Tag Archives: 6 months

Beyond Breast Milk Part 1: Non-food Tasting Notes

Baby peers, I made it, I’m now half a year old! For you younger, less experienced babies, that means 6 months. Yep, no more counting by months for me, now I can count by half years!

DSC_0954 (Medium)

I have a feeling things are going to start changing around here now that I’m half a year old. For one thing, I hear mommy and daddy saying things like “solids”, “food”, “high chair”, and “big poop”. I’m not sure what it all means except that food is mommy’s milk and poop, well it’s poop. Oh no, I hope poop isn’t what they are going to make my food now!

DSC_1156

That sure would stink (ha ha, see what I did there?). Nah, they love me to much anyway!

Another thing I’ve noticed is that in the past few weeks, I’ve been trying to eat everything around me! I don’t know where the urge comes from, but I could just be hangin’ in my jumper next to a toy like the worm in an apply G-Ma got me….

DSC_0528

….and next thing I know, I’m trying to eat it!

DSC_0529

Then I caught daddy looking and quickly had to pretend I was just rubbing it on my cheek.

DSC_0532

Phew, I think he bought it.

And that’s not all, I’ve tried several other things that, having found out the hard way, are not food. You’re probably thinking the things had to of at least looked like the typical boob or bottle we currently get our food from, but they didn’t!

So, I’m taking it upon myself to share with you my tasting notes on these non-food items. I hope it helps you make a wise choice when you are presented with similar things and feel “the urge.”

First off, the obvious one is your hand. My hand is what started me on trying other things and I can’t seem to get enough of it anymore!

DSC_0112

Tastes like fresh breast milk at first, but can be gross if you put your hands somewhere before your mouth. When I’m not craving hand, I opt for just a finger to hold me over.

DSC_0113

Same taste, just not as intense. Be careful here, if you stick your finger in your mouth too far, something weird happens and it doesn’t feel good. Trust me, I know….

DSC_0107

So the hands, I recommend them for any baby to start with, and then you can move on. For me, I figured if I like my hands so much, maybe daddy’s will be just as good, or even better! Given the opportunity, I tried it out…

DSC_0847 (Medium)

Initially, it didn’t seem too bad, but it still wasn’t the same. It tasted like something, but I couldn’t quite put my finger (ha ha) on it.

DSC_0848 (Medium)

Then it hit me, spoiled breast milk! Yuck!

DSC_0849 (Medium)

I won’t be trying that again anytime soon. Thinking that maybe daddy just has bad hands, I decided to try Uncle Preston’s hand as he held me one day.

DSC_0940

Nope, no good either. That was a first and a last for me!

DSC_0938

Take it from me, only eat your own hands, everyone else’s just don’t taste the same! Ready to move on to non-hand items, I tried a taste of the teddy bear sitting next to me one day.

DSC_1171

It was hard to reach his neck, so I tried for the paw instead.

DSC_1174

Yum! This is a keeper, I highly recommend teddy bear for a tasty treat. Tastes like fresh breast milk.

DSC_1178 (Medium)

With how delicious the teddy bear was, I figured I would enjoy all stuffed animal toys I have. That was, until daddy put this thing next to me…

DSC_0996

Is it a dog, alien, or some weird baby? Mommy and daddy call it a dog, but I’ve seen a dog and I’m pretty sure they don’t have hands like it says on this one.

I didn’t even try tasting that thing.

DSC_0997

Once daddy took it out of my crib, I sat up in joy!

 

DSC_1009

Yeah, I’ve seen our dog, Abby, and I’m pretty sure she just has four paws, not hands and feet!

DSC_0374

After having enough of the soft, fuzzy toys, I decided to move on and try my smooth, shiny toys. I’ve been playing with these rings for a while now, and just lately, they seem appealing.

DSC_0737

The obvious first choice was the orange one since it was on top.

DSC_0747

Yep, this was like breast milk from the bottle. Not bad, but nothing great. That said, I still go back to it.

DSC_0430

And daddy always talks about the blue one being his favorite, but it seems no different to me. I’d like to see him try it once!

DSC_0452 (2)

Bottles seem to be something I can’t get away from since that’s all daddy can give (trust me, I figured out the hard way), so I’m okay with these shiny rings. If you have some, give’em a taste.

While in my jumper (which is a lot!), the red bird hanging to one side caught my eye and I just had to eat it!

DSC_1100

Holy yum, this thing is great! It can’t even be compared to milk, it’s in a league of its own and I like it!

DSC_1100

Seriously, I just can’t get enough of it now!

DSC_1103

By all means, if you have a plastic red bird hanging anywhere around you, eat it!

Speaking of things around you, I bet you have some sort of cloth with arm holes pulled over your head every day. Right? Well, just happens you can eat that too! Seriously, I just figured this out several days ago and can’t believe I’ve been missing out on chewing something attached to me. No work needed, just put in mouth and chew.

DSC_1075

Depending on if I just ate from a bottle or from mommy, the taste can range from fresh milk to not so fresh milk. Either one is okay with me, just as long as it’s not like daddy’s hands!

In sum, when you start having these random cravings to put things in your mouth, choose your hands, no one else’s, at first. Then move on to things like what you wear, hanging red birds, and colorful rings when you have to.

I’m still trying to figure out what mommy and daddy are up to with their “new food” talk, and I have a feeling I’ll find out soon. I overheard them talking about this weekend and setting up a “high chair” while I pretended to be busy working on something.

DSC_0682

How many chairs do I need, really? I’ll let you know how it goes if I make it through whatever is happening. For now, I leave you with some words of wisdom; always cry long and loud when you poop and make sure to blow raspberries to really make your point!

 
This post is part of a link up from Love All Dads with other outstanding dad bloggers. Click on the link below and check them out; you won’t be sorry!

LoveAllDads

6 Memories from my 6th Month Since “Going Dad”

I can’t believe it’s already been a month since I published my 5 Memories since “Going Dad” post!

But here we are in the middle of May and Avery will be 6 months tomorrow, the 15th. What sounds longer; 6 months or half a year? I know they’re the same, but seriously, time flies!!

I’m sure all of you parents with toddlers, teens, and older are just laughing thinking how it only gets faster; am I right? Ugh, all the more reason to try and make the most of each moment! I really need to remind myself of this.

So, keeping consistent with my new monthly memories posts, I’ll get to it. Avery, it saddens and excites me at the same time when I think that one day we will go back and read these posts together. Your mom and I love you so much and we are happy with our little family!

Edit: Ha, I just looked at mu first memories post and pretty much said the same thing before starting the list. I could delete instead of writing this, but I think it further drives into the ground how much we love our little girl!

1. You’re getting better control of your arms and legs now, and although you still kick and flail your limbs like crazy, you’re definitely making contact with things. Sometimes, they are things that hurt mommy and me, but we know you don’t intend to hurt us, right?

You also reach for and grab things pretty well, but you’re still learning how to maintain your grasp for longer than a few seconds. Unless, of course, it’s mommy’s hair, you like to hold on to that and pull.

DSC_0456

2. Now that you are more active, we’ve been playing before your bedtime on a blanket in the living room or the kitchen floor.

DSC_0635 (Medium)

Depending on how tired you are from the day, we might get anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes of quality play.

DSC_0804 (Medium)

Some of the things you enjoy most (we think) are being tickled all over in the form of “tickle bird” attacks, standing up as we hold you by your hands, and hanging upside down. We are getting close to wrestling, and I can’t wait for a little rough housing!

DSC_0652 (Medium)

3. You have figured out and mastered how to blow raspberries. I remember Jonathan from Dad’s The Way I Like It mentioning how his son was doing this and I couldn’t wait to get youdoing the same. After many “teaching by example” sessions from Mommy and me, you finally started blowing your own raspberries and haven’t stopped!

Caught in the act!
Caught in the act!

4. Lately, trying to get you to take your first and usually only nap of the day, I’ll feed you a bottle and while burping you, you just look me straight in the face a flash a big smile. I can’t help but laugh and smile back, but I’m really thinking “Crap, she’s never going to sleep!”

That’s when I give up and tell you that I love you, kiss your head, and lay you in your crib just hoping for the best. Surprisingly, you have a short fussy session and you’re out! I’m not sure how long this will last, but I’ll enjoy it while it does!

5. You’ve already had your jumper for a couple months, but now you’re finally starting to jump in it. Out of no where, you’ll just bounce up and down and look at us with a big smile. Mommy and I applaud you and love seeing our happy baby so excited to jump!

DSC_0954 (Medium)

Now when I bring you to the garage for my workouts, I bring your jumper out too. You’ll start jumping as I do burpees or jump rope to exercise with me and I can tell it makes you happy. I foresee you being the youngest baby who can do burpees one day!

6. Mommy and I had been working with you on sitting up by yourself but you usually would tumble to the side.

The setup...
The setup…
Mid-tumble....
Mid-tumble….
Crash!
Crash!

Then, just a few days ago, Mommy watched you sit up on your own while laying on the blanket! I missed that time, but have seen you sit up as we play at night and even during the day. I went to wash my hands after changing you, and when I came back, I found you sitting up and obviously very proud!

DSC_0961 (Medium)

I have a feeling one of my memories at the 7 month mark might be crawling, or close to it! Kelley and I are so proud and in love with our growing daughter, and it makes me happy to be able to share our journey with all who care to follow!

6 Month Photo Session and My Mother’s Day Recap

Wow, what a day! Mother’s Day is a well deserved day of celebration, but it can really wear you out!

I guess having a 2+ hour photo session with a hyper baby doesn’t help, huh?

Kelley’s parents, Nana and Papa, hosted the family for Mother’s Day, and Papa graciously took Avery’s 6 month photos. Kelley had several ideas picked out from Pinterest, and Steve (Papa) is a great photographer with high quality equipment. So it just made sense for Papa to do the “shoot.”

And he wasn’t messing around; for only having photography as a hobby, he’s well equipped to have his own studio.

DSC_0927

He also had white and black backdrops, and both were used for our session with Avery. The black backdrop made for a dramatic effect and think the pictures will turn out great. Actually, I think all of the pics will turn out wonderful! I’ll be sure to share once we have them.

Before making the trek over to Nana and Papa’s, I woke up before the girls to make breakfast and coffee for Kelley and setup her gifts.

DSC_0883 (2)

In the bowl is one of her favorites, teff porridge cooked with whey protein, peanut flour, mashed banana, and lots of blueberries. And coffee is always a must in our house!

Yesterday I posted about my Casting Keepsakes clay print and photo kit which I reviewed and gave to Kelley as one of her Mother’s Day gifts. She loved it, and I love how simple it was to make such a lasting memory with Avery’s help!

The other items include a “handmade” card, my personal recipe of baked goat cheese crackers, and a poem I wrote from scratch. I’ll post the full poem at the end of this post for those who want to read it.

DSC_0878

Inside I wrote “The guy who cut these pieces of paper.” I know, she’s lucky, huh? Well I’d say it certainly beats giving a bouquet of flowers someone else cut and put in a vase that all you do is have to pay for; but that’s just me. 🙂

At Nana and Papa’s we cut right to the chase and started the photo shoot. Avery was already missing out on her regular naptime and Kelley said it best by saying she was a ticking time bomb.

6 Month Pics_All 3
1 of a 10000000 pictures…..or so it seems

 

Fortunately, Avery did a lot better than expected and besides her constant squirminess, she was good for most of the session.

One of Kelley’s Pinterest inspirations was to have a photo of Avery sitting with several stuffed animals. I loved the idea and the pictures she showed me, but Avery was difficult to keep still. Nonetheless, I’m pretty happy with how it turned out.

DSC_0895

Another idea was to have Avery naked with just a bow and pearls; these photos are adorable too! I used my camera to snap a few quick shots while Steve did the pro shots, so just want to make that clear.

DSC_0926

Towards the end, when we brought her outside and I tried tickling her for the millionth time, she finally started to get impatient.

6 Month Pics_All 3 Outside

In all fairness, so did I, I was ready to get out of my jeans and into shorts and a shirt!

After our session was over, several attempts were made to get Avery to take a nap, but to no avail. I guess there was too much going on and she didn’t want to miss anything!

I was happy to have my mom (G-ma), and brother (Uncle Preston) there with us and we all had a nice late lunch together. Uncle P even got a little niece holding action as she tried to eat his hand.

DSC_0940

For G-Ma’s gift, I kept with the handprint theme but used a block of Sculpey polymer clay. This required more work than the Casting Keepsakes kit, and you have to bake it instead of letting it air dry.

DSC_0296

5 handprints and 1 footprint later, I finally settled on a print I felt G-Ma would love. I first made an impression with my hand, and then put Avery’s hand in the middle. I saw it on Pinterest (that site is so useful, but also addicting!), and knew I wanted to give something like that to my mom.

DSC_0884

Yeah, that’s my best painting job and I’m proud of it! I also gave her a picture frame with a picture of her holding me as a baby and another picture of her holding Avery now. Going Mom helped me out a lot and wrote “Great Moms Make Wonderful G-Mas” beside the pictures and it turned out great! What an outstanding wife!

Mother's Day Frame_2

Since we don’t have a printer, I had to wait for my mom to bring a printout before I could give Going Mom her last gift. I purchased a Groupon for the two of us to attend a BYOB painting session at Texas U Can Paint. It’s something we’ve both been wanting to do, and since G-Ma agreed to watching Avery anytime, we’ll be doing this soon!

It’s kind of like a little gift to myself too, but only with my best friend/wife! Can’t wait to go!

Avery only took a couple of short cat naps the whole day and her tiredness was coming up fast once we were home. I made Kelley a quick salmon with steamed rice and broccoli dinner but she had to save half of it until after we bathed and got Avery to sleep.

It was a very long and busy day, but we both agreed it was a great day. We loved being with each other and our family and are so happy with our current lives. Let the warm fuzzies commence!

How was your Mother’s Day?

Anything special to note?

As promised, here is the poem I wrote to Kelley:

It was only last year

when you held something dear.

The excitement we had

and fear that nothing went bad,

stayed with us right to the day

“Hello, Avery” we would say.

 

At times we felt stuck in a rut,

especially with shots in the butt!

Now we have Avery,

the most beautiful baby

that we love so much,

and can’t get enough of her touch.

 

I am so happy to have you and our daughter,

and it cheers me each night we watch her splash in the water.

You are the kindest, most caring mother

whose love can be surpassed by no other.

 

We may have celebrated Mother’s Day last year,

but now our baby is actually here!

You are the best mother and wife

Avery and I have for life.

 

Let’s celebrate this day as your official first,

and know that you fill me with so love I could burst!

Happy Mother’s day to my best friend, my wife, my lover,

and now and always, a wonderful mother!

This post is part of the I’m Proud of That Link-up Party on DaddySpace, check out other cool dad bloggers using the badge below.

TheIPOTLink-up