cute Adelle

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So, the girl is walking now. She decided that it would be okay for her to walk before her 9 months birthday. So, she's been walking for weeks, and has been consistently gaining speed. Not running yet, but nearly so.  Must keep up with so siblings, you know.

I've been meaning to record for myself and the internet a cute Adelle move. She's been doing it for several months, and it could disappear at any time. It actually started as a "bump bump": When lying on her back, she would lift her bottom from the floor, and then drop it back down. Bump, bump, you know?  Wiggly girl.

Verbal description: Kicking her legs straight down from her hips. She pulls up her knees, and kicks down, as if she were jumping. She does this when she is lying down. She does this when she is being held. She does this probably when standing, but it looks like jumping.  Or squatting several times in a row.

When used: in frustration or anger. If we're holding her, and she want down she kicks. If she's lying down, and she's impatiently waiting for her diaper change. If we laid her down because she's super sleepy, but she doesn't want to go to sleep.  Any of those times, she brings out this move. If she simply doesn't like what we're doing, or how long it's taking, the legs start moving.

She's very smiley now - she laughs at many things. She claps. She "yells" at me when I'm not paying enough attention to her. 

She dances, too, but I can never get it on camera. Every time I get the camera out, she hurries over so she can get it.

She's trying out some sounds - she says "uh-oh,"  but she doesn't use it for uh-oh moments.  Just any time, whenever she likes. I think she likes that when she says it, we parrot it back to her. Still waiting on the "first word."

Adelle is 10 months old. At her last measure, she was 18.5 pounds, and 28.5 inches.  If she follows the pattern of my other kids, she'll stay at about 18 or 19 pounds for the next year, and very slowly add on some weight. She still nursing quite regularly, but she does enjoy snacking on solids.  She likes to have her own, and she'll steal food from other people's plates.  Watch out, is all I'm saying.

 Her name is apparently on the list of fastest-rising baby girl names. FAN-tastic. That means we'll encounter a bunch of little Adel(l)es running around the playground over the next several years.  I haven't yet encountered another baby Adel(l)e though. I suppose rising in the ranks quickly doesn't mean a lot - I think the last time I looked, it was ranked about 627, so even jumping up to 200 wouldn't put it in the same league as Elizabeth (hello top 20!)

Eventually, I'll need to figure out my photos and this new mac.  I haven't uploaded any photos in months - they're all sitting on the camera card, waiting for me to get my act together. I think I'm almost there.

So, until then, imagine a sweet brown-haired, blue-eyed baby, toddling around, and looking remarkably cute (and clever).

I want fluff

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I'm considering getting some new cloth diapers.

My trusty BumGenius one-size diapers have done well for more than 3 years (and have been worn on 3 kids). The velcro is shot (although I replaced some of the velcro with snaps) and then I find some are beginning to leak regularly.

So, I want some new fluff. Maybe if I have new fluff, I'll keep cloth on the baby more regularly!

I really do like my bumgenius diapers.  I've tried fuzzibunz and a tiny tush elite, and they both do fine. I guess I'm feeling a little like I want to try something new.  I've been a bumGenius mama pretty much my whole diapering time, and I've never explored much of the other options.

I don't strongly prefer snaps or velcro.  I've done both, and they both have their benefits. I guess I like a mix of both. And I'm all out of velcro/aplix whatever diapers, so I'm probably mostly shopping for that.

I would LOVE to find a night time diaper for my girl, as I'd given up on nighttime cloth diapering a long time ago (mostly the stink and the ammonia burn on baby's bottom did me in. Maybe new water, new diapers, and new washer will make a difference).

Some of the diapers I've been eyeballing:


Rumparooz

Applecheeks

 










I've always done pocket diapers - I've read the all-in-one diapers can take a very long time to dry, so I've stayed away from them.  But, in my question to explore some of the diapering options out there, I'm considering those, too, although I don't have any that have really grabbed my attention.

Suggestions on "must-try" pocket or all-in-on diapers?

around here

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It seems like lots has been going on around here.

I still have a quilt waiting to be done. The recipient is in college now, so maybe by the next birthday it'll be done?  Or maybe by the time he has his own grandkids?  Somewhere between now and then I'll finish that quilt.

I've been preparing a whole boat load of stuff for consignment. I made a questionable choice a while back to purchase a large lot of clothes (which were in the size range of my two girls) with the intent to resell that which we don't need. I've been doing pretty well on it so far, but I have a BUNCH of clothes that I need to sell off to make sure that I didn't blow way too much money on kids clothes. So, I stain-treat, I wash, I consign. Note to self: Don't do this again (once I get through all the stuff I have). Even if I recover all the money I spent (making the clothes I kept free!) it's more work than probably worth. Although I did score a bunch of cute clothes at a great price....

I've been "preparing" for our homeschool year. Yesterday was our first "official" day of kindergarten for E, and preschool for N. Since my soon-to-be homeschool classroom/studio is not yet prepared, it felt mostly like a normal day.  We spent maybe an hour reading, playing some math games, working on fine motor skills, and other stuff that sounds "educational." Most of it is stuff we do anyway, just with a little more purpose now. As the year progresses, we will be adding in a few things to round out the day and week. By "preparing" I also mean that in spite of my best intents, I have yet to plan out what I'm doing any day this week, beyond homeschool group activities.  So, week one, we're just easing in to a routine.

That homeschool room/studio I referred to... Our front room will no longer be the catch-all of kids toys and unpacked boxes. We've decided it would be better to keep our school materials there, organized, rather than spread through the dining room, living room and the upstairs office and guestroom. I'm on a quest to find whatever it is I have in my minds eye, and I'm not really seeing it for the price I'm willing to pay. The search continues.

This is the space I have to work with (The orange room. Red room is full of dining table, a large painting and shelves).  This is also the view upon stepping through the front door (and looking to the left). The wall is about 18 feet long. We're imagining a wall full of shelves about 30 - 48 inches tall - the right height for kids to access pretty much everything, plus one tall unit on the end for things that aren't for kid access. I'm also imagining a reading nook on the left end of the shelves. We have a 5x7 map rug that would go on the left. I have a coffee table that makes a good kids' table for now, plus another low table.

I'm looking forward to developing this into a well-arranged space!