Labor Day Weekend Pics

First boat ride (in my arms with my dad and sister J)-
MR, JR, and JM are about to all be pulled behind the boat

First Swing Time

Tricycle Time (and supporting one of her favorite college teams)

Eating Dinner with the Cousins (minus 2)
From L to R: GR (19m), AJU5 (8.5m), MR (6.5 yr), Jr (3.5 yr), and JM (8.5 yr)

Feeling Better

AJU5 is finally feeling better, but now her teeth are really bothering her. She is chewing on her pacifiers, etc as much as possible. Luckily, she is starting to eat more again. Tonight she actually ate 2.5 baby carrots, some peach, and some pizza crust. I had only been able to get her to eat Cheerios, bread, and rice all week (I did sneak in some carrots witht he rice though).

On top of that, the past two days we have had 1-2 hour naps together in the recliner. Hopefully she will sleep better at night too - but I am not betting on that one!

Hopefully tomorrow I can get a few pictures from last weekend up!

Sick...

AJU5 got sick. I am guessing it is her 19 month old cousin who is to blame. She had a 101.7 fever this morning, but is now down to 99.1 with some Tylonel. The pictures is from Monday (with my sister K and her son J - who was playing asleep). AJU5 has wanted to be held almost 24-7 since the middle of the night on Sunday/Monday. This afternoon she has been a little more independent, but she still isn't eating much (luckily she is nursing regularly, so I am not worried there). Hopefully she will be back to normal her soon and I can post some more pictures from the weekend!

Getting ready...

Tomorrow AJU5 and I head to my parents - without my husband who is still on his work trip (and hence won't get to go with us). We will be flying Southwest and have to change planes once (both flights are short - 1 hr 40 minutes and then a 50 minutes flight - so hopefully she will do well. We flew Southwest to my inlaws in May, so she does have experience.

One advantage of flying Southwest - she can have her own seat as long as the flights aren't full. I got up early this morning and checked in, so we are A21 on both flights. That means we can get good seats!

What I am not looking forward to is managing all of our stuff! We will have one bag checked, her umbrella stroller, he car seat, and the diaper bag. If not everything fits in the diaper bag, we might end up with another bag of food as well. Luckily I can loop the car seat on to the stroller if she is in it...

Well, I better go start packing my stuff. I already packed 2/3 of her stuff...

Wordless Wednesday - Dishwasher

WW

Independent, but

AJU5 has decided that spoons are for little babies and is demanding to feed herself! Unfortunately, that means all of the food I made a few weeks ago is going uneaten. Luckily, I still had baby carrots in the fridge and had just bought grapes when this happened. We tried green beans last night, but there weren't as big of a hit. I think it is mainly a texture issue - stringy, etc. So, today we are heading to the store to try and find more options. I bought this on Saturday to try, but she don't like it. She sucked on it some the first time, but she wouldn't even try to eat it this morning. Oh well...

Now for the but...
If I leave her in a room, she cries and tries to crawl after me. I think she has officially hit the separation anxiety stage. She will explore some on her own, but she always comes back to find me, especially when we aren't home (at home, she knows where to find me most of the time so she is more adventurous).

Now if only I could get her to sleep for more than 3 hours at night without eating...

Pictures from Snow White/Princess Party on Saturday:

(eating carrots and grapes - E trying to give her a cheeto too)

(With the birthday girl and Snow White)

Big Bath!

Now that AJU5's bathroom is done, she is using the bath tub in there. She had figured out houw to climb in and out of her little tub (while empty) and was splashing out of the tub too much to continue to use it. The first attempt was last Sunday, when these three pictures were taken. She was happy until the end when she went to grab a toy and did a face plant. It probably didn't help that she was tired (look at those sleepy eyes in the last picture!). AJU1 commented that she might be too little, but I was going to give it another try. Tuesday's bath (and Friday's) contained no cries! She likes it as long as I am in the tub. I think it is a security issue for her still after the face plant.

The towel a friend made for her. It was her first time using it! It swallows her, but it keeps her warmer and me drier. So, I plan on using it most of the time!

Grapes and Park!

Sorry I have been deliquent in posting. AJU5 is about to cut her two top teeth, so my alone computer time is very limited. Also, AJU1 left this morning for a work trip, so I have been spending a lot of time with him as well.

We tried grapes this week - and she loves them! She now is starting to refuse to be fed with a spoon. So, I am having to give her lots of grapes and avocado. The second picture is what she did with the avocado one day...

Here are a few pictures from our trip to the park yesterday. We only spent 15 minutes there, but she had fun on the steps. It was too hot for the slides, so we will have to go back earlier in the day for that. It was our first time to play on the playground. No one else was there (school is back in session here already), so it was nice.

Today we have a birthday party to go to. Hopefully, I will get a good picture of AJU5 with Snow White!

On the Move (and some shopping)

Here is AJU5 "eating" lettuce at Costco. I am 99% sure none of it was actually swallowed, but it kept her busy while I ate my salad (she had already had her lunch).

Here is AJU5 in the cart at the tire center (at Costco). They said it would take about 2 hours to get my tires changed... it took 3! Luckily I did get her to take a nap in my arms and then she played for a while in the tire center. I put her in the cart to contain her while I put away a few things - and of course - she stood up...

After Costco, we went to Babies-r-Us. First, let me say I am glad they have a mother's room so I can feed her (I had a bottle, but she was refusing it). One mom was walking around the store with her baby attached (and not covered in that area) - but I could NEVER do that... After eating, we looked at a bunch of stuff. She was fussy, so I put her down so she could crawl a little while I looked at the clearance rack. She got to the cart after a while and stood up. I tried to pick her up, but she had a very good grip on it. So I slowly pushed it. Later, while I was looking at more clearance stuff, she got back tot he cart and took off on her own! Luckily I am faster than her. But, she had a great time! She made it the whole width of the store. So, I ended up buying her a cart toy so she can practice at home.

Trapped!

AJU5 trapped me in the shower this morning. I bring her in the bathroom with me if she is awake so she doesn't cry. When I got done and was squeegeeing the shower off, I noticed she was standing against the door. I had to bang on the side panel until she got down and crawled over to see what the noise was about. Then, once I was headed out of the shower, she climbed in. This isn't the first time she has gotten in, of course, but it is fun to see her play around in there. Because her standing don't take too much assistance these days (she used a pillow on Saturday to get upright - and the pillow didn't even squish), she was able to pull herself up in the shower and just stand there watching me get dressed.

In other news, I have to clean out her drawers this week. She is growing out of her 9 month stuff. I put her in a few 12 month things last week, and I realized how much better they fit on her. So, we are going to the store today to buy a few more things. We got a lot of hand-me-down pants and long sleeved tops, but it is still warm here. So, we need to get some onsies and short sleeved tops. Hopefully I can find stuff on sale!

Finally, she got to ride in Daddy's car yesterday for the first time since she came home from the hospital. Normally, we just take my car when we are going out, but it had a huge screw in the tire (and a resulting flat). She gave me a funny look the first time I put her in, but by the fourth time (back and forth to church twice), she was very content. I wonder what she will think of my car today?

Peaches!

AJU5 now has peaches and plums for breakfast. I peeled them, steamed them, and then diced/pureed them (the dicing was taking forever, so I through a bunch into the blender). Since I couldn't fit all of the peaches I bought, I ended up making a second batch the next day. I first made a batch of carrots that day - and in the process remembered that we have this. It worked great! I think it is easier than the blender because I don't have to stop and mix so everything gets blended. It is also quieter and easier to clean (AJU5 is not a friend of the blender). I ended up using it for the carrots, peaches, and some green beans.

I decided to make so much food because we are almost out of new food options for the month. I can't find any good squash in town, and that is about the only veggie for 6-9 months she hasn't had. We still have some fruit options, but the 6-9 month and the 9-12 month recommendations are very similar. So, we have time to add them. With all of the food we have in the freezer now (I also froze more avocado this week too), I won't have to cook anything for her in a while.

Oh, and for the carrots, I tried the baby already peeled carrots, and they worked well. I hate peeling carrots, so I thought this was a lot easier.

8 months old!

Here is the letter AJU5 sent out to her friends and family via email today and a video of her giving one of her ducks a ride (sorry I can't rotate it):

Hello Again!
Today I am 8 months old! Can you believe that? I am getting bigger every day, which scares Mommy and Daddy I think.

This past month I mastered sitting down after standing up. I am really glad I figured this out! I was tired of having to fall backwards when I was tired of standing. Now I can just squat down and crawl when I want to. I now pull myself up on everything and anything – from Mommy’s legs to the dishwasher to boxes. If it will support me, I will use it! I will even transition from one object to another without much thought these days – it is easier most of the time to not squat down, crawl a little, and then stand back up! I just wish I could climb up on to things. I keep trying, but I am just not tall enough!

I have also gained a dislike for clothes and diaper changes. This is because Mommy tries to keep me still and in one place. Doesn’t she know I want to be on the move whenever I am awake? I roll over and crawl away any chance I get. Unfortunately Mommy is faster than I am, so I always end up with a diaper back on before too long.

I love my bath time! I have learned to splash and make a big mess as a result. I soaked a towel and a bath mat yesterday! Daddy suggested I move to my bathroom as a result (it is almost done – hopefully by tomorrow I can use it). Maybe Mommy will let me take a bath in the big tub even! My pool is not so much fun. Even with all of my toys, I crawl out of it after about 5 minutes. Mommy suspects it is because I can crawl out of it, unlike my bathtub. But those five minutes I am in the pool are fun. I splash and crawl around until I get bored (and escape).

As for food, I am a big eater. Lately I have had one banana, two ice cubes of plum, two ice cubes of veggie, and one tablespoon on oatmeal each day. I have had apple, banana, plum, peas, green beans, carrot, and avocado plus rice, oatmeal, and barley cereals. The only one I am not a huge fan of is the plum – and that is fine if it is mixed with the banana. Next up is peaches!

Now, at night I am not a good sleeper. I will start off in my bed (around 7:30/8:00). By 10, I normally cry. Luckily for Mommy and Daddy, I am not fully awake and Mommy can get me back to sleep by rubbing my back. Then I wake up again around 11 because I am hungry. Normally I want to play too, so it is hard to get me back to sleep. So, I end up in bed with Mommy and Daddy. I wake up at least once (if not two or three times) more before 6am. Mommy is trying to work with me on this, but I am not so sure about it. She keeps mentioning how things will change when I get my own room in a few weeks… We will see…

I am still willing to let almost anyone hold me. Just don’t try to take me away from Mommy if I am hungry! If I am sleepy, it depends on my mood if I will let someone else hold me. Daddy is normally an okay replacement, but I am not always sure about others when it is close to sleepy time.

I still only have two teeth. I still drool and chew on everything, but I have no idea how much longer it will take for the next ones to come in. My hair keeps growing though! It is a reddish color these days. My eyes are a blue-green mix depending on what I am wearing.

Well, I better go. This bin of hangers looks like a fun place to play!

Love,
AJU5

Avocado!

So, AJU5 is now eating avocado. All I had to do was slice the avocado and freeze the slices before they went bad. I haven't mastered the freezing thought sticking issue yet though... I think I need to get some freezer paper before I freeze some more.

Because avocado is soft, I don't have to even mash it. I just break off small pieces and give them to her. Some times I use the spoon, other times I let her put it in her mouth (and make a mess).

Next food: Peaches (I made them yesterday - will start on Saturday)

Neighbors

Yesterday around 5pm AJU5 decided to be upset. The only problem was I had no idea what had made her so upset! The only thing that would keep her calm was holding her while standing up. So, we went for a short walk. We were on our way back when one of the neighbors drove by (and parked at their house). Their daughter - 7 yrs old) came running towards us saying "Hi AJU5" (well, not AJU5, but her name). So I started talking to her. Then her brother -3 - started crying so we went to see what the problem was (he had popped his balloon and was sad). Their mom invited me in and I ended up talking with them for about an hour. It was nice to have adult conversation. The funny part was they have a very gentle smaller (but not tiny) dog. AJU5 was not so sure about him. She cried for a while when he was close. So, I put her in my lap and he just sat there. Then, once they were both calm, I put her down. When ever he would come close, she would get this look on her face and back away. By the end of our time there she was getting more comfortable with him though. I am hoping she will get over her fear before too long. We don't have pets and aren't planning on having pets, but I don't want her to be afraid when she goes to my in-laws or is at a friend's house.


In other news:
We don't have a TV. We have cards in our computers to watch and record TV with though. The only problem is it isn't working! So, I haven't watched any of the Olympics. I keep reading posts about them, and I feel like I am missing so much! But, not having a TV keeps me from spend HOURS in front of it (instead I am in front of the computer a lot).

Oh - and Marianne asked when AJU5 started teething. Her first tooth poked through on June 4 - 10 days before she turned 6 months old. The other one poked through the next day. No more have appeared, although she drools a lot and chews on just about everything! We are waiting for number 3 and 4 to come any day now...

Last Day...

Technically, today is my last day as a full-time faculty member. So, it is also the last time I had to come to the office to work. Now I just need to move out of the office... Luckily, no one is moving in for the fall term. That means I have a while until I HAVE to have my things gone. The plan is to come once a week and box things up. When I have the chance, I will bring a box or two home (although it is hard to move things with AJU5). Hopefully we will have the office at home set up before the fall term starts (Sept 2 here). If not, I will survive!

We also had a lunch today for a fellow faculty member who is retiring for good. We sent to Sweet Tomatoes. It was my first time there, and I liked it. It wouldn't be a place AJU1 would like because of the lack of protein, but it was nice for lunch.Plus, AJU5 got lots of attention. Many of my colleagues are old enough to be grandparents if they aren't already - so they goo and gaa over her. It was fun.

Now to head home. AJU1 is out of town for work, so I think we will take it easy this evening.

An Eventful Weekend At Home

The first picture is AJU5 in her chair. I got it over a month ago from a neighbor - the first time I met them while on a walk. It had been theirs, then they have given in it to neighbors who had moved and left it, so we got it. She seems to like it. She can move the "pages" of the phone book and the clock to make music/noise - which she loves!

The second pictures is over AJU1 and 5 while we worked on installing new railing upstairs. We started yesterday and got it all installed (upstairs only) today. Nowe we just have to sand, stain, and finish the wood parts (it is wood with iron balusters).

The bottom picture is from today while she played in her pool. It was her first time in a real swimming suit. She isn't a huge fan of the pool after about 5 minutes, as she decides to crawl out about then, but otherwise she likes it.

Note: This post was written last night - but some how it didn't get posted. Oops!

Sleepy...

Last night we were out until after 10. Pastors and missionaries in the area were at our church for an association meeting, and we were helping out. That meant AJU5 did not go to bed as usual. Around 9:15 the "meeting" portion was done and the closing prayer ensued. As one of the missionaries started praying, I heard her moaning a little. A few seconds later I peaked to see how she was doing - and she was asleep. So, we stayed a little longer chatting and then left. Of course she woke up when I put her in her car seat. Then she woke up about 15 minutes after we got home. Finally around 11 we got her to sleep and we got to sleep. Today she has already had two naps, and it is only noon!

In other news, she decided to pull over the shredder yesterday. I expected this to happen eventually. But the weird thing is she just laid there. She didn't try to eat the paper pieces until I had 99% of it cleaned up! She is normally so quick to get paper.

I Guess We Hit Seperation Anxiety Stage?

AJU5 is very clingy these days. The worst part of it is trying to get her to sleep. She used to go down without too much of an issue - about 2-4 minutes of crying was it. Now she will cry and cry and cry until we get her out (even after 20 minutes she is still crying). I did get her to go down yesterday, but it wasn't easy. She wants to play on me, which is okay as long as I am not trying to work. The funny thing is that she loves attention. So, at work when I bring her to the main office she is happy! At church - Happy! At home - not so happy :(

Oh - funny story from last night at church! Our pastor's daughter got a lip piercing a month or two ago. AJU1 and I don't like it one bit (we are very conservative...). So, AJU5 crawled over to her and stood up against her chair. She picked AJU5 up and, per norm, AJU5 decided to play with her mouth. but she noticed the stud and was instantly interested in pulling it out! It was funny to watch her try and keep AJU5 away from it. My husband and I cracked up on the way home. We had jocked before about pulling it out - and our daughter tried to do it for us!

Ready to Go for a Ride!

I bought AJU5 a bike helmet yesterday. So I thought I would try it out on her so she could get used to wearing it. The first time on put it on (see top photo) I crossed the straps in the front. It took me a few minutes to realize that I shouldn't have crossed them (doh!). She seems to like it though. Now we just need to buy a bike trailer. The only problem is that they are EXPENSIVE! If you have one (or know someone who does), what kind is it and what do you think about it? I have looked at quite a few online, but I am still not sure what I want. The only musts for me are:
1. Able to hold two kids (if I am going to spend money on something, I want to be able to use it for a few years at least).
2. Must be able to convert to a stroller or jogging stroller (I don't run, so the jogging is not necessary).

Getting Big!

I am having a hard to accepting how tall AJU5 is getting. It may not be the actual height - but what she can reach these days. This morning (and note we have only been up for about 40 minutes) she has pulled things off of the desk, the filing cabinet, and the top of the bathtub (while I was in the shower). Very little is safe now! I am just surprised she hasn't hurt herself yet! She was chewing on my razor in the bathroom (I forgot to put it back in the shower last night after a bath), chewing on a chisel in the office (which my husband left on the filing cabinet for when he works on the doors), and tried to pull down our bin of mail. Luckily what she took from the desk was safe - an M&Ms wrapper. I guess it is time to work at baby proofing some more! Luckily we have kept a lot of the house baby-proofed by just not moving much in!

Blog the Recession

So, as a user of Google Reader, I understand the recession on blog stats. Unless you click to read the blog, you don't get a hit. So, what do I do: First, I only have it post part of the post. That way people who are interested in the post may come and actually read it. Second, I try to view the blogs if I am at least remotely interested. Now I realize I should open all of the blogs. The onesnI have been less interested in are the ones with lots of readers (commenters). But, these are normally the ones that make money off their blogs. So, I challenge everyone who reads this blog (which I know is only a few people) to click on any blogs you keep up with via an RSS feed for the month of August.

ClickHERE for more information on Blog the Recession!

Plums!

I made plums this week (Wednesday). First, I pealed them and put them in the pot to steam.

Then I pitted them and mashed them.

Finally, I put them in ice cube trays and froze them.

I put the little bit I had left after filling three trays in the fridge for AJU5's first taste. That night she ate all of her carrots and was still hungry. So I got the plums out and fed them to her. Her face made it clear that they were a little tart for her. So, I mixed in some banana. She seems to like the banana-plum mixutre. So, it is what she now gets for breakfast and lunch (with oatmeal occasionally added in). So what to try next? I want to do another veggie once we are almost out of carrots. Any suggestions?

Stairs...

I was going to post about making plum-sauce today, but the camera and the computer are not talking. And I took pictures when I made it, so I want to post them.

So, I will talk about stairs. AJU5 loves the stairs. She so wants to climb up and down them. Luckily, so far we have been fast enough to stop her. I know, we should have gates on them, but the railings (which we are replacing) are not strong enough to support the gates. So, we have to wait until the new railing is installed. We got the spindles (iron) today and should get the wood (hand rails and posts) next week. Then we can stain the wood and start installation! This is the last big project upstairs, so we are ready to get it done!

Why we blog...

I was reading Marianne's blog commenting about another blog and mommybloggers. This got me to thinking about why so many of us moms blog. I started to think about the blogs I enjoy reading the most and what those moms are up to on a daily basis. Many of us either work or are in school (I am counting writing a dissertation as in school). These things take a lot of the time out of our days. Time that in the past moms would spend together talking, either in person or on the phone. Now we use the internet to talk. We are using blogs to communicate with other moms "like us." Now, that isn't to mean that we never talk with those who live near by or don't have friends in our area to talk to. But, it gives us a chance to communicate with more people - especially more that are dealing with similar daily schedules.

Many of you blog to keep family up-to-date. I actually haven't even shared this blog with my husband, let alone any of the other family. I do it instead to just get things out of my head and to have them saved somewhere. I could journal like this on paper or in Word, but I enjoy the occasional comments I get - the advice that is shared from time to time. Would I still blog if no one read it? Yes, because I am not blogging for others. I am blogging for me. I read other blogs for me.

So, that was a little rant that may not be written too well (AJU5 fell twice during writing it so I got distracted). Feel free to comment about if you agree or disagree with what I have said!

Wordless Wednesday - Helping Install Cabinets in Her Bathroom

Food!

AJU5 has become very independent at times - feeding herself even! I have to help her get the food out of the bowl, but she can get it in her mouth. Now, she does make more of a mess this way, but it is fun! I normally feed her about 2/3 of her food and then let her do the last third if she wants the spoon.

She was not a fan of the texture of watermelon, so we moved to carrots. She seems to like0 the carrots! For breakfast, she has been eating banana. She eats between 1/2 and a whole large banana each morning! She also drank from her sippy cup yesterday! She hadn't been finishing her bottle, so I decided to try the cup. She drank about 2 oz out of it - so I was happy! I think she isn't a fan of the bottle right now because she is teething. She has been chewing on her fingers more than normal and has been overly cranky. Three Little Teethers teething tablets before bed last night did help her sleep though!

Her are some recent pictures of her eating!


Left: Eating a Teething Biscuit (Organic Barley) Right: Feeding Herself Grean Beans


Above: Feeding Herself Carrot!

Sleeping... or lack there of...

We have three issues with sleeping these days.

1. She has learned to stand up in her pack-n-play (i.e. bed). So, now when I put her down she ends up pulling herself up. The problem is that she has not mastered the sitting down! So, I end up having to get her almost asleep before I can put her down or rub her back until she crashes.
2. Nightmares - or so we assume. She cries in her sleep. The cries are not just whimpers - they are full out cries. But she is still technically asleep. So, during the day we wake her up and hold her until she is happy. At night I nurse her back to a calm sleep.
3. She wakes up/cries every 1-3 hours at night. It is a miracle if I get one 4 hour stretch or two three hour stretches. Luckily she normally just eats and falls back asleep. But some times she wants to play or requires lots of rocking/back rubbing to get to go back to sleep.

Somewhat related is the concern she will crawl out of our bed. I try to put her back in her bed around 4, but it doesn't always happen. And there was the night she woke at midnight and started to crawl all over us...

Other than that, she is a happy baby. I do enjoy her, and the sleep-deprivation isn't killing me yet!

Tag- Your It!

Marianne tagged me. She has a son about a month younger than AJU5


First the rules:

1. Link the person who tagged you

2. Mention the rules on your blog

3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours

4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them

5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Quirk 1: Sugar after 8pm is not allowed unless I am sleep-deprived already. Why you ask? Because I get really hyper and giggly. So my husband created the rule. Luckily these days I am always sleep-deprived, so the hyperness is not so evident.

Quirk 2: I remember lots of random things. They are mainly things I heard. On the other side of the coin - I am terrible with song and movie names - oh my crazy brain!

Quirk 3: I have a hard time with right and left. I am not as bad as my sister, but I do have to look and see which one makes an L. We think that we might have some sort of dyslexia (we also have problems with b, p, d, etc), but since we both did fine in school, no one ever tested us.

Quirk 4: I used to hate reading. Now I can finish a full length novel (350+ pages) in a day or two. It is crazy to think back to high school and undergrad when I did everything I could to not read. Now I read like crazy if I have a book or two around.

Quirk 5: I am a procrastinator. Doesn't matter what it is- I procrastinate 95% of the time. I even procrastinated finding a doctor for AJU5. I didn't find one until she was in the special care nursery and they told me I had to have an appointment set up before they would discharge her.

Quirk 6: Well, this is only a quirk to about 90% of the population - but I LOVE math and logic problems/puzzles.

So, I guess I will tag the following:
Becca
McMurtrey's Murch
The Young's
Rima
Sarah
And the first person who reads this bolog and hasn't been tagged yet...

Rolling Over

I remember when I wanted AJU5 to learn to roll from her back to her belly. We even practiced it quite a bit. Now I wonder why I taught her that! It is making diaper changes a lot of work these days. Almost every time she rolls over when I am getting ready to wipe her/before the clean diaper is secured. Luckily she doesn't go far and hasn't made a mess.

On another topic, she is getting more adventurous by the day. Yesterday she was practicing standing holding on with only one hand. She has also used everything and anything to pull herself up on - a file box, a computer monitor, furniture, her baby gate, me, pillows... She still needs falls more than sits down, but hey - it is a lot of work to do squats!

Better than Last Year!

Last year, I was sick on my birthday. I thought I had the stomach bug. When I wasn't throwing up, I was on the couch or bed sleeping. I ate very little and drank mostly Gatorade all day. I found out 3 days later I had a kidney infection, most likely caused by AJU5's position (pinching some tubes). I got to spend 2 days in the hospital.

One year later I think back on those days. When I realized I had a kidney infection I was scared. I wanted the baby that was inside of me... That hadn't been true two months before when I found out I was pregnant... AJU5 was not planned... we had wanted to wait a few more years... There were days I prayed for a miscarriage. But when I got sick, I was worried about the little one inside of me. I had come to accept the pregnancy... I had accepted the role of mother.

Old...

As my husband put it last night at church, I am three decades old today. I remember when I though 16 was old... then it was 21.. then 25... now I am 30 and don't know what is old. Many of my friends are older than me. I am the youngest of 4, and the one closest to me will turn 35 this year... My brother will be 41 in a few weeks... my other sister will be 39 later this year... But then I think of my husband's brothers... they are 26, 19, and 17... I remember when I started teaching here at the CC almost 5 years ago. Most of my students were about my age or older. Now more are younger than me (although I still have those that are older). It is crazy how things change when we aren't thinking about them!

AJU5 did sleep fairly well last night though. She only woke me up a few times. But, she was awake before 6 this morning... normally it is 6:30 before she is awake. It didn't matter much - I have work today so I had to get up around 6 anyways...

Lesson Learned/Remembered this Morning: Rice cereal mixed with my milk thins out when left to sit...

Questions for the Commenters:
1. Should I try watermelon or carrots with AJU5 next? We did bananas this past week (just mashed)...
2. What is your experience with the word "old?"

Busy Week!

We have had a busy week. First, we had VBS from 10am to 2pm. We also had the normal house work to do as well (we are currently working on tiling AJU5's bathroom and replacing the sliding glass door to the office). Then, my parents were here Wednesday night through this morning. My mom can get on our nerves easily (she gets on my siblings nerves too - and my dad completely understands our frustrations with her), so that added to the busy-ness.

We went out to eat last night in honor of my birthday (which is Monday). I decided to go to the same place we went last year. But, unlike last year, I didn't throw up at the restaurant (in the bathroom). I ended up having a kidney infection then - but it took until Monday night/Tuesday morning to figure that out. I thought it had been just a stomach bug (as did my doctors' office when I called Monday morning because I had thrown up so much). So, I have vowed to have a better birthday this year!

AJU5 is getting more adventurous. She pulled herself up on the entertainment center this morning. She also got over her dislike of grass - as evidenced by her pulling it out and eating it at church during VBS. Because yesterday was also water games at VBS, she got to spend time in a swimming pool for the first time - well - first time with water in it. She seemed to enjoy it. Hopefully this week I can take her to the pool so she can really play. I might also buy her a pool of her own...

Sorry this post is so scatter-brained. AJU5 has not been sleeping well at night (lots of cries and wimpers in her sleep), so I am tired...

Here is a picture of her in the grass at VBS...

7 Months Old!

AJU5 is 7 months old today! And she spent 4 hours of it at VBS. She seemed to have fun (although there is nothing geared towards her). She got to sleep, crawl, and play. Plus, she got lots of attention! Here are two great pictures from the day. The second one contains her friend E who is 9 months older than her.

Green Beans and Freeze-Dried Apples!

AJU5 had her first green beans yesterday. I made them the same way I made the peas - steam, puree with steaming water, and freeze in ice cube trays. Although the first bite or two was met with a weird face, she did eat as much as normal (one-two cubes). I also froze a few whole steams green beans that I plan on giving her in the next few days to play with.

Next week our church is doing VBS. It is four hours long - including lunch. So, I thought she might like some finger food to snack on (she normally doesn't eat lunch, but she does like to grab our food at dinner). So during a trip to Target on Tuesday, I bought her some freeze-dried apples. I gave her a few Tuesday night and last night at dinner. She plays with them more than eats them. To get her to eat them, I have to put them in her mouth actually. But, they do keep her occupied!

Feeding herself peas...

Considering what to do with the freeze-dried apple


Trying to get the apple piece in her mouth

Vertical!

We are at the office today because I had to meet a student. After meeting with the student, I decided to hang around for about 30 minutes until my office mate was done with class (she hasn't seen AJU5 in a few weeks). So, we went to the main office to hang out the the secretaries, et al. She was crawling around and keeping them entertained when our scheduler came in. He decided to see if she could stand up. So, we put her bottle and a "toy" she was playing with on a box. She considered kneeling (which she has done before), but wasn't sure. So, I helped her to the kneeling position. Then, with just a hand behind to make sure she didn't fall down, she stood up on her own! Her hands were still on the box - but she was standing up! She is also scooting a little bit when standing, so before too long she will be cruising... uh oh!

Will it ever end?

We are on night three of sleeping issues. First it was the fireworks, then it was God's fireworks (thunder and lightning). Last night it was teeth followed by a dog this morning (see end for dog story). AJU5's top teeth are almost through. You can see the white lines just under the gums. So, she was very cranky last night. She went down early (7:45), but woke up around 8:45. I fed her and tried to put her back to sleep. I let her cry, I tried to feed her, and neither worked. I didn't want to hold her because I knew she would fall asleep in my arms but then have issues laying her own bed. Finally my husband held her. Then he mentioned her teeth (we had looked at them before church, but I had completely forgotten about them! BAD MOMMY). So, I went and got her teething tablets. When she cried again, I gave them to her. After a little bit (it was about 9:45 at this point), I realized she might want a topping off before falling asleep. So I took her, let her eat and she crashed. I was able to get her back in her bed without waking up. But, she did wake up more than normal during the night. So she spent a lot of the night in my arms in bed.

Now for the dog - at 5:30 this morning AJU5 and I both woke up to a dog barking. AJU1 was just finishing getting ready for work, so when he came into the room I mentioned that I wanted to kill the dog. He looked at the window and realized the dog was in our yard and it was having a turf war with the big orange cat. Now, neither of these two are ours. So, they were fighting over property that neither of them is technically owners of. Eventually the dog quieted down (I don't know who won), but we were both too awake at that point... So it was cranky AJU5 this morning... lack of sleep plus teeth will do that to a baby!

Baby Blogger- My Views of the 4th of July

Hi, it is AJU5 here. Since I have been writing emails since I was one month old, Mommy thought I was big enough to write my own blog entry too. Yesterday was the 4th of July. I have been told that it is the day we celebrate our country's independence, but I am not sure what independence is yet (come on - I am only 6 months old - I can't even feed myself yet!). What I do know is that fireworks look cool but the noise is very annoying when one is trying to sleep! Everything was normal until about 9:00. I started to hear a bunch of bangs! At first I would just whimper and go back to sleep, but then they came more often! Eventually I got fussy enough that Mommy got me out of bed and held me. First we tried to spend time in the chair just relaxing, but the noises kept coming! So, we walked around and I go to see the lights from the windows. They sure did look nice. But, the ones that make the loud noises I didn't see... and those are the ones I don't like! Eventually Mommy and I laid down in bed. I laid on her tummy until I was completely asleep. Eventually Mommy put me next to her, but I spent very little time in my bed last night. Mommy tried a few times, but my schedule was all messed up. I woke up a few times just to be held - instead of the normal waking up to be fed issues. Luckily today is a new day and I have almost forgotten about the issues last night.

Oh - for fun news! I can crawl a little bit now. I make it about 2-3 crawls and then land on my belly. I think I am faster this way. Also, I have discovered the fun of a tongue! I have been playing with it quite a bit this morning. Well, I better go know. My toys are waiting to be played with!

That Was Fun...

Door bell rings. I go to the window to see who it is and see the Fed Ex truck in front of the house. So, I slip on my slippers and head down the stairs (no carpet on stairs yet - so shoes are needed). I open the door and see the Fed Ex man back at his truck and then notice the package be post. I step out to get the package and the door shuts... I check the door - and it is shut and locked! AJU5 is upstairs, in her pack-n-play, but awake (I heard her before I went downstairs). So, I go get the mail (because I don't want the FedEx man to see be breaking into my own house). He is still there, so I head to the back yard. I first try the sliding glass door downstairs. I get the first door and open the second one (for some reason the past owner put two doors in the same opening) until it runs into the board we have in the track. I try to squish my way through before I realize that isn't going to work (I can't get all of my leg through - how am I going to get my head through?). So, then I try the windows. Luckily we have some open because we have swamp coolers that require venting. I try to get the screen off of the open one, and it is stuck. SO I try another one. The screen comes off but the window is locked. I check the other windows, but I can't get the screens off. So, I go back to the first one (because it is an old window we are planning on replacing) and try again. I also try the door again. Finally, I get the screen off and open the window so I can slip through. Then I have to work around everything because that is where we have a lot of construction stuff stored. Finally I get to the door and open it so I can get the package...

Lesson Learned: Don't even step outside with the door open if it isn't unlocked!

This Would Have Been Easier A Year Ago...

I caught the wonderful stomach bug this past weekend. I have been fighting stomach issues since the middle of the night on Sunday. Unfortunately, I can't just lay in bed and rest. AJU5 will have only so much time on the bed. So, I have camped out in what will be our bedroom with the laptop and pillows. She has toys in here and a lot of room to play. But, she seems to like to play with the laptop the most. I keep having to figure out what she has hit and undo it. But, we are getting by!

On to more fun things:
She can hold her bottle now if she wants to. Key words - Wants to! Sometimes she still makes AJU1 or myself hold it for her.
She did great at Costco on Tuesday in the big kid seat on the cart. We had tried it before at Lowes and such, but never at Costco. Plus, on the other attempts, she melted by the end. This time she was happy even when we got out to the car!
She has figured out how to get her hands on the top of the step into the dining room. She even got off her knees and up on her feet yesterday. She also managed to get into an almost seated position there once - I am glad she didn't try to sit though because she probably would have knocked her head on the entertainment center right behind her!

Hope everyone has a great 4th of July!

Peas!

AJU5 hasn't been eating too many solids lately. I keep trying to get her to eat, but she only has been taking about a third of what she used to. This morning was different. I had one last serving of apples left, so I made her her usual apples and barley. When she had finished the bowl (one cube apples, one cube apple juice, and one tablespoon barley), she wasn't full yet. So, I defrosted a cube of peas (which I made on Sunday). She wasn't sure about the peas to begin with - as the first bite came right back out. But, before too long she was eating them. She only ate about half of the cube, but I think she was full and getting tired (she is napping now after a topping off of nursing). We will try the peas again tonight. The current plan is to give her peas at night and apples in the morning (I need to make more apples and apple juice this afternoon). Since she is only eating about 1/3 of what she used to eat at night, I don't think it is going to plug her up too much. On that note, it seems to be getting better. She is taking the apple juice more, and I think that is helping. Hopefully it won't get worse again!

Recipe/Directions for Peas:
Steam peas for about 10 minutes
Put peas in blender with a spoonful or two of the water from the steaming.
Blend until smooth
Pour into ice cube trays and freeze.
I got about 20 cubes out of the batch I made, so we should be good for a while!

Up Next: Green Beans!