Creepy Crawly, no not bugs!

So, it's gonna happen soon. Yep, that's right. Clare's getting ready to move. She's made some crawling motion, but hasn't yet realized that's the way she can move forward. I've included this video for you to enjoy.

7 Month Stretch

Well, things are getting better for me as a mother. I think the first week after Clare was born, not only was I physcially drained, but I think emotionally I wasn't ready to have a baby. I know I had post-partum depression for awhile. But now that she's older and I've had more experience with her, I feel better. More confident in my mothering skills and I think that makes her feel better too.

So, what has Clare been up to lately? Well, scooting in her middle name now. She's in one place and another the next. It's only a matter of time before she starts crawling.

 

She's also got 2 teeth!  The teething process wasn't too bad, but it was a long one.

Today, she sat up on her own. It's a first caught on camera!

 

Baby's got back!

It's day 3 of our cloth diaper trial and I'm liking it!  It's really easy!  The only thing is they make her bum huge!  Her onesies are super tight and so I have to put her in the next size up- 12mo!  I have to double the liners at night because she is a super-soaker and doesn't get changed in the middle of the night except if it's a poopy diaper.

Our neighbor gave us a couple of toys that her boy didn't use anymore and Clare's just loves playing with them. The colors and shapes toy makes noises too.

Of course, it's essential to have a mirror to look into. Up until this point, we haven't really had much mirror time. She's been fascinated with it and with looking at that other little baby.

Cloth Diapering

Aren't they beautiful? Can you believe it? After a few weeks of contemplating making the switch from disposables, I finally ordered them. What made me decide to switch? Well, in a nutshell, I had heard all the pros about how it saves money and the environment. It also has benefits of less diaper rash and helps babies potty train quicker. I know of several moms who are already in the CD world and they RAVED about it. And the cons weren't "cony" enough for me to say, "Never."

Cloth diapering has been known in the past to be lots of work. However, over the years, developers have used new fabrics and designs to make it extremely simple. After talking with my friend, Erin Tink, I decided to check out bumGenius diapers. And I as soon as I read up on them, I said, "I can do this!".

I will probably start Clare out on them this weekend while we are home together and see how it goes. We have plenty of time to transition and I will allow myself to use disposables when necessary, i.e. traveling.

I had high hopes of making my own baby food, but I'm going to conquer one thing at a time. For right now, Gerber knows more about baby food than I do and I'm okay with that.

Something new

How exciting! We've decided to start a blog for our family to stay updated while on deployment. I'm hoping that Joe can contribute too.

Joe's only been gone a week and I'm doing good so far. Trying to keep myself busy with different projects around the house and a long to-do list.

One of my to-do's was to take our youngest cat, Ralphie, to the Cedar Bend Humane Society. I had to evaluate different areas of stress in my life and the cats (mainly Ralphie) were a huge part. Ralphie is only a kitten and very active. He constantly wants to be playful and always seems to be in my way as I walk around the house. A HUGE safety issue when carrying a baby around. So, I took him in. I cried all the way home, but as soon as I walked in the door, I felt a peace about it. I realized that we were just not the right family for him. My house was very quiet the rest of the day and during the night. I still have Nacho and Dukie and will probably see how it goes for awhile with just the two of them.

On a happier note, Clare and I have traveled outside the last couple of days. I've taken the opportunity to snap a couple pics of her enjoying the texture of the grass. She just loves it! My favorite is when there is a breeze. She just smiles and somewhat giggles.