Weekend Happenings

So Larry and I seemed to have find a way to time travel...but only to the future and very quickly (as in we make time go by VERY fast these days). We get so busy during the week and then have a whole list of things we'd like to do on the weekends and even having a lazy/chore day on Sunday it still goes by in the blink of an eye. Here's what we've been doing on weekends lately:

Antique Shopping

So Larry text me one day saying he'd really like to go look at some local antique shops. I thought this was such a funny idea since we have been to a couple antique shops, but Larry didn't seem interested in going more. I strangely love walking through the stores, not necessarily to buy anything, but to just see the old stuff. I'm super intrigued by old typewriters and brushes for some reason. We found a couple near us that seemed to have a lot to look at and boy were we not disappointed. I think my favorite find was an old Electro Shock Therapy Machine. Larry seemed to like the books and games they had. We didn't get anything, but it was still cool to see all the old stuff!

 

Am I the only one who loves old things like this?

 

Cara couldn't care less about most of it, but she did seem to like chandeliers and umbrellas that were hung high. I even showed her old stuff animals and I think she was expecting them to entertain her more haha.

PT Tests

So Larry has some pretty good opportunities coming his way, of which I'm not sure I want to speak of just yet, but the point is he's had to do some PT tests. We decided to hit up the Lehi Rec Center to time him and I have to say I was pretty amazed at the center. We'd never been before and it seemed SO cool. They had a rock wall, gymnastics area, many basketball courts (that were being used for a  volleyball game that day), pools, splash pads, fitness area, and even a concession stand. I can't wait till Cara is old enough to take her there to do fun stuff (especially the gymnastic area and pool areas haha).



Cara watching Daddy run around the track
 

Home Depot Runs

So we've been working on house stuff a lot lately. It's been nice getting things done. But this means we've been hitting up Home Depot, Lowes, and Costco for home stuff. We keep talking about what our next project is going to be and then start making lists of what we need to do for that. Recently we've just started getting a new mattress pad for us (our old one was AWFUL) and ceiling fans for Cara's nursery...which now that I think of it is almost pointless since we're getting into Fall and Winter so they won't be as needed, but oh well.

I'm hoping to maybe work on our front room built ins really soon. I think it'll help with organizing and cleaning up the main level a bit more. It'll be a TON of work, but so worth it once it's done!

Our First Babysitter

So Larry and I decided to get our first babysitter and go see a movie just us two. My grandma was the gracious first victim of our babysitting experiment! We went to see "IT" and left Cara at her house for the few hours we were gone. Overall, I feel a little bad because we didn't have enough time to go over what she'd need while we were gone before we had to leave (we ended up getting a late start to the morning) and it's been a while since she had to watch a baby so there was some chaos when we got back to her house. I think it mostly went well until Cara didn't get a full nap. But we got her calmed down, fed, and then we all went out to lunch.

I will say the movie was really good, but it didn't make me miss going to the theater - our house is still much more comfy haha. But I'm glad we got to go out and I'm glad my grandma survived (I wasn't so much worried about Cara, just grandma having a baby again).

Our Weekly Plans

So I mentioned in this blog post that we had a goal for something to do each night after dinner and before we get Cara ready for bed so that we weren't just sitting around doing nothing.

This time of day has become a harder time of transition for me because after work was when I'd usually be lazy; and while I could be lazy with a baby, I don't want to be (like physically and mentally it just feels wrong to not do something with her during the time I actually have with her). I wasn't sure what to do with such a short amount of time (short because she takes a nap, we eat dinner, we feed her, and then put her down pretty early), but after thinking about the demands of each night (who works out which night, which nights are bath nights, etc. etc.) I came up with a decent plan to start out with.

We started this last Thursday, so it's been a full official week, and here's what we've been able to come up with that's worked so far:


Sunday - Lazy/Chore Day 

Sunday is what I call Lazy and Chore day. We usually do grocery shopping and laundry on Sundays. Eventually (when kid(s) are older) this will also be clean-the-house day so that we can start the week with a nice clean house...right now we won't discuss how often the house is cleaned haha. And because it's such a lazy day the rest of the time it's a "go to bed early" night. I love that we can start the work week well rested and get things taken care of on this day.

Monday - Creative Night

Monday is creative night in that we should do something creative: Play an instrument (so far we only have a keyboard, but we might get more as time goes on), color, draw, build, dance, etc. This last week we made a sensory bag for Cara to play with. I was so excited to see how she'd do with it and she does seem to like it, but mostly wants to put it in her mouth (like usual haha) so we might have to make this a more edible creation night for the next little while haha.

Tuesday - Reading Night

Reading Night is pretty self explanatory. Right now it's just "read to Cara" night and then I'm working on catching up on my magazines once we put her down for bed. This is also a secondary "go to bed early" night as well since reading makes me EXTREMELY tired and so it's hard for me to do it during the day and then try and do something else. Alternatively I can work on our budget or blog updates during these nights if I don't feel like going to bed early.

Right now we're reading a Disney short stories book to Cara. I like that they are a bit longer so it feels like I'm really reading to her (they aren't just a quick read like the ones with only a sentence or two on each page), she likes the pictures, and they are Disney so I love it even more!

Wednesday - Fend For Yourself Night

Fend For Yourself Night is mostly for the one who isn't with the kid(s) all day. Right now that's Larry (not that that will change right now, but just saying) so I take over watching Cara and doing stuff with her while he can take the after dinner time to do whatever will help keep him sane. I'm sure having her all day, playing with all of us all night, and not really getting a weekend break takes it's toll after a while so I like to give him breaks whenever I feel confident that I can take over. Last night was our first night of doing this one, but it was our first night introducing her to oatmeal cereal and peanut butter so of course he actually wanted to be a part of that. But it's a work in progress.

Thursday - Reading Night (pt. 2)

Because I don't think you can get enough of books and the advantages of reading I added a second reading night to the weekly routines. I love reading to Cara and she seems to like it too. I just need to get more books that have more sentences on each page haha. Plus I love that this gives me more of an opportunity to read my books (once I'm done with my magazines!).

Friday - Game Night

Larry and I have quite the stash of games in our home and we've talked for many years about how we'd love to have a game night as a family as we grew up so I figured it's a good time for us to establish this. Cara mostly just loves playing on her activity mat so we have her on that next to us and then if she gets bored with that I'll sit her on my lap while we play a game. Last week we played Settlers of Catan (Larry's choice). The best part of this is we can switch off who gets to choose which game we play each week so that we all get to play a good one as the kid(s) grow up.

 

It can't all be glamorous...right?

 

I also think it'd be fun to include playing a sport (catch, basketball, tag, etc.) in this one during warm months when we can be outside. Maybe sledding or a day off to do skiing during the winter (I imagine we'll just be loaded with money in the future, that's not odd right? Haha)

Saturday - Movie Night

This one is similar to Game Night. We normally are running errands and doing things all day Saturday that it's nice to just relax at night (especially since Sunday is the lazy/chore day). Right now we pick a Disney/animated movie for Cara to watch before we put her down and then we can watch one together. This one will also be good to switch off who gets to choose a movie each week or if we go out to one. Since it's September I've been working on my thriller/horror movies for now. It'll eventually be Thanksgiving/Fall/Football Movies in November and Christmas movies after Thanksgiving :)

So that's our plans for now. I'm sure they will be altered, but it's a good starting point...I feel like it anyways.

Cara is FOUR Months

I am FOUR months old!

 

 

I like:  Fart noises (seriously, we get a giggle from her when I make them haha), when mommy reads to me (she LOVES colorful books), touching daddy's face when he feeds me, when mommy fake eats my fingers (because she won't touch my face just yet), the color yellow (she went nuts when we had her watching Minions haha), Sophie the teether giraffe (or really any teether toy) and holding the bottle during feedings.

Mommy and me reading each night

I'm holding the bottle now!

 

I dislike: being held while finishing a bottle (she will start it that way and then she wants to lie down for the last of the bottles), binkies (she is officially a finger sucker and HATES her binkie now), and gas bubbles.

 

I am now: We had her Dr. apt today and she weighed in at 13 lbs. 9 oz. and 24.4 inches long. Her height and weight were around the 40th percentile and her head was in the 80th percentile so basically we have short, skinny Megamind! Haha. Cara is wearing size 3 clothes and size 2 diapers. But we're getting close to upping the clothes to the 3-6 month size.

A Typical Day looks like: Mom leaves for work around 7:30 and dad starts his day at work real quick. Cara wakes up around 8 ish (might be 8:30 depending on how well she slept during the night) and daddy gets her dressed and ready for the day. He does tummy time, practice talking, little workouts (squats and stuff to get her muscles strong) and lets her play on her activity mat while he works. She eats about 3 - 5 to 6 oz. bottles during the work day and then (at the beginning of the month) we will give her a small one around 6 (about 2-3 oz. just to hold her over until bedtime). Around 7:30 PM we take her upstairs for a bath (either in the bathtub or a wipe one), grease up her dry spots (unfortunately she has a ton of them) and lotion up the rest, and then we feed her a 6 oz bottle and put her down after that. She's still getting up once or twice a nice (depending on what you still consider the night. Usually once around 2 AM and then 6 AM)

This last week we decided we should transition her into getting used to not having a bottle to go to bed so we made the 6 PM bottle a 5 or 6 ounce once and then we do 2 ounces at 7:30. Our plan is to transition the 6 PM bottle to 7 and eliminate the 7:30 bottle and we'll get her used to a bedtime routine without a bottle. The teething process has made it so that when she gets up she's up for a little bit, she doesn't cry, but she will whimper a little.

Holding my head up...about
To roll over from tummy to back

Naps with Dad are awesome!

 

This Month I: started reaching and grabbing for toys, my own fingers, and holding the bottle when I'm being fed. I am getting so so close to rolling over from back to tummy (she's got some pretty strong legs!), went back to rolling from tummy to back again, and started the fun teething process (luckily not cranky yet, but definitely teething. I'm oddly excited for this even though it has messed with her sleeping)

Watching fishies with Dad

Teething rings with Mom

Parent's Notes: I swear each month gets better and better. Watching this little girl learn and start doing new things is seriously my favorite part. I feel like I'm constantly watching her, playing with her, doing stuff with her and don't take time for myself, but honestly she's my favorite little human and I just don't mind that a majority of my time is dedicated to her (Plus we put her down for bed early enough I can take that time for myself if need be).

It's funny because I think I'm used to not sleeping as much and actually prefer sleeping 7 hours to 8 or 9 hours. Even on the hardest day when I think I'm dreading that I can't relax after work I get so excited to see her face and how she lights up when she sees me that it makes any harder, more exhausting times so much easier to push through. I'm realizing now how much of a life change having a baby is, nothing will ever be the same again in the most awesome way, I'd never go back to before we had her at this point. She's just so cute and perfect that it's the best change ever!

One of my favorite things that happened this month is usually when I get home I roll my tongue (either so it sounds like a Spanish R or between my lips so it looks like I'm spitting) and I start my voice low and go up higher, well around the 21st I got home and Cara started gurgling and making the high pitched sound to get me to laugh. When I stopped laughing she would make the noise again and if I left the room she'd do it. Almost like that was her association with me and it was the cutest, funniest thing ever! I was in tears the first time she did it. I, of course, tried to record it, but she doesn't always like performing for the camera.
 

Update on last month's goals:

• We've got a good nighttime routine figured out. Since I miss out on most of the day with her I'll get her ready for bed (a wipe bath, lotion, and some grease for her dry spots, then the owelet and pajamas go on and I give her kisses before handing her off to dad on his nights or starting to feed her on my nights). She throws fits randomly and will take her time going to bed some nights, but we've found if we give her more formula bottles during the day she'll sleep most of the night peacefully. Teething was the only thing to upset that rhythm. We also figured out how to get the cats to STOP waking her up early and so we don't have to lock them out (once we hear clawing on our mattresses it's a sign they'll wake her up so we stop them right then, but they've stopped doing it for the most part now).
• It was hard to split working and caring for Cara in the beginning, but now things are running much smoother and I'm happy to say I think we have a good balance of things.
• There's really no more preparation we could do for the 4 month mark. I mean we let her smell our food and we're gauging if she's showing interest in it (because I've read that's when it's best to introduce them to solids). We'll see how she responds this next month.
• I only skipped a couple workout days (not including Saturdays since that one is either do something physical or workout) and that was for date nights or something important came up. I got my other workouts in that week and things have been feeling much better.

Goals for next month:

• Introduce Cara to the start of the holiday season - only not really because I start this time with scary movies, but we'll get to go costume shopping soon - eeesh!!
• Maybe try ONE more hike this season with Cara. She seems to love being in nature. The only annoying party is getting sunscreen on all of us.
• Introduce her to oatmeal cereal (rather than rice, since I've heard that doesn't have any nutritional value) and hopefully that'll help the sleeping at night thing.
• Work on teething helpers since it's starting to bug her in her sleep. Hopefully we can find a good thing to use that'll also help with the sleeping.
• Stick with an activity for after dinner/before her bedtime so that we aren't just wasting time doing nothing. I think this might help with her fussy hour as well. I've got an idea for each day of the week that we're going to try this month and see how it works. Plus it's a good schedule that will grow and evolve with her and we can keep up as the years go by.
• Work on night time weaning and getting rid of the night time bottle and transitioning to a new bed routine.