Saturday, August 27, 2011

baby-led weaning, one month in

Mara @ Barfing Rainbows asked a question about baby-led weaning and food allergies, and it occurred to me that others might be curious about that and other aspects of BLW as well.  Clara is 7 months old now (cry!), and we've been doing BLW for a month, following two months of purees.  (See my original post on BLW for how we got started and the book I recommend.)


I guess we're not doing strict BLW because we do spoon-feed Clara yogurt every day (YoBaby plain with a puree mixed in)....but otherwise Clara is feeding herself her solids - everything from sweet potato wedges marinated in maple syrup/olive oil/red pepper flakes(!)/garlic to banana pancakes (Bisquick + organic eggs and milk + wheat germ + cinnamon + banana slices). 


BLW definitely makes a ridiculous mess, and there's lots of wasted food (though our pets wouldn't call it wasted, ha ha). Still, Clara enjoys it immensely and is honing various skills this way - hand/eye coordination, pincer grip, biting off, chewing, etc.  And it's cool to be able to eat with her instead of having to feed her before or after we eat.

To answer Mara's question, the BLW people say that unless there is a history of food allergies in the family, you don't have to follow the "four day wait" rule. We give Clara stuff with numerous new ingredients all the time and haven't had any problems.


You're supposed to give the baby an open cup of water in case they get thirsty. Clara can't hold bottles very well, much less an open cup, so we guide it to her mouth when she reaches for it.  We've tried a couple of kinds of sippys for water, too, but she's able to drink better from the open cup at this point. (It doesn't matter how your baby gets water, just that it's available if she needs it.)

She has never choked using this method.

We have no regrets about going this route and would recommend it if you're interested, and especially if your baby is more interested in YOUR food than her own spoon-fed purees, like Clara was :-)


Sunday, August 21, 2011

the changes ahead (and weekend pics)

THIS POST- is full of serious stuff.  Photos from the weekend are haphazardly inserted throughout, since I figured half my readers probably don't care about words and just want to see the cute girl :-)

who's at the door mommy?

oh hai grandma!

Scott and I have had sort of a strange marriage. Unexpectedly, from the very start, he ended up having to work nights and weekends. This lasted approximately 3.5 years, ending when he started staying home with Clara in May. I've so enjoyed us both being home every night since then, but times are a-changin' again starting tomorrow, when he starts a very intensive night school program for his master's in accounting.

It's so easy to take time for granted when you have plenty of it. The last few months have been downright leisurely, especially with Clara, the world's easiest baby. I'm glad we coasted along for this rare time in life when we could get away with it, playing UNO and making margaritas instead of getting our house ready to sell or otherwise being productive.  There's plenty of time for all that.

Of course, this change is nothing compared to what's ahead. Clara is almost 7 months old now. She'll be going to daycare this time next year. Scott will be starting a good 9-5 job. Once we have two incomes, I may be transitioning into something less stressful with better hours so I can spend more time with Clara. We'll have a new house, better equipped for visiting grandparents.

I love going to the park with doing anything with daddy

One thing that won't have changed is that we'll still be a three-person family unit. Clara is old enough now that people are constantly asking us when (not if) we'll give her a sibling. Due largely in part to finances, we're not going to. We're going to send her to a wonderful school that we couldn't afford for more than one child, and will only have to worry about saving for her college.

CRAZY SMILE (and you thought I left it in Destin...)

Though there is something about the thought of another baby that gives us the warm fuzzies, two things (other than finances) really drove home this plan for me:  1. We are so, so spoiled by what an easy baby Clara is and how simple it's been to integrate her into our life.  2. (Warning- this is sappy and sad) I don't want another baby. I am just mourning the loss of what we'll never have with Clara again. I miss being pregnant with Clara, not just being pregnant. I miss newborn Clara, not just any old newborn eating around the clock and crying inconsolibly at times.

sidenote:  obviously I need to work on living in the present :-)

mommy kind of has a crazy smile too when she's around me

FYI, the paper from the 70's about only children being spoiled and lonely has been thoroughly debunked.  And Clara would probably be spoiled no matter how many siblings she had. Ha ha.

pretty sure I broke the mold with this sweet face

Enough with the serious stuff...  Hope y'all had a relaxing weekend and have a great week ahead!
-Ginger

Sunday, August 14, 2011

everyday fun

business first:  clara had her 6-month well-visit last week, and is in the 90th percentile for height and 50th for weight. she's slimmed down a good bit the last couple of months. her doctor says that's totally normal for breastfed babies and that she's 100% healthy :-)

she can get in the crawling position now but can't go anywhere. I am not in a hurry for her to crawl! her daddy is encouraging the crawling, and may soon pay for that by having to do a whole lot of baby-proofing. ha.

now for the fun... here are some snapshots of some of clara's usual daily activities, taken over the past few weeks:


I love when daddy buzzes me with the "snake"


ready to go on an adventure (and about ready for a bigger carseat.... sigh)


daddy reads the paper... I play with the ads. everyone's happy



I'm entering the above photo in Paper Mama's "eyes" photo challenge.

daddy made me french toast sticks!



mommy made me blueberry pancakes!

playing horsey with daddy

mmmm sweet potato oven-fries


have a great week, y'all!
-ginger

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Vacay Part 2

breakfast tastes better in the ocean breeze

CRAZY SMILE






sweet girl passed out in the car on the way home


waterproof disposable cameras = the bomb
 


This video is long and we talk about all kinds of random stuff, but you can catch lots of CRAZY SMILES just in the first few seconds :)

Back to work tomorrow. So sad about that, but these 9 days (counting weekends) with my baby have been wonderful!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Clara's First Beach Trip

We've been in Destin, Florida the last few days - Clara's first trip to the beach! She is scared of sand on her feet, but likes the ocean and loves the kiddie pool. We drove during the night while she slept. She has stuck to her usual self-imposed sleeping schedule while here (thank goodness!). A few pics today, more to come (and a video) when we get home:
Very first time on the beach! (Learned lesson about camera fogging... must acclimate first.)

Worn out and bathed after a day at the beach. Ready for yum-yums and bed.

With mommy on the way to the beach (day 2).  Her outfit is from GAP.

With daddy in the ocean!

Chillin' in my beach tent. This is my new "crazy smile" face.

Having a lot more fun than my face would portray.

More CRAZY SMILE.

Guess we'll be getting a kiddie pool when we get home!