I can't believe how big, smart, cute, and just plain sweet Brynlee is now. Honestly, she is a really nice little girl. We play, read books, play 'hide-and-seek' (seriously we do). I go hide somewhere in the apartment and I just keep on talking really loud and she tries to find me. She's actually pretty good at it! And we I yell out, "you found me!" she get's so excited. She still kicks every door and wall in our place. Her legs do not stop moving. She LOVES to read with me and even by herself. She's a great kid and sometimes will just go crawl back into her bedroom while I'm busy working, cleaning, or just getting ready for the day. She takes all the books from her bookcase down and also the toys in there or she plays in her closet with her shoes and clothes. That's my girl!
She's growing up so fast and I love it! She get's more fun every day and I know that she will make an awesome big sister when the time is right. But thank goodness for instagram and my camera so I can take a million pictures of her. Seriously, I know I'm a picture freak but secretly I would love to take some photography classes and a really nice camera and see what I could do with it.
First time swimming- So this Saturday we took Brynlee swimming for the first time up at Rexburg Rapids. The water was actually pretty cold so she was not a fan at first. She wasn't crying just kind of whining. Slowly she got used to it and I had to act like a crazy person to get her to smile and laugh in the water, she thinks it's funny when Mom barks at her. Strange kid (she must get it from her Dad). It was new, super crowded, and kids running and splashing everywhere so I think that the next few times we go swimming and we can put her in the baby float we got her she'll like it better. P.S. taking a baby to a splash park is probably not the smartest idea haha...I probably spent half the time trying to shield her from getting water directly splashed all over her by these 4 crazy boys. I'm not trying to be mean, but they were just down right obnoxious and inconsiderate. I understand it's a splash park and you can be rowdy and have fun and all but you should not be face diving right next to little babies. Use some common sense boys, or rather where exactly are your parents when you splashed huge amounts of water into my kids face like 10 times? Anyways it really was super fun! Brynlee finally got used to it and it wasn't cold anymore so she fell asleep in the water. Yep, I was holding her on my lap in about 2 feet of water and she just passed right out. Even with getting splashed in the face a couple of times she didn't wake up. Seriously who falls asleep their first time swimming...my kid! Gotta love her.
First time in a shopping cart
First time in a high chair.
First time eating solids! We will probably do just a little a day or so until she's a year old. She was actually better at eating it then a few kids I've seen who have been eating for months. So that theory of 'she won't know how to eat, if I don't start her on solids now', that for some reason a lot of people believe but has been widely unproven clearly doesn't apply to her. She was more interested in the spoon then she was the peas! Anyways yea for vegetables! There are definitely benefits to delaying solids, but every mother and baby is different. I get asked quite a bit about when I will give her food by people at WIC, strangers at the grocery store, and friends and family. I buy baby food because I get it for free from WIC but I don't use it yet. I have a baby food storage haha, seriously have you looked at the expiration date lately, they last quite a while.
Most people who I talk to are genuinely interested in why I don't feed her solids yet at 7.5 months and when I explain about the benefits like a better digestive system, less chance of Celiac disease, at a lower risk for childhood obesity, etc. However every once in a while I meet a person who just thinks I'm nuts and starving my kid. Have you looked at Brynlee lately, she is super healthy! She's right on track at weighing 17.5 lbs and developmentally she's great. The reason I'm saying this is because I think that all us mothers need to stop judging each other. From the moment we tell people we are expecting there are a billion different people telling you what you should and should not do with your baby or body. I'm guilty to say I'm one of them sometimes! I think we all are! I'm definitely a strong advocate for as natural of a birth as you are able to have, but I don't think anyone is less of a mother if they chose otherwise. I also think that breastfeeding is one of the most amazing things in the world! I could only breastfeed Brynlee for 4 months before it was just to much for me. I had an extremely colicky baby who would not sleep more then 2 hours at a time, and she would only sleep longer if I was holding her. I spent a lot of sleepless night on our chair in the living room, and I was still in school. On top of that she was sensitive to lactose, and incredibly constipated all the time. I tried my hardest to stick with breastfeeding but I stopped producing and for the sake of everyone's sanity, formula was what my baby needed. And she is so healthy. I learned a lot afterwards from doctors and friends that I wish I had know so I could have tried a few different things to see if it helped with my milk supply and Brynlee's digestive issues, but I'm still grateful for the knowledge that I have now for the next one. I would love to exclusively nurse for the first 6 months and then pump exclusively till she's 12 months the next time we have a baby, and I'm not going to be afraid to get help or support if my breastfeeding plans are struggling. Even though I didn't breastfeed I definitely think that it is the best thing for a baby (generally), and for you amazing moms who are able to do it congrats! But please the next time you see a women giving her baby a bottle please don't give her a nasty stare, because she probably already feels a little bit guilt to begin with because of the way formula feeding moms are treated by society (I know I still do). There is a stigma in the motherhood community that I have seen; women who formula feed are sometimes looked down on as not as good of mothers, or lazy, or just not caring enough about their babies health. I would love to one day see this stop, especially for when my daughters have babies of their own. Also please don't say that I couldn't breastfeed because my baby was cranky all the time. It's rude. My baby was and is perfect, and I hope you feel the same way about yours. My point is, we need to stop judging every mother on what she is doing for her baby. Mother's intuition is alive and well. Heavenly Father gave us a divine calling to not only raise and love our children but to have the ability to know what is best for them at times. I'm not saying that I know everything that my child needs, I'm sure there are departments that I'm lacking in. But, I know my daughter is happy, healthy, and right on track and that is all I could ask for.
Let's put a little good karma or energy back into the world and try to stop telling each other why what we are doing is wrong. Different doesn't always mean bad. Sometimes being a mom is hard, so why do we have to make it harder for each other. This isn't a competition on who can raise the best kid, it's a calling from God to take care of one of His precious children.
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