Five Months Old

Carolyn was five months old yesterday.

Here she is showcasing her newest talent (and her old talents of slobbering, spitting up, and displaying her wide array of facial expressions):

Sorry about the quality of pictures - we were outside and it was getting dark. I still have no idea how to use my camera in that situation. Any tips would be appreciated.



Chubby Thighs

This is mostly for Holli, since she gave us this super-cute outfit, but I just can't get enough of these chubby little thighs:

Fresh and Clean

I'm sorry, but her facial expression cracks me up.

Ode to Spit-Up

So.

My baby spits up.

I might have mentioned it.

Three-gajillion times.

Mostly because it kind of consumes my life.

When you put her on her tummy, without fail, she vomits.

It doesn't matter if it's been ten minutes or three hours since she's eaten, barf-a-roo.

Nine times out of ten, she rubs her face in it before you can get to her to wipe it up.

Incidentally, right after these pictures were taken, I was carrying Carolyn upstairs and she hurled down the back of my shirt and in my hair.  Then, she turned her head and ralphed straight down the front.  Nothing like cleavage full of throw up.

Awesome.

Carolyn Loves Her Daddy

Solid Food

Last night we made apple crisp for the church activity.  Here's Carolyn helping me out:

FREE!

Nothing makes me laugh more than first thing in the morning when we let Carolyn out of her swaddle:

Making Progress

Carolyn started grabbing her toes the day after Thanksgiving.  She rolled from front to back several times that day.  She hasn't done it since.  Apparently she feels about rolling over the way her Grandpa The Paul felt the time he accidentally drank some whiskey - if you've done it once, there really is no need to ever do it again.  The look on her face in this picture cracks me up.

She's kind-of-sort-of holding her own bottle.  If you put her hands on it, she can pretty much keep it where it needs to be.  Unless you distract her.  Then she pulls it into her chest in a death grip.  Maybe she's scared it's going to be taken away.  This is a girl who loves her food.

Other things she's doing:

- She will roll up on her side but ONLY if she needs to get to something or if she wants to see the TV.

- We practiced sitting up yesterday morning.  It went very well beside the fact that she pukes all over the floor as soon as she slumps forward even a little.

- And speaking of spitting up, it's not getting any better.  If anything, I'd say it's gotten worse over the past couple of weeks.

- She got a little rash in her armpit, which was taken care of in 24-hours with some Corona ointment.  Forget Butt Paste, Desitin, ect, this stuff is magic.  If you've got kids, you need some.  I read about it here.  I also bought the Mustela shampoo she mentioned - it's FABULOUS.

Jump Jump - The Live Version

Thursday night when I got home, I put Carolyn in her jump jump so I could make some dinner. 

She was jumping up a storm, giggling and smiling, so I thought I'd take the opportunity to get some video evidence that she's actually a very happy baby.

However, just as usual, as soon as she spotted the camera, all the fun stopped. 

I think she's half Aborigine and believes the camera will steal her soul.

I tried everything.

I sang.

I danced.

I baby talked like never before.

Here's what I got (please disregard the spit up on her face and the wonky camera angles...):

Sleeping Baby

This is how Carolyn looked after getting her four-month shots:

My Day

1.  I practiced my parallel parking skills just now for the first time since coming home from Japan.  The Paul would have been proud of my technique.

2.  On my way out of the place I was eating, a man hit my perfectly parallel parked car.  Awesome.  The good news is THE TANK took no damage.  Let's hear it for the Geo!

3.  My boss just asked me if I know of a good "groomer".  I thought he meant for his dog.  I told him I'd ask my sister-in-law where she went for her cocker spaniel.  He said he just wanted a hair cut for himself.  Well, whatever.  Stop using words that don't belong.

4. After much research, it has been determined that baby Carolyn prefers Pitbull and Katy Perry to lullabies. 

5.  I put a new air freshener in my car today.  It smells like fruity alcohol.  At least what I picture fruity alcohol to smell like.

6.  Carolyn flipped from her back to her tummy twice last night.  I'm unsure whether it was a skill learned or a complete accident.  I'm leaning toward the latter.

7.  Carolyn had her four month shots today.  She cried real tears.  The nurse said to me, "You've got to be one of the least dramatic mothers I've ever met.  Most mothers bawl their eyes out when their babies get shots."  Ironic, don't you think, that I'm so calm when it come to Carolyn getting shots and so hysterical when I have to get my own.

8.  Rao's Bakery has the best hot chocolate in town.  Period.

9.  I took my resume to a spa today.  I had no idea I'd get an impromptu interview - I was wearing flip flops and a sweatshirt and carrying a still-screaming infant.  It could not have been more awkward.

10.  I also stopped by the daycare to finish up some paperwork.  I almost had another nervous breakdown.  There were five of the nine babies screaming.  And the workers could only handle two at a time.  Plus, the daycare director kept calling me "Baby" and "Mama" and "Love" and "Precious".

Jump Jump

This weekend, I had a brilliant idea.

To buy Carolyn a jump-jump.

Because she likes to kick her legs so much, I figured bouncing around in a jump-jump would be second nature.

This is pretty much how it went:

She used the side to chew on.  For twenty minutes.  I would swear she's teething, but she's been doing that since she was born.  The very first casualty?  My nipple.  Just so you know.

Then, when she was done slobbering excessively on the kitchen floor, she decided a nap was in order.



A really long nap.



With even more slobbering.

Carolyn's Future Boyfriend

The day after Thanksgiving, I was able to hit up Thanet's in-laws for a second Thanksgiving dinner (many thanks, in-laws!  I love you!) 

Fried turkey, bacon explosion (more on that later), mac n' cheese, football, and yes, time to nuzzle baby Mitch's cheeks. 

I think Mitch might have thought the cheek nuzzling was weird.

I can't help it.

Baby cheeks are just like cats to me.

I have to touch them.

Before coming home, I forced Thanet to make Mitch to do a photo shoot with his future girlfriend.

Good grief, but who knew it would be so hard to get a good picture of two babies?

Mitch was smiley, happy, and giggly.

Carolyn was stoic.

Then, she was mad.

Then, she screamed her head off.

It might have been because Mitch was trying to gnaw on her head with his two cute little teeth, but whatever.

Most of the pictures turned out blurry and non-centered, but here are my faves:


Mitch goes in for the kill:

Is it just me, or is this one Matrix-esque?  Carolyn was throwing a fit, but it looks like Mitch took her down:



 Could the looks on their faces be any funnier??



 And, could they look more different??

I think mine kind of looks like this:

Minus the smile, of course.

Fan-Freakin'-Tastic

1.  Husband watched Carolyn on Saturday so I could go to Harry Potter with Shannon, Marshall, and their friend, Nichole.  It was weird to be at a movie with someone other than Husband - no hand to hold, and no popcorn to steal (because as he'll tell you, I never want popcorn until he has some).  Either way, I really enjoyed the movie.  I mean, other than the fact that some of the camera effects made me dizzy, reminding me that I'm getting old.  And, I really, really missed Hogwarts.  Oh, and I'm pretty sure I grabbed Shannon when the snake came out of the old woman.  I'm sure Shannon enjoyed it.

2.  I had a friend ask for a massage this weekend.  It was almost like Christmas for me.  I pulled out my table, sheets, heating pad, and best lotion.  I love the feeling of knotted muscles under my fingers.  It always amazes me how the body protects itself, how the body works.  I'm the Stevie Wonder of massages, I like to close my eyes and feel how the muscles (especially those in the upper back and neck) come together.  I know that all sounds really creepy, but I promise it's not.  At least I don't think it is.  Is it??  Crap. 

3.  It never ceases to amaze me how long some people will wait for a parking space.  At the grocery store on Saturday, I had an entire cart of groceries to unload when a car stopped right behind me to wait.  I swear, it must have taken me ten minutes to get everything in the trunk and the cart back to the cart rack.  They waited the entire time, honking when I made the move to take the cart back.  Seriously??  In that amount of time, they could have been half-way done with their shopping.

4.  Husband made bacon wrapped shrimp and dirty rice for dinner last night.  It was gorgeous.

5.  I had the most luscious dream this weekend - me with a flat, non-stretch marked tummy.  I was quite upset when I woke up and it wasn't true.

6.  The Tummy Toucher told me the other day that if you have an account at a certain credit union, they are giving out $1,000 loans, no questions asked.  When I asked it what the interest rate is and when she has to pay it back, she had no idea.  And people wonder why there are so many defaulted loans and why America's in a financial crisis.

7.  We didn't go to church yesterday.  I woke up smack-dab in the middle of another panic attack regarding putting Carolyn in daycare.  Chest pain, stomach cramps, etc.  I need some peace of mind or else I'm going to go nuts.

8.  And speaking of daycare, I went to visit another daycare center on Friday night.  It made the first daycare look like a luxury hotel.  This one looks like an insane asylum.

9.  We bought our turkey on Saturday.  It's thawing in the fridge.  Husband looked up the recipe last night.  Ugh.  I can hardly wait.  That turkey is the most delicious thing on the whole damn planet.

10.  Carolyn will meet her Grandpa for the first time this week.  He's so lucky to get to meet her now - she's really getting to be so much fun.

How Carolyn Feels About My Camera

Four Months

Carolyn is four months old today.  We did our customary weekend photo shoot.  Instead of her happy side, Carolyn decided to showcase her sassy, sultry side (and also her ability to expel an amazing amount of spit)  - as she usually does as soon as the camera is in sight.

Here's the entire set, if you'd care to see them.

Carolyn's four-month-old abilities include:

batting toys

slobbering

babbling

smiling

kicking her legs

fitting her entire fist in her mouth...but not keeping it there

sleeping through the night about once a week

flirting with every male in sight

looking cute

What we're working on:

excessive spitting up

rolling over - she rolled over several times about three weeks ago but hasn't since

hand control

napping on her own



Just Like Her Daddy

I put Carolyn down on the couch the other day so I could make her bottle.  When I came back, I was greeted by a familiar sight:

Looking just like her daddy!

The look on her face when she's surprised/scared cracks me up:

Catching a Smile

I pretty much spend all weekend, every weekend, trying to catch a picture of Carolyn smiling.  I know.  My life is awesome.  And totally interesting.

When I try to coax a smile, I usually get something like this:

Or this (don't you love the hat?  She didn't.):

When I hand her off to Husband, without even trying, he gets this (but only if I keep my distance with the camera):

I'm sorry, but that's a cute baby (even if the pictures are blurry).

There's Something About a Sleeping Baby...

Carolyn Rolls Over...

First...

And then....



And then...

Ok.  So I didn't get any more pictures.  Mostly because she completed the roll-over and I started to screech - literally, screech about how I have a genius child and how good she did and how relieved I am that she rolled over because I was scared she was going to be developmentally delayed.

She took it all in stride.

Bless her heart.

She's got a crazy mother.