Thrifty?

Let me start by saying that I am not known for being tight with money. I never have been, and I should be considering I come from one of the thriftiest Moms in the world. My mom can shop a sale with the best of them! And, my dear, sweet husband is pretty tight with money. How he ended up with me and my frivolousness is beyond me! Is it possible for this once very frivolous shopper to become thrifty? Well, I am certainly going to try to step up to the challenge, and it really is going to be a challenge.

Since becoming a stay at home mom, I've really tried to be good with money. I even gave up getting my french manicure every two weeks! Seriously, I started to shop the grocery sales, clip coupons, plan meals, plan grocery trips in an effort to only buy what was needed, and generally make an effort to save money in all the stores I shop. I've done well for the most part...well, for me! :) However, I feel like I could be doing more when I read on others' blogs about getting $46 worth of groceries for about a dollar!!! I've read on many blogs about The Grocery Game. I've signed up for a trial month, am receiving the Sunday paper for the coupons (plus, I just really love reading the newspaper!!), and am stoked up to SAVE MONEY! (And, for those of you who know Eric--Yes, he did do the math to account for the cost of joining the game and receiving the Sunday paper. He decided it was still a great money saver even though we do incur those costs.)

We'll see how it goes, and hopefully, I too can report that I got 50 bucks worth of groceries for practically nothing! Now, that would make my ever so thrifty Mom and husband very proud! If only this could be applied to my favorite clothing and shoe stores! Hmmm...one can dream, huh?

Note to Self: Do not leave the room to answer the doorbell while refilling the baby wipes!

This is what I found when I returned to finish what I started before the doorbell rang! (On a side note, Madeline was sitting at the playmat behind her when I walked out. She doesn't crawl yet, but she is determined to get to what she wants!)

This next batch of wipes should be interesting to use since I made no effort to stack them back up properly!

Who needs toys when you have wipes and mail to play with?
I laughed out loud when I saw this scene when I returned to the room. It did not even cross my mind that she would get into the wipes...first time Mommy! I'm sure one day I will not be laughing when Madeline gets into something more dangerous or more difficult to clean up. But, this one struck my funny bone.

First Trip to the Zoo

Madeline had her first trip to Riverbanks Zoo on Saturday. She loved it. It was our first little family outing geared for kids. We loved it! The monkeys and elephants were by far Madeline's favorite because they were the animals that moved and made the most noise. For me, personally, the giraffes were my favorite. We went after Madeline's morning nap, and we planned to eat lunch there leaving just after lunch to get Madeline home for her afternoon nap. We laughed as we were exiting the zoo, and all we heard were crying children. We could only assume these crying children were ready for naps. However, we left with a content baby, but she was certainly on the verge of having a total meltdown because she was ready for a nap too.

Remember Madeline's first dinner with total table food (the night before this zoo trip)? Well, this photo was taken just before she REFUSED to eat the easy-to-travel-with-jars-of-baby-food that I brought along to feed her lunch. Oops! Luckily, Madeline's daddy decided to eat a cheeseburger for lunch, so he shared his plain bun with her. Nothing like some good 'ol enriched flour for lunch, but hey, it satisfied her hungry tummy.
All in all, we had a WONDERFUL day on our first little family outing! Eric and I can't wait to do more things like this in the upcoming summer weekends to entertain the three of us!

Overnight & Yucky Iron Vitamin

In Madeline's 9 month update, I mentioned that she was taking an iron supplement because her iron was a little low at the well visit. Well, this supplement basically put Madeline's tummy into a whirlwind and caused a major food strike. She's gone on food strike before for short periods of time when she was teething or a little under the weather, but I am talking refusing to eat lunch and dinner and only have a few ounces of bottle for several days in a row. Well, that type of food strike is certainly not normal nor is it going to help her iron levels. At first I thought she was "over" being fed with a spoon and not interested in pureed baby food anymore. So I tried the table food pieces again thinking that was the culprit. Well, she devoured 3 mini Eggo waffles in no time flat for many reasons I'm sure: she was starving, carbs sometimes soothe an upset tummy, and she enjoys bite size foods now that she seems to know what to do with them. I also decided the main culprit of the food strike was the supplement, and therefore, I made the executive decision to take her off the vitamin and fill her diet with iron rich foods. (Amazingly, the appetite is back!) As of Madeline's 9 month update just a short 6 days ago , she wasn't into much table food. Mainly, she didn't have the connection to take the food she picked up and put it to her mouth. Well, it seems OVERNIGHT Madeline discovered this is what eating table food is all about just in time to overcome her upset tummy! And, she LOVES!!! it! So far, Madeline has sampled and devoured: Eggo mini waffles, green beans, peas (still a bit tricky to actually pick up), grapes, banana, & hamburger bun (see first trip to the zoo entry for this story). She has pretty much rejected all baby food except for peas, green bean, squash, and prunes. Go figure on the prunes -- prunes make for a nasty diaper, but they contain a lot of iron. So the following pictures are Madeline's first dinner consisting of mostly table food --- waffles, grapes, and green beans. It just so happens that this "milestone dinner" was the Friday of Memorial Day weekend.

What a big girl eating by herself while her Mommy and Daddy are obviously kicked back watching this take place!

Don't you love how Eric and I prop our feet up close and personal to Madeline's dinner plate? How inconsiderate of us!
Such concentration and determination to pick up that little piece of waffle.

Typical Madeline --- that really is her "I'm so excited!" face!

Lip smacking good!

Madeline is 9 Months Old!

Miss Madeline has exploded with her "talking" and movement over the last month. She's not crawling yet, but she's definitely getting into the position to crawl. The desire is there too ~ she sees something she wants, and she's trying to get there. In fact, when she's tired, she's gets rather fussy about not being able to get to the object of her desire. She continues to roll all over the place. Madeline "talks" non-stop with lots of "dadada" and "oooooohhhh" thrown into the conversation. I would love to be a fly on her little brain to hear these conversations she is having with a toy, a blade of grass, or even the faucet in the bathtub. Madeline requires no one in particular for these conversations. Peek-a-boo and pat-a-cake are favorite games to play. While Madeline loves to have stories read to her, she has really started to chew on the books. We're working on reading the stories and looking a pictures rather than chewing on them. The child chews/gnaws on EVERYTHING!!! She has two little bottom teeth so far, and I feel that some top teeth might be on the horizon as her chewing, drooling, and runny nose have really increased lately. Her nose and mouth are like drippy faucets. Her favorite "station" that I use during the day is her doorframe jumpy thing. She loves it and really goes to town jumping up and down. I would say that her favorite "activity" of the day is taking a bath.
Madeline is quite the little social bug. She LOVES other children and yelps and laughs loudly when she gets around other children. She reaches out to them, claps, or smiles from ear to ear as we pass other children in the grocery, the street, or wherever we may be at the time. Madeline really enjoys it when adults approach her as well. She gives a wave hello, a big smile, and even a squeal of delight. She doesn't seem to have any stranger anxiety ~ she continues to love the ladies at the gym and the nursery staff at the church. I hope that she remains comfortable in those places. Madeline LOVES to be outside ~ I think the wind blowing on her face is one of the most exciting things to her. She squeals with delight and claps her hands when the wind blows.
Although Madeline is a very happy, social baby, she has certainly started to show her stubborn side. When she is not interested in doing something (changing a diaper, eating, being strapped in her carseat, etc.) she kicks her legs and pushes our hands out of the way. When she's tired, there is even some loud crying. I foresee some serious temper tantrums in my future. I'm bracing myself already.
Madeline continues to be a great eater and sleeper. She still takes a morning and afternoon nap and hitting the hay for the night between 6:30-7 PM. Her typical wake up time is between 6-7 AM, so she's getting a solid 11-12 hours of sleep at night. She only takes her paci at bedtime, and we leave it in her bed so she's not using it any other time in the day. (Of course, I always keep one in my purse just in case we are out and about, and I need to plug her up. Rarely do I need my backup paci...) Madeline does have her bunny lovey that she keeps in her bed, and again, this stays in her bed for the most part. When she's tired/ready for sleep, the bunny soothes her like magic! By far her favorite foods are oatmeal, peas, and prunes! Wow ~ that makes for an interesting diaper several times a day! Madeline still receives three 8 oz. formula bottles a day, so she's not terribly interested in taking a sippy cup. I've even tried to entice her with a yummy sip of apple juice, but Madeline really prefers to play with the cup and gnaw on it. Also, she's not a huge fan of table food yet. We've tried peas and green bean, and she will eat them, but I think table food will take some working with her. She's interested, but I don't think she's quite there yet developmentally. She can pick up the bite, but she's not made the connection to put it into her mouth. We still have to guide her little fingers there. Madeline has the "chewing" down and her gag reflex seems to have gotten much better. So right now, Madeline is still eating about 2 jars of baby food at lunch and dinner with some table food for "practice". This new mommy is just winging the food thing one day at a time! Lately, she seems to be going through small periods of food strike in which she will flat out, temper tantrum refuse to eat regardless of what I try to give her. Since she is still receiving several bottles of formula throughout the day, I don't get overly concerned. Afterall, babies will eat when they are hungry and stop when they are full (unlike us adults), and her food strikes do tend to last a couple of meals only. It's such a fight to try to force her to eat when she's on food strike that I feel like I do more harm than good. (Hopefully, I am taking the proper attitude at this point regarding food strikes.)
We took Madeline to her 9 month well visit the other day, and she's received a clean bill of health. Her iron is a little low, so we've got her on a vitamin. Luckily, peas and prunes are two of her favorite foods, and they are great sources of iron too. Madeline received one shot, and she was NOT a fan.
Madeline's stats:

• weight -- 19 lbs. 14 oz. (75%)
• height -- 29 1/4 inches (96%)
• head -- 45 cm (83%)
  

Madeline is such a joy to be around. Her daddy and I love her to pieces, and we are looking forward to doing some activities this summer as a little family of three or with friends! It's hard to believe how the time has gone by so quickly. We are seeing less baby in Madeline as the days go by. We are trying to treasure these moments with her, and we are excited to have some free weekends to ourselves to dip our toes in the pool, try out the swings at the park, or visit the the zoo.Disclaimer ~ These nine month pictures were actually taken on her ninth month third day, & as you can see, she's not the most still subject to photograph! However, these pictures do show her desire to be EVERYWHERE except where I want her and her amazing ability to destroy my props!

First Haircut!

The Shaggy Before Shot

Madeline received her first haircut on Sunday afternoon thanks to my sister-in-law, Kim. We always knew Madeline's Aunt Kim would give Madeline her first haircut since she's a hairdresser and family! It was more of a "shaping up" around the ears and along the back. She had so much hair over her ears (just look at the above picture!), and it was really starting to bother me. I tried to tuck it behind her ears, but it wouldn't really stay there. So call me vain, but I wanted her "little do" shaped up a bit. We saved her first locks for the baby book. All in all, Madeline did really well sitting in her Daddy's lap while Kim worked her magic with her shears.

The After -- Madeline wanted nothing more to do with the camera at this point!

Grilling Out and Swimming with Friends -- The Reason this Mama's Purse Was About to Explode!

Madeline, Eric, and I went across town to grill out and swim with some of my monthly supper club friends. A grand time was had by all!

Madeline really loved taking a dip in the pool in this float!
Madeline's friend, Jack, is 6 months old. He's a handsome little fella!

Our twin friends, Delaney & Rutledge, are only one month younger than Madeline. We have lots of playdate with the twins.

Daddy & Madeline enjoyed the pool together.

Madeline and the rest of the babies needed to get out of the sun, so we set them up on the floor with a bunch of toys. It was really cute to watch all the babies mingle with one another.

Madeline making more housework for Jack's mommy!

Now I Understand Why Mommies Have Such Big Purses!

Inside this Mommy's purse on the way to grill out with some friends: baby toys, baby paci, salad croutons for my salad to share, bottle of wine, and somewhere buried in the bottom are my essentials: wallet with driver's license, sunglasses, and lip gloss! At least I was smart enough to remove my keys before packing it full. My, how times have changed.

Now that is a sign of a good night's rest!

Madeline has wild hair anyway, but her little alfalfa sprout was just too hilarious to not capture on this particular morning! She would've posed all morning for photos. She was in rare form. I guess the hair standing on end really is a sign of a good night's sleep!

Happy Mother's Day

What a lucky Mama I am! I was chosen to be this little girl's Mama, and I sure do feel blessed. I had a great first Mother's Day with Madeline actually here in the world. My husband treated me to a day "out on the town", and we enjoyed our date. There really is nothing like being a Mom ~ the good and even the not so good. Hope all you Mothers had a wonderful day!

Bathtime fun

Can you tell who was in charge of the bath last night?! Sometimes Daddy just makes things more fun than Mommy!

What a BIG girl!

I have been feeding Madeline in her Bumbo seat, but lately, she seems to be a little squeezed sitting in it. It was time to move onto a high chair of some sort, but I was dreading the thought of going out to buy one of those clunky high chairs with cushions, creases, and crevices that required lots of cleaning to meet my OCD standards. Not to mention, those high chairs take up a lot of space. With us having our house on the market, I was not too keen on the idea of having a clunky high chair in the kitchen taking up space and making it look cramped. As I was lamenting the high chair, my friend suggested I just buy one of the booster seats with a tray. Perfect. Madeline dined in her new seat on Saturday evening. Not only was she in her new seat, but she also had an outdoor dining experience. What fun and look how big she looks sitting in it. Clearly she happy about her new, spacious seating arrangement.

Mashing bananas between her fingers. She would not put what she had in her hand to her mouth, so I was feeding her while she made a paste out of her bananas! Go figure...

She clearly was not a huge fan of the banana, but it's growing on her.