{eat} Daphne eats peas...

Last month, we started feeding Daphne baby food. I didn't want to start with rice cereal because there's so much negative info out there about it. I kind of wanted to cook our own foods, but ultimately decided the jarred purees were probably the most convenient and safest choice.

We started with sweet potatoes. Then added squash, pears, and apples. I found a website that lists which foods were "safe" to start with, and then by age which foods could be added. Since I was keeping cereals at a minimum, I wanted to be sure to give Daphne things that were easily digested. I've waited two to three days between adding each new food, and so far no allergic reactions.

I was a little shy of green foods, though. It's probably nothing to worry about, but my oldest brother couldn't digest green foods as a baby. His digestive track was underdeveloped and he ended up being allergic to chlorophyll. I was a little cautious of trying peas because of this, but went ahead because Daphne has been fine with everything else.

So here's a video of Daphne's first taste of peas.

 

grandma's home videos: daphne speaks

My little girl is growing up so fast. She's cooing and saying: "ma ma ma ma" all the time. My husband thinks she's trying to say "Mama", but I think it's just an easy sound for her to make. Either way, her little baby sounds are adorable.

Cosleeping...

When I was pregnant, I was totally against the idea of cosleeping. It was mostly because I was afraid I'd roll over the baby in the middle of the night. I'm a pretty heavy sleeper and just imagined all sorts of catastrophe.

A few weeks in, and I began to understand the advantages of cosleeping. One night, I fell asleep while nursing Daphne. I had dozed off and was sitting upright with her tucked in my arms. When I awoke a few hours later, I was so upset with myself. I thought of all the bad things that could have happened. At the same time, my little one had fallen asleep and continued to sleep longer than if I had put her back in the Pack-N-Play. A few more nights of this continued, until I decided to try letting Daphne sleep with us.   

My husband was very supportive of the decision. He was working early mornings at the time, and Daphne would wake up every few hours throughout the night, in turn waking Kris up. When I started letting Daphne sleep in our bed, everyone slept through the night. (Another plus was that it allowed me to feed Daphne much easier in the middle of the night.) 

We continued to cosleep until Daphne was about three months old. While it was a great solution to the problem we were having at the time, my husband and I needed our bed back. Too many mornings I'd wake up and Daphne's diaper had leaked. There would be a big wet spot underneath her and I'd have to wash our bedding. At night, I couldn't cuddle with Kris because I'd have to hold onto the baby. She started kicking in her sleep, and I'd wake up with a foot in my gut. Then the fear of her rolling off the bed kicked in. I considered buying a rail to put on the side of our mattress, but ultimately decided to get her back into the Pack-N-Play.

Currently, Daphne still sleeps in our room. The Pack-N-Play is on my side of the bed. Most nights she sleeps on her own. There have been a few nights that I've cuddled her to sleep. She's been theething and it makes her super cranky. Sleeping next to Mama soothes her, so on really bad nights I'll let her sleep with me.

Cosleeping is something I never would have planned to do as a mother, but I'm actually glad we ended up trying it for a while. I feel comfortable, now, if I ever need to have Daphne sleep with me. I had a few sweet months of bonding with my baby girl, too. 

{outfit of the day} monday, may 27th, 2013

My mom calls this Daphne's "Parisian" outfit.

When I was pregnant, my mom had a lot of fun shopping for the baby. One day, she went to JC Penney, and they were having a huge clearance event. She bought this outfit, and was excited to show me. I was a little underwhelmed. Poor mom. She thought it was so cute, and all I saw was turquoise tulle and sequins!

My silly baby, making silly faces.

Well, Daphne is now four months old, and the outfit fits. I put it on her yesterday, after deciding I was going to my mom's for a visit on my day off. It's pretty cute, I must admit. You can't tell from these pictures, but it's three pieces: a top, tutu-like skirt, and a pair of capri leggings. I put Daphne's bow headband on to complete the look, and headed for Grandma's.

We had to snap a few pictures. Just too cute.