Des Herissons (Hedgehogs).

Grandmas are for loving.

We were thrilled to have Grandma out to visit again this weekend.  That means that in the first 8 months of 2010, Grandma has been out four times.

1.  For Jude's baby shower (Jude was -2 months old)
2.  After Jude was born (Jude was 2 weeks old)
3.  Early in summer (Jude was 3 months old)
4.  Late in summer (Jude was 6 months old)

It is so fun for her to see how much he changes between each trip out here!  And of course, Jude showed off all of his gummy smiles to her during her visit -- we are still sans teeth.  We are all convinced that they are comings soon, however.  That being said, we have been convinced that they were coming soon since he was about 3 months old.  Jude's in a bad mood?  Teething.  Jude is tugging at his ear?  Teething.  Jude woke up in the middle of the night?  Teething.  Jude doesn't eat chicken?  Teething.

Jude was stubborn on one thing this weekend.  No matter how much he loves his Grandma, he will not roll over for her.  No way.  He can't see the purpose in rolling over when he knows that he will end up on his stomach and that is a horrible place to be in.  Even if Grandma strategically places all of your toys over your right shoulder and sneakily places your left arm across your body to encourage you to reach for them.  Don't be ridiculous, Grandma.  I can always chew on my feet.

We spent most of the weekend doing my favorite activitiy...sitting around and looking at Jude.  And I was relieved to know that it is also one of my mom's favorite activities.  When I asked her what she wanted to do for the couple of days that she was here, she actually said the words "I'm fine just sitting here watching Jude."  So that's what we did.  And boy was it a great weekend with the mommies, Grandma, and Jude.

The Happiest Baby on the Block

And we have a lot of babies on our block, let me tell you.  Jude had MAYBE what could be considered his happiest (and hence most adorable day) today.  He was smiling from ear to ear, with and without clothes on.

Baby Food Maker? You mean my new best friend.

Hi.  My name is Lindsay.  I am addicted to making baby food because of my new Beaba Baby Cook.



When Liz originally suggested that we use our Williams-Sonoma gift cards that we had been saving for the perfect kitchen gadget on the Beaba Baby Food Maker, I scoffed.  Why couldn't you just use a pan, some water, and a food processor?  We have all of those things.  This is just another cheap ploy for Liz to get a new kitchen appliance.

To make a long story a little less long, Liz won.  I am sure you are all shocked and amazed by this.  We gathered up our Williams-Sonoma gift cards and hauled them to our nearest store, where we walked in like crazed lunatics ( did not pass dishcloths and All Clad, did not spend $200) and headed straight for the baby food maker.  We didn't truly understand its magic until we got it home that night.

For the first couple of times that we used it, I stood off to the sidelines.  I wasn't convinced that Liz hadn't tricked me into spending $150 of perfectly good gift cards on a baby food maker when a steamer basket and a food processor would work just fine.  And naturally, I got jealous.  Liz was making food for Jude, and then he was eating it!  He didn't know anything about my cooking and he had already chosen Mama!  

Naturally, I had to try it for myself.   And now I think to myself, "No more visits to Trader Joe's - we don't have any room left in our freezer for grown-up food!  The colorful food cubes are taking over!"  So far, I have made (with some commentary):

• Bananas: Beaba not necessary, but makes the process much more enjoyable.
• Apples: Both the Pink Princess, which Jude found overly tart, and the Fuji, which was much more enjoyable
• Chicken: See earlier post.
• Lamb: Most disgusting experience.  One moment, it smelled like gyros, the next, dog food.
• Green Beans: A raging success.  I had heard this, but was shocked to witness the phenomenon for myself.
• Peas: First, I shelled the peas myself.  Then I bought frozen organic.
• Mango: Yes, organic mangoes.  Yes they were on sale at Whole Foods.
• Plums: Jude loves plums.
• Summer Squash: Turns out extremely runny - now I understand why you can't buy this in the baby food aisle.
• Carrots: He can't eat these until 6 months due to high potential levels of nitrates.
• Beets: Nitrates.  Blah Blah Blah.
• Sweet Potatoes: Jude loves him some sweet potatoes.  Just when you think that there is no way he could possibly eat any more SPs (as they are called in our family), he downs another bite.
• Cauliflower: Jude loves this stuff even without cheese sauce!

I will say that in order to properly feed my addiction, I have my process down pat.  First, it is essential to lay out a dishtowl under the Beaba, as it is a steamer and therefore gets steamy.  Measure out the appropriate measures of water.  It isn't cups or tablespoons, it is just little marks on the side of the container, so measures is the word we use.  3 for veggies and meat.  2 for fruit.  Prepare fruit, which usually involves some sort of peeling.  Of both the fruit/veggie and my finger.  I have war wounds, people.  Place food in basket and set to steam, as seen in the earlier video.  SO EASY!   Then use the handy orange stick which I was originally extremely skeptical about to remove steamer basket.  Pour steamed food into the pureeer (3 eees).  Puree until desired consistency, adding water as necessary.  

Here's where the Heyer brilliance comes in.  Originally, our plan was to store our baby food in the Glad reusable 1 cup plastic cups.  But we realized that destroyed our dream of large batch food, as you can only have so many 1 cup containers.  So we have now moved on to the Wilton Silicone Baking Cup.

These little beauties allow you to make up to 12 little cups of food, freeze them, and then POP THEM INTO ZIPLOC BAGS FOR STORAGE! And LABELING!  It is really amazing.  And because they are individual cups, you can put them where ever you have room in your freezer, including the door.  You don't need to have one huge flat place to put your cups.  These babies are versatile.

As you can see, I love how Beaba + Wilton Silicone Baking Cups = Organic Fruits, Meats, and Veggies for my baby!  I'm not into cloth diapers, glass bottles, wooden toys, organic cotton sheets, or all that other stuff, but damn it, my kid is going to love food.

Isn't it okay if I just want to sit at home and stare at my baby?

Sure, we used to be those people.  You know the type.  When you ask them what they are doing on the weekend, they say "Well, tonight we are going out with some friends to dinner, tomorrow we are going to the mall and then running some other errands, and then we are going to a cookout with friends, and then Sunday we are going to meet some friends for breakfast and take the dog to the dog park and see a movie."  I mean, you get exhausted even listening to them talk about their plans.  We would go the whole weekend without spending more than 3 hours awake at home -- the rest of the time, we were going places.

Now, people ask me what I am doing this weekend, and I just look at them.  Shocked.  Astounded, really.  What do you mean what am I doing?  My head starts spinning.  Should I make up some really exciting plans that sound very elaborate and urban to prove that even though we have a baby, we are still FUN?  Should I brush it off, ask what they are doing, and live vicariously through their exciting plans?

But this is only my first reaction.  What comes out of my mouth is something much different.  Much more, well, early thirties suburban.  Instead, I say "Well, I made some squash puree for Jude so I am excited to see him eat that for the first time.  And then, we'll just sit around and hang out with Jude.  He's pretty fun right now, and he's really a cute guy.  So, basically, we're going to spend the weekend staring at our baby."  And I don't think that there is anything wrong with that.  Who needs plans when you've got this?

And the little one said....

So, I'm trying really hard not to be worried, but Jude is more than 5 months old, and he still won't roll over - either way. I've tried giving him lots of tummy time, but he pretty much hates it. Today he had a complete meltdown about being on his tummy for more than 5 minutes. I've tried showing him how to roll over - rolling him myself, lifting one edge of the blanket he's laying on. Nada. He's got lots of other encouraging moves. He can push himself up on his arms to get a view of the world around him. He can rock himself on his belly (like a tiny beached whale). He even gets his legs underneath him and makes little kicking movements like he's trying to crawl. And the boy can kick, let me tell you. Last night he was kicking like a champ in the tub.

But no rolling over yet. When can I officially worry?

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes!

Jude has been alive for 148 days today, and I absolutely cannot believe how much has changed.  It feels like every day something amazing and new happens, but when you ask me what I did over the weekend, it always comes out "I sat around and looked at my baby."

To illustrate how much has changed, I have put together a graphic.  This is a la the Now and Then Game on Price is right.



Okay, so I couldn't create the same kind of slick graphic (did you know that oil cost $0.76 in 1979?), but I can put together a mean excel table.

Insane!  And if you see me walking out with Jude, don't say something like "Enjoy it.  It goes so fast." or "They aren't always this little." I know that.

Jude, the Food Dude

We started Jude on solid foods this week.  After his 4 month appointment, the pediatrician said that he was a big guy and was old enough to start on people food.  And he was eating his feet, so we of course assumed that he was ready to eat solids.

She wanted us to start rice cereal.  I have always had this strange interest in "rice cereal."  Why do babies eat it?  What is it, rice or cereal?  How can it come in a box?  Needless to say, Jude did not share this fascination.

Day 1: He hated rice cereal.  It sat it his mouth like the paste that we used to have in our first grade class that came in a tub with a stick to smear it.  We decided that he wasn't in the right mood that night, so we packed up the rice cereal.

Day 2: Rice cereal again.  Jude still not interested and definitely not swallowing.  We gave up after approximately 3 "bites."  Not really bites, since he won't swallow.

Day 3:  Take break.  Don't even think about rice cereal.

Day 4: Start with rice cereal.  End with bananas.  Jude loves bananas, we come to find out.  Maybe it is because I always dress him in shirts with monkeys on them.  He ate an entire banana in one sitting.  Obviously, the problem was not that Jude didn't like solid foods.  The problem was that his didn't like rice cereal.  Of course we would have a baby who was a foodie.

We continued with bananas for a couple of days and then shifted into chicken as soon as we knew that he wasn't allergic to bananas.  Pureed chicken = disgusting to you and disgusting to Jude.  He gagged dramatically and made repulsed faces.  After the disappointment with the rice cereal, we knew that we couldn't give up quickly.  Jude would not be a picky eater.  He would definitely like chicken.

After three days of chicken, the gagging improved.  He's not ready for Taillevent, but I feel confident about the green beans and peas we have in the freezer.

One big happy family!

Our adoption is officially legal!  We even got the decrees in the mail.  Now all we are waiting for are the birth certificates.  Thank you to our attorney, Lindsay Flint, and the awesome judge Tony Leung who was thrilled to make our family official.

I'm getting my very own baby tomorrow.

Tomorrow is a really big day for me and Jude.  The whole family is heading down to the Hennepin County Courthouse to make Jude's adoption official.  This is a completely amazing day for us.  Although Jude has felt like my baby since the day that he was born, this makes it legal.  I'll be his legal mom.  I can make decisions for him and no one can argue with them.  I could visit him in the hospital and no one can stop me.  My name will be on his birth certificate.

So you can imagine the despair as I was driving to work today, my heart filling with pride about the wonderful experience that was slowly approaching, when I heard that Wisconsin upheld the ban on gay marriages and civil unions.  By a 7-0 vote.  Justice Michael Gableman says the sentence carries out "the same general purpose of preserving the legal status of marriage in Wisconsin as between only one man and one woman."  All I could think was that all 7 of those judges don't believe in the validity of my family.   

But it's okay, because when I wake my son up in the morning, the smile that he gives me tells me every morning that my family is completely valid.  And the perfect family for him.