Makayla Jo | Five Months | August 9, 2012

Like every month, I'm late on this post. Seriously? Time can slow down now. I can't believe how fast the past month has flown by. I can't believe the M is already five months (going on six here!). She is growing daily and is getting so big. You are the love of my life and you bring so much joy to our family little girl.

Here's a look back at her monthly updates:

• 1 month
• 2 months
• 3 months
• 4 months

Height: unknown
Weight: No idea girlfriend, but at your last Dr. Appt for your ear infection at the end of July you were 13 lbs. I'm estimating 14 lbs or so.
Head Circumference: unknown
Clothes: squeezing you into some 3 month outfits, but for the most part you are in 6 month clothes.

Feeding
You are still eating 5-6 ounces every 3-4 hours, but we have been giving you about 1 tbsp of rice cereal every evening around 5:30-6:00 p.m. You seem to love it and we plan on introducing you to sweet potatoes, carrots and peas within the next week or so.

Personality
You are such a happy baby. Seriously. I don't know how we got so lucky. You NEVER cry. It's more like a fake whine but that hardly ever happens unless you are really hungry. Your personality is so carefree and easy going. Everyone loves to be around you. You are one of the best babies in day care!

Play Time
You are still loving your Jumperoo. You are still enjoying your PlayMat as well. You got some new toys this month including paper crinkle books, some blocks, and some more teething rings. You love to play! You also have learned to love to play in your crib in the mornings while I get ready for work. Your favorite thing right now is eating your toes.

Teething
No teeth yet, but still lots of drool.

Nicknames

Makaykay, Princess, Pretty Face, Sweet Fish, Petunia

Weekend Recap

I can't believe that July is almost over. This year has flown by, and now that I am back at work five days a week time is going by even faster! Friday night my mom and I saw Sheryl Crow at Humphrey's and she was amazing! Definitely one of the best concerts I have ever been to. (not that I go to concerts very often, but still).

We've been just hanging around, getting used to my husband's new work schedule. We did our usual trips to Target and Trader Joes, napped a lot, watched the olympics, and took some long walks to the park.

I've decided that I spend too much money on headbands, so I am going to be making my own soon! I just ordered a bunch of wholesale supplies and I am so excited. Stay tuned for tutorials, pictures, and if they turn out good, I will even start selling them in my Etsy Store along with my graphic design and stationery. I'm really excited to get started.

I just ordered some custom Orbit Labels from Inchbug. They actually had 'Makayla' as a pre-made name. These will be perfect for her bottles for day care!

Of course we had to play dress up and do a little photo shoot. Makayla is 20 weeks old and will be 5 months on August 9th!

Makayla Jo | Four Month Update | July 9, 2012

 

How old is baby? 4 months on July 9th

Doctor’s appointments?: We went to our 4 month appt. last Friday, July 13th. Next appointment: 6 month appt. in September. 

Stats:

·         Weight: 13 lbs, 11 ounces (doubled birth weight - yay!)

·         Height: 25 inches (+5.5 inches from birth)

·         Head Circumference: 39 cm

·         Clothes size: 3 month sleepers are officially too small, moved on to 6 month sleepers! Still in size 3 month clothes. Probably for only another week or two.

·         Diaper size: Kirkland (Costco size 1-2) are getting really snug but we have to finish up what we have, Overnight Huggies size 3. 

·         Hair color: Brown

·         Eyes: Beautiful Blue 

Milestones:

·         Teething: no yet, but I have a feeling that will change within the next month or so.

·          Verbal skills: she has kind of stopped coo-ing a bit this month. She definitely has started grunting. She has a new habit of doing this in the car when she is trying to get a toy or a blanket in her mouth. She gets really frustrated with her o-ball because the whole ball won’t fit in her mouth. She has started laughing as well. She laughs before bath time every night and it is the cutest sound I’ve ever heard!

·         Rolling: oh goodness, this child is a rollie-pollie. She will not stay still. She will not lie on her back anymore. She has to be on her belly. And now she is trying to crawl! Yes, that’s right at 4.5 months she is inching forward like a little inch worm.

·         Sitting: she’s not sitting up yet, however, I think she will be within the next couple of weeks! 

Things she likes: She still loves her Jumperoo. She loves trying to stand. She likes lying in bed with mommy & daddy on the weekends in the early morning. Sometimes she likes cuddling if she isn’t wiggling around. 

Sleeping: I seriously don’t even like talking about it because I don’t want to jinx it. M is generally sleeping from 7-8 p.m. to 6-7 a.m. She does wake up a few times whimpering in her sleep but I just walk down the hall, give her the paci, and she falls right back asleep. We did experience a little of the dreadful “4 month wakeful” period I think when she started turning from back to belly in her crib. She constantly thought it was play time when she was on her belly and it took a few nights for her to get used to sleeping on her belly. Now, I put her down on her back, and if she is still awake she will turn to her side or belly immediately. If she’s asleep, she will eventually roll over to her belly. She’s officially a belly sleeper. 

Eating: I’m actually surprised her daily consumption has not increased. She’s gaining weight appropriately so I’m not worried. She is still eating between 4-6 ounces every 3-4 hours, usually about 26-30 ounces daily. We tried rice cereal once about two weeks ago and I don’t think she was ready because she spit it all out. We’re going to try again within the next week or so. I’m really not in a rush to start solids! 

Nicknames: Sweet Fish, Sweet Face, Makay, Makaykay

Things we’re looking forward to next month: we’re starting swim lessons tomorrow! We purchased a package of 12 “parent & me” classes, and we can’t wait to get her in the pool. Our first lesson is at 9 a.m. tomorrow, stay tuned for updates!

Here are some highlights from this month:

Snail Butt - one of my favorite outfits of yours

you are always trying to eat your fist

just chillin in the backyard

sick baby

you love your jumperoo! 

morning smiles

pretty eyes

bedtime

happiest baby ever diagnosed with her first ear infection

celebrated your first Fourth of July! 

Feet, yum! 

You became a belly sleeper the exact same week you turned 4 months

ready to party at 5:30 a.m.!

Favorite Baby Things 2012 | favorite baby items reviewed

I thought I'd take the time to write about some items that have been absolutely awesome during the first four (omg!) months of Makayla's life. Being a first time mom, I had no idea what to expect, had no idea what we needed vs. what we didn't need. I basically spent countless hours on baby forums on the internet and reading reviews on Amazon.com.

These are some of our favorite things!

1. Fisher Price Rock N Play - Review

This thing is amazing! We knew that we wanted M to be close to us at night for a few months before we transitioned her into her room. She slept in this starting the day we came home from the hospital. She had a lot of issues with spit up and hiccups during her first few weeks of life and I believe the incline on this helped. It is so easy to transport, we moved it from room to room and even took it on a few road trips. I've heard horror stories of parents trying to transition their babies from this RnP into their cribs. At 8 weeks old, we decided it was time to put M in her crib. She transitioned incredibly well, thank goodness!


2. Aden & Anais Muslin Swaddle Blankets - Review

I really wish I got these as a shower gift. I read rave reviews about these Aden & Anais Swaddle Blankets but I didn't want to buy them because I received so many other blankets as gifts. We also received a ton of crochet blankets. However, these are different. They are so lightweight and perfect for summer. We don't swaddle, so they don't necessarily have to be used for swaddling. They are so thin, lightweight and perfect!


3. The First Years White Noise Sound Machine - Review

We registered for this white noise sound machine because I had read amazing reviews about it. We didn't start using it until Makayla was eight weeks old, when she transitioned into her crib in her room. I do attribute her fantastic nighttime sleep habits to this machine! It plays white noise static all night long and has other sound options as well.

4. MAM Pacifiers Review

We received a few different types of Paci's as gifts. I always heard great things about Soothies so we picked up some of those before she was born. It wasn't more than about two weeks when we realized the Soothies wouldn't stay in her mouth without our finger in it. We then picked up some MAM paci's and she has loved them ever since. She is really good, only uses the Paci's to fall asleep then eventually spits them out when she is in a deep sleep. Recently I've been having to go give her paci to her in the middle of the night when she is stirring, but thank goodness she generally falls right back asleep.



5. Fisher Price Cradle N Swing - My Little Lamb Review

We actually didn't think we needed a swing. Ha! Little did we know that our little munchkin loves movement. We bought this swing off of Craigslist (they threw in a matching bouncer for free!) when she was about six weeks old. It's been amazing, she takes most of her day time naps when we're at home in it. I would definitely recommend this swing, however it is pretty big and takes up so much space in our home. Next time I might consider a mini-swing that is closer to the ground.



6. Fisher Price Rainforest Bouncer Review

We traveled to our cabin in Truckee/Lake Tahoe in May this year. It was Makayla's first plane ride. When we got there, we realized that we didn't have anywhere for M to play. We searched craigslist and picked up this bouncer for only $15. M absolutely loves the noise, lights, and vibrations of this bouncer. She does not like her Fisher Price Snuggabunny Bouncer that we have had since before she was born. Now the Rainforest Bouncer is at Grandma & Grandpa's house. Hopefully she will use it for a couple more months.




7. Dr. Brown's Bottles Review

M had a lot of gas and spit up during her first two months of life. We started with Dr. Brown's bottles immediately when we realized we would be Formula Feeding (FF). We still use them today. A lot of people don't like them because of all the extra parts, but it is not bad. I throw them all in the dishwasher every day or so.





8. Graco SnugRide 30 Infant Car Seat - Mirabella Review

I knew that we wanted to go with a Graco Infant Carrier System, and of course I wanted a pink and black one to match Makayla's nursery! We found this one, unfortunately it was only carried at Babies R Us, so we registered it and got it for our shower from some dear family friends. We have since taken out the head insert, since our little chicken is not so much a chicken anymore!

9. Graco Trekko 3 Wheel Stroller Review

This stroller is absolutely awesome! The front wheel rotates 360 degrees so it is super easy to maneuver around the grocery store, mall, etc. I also use it walking/running on trails. The wheels are rubber, so you don't have to worry about popping a tire. I only wanted one, good, all-around stroller, we we have been 100% satisified with this one! I would recommend it to anyone. And, it fits the Graco SnugRide 30 Infant Car Seat - Mirabella perfectly!

Makayla Jo | three month update | June 9, 2012

1.       How old is baby? 3 months on 6/9

2.       Doctor’s appointments?: next one is on 7/13 (4 month)

3.       Stats:

a.       Weight: unknown

b.      Height: unknown

c.       Clothes size: M is wearing some 0-3 month clothes and 3 month clothes now. A lot of them are getting tight, but I refuse to get out her 6 month clothes already!

d.      Diaper size: Kirkland (Costco size 1-2), Overnight Huggies size 3. 

e.      Hair color: Brown

f.        Eyes: Beautiful Blue 

4.       Milestones:

a.       Teething: Tons of drool, like tons. But no signs of teeth yet! 

b.      Verbal skills: Lots of cooing and she had her first laugh at 14 weeks! 

c.       Rolling: She started rolling over at about 12 weeks (back to belly). She rolled over the evening of my very first day back to work (5/29/12). She loves rolling over and does it non-stop now. She just started rolling from belly to back this week (15 weeks).

d.       Anything else? She LOVES her FP play gym, her swing, and we recently bought a FP Rainforest Jumperoo off of CL but I think she's still a little to young for that. 

5.       Things she likes:

a.       Toys: She loves her "o ball", her "taggie", and putting anything in her mouth! 

b.      Books: She's not a big fan yet, but we do try to read "its pajama time" every night before bed. 

c.       Songs: Recently started playing Pandora's Baby Einstein station, she loves it! 

d.      Other activities: She loves tummy time and she could stay on her tummy and hold her head high for awhile.

6.       Things he dislikes: Still hates wet diapers, but yet will sit in a dirty diaper all day. 

7.       Sleeping: Just within the past two weeks, M has been sleeping from approximately 7:30 p.m. to 5:00-6:30 a.m. She loves her room and is such a wonderful sleeper! 

8.       Eating: She's eating between 4-6 ounces of Similac Sensitive every 3-4 hours or so. Approx. 27-30 ounces a day.

9.       Nicknames: Makaykay, Makay, Chicken, Princess, Pretty Face

10.   Things we’re looking forward to next month: 4th of July, enjoying summertime weather

11.   How I like motherhood: I love it. However, it is much harder then I ever imagined. Being back to work has been so wonderful for me. Working 4 days a week is the perfect balance. I love spending my evenings and weekends with M, it is so much more special now that I am back and work and not around her 24/7. I always knew I wasn't cut out to be a Stay At Home Mom, but now I am 100% satisfied with my decision of going back to work. I'm sure it helps that I LOVE MY JOB so very much! 

a.       Likes: Watching my husband interact and play with her. Melts my heart every single time.

b.      Dislikes: Being tired, and getting used to starting my weekend days at 6 a.m. now. 


This month we did a lot:

Took your first airplane ride to Reno (Truckee), 11 weeks, you did AMAZING! 

Went to Truckee for the first time....and it was snowing in MAY! 

Playing in the cabin with Grandpa

You can now sit in your Bumbo holding your head up strong

Snuggles on mommy's first morning back to work

Lots of tummy time

Napped in the park

Snuggles before bed

Love your FP rainforest bouncer at G&G's house! 

Invested in lots of cute hair headbands for your bald head :)

Happy First Father's Day, Daddy!

Helped Mom celebrate her 30th Birthday (6/20/12)

Got our first cold. Darn day care! (6/21/12)

Almost climbed out of your swing! (6/21/12)

Just chillin in the front yard enjoying the warm summertime weather! 

First time at the beach! You loved it! (6/23/12)

Went swimming for the first time

Went to the Del Mar fair and played with Grandpa on Father's Day