Happy Birthday, Sammy S.

Lauren didn’t mind the party hat.

Friends K and J celebrated their son Sammy’s first birthday this week, and we were invited to a fun party with cake and lots of kids. S loved his presents and ate his personalized cake in record time! (He now has almost all of his teeth; Lauren still has yet to grow ONE!) The grown-ups talked about how fast the time went, how S might have a milk allergy, how Lauren avoids eating hamburger but goes to sleep instantly. I remembered how brave K was through a C-section on that day one year ago.

Lauren, this week, will periodically pull her stomach off the ground to crawl. She points at Nick or me when we come into a room, like “Aha! There’s my missing parent!” And, like last week with the mixed vegetables, she continues to pick and choose her food. Green beans, yes. Apricots, no. Chicken, yes. Ground beef, not a chance. Kaye says the highchair at daycare has a cup holder, and in lieu of a cup, that’s where Lauren stuck her apricots today. The reject pile!

Mom and Dad are excited for Halloween and the upcoming election. We’ll post pics from the big H next week. As for the election, we hope to elect someone that cares about working families like ours, and will raise education standards for Lauren’s generation.

Food & Milk Changes

Nick and Lauren, “horsing around”.

We’ve reached the part of Lauren’s life where it feels if you blink, you’ll miss it. For one, she’s started calling me “Mum-mum”: she’ll crawl around the kitchen island looking for me, finally resting her hand on my shoe. And, tonight I quickly ran upstairs for something and when I returned, she was waiting for me on the second step. (Guess I will not be going anywhere without Lauren in tow). Additionally, she has days where she wants to eat exclusively finger foods, then days where she’s all about puree. I’ve given both to Kaye so she can have back-ups on hand. She loves fruit, but I made her a veggie mix of whole green beans, carrots, corn and peas and she works hard to eat only carrots and green beans, leaving the rest.

I was given my own office at work last week, clearing my cubicle out for a marketing intern they are going to hire. Wouldn’t you know it – I finally get someplace private and my milk dried up. Lauren’s now on formula full-time, and while I mourned the change, I quickly realized how much more can be accomplished when you don’t take time out of your day to pump. Six weeks and counting until we can quit formula and start whole milk.

I’ve already started brainstorming for Lauren’s first birthday, and we are having trouble deciding just how big of a celebration it should be. But Nick and I will celebrate our three-year anniversary with a date tomorrow night (not the actual anniversary date, but close). We usually do something unique (concert! theatre!) but a plain old dinner-and-a-movie sounds just fine to these two new parents.

Lauren’s First Haircut, Learning to Stand

Picture 1: Lauren after her first haircut. The sides, front and back were getting shaggy, so we visited Great Clips. I think I learned enough to cut it myself next time. She was very well-behaved once she understood what was going on, and stopped shaking her head!

Pictures 2 & 3: Nick took care of Lauren last week, and noticed after he placed her in the Bumbo and left the room for a second, that Lauren was no longer in it. Later, we tried it again, and watched her confidently pull herself out!

Picture 4: Even though as late as last week, Lauren couldn’t pull herself past her knees, now she pulls herself up to standing like a pro! She can now stand up to reach her Leap Frog music table, and here she is in her crib after a nap.

Picture 5: Lauren pulling up to her knees, before she learned how to stand!

Tonight was fun – Lauren tried cooked black beans for the first time and really liked them. I made chili for Nick and me. Lauren used a wooden spoon to drum on two pot lids, another one of her favorite games!

The Daycare Hiatus

Happy girl in the Jumperoo!

Kaye is off to a cabin for a week of relaxation, and Nick and I enlisted friends K and C to help out for a few days. (The rest of the week is ours.) K and C stay home with children of their own, but both are outstanding mothers and welcomed Lauren as a playdate. We don’t have a Jumperoo or siblings at home, so I know Lauren had a great time.

Over the weekend, Lauren started saying something that sounded like “babe”. She says this to her reflection and her baby doll, so we think she’s trying to say “baby”. She’s also trying to pull up, but gets as far as sitting on her knees and she has to give up. She really enjoys standing and walking while supported.