Our Holiday Cards

We got our cards from Tiny Prints this year and I think they are my favorite yet!

We had to choose a Jonas-kind-of-smiling-but-not-looking-at-the-camera over a 

Jonas-not-smiling-but-looking-at-the-camera.

13 Months

 

Ham.

Ok, this is my favorite age. It's a good thing I didn't know when he was a newborn that they get super fun once they are 1. That would have seemed like forever away. But of course it went so fast, and I'm enjoying Jonas so much these days! And the explosion of development between 12-14 months is bananas. (Jonas turns 14 months on Wednesday) I like to keep a little running list of new things he is doing, eating, etc so whenever I get little pockets of time to work on his baby book I can just consult my notes. It would actually be impossibly to do otherwise. And the list I had made for 13 months was the longest yet!

At our family photo shoot earlier this month.

Speech. He says so much! Early on he said dada, mama and cat but now the list is 30 words deep. Of course these are in his own little language, usually just the first syllable. But last night he started saying the "th" sound in "bath", coming out as "ss"..."ba-ss". I died, it was really cute. Most are identifying people, animals and objects but some are directions and food so that really helps with communicating. He never picked up on sign language. He signed "more" but now he just says "mo", although I wish sign language worked for us. Oh! He has also started copying words that he hears Jon and I saying...uh oh.

Facing off with a turkey.

Demeanor. Jonas is such a goof. Loves to laugh and rough house with Jon. He has been dancing up a storm lately, which consists of bending his knees over and over. ;) And clicking his tongue, that is constant these days. He is always making us laugh.

 

Mini lumberjack

Eating. We are down to nursing just once a day. We were at 4 times a day and I weaned him down, thinking we were going to completely wean but I stopped at the morning nurse just because I couldn't bear to stop. I think Jonas would go either way at this point. He doesn't ask for it in the mornings but he also gets excited when he sees we are about to nurse. With that said, I do think the end is near. I'm proud of myself for making it 14 months. And as far as solid food goes, a somewhat picky eater has emerged! He used to eat anything and everything and now suddenly he is Mr. Opinionated.

Jonas turns ONE

I had to pop in to share Jonas' first birthday party. I hope you enjoy looking at the pictures as much as I did putting everything together! All photos by Mark William Photography.

Must have baby item

Ok, not really must have, but must want! Baby moccasins. Is anything cuter than a baby's chubby leg that goes into a cankle into a pair of moccasins? Gah! No, nothing is cuter. Its funny because if there was a chubby adult leg with cankles and a moccasin on, it wouldn't really work well.

I ordered mine from Freshly Picked when they were having a big sale. (Follow freshlypicked on Instagram to be notified of upcoming sales!) They are some definite coin but I value the way owner Susan Peterson sources her leather and how everything is made in the USA. Also, you cannot find a more highly reviewed and praised baby mocc!

I got Jonas some moccs in Butterscotch. I really wanted a more "fun" color but I knew this would be the only pair I buy and they have to be passed down to his future sibling(s) so I needed a classic color. He is a size 2 but I ordered a size 3 so he can wear these when he is actually walking!

So far they were very easy to get on and Jonas was fascinated by the fringe. ;) 

I can't wait until he grows into them. If money were no object we would be adding cobalt and gold to our collection!

Baby Popsicles

 

Baby popsicles are an epic mess. There is a reason why the pictures of them on Pinterest only show the popsicles themselves and not the kiddos eating them. The above mess got about 100 times worse and ended in me taking it away from him because he was so frustrated eating it, which resulted in a crying fit. Baby hands are not really a well-oiled machine yet, especially for this kind of a job. But hey, if you're up for it just puree a banana, avocado, mango and a splash of coconut milk to fill 4-6 popsicle molds.

#cornking

We have discovered the secret to enjoying our dinners together without Jonas running the show: give him a (mostly eaten) corn cob!! A few nights ago his first corn cob kept him happily busy for over an hour while we visited with friends in the park and last night we had friends over for an impromptu BBQ in the backyard and we were able to all sit down together and have adult conversation while Jonas happily munched next to us, for over an hour! People without kids: this is a big deal. This is the perfect teether for our little food obsessed guy since he can't choke on anything and this isn't going to fill him up since he basically gets about 5 kernels off each cob.

crayon making

As Jonas' first birthday creeps closer and closer I have begun thinking about his party. With the party comes a lot of things that can be costly, like favors. I'm not stoked on spending money on plastic crap made in China that will be thrown away after the day is done. I know kids look forward to the goodie bags and the kids at the party will range in age, so I decided on crayons in fun shapes. Most kids like to color and the babies can use them soon enough.

I put a request on my local Freecycle asking for used or broken crayons. I got 3 responses; 2 from teachers that "had" to get rid of their crayon stash because every fall they "have" to put out new supplies. I got BAGS of crayons that were perfectly fine, maybe 5 broken ones. Insane. For free, the best part!

Some of my crayon loot.

Besides the crayons you will also need a fun mold to melt the crayons in. I got this fruit one from eBay for $3.99. Most silicone ice cube trays can withstand high temperatures so when you search you don't have to search for baking molds, but ice cube trays too! IKEA has some great ones for $1. 

You will also need a knife and cutting board that you can dedicate to this project, no food should touch them from here on out.

Then you cut up the crayons in tiny pieces and fill the molds! You bake at 250 for about 8-10 minutes and allow them to cool completely, about 15 minutes. I think they are beautiful little pieces of art. 

{The grapes are my fave}

I have been saving baby food jars thinking I could use them for something and now I have! I will add the crayons in the jars for the birthday favors. I obviously need to get more, but maybe I can put another Freecycle request out or ask my mom's group.

I plan on spray painting the lids some fun colors to complete the look. This whole project (that provides me with supplies that will last well beyond the party favors) cost $3.99. Not bad!

Milky! (And some thoughts on breastfeeding)

I've been breastfeeding Jonas for over 8 months now and am getting close to my original goal of 1 year. I recently read on someone's blog that she wanted to nurse for at least a year, but less than two. That sounded nice to me. After I got through the initial hump of breastfeeding (pain from improper latching and emotion-messing from the physical demands and invisible chain that is wrapped around you and your baby) I loved nursing. Especially since in the first 4 months during the rough seas of colic it was the only time I could bond with Jonas. Breastfeeding really peaked for me right around 5 months. I loved it so so much. I am lucky that I am staying home with him because I know pumping can be a real pain. I did it in the beginning so Jon could give Jonas the occasional bottle, but it was harder to find the time to pump.

Up until the last month, Jonas has been a champion nurser. Lately he has become super distracted and will pull my hair, scratch wherever he can reach, pinch my arm, look at Jon and smile, come off entirely and laugh, you get the idea. He is just so busy! He doesn't want to miss a thing. Also, he now has four teeth and while biting was only a problem for a week or two, it has become a problem again. His latch is so strong and he doesn't want to unlatch at the end of a session.

I am in a moment where I really want to make it to a year or past but I am just seeing how things go. And since he is eating more and more solids he is actually nursing less. So it is important that I keep my milk supply up. Which is why I was so excited when Need Brands contacted me to try out Milky! Milky is an organic herbal cocktail to increase milk supply and promote faster let-down. As most nursing mothers know, fenugreek is the herb that increases milk supply. I have been taking fenugreek pills from about 1 month out, just incase. The suggested intake is 3 pills daily and sometimes I forget. I also tried Mother's Milk tea but it was disgusting.

Milky! is delicious. Think of it as a little energy shot (quantity wise) that tastes nothing like its name suggests, it actually tastes like strawberries! I have been taking two a day and I look forward to it. It might have something to do with those cute little bottles I can just throw in my purse. Plus, it doubles as a baby toy. ;)

Added bonus, Milky! was dreamt up by Tia and Tamara Mowry. You know I used to watch Sister, Sister all the time, so this was a happy discovery. Love those girls. I am totally not being paid to say this and once my free supply runs out, I am actually buying this myself. Highly recommend!

baby wants what baby wants

{Jonas and his Zip-Itz Zeke doll}

File this under Things I Never Thought I'd Do As A Parent. I thought I would provide Jonas with only the highest quality, organic wooden toys with patterns and colors that were appealing to myself. But then I realized I wanted moments of silence and happy independent play. Enter the brightly colored toys that I normally would have cringed it. Yes, I caved and I totally don't even care anymore! After the very young stage where babies are obsessed with all things high contrast and black and white they are attracted to bright colors! They reach for it, they grab it and eventually put it in their mouth. Which is why Jonas loves his Zeke doll. Once he gets older he will be able to unzip those zippers, but for now he loves sucking on the star tabs. 

And other things that are rocking Jonas' world right now? 

Straws, spoons and tags (note to moms-to-be: Don't cut tags off anything, babies love tags!).

Sunscreen overhaul

I recently read this post about 8 New Rules for Sunscreen at A Cup of Jo and read through all the comments. Things are not so simple anymore, when I think the only rule might have been to wear it. Lots of comments from women saying they don't wear sunscreen because fear of vitamin D deficiency and ones that love the organic sunscreens but also use the chemical laden self tanners. And the ones that avoid the sun altogether from 10AM-2PM (when the sun is the most dangerous). People are all over the map! It motivated me to read the rules, read all the ingredients on my sunscreens and do a major overhaul.

All of our sunscreens. Ones for baby, ones we purchased on our honeymoon when we ran out, ones that were pricey, ones that were cheap. Here they all are. First up, looking for the hormone disruptor and chemical that enters your bloodstream...oxybenzone.

These 3 had it, not surprised actually. They are the cheapest and most mainstream sunscreens I owned. Past tense, since I tossed them after this recent discovery. Reading up on Banana Boat on the Environmental Working Group website and its all really scary. They have the worst scores, even their baby blocks. Most of them also carry Vitamin A (Retinol) which may speed development of skin tumors and lesions.

These sunscreens were all listed on the EWG's list of 184 sunscreens that meet their criteria. The lower the score the better and LaVanila scored a 1 and the others pictured all scored a 2. The two pictured in the top photo, Korres and Jose Maran were not on the list. The Josie Maran product is a moisturizer with sunscreen that I LOVE but was puzzled it was not on the Moisturizer with Sunscreen list. And I cannot find a reason why the Korres did not make the cut, my only guess is it's low SPF of 25.
Of the winners, the California Baby is loads easier to rub in because it is mineral based which is the titanium oxide cutting down on zinc that is so very white.

What about you? How are you when dealing with the sun?