This Too Shall Pass?!?

Now that Ethan is now crawling, he is even more active than he's previously been! He's also now pulling up on things, including the slats in his crib! It's all a double edge sword because I'm so proud of him for learning so quickly how to crawl and pull up, but he's keeping himself up at night by practicing his new skill, and in turn keeping us up as well! I've actually watched him do it (where he can't seem me of course)- he rolls over from being on his back, then sits up and either plays or cries because he can't figure out how to lay back down again. To add more fuel to the fire, he'll try to pull up on the slats and get even further stuck! I feel so bad for him, but then again, I'm so frustrated because I have to keep going back in his room to pick him up and set him back down so he'll go to sleep. Last night I went back in there 5 times before he actually fell asleep! Plus Chris went back in at 11:30 to set him back down from sitting up and crying! I usually can just put him down and he'll talk to himself for about 10 to 20 minutes and then he's out. Nope - not now! So, I looked it up in my handy dandy baby book of what is happening from week to week. Low and behold, it did mention at 32 weeks, which is what he is today, baby may learn to pull up on things and will do so in his crib through the night and mom and dad will have to come in and reassure him that it's ok after he gets upset from being stuck! AHA! It said that this phase doesn't last long, so be patient! Well, God didn't grace me with that gift, so I'll do the best that I can. I love him to pieces, but it's driving me bananas! Any suggestions from you other moms out there that may have had this problem?

Millions of Peaches - Peaches for Me (Actually for Ethan)!

Ethan has now had two vegetables and one fruit, so my next quest was to make peaches for him. I wanted to buy them organic of course, because of those pesty pesticides, so I started searching the local weekly ads for the grocery stores. Of course, just my luck, they were not on sale anywhere, so I just trekked it down to Earth Fare this afternoon on my lunch break. I have never been in that store and when I walked in, it just had this clean, earthy smell. I felt healthy for just being in there. I have been making fun of my friend Kelly who has totally gone organic, like all the way to wanting to have her own cow, but I won't anymore. I really liked it! Who knows - with all this baby food making, I may be going organic for myself as well! Anyways, back to the peaches. They had local peaches on sale for 99 cents a pound, but they were not organic. The organic ones were close to $3.00 a pound! As cheap as I am, I was floored! I literally stood there in the middle of the store with a local peach in one hand and an organic peach in the other and I just could not decide what to do! Then I remembered reading that if you were going to make your own baby food and NOT buy organic, you just have to wash it REALLY well to make sure the pesticides are washed off. The reason I couldn't decide what to do is because I would just feel so guilty for feeding little Ethan food that I know have pesticides on them just because I was trying to be cheap. On the flip side, I know buying the jarred organic baby food would be safer. AHHH - this is the struggle I go thorough when trying to find organic veggies and fruits that are not on sale! Anyways, after much deliberation, I just bought the local ones that were 99 cents a pound. I bought 3 pounds, which equaled 6 BIG peaches, and pureed them tonight. It was so easy too! They were already ripe enough, so I just washed them REALLY well, cut them in half and took the pit out, laid them face down in my steamer, and steamed them for 30 minutes. When they were done, the skin just peeled off. (The book I have says that leaving the skin off keeps the nutrients in when cooking them, and you have to cook them to help make them softer to be able to puree). I pureed them for like 1 minute, then put them in the ice cubes. Besides the 30 minutes it took to steam them (which I watched So You Think You Can Dance), it only took me about 10 minutes to make! Now I'm going to bed and I'm sure visions of peaches will dance in my head!

Daycare or NOT to Daycare - That is the question!

This morning when I dropped Ethan off at Abbie's house (our friend that watches him twice a week while I try to make a buck), she informed me of some news that has been on my mind all day long. She has a friend who has been on a waiting list for the same developmental center (fancy word for daycare these days) that I have Ethan on the list for. They told us it would be about 1 1/2 to 2 years to get in. Well, she got on 1 year before her daughter was born and she is now 18 months, and she's still on the list!! That's 2 1/2 years! Our plan in the grand scheme of things was for Abbie to watch Ethan until he got into this center, then he would go over there until kindergarten. That would mean he would be anywhere from 1 year to 1 1/2 years old when he got in, since we got on the list when i was 5 months preggo. Man - that just screws up any plans we had! I immediately called two other places in a town nearby and they both are at least 6 months to a year for a waiting list. I am going to get on them as soon as I can, but both of them are at least $200 to $250 more than the original place we have been looking at! And if you know me well, I am a very planned person and so it's driving me crazy - getting pregnant with Ethan surely threw that for a loop. Maybe God is trying to teach me something, and I just need to listen as hard as I can!

I am so blessed to be able to work part-time and still actually bring in some money, even after we pay Abbie. I so enjoy my time at home with him because I know a lot of people don't have the opportunity to do this, or either just don't want to. I surely do have my days when I just need to be around adults that I can converse with. But I do struggle constantly with the decision to go back to work full-time or stay home with him, because Abbie can't keep him forever. She has an 18 month old now, and is planning on having another baby sometime soon. I am just so thankful that she is able to keep him because I was having an epiphany back when I couldn't find anything that was less than a year waiting list. She offered and I took it! She is wonderful and takes very good care of him, plus she lives 3 houses down! You can't beat that! Plus she gives me a "report card" when I pick him up which tells me when he ate, napped, pooped, and even if he had tummy time! She's awesome! I need to tell her that more often - Abbie if you're reading this - YOU'RE AWESOME! :)

I'll just keep praying and God will lead me to the decision I have to make. I just hope that doesn't involve shelling out $800 a month!

Super Baby Food is Making Me Super Confused!

Ethan is getting very close to being able to eat vegetables and fruits so I've been studying about how to make baby food instead of buying it in the store. I have several friends that do buy the commercial jarred food, so I know there is nothing wrong with it. Gerber surely wouldn't make anything that would not be healthy for a growing baby. But I also have a couple of friends that make or have made their own food, including my own mother. I'm just on the fence myself. My initial thought for actually making baby food was to save money and to be healthier for my little one. After reading this book called Super Baby Food that was recommended to me by my friend Kristi, who has 3 children plus one on the way, all the facts make a lot of sense. She said the book was great, and it is great, but I'm just confused as to the pluses minuses. It is supposed to be really easy - you just spend 1 1/2 hours one time a month cooking, pureeing, and putting the food into ice cubes trays to freeze. After they are frozen, then you just put them all in a labeled Zip-lock freezer bag for up to two months with most foods. Then when baby is ready to eat, you get one cube out, which equals 2 tablespoons, and thaw it in the microwave or cook top and Voile! It's ready to go! I'm just not sure that it is worth the time and effort that it takes to make it versus just opening a jar of baby food! I want to do what is absolutely best for him. Any of us that have children know that everyone has their opinions and there seems to be no right or wrong way of doing anything. If anyone knows anything about this stuff and can give me feedback, please help! I am lost in the world of solids and don't know how to get out!! :)