Our Elsa, The Model

Check this out. Elsa landed her first modeling gig. Cool, right? I sent the bonnet seamstress a message letting her know that I received the replacement bonnet she sent (she was extremely nice and let me send the first one back because it ended up looking like Elsa would grow out of it too quickly) and to thank her for her excellent customer service. I also attached a photo of Elsa in the bonnet, and told her how much I loved seeing her in her new hat. She liked the photo so much that she asked if she could use it on her Etsy Web site, to which I replied, "Of course!" She would like to do this entire page using photos of Elsa, so I am going to take some better shots and send them to her soon. Very fun.

Elsa's New Bonnet

How cute is this baby bonnet? When I saw one of these on a friend's baby registry, I just knew Elsa had to have one. She was in need of something to keep her face out of the sun when we go on walks and such, and this just seemed perfect. If you look at these photos and feel a bonnet like this is as much of a necessity for your little one as I felt, then take note that I have a link to the seamstress's Web site in the Etsy box on the right-hand side of the blog.

Foodie

Elsa is really -- and quite literally -- into her food these days. She is still primarily nursing, but she has now tried acorn squash, green beans, carrots, and sweet potatoes, and she seems to like them all. What is next on the list? Probably peas and avocado. Yes, avocado is technically a fruit, but it's definitely not sweet like one, and it is just so chock-full of good fat. Soon we will likely introduce some protein (what, I'm not sure) and then fruit last. I am definitely enjoying this stage. I guess it is just something new, but it is also simply fun to watch Elsa experience new things.

Keep on Shining

Just a little something to brighten this rainy day...

Grandmommy Helms

Elsa was paid a special visit by her Grandmom Helms this past weekend. It was really nice being able to spend some time together, and Elsa really enjoyed all the additional attention, despite the fact that she seemed to really have some sleeping issues over the couple of days -- but that could have been due to the excitement of having other people around. Who knows -- it's all a guessing game.

We took advantage of the nice weather on Saturday afternoon and took a stroll over to McKoy Park and let Elsa swing in the baby swing for a bit. I put her in the swing for the first time last Thursday and she seemed to like it, so we wanted to let Daddy check out her new skills. There was a little girl (probably around four years old or so) at the park who was quite intrigued with Elsa, and insisted on pushing her on the swing and giving her a hug. It was cute, but we had to explain that Elsa was still somewhat fragile and not ready for extreme swinging. We had to also squelch her desire to hold Elsa while sliding down the slide (she saw Elsa and me sliding and immediately climbed up to join in on the fun).

Elsa also rolled over from back to tummy and then back over from tummy to back for her daddy and grandmom on Saturday (Jarrett caught the first half on camera, but missed out on the second roll), and I finally witnessed it for myself yesterday afternoon when she repeated her moves. She also reached out for Jarrett yesterday when he went to take her from his mom, making it the first time she has reached for either of us. And she is able to sit up awhile longer on her own before toppling over sideways. Big stuff -- our little girl just continues to grow and develop!

First Veggie

Here is Elsa watching Mama blend (with handheld stick blender) the acorn squash she baked. (I first tried the regular blender, but have decided that ours is just plain worn out from all of the frozen margaritas made over the years, as it did not blend worth a squat, and Elsa cried over the horrendously loud noise it made. However, she seemed to find the stick blender quite amusing. She just laughed and laughed as I blended away.)


Here is the said blended acorn squash, mixed with some water.


And here is Elsa enjoying her yummy meal. There were a couple of funny faces involved, but overall she seemed to like it. Yay!

Six-Month Appointment

Elsa and I went to see Dr. Owen yesterday for Elsa's six-month appointment, and things seemed to look a bit more positive this time around. Elsa weighed in at 14 pounds, 8 ounces -- an increase of 11 ounces. She is still around the 25th percentile in terms of her weight, but she is leveling off on this new path and not dropping anymore, so Dr. Owen is not concerned. She thinks her body is just figuring itself out. It seems the measurements for her head circumference and length were off, but I don't fault Dr. Owen -- Elsa was having a hard time at the appointment yesterday. She was extremely tired and cranky, and basically just squirming and screaming her head off while on the exam table. I guess we will wait and see what those measurements are like in another month. She received two more shots, which just made her all the more happy -- both of these were just secondary doses of vaccines she received at previous appointments.

The good news is that Dr. Owen thinks the yeast is gone, and now the little red dots/rough patches that are left on Elsa's diaper region and over various other parts of her body are eczema-related. Because the eczema is still present, the doctor does not think it is related to a dairy/soy allergy since I have avoided both of those since the last appointment. She said it is not a bad enough case to be overly concerned at this point, and that we just need to keep an eye on it and make sure it does not get any worse, especially as we introduce new solid foods into Elsa's diet. I personally think the eczema has improved somewhat, so I am going to remain off dairy and soy at least through the next week (especially since I have already planned out the menu for the week), and then possibly reintroduce soy into my diet first and see what happens over the next week. If things still seem okay, I will reintroduce dairy and see what happens.

As for Elsa's food, I am fairly excited about letting her try new things. We are going to start with some vegetables, and since I am going to the Farmer's Market today, I think I might start by pureeing something on my own. My friend, Natali, let me borrow a cookbook, Feeding Baby, which contains recipes intended for grown-ups, babies, and, in some instances, both. I doubt I will have the time and/or energy to make all of Elsa's food (we'll see), but I think it will be fun to at least attempt. I will probably end up buying some jarred food from the Earth's Best line as well -- especially for when we travel. I asked about introducing a sippy cup, and Dr. Owen said that when it gets warmer I could start trying to offer water in either a sippy cup or a small cup, but she said it was not a big deal to start this right away.

The only other news I can think of related to the appointment has to do with me. I asked Dr. Owen if my weight loss could have any affect on the milk I am producing and, therefore, Elsa's weight gain, and she said no. But she did say she noticed that I have lost quite a bit of weight. I am pretty sure I weigh the least amount I have ever weighed in my adult life, and I am eating -- I promise you that. So we decided it would probably be good for me to make an appointment for myself just to get things checked out. She mentioned hyperthyroidism, which I looked up and read about online. I fall inline with several of the symptoms, but am definitely not experiencing all of them, such as trembling/shaky hands, which is apparently a big one. Who knows. Anyway, I scheduled an appointment for a physical at the end of April, which was the first available appointment I could make. That is quite some time off, so obviously if things get any worse, I'll go in sooner, but things seemed to have leveled off. For now I'll just continue to eat my snacks of bread smothered in peanut butter. Hey, I could have worse problems, right?