Breastfeeding, Formula & Pumping: An Update at 11 Months

^^^Using my last bag of frozen milk. 6/13/16

I’ve gotten a few questions here and there about my breastfeeding journey, and I’ve mentioned it in passing in the last few monthly R updates, so I thought I would pop in to share in a bit more depth what has been going on just in case any of you are interested. Please feel free to email me and/or leave comments or follow-up questions below!

I initially wrote a post about breastfeeding back in February, so read that if you want more information about the first few weeks and months. In that post, I was a month into pumping at work, and I wrote that I was having trouble pumping enough for R’s bottles. Well, long story short, I was never able to pump enough for her bottles, and over the next few months it only got worse. I went from pumping 5 ounces at a time to 3 to 2, and on my last day of pumping at work, I got 1.5 ounces total from two sessions. At that time, R needed 12 ounces a day of pumped milk, so you can see the problem.

Ultimately the decision to stop pumping and supplement with formula was not something I chose myself but was chosen for me. I wasn’t getting enough milk, and formula was necessary because I wasn't with her during the day to nurse. It took a while for me to accept the fact that we would need to give R formula and I wouldn’t make it a full year of exclusively breastfeeding. 

It’s not that I ever had a problem with formula. I had a problem with quitting. 

I felt like I was giving up, like maybe if I stayed up late or got up early to pump just a little bit more, I could get enough for her. And there were many nights when I did stay up late and days I get up early to pump, adding a few precious ounces to those already sitting in the refrigerator.

But I eventually decided that the stress and tears were not worth it, and I got a canister of formula when she was 8.5 months old. We started out mixing formula in with pumped milk for her bottles, and she did great with it, which simultaneously made me feel extremely relieved and extremely insulted that she didn’t notice a difference between my milk and the fake stuff. (I’m only sort of kidding about that last part.)

After a few weeks, we gave her a full formula bottle, and she took it just fine, which I am so thankful for! I continued to pump at work, but the stress was lifted to get enough to fill her bottles, and we mixed in my pumped milk with formula for her daycare bottles. I was able to breastfeed in the morning and night during the week days and all day on the weekends. However, I definitely started to notice a supply drop on the weekends since I was pumping so little during the days. It took a long time for my milk to let down, and R would get really mad about it.

I decided to stop pumping at work when R was 10 months old. I was consistently only getting 1-2 ounces a day, and we had used up every single bag of frozen milk I had in the freezer. It just wasn’t worth the effort for me to mix a few ounces in with her formula bottles for daycare. 

R is still breastfeeding in the morning and night and taking bottles with 6 ounces of formula during the day. She is doing very well, and consequently so am I. Pumping had become something I dreaded every day, and it is a relief to not have to do that anymore. I am fine now, but making the initial decision to supplement with formula and ultimately quit pumping, as much as I hated it, was very hard for me. Again, I have no problem with formula, but I just felt like a quitter and a failure for not being able to continue to make pumping work for us. It felt like a competition with myself, and I hate losing. Not to mention that I have friends who have babies the same age as R who are working and pumping just fine. But as I’ve learned, everyone is different, and comparing is not only useless but just plain dumb.

I love nursing R, and as she has gotten older it has only gotten easier. She is eating on a more regular schedule, less often during the day, and she and I both know how to do it so I am so much more comfortable feeding her anywhere we go. Plus, it’s free and in my opinion easier than washing bottles and making sure we have formula on hand. I plan on continuing to nurse in the morning and at night as long as my supply keeps up or until she and I decide it’s time to quit.

I don’t exactly know what I did expect, but I can tell you that I fully did not expect breastfeeding to be such a huge commitment, on my body, my emotions, my time, and, let’s be honest, my daily wardrobe choices. I will forever be grateful I have been able to nurse R as long as I did, and I have so much more understanding, compassion, and respect for the decisions that moms make to feed their babies, whatever that looks like.

And to all you working, pumping moms who might be reading this: solidarity, sisters. I am giving you a gigantic high-five through the screen. You rock.

Frustrated by [Lack of] Fitness

*Yes, I am still rocking the giant, old-school Garmin. If it ain't broke, don't spend money you don't have on a new one.

Can I get real with you guys today?  

I have been extremely frustrated by my lack of fitness lately. I genuinely enjoy running, and over the past few months I’ve gotten into more at-home workout videos and even some yoga. I love getting my heart pumping and working my muscles, but I just don’t think I’m ever going to be one of those people who exercises on a consistent basis. 

This year I have really kept trying and trying to start a fitness routine, and it’s been a giant fail. I know, I have a baby and I need to give myself a break, but I don’t want to use that as a crutch. I'm not talking about losing weight here. Personally, I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight, but I just feel better about myself, my eating habits, and my body when I’m exercising, and I want to set a good example for my children too.

I’ve noticed that I will do really well for a week and then something will derail me. Either I’m not at home for the weekend or R is sick or I’m sick or it’s ten thousand million degrees outside and I feel like I’m sitting on the surface of the sun if I even open my front door.

The struggle is real.

I don’t really have a point to this post other than to admit to you that I’m frustrated. Working out is something I enjoy, but it’s not always something I want to do, if that even makes sense. But I will keep pushing, and I will try not to let myself get discouraged when I miss a day or two or ten. I will celebrate the little things like getting out for a three-mile run instead of feeling lame that I “only” ran three miles instead of six. We can be really mean to ourselves, can’t we?

 So here’s to trying to get back into a groove, whatever that looks like. Join me, won’t you?

What is your exercise of choice? Do you struggle to stay motivated to work out?

Related: How to Start Running Part 1 / 4 Tips for Fitting a Workout in a Busy Schedule

Illinois, I Love You

Last weekend, I took R with me to Illinois for a fun girls' weekend! In case you haven't been around very long and are confused about my obsession with Chicago and all things Illinois, I grew up in a Chicago suburb and went to a small, private college less than an hour outside Saint Louis. My grandparents and some aunts, uncles, and cousins live in Illinois, and I still have college and high school friends I keep in contact with who live all over the state. I've been back many times in the past eight years I've lived in Oklahoma!

I was nervous to take R on an airplane by myself, but she did great on both flights. (Just as an FYI, I reviewed my post on traveling with a baby, and everything was applicable this time around. I essentially did everything the same! Southwest Airlines did need to check her birth certificate, so I was glad I had brought a copy. Neither American nor United checked it when we flew with her in March.)

We flew into Saint Louis, where a college friend picked me up from the airport. We went back to her house, where R and my friend's daughter had a good time playing together. They are just two weeks apart in age! The cuteness was too much to handle.

Then, another college friend drove down from Springfield, IL, and picked R and I up so we could spend the weekend at her house. She has a three-month-old, and I was so excited to meet him! I want to be respectful of my friends and their babies on the Internet, so I won't post pictures, but just imagine the cutest thing you've ever seen and you can pretend you were there. While you're doing that you can imagine R swatting him in the face and trying to sit on him.

Our flight was early Thursday morning (5:30 flight), and we came back Sunday afternoon, so R and I partied hard for close to four days and had a lot of fun. Never in my life would I have expected to have fun with a ten-month-old, but it's a real thing!

^^^She slept great in the pack-and-play for the three nights we were there! After she woke up to eat around 5:30, I brought her in bed with me and we slept a little longer. We also took a few naps together in the afternoons, and it was glorious. And sweaty. She is small, but she is a giant furnace.

One highlight was R's first trip to the pool! The first time, she didn't like it so much and basically cried the whole time and glared at everyone. We went back the next day, and she seemed to enjoy it much more as long as she was holding on to me.

^^^ Two different days, two different swimsuits! Both from Target for less than $10. The hat is from Gymboree from my mom. I die.

^^^ My friend's air conditioner broke while we were there, and Springfield was setting blazing temps, so it got toasty in their house. At one point I gave R a damp towel to cool off, and then she wore it around like Mother Theresa and I couldn't stop laughing. Also, that tongue is out all day every day. 

Also x2, I tried off and on to put a bow on her throughout the weekend and see how she would do. She went in long spurts where she left it on, but ultimately it always ended up in her mouth. We still have work to do!

She did so great on both flights! I nursed her during takeoff, and then she promptly fell asleep and woke up right as we were landing. She laughed and clapped and cheesed it up to all of our seat mates, and it really couldn't have gone better. Plus, I didn't throw up, which was a legitimate fear of mine after last time coming back from Virginia when I used the barf bag twice in a row. I have problems.

I'm so thankful for friends in exotic locations like Saint Louis and Springfield to spend the weekend with. I'm also thankful for $89 flight deals from Oklahoma City to Saint Louis, which is basically the only cheap place to fly out of here. Amen.

Easy Father's Day Gift for Dad or Grandpa

Now that Father's Day is over, I wanted to share with you the gift R and I worked on to give Jordan and her grandpas for Father's Day! I couldn't share before, because Jordan and my dad read my blog, and I didn't want to ruin to surprise. 

When I was in Illinois a few weekends ago, my friend Justine showed me this idea that she had found on Pinterest, and I thought it was so cute! We made the sign and posed our babies for these pictures, and then we printed out the photos, got some frames, and wrapped up this super cute Father's Day gift.

It's too late for this year, obviously, but maybe this is something you want to do next year! Although I will warn you that it is ridiculously hard to get a ten-month-old to pose with a sign while looking at the camera. She kept trying to eat or or throw it or crawl on it!

I am so thankful for Jordan and how well he loves us. He truly is my better half, even though sometimes I forget. And I'm thankful for my dad and father-in-law, who light up when R is around and are such wonderful, godly examples of how to be a good father and husband. We are blessed!

Some outtakes for you!

Struggle Bus, Party of One and a Half

I wish I could say that I've spend the last week on vacation at the beach, and I've been too busy to blog because I'm working on my tan. But sadly, no. I've been sick, and it's been terrible. Other than my post-pardum recovery, this is probably the worst I've felt for the longest period of time in my life. R has also been dealing with her second ear infection, so basically it's been a hot minute since everyone in my house has been well at the same time.

I'm cautious to speak too soon, but the medicine I'm on appears to be working, and over the weekend I felt better than I have in two weeks. So yeah. I really want to share some stories and pictures from my trip two weekends ago with R to visit some friends in Illinois, but like I said, I've been busy trying to keep my insides from killing me while we chase R around the house.

So instead, I'm just going to share five things other than illness that have been going on lately:

1. At the end of May, my grandparents stayed overnight at our house. They live in Illinois but were driving to Texas for my cousin's graduation and stopped in Oklahoma to say hello. They hadn't seen R since she was 6 weeks old, and it was so much fun to reintroduce them! 

2. I realized when I got home from work on Friday that R and I matched. It was totally accidental, but I didn't hate it, which is saying something if you know how much I hate matching.

3. That picture up there at the top of this post? That's from our most recent drive to Texas. That is just one side of the rainbow, but we could see the entire arc all the way to the other side. THEN, the skies cleared up and we were treated to the most beautiful sunset. God is a master painter.

4. I don't have a picture for this, but I recently bought these curtains for my big front window! They are exactly what I was looking for, and my obsession with Wayfair continues. Fast shipping, great prices, and such a wide selection! Plus, they have awesome customer reviews, which helps with my purchases. I'm not being paid to say this. I just seriously love them.

5. I took this picture of R and Jordan when we were in Texas earlier this month, and I love it so much that I made it the lock screen on my phone. Her face and that hat and the jean shorts kill me.

This week I am setting the bar low and just hoping for no explosive poops and no one to projectile vomit. (Sadly, I'm not just talking about the baby.) Happy Monday, everyone!

On Prayer

For the past few months, God has been teaching me about prayer. 

I'll be honest, it always sounds kind of odd to me when someone says they feel like God is teaching them such and such. I mean, is he talking to you? Did you get a postcard in the mail?

But a few months ago I felt an urge to learn more about prayer, and a series of things happened where the topic of prayer was pushed right in front of my face, from sermons at church to podcasts I listen to while I run to lessons in the Tuesday night Bible study I'm in. I have also been reading a book that my dad let me borrow called Prayer: Does it Make Any Difference? by Philip Yancy.

As a Christian, I know that the Bible calls us to pray. But why? If God knows everything and has an ordained plan for the world (which I believe he does), then what is the point of praying?

In the wake of tragedies such as the recent shooting in Orlando, I see social media flooded with mentions of prayer. Pray for Orlando. Pray for the families. Pray for our country.

I always find it interesting how some people can want little to do with God or church or prayer until something bad happens. Admittedly in my own life, it's easy to forget to pray when things are going well, but when someone I love is sick or I am feeling stressed out, I find comfort in prayer.

And yet, there are times when I can't help feeling like prayer is a waste of time. After all, there are dishes to clean and laundry to fold and a baby to feed. When I'm praying, I'm not doing anything. I can say I'm praying for Orlando, but what difference is that making?

Over the past few months, I have become convinced that prayer is important and certainly not a waste of time. Of course, there is no way I can write out all my thoughts on the topic in one blog post, and I would never attempt to assume I have all the answers. But I have been wanting to share with you some of the things I've been learning, and now seemed like a good time.

If nothing else, we should pray because Jesus did. The Bible is littered with the prayers of Jesus, and he even spent time explaining how to pray to his disciples, so we have to believe that prayer is something we should do to. I think it's also important to keep in mind is that prayer is not just a catch phrase or a nice hashtag. If I tell someone I am praying for them, I need to actually pray for them. I try to be very careful about saying I am praying about this or for that unless I intend on actually doing it.

Philip Yancy wrote this in his book: "For most of us, prayer serves as a resource to help in a time of testing or conflict. For Jesus, it was the battle itself." Then, Yancy quotes from another source, saying: Where was it that Jesus sweat great drops of blood? Not in Pilate's Hall, not on his way to Golgotha. It was in the Garden of Gethsemane. There he 'offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One who could have saved him from death' (Hebrews 5:7). Had I been there and witnessed that struggle, I would have worried about the future. 'If he is so broken up when all he is doing is praying,' I might have said, 'what will he do when he faces a real crisis? Why can't he approach this ordeal with the calm confidence of his three sleeping friends?' Yet, when the test came, Jesus walked to the cross with courage, and his three friends fell apart and fell away."

Prayer is not just a throwaway but a real place where we wrestle with God. The world is beautiful, but it is fallen. Bad things happen that we can't expect or explain, and trials come that we wish we didn't have to walk through. I find comfort in our ability to come to God with our fear, anger, and despair and talk to him about it. He knows everything we think, so we don't have to hide or pretend or worry about offending him. In a world where we are all so afraid to offend, this is rather freeing.

Here's Philip Yancy again: "What is God doing in the world? The answer is another question: What are God's people doing? Those we minister to, Christ ministers to. Those we forgive, Christ forgives. And more to the point, those we pray for, Christ prays for."

Prayer is an action in itself, but we should be careful that it is not a substitute for physical action. I believe that we should pray and we should look to find ways to help in a tangible sense. It's not one or the other. Jesus himself prayed and healed the sick, the blind, the deaf. Paul prayed for the churches but also visited them or wrote letters. I admit that there is often more I could do to find ways to help.

I don't understand how it works, and I won't this side of heaven, but I believe that when we pray for others, they are strengthened and comforted. I have started being more intentional about praying for Christians around the world, praying for my pastor, and praying for those who are hurting. And as I pray, I also need to be aware of ways I can offer physical help.

There is so much more I'm processing about prayer and so much more I'm learning. I am practicing how to pray and trying to be intentional about carving out time for it. I still have so many questions, but I am encouraged by what the Lord has been teaching me so far.

I was listening to a sermon on podcast while out on a run a few weeks ago, and the pastor said something that I can't stop thinking about (my paraphrase): If we knew everything God knew about his plan laid out since the beginning of time, about how all the pieces fit together and how the path twists and turns, we would answer all of our prayers the exact same way he does.

In case you find yourself today wanting to pray about the recent tragedy in Orlando but not sure how, you might find words here: A Prayer for When You Don't Know What to Say.

And I want you to know that I do pray for you, the readers of this blog. My hope is that you are strengthened and comforted today.

- - -

"In short, prayer invites God into my world and ushers me into God's. Jesus himself, who spent many hours in solitary prayer, invariably returned to a busy world of weddings, dinners, and crowds of sick and needy people. He rejected Peter's suggestion to build a tent on a mountaintop and returned instead to the masses below. Following that pattern, I look for ways to bring the two worlds together, God's and mine, to let them become one." - Philip Yancy, Prayer

Related: Verses for Peace and Joy

Month Ten

R has been a lot of fun this month! We are loving this stage and just think our little girl is the best. Here's what she's been up to lately:

Eat

We have made it ten months breastfeeding! Last month I mentioned that we were supplementing with formula for the two bottles she takes during the day at daycare. We finished the canister, and I realized that I had two grocery bags full of frozen breastmilk, and why wasn't I using it? So we went through the breastmilk I had in the freezer, and I continued to pump a couple of ounces at a time during the workday. As of TODAY, I am officially out of frozen milk, I am not pumping at work anymore, and we are doing formula during the day now. It burns me a little bit that if I weren't at work and pumping, I would be fine and have enough milk! But it is what it is. I hope to be able to continue nursing in the morning and at night, but we will see what happens.

In the news of solids, R is a fantastic eater. She LOVES to eat. In the mornings we feed her scrambled eggs, cheese, bananas, and blueberries. In the evening she eats whatever we are eating. The only thing she doesn't seem to like is ground beef. And the other day she refused to eat chicken until we put some BBQ sauce on it. Funny girl!

Sleep

Honestly, sleep is hit or miss. She goes down around 7:30 and falls asleep quickly, but after that it's anyone's guess what she's going to do. Sometimes she wakes up crying around 11 or 2 or 4 or... well, you get the idea. Jordan and I often think that we could have eight more kids because R is so much fun, but it's the sleep that will get you. We have been letting her cry it out in the night if she wakes up, and a lot of the time she will go back to sleep after 10 minutes or so.

Play

BIG NEWS this month! R is crawling! She isn't up on her hands and knees; she's more of an army crawl kind of girl. And speedy! We can tell she wants to stand, and she's getting stronger on pulling herself up but isn't quite there yet. It's crazy to see her moving all over the house now, and we have to make sure to keep an eye on her.

She started doing this really funny thing where she blows bubbles on people and on her own hand and arms. It's hilarious. R also started clapping this month, which is SO CUTE.

She can also go from lying down to sitting up. The first time she did it, I missed it! She was at my feet in the kitchen, and when I looked down, she was sitting up and looking at my like, What's up, Mom? Over the next week, she did it about four more times right in front of my face before I finally saw her in the act.

Now there are only two months left until the big one zero! I absolutely do not feel like I've been doing this mom thing long enough to have a one-year-old, but I guess it's true what they say: time really does fly. Love my girl so very much.

Month One // Month Two // Month Three //

Month Four // Month Five // Month Six // 

Month Seven // Month Eight // Month Nine

Something I Always Say

I saw this quiz on Facebook recently and thought it would be fun to ask Jordan these questions about me! Here's what he said:

What is something I always say?  
Can you get me [insert thing]?

What makes me happy?
R

What makes me sad?
Taking R to daycare

What's my favorite thing to do?
Play with R

What do I do when you're not around?
Blog or play with R

What am I good at?
Seeing things from a different perspective than me.

What am I not good at?
Not taking criticism as a personal insult 
^^^ I RESPECTFULLY AND INDIGNANTLY DISAGREE

What is my favorite food?
Ice cream or cookies

Where is my favorite place to eat?
A good burger place
(Amen, brother!)

What do we do together?
Watch cooking shows
(Most recently we've started going through "Worst Cooks in America" on Netflix. So funny!)

How are you and I the same?
We both love R and we have a shared faith
(We are Christians, in case you didn't know!)

If I could go anywhere, where would it be? 
Europe
(We've been saving for a trip for, like, ever. Europe, I haven't forgotten about you!)
Related post: My Trip to Greece

How do I annoy you?

When you act like I'm incapable of doing basic household chores when in reality I can do them, but I just like to do them in my own time and not as quickly as you want to do them.
(On all the other questions he had to think, but he had no trouble coming up with an answer for this one.)

What is your favorite thing about me?

Your sense of humor

So there you have it! Did you sense a theme? Apparently I like my daughter. New mom no shame, y'all.

What is something you always say?

What makes you happy?

p.s. One year ago, this happened. One of the craziest and most amazing things ever!

Introducing Foods to Your Baby

When R got old enough to start eating food, I found the whole thing to be very overwhelming. I have some friends with older kids, and I asked them what they did just to get an idea of what others were doing. 

There are a lot of different opinions about how to introduce foods to your baby, and I don't believe there is only one way or a right way to do it. As long as you are feeding your baby something and your baby is growing, you're doing it right. Ultimately, you have to do what makes you the most comfortable and what you feel is best for your baby. 

I wanted to share what we did/are doing with R. I hope this is helpful to anyone who is approaching this stage!

Homemade Purees

We started R on homemade purees at six months old. I really wanted to make my own purees, and I was happy to discover that it's pretty easy to make your own baby food! The process is literally this easy: steam it, blend it, freeze it in cubes. Some foods like mangos and blueberries you don't even need to steam! When you are ready to serve the puree, just pop a cube or two out of the freezer, microwave it for 10-15 seconds, and serve! Alternatively, you can take the cubes out of the freezer 24 hours in advance, and they thaw in the fridge overnight. 

Below are my favorite products for making your own baby food.

1. Nuby Garden Fresh Freezer Trays

These are perfect for freezing and storing your homemade food cubes! What I love about these is that they come with a lid. Each cube is 1 oz, so you know exactly how much you are feeding your baby. They are made of silicone, and in my experience, cubes pop out easily from the tray.

2. Ninja Master Prep Blender

I don't think you can beat this awesome little blender for the price. I'm obsessed with it. I used it for making R's food and also make smoothies and blends with it for me! Note: it is made of plastic, not glass.

3. Pampered Chef Micro-Cooker

I've been using this for years for steaming our own veggies for dinner, and I used this for steaming all the fruits and veggies for R's purees!

*If you are the type to like books, I highly recommend this book, which I used to get flavor combinations and for tips on how best to puree different foods.

Food Pouches

Baby food pouches have been working very well for us. They are especially handy when we are traveling or when we want to feed R something but don't want to deal with a mess. As she's gotten older, I try to buy more advanced combinations of pouches for her. I've done the math, and it is cheaper to make your own baby food, but R loves the pouches, and they are very handy. They come in 4-oz portions, and you can buy them at Target, Walmart, etc. I have also seen pouches at Aldi! They are cheaper but a bit smaller with 3.2 ounces.

// Related Post: Traveling with Your Baby

Baby-Led Weaning

When we first introduced purees, R took a while to get used to it. Each cube was 1 oz, and she would eat maybe one third of the cube in one sitting. After a few weeks, she starting eating more and more, and by eight and a half months, she was eating 2-3 full cubes at a time and still acting hungry. It was at this point that Jordan and I decided to start trying baby-led weaning. 

Here's the thing you need to understand about baby-led weaning: Don't be intimidated. It's a fancy term for giving your baby table food.

I asked a few friends of mine about baby-led weaning because I didn't understand how to do it. And then I had a lightbulb moment when I realized it was as simple as cutting up the food we were eating and feeding it to R. I feel like people are making this sound more complicated than it is. (Note: my friends were very helpful on this topic. When I say people, I mean Internet people.)

Some people like to skip purees altogether and jump right into baby-led weaning, which is, again, completely personal preference and great if you want to do that! But for us, it just made us too uncomfortable, and we felt better starting R with purees first. Looking back, I am happy with what we did and wouldn't change anything!

R is ten months old now, and anything we eat, I cut up into small pieces and give to her. She is doing so great with it! We still do give her food pouches sometimes when we are on the go or just need a quick (read: not messy) snack, but I am not making purees anymore.

She does gag sometimes, and it's terrifying, but we keep a close eye on her and have discussed what we would do if she actually started choking. It's really so fun to sit and eat family meals together at the table, and it's easy to just cut up whatever we are eating and give R.

Below are some of our favorite products for mealtime with baby!

1. Soft-Tip Infant Spoons 

These are regular, cheap spoons and have been working great for us! She doesn't use the spoon to feed herself yet, but we are working on it.

2. Boon Swap Baby Utensil

We loved these spoons for R when she was first eating purees. The tip is smaller and seemed easier for her to use. The bigger infant spoons (above) are better now that she's older and eating more at a time.

3. Stay-Put Suction Bowls

Just in the last few weeks, we have introduced a bowl for R instead of just putting the food on her highchair tray. She's actually doing really well using the bowls. Some of the reviews say these bowls don't stick, but we haven't had a problem with ours. I do wish all three bowls came with lids. Only the smallest bowl has a lid, which is a bummer. We do have some regular plastic bowls (no suction) that are working fine too!

So that's where we are at! R eats basically everything we eat, and she is loving it. The other day she ate an entire hot dog in one sitting! I was like, woah, girl, woah. I still nurse/bottle feed 5x a day, and we try to give her 3 meals a day when she's with us. At daycare, she eats at least 2x, usually for breakfast and lunch. Overall, even though it has been stressful at time, I would say that introducing foods has been fun (and messy) for all three of us. 

I hope this post has been helpful to you! Please feel free to leave any feedback or questions in the comments.

p.s. Allison shares some fun and easy baby- and toddler-friendly recipes on her blog!

What are your favorite infant feeding products?

Would you make your own baby food, or do you prefer to jump right into table food?

Currently: June

^^^A lily from our garden! 

planning

Two trips to Illinois this summer! We will be flying with R on one trip and driving 13+ hours with her on another trip, so we are planning how to best make that happen without any meltdowns from adults and/or infants. (Read: snacks)

enjoying

Currently I am enjoying a bowl of fresh strawberries and mangos. Because give me all the fruit all the time.

buying

I am on the hunt for some curtains for our front room. I also want to buy some patio furniture for our back porch!

But in all honesty, I will actually be trying to buy as little as possible this month. I looked over our final budget for May, and let's just say I do not know what happened to our grocery bill, but it wasn't good. I feel slightly ashamed looking at it. I don't even know how we spent that much! Locking it down for June.

craving

Ice cream. Always ice cream. Last year at this time I was 7 months pregnant and was able to blame that on pregnancy cravings. I asked Jordan why he doesn't run out at 9pm to get me milkshakes anymore. He just shook his head at me.

pinning
Over the weekend I made these muffins that I had pinned, and they are so good! You should try them! I made a batch to eat for breakfast all week.

What are you craving currently?

*linking up with anne and jenna.