8 Months

I'm a little behind on my blogging- baby girl is going to be nine months next week (time really does fly when you think outside of days), and I still haven't posted her 8 month post. Better late than never! C spent the morning of her birthday in sunny Puerto Plata where she was strolled to breakfast every morning followed by a nap and time at the pool. On the afternoon of her 8 month birthday we rode a bus to the airport and spent 4 LONG hours on a plane. Miss C was a bit annoyed to be heading home and voiced her displeasure for half the trip. It was so bad that the people in front of us got free drinks (their tvs also did not work, which I like to think is the real reason they got the drinks)!

At eight months Charlotte likes

-crawling and pulling herself up on everything

- feeding herself

- eating paper

- swimming

- her play kitchen and remote controls

- stealing toys from other babies

-swinging

-body slamming her cats

She dislikes:

-puréed food

-getting her diaper changed

-orange kitty toy

-having her hair washed

-getting her hair pulled by all the other babies

The Best

It's amazing what nicer weather can do to the spirit of a new mom that's been cooped up all winter! I've consulted all my mama friends and they agree, so it must be a thing!

Baby girl loves her some swinging, and I just couldn't resist sharing!

7 Months Oh Wow!

Little one is seven months old, and it's hard to believe how much she has changed in a month. While we're still not sleeping perfectly by any means, napping continues to improve and it feels like progress is being made. The big news to share is that we are mobile! C is officially a crawling machine and she is attempting to pull herself up on things. She is also a lot more steady on her bum and goes from crawling to sitting with ease. Another big hurdle for this paranoid mama of a child with food intolerances is that we tried egg and so far so good. Wheat toast is next! She has also increased her vocabulary to Dada AND Mama!

Likes:

Grabbing all objects and putting them in her mouth

Smiling for pictures

Chicka Chicka ABC Book

Broccoli 

Avocado

Grampy's Coffee Cup

Fisher Price Little People

Knocking over buildings

Bare bum time

Dislikes:

Bath time cream routine

Not getting her way

Getting dressed

Six Months- aka Halfway There...or Two Steps Forward One Step Back

Here we are...the amazing six months, the time when everyone said everything would get easier, and better...well my friends- those people were wrong!!! Five months was definitely better than six months for us. C is in what I like to call a MEGA development phase of crawling and teething otherwise known as- Mommy doesn't need to sleep.  Sleep has taken a backseat and we're back to waking up every two hours at night...where did my newborn go...oh wait, she's right here!

Despite the above, it's not all downhill...we have seen some major development in the napping arena- we are now consistently using the crib and hoping Miss C gets the memo of staying in it longer than 30 minutes. The breaks however short they may be are refreshing, time to eat, have a shower or read an article...much appreciated!

She has started eating solid food now, and what an adventure. Have you ever had pureed turkey flung into your ear? If not- you should try it sometime.  Our little one prefers a daily avocado facial to the turkey fling. So far she likes everything we have served up, which is pretty exciting.

She likes:
- Banging her spoon on the highchair tray
- Her gold glitter sensory bottle- bling anyone?
- Being thrown in the air
- Sucking her thumb and holding a blanket
- Chewing on everything
-Playing peekaboo
- The cats- she has a special soft voice she uses to lure them in

She dislikes:
- Surprise noises
- Getting taken out of the bath
- Anyone other than mommy comforting her at night
- Being strapped in her carseat


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Tolerating Intolerances

We've been dealing with a medical mystery in our house since November. Miss Charlotte has a few symptoms of a food intolerance (I'll spare you the graphic details), so I have spent the better part of 4 months eliminating common allergens from my diet. This is difficult for a girl with no food restrictions who loves to bake and eat! We're not out of the woods yet but I've been told to go back in a normal diet until February. (***since drafting this, I have actually gone off of gluten and dairy again...fingers crossed things are improving)

In the meantime, I thought it would be fun to share some of the successful things I made while on these special diets

Oatmeal Thumprint Breakfast cookies

Creamy Avocado Pasta Sauce

 

The "best" vegan chocolate chip cookies

The best vegan cookies (in my opinion)

Yummy Soy,Dairy,Egg-Free bread

There you have it folks- if you're ever avoiding soy, dairy and egg for whatever reason- here are some yummy recipes that are tried and tested. Throwing gluten into the mix has definitely thrown me off, so if you know of any yummy gluten-free recipes please send them my way:)

Another Reason Why My Grammy Rocks (my socks)!!!

My Grammy has knit me a ton of socks in her day. I used to wear them a lot in univesity, but I haven't worn them a ton since (corporate jobs will do that to you). Since being on maternity leave, and it being winter and all- I have a new found love for all of my Grammy socks! I've been wearing them daily and loving it:)

Ideas and Goals

I read the Nesters blog or Instagram the other day about clearing out the clutter and I got inspired. As Baby stuff is taking over some of my living space I am having strong urges to purge. I am planning to clear out all the tchotchke, some will go into a bin to store because I'm not ready to part with it and some will go into a bin to donate or sell, which brings me to the next goal. One weekend this summer I want to pack up my collectibles and furniture I am no longer in love with or have a place for and I want to rent a table at an antique market! I want to play dealer for a day! I may even try to convince some friends to join me!