by Liz | All Things Kids
A few months ago I posted our rough plan for introducing solids and the aftermath thereof. We are very fortunate that Lena has taken to food so well and are looking forward to the next step to finger foods, though she isn’t quite ready yet!
At the time of my post about solids, Lena was about five months old. We quickly ramped her up to three meals of solid food a day after that and even introduced a sippy cup for water. She was teething and drooling like you wouldn’t believe so we felt obliged to restore some of her fluids. She took to stage two foods readily and even loved mixing up fruits and veggies (yay for us!). I had high hopes of making my own food but with a busy work schedule we have continued to purchase most of her food.
Between five and eight months, I continued to breastfeed so we really didn’t change any of her feedings. She was still getting approximately six feedings per day for a total of roughly 25-30 oz. Added to that, she has at least one jar per meal (approximate 4 oz each) and sometimes 1.5 jars during lunch and/or dinner.
We were pretty happy with that routine so didn’t really switch it up that much until recently. When we hit eight months, I finally resigned myself to the fact that formula was a much more practical option for us so we starting mixing in a bottle or two per day. Things quickly progressed from there and we are now 100% formula feeding. With that change, we upped her bottles to 8 oz per feeding and in so doing, eliminated one of her smaller feedings in the early evening. This has definitely given us a new-found freedom and allowed us more flexibility with our routines because we always know we can easily feed her whenever we need to.With the addition of formula, Adelena also lost interest in having oatmeal mixed with her meals and so we’ve opted to leave that out.
Experiments with slightly chunkier foods have NOT been successful yet! Lena isn’t sold on protein yet and still prefers any protein items be mixed (heavily!) with some of the sweeter veggies like carrots and sweet potatoes. Fruit is never passed up either, of course. Thicker blends of food are definitely a hit, however chunks are usually met with disgusted faces and some serious tongue agility exercises in order to expel the unwanted items! Oh well…better luck next time perhaps!
by Liz | All Things Kids
It always seems that problems come in threes. The last few weeks, poor Lena has been struggling with a cold, teething AND an ear infection. Needless to say, none of us are getting very much sleep! She’s been a trooper and for the most part has been incredibly good-humored despite how she must be feeling. She was on antibiotics briefly but the side-effects seemed to be worse than the ear infection. After a second trip to the doctor I was very relieved to take her off the meds and she’s been a different baby ever since. While still sick, she’s much happier and definitely seems to be on the road to recovery!
On a more positive note, she’s started babbling all sorts of new sounds, desperately trying to move AND has become incredibly opinionated about her likes and dislikes. It’s amazing the progress she’s made in such a short time and she continues to surprise us every day. She’s even started blowing kisses which is just about the cutest thing you’ve ever seen! The key seems to be unending repetitive play. She has so much fun watching faces or our actions and slowly attempting them for herself. We’ve even seen her use a few baby signs though it’s not clear she knows their meaning yet. The sign for “milk” for example, might mean either “mom”, “up” or “milk”. Only time will tell!
That said, she’s no longer sleeping through the night, can be incredibly difficult to put back to sleep AND likes to wake the household up incredibly early with no thought of going back to bed. We’ve been extremely diligent about discouraging any “patterns” involving her sleep habits and continue to rely on some of our old staple tricks but to no avail. She has gone through cycles like this before (though none for such a long period of time) and if we kept to our routines, we found she’d get herself back on track eventually. We’re hoping this method will still work for us and are trying desperately not to encourage any habits to form!
by Liz | All Things Kids, Life Snapshot
It’s hard to believe almost eight months have passed since Adelena was born. Life has a funny way of evolving constantly and yet it’s so difficult to imagine what I did with myself before she got here. Spare time, what’s that?!
I am so thrilled with the time I get to spend with her and going to work every day has not gotten any easier. Our lives are a constant muddle of rushing to and fro, attacking the piles of laundry and trying to get a million things done in the one spare hour or so I have a day. Weekends seem like a distant lifeline to sanity…until they arrive. Despite the extra time we get to spend with Lena, there’s just as much chaos as weekdays. Taking care of Lena doesn’t seem like “work” and I truly enjoy every minute. She’s on a great schedule and for the most part is an extraordinarily easy baby.
Will the chaos ever end? Will it ever get easier to head to work in the morning? I think not. But at least I get to come home to this sweet face every day!
by Liz | All Things Kids, Chaos Hacks
If you have a child anything like mine, they’ll have been drooling like Niagra Falls since the tender age of two months. Fast forward to six months and they’ll graduate to gnawing on every available object that comes within reach, including (but not limited to) fingers, toes, toys, stuffed animals, tables, utensils, limbs, burp cloths, limbs, jewelry and so much more. Add to that the unexplained changes to their sleep patterns along with unprecedented bouts of crying and well, eventually you’ll surmise that your little cherub is finally, at least…most likely, cutting a tooth. That said, any and all of the above can continue for months on end with no tooth in sight. It’s all rather predictable really, I don’t know what anyone could possibly be mystified about.
My new motto: “When all else fails, blame it on teething.”
Being forewarned is definitely being forearmed. Here are a few of my teething necessities:
aden + anais burp bibs – These are amazing. They not only soak up just about anything that comes within a foot of them, they have such amazing coverage. Now that Lena is getting seriously active, she can twist and turn to her heart’s delight and still be covered! Granted, I have to change these out three to four times a day but this has done wonders for her prickly neck rash and keeping her clothes presentable through most of the day.
Sophie – It’s inexplicable…but this is definitely a crowd favorite for teethers. This model is a bit smaller than the traditional Sophie but easier for little hands to grasp and manipulate. We really don’t go anywhere without Sophie in tow!
Fridge/freezer teethers – We have a few of these and Lena’s favorite happens to be a somewhat flat and smooth variety (the keychain was a non-starter). My guess is every child has their preference but it’s a good idea to have a few of these on hand just in case the phantom teeth choose an inopportune time to strike.
Spiffies – Thanks to my sister-in-law (and her parents who are both dentists!), we came across these little gems. When refrigerated, they provide great relief to teething babes and have been shown to reduce cavities. They are just as effective as brushing!
As a last resort, you can always speak to your doctor about using a pain reliever. We found that just one dose while going to bed allowed her to get a good night’s sleep with minimal interruption even on the worst teething days.
At almost seven months old, Lena has two shiny new teeth to show off. She really enjoys smacking her lips or tapping at them with rattles and other toys. She worked hard on those little chompers, she should be proud!
by Liz | All Things Kids, Chaos Hacks
Raising a baby is an expensive endeavor! While we try to be responsible shoppers and search for good deals, there are always those moments when you need a specific item and end up paying full price for it. I have the best intentions of clipping coupons, saving sale offers and other promotions, only to forget them all in a pinch. That said, there are some pretty handy tools out there for helping you to save a little money! Here are a few that I’ve found that involve a minimal amount of fuss/clipping/remembering that will save you a few $$ that will make your checkbook a little happier at the end of the month!
- Amazon Mom: Members receive free two day shipping, 20% off diapers and wipes and various other discounts throughout the year.
- Ebates: Simply by using their site to initiate an online purchase, you get access to additional discounts and cash back on your purchases. They’ll send you a check or gift card from your merchant of choice!
- Retailmenot: Check here before finalizing any online purchase. Just type in the website and any current offers/promotions will be displayed along with the code you need to enter at checkout!
- Groupon & Living Social: Local deals in your area from vacations and family outings to store discounts and gift ideas. I’ll admit I don’t use them often but they’re great for ideas on a rainy day or a last minute idea.
- Gilte, Totsy & Zulily: Deals on stuff for moms, kids and more. Great for finding an expensive item at a huge discount!
Happy Shopping!
