Henry-isms (17 months old)

So let's just move past the fact that my last post was 6 months ago...and on to cute baby stories.  Henry's verbal communication is improving every day and I thought I'd share some of his recent "Henry-isms":

Henry can now stay "shoes" and will bring me one of our shoes while saying the word.  And if he brings you a shoe, you MUST hold it.  I learned this lesson while trying to make breakfast and holding two running shoes this morning.

We are trying to teach him "hot" and now everything that we don't want him to have is "hot".  The grill, the stove, the toaster oven, Daddy's coffee cup, iPhones

While getting ready for bed, Henry brought me his Bubbles, Bubbles book while saying "bubbles".  He also will make the sign for eat when I'm reading a story and we come across the word (we use limited sign-language with him to encourage communication).

Chris and I are frequently telling Max and Lila "No Barking" (they are fierce guard dogs and take their job very seriously:) ).  We were upstairs and Lila started barking so Chris said "Lila, no barking" out the open window.  She started barking again and Henry ran over to the window and started yelling outside.

Breckenridge, CO

Oh my, we had a blast over the holidays and enjoyed lots of family time.  I did a terrible job capturing the moments of Henry's first Christmas but believe me when I say the child is very blessed!  He didn't really "get" Christmas this year but is always happy around people, especially his favorite people (aka family members). We ended the holidays with a trip with my family to Breckenridge, CO.  This was my second trip to Breck and Chris' third trip to hit the slopes...lucky guy!  The town got great skiing and such a cute main street.  It was H's first time flying and he did great!  We flew out of the Akron/Canton airport since we could get a direct flight and where pleasantly surprised at how nice everyone was there.We did learn its better for H to fly at nap time than bedtime but it still will be a while before we fly with him again.  

We had 8 adults and one baby on the trip, which meant plenty of babysitters!  Henry enjoyed several outings to dinner, the coffee shop and stroller rides around Breck while the rest of us enjoyed the slopes.  Especially the day of FRESH POWDER and the opening of Peak 6.  It was definitely the best skiing I've ever done and was so, so beautiful.  The weather was great and we really enjoyed our selves.  Henry slept in a pack n play in our room...which meant he ended up with us every night.  He also didn't adjust to the time difference so someone had to get up with him before the sun was up at 4:30 or 5am each day.  

Henry showed off some of his 11 month old skills for his grandparents and uncles including standing up on things (including the fire place mantle...he's a little dare-devil), high-fiving and eating.  This child can put away the food, especially yogurt and bananas.        

2014-Present

Last year, I jumped on board with the One Word concept instead of a whole list New Year's resolutions and loved it.  I was much easier for me to keep track of and I truly would think of balance (my word for 2013) throughout the year....as in trying to balance a new baby with being a working professional, wife, friend and individual.  Over all, I felt our lives and year were balanced as we got to know our newest family member and welcome him into this world.  I'm back to some of my favorite activities, cooking, working out and being creative but don't have as much time to spend as I used to.  Which is fine, I love hanging out with our little guy and watching him grow and develop every day.

I've put some thought into my word for 2014 and have decided on present, as in being present in my actions.   When I started thinking of my intentions for this year, I kept coming back to a conversation I had with my good friend Caitlin on a recent girls weekend about being present. So often, I'm doing one thing and my mind is somewhere else.  I want to focus on enjoying the present moment and living it, instead of thinking of my to-do list or work or baby.  It truly goes both ways, sometimes I'm at work and distracted by thoughts of home and sometimes I'm with Henry and Chris and thinking of work.

pres·ent¹

ˈprezənt/

adjective

1. 1.

   (of a person) in a particular place.

   "a doctor must be present at the ringside"

   synonyms:

   in attendance, here, there, near, nearby, (close/near) at hand, availableMore
2. 2.

   existing or occurring now.

   "she did not expect to find herself in her present situation"

   synonyms:

   current, present-day, existing More

noun

1. 1.

   the period of time now occurring.

   "they are happy and at peace, refusing to think beyond the present"

   synonyms:

   now, today, the present time/moment, the here and now More

2. So here's to being present in 2014!  What are your intentions?  

Hello?

Hello?  Helllllllloooooo?  Anyone out there?

Many, many apologies for the prolonged, unintended absence.  I've had many blog posts in my head but MAKING the time to sit down and write them out hasn't been a priority for me.  We've been busy enjoying our family, working and just doing the things that make life happen (grocery shopping, lawn mowing).  One thing I try to focus on is being present with Henry when I'm with him.  As a full-time-working-mom, my time with him is limited and I truly want to savor it!  I'm hoping to do better as I've got lots to share but let's start with these 9 month old photos of Henry by the oh-so-talented Stephanie from Stephanie's Creations.  

-

Meal Planning-Enjoying Summer

August already!  Summer has been short here in Cleveland as we've only had about 2 weeks of really hot weather (not that I'm complaining) and LOTS of rain.  Our tomatoes are still green but C's mom was able to give us some from her crop so we will be having lots of fresh-from-the-garden tomato dishes this week.

Sunday-Lunch was steak and corn on the cob on the grill.  Dinner was sausage/pasta/tomato/basil dish garnished with balsamic/olive oil/garlic/cheese
Monday-BLT wraps and grilled summer squash
Tuesday-Chicken and sweet potatoes in the crock pot with salad
Thursday-Brucshetta pizza

Now that Henry is starting to enjoy food, I have the following planned for him:

Breakfast-Pears
Lunch-Sweet Potatoes
Dinner-Avocado

We are adding a new food every 4-7 days so on Wednesday, I'll add something else into his diet.  I'm thinking bananas as they would easily mash in his mesh feeder.

What's on your meal plan for this week?  Any great fresh tomato recipes?

6 months old!

Here we are at 6 months old already, how did that happen????

We've had an eventful month and the biggest news is starting food!  Henry is a fan of the mesh feeder (I think he likes that he can do it himself) and he has tried avocado and sweet potato.  His sleep schedule is starting to regulate a bit into 2-3 naps per day but we are still working on getting them at a consistent time each day.  Each time we make progress, life gets in the way :).  He's increasingly vocal and enjoys talking and shrieking.  When he gets upset about something, boy he lets us know it.  This afternoon Chris tried to put him down for a nap and Henry certainly didn't think it was necessary.  Henry screamed for about 10 minutes and then when Chris brought him downstairs to to me, Henry spent a few minutes "complaining" about it.  Henry loves music and having us sing to him.  He also loves his interactive toys and is always on the go.

We've noticed that he's developed a bit of a temper (see above nap example) and is very clear about his likes and dislikes.  We do enjoy seeing his personality develop!  H continues to got to PT and we do his exercises every day to strengthen his upper body.  Henry has his 6 month well-check in a week and I'm excited to see his stats!

Here are a few photos of our growing boy:

Nanny Issues-Finding a Good Fit

Without going into all the details, we've recently had a change in nanny's for Henry.  The past few weeks have been incredibly stressful as we interviewed, hired and transitioned from our old nanny to the new one.  We've had lots of questions as to why (after only 2 months), we were searching for someone new to watch H and I think it all boils down to the first nanny wasn't a good fit.  Honestly, when we interviewed the first time around, we found someone we really, really liked.  We made her an offer but she was also interviewing with another family and choose to work for them instead.  So feeling rushed to get someone before I went back to work, we hired our second choice.  We called references, ran a background check, did a monthly review-all the "right" things to do.  Things were fine for a while and then they weren't.  I felt like I was constantly having to deal with things not being done as we asked and C was starting to dread my phone calls during the work day as they usually had some sort of nanny related issue.  Our parents have listened to me worry over our nanny situation for some time...sorry guys!  It wasn't anything one thing and honestly, the feeling was mutual (and she even brought it up!) so we parted ways last week and thankfully, she stayed until we found someone new.  It's been a new experience for us to have a household employee and learn how to set expectations that were clear (yet trying to be flexible and understanding as she was taking care of our most precious thing, Henry, in our home.  Um, I didn't want to totally peeve her as she could steal our baby and rob us blind).  

So now that we've got 4 days under our belt with our new nanny, I can say that things are SO much better already!  The energy in our home is better and I think it's a much better fit.  The new nanny came prepared with crafts (Yes, crafts for a 5.5 month old.  The fridge is covered with baby paintings already) and has all sorts of daily developmental activities they do together.  As we can only learn from our past, I've been thinking about our last experience and this is what I've learned:

1. Trust my instinct.  We know what's best for our family and need to make sure that comes first.

2.  It has to be a good fit and if it's not (see #1) cut our losses and move on.  I spent a lot of time and energy trying to make our last relationship work and bottom line was it didn't.  Next time, I'll call it sooner and take steps to move on.

3. Don't be afraid to speak up about instructions and expectations up front.  I've created a "House Rules" list that we now use for everyone that watches H.  At the end of the day, Henry (and the dogs and our home) our OUR responsibility and we, as parents, should fully be able to expect our rules and guidelines to be followed.

I'm sure this is just the first of many challenges of being a working mom :).  To those of you who have great help, be thankful and show appreciation!

If you have child-care, what are some things that work for your family?  Any "House Rules" we should add to the list?  

 

5 Months old!

How time flies-our little guy is 5 months old!  He is growing and changing more every day!  Some of his recent developments are pinching (fine motor skills), talking/having conversations with us/shrieking (verbalizing), pulling toys and his pacifier toward him/putting them in his mouth and touching faces-he LOVES faces.  He likes to go on walks in the stroller and he enjoys watching Max and Lila romp around.  He doesn't like getting dressed or waiting to eat.  When he's hungry, he wants to eat NOW :)

A few weeks ago, Henry had his first chiropractic appointment!  The chiropractor also specializes in NAET testing and we learned that Henry was deficient in fatty acids (no surprise there since his weight gain has been slow).  I'm now taking supplements and changing my diet a bit to increase the amount of fatty acids in my breast milk.  One of my nursing mom's group friends suggested reading Mother Food and it has been very helpful.  I'm (very slowly) starting to introduce diary and a few other foods back into my diet and it doesn't seem to be affecting Henry.  I will be very interested to see where he is at his 6 month well-check in August!

Henry has also had a couple more PT sessions with his PT Cathy.  We are working on sitting and pushing up on his hands and knees!  Crawling will be here before we know it, Chris and I are already talking about baby-proofing the house :)       

Henry's bedtime is around 7pm and he still gets up a couple times each night to eat.  At night he sleeps about 6-7 hours before his first wake up and then every three or so hours after that.  During the day he takes several naps still and usually we get a nice 2 hour nap and then 2-3 shorter ones.  For the most part, Henry self-soothes to sleep but we do occasionally need to rock him.  

Some recent adventures include going to a family reunion where Henry got to meet his newest baby cousin, Catherine.  He also spent the day at Grandma's house with his cousin Luke.  Last Sunday, I took him to the grocery store in the Baby Bjorn and he really liked looking around at all the bright lights, colors and shapes.  

Here are a few photos over the past month of Henry:

Helping Mommy fold laundry (otherwise known as eating
Daddy's sock)

Chris "playing" with Henry at Grandma's house

Concentrating REALLY hard on one of his toys

Bath time!  He loves to splash and kick in the tub!

Serious boy hanging out at Oma and Opa's house

And a video showcasing his new verbalization skills:

Meal planning

Chris, H and I spent a few days out of town visiting family (family reunion for me and H and moving family for C).  We got back late Saturday night so we could get ready for the next week-Monday always comes around so fast!  Mac and Lila also had an obedience lesson or shall I say Chris and I had a lesson in being better pack leaders.

Is it hot where you are?  We are supposed to see 90 every day this week!  I doubt we will be turning on the stove or oven.  I'm certainly going to miss having central air as we only have window air conditioners. They do the job but some rooms are hotter, like my office, than others.

Sunday-Greek festival!  We picked up food from the drive-thru after running errands.

Monday-spinach salad with chicken, goat cheese, strawberries and a strawberry vinaigrette

Tuesday-C is on his own

Wednesday-chicken tacos with guac

Thursday-grilled pork chops

Friday-????

Happy Hour at Home (guacamole recipe)

Chris and I rarely made it out to happy hour before we had Henry and now it never happens.  Yesterday, we did our own "happy hour at home" with some fresh guacamole and some Summer Shandy....so refreshing!

Guacamole Recipe:
4 Avocados (I used organic Haas), removed from the peal and smashed
1/2 lime, juice and zest
1 teaspoon cilantro, fresh and chopped
1 tablespoon salsa
1/4 teaspoon seasoning salt

Smash avocados in a bowl, add remaining ingredients and stir.  Serve with chips, veggie slices or on top of burgers or chicken.  Store left-over guac in the fridge.  I press plastic wrap right on the surface of the guac to keep it from turning brown.

Happy Father's Day!

For Father's Day, Henry and I treated Chris to brunch out at our favorite local restaurant, Sweet Melissa.  Here's a few photos of our outing.  Happy Father's Day to all the Daddy's out there!

Wearing his "Happy First Father's Day Daddy" shirt from
our Nanny.

Henry and Daddy.  H is enthralled with all the
noise and people.

Tired baby but he wouldn't give in and take a nap-
too much to look at.

Henry and Mommy.

Henry-4 month well check

Last week, Henry attended his 4 month well-check with CNP Allyson.  She was his practitioner at his 2 month well check too.  Due to scheduling conflicts, Chris took him to the appointment and brought back lots of notes for me since I couldn't attend.  Don't worry, it all evens out since I took H to PT later in the week :)

Here are the basic stats:
Height- 24 inches (16th percentile)
Weight- 11 lbs 13 oz (3rd percentile)
Head circumference- 39.9 cm (2nd percentile)

So we have a peanut on our hands...no surprise there if you know us.  Chris and I are both on the short side :).  Our little guy is thriving developmentally (holding head up well, rolling all ways, being very alert) but the CNP is concerned with his size and is suggesting we start to introduce rice cereal and oatmeal.  To be quite honest, I was taken by surprise by this and probably a little defensive since I'm Henry's primary supply of nutrition AND I wasn't there to discuss my concerns with starting him on cereal/food so early.  We were told that if we don't start feeding him soon, he will "fall behind even more".  I have a bit of an issue with that, especially considering his gene pool.  After all, everything I've read states that solids should wait until six months (or close to it) because the digestive system is not ready yet and it can increase food sensitivities and allergies.  We already suspect that H has some food sensitivities, that's the whole reason I'm not eating dairy or bananas or spicy foods or broccoli...you get the idea.  So I decided to do some more research before making a decision.  I first started talking to other moms: my Mom, C's Mom, my Mom's group moms, co-workers who are moms.  Basically, it came out to we need to do what we feel is best for Henry.  Next, I checked out some online resources that are well-respected (KellyMom and Science of Mom).  I still want to call the office and ask a few questions (WHO growth charts vs. CDC growth charts) but after much thought about it, we are going to wait until closer to 6 months and follow his cues.  We have been including Henry in family meals in his infant swing for a while and just recently started sitting him in his high chair at the table with us (and a tray full of toys).

Chris also asked her about sleep (and the fact that this guy gets up a lot at night).  Thanks to her advice, we are transitioning to self-soothing.  This means no more rocking H to sleep, which is sad for me, but we are working on teaching him to go to sleep on his own to encourage healthy sleep habits.

And a video in the high chair:

Please know that we do not come from a place of judgement on those who choose to give cereal at any age, this is what we've chosen for Henry right now based on what we feel is best for him.

Baby blanket-girl

Just a quick post this week as its Friday night before 8pm and I'm already in bed due to combo of early mornings for work and getting up 5+ times the past few nights with H.  I'm physically and mentally exhausted.  So so happy we've got nothing planned this weekend other than the regular gym/grocery shopping/cooking/cleaning schedule.  I'm sure we'll do a few special things for Father's Day but I know Chris is just as tired as I am (he had a few late nights due to work functions).  I wanted to share my latest creation/baby gift for a soon-to-arrive Florida baby!  No batting and a nice soft flannel backing and silky binding.  I quilted along the horizontal stripes to keep it together.  Love making gifts for our friends!

Asian Coleslaw (Ramen Noodle Salad)

When I'm looking for a quick, summery side dish I always think of this salad.  We love the crunchy texture and the flavor combo!  I can (and do) eat it right out of the serving bowl if I'm really hungry.  I recently had a friend request the recipe so here it is:

In a large salad bowl, combine:

1 package shredded cabbage/coleslaw mix
1 package of ramen noodles, broken into small pieces (I use chicken flavored)
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 Tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
1-2 Tablespoons green onions/chives, chopped

To make the dressing, whisk to combine:

1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons white vinegar
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 flavor packet from ramen noodles

Pour dressing over salad and toss to incorporate.  Salad will wilt down after 1/2 hour or so.  I try to make it an hour or two ahead of time to allow time for the flavors to meld but not too far in advance because the ramen will soften.  Enjoy!

What are some of your favorite summer dishes?
     

Meal planning

Although I haven't been posting it here, we've still been meal planning, shopping and cooking.  Meals that come together fast are preferred and we do a lot of grilling!  I try to prep as much on the weekends as possible, it makes our weeknight s go more smoothly.

Sunday-chicken, quinoa and spinach bowls

Monday-turkey, bacon and spinach wraps with Asian coleslaw

Tuesday-I'm at a work dinner, Chris is on his own

Wednesday-grilled shrimp and asparagus

Thursday- burgers with avocado  

What's on your menu for the week?

First race after baby

A few weeks ago, Chris and I ran our first race as parents!  The training went decently...until I went back to work and then I was only running 1 day a week and going to body pump 1 day a week.  Certainly not ideal race prep but work with what you have :).  

I started running 6 weeks after Henry was born (after being cleared by my midwife).  The first few weeks were a little rough and very slow.  I could certainly still feel the looseness in my hips, lost my cardiovascular endurance and I was achy after running but things steadily improved!  Another challenge I faced were "the girls"-I have to invest in larger and more supportive sports bras and had to pump directly before the race.

Most of C's family ran the race too, which made it really fun!  I ended up the same pace as my mom and we ran together for most of the race and finishing just over an hour with a 10:30/mile pace....not my best but certainly not bad.  

Chris originally signed up for the 1/2 marathon but dropped down to the 10k because of some hip issues and pack if training.  Danielle wrote a great race recap here: (http://justanotherdayinthepark.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-family-that-runs-together.html?m=1).  

I love that health, wellness and fitness are family activities!  Can't wait until H is old enough to ride with us in the jogging stroller-only a few more months!

Race day:

Pre-training race with Henry:

4 months old!

Where has time gone?  Henry is 4 months old today!  In the grand scheme of life, 4 months is a short period but it seems like he's been with us forever.  He celebrated the milestone by breaking free from his swaddle blanket rolling from his back to his front twice in the middle of the night and crying for someone to help him.  Stats are unknown as his next appt. to see CNP Allyson is next week.  I'm looking forward to hearing about his progress-I've got a work meeting I can't miss so C is taking the afternoon off to go to the appointment.  

Other developments include "talking".  H likes to carry on full conversations with us, especially while being rocked and at the end of nursing sessions.  

Henry is eating every 3 hours during the day abs every 2 hours in the evening in an attempt to "stock up" for nighttime.  He still gets up between 2-5 times a night-sometimes to eat and sometimes we just comfort him.  Clearly, he isn't self-soothing yet :)  We start bedtime between 6:30 and 7:30, with a goal of 7pm pjs, story, rocking and last feeding...sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  

We love our little guy and can't wait to see how he continues to develop!

Henry-6 weeks old (video)

I've finally figured out how to get video's to the blog-upload them to YouTube first :).  I've been taking one or two short videos on my iPhone every week to document Henry's progress and development.  Here's Henry at 6 weeks old:

More to come!

Back to work week and meal planning!

Here we go, my first week back to work and our first with with our nanny (in order to protect her privacy, I'll just refer to her as Nanny or the nanny on here).  Today, our nanny starts and tomorrow I'm back to work.  I hear a shortened work week is the way to go and it's best to ease back into things, we will see!  Meal planning is even more important now that my time is limited so I spent a few hours planning and prepping this weekend, thanks to a 3 hour nap, to ensure success during the week.

Prep work:
Paleo fudge-added toasted coconut as inspired by Danielle and these things are amazing now!
No bake energy bites
Paleo blueberry muffins

Meal Plan:
Sunday-Burgers on the grill with guac and bacon, green beans, strawberries
Monday-Roasted Chicken in tomatillo sauce (crock-pot) and butternut squash risotto (carry over from last week)
Tuesday-quesadillas with left-over chicken
Wednesday-Bratwurst on the grill, spinach salad
Thursday-left overs
Friday-Out to dinner/take-out?

I'm a little nervous about returning to work so let's see how thing week goes!

Meal planning

Meal planning has been tough lately, I'm working with limited ingredients (due to dietary restrictions for H) and limited time ( um, I've got a baby and we were out of town over the weekend). I'm traveling again at the end of this week so here's what we've done so far:

Sunday- burgers and sweet potato fries on the grill
Monday- stuffed shells from the geezer for C. (I had a meeting and I'm not eating dairy still)
Tuesday-meatloaf from the freezer, sautéed green beans and mashed sweet potatoes
Wednesday- chicken noodle soup (perfect for a rainy day)
Thursday- C's on his own
Friday-grilled marinated chicken and bn squash risotto (dairy free- made with chicken stock and coconut oil).

Next week I return to work so meal planning/ prep will be even more important! I'm going to stock up at the farmers market/grocery store and hope to get some prep work done this weekend!

Any tips/tricks tidy I should know for speedy meals?