6 Months

Dear Lilah,
Good morning beautiful! We have been together (earthside at least) for ½ of a year now, and I have to say, life is just getting better and better with you around. I feel like I just woke up this month and you were a big girl all of the sudden. I thought I would be envious upon seeing newborn babies, but I’m not! You are so much more fun now than you ever were before.
We started out this month with your first ever horseback ride; for your 5 month birthday, we headed down to Alvin, where Napoleon, the uber-friendly miniature horse, graciously allowed you to sit upon his back. You loved it! You smiled and laughed the whole time. I foresee many more rides in your future!
This month you started sitting up on your own like a champ! You literally went from falling over constantly to sitting up unassisted in one day! You love sitting in the floor of my closet playing with toys while I get dressed in the morning. You have become slightly mobile this month; if I leave you on the floor you can flip over and launch yourself forward a few inches at a time. It isn’t the most graceful movement I have seen, but it seems to work. This month, you can now string together multiple consonants including, “bababa”, “mamama” “gagaga” and “nanana” Your favorite word the other day was “mamababa” you kept repeating it until you were nearly hoarse that evening. This month you went to the park for the first time; you went down the slide with Daddy and got to go on the swing as well. You had so much fun, that you passed out in daddy's arms on the way home.
This month you took your first visit to the Brazoria County fair! It was here that you bought your very first cow in the heifer auction. Daddy helped you with the bidding, but the card had your name on it! Your cow now resides at Grandpa’s in Alvin!
This month you had many visitors; Nana and Grandpa came down from North Carolina to see you, and you also got to meet Grandtom and Emily! You have now officially met all of your great-grandparents!! Despite Nana’s attempts to feed you everything from limes to cinnamon raisin bread, you still haven’t given solids foods a try just yet. Hopefully in the next few weeks, we can start playing around with some new foods. You are still nursing around the clock, but have spread your feedings out to about every 3 hours (sometimes more, sometimes less).
I am not sure what your weight is right now; I believe it is somewhere around 16 pounds. We are delaying your 6-month check up due to the fact that the Dr.’s offices are filled with patients infected with seasonal flu and swine flu. Since, we are all happy and healthy at home, we would like to keep it that way!
We are rounding out this month with Halloween preparations! Nana and I took you to the local pumpkin patch for pictures, and your costume is ready to go; it is so stinkin’ adorable I have to stop myself from dressing you up in it everyday!
As we get closer to the holiday season, I find myself getting more and more excited about having the chance to share these special times with you. You are growing so fast, and I never pass up a chance to squeeze you real tight and nuzzle my nose into that sweet neck of yours. I love you Bean, and I can’t wait to see how you will continue to amaze me this coming month.
Love,
Mom

Pumpkin Patch Kid

I have gotten so lazy about updating the blog! I would love to say that things have been busy and that I have been running around, etc..., but the truth is that I have just been lazy!!
Yesterday, me and Nana took Bean over to the local pumpkin patch for some cute photo opportunities. Let me preface this by saying that pumpkin patches, in my mind, encompass all that is wonderful in the world... cool weather (theoretically..not always a guarantee in South Texas!), babies in cute outfits, earth tone colors, family outings, tradition, hot chocolate, festive vegetables! It is all fabulous!! I seriously love nothing more than plopping a baby down in the middle of a pile of pumpkins and taking a picture. Babies in bluebonnets are a close second, but they lose because of spring shower threats, hotter weather, and fire ant hazards.
Anyway, here are a few pics of the Bean at her first pumpkin patch:

5 Months

Lilah,
Another month crept up on us again! I have to say that this past month has been the most fun month of your life so far. In the past 30 days, you have made the transition from hungry, sleepy newborn into a laughing, talking, mobile, interactive baby! Here are some things that you did this month:
We drove to Lafayette, Louisiana (your parents’ hometown) to see our friends Travis and Heather get married. Heather tried to steal you all weekend! You enjoyed dancing the night away with everyone at the reception (including the bride and the groom). It was a special night for us because Heather, Travis, your Father, and I all grew up together, and it was neat to see all of the high school sweethearts finally married! I hope that you and your siblings will have the chance to hang out with the future Coleman children! While in Lafayette, you met another set of great-grandparents. You had a great time laughing and smiling with Maw and Paw!
This month you went in for your 4-month check-up where the Dr. confirmed what we already knew (that you were growing perfectly!) You rounded out this month weighing in around 14 pounds, 12 ounces. You have become quite the talker this month. You have mastered the art of the “mama” babble and are quickly leaving the newborn cooing behind you. This month you have also decided that you can grab anything and everything within your reach! While cutting coupons one day I had you sitting in your bumbo seat watching me. This is the same routine that we have every Monday morning, except this time when I looked up from an ad I found you stuffing an entire page of the newspaper into your mouth!!
Nana and Grandpa drove down from North Carolina to visit you this month. You and Nana played peekaboo until I thought you would pass out from laughter!
This month we also drove to Dallas to visit Uncle Dave and Aunt Lauren. You attended your very first themed birthday party! You were the cutest little pirate I have ever seen! Your outfit was complete with a sword, an earring, a bandana, and several skull and crossbones patches.
You still love bath time (and water in general)! You are spreading out your nursing sessions to every 2-3 hours during the day and have recently picked up a snack time session in the middle of the night. Luckily, neither of us seems to fully wake up for the nighttime feeding so no sleep is lost. You and Daddy are still enjoying your weekly date night while I go to yoga. You and your father are two peas in a pod! As soon as he gets home in the evening, you two are outside feeding chickens, watering plants, harvesting veggies, or just hanging out on the back porch. Anytime we go out to dinner, you sit on his lap the whole time! You guys are inseparable (I’m only there as a food source ☺)
Lilah, this month has been a fun one! You have been a joy and a blessing! I am still finding it hard to believe that we are worthy of such an awesome gift! We love you more and more everyday and hold you a little closer every night. Seeing you grow so quickly has made us realize more than ever that these nights of cuddling will end sooner than we can imagine!
Hug and kisses forever,
Mom

Road Trips & Weddings & Doctors, Oh My!

Busy! Busy! We have been busy the last week or so! Last weekend we drove to Lafayette, LA to see our long-time BFF's Travis and Heather get hitched!! We had a blast seeing everyone; Bean was an absolute angel, of course ;) She was passed around by everyone! I barely even got to see her at the reception. Here is a picture of Chris (groomsman) and Lilah at the wedding:

She, of course, had a cute dress for every occasion. She wore a white dress to the rehearsal dinner (couldn't be rude and wear white on the wedding day!), a big frilly pink dress to the ceremony, and a more casual coral dress (better suited for dancing) to the reception. We were also able to visit with all of our family in Lafayette; it was great to see everyone again!
Today she had her 4-month check-up with the pediatrician; he said what he has always said: "She is perfect!" We LOVE our pediatrician!! He always has to steal a hug from her at the end of every appointment and say that he is going to steal her! She weighs 13lbs. 7oz. (lighter than I thought she'd be but still 55th percentile); she is 24.5 inches long (51%) and her head is 43cm in circumference (91% Still has a huge noggin!) We are still waiting for her to start receiving her vaccines. When we got home from the Dr. today, Lilah was playing on the floor while I worked on dinner. I didn't hear her playing for a few minutes, and when I looked over the bar into the living room, I saw this...

Apparently, she wore herself playing so much! And yes, she is still gripping the hanging toy as she is sleeping!!

4 Months

Dear Lilah,
Today you are 1/3 of a year old! We have had many fun times together this month. At the beginning of this month, you were finishing up our trip in Florida. You spent your first night in New Orleans where Daddy carried you around in the sling all day. You were intrigued by the many interesting sights (and smells) of that city! You took a carriage ride around the French Quarter and got sprinkled with powdered sugar while napping at Café Du Monde.
You are right at the 14-pound mark now! This month you have discovered the glory of your own toes! You love to pull your legs up and grab onto your toes. It makes changing your diaper quite difficult. You started rolling over just one day shy of your 4-month birthday! You can now successfully roll from your back to your tummy! Once on your tummy you look around for a few minutes and then start fussing until I roll you back over. You have become increasingly vocal this month; you seem to discover a new sound that you are capable of making, and you repeat that sound over and over again until you come up with something new. Your laugh is starting to sound more like a grown-up laugh this month; you are especially giggly when Daddy blows raspberries on your neck! You are grabbing at everything including hair, noses, glasses, etc… You kept pushing Daddy’s menu off of the table the other night at dinner. You have fun laughing and watching the toddlers play at our weekly breastfeeding support group and cloth diaper playgroup.
You are still nursing around every 2 hours during the day; you still mostly sleep through the night, but you sometimes wake-up once at night for a quick nibble. You now get to hang out with Daddy every Thursday from 7:00-9:00pm because I am finally getting back into the yoga studio! I was nervous the first time, but you and Daddy have a great time going shopping and walking around local stores. I have to make sure to fill you up before I leave because we recently discovered that you absolutely refuse bottles!! You have no idea how to eat from a bottle at all; it is pretty funny!
This month you also had fun at the farmer’s market on Saturday mornings, you silently take all of the sights in from the safety of your sling. You also went to your first Astro’s game! Daddy scored dugout tickets from work; you slept through the majority of the game, but you will have plenty of opportunity to enjoy the games in the future. You also took your first trip to Aggieland where you got to sit in Mommy and Daddy’s old booth at Fitzwilly’s. Perhaps you will spend Friday nights with your friends in that same booth one day! ☺
It has been a fast and fun month BG (now pronounced as beege); I can’t wait to see what happens next!
Love,
Mom

525,600 Minutes...

August 18, 2008: One year ago today, I woke up after Chris had already gone to work, peed on a stick, and three minutes later was greeted by this:

August 18, 2009: Today, I woke up after Chris went to work, rolled over and was greeted by this:

Amazing how much your life can change in just one short year!!

Think Globally, Eat Locally!

Sorry again for the lack of posts lately! I sat down to write 100 times and never got to actually post anything!
So to catch up first; we had a fabulous time in Florida! We rounded out the trip with a quick overnight trip in New Orleans.
While on vacation, I finally got around to reading Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. . It documents a family's mission to live on locally produced foods only for a year! I highly recommend it to anyone involved in agriculture (HINT: If you eat, you are involved in agriculture!!) I also recommend reading The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. I can't wait to see Food, Inc., a new documentary with a similar message. Over the last two years, Chris and I have really made strong efforts to become better stewards of our environment. We have made a conscious effort to eliminate any material that we feel is not a safe option for ourselves or our environments. Everything from soap, shampoo, household cleaners, laundry detergents, medications, diapers, wipes, sunscreen, etc... to food options, food packaging, recycling, etc... It was been an exciting journey and this past weekend we were ready to take it to the next step. I finally decided that I was done paying a premium for commercially produced organic meat in the grocery store because 1) it is wildly expensive and 2) I still have major issues with the questionable farming practices and insane transport of said meat. I found a family in Brenham that raises their own grass-fed cows, pastured pigs, and free range chickens! Saturday, we drove out to beautiful Brenham, TX where we were graciously greeted by Jason Kramer of Yonder Way Farm. We spent an hour or so chitchatting with Jason about sustainable farming practices before loading up our coolers with over 40 pounds of meat and heading home.
There is something special about sitting down for a meal at home and knowing exactly where this meat came from. I know for a fact that the chicken we eat tonight lived a happy and healthy life at Yonder Way. If I ever needed to know anything about our meat, I can pick up the phone and call the Kramers (at their home!) and ask any question! Can you say the same about the food you buy at the grocery store?
We have now completed a major step in our plans to eat as locally as possible! Our local organic produce co-op provides us with a mystery box of fresh veggies and fruit every Wednesday! Now that we get our meat, produce, and eggs from local sources, we need very little from the grocery store (rice, olive oil, flour, pasta, etc...) It makes you feel good inside to know that you are doing what is best for your family and that you are supporting other local families!!
To finish up this post, I leave you with a picture of the Bean at Fitzwilly's in College Station next to our initials (written in 2006, I believe, in the booth we sat at EVERY Friday night while at A&M)

Three Months

Dear Lilah,
Today, you are three months old! I cannot believe how fast the time is passing. At this very moment I am sitting on the bed staring down next to me at the most beautiful sight a mother can see. You and your Daddy are snuggled up next to one another! This is our most favorite part of the day! Everyday you wake up around 6:30am for your first meal of the day. You always fall right back asleep when you are done, and I bring you in under my arm while we roll over for a nap. On the weekends your Daddy gets to have you for this special naptime.
We are celebrating your 3 months this week in Florida at an amazing beach house with all of your crazy family! Today, you will experience the ocean and the sand for the first time.
This month we have seen so many changes; you are holding your head up so well now; you love “standing” on people’s legs while they hold you up. It has become a game to get you into the sling; you always lock your knees and stand in the sling until you get tired and collapse. Daddy always jokes about “karate-chopping” the back of your knees to get you to sit down. This month you started really playing and interacting with your toys for the first time! I can lay you on the playmat and you will talk to your toucan for quite a while. Your hands have become much more tactile; you will grab my fingers and bring them to your mouth. You like to reach for my hair and rub the strands together while you are nursing. You are so expressive now; it is so much fun making you laugh! I tell everyone that you are an aggressive smiler; you literally use every muscle in your face to produce the biggest smiles I have ever seen. The last few days you have also started to roll from your back to your side and vice versa. The first time you did this you were on the play mat; I placed you on your back and when I returned a few minutes later you were on your right side laughing at the koala bear hanging above your head!
This month you were quite the traveler! You flew to North Carolina to visit Nana and Grandpa for the 4th of July; you were such a pleasure to bring on a plane. You also took your first long road trip. We make the 9.5 hour trek to Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. We stopped for the night in Pascagoula, MS on the way here and you had your very first hotel experience.
Lilah, thank you for the last three months! We are starting to look back through all of your pictures and see that our baby girl is really starting to grow up. The love that our family shares for one another grows stronger and stronger as the days pass. Thank you for teaching us the true meaning of unconditional love!
Love,
Mom

On the Road Again...

In just three short days, we are departing for our week-long stay in Florida. We are staying in the same amazing beach house that we had last year in Santa Rosa Beach (just outside of Destin). I am currently in the middle of my "go crazy making lists of lists" phase that I go through before any vacation. Chris' dad booked this vacation right after we found out I was pregnant; we reserved a week at the end of the summer because traveling with a 3-month old sounded much less scary than traveling with a 1-2 month old. The North Carolina trip was a good practice run! We discovered that we really didn't need a whole lot more than when it was just the 2 of us! She has a little bag with her clothes and another bag with her cloth diapers and wipes, her soap, and a few other items. Other than that, we are only bringing a little playmat and some small toys for the car! She sleeps with us and still only needs the boobies for food, so she is good to go!
I have been couponing for the last month and collecting food that I could bring with me because the only store near the house is an overpriced crowded Publix in an expensive beach community! We are trying to only have to buy milk, bread, eggs, etc.. there.
I am so ready to relax at the house for a week and soak up some rays! It is going to be great to have grandparents, aunts, and uncles around to see Lilah Bean. She probably won't be put down the entire week!
I will definitely be posting some pictures to the blog while we are there so be sure to check it out!!
For now, here is my little helper this week...she can't carry luggage very well, but she sure is cute!

Dr. Dr. Gimme the News...

(I have this thing with song lyrics and post titles :)
Today Lilah had her 2 month check-up with Dr. Injac, a.k.a. the most awesome pediatrician ever!!! She is still perfect :) She weighs 11lbs 2oz (50th percentile), is 23 inches long (75th percentile), and her head is 16 inches around (90th percentile). Not sure where she got that big ol' noggin from? We discussed her vaccine schedule again...
Before I was even pregnant I started reading all of the scientific literature regarding vaccines and decided that we would probably not follow the standard AAP vaccine guidelines when we had kids. I continued my research while I was pregnant and decided on a delayed vaccine schedule. We spoke with our pediatrician at length when I was pregnant about the matter; we discussed our home life, daycare options (or lack thereof), and exclusive/extended breastfeeding, etc... Basically we decided, for our family, it was best for us to delay the start of Lilah's vaccinations until she is 6 months old. So as of now, she has yet to receive any immunizations. I couldn't in good conscience willingly expose her to known toxic components during such a critical developmental time period (especially since I worked so hard to limit her exposure before, during, and after my pregnancy). I find something fundamentally wrong with giving a 1-hour old baby a vaccine for Hep B, a virus transmitted through bodily fluids (IV drug users, sexual transmission, or exposed healthcare workers). Seeing as I know, for a fact, that I do not have Hep B, I knew that my child was safe during delivery, and I don't see Lilah becoming a drug addict or having unprotected sex in the next 4 months ;)
Anyway, I could go on all day about that debate, but back to happy stuff...
We are getting settled back in at home after the NC trip just in time to start getting ready for Florida!!! B.G. is super stoked about her 1st long road trip!

Later Gators!!!