Hello, Seattle!

Newspaper Debut

This photo was taken for the DNews (a Pullman/ Moscow area newspaper) about our little swim class.

Mila is practicing using her arms to move forward... though truthfully she just wanted to get that lamb in her mouth.

cups and stripes

chillin

 I said no pictures!!!!

 baby gang signs?

Adventures in trying to eat a camera...

Wednesdays are Mama and Mila days.

Austin leaves for class a bit after 9am and usually calls for a ride home around 6pm.

We hang out, dance, sing, read, snuggle, and enjoy the day.

Mila loves sitting up on her own and was in such a wonderful, bubbly mood that I just had to capture the moment. She almost immediately decided that she would like to eat the camera, or at least try to shove it in her mouth.

Keepin' Warm while Lookin' Cool

Things have been PRETTY chilly here in Pullman... we had a few days where the temperature never got warmer than 4 or 5 degrees and dipped well below zero. Yes, below zero.

Why anyone would choose to live in this sort of climate is beyond me.

Anyway, much of the time was spent trying to keep Mila nice and cozy while still giving her freedom of movement and some semblance of style.

I also decided to pay tribute to Austin, who is always in all-gray sweats (and usually WSU gear). The leg warmers were for a pop of color.

This look was the outcome.

Adventures in Solids

Pediatricians say that you should wait to start solids until your baby shows definite interest in food. 

Mila, with her two little chompy teeth, started grabbing for spoons and our food around 4 months. I was initially hesitant to start any solids because, selfishly, I enjoyed that I was the only person who could really feed her (as she has never been into bottles). But, with my return to school looming, I decided to wait until about 5 months and then started her.

While we were in San Diego, she had some banana and water. Mila LOVES water and wants it all the time. Good luck to you if you decide to drink water around her and think she isn't going to get that little drooly mouth all over your cup/water bottle.

After we got home and recovered from our delightful family-wide stomach bug (even Fernando and Amelia the cat puked a few times), we tried out some rice cereal. 

NOT Mila's favorite. 

We have since switched to baby oatmeal cereal, which she clearly prefers.

I made a bunch of home-made baby food: pears, apples, and carrots in the Baby Bullet (an absolute MUST-HAVE for making delicious baby meals). 

Basically: pureed fruit or veggie +oatmeal cereal+ water or breast milk= yum

In theory, anyway.

Mila loves eating, but has made the following decisions: 

1. carrots are gross.

2. pears are delicious

3. (oddly enough) peas are pretty good, but best if served while already happy

4. everything is better if you can drink it.

So we dilute her food in milk or water and she chugs it right down.

 You can see the water all over her mouth

 Adventures in carrots. Lesson: add milk or water because the thick texture is not appealing for babies used to an all-liquid diet.

 Not too sure about those carrots.

 "Why would you make me eat this?!?"

As a true independent woman, Mila was much happier once we let her feed herself.

Mila only really eats solids when I am at work (which is 3.5 hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays) and often isn't really that hungry when she is hanging out with her daddy.

So far, she has had:

banana

carrot

apple

pear

peas

oatmeal cereal

rice cereal

I am eager to try more veggies to get some iron into her tummy.

We are working on the signs for "more" and "water"--- which are coming along nicely!

She loves feeding herself, by which I clearly mean flinging food everywhere BUT her mouth, and chugging as much water as she can possibly get.

The only weird thing really is the change to her pooping schedule. 

Aren't you so excited that I am going to tell you about this?

Because of the adjustment to new foods, Mila has gone from insanely active (perhaps hyperactive) bowels to rare appearances with plenty of hype. By this, I mean that she poops about once a week and farts constantly. 

No constipation, just stinky as all hell.

So that is where we are now. I am looking to test out sweet potatoes and mangoes in the next couple days. Wish us luck.