Ruby -- Eight Months

Just when I think that being Ruby's mom could not be anymore wonderful, it gets even better. Ruby is SO much fun. She is such a little social bug, and is constantly making us (and everyone else) laugh and smile.

Besides the double ear infection at the beginning of the month, this was a relatively healthy month for the girl, which has not happened much since she started daycare. I keep telling myself that hopefully this means she will have all her immunities built up by the time she is in Kindergarten and will be healthy while all the other kiddos are getting sick all the time.We'll see if that proves to be true, or just a mama's false hope. I'll let you know in 5 years.

Ruby is crawling! It's not full speed crawling, but slow and steady wins the race, right Rubes? She inches her way to whatever catches her eye and grunts and squeals along the way. She's pulling up on things constantly now, and it makes my heart race when I come back into the room and see her standing pulled up on something (like the basket of blankets) that might not be able to support her healthy, chunky self. She's bonked her head a few times, but bounces back like a trooper. She's a rough and tumble little thing, I'm afraid she got that from her mama. Hopefully it wont translate to multiple trips to the ER like it did for me.

Speaking of chunk, when I took Ruby to the doctor for a follow-up for her ear infections (three days after her 8 month birthday) she weighed 20 pounds! My arms are getting SO strong. I kind of couldn't believe it because she has not been eating quite as much, and has been moving a lot more, but I guess she's getting all the nutrition she needs. I love, love, love her thighs. They are so soft and mushy and there is nothing in the world the is sweeter to nibble. Ruby still favors lunchtime, and pretty much refuses to eat anything but puffs for dinner. I think it's mostly a control issue (again, a trait she got from her mama), because she loves to everything by herself, but hasn't quite mastered the art of chewing food. I'm not pushing or forcing her to eat because I know that she will eat something other than breastmilk and puffs eventually. Plus, milk is all she really needs anyway!

Ruby is wearing size 3 diapers and a whole bunch of different sized clothing. She still fits into a lot of her 3-6 month shirts, but has outgrown all of her 3-6 month pants. She wears 6 month and 9 month onesies and 6-12 month from old navy. Most dresses are 6 month and 9 month dresses are still a bit big. It's strange to me that she is so heavy but still fitting into her smaller sized clothes so well. I'm glad she's getting good use out of them, though!

Ruby's sleeping has stayed about the same this month. She's still sleeping from around 8:30pm-7:00am. Can't complain. If she does wake up in the middle of the night she is usually able to soothe herself back to sleep pretty quickly, and if not some snuggles with mama or daddy always do the trick. She's only taking one nap at daycare from 12-2, but when she's home with me during the day on weekends she'll still take 2 shorter naps (1 morning, 1 afternoon). She usually falls asleep in the car on our way home from work/daycare, which is awesome because it's usually rush hour and the only thing worse than traffic is traffic with a baby screaming in your ear!

Ruby is such a little smarty pants (at least we think so...). She has words that she knows and responds correctly to, and is already picking up some sign language that we have been working on with her. She knows "clap", "bye-bye", and "hi". She will usually perform and show off her tricks for anyone. She is able to say "more" in sign language when she wants more of something (PUFFS. Always more puffs.), and is getting close to mastering "all done". We're so proud of her, and I think its shows...maybe just a little. 

Ruby has a tooth! It's a tiny little dagger right in the middle of her bottom gums. It hasn't made its way completely through quite yet, but it's definitely there. Can I just say OUCH?! Oh my goodness. The worst part? When she bit me the other day while nursing, I pulled her off and said sternly "Ouch Ruby! That hurts mama when you bite! Don't bite mama!", she started cracking up. Ummm? We're in trouble....

Other than that specific, terribly painful moment, her laugh brings us so much joy! She is a giggling fool. She has started doing this "fake" laugh, where she will let out a little "hehehe" when you're talking to her about mundane stuff. I can tell she doesn't really think it's funny, but is just giving us a little courtesy laugh to let us know she's engaged. Her belly laughs are frequent and are usually induced by something Banjo is doing. She loves that dog.

Ruby's favorite things:
-Banjo.
-Bath time.
-Mama. Ruby has become quite the mama's girl this month. She is still very social and doesn't mind going to others, but there are times where she makes it VERY clear that all she wants is some mama snuggles.
-Sticking her tongue out (see above pics)
-Puffs. So many puffs.
-Looking at pictures of herself on our cellphones. We will scroll through pictures and she will chuckle with every single one. She loves it! It's so funny.
-Copying sounds. She loves it when she grunts or makes a funny noise and we copy her. She smiles so big and then waits for us to copy her again. It's cute.
-Favorite foods: anything sweet (apples, mango, banana, pear, PUFFS), she also loves avocados.

Ruby's not so favorite things:
-Changing clothes. Sleeves are still the worst thing ever.
-Sitting still.
-Getting her nose wiped.
-Getting fed baby food with a spoon. She wants to do it ALL BY HERSELF. I bought some reusable squeeze baby food pouches and they are working ok because she can have some control. Such an independent little thing.
-Food dislikes (for now, I know as we continue to offer them, she will hopefully start liking them): peas, green beans, plain oatmeal.

Sweet one, 

You are growing so fast Ruby girl. You are busy and keep your dad and I on our toes. We have to watch you constantly because you are always on an adventure looking for something to get into and explore. It can be exhausting, but I absolutely love that about you. I love that you know what you want and don't stop until you get it. I hope you always keep that spark, even though I'm sure it will cause us some grey hairs along the way. We are so proud of you, and feel so incredibly lucky to get to watch you grow, learn, and change every single day. You're the best. Really. 

With every ounce of my heart. 

Love, Mama 

Coming soon...

Ruby is 8 months old! 

Photos of my squishy, sweet, beautiful girl coming soon. I just wanted to share one of my favorites! Love this spring evening light. So pretty! 

Ruby-- Seven Months

Well time just slips right on away from you when you start a new job! I finally got around to taking Ruby's seven month photos after our sweet girl recovered from her double ear infection/pink eye, only about 10 days late. I swear, our poor kid cannot stay 100% well. Good thing she's still happy and sweet when she's sick! My sweet darling girl.

Oh, Ruby girl. You are our little monkey! Ruby LOVES to be on the move. She scares me sometimes with how active and daring she is. She tries to dive out of our arms if she sees something that sparks her interest (anything that she can put in her mouth, shiny stuff, electronics, and basically everything else). She's still not full blown crawling yet, but I think mostly it's because she doesn't have to crawl to get what she wants. She's taken up barrel rolling this month and will roll over and over and over again until she gets to where she wants to go. It's funny and quirky and totally her.

Ruby is still our little social butterfly. I was laughing with one of the ladies that works in the nursery on Sunday mornings at church because when I drop Ruby off, typically ALL the other babies are screaming bloody murder missing their mamas. My girl, though? I set her down and she dives toward the first toy she sees, looks up at me, puts the toy in her mouth and smiles like "it's cool, ma...have fun at church!" She loves us and it's obvious, but she also loves other people too. I like that about her, she's very easy going around others, which is convenient because she tends to get LOTS of attention. :) 

 Teeth? Ruby is just not interested in them! She's still soaking her shirts with drool and chewing on everything like crazy but no chompers yet. I'm not necessarily excited for her to get teeth (um, ouch!), but I am excited for her to not have to deal with the discomfort of trying to sprout them! She's still digging the frozen peach slices and has recently taken up sucking on the bottom of a cold, wet, sweaty cup. Whatever helps, Rubes.

Ruby has pulled up several times this month, but isn't doing it consistently. She can pull up to her feet if she's in just the right spot with plenty of sturdy surface to grab. She also recently started making stepping motions when you help her stand and hold her hands. I keep telling Andrew that she might walk before she crawls. She's definitely ready to be on the move, for real! Sometimes (okay, all the time) I watch her and just cannot believe how big she is and how much she is changing right before my eyes. It's bittersweet.

Sleep this month has been AWESOME. We've established a great bedtime routine of dinner, bath, nurse, lotion, bed and it's working out so well for us. She's typically in bed by 8:30 most nights and wakes up around 6:45-8:00. We had a couple middle of the night wake-ups when she was sick, but she bounced right back once she was feeling well again.

It's still so hard for me to leave Ruby during the day to go to work, but oh my goodness does she love school! She loves her teachers and has made so many friends. She wrestles with the boys and teases the little babies with her bottle...she's a little bit of a bully sometimes, but we'll work on that later. ;) She's always so happy to see me when I pick her up in the afternoons, but still always gives her teachers the biggest "bye-bye smile". Sweetheart.

MMMMM....grass!

Ruby's favorite things this month include:
-Baths. Baths are daddy & Ruby time and she LOVES them. She kicks and splashes and dumps cups of water all over the place.
-Rolling around. Over and over and over and over.
-Nursing. It solves every problem. Always.
-Chewing on stuff she's not supposed to chew on.
-Jumping in her jumper.
-Playing "where's Ruby??" She will hide herself behind a blanket (or a toy, ball, and even underwear once when I was doing laundry), you say "wheeeeeres Ruby?!" and she'll pop whatever she's holding down so fast. "There she is!!!!" Always get the best smiles out of that game.
-Banjo. The girl loves her dog. She lights up when we let him in the house after we get home. He cracks her up all the time.

 Ruby is still quite the quirky little munchkin and I wouldn't have it any other way. She has grown a great distain for laying down on her changing table (which used to be something she absolutely LOVED). After bath changing table time is the ABSOLUTE WORST THING EVER.
She's perfected the fake cry and gives it a whirl anytime things aren't going as she wishes.
She chews on my chin. All. The. Time. Which looks weird to everyone, and leaves me with a soaking wet chin.
She plays with her ears.
Still hates sleeves.
So. So. So. Determined. (Stubborn. Hard Headed)
Has gotten a little more understanding about the fact that some things just don't fit in your mouth.

As you can see from the above pictures, the girl loves to eat. I'm pretty certain she is almost 20 lbs, and my arms are getting stronger and stronger every month. With my new work schedule we have had to adjust her nursing schedule some. Instead of me getting to feed her in the mornings, I pump before leaving for work and give one of the fresh bottles of milk to Andrew for him to feed to Rue when she wakes up. She's eating two 7-8oz bottles during the day at school and a "lunch" of either a pureed veggie or fruit and then a veggie or fruit (sometimes with some oatmeal mixed in) for dinner. So far I've made her: sweet potatoes, peas, avocados, pears, plums, apples, mangos, peaches, mum-mums, and puffs. She likes lunch more than dinner and will eat about twice as much at that time. I've racked my brain as to why I can't get her to eat a good dinner, and I honestly think it's because all she wants to do when she's around me is nurse. I'm okay with that, and give the girl what she wants! 

There have probably been about ten thousand times I have looked at my girl and said "I just love you so much!" She really is our sunshine, she makes our lives so much brighter! I could not ask for a sweeter, more darling daughter!

My baby girl, 

7 months. How in the world? If I could slow time down I would, but I can't. Instead I'm just having to suck it up and enjoy every single second of life with you. It's so simple to do though, because you are the most precious and perfect girl in the whole wide world. Mama and daddy are so proud of how determined and strong you are already. We know you are going to do great things! Ruby, I wish I could fully explain how much love for you is in my heart, but it's just not possible. It's full. That's all I can say. You make my heart full, and somehow this full heart just keeps growing and growing with more love for you every single minute of every day. 

I love you more than words can say, 

Mama.

and... it's a wrap! 

Top 10 Baby Products

I have several friends who are expecting their first babies, and have come to me asking about certain baby products. I was always on the search for these kinds of lists when I was pregnant with Rubes, so I figured it might help one of the ten people that read my blog!
I'm of the mindset that you could of course raise a baby without any of this stuff, but these products have definitely made life with a baby easier and more convenient! There is nothing wrong with convenience when you are a sleep deprived new mama (or ever, really!).

1. Boppy Pillow.

So simple, yet so amazing. Up until recently, I had used the boppy every single day since Ruby was born. I fed her for the first time ever on it, and we never looked back. Now that she is older, sturdier, and prefers to roll, twist and kick while she eats we don't really use it anymore. However, those first few weeks when she was nursing like a maniac I really don't know what I would have done without it. I kind of got dependent on it for a while and almost didn't even feel comfortable nursing Ruby without it...shows how much I really love that thing!

This kind of counts as a separate product, but I'm not going to count it! I have found that if you have a good, sturdy cover for the boppy it mantains its shape much better. With a flimsy cover, it tends to flatten out, but with a cover like this adorable one I got from For the Love of Joy etsy shop it keeps its shape really well which helps hold the baby up.

2.  Play gym.

Play gyms are for puppies, too!

We have used this almost daily since around 3 weeks or so. Once Ruby started getting past that sleepy newborn fog stage (around the same time we FINALLY got back into our own house after hurricane Isaac), she wanted to do more than just lay in my arms. This play gym from infantino was the perfect solution. There are so many different versions of this, with less expensive and more expensive options. Honestly, I chose this one because of the pattern. I loved the vintage, quilted look and wanted to get away from brightly colored animal prints as much as possible. It's easy to fold up, and stores in the corner of our living room very nicely when it's not in use. We mostly leave it out in the middle of our living room floor all the time, and take it down if we are having company. Even now with Ruby sitting and moving around more, she still loves to pull on, chew on, and play with the animals that hang down.

newborn Ruby using her playgym for the first time

3. Carseat toy.

 It's technically called "Baby Einstein Busy Belly Toy Cow", we lovingly refer to him as Cow, aka Ruby's BFF. I don't exactly remember when we put Cow on her infant-seat, but it was love at first sight. Cow has saved our ears many times in the car, and has turned some what could have been deafening situations into a smiling good time. She looooves to pull on Cow and make his belly vibrate. It makes a noise that she is a big fan of, and I'm sure it was good for her hand-eye coordination when she was first learning to grab stuff. Bravo, Baby Einstein for creating a genius toy!

4. Baby Carrier.

There are SO many to choose from out there. I have used two primarily. The Moby wrap, and the Ergo. Here's my two cents on them:
The Moby is great for when they are teeny tiny and can just fold into a little ball. I was a little afraid to put my tiny baby into the Ergo (I felt like it was going to swallow her*). I used the Moby a lot while doing stuff around the house and only twice outside of the house. I can remember that I only used it twice outside the house because both times I regretted it. Because it is made from a extremely long piece of pretty thick fabric, and you are carrying a tiny little ball of warms right next to your hormonal body, that thing gets HOT. That being said, it's still wonderful for indoor use. Having the Moby allowed me to get dinner cooked, dishes put away, and two free hands to do whatever I pleased on many occasions.

The Ergo is definitely more sturdy and straightforward than the Moby. The Moby can take a while to master how to use, and the Ergo is pretty simple. I preferred the Ergo once Ruby got a little bigger and could hold her head up better, and have used it very often since then. I use it to go shopping, on walks, and it has really come in handy for trips that involve the airport. If you are wearing your baby while going through security, you (most of the time) do not have to take the baby off. I wasn't aware of this until we travelled to Texas for the first time and it was a breeze taking Ruby through security with her in the Ergo. It is SO comfortable, lightweight, and never hurts my shoulders. It's definitely a pricey item, but worth every penny if you are for sure going to wear your baby often.

Airport nap thanks to the Ergo

I really wanted a Sakura Bloom Sling. Mostly because, oh my goodness they look so pretty. But I decided against spending such a crazy amount of money on yet another baby carrier when I already have two perfectly good ones. Maybe for the next baby... :)
*side note: there is a newborn insert available for the Ergo, but I couldn't justify spending money on that when I knew she would grow out of it so quickly. I also read that you can roll up a receiving blanket and put it under the baby's bottom, but I never tried this either.

5. Swaddle Blankets.

first night at home...so tiny and new. 

I'm going to keep this one short because I just realized how lengthy this is getting, and who wants to read all of that?! We LOVE the Aiden and Anias swaddle blankets. Especially the bamboo kind....SOOOO soft (and beautiful). We used those until Ruby started busting free from them. After that, we made the switch to SwaddleMe blankets which have velcro so it's harder for the baby to wiggle out. We stopped swaddling once we realized that she slept SO much better on her tummy (I know, back is best...but sleep is also pretty great), but while we were swaddling, those were great. There is just something so, so, so sweet about a swaddled baby.

6. Wubbanub.

Our dear sweet friend, Wubby. He helped Ruby learn how to find her paci in the middle of the night and helped keep it from rolling out of reach. He saved me a lot of pacifier replacement wake-up calls. I feel silly that this is one of my top baby products, but it really has been a sleep saver for us. Now she just loves to cuddle with it, and it's super adorable.

7. Breast Pump.
Self explanatory. I wanted to breast-feed Ruby as long as possible, but also had to go back to work. This amazing invention (as much as I hate it some days) allows me to make it work. I wish I would have bought it before I had her but didn't because I wasn't sure if breastfeeding would work for us, and didn't want to spend 300 bucks on something that I wouldn't use**. The first week of breast-feeding was miserable and I think it could have been a lot better had I been able to pump. Live and learn, though. I have the Medela Pump in Style. It works great for me, and I have absolutely no complaints.
**Little piece of info that I didn't know before I had Ruby: With the new(ish) preventive care act, breast-feeding supplies are covered by your insurance company. Some are 100% covered! Just check with your insurance company. I had to buy mine through the hospital, that way I could send an itemized receipt into my insurance (which places like babies-r-us and target cannot provide). I got a check in the mail a few months later paying me back for everything except the tax on it!

8. Mesh Feeder. 

Ruby is pretty stubborn when it comes to trying to do things herself. That coupled with teething pain can make a girl a little cranky. Cue the wonderful mesh feeder. Plop a frozen slice of peach in that thing and let her go to town. She loves it. And so do I.

9. Stroller.

I love our stroller. It's easy to fold, lightweight, turns great, handles rough New Orleans side walks easily, and even has a little ipod plug in! Our stroller was not expensive, but definitely feels like it should have been. You can spend an arm and a leg on a stroller, but I highly recommend the baby trend one. It's inexpensive, and effective.

10. Squeaky Monkey Toy

Infantino Go Ga Ga Squeaky Teether is the cheaper version of Sophie the Giraffe. Ruby absolutely LOVES this thing. I think that it feels good on her gums, and the squeak always makes her so happy.

Honorable Mentions:
-Amber Teething Necklace

-Rocking chair

-Johnny Jump Up

-O-ball

complete with the spit up waterfall!

A New Chapter

I mentioned a few posts back that I might have some exciting news to share soon.
It's true.
About a week ago I accepted a new job as a school nurse! I am incredibly excited about this opportunity, I really cannot wait to get started! I gave my two week notice this past Monday, which means my last day at my current job will be this Friday. It's bittersweet, as most new chapters in life are. I have built so many meaningful relationships and learned so much at Emeritus. It will always hold a special place in my heart, and I will definitely be going back at least monthly to visit my sweet residents who are so very special to me. While it's hard to leave, I also know that I am going to love my new job. I am so excited to get to work with kids, and get more time with my Ruby girl. I'm thankful for the blessing of change, even though it can be hard.
We've been casually looking at houses, which is pretty fun! It's so fun to walk through places and imagine our family growing there, as well as imagining what history the walls of all those rooms hold. We keep going back and forth on "are we really ready for this?", which most likely means we're not. It's still fun to dream, nonetheless. Ruby likes looking at houses, too. Our real estate agent keeps telling us that she is the best house hunting baby she's ever met. She enjoys testing the acoustics in the houses by squealing in each room.
We had our final home visit for our (never-ending) foster care certification (we started in November 2011). Our case-worker said that she thinks that we should be certified by the second week of April. We definitely aren't holding our breath, seeing as though it could take much longer, but are hopeful and excited for that change as well!
Andrew has some neat and exciting things going on at his job as well. He moved into a new office where Ruby loves to visit and help him send emails. Andrew is still enjoying his ministry with our boys, and is starting to work on connecting them with families in our church. It's neat to see his ministry grow and change, and I feel grateful to get to be apart of it.

So, there you have it. That's all of our news in a nutshell.

And here are some Ruby pictures for those of you who come to this blog strictly for that reason.

Ruby Movies

A few of my recent favorite videos of Ruby-girl. 

She is so much fun!

Happy Wednesday everyone!