Big Girl Walking!

It's official. Sydney is walking!!!!!

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I was hiding out in the bedroom when Jason came in all excited.

"BABE! You missed it! She just walked over to me from the swing."

So I jumped out of bed to go see if she would walk again. Sure enough, she was suddenly a walker. I was speechless, and I could not stop smiling. I mean, she's been taking solo steps here and then, but suddenly walking around like it's no big deal? So cool! And the wobble is no joke. It's funny enough to cure any bad day.

My little girl is a toddler.

Being Polite

Sydney did a few things today that made me such a proud momma. We've been saying "bless you!" when she sneezes for quite some time now, and today, today she said it to US! Not once, not twice, but all three times we sneezed! (Apparently we sneeze a lot around here. Thanks, Beaker.) She also signed please for the first time today. Then, after eating her dinner I gave her a napkin and told her to wipe her face and she did it! The fact that she truly enjoys being so polite and proper is what makes me the most proud. She gets quite the smile on her face when she figures things out. There are even things she does that I never taught her. Like covering her mouth when she coughs for example, or crossing her ankles when she sits. I just love her so much!

Happy 15 Months!

Highlights:

Weight: Check back after her appt. June 2!
Height: Check back after her appt. June 2!
Tooth Count: 10 and more on their way very soon.
Vocabulary: 37 words! Mom, Daddy, Baby, Sydney, Dolly, Pop-Pop, hi, bye, cat, doggie, bunny, bear, fish, duck, baby, piggy, bubble, cookie, meow, ruff, roar, stinky, cheese, up, nap, sleep, more, this, thank you, hot, ball, nose, eyes, ear, belly, yes, no
Signs: milk, more, eat, all done, change me, sleep, stars (for puffs), thank you, hungry, and she does I love you without the pinky. Of course, waves hi and bye too.
On The Move: Crawling, Cruising, will take solo steps if not going far, will walk across whole condo if I hold my arms out and keep walking backwards for her to follow.
Personality: Silly! Laughs a lot.
Favorite of the Month: My favorite thing she does at the moment, is pull up my shirt to point to my belly button. She calls it "baby".

Mommy Moment

Today Sydney came crawling up to me, REAKING of poop, with a ton of brown stuff on her face and hands! Now this is her first poop in her new cloth diaper so I've been waiting, and wondering how this is all going to go. I think I froze for a minute. Then, without thinking, I wiped her face with my finger to smell it. It was OREOS! LOL!!! I've never felt more like a mommy until I took that chance of it actually being poop. I mean, it really could have been poop. She even had some on her butt from sitting on the cookie!

Oh and PS. She DID really poop too. And it did stay contained. Cloth diaper success!

Fluffy Butt

Tell me that isn't the cutest butt you've ever seen?

Today is officially Day 1 in Operation: Rash-Be-Gone. We had no leaks the past two nights using the flushable inserts in her little gPants, and hoping for the same results with the gcloth. Fingers crossed! I'm really liking the wipe solution I made yesterday with the flannel wipes. I am now anxiously awaiting her first poop. Stay tuned.

Mothers Day

I was supposed to sleep in this morning. But I was too excited. No reason really. I just wanted a big hug from my silly little girl. When she finally woke up, Sydney and Jason went to get me Starbucks. It was delivered to my bed, along with a card and chocolates. I really wasn't expecting those. It was very sweet. Jason helped Sydney write "Mommy" on the envelope and signed everyone's name-including Charley and Beaker. All my babies. I am one really blessed mommy.

I was brought breakfast in bed a while later and pretty much spent the morning just relaxing and watching tv from under my covers. Sydney popped in a couple times for a kiss and left just as quickly. When she went down for her nap, I got ready to go drive around a bit.

Where did I go?

To exchange Sydney's new cloth diapers! I bought a gdiaper starter kit yesterday on clearance when I finally had it about her ongoing rash issue. Well, I was jipped the snap in liners.

Jason gave me a few dollars for whatever I wanted for myself while I was out.

What did I buy?

Cloth diapering stuff for Sydney! They were out of the size I needed, so I had to do a return. I got a gPants 2 pack and a 6 pack of cloth inserts since the flushable inserts cost more than disposables.I ended up being able to keep the $5 giftcard I got yesterday, plus got an additional $5 coupon on the gPants package. Then I got another $5 giftcard for buying 2 gdiaper products! Super deal! So I spent my savings on some flannel wipes at another baby store and got to check out some other brands of cloth diaper options.

When I got back, I was pretty busy.

What did I do?

Prep the cloth inserts for Sydney's diapers! (aka 6 times washing and drying!) I also washed her two gPants and the small pack of cloth wipes I got today. Hey, if I'm going laundry anyway, I might as well save on wipes.

What did I do next?

Make my own wipes solution! I'm telling you. This rash problem of hers, it better take a permanent vacation within a week or I'm completely out of ideas. Eliminating all the chemicals, chlorine, plastic, latex, etc HAS to work, right? I'm really hoping it works, because switching over to cloth will save us so much money, especially with another baby coming. And you can't deny how adorable babies look in those soft little covers!

So I didn't spend my Mothers Day taking a break from my mommy duties. I didn't sleep in. I changed two diapers. I still put Syd down for her nap. I quietly bit my tongue over the potato chip appetizer Jason fed her for dinner. I even settled a short whiny spout Syd was having. Tomorrow morning, my sink will still be full of dirty dishes. The carpet still needs to be vacuumed. There are still dirty socks all over the place.

But this Mother's Day was even better than last years. Because that's what being a mom is all about. It's not about expensive dinners, a clean house, and spa days. It's messy. It's exhausting. It's financially draining. And you know what I get back? Smiles. Hugs. And if I'm lucky-big wet kisses.

Nothing gets better than that. Nothing!

Sunny Days

I woke up this morning silently cursing the sunlight that was peeping through my eye lids. I've been waiting for a day nice enough to go to the pool again and here I was thinking Go. Away. What was wrong with me? I glanced at the time. Not even 6:30. Considering Syd went to bed at 6pm last night, I'm not sure why I was surprised. I listened to her whining for Daddy as I pulled up the blanket and managed to mutter the word coffee before it ate my head.

A few minutes later, I rolled my growing belly out of bed and was happy to find a brewing pot on the counter. I guess he heard me. Syd took a break from her Mickey Mouse and pancakes long enough to smile and scream, "HIIIIII!" as I dragged my feet across the kitchen floor. Now THAT little ray of sunshine is sure to brighten my day. I smiled back at her, waving, and said good morning.

I decided to spend the morning carrying her around on my hip because it was comforting. Besides, she didn't seem to mind. What we did exactly is already a blur, but I know there were hugs, there were kisses, and there were lots and lots of giggles. But when I laid her down for her morning nap, I began feeling sad again.

Today was the day I was supposed to see my other baby. I was supposed to hear how perfect she's growing, and that all her organs are properly formed and functioning as they should be. I was supposed to hear that my low 2 pound weight gain is nothing to worry about and it will pick up now that I'm five months along. But I had to reschedule my appointment. Because my medicaid is still pending. I decided to call my doctor just to see what my options were next week if I still had not had an answer from Medicaid yet. They tell me they will not see me unless I pay the remaining balance of my prenatal care in full. I have not been there in five weeks. We've been allowed to pay in cash for the first two appointments, more than they were worth I'm sure. But we're all out. We have nothing else to give. Not that they'd accept it anyway. In the next sentence they tell me next week is the last week this scan will be accurate and it's very important I get it done. There's no way I can get in anywhere else this soon, one that will take someone without insurance, one with nothing to give. So I let out a good cry, decided to give up for the moment, enjoy my weekend, and worry about the next step after my medicaid meeting on Monday.

And then my sweetheart woke up.

We made lunch together, ate together, and then baked cupcakes together. Because cupcakes are delicious. And it must have been meant to be because there were exactly 3 eggs left.



And exactly 1/2 cup of vegetable oil left.



As I mixed that chocolaty goodness together, Sydney grew excited over the sound of the mixer.

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And then they were ready for the oven.



I didn't care about the cake mix that had spilled over the pan. I let it fall without wiping it off. Because sometimes, you just have to let it go. Nothing is perfect.



But it always comes out good.



Life is messy. But it is oh so yummy.





Thank you, Sydney, for teaching me so many things.