Our little Coconut. That's what we call Elodie sometimes. A friend of mine was affectionately calling her peanut and to me it just didn't fit. When I hear peanut, I always think of small, tiny babies. Which Elodie definitely is not. I was thinking she was more of a giant walnut. Ha! Then Phil suggested coconut and that fit perfectly. Our little coconut. Who is also somewhat crazy from time to time. Like yesterday, I was feeding her and I sniffled, very softly mind you, and she burst into tears. Apparently I scared her. And today on the way home from the bookstore instead of playing with the toy I gave her, she decided to hoist her foot up to her mouth and lick her shoe. Crazy, I tell ya'.
So our crazy coconut, um....I mean Elodie is getting much better at sitting up unassisted now. She's a lot more balanced than she was just a few short weeks ago. She'll occasionally still take a spill, but as long as she is on the carpet then she doesn't seem to get too upset about it. Thus I can actually leave her for a few minutes and run to the little girls room without fear of coming back to a screaming baby. We still do tummy time every day, and she likes to reach for whatever she can possibly get her little hands on. She's learned that if something interesting (okay, pretty much anything!) is to the side of her, that she can turn herself towards it in order to be able to reach it. She's generally just reachy, reachy, reachy and grabby, grabby, grabby right now. You name it, she wants to get her hands on it. Cell phone. Magnets on the fridge. My lips. The cat. A piece of mail. Daddy's arm hair. A fresh diaper. A dirty diaper. She's pretty non-discriminatory right now. She's also working on a little inch worm like crawl, as she sticks her booty up in the air sometimes when she's trying to get something in front of her. So far it hasn't gotten her anywhere just yet. And I'm perfectly okay with that. :)
It's pretty easy to get her to smile these days. Although laughing is another story. She does laugh, but she makes you work for it. She's a hard nut to crack. (Pun intended.) In general she is a pretty serious baby when she plays. Or maybe mommy just isn't as funny and amusing as she thinks she is. I've started to play peek-a-boo with her and she usually obliges me with a little chuckle or two. Then it's onto more serious matters. I've also started to incorporate a few baby signs into our day, and she generally finds those pretty amusing too.
We've gotten into a pretty nice routine and don't deviate from it too much. I'm pretty much a slave to her nap schedule right now. But I try to get out to the store or even just make a quick run for some kind of sickeningly-sweet-fancy-schmancy-over-priced coffee drink, at least once or twice a week. And we get out almost daily for an afternoon walk. Weather permitting of course. Unfortunately our neighborhood isn't the best one for a nice peaceful stroll. Not only is there housing construction on just about every street, but there is also road construction that often involves dynamite blasts that can shake the entire neighborhood. The first time I felt one I could have sworn it was an earthquake. (By the way, these blasts don't make her cry or even flinch, but my sniffle brought her to tears.) Not to mention that it's a small neighborhood, so I basically just walk in circles, over and over, and over again. Or that half the sidewalks are missing where there are still empty lots to be filled. Or that there are a ridiculous amount of annoying dogs that like to bark at us even if we are on the opposite side of the street. Some days I wish I had a BB gun. I kid of course. Sort of.
And lately while on our walk, we've been playing a fun game of "Where is Elodie's shoe/sock?" Seriously, those little buggers will NOT stay on. So far we have successfully lost and found (either same day or next day), 2 shoes and three socks. I finally quit putting shoes on her because I was tired of retrieving them, and I figure she doesn't really need them anyway. But I can't just take off her socks because her little feet will freeze. She generally has a blanket over her but I can't really tuck her feet into it. Thus they get a little more cool air than the rest of her so she has to have socks. Short of superglue or putting her in her footed PJs, I'm not sure what else to do. So for now I do a sock check at the end of every block so that at least if we lost one I know I don't have to go too far to find it. It's not the most fun game to play but it keeps my mind off of some of the sketchy construction dudes that I have to walk past.
She's eating solids twice a day now. She usually has oatmeal and some kind of fruit for breakfast and then an afternoon snack after our walk. Some days she's excited for food, other days not so much. She's finally had a change of heart and has decided that she likes sweet potatoes. Perhaps a dusting of cinnamon helped? The jury is still out the the butternut squash I prepared for her though. I hope she warms up to it eventually since it cost us an arm and two legs at Wholepaycheck (aka Wholefoods). And if she doesn't take to it then I'll have a plethora of butternut squash ice cubes in my freezer. Cocktail anyone? She also loves to drink water from her sippy cup, which I hold for her of course. Although the amount of backwash she manages to get in there is quite disturbing.
So our crazy coconut, um....I mean Elodie is getting much better at sitting up unassisted now. She's a lot more balanced than she was just a few short weeks ago. She'll occasionally still take a spill, but as long as she is on the carpet then she doesn't seem to get too upset about it. Thus I can actually leave her for a few minutes and run to the little girls room without fear of coming back to a screaming baby. We still do tummy time every day, and she likes to reach for whatever she can possibly get her little hands on. She's learned that if something interesting (okay, pretty much anything!) is to the side of her, that she can turn herself towards it in order to be able to reach it. She's generally just reachy, reachy, reachy and grabby, grabby, grabby right now. You name it, she wants to get her hands on it. Cell phone. Magnets on the fridge. My lips. The cat. A piece of mail. Daddy's arm hair. A fresh diaper. A dirty diaper. She's pretty non-discriminatory right now. She's also working on a little inch worm like crawl, as she sticks her booty up in the air sometimes when she's trying to get something in front of her. So far it hasn't gotten her anywhere just yet. And I'm perfectly okay with that. :)
It's pretty easy to get her to smile these days. Although laughing is another story. She does laugh, but she makes you work for it. She's a hard nut to crack. (Pun intended.) In general she is a pretty serious baby when she plays. Or maybe mommy just isn't as funny and amusing as she thinks she is. I've started to play peek-a-boo with her and she usually obliges me with a little chuckle or two. Then it's onto more serious matters. I've also started to incorporate a few baby signs into our day, and she generally finds those pretty amusing too.
We've gotten into a pretty nice routine and don't deviate from it too much. I'm pretty much a slave to her nap schedule right now. But I try to get out to the store or even just make a quick run for some kind of sickeningly-sweet-fancy-schmancy-over-priced coffee drink, at least once or twice a week. And we get out almost daily for an afternoon walk. Weather permitting of course. Unfortunately our neighborhood isn't the best one for a nice peaceful stroll. Not only is there housing construction on just about every street, but there is also road construction that often involves dynamite blasts that can shake the entire neighborhood. The first time I felt one I could have sworn it was an earthquake. (By the way, these blasts don't make her cry or even flinch, but my sniffle brought her to tears.) Not to mention that it's a small neighborhood, so I basically just walk in circles, over and over, and over again. Or that half the sidewalks are missing where there are still empty lots to be filled. Or that there are a ridiculous amount of annoying dogs that like to bark at us even if we are on the opposite side of the street. Some days I wish I had a BB gun. I kid of course. Sort of.
And lately while on our walk, we've been playing a fun game of "Where is Elodie's shoe/sock?" Seriously, those little buggers will NOT stay on. So far we have successfully lost and found (either same day or next day), 2 shoes and three socks. I finally quit putting shoes on her because I was tired of retrieving them, and I figure she doesn't really need them anyway. But I can't just take off her socks because her little feet will freeze. She generally has a blanket over her but I can't really tuck her feet into it. Thus they get a little more cool air than the rest of her so she has to have socks. Short of superglue or putting her in her footed PJs, I'm not sure what else to do. So for now I do a sock check at the end of every block so that at least if we lost one I know I don't have to go too far to find it. It's not the most fun game to play but it keeps my mind off of some of the sketchy construction dudes that I have to walk past.
She's eating solids twice a day now. She usually has oatmeal and some kind of fruit for breakfast and then an afternoon snack after our walk. Some days she's excited for food, other days not so much. She's finally had a change of heart and has decided that she likes sweet potatoes. Perhaps a dusting of cinnamon helped? The jury is still out the the butternut squash I prepared for her though. I hope she warms up to it eventually since it cost us an arm and two legs at Wholepaycheck (aka Wholefoods). And if she doesn't take to it then I'll have a plethora of butternut squash ice cubes in my freezer. Cocktail anyone? She also loves to drink water from her sippy cup, which I hold for her of course. Although the amount of backwash she manages to get in there is quite disturbing.
All in all this is a really fun and great age. She's sleeping well, easily entertained and can't get into too much trouble yet. I shall relax and enjoy it while it lasts. Here are a few recent pictures of our crazy but most wonderful and adorable girl.
Sportin' some stylin' baby jeans.
She's got her purse and is ready to go shopping.....in her diaper.
Our sweet little watermelon...I mean coconut.
Too cute for words.
"I've almost got it!"
Trying to roll from back to belly but that pesky arm keeps getting in the way.
"Helping" mommy with the laundry.
Holding pen! Hey....ya' gotta do what ya' gotta do.
Happy day to all!
The pictures are super! Love the laundry basket one; I wonder if we have one of you in the laundry basket. I bet we do. Thanks for the posts and the pics. Grandma Jean
ReplyDeleteYou're reports are now as enjoyable as the ones from Israel...and the "hard nut to crack" line was great....Thanks again, Love Sarasota Dad
ReplyDeletegreat pictures, especially the one in the laundry basket with you unloading the dryer (might be worth entering into a funny baby picture contest).
ReplyDeletecan't wait to see all of you on Sunday...
Grandma Lynn