Swimming!

Last Saturday, I had a date planned with some girl friends to go meet for a Ladies Day and baby shower at Inspirations Tea Room. I had a wonderful time discussing grown up things and talking about babies already here and babies yet to come. While I was away, Zoe was able to spend the afternoon with Grandma Linda and Grandpa Gary at their house. Grandma Linda and Zoe had a great afternoon together. Grandma Linda carried Zoe around in a snugli carrier and they did yard work and then had lunch. After the baby shower, I went back out to Grandma Linda's to pick Zoe up. Before we went home, we had to make sure to let Zoe try 'swimming' for the first time. Grandma Linda had a cute little duck floating seat and the hot tub was the perfect warm bath temperature (the pool isn't ready yet). So, Zoe got in her swimsuit and they hopped in the hot tub. I'm not sure what I was expecting. Delight, horror, crying, laughing, anything.... Zoe was so unimpressed. Just floated in the water, looked around and kicked a lot. I (of course) have video but it's 3 minutes of Zoe floating around looking pretty nonchalant about the whole thing. And a couple of still pictures as well: After about 5 minutes, Grandma Linda pulled Zoe out of the floaty to see if she would react to being in the water more. Nope! It just made her sleepy. I need to do a full 7 month update. Hopefully I'll have time this weekend. We are all looking forward to a quiet weekend spent at home with no activities planned! I can tell you that Zoe loves her solid foods. She loves bananas (probably her favorite), peaches, pears, apples, sweet potato, carrots, green beans, & peas. She'll tolerate her meats if they are mixed with something else; turkey, chicken, beef, and ham. Squash and avacado have to be mixed with something really yummy or she won't eat them. We are trying leeks and white potatoes this week. As soon as the summer crops come in, my plan is to go to the farmer's market and get some fresh organic fruits and veggies for her. I'm still making home-made baby food for her with the exception of meats. The meat thing just doesn't work well at home. But, I found a good commercial baby food that just has meat and gravy. No additives or chemicals. She did roll from her back to her tummy but neither her Daddy nor I saw it. We both walked out of sight getting ready for dinner and when I stepped back in a few seconds later, she was on her tummy! She hasn't done it since then but I know she's smart enough to realize that rolling from her back means she'll end up on her tummy. She's not really crawling yet but she's trying as hard as she can. She can stand for about 3-5 seconds before her little legs collapse under her. Still not sitting unassisted but getting closer each day. She's still blowing some razzberries but not as much as when she first learned how to do them. Her two new 'words' are blah-la-la and ma-ma-ma-ma. Don't think that ma-ma-ma-ma is her saying Ma-Ma, it's just her babbling. Her new trick is to open and close her mouth like she's chewing something but there's nothing in her mouth. Her Daddy taught her this and he gets a kick out of seeing her do it. Finally, we have a set bedtime routine that is working well. Once she starts the eye rubbing, Daddy and I go into the nursery. One of us holds her and rocks in the glider while the other one reads. It usually only takes 10 minutes before she's out. Oh, and the WONDERFUL thing is that she's pretty much sleeping through the night now. She does wake up still at odd hours but for the past few weeks most nights she makes it until 5 am or later before waking up.

Peas

Quick and short post tonight. Zoe decided 5am to 6:20am was prime play time this morning so I'm exhausted. I'm hoping she sleeps better tonight. I think I've figured out she's cold natured and sleeps much better if it's a little chilly in the house. Last night when she woke me up at 1am for a feeding, I checked the thermostat and it was 80 in the house. We tried leaving the windows open but it seems that Oklahoma only provides a breeze when it's 30 degrees or 95 degrees, not when it's 68 and humid. Anyway, it was a rough night last night for me and a long work day so you are getting a short post. Be sure to check the Flickr pictures, I uploaded several tonight. Here's a short video of her enjoying her peas. So messy! And, I don't think I've blogged this video. Zoe playing on the floor making all kinds of noises. Excuse her outfit, she normally matches but this was the day of non-matching stripes!

This is...

This is.... What a happy clean baby girl looks like: What you can do with flexibility: What a big girl looks like in her Grandma's high chair: What a sleepy girl looks like when she's snuggled in her grandpa's arms: What a happy, drooling girl looks like after a day with Grandma: How sweet Zoe is with another baby at daycare: Finally... This is how silly Zoe and her Daddy can be: