Moving Forward

Wow its been a while! I guess I shouldn't say Happy New Year as we're 17 days into 2012...but I said it anyway :) L.J. is growing like a little weed! In fact I had to get a new car seat because he outgrew his infant seat. Also, he was getting close to the weight limit (22lbs) so I thought it was time to move on and put the infant seat away. I swear it feels like the end of an era.

So here are some pictures of my lil man I've been meaning to post:





Okay I think that pretty much updates the first 6 months of L.J.'s life. So the stats:

- Weight: 19 lbs (as of his 6 month visit)
- Height: 27.5 inches

Both stats are in the 75th percentile. So L.J. has come a long way! Unfortunately, my lil man has had one cold after another. :( Right now he is on antibiotics for his first ear infection. I'm hoping that he'll be 100% soon. But I must say that through it all he has been a jovial and good spirited baby. He's always smiling even when he doesn't feel well. He truly brightens my day.

Also, L.J.'s first tooth has finally pushed through his gums! Not sure if you can see it in the picture, but it's definitely there. I'm so glad because this little boy has been teething and trying to "cut these teeth" (that's what the old folks say) since he was three months old. At this point the slobbing is back but I don't mind. I'm just glad his has his first tooth...well almost.

L.J. got a big Christmas gift: the gift of real food and water! It's been six months in the making but finally...REAL FOOD AND WATER!!!!

And now for my Product Recommendations:

The Baby Bullet:



I absolutely love this gadget! It makes making L.J.'s food hassle free! It even comes with a food log and a recipe book as well as recommendations for baby's first foods. So my Pedi recommended that L.J. starts eating vegetables first and then fruits later. He can have no more than 4 oz of water and or clear juices (apple, pear, white grape) a day.

We started L.J. with spinach...that was interesting. He didn't like it at first and really I think it was more him getting used to eating this way versus him not liking spinach. But after a week of eating spinach he took to it. Next we tried carrots which he loves! Then we stopped for a little while just because of his cold turned ear infection. But Saturday we started him on peas. I think next we'll do sweet potato and when he goes back for his follow-up I'll have my Mom ask if its okay to start fruits. I can't wait til we can start mixing different foods. I haven't tried giving L.J. juice yet and quite frankly after doing some research even IF I give L.J. juice I will be making it myself from organic fruits. I'm to the point I may start my own vegetable and fruit garden. I swear all the chemicals they put in our food is ridiculous! I mean ARSENIC in our apple juice!!! Not for my baby! So needless to say if I give my child juice I'll be investing in a juicer.

Evenflo Convertible Car Seat:
I love love LOVE this car seat. This makes me wonder why I listed on my friends and even purchased an infant car seat/stroller or travel system. What a total waste! This particular car seat: Evenflo Symphony 65 XL features a secure latch system which is basically two connectors that hook into the anchors in your car. Installation is literally less than a minute using these. The shoulder straps are super easy to tighten and loosen as well as adjust up or down. The picture shown is the exact one I purchased and it looks awesome in the car. The seat also features three recline positions and can hold a child rear facing up to 40 lbs and forward facing up to 100lbs. It was totally worth the money and not to mention it was a the top of the consumer reporter for safest car seat. I highly recommend this seat.

Okay so back to L.J....my lil man is sitting up like a big boy and has been doing so since about 5.5-6 months of age. He's still not quite crawling but he does take steps if I or my hubby stands him up on his feet. I think he'll actually skip crawling and go straight to walking. Yikes! I guess its time to start looking into baby-proofing.

We've Got a Big Boy On Our Hands!!!

**Weight Update** My son now weights a whopping 17lbs and 11 ounces! WOW! Last time we went to the doctor (2 months ago) he weighed in at 11 lbs 11 ounces....I think! Sheesh I guess I should write this stuff down somewhere! :) LJ also got two shots and luckily didn't have much of a fever this time around. But he was slightly irritable the rest of the evening yesterday so we put him to bed a little early.

Anyway, my Mom and I were both shocked with his weight gain. LJ is now bigger than 90% of infants his age. But the height department is not so great. He's about 25 inches long....about 25% longer than infants his age. So my lil man still has some growing to do but all in all he's healthy and to me that's all that matters.

So Halloween came and went so fast. Hubs and I wanted to do something for LJ but we thought he was a bit young and it was too cold to take him anywhere. I of course wanted to do the whole pumpkin patch and pumpkin carving, but in the end we settled for just doing some pictures of him in his costume. He of course was a little plump pumpkin! :D *pictures coming soon* LJ did pretty good with the portrait folks at JCPenny but he is a baby so as soon as we were finished he feel right to sleep. LOL.

I was so impressed with the JCPenny that I decided to book our family portraits there for the Christmas holiday. Of course we'll be taking those pictures early to avoid the crowd and to ensure that the Christmas cards are on time! :)

Okay so I have a couple of items for review:

The Bumbo:

So I got mixed reviews on this item which is why it was not on our registry. However, my BFF decided it was a must have so purchased one for LJ anyway. The premise of it is neat...infant gets to sit up and see the world as we see it. BUT LJ will only stay in the Bumbo for about five minutes. Not sure if he gets tired or annoyed but he'll start to lean to the side and then cry. Also, his little legs have gotten so chubby that he can barely get in the Bumbo now. All and all I don't think it's worth the $40.00. Now if someone gives it to you, definitely try it out....but don't run to the store or amazon and get one.

Sophie La Giraffe

Love, love, LOVE this thing! So as stated a while back LJ started pre-teething...basically he drooled so much that we had to start putting bibs on him. Now, he's spitting (Mommy hates this) and I can see the bottom two teeth trying to push through. Now we've tried our share of teething rings but either he couldn't grip them or they were too cold or too hard. This always resulted in a crying baby. So one of my sorority sisters suggest Sophie. After looking at Sophie I was not convinced...it literally looks like a chew toy for a dog and I should know because we have two dogs. LOL. However, my Mom wanted something as she keeps him during the day and noticed that he was getting very fussy because of his sore gums. We do have oral gel but that only lasts a few minutes and we didn't want to inundate him with it so I broke down and got Sophie. BEST DECISION EVER! LJ loves this thing! He loves that it makes noise, its easier for him to grab onto and literally he can chew or gnaw any part of Sophie! So I HIGHLY recommend Sophie for teething or even pre-teething babies.

Anyway I guess that's it for now. I'll be back to post some of those Halloween pics! Oh and I'll also post 1-4 month pictures!

Also Moms who print photos: check out and join Shutterfly and Snapfish they have some great deals on prints and other items for the holidays.

What's Truly Best For Your Baby..?

So in my last blog entry I attempted to solicit help because my little guy was not getting enough sleep and of course neither were my husband and I.

Thankfully my daycare provider (my mommy) noticed this same thing during the day and decided to try to put LJ on his tummy for naps. Eureka! It worked like a charm and LJ has been a tummy baby ever since.

Of course I was worried and started Googling and reading and the bottom line is infants should sleep on their backs; this helps prevent SIDS. So, after reading I was terrified and almost went back to putting LJ on his back but decided to speak with some friends who recently had children. Both told me that their babies slept on their tummies too after a while. They concurred that both of their boys slept better this way.

Well, after talking it over w/ the hubs, we decided that we have to do what's best for our child. Obviously getting more rest is beneficial to him and us quite frankly. Besides now that he rolls (well actually he's been rolling since he was about 2 months) he didn't really sleep on his back anyway. Once babies begin to roll they will always roll to where they feel comfortable.

Further, more research has to be done on SIDS. It's a terrible and horrible thing to not know or understand what causes SIDS babies to stop breathing. My heart goes out to every parent who has had to deal with this. I just personally think that for us, we will go with what WE think is best for our child. There are all kinds of studies out there and some contradict others so its important to do your research.....YES! But you have to put said research into perspective and then make an informed decision and that's what we did.

Oh by the way LJ is 4 months old! He's trying to sit up now...he thinks he's so grown! LOL!

Almost 1 Month Later....

Mommyhood is kicking my butt! But I must be honest...I love every minute of it...well not every minute. I must admit that the moments that are not so great definitely happen but I always look back on them and laugh. I'm truly thankful and blessed to be a mother to such a wonderful, curious and sweet baby.

Okay here is my list (so far) of must-have's from one new Mama to another:

Graco duo 2-n-1 baby swing (pictured to the left)
Keep it Kleen pacifier (also pictured to the left)
Munchkin/Arm n Hammer Diaper pail (truly a lifesaver)
Boppy
Aden and Anais muslin wrap blankets (LOVE these)

Of course this is just my list so far...I'll be sure to add to it as my little one grows and I start using various nick knacks and gadgets. But I can't say enough about that Graco swing. It is a total life saver!!! When L.J. gets fussy or gassy I put him in this swing and he can't help but eventually settling down and going to sleep. The swing plays classical music as well as nature sounds; it has a timer and of course various swing settings ranging from 1-6 (6 being a very high swing). Additionally, the seat of the swing detaches and becomes a bouncer. Yesterday this came in handy because L.J. was just not feeling it and so I took the seat out (very easy) and put him on top of the bed and just bounced the seat until he feel asleep. Now I'm not trying to sound like a sales person, nor is Graco paying me for this excellent sales pitch (lol) but this swing was the best decision ever!

Now as for the pacifier...well it closes when it falls on the ground so you don't need to rinse it off. Really though, just be sure to get your newborn a pacifier...otherwise they will use YOU as their pacifier (if you're breastfeeding). L.J. is sometimey when it comes to taking it. I'm going to try a Nuk pacifier and see if he likes that...if not we've run out of options and brands! LOL!

Diaper pails are a personal preference but the one I have is easy to change and I have yet to smell a smelly diaper. I was a little displeased because you can't purchase the refills in a wholesale store like Costco, Sam's or B.J.'s (unlike the diaper genie refills) but Babies R Us has them on sale quite frequently so I just stock up at that time.

The Boppy I could do without at this point since L.J. and I have our breastfeeding positions down but I've noticed that the heavier he gets the more my carpal tunnel in both of my wrists begins to act up so I'm back to the boppy. Unfortunately I can't take it out with me but I guess I'll just have to get some braces for my wrists :(

Aden and Anais blankets are awesome! They are perfect for swaddling (L.J. hated being swaddled...he always managed to get his arms out...lol) and for going out when you want to protect your little one from the sun or germs. On top of that the blankets are sooooo soft! I absolutely love them! They were not on any of my registries but someone purchased them for us and I'm so glad they did! Awesome blankets!

Anyway....I can't believe a month ago today at this time I was in serious labor pain and got sent home only to go back to the hospital and have my little guy on the date of my scheduled induction! L.J. has his one month doctor's appointment tomorrow. Unfortunately he has to get a shot and I know he's just going to cry his little eyes out *sigh* oh well. It must be done :)

Welp guess I better attempt to keep L.J. on somewhat of a schedule....time to eat!