I was listening to a commercial on the radio the other day about weight loss (I think it was acutually a commercial for Aetna or Kaiser or something like that) and it said that even if you take two steps forward and one step back, that is still one step forward, and that is progress, and not to think too poorly of yourself if you fell off the wagon, because you did still make forward progress. I'm taking that to heart not just in terms of my exercise program, but also in terms of this blog. So I haven't written in 2 months. That doesn't mean I should stop now, especially since so many exciting things are happening.
I may do a totally seperate post for the fact that Sarah is now 1! We had a fabulous party with fabulous family and friends in town, but hopefully I'll get around to writing more about that later. So instead I'll focus on milestones we've reached since August 31st.
1) We now have 5 (1/2) teeth. Two on the bottom and pretty much four on top (though one is stubborn and doesn't want to pop through)
2) Our vocabulary has expanded. Her first word was "doggie" (which she can now apply to more than Bailey and Toby. When we see dogs on the street, hear dogs barking, or even see pictures of dogs in books or our friends dressed up as dogs on Halloween, all gets the Sarah point and "doggie"... though she may have thought a chicken was a dog as well?). Other words we've mastered are "day day" (dad), mmmmmum (mom), ah oh (uh oh), ah gee (all gone) and "alley" (hello, often with a phone held to her ear)
3) We've been attending Gymboree together, and unfortunately the entire world does not have mats below it such as it at Gymboree. Gymboree has taught Sarah lots of climbing skills - however, this doesn't stop Sarah from lunging off furniture, with no abandon to how high it is. She has however begun going off some things feet first... some things.
4) Few foods are an obstacle anymore. Though dinner most often consists of chicken (though she prefers the "fake" morning star farm tenders to real ones), vegetable (green beans are her favorite) and a fruit (bananas please!) she did have her first piece of pizza last night.
5) Sarah has become a pro (almost) walker - first with her dinosaur, then with a single finger of mommy or daddy, and today she took three steps by herself! Before when I would let go she would just stand there hovering, but today when I let go she kept going! She may have even gone further, but I was so excited a scooped her up and gave her the biggest hug. What a fabulous birthday gift from Sarah!
I'm sure I'm missing some major or minor accomplishments, but hopefully I'll keep up with this blog more often to record them. But first steps are something I wanted down in writing... not like I would forget the best 32nd birthday gift ever.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
We're safe (for now)
I've been blessed that Sarah has not shown too much interest in independent moving. Though she's loved to be vertical since birth, and sat up rather early (pictures by 5 months have her sitting up without my help) she wasn't so much into crawling and she doesn't appear to be in any hurry to walk.
That's no to say she doesn't like to move - the main floor of our house has become a show room for various brands and sizes of baby gates, as we have three different brands on three different entrances/exits. That was the best $60 I've spent in a while as it's now been 24 hours since I've had to chase Sarah up the stairs. Having lost that distraction, she now goes exclusively toward the other two things she's not supposed to do - emptying off the bottom shelf on the entertainment unit and playing in the dogs water bowl, but baby steps (no pun intended). And she loves to cruise - she no longer needs an edge to pull herself up with - a wall, the refrigerator, a screen door, those are all enough of a steady surface to help her get onto her feet. And once she's there, she's quite the confident little girl - showing off with one hand or leaning up against it with the "look ma! no hands" face. But that's the end of her tries at mobility. If you hold her hands to try to walk with her, she pulls her feet up toward her bum, just like she used to do when you put her on grass. If I stand her up two feet in front of me, she'll stand for just long enough to realize she's standing, and instead of tipping forward and trying to walk, she'll plop down and crawl over to me. My aunt got her a learning table and a walking toy at a yard sale - learning table she loves, walking toy she hates (or at least is very much afraid of). The walking toy has some bells and whistles on the front of it, and she's more than happy to crawl around and play with those, but stand her up and have her hold on and she is not a happy camper.
I guess I should be grateful that she's not too mobile yet. It's already scary to think that I have an almost one year old, and I'm not wishing her to grow up any quicker than she is. And my mom told me I didn't walk until about 16 months, and I don't think she'll make it another 7 before her first steps. Lupita has taught her to clap while at daycare, and I suspect toddling is next. Thus far I've only "babyproofed" things that are 12 inches off the floor - once she starts standing I'll have to move my perspective up another foot.
(Family, you can stop reading now - this paragraph is exclusively for my friends who read this who still have babies at home... I mean, if you want to read it or are considering baby-proofing your house, that's cool, but this next paragraph has nothing to do with Sarah, more of a note for me). And gate preferences? I like the first years the best (the step mechanism is really nice and I think it looks the classiest... not like a house with a baby and two dogs is winning any designer awards, but...). Least favorite is the munchkin. I think the magnetic mechanism is too much. The dogs don't like any of them. All gates freak them out.
That's no to say she doesn't like to move - the main floor of our house has become a show room for various brands and sizes of baby gates, as we have three different brands on three different entrances/exits. That was the best $60 I've spent in a while as it's now been 24 hours since I've had to chase Sarah up the stairs. Having lost that distraction, she now goes exclusively toward the other two things she's not supposed to do - emptying off the bottom shelf on the entertainment unit and playing in the dogs water bowl, but baby steps (no pun intended). And she loves to cruise - she no longer needs an edge to pull herself up with - a wall, the refrigerator, a screen door, those are all enough of a steady surface to help her get onto her feet. And once she's there, she's quite the confident little girl - showing off with one hand or leaning up against it with the "look ma! no hands" face. But that's the end of her tries at mobility. If you hold her hands to try to walk with her, she pulls her feet up toward her bum, just like she used to do when you put her on grass. If I stand her up two feet in front of me, she'll stand for just long enough to realize she's standing, and instead of tipping forward and trying to walk, she'll plop down and crawl over to me. My aunt got her a learning table and a walking toy at a yard sale - learning table she loves, walking toy she hates (or at least is very much afraid of). The walking toy has some bells and whistles on the front of it, and she's more than happy to crawl around and play with those, but stand her up and have her hold on and she is not a happy camper.
I guess I should be grateful that she's not too mobile yet. It's already scary to think that I have an almost one year old, and I'm not wishing her to grow up any quicker than she is. And my mom told me I didn't walk until about 16 months, and I don't think she'll make it another 7 before her first steps. Lupita has taught her to clap while at daycare, and I suspect toddling is next. Thus far I've only "babyproofed" things that are 12 inches off the floor - once she starts standing I'll have to move my perspective up another foot.
(Family, you can stop reading now - this paragraph is exclusively for my friends who read this who still have babies at home... I mean, if you want to read it or are considering baby-proofing your house, that's cool, but this next paragraph has nothing to do with Sarah, more of a note for me). And gate preferences? I like the first years the best (the step mechanism is really nice and I think it looks the classiest... not like a house with a baby and two dogs is winning any designer awards, but...). Least favorite is the munchkin. I think the magnetic mechanism is too much. The dogs don't like any of them. All gates freak them out.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Miss Independent
Cheese is better than chicken, which is better than sweet potatoes which is better than broccoli (even if hummus is mixed in to make it thicker and tastier). Or at least that is what Sarah "told" me today while taking a break at the food court at Dulles Town Center. When Sarah started eating real food, the only thing she originally didn't like was peaches, and soon even those became palatable. We went out to eat in Bethany Beach, she wasn't a huge fan of my fish (side note, cutest face ever as she tried spitting it out and shaking her head to rid her mouth of all remnants), but as far as I can remember, those are the only two times she hasn't liked what she's eaten.
Recently, this has all changed. She no longer will eat whatever is for dinner. This makes packing for trips quite difficult because I have to bring the equivalent of three meals with me at any given time, not being sure what will go over well that day. I normally throw in some sweet potatoes or applesauce, as those rarely are rejected, but today even the former was not a winner. My new favorite behavior is her ability to physically choose between like items. I love now that when I put small pieces of food on the table in front of her she picks and chooses what she wants to eat. Today we had pieces of chicken and cheese mixed up on the table in front of her and she very carefully chose the cheese, leaving the chicken behind. When given a choice between peas and most any other finger food, I notice the peas are the first to disappear.
And it's not just in her meal choices that I'm noticing her developing preferences. She'll crawl across an entire room to get to a toy that she wants (often that "toy" is a remote control or cell phone). Regardless of where you put her down, she often ends up in one of two spots - the stairs or the dogs water bowls. I think she knows the meaning of the word "no" but just laughs it off. Her new favorite game is "let's pull the books and DVDs off of the bottom shelf of the entertainment unit". Whenever she crawls over to the bookshelf I say "Sarah, no" and for an instant she stops... and then continues what she was doing. As a parent, when do I start enforcing behaviors? At this point, I don't really care whether she eats peas or broccoli for dinner, or prefers the ball to the stacking cups, but I do care that she throws a 10 month old tantrum if she doesn't get what she wants.
But as I sit and ponder that question, I do revel in the fact that in her own special way she's communicating with the world. Her verbalization's are mostly squeaks with a couple of "d" and "g" sounds thrown in for fun, but she does convey what she wants. And she does have preferences. I just hope that at least for another year her preference for clothes will continue to be pink and girly. I'm not sure I'm ready to leave that bandwagon just yet.
Recently, this has all changed. She no longer will eat whatever is for dinner. This makes packing for trips quite difficult because I have to bring the equivalent of three meals with me at any given time, not being sure what will go over well that day. I normally throw in some sweet potatoes or applesauce, as those rarely are rejected, but today even the former was not a winner. My new favorite behavior is her ability to physically choose between like items. I love now that when I put small pieces of food on the table in front of her she picks and chooses what she wants to eat. Today we had pieces of chicken and cheese mixed up on the table in front of her and she very carefully chose the cheese, leaving the chicken behind. When given a choice between peas and most any other finger food, I notice the peas are the first to disappear.
And it's not just in her meal choices that I'm noticing her developing preferences. She'll crawl across an entire room to get to a toy that she wants (often that "toy" is a remote control or cell phone). Regardless of where you put her down, she often ends up in one of two spots - the stairs or the dogs water bowls. I think she knows the meaning of the word "no" but just laughs it off. Her new favorite game is "let's pull the books and DVDs off of the bottom shelf of the entertainment unit". Whenever she crawls over to the bookshelf I say "Sarah, no" and for an instant she stops... and then continues what she was doing. As a parent, when do I start enforcing behaviors? At this point, I don't really care whether she eats peas or broccoli for dinner, or prefers the ball to the stacking cups, but I do care that she throws a 10 month old tantrum if she doesn't get what she wants.
But as I sit and ponder that question, I do revel in the fact that in her own special way she's communicating with the world. Her verbalization's are mostly squeaks with a couple of "d" and "g" sounds thrown in for fun, but she does convey what she wants. And she does have preferences. I just hope that at least for another year her preference for clothes will continue to be pink and girly. I'm not sure I'm ready to leave that bandwagon just yet.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Sometimes It's Hard to be a Grown Up
I know that I still haven't shared the "fun" that was our family vacation (though I probably shouldn't put my sarcastic fun in quotes when the trip itself was fun, just the getting there and getting back were not so much) but I thought after being 6 weeks behind on the last post, I'd make this one more topical.
Being a grown up sucks.
Sorry to be so blunt in my language, but this past Wednesday I went back to work. I struggled with the decision in the spring - I really wanted a part time job to the point where I had resumes in yellow folders ready to send out to various principals in the Ashburn area. Then I found out that part time jobs were going to be exceptionally difficult to come by to the point where most part time teachers that weren't grandfathered in were going to have to be part time at two schools, the worst of both worlds. So I cried and whined and decided that the financial security of having two paychecks was worth going back to a job that I loved. If I wasn't at the AOS I wouldn't be working right now - but it wasn't just any job that I was leaving, it really would have been leaving my ideal teaching job.
Leaving Sarah in February was hard. I was sad to go back, but I left a baby who mostly slept, ate, and pooped. Going back last week was far harder. Now I left a rapidly growing up child who played with me, who laughed, found joy in crawling up stairs, splashing in water bowls or taking the books and DVDs off of the bottom shelf as fast as I could put them back on. Who recognizes string cheese when I bring it near here and screams with displeasure if I don't rip it up quick enough. Though she is still not verbal, she communicates now. She curls into my shoulder when someone she doesn't know comes near, and she lets out a gleeful giggle in the morning when she first sees the dogs. When we were in Florida, T.J. and I took turns playing in the waves and holding Sarah, and whenever she saw the frolicking parent returning she would laugh and laugh and laugh. She knows me. And she knew I was leaving her.
Am I making the wrong decision? T.J. constantly reminds me that there is no wrong decision - there are pros and cons to both. I'm not normally the best person at time managemnt at work - after 3 hours of kids in the morning, I used to take my planning and catch up on email because I was too burnt out to grade or plan. This year, I am planning to use my planning to its fullest. Because this year I have a reason to chase the kids out of the building. Not just because I want to get home and catch up on whatever is saved on the DVR (because let's be honest, that doesn't occur until after Sarah goes to bed) but because I have a little girl who still squeals when I walk up to her. I know this pure, unadulterated love will not last forever. Eventually Sarah will grow up and instead of a happy dance I'll get a sarcastically toned "moommmmm". But not yet.
So why do I potentially regret going back? I love the intellectual stimulation, I wouldn't take forever off, I would only want a couple years, and then I would have regretted leaving this job. But the one thing I can't get back is time. And considering that she crawls faster than I do, cruises around furniture and takes confident steps holding onto my fingers, I suspect my little princess will be walking before I know it. And I will most likely miss her first steps. Might I miss them if I were home? Perhaps, but I would be there fore the second and third and fourth.
So for now, I'm sorry if I don't do as many things on the weekends as I used to. There are only so many more days that I can lay down, hold Sarah close to me and take our 9am nap together. I might have lost my everyday access to my favorite part of the day, but there are always Saturdays and Sundays (and snow days!).
Being a grown up sucks.
Sorry to be so blunt in my language, but this past Wednesday I went back to work. I struggled with the decision in the spring - I really wanted a part time job to the point where I had resumes in yellow folders ready to send out to various principals in the Ashburn area. Then I found out that part time jobs were going to be exceptionally difficult to come by to the point where most part time teachers that weren't grandfathered in were going to have to be part time at two schools, the worst of both worlds. So I cried and whined and decided that the financial security of having two paychecks was worth going back to a job that I loved. If I wasn't at the AOS I wouldn't be working right now - but it wasn't just any job that I was leaving, it really would have been leaving my ideal teaching job.
Leaving Sarah in February was hard. I was sad to go back, but I left a baby who mostly slept, ate, and pooped. Going back last week was far harder. Now I left a rapidly growing up child who played with me, who laughed, found joy in crawling up stairs, splashing in water bowls or taking the books and DVDs off of the bottom shelf as fast as I could put them back on. Who recognizes string cheese when I bring it near here and screams with displeasure if I don't rip it up quick enough. Though she is still not verbal, she communicates now. She curls into my shoulder when someone she doesn't know comes near, and she lets out a gleeful giggle in the morning when she first sees the dogs. When we were in Florida, T.J. and I took turns playing in the waves and holding Sarah, and whenever she saw the frolicking parent returning she would laugh and laugh and laugh. She knows me. And she knew I was leaving her.
Am I making the wrong decision? T.J. constantly reminds me that there is no wrong decision - there are pros and cons to both. I'm not normally the best person at time managemnt at work - after 3 hours of kids in the morning, I used to take my planning and catch up on email because I was too burnt out to grade or plan. This year, I am planning to use my planning to its fullest. Because this year I have a reason to chase the kids out of the building. Not just because I want to get home and catch up on whatever is saved on the DVR (because let's be honest, that doesn't occur until after Sarah goes to bed) but because I have a little girl who still squeals when I walk up to her. I know this pure, unadulterated love will not last forever. Eventually Sarah will grow up and instead of a happy dance I'll get a sarcastically toned "moommmmm". But not yet.
So why do I potentially regret going back? I love the intellectual stimulation, I wouldn't take forever off, I would only want a couple years, and then I would have regretted leaving this job. But the one thing I can't get back is time. And considering that she crawls faster than I do, cruises around furniture and takes confident steps holding onto my fingers, I suspect my little princess will be walking before I know it. And I will most likely miss her first steps. Might I miss them if I were home? Perhaps, but I would be there fore the second and third and fourth.
So for now, I'm sorry if I don't do as many things on the weekends as I used to. There are only so many more days that I can lay down, hold Sarah close to me and take our 9am nap together. I might have lost my everyday access to my favorite part of the day, but there are always Saturdays and Sundays (and snow days!).
What I Did Last Summer
As I've been back at work for three days (and haven't updated this blog in a month) I figured I would title this blog one of the most trite and overused activities ever to go on in a classroom - tell us what you did last summer. Since I've last posted here we've had quite the summer - I debated breaking it down into smaller posts, but I decided to just combine all of our summer activities into one giant post, and then I'll write additional posts about all of the milestones Sarah has accomplished in the last month or so (though she didn't start walking before I went back to work, so I'll most likely miss her first steps, sigh).
I swore I was going to take her to the pool this summer...and summer came and went... and we never went to OUR pool. We did however go to Ida Lee twice and a neighbors pool once, so at least she had some exposure to the world of over chlorinated water. First thing I learned this summer, Sarah likes the taste of chlorine. She would entertain herself for hours (ok, minutes) at a time by dipping her hand in the water and then licking it clean. I figure there have been worse things that she's eaten, so I wasn't too concerned. On July 17th we made our first trip to the pool, and though she was a bit nervous when we let her "float" (holding onto her of course, just not supporting her legs on our legs or the bottom of the pool) she appeared to have a good time.
At this point we still had not decided upon summer vacation plans, so, taking full advantage of having finished summer school the next day we packed up and went to Bethany Beach, thanks to the wonderful hospitality of the Brigleb family. We were discussing going to the beach in Florida, but I was reticent to purchase expensive plane tickets and a pricey hotel if Sarah wouldn't like the beach, so I also viewed this as a trial run. Things I learned about Sarah's first trip to the beach.
She loved having the wind blow in her face.
And she loved, loved loved to eat sand. Carol had called her pediatrician when Jay was little and was told that sand would just "go right through them" so again, I wasn't too worried about this new item in her diet. We tried going into the ocean on this trip, but after just holding her and dipping her toes into the water they turned purple (like actually dark purple) because the water was so cold, so we just stayed on the beach... and continued to eat sand.
I guess since the purpose of this blog is to chronicle her firsts, I should put down Sarah's first junk food... beach french fries.
When it comes to vacations, I am NOT a very impulsive person, but after having such a great time at the Delaware Beaches (where I would return just for the opportunity to shop at the Disney Outlet again!) we booked a flight to Sunny Isles Beach, Florida... for the following week. I really did intend for this blog to be about all of our summer travels, but I think at this point the posting is getting long, so I'll dedicate another post entirely to our first family vacation. Just no promises it will be up before our second or third.
Two short weeks later (because I must have a death wish after the "fun" that was the plane ride to West Palm Beach... more about that later), we were off again, this time to visit T.J.'s family in the suburbs of Chicago. For a short trip we kept very bush, a trip to the arboretum, the zoo, a visit to Great Grandma, lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of food, and of course, Kate beating Uncle T.J. at soccer. After a July that was actually the hottest on record, the weather in Illinois was perfect. We spent the first day at the Morton arboretum just enjoying being outside. The next day we drove to Northwest Indiana to visit T.J.'s grandma. Just days before her 94th birthday and she was looking fabulous!
The next day was a Sarah's first trip to the zoo. As an environmental scientist, I appreciate zoos for what they're doing with species survival programs, but sometimes they make me sad seeing big animals in small spaces. The Brookfield Zoo though has done a fabulous job in really making the spaces seem large and open. As much as her cousins kept trying to point out the animals, Sarah was more enthralled by things like fences, railings and people and dirt. There was one great exhibit where you stood under an incoming tide where a very large quantity of water was dumped above your head - that got a rise out of her, as did the birds flying around in the penguin room and the dolphins (I think she was following them, either that or she was getting tired and her head was kinda just lolling around).
I realize that this has basically become a vehicle to share a series of pictures... and I didn't even delve yet into the fun that was Florida, so perhaps I'll try to be better about updating this more often. However, please indulge me with one more picture of the reason we traveled... two weeks after we travelled and 10 days after we travelled. Family.
I swore I was going to take her to the pool this summer...and summer came and went... and we never went to OUR pool. We did however go to Ida Lee twice and a neighbors pool once, so at least she had some exposure to the world of over chlorinated water. First thing I learned this summer, Sarah likes the taste of chlorine. She would entertain herself for hours (ok, minutes) at a time by dipping her hand in the water and then licking it clean. I figure there have been worse things that she's eaten, so I wasn't too concerned. On July 17th we made our first trip to the pool, and though she was a bit nervous when we let her "float" (holding onto her of course, just not supporting her legs on our legs or the bottom of the pool) she appeared to have a good time.
At this point we still had not decided upon summer vacation plans, so, taking full advantage of having finished summer school the next day we packed up and went to Bethany Beach, thanks to the wonderful hospitality of the Brigleb family. We were discussing going to the beach in Florida, but I was reticent to purchase expensive plane tickets and a pricey hotel if Sarah wouldn't like the beach, so I also viewed this as a trial run. Things I learned about Sarah's first trip to the beach.
She loved having the wind blow in her face.
I guess since the purpose of this blog is to chronicle her firsts, I should put down Sarah's first junk food... beach french fries.
When it comes to vacations, I am NOT a very impulsive person, but after having such a great time at the Delaware Beaches (where I would return just for the opportunity to shop at the Disney Outlet again!) we booked a flight to Sunny Isles Beach, Florida... for the following week. I really did intend for this blog to be about all of our summer travels, but I think at this point the posting is getting long, so I'll dedicate another post entirely to our first family vacation. Just no promises it will be up before our second or third.
Two short weeks later (because I must have a death wish after the "fun" that was the plane ride to West Palm Beach... more about that later), we were off again, this time to visit T.J.'s family in the suburbs of Chicago. For a short trip we kept very bush, a trip to the arboretum, the zoo, a visit to Great Grandma, lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of food, and of course, Kate beating Uncle T.J. at soccer. After a July that was actually the hottest on record, the weather in Illinois was perfect. We spent the first day at the Morton arboretum just enjoying being outside. The next day we drove to Northwest Indiana to visit T.J.'s grandma. Just days before her 94th birthday and she was looking fabulous!
The next day was a Sarah's first trip to the zoo. As an environmental scientist, I appreciate zoos for what they're doing with species survival programs, but sometimes they make me sad seeing big animals in small spaces. The Brookfield Zoo though has done a fabulous job in really making the spaces seem large and open. As much as her cousins kept trying to point out the animals, Sarah was more enthralled by things like fences, railings and people and dirt. There was one great exhibit where you stood under an incoming tide where a very large quantity of water was dumped above your head - that got a rise out of her, as did the birds flying around in the penguin room and the dolphins (I think she was following them, either that or she was getting tired and her head was kinda just lolling around).
I realize that this has basically become a vehicle to share a series of pictures... and I didn't even delve yet into the fun that was Florida, so perhaps I'll try to be better about updating this more often. However, please indulge me with one more picture of the reason we traveled... two weeks after we travelled and 10 days after we travelled. Family.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
A Great Day for Up!
I loved that book as a child, and as today Sarah went to a book themed birthday party, I thought it was a fitting title for this post (pictures from the party with be forthcoming). Sarah has become remarkable adept at pulling herself up onto objects - most of the time they're stationary, though she's had some issues with trying to stand holding onto the base of a carseat (it rocks) or a stroller (it rolls). Normally this isn't an issue as she's never out of eyesight... except when she's in her crib at night. This morning when we went to get her out of bed she was standing and holding onto the edge of her crib, and when I went to get her after her nap she had also pulled herself up. As we hadn't lowered the crib mattress yet, this was quite easy for her, and yet quite precarious. I've learned in the past 9 months that what gets done is often what Sarah dictates that we must do RIGHT THEN, so this morning instead of going to the gym or folding laundry, we spent time lowering the crib mattress. I just put her down for the night now, and she missed her afternoon nap today (and we paid for that tonight) so it will be interesting to see what position we find her in in the morning. I suspect the position we'll find her sleeping in tonight is the same as always, on her tummy, legs tucked under herself, tush in the air.
In other news, we've moved onto protein in her diet. One of the advantages I've found with making her food is that texture doesn't seem to weird her out - I've read that babies who are on jarred baby food have a harder transition to table food since their food is so smooth, while food that I make is always a bit lumpy, irregardless of how long I run the food processor. So at lunch today, T.J. ordered grilled chicken from the kabob place, so I decided to try to give her some piece of chicken that I tore up into small bites.
In other news, we've moved onto protein in her diet. One of the advantages I've found with making her food is that texture doesn't seem to weird her out - I've read that babies who are on jarred baby food have a harder transition to table food since their food is so smooth, while food that I make is always a bit lumpy, irregardless of how long I run the food processor. So at lunch today, T.J. ordered grilled chicken from the kabob place, so I decided to try to give her some piece of chicken that I tore up into small bites.
As evidenced by the pictures, she really took well to "real food" (even though it had a bit of kick to it... apparently she also likes spices). It is becoming easier to feed her now - even though it's much messier as she prefers to try to feed herself, I don't need to mash up or puree everything. At the aforementioned birthday party this evening, I was able to just rip off pieces of banana or pull of bits of pizza and give them to her to gnaw on. I was worried about how we were going to travel with all of her homemade baby food, but the last couple days have shown me that as long as I bring some veggies, she can really make do with whatever I can find.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Little Baby, Big Head
Andrews girls have big heads. And I guess I have passed that gene on to my daughter. I thought she was getting so tall, but she's only grown 1" in the past 3 months - up to a whopping 27" long (as TJ pointed out, that's 6" longer than she was when she was born!), which is in the 36 percentile. She now weighs in at more than a bowling ball - 18 lbs, only the 31st percentile, but though I forget the exact number, her head circumfrence is in the 57th percentile. Go big head!
In other words, I'm going to have to start babyproofing sooner than later. At my parents house for dinner tonight Sarah will now crawl across the floor to a table, and pull herself up on the table, regardless of the height (or the sharp corners). Just looking around our family room right now I see chairs that are unstable, tables that have sharp corners, books and game systems just waiting to be pulled on top of a little head, and plugs that are just asking for little fingers to be stuck into them. It's amazing how differently I look at a room or anything now when viewed from the perspective of a month. I may not care about germs - a binkie falls on the floor I am a firm believer in the 5 second (ok, 10 second) rule, but large heavy objects are a different store.
In other words, I'm going to have to start babyproofing sooner than later. At my parents house for dinner tonight Sarah will now crawl across the floor to a table, and pull herself up on the table, regardless of the height (or the sharp corners). Just looking around our family room right now I see chairs that are unstable, tables that have sharp corners, books and game systems just waiting to be pulled on top of a little head, and plugs that are just asking for little fingers to be stuck into them. It's amazing how differently I look at a room or anything now when viewed from the perspective of a month. I may not care about germs - a binkie falls on the floor I am a firm believer in the 5 second (ok, 10 second) rule, but large heavy objects are a different store.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
9 Months
Last week someone said to me isn't it strange that Sarah has been outside of you for as long as she was inside of you? And I responded, not quite. And though technically 40 weeks isn't until another 8 days or so, I feel 9 months is somewhat of a milestone. We got her a leapster table a couple weeks ago off Craigslist and in the few weeks since we've had it, she can now pull herself up to a standing position using it, and grab across the table to the "instruments" that she likes best, when before she couldn't reach. My mother and TJ commented this morning how tall she's gotten, so I'm quite excited about getting her measured tomorrow, though I suspect this means she's nearing the end of her infant car seat.
In other developments Sarah has graduated from creeping to crawling. And she's fast! If she sees something she wants, she's off and ... crawling? Unfortunately she has not yet discerned the ability to realize that she can't keep crawling once she reaches the edge of the couch or our bed. We've added more and more solids to her diet, which makes keeping her busy at restaurants much easier now that I can just rip off a piece of bread or some rice and feed it to her. Though she is starting to develop an independent streak, where she wants to feed herself. I'm not sure I'm ready for that mess yet.
No talking yet - but she's great at imitating snorting. For some reason she no longer laughs, but curls her upper lip and snorts. Perhaps her teeth get in the way. Or perhaps the baby cold that she's passed to everyone else in the family continues to rear its ugly head. I suspect we'll get a mama (or more likely a dada) sometime this month. I'm excited except I read on some message board it's so much harder to ignore a crying baby and let her put herself back to sleep when she's not only crying, but she's crying for you.
As this blog is for my own records, I'll probably post again tomorrow with her weight, since I know her Grandma and Ppa are always concerned about their little peanut!
Friday, June 24, 2011
Mans Best Friend
I love this picture on so many different levels - I like the color, the angle, and the fact that I'm glad that the doggies have a new friend who feeds them cheerios while trying to feed herself. Whenever she sits at her high chair or chair hooked to the counter, she hangs her hand down just asking the dogs to giver her kisses (even if they're feet below her and don't stand a chance of being petted). Whenever I let the dogs out of their crate, Bailey always goes straight to the couch where Sarah normally sits to say hi, before greeting me (or scratching at the door to go outside). When she cries in the middle of the night, sometimes I go into her room and I notice the door has been pushed open and Toby or Bailey is sleeping next to her crib. I just hope this love between them continues when she tries to start riding them or pulling their tails.
On the Move
Sarah was a late mover. I was a spoiled mom. Ever since she's been born she's liked to be upright. Even in the hospital she was never a baby that you could snuggle in your arms and rock to sleep - she much preferred to be over your shoulder looking around at the world. I think it was that predisposition that had her sitting at a young age - around 5 months. However, she had no desire to move once she was upright. She'd grunt and groan if something she wanted was out of her reach, but she didn't seem to realize that by rolling over or scooting forward she might actually be able to attain it for herself. She also has never like sleeping on her back, so I think that delayed her rolling - she's preferred to sleep on her side since she was very young, and if you put her on her back, she was talented enough to get herself to her side to get back to sleep - and mommy and daddy liked this too, because a baby on her side was much less likely to lose her binky.
Somewhere near the end of May she decided she'd start rolling over. Somewhere near the beginning of June she decided to start "inchworm crawling", where she'll put the entire front half of her body down on the floor, scoot her legs forward, lift her body up, and try again. If I can figure out how to link video to this/get video off our camcorder, I'll post video of it because it's quite funny. Recently, we've moved forward toward what I consider real crawling. She doesn't quite move forward yet on hands and knees, but she holds herself up on them, and will move one leg forward before she loses track of what she wanted to do.
Moving has become a challenge and a game to her. Pillows, dogs, and legs are now obstacles to cross. I left her on the floor in our bedroom to run downstairs to get her bottle, and I can't do that anymore as when I came back she had crawled under the baby gate blocking the entrance to our room and had got herself stuck. She doesn't pull herself up on objects yet, but can push herself up to her legs - so if I'm lying down she'll crawl over to me and push herself to a modified plank position on her hands and legs. I envy her ab strength. Twice while writing this I had to stop to keep her from crawling off the couch. Unfortunately along with her new-found mobility does not come an appreciation for being on top of high places.
Standing makes her happy - whenever she's upset, most of the time if you just put her in a standing position she calms right down. I hope she'll make it the next three weeks, but I suspect my post summer school time will be spent baby proofing the house. And thus ends 9 months of relative peace.
Somewhere near the end of May she decided she'd start rolling over. Somewhere near the beginning of June she decided to start "inchworm crawling", where she'll put the entire front half of her body down on the floor, scoot her legs forward, lift her body up, and try again. If I can figure out how to link video to this/get video off our camcorder, I'll post video of it because it's quite funny. Recently, we've moved forward toward what I consider real crawling. She doesn't quite move forward yet on hands and knees, but she holds herself up on them, and will move one leg forward before she loses track of what she wanted to do.
Moving has become a challenge and a game to her. Pillows, dogs, and legs are now obstacles to cross. I left her on the floor in our bedroom to run downstairs to get her bottle, and I can't do that anymore as when I came back she had crawled under the baby gate blocking the entrance to our room and had got herself stuck. She doesn't pull herself up on objects yet, but can push herself up to her legs - so if I'm lying down she'll crawl over to me and push herself to a modified plank position on her hands and legs. I envy her ab strength. Twice while writing this I had to stop to keep her from crawling off the couch. Unfortunately along with her new-found mobility does not come an appreciation for being on top of high places.
Standing makes her happy - whenever she's upset, most of the time if you just put her in a standing position she calms right down. I hope she'll make it the next three weeks, but I suspect my post summer school time will be spent baby proofing the house. And thus ends 9 months of relative peace.
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| Sarah loves her musical table - mostly because it's the right height to stand up against! |
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Down on the Farm (in South Riding)
Sarah does not like goats. Or camels, or cows, or a large furry animal that we could not figure out what it was. Yesterday we went to the "Celebrate South Riding" festival where there was a free petting zoo. Sarah does great with Toby and Bailey - she lets them lick her face, she pets them, sticks her fingers in their mouths, so I figured a petting zoo would be something that she was into. I was wrong. This was the first time I ever saw abject fear in my daughter. Anytime I put her anywhere near the animals (and some of the kids (goats, not humans) were really really tiny!) she would cower into my shoulder and start crying. Every time. Every animal. It wasn't the size of the animal - the baby goats were just as scary as the camel - it was the fact they were animals. I worry now about taking her to Disney - will the giant life sized mouse freak her out too?
I did have T.J. take one picture of us trying to pet the animals.
So we missed our afternoon nap yesterday - we slept so well in the morning that she wasn't ready for a nap until we were already heading out the door. My goal was to make it to the fireworks because I love fireworks, but as soon as she had a meltdown I was prepared to leave. We lucked out - no meltdown! She just fell asleep for a nap right in my arms.
Considering how scary the goats were, we really weren't sure how fireworks would go over. But the loud noises and bright lights didn't seem to phase her. I think she's become accustomed to loud bangs and barks at home. Special thanks to Toby and Bailey for prepping Sarah to not freak out in the presence of startling noises.
So newest lessons learned in parenting. We can stay out past bedtime without meltdowns, goats are scary, and fireworks are fun. I think we can live with that. P.S. Sarah has her first boyfriend :)
So we missed our afternoon nap yesterday - we slept so well in the morning that she wasn't ready for a nap until we were already heading out the door. My goal was to make it to the fireworks because I love fireworks, but as soon as she had a meltdown I was prepared to leave. We lucked out - no meltdown! She just fell asleep for a nap right in my arms.
Considering how scary the goats were, we really weren't sure how fireworks would go over. But the loud noises and bright lights didn't seem to phase her. I think she's become accustomed to loud bangs and barks at home. Special thanks to Toby and Bailey for prepping Sarah to not freak out in the presence of startling noises.
So newest lessons learned in parenting. We can stay out past bedtime without meltdowns, goats are scary, and fireworks are fun. I think we can live with that. P.S. Sarah has her first boyfriend :)
Monday, May 30, 2011
Water Baby
I've come to realize that the camera that I had was just not good enough with a quick moving baby in the house. By the time my shutter snapped Sarah had already moved on from whatever cute action/adorable face she was making or doing. So our weekend began with a trip to Best Buy to buy a new camera (and yes, it does take great pictures inside without a flash, and yes, I did research and it was less expensive at best buy than online). This camera has some fun modes that I'm sure I'll grow tired of quite quickly, but was fun to play with this weekend. I'd like to thank my daughter and my dogs for being (somewhat) willing models.
Toby thought the pool was a giant water bowl. I think he was annoyed that the baby was in his bowl as opposed to Sarah being annoyed that Toby was in her pool.
With the temperature projected to maybe hit 100 tomorrow, and the pool only taking two buckets of water to fill, "See you later, alligator" pool may just have to make another appearance tomorrow.
Toby in supersaturated color
Our house in fish eye
Bailey in the toy camera mode
On the way to the grocery store today my car thermometer registered 98 degrees, so while at Walmart we made an impulse buy of a baby pool. I wasn't quite sure how this would go over as bath time is hit or miss as to whether it's fun or torture, but it was so hot today I figured she might like to cool down. So after almost passing out blowing up the pool, we put her in her (already almost too small!) bathing suit and plopped her down.
She stayed in for almost 40 minutes until she decided she wanted to try to crawl out.
She was kicking, splashing, and having all sorts of fun! Even without any toys in the pool with her, the idea of a hot day and water was enough. Next time I think I might try to bring out some shampoo and just use the baby pool as a bathtub. Far less drama.
With the temperature projected to maybe hit 100 tomorrow, and the pool only taking two buckets of water to fill, "See you later, alligator" pool may just have to make another appearance tomorrow.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Happy Mothers Day 2011
I know this is after Mothers Day by a couple weeks, but I just received our pictures in the email today, so I figured this would be a good time to share. I had an INCREDIBLE first mothers day. T.J. made me breakfast in the morning, and the we went out to Notaviva Vineyards. They were having a mothers day special where for what amounted to $10 you got a professional picture. Since my parents decided to join us (the day before they were leaving for Europe) I got two pictures take - one of the Flynn family and one of 3 generations.
From there we were going to go to Hillsborough Vineyards but missed the turn and serendipitously ended up turning in Loudoun Valley Vineyards. Though the tasting room was a bit dated, it was free wine tasting and free cupcakes for moms, and the grounds were lovely. T.J. took a whole series of pictures of Sarah and I, and I didn't realize why until later that night.
Before dinner at Ford's Fish Shack, Sarah gave me a present that she made for me - a tri-fold frame with her hand print on one side and her foot print on the other. Though her foot was a little big larger than it should have been (daddy said she was not too cooperative with that), it really was the perfect gift for a perfect day.
Thanks Sarah! Mommy loves you very much!
From there we were going to go to Hillsborough Vineyards but missed the turn and serendipitously ended up turning in Loudoun Valley Vineyards. Though the tasting room was a bit dated, it was free wine tasting and free cupcakes for moms, and the grounds were lovely. T.J. took a whole series of pictures of Sarah and I, and I didn't realize why until later that night.
Thanks Sarah! Mommy loves you very much!
Summer is in the air (even though it's only May)
So we had a busy weekend this weekend, all of which kept me from doing what I should have been doing (grading, cleaning) but at least I got to enjoy the almost perfect weather. Friday night Sarah went to her first concert. My daughter is a baby after my own heart - she loves music (and it's not thanks to what I played her while I was pregnant, since most of the time my car is tuned to NPR). When I sing to her, be it lullaby's or Katy Perry she bounces along happy as a clam and apparently really loud rock music also makes her happy. We went to Herndon Rocks with some friends, and there was a point where she was laying on her back staring at the (starless) sky and just kicking her legs bouncing around. She also took time there to practice her new found rolling and scooting skills. I am going to have to baby proof the house sooner than I expected.
Saturday Great grandma Andrews came back from Florida. Again, the weather was perfect so we took time to hang out on the deck bouncing around. This was the best picture I got of Sarah and Grandma mostly because she doesn't sit still. I am glad that my grandmother has moved on from calling her "baby" to using her name. I am so lucky to have my grandma in my life, and even luckier that Sarah can have not one but three great grandmas.
Today we were supposed to be productive and really, for the first five or six hours we were... then the weather was nice, and I live on a fabulous street, so Sarah got some quality time playing on neighbors toys. The best part of the day was the girl who LOVES to stand up would NOT put her feet down on grass. As soon as they were anywhere near the grass she's pull them up into a sitting position and freak out if she got too close. As much as I love having a little princess, I'm not sure I can deal with one who won't get a little bit dirty. Thanks to Gabi and Anna for sharing their dog.
I don't know how many more days left in school I have, but weather likes this really makes me wish summer were already here.
Saturday Great grandma Andrews came back from Florida. Again, the weather was perfect so we took time to hang out on the deck bouncing around. This was the best picture I got of Sarah and Grandma mostly because she doesn't sit still. I am glad that my grandmother has moved on from calling her "baby" to using her name. I am so lucky to have my grandma in my life, and even luckier that Sarah can have not one but three great grandmas.
Today we were supposed to be productive and really, for the first five or six hours we were... then the weather was nice, and I live on a fabulous street, so Sarah got some quality time playing on neighbors toys. The best part of the day was the girl who LOVES to stand up would NOT put her feet down on grass. As soon as they were anywhere near the grass she's pull them up into a sitting position and freak out if she got too close. As much as I love having a little princess, I'm not sure I can deal with one who won't get a little bit dirty. Thanks to Gabi and Anna for sharing their dog.
I don't know how many more days left in school I have, but weather likes this really makes me wish summer were already here.
Friday, May 20, 2011
And then there were 2....
An update for the baby book - last night T.J was trying to feel the tooth and he noticed that there was more than one down there (before she locked her jaws super tight so we couldn't get into her mouth). Today she spit out her binky across the car while running errands, and I put my finger in her mouth to quiet her down a bit. Note to self: Even with two teeth she's already figured out how to bite.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
What's in a Name?
I know there are quite a few posts in quite a short period of time, but this blog is my way of putting memories down on paper, and I thought of another thing today that I want to write down (so I can print it out and one day just stick this in her baby book).
Sarah was not Sarah for the first two or three days of her life. It took the birth registrar three visits to our hospital room before we agreed to sign the paper that gave her a name, and even that it was with some reluctance. We found out that Sarah was a girl when I was 19 weeks pregnant, and one of the reasons that we wanted to know is that I am the worlds worst decision maker and we thought we'd need that much time to come up with a name. I think perhaps less time might have been useful.
A list of the finalists and why they weren't chosen:
Teresa/Theresa (we were leaning toward the first spelling): I love the name Teresa, but even more I love the nickname Tessa. T.J. was fine with Teresa, but he didn't like Tessa and we figured that calling our baby girl by two different names might have been a bit confusing.
Molly: A late entry into the field, but once I found out that Molly is the number one dogs name in America, I couldn't name my daughter that. And as soon as we ruled out Molly, my aunt and two of our nurses said they knew Molly dogs.
Caroline (Callie): Callie is a name we both liked, but we couldn't agree on a long name form of it. Calista is too Calista Flockhart (Sarah, you'll have no idea who she is in 20 years) and Calliope reminds me of an organ grinder monkey. I did look up that Caroline can be a long name for Callie, but like the Teresa issue, it was a stretch and therefore not a winner. This name though may come up again if Sarah ever has a sister.
Hannah/Leah: I still love both of these names, but T.J. said I couldn't name her after the Gosslin children.
A bunch of really weird modern names like Hensley: Growing up as a Jennifer that was so trendy in the 70s and early 80s, but I wanted a name that would stand the test of time.
Haley/Hailey: Rhymes with Bailey. And though I offered to rename our dog, I didn't want the first 8 years or so confusing the dog and the baby. I do that already and Toby/Bailey sound nothing like Sarah.
Elisabeth/Elizabeth: This ended up being her middle name as it's a great family name. My grandmother is Elizabeth, T.J.'s sister is Elizabeth and my mom is Mary Elizabeth. But he didn't want to use it as a first name.
So we ended up with Sarah. Classic, biblical, and means princess. I wanted a name outside of the top 20 (it was 21 in 2009), a name that is popular but not #1. I think we did well.
And as an added bonus, Sarah fell to #30 in popularity in 2010.
Sarah was not Sarah for the first two or three days of her life. It took the birth registrar three visits to our hospital room before we agreed to sign the paper that gave her a name, and even that it was with some reluctance. We found out that Sarah was a girl when I was 19 weeks pregnant, and one of the reasons that we wanted to know is that I am the worlds worst decision maker and we thought we'd need that much time to come up with a name. I think perhaps less time might have been useful.
A list of the finalists and why they weren't chosen:
Teresa/Theresa (we were leaning toward the first spelling): I love the name Teresa, but even more I love the nickname Tessa. T.J. was fine with Teresa, but he didn't like Tessa and we figured that calling our baby girl by two different names might have been a bit confusing.
Molly: A late entry into the field, but once I found out that Molly is the number one dogs name in America, I couldn't name my daughter that. And as soon as we ruled out Molly, my aunt and two of our nurses said they knew Molly dogs.
Caroline (Callie): Callie is a name we both liked, but we couldn't agree on a long name form of it. Calista is too Calista Flockhart (Sarah, you'll have no idea who she is in 20 years) and Calliope reminds me of an organ grinder monkey. I did look up that Caroline can be a long name for Callie, but like the Teresa issue, it was a stretch and therefore not a winner. This name though may come up again if Sarah ever has a sister.
Hannah/Leah: I still love both of these names, but T.J. said I couldn't name her after the Gosslin children.
A bunch of really weird modern names like Hensley: Growing up as a Jennifer that was so trendy in the 70s and early 80s, but I wanted a name that would stand the test of time.
Haley/Hailey: Rhymes with Bailey. And though I offered to rename our dog, I didn't want the first 8 years or so confusing the dog and the baby. I do that already and Toby/Bailey sound nothing like Sarah.
Elisabeth/Elizabeth: This ended up being her middle name as it's a great family name. My grandmother is Elizabeth, T.J.'s sister is Elizabeth and my mom is Mary Elizabeth. But he didn't want to use it as a first name.
So we ended up with Sarah. Classic, biblical, and means princess. I wanted a name outside of the top 20 (it was 21 in 2009), a name that is popular but not #1. I think we did well.
And as an added bonus, Sarah fell to #30 in popularity in 2010.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
The Good Eater Award
I suspect the frequency of posts will greatly decrease in the coming months (years?) but I have 7 months of baby life to catch up on, so I figure a few more thrown in at the beginning won't hurt.
Sarah is her daddy's daughter when it comes to eating. She got off to a little bit of a late start, losing weight for the first couple weeks and all, but since then she's been a champ! Anytime a bottle comes near her mouth she makes this cute little fish mouth face like she's drinking it already. However, the girl hates water. Even water spiked with pear juice to make it nice and sweet, no interest in in. If it even makes it in her mouth (because sometimes I swear she smells it coming... even though water has no smell?) she'll bat it away until you put it down. We've got to work on this at some point, but baby steps.
Solid food has been a fun game to play! I'm making all of her food thus far - I feel it's something that I can give her if I have to leave her to work every day, and so far it's been pretty easy - big steaming sessions on the weekends and lots of ice cube sized food pieces to serve during the week. There is a video on facebook of our first try of solid food - sweet potatoes, but since then we've had quite an expanded pallate - sweet potatoes, zucchini, green beans, peas, apples, pears, bananas at home and avocado, papaya and fabulous fruits at daycare. So far this baby has yet to see something on a spoon that she doesn't want to eat.
Today we explored the realm of hard food with cheerios. Sarah had a grand total of four (not four scoops, or four cups, four) but it took almost 15 minutes to have her try to get them in her mouth,then drop then, get them in her mouth, drop them, have me feed her, have her gum it since she has only 1 tooth, then swallow. The only ones we had in the house were multigrain, but some of the faces she made were priceless. We might try cheerios again tomorrow, this time with video camera in hand.
Sarah is her daddy's daughter when it comes to eating. She got off to a little bit of a late start, losing weight for the first couple weeks and all, but since then she's been a champ! Anytime a bottle comes near her mouth she makes this cute little fish mouth face like she's drinking it already. However, the girl hates water. Even water spiked with pear juice to make it nice and sweet, no interest in in. If it even makes it in her mouth (because sometimes I swear she smells it coming... even though water has no smell?) she'll bat it away until you put it down. We've got to work on this at some point, but baby steps.
Solid food has been a fun game to play! I'm making all of her food thus far - I feel it's something that I can give her if I have to leave her to work every day, and so far it's been pretty easy - big steaming sessions on the weekends and lots of ice cube sized food pieces to serve during the week. There is a video on facebook of our first try of solid food - sweet potatoes, but since then we've had quite an expanded pallate - sweet potatoes, zucchini, green beans, peas, apples, pears, bananas at home and avocado, papaya and fabulous fruits at daycare. So far this baby has yet to see something on a spoon that she doesn't want to eat.
Today we explored the realm of hard food with cheerios. Sarah had a grand total of four (not four scoops, or four cups, four) but it took almost 15 minutes to have her try to get them in her mouth,then drop then, get them in her mouth, drop them, have me feed her, have her gum it since she has only 1 tooth, then swallow. The only ones we had in the house were multigrain, but some of the faces she made were priceless. We might try cheerios again tomorrow, this time with video camera in hand.
The Flynn Effect
So I've been really bad at keeping a baby book. The first couple months when I was home with Sarah (and going to the doctor every other day for some malady or another) I was very good at putting in her weight and height and head percentile, but I don't think I've written a single thing in her baby book since I've gone back to work. And that was the end of January. Recently I feel she's hitting milestones left and right, and if I don't record them somewhere they're going to be lost in time and when Sarah is 18 and asks me when she got her first tooth my answer will be "before you were 1". My grandmother knows that my dad got his first tooth at 4 months old and I do not have the memory my grandmother does, so I'm hoping this helps me keep track of time.
I have to give Meredith credit for the title of this blog. This really was a spur of the moment thing, and she happened to call when I was on the page that had me pick a title. Apparently "The Flynn Effect" refers to the rising of IQs over the past 100 years. I had to wiki that to find out, and though I don't think reading this will make you any smarter, hopefully it will give you a bit of insight into life with our firstborn, especially if you're family far away. Plus the name was just plain catchy.
I make no promises as to how often or not often this will be updated. I hope this won't be the only post, but with clothes to watch, games to play, houses to clean, papers to grade, shopping to do, who knows. But it does take less time to do this than to find the baby book, so here's hoping.
P.S. Sarah got her first tooth this past Sunday, May 15th, and started rolling over (like again and again and again) this morning. I just had to pause writing to keep her from rolling off the couch next to me. What will this amazing girl do next?
I have to give Meredith credit for the title of this blog. This really was a spur of the moment thing, and she happened to call when I was on the page that had me pick a title. Apparently "The Flynn Effect" refers to the rising of IQs over the past 100 years. I had to wiki that to find out, and though I don't think reading this will make you any smarter, hopefully it will give you a bit of insight into life with our firstborn, especially if you're family far away. Plus the name was just plain catchy.
I make no promises as to how often or not often this will be updated. I hope this won't be the only post, but with clothes to watch, games to play, houses to clean, papers to grade, shopping to do, who knows. But it does take less time to do this than to find the baby book, so here's hoping.
P.S. Sarah got her first tooth this past Sunday, May 15th, and started rolling over (like again and again and again) this morning. I just had to pause writing to keep her from rolling off the couch next to me. What will this amazing girl do next?
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