My New Blog

So- I have found that I have become more and more opinionated and that I am not afraid to share these opinions. I have a hard time biting my tongue when I have something I just really want to say. SOOOOOO- because of this, I created a new blog that is specifically for me to share my opinions, ideas, etc. Some are whimsical and some are serious. If you would like to check it out you can HERE
I also did this so that I would not have to invade this blog- keeping it more "reader friendly."
Finally, I may use the new blog to share crafts, etc that I do. Although, I am not sure if that will happen yet.
Check it out if you would like, but I make no apologies for the opinions I express on it. It is a blog for me.

Babywearing Suggestions

I am not sure how many of you are familiar with baby wearing. Basically, it is an alternate way to carry your baby then in their infant car seat or in a stroller. The more in-depth explanation is it keeps the baby close to the parents, bonding them, and helping them grow in more of an "Attachment" Parenting environment. (I prefer the term Natural Parenting as my son is extremely independent even though I am more on the AP side of parenting then I ever thought possible.)
SO- YES, I wear my baby. We have a SBP ring sling. I LOVE this for shorter periods of time. I also have a (knock-off-brand) Mei Tai. I love the MT because it really helps spread the weight of my son and not just use one part of my back, etc. HOWEVER, I find that with the MT I feel it loosens up too much as I wear my son for longer periods of time. SO- I have started looking at SSCs (Soft-Structured-Carriers). The easiest way to describe them is MT with buckles instead of just ties. I am debating on an ERGO or a BECO. Has anybody tried either?
Also- I know a few of you use MTs often...any suggestions on using it.
I will say, the other issue we have is that G is short. Poor little guy. Almost all the carriers still hit him mid-face and he doesn't like that too much. He likes to see out. So, if anybody knows of carrier with a shorter body, please let me know.
(Some people may ask why I do not use a Baby Bjorn. First, I believe the best baby carriers promote the parent to wear their baby close- often times facing inward. Second, in the baby-wearing-world these types of carriers are known as crotch-danglers. They place a lot of pressure on your childs crotch and can interfere with hip growth. Are they better then nothing...sure, but they are not the right option for us.)
SO- tell me, what is your favorite carrier and what ones have you tried and what are the pros and cons.

This Just In...

Grayson has just learned he can roll from his back to his tummy. But he hates his tummy. OH- and he can't roll from his tummy to back yet. SO, it pretty much goes back to tummy, play for a few moments, scream and cry until I put him back on his back, back to tummy, play for a few moments, and so forth.


OH and I realized I didn't post his 4 month picture with the post, so here it is now.

If Daddy was Possessed G would...

Sorry it is sideways. I always forget I can not rotate a video from my camera.

Grayson- 4 months

On Monday- Grayson turned 4 months old!
Here are some stats:
My lil slow growing man weighed in at 12 lbs 5 oz on Monday.

Grayson is no where near interested in rolling all the way over. He rolls from side to side but mostly he scoots on his back. I can lay him down in one place and come back to him being 3 or 4 feet away from that spot. He can turn in circles on his back too. He will never do this in front of us though. We call him a shy scooter.
He is super talkative! He is pretty loud too. He has also has started singing along to the hymns at church (think Vigo Bolander as a baby).
He loves when Mike plays a little rough with him.
He laughs...but it is a pretty quiet laugh.
He loves watching us eat. Wondering if we are going to make it to 6 months before starting solids. I almost feel rude eating in front of him.
He is starting to sit a little. Problem is, he gets distracted by his feet right away and when he reaches for them, he topples over.
He is starting to recognize his name.
He loves having books read to him.
He is changing so fast. He is very willing to let me know he wants some time to play by himself. He doesn't hesitate to let us know when he is unhappy with the current activity we are trying to do with him either.
I wish he would SLOW DOWN a little bit. I just want to cherish this time.

A Day In the Life of Grayson!

I wake up at 7 am and eat. I get my diaper changed and then I go back to sleep.

I wake up around 9 am. If Mom is lucky- she comes in to me looking like this:

Mommy and I cuddle for a few minutes. She changes my diapey. Then she feeds me again! She wants me to grow big and strong!

OOPS- HAHA! Guess what mom- I need another new diapey! What have you been eating Mommy?

Mom still has not eaten so I either do this:

(tummy/floor time)

Or sometimes mommy lets me do this:

(watch Baby Einstein or Mickey Mouse Clubhouse)

while she eats.

Then Mommy plays with me some more. My favorite game is SUPER BABY!!!:

Boy, all that playing has tired me out so I take a nap.

I don't know what Mommy does when I am sleeping but when I wake up she is there. She comes and gets me from wherever I decided I would nap this time. I give her a big smile because I know what comes next!

FOOD!!!!! Mommy feeds me some more. Changes my diaper again.

Then Mommy reads to me. My favorite book right now is Dr Seuss's Fox In Socks

It is SOOOO FUNNY to hear Mommy try to say all those tongue twisters. The pictures in the books are so bright. I sometimes try and help Mommy turn pages.

YAY! It is time to play again! I LOVE play time. Then Mommy takes me for a walk. I LOVE to see the outdoors. I usually fall asleep before we get home but that is okay.

So, I nap, then wake and eat. I get my diaper changed again. Then usually Mommy has errands to run. So I get in the car seat. I used to hate my car seat but now I like it okay.

After we get home and I take a nap (which I probably started in the car), eat and get my diaper changed again, something wonderful happens....

DADDY COMES HOME!!!!!

I love playing with Daddy!

(Sometimes Daddy is so silly even I roll my eyes)

Daddy and I play and play! I stop every once in a while for Mommy to feed me.

Then we play some more.

After I play and eat and play some more, it is time for my bath! I LOVE bath time.

After my bath Daddy dries me off and gets me in my jammies.

Then Mommy and Daddy plays with me a little more and then we cuddle.

While I am falling asleep Mommy sings me "I Am A Child of God"

I am barely awake when they lay me down. It has been a long day! Tomorrow I will do it all again!

50 Years

It is hard to believe but my parents have been married for 50 years!
September 2nd was their 50th Wedding Anniversary. My sisters and I threw them an open house on the 3rd. It was simple but nice. A lot of people from the old 9th Ward came.
My sister Carma did up a quilt for them. It had a quote from each of us on what we have learned from mom and dad. It also had a few scriptures about family on it.
It was a wonderful evening.
I am so grateful for my parents. They are such good examples of a loving marriage. I am grateful for parents who have lived worthy lives that they may have an eternal marriage and family.

Sienna Visits

Each year, we try and either have Mike's niece, Sienna, here for a week or two or take her on a vacation. This year we stayed home with her since we are now a one income family.
After the family reunion we went up to Lewiston to pick up Sienna. We brought her down and enjoyed some time with her.
While Sienna was here we went to the park several days. It rained mid-week and then on Thursday we went to the zoo. It was a lot of fun. I did feel kind of bad for Sienna as she had to wait on two seperate occasions while I nursed Grayson...but she didn't complain at all.
On Friday, Mike was off work. The local Discovery Center was having FREE FRIDAYS! We knew it would be crazy busy but how can you pass on FREE? So we went. It was a lot of fun to learn about so many different things. After that we went across the River and ate lunch in the park. Mike and Sienna then did the paddle boats.
We went back on Saturday so that Mike's family could all get to see Grayson. It was a lot of fun having Sienna here.
I have pictures but seeing as I am playing some major catch up...I will have to add them later. Maybe in a slide show or something.

Just a Quick Update

So, for the record, I am working on posts regarding the following:
The Farrar Family Reunion
Sienna Visits
My Parents 50th Wedding Anniversary

BUT I wanted to give a quick update.

I have been able to go with out supplementation for the last week! WOOHOO! And, Grayson gained EXACTLY the 4 oz he needed to this last week to be "acceptable" weight gain. I started taking Shatavari (an herb mostly containing asparagus) and it probably DOUBLED my supply! The pediatrician has asked that I continue weighing Grayson once a week and if his weight gain gets to slow, that I add back in 2 oz of supplementation a day.
Grayson had his 4 month appt today- a little before 4 months but that is okay. He weighed in at 12 pounds even. He is in the 7th percentile for weight but only in the 5th for height. According to WIC he is in the 70th percentile for weight compared to other babies his height. (I liked that they did that when I was there last week because it made me feel better about his slow gain) The pediatrician said "He isn't the biggest guy on the block but he isn't the smallest either and that is okay."
He also got his second set of shots. He has been either sleeping, nursing, or cranky all day.

I will try and get my other posts done. We have been pretty busy with errands and miscellaneous stuff but hoping it will calm down for the fall.

Farrar Family Reunion 2010

As a kind of 50th Wedding Anniversary present to my parents (Can you believe they are old enough to have been married 50 years?), we had the first reunion for their children. It was clear back at the beginning of August but we have had so much going on that I have not yet been able to post.

We tried going up Thursday night with Grayson. On Monday of that week, Grayson woke up with an AWFUL cold. By Thursday I thought he was feeling good enough to try out camping. Well, by the time we got up to Payette Lake, the altitude or something was bothering him and he SCREAMED. Everything was just going wrong when we got up there too. SO- we headed back down the mountain. We did go up on Saturday for the day. Again, Grayson was VERY CRANKY so I am sure the altitude was a lot of that problem.

Here is a picture of the CUTEST camper in the world!

Christmas is coming!

So, Summer is just about over...which means Christmas is coming. Ok, sure, it is a ways away, but not for anybody who hopes to MAKE and CREATE some AWE INSPIRING gifts this year! I happen to be one of them.
We are trying to be extremely thrifty this year and make most of our gifts. SO, I suppose I better get started.
In my family, we rotate through the siblings. This year I have my younger sister Amanda. She is single and in her mid-20s. She LOVES music, crafts, baking, and interior design. She, like all my sisters and I, loves travel and photography.
If you have any crafty ideas- please share! I want to make her something special and WAY CUTE!

Are You Ready For Some Football?

Grayson is!!!!!

Go BRONCOS!!!!!!

Three Months Old

This handsome young man is 3 months old today! Time has really flown by!
Here are some stats:
Weight is now 11 lbs 4.5 oz as of tonight. (Yep, he is a slow grower, even with being supplemented with formula)
Height is approximately 23.75"
Finally starting to wear size 0-3 clothes (except pants are still newborn as 0-3 are too wide and he has short legs), and a lot of onesies he now wears 3-6 months as they are too short in 0-3.

He loves to chew on things. The soothie (pacifier) is more for chewing, fingers are fair game, and burp clothes are all his.

He is so-so with tummy time. It is a 50% chance he will love it. If he doesn't love it that time, he hates it. He has been able to roll over 2-3 times a day but then after a few times he just doesn't have the strength, or maybe he can't remember how, to do it again.

He has learned that when he is on his back, if he can get a good grip on the floor, or something else, with his feet and push- then he scoots. He is loving this one. Mike said "YAY! Grayson is becoming mobile." I said, "Uh-oh, Grayson is becoming mobile."

Grayson loves to talk. But usually only when he has something in his mouth.

He now prefers to be carried with either his head over your shoulder or facing outwards so he can see. Also, he hardly ever looks at the person holding him. Instead, he enjoys looking at his surroundings.

He likes to hold his bottle during bottle feedings. He is good at yanking it out too. He does ok at putting it back in but you have to help him get the right angle to actually start eating. (He does start to let it droop pretty quickly so we do help him hold it.)

As far as nursing- I went 4 days without supplementing. Then Grayson had a growth spurt. He nursed all day, had 5 oz of breastmilk I had stored and still had 8 oz of formula that day. My body has not yet caught up to his latest growth spurt but is getting there. I am very blessed that Grayson has not had any problems with nipple confusion or bottle preference.

Motherhood- Is wonderful! We were very blessed to have Mike's niece here last week and it was a lot of fun to see what may be in our future with 2 kids some day. We went to the zoo, the Discovery Center (as they are having FREE Fridays), and several days at the park. It was a lot of fun and I will post more on her visit when I have time. Grayson continues to amaze me everyday! I love watching him grow but at the same time wish it would slow down. I am already missing those first few weeks and just being able to hold and snuggle with him. Now he is already wanting some freedom and time to play by himself under his little gym. (Insert sad face here.)

Mike is enjoying daddyhood! He has been great with Grayson. He has been working hard to provide for the family. I am grateful for all that he does. I am so grateful to have him as my eternal companion and the father of our child(ren).

Great Grandma Hayward

Grayson met his Great Grandma Hayward (Mike's Grandma who raised him) on Sunday August 8th but we went back up on Saturday August 14th and we got a picture of the two of them together.