Nora 6 and 7 months

Our sweet Nora Jo is 7 months! Months 6 &7 have been amazing. She is sleeping through the night and her momma feels like a new woman! 

She is an eating machine and loves some fruits. True to her nature, if she doesn't like the food you are trying to get her to eat she gags dramatically and acts as if she might throw up. 

She is thinking so hard about crawling and can get her little knees up but mooshes her little face in the floor in the process and just jibber jabbers, talking into the floor. 

She is incredibly ticklish and loves to laugh.

She adores her big sister (most of the time) and has recently discovered all of her sisters toys. She rolls all over the floor until she catches one of Lucy's toys and then proceeds to slobber all over it. 

I can't believe you are on your way to being mobile, and are closer to turning one than you are being my newborn baby! We love you sweet Nora Jo. 

Trunk or Treat

We went to our first "Trunk or Treat" this weekend! It was a cute little chance to debut our Halloween costumes and practice Trick-or-Treating. 

Lucy has insisted on being Sully from Monsters Inc. this year (which we may have seen 3,000 times) "because he's blue and blue is my favorite." 

The babies were less than thrilled about all the dressing up and Nora lasted about 20 minutes in her Owl costume before screaming to get out of it. 

But oh those cheeks!

Some of the trunks had little games to play before you could get your candy. The girls loved it! Lucy also wanted to eat a different candy in between each and every car. 

It was a great practice for Trick-or-treating and also very confusing to a three year old who has just been taught not to take anything (including candy) from strangers because they are bad.

We can always un-confuse her next week, right?

In the meantime, we will be practicing our ROAR...

Nora: 5 months

Sweet Nora. You are now 5 months old! Sometimes the days fly by and sometimes in the middle of a screaming night I wonder when you are going to big like your sister and we are all going to sleep. But I promise not to wish the days away.

When you are happy you are squealing with delight so loud that it can be heard throughout the whole house! And when you are mad....lookout world.

I can't wait to see where this passionate side of you takes you one day! (Maybe you'll be an actress or a politician.)

When I pick you up, you lay your head down on my shoulder as if to give me a hug and I just melt. And when you cry you say mamamamama, I suppose because you know i can fix it! You adore your big sister. She makes you laugh and smile no matter what sort of mood you are in-and mom and dad use that to our advantage!!

You have started solid foods for the first time and it's fun to see what you like/don't like compared to your sister! The jury is still out on a few veggies because of your sensitive little tummy, but I'll find a way to get you to eat them one day!

Gagworthy:
Green Beans

Like:
Peaches
Pears
Applesauce
Peas

Happy 5 months sweet Nora Jo!

ten on ten:September 2015

Ten pictures from simply beautiful moments in our day on the 10th of the month!

There are only 8 today because I got a new phone and 2 of my pictures disappeared in Verizonland. 

The 10th was full of chunky baby smiles, first day of preschool friends and my new favorite Podcast: Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey. Listen to it, y'all. You will feel like you are sitting down at Happy hour with a couple of girlfriends and you won't want it to end. 

Have a blessed weekend!

Nora 4 months

This little sweetie is 4 months old! 

Sweet Nora, you are a happy, delighted little child. You love to be snuggled and to be in the center of the action wherever you are. You go with the flow most days. We now think you have reflux, as our calm happy little baby turned into quite the screamer overnight at 4 months. You can roll both ways now, but most of the time you prefer to just hang out on your back (and you love to sleep on your back!)

You are nowhere near sleeping through the night, but sometimes I groggily treasure those midnight moments with just the two of us. 

You squeal {loudly} when you're happy and you scream when you're mad/sad. We can't wait to see the little person you are going to grow into!

1000 sleepless nights

Momma I'm with you. When you're up at 12am and then again at 3am feeding a baby, rocking her in the quiet of the house, staring at her sweet fuzzy head.  Your eyelids droop and you nod off, hoping to catch just a few minutes.

Then you stagger back to bed, only to hear the whimpers of a 2 year old who needs a kiss, tucking them back in bed. You crawl back under the covers and pray for rest. 

And then 2 hours later you do it all again.

I've heard it said "the days (nights) are long but the years are short." And that feels so incredibly true. It feels as if I may never see a solid 8 or 9 hours of sleep again, and I am tired. Bone tired. 

 

I was listening to Laura Story's Blessings and I heard the verse "what if 1000 sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near..." And I had to laugh. 

In these tired, weary moments God is drawing me to Him. That I may draw my strength from Him (and coffee doesn't hurt either). The strength to weather the tantrums in my most tired state. The strength to cuddle and carry around a 14lb baby all day long who isn't feeling good. And the strength to be fun and engaging to a 2 year old who needs to know that even though there is this new person in the house, momma's love is still SO great for her. 

So tonight, when you're up tending to babies (or toddlers), and you are tired, and at the last string of your rope, know that you're not alone. Because at our house, Gods working on me, too. He's working in my heart, to prepare me to be the kind of mother for harder things ahead. 

And to prepare those blessings that only come through tears. The pearls that begin as little, irritating grains of sand in our Oysters. 

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" Matthew 11:28

 

Zipadee Zip Slumber Sacks: A Giveaway!

Here in the McWonderful house we have been desperate for sleep this week! Between a 3 month old who recently started rolling this way and that, and a 2.5 year old who needs "one more kiss and hug" every 30 minutes we are wiped.

So when the people at Sleeping Baby Inc. graciously shared their Zipadee-Zip Slumber Sack with us to try, I was thrilled!

The Zipadee-Zip (Or Zippy) is perfect for a baby who is going through swaddle transition who likes to bust out of her swaddle 800x a night. It's made of a soft cotton in a starfish-type design with adorable prints. The arms have a smidge of resistance, similar to swaddling to help with the startle reflex. 

You have to read their story: Stephanie and Brett, Christian entrepreneurs, created the entire concept to help their baby sleep through the night! And now their amazing company has spread by word of mouth alone. Truly wonderful!

It took a couple of nights for Nora to adjust to her new sleeping facility but now she is smitten with the Zippy. She will be fussing and crying for sleep, and I zip her up in the Zippy, and she is instantly happier and ready for a snooze.

Sometimes I can even set her down in the crib drowsy in her zippy and she falls asleep on her own. I also love that it keeps her little hands warm, because we keep our house a nice frigid 68 degrees. 

We are now converted Zipadee-Zip lovers in this house! 

The generous people over at Sleeping Baby want to share the love with you, too! 

To enter the giveaway, 

(1) LIKE Sleeping Baby on Facebook

and (2) Go to zipadeezip.comand pick out your favorite Zippadee-Zip design and post it in the comments section below! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You can also use the $2 coupon code SLEEP if you would like to purchase a Zipadee-Zip but do not win the giveaway. 

Ready.....Go!

Nora 0-3 month favorites

I loved sharing my favorites with y'all the last time around, so here we go again:

one: k'tan. So helpful in the early days to give attention to a 2 year old and to still have arms available. I also used it the other day to carry a sleepy baby around the grocery store while pushing a cart full of groceries and a 2 year old in it. (And nobody cried. K'tan FTW.)

two: Boogie Wipes. Nora has had a clogged tear duct since she was born. I followed the recommended "warm wash cloth" for the first 200 or so swipes and then decided these would be a much easier solution. Great for eye "goopies" as we call them in our house.

three: stroller hook. I stole this one from a friend of mine after watching her grocery shop with her baby and a stroller and some reusable bags. It's perfect for hanging your bags to fill with groceries, OR a very clever way to make your toddler stay with the stroller, by holding on the handle. Lucy loves it!

four: Covered Goods Nursing Cover. I am in l-o-v-e with this nursing cover. It goes around you 360 degrees, which I find useful when nursing a baby while chasing a toddler at the park (no side boob flashes to other park goers.) It's lightweight and soft, and gorgeous. Can also be used to cover the carseat, as a grocery cart cover or a scarf. I actually left mine at the beach last weekend and nearly cried because I love it so.

five: Honest sunscreen. So I know the whole "Don't put sunscreen on your baby till they are 6 mo old" shpeal. But let's talk about real life with a toddler. Summer= pool + beach + park + everything outside. So after testing this completely organic and happy sunscreen on Nora's wrist and finding no reaction, I use it when necessary on all the things I cant cover up with clothes or a hat. Because sunscreen beats sunburn every day in my book. {Also, Costco has a 2-pack right now!}

So, there you have it!

What have your favorites been in 0-3 months with your first/second/third baby? I'd love to hear! (And possibly steal some more ideas.)

Lucy 2 month Favorites/ Lucy 3 month Favorites 

Red, White and Blue: Photo Dump

We spent the 4th of July at the beach, frolicking in the sand, looking out for sharks, and snuggling with an adorable baby. 

This girl asks to go to the "splash park" every day. If only it wasn't 3 hours away...

Who gave the children sparklers?

Sometimes I think I could just pick everything up and move to the beach.

I hope you had a happy 4th! 

Nora 3 months

Our sweet little chunk is 3 months old already! With a quarter of a year under her belt, she LOVES smiling, talking babytalk loudly, and rolling all over the place (both ways). She even likes laying on her belly. She loves watching the fishies in the fish tank, and seeing what her big sis is up to. 

During our photoshoot this morning, Lucy was not to be outdone and insisted she got a picture too. So here, she is 2.5 years (34 months for those keeping track).

Likes: The color blue, Disney Princesses, helping fetch mommy diapers, turning on Nora's sound machine, reading books, swimming at the pool, and pretending she is a mommy with her babydoll. 

After Lucy's turn in the picture chair, she stole my phone to snap a pic of her baby. {I have no idea how old baby is.}

I'm really liking the angle of her shot.

More Nora cuteness:

"I can only imagine where these tiny feet will go in their lifetime. My only hope is they never forget their way home." -Author Unknown

Rainbow muffins

Lucy is recently fascinated with all things rainbow. We color rainbows with sidewalk chalk, markers, you name it, it becomes a rainbow. 

So one day this week when making her some pre-mixed muffins, we decided to rainbow them up.

She loves to help me bake. {Sorry dear, mom is not the greatest baker.} But I sure can mix milk into apple cinnamon muffin mix.

After mixing our muffins up, I let Lucy drop different color drops into each muffin cup. She got to pick the colors we were making, and then mix them up with a straw. (Toothpicks would work too!)

Then we followed the directions on the package for baking them.

It may be blurry but I managed to catch her reaction when I pulled them out of the oven. 

Just a teeny bit "cited".

The hardest part of the whole process? Trying to convince a 2.5 year old that she couldn't eat ALL of the muffins we made right now.