making chloe's food

I've finally found a book that is allowing me to make more of Chloe's foods. I don't claim that everything is organic, and I don't claim that I will freshly cook EVERYTHING she eats. I still love the foods Gerber (and other baby manufacturers provide) but this has helped stretch me and see that things are DO-ABLE and easy if I have the free moments. Right now in my slow work period I'm able to do more things for Chloe like this and I really like it.

Anyway it's called The Best Homemade Baby Food On the Planet, and it tells me simple combos that I never would have thought of to spice up and vary the foods chloe is getting. Like pumpkin and banana mashed up together, dreamy green beans (frozen to cooked green beans pureed with cream cheese & plain yogurt), etc. So far Chloe is really enjoying this stuff and she is becoming a very good little eater! I even gave her cheerios today which for some reason I've been holding back on (even though she's a pro with the Gerber puffs) just because Cheerios were a bit harder and I was convinced she'd choke on them! yikes.

This book also goes up to toddler-ness with more mature combos and I'm excited for it to help me be creative instead of just giving her applesauce all the time :) I also like it because it tells you the importance of certain things like organic, but it doesn't push or preach it and it says, it's still so good for your baby if you are feeding them healthy foods with a variety and creative combos, and that you are doing it yourself. It is super encouraging and not overwhelming or intimidating!

Merry Christmas & Boxing Day :)

We love when Chloe laughs like this - she doesn't do it every day, but that Paul-pa with his silliness can bring it out!

merry christmas from us!

In lieu of paper cards this year, mainly because we don't have the $$ to send a christmas card to everyone of you in the mail since we love you all so much, I designed a little digital one for the world.

We love you all, and have had an incredible year, with the birth of our daughter Chloe our lives have been totally changed for the better. She is our light and laughter, and the joy of both of our families! My sister got married this year to an awesome young man, Josh, and we are so happy to have him in our family. We were blessed enough to take a trip to Myrtle Beach with Brian's family in september, and then to Maryland for Thanksgiving with Chloe where she ate her first thanksgiving treats :) Chloe is growing and learning and we are just trying to hang on for the ride! 2010 saw a great year of business for Rachel's business, Puremotif, as well, and is set for some big changes in 2011 and I can't wait to annouce them and show you our new look! Brian saw a lot of changes at Grace this year as well, and has begun preaching more and accepting new responsibilities as a Pastor.

We couldn't have asked for more and are so thankful for all the ways that our friends and family have been near us, reached out to us, and helped us during our first year as parents!

hair loss

Did you know that when you have a baby, the hormone changes screw even with your hair? My hair was thick and lush while pregnant, and about 3-4 months post-partum, it started falling out, like CRAZY!! It was a bit scary at first, but I am blessed with thick hair naturally, so it wasn't so bad until I realized I actually had bald spots around my temples!

Well, it's been coming back in now for the last month or two, and it's finally pretty obvious exactly where the majority of the loss was. I'm just happy it's coming back, even though I practically have shag bangs around my whole face. LOL! I knew it was bad when my good friend Kristin goes "what's up with all these little hairs here?" while looking at me. aaah...

Observe the photographic evidence :) (highlights just done by Ellen)

Happier Post - Thanksgiving!

We had so much fun in Maryland for Thanksgiving. She just loved being there, and loved having grandma & grandpa lusky around all the time. She also loved Daisy!! I have a ton of pictures and posted a bunch on Facebook so you can check them out there. Here are a few favorites.

tummy upsets

This post is about gross tummy stuff, so you don't have to read it if you don't want to.

So, I'm pretty sure Chloe doesn't like pasta. I tried to give her a few cooked pieces. I put it in her mouth and her face turned sour, she started gagging, and proceeded to vomit and wretch all over the high chair.

The last few days have been rough around our house. Chloe caught some sort of stomach virus on Tuesday and has been throwing up and had diarrhea (not too severe, but definitely not herself). Then I caught it yesterday (mild form) and was not feeling great Thursday. Luckily I had a lot of help because I was sooo weak.

Did I ever tell you I have a fear of throwing up? Because I do. But I'm handling my daughter's puking surprisingly well (so far). It's amazing how you just spring into action. Maybe we've started to be trained because of all the spit up?

(unrelated picture)