10th month

Unfortunately this month got away from me and I wasn't as on top of my game with photos and "new discoveries" as usual!

This month you learned to stand without pulling up on something. You just stand right up in the middle of the floor with those strong legs of yours. You can stand for a few minutes, keeping your balance quite well before you plop back down on your butt.

You are now taking 5-6 steps before you fall, and ah, so exciting! Each day your walking skills seem to improve more and more.

You are so so mischievous. We have been practicing "no" when we see you move towards things you shouldn't have your paws on. You definitely understand, and it stops you in your tracks. I have to bite my lip so not to laugh at your adorable smirk.

We continue to introduce new foods, some of which have included cheese, yogurt, strawberries, potatoes and other finger foods. We've also been practicing using the straw to sip water and you're getting the hang of it!

I say "Where's baby?" and you look and reach for the photos of you in our living room.

Your latest obsession is with doors. You've discovered how to push them open, and while you understand that pulling them opens them as well, you can't quite figure out how to do it.

Balls are a favorite toy. You could seriously chase one around for hours. Sometimes I actually let you do just that.

You are such a silly thing. You love to play. You love when daddy chases you, and you usually tease him so that he will. You love to look at photos of yourself and other babies. Sometimes you smoosh mommy's cheeks between your two miniature hands and bring my face close to yours, putting your mouth onto mine or my nose. And my heart melts.

Goofy girl we love you. 

Cinnamon Sweet Potato & Chickpea Salad

Lately the Evster is learning to pick up foods and feed herself.  Blueberries, apples, squash, corn, potatoes....she won't cram just anything in her mouth, but she does enjoy the independence of self-feeding. This is great because I don't have to bother with the spoon and all the puree crap, but on the other hand, it does require a bit more planning and preparation on my end.

I'm learning that by selecting healthier foods that the whole family can enjoy, Evie can simply have what Ryan and I are having, just cut into smaller pieces. This eliminates the need to create two separate dishes and it encourages Ryan and I to eat healthier. Win for everyone!

Here's a lunch/snack type recipe I made the other day. Evie and I were both able to enjoy it for lunch. Yummy and easy, it's a keeper.


What you need:
1 large sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
1 can chickpeas
1 small white onion, peeled and chopped
Cinnamon and sea salt to taste
1 tbsp coconut oil

Directions: Preheat oven to 425. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.  In a large bowl, mix together chickpeas, uncooked chopped sweet potato, chopped onion, cinnamon, salt, and 1/2 tbsp coconut oil. Mix well. Spread onto baking sheet and place in the oven for about 40 minutes. Remove from oven and plan into large bowl. Add remaining 1/2 tbsp coconut oil and stir well to coat. Add additional sea salt and cinnamon if preferred.

And it made our house smell heavenly!

Enjoy!

Sleeping Like a Baby: What They Didn't Tell Me About Infant Sleep

Of course I knew sleep would be hard to come by after we had a baby. But what I didn't know was that infant sleep was one of the most widely discussed topics among mommies EVERYWHERE. And did you know there are a million books out there that offer various sleep methods and techniques to get your baby to sleep and stay asleep?  From crying it out, attachment parenting, no crying, sleep training....the list goes on. Everyone claiming to have the right solution to get your baby snoozing through the night in no time.

I too found myself googling things on more than one occasion like: "Why won't my 3 month old stop crying at night" and "How to soothe a fussy infant at bedtime."

And of course, thousands of listings and online forums popped up with moms like me offering their 10 cents on baby sleep, blah blah blah. Usually these "helpful" tid-bits would leave me feeling defeated and even more confused about the best "solution" for Evie's sleep habits.

Hold her more. Put her down. Let her cry it out. Make sure her belly is full. It's colic. It's reflux. It's gas. She's teething. She's manipulating you. Change your diet.  With so many suggestions pouring in, many of which were conflicting, what was a new, overtired momma to do?

Here's what: Follow your gut. Momma really does know best. 

Evie has never quite fit any sleep pattern found in a book, and she has been so unpredictable from day one that I could never really enforce any sort of schedule to help her ease into a sleep routine. It took a few months, but I finally realized that the best solution for us was not to teach Evie to go to bed, but instead, to create the best possible environment for Evie to relax and feel safe so that she could finally reach a state in which her small, tired body would drift to sleep.

After 5 months of sleeping in bed with us and some really (I mean really) frustrating evenings, Evie FINALLY started to to self-soothe. That means I could put her down, sleepy in her crib and she would fall asleep.  On. her. own. Before I would have to nurse her, nap with her, nurse her again, repeat....it was the only thing that would work. Looking back, Im so grateful for those little moments with her, snuggled up. It's what she needed, and it's all I could give.

I do wish someone would have offered me this bit of advice, though:

Be patient
It's going to pass, really. I mean what 13 year olds do you know who don't want their mom to go away so they can sleep a few more hours? I hope we don't have to wait until Evelyn is a teenager for sleep, but I do know that Ryan and I have been doing everything we can to make sleep easier for her, and that's all a parent can do. Hang in there and know there's an end in sight. This is coming from someone who hasn't reached the end, but I'm being optimistic. :)

Laugh
MANY other emotions that do not include smiling will flood your mind when you have a baby at home who keeps you up all night, but seriously, you just gotta laugh. Some nights (after having a good cry of course) Ryan and I would just look at each other and laugh. "What in the world just happened?!" Yep, it's funny. This two foot tall, 15 pound girl just wrecked our whole evening for the 20th week in a row, and it's already 2 a.m., and I'm exhausted and she's probably going to wake up again in a few hours. And guess what? It's funny.

Lower your expectations
I think it's perfectly fine and even encouraged to read up on infant sleep for advice, tips, etc, but don't beat yourself up when it doesn't work for YOUR baby. There are a few books that I found offered some good tips here and there. But to be honest, none of the so-called sleep methods worked for us. Rather than getting frustrated every evening because, oh guess what, the baby won't sleep again, just find ways to prepare yourself for whats to come instead. Our sleep challenges change week to week. Rather than getting discouraged with every new challenge, we've learned to respond the most appropriately to each of Evie's unique night time needs instead.

Treasure it. 
These fleeting moments really do come and go so quickly. The first baby is tough because you really have nothing to compare it to. Don't be so hard on yourself or wish away certain "stages." They really will pass.  In the meantime, enjoy the extra snuggle time your baby demands and loves (even if it is a 2 am). It's going to pass, and you'll miss it.

Still feel defeated? New moms should read this article for a chuckle.

Today, at 9 months old, Evie still gives us a run for our money at bedtime. But it's better. We survived are surviving, and we are better for it. I certainly don't regret any of the extra rocking, nursing or hours not sleeping that I spent loving on and helping our daughter attain the rest she needed.

9th month

Baby girl, where do I start? You've been with us now for 9 months- the same amount of time that I carried you, eagerly awaiting your arrival in this big, crazy world.

Nine months later and we are still so proud to call you ours, and I still look at you every day amazed and have to sort through for the millionth time what a miracle you truly are.

You've been learning so much this month, all of which is contributing to your sweet personality and eagerness for independence. With each passing day I think you are starting to look more and more like a little girl and less like a baby. <Tear> ;(

You think daddy is so fun. He pretends he's going to get you and you squeal in delight as you crawl as quickly as you can across the room until he catches you.

If I go into the kitchen and out of your sight, I'll call your name and soon enough I hear the pitter patter of your little hands and feet inching your way towards my voice.

Not only have you become a proficient crawler but you are obsessed with pulling yourself up on EVERYTHING. You've even let go a few times, standing there for 10 seconds or so without holding on!

You are such a curious little girl and how quickly you are bored with your toys.  Your new favorite game involves pulling the magazines off our coffee table and then ripping them to shreds. I'm pretty sure you managed to swallow a few pieces of Better Homes & Garden when I wasn't looking.

Sleep has been overall better. The battle to get you to sleep has been a little less painful and time-consuming, and you are waking up only once a night (usually).

You are now eating about one solid meal a day, sometimes two if time allows. And to be honest, sometimes I just don't feel up to cleaning goopy squash off of you, the floor and the walls, so we opt out  on those days. You've also been working on your pincer grasp and enjoy picking up blueberries, grapes and puffs and stuffing them in your mouth all at once.

FOUR adorable teeth now poke through your top gums, complementing those two adorable ones on the bottom. The downside: you have been biting my shoulder when I am holding you and it is SO painful.

Mamma & Dadda are still your favorite words it seems, but I've also been hearing the N's, G's, and B's included in your incessant jibber jabber.

You wave! After repeatedly waving my hands at you day after day, you finally reciprocated by holding your two little hands up in the air and moving them around. So adorable. Sometime we catch you putting your hands up in the air and waving them for no reason. Guess we better watch what we do around you for now on.

You've discovered how to express your likes and dislikes which has been especially helpful. Don't want me to hold you? Not interested in eating? Dirty diaper? Now I don't have to guess at what you want and don't want, making our days a bit easier.

At your 9 month check up, you were 26 inches and just an ounce shy of 18 pounds!

This age is so fun and we can't wait to see what else you'll be learning in the coming months. Happy 9 months, sweet one.

Expression trumps perfection. Always.

If there's one thing I'd absolutely love to get the hang of it's taking photos.  Now that we have a baby and as our family grows, capturing life's precious moments is something I don't want to miss.

The photographer we've used for a few special occasions recently wrote an article about the importance of emotion in photography and how it should always trump the image.

"Over the years I have been surprised several times over when a client will choose a less than perfect image as their absolute favorite. The biggest reason for their choice--the image was the embodiment of the subject's personality. "

Someday when these fleeting moments have come and gone, I want to be able to look back and remember it all. The good. The bad. The details. The day to day. The realness. Right in the moment.

The photos I take certainly aren't great images, but the emotion is priceless. They're us.

"...when push comes to shove, I will take a great expression over a perfect image any day!"

 What a great reminder: a great photo doesn't necessarily equal great image. You can check out the rest of Laura's article here for some great tips.

Cheesy Bacon Chicken Pasta

Ever have one of those weeks where you just can't seem to get your act together? The house is pretty messy. I'm behind on laundry. And we don't really have any food.

Whoops.

I'm a planner, and every week I plan out meals a week ahead of time and make a corresponding grocery list. Just didn't happen last week, and as a result, this week we're suffering.

Rather than ordering take-outs or running to the store for food, I decided to scrounge and pull together items we already had.

Bacon.
Chicken.
Pasta.
Cheese.

I'm not a great cook by any stretch of the imagination, however, each of these foods is pretty tasty on it's own, so why not combine them?

Here's what I used:

3-4 Chicken breasts
1 16 oz. Pasta (Whatever kind you have. In my case it was Penne)
2 cups shredded cheese (I used Mild Cheddar)
Bacon (I used about 8 strips that I had leftover from a breakfast casserole I made over the weekend. More probably would have been ideal)
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
Cream of Chicken Soup. (I guessed here and used about 2 cans)
1 tsp. Cayenne Peper (Because everything can benefit from a little kick)

Cook and cut up the chicken into bite size pieces. Cook the pasta. Combine all ingredients and mix together well. Add to casserole dish and bake for approximately 20 minutes at 350 or until cheese is melted.

Tada!

This was really easy, pretty good given the short list of ingredients, and I was pretty proud of myself for being so resourceful.

Enjoy!

8th month

I'm the worst at posting these on time.

Oh well! Happy 8 months, Evie!

It wasn't long after you turned 7 months old that you started to learn new things- again! Here's a brief summary of all the exciting things that went on during your 8th month of life.

You were dedicated. 

You were dedicated at our church on Father's Day. We feel so blessed to be a part of such a wonderful church body that is committed to helping us raise you up to know and love the Lord. You are also very fortunate to have very loving grandparents and aunts and an uncle who made it for the dedication as well.

We missed you Aunt Amanda

I just want to call out that I am super impressed with everyone's color coordination (except for Uncle Matt).  

Fathers Day

This month we also celebrated your daddy's first of many Father's Days.  He sure does love you and I am here to tell you that you are a lucky little girl to have him as your dad. He adores you Evelyn and can't wait to learn with you, play with you and create special memories with you.

Right after you turned 7 months old you decided you would learn to do a lot all at once.

Crawling. You've got it down! No more wounded soldier for you. Now you're are up on all fours and crawling like a pro! While this is super exciting and fun, it is also really tiring on your mommy who finds that most of the day is spent chasing you around the house so you don't hurt yourself.

Pulling up. Oh the excitement on your mommy's face when she creeped into your room to find you standing at your crib with the biggest grin on your face.  You hadn't been 7 months old for a week when you figured out how to pull yourself up in the crib.  I'm pretty sure I squealed like a little girl when I saw you.  Little did I know that this wasn't necessarily a good thing since now you are climbing all over! Up the baby gate, up my lap, up your toys!

"Come on, Evie. Will you please go to bed for Daddy?"

Solids. You've shown a bit more enthusiasm for certain foods this past month, and I knew you'd like peas like your momma! We haven't pushed it a ton as you still aren't super interested, but we are working on picking up our foods like blueberries and peas to feed ourself. They usually just end up smashed on the floor or in your shirt.

"DA-DA." You did say "ma-ma" first, but the "da-da's" are coming out pretty much all day long. I like to tell daddy that you talked about him all day while he was at work. You don't know that you're saying our "names" yet, but hearing those sweet sounds roll off your tongue sure do tug at our heartstrings.

Knock knock. Your new thing this month is knocking. You knock on my head, toys, the wall, doors. I think it is your way of testing out new things.

More teeth. Well, almost. Your two bottom teeth are especially noticeable now, and we are definitely about to cut the top two (says your less than chipper behavior these last few weeks). Those gums look nice and puffy, and I'm thinking any day now Ill see them poking through.

Weight gain.  You've always been on the teeny tiny side for weight. But after 6 months you just started gaining faster. At 6 months you were almost 15 pounds. Still on the smaller side, but healthy and growing nonetheless. Had to take you to the doc a few weeks back and they weighed you-- 17 pounds! I knew your little legs were looking chunkier than usual. Looks like all those nursing sessions have paid off after all.

Can we say temper tantrum? So, Im pretty sure you've figured out how to whine and grunt when you don't get your way. You get frustrated when you can't do something, such as pick up a piece of fruit or reach a toy. You definitely get your impatience from me.

Sleep.  I'm living proof that a person doesn't need a ton of sleep to get by. Naps during day are pretty good for the most part. Nighttime is usually still such a battle though, and you are still waking up about 2-3 times each night.

Games.
Lately you enjoy knocking over blocks when I stack them, peek-a-boo, watching daddy bounce a ball, pulling a blanket off of your face, singing and mirrors, to name a few. You are becoming quite the little tease and love playing games with mommy and daddy.

You are such a joy Evelyn, and we love you beyond words- yes even on those nights when you are crying and won't go to bed.  But one thing, can you do me a favor and stop growing up so quickly?