Category: weekly birthday

{hoodie: Childhoods // jeans: Carter’s // puppy: JellyCat}

{week 35} this week we are still battling a cold. (so much mucus!) between that & the (at least) two other teeth that are making an appearance, some naptime sleep & a lot of nighttime sleep has been disrupted… but during the day, eloise is still happy & joyful!

not much has changed this week. I think we’ve hit our new normal for at least a while. we are in a really good routine each day & it’s nice when eloise knows what is going on & I can meet her expectations. it makes it easy to know when we can go out & run errands or have play dates without being so disruptive to napping or eating, etc. the biggest things are still: solids three times a day (& figuring out how much that is!), army crawling, & teeth. two of her top teeth just came thru (left) and the other top two are going to break thru any day.

short post this week!

happy 35 weeks eloise!

M

this post contains affiliate links.

{jumper & bloomers: babyGap // tights: babyGap // bow: Lululuvs // moccasins: Freshly Picked // bunny: JellyCat (similar)}

{week 34} this week has been busy as eloise is pretty much on the move! up until last week she has rolled to get anywhere she has needed to go, & still does but has know also started army crawling. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that she has also learned to get from sitting to her tummy (gracefully). she is figuring out what her arm strength is & boy is she a quick learner! we have “baby-proofed” the house via the outlets (either plugs or new face plates) but will probably need to be mounting the TV and (maybe) putting up a gate on the stairs sooner rather than later (among other things!). we are trying not to go crazy baby-proofing everything right away since some things won’t need it. we obviously don’t want to wait for an accident, but some things seem a little overboard.

eloise has also been teething these past weeks which has resulted (I think) in her middle-of-the-night wake-ups last week. those have finally stopped (knock on wood!) & she has been sleeping really well. just yesterday morning I noticed that you can see the white little bud of her left front tooth popping thru. those three teeth (the two front & the right incisor) have been trying to come thru for weeks now! when eloise first got her two bottom teeth, it was really hard to see them since she would stick out her tongue if you tried to open her mouth. now she proudly shows those little pearly whites off with her grins & smiles. the top teeth are harder to see since her lip is in the way (obviously). it is so crazy to think that our little one is already getting teeth!

I almost hate to bring it up because it is going so well, but sleep (particularly napping) is really going well. eloise still naps three times a day & starts showing signs of sleepiness like clockwork (eye rubbing & yawning) even if she is playing & seemed wide awake just a second ago. lately when I have put her down in her crib to zip her into her sleep sack before story time, she will grab her lovie & her pacifier. I could probably just turn on on her white noise & turn off the light at that point, but she LOVES books & I enjoy the cuddle time.

happy 34 weeks eloise!

M

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{chambray: babyGap (similar) // leggings: Target // moccasins: Freshly Picked}

{week 33} this picture is such a good representation of eloise lately – she is always babbling & talking, & she is curious about everything. the chat bubble (no surprise) ended up in her mouth during this photoshoot which I thought was funny since it’s, well, a chat bubble.

this kiddo is constantly on the move, whether it is her foot tapping, her arm waving, backwards scooting on her tummy, rolling everywhere & anywhere, or pulling up on things (like the arms of her nursery glider to see over the edge). eloise isn’t quite doing the rocking on her hands & knees yet, but is definitely making a move towards army crawling. if she wants something, she will reach towards it, but hasn’t get made the move forward if she is on her belly & something is just out of reach. she will, however, push herself backwards if she is on the hardwood floors until she gets to where she wants or gets stuck.

sleeping has been a little challenging this past week since we think she is getting three (yes, THREE!) top teeth, including her two front ones. her little gums are swollen & you can see the outline of those little chompers just waiting to break thru. naps have been pretty consistent & she is taking at least one, if not two, really solid naps every day, but nighttime sleep is another story. she is still going down well after her bedtime routine (which now includes a bath since dinner is always such a mess!), but she is really fussy between 1 AM and 4 AM. so just enough time for me to get a few hours in before I am up with her 4 to 5 times & then she will go to sleep for a bit just before she wakes up to eat between 4:30ish & 6 AM. she doesn’t seem to be able to do more than about a 3 hour stretch of sleep these days. poor kiddo. her fussiness is different though than it has been in the past since she will cry & fuss but she won’t be awake. sometimes you can go in & she will take a pacifier & continue to sleep peacefully, but a lot of the time she will just continue to cry or even yell a bit. she doesn’t seem really upset though while she is sleeping & the other night she woke up after a crying-while-sleeping fit & was super smiley & happy when she saw me standing over her crib. so weird. I am hoping this is just a phase & she will move onto better sleep really soon!

solids & eating are going well still, & eloise expects two meals a day (lunch & dinner). I am still offering a mixture of hand-held solids (BLW) & purees which seems to be perfect for her. eloise also learned how to drink out of a straw this week & I have been offering water in a (straw) sippy cup after each meal. it was a little tricky to get her to understand the concept of a straw, but this article was super helpful & lays out really good steps. eloise has a cup that has both a sippy cup top & a straw top, but we found the sippy cup top to be really difficult for her since you basically have to turn the cup completely upside-down in order to get water out. some time soon we will tackle that, but for now the straw works wonderfully. eloise also is learning & perfecting her pincher grasp. I introduced ground turkey last week & she was able to pick up a piece that was on her tray & eat it – it was pretty impressive! sadie has also discovered pretty quickly that if eloise is in her highchair, she should be close by because food will magically start appearing on the floor. I believe this is the start of a beautiful & lasting friendship!

happy 33 weeks eloise!

M

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{top: Carter’s // jeans: babyGap (similar) // moccasins: Freshly Picked}

{week 32} this week has been all about teeth. eloise has been cutting her bottom two teeth for some time. the right one is very visible, & the left is well beyond just a little white spot. I just assumed that her two front teeth would be next (since that has been the typical growth pattern for all of eloise’s friends) & although those front teeth look imminent, it is actually the one to the right of the middle that has made it’s entrance. aaron discovered it this weekend & we didn’t even realize eloise was cutting that tooth since she didn’t seem fussy/drooly/stuffy/etc.

beyond growing teeth, eloise is busy. she is constantly moving (even in her sleep – she is all over her crib!) & never staying still. I think this is good practice for, well, the rest of her life. if eloise is being held, she either wants to be facing you & poking or pulling at your hair or nose; if she is nursing, she is constantly looking around & grabbing what she can & waving her arms; if she is on the ground, she is rolling & scooting around; & if she is sitting, she is tapping her (right) foot – tap, tap, tap!

eloise can also sit completely by herself now, & since she can pretty safely get down to her side or tummy from sitting, it feels much more real. you can set her down now on her playmat on her bum & she will play independently. she loves to pull everything out of her toy baskets, examining each toy & tasting any tags she can find along the way. I find that I am often putting toys back in the baskets for her after playtime since it makes me feel better (organized!) & eloise prefers a cleaned up playspace – win-win! I know it will get old very soon for me to continue cleaning up toys, but for now I don’t mind & I find that it also increases eloise’s exposure to some toys that may otherwise be forgotten. that said, when (if at all) did you mamas out there start rotating toys? we have toys in the living room, toys in the diaper bag, & toys in eloise’s nursery, but I haven’t started rotating things out yet (but would like to at some point).

happy 32 weeks eloise!

M

P.S. only 20 weeks left until she is one – where did the time go?

this post contains affiliate links.

{chambray shirt: babyGap // leggings: Gymboree // moccasins: Freshly Picked}

{week 31} so this is fun: see eloise 31 weeks in my belly!

this week seems like it is just setting our new normal. not a lot of exciting things to report or any big changes.

eloise has been consistently taking three hour plus naps a day – hooray! sometimes she will wake up 45 minutes or so into her nap & start to talk to herself (or her lovie I suppose) & then soon enough she is back to sleep. it has been nice to know she is sleeping well during the day & that it is so consistent since that makes it easier for me to plan my days! sleeping at night is going well, but eloise has been waking up fussing around 3 am for the past few days. that isn’t too fun since she is still waking between 4 and 6 am for a feeding. just as I am getting back to sleep it seems she is waking me up again! I have definitely been taking advantage of eloise’s morning naps lately to get a little more shut-eye of my own. plus, who wants to be dressed before 11 am anyways?

eloise is still a roly-poly & will pretty much flip over immediately whether you put her down on her back or on her tummy. she doesn’t seem to mind the hardwood floors at all, despite having blankets down in her playspace in the living room. she is engaging so much with toys these days & often lights up when she sees a specific toy. sitting is also still going well & she is getting better at it each day.

food & eating is eloise’s new fascination. any food that she sees she thinks she is meant to eat! we have been continuing with the purees & BLW which is going so well. I am still liking the combination of foods. eloise has eaten everything we have offered her, & even though she always makes a face on her first bite of food, she happily eats. yesterday I roasted sweet potato spears & cauliflower, & she was delighted. I have been trying not to share any of my own food bias & introducing her to a wide spectrum of food (broccoil & cauliflower are not my favorites). I also introduced quinoa which is a nice change I am sure from just the fruits & veggies. she doesn’t quite get eating it by herself, but seems to enjoy it mixed up with pureed food. we are still working on teaching eloise how to drink from a sippy cup & straw, but she mostly just wants to play with the cup. oh well. we have lots of time before she will really need water for hydration.

happy 31 weeks eloise!

M

{dress: Crewcuts // leggings: babyGap}

{week 30} I am not sure what about 30 weeks feels so old, but it does! eloise – you are growing up way too fast! all of the updates for this week are in eloise’s seven month post from yesterday {HERE}.

happy 30 weeks eloise!

M

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{shirt: Carter’s // jeggings: Carter’s // moccasins: Freshly Picked}

{week 29} this week just flew right by! eloise has been such a happy kiddo, despite her first tooth that is moving into her mouth. at this point you can see the top of it & feel it (razor sharp!). it doesn’t seem to be bothering her too much at this point which is great since it was doing a great job at disrupting naps last week.

sitting is going well & each day it seems like eloise is getting sturdier. she will still bail or just fall over pretty often, so she needs spotting, but I know that pretty soon she will be sitting on her own. she is still excellent at rolling & now rolls towards whatever catches her eye – baby-proofing commence!

earlier this week I took eloise to a local swimming pool with another mom friend & her daughter. it was the first time eloise had been in the water other than the bath, but since we are hoping to start swimming lessons next month, I figured I should introduce her sooner rather than later. she definitely wasn’t sure at first. I sat down with her in the very shallow end (it was just a few inches) and let her sit & splash. the pool had a lot of fountains & water features which I know she will love when she is older, but I think they were a little scary. we pretty quickly moved into the “hot tub” which eloise seemed to enjoy. the water was warmer, it was a smaller pool, & only a few other people. eloise enjoyed floating on her back & holding her feet (happy baby pose!). I also put her on her tummy & she actually kicked around a bit. she’s not a huge fan of water on her face, but there were some splashes & she did really well! this made me really excited for swimming lessons & also for this summer!

eloise is so vocal these days & is constantly blabbering or cooing. she loves to talk when we are driving & also when we are walking around which catches the attention of lots of strangers everywhere we go! we still think she is saying “yeah” as well as “da” & “ga.” she has put together “da” a couple of times, but hasn’t really gotten to “dada” yet. I am working on “ma” as her next sound! eloise also does this thing where she opens & closes her mouth like she is talking, but she doesn’t make any sounds. it is like she is practicing, but doesn’t want to be too loud. usually after she does that a few times she will start softly making sounds & then get louder & louder. our bets are that eloise is a very vocal child!

eloise is still loving her exersaucer & has really learned to stand up & bounce in it! I try not to put her in it for too long each day, but it is so nice if I am in the kitchen trying to cook or clean up. she is such an active roller that I have to have eyes on her all the time if she is on her play mat. plus, it is great for eloise to have the opportunity to be up off the back of her head, which is one big thing her PT had suggested for gaining neck strength & movement.

solids are still going really well (other than the on-going diaper rash… boo. I may need to take her into her pediatrician if it doesn’t clear up in the next few days?). eloise is really enjoying eating still & seems to like everything we have offered. we recently tried zucchini & carrots (cut up in big, long sticks & roasted with olive oil) & she loved both! I have been doing one serving of puree & one serving of hand-held solids. that seems to work pretty well & give eloise a good variety of taste & texture. she is pretty much feeding herself with a spoon & also drinking water out of a sippy cup with help.  I think next week I will start adding solids around lunchtime too (right now we only do dinner).

happy 29 weeks eloise!

M

this post contains affiliate links.

{sweater: babyGap // leggings: babyGap}

{week 28} busy, busy is how I would describe this week! eloise is constantly in motion & always wanting to go, go, go! rolling, sitting, & standing with support – where did my teeny, tiny baby go?

even though I have claimed eloise has been “teething” since the new year, I am only now sure that she is getting teeth. it is tricky to see since she sticks out her tongue every time you pull down her bottom lip (it’s cute, really!), but there are in fact two little teeth trying to make an appearance. I have been able to get eloise to open wide by opening my own mouth & she mimics me – also so cute!

another thing this week has brought is eloise’s first diaper rash. maybe it’s the teeth or solids? not sure. it isn’t too bad & doesn’t seem to bother her too much, so that’s good. I have had her in disposables only so I can lather on diaper cream {I have been using this one from the Honest Company & really like it so far!} but am super open to suggestions!

eating is going really well still & we have introduced a few new foods: avocado & prunes. broccoli is also on the menu for this week – whole, not pureed – just as an introduction. eloise will feed herself purees with a spoon (we load the puree on first) & is really loving BLW solids (so far just apple slices & banana segments).

eloise’s dexterity & coordination continues to amaze us as we watch her develop at lightning speed! she can transfer things from one hand to the other, & rakes her fingers over different fabrics & objects. she also does this insanely cute thing where she will look at something & study it in her hands, & then raise her eyebrows – it’s adorable & I wish I could get it on video!

crawling doesn’t seem imminent based on eloise’s lack of knee use while on her tummy (watch me eat my words!) but she is a roly-poly little bug. if she is down on her playmat or a blanket, or in her crib, she is all over the place! she sometimes still gets stuck on her tummy at night & fusses, but will go right back to sleep once she is rolled (or more recently she will just sleep on her tummy too). we definitely need to baby-proof at least our living room since eloise is definitely mobile!

eloise is also still such a chatty little one! she is most vocal in the evening times (when papa gets home!) & during diaper changes. she often talks to herself while playing with toys & it is endlessly cute! there aren’t any definite consonants, but so many types of sounds. aaron & i do both think she says “yeah” though.

happy 28 weeks eloise!

M

this post contains affiliate links.

{onesie: Carter’s // cords: babyGap // Jellycat penguin}

{week 27} this week eloise has really been showing us her personality – so sweet, happy, & funny. she constantly has us laughing with her giggles & chattering. she is such a tiny human now, like a real little person {& not just a baby}. I think we are getting thru the “blob” stage of babyhood & into the more interactive stages!

eloise is all about sitting, rolling, chewing, & babbling these days. in constant motion & doesn’t miss a thing! she watches everything & you can see her little brain working a mile-a-minute – it’s amazing! we are still working on sitting since eloise is still pretty wobbly, but she can sit by herself if someone spots her or if she is against the Boppy pillow. rolling, on the other hand, she can do all by herself & can even get around her arms {that was a tricky one to figure out!}. on occasion at night I have noticed that eloise sometimes get stuck on her side with her arm at a weird angle behind her & wants some help, but mostly she has got rolling down. this also means tummy time is pretty much non-existent since as soon as she is on her belly, she flips over!

this past week or so eloise has also started showing a bit of separation anxiety. we have an exersaucer plaything in the living room right next tot he kitchen doorway where eloise hangs out a lot while i make dinner (since she is within earshot of me & can’t get into too much trouble). a few times this past week she has been really fussy if i am in the kitchen & she is in her exersaucer. as soon as i moved right in front of her, she was fine. this was at the end of last week, following two sets of immunizations (we spread her 6 month shots over two days since it included the first flu vaccine dose) so i am not sure if that had anything to do with it or not. as much as i know separation anxiety is really normal for babies, especially starting at this age, it is so out of character for eloise that it is throwing me off!

happy 27 weeks eloise!

M

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{tee: babyGap (old) // leggings: babyGap (old) // moccasins: Freshly Picked}

to celebrate valentine’s day {& mama’s birthday!}, eloise is pretty much wearing hearts all week! I did eloise’s big 6 month update on the blog this week. see it here.

happy 26 weeks eloise!

M