8 Months

Charlie Ann has loved spending her last month with all the grandparents and aunties and uncles and cousins here in the Midwest.  She is definitely getting spoiled... in a good way!

Charlie Ann - 8 Month Recap

First, the important stuff.  I dont know for sure, but I think you weigh about 15 pounds.  Yeah buddy!  You have almost doubled your birth weight :)  You are wearing size 6-9 month clothing straight across the board.  You are in size 2 diapers.

Your new foods this month are: zucchini, summer squash, black eyed peas, carrots, nectarines and cooked egg yolks.  Your favorites are nectarines and yellow squash.  

Mom completely stopped pumping at about 7 1/2 months.  So you are exclusively formula fed and you LOVE IT.  You actually seem to react better to formula, than to my milk.  No gas pains, no spit up, consistent messy diapers... you are on a roll with that Similac Advantage!   Although it was hard to let go of, Mom has no regrets about stopping breast milk.  You are a better baby all around!!

Also, at 7 1/2 months, when Mom and Dad were in New York, you started sleeping 12 hours SOLID throughout the night.  No waking up for a paci check and an early morning feeding.  Thank you, Grandma!!  And because of the time change, you sleep uninterrupted from 8pm to 8am.  Mom and Dad are thrilled beyond words.

This month you got your first TWO TEETH!  You cut your bottom two with very little fussiness.  Way to go, Missy.

This month you really became a CHAMP at sitting up.  You could do it last month, but you are really developing some core strength (thanks Uncle Austin for trying to push CA over while sitting to see just how good her balance really is). 

You have a funny little monster voice that is pretty raspy.  We don't hear a lot of sweet cooing from you, except for the first 5 minutes after you wake up.  Other than that, it is a lot of loud demands and squealing :)  We think you are going to be a rough and tumbler.  When we play sweetly with you, you look bored.  But throw you, roll you and toss you in the air, and you are all smiles! You are not much of a laugher, but are pretty serious and most of the time stoic (unless you are being an acrobat for us).  When you do laugh, you sound like Marge Simpson. You examine all your toys over and over and over again, by twisting your wrists and bringing them closer and further away from your face. 

You are very, very aware of what is happening around you.  But thats no surprise, you have been since Day 1! We like to reference your bionic ears, you hear everything from a garbage truck three streets away to a cough in another room.  You are always curious about every noise.  

Another funny thing you do is, what we like to refer to as, your SUPERPOWERS. When you are very excited or frustrated or overstimulated, you tense up your face, turn red, clench your fists and let out a loud 'eeeeeeeeee!' sound.  It looks like you are trying to turn into a puff of smoke or vanish before our very eyes.  You usually smile and laugh afterwards or maybe that's because we are laughing and smiling at you. 

Aunt Zoozanne taught you how to wave and it is VERY cute.  You like to combine waving with making raspberries on your left arm.  It is very funny.  You very much like to hear yourself make noise.

This month your favorite toys are: a vegetable leek from IKEA and your baby doll with the opening and closing eyes.  Your favorite books are "This Little Piggy with a Piggy Finger Puppet" and "Polar Bear, Polar Bear" by Eric Carlisle. 

Now onto some pictures!

Your balancing trick on the way to see relatives in Kansas.

Not your finest moment... a major, MAJOR messy diaper explosion en route to Pops house in Oklahoma.  We had to change and clean everything out on the side of the road. 

Saying hello to Uncle Austin before the Color Run Race in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Our clean little family June 23, 2012.

Post Color Run, our messy little family, June 23, 2012.

Charlie Ann with Grandpa and Grandma, post race.

We have spent a lot of afternoons at Grandma's pool.  I think every day has been 100+ degrees here in Missouri.  H O T.

What we do in the pool.

Happy Fourth of July!

Just relaxing, watching Grandma clean outside.

Cousins!  Charlie Ann and Asher (10 weeks apart)

#14 - Make Mango Salsa

Made fresh mango salsa from the garden veggies.  

Jalapeno plant (we thought it was a banana pepper plant til we realized that green wasn't changing to yellow anytime soon)

Tomato plant

Fresh salsa produce, ready!

And the finale!

Mango Salsa

1 mango

1/2 red onion

2 jalapenos

1/2 red pepper

1/2 bunch of cilantro

2 limes, squeezed

1/2 lemon, squeezed

sea salt

Peel mango.  Dice mango, onion, jalapenos, red pepper and cilantro.  Combine all in a medium bowl, add citrus juice and salt. Refrigerate. Serve with tortilla chips or on fresh fish.  

30 Before 30

I turn the fat 3 0 thirty days from today, on August 18th.  A friend of mine is doing a "30 Before 30" challenge, and I liked the idea.  So here we go.  Thirty things I have never done :

1. Bake a homemade triple layer cake.

2. Drink a shot of espresso.

3. Watch the Opening Ceremonies of the Summer Olympics.

4. Bike the Frisco Highline Trail - 70 miles.

5. Watch the "Babies" Documentary.

6. Enjoy a candle lit dinner with the Hubs.

7. Read "Emma" by Jane Austen.

8. Watch the movie "Jaws".

9. Sew a cloth flag-banner for Charlie Ann's room.

10. Wear galoshes. 

11. Wear red lipstick in public.

12. Get a facial.

13. Paint alphabet letters for a friend's new baby.

14. Make mango salsa.

15. Write a love poem.

16. French braid my own hair.

17. Take Charlie Ann and Jarod to the farm (my grandparents old house).

18. Paint a live park scene on sight.

19. Throw change in a fountain.

20. Write myself a letter to read when I turn 31.

21. Make homemade peach ice cream.

22. Say "hello" in 30 languages.

23. Bird watch.

24. Tour the Smallin Civil War Cave.

25. Play Gin Rummy.

26. Paint using watercolors.

27. Use the nice camera to photograph my "30 Before 30".

28. Knit a scarf.

29. Make an origami bird.

30. Buy and read a People Magazine.

Fabric Inspiration

I have six pieces of fabric that are absolutely adorable. They match CA's grey and yellow decor perfectly.. But what cute thing can I do with these pieces? I am a bit sewing challenged, but am not easily discouraged :) The fabric pieces are small, about 15" x 15". Any shareable inspirations?

They Accepted Our Offer!

We are still in the middle of signing paperwork and we won't close til next month...  but the ball is rolling on our new home!  We have sent in our official contract this evening, the inspector is arriving this week, and then next thing you know, the Sickler family will have a mortgage!  Exciting times ahead.  

7 Months Old!

Our little Missy turned a sweet seven months somewhere between Albuquerque, New Mexico and Amarillo, Texas, during our big move from California to the midwest. 

This month was a whirlwind, Charlie Ann.  Looking back, I have no idea how we managed to carry on sleep training (aka, keeping you on a schedule) start solid foods, host two parties, host extended family for two weeks, celebrate Jarod's graduation, say goodbyes to friends, pack up our entire apartment, move across seven states AND keep our sanity through it all! 


I would just like to give you, Little One, a round of applause.  You were a champ through all the transitions (especially the eight consecutive nights of sleeping in different cribs and places).  You truly are a flexible Sickler, Charlie Ann!!


Recapping the last month..  you are interested in EVERYTHING in the big, wide world around you.  In fact, you are as interested in your toys as you are with coffee beans in a bag. 

We are still very big fans of the Bumbo, as you are sitting up, but need a bit of an extra prop up still.  We use it ALL THE TIME... 

during play time...

during bath time...

during pool time...

and

for outdoor lunches.

Which brings us to solid foods...  

This month you are eating, bananas, brown rice cereal, avocados, pears and your absolute favorite, sweet potatoes.  We have some cute videos of your first tastes of bananas and sweet potatoes.  You are an eager eater.  I am so thankful.  We quickly jumped into solid lunches and solid dinners.  

Right now, your food schedule is like this: 

4am-nurse

7am-nurse

9am-nurse

11am-solids

1pm-nurse

3pm-solids

5pm-nurse

6pm-bottle

Basically, its nurse when you go to bed and solids when you wake up.  You are eating and eating and eating these solids.  Its so great.  Although, the output (aka poop) is not so great.  Pew, stinky!  I am now considering using one of those handy diaper genies...

 Well, it finally happened, Charlie Ann!  Dad finished his Master's degree!  Here we are celebrating after the ceremony.

Shortly after Dad's graduation, you got sick.  You had to sleep with your mouth open in order to breathe, you always sleep with your paci otherwise.

It was another sneezing, runny nose, low grade fever, coughing colds.  Enough to keep you up at night, if you werent being held.  So Dad and I alternated every four hours through out the night of holding you upright and rocking.  Then, to put a little icing on the cake.. Mom and Dad got sick too.  So EVERYONE at 851 Citrus Drive was out of sorts and a bit crabby.  

While sick, packing was still in order.  You helped Mom pack by playing with toys and clean clothes in the laundry basket.  You staying in there for almost two hours, busy as a bee, while I packed ALL your things.  Thank you!

This is about thirty minutes before our walk through with our apt manager.  You are sitting really well by yourself, Little Girl!  Good job.   You also stayed with a dear friend ALL DAY while we packed up every last bit and loaded the truck.  What a blessing it was to have you taken care while we tied up all the loose ends.  

And off we go!

You did SO SO SO well during our four day journey across the United States.  You played and slept and even ate in your carseat like a champ.  No one would have had a clue how much you hated this seat about five short months ago.  You are growing up :)

Grandpa flew into LA to help us drive the long drive.  Grandpa, me and you had a fun time in the Pilot, while Dad managed the moving truck.  You were such a trooper during all those hours in the car.

About one week prior to the move, I started supplementing nursing with formula.  When it's time, it's time.  And we definitely knew it was TIME.  :)  You are a rather impatient little girl when it comes to meal time.  So the bottle worked best.  And now, with premixed up formula, we just screwed on the top and bam!  Perfect for a road trip :)  And it was nice for you to get to eat with Grandpa.

 This is the day you turned seven months.  Mom and you celebrated the occasion by taking your first swim at the Holiday Inn Express in Amarillo, Texas.  It was a bit cold, but you had a VERY fun time.

We love you little Missy, and look forward to many new things ahead :)

This is it, folks.

We load the truck at 9:30am tomorrow morning.  Cant believe our California chapter closes in less than 24 hours, so bittersweet.  

---------

Also, one of the "sweet" parts of the bittersweet included our good friends, Patrick and Anne and Baby Hudson bringing us dinner tonite.  We sat by the pool and a fun last visit.  

The guys and the babies.