes, are that she got another tooth this month.  Her top left front tooth finally broke through.  The other one is kind of coming and going (but it's basically there), and these teeth seem to have been giving her more trouble than the first two.  Still, she's a pretty tough kid, pain-wise, so who knows?  

Also, she got her first REAL cold this month, which prompted me to go out and buy a Nosefrida (finally), baby chest rub, vapo-bath, and boogie wipes (which I thought were a gimmick, but are actually awesome).  The first night (before we had all that stuff) was rough.  But all of those things helped immensely (even though she really hates the Nosefrida).  Oh yeah, and Mr. G went out of town before she was over it, which sucked for both her and I!

How many are you, Toots?  Oh, eleven?
Ruby babbles almost constantly now, which is just pretty darn cute.  Mr. G is dada, I am dada (unless she's mad, then it's MOM MOM MOM MOM!), and Braidy is do-do, which we assume is dog dog.  Like I mentioned above, her receptive language is off the charts.  She understands a TON, and can point out bears, ducks, dogs, Braidy, Mommy, Daddy, grandparents, sippy, diaper, food, milkies, her clouds (mobile), jumpie-jumps (jumperoo), toys, and about a billion other things I can't think of.  If you tell her what something is, she usually remembers and can point it out later.  One day she was being a grouch, and I said, "Why so sad, thundercloud?"  She whipped around and pointed out her mobile.  Because she heard cloud.  She is obsessed with pointing to the "three little bears sitting on chairs" in Goodnight Moon, and finds them on every page.  And she waves bye-bye to people and things when we leave, or they go away.  Love.


Since I am late on this post (what's new), I feel like this last month of her babyhood is already just racing by, but like I said, the months just keep getting better.  And while I sometimes see glimpses of toddlerhood (hello, meltdown because I won't let you hold a can of beans in Whole Foods) that scare me (haha!), I just can't wait to spend the next month with her.  And the next.  And the next.  And the next.  My Ruby Jo, I'll eat her up, I love her so!

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

DIY Pointing Activity

One of the best things about finding some mommy-friends is the idea sharing that comes along with them.  Case in point this little pointing activity I'm going to share with you.  The idea is totally not mine at all, but luckily my friend Jessie doesn't mind sharing!

Ruby is for sure a pointer.  In fact, I often get, "She sure does like to point at stuff, doesn't she?"  I think it's mostly her personality, because we really didn't do anything to encourage this, other than ask her where stuff was once she started pointing it out (specifically the bears on her pajamas to start).  Because of this, I wasn't sure if she'd really need or want this toy, but she loves it and it was SUPER easy to make!


To make your own, you will need:

* An empty cardboard egg carton
* 12 various inviting objects, such as beads, pasta, buttons, stickers, bells, small erasers, colorful/sparkly paint, etc.
* A hot glue gun.

And that's it!

So let's get started.  Assemble all of your stuff.  Good.  Did you make sure to have a cardboard egg carton?  Don't use the styrofoam ones, or they might melt with your glue!



Determine the order in which you'd like to place your objects.  I went for a loose rainbow order.

Now, get gluing!


Try not to burn yourself.  I was not successful at this.

If you're using paint, paint/squirt it into the egg cup.  I used this silver puffy paint that we had on hand from our Easter egg dye kit.


Let everything dry/harden/cool down, and check for durability.  Pretty much ALL of this stuff is a choking hazard, which means you do not want anything to be loose!  Also, please please please don't give this to your child unless you are going to be right there to supervise.  Just in case.

Voila, you are done!  Give it to your babe and let them point to their heart's content.


Did I mention she loves it?  She requests it all. the. time.


Now go forth and make your own!  =)

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Week in iPhone Pictures

Seems like this week was a busy one!  Ruby turned eleven months old, which means that I spent all of my free time this weekend working on her birthday party invitations.  I can't wait to share them!

March 31 - April 6


Sunday:  The Easter Bunny came!  So excited to see her Easter treats.  Searching for more eggs in her basket.  Monday:  My little bunny.  What, you don't eat breakfast in pink bunny ears and unicorn jams?  Sooooo big!  Practicing some standing.  Tuesday:  Love this goofy girl.  Making a mess while I sewed some birthday garland.


Wednesday:  Trader Joe's frozen wild blueberries are awesome for teething babies, but really messy!  My mama got me a hydrangea, so I was diligently checking to see if it needed water (I'm determined to not kill this plant).  We went to a new park, made a friend, and found this turtle to play with (and she looks SO grown up!).  Thursday:  Little Miss 11 Month Old.  We made a fort out of the jumperoo.  Friday:  Inexplicable, near-constant crying until she took another nap in the car seat.  Having her first meal off the kid's menu at Red Robin (she actually ate enough to make it worth buying!).  Saturday:  Perhaps this was the reason for the crying?  Sick baby was sick.  First fever ever.  Didn't want to eat.  Loooong nap.  Thankfully, she seems to be feeling better now!

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Week in iPhone Pictures

March 24-30


Sunday:  Baby girl got her rally cap on for the Bucks game.  A pregnant friend of mine asked that I send her a photo of our diaper "disposal" set-up: wet bag, covers, and a bag for the occasional trash item.  Ruby's first bubble bath, with "soothing vapors" because she had a sad little cold!  She wasn't too sure about the bubbles.  Monday:  Swinging at the park.  Somebody discovered her curtains and insisted she play like that.  Her cold made her a sippy cup drinking champ (even the ones with the valves!).  Tuesday:  Another mailbox treat for the Easter Bunny (yep, the EB loves neon too).  Scouting some nursery fabrics for a friend.  Too peaceful to wake from this car seat nap.


Wednesday:  She requested (by pointing) a laundry basket ride.  Trying to break into the laundry closet to get at the dryer!  Thursday:  At our lunch date after baby class, she kept pointing at other diners, trying to mooch their food.  A quick evening swing before game time.  Friday:  Enamored with the fishies at grandpa's house.  Again with the food-mooching; this time it was my blueberries.  We made a quick stop at Trophy to get cupcakes, then brought them to Grandma's work for her birthday!  Saturday:  We knew it would happen - Mr. G was out of town, so of course, she cut a tooth!  Licking the frosting spatula from our Easter cake.  Something tells me this kid is going to enjoy her birthday.

Monday, April 1, 2013

Saving the Best for Last

Somebody had her last first holiday yesterday.  Sob.


But you know what?  Easter was the best holiday with her yet.  She was SO excited!


Even though she'd seen her basket before when I was taking pictures of it for my last post, this was her reaction when we plopped her down in front of it Easter morning.  She couldn't get enough!




She was very interested in the eggs, and amused herself for quite some time taking them out and putting them back into her basket. 

Then, after a breakfast of sour cream doughnuts (and banana), and after an only 30min nap (ugh!), it was time to get her all dolled up in her Easter dress.


Can you believe this cuteness?  Oh, and the dress?  I found it at the consignment sale a couple of weekends ago.  How perfect is it with that Easter basket???



Our neighbor, Samantha, came out and chatted with us.  Ruby was sightly enamored with her.  That's who she's looking at in the picture below.


We chatted, blew some bubbles, and basked in the glorious PNW spring sunshine (we seriously could not have had a more beautiful Easter day!), and pretty soon, the grandparents arrived.  Bringing more Easter baskets, of course.  In fact, Grandma C even had some yellow sunglasses with white polka dots in hers!  But of course, Ruby wouldn't keep them on her face long enough to take a pic.

My mom also brought over a tasty Easter dinner of ham, scalloped potatoes, and asparagus.  Unfortunately, before we could eat it, Grandpa G got a massive bloody nose.  Because he needs to take blood thinners for his heart condition, he and Grandma C ended up having to leave to go get his nose cauterized.  =(

However, my mom stayed, we dyed eggs, had our tasty dinner, took a walk in that amazing sunshine, then came back for dessert (I baked a test "smash" cake for Ruby's birthday, which became our Easter cake), lowered the crib mattress (because somebody is getting bold with the climbing), gave the babe a bath, said goodbye to grandma, and put little miss to bed.  Phew!  Then topped off the day with the Walking Dead season finale (I seriously don't think I can wait 6 more months for season 4!).

Ruby was so excited all day, "talking", laughing, clapping and playing peekaboo, and kicking her feet with enthusiasm.  It was awesome.  It was like she totally got that it was a holiday and special and she just ate it up.  And in spite of a crappy morning nap, and no afternoon nap, she took it all like a champ.

Love that girl so much.  I can't wait for many, many more holidays spent with her.  Hope you all had as nice an Easter as we did!