Friday, April 4, 2014

Month Twelve: Baby Must Haves...and Thoughts on the Past Year

A year has come and gone. HOW? I feel like it was just yesterday that I was awake all hours of the night, walking around like Quasimoto post c-section, downing hydrocodone every four six hours, and changing my PJs three times a night because of "night sweats" that NO ONE told me about. Ah, fond, magical memories. Don't worry, friends. I am now sure to share my extensive night sweat knowledge with you before your next labor and delivery. You really need to know. Knowledge is power.

Those first few months were truly the best and worst experience of my life so far. We had NO.CLUE. how much having a baby would change our lives. You think about it and imagine it but until you are living it, you just have no idea. But, it.is.so.fun. Lots of people talk about bringing home a baby...they say things like, "OHHHH, you're in for it." Or how about, "See you in eighteen years!" And then there's my favorite, "Was this planned?" People can sound very cynical about the whole thing (including me at times). But you have to look at the wonder in it all. It is a complete trip to look at this little person who came out of you. It blows my mind. And the major plus is that I will have someone to take care of me when I'm 90. The hubs might have kicked the bucket by then, so this is good.

We have survived the first year! Yes, it rocked our world. However, I cannot imagine not having this little guy in my life. I am not really sure what we did before he got here. Oh yeah, sleep. There have been many highs and lows, but one thing is for sure - he keeps us laughing and he keeps us wanting to be better people. I love him to the moon and back. People told me you can't prepare yourself for the kind of love you have for a child and it's true. It's so much bigger than I imagined. I fully felt the depth of this love once I was getting a straight six hours of sleep every night again. *Disclaimer: I know I mention sleep a lot, but me with not much sleep = a totally hormonal, bat sh*t cray girl who is not fun. Like not fun at all. I won't get into specifics. But I will tell you there's lots of crying involved.

Without further ado, here are our month twelve baby must haves! Some of these have actually been "must haves" since month 10 or so... Can I even call these "baby" must haves anymore??? Where'd my baby go???? Whah!

  • Kitchen Utensils - whisks, spatulas, you name it. This is Robby's obsession. He can be screaming bloody murder and I hand him a whisk and it's like the baby whisperer entered our home. Thanks whisk! Sometimes you can find random plastic kitchen utensils in the Dollar Spot at Target - I scoop up a few when I see them and stick them in R's toy box.
  • Goodnight Moon board book - We have read this book to Robby every night at bedtime for a long time. I throw in other books too and Robby gets pretty irritated that we aren't reading Goodnight Moon. It's funny how babies really do fall into whatever routine you teach them. Thankfully, he only does this at bedtime so I don't have to read Goodnight Moon ALL day long. It only takes a few times through to memorize the words. The 107th time reading it gets monotonous. Maybe he'll have a new favorite soon. Maybe I'll write a sequel!
  • Johnson's Hand & Face Wipes - These are just the best. Babies are messy. Especially when they start feeding themselves. These wipes smell so good and according to the package, remove 95% of dirt and germs. I'll buy anything that says it removes germs. I stash packages of these everywhere so they're always on hand. In the car, in my purse, in the junk drawer in the kitchen, and so on. R recently started thinking it's funny to pick his nose (just lovely) and these wipes really come in handy.
  • Munchkin Mighty Grip Flip Straw Cup - We still aren't fully transitioned from the bottle just yet but this is one of the straw cups that R will drink out of. Not too hard to put together and dishwasher safe, cause y'all know I don't hand wash stuff in the sink. Ain't nobody got time for that! 
  • Stride Rite Shoes - R took his first independent steps at 10 1/2 months and crawling was quickly history. These little shoes are perfect for new walkers. I finally realized that Robby was falling all the time at home because he was walking around in socks on concrete and wood floors (genius discovery) - so I got these shoes and he loves them. I can tell when I put them on him that he feels so dapper. I also ordered a pair of New Balance gray tennis shoes but they are a tad too big so we won't get to wear them for a bit. I'll get back to ya on those.
  • IKEA MULA Bead Roller Coaster toy - This toy is fabulous because it holds Robby's attention for more than five minutes - and that is saying a lot these days. I randomly picked it up the last time I was at IKEA. They have some of the cutest and cheapest little children's wooden toys. And I have an obsession with classic-looking wooden toys. I have to class up our ginormous lot of plastic real estate around here somehow. My house is basically one giant ad for Fisher-Price. At least this gives me an excuse to go to IKEA. Not that I need one. Also, if you were wondering, IKEA knows their customer base. There's free diapers in the bathroom. They've got your back, moms.
Little man had his 12-month appointment a few weeks ago and he is weighing in at almost 25 pounds and standing at 30 1/2 inches tall. STOP.GROWING. Actually, don't. I want you to be taller than me when you're 20. 

Current tricks are clapping on command, "singing" songs, and walk/running anywhere and everywhere. His favorite foods are cheese, ham, and any carb. He has finally accepted one fruit: raspberries, and one vegetable: peas. Wait, he does eat avocado - is that a fruit or a veggie? Funny thing is, I can give him anything as long as it is in one of those baby food pouches. Otherwise, he's picky. Hopefully I don't have a dreaded picky eater on my hands. Oh well, we have plenty of time to expand his palate!

HAPPY April y'all!

2 comments:

  1. Have you tried veggie burgers? Liam likes them, they only take 2 minutes in the microwave, and you feel like they are getting some veggies in. Win, win, win! He also loves all of the dole 100% juice fruit cups with the juice drained, mini waffles and French toast sticks. I feel like all I do some days is figure out what to feed him!! Love your monthly must have posts!

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    1. Those are great ideas Lauren! I will definitely pick up some veggie burgers next time I'm grocery shopping.

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