9 Months and Climbing!

Normally I try to get a really cute picture of Grayson, in a cute outfit, with my dirty house looking clean and spotless.... but I couldn't pass up this picture:

Yep, Grayson is a little Monkey! Climbing on EVERYTHING! He was almost completely on the coffee table, turned and saw me coming, say "no Grayson" and he kind of paused, then lept to the side on the right. This was our home made "baby gate" for the living room.....guess we may have to invest in a real one...or worse yet, baby proof the entire house. ;P

Grayson is 9 months old today.

He is still in the 16-16.5 pound range.

Not sure of his current height.

He wears size 3-6 clothes, except onesies are 6-9 months and some T-shirts are 6-9, or even 12 months depending on brand.

He is still just couch walking. 2 months of this..... We think it may be because our living room is so small and he can make an entire circle of it with the furniture and the "baby gate" pictured above. There is no need for him to actually walk.

However, we are hoping his new toy will help him decide to walk a little more.

I am not anxious for an early walker- more worried that my son will walk sideways like a crab if he uses the furniture for much longer.

He {LOVES} food! Especially finger foods like cheerios, the puffs you can buy (found some organic, gluten free ones! SCORE!), bananas--or as he says "nana" (still not counting it at his first word).

Last night, my family went out to Mandarin Palace. I ordered him some steamed rice:

He wasn't quite sure what to think about it..... He only took a few hand fulls and tried to shove them in his mouth. Luckily I had brought some other food for him.

He loves to make people laugh and, unless he is super tired, is generally a very happy baby

He is really into copying us right now- ESPECIALLY if we shake our head and yell! He loves to talk and babble to himself...especially in the car.

With our tax refund we purchased his new convertible car seats! He probably could have stayed in the bucket seat a lot longer since he is so small, but we never took it in to stores anymore (although I miss carrying him in when sleeping and sneakily moving him to his bed without him waking up). We decided now was the right time to buy them since we had the money and we got a good deal on one for Mike's car (on sale for $35!!!) and the one for my car we used an old bucket seat Terrie left when she moved to Texas to do the Trade In Even at Babies R Us and get 25%.

We also ordered a new lightweight stroller. The Graco Mosiac. It folds up like an umbrella but has a full size basket, and lots more. It will be for going to the mall so that it doesn't take up the entire trunk. To say the least- Grayson got spoiled recently....

We have started easing into a schedule. We are trying to wake and have bed time at approximately the same time every night. We are also trying to get on a decent nap schedule...although this varies as some days he doesn't need as long or as many naps.

He loves having books read to him.

He enjoys when I build a tower of bricks and he knocks them over.

He also loves me singing and signing his ABCs to him.

We are starting to use a few signs with him, but he seems very un-interested in it. He also has no interest in waving, as hard as we are trying.

He loves to give kisses.

Grayson loves pulling the clean laundry I fold off the couch so it is making me have to work much faster at getting it put away.

He is a joy and I am trying to cherish every moment with him. I feel so blessed to be able to be at home with him and wouldn't have it any other way.

Answers on Questions on OUR Sleeping Arrangements

OH BOY!!!- I knew the picture I posted may bring some questions about our sleeping arrangements. A good friend sent me an email, asking a few personal questions, and wanting a little clarification on a few things....so, I am going to get more personal than I ever wanted...and answer her questions.

1. Grayson was sleeping on a pillow, other pillows in the crib, and he had a blanket. He was also on his stomach. It is recommended that babies sleep on their backs and with none of this stuff in their cribs. So does Grayson always sleep like this and how does that work with co-sleeping when IN your bed? Do none of you use blankets? First off, sleeping on the back is recommended- but once a child is mobile and can lift their head up well, and roll over at will- that is basically the end of it, unless you are swaddling them and keeping their hands tied down. The pillows and blankets are basically recommended to be out of there for the same amount of time. By around 6 months most children have the instinct to lift and turn their head, etc to be able to breath better. Also, the white pillows are not normally in his crib like that. Even "sleep experts" (whatever that means when talking about infants) suggest giving a child a lovey, blanket etc to help them sleep without their parents any time after 4-6 months of age. We do not put the blanket up near his face. Also, with co-sleeping, we did not have him in our bed until he was older, so we do use blankets. I do, however, sleep very low down on the bed, and keep the blankets under my arms so that they do not come up over Grayson's head.
2. This may be a little personal, but with Grayson in your bed- how do you and Mike find "personal time" with each other? I am not going to get to detailed- but I will say his, you find ways. We may not set a record for how often we are able to have personal time, but we have enough. Also, during the day, sometimes Grayson naps in other places. This is not a huge issue for us. You adapt, and you get creative...that is all I am going to say.
3. Don't you worry that he will never be able to sleep on his own and that he will just be very dependant on you for life? Don't you worry about him learning to become independent and self-soothe? Quite the opposite. Grayson will grow up feeling loved and protected. He will not be left to question why we are not responding to his only form of communication-crying. He is already sleeping more and more on his own, and the same with daily activities. He is very independent and stubborn. He will be gently moved into his own bed and we have gotten much better sleep, he sleeps longer in between waking most nights, and there are no tears involved. As for self-soothing...I don't think my INFANT son needs to be able to self-soothe in a dark room, in a crib that probably feels like a cage, wondering where his mom is and why she has abandoned him. Again, I feel the Lord does not leave us without comfort and guidance and Him and the Spirit to turn to when we need it, so why are we so eager to tell his precious little ones, who are still so new to this earth that they need to handle these feelings/needs all on their own. Dr. William Sears said it best "Babies cry to communicate, not to manipulate."
4. I am not judging you, but I just feel the bed is the place for the husband and wife, not for the entire family. I read a bunch of articles and research that talked about all the benefits of co-sleeping. I will be honest- before I had Grayson, I swore my baby wouldn't sleep in my bed. I kind of worried about a few things- him staying i there and us never getting him into his own bed, space, and mine and Mike's relationship. Educating myself as to the way children and parental relationships are meant to work, looking at how I believe the Lord would have us parent, and a lot more changed my mind- except for the part on how it would effect mine and Mike's relationship. Guess what- Mike is the one who kind of started the co-sleeping though. And yes, there are times when it has been an issue- but only on nights when going and walking across the apartment to comfort Grayson would have been more of an issue. You know- those nights where he is up every hour or so due to teething or such. It would have been more stressful on our relationship if we were fighting over you needed to go get him each time. I really feel that the argument of the bed being just for the parents is really just a personal issue, and when it comes to total sleep deprivation, you may be willing to bend on that.

All in all, I am not saying everyone has to co-sleep. Again, I may not co-sleep with future children. I have seen where we took steps that led to Grayson not sleeping as well, also each child is different and while some are great sleepers, others are not. Each child will sleep where he or she is most comfortable and getting the best rest. Grayson was so sleep deprived that something HAD to change. This is what works. You may be surprised at how many of your friends co-sleep. Many fear being looked down upon, so they don't share openly. However, it is much more common than you may think.

HOLY CUTENESS!!!!

My friend has started a Work At Home business making {ADORABLE} AIO (all-in-one) cloth diapers, covers, and so much more!
Check out her store HERE! Viva La Fluff is the name of her store and they are very unique, adorable, fashionable diapers!

Disney Crafts

So, back in 2007 we went to Disneyland with our friends- The Bolander Family, and Sarah. My parents also tagged along.
Before the trip, I made a lot of crap gifts for the kids, and everyone else who is going.
Well, we are heading to Disney again this fall so Grayson can meet the real live Mickey Mouse! Plus, it is our 10 Year Anniversary!!! So, why not go back to the place where we family vacationed Honeymooned?
We will be traveling with some of the fam because, well, they came with us when we went 10 years ago. We are also taking my friend Sarah along. After all, we will need plenty of adults to rotate on and off the rides Grayson can't go on, and to help me stay sane!
So, I have been thinking of making some of the crafts again. I never got pictures of the Personalized Autograph books that I made for the Bolander kids....but here are a few things that I made and DID get pictures of.

This is a journal I made out of a notebook, using scrapbook paper and stickers. I love reading through it.

I mad these countdowns for each group that was going. I sent one to Sarah, one to the Bolanders and kept one for myself. It later made the first page of our scrapbook.

Each tag had a little poem about how many days were remaining until we went to Disneyland.

So, fast forward to now....Feeling a little crafty for this year's Disneyland trip. So the first craft project happened today.

This was taken while waiting for the Mod Podge to dry so I could put on a second coat. This is our jar for all our change to save up for spending money for Disneyland. Last time, we had over $100. However, we used to only pay in ACTUAL cash for things, so we had lots of change. The use of a debit card may curb the amount we save- but we are still going to try.

I hope to make a lot of things for our trip, such as autograph books, penny holders, pin holders, and so much more! Better get Crafting!



Sleeping Arrangements

I have been very timid about sharing this, but I have decided I don't care what others think.

Our family co-sleeps! That is right- Grayson sleeps in the same bed as Mike and I. It hasn't always been this way. When he was little he slept in a bassinet and his crib. But, around 3 or 4 months, we decided to wean Grayson from swaddling. Suddenly, he didn't like sleeping in his crib for the entire night. He would normally sleep in it until around 1 am, but after that he just didn't want anything to do with it. I personally do not believe in "Cry It Out" (after all, the Lord doesn't just leave us on this Earth and tell us to "cry-it-out" with no source of comfort, why would we do that to his precious little ones) and I needed sleep. Then, around 4 months Grayson began nursing every hour or so again. I REALLY needed sleep. So, we started co-sleeping. He would still do the first stretch of the night in his crib. The first time he woke up after we went to bed though, he would come to bed with us.
When we went to Texas however, he shared a bed with us the entire night. That put an end to him wanting to sleep in his crib. Add to that the fact that he would just crawl around his crib, or pull himself up to a standing position and walk around....
So we began fully co-sleeping. I LOVE a few things about co-sleeping. Grayson can nurse on demand through out the night, without me having to fully wake up. He gets the security that Mom and Dad are close by. I don't feel like I am putting him in a cage.
However, there were a few things I did not like- minimal space. We have a queen size bed, but Mike and I are not small people. On top of that, Grayson only likes to be snuggled up to one person. The other better be far away. Then, both Mike and Grayson are human furnaces...creating WAY TOO MUCH HEAT!
We had started trying to get Grayson back into his crib because it was no longer working for us. That went okay...until Grayson got sick. Then he was back in bed with us. I decided we needed to fix this. Something had to change. So- here is our new sleeping arrangement

I had never heard of Side-carring a crib until a gal on babycenter did it. Then I learned it is actually very popular. The crib is wedged up in the corner and the legs of the crib are (industrial strength) zip-tied to our bed. There is a LARGE blanket rolled and stuffed between the beds to make sure there is no crack for Grayson to fall in.
It has been wonderful! I am able to snuggle Grayson to sleep and then slide him over. I can scoot over to the edge to nurse him if he needs it....although, since we started this, he has slept much better at night and is only nursing 1-2 times at most.
We moved our bed into his room because we do hope to move away from this arrangement around the time he is a year old. We figure it will be easier to make the adjustments if he is not also learning to be in a new room. Plus, now we have an office/closet in the other room. Mike is able to get up for work at 4:30 am and go get ready without worrying if he will wake Grayson and I.

Co-sleeping is a great arrangement for us. I am not sure if I will do it with future babies- however, I will probably side-car the crib again, especially if I have another c-section.

I have heard a few myths about co-sleeping. That you will never get your child out of your bed. Not true. Most co-sleepers I know gently move their child out of their bed around 18 months. Others as soon as their child night weans. Yes, I have friends that have kept their children in their bed through toddler-hood, or in their room in their own toddler bed. But co-sleeping is not a sentence to have your child in your bed forever.
Another myth is that you will smother your child. I honestly really worried about this one. Mike moves so much and we are not small people....but that parent-instinct is there, and you don't smother your child. There are few instinces of it happening- but it is honestly EXTREMELY rare. There are precautions to take so if you do plan on co-sleeping- I would suggest looking into them. Newborns are better off in a co-sleeper or side-carred crib. Once your child is older (like Grayson), the risk of you rolling on them without them letting you know, etc is much less. And of course- you need to know what kind of sleeper YOU are. If you are a heavy sleeper, and would not wake up if your child cries out, you bump into them, etc...then co-sleeping may not be for you.
The best thing is, co-sleeping is shown to reduce the risk of SIDS! When done properly that is. The mother, even when sleeping, is closer to her child, and aware of his breathing. She is more likely to wake if her child has breathing issues.

I am so grateful that Mike- the person I thought would never be ok with this arrangement- also enjoys co-sleeping. It is the best thing for our family at this time.