More expensive toys

oooooooooooohhh, look at some of bailey's lovely toys!!! don't they look like fun?! don't you wish you could play with them?! don't you know we have a playroom and a baby's room full of other toys?!

now, look closely at the pictures.

can you guess which plaything is bailey's favorite?

is it the drum that announces and displays the alphabet or numbers when hit? or the lighted, musical stacking stars? maybe the countless books she has? or whatever else we own that promises to make her a certified baby genius (or at least advanced)?

i'll give you a clue, it's clutched tightly in her hand.

yes, it's the beautifully shiny wrapper of a kashi chewy granola bar (it probably teaches her the alphabet too!). bailey toted it around the house all afternoon enjoying how it is not only lightweight, but crinkly and lovely too. totally what i would have chosen to play with too.....

remind me again why i keep wanting to buy her new toys?

also, i do dress her in real clothes, i promise!!!

and another also, i'm sure kashi granola wrappers pose some sort of choking hazard, but i kept an eye on her, so don't worry! my child was safe and sound playing mostly supervised with her choking hazard toy while wearing only a diaper that was probably wet.....which is what billy calls klassy with a capital K!

Bottom's up!

ah-ha! thanks joy for capturing a picture of bailey in one of her cuter poses (i've tried for months)! she does this all the time and it's even more adorable in person :)
what you can't see is the giant grin on her face!

Bailey? is that you?

this picture was taken on february 1st of this year. can you believe how much my bailey boo has changed in only 4 1/2 months? (notice where her head is on the chair)

she looks the same, yet totally different (if you know what i mean)! i could go on and on about what all she is capable of doing now, but if you glance through this blog then you already know. something i do have to mention is that she is eating finger food almost exclusively (with the exception of a baby yogurt with breakfast and oatmeal mixed with baby fruit for dinner). i find it so bizarre how happy it makes me when she eats healthy food and really really likes it (aka, she quickly slams handfulls of blueberry halves and cheerios in her mouth), although i know deep down in my heart that once she get a taste of the sweet perfection that is a cupcake, then it's all downhill from there!

sorry about the lack of fun in my blog entries lately. i guess i'm in somewhat of a rut.....

I gotta have a whoppa!

okay, so i'll save my entirely too long story about how i met shaquille o'neal in a sam's club in northwest arkansas with my friend bonnie (we have a picture for proof) for another day since it was already too long and i wasn't even to the good part yet. but it seems as if bailey was equally impressed with this tiny, bobble-head version of the whopper loving giant as i was with the real deal (words cannot express how truly ginormous this guys really is)



"daddy, look at him. did you see it!? his head!? how is shakes so beautifully?! this might be the funniest thing ever!!"
even boss was impressed!

The end of an era

9 months marks an end to 2 things:
1) bailey has now spent more time growing and developing outside my body than inside my body. just the idea that my body was her first home, that she was created, nourished, supported and secure inside of me is truly amazing. i mean, really when you sit down and think of it, pregnancy, birth and babies are such miracles. i do not believe that our bodies evolved from simple one-celled creatures to the complex beings that we are today, capable of producing life. the birth of our precious bailey further strengthened that belief. we were perfectly created by god and he has given us the gift of being involved in his creation through babies. i've never been a part of something so important, special and life changing as becoming bailey's mother. i hope i always appreciate the beautiful gift she is and never forget who gave her to billy and i.
2) and speaking of bodies, mine in particular, yesterday marked an end to a fabulous excuse for the extra remaining bailey weight. so long "it takes 9 months for your body to grow a baby, give your body 9 months to get back to normal", we had a lovely time together. you made me feel okay about my various rolls and tight pre-pregnancy clothes for those glorious 9 long, yet somehow also short months. and, ha, normal. my body will never get back to normal. it will never be like it used to be. and, i'd be lying if i said that that doesn't hurt a little bit (not that i was all super hot and perfect or anything before, but there is a definite difference now). but, you know what, the bigger part of me doesn't care. when you have a baby, you have to abandon a lot of your selfish ways and i think that is good for you. not everything in life is all about me, me, me, despite what the magazines and world will tell you. i don't care as much about how i look anymore and i'm just fine with that. in the great scheme of things, it's just not that big of a deal. not that i'm going to stop caring totally about my health and appearance, i'm just not going to obsess about a little belly fat or not being able to squeeze myself into a certain familiar size. i've got plenty of other things to occupy my time and thoughts with these days and my most favorite is my bailey boo (and of course, billy)! so, my hope is that i've become a better (if not consequently bigger, in both senses of the word) wife, daughter, friend, sister, neighbor and person thanks to my experiences with my beautifully made bailey bear!! thank you bailey for all you have given me! mommy loves you more than you will ever realize!

(addition: this doesn't mean i still don't have moments or days when i'm all "i'm fat and have nothing to wear and i look absolutely horrible in everything, all the time", but i don't obsess about my weight and looks all the freaking time like i used to and will continue to grow in this particular area)

9 months

wow! i seriously can't believe my baby girl is already 9 whole months old!!! here are her current stats:
weight: 16 lbs. 10 oz. 15th percentile
height: 27 3/4 inches 50th percentile
head: i forgot, but 50th percentile

sooooo, okay, about the weight......... my girl was born a bit on the plump side being up there in the 90th percentile (8 lbs. 11 oz. to be exact). as she has grown, she has dropped to the 80th, the 50th and now the 15th percentile in weight. my first reaction was like, oh my gosh, why did i do? did i not feed her enough? because, one time, i kept feeding and feeding her because she wanted more and more and then she threw up and i felt horrible. so, at her 6th month appointment, i asked how much food she should eat at a sitting and they said anywhere from half a jar to a jar and a half. so, i've been feeding her a jar and a half. and yes, after every meal she would bang her hands on the tray in a gimme more fashion, but i didn't want her stomach to hurt or get too full, so i would just nurse her. and, of course, i wanted to follow the pediatrition's directions and i've always felt pretty clueless about this whole feeding a baby thing. plus, i think she is the fastest eating baby i've ever seen, so i don't think her stomach even got time to feel full. anyway, after an initial guilt trip for feeling like i didn't nourish my child like i should and was denying her food, which resulted in a smaller than "normal" weight baby, i'm over it (really, because i've written a lot about it so far). the pediatrition didn't seemed fazed at all at bailey's weight and so i shouldn't be either. she's healthy in every other way (except now has a snotty nose....nice), is happy, can sit up, crawl, pull up, point, feed herself, babble and almost walk and so what do i care about how she is compared to other babies on a scale? i don't. she looks nice and round to me, not to mention absolutely the most beautiful thing here on earth!! bailey is now free to eat fruits, veggies and baby cereals to her little hearts delight. so, in case you were worried that i was worried, i'm not. initially, yes, i was and felt like it just had to be my fault, but now, i'm not. she's more than perfect to me and i'm loving her more and more each day!!

Walkie Talkie

bailey has been such a little walkie talkie lately!! she has found her voice and oh my, is it loud (my child? ...loud? ...noooo)! she used to be only about the "da da da's" or the "ba ba ba's", but now she's added "ma ma ma's", "momma momma" and some "ga ga ga" to mix it up.
now, she's not saying "momma" in reference to me, it's just some sounds she strings together over and over and over again.

it's amazing to me how much she has changed, even in just a week. a week ago, she would cry if you tried to "help" her use the walker by herself (i have plenty of witnesses for this one). this week, she crawls right up to it, pulls herself up and starts cruisin'! she is even okay to walk on the hardwoods. not that she doesn't have an occasional fall or anything, but she is getting the hang of it. oh, and can you tell just how much she loves doing this?!

a week ago, she wasn't saying any sounds that begin with "m" and now she is all about it.
who knows what next week will bring :)

I have a need, a need....

to read! bailey now seems to really enjoy books. she has always paid enough attention to turn the pages, but now she points at different pictures (mainly whatever is the smallest and/or most vibrant red part of any page) and she's interested a lot longer. we read anywhere from 3 to 5 books at night right before it's time to put her to sleep. obviously, we're reading the thick, carboard baby friendly type of books, but still, that requires a longer attention span. the kindergarten teacher in me is just loving this.


my mom's been in town (woo-hoo!) and we've been super super busy with project redo as much as possible in the house without spending a lot of money. so far, so good, the house looks better than it ever has. as always, we're having a great time together, but we have hardly sat down in three days, so we're (okay, really just me) a bit tired. thus, the lack of picture taking and blogging. but this one's for you grandma!!! hope it's good enough :)

What is UP with the not sleeping?!?!?

okay, bailey has been refusing to settle down for her naps all week and it's driving me crazy!!!!!! i don't know what her deal is. she'll be all tired, clean, fed, in a dark, calm room and yet, yet, she still won't go to sleep. on monday, i left at 3:45 to go to the gym (woo-hoo!) and the baileysitter was walking upstairs to put the boo down just as i was leaving. on my way back home, i got a call from the baileysitter saying that bailey still had not gone to sleep. it was 5:45! two whole hours of not sleeping! she kept throwing her paci out, crying and playing in her crib. nice. then, we had a repeat yesterday afternoon, although not quite as long. bailey just refused to sleep for a little over an hour. and she has already started doing it again today. i feel horrible hearing her cry upstairs, especially when it is longer than 10 minutes or so. i know it's not good for her (or me) in the long run to go up there, but i seriously can't take the crying anymore. it makes me feel like a bad mom, although i know i'm not. she must be teething or something or she has figured out that if she drops/throws her paci out of the crib and screams, we will come. who knows.
anyway, the sleeping at night is fine, although we have had to work her down from a 9:45 bedtime. she was doing this exact same thing but with a lot less crying and a lot more playing. i just don't understand and i know i never really will. i'm okay and all, just frustrated at the fact that my baby girl is spending about 2-3 hours a day messing around in her crib either playing or crying. the playing part i can get over, but the crying is just not cool. not cool at all.
:(

Yo bailey, yo bailey, yo!

in the neverending quest to find new, healthy foods for bailey to enjoy, we have discovered yo baby yogurt (thanks kirsten)! it is the first baby food that i like as much, or possibly more, than bailey. i am not lying when i say that it is the best yogurt i have ever had in my entire life! we, uhhh, i mean she, has it every morning and i like giving her a breakfasty food instead of vegetables or baby chicken "dinners" and such. i mean, who wants to wake up and eat green beans, spinach or carrots? maybe a pregnant woman, but even that may be pushing it.




and since bailey really likes to feed herself, she has successfully tried the following foods:
scrambled eggs, black beans, peas, soft cooked carrots, squash, avocado, bananas, green beans, crackers, steamed broccoli and i'm sure something else. so far, she has liked everything. i bought her some kiwi and peaches to try once they are ripe and soft enough for her, which should be fun. i have this strong desire to expose her to new, healthy foods and i work really hard to give her as balanced of a diet as possible. it's becoming my new obsession. who knew?
also, if you know of anything else fresh and healthy i can feed her, i'd love to know! has anybody's baby tried cottage cheese or any type of cheese yet?

Uncle Adam

bailey doesn't quite know what to think of her uncle adam (i think the feeling is mutual).

"mommy, please, come and get me!! i don't think this guy knows much about baby girls!"


all kidding aside, bailey enjoys spending time with her uncle adam. i know he's going to be a big hit in a few years! but now, he's just hard to recognize when baileybear has only seen him a handfull of times and his face is covered in sparse patches of hair.

Guess which child my mom loves more

Random vacation pictures

lounging and laughing in the hot tub
admiring the awesome pool and pondering something really important hmmmmmm.......where does bailey get most of her looks from?!?!
playing with my basket of fun by the pool
talking to my toys

I wish I was a little bit shorter

if bailey had her way, she would have a mommy finger in each hand at all times. this child is ready to walk!!! well, not quite, but the desire sure is there. when we're playing together, she will crawl over and grab for both of my hands and in a flash, she's off. bailey will even get mad at me (yes, me, her loving mother, what nerve) if i don't immediately get up and help her walk the loop of our downstairs. which is fun and all, but after about five minutes, i'm pretty uncomfortable. it's hard to walk tiny steps with your legs far apart while hunching over and supporting your ready to be completely independently mobile child.


and while posting these pictures, i noticed the lip sucked in expression. oh gosh, i hope this doesn't mean another tooth is on it's way :(
we've been having such a good time together with her being all not sick, well-rested, smiley, not clingy and fun and a tooth will ruin all of that awesomeness in less than a second. seriously, i'm so not ready for the complete misery cutting a tooth can be. no other signs just yet, but i'll keep you posted...

On the GO!!

i have really had a lot of fun with baileybear lately! she had been entertaining herself a lot more lately (read, she hasn't been tightly attached to some part of my body every waking second) by moving all around the house. she crawls and crawls and crawls, looking for something, anything, to pull up on. all the while jabbering away, having a good ole' time!

ah, yes, and notice the lovely superyard (aka, baby jail) in the background. notice how she is not in it. notice her beautiful smile, her joyful expression, her happy disposition. it's all because she is free, free, free at last! but, alas, i have not given up on the superyard. bailey will spend some time in there, but i'm just having too much fun watching her explore our home. plus, she has blessed me with some sleep and i have had the time during her naps and before she's up for the day to get some stuff done. important things, like blogging for example. and maybe a little eating, showering and cleaning. therefore, i don't necessarily need to do all that much while she's awake, so i have the time to focus just on her. and, wow, this is what i've been waiting for!!!!!


okay, so i still have a little more redecorating to do since bailey likes to try to pull up on new things. she can even pull up on a wall, if you can believe that! speaking of, i think she's going to be an awesome rock climber someday! we have an indoor rock climbing wall at our gym that billy and i used to go to, you know, before i got all pregnant and had bailey and everything. oooooh, just thinking about our whole family spending some time rock climbing together makes me very happy :) we'll have to try it out, but not until bailey's ready, of course. which won't be that long, right, since she's getting close to walking?

One man's junk is........

a baby's treasure!
bailey gets free toys in the mail almost everyday! oooooo, i know you are jealous!!! she just loves playing with junk mail and lucky for her, we get tons of it everyday. some days, we only get junk mail (oh yes, we are that special). here she is toting her daily prized possession around the house.

and that's another thing. bailey has been spending a majority of her awake time cruisin' all around the house. she likes to circle through the living room, into the foyer to the dining room, into the kitchen and back through the living room to start over again. all the time, she's talking to herself or me, i'm not sure who, using various voices from her soft, raspy whisper to her loud shrieking and everything inbetween. it's very cute to watch :)

Billy has a new reason to love me

warning, this post has nothing at all to do with bailey (except that she loved eating the peas and carrots out of this here pot pie, the food of southern champions).

i'll start by sharing that i'm not much of a cook. i'm actually kind-of scared of cooking. my poor husband suffers through the same meal rotation that includes culinary classics such as spaghetti, broccoli chicken casserole and "dump soup", which is a wonderful concoction of various cans that you literally dump into a big pot and slap on the stove. the main reason why i don't cook is that i worry way too much about it. i worry that i will somehow mess whatever i am making by 1) burning it 2) not following the recipe right 3) not knowing the cooking lingo 4) forgetting an ingredient 5) undercooking some part of it 6) messing up the timing of the whole meal of food 7) getting in way over my head. the only recipes i feel comfortable trying are those that i have eaten before and that "look" easy (aka, short ingredient list and with a title that includes the words "easy", "fast", "quick" or "simple"). before you mentally make a note of the perfect christmas/birthday/just because you love me gift, rest assured, i already own plenty of cookbooks. i'm just too chicken to try any of the recipes out. plus, i'm too lazy to invest any time in something i could potentially hate, not to mention the emotional letdown, shame and utter disappointment i would have in myself if it wasn't just right. sooooooo.....
i am extremely proud to share that I MADE THIS HERE CHICKEN POT PIE FOR MY HUSBAND! all by myself! from a cookbook i own! and it's a recipe i have never tried before! i didn't even own a pie plate, let alone have any clue as to how exactly to use pie dough. but, it tasted good, really really good! and billy liked it! he really liked it! and he wanted more of it!! so i made another one just days later and guess what, it was good too (although i stressed about it since it sort-of bubbled over in the oven and i forgot to defrost my already cooked frozen chicken and it just wasn't exactly the same as i remember it being the first time. plus, bailey was screaming in the background and i couldn't find a big spoon and i was hungry and tired)! so, a huge woo-hoo for me for trying something new and it not being awful! no need to pat me on the back, i've already done it to myself way too much!

Big bathtub

hey there, it's me, miss bailey boo. and man, am i delighted to be home!!!! sure, it was fun to see some family, listen to how pretty i am all the time, show off my awesome new skills and crawl around in a new place, but i pretty much hated sleeping there. i would wake up all scared and alone. like, wait a minute, this isn't my pink sheet and why is this mattress all hard and noisy ......hmmmmm, there's my pink bear but i know something isn't right here...... oh no, i have no idea where i am and oh my gosh, where in the world is my mommy...hello? i said where are you mommy....ahem, i don't think they can hear me, i said WHERE IS MY MOMMY, I NEED HER NOW!

oh, right, where was i? anyway, the one thing i thought was pretty cool about that place was this giant outdoor bathtub where i got to splash with mommy and daddy (but why did they make me wear this uncomfortable blue ruffley thing, so hated that. and don't even get me started on that hat). there were bubbles (overflowing from the hot tub, not from daddy.....or so we were told), toys and i pretty much thought it rocked. well, at least for about an hour or so a day. then i had to take a shower (which i hated) and a nap (which i also hated).

Just beachy

i hope you aren't sick of vacation pictures and stories, because i'm not done quite yet! come on, we had no internet access the entire time and just look at how much there was to share! it was bailey's first vacation! big stuff!
anyway, here are some pics of us at the beach as proof that we actually went there (although billy didn't step foot onto sand until wednesday and we were only there mere minutes at a time. we thank god there was a pool this year)

bailey thinks it's hilarious when billy or i run up to her as if we are chasing her with huge, over-exaggerated, goofy, open-mouthed grins while chanting in a high pitched voice "i'm going to get you....ohhhhh, i'm going to get bailey boo!" i'm sure this makes us appear really normal, but who cares because she laughes and that's all that matters to us :)

i just love this shot because you can actually see how small bailey is. she always looks all big and round in the many pictures we have of just her (who wants us in pictures anymore anyway). people are usually surprised when they see her in person and she's just a little ole' thing. her nickname during vacation was tiny (pronounced tIIIII-nee).