The next morning while I was in the shower, Ezra transformed into his own super hero...drum roll please....Eggs Man!
(Megan and Nat...your burp cloths make very cute diapers when all others are in the wash! :)
Tuesday, August 03, 2010
Eggs Man!
The other day I got home from work to Ryan and Ezra watching Spider Man. I teased Ryan that it was a little early to be exposing Ez to TV...Ryan insisted that Ezra had just woken up and was just watching the tale end of it with him. Then he tried telling me how it was important for Ezra to watch super hero movies so that he can act them out while playing dress up, etc when he's older. I didn't buy it. I said that Ezra can make up something to be, he doesn't have to go with a pre-characterized super hero...he can be whatever kind of super hero he wants to be!
The next morning while I was in the shower, Ezra transformed into his own super hero...drum roll please....Eggs Man!
(Megan and Nat...your burp cloths make very cute diapers when all others are in the wash! :)
The next morning while I was in the shower, Ezra transformed into his own super hero...drum roll please....Eggs Man!
(Megan and Nat...your burp cloths make very cute diapers when all others are in the wash! :)
Monday, August 02, 2010
5 Years!
This past weekend Ryan and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary! It's amazing that it has gone by so quickly, and at the same time it's hard to remember life before we were married. It's been a fabulous 5 years...now for 75 more! :)
Noel and Jessica's anniversary is the same weekend as ours, so we took turns babysitting for each other so we could both go on anniversary dinner dates! Its funny to me how Eleanor is such a peaceful little player, while Ezra is a total rough house man. Thanks for babysitting Noel and Jessica!
Noel and Jessica's anniversary is the same weekend as ours, so we took turns babysitting for each other so we could both go on anniversary dinner dates! Its funny to me how Eleanor is such a peaceful little player, while Ezra is a total rough house man. Thanks for babysitting Noel and Jessica!
Sunday, August 01, 2010
Elimination Communication 101
I first heard about Elimination Communication (EC) a few years ago. With no knowledge really about it, I thought it was totally absurd and crazy.
Fast forward now to May 2010 when Ezra is 6 weeks old. I read an article in Mothering Magazine on Elimination Communication and all of a sudden I got it! It wasn't about potty training your infant, it was about recognizing and meeting your infant's needs, just as we do with feeding them and putting them to sleep. I was hooked! I went on Craigslist and there was a recent posting for an infant baby bjorn potty chair and book called Diaper Free by Ingrid Bauer. A sign? I choose to think so. I read Diaper Free and LOVED it...I highly recommend it to anyone who is even the slightest bit interested in EC. It gives a great description of the philosophy behind EC as well as the practical how-to's. After I finished that book, I found and read The Diaper Free Baby by Christine Gross-Loh at the library.
Finally, I decided to stop with all of the reading, and just go for it and start trying to see if I could read Ezra's signs of when he had to go the bathroom. At first I was not too sure of myself, so I would always have him in a diaper (without a cover) and about 4 prefolds on my lap in case he peed. The first evening I tried reading his cues, he was 7 weeks old and went in the potty 6 or 7 times in a 5 hour period! He's a pretty easy guy to read when looking for his signs. Before reading these books though, I never would've caught on that he was trying to communicate his need to go to the bathroom. For Ezra, he gets squirmy and fussy, but doesn't cry. Or, if he's nursing, he won't stay latched on...he'll repeatedly go on and off, on and off for several short bursts in a row. When we first started putting him on the potty to go to the bathroom we would make a "zzzzz" sound whenever he started going. Now, when we put him on, we start making the "zzzz" sound and he goes almost immediately.
At home, he is a diaper boy. No cover, just a diaper so that we can quickly take it off to put him on the potty. We've decided though to only do EC when we are home and awake. I know some people do it at night as well, but for now...sleep is too important for us. We have found though that he doesn't go that much at night anymore, but rather he takes a loong potty time in the morning. Although we did let him go out in the woods while we were camping, for the most part we save EC for when we are home.
On an average day he will go to the bathroom on the potty between 5-7 times. There are days though when we are totally off and it's 1-2 times...and other days when it's 10-12 times. This means some days we go through as little as 2 diapers! I've gone from doing diaper laundry every 1-2 days to every 3-4 days.
The beauty of EC is that its not an all or nothing deal. You can do it as little as once a week, and it will still teach your baby the connection between what muscles need to be relaxed/held for going to the bathroom. I also personally feel it makes for happier babies and happier parents: a.) baby's needs are responded to when they are communicating they need to go to the bathroom, and b.)mom and dad know why baby is fussing and they are able to respond appropriately.
At first I mainly was the one to read/respond to Ezra's cues. But now Ryan is able to do it with ease. And when my mom was here the other week she was able to pick up on his cues right away. I love it!
Here he is at 7 weeks, using the lil' potty like a pro!
10 weeks...note he likes to have reading material in front of him. :)
At first I was a total "closet EC'r" and would hide the potty whenever anyone came over. I have recently had a change of heart though. I think EC is soo great and would want for others to have told me about it if I didn't know...so now I'm telling the whole world! :)
Fast forward now to May 2010 when Ezra is 6 weeks old. I read an article in Mothering Magazine on Elimination Communication and all of a sudden I got it! It wasn't about potty training your infant, it was about recognizing and meeting your infant's needs, just as we do with feeding them and putting them to sleep. I was hooked! I went on Craigslist and there was a recent posting for an infant baby bjorn potty chair and book called Diaper Free by Ingrid Bauer. A sign? I choose to think so. I read Diaper Free and LOVED it...I highly recommend it to anyone who is even the slightest bit interested in EC. It gives a great description of the philosophy behind EC as well as the practical how-to's. After I finished that book, I found and read The Diaper Free Baby by Christine Gross-Loh at the library.
Finally, I decided to stop with all of the reading, and just go for it and start trying to see if I could read Ezra's signs of when he had to go the bathroom. At first I was not too sure of myself, so I would always have him in a diaper (without a cover) and about 4 prefolds on my lap in case he peed. The first evening I tried reading his cues, he was 7 weeks old and went in the potty 6 or 7 times in a 5 hour period! He's a pretty easy guy to read when looking for his signs. Before reading these books though, I never would've caught on that he was trying to communicate his need to go to the bathroom. For Ezra, he gets squirmy and fussy, but doesn't cry. Or, if he's nursing, he won't stay latched on...he'll repeatedly go on and off, on and off for several short bursts in a row. When we first started putting him on the potty to go to the bathroom we would make a "zzzzz" sound whenever he started going. Now, when we put him on, we start making the "zzzz" sound and he goes almost immediately.
At home, he is a diaper boy. No cover, just a diaper so that we can quickly take it off to put him on the potty. We've decided though to only do EC when we are home and awake. I know some people do it at night as well, but for now...sleep is too important for us. We have found though that he doesn't go that much at night anymore, but rather he takes a loong potty time in the morning. Although we did let him go out in the woods while we were camping, for the most part we save EC for when we are home.
On an average day he will go to the bathroom on the potty between 5-7 times. There are days though when we are totally off and it's 1-2 times...and other days when it's 10-12 times. This means some days we go through as little as 2 diapers! I've gone from doing diaper laundry every 1-2 days to every 3-4 days.
The beauty of EC is that its not an all or nothing deal. You can do it as little as once a week, and it will still teach your baby the connection between what muscles need to be relaxed/held for going to the bathroom. I also personally feel it makes for happier babies and happier parents: a.) baby's needs are responded to when they are communicating they need to go to the bathroom, and b.)mom and dad know why baby is fussing and they are able to respond appropriately.
At first I mainly was the one to read/respond to Ezra's cues. But now Ryan is able to do it with ease. And when my mom was here the other week she was able to pick up on his cues right away. I love it!
Here he is at 7 weeks, using the lil' potty like a pro!
10 weeks...note he likes to have reading material in front of him. :)
At first I was a total "closet EC'r" and would hide the potty whenever anyone came over. I have recently had a change of heart though. I think EC is soo great and would want for others to have told me about it if I didn't know...so now I'm telling the whole world! :)
Oh rats! (part 2)
After the first rat got away, we declared war. I cannot think of a more annoying sound than a rat running around on the ceiling above my head. In the kitchen. In the living room. Everywhere. Drives me crazy! We decided to get serious. We called Truly Nolen (a rat exterminator), but they wanted to charge us $400(!!), and that seemed like way to shiny of a penny to throw down on rat catching in our opinion. So, we borrowed yet another trap so that we could have two trapping stations set up. And, just like magic, we caught two rats...one in each trap! The one on the roof died of natural causes (honest Barnes, Ryan wasn't about to go through trying to drown one again...it was a bit too emotional)...and the other one now resides somewhere far far away in the desert.
The rat on his roadtrip to his new home...
The rat on his roadtrip to his new home...
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Fruits and Veggies mania...
I have mentioned Bountiful Baskets here once before...I LOVE it! Honestly, it ranks quite high in my "Top 5 Things I Love About Tucson". In the past month we've been exposed to lots of new fruits and veggies that I've never tried before/didn't even know existed.
* Pluots (cross between a plum and an apricot).
* Brussel Sprouts (actually quite tasty when roasted with olive oil and salt)
* White Asparagus (which needs to be peeled before you cook it!)...unfortunately it's just like green asparagus in that it makes your pee smell after you eat it though.
* Green Cauliflower (in the fridge still...to eat this week)
* Mustard Greens (great in soups, eggs, etc)
Samantha, Blanca...am I missing any?
I have been dairy free for quite some time now since Ezra's lil' body can't seem to digest the milk proteins yet. We are going to try again when he's 6 months old. At first it was hard to read labels of EVERYTHING (no trace amounts of dairy even), however now it's become the norm. I know how upset it makes Ezra feel...so it's easy to go without it. I'm thankful for goat cheese and coconut milk ice cream, that's for sure. :)
Ryan just learned on Friday that he needs to go on an elimination diet to determine what food allergy is causing his eosiniophilic esophagitis (feel free to google it)...it's basically like asthma, only in his esophagus.
The elimination diet means no:
-eggs
-dairy
-soy
-corn
-wheat
-nuts
-fish
-shell fish
Yup, pretty much everything except rice, beans, meat and produce. Luckily, he doesn't have to eliminate those foods forever...just until we get him feeling good, and then he'll add them back in one at a time until we see what it is that he's allergic too. They will also be doing skin prick testing, but not for a few weeks, and there is a false-positive with that, so this is the most accurate way to find out.
If anyone has good elimination diet recipes...please feel free to send them our way! :)
* Pluots (cross between a plum and an apricot).
* Brussel Sprouts (actually quite tasty when roasted with olive oil and salt)
* White Asparagus (which needs to be peeled before you cook it!)...unfortunately it's just like green asparagus in that it makes your pee smell after you eat it though.
* Green Cauliflower (in the fridge still...to eat this week)
* Mustard Greens (great in soups, eggs, etc)
Samantha, Blanca...am I missing any?
I have been dairy free for quite some time now since Ezra's lil' body can't seem to digest the milk proteins yet. We are going to try again when he's 6 months old. At first it was hard to read labels of EVERYTHING (no trace amounts of dairy even), however now it's become the norm. I know how upset it makes Ezra feel...so it's easy to go without it. I'm thankful for goat cheese and coconut milk ice cream, that's for sure. :)
Ryan just learned on Friday that he needs to go on an elimination diet to determine what food allergy is causing his eosiniophilic esophagitis (feel free to google it)...it's basically like asthma, only in his esophagus.
The elimination diet means no:
-eggs
-dairy
-soy
-corn
-wheat
-nuts
-fish
-shell fish
Yup, pretty much everything except rice, beans, meat and produce. Luckily, he doesn't have to eliminate those foods forever...just until we get him feeling good, and then he'll add them back in one at a time until we see what it is that he's allergic too. They will also be doing skin prick testing, but not for a few weeks, and there is a false-positive with that, so this is the most accurate way to find out.
If anyone has good elimination diet recipes...please feel free to send them our way! :)
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Updated photos galore...
Hello all!
Here is a random smattering of recent photos.
Ezra playing with his friends Corban and Josh.
My favorite Corban story, which I recently re-told to Ryan and we keep laughing about... Corban's mom told her they were going to Chuck E Cheese (for the first time!), after being at Chuck E Cheese they got in the car, and with disappointment in her voice Corban said, "I thought we were going to see Jesus." Oh how things sound so similar to a 2 year old. :)
Ezra and Eleanor have made up since their last photo shoot...now they are even holding hands.
Ezra now has a favorite stuffed animal, and we think it's quite adorable how he likes to hold him when he takes a nap. This photo makes it look like we propped the bear next to him, but I promise we didn't. And, to make it even cuter, the bear's shirt says "I 'heart' Ezra"!
Our lil' pilgrim taking a bath...
My cute boys sound asleep in the morning...
Our neighbors Jose and Sara stopped by tonight for a visit!
Here is a random smattering of recent photos.
Ezra playing with his friends Corban and Josh.
My favorite Corban story, which I recently re-told to Ryan and we keep laughing about... Corban's mom told her they were going to Chuck E Cheese (for the first time!), after being at Chuck E Cheese they got in the car, and with disappointment in her voice Corban said, "I thought we were going to see Jesus." Oh how things sound so similar to a 2 year old. :)
Ezra and Eleanor have made up since their last photo shoot...now they are even holding hands.
Ezra now has a favorite stuffed animal, and we think it's quite adorable how he likes to hold him when he takes a nap. This photo makes it look like we propped the bear next to him, but I promise we didn't. And, to make it even cuter, the bear's shirt says "I 'heart' Ezra"!
Our lil' pilgrim taking a bath...
My cute boys sound asleep in the morning...
Our neighbors Jose and Sara stopped by tonight for a visit!
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Mt. Lemmon in the summer...
...with friends...is a very nice place to be.
With less than a week's notice, we planned a trip to camp at Rose Canyon on Mt. Lemmon.
I LOVE camping.
Growing up, we camped. A lot.
Growing up, Ryan did not camp. Ever.
We have met in the middle though, and on average go camping about once every year, which makes me a happy wife, and a happy camper. :)
The campers for the weekend:
9 adults
2 toddlers
2 infants
2 pregnant mamas
and, 2 dogs
Good thing we had a large campsite.
It was a wonderful weekend...the photos are worth a thousand words, so I'll just post photos instead of blah blah blah-ing all about it. :)
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*=photo credit to the Lauderdales Photography.
With less than a week's notice, we planned a trip to camp at Rose Canyon on Mt. Lemmon.
I LOVE camping.
Growing up, we camped. A lot.
Growing up, Ryan did not camp. Ever.
We have met in the middle though, and on average go camping about once every year, which makes me a happy wife, and a happy camper. :)
The campers for the weekend:
9 adults
2 toddlers
2 infants
2 pregnant mamas
and, 2 dogs
Good thing we had a large campsite.
It was a wonderful weekend...the photos are worth a thousand words, so I'll just post photos instead of blah blah blah-ing all about it. :)
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*=photo credit to the Lauderdales Photography.
No excuses...
Yesterday Ryan said to me, "I think something is wrong with your blog".
I got a little worried, "Huh!?"
Ryan: "Yeah, it says your last post was over a week ago!"
Doh! I could give a million excuses, but there are none really.
I will say though that I've been working many odd jobs lately, which means Ryan has gotten a lot of great quality time with Ezra at home!
I got a little worried, "Huh!?"
Ryan: "Yeah, it says your last post was over a week ago!"
Doh! I could give a million excuses, but there are none really.
I will say though that I've been working many odd jobs lately, which means Ryan has gotten a lot of great quality time with Ezra at home!
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Guess who's here??
...Grandma Sue! My mom flew out to visit for the week...and Ezra couldn't be more excited! (Well, the photos may not reflect his sentiment, but trust me...beyond his concentrated efforts to touch the ribbon on his burp cloth, he's smiling inside. :)
someone loves their tummy...
Ezra has been quite content on his tummy lately (something that wasn't true two weeks ago)...in fact, I may even venture to say that he loves being on his tummy! (Oh, and yes Jess, naked tummy time is totally where it's at!)
Wednesday, July 07, 2010
"I love us!"
Ryan laughs at me all of the time when I shout my coined phrase, "I love us!". Its true though, I couldn't think of a better person to be matched with for life...or a life I'd rather have than the one I'm living! And...I think Ezra fits in oh so nicely with us. He gets all of our jokes, and has plenty of his own to share that make us laugh. He dances just like us. And, talks non-stop, just like us...well, just like me I guess. :)
After a great dinner yesterday...
And a walk around the neighborhood...
Naked tummy time... (and many times of rolling over from belly to back)...
Ezra took a bath and Ryan read him a story (my childhood favorite, Euphonia and the Flood), while I listened in.
Ezra went to sleep...and Ryan and I played what is soon to be my new favorite game, San Juan.
Happy Summer to you!
After a great dinner yesterday...
And a walk around the neighborhood...
Naked tummy time... (and many times of rolling over from belly to back)...
Ezra took a bath and Ryan read him a story (my childhood favorite, Euphonia and the Flood), while I listened in.
Ezra went to sleep...and Ryan and I played what is soon to be my new favorite game, San Juan.
Happy Summer to you!
Tuesday, July 06, 2010
Sound to sleep...
One of the most commonly asked questions I get is, "How is Ezra sleeping at night?". Truthfully, I think he is doing great! I feel rested, and he is happy. However, people usually want to know how many hours he is sleeping, (the more the better in their minds). And how many times he eats at night, (the fewer the better). I often need to remind myself to hold things in perspective: a.) he is a baby, b.) this phase of waking up during the night is going to be over before I know it, c.) waking up through the night serves many purposes (connecting with mama, SIDS prevention, growing healthy and strong, etc..) and d.) I'm not stressed about it, so why should I let others stress me out? I started reading a book that was given to me by a friend about helping your baby sleep through the night. She loved it and it was a great read for her...so I'm not at all meaning to knock the book or the suggestion, it just wasn't for me. The more I read it, the more stressed out I was getting. I realize that the whole point of the book is to help give your baby healthy sleeping habits. Which, sounds great. I want Ezra to have healthy habits. But, when it comes down to it, right now he is a baby and I want to give him comfort, not discipline. If I had the option of being held and swaddled and soothed to sleep right next to the person I love every night, you bet I would take it...so that is also what I am choosing to give to Ezra. I found a lot of affirmation in my choice to do this when reading this blog post yesterday.
He is a great sleeper! And, he can sleep almost anywhere...the swing, our arms, your arms, a pack 'n play, our bed, my wrap carrier, Ryan's ergo carrier...and most importantly, he is a happy lil' guy!
He is a great sleeper! And, he can sleep almost anywhere...the swing, our arms, your arms, a pack 'n play, our bed, my wrap carrier, Ryan's ergo carrier...and most importantly, he is a happy lil' guy!
Rockin' baby!
For the past 4 years, Ryanhood has played on the 4th of July at the Hilton El Conquistador Resort in Tucson. The resort hosts one of the many firework displays around town, so a lot of families flock there for a weekend family getaway.
I had planned on babysitting Dominic for an hour or so in the evening before heading up there, but then at the last minute found out they didn't need me to babysit. This all of a sudden freed me up to go to the resort early with Ryan and spend the day hanging out. I was a bit reluctant at first. I thought, I'll stay home so Ezra can get a good nap in, I can pick up the house a bit, pack our bags, etc. But then it hit me, as cliche as it sounds, "Seize the moment!". We can always be at home and get good naps in, and the messy house will still be here when we get back and can be cleaned then. Experience is when real living happens...and in my opinion, it definitely outweighs routine.
Now, the funny part, is that I packed a blanket for Ezra and I to lay on in the grass and a book to read as well as some knitting for me. Because of course, we were going to play on the blanket together with lots of smiles and coo-ing, and then he was going to fall asleep while I sat and relaxed, reading and knitting. It was going to be this idyllic 4th of July at the park. Well, that's not exactly how it worked out. For starters, even though there is lots of grass and shade at the resort, it also has a "spring break" atmosphere...not exactly the relaxing with my baby kind of place. Then came the fact that Ezra really just wanted to be snuggled close in my carrier. Whose to blame him? I love cuddling! Needless to say, there was no reading or knitting that took place. But there was lots of cuddling and sleeping in the baby carrier while walking around and listening to Ryan soundcheck.
That night was Ezra's first Ryanhood concert! I don't know that he recognized Ryan, but he was totally lovin' all of the lights. Here's our little man rockin' the ear protection...
Ezra and Kaia both protecting their ears while listening to the concert. It was a priceless moment when Kaia recognized Ryan on stage singing...she waved and waved, but sadly Ryan didn't see her. It was too cute!
Here he is up on his feet dancing away...
My favorite part of the night was taking him up close to the stage...and seeing Ryan sing to him.
Ezra loved watching the fireworks...until about 1/2 way through when he crashed for the night in my arms. Funny how a baby can sleep through a grand finale on the 4th of July.
I had planned on babysitting Dominic for an hour or so in the evening before heading up there, but then at the last minute found out they didn't need me to babysit. This all of a sudden freed me up to go to the resort early with Ryan and spend the day hanging out. I was a bit reluctant at first. I thought, I'll stay home so Ezra can get a good nap in, I can pick up the house a bit, pack our bags, etc. But then it hit me, as cliche as it sounds, "Seize the moment!". We can always be at home and get good naps in, and the messy house will still be here when we get back and can be cleaned then. Experience is when real living happens...and in my opinion, it definitely outweighs routine.
Now, the funny part, is that I packed a blanket for Ezra and I to lay on in the grass and a book to read as well as some knitting for me. Because of course, we were going to play on the blanket together with lots of smiles and coo-ing, and then he was going to fall asleep while I sat and relaxed, reading and knitting. It was going to be this idyllic 4th of July at the park. Well, that's not exactly how it worked out. For starters, even though there is lots of grass and shade at the resort, it also has a "spring break" atmosphere...not exactly the relaxing with my baby kind of place. Then came the fact that Ezra really just wanted to be snuggled close in my carrier. Whose to blame him? I love cuddling! Needless to say, there was no reading or knitting that took place. But there was lots of cuddling and sleeping in the baby carrier while walking around and listening to Ryan soundcheck.
That night was Ezra's first Ryanhood concert! I don't know that he recognized Ryan, but he was totally lovin' all of the lights. Here's our little man rockin' the ear protection...
Ezra and Kaia both protecting their ears while listening to the concert. It was a priceless moment when Kaia recognized Ryan on stage singing...she waved and waved, but sadly Ryan didn't see her. It was too cute!
Here he is up on his feet dancing away...
My favorite part of the night was taking him up close to the stage...and seeing Ryan sing to him.
Ezra loved watching the fireworks...until about 1/2 way through when he crashed for the night in my arms. Funny how a baby can sleep through a grand finale on the 4th of July.
It's laundry time...
This past weekend, we had a Ladies' Night/ Laundry Soap making party! I was inspired by SouleMama's blogpost about making her own laundry soap and thought, "I want to try!". It's really quite simple...and quite satisfying.
Laundry Soap Ingredients
2 Cups of grated soap (1 bar of Dr. Bronner's soap works great!...choose your own fragrance)
1 Cup of Borax (found in the laundry soap aisle)
1 Cup of Washing Soda (found in the laundry soap aisle)
1 Cup of Baking Soda
Directions
Use a cheese grater to finely grate the bar of soap
Mix together all ingredients in a bowl or bag...and voila!...you have laundry soap!
2 Tablespoons per load is all you need. GREAT for washing diapers...as well as the rest of your laundry stash!
Saturday, July 03, 2010
Ezra goes to the gym...
Having a 14lb baby around the house, is definitely great for the arms...turns out he is also a great sit-up partner. :)
Friday, July 02, 2010
Thursday, July 01, 2010
Happy 3 Months!
Ezra is 3 months old today! To celebrate, we met up at the zoo with some other mamas and babies (well, okay...the other mamas planned the zoo trip without knowing it was Ezra's birthday...but I told him it was really for him.) I'm not sure that he loved it...but I think he'll like it more and more as he gets older...and as the weather cools off a bit.
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