Wine Down: October 2014

Allow me to introduce you to my new favorite fall tradition...the pumpkin patch/corn maze/farm combo. It's basically everything wonderful about fall all wrapped up into one awesome experience...plus, adorable photo opportunities! I've been begging Jared to take me to a corn maze for years now, but he claimed that was a "family with kids" activity and that he wanted to wait until we had kids to do that sort of thing. Lame excuse. Plus, we basically never have free weekends to do stuff like this because of our season tickets to FSU Football. We've got priorities around here. However, since this was Peyton's first Halloween/Fall, I insisted that we partake in all those fun, family, fall traditions this year for her sake. Ok, so really for my sake. Alright, mostly for the sake of my camera documenting these experiences. I couldn't possibly allow myself to look back on Peyton's first Fall and not have seized the opportunity to pose for photos on the farm for heaven's sake. I mean, what kind of mother would I be if I allowed such a travesty? A sane one, perhaps.

It was about 90 degrees on this "crisp" (as in ~~burned~~ baked in the oven crisp) fall day, and I had to haul about 50 pounds of baby crap from the field we parked in up to the farm, but oh my goodness did I have a blast. It was all worth it to get this adorable photo of my pissed off husband, over-heated sweaty 4 month old, and myself surrounded by the goodness of fall. Happiest mommy on the block right there.

If you live in Northeast Florida, I highly recommend Sykes and Cooker Farms in Elkton (South Saint Augustine near Palatka) for this type of family fall activity. We had a great time and I can't wait to take Peyton back next year when she is actually old enough to truly enjoy it.

Of course, we dragged our entire families along with us to suffer in the heat and watch our 4 month old be completely clueless about what the heck was going on around her. I'm pretty sure that my husband is never going to forgive me for forcing him to do this. Too bad, daddy.

Daddy is a least pretending to enjoy our little outing...even if only for Peyton's sake. That's parenting right there folks.

Because everyone needs a family photo with a tractor. Welcome to North Florida.

Peyton loves to dance with Grandma DeeDee

Peyton's first pumpkin!

Only grandparents would tolerate scorching heat on a farm for nothing more than a photo and an experience (that the kid won't even remember) with an infant. Grandparents are so amazing.

We accidentally started out on the kids version of the corn maze, instead of the adult one. Well that turned out to be a blessing in disguise because we totally got lost anyways. This little family with small children let us go ahead of them at the beginning of the maze and by the time we found our way out, they were already done way before us. Epic fail. Apparently, it takes more than college degrees to get you out of a kiddie corn maze successfully.

And this is why my sister-in-law and I are basically best friends...we both share a love for acting like complete idiots together. No shame. Happy Fall Y'all!

Peyton turned 4 months old on Monday, August 13th. I've been a super busy mommy and one slacker of a blogger lately. If you are thinking that you somehow missed Peyton's 3 month post, don't worry you didn't miss it because I never wrote it. So let's just pretend like I wrote this post back in September when I was supposed to instead of writing it yesterday and back-dating it. Now, you get two extremely long blog posts about Peyton for the price of one today. Lucky you. Read that one first and then see what we've been up to this month...

Weight/Length: At her doctor visit today, Peyton weighed 14 pounds 4.5 ounces and measured 26 inches long. She is still in the 52nd percentile for weight and the 97th percentile for height. The doctor said that she is currently the height of an average 7 month old! I guess I'll be getting her a volleyball for her first birthday! :)

Hair: Outside in the sun and in certain lighting, her hair looks super blonde. However, at other times it looks like a light brown. She still doesn't have a ton of hair so it is difficult to tell for sure.

Eyes: Her eyes are a dark blue-gray, but more on the gray side. Sometimes they look like they are starting to turn a little green or hazel. Just like the hair, it depends on what type of lighting you look at them under.

Diapers: We are currently in size 2 diapers and still using the Pampers Swaddlers Sensitive. I have become quite the shopper when it comes to finding good deals on my favorite diapers. When I find a really good deal, I stock up.

Clothing: Peyton is still wearing mostly 3-6 month clothing, but is rapidly moving into the 6 month clothing due to her length. She has been wearing strictly 6 month sleepers all this month because her legs are so long. Now that she can sit up with assistance and sit in the Bumbo on her own, we have started wearing some dresses and two piece outfits in addition to the onesies and rompers. However, the onesies are still her favorite because she doesn't like a lot of fabric or getting too warm. We have to accessorize every outfit with a bib these days because her mouth is like a 24/7 fountain of bubbles and drool.

Favorite Things: her Elsa (from Frozen) doll, her stuffed animal Brie (from The Aristocats), WubbaNubs, her zebra lovie, crib mobile, play mat, mirrors, her fist, her feet, lights, music, Bumbo seat, and her activity jumper.

Likes: All types of music (especially when mommy sings Disney songs), WubbaNubs, putting anything with soft textures (bib, burb cloth, lovie) in her mouth, putting her fist in her mouth, laughing and giggling, smiling, looking in the mirror, playing by herself on her mat or in her crib, watching her mobile, imitating sounds and "talking" gibberish, being held up so she can look around, sitting up in her Bumbo or activity jumper, grabbing her legs and stretching them up, getting so excited when Daddy comes home from work, bath time with Daddy, her bottle and being naked.

Dislikes: Peyton doesn't dislike much these days. She doesn't like getting too warm or overtired. She still hates being confined, but I don't ever try to confine her (except in her car seat, which she is used to now so she doesn't mind it) so we don't typically run into that problem. She gives a little fuss when she is getting dried off after her bath or if you take her bottle away before she is finished. Other than that, she is super easy going and doesn't let much bother her.

Feeding Patterns: Peyton is still strictly on breast milk, either via nursing or me pumping into a bottle. She eats five times per day, every three hours. She nurses at 8:00am, 11:00am, 2:00pm, 5:00pm and then has 6.5 ounces of breast milk in the bottle at 8:00pm. She does not have any night time feedings! However, I wake up at 5:00am every morning to pump so that I can keep a stockpile of breast milk. I hate having to nurse her when we are at events, or out in public doing stuff on the weekend. It takes so much longer to nurse, I have to go away and hide somewhere, she hates the nursing cover and it's just annoying and uncomfortable for both of us. It's so much easier to just give her a bottle.

Sleeping Patterns: My 4 month old sleeps 10-11 hours uninterrupted at night. You can hate me, it's ok. I understand. After Peyton drinks her 8:00pm bottle, she gets her bath, a bedtime story and then we put her in her crib wide awake around 8:45. She then falls asleep on her own usually by 9:00-9:15. And sleeps all night long. Hallelujah. I wake her up between 7:30-7:45 in the morning for her 8:00am feeding. Sometimes she will wake up on her own right at 7:30, but if she does wake on her own she doesn't cry or fuss, she just looks around her room and entertains herself until I come get her. I know. Luckiest mommy ever. I wish I could pretend like I'm a super mom and that I actually had something to do with all this, but I didn't. I have no idea how she learned to sleep in her crib through the night so well. She just did it on her own. So I just went along with it. I'm sorry I don't have any trade secrets or magical technique to share with y'all, trust me if I knew the secret to how to get your baby to do this I would share it with everyone, but I just got lucky I suppose. Peyton still follows the "eat, play, sleep" routine during the day. Every three hours she nurses, plays for about 1 hour, sleeps for about 1 hour, and then she wakes up and starts the whole cycle all over again.

Month Four Milestones: Peyton has been excelling in development like crazy this month! She discovered that she can change the volume of her voice (from cooing to squealing) and she "talks" at length in baby gibberish. She can prop herself up on her elbows, holding her head and shoulders up nice and high. She loves to prop herself up and look around. She has started holding onto objects well and holding her own hands and feet. She can sit up with assistance, as well as sit up on her own in the Bumbo seat and the activity jumper. She has started reaching out for objects that she wants, but she hasn't fully learned to reach and grab yet...it's still more of a reach and swat right now. She tries (but has not been successful yet) at putting her pacifier back into her mouth when it falls out. She can grab it and bring it to her mouth, but she can't quite get it in correctly yet. She slept over at Grandma DeeDee's house overnight for the first time ever. She recently had her first stuffy nose, but she didn't let it bother her at all. Her little nose made the most pathetic, sniffly sounds which made mama sad, but she acted like she felt perfectly fine so that was good. We survived our first bout of being "sick" with no trouble at all, hooray!

And last, but definitely not least...drum roll. Peyton decided that today, during her 4 month check up, would be a good time to roll over for the first time ever! And I got it on video...

During our doctor's appointment, I was telling the pediatrician about how Peyton is so close to turning over, but she just can't figure out how to get her arm out of the way and into the right place. A few minutes later, the pediatrician laid Peyton down on her tummy to do part of the exam and all of a sudden she just rolled over! We both cheered in excitement and the doctor said that she was thrilled that she got to be there to witness this special milestone for Peyton. Of course I didn't have my phone out during the exam, so I missed her first real roll over because I just wasn't expecting it to happen. However, after she did it the first time the doctor looked at me and said, "Get out your phone, let's see if she will do it again!" So the video above is technically her second time ever turning over. I think she was a little shocked/scared by her fancy new skill. I feel like her face is saying, "Ah! What the heck just happened and how did I get here?!" I'm so proud of my big girl!

Peyton also got 3 vaccines at her check up today (2 shots and 1 oral) and she took them like a champ. She cried for maybe 5 seconds and then was back to smiling again. She's tough just like her mama! :)

Mama's Thoughts: Watching Peyton roll over for the first time today was magical. I've been watching her try so hard to accomplish this milestone for weeks now, and I was extremely proud of her for finally getting it! It was a true proud mama moment. I finally understand that "proud parent" thing now. It doesn't matter if every other kid in the world is doing the same thing, when your kid finally does it, it's the greatest feeling ever. I realize that every baby rolls over eventually, but mine did it today and I'm so overjoyed about it so I'm going to savor the moment, just for me. I can't imagine how proud I'm going to feel when I watch her accomplish something really cool like graduating from college. Good thing I have the next two decades to prepare for that.

Peyton can sit up in her Bumbo seat on her own and she loves it!

Peyton stayed at Grandma DeeDee's house overnight for the first time ever while mommy and daddy went to the FSU vs. Clemson game in Tallahassee.

Trying to learn how to turn over earlier this month. That pesky bottom arm just kept holding her back. I can't believe she finally did it today!

On the first day of fall, we went and played out in the yard for the first time and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Peyton loved being outside!

Peyton discovered her feet and just loves to pull them up high and hold on to them.

Peyton and I started volunteering at our church one weekday morning per week.

Peyton loves going to volunteer at church because she gets to play with her friend Lorelei while the mommies help out in the Children's Ministry!

She finally figured out that putting her arms in front of her makes this whole tummy time thing a heck of a lot easier. She can now prop herself up on her arms and hands. She enjoys tummy time much more now.

Peyton doesn't know what to do with all the goodies on this activity jumper yet, but she definitely loves sitting in it and just looking around for now.

I just love when she shows off her big smile for my camera :)

We took Peyton on her first trip to St. Augustine. She basically slept the entire time.

Left to Right: Heather with Baby Bean (Due May 1), Christina with Baby McGuire (Due March 25) and Ava (almost 2 years old), Nicole with Adelyn (7 months old), Me with Peyton (4 months old), MaryAnn with Joseph (10 months old) and Jackson (not pictured - 6 years old), and Emily with Harrison (not pictured - Due February 3).

We finally got all of these babies together for the FSU vs. Wake Forest game! Our husbands were fraternity brothers in college so we have been calling ourselves the "Kappa Sigma Wives Club" as we've all gotten married over the past 6 years. Now, all of us have kids! I guess we are no longer the Wives Club, but the Mommies Club now!

Peyton strolled along with us in the Out of the Darkness community walk in memory of her Grandpa Rocky (my dad). This event benefits the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

Grandma DeeDee and I took Peyton to the Grand Opening of the new Disney Store here and she absolutely loved it! She especially fell in love with Elsa from Frozen.