Keeping the baby DOWN

Well, this isn't about hurting my children... although after 12 hours alone with them and each night doing bedtime while Andy works on his CFP (Certified Financial Planner) classes, it's been enough to make me super glad for bedtime!!!  This is actually just a quick post about this awesome baby gate I MADE.  Yep, just "Suzy Homemaker" here.  Actually, I really enjoy sewing and since we don't live close to much, it's made me really utilize my handiness!

This is a baby gate for THE BOTTOM of stairs.  NEVER at the top, those need to be screwed in and secured and made specifically for keeping baby safe from falling down the stairs.  This gate is for deterring baby (kids) from going up the stairs- it is NOT foolproof, but it does a pretty good job and at least gives me more time before Maxwell is up the stairs. :)

I found the idea at this link Merrimentdesign.  I put it on my to-do-list and it was always hanging in the back of my mind.  Then, about 2 months ago (at 8 months), Maxwell started to crawl up the stairs.every.chance.he.got.  So, something had to be done at the bottom of the stairs.  I did not want to screw into our banister so I had to find something else, that's when I finally made the fabric baby gate.  It's GREAT!

I made a few changes to the design partially, because I didn't have enough fabric, but mostly because I lack the sewing skills and was nervous!  I used a pre-quilted material for the back, that I was going to use to make crib rail covers, but decided instead to just go onto Etsy and buy these.  I was a little nervous to do the whole interfacing thing too.  I haven't sewn much and that seemed a little too much for me and my $50 machine.  I also did not use the velcro idea, because I was nervous to sew velcro, but also, because of the way our stairs are, I need to have an extra loop to attach to the wall.  I like how it turned out and I LOVE the fabric, from a local store.  So far my projects have been successful!!

Tatertots and Jello

3 Months old

3 months...

My baby is now 3 months old (it was on Tuesday, but that's how it goes when you have a 3 month old)! He is getting so big! I love all of his smiles, giggles, and even his cry is kind of cute (except at 2:30 in the morning). Here is a quick list of the things little Maxwell is up to these days...

• He loves to look at his big brother. When Jackson is playing he watches him like a hawk and if Jackson goes up to him he will smile.
• He gets kisses from his big brother at bedtime and SMILES so big! Maxwell likes to give big open mouthed kisses to Jackson!
• Sleeps from 9-1030pm before going down after his last "meal". He sleeps after his last "meal" for 4-9 hours just depending. We have moved him from the swing, but he only likes to sleep propped up. So, he sleeps on his boppy in the pack'n play in our room.
• He wakes between 8:30 and 9am, eats and goes back down for an hour or two.
• He is still nursing almost exclusively... sometimes he gets a bottle, but not very often. It's just easier. I still pump every morning and have quite a stash built up. :)
• He eats about every 3-4 hours in the morning/early afternoon, but by 4pm, it's every 2 - 2 1/2 hours.
• He is less of a messy eater... he has gotten it down and goes pretty fast these days. But he likes to hang out and suck. I call myself the "human pacifier".
• As I eluded to above, still not that interested in a pacifier.
• He only cries when he is hungry and right before he falls asleep.
• After every "meal" he spits up... a lot. The most is usually about an hour after he eats.
• He smiles all the time. I missed this with Jman since I went back to work and I just love it!  
• Maxwell is very vocal and makes TONS of sounds all the time, he gets especially "wild" when he and Daddy are playing after Jman goes to bed.
• He is now in 3-6 month clothing (but can still wear 3 month stuff and some 6 month things)
• We are cloth diapering... this has caused a lot of his clothing to fit a little snug (3 month), but otherwise it's going well. :)
• Hates belly time. Screams after about 15 seconds, but we keep trying it. :)
• Grabs at toys that are hanging.
• sucks on his hands when he is upset... sometimes gets a couple of fingers in his mouth, he likes that. He is really a noisy sucker. ;)
• clasps his hands together in front of his face and looks at them for a long time.
• He loves these flat blanket toys he got for Christmas. they make crinkly noises and have soft plastic corners or silky corner, he really likes them and will grab and play with them.
• Likes to have a burp cloth near his face (probably because we always have one close by, because of his spitting up).
• Still has all his hair (minus the back where it rubs from sleeping) and is starting to get a curl on his forehead I think. His hair is still lighter than Jman's and really fluffy after a bath.
• He also has great head control and loves to stand up! Strong legs!!

That's quite a list. He is just such a good baby. We fall more in love with him each day!

1st birthday pictures

Last Friday we had professional pictures taken by Giraffe Photography in the Village of East Davenport. It was a quick session, but so many of the pictures turned out great! We bought the rights to the pictures so we can do what we want with them... I wish we had done this for the last year... outdoor pictures are just so much better and a professional has so many cool things that they can do to the pictures. Here are just a few of my favorites.

First Time Blogging

Well, I have been thinking about blogging for awhile now... I think this will help take over the journal I am suppose to write for my Healthy Momma Challenge. I need to do some journaling for myself and I think this could work out... of course there are some things I won't want to necessarily share with everyone, but maybe I can figure out how to make those things private.

Jackson and I are playing right now. He is finding everything on the floor that he SHOULDN'T be putting in his moutha nd I am putting toys in his hands. I guess all I can ask for is that he is NOT putting the cat in his mouth at the moment. Although Spooky doesn't mind, it kind of grosses me out. There he goes for the cat...