What we've been up to

Wow, I have become pretty busy lately.  Well, with a seven month old, a kitchen renovation, and a piano recital coming up, it's no wonder.

So, what's new with Lydia?  Well, she loves to clap.  She has started babbling, rather than just cooing.  She gives high fives . . . most of the time.  She waves, so cute!  She has been eating baby food.  She isn't so much into the veggies any more.  She only wants fruit.  I don't blame her, but I still force feed the veggies.  I know, I'm mean.  She's getting longer hair.  She loves to smile with her tongue.  You know she's super happy if her tongue is sticking out.  There's probably tons more, but we'd be here all day.

 

So, what's new with us in general?  Well, we don't really have a full kitchen right now.  We're in the process of renovating it. 

We're installing a dishwasher.  Thank goodness!  I'm really tired of vacuuming it out after every use.  Yeah, we've been ghetto for a couple years. 

We're getting new counter tops.  We're getting granite.  We wanted a solid black color to contrast with our white cabinets, but solid black is pricey.  So, we got an almost black color, called Ubatuba.  Go ahead, say Ubatuba out loud.  It's so much fun to say!  It has green flecks in it, and it's very pretty.

To keep the same amount of cabinet space, we're adding a cabinet (thanks, Bubba, for helping us build that!).  We'll actually gain about 10 inches more cabinet space, so that makes me happy.  Every little bit counts.

We got an amazing new faucet, which was a great find.  We payed the amount you pay for a cheapo faucet, but got one of the most expensive styles.  It was a scratch and dent item, so it was TONS less.  It's rubbed oil, so it's very pretty and very much in style.

We're doing a tile backsplash.  We chose light green subway tiles.  It will be awesome!  We wanted glass tiles, but they're very expensive.  And let's face it, we're not going to be here forever, and our house is very close to the ghetto, so we're not going too crazy.

I honestly don't know what part of my kitchen I will love the most.  Now, if only we could magically have it done.  It's quite inconvenient having the kitchen torn up.  It's frozen pizzas and quesadillas for dinner here for a while.  Ha ha!  It will be SO worth it, though.

Also, I have enough students to hold a piano recital!  It will be here, since it costs so much to have it at our library, and with only six students, we should all fit in my front room.  I'm nervous and excited all at the same time!  I have the best students!  They're all so much fun to teach.

Well, that's what's going on around here.  Wish us luck!

Trying New Foods

Here are some videos to compare and contrast.  Lydia's been all about baby food lately.  The first one is carrots.  She hates carrots.  The second is her first time eating peaches.  She loves them, but at first didn't know what to think, because it was new.  Enjoy!

She is so happy to be trying out a variety of foods now.

So far she's had squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, and peaches.  She also LOVES her rice cereal.  The only one she doesn't like is carrots.  Pretty good, I'd say!  I hope she keeps up with the good eater thing as she gets older.

Six Months and Quirks

Can you believe that little Lydi-Bug has made it past her half birthday?  Wasn't she just born yesterday?

 

Here are her stats from the doctor on Monday:

Length: 26 inches (70th percentile)
Weight: 16 lbs 4.5 oz (60th percentile)
Head circumference: 44.4 cm (95th percentile)

So, some of the things she's doing right now are:

Rolling all over the place
Eating rice cereal, soon to start baby food!
Blowing raspberries
Smiling and laughing TONS
Drooling a constant puddle around her
Sitting up with very little help
Playing with toys almost all the time
Being very good at church (thank goodness!)
Grabbing things and getting quite skilled with changing hands

I'm sure there are more, but we'd be here all day.

 

Lydia's first time eating rice cereal

I'd really like to tell you some quirks about Lydia.  She has such a cute personality.  I also need to remember these things, because she may change at any moment.  She's growing so fast.

-She has a birth mark on the back of her neck.  It's dark and very conspicuous.  Many people comment.  I hope this doesn't make her embarrassed later on.  Luckily, it's on her neck, so her hair could cover it up, once it gets long enough.  I plan on helping her realize that it is normal, and she shouldn't be ashamed of it.  If people comment rudely, I want her to be one to reply, isn't it great that I am so unique?  Or something similar.  While we were in the hospital when she was born, I always knew she was not switched with another baby, because of the birth mark.  Whew!

-When she was born, she had tiny hairs on the ridges of her ears.  I called her my little Sycophant.  Those of you who have read Leven Thumps know what I'm talking about.

-Her laugh is hilarious.  She has a deep voice when she laughs, and only when she laughs.  Otherwise, her voice is high and sweet.  Those of you that knew me well as a teenager know that I can mimick a lot of laughs, but Lydia's laugh is not one I can easily mimick, because it's so deep.  I love it!  Also, when she's really excited, she will squeak.  It's so fun!

-She's at a stage where she opens and closes her hand a lot.  Some people think she's waving at them.  I just think it's practicing her grasp.  She will also open and close her hand quickly on different surfaces, making a scratching sound.  You'll hear it all the time.  We love her little scratches when we hear them.

-Another stage she's working on is using her wrist joint.  She will move her fist up and down quickly, also like she's waving.  Who knows, maybe she really is waving to everyone?  It's super cute, but the truly unique thing about it is that her pinky finger is straight up.  She's such a dainty little thing.

-Her favorite toy is paper.  She could crinkle it all day long if I'd let her.

-She loves to touch people's faces.  It's like she's memorizing all the people who love her.

-She knows when it's eating time.  As I'm getting ready to feed her, she will come at me with mouth wide open, enough to make the rest of her face scrunch.  It's pretty hilarious.

-Her eyebrows are VERY expressive.  You'd need to see her in person to get the full effect.

Like before, I'm sure there are many more, but I'll save those for later.

I love this girl so much!  I'm the luckiest mommy on the planet!

Souper Dooper

I've been on this soup kick lately.  There's no scientific reason.  I've just really enjoyed soup.  It's hit the spot for me.

To those of you who don't want to spend time making your own from scratch, my recommendation would be Progresso's Minestrone.  We got an entire case from Smith's caselot sale, and it is amazing!  Only their vegetable soups were on sale, so that's why we chose this particular flavor.  I was a little nervous to try it, but it did not disappoint.

To those of you who enjoy making soup from scratch, and to those of you who would do it just to be healthy or save money, this soup is for you!  And if you like creamy vegetable soup.  I got this recipe from Pinterest.  It is a lot like Broccoli Cheese Soup, except it has more veggies and is made with real cheese, not Velveeta or Cheez Whiz.

Here is the link for Cheesy Vegetable Chowder:  http://luluthebaker.blogspot.com/2011/09/cheesy-vegetable-chowder.html

Really, you should make this.  It is well worth your time and tastes divine!  Enjoy!

So, yeah, these are both vegetable soups.  I'm not a vegetarian.  And I'm not obsessed with eating healthy.  They're just really good soups, so I thought I'd share the love.

These could both be your entire meal if you wanted.  They're very hearty soups.  But I suggest dipping bread into them to keep you full longer.

So what is your favorite kind of soup?

Nursery, AKA Lydia's Room

I know, we should have had the nursery done six months ago, but we were under construction over here, so it didn't get done until about a week and a half ago.  Don't worry.  We made things work for us.  And I'll admit, it was kind of nice to be able to do computer stuff while taking care of Lydia in her first few months.

That said, I am extremely happy she has her own room now.  AND that the computer isn't in her room any more.  I was a horrible mommy, constantly staring at the computer screen instead of my adorable baby girl (tsk, tsk).

So, here is the room.  The style is a bit eclectic.  That's what happens when you get stuff second-hand.  But hey, it works!  Yeah, we're cheap-o's and proud of it.

Here's the desk that stores toys, books, toiletries, and nick-nacks. The changing table stores diapers, wipes, and linens.  The glider chair and ottoman is used for nursing, rocking, singing to, and reading to Lydia.  On the wall is a bow holder, made from fabric covered card board/thick poster board, with ribbons looping around the board, and a ribbon hanger.  The fabric board is reused from the diaper cake I got at one of my showers.  The picture hanging on the wall is a Precious Moments ballerina that my sister-in-law did freehand for me several years ago (she's amazing).  That cow thing on the rolling chair is a humidifier.  Cute, huh?  Oh, and see that big green bag hanging off the changing table?  I use that to put the blown-out clothes into, so I remember to treat them before putting them in the wash.

Decorative shelves, dresser, and crib.  The lamp shade is zebra print.  The lamp and shade are from Walmart.  $10 for the entire lamp/shade combo.  I've had a tiny fetish with zebra print lately.

To cover the bite marks (like I said earlier, we go second-hand), I used fleece and tied it around the top of the crib railing.  The fleece was one of the remnants at Hancock Fabrics.  Lydia LOVES her mobile.  She wakes much happier because she has something to look at now.  Isn't she such a cutie in there?

This sign is made from fabric covered cardboard.  I mod-podged it.  It's hooked together and hung with ribbon.  After the first night, it sort of curled in, but I bent it back, and it has stayed pretty straight since.  I got the fabric in the little 1 yd squares at Hancock Fabrics, and the ribbon from the $1 bin at Michael's.  The sign is right next to an enormous mirror.  We were going to put the mirror either in the hallway pod or in the master bedroom, but Lydia loved it so much before mounting it, that we decided it would be beneficial to her in her room.

I'm so glad Lydia has her own girly room now!  It is such a relief to have this done.  I think this girl deserved an actual bedroom instead of a multi-purpose room.  And it's nice she has an actual bed, instead of a play-pen to sleep in.  She adjusted wonderfully and loves the extra room to stretch.  It's funny, because half the time when I check on her, she'll be faced sideways in the crib.  Silly girl.

So where did we get all the furniture?  The dresser and desk were mine growing up.  They're the only furniture pieces in there that actually match.  The changing table is from my sister.  The glider chair was my brothers, one of the lower springs broke, so I saved it from being thrown into the garbage and fixed the spring.  The glider ottoman used to be my parents', and it matches a set of gliders we also got from them, but they're downstairs right now, and there's another glider ottoman that matches too.  The crib was a KSL find.  The rolling chair was a hand-me-down from Lance's brother.  I think that just about does it.  So, the only item we actually paid for was the crib, and that was super cheap.

There you go.  It's been so exciting the past couple of weeks to get TWO entirely new rooms in our house!  (The nursery and the family room.)

The Diaper Conundrum

Those of you who are my friend on Facebook know that Lydia has this little diaper problem.  She blows out of about every other stinky diaper she has.

I asked for advice a few days ago, and got tons.  Wow!  Thanks friends!  About half of the advice given said to put her up a size.  Very good advice, by the way, but in this particular circumstance, it didn't work.  I had bumped her up a size about a week and a half before, and still, blowout after blowout happened.

We have been getting the cheap-o brand at Walmart.  We've had problems with blowouts all along, but not quite this bad.  Even when she was brand new, and we had lots of different brands of diapers from baby showers, she blew out of every single kind.  Well, except Pampers, but she only had those for about a week, and they're twice as much as everything else.  So, we decided to go with the cheapest ones, since they all were problematic.

Now that she's older, and a little differently shaped, we're trying out different diapers again.  Right now, we're trying the next cheapest kind, Target's Up and Up brand.  It's been a couple of days, and the result is: still a few blowouts, but not quite as many.  If these don't work, we'll try the next cheapest diapers, and so on until we get to one that works, or to the top price.

We may be a little premature on trying out new diapers.  She's barely six months now, which means we'll be introducing her to different foods.  Up 'til now, she's only had breast milk, so I'm sure that the consistency of her poop will change (sorry about the TMI).  But honestly, it's frustrating to have to pack two or three extra outfits everywhere we go, so we're trying things out.

Any advice or encouragement you have would be appreciated.  I'm to the point where I think she's just a super pooper.  She really does put a lot of force into it.  It's kind of funny, but still frustrating to have to change her and sometimes myself if I'm holding her when she blows.

Family Room Remodel

So, do you remember how we were remodelling our family room?  Well, it is finished!  I still have a few decorating and organizing tasks to do, but we're moved in!  Ah!  It's so exciting! 

So, Lydia has her own room now, but that's for a later post.  As for this post, it's all about the family room.

With our old, psychadelic, red carpet, we were inspired to keep it a movie-themed room.  Lance loved the red concept, so we painted one wall red as an accent wall. The rest of the walls are a blue-ish gray, my choice.  It's an interesting and bold combination, but we like it.  We painted the trim black for an even more dramatic look.  It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but we LOVE it! 

 

Movie-themed decorations on the red wall

Oh, and the red carpet . . . gone!  We replaced that with luxurious, fluffy, beige carpet.  Mmm . . . even just thinking about it makes me feel all warm and cozy.  We got a mid-grade pad for underneath.  The carpet before had maybe a milimeter of pad smashed down from the 70's.

We have this awkward shelf at the end of the room, so we sectioned it out, and one day we or future homeowners will be able to put a pretty large TV in the middle.  The side sections are shelves for movie storage, blankets, etc.  However, our current TV is one of those huge big screens from the 90's.  So, big picture, bad quality, and a LOT of floor space.  We got it for free, so don't judge.  But as for the shelf area, I think it turned out great!

 

Pretty good shot of the room with the shelves, different colors, and carpet

We also decided to do something with the under-the-stairs space.  Before, it was just a book shelf, which was great, but we dug deeper, and decided to transform it into a built-in computer desk.  Yeah, Lance was the mastermind there.  We also have an interesting material for the top of the desk.  It's white board!  Yeah, we can write on the desk!  Pretty awesome, huh?

Build-in computer desk under the stairs

So, Lance redid this ENTIRE room himself.  We had paneling on the walls, so he tore that off, and it was just glued to the cement foundation, so he framed almost the entire room, even the interior walls because they were crooked (we could have passed for a Dr. Seuss house).  He also built a drop ceiling, because we tore up the ceiling a couple years ago to fix plumbing and electrical work.  He installed can lights, installed lots of outlets, phone jacks, TV jacks, and ethernet jacks, did his own dry wall and painting, switched a doorway, installed the carpet himself, and built the desk himself.  He had lots of helpers along the way (thank you so much to those who helped!), but we never hired professionals.  Don't worry, Lance's dad is a licenced electrician, so we weren't naughty.  He supervised what was needed.  But yeah, Lance is a DIY master.  He's my hero!

Well, there's one more project to add to the list of remodels we have done.  On to the next!