Sunday, September 29, 2013

Week 33: 7 Days of Beckett


Day 225 (9/21); Reading with Lee 
Day 226 (9/22); Riding on Dad's shoulders - awesome!
Day 227 (9/23); Playing with my activity table
Day 228 (9/24); Loving my dad  
Day 229 (9/25); Sitting up all by myself - love it so much
Day 230 (9/26); Loving her continued sippy cup practice!
Day 231 (9/27); Practicing her yoga poses
Another amazing week with this sweet girl. I'm sorry, I know I gush about her, but she is truly just so sweet. She smiles so much. She laughs and giggles and even squeals with happiness. She talks so much more, jabbering with lots of 'dadadas' and 'hiiiissss.' She wants to learn, reach, touch, grab, discover, taste, explore - she seems so hungry for 'new' and when she gets that out-of-reach toy or what not she goes 'ahhhh.' It's hilarious. We tell her all the time, "there is nothing we don't love about you." And it's true - we love her little face and hair swirl, her two bottom teeth, her very small feet and somewhat large hands, her fabulously chubby legs, her infectious laugh, her awesome eyebrows, her many (many!) expressions - I could go on and on. We just think she is such a special girl and can't believe that we're lucky enough to get to be her parents. <gush over... maybe..> :)

Likes:
  • Yoga. But for real, she does that position a ton and moves forward a good bit but mostly backward. She seems to enjoy wallowing around on the floor!
  • The new straw sippy cups. SO much better, she just can't tip up those others!
  • Jumping in our laps while squealing
  • Sitting up, especially when she can dig through toy bins
  • Her top - she spins it around, especially on her high chair because it has 'guard rails'
  • Her activity table with the two legs off (still a fave!)
  • Yellow Squash. She wasn't like all over it or anything but she didn't hate it.. like she did the chicken.
Dislikes:
  • Does the thought of pureed chicken make you gag? If so, you and Beckett have something in common. She made a horrible face and literally gagged and stuck her little fingers in her mouth to assist the chicken's retrieval. She was utterly disgusted. Eek! Perhaps we have a vegetarian on our hands? We'll try, try again later.
  • When you take thing away from her she shouldn't have, like iPhones, iPads, cords, remote controls. She doesn't cry (yet) but she does give you kind of a stink eye until she's redirected.
Her Week in a Nutshell:
  • Saturday: Lola's First Birthday Party; Visit to Andrew & LA's and time with Baby Lee
  • Sunday: Family day at home
  • Monday: Visit to Monica's
  • Tuesday: Infant Room with Andrea
  • Wednesday: Playdate at the indoor playground/lunch @ mall; afternoon Infant Room with Laura
  • Thursday: Family Walk; dad home early from Dallas!
  • Friday: Infant Room with Andrea; errands with Mom

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Strollin' in the Rain

Playdate was rained out so we went to the indoor playground at the mall. Great idea! Except everyone had that idea - eek - crowded! We scattered quick after lunch but we snagged a pic of the last 3 standing: Gavin, Beckett & Graham.
Yes, this was the best shot! LOL Gavin is in, Beckett is confused, and Graham is totally feeling it!

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Week 32: 7 Days of Beckett

Day 218 (9/14); Hanging in the backyard with my sweet girl in our PJs
Day 219 (9/15); last bottle of the day - time for bed sleepy head
Day 220 (9/16); Me and my 3 babies
Day 221 (9/17); Beckett in her jams - having time with Dad while Mom attends book club!
Day 222 (9/18); Playdate with Harper!
Day 223 (9/19); stroller ride in the neighborhood with Sharon!
Day 224 (9/20); Friday morning swing session with Henry at Newtown Park
Likes:
  • Sitting up! She is up to 15 minutes unassisted now - BIG milestone!
  • Talking! She is very into her new syllable 'da' - she says dah dah dah - the first time hearing her say something 'human' vs. 'baby' was pretty amazing!
  • Reverse crawling - another big milestone. She isn't so much going forward, but she has gone backwards up to 10 feet!
  • Going up on all 4's and rocking - she is so close to crawling. I'm not ready yet so I'm glad she's not quite there - eek!
  • Sitting outside - so much to see and hear, and she's closer to her pups who she really loves!
  • Taking all of her toys out of her basket - she can sit at a basket and empty the whole thing, each toy, one by one. So cool to see her playing independently and really examining each toy.
  • Playing piano. She is still loving that mat the Veloti loaned her - now she can sit up at the piano and play with her hands! (she used to lay down and play with her feet!) 
  • Andrea! She has just really taken to her - it's clear that she recognizes her and trusts her. It's even more fun now at the gym since they had the day together - I can tell she is so happy to see her even more than usual!
  • Our stuff. She is getting increasingly interested ins our remote controls, iPhones, iPads, laptops, etc. 
Dislikes:
  • Toys out of reach; I'm working with her to crawl this way and she has meltdowns every once in a while out of frustration - obviously after an attempt or two I help her but 
  • Sleeping in. Girlfriend usually wakes at 7 a.m. but a couple times this week she was up/having nightmares (eyes closed but crying) at 6 a.m. 
Her Week in a Nutshell: 
  • Saturday: Her first babysitter! (outside of family) Andrea from the infant room spent 4 hours with her, from 2:30 - 6:30 p.m., while me and Austin went to a wine party with his co-workers - she did GREAT!
  • Sunday: Family day at the house; lots of time with Dad!
  • Monday: Visit to Gym Infant Room with Andrea; visit to grocery store/drycleaners with mom; 
  • Tuesday: Visit to Gym Infant Room with Jill
  • Wednesday: Playdate with sweet baby girl Harper and her mom Meghan
  • Thursday: Visit to Gym Infant Room with Andrea; neighborhood walk with Sharon
  • Friday: Early morning park visit with Henry and his mom Chanel; Gym Infant Room with Andrea; Visit to Grocery Store

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Playdate With Harper


Today Beckett and I visited Miss Meghan, her adorable little Harper, her cute dachshund Emma. CUTE OVERLOAD. We had so much visiting, playing with Harper's toys, watching Emma race around the room and watching Harper show off all her tricks - standing up, walking, crawling, riding her dinosaur tricycle - she was ALL over the place - very impressive. We hope to see them again soon!

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Week 31: 7 Days of Beckett

Day 211 (9/7); Happy Beckett covered in pears!
Day 212 (9/8); Happy Beckett is 7 months old!
Day 213 (9/9); Sweet sleepytime girl - love those eyes!
Day 214 (9/10); pretty in pink - already in 9 month outfits!
Day 215 (9/11); at the Atlanta Zoo with Beckett in the bird area - she loved hearing them chirp and fly around, and of course spending time with her cousin Dane and Aunt Devon
Day 216 (9/12); Sweet, slightly snotty Beckett practicing crawling with sister Remy!
Day 217 (9/13); swinging at the splash park during a fun playdate
Likes:

  • Swinging! Who knew she was old enough for these bucket seats?! We have 2 across the street - that's about to happen regularly.
  • Combos - her favorites lately are carrot/apple/mango and butternut squash/pear
  • Umbrella stroller - the pups do even better with the smaller stroller and she loves facing out during family walks
  • The splash park - no cries, she seemed to really like the water.
  • Her jellycat from Gigi; she is going for comforting, plush toys more these days (don't get me wrong though - still putting everything in her mouth - washcloth teethers, sophie giraffe, blocks, links, etc.)
  • Still loving peekaboo, magic show with scarf/paper towel tube and lots of songs!
  • The Zoo - she seemed to have such a good time taking it all in, especially the bird area; she mostly enjoyed facing out and seemed to love watching Cousin Dane interact with the zoo!
Dislikes:
  • Her hat. She must have taken it off 10 times at the splash park!
  • Having her diaper changed. I don't know if she dislikes it but she is MUCH more squirmy then she used to be. The best was when I was changing her in the empty trunk area of the car at the splash park (tip I learned from mom Sarah!) and with that much width on each side she was literally trying to barrel roll all over the back of the car. haha
Her Week in a Nutshell:
  • Saturday: Visit from Andy & Monica for Auburn football
  • Sunday: Home with Dad while Mom went to Sharon's baby shower for Peyton
  • Monday: Infant room with Andrea
  • Tuesday: Infant room with Jill
  • Wednesday: Full day with mom; visit to zoo with Aunt Devon & Cousin Dane
  • Thursday: Another full day with mom; visit to infant room with Andrea/Samantha
  • Friday: Playdate with Mom's Group at Splash Park & Playground; Visit with Mom to Haircut

Saturday, September 14, 2013

Friday, September 13, 2013

4 Babies, 2 Swings? No Problem!

Beckett had a big adventure today at the splash park, followed by an outdoor lunch and some time at the park. She did great! I was so proud of her. Appreciated the other moms helping me let her try new things - like the swing! Here she is with Gavin, Jake and Ben - her swing buddy. Sooooo cute. 

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Good Luck, Daddy!

Beckett hopes Austin does well on his first RSUI event: the Kaiser Permanente 5K! We wish we could be there to support him - we're so proud of him and all of the running he has been doing to get ready. We know he's going to do great!

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Zoo Fun with Cousin Dane

More to come, but for now here is a sweet pic of Beckett and her two-year-old cousin Dane! Me and Beckett met up with them at Zoo Atlanta, and saw zebras, panda bears, birds, monkeys, elephants, giraffes and more. Dane even got to feed a giraffe up close and personal! There was no one at the zoo - so nice to have it to ourselves and enjoy the day. Can't wait to go again, especially when Beckett is older and can participate a bit more!

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Beckett's Favorite Things Months 1 & 2


Found this idea on several blogs, including Little Baby Garvin, and knew I wanted to do it for Beckett! (and for my future self should we have another baby one day!)

A: Fisher Price swing - we borrowed this from our friends Mary & Jimmy and Beckett LOVED it. She napped in it frequently, swaddled up strapped into one side.
B: Skip Hop Activity Mat - we ended up buying two of these, one for upstairs and one for down. That's how much we use this. Early on, she loved to lie on her back and play with all of the hanging toys.
C: Swaddle Blankets - we actually swaddled her in the Moms on Call blankets, but these Aden + Anais blankets were used for everything from covering up her carseat, playing peekaboo, changepads - you name it. They're very thin and soft.
D: Baby jaR Burp Cloths - Beckett was a spitter upper and these were the thickest ones we had! Super cute, held their color after many, many washes and worked better than the Aden + Anais ones. We did like the 3 Marthas ones, too, as well as the SwaddleDesigns ones.
E: Tommee Tippie Bibs - we have a ton of these. Babies R Us ran a BOGO deal and we stocked up. They were especially great early on and kept her neck from getting wet/yeasty.
F: Butt Paste - we tried lots of different ones and these kept her most dry and it was odorless - big bonus as some smelled very medicinal.
G: Baby Einstein Bach - we are big Baby Einstein fans. Beckett has my old iPhone 3 on a dock in her room loaded up with Baby Einstein - her favorite is Bach.
H: Conair Sound Machine - we couldn't live without this Moms on Call recommendation. We use it for every nap, overnight, etc.
I: Aquatopia Thermometer - we use this for her daily bath to ensure the temperature is right - it works great!
J: The First Years Bottle Warmer - we use this for every bottle, so early on 8 bottles a day! My sister loaned us hers and we ended up getting a second one for Austin's parents house! I like that it grows with her and can do bigger bottles, baby food, etc.
K: Carter’s Zip-up PJs - we had tons of differnt PJs, some that snapped, some that buttoned, some from other stores- but the Carter's zip-ups whether in knit, terry cloth or fleece were the best!
L: Moms on Call Schedule & Swaddle Blanket - no way could we have done this without Moms on Call! The nurses came out to the house and showed us how to do saline, clip her nails, swaddle her, give her a bath and more. They helped us establish a bedtime routine and helped us get her on a schedule and had her sleeping through the night since 7 weeks. (Now, at 7 months old, she has been sleeping from 7/8 p.m. to 7 a.m. every night, even when we're out of town). We swear by them, their schedules (they even have an app!), their book and their blankets - we have 2 in case she spit up.
M: Johnson’s Natural Body Wash with Pump -  we love the nice, relaxing, light scent of this body wash that we use as shampoo, too - it's head to toe. It's never bothered her skin and the pump is very important when you're bathing in a big tub and holding baby with one hand.
N: Motorola Monitor - this camera has been wonderful! It was a gift from Austin's parents and we use it nonstop. We have two cameras - later we'll probably install one in her playroom, but for now it works great, has a clear picture and helps us know when to go in and check on our little one.
O: Glowworm - we didn't use a lot of toys in those first two months. We focused more on singing, reading, cuddling, etc. as Moms on Call said their favorite toy at that age is us! BUT, we did practice her 'eye tracking' a lot and this light up toy that played sweet tunes worked great, and it will definitely age with her.

That's that! Here are a few pics of Beckett with some of these favorites:
Always rocking a Tommee Tippee Bib - even now, at 7 months
Zip-up Carter's PJs on Day 4
On her skip hop mat with her Aunt and her Gigi! You can also see two of her burp cloths - the polka one was a SwaddleDesigns and the elephant one is a jaR
Two of her swaddle blankets at the hospital on Day 2 making her bed softer and cuter!

Monday, September 9, 2013

Ode to the Oball

Beckett seriously loves this thing. It was probably one of the first toys she grasped, and definitely the first one she passed from hand to hand. It has so many entry points for holding she can toss it around and hold it easily. Sometimes I think she is even trying to set it down but because she still balls her hands up a lot she like can't put it down. Haha Either way, definitely a top toy for Beckett!

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Week 30: 7 Days of Beckett

Day 204 (8/31); Wearing her Auburn shirt with her Daddy at the her Mimi and Poppa's lakehouse
Day 205 (9/1); hanging with her mom on the dock at the lake
Day 206 (9/2); She LOVES this little chair - she used to just sit in it but now she can play with all of the attachments - TOO much fun
Day 207 (9/3); Beckett and another favorite toy - her dino!
Day 208 (9/4); Happy, smiley, squirmy Beckett pre-bath
Day 209 (9/5); Showing off her two little teeth on her changepad after her nap
Day 210 (9/6); Sweet girl during her bath!
Likes:

  • Trying to eat remote controls
  • Sitting up at the piano
  • Strawberries - another new fruit!
  • Sitting up in her diaper box - she does great!
  • Her O-ball - she can get SUCH a great grip on it and enjoys tossing it around
  • Trying to crawl - she is really working on it but hasn't moved forward yet
  • The lake - she seemed to love the temperature of the water and was kicking and splashing
  • Her travel jumper - she bounced SO high and fast, and would swing side to side
  • Watching football - she would just stare at the screen haha Austin decided this means she likes it!

Dislikes:

  • Sitting still for too long! She is much more squirmy now!
  • Still not a big fan of green beans or carrots (we can mix the carrots in other stuff and she'll eat them... not so much with the green beans yet!)

Her Week in a Nutshell: 

  • Saturday: Family time at the lake; took a dip in the lake; watched her first Auburn game
  • Sunday: Another family day at the lake
  • Monday: Drive back to Atlanta
  • Tuesday: Infant room with Andrea
  • Wednesday: Perimeter Mall with Mom; lunch with Majd & Miranda; Infant Room with Laura
  • Thursday: Infant Room with Andrea; visit to 5 Seasons to meet Cush & Katie and Ryan, Savannah and Kinley
  • Friday: Infant Room with Andrea; visit with Ashley & McKenzie 

Look What I Found, Pups!

Mom and Dad call it a remote and they point it at the magic light-up box!

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Sitting Up Practice

Beckett's Gigi had seen other Atlanta parents practicing sitting up with a diaper box! I was like hmmmm we get huge boxes once a month. I googled it and it seemed like a pretty common Montessori  thing. So we gave it a whirl. She loves it. I can put different toys in there for her to discover and play with, and bonus - the puppers can't get to her. Not that they do, but ya know what I mean - no risk! She seems to really enjoy it and, while it's only been 4 days of 10-minute sessions, I can tell she is already getting stronger! As per always, ignore the dirty bib! :)

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

War Eagle, Little Becks!

Beckett saw her first Auburn football game Saturday at the lake! And it was a victory - yay! After last year's dismal season where she went, with me, to game after game seeing loss after loss it was very nice to have a win. Here's an adorable pic of her and Austin before the game! Special thanks to Megan, Clint & Ava for her AU onsie. :)



Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Week 29: 7 Days of Beckett


Day 197 (8/24): Beckett having lunch with her Gigi
Day 198 (8/25); Happy Beckett on Dad's lap - always smiley! 
Day 199 (8/26); Bedtime bottle sleepy face - her hair is getting so much longer - love it!
Day 200 (8/27); Beckett loves looking at herself in the mirror - this one is especially fun because she can sit up while holding it (yes, very supervised - time to start thinking about anchoring taller furniture to the wall - eek!)
Day 201 (8/28); she still can't get enough tummy time. She is now pulling her knees up a bit and you can really tell she wants to crawl. In the meantime, she's still our little super baby!
Day 202 (8/29); See what I mean? I can barely get a picture of her unless she is on her tummy! Love her sweet, always-thinking face in this shot.
Day 203 (8/30); We made it to the lake! Beckett had a couple hours of awake time when we got there - here she is hanging on the deck in her sweet summer clothes that are getting too small just in time for fall
Another great week with this babydoll. I swear she gets sweeter every day. I love hugging her while she 'jumps' in my lap. And smiling at her while she gives me a huge grin back and reaches out to touch my face. She is just so precious and we say at least 5 times a day how lucky we are to have this little lady in our lives. Sorry if this is crazy cheesy but she is wonderful and we're just so happy with her! I know I say it every time, but I can't believe we're only 5 days out from her being 7 months old. Seems like forever!

Likes:

  • Bouncing - on our knees, in her jumperoo, when you're holding her - she can't get enough bouncing!
  • Mango - her newest fruit. She seems to like it, especially for breakfast with bananas and oats
  • Magic - magic is essentially a scarf being tucked into a papertowel cylinder and pulled out - she smiles big when it comes twirling out
  • Her dogs - she can't get enough time watching them play, and she loves to pet them, especially Remy
  • Her blocks - she's mostly eating them now, but she loves reaching for them and collecting them all in her arms/hands when she's on her tummy

Dislikes:

  • Napping in the car, apparently - we had a rough ride over to Alabama. I personally blame the marta cop who walked up to my car when we were waiting on Austin outside his office - cop caused dogs to bark which caused Beckett to cry and she never really slept after that which made for a lonnngggg ride
  • Greenbeans - she finally ate them pretty good... then promptly tossed them up. Must find another fruit or veggie to mix them with to see if she likes them then. If not, they'll wait until she's older and perhaps she just won't be a greenbean fan like her mom!

Her Week in a Nushell: 

  • Saturday: Day with Gigi! Parents went to a wedding so my mom came and stayed over with her!
  • Sunday: Family Day! Grocery store visit & trip to Ballard Designs
  • Monday: Infant Room at gym; errands with Mom
  • Tuesday: Infant Room at gym; visit from Mimi! Shopping trip and slumber party :)
  • Wednesday: Day with Mimi; more shopping; lunch with Mimi and Dad at Nordstrom Cafe
  • Thursday: Packing Day for lake! Walk with Ashley & McKenzie at the Greenway
  • Friday: Infant room at Gym; drive to the lake in Alabama!