18 month highlights

How can it be, my baby is 18 months old already!
Her round face, sparkly blue eyes and blond ringlets melt my heart.

SHE:
loves being outside

sledding
swinging
swimming
riding trikes

Her favorite foods are:
broccoli
cheese
milk
peanut butter & bananas
chicken
waffles
black beans
apples

Her favorite stuffed animals to carry around and sleep with are her penguin and her meme (monkey). She loves to wear shoes, boots and slippers.

Words she says:
cheese
pink
balloon
mom
dad
me
yes
no
eye
do
see
bye-bye
hello(as she puts a phone to her ear)
teeth
baby
that
meme (monkey)
shoe
moo
roof

Indoors you will find her:
unloading boxes, trunks, cupboards

playing playdough
feeding her dolls

working in her kitchen
dressing up
looking at books
sitting in things

She has her daddy wrapped around her finger.

We love you little Ashlynn and can't imagine our family with out you!
Happy 18 months!

Sweet

Potatoes
The size of a pie pumpkin!

After scrubbing them yesterday, Ashlynn was trying to decide which one to pick up to take inside for me.

She finally decided on the biggest one, of course.

But it proved to be a little bigger than she could handle.

I have no idea how my potatoes grew to this size.
We have a few so immense I'm sure not they're fit to eat.
I've never seen potatoes so big.
There is more out there.

Sweet potatoes anyone?

WW Little One

Balloon Time

A party isn't complete with out colorful balloons!

They provided plenty of entertainment while I got things ready for the birthday dinner.

Big sister was right there to help.

And sometimes strings are fun too.

A little Cake for the 1 Year old

We had a belated birthday party for our little one year old. It was ok though, she didn't know :) It is always fun to watch the little one with their cake. It is always a surprise as to how they will react. Ashlynn was hesitant, not wanting to dig in. She took a little bite, then realized it was good and went in for a little more. Of course dad helped and then it began to get fun, somehow she managed to stay clean!

Just a little taste to make sure it's good.

I think I like it, maybe I'll try more!

This looks colorful, maybe I'll try it.

Good Stuff!

Ahhh, but look at my hand!

WW Corn

Happy 1st Birthday

Ashlynn!
I can't believe you are one!
This past year has flown by. You are a little miracle, just like each of your siblings. God made me wait for 10 years for you, but honestly, I thank Him for every day I waited. I thank Him because during those years God made your biggest brother, a big brother x 2 and placed your next to biggest brother and big sister into our family.
You are the perfect 4th child, and He knew you would be!

You are a bundle of love.
You are the definition of 'easy going'.
Your blue eyes sparkle with joy, soon to be mischief I am am sure!
You babble important stuff.
You almost always have a smile.
You have a healthy appetite.
You are our first baby with curls, you got them from your Grandma Jane.
You aren't walking yet, but you sure do move fast.
You sleep from 8:30 pm until 8 am.
You take two naps, an hour morning one and a 2 1/2 hour afternoon one.
You love to bath, swim and play in the water.
You sleep with a penguin.

You eat a banana every morning for breakfast.
You love green vegetables.
You've never had formula.
You have 8 teeth.
You are wearing 12 - 18 month clothes.
You've had 5! ear infections in the last 4 months. So we've taken you to the chiro.
You've been to Florida and Texas, and flown on a plane.
You are a mama's baby.


I love you little one!

WW Hey, it's raining in there!

My morning do

We're still learning to handle all the curls.
Any suggestions?

Blue eyed smile

6 month

I can't believe you are 6 months old already.
It seems like just yesterday we brought you home from the hospital.

I call you Sunshine and it suits you perfectly!
Your eyes twinkle with joy 99% of the time.

You are a very content, easy going baby.
It took you a little longer to make it through the night than the rest of your siblings, but 8 hours at 10 weeks is nothing to complain about.
You still sleep great.
You loved being wrapped up tight.
I lay you down awake and most times you fall asleep without making a peep.
You take 2 naps a day and sometimes a mini nap right before dinner.
You are still nursing. Hopefully we will make it to a year.
You started solids on Christmas Eve.
Avocado was your first food.
You've now expanded your menu to sweet potatoes, pears, peaches and bananas. However bananas tend to constipate you, so those are saved for special treats. Kind of like mom's ice cream, well not the constipate part, the treat part :)
Soon you will be starting on yogurt and whole grains.
You don't have any teeth yet, but you drool all the time.
You twist and roll around. You're not going anywhere fast, yet.
Last night you started to try work yourself up onto your knees, but you weren't quite strong enough yet.
You can sit by yourself but only for 10 seconds. Then something excites you and down you go.
You giggle at your siblings, smile at their presence and love to watch them.
You don't like your car seat for long periods of time. I normally put you in the Hot Sling when we go shopping.
You LOVE bath time. You kick with delight when we start the water.
You fall asleep easily for dad at church. You've got him wrapped around your finger.
We've voted you the biggest distraction during school that ever was.

You, my Sunshine, are a gift from God.
And I thank Him for giving me the privilege of being your mommy.

Baby Food

Yes you are right! I was making my own organic baby food.

Ashlynn started eating big girl food on Christmas Eve.
We started with avocados, then bananas which constipated her so we stopped, now she has added sweet potatoes to the mix. Yum!

I give my babies avocado as their first food. The health benefits of giving babies (and all children) avocados to eat are countless! They are one of nature's perfect foods. Avocados contain healthy fats great for your little ones' brain development, plus much more. They can be easily mashed with out the need to puree in a blender or baby food mill.

Making baby food is incredibly easy, less expensive than buying it and it's got to taste better. My favorite baby food making book is Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. I don't agree with, or do everything she says. However, her book has a wealth of information in it, a lot of good tips and many tasty, kid friendly recipes. Another great resource for making (and feeding babies) baby food is Wholesome Baby Food.

The basic steps for everything you make are the same.
Wash, cook until soft( if needed), puree and freeze.

Yesterday...
I cooked one LG sweet potato for about 1 1/2 hours in a glass dish with a lid on it. Let it cool, removed the skin and then pureed it. You may add liquid if needed for your babies age.

Next I scooped the potatoes into ice cube trays (my potato made 2 trays of cubes) then I put the trays into the freezer.

When the potato cubes were frozen I popped them out and put them in a freezer bag to store.

To use, remove # of cubes desired from freezer, thaw, add liquid if necessary and feed. I normally warm the food a bit as well.

If bananas and avocados are on sale, I will mash and freeze them but I normally mash those two foods at feeding time. An avocado or a banana is the first thing I will grab to feed my baby if we are going to be gone over a meal. You can toss the whole thing, in it's peel, into your diaper bag. If your baby doesn't finish it, you can, or you can put the extra in a baggie to finish later.

Here is a chart of great first foods and when to start what, plus why I wait to start until my baby is close to 6 months and why I've chosen not to start with rice cereal. Super Baby Food also has all this information.

I normally introduce grains between 6 and 8 months. Your babies digestive system isn't developed enough to handle whole grains (oatmeal, barley, millet, quinoa, couscous) until 6 months. Making your own baby cereal is easy too! I'll save that for another day.

What?

are you jealous of my figure???

We have a jumper

All Smiles

Hats

I was the lucky winner of these adorable hats. Actually, I was able to pick any item from her store I wanted!

The hats are handmade. Aren't the cute!
Visit Momma Molly to see what else she has in her Etsy store.

WW Baby Cheeks

Ashlynn

Has rolled, several times from tummy to back.
Has better head/neck control.
Smiles.
And is a big distraction during school.
But we'll learn to live with that :)

Next week we have her 2 month appointment, I can't wait to see how big she is!

...tomorrow: how to keep little ones busy during school...

Time is going too fast

How can she be so big already?
7 weeks!
It has gone too fast.
Time, slow down!

Thank you Lord for our little miracle. She has brought much joy into our house.

Ashlynn Elizabeth

Oh what a little blessing you are.

Little one, I am head over heals in love with you.
I love your newborn smell.
and the way you snuggle in tight.
I love your tiny finger and toes.
and your little button nose.
I love the noises you make.
You are a perfect miracle
sent from the Lord above.