Good morning everyone! Currently I’m in Quinn’s nursery, working on a crib nap again. Working on crib naps has occupied a good chunk of our time these past two weeks. We have had short successful naps of 20-30 mins, but not much longer than that. She’s at the 17 min mark right now though! (I jinxed myself because as soon as I typed that she started crying, and I had to put the post on hold hah). Whenever she loses her pacifier, she wakes up, so if anyone has suggestions on what to do about that please let me know 🙂 .

She is now back in her crib after a feed (she was due anyway), she’s just drowsily looking around, hopefully she’ll fall back asleep!

With the naps, we’ve been trying to stick to the eat, play, sleep routine. She was doing so well with this rhythm when she could sleep in my carrier, but the crib really seems to throw her off. It’s been an emotional and trying transition I think for us both. We alternate naps in the carrier and crib right now. I am always carefully towing a line between helping her practice crib naps and making sure she doesn’t get overtired. I do think we see a tinyyy bit of improvement every day, just going to continue to try to be consistent. I’m proud of her for even 20 mins!

We also have a couple trial daycare days this week for half days. I am very nervous, and I get a pit in my stomach every time I think about it. I know it’ll be ok, but my heart hurts thinking about sending her so soon from now.

Onto the fun happenings this past couple weeks!

July 9th, we went for a walk in the morning as usual and then went to a birthday party for my friend’s (Clair), son. It was Sonic themed and so adorable from the cake to the popcorn machine. I have missed her family so much, and it was really good to see them again!

 The day before this we discovered her love of dancing fruits and veggies, so this outfit felt appropriate 😄.

 That evening, Moose joined her with her tummy time. He often comes up and lays a big ol’ kiss on her out of nowhere. She looks surprised, but it never seems to bother her!

Oh my gosh she’s back asleep on her own without crying! Woohoo!! This is HUGE! Okay starting the timer now. 9:12 AM.

Moose has been on one with suddenly always wanting to get up on the living room coffee table. This dog, always up to somethin’. Haha.

 The afternoon of July 10th, I did a little craft time during Quinn’s playtime! My sister and Kevin gifted us this clay handprint and footprint picture frame. I printed Quinn’s foot no problem, but it was super hard to get her to open her hand flat for a print. So I decided to do Moose’s paw print instead and plan to put a picture of the two of them in the middle of the frame 🥰.

 July 11th, Marie sent some seriously adorable pics of Crush and Moose. Crush doesn’t leave Moose’s side.

Even when Moose was napping, Crush was just patiently sitting there waiting for him to wake up.

In terms of new fun developmental milestones these two weeks, Quinn has started holding things pretty well and she all of a sudden is chatting up a storm with her cooing! It’s so much fun. Every morning I sit with her with my coffee and oatmeal, we play some light “coffee shop hits” and chit chat back and forth. I’ll tell her what I’m eating, ask how her morning is going, but she’s especially engaged when I repeat the exact sounds she makes. She LOVES it. I sometimes smile so much during these times together that my cheeks hurt. She also studies faces for a long time now. Before this, her gaze was more shifty, but now she’s hyper-focused. She still is killin’ tummy time too.

 

She also has been trying to bear weight when we stand her on our legs, it’s wild. I’m like, girl, slow down! I can’t have two toddlers running around just yet!

The evening of July 11th, I started the Bachelorette in bed. I know many people have jumped ship on this franchise, but I have watched for as long as I can remember- I don’t think I’ll ever stop no matter how repetitive and silly it is! I’ll probably be in a nursing home organizing watch parties.

One thing different this time around, it takes me a couple days to finish an episode. It comes on at 8, I usually don’t start it until 830/9 and then shortly after 9 pm I am out if Quinn’s out.

 Another great pic from Marie that week of my boy 💙.

 The smiles are more and more frequent and more and more cheesy 🥰. I just soak up every single one. She gets such a kick out of watching me lift weights; this was a smile from that. She was probably laughing at my form 😅.

 Week 10, I suddenly got the urge to cook again. I haven’t ordered takeout in over a week, who is she?!

When I cook, I basically have to do it with Quinn either in the carrier or bouncer, but I’m finding ways to chip away at prepping a dinner through the day. I was feeling real motivated one day after seeing a recipe for filet mignon in the air fryer. I made them with a medley of vegetables and couscous. Oh my word! SO GOOD and so easy.

 It’s 9:31 AM! 20 min mark. Go, Quinn, go!

The evening of July 13th, I made a vegan Dr. Praeger burger with rice and veggies. This has been a super easy go to dinner for me lately. I usually top it with Noble Made dressings and hummus.

And she’s awake at 9:34 AM. Going to put pacifier back in and see if she falls back asleep.

She didn’t fall back asleep, but that’s ok! 21 minutes, not too bad.

July 14th we started with our usual morning walk. We had a bit of a chaotic morning, I don’t even remember why I just remember feeling frazzled, and being out on the trail immediately calmed me down.

 That evening I captured this precious moment!

 Mr. Moose was tuckered after a day at Marie’s.

 Friday July 15th Gigi stopped by! She dropped off this absolutely adorable bib. How cute is this?!

  July 16th I made us some shrimp tacos for dinner. Besides the steak, this is my favorite thing I’ve made in the air fryer. These tacos are becoming a frequent rotation! I just get the large easy peel shrimp, defrost them, lather them in olive oil, and douse them up with whatever seasonings feel right in my soul- usually a combo of cumin, chili powder, cayenne, garlic powder & smoked paprika.

This week we read The Rabbit Listened. I adore this book & its message!! She loves it too ☺️.

 I love how comfortable Moose is with Quinn now. The first couple weeks he went to the opposite couch she was on, but now he snuggles right up.

 Saturday July 16th was a very special day! It was Moose man’s first birthday. How is our fur-born already one?! I ordered a puppy cake from Okra and Molly online – and it was wonderful service! Super fast and fairly inexpensive. I made one little mistake- I accidentally ordered Moose a female cake, but I don’t think he cared 🤣. We had to stop him from devouring the whole thing in one go!

Oh and did I try it? Of course. I know it’s technically for dogs, but it’s made with all food us humans eat & it looked so appetizing 😆. It was not bad! Like a really dry peanut butter cake with zero sweetness lol. I see why Moose loved it though.

Since it was his birthday, he got dessert first. But for dinner, the old man got ground beef and rice.

Another morning walk pic. I know these blogs are quite repetitive! I guess that’s somewhat a good sign that we have a kinda maybe sorta semblance of a routine?

On Sunday July 17th, we took these pics of Moosey and Quinnie in her “And then there were four” onesie 🥹. I mean..

 That onesie was a gift from one of DJ’s coworkers, and I’m just so obsessed.

Don’t know where I saw this, but had to share since I saw it screen-shotted when going through my camera roll, lol. I’ve got 8 years on this person, and still don’t know what to say 🫠.

Monday July 18th , Clair came by with Jacob and Layla for a little mom and kids morning. We ordered breakfast from Garrets Mill Diner (still a favorite) and tag-teamed feeding the two toddlers, Quinn and keeping everyone happy/entertained while catching up!

We had fun putting on the dancing fruits for a couple minutes, and Quinn was thoroughly entertained by our dancing 🤣.

That afternoon we had two successful crib naps! Even though they were only 20ish mins a piece this was the most success we had had yet!

That evening I made Indian for DJ and was craving a salad for myself. The salad is not all that pretty- presentation goes by the wayside when the objective is make and eat the food before baby girl cries! And then if she’s in my carrier while I’m eating (which is often the case), I try hard to avoid dropping food on her. When it’s a real messy meal, I now put a light blanket over her head. I have found avocado in her hair, watermelon juice on the side of her head and peanut butter somehow got on her face one time. Oh and we can’t forget the cashew in the diaper 🙈. Sorry baby girl! She’s a trooper putting up with me, I’ll tell ya what.

Tuesday July 19th we had a gorgeous walk to start the day on our trail. The only annoyance is how buggy it is that time of morning. I have a mosquito net for the stroller, but that doesn’t help much when she fusses and wants in the carrier. Usually I just cover her legs with a light blanket if they’re exposed, or if it’s cool enough, keep her in a full body onesie.

That afternoon I was feeling ambitious. I needed to get Quinn a rehearsal dinner dress for a wedding in August, so I looked up baby clothing stores in town. I thought it’d be a fun little outing for us to do together. I found one only 9 minutes away. Perfect, or so I thought. Lately, Quinn doesn’t tolerate even a minute in the car. She hates it. I even dread the drive to and from walks. As soon as we started driving, she started wailing. I feel so helpless when she cries in the car. When we got to the area where the store was located, I realized we had to park in a parking garage – a minor inconvenience. I found a spot on the first level, unloaded her (still crying, now echoing through the entire garage), and she didn’t stop even in the stroller. I put her in the carrier and she immediately calmed down, but then I had this whole stroller I had to lug back into the trunk (not possible when she’s in the carrier). Out of desperation and a prayer that it wouldn’t get stolen, I hid the stroller in from view in front of the car. I jetted quickly to the store only to find it was vacated and no longer existed. I put her back in the car and she wailed all the way home. She was crying, I was crying, and I vowed to never leave the house again. Dramatic, I know, but when you’re stuck on the highway with a wailing babe it’s the worst!

Thankfully as soon as we came home she was a happy camper again, and I bought a couple dresses online for her instead. What would we do without online shopping. I really do not know.

Week 11’s book was Wake Up Farm. It’s so fun with the pop out images!

This week we spent a lot of time dancing and listening to music. I introduced her to some of my dad’s favorites- mainly 60s classics/60s Motown. I think her favorite song right now is I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch). I don’t think I’ve mentioned this on the blog yet, but Quinn’s middle name, Rae, is in honor of my dad and Grandpa- my dad’s middle name was Raymond and my Grandpa’s name was Raymond, but he went by Ray 🥰.

I was very much in the reading mood this past week too, I finished three books and started a new one. My favorite of the three was Educated, (yes, I finally finished it)- phenomenal!! One of the best books I’ve ever read start to finish. The pure genius of her writing gave me chills!

I also started Ready Player One, which is not at all my usual cup of tea, but I’ve heard it referenced quite a bit lately with the creation of Metaverse. I know it came out a long time ago, but I’m actually so into this book. It makes me feel a little bit like I’m reading Harry Potter again. Have you read the book or seen the movie?

Friday July 22nd, we changed things up during tummy time. I got this idea to use wrapping paper for play time from the Curious Baby cards. These cards are filled with some really fun ideas for each age!

She loved this idea. The crinkly sound of the wrapping paper kept her engaged for a while and see loved playing with it with her hands.

That evening, DJ and I decided we would try to do a date night at home since it’ll probably be a while until we have one out of the house again!

I started with a random throw together-whatever-is-in-the-pantry appetizer spread since I knew sitting down to eat may take some time. For the main meal, I made filet mignon in the air fryer , and had some homemade sweet potato soup from the food prep pre-baby, creamed spinach (dairy free for me) and rice.

Ms. Quinn was especially fussy, so right when we were about to eat our main meal, I put my attention on calming her down. She finally crashed in my carrier, so I stood and swayed at the kitchen island while DJ cut up my steak into bite size pieces that I could easily eat without disturbing her. We watched half an episode of Yellowstone and were ready to call it a night by 845 pm.

And that wraps up week 11!

Questions for you:

– Do you have a favorite air fryer recipe?

– What is/was your favorite children’s book?

<3,

Mackenzie