COUCH CRAWLING

I am not quite sure what it is about the couch but Addison is a maniac on it.  She crawls on it, climbs it, rolls around & gets bizarrely excited. Maybe it's the texture of the fabric or the cushion?

I am not really sure but I do know that she LOVES to be on the couch & crawl all over it.  Today she nearly nose dived towards the floor but thankfully Philip was right there to catch her.  She is going to be 8 months tomorrow!?! INSANE!

THIS WEEK

This week...

• not only did I cook beef for the first time ever in my life but I ate beef for the first time in a VERY LONG time
• Philip planted a small garden with cucumbers, tomatoes & zucchini
• the weather was FINALLY nice enough that we got to go to the park
• I participated in a 2 hour spin event that raised money for a 10 year old little boy's foundation who has leukemia
• Addison had pureed chicken.  The verdict is still out.  Try #1 was with carrots (one of her favorites) & she didn't like it.  Try #2 was with sweet potatoes & she liked it; towards the end we flavored it with allspice & she LOVED it.  Try #3 was again paired with carrots & seasoned with paprika...she didn't like it so much so we paired it with sweet potatoes & she liked it.
• We went to the strawberry festival but it was overcast & I didn't take any pictures
• Addison learned to click her tongue 
• my new BOB came (it's sweeeeeeet)

FOOD FACES

Part of the fun of introducing new food to Addison is seeing what type of faces she'll make.  The other day I cut up a few pieces of banana & mashed it a little to make it a little softer. 

She wasn't really sure what to make of it at first.  She was clearly intrigued by the texture & moved it around her hand for a minute or so before putting it in her mouth.

  After she checked it out she very excitingly shoved it in her mouth.  Then came the faces.

She liked it for sure but had a perplexed look on her face the entire time she was eating the little pieces.  Before this she had only had pureed bananas & Trader Joes' Just Bananas flattened (sort of like a cross between a dried banana & fruit roll up; it's literally just a banana flattened out).

She enjoyed these banana pieces with a warm blueberry sauce.

 You can't see it in the picture but she has a tooth on the bottom right & another one right next to it that has broke through the top of the gum but hasn't popped out yet.

 And in true chuba-lub Hampton fashion he sat & patiently waited for something to fall.  I think he was more excited than Addison about the banana because he was expecting a puff.

Today I picked up some 100% fruit, no sugar added freeze dried mangoes & apples from Trader Joe's.  They are perfect for her to suck on & they dissolve just like puffs.  She realllllllly liked the mango, literally squealing "eeee-eeee-eeee" after she tasted it, lol.  There is no doubt she is a good little eater. 

FAMILY PHOTOS

On April 14th, after having to reschedule the original shoot (March 24) due to bad weather, we had the opportunity to work with a fantastic photographer Christina Evans.  Although it was much chillier (obvious in photos) than we had anticipated it was an absolute DELIGHT.  Christina came highly recommended by my friend Emilee who is a professional photographer.  Em is pregnant (YAY) but has been incredibly sick during her pregnancy & is taking a break from photography right now.  I had seen lots of Christina's work & love that she, like Emilee, is a natural light photographer.  Not only is she super talented but she is extremely sweet! We thoroughly enjoyed working with her!


We had the shoot just outside Greensboro in 4th of July Park.  I told Christina that I wanted an organic/natural feel & she definitely found the perfect location.  Addison was great but the weather definitely hindered her usual outgoing, always smiling personality.  Nonetheless, Christina was able to capture some BEAUTIFUL images of our little family.   

STINKY FRUIT

{SOURCE}

How can such a luscious fruit, so aesthetically pleasing, smell so horrid? It's pretty, rich orange, creamy pink/yellow color are deceptive.  As I scrapped out the seeds & peeled away the skin my nose was greeted with a rather unpleasant scent.  I cut the papaya into chunks & realized the horrendous odor was THE papaya.  Immediately I called Philip over to determine if it was in fact the beautiful fruit that I enjoy in so many fashions. Thanks to Google & Philip it was confirmed that this wonderfully sweet & buttery fruit was the culprit.  Having never cut my own before, I had no idea it was such a stinky fruit. I continued on pureeing it & portioning it into the cubes for Addison.  Papaya has tons of nutritional benefits being rich in antioxidants, B vitamins, folic & pantothenic acid, potassium, magnesium & fiber;  all of which promote cardiovascular health, prevention of diabetes, provide protection against colon cancer, immune support, lung health...the list is endless.

Addison enjoyed the taste off the spoon.  I am curious to see if we can add this to her "like" list.  So far the only thing that has made it to the "dislike" list is avocado.  She loves carrots, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, turnips, rutabaga, apples, pears, plums, blueberries, asparagus, mango, zucchini & banana; her favorite combinations is mango/banana & blueberries/squash & plums/carrots.  We are going to introduce some pureed roasted chicken this week because pretty soon she will get to have fish.  She's tried a few spices: cinnamon, yellow curry, paprika & cumin.

THIS WEEK

This week:

• another tire on the BOB went flat
• we got our proofs from Addison's photo session {I can't wait to share}
• I was able to string 3 double unders together
• Hampton got put on a diet for being 5 lb over weight
• Addison discovered Philip's guitar & loved strumming on it
• we had 2 lovely lunch dates
• we celebrated "Grandpa Tabor Day" on my father-in-law's birthday
• Addison tried a blueberry sauce & it was like baby crack
• I deadlifted 165 lbs
• the UPS man was at my house like every day
• Addison had a low grade fever (100-101) & runny nose...I think her 2nd tooth breaking through was the culprit
• I had my eyebrows threaded for the first time...HATED IT...holy cow, it hurt
• Addison said "ma-ma" but I don't think she knew what she was saying

WHAT DIDN'T GET BLOGGED ABOUT

Sunday night it was just Addison & me.  We sat down for dinner; I had curried chicken in a coconut sauce with red cabbage & butternut squash & Addison had apples & turnips.  My meal my absolutely FAN-TASTIC & there is no doubt Addison was enjoying hers.  {This little chick-a-dee loves to eat}.  I actually snapped a few pictures with my iPhone & texted them to my mum because Addison was reallllllly loving her turnips.  Both are things she has had before & done great with.  Almost immediately after finishing her meal she started rubbing her eyes & the next thing I knew she had a ring of red around her lips.  The nurse in me said "she's totally fine, her tongue isn't swollen, she isn't drooling & she is breathing normally, she is still happy, she doesn't have hives...". I waited, thinking maybe her skin was sensitive to the warm water I washed her face with but decided to pull out my stethoscope (only a mum nurse would do that). Her lungs her clear but she was getting redder & redder around her mouth by the minute & her tiny little upper lip started swelling.  I kept thinking "I don't want to be that nurse mum that thinks she knows everything & her kid winds up wicked sick but I don't want to be that crazy mum that gets all worked up over something so simple." I texted the picture to my mum, Philip & my friend Shannon & decided to call the nurse line for our pediatricians office.  While waiting for what seemed like and eternity I dialed the charge RN number to the ER I work in.  She agreed that it didn't seem systemic but passed me to one of the MD's working. He also agreed that it didn't seem systemic, told me to watch her & give her benadryl if I was really concerned. Almost immediately after hanging up the RN from the pediatricians office called me back (meanwhile my awesome neighbor/friend Shannon comes over to check on Addison), we talked everything through & decided to just watch her.  I opted not to give her benadryl because she's never had it & since it clearly wasn't systemic all it was going to do it make her drowsy (probably).  Why do these things always happen when Philip isn't around?

{pre apples & turnips}

{post turnips & apples}

A few other pictures from the weekend that didn't make it into a blog post...

{Sunny Saturday afternoon @ the farmer's market}

{Saturday brunch @ Print Works; rosy cheeks complimentary to an outdoor photo session prior to brunch}

{She was so excited}

{Addison rocking her shades in Emma's lap with Ms. Shannon...we love them}

LITTLE EXPLORER

Addison is becoming quite the explorer. I love it when something catches her eye.  She crawls (still army crawling), scoots or rolls to it & examines every aspect of it.  It makes me wonder what is going on inside that tiny little head of hers.  What is she thinking when she pushes around her little elephant toy or lunges towards her musical/mirrored caterpillar.  I was cracking up watching her play in the living room the other day (partially because of her CRAZY hair).  She would find the tiniest little fiber on the carpet or fuzz from one of the throws & pinch it between her two fingers.  She'd nearly go cross eyed studying it. One second she'd be on the blanket I had laid out & the next thing I knew she'd be all the way across the living room with her little baby doll. I laid on the floor with her with my camera pointed towards her.  Of course, being the nosy girl she is, she lost interest in what I was trying to capture her doing & became more interested in me & the camera.  I know I have said it before but I can't imagine what it would be like to see the world in a baby's eyes. 

REUNION

I could barely hold back tears as we entered Marbles Kids Museum in downtown Raleigh today.  Stroller after stroller (mostly dualies) filed in behind us & we were in a sea of beautiful babies/toddlers.  WOW, how proud Carolina Conceptions must feel...if it wasn't for them we wouldn't have our little miracles.  It definitely tugged at my heartstrings.  As I looked around I saw familiar faces from the waiting room, medication classes & just passing down the hallways...YAY for them us, that it worked! We got to hear stories from other families that struggled with infertility & celebrate with them.  Addison being a "singleton" was rare; There were twins & triplets EVERYWHERE! It was such a different interaction with the doctors & staff.  Most of the time spent at Carolina Conceptions was filled with so much let down & heartache/pain.  Today was all about celebration & joy.  How cool of Carolina Conceptions to not only have a baby reunion but to pay for our entrance into Marbles. 

Addison definitely had a great time. She is still a little small for the Museum but still enjoyed what she could.  She especially loved the fish tank, the sports area with foam dumbbells/basketballs, gymnastic rings, coloring in the art station & playing outside.  She loved all the attention & definitely enjoyed playing with the other babies too.  Wow, what a neat day today was.