beach+baby=disappointing.

I have a confession.  Most people already know this about me.  I hate the beach.  I want to love it.  It's beautiful, seems like it should be relaxing (yes, seems...), you can get a tan...whatever.  I HATE sand.  I hate sand even more with a baby.  I kid you not, we were on the beach for no more than 20 minutes and Blakely came back with sand in her crack.  Not sure if you are familiar with sand, but you can't just brush it off either.  Maybe you can brush most of it off...but you will always have a few kernels lingering.  She'll probably have sand in her crack until shes 10.  Not to mention the car...I think I will now forbid my husband from ever taking our car to the beach again.  It will now have sand in it until the end of its days.  How do I know?  I took my old car to the beach in 2006 and it had sand in it until the day we sold it last month.  Anyway, I also hate salt water.  It makes me feel sticky.  I also hate sunscreen....even stickier.  And you are done-zo until you take a shower.  So even though I barely broke a sweat at the beach I need a shower anyway.  Now, I'm not complaining that I get to live near the beach all summer...I love it here.  I just won't be going back to the beach.  Last summer I went to the beach twice in 7 weeks...and both times it was because I had to. 

Plus, in the hoopla of bringing a baby 17 hours from home we forgot our beach towels.  woops.  So we had to stop at target.  Oh, and I also forgot her swimsuit.  But personally I am not that sad about it.  I was not looking forward to putting a swimsuit on this girl...and does she really need one anyway?  So we just went with a diaper.  Plus B didn't eat like she was suppose to, or nap like she was suppose to, so on our way to our first family outing to the beach she was crying...sticky from sunscreen, sweaty...you get the picture.  So we left for the beach around 2:20 (we are only about 2 miles from the beach...) and we did not set foot on the sand until after 3.  So we set up an umbrella and laid out our two towels we bought and laid Blakely down on the towel, and she got sand in her eye.  not sure where it came from cause I felt like I was being a freak trying to keep it away from her.  So we took a couple of pictures of us in the water...to prove that it happened.  Stuck her feet in the water and let her stand in the sand for a minute, then we had enough and came home. 

I do like this picture of us...but it might as well be a lake.  I like lakes. 

ps.  Blakely slept ALL night last night (minus the 45 minutes Stephen was up with her...but still...Thanks babe!) but seriously...slept from 6:30 until 7 this morning.  THEN.  Took a 2 hour nap.  Somebody pinch me. 

traveling

Phew!  We made it to Gulf Shores.  Let's just say, I don't know how we'd do it without the minivan.  :)

We loaded up on Sunday afternoon with hopes of Blakely going to bed at her usual 6:30...but of course, instead, she didn't go to sleep until 8.  No big deal really, except that this was the beginning of her schedule going wacko.  We arrived in Newport at MawMaw's, and I am pretty sure Blakely loved her instantly because she thought MawMaw was the reason she got to be awake and social at 1am.  I've never seen Blakely smile at someone she didn't know so much.

 Blakely also got to play with her cousin Josie.  Josie's mom asked if she wanted a little brother or sister like Blakely and she said yes.  She was then convinced that Blakely was "hers."  She was pretty upset when I took her.  Josie also couldn't figure out why we wouldn't put Blakely down so she could go play with her.
And I thought getting a good picture of a 5 month old was hard...

Then we headed over to Nanny's the next morning.

After a late bedtime, playtime for an hour at 1am, and getting up an hour early, Blakely's tank was getting close to E, but she did SO good!  Neither Nanny nor Blakely cooperated with the pictures, so this is what we got.  :) 

We then headed to Memphis that afternoon, and I don't have a picture to show for it.  Boo.  Stephen's sister, Anna, has a beautiful white lab/border collie mix named Presley.  My grandparents always got me and my cousins names mixed up.  I never pictured Blakely having this same problem with her dog-cousin, but she did.  :)  But I guess it's better than being accused of being a boy when you have a bow on your head.  Poor girl. 

We then loaded up at 4:30am (yes, you read that correctly...) Wednesday morning to head to Gulf Shores.  Blakely did SO good.  We stopped for lunch in Lucedale, Mississippi at this place:

 We ate outside on the patio, cause it was nice, but mainly because we had no idea how Blakely would do.  It was a good thing we were outside thanks to this:

 In case you can't tell, Blakely lost a little bit of her lunch during our lunch.  We had a great trip, and now we are trying to get her adjusted to her new home!  

5 months!

Whew!  April was crazy, and May is about to be even crazier!  We were busy every weekend in April including: Stephen's parents visiting, a trip to see my parents + me and B staying there for a week, our staff training in Tulsa...then on to May!  We spent several days in Fayetteville visiting friends, then back to Lawrence for a week, Stephen took a day trip to Omaha, and we leave tomorrow for Blakely to meet her great-grandmothers in Newport, AR, then to Memphis for a couple days, then on to Gulf Shores, AL for 7 weeks!  Good thing we bought a minivan!  :)

I seriously never thought I could be so excited about a minivan.  It is so great though.  I can walk back and sit by B easily if she needs some company, nursing is a breeze on the road, plus there is so much room for ALL her stuff!  I feel like a true mom with a minivan. 

Oh!  AAAAAND...Blakely turned 5 months old! 
As she gets older, it gets harder and harder to get a good picture out of her! 

I'm not sure how much Blakely weighs...but I would guess around 13lbs.
She rolls over in either direction occasionally, but not regularly.  I'm not entirely sure that it's ever on purpose.
She can sit up, supported by the boppy and momentarily unsupported.  
She is still drooling like crazy, but no teeth in sight.
She has started reaching for things...everything.  Here's proof:

We call her arm the "flapper" because it seems like she just flaps it constantly now.  No real coordination just flapping everything within her reach.  It's pretty hilarious.

We took a break on cereal, because she took a nursing hiatus.  Then we were back at it.  Now we are taking a break again because it seems to be messing her tummy up.  So we are going to wait until 6 months.


Blakely is still a terrible napper and is not sleeping all night.  She is so unpredictable.  Sometimes she will sleep until 5am, and sometimes she is up at 2.  Will I ever get a full nights sleep again???  But I'm not complaining or anything...

Currently I am making my most desperate attempt to get her on a tight schedule.  It kills me to fight with her, but I am forcing her to nap, even if it means I put her pacifier in 20 times in an hour.  (yes, I did this yesterday.)

Along with reaching for and grabbing everything, she also wants to put everything in her mouth.  This is her trying to eat the camera as I take her picture.  

And just because I think this picture is hilarious: 

two things:

First.  We were fortunate enough to have some 80 degree weather here this past week.  I heard that most eye damage occurs in the first 5 years of life so I made sure she was protected. 

 Second.  We started real food for Blakely tonight.  So I sent Stephen to the store to get "rice cereal" for her, and this is what he came back with:

Hilarious.  So, of course, he went back for a second trip to the store.  Good news- the real rice cereal was a hit and we couldn't shovel it in fast enough. 

4 MONTHS!

Blakester weighed in at 11 pounds 13 oz. in the 11th%, and 23 and 1/2 inches long in the 20th%.  Since she is still on the small side, we are suppose to try cereal soon.  I am not really looking forward to it, but hopefully it will beef her up, make her a little more content, and maybe even sleep better!   After the fiasco with her 2 month vaccinations I made Stephen come to this one.  Blakely and I both cried still, but it was at least better than last time.

She started laughing a few weeks ago!  Nothing is ever funny twice though, so we are constantly trying to figure out what will make her laugh.  It is the greatest sound! 

She has started occasionally playing by herself.  Last night she woke up at 9pm, 4am, and 7am to play and talk to herself for about 30 minutes each time.  Hilarious.

She goes to bed around 6:30- I know, crazy, right?!- and has slept all the way through the night 3 or 4 times.  I mean, who could blame the girl for getting hungry at 4am when she's been asleep for almost 10 hours?  Terrible napper.  So if she takes a few good naps, it might be later, but usually I have to fight her to get one, maybe two, hour long naps a day- so 6:30 couldn't come sooner.  For either of us. 

If I could change anything about Blakerino it would only be the unbelievable amount of saliva she produces.  Holy moly.  Please appreciate this picture.  And you can't even see the wetness that covers most of her onesie (or my shirt...)  But I wouldn't change anything else about this pretty girl. 

She is, no doubt, the cutest drama queen I know. 

bouncer

blakely's new favorite thing to do is bounce!  i apologize for when i turned the camera sideways...not sure what i was thinking there. 

cloth diapers part 2

the last time i blogged about cloth diapers i was still pregnant.  so i thought i would do a follow up post since i have been at it for 3 1/2 months now.  i have several friends that are considering it, and in my infinite (ha) wisdom, i thought this might help.  i wish i knew (or sortof knew...) someone that used cloth diapers, rather than just read about it from people in colorado i didn't know at all.  so for those of you that aren't interested in cloth diapers- this is a dull post. 

what i like about it: 1. it really is sortof like a hobby.  i can't explain this any other way, it's just fun.  and it's much easier than i thought it would be (even for stephen!) 2. environmentally friendly- this honestly wasn't a factor when i was deciding but i like that our diaper trash is minimal.  3. money- we have probably spent a total of $500 on cloth and i could spend more if i want, but i don't have to.  i'm pretty sure i would have spent close to that by now on disposables.  4. they are cute. 5. B has only had diaper rash when she was in disposables. 6. she can go longer between changes- i like to change as frequently as she needs, but if she poops in a disposable i have to change it immediately, but in cloth she will be ok.  this is especially helpful at night.

what i don't like: 1. we have a front loader washer.  top loaders are better for cloth. but nbd.  2. cleaning them- this is also nbd, it would be a perfect world if you didn't have to clean them.  3. i have to stay on top of laundry- if i don't, no diapers.  i do diaper laundry about every other day. 4. the smell.  this was my BIGGEST concern when deciding if i wanted to do it.  i won't lie like some people and say there is no smell.  there is.  we keep all our dirty diapers in a hanging cloth diaper pail in our bathroom in the basement.  because this is also where we clean and wash the dipes, the room has a little funk to it.  BUT when i light a candle, you really can't smell a thing.  AND it's still not the funk you get with poop+disposables.  5. not everyone can change her diaper.  we just make sure we have disposables for when someone else might change her.  6. out of town trips- when we go to my parents i still use them, but anywhere else i just use disposables so i am not toting around dirty diapers.  those are the cons- but honestly, none of them are as big of a deal as i thought they would be. 

what i use(ed):
Rumparooz G2 one size pocket- like it
bumGenius 4.0 one size pocket- love it
thirsties duo- like it
bumGenius all in one one size- don't like it but i am glad i have a few
flips diaper by bumGenius- like it

bumGenius 3.0 size xs- loved it, but it is about to be too small

lil joeys by rumparooz- they were ok, wouldn't recommend them.

kissaluvs fitted size xs- dislike. 
prefolds- dislike
fuzzibunz one size pocket- dislike- this one might be better when she gets bigger
fuzzibunz size small pocket- dislike- ditto

velcro is easier, but snaps last longer- snaps are nbd once you get use to them.  most diapers come in both.

if i had to do it over i would have bought one of each kind/brand i was considering and used them for a week or two and made my decision from there.  i would however recommend having a variety and not just go with one brand- i think my favs will continue to change as she grows. 

who should do cloth?  anyone who wants to.  if you don't think you'll enjoy it, i don't think it's worth it unless you need to do it to save money.  but if you think you might enjoy it then you probably will. 

any questions?  :)