Spring Break, I Hardly Knew Thee

Here we are, at the end of spring break. I can't say it was my most productive or exciting break ever. But with a six-month-old, I knew things were going to be fairly low-key. We'll try to live it up next year, perhaps.

The weather was awesome and we played outside a ton - Annie loves the swing!

 

Annie continued to hone those sitting-up skills.

So proud of her puzzle skills.

Perplexed by the whole sippy cup thing. But it sure is fun to throw on the floor!

The best part of the week was this last weekend. We dropped the girls off at Grandma's house and headed out for a night on the town. First stop, killing time at Ikea, wandering around, having a spot of coffee, just like the pre-kiddo days. Then we headed to our pastor's home for a church band get together. (It was way less lame than that sentence made it sound, I promise. There was much talking, laughing, and I was pretty much just excited to be child-free for the evening.) We left late, drove to our hotel and got checked in, then decided to be party animals and headed back out at 10:30 (when usually I'm fast asleep) to Eclipse de Luna, a fun little tapas place. We had mojitos and sangria and delicious food and stayed up much, much later than I even thought possible. Meanwhile, the girls had an awesome time without us. Violet got to premiere Frozen for Grandma, Annie was her usual charming self, everyone had a great time. It's funny, leaving Violet for the first time overnight took an entire year. I was a bundle of nerves. It seemed like such a momentous occasion. Thank goodness for second babies. Everything is easier.

And speaking of second babies, it's amazing to me that I'm already packing up Annie's baby stuff. Everything of Violet's we saved, on the off chance we had another girl. Now I'm just eager to get it out of the house! Baby clothes are being boxed up, outgrown gear is being wiped down, packed away, ready to be passed on. Anyone need anything?

Jammin' at Grandma's house.

Trying Something New

Getting big enough to try something new.

Thinking about it.

Eh, still rather unimpressed.

Have a Seat

It's nice to see everyone can get use out of our baby gear... I imagine the cat will be hopping in one of these days.

Hands Free Baby

I'm not traditionally a baby-wearer. First off, I really dislike the term "baby wearing". It's not like my infant in a fashion accessory or an article of clothing! But beyond the term, it's just not something I did a lot with Violet. We were loaned a Baby Bjorn at some point, but it was late enough that Violet never really got into it and neither did I. I seemed to just bump her into things if I ever tried to use it to help get things done. (Nothing like attempting to unload the dishwasher and banging your child's head into the granite countertop!) And honestly, it took more time to put on and configure than it would have to just pick her up and go. On top of that, we never really went places that weren't stroller accessible, and given the choice between the two, I'm going to pick stroller versus strapping on and lugging about.

But... now that I have two children to keep up with, and both still require hands-on holding, I've decided to give the whole baby carrier thing a try. Along with the Bjorn, I've also been loaned a Moby wrap. It's essentially a super long piece of heavy-duty fabric that you have to loop and tie around yourself, making these little pockets that the baby gets slipped into. I had to consult youtube just to figure out how to get the thing on! But once it was in place, both Annie and I were surprisingly comfortable.

I can actually see myself using this one. Maybe not for hanging around the house, but certainly for the pumpkin patch or zoo. But what has really convinced me is that, thanks to my c-section, I'm not supposed to be lifting anything heavy. And car seat plus baby equals heavy. I'm eager to start driving again, but what's the point in driving somewhere if I can't lug the car seat in and out of the car. Now eventually this will cease to be an issue. But for now, I can't even figure out how to go to Violet's parent appreciation breakfast at school short of holding Annie in my arms the whole time (not the safest long-term solution). But with the Moby, I could get it tied on before we leave the house, slip the baby inside once we reach our destination, and be free to grab Violet's hand before she darts across the parking lot.

We'll see if Annie ends up being fall's hottest new fashion statement. Any other baby wearing methods I should check out? Tips or tricks for getting around the car seat lifting dilemma until I'm a little further in my recovery?

Cupcake Onesies

Our circle of friends has added another baby to the brood - our friends Travis and Wendi just had a sweet little boy. I couldn't wait to meet him, and I never want to show up empty-handed, so I was poking around pintrest, looking for a unique baby gift. I bumped into this cupcake-inspired idea and decided to try my hand at it. Ya'll know me, I'm not what I would describe as naturally crafty. But this one looked easy enough for even me to attempt. The only supplies needed were the baby clothes and a cupcake box. Oh, and some tape. Check out the results below!

Presentation is key.

Cupcake box from Michaels, ribbon from my stash.

Four little onesies and two pairs of socks, all from my favorite Target.

Everything rolled up to look like yummy cupcakes, topped with little sock "cherries" in the middle.

For your baby, from my not-such-a-baby-anymore.

Violet Baby

Feeding Violet Baby. Little Tiny Baby is sharing the chair.

Violet would like to introduce you to her baby, aptly named Violet Baby. (Which is still more creative than most of the names I came up with for my childhood toys. I tended to name all my teddy bears by the color of their fur, hence the slightly racist-sounding Brownie Bear and Whitey Bear.)

Violet has become quite attached to her little baby, insisting on having her in the car, at daycare, and of course, at night. She (the doll) has been forgotten at Target (we made it to the parking lot before we discovered her MIA) and taken to Sunday School (where she stays in the backpack and waits for Violet to come get her.

Getting ready to hit the road.

Violet has also adopted a voice for her doll. The other day I heard Violet screeching in an awful high-pitched croak. When I asked her what she just said, she promptly "translated" for her doll. I've used the doll as a means of convincing Violet to do something; when Violet doesn't want to get dressed, often her baby doll will get to put on her clothes, resulting in Violet quickly changing her mind and trying to beat her doll to the punch. Ah, the means we parents go through to get the results we need!

One proud mama!

Starting Over from Scratch

One of these days my husband is going to look at me and say something romantic along the lines of "so, when are we having another kid?" Because this is pretty much how this first one came around.

Don't get me wrong, having him say those words the first time was a beautiful thing. It meant that I wasn't the only one wanting to jump the parent train. It meant I didn't have to do anything sneaky like "forget" to take my pill or whine and beg until he agreed just to shut me up. I love that Matt wanted to become a dad as much as I wanted to be a mom, and he was willing to put it out there first.

And inevitably, one of these days, we'll want another one. I'm not presuming when. I just know we both want Violet to have a sibling eventually. I even changed the name of the blog (anyone notice?) because "and then there were three" won't always apply (and I always hated that name anyway. Although not to go off on a tangent now, but I have yet to think of something witty to replace it, something that sums up exactly what I do here... of course, since I'm still figuring out exactly what I do here, naming is a rather vague endeavor.  I'm accepting suggestions. Winner gets a prize to be determined later.)

But I have to be honest. The idea of going back to the infant stage is mind-boggling to me. I love babies - their sweet, milky skin, the way they just lay there and don't talk back or argue about what clothes to wear... I digress. I love babies, I do. But what I've realized with Round One is that I really like babies when they stop being babies and start contributing.

Life got better once Violet started smiling back. Just that small reward was enough affirmation for me to know I was doing something right and my daughter might possibly like me a little. Life got much better when she could sit up by herself. It got infinitely better when she could move herself around. And when she's out of diapers and vacuuming for me? I can't even tell you how magical that will be! I know some moms that miss the infant stage, that sweet innocence. I argue that life gets far more interesting the older your child gets. It gets harder, in its own way, but more satisfying.

Sweet baby Madeline came to visit us last weekend and even though she's not an infant anymore, I still groaned when I saw the trunk full of supplies her parents had to tote for her - bags of baby food and utensils, the bottles, the bibs and clothing changes, a portable high chair, teething toys - save me! I am not looking forward to going back to that!

When I think of the way the baby bottles and accessories take over the kitchen and dishwasher, my shoulders tense up a little. And the drool. And the breast pump. And the clutter that is the baby swing, bouncy seat, exersaucer, high chair, infant tub... This article pretty much sums it all up (hilariously) for me. In those dark, future days I'll be sure to cling to this quote:

On the horizon is a kitchen devoid of bottles, nipples and bottle warmers. You will reclaim your countertop, your cupboards and your dishpan hands. Can I get a "Hallelujah"?

And this one:

You'll figure out how to carry the infant car seat that weighs five times what your baby does, your purse and the-cup-of-coffee-that-is-the-only-thing--keeping-you-from-crashing-the-car-thank-you-very-much, all at the same time. 


Of course, I'll need to figure out how to carry the infant car seat/purse/coffee while I wrangle the older sibling from running out in front of a car in the Target parking lot. Hmm...

The Paci Wars

Ditching the pacifier. We've known for awhile that this day needed to come. But oh, how I was dreading it. Still, Violet is almost two (the recommended cut-off point for paci habits) and there's never going to be a perfect time.

So when I casually mentioned, yet again, to sweet Violet that she was a big girl now and big girls didn't need pacifiers (we've been having this conversation at least twice a week since Thanksgiving), I meant it but didn't expect anything. Except Violet readily agreed with me this time, and even willingly tossed her beloved "night-night" down the stairs (I told her to put it in the trash and as she reminded me, the trash can was downstairs - so down the stairs it flew).

Prior to this moment I had been planning to use the weekend to catch up on some sleep and relaxation, not wage a full-on paci war. But Matt and I looked at each other, shrugged, and wordlessly seized the opportunity.

It's been a bumpy road. We've taken to sitting in the upstairs hallway waiting for Violet to fall asleep. She seems somewhat comforted by having a glimpse of us out there. I give in to this whim because I used to be the same way. Many a night I can remember crawling into my parents' bed after a bad dream or just plain old loneliness. It wasn't enough to merely be in the same bed with them, though. I had to make sure some part of me was physically touching them. It was as though without the contact, they might vanish when I closed my eyes.

We've been up for at least an hour every night, middle of the night, dealing with heartbreaking wails of regret. My once easy-to-bed napper has struggled and cried and occasionally begged tearfully for her friend night-night. It's like having an infant again - each night we go to bed wondering if tonight will be the magical night we sleep until dawn.

Matt has been a solid rock, and I've never admired him more. That first night, he trudged upstairs to sit with Violet while I laid in bed praying for peace for my child and patience for my husband. He has refused to give in. (I, on the other hand, am so weak that I offered to crack at one a.m. that first night.) He has had words of praise for our big girl every morning, regardless of how little he slept. And the battle wages on. I'm actually looking forward to going back to work tomorrow, because it means Violet's teacher will get to deal with naptime. I realize I've taken for granted how easy Violet has been when it comes to sleeping. Paci's siren song was enough to get her upstairs and contentedly into bed. Now in a world without it, she stalls, she asks for one more book, one more song, she starts crying before we leave the room, she withholds kisses.

Dependency is a dangerous thing.

Back in Style

My friend Jeanette finally had her baby! Okay, this is way old news, she actually had sweet Madeline about a week after her shower, just as we were setting off on our roadtrip. But now that they are home and settling into a routine, I decided to dust off Violet's old bouncy seat and bring it over so it could be put to good use again. Violet loved this thing - it was known to travel from room to room with me, even getting some countertop action (I know they say not to use it anywhere but the floor, but at two months she wasn't going anywhere and I don't know why I'm even bothering to defend myself when I don't feel guilty!) while I was cooking. I was hoping Jeanette would find it just as useful, and besides, it was just sitting around gathering dust in our Hoarders-style bonus room.

Don't worry, I washed it. Just in time for Violet to drool all over it again.

Well! Little did I know how fascinating Violet would find it! First she tried to climb in. Then I explained it was a place for babies to sleep, and she promptly brought her dolls over for a try. She's going to be such a good little mommy one day!

Tucking those babies in just right!

Violet got to meet baby Madeline earlier this week and things went pretty well! We had lots of talks about gentle hands first, and she didn't poke the baby's eye out or try to bite her, so I'm chalking this one up as a success. NOT that we are in any way, shape, or form ready to have another one right now. I'm just saying...

Violet demonstrates what we say when a baby is sleeping: "Shh!"

Water Table

Ya'll getting tired of me talking about water? Yeah, well, I'm getting tired of hearing about wah-duh. So suffer with me, my friends!

Violet got a water table finally! When I was too cheap to buy one, the neighbor stepped in with her old one. Heck yes we will take a hand-me-down that costs zero (save the skyrocketing price of H2O). Especially since I wasn't convinced Violet would do such a great job of playing with it.

Faking interest for the camera.

It's weird (or maybe completely normal)... when it's just her, she seems apathetic at best, even though we all know water is her absolute favorite substance on earth, second only to her 'nack. Still, I can't get her to engage for more than five minutes or so. (Still the hottest, most sweltering, nearest to the actual flames of hell five minutes I spend each day.) But the second one of the little boys shows the slightest bit of interest, suddenly the water table is the hottest commodity in town and Violet is all over that thing. I might have to start paying them to come over and play. Think they accept Oreos as a legal form of currency?

Forget the water table, the neighborhood fountains are where it's at!

DIY Kitchen

So I was stumbling around on my pal Natalie's blog, Natty Michelle, and came across the most adorable DIY kid's kitchen!

Tossed television unit recycled into a play kitchen via Design*Sponge

Can't you just picture Violet standing here, working away? Now I just need to find an old entertainment center, a workshop, and someone handy enough for this transformation! Any takers? Oh Hubby?!

Push It

 Violet loves pushing things around the house now.

But sometimes I really don't know why we bothered with all those fancy push toys and walkers.

Violet is making do just fine with found objects.

Work it, girl!

Eat Your Veggies

Violet loves fruit. Be it mandarin oranges, pears, or applesauce, the girl has a sweet tooth and I'm glad I can offer her a healthy version instead of letting her eat ice cream and cake.

The problem is, she would much rather eat her fruits than veggies. (She'd rather eat fruit than almost anything else on the plate, but definitely more than veggies.) I'm guessing this is a pretty typical problem (unless you're my husband, who prefers cauliflower to almost any fruit). But I'd like to start Violet off on the right foot when it comes to trying things on her plate and appreciating, nay, enjoying vegetables. So far, the vegetable she seems to like the most is the tomato, which, no surprise, is in the middle of the age-old it's a vegetable no it's really a fruit tug-of-war. Tomatoes and Pluto, poor things never can quite figure out where they belong.

Anyway, here are some vegetables (and fruit) that both Violet and I can agree on.

Aren't these sweet? Violet got this set of enticing produce for her birthday from Mimi, and they look almost good enough to eat (Violet has indeed tried). The detail is adorable, right down to the banana that really peels and the head of lettuce with removable leaves. Plus they are soft and squishy and just right for little hands. And completely machine washable (mom bonus!).

Only the Swedes could come up with a produce mix for little children that includes not just your standard grapes and carrots, but mushrooms, leeks and a head of garlic. (Perhaps they have a bit of a vampire problem in Sweden.)

Here's a bit of trivia for you: the name of this Ikea product is duktig, which happens to mean "clever". I love Ikea's protocol of using random Swedish words to name their products. That being said, this little set is rather clever. Ikea's website claims these toys will "encourage role play". Here's hoping they inspire Violet to take a bite out of a real vegetable one of these days!

Bottles Up!

I am done with bottles. Just done.

I'm tired of the way they have cluttered up my counter top for the past year. They tip over easily. They have multiple parts that get scattered all over the kitchen.

I'm tired of washing them, first by hand back in the breastfeeding days when Violet only had one bottle a night. Now they hoard all the space in the top rack of my dishwasher, leaving us running the machine half empty because the sink is full of all the cups and glasses that won't fit.

Yes, that is a bottle of cheap champagne trying to camouflage itself with the baby bottles.

When we first started bottles, it was once a day. It gave me a break from breastfeeding. It gave Matt a chance to feed Violet and bond with her each evening. And it was one new skill for her to quickly master. One bottle to wash each night isn't so bad. Then I started working. And pumping got old real quick. My milk supply gradually dried up and we committed to bottles full time. Eventually we switched to the simpler Avent bottles versus the excellent but somewhat cumbersome Dr. Brown bottles. And Violet gradually decreased her bottle feedings down to four times a day.

But after a year of this, I'm done.

When I was a babe and it was time to get rid of my bottle, my mom had a unique approach. Our family was living on the OM Logos at the time, a missionary ship traveling the world. When she'd had enough of the bottle, we very ceremoniously filled them with rocks and tossed them overboard, giving them an appropriate burial at sea.

For obvious reasons, I can't take the same approach. But I really, really wish I could.

See, I think my Friend is ready to give up the bottle and be a big girl. A few weeks ago, Matt made her bottles for daycare but forgot to screw in the proper inserts. In short, the bottles weren't going to work. Undeterred, her teachers optimistically poured Violet's milk into a sippy cup and sat her down. And although she had previously shunned milk from a cup, apparently she was hungry enough to drink it all down. And her teachers didn't look back. Teaching the kids to drink from cups is one of the skills they work on at school, and it looked like Violet had just mastered it!

Well, for whatever reason, Violet wouldn't perform the same trick for me at home. Whenever I attempted to give her formula from the sippy cup, she'd let it pool in her mouth and then spit it all out, tossing the cup to the floor with a hoot of displeasure. If there was water or apple juice in the cup she'd eagerly suck it down, but not milk. I was wildly jealous of whatever secret tricks they used at daycare and frustrated that it wasn't carrying over at home.

But this weekend, we had a breakthrough. I waited to bring out the formula until Violet was extra hungry. I gently warmed it. I poured it into the same type of sippy that has had so much success at school. Then I plopped her on my lap and presented her the Nuby just like it was a bottle. And that child drank it all!

And so, I'm hoping we can be done with bottles. Maybe not today, maybe not next week. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

A completely unrelated picture that I couldn't help but share!

Will I miss the snuggly moments of feeding Violet her bottle as she grows full and drowsy on my lap? Of course, just like I miss the breastfeeding days when we could nestle up together and share that special moment together. But I'm excited about finding new ways to cuddle. And I'm oddly excited about my extra counter space.

Next up - ditching formula for real milk!

Car Seat Blues

Lately whenever I put Violet in the carseat, she starts crying. Any idea what that could be about?

 Don't let this smiling face fool you... Daddy put her in the car this time.

I'm wondering if it's my method... She's so heavy, and the seat is so awkward, that by the time I maneuver her head under the door frame, I have no choice but to basically drop her into the seat. Not graceful in the slightest. So that could be an issue. (For the record, she doesn't cry when Matt puts her in every morning for our trip to daycare.) I'm also wondering if she's afraid of it, or rather, what it means - she's going to be stuck there in the backseat by herself for an indeterminate amount of time - LAME.

The crying really picks up after I'm loading her in the car to take her home from daycare. She's probably thinking - finally, my mom is back! And then the first thing I do is stick her in the car. It's gotten so bad that all I have to do is open the car door and she freaks out and starts clinging desperately to my neck as if I'm about to abandon her on a desert island filled with baby-eating wildebeests or something.

Anyway, any advice out there from fellow mommies who have experienced something similar?

Sitting Pretty

One of Violet's new favorite toys. She loves to dance when the music comes on (which happens any time she pushes the lamp... so it happens a lot). Rumor has it there is a matching kitchen set. Hmm... Santa? (Or more likely... Grandma?!)

Car and Driver

Stay off the roads, Violet is behind the wheel! I took this video a while ago, I just suck at getting them uploaded in a timely fashion. Mimi and Violet had the best time driving all over the house one afternoon as they took the car for a spin for the first time. Now, we just have to teach her to keep her hands on the wheel...

Baby You Can Drive My Car

Baby you can drive my car
Yes I'm gonna be a star
Baby you can drive my car
And maybe I'll love you

Beep beep'm beep beep yeah!

Best of Times, Worst of Times

This weekend put us through the wringer. I'm ready for another one already! Alas, the week has just begun, so we must soldier on. It started well enough. Violet got to check out a few of the big-girl items she's been itching to get into. For example, the neighbors' swingset.

Aw... my big girl! So after pizza and swinging on Friday, Mimi came up Saturday and hung out for a few hours. We took Violet for a walk in her big-girl stroller at this fab park we recently discovered. She was actually awake for it this time - big improvement from our last outing there. Then Saturday night, Matt was slated to babysit while I had my first girls' night out. We had a great time at a fun little restaurant called Kozmo. I'm pretty sure it's the first time I've been outs sans baby and husband, and it was nice. Must remember to do that more often. Anyway, I arrive home to find out that Violet has been giving Matt the business all night long. I don't know if her stomach hurt, her teeth were bothering her, the runny nose and cough were keeping her up or what, but suffice to say, the stinker was not happy and she was going to tell us about it.

Tooth Number Two is making its presence known.

So I capped off a fun evening out with a night of zero sleep. To make matters worse, Matt was off to the Falcons game on Sunday, stranding me at home with a cranky baby who wouldn't let me leave her sight without completely falling apart. She was either feeling miserable or she is spoiled rotten. Jury is still out. It was a long day to say the least. I wish I could nap, but I've never been good at it. One bright spot: Publix was running a BOGO sale on baby food, paired with a handy coupon of a dollar off seven jars (Keight - you were right! What a deal!) so at least I scored there. Then we headed to the neighbor's house for a two-year-old's birthday party. (As an aside - God knew what he was doing when he gave me a girl. I went shopping for little boy clothes and a) there aren't any cute ones, and b) Target has four racks of girl clothes for every boy one.) 

As if that weren't exhausting enough, Sunday night didn't hold much more sleep than the one before, although this time we threw the towel in much earlier and just took Violet to bed with us, taking turns holding her so she could breathe without coughing. It's been rough, I'm not going to lie. There were some bright spots this weekend, but I'm ready for another one. (Although this coming weekend I'll be spending all day Saturday at UGA for my Master's degree, so I won't be catching up on any zzz's there.) Sorry about all the complaining... we'll take any prayers you can spare over here that Violet will get over this cold/tummy trouble/teething pain she's been experiencing.

 

Violet's New Ride

So we survived another busy weekend. They just aren't long enough. I somehow end up more exhausted at the end than when they start out! But we make the most of every second. Matt and I got things started in the most delicious way - a trip to the Biscuit Barn! After driving by it every day on his way to work, Matt finally tried it and made me so insanely jealous by his mouth-watering descriptions that I extracted a promise that he'd take me there on our way to Peachtree City for the weekend.

I thought I liked big, fluffy, Chick-fil-a style biscuits. Now I realize how misled I've been. Those biscuits are nothing but a gummy mouthful of dough. What you want is a larger, flatter biscuit so the top gets a little crispy and melts in your mouth. Perfection. I got the bacon, egg and cheese and the bacon was nice and crunchy, not limp and chewy like some other places. I could go on and on. And we'll be going back.

Also, the Biscuit Barn on a Georgia football Saturday is the perfect place to take your adorable child dressed in her precious UGA outfit, because admiring looks and whispers will just follow you around. Mommy and baby both love that attention!

So then it was off to Peachtree City, where we watched a day full of football (some for better, some for worse) at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Violet loved playing with them and really liked the NYC hat they brought back for her from their recent vacation to the Big Apple.

Is the backwards cap look still cool?

 

Exhausted after a disappointing Georgia game, resting up for the Ohio State match-up...

 Violet's new ride!

 

Violet and I headed to my parents' house on Sunday for lunch and some more family time. Mimi has been hitting the garage sale jackpot and managed to buy 100 kids books for only ten bucks, so Violet has a fully stocked library now. My mom also scored a practically brand new stroller for only 20 dollars, and Violet tried it out to much success. (The sellers told her they loved using it at Disney World and that was all the incentive Mimi needed!)

Loving on Aunt Chitra after lunch.

So it was a good, long, exhausting weekend. We came home with a truck full of furniture we are inheriting from Matt's grandma, another load is being delivered tomorrow, and after this morning's pediatrician pit stop, we are all back into the swing of things. It's going to be a crazy week at school for me, but really, I've learned not to expect anything less! Hang in there, folks!