Tulips

The flowers were on clearance at Wal-Mart the day after Valentine's Day. I couldn't help myself. I was hoping that these tulips would open nicely, and I was not disappointed. 

The first photo was taken with my awesome iPhone 5S, and it's kinda my favorite of these pictures. I should do a post about my favorite editing apps. 

Also, I took the second to last photo at ISO 1000 so I could stop down the shutter and have a larger depth of field. I should remember to not be afraid of a higher ISO when I have good lighting.

What are your favorite kinds of flowers?

She's One

Helen turned one year old on Thursday.

It has been a crazy journey. Very hard and very rewarding. 

Here are a few updates since last month:

• She claps her hands when I start singing patty-cake and puts her fingers together when I sing The Itsy Bitsy Spider.
• She started being able to follow directions. When I tell her to get a book she'll walk over to the bookshelf and pick one out. For a while she would only choose the Pride and Prejudice counting book. She held it up for me to read it to her again and again and again. Then I hid it from her. I'm such a good mom.
• I also taught her to get my nursing cover for me when she's hungry. Very handy.
• Her words have just exploded. She can say dog, cat, cheese, mama, dad, Teddy, up, all done, ball, please, pretty, brrr, and probably more that I can't remember.
• She's learning where her body parts are. Sometimes she'll point to her nose, eye or belly when I ask her.

I put together a short film with highlights of Helen's firsts:

Here's a look back on her first year of life:

Born on February 13, 2013 at 12:03 PM |  6 pounds 14 ounces | 20.5 inches long

You can read her birth story HERE

Rolled over on a hard surface for the first time at 15 weeks old

She was able to sit up on her own at 5 1/2 months

She tried her first food (egg yolks) at about 5 1/2 months

Crawled for the first time a few days after she turned 6 months old

Pulled herself up to standing at a couple weeks shy of 7 months

Started walking at 9 (almost 10) months

She began doing sign language and saying a few words at 10 months

You can read all of Helen's monthly updates HERE

DISCLOSURE: Some links are affiliate. 

Knitting Project: Cowardly Cowl

A while back I purchased some yarn to make my sister a hat (I'll be posting about that sometime, hopefully), and I picked up a ball of Malabrigo Worsted to save on shipping. I had intended to make Helen a hat out of it, but she received so many nice hats as gifts that I didn't need to go to the trouble! Thus I had a lovely ball of yarn just begging to be made into something purdy.

I settled on this pattern. It knit up very quickly and I LOVE the stitch pattern. I'm thinking I'll make Helen a cowl out of the leftover yarn.

Here are the details in case you're interested in making it yourself:

Pattern: Cowardly Cowl

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted in Pink Frost

Needles: Size Eight 16-inch circular needles

Ravelry Project

The pattern suggested that you knit until the cowl measures 9 inches from the cast on edge. I only knitted until it measured 5 inches until I began the seed-stitch edging. 

What have you been creating/dreaming of creating lately?

Nursing Essentials: What Worked For Me

As a new mom, I was so confused about what I needed to nurse efficiently and discretely. I (stupidly) decided not to buy a lot of clothing before giving birth. After I had Helen, I had very little time to do much shopping. I wish I had known then what is useful and what doesn't work. Let me share my experience with you:

Empire Nursing Top | Nursing Tank | Hoodie | Nursing Cover | Boppy

Of course every mom will have different requirements for their nursing wardrobe. I personally TRY to stay modest as best I can (it's a LOT harder to do when you're nursing). And I prefer to keep my stretch-mark-riddled belly to myself, thankyouverymuch. 

Here are some items that I have found useful so far in my nursing experience.

0-3 Months

I basically lived in nursing tanks. They were so comfortable as my body adjusted to feeding another human being. Nursing tanks do NOT provide very much support, so I made sure to wear a thick hoodie on top. Otherwise I would leak through. How embarrassing. 

My favorite tanks were from Target and Bravado.

During these first few months, when Helen was feeding for an hour (or more!) at a time, I had to have my Boppy. I picked one up second-hand for a couple dollars. Now that Helen is older (and a faster nurser) I basically never use it, but it was a life saver at first. And I used it to make tummy-time a little more enjoyable for her (see this video).
I couldn't have lived without a nursing cover. My mom picked one up for me second-hand, but there are lots of cute styles online. Some moms can get by with just a blanket, but Helen is an active nurser and there have been many times I'm happy the cover is hooked over my neck.

Cami: Maurices | Shirt: American Eagle

3-6 Months

During this time I was still trying to figure out what worked for me. I tried the whole lift your shirt up from the bottom, pull down your cami thing and it drove me CRAZY. My shirt would stick to the cami and I got really frustrated as I tried to get ready for nursing and stay modest while holding a squirming, desperate baby. Not fun.

Then I discovered the cami + v-neck method. If you wear a camisole with stretchy straps you can easily pull is down and the v-neck aside for quick and easy access. 

However, this method is not the most discreet. You definitely need to wear a nursing cover if you're concerned about keeping covered.

6 Months - Present
Around this time I purchased my first actual nursing shirt. I fell in love and wore it all the time. If I could afford it, I would buy all nursing shirts. They are so easy to nurse in and are quite discreet. I haven't been brave enough to do it, but it would be possible to nurse without a cover with one of these shirts.
I really like THIS brand (I'm too embarrassed to say their name on my blog) and Milk Nursingwear.

Underpinnings
As far as undergarments go, I really like this kind from Target. I had heard that the underwire variety could make you get clogged milk ducts, so I bought several garments that were wire free. I hated all of them. They still had some sort of poky plastic for shaping and it always dug into me. Underwire is just more comfortable for me.

Other Things I Didn't Like
I bought a couple of nursing shirts from a company that is now out of business. They were cheap, but so not worth it. They were the "lift the hem" access type and they drove me batty.
I also tried the Undercover Mama tank. It sounds nice: turn any shirt into a nursing shirt! My problem was that it was too low for my modesty comfort and it's made from cotton which sticks to everything. When I tried to lift up my outer shirt, it just stuck to the fabric and the tank came up with it, exposing my postpartum (jiggly) belly.



So those are the things that have worked/not worked for me.

For all you veteran moms out there: What worked well for you?


Note: Some links are affiliate. All opinions are my own.

Winter Walk

Last weekend, my brother-in-law told about some awesome frost that he had seen on his cross-country ski run. Of course I wanted to photograph it. 

So I convinced Reuben to trek out with me. It was a lovely day and the frosty trees were beautiful. 

Reuben got sick of waiting around while I snapped pictures from a million different angles, so he and Helen headed home. But as I walked back, I heard someone quietly say "boo." And there they were, hiding behind a tree, waiting to scare me. Silly-heads.

By the way, most of these photos were taken with my newly acquired iPhone 5S. I love love love its camera capabilities.

You can always see more of my iPhone photos on Instagram.

Best Face Photo of 2013

I had a hard time deciding on a favorite face photo this year (What can I say? I love every photo of Helen), but this one is just so sweet.

On Easter Sunday, Susan (11 months old at the time) got to "hold" little Helen (2 months old at the time). I love the look on Susan's face. And their little dresses are adorable. Paints a pretty calm picture of these little rascals.

Make sure to stop by I Heart Faces to see more entries for "Best Face Photo of 2013" HERE.

11 Months

My apologies for my hiatus in blogging. It was unintended. We got really busy (visiting my sister who lives over 3 hours away and going to visit my family 4 days in a row while our house was freezing cold). Plus, Reuben's computer died so I've been sharing mine with him.

Anyway, here's what's new with Helen this month:

• She knows three signs really well: up, please, and milk (see THIS video for proof). She occasionally signs for "more" when she's really desperate for something.
• She's also trying to say more words. She says "up" (with a silent p) accompanied by the sign when she wants to be picked up. And I *think* she's trying to say "teddy" and "daddy."
• She has four teeth now! Three on the bottom and one on the top. She was SUPER cranky when her top one was busting through. 
• I taught Helen how to drink from a straw the other day. She also uses a sippy cup and she actually drank from a bottle (she has hated using a bottle up to this point).
• Reuben pulled out his old teddy bear for Helen. She loves it. She'll rest her head on him and coo "Ooooh" -- it's pretty adorable. 
• She's more actively playing peek-a-boo now. She'll raise and lower a blanket and grin, or put her hands behind her head to play (why do little kids NEVER put their hands in the right spot when they play peek-a-boo?!).
• She's also learning to use objects for their intended purpose. The other day I handed her my comb to play with, and to my surprise she tried to comb her hair. And when I was sweeping the floor she found a little plastic golf putter and tried to sweep my dirt. Melted my heart. 
• She also loves to throw balls (or grapefruits) onto the floor and watch them roll (see THIS video).
• Helen knows where my nose is (she points to it when I ask her). Now to teach her where her own nose is...
• She's FINALLY warming up to food. When I'm eating something, she really wants a taste. I made her some ice cream (grass-fed cream, maple syrup and a splash of vanilla). And she loves her pickles (see this and this photo). She still nurses for most of her nutrition, but I'm hoping to transition to more solids.

And that's all I have for this month.

Have a lovely day!

Erica