5 Months Old Already!

Yep, Baby Girl is 5 months old! And her life has been very exciting recently: she has two teeth! There were two days and two nights this week when they were coming through, but the worst is over now. There are two little white tops poking through on the bottom!!

She has also tried green beans for the first time this week. I think she could go either way on them... maybe when she is older she will think their bright green color is fun!

She is not crawling yet, but I keep thinking it will happen any day!

Last week she had her first cold. She is still getting over it this week. Other than me wiping her nose all the time, I don't think she minds!

We have also been reducing the amount in her bottle over night. This has allowed us to feed her and change her diaper in about ten minutes!! As a result, she is taking in more formula during the day, and we are all sleeping more! Eventually, I think the over night feeding will disappear totally.

I have finished both of her sewing projects: burp clothes and mobile. The instructions for how to make the burp clothes are below. I was hoping to post instructions for the mobile too, but I really just made it up along the fun. You should too! It wasn't too hard to do. I got the clamp on arm and rotating music box on Amazon. I picked up a wooden ring at the craft store. I think the colors go perfectly with her room! I wanted to give her a mobile where she could see the dangling animals.

Have you seen her nursery? We have finally put up some pictures. We would like to paint a mural over the changing table of a map of the world.

 She is not actually sitting up yet; I posed her for this picture!

This is a little rocking chair from Julie. It was her Dad's when he was little!

Here are some pictures of Evelyn "getting into" some books!

And some fun pictures:

Log rolls + grabby hands = baby burrito!

Hanging out with Daddy

Hmm... I don't think this chair is meant for this

Moment of relaxation:

HOW TO MAKE BURP CLOTHS

First, cut your flannel cloth to 18 1/2" by 28 3/4". 

Then, fold in one side 8 1/8". Fold the other side in 1/2" then 8 1/8". This will make a tri-fold. 

Press your folds to ensure a crisp edge for sewing. 

Next, sew down each of the folded outside edges to keep the cloth's shape. Also sew 4 1/2" in on each side to secure the edges of the fabric.

Finally, cut your raw edges to even up the sides. Then, sew a fun, but sturdy stitch down each open side. If you have a serger, you can combine these steps.

Your final burp cloth will measure 18 1/2" by 12". 

Wash and cut any loose threads. Enjoy!

Prunes

I am loving making baby food for EV and she is loving eating it! Last week was sweet potatoes. She barely got any on her she loved them so much!

This week is a different story... prunes. She is not a fan. Check out this video: (sorry it is so shaky- I could not stop laughing!!)

Check out her prune goatee: 

And here are a few more pictures, just for fun!

Future blogger

Sleepy girl. Thanks to Julie and "the boys" for the horse toy- she really likes it!

A couple pictures of her sitting on my lap this morning (before the prunes- how clean!).

4 1/2 Months Old

Where did the month of April go?! So much has happened since I last posted I don't know where to begin!

We had a terrific visit from Grandma Soileau! Aside from playing with Evelyn, we took walks, shopped, and talked the whole visit. It is so much fun to share (and show off) our little girl!

Check out that adorable hat!

Evelyn has also been introduced to solid foods! She tried bananas, but they upset her stomach a little. We found out later they are constipating and gassy. Today, she tried sweet potatoes for the first time! She loves the idea of eating. She will watch our forks travel from our plates to our mouths. Her little face lights up when she sees a bottle or spoon coming toward her while she holds out her hands and makes an "O" with her mouth. It is too cute!

Here she is today eating sweet potatoes.

I am making her food by baking or steaming it, then putting it in the blender with filtered water, then freezing it in ice trays. It is so cheap and very easy to do. One sweet potato has made 19 servings! I have put the "ice cubes" in a labeled ziplock in the freezer. It will last up to 6 months. Have you made baby food? What works for you? What foods did your little one like the best? Which ones were easy on their stomach? I would love to hear your baby food stories!

Evelyn is also rolling a lot these days!! Many times she is half way across the room as she log rolls. She does what I call the pin ball effect: she will log roll until she hits a piece of furniture, then log roll the other direction. What exercise! She really wants to sit up, but cannot get there on her own. If we sit her up, she will stay for a moment before falling over. She is also really wanting to crawl. She can now pull her legs under herself (she usually sleeps this way!). However, when she tries to lift her chest, her legs slide out. Then she tries to pull in her legs and her chest falls down! She is like a little see-saw!

Here are some more pictures from today. Look at all that hair!!

I have started to read a book called "Wonder Weeks" by Hetty van de Rijt and Frans X. Plooij. It is a very interesting book about the baby's mental development. According to this book, Evelyn is going through a leap called "Events" where she is learning patterns of movement. For example, she is learning when I brush my teeth, I move the brush forward, then back, and so on. She identifies each movement individually verses the way adults identify the movement as a whole (brushing teeth, bouncing ball, itchy dog). This helps her put together movements like rolling over to be able to reach a toy. The book also talks about times when babies are very fussy when they are overwhelmed by each new discovery. It will even tell me when she is going to be fussy again! I recommend this book to anyone with a little one under 20 months old or anyone expecting.

And that's my baby girl! I can't wait to share with you the burp clothes I have been making- they are almost done!