Standing!!!

We took advantage of the beautiful weather yesterday and spent most of our day outside! Josh mowed the lawn while I planted a few things and vacuumed my car. Alex hung out on a blanket with Cooper! I took many little breaks to play with her and she kept trying to stand up. I remembered our friend Rachel let us have a VTech Sit to Stand walker that her son no longer used so I thought it was time to break it out! Alex sat in my lap with the walker in front of us (the wheels we locked) and she grabbed the bar and pulled herself right up!!! I, of course, stayed right beside her in case she lost her balance, but she did great!!! She could balance herself for 1-2 minutes at a time! This morning she tried again and I moved away a little to take a few pics. I still don't have batteries for the camera so the quality isn't that great, but you can see the little pumpkin standing!!!

I don't usually put buttons on my blog but I have been reading about Stellan since he was in utero. You can read his story on their site, but in brief, he was diagnosed with heart failure and an enlarged heart when he was in the womb, he was born in great health and now, he is back in the hospital with his heart function slipping way. The story just breaks my heart and makes me hold my sweet baby girl a little closer, tighter and longer every chance I get.

Our First 5K

Well, I should say Josh's first 5k! We were up bright and early this morning dressed in our warmest clothes because it was COLD!!! Alex was bundled up and looked like the Stay-Puft Marshmallow man! We could barely buckle her in the car seat!! Alex and I walked a whole whopping .9 miles because it was so cold! My whole goal was to see Josh cross the finish line and we missed it because I was helping Tracy's mom with Abby! :( He finished in 29 minutes and 30 (something) seconds!! After the race and awards, we headed home to get ready for the day. Alex was great considering how cold it was, she only got fussy when she started to get sleepy. We ran errands the rest of the day. Josh got a new lawn mower, we had lunch then headed to Houston to pick up a few gifts for upcoming baby showers and finished our day off with dinner at Chuy's.

My poor pumpkin is having some tummy issues. Sometime between home and Babies R Us, she blew out her diaper. It was on her car seat and clothes. Good thing I had a change of clothes. Since we knew we were going to be out a while longer, we bought another outfit at BRU just in case! Poor Alex has had 6 poopie diapers and 3 outfit changes today. It doesn't seem to bother her in the least, but it still makes me feel sorry for her! I hope it passes soon, if she is still having issues on Monday, I'm taking her to the doctor. I can only handle so many poopie diaper changes and poo covered clothes a day and I think I've met my limit! I have gone through half a bottle of Shout this week!

Baby, bundled up

Warm me up! Josh, post race

Bunny cup

So the poor little pumpkin has made me some very interesting "pants
presents" today, we've had 4 wardrobe changes!!!. I called the pedi
and he said to keep an eye on it, stick to starchy foods, give her
some pedialyte to make sure she stays hydrated and it should pass in
the next day or so. I've been trying to get Alex to learn how to use
a straw so while I was at Target yesterday, I saw the cutest bunny cup
with a soft straw. I put some pediatyle in it and after a minute or so
she figured it out!!!

Stomach Bug

We have had an off couple of days...no, it's not Alex this time! It started Wednesday with poor little Abby getting sick. She had some stomach bug thing so Katie picked her up around noon. By two, I wasn't feeling so hot. I think I had a mild touch of it and spent most of the afternoon/evening throwing up. Josh came home to take care of Alex so I could rest. By the time I went to bed, I was running a fever. Good thing is, Thursday morning I was feeling like a brand new person. Miss Abby stayed home with Tracy yesterday so Alex and I took advantage by going to Kohl's, Target, lunch with Josh then the mall. Now thinking back, I probably shouldn't have made my first meal after being sick a whole plate of honey seared chicken from Pei Wei. I felt ok until we got to the mall, then I started smelling all the wonderful mall smells (warm pretzels, cookies, and all the other goodies) and my stomach started turning again. We high tailed it out of the mall as quickly as possible. We made it home just in time for me to heave. Thankfully that was it! I tried getting Alex to take a nap so I could sleep for a few minutes, she had no part of it, so I put her in bed with me, gave her my phone case to play with and she was a happy camper for about 20 minutes, then she went down for a nap! Since I was feeling much better, I decided to join Josh for one of his departments work things. We went to the bowling ally and everyone played video games and stuff while Alex and I hung out with Sheena and Kyler. When we left, I decided I was hungry so we picked up a pizza. Again, probably not the smartest thing, but the doughy crust and bread sticks just sounded so good! Thankfully I was ok and am still ok! Abby is back today, feeling much better, but now Katie has it!

Somewhere along the way, I lost a huge package of batteries for my camera so I've had to use my cell phone to take pictures. For some reason, every time I am out, I seem to forget to pick up more batteries!

Alex, perfecting the pout
trying to keep the munchkin entertained in bed so I could rest

Cooper pillow

Giving Mommy kisses!!!

Cheese Thief!

Cooper has learned the best place to be during meal times is right by Alex! He stole a piece of cheese off her tray today! He is so darn cute, I couldn't get mad at him!

Our schedule is still way off! Yesterday, Alex napped for a whole whopping hour the entire day. She was out by 6:20 last night! I had a doctors appointment this morning and I could tell she was getting sleepy, but she just cried when I put her down. Since Josh was coming home so I didn't have to take the girls, I figured I wouldn't push for her to take a nap. She played with Josh the entire time I was gone and about 15 minutes after he left, she crashed! I'm pretty much going day by day now to see what she decides to do. I've never really pressed to put her on a schedule, I usually follow her lead, so I'll just wait and see what she settles on!

On a good note, I had a great visit with the rheumatologist today! Normal RF (rheumatoid factor) is around 23, my counts were 150-something about 5 months ago, 112 at the last appointment and 42 this week! This means, the meds are working!!! In a few weeks, I'll start lowering my daily Prednisone intake. I'm currently taking 5 mg a day so each month I'll lower it by 1 mg until I hopefully don't have to take it anymore! My next round of blood work and appointment will be June!

Both girls are up and calling so we are off to run errands!!

Weekend at the Lake

We went to visit my parents this weekend and had the best time! We got there Friday night and Alex got in some quality Nomi and Popi time before she went to sleep. Saturday, we relaxed in the morning then Nomi, Alex and I went to run some errands while Josh helped Popi in the yard. Nomi and Popi bought the pumpkin a pink swing, so after lunch she got to try it out! It was so cute watching Alex swing, she just squealed in delight the whole time! Cooper got to play with his pals Annie and Stoney so he was happy! By the end of the day the kids were tired so after Alex went to bed and Cooper passed out on the couch, we stayed up playing games! Sunday was a little windy out and I forgot to bring a hat for Alex so we had to make do with a cloth napkin she wore like a a do-rag! Josh helped Popi with more yard work while Nomi say with Alex on a swing. By the time I got out there, Alex was passed out on her Nomi. After a little more fun on the swing and a late lunch we headed home around 5. I was so sure Alex was going to sleep the entire way home because she had only taken 2 very short naps but she didn't! She slept the first 30 minutes then stayed awake the rest of the trip. It worked out good because when we got home, she took a bottle then went straight to bed! Cooper ate his dinner then disappeared. I found him knocked out on our bed. Poor little guy was pooped from his weekend! Actually, we were all pooped from our weekend, but it was worth it!

Alex and her new pink swing!

My mom and me swinging!
Josh and I had a hard time getting our timing down!

Alex and her napkin hat!

Alex and Popi

Here comes Cooper Cottontail!

Ladies Who Lunch

Today, since both girls we up and getting hungry at the same time, I decided to feed them together instead of one at a time. I tried one at a time yesterday and it just didn't work out. Abby was too interested in Alex and Alex was upset Abby was eating when she wasn't! It was actually much easier than I thought. Alex stayed occupied with pieces of mango for the first few minutes. Once she noticed Abby was getting food on a spoon, she wanted some too, so I held both of their bowls & spoons and alternated bites.

Before

After (Abby was getting sleepy, putting her hands in her mouth

and rubbing her eyes, that's why she has sweet potatoes all over her face)

I am constantly taking pictures of Alex, the top one is my favorite this week, and the bottom is Josh's fav!

Crazy Car Rides

Well, we ended up skipping the rodeo last night. Josh was feeling really run down and thought he might be getting sick. We met Michael and Penne to give them the tickets. We wanted them to be used. We realized when we are in Josh's car, we always forget to move the seat mirror so we can't see Alex. Instead of trying to crawl in the back to see if she is sleeping I usually try to take a pic of her with my phone so I can see if she's sleeping or not. The pictures usually turn out pretty funny!

Just when we had a pretty good schedule down, it all just went away. Our mornings are pretty much the same, wake up around 7, bottle and breakfast around 8, play then nap. Our afternoons are way off. Some days she will nap, some days she won't. If she doesn't nap, she goes to bed at her normal time, 7. If she naps, she stays up later. I've noticed, if she naps for an hour, she stays up an hour later, 2 hours, 2 hours later. It is so frustrating. I love her afternoon naps because I get to get some things done around here, but I also like her going to bed a little later because she gets to spend more time with Josh and we can go out to dinner without throwing her schedule off if we want to. I don't want to have the baby who stays up until 9, I know she needs an afternoon nap otherwise she just starts to melt down around 6:30. I don't know what to do!?!?

The Princess and the Pea

A few months ago while I was shopping with Shannon, I bought The Princess and the Pea for Alex. It had beautiful pictures, so of course I couldn't pass it up! I forgot all about it until I was cleaning up her room today and I found it in the closet! Since we are trying to incorporate at least 1 finger food into each meal, I decided peas would be perfect! Before lunch, we read a little bit of the book...it's pretty long!


While I was cleaning the kitchen and cooking the peas, Alex and Cooper kept me company!

The princess inspecting her peas!
Yummy!!

Today has been a busy day! I had to have blood drawn for my RA appointment next week so I was at the Med at 7am! I figured I could run and do it before Alex woke up that way I wouldn't have to drag both babies with me. The lady who was working was obviously not too happy to be at work at 7am and she took it out on my poor little arm! I am so used to having blood drawn now, I usually don't even feel it, but this morning, man it hurt!! Alex was awake when I got home so we did our normal morning things, diaper change, bottle, breakfast, play and bath. I was a little excited when she started getting sleepy while she was playing. I thought she'd go down for a nap early and give me time to take a quick shower. She did..but only enough time for a shower, no make up or blow dry. Now it's 1:30 and I still have wet hair and no make up on, I guess I better get to that. She and Abby woke up around the same time so I let the girls play while I vacuumed, started laundry and mopped the floor. For some reason I got on a cleaning kick today. Anyway, we are going to the Houston Rodeo tonight to see some cowboy stuff, or whatever they do at the rodeo then Gary Alan is performing! I love Gary Alan...the rodeo stuff, not so much. We went last year and it just made me sad, watching the calf roping and stuff. Those poor baby cows! Josh laughed at me because I got excited for the cows when the cowboys couldn't rope them! I'm sure I'll be the only one in the crowd cheering when the baby cows get away again this year!

Yummy Yummy!

We introduced eggs last week! Well, egg yolks! I tried hard boiling them and mashing up the yolk and Alex was not a fan of them. The next day, I scrambled the yolk and she LOVED it! It gets soo messy because she loves trying to feed herself! Today she had lentils! Again, she loved them! The girl loves her food!

While we were in Dallas this weekend, we bought a jogging stroller! We love our Chicco stroller, but we wanted something we can use on the rougher streets in our neighborhood so Alex's little cheeks don't jiggle nonstop! We went on a walk tonight and and we love the new stroller! After our walk, she was playing on the floor and got into a sitting position from her belly!!! She is such a big girl! She also proved that she is a Mommy's girl! My Dad stopped by today since he was in the area and Alex was playing on her lap and she hit her mouth on his knee and she started crying because she was tired and fussy. My Dad got up with her and I walked over to them and she just leaned towards me with her arm wide open! In the past, she has kinda leaned towards me if she wants me to hold her, but never with her arm wide open reaching for me! Josh was holding her earlier and I held my arm out and she leaned away from him towards me! He tried getting her to come back to him and she wouldn't, she just wanted her mama!

My little munchkin is way off her schedule. Friday, she took her morning nap around 11 after playgroup and didn't take another nap. Saturday, she only took her morning nap, and yesterday she took her morning nap and a little hour long cat nap on the way home from Dallas. Because of that little hour nap she stayed up until 8 last night! She had been going to bed between 6:30 and 7. I thought we were getting back on schedule today because she took 2 great naps! Not so much, it's 8:30 and she is still awake! We've been trying to get her to sleep since 7 and she just screams and cries. Who knows, maybe she just wants to watch Dancing with the Stars!

Besties!

I truly think Cooper would be lost without Alex. They are both so interested in each other. I'm not gonna lie, sometimes it can be maddening because Cooper always wants to be where ever Alex is and Alex can not keep her little paws off Cooper or his toys! Cooper loves standing over Alex like he is her protector. Alex loves petting/pulling Cooper's hair out. Here are a few of my favorite pics of the duo!

The First Meeting

"Love at First Sight" Cooper keeping Alex company during "tummy time"

The love isn't always mutual
Looks like they are up to something!

Alex loving on Cooper!

Best Buds!

The girls and I went to our first playgroup today! They were the babies of the group and had a blast! Alex loved trying to play with the "big kids" toys. She just watched with bright eyes as the kiddos ran around! It's a weekly playgroup so we are hoping it will work out so we can go each week!

We are off to Dallas this weekend to see Grandma and Grandpa Stafin. It's been way too long since we've seen them, we are really looking forward to it!

The Clink

Since Alex is on the move and never stops, I usually put her in her crib for a few minutes I need a minute to get something done. When I walked back in her room today, she and Cooper were making big plans! I later realized what the plan was! Alex is obsessed with Cooper's toys. Anytime he leaves one on the floor, she immediately goes for it and tries to put it in her mouth (yuck!) Today was no different. There were 3 toys around the living room so as soon as I would put one up, Cooper would take another one out and put it right beside her! Little stinker!

I have a feeling we are right around the corner from tooth #1! I can see a little white under her bottom gums and she has been a little fussy. I gave her a paci to play with yesterday so she would stop taking Abby's out of her mouth and she chewed on it all afternoon. She is doing great with little bits of finger foods. With each meal I give Alex a little something to try to feed herself. So far we've done banana, plums and scrambled egg yolks. The girl is getting good! Josh and I both think Alex is going to be right handed. I know it's still kinda early to tell, but anytime we put a puff on her tray she picks it up with her right hand. If I put on one the left side of her tray, she will still reach over with her right hand to pick it up. I have to admit, I'm a little sad about it, Josh and I are both lefties and hoped Alex would be too!

Coming for YOU!!

While we were playing outside yesterday afternoon, Alex set her sites on the camera and wouldn't stop until she got it! It's so cute watching her focus on something then do anything she can to get it! First it was my sunglasses, the camera, the mail I had on the blanket then any leaf that landed on the blanket!

Yesterday we went to Sam's to stock up on formula. I tried something different since Abby isn't a huge fan of being in the stroller. I kept Abby in her car seat and put her in the large part of the shopping cart and put Alex in the top part, sitting up like a big girl. Alex LOVES sitting in the carts! People stop and talk to her and she just smiles and hams it up! Abby did great! She just babbled the whole time! I think we found a new fix for our outings! I am going to start doing afternoon walks with the girls in the stroller so Abby can learn to love the stroller!

8 Months Old!!!

My precious little girl is 8 months old today! I know most moms say it, but she really is the best baby ever. She is very laid back and calm. She is loving her new found independence. She is all over the place. Last night we were in her room lowering her crib and she decided to explore. She went into her closet, behind the glider and was on her way to the bathroom! She is sitting up like a champ now! She still prefers to be on her belly so she can move around. Taking her monthly picture is getting harder and harder because the wiggle worm can not sit still or stay in one place! The dress she is wearing in these pics is one of my favorites! It is the first thing I bought when we found out we were having a girl!

We won't have her next doctors appointment until 9 months, but according to my super sophisticated weighing method (get on the scale without her, then get on the scale with her) she is about 17.5lbs and about 28ish inches long. We are quickly approaching the 30 inch mark, which means she is getting close to outgrowing her car seat! I've picked out her next car seat, but it doesn't come out until later this month, so we can't buy it yet! Today, we are starting 3 meals a day. We are also going from 4 - 8 ounce bottles a day to 4 - 6 ounce. She rarely finishes an 8 ounce bottle anymore so we are dropping back to 6 ounces.

I almost forgot our big news! Alex is saying da da! She doesn't know who da da is, but she says it all the time! If you say it, she will repeat it back (most of the time). It is great because I can now tell Josh when she is talking to herself in the morning, she is calling for her da da!!