Pictures!

Enjoying a day at the zoo with friends.

Peek-a-boo!

Aftermath of a teething biscuit.

Check out the gap in between her top teeth!
This is where she'll eventually have to have surgery.

Autumn's new favorite way to play with her toys!

Enjoying the afternoon outside.

I have a very happy baby!

Showing off her teething necklace!

My favorite pic right now!
She has her father's facial expressions :-)

Sleep training... Again???

Here we go again... Sleep training! I've tried my fair share of sleep training. They all seem to work, until something happens. A cold. Shots from a doctor's appointment. Major milestone in development. So here I am, trying it again. I pray that this works, because I'm tired. Exhausted is more like it. Tonight will be night number 3. The first night went really well. I always expect the worst for Autumn, but she's a trooper! She woke up at 12:30am and I laid her down on her tummy and told her to go "na-night" and that mommy was there. What's different this time is that I stay with her the whole time. So that she understands that she's not alone and I will always be there if she really needs me. She fell asleep within 10 minutes. Hardly fought it. I thought it was too good to be true. She then woke up again at 4:30am. I did the same thing, laid her down on her tummy and went through the routine. Asleep within 5 minutes.... CRAZY!!! But that time was too good to be true! She was awake within 15 minutes, WIDE awake!!! She wanted to play. I tried really hard to get her to sleep, but she wanted nothing to do with it. And I did not want to stay awake until her normal wake time trying to get her to sleep. So I gave in :-( Last night was much, much better. Autumn went down at 7:30pm and woke up at 4:30am!!! All by herself :-D I picked her up right away and nursed her. Then it hit me... Shouldn't I be sleep training her? Haha. Oh well, I think 9 hours deserves a good nursing (and I was hurting too). I'm praying for another good night tonight. Mommy deserves it.

Wow, where do I begin on Autumn? She's everywhere!!! Literally. A house can never be baby proofed enough for this child. She's crawling, fast. Pulling herself onto everything. Walking around furniture. She learned how to climb up stairs, with mommy's help. I was curious one day if she could and she did. Right up the flight of stairs!!! She was so proud! Then she figured out that going up the stairs leads to tubby time, so she tries to go there every chance she can. I've learned to barricade her into the family room with me. Hehe.

Autumn now has 4 teeth, 2 top and 2 bottom. And a huge gap in between the top 2. Thanks to mama, hehe. She's going to have to have surgery, who knows when... I think I was in elementary school when I had the surgery done. But mine wasn't as bad as Autumn's is :-) That's one of the first things I noticed when she was born, besides her dimples! At Autumn's 9 month appointment, she weighed 19 lbs 1 oz and the doctor recorded that she was 27 3/4 in long. However, at her 6 mth appointment she was 27 1/2 in long... So I knew for a fact that that was wrong! My mom and I remeasured her and we got 29 inches. That sounds better!

Autumn loves eating solids now. She eats almost everything we eat at the table. She does, however, still loves her boobie juice. She always saves enough room for a full serving of boobie juice :-) I love it. I probably still nurse her around 3 - 5 times a day and sometimes a couple at night (depending on how long she sleeps). I'm not giving up anytime soon. It's so healthy for Autumn!!! And that bonding time that we have between us is the best!

The cutest thing that Autumn's been doing lately is dropping her toys from her highchair and saying "ut-oh". It's sooooo cute!!! She says it so well. Took her only a weekend to master it. She works really hard at imitating and can master just about anything you throw her way. I just started teaching her sign-language from the My Baby Can Talk series. It's great! I've been reading Autumn her books everyday. She loves them. Sits down in front of me, facing me and we go through the book and signs together. Somedays she's not super interested. Other days she's really into what I'm doing and you can see her little wheels a turning in her brain!

Well, Autumn's nudging me to play with her, so I'm off. I'll update with pictures later.

Misc...

I never know how to start these blog entries... LOL :-P

I'm really enjoying the idea of having children (well, only one right now... I'm not pregnant). Last week Monday, Kate and I took Autumn and Danielle (little girl I was babysitting) to the Gardens for the afternoon. They both really enjoyed the scenery and didn't mind sitting in their strollers for a while. I just loved watching Autumn's mind getting stimulated by all the new things she's seeing. Watching her want to reach out and touch new things. Smiling when she sees something that she likes. It's so heart warming. It was a successful afternoon, both of the girls passed out by the time we got home. Definitely keeping that in mind next time I need to babysit Danielle!

Today, Autumn and I ended up going to the zoo with Julie and her brother Timmy. Last time I took Autumn to the zoo she didn't show much interest. Unless it was super close to her face. Now she's noticing things a little further away. Likes to point if she likes it. Autumn loved the penguins! They were swimming all over the place in front of her. She was in awe! I had to entertain Autumn a little more than normal. I think she was a little fussy from the humidity and the fact that she's getting over a cold. My new favorite item for Autumn, my CamelBak water bottle. I found out on the plane that she's able to suck up water from it, and she loves it! Even cries when I take it away (which is new). On the way home from the zoo, she was fussy. So I stuck the water bottle next to her legs so that she could reach the sippy part, and she drank almost 8oz the whole way home!

Autumn officially has 3 teeth now. The top right tooth has come in and the left is working its way through. So glad her new teething necklace came in! Definitely was a long 5 days without her teething necklace :-) Doesn't help that she developed a cold as well. She's finally on the mend, but definitely didn't help her sleep schedule or mine for that matter. I found some organic teething biscuits at Meijer the other day. They're made with maple, so the whole house smells like pancakes whenever she's playing with them. And boy, can she make a mess!!! The whole bottom half of her face is brown, her arms are brown and her bib is all brown when she's teething on it. Did I mention that she loves them? ;-)

Blowing bubbles from her mouth is something that she learned from being sick :-) Autumn also knows how to clap now too! She's getting riskier when it comes to trying to stand on her own or with little balance. She really knows that there is a world outside of the family room now and regularly will go and explore it. Which means a lot of running around for mommy! Today was hilarious! Sitting on the couch with Autumn, she was attempting to nurse on my arm... She thought it was silly so she started blowing raspberries with her mouth. Then ended up putting her mouth on my arm and blew a raspberry (a very loud one) on it! She was so shocked by the noise!! She wasn't sure if it came from her mouth or my arm. Haha. Adorable!

Yesterday was Jordan's first Father's Day! Autumn and I woke him up with breakfast in bed. She enjoyed that very much. We then went to our Young Married's class at church and kept Autumn with us (since she's still got a cold). She was very proud of saying "da-da" almost the whole time class was going :-) Then we went to Jordan's parents house for dinner and hung out there for a while. Autumn's starting to warm up to them a little bit more, but she's still not 100% sure about them...

I think I wrote enough for one entry. Wendesday is Autumn's 9 mth check-up. I will post more then!!! I'll post more pictures tomorrow too. Autumn needs my attention now ;-)

Myrtle Beach (long overdue)

Our little vacation kind of started as a dream. Jordan was going fishing in the U.P. with some guys from church, leaving Autumn and myself home alone. Jen, my friend who lives in Myrtle Beach, and I were chatting about the possibility of coming out and visiting her. Conversation with the hubby and cheap round trip tickets later... Autumn and I were on our way to Myrtle Beach!!!

Autumn did better than expected! It was just under a 2 hour plane ride. I was hoping that she would take a nap, however, she didn't. She was very interested in the people around her, especially the nice gentleman sitting next to me! I was planning on nursing her during the take-off and the landing. However, she was not interested what-so-ever. So I'm glad I brought a bottle along with me to help her ears. She didn't complain, what a trooper! Ended up only taking a half hour nap the day we arrived. Getting her to bed at her normal time was a different story ;-)

Autumn and I had a blast!!! It was really great getting to know Jen (other than just online) and watching our little girls play together. Leah wasn't so sure about Autumn, but eventually warmed up a little bit by the end of the week. We did lots of things together. Went to the aquarium, which is by far the best aquarium EVER! Did some outlet shopping... Did I mention that I had to bring an extra carry-on for the flight home? ;-) We mostly just stayed home and played with the girls, watched home movies and did laundry (haha). It was exactly what I needed!!! I learned a lot about eating healthier and even lost 5 lbs while I was there!! Thank you Jen for allowing us to stay with your family and entertaining us all week!!! You're amazing :-D

One of those days we ended up going to the beach (a must when you're in Myrtle Beach). Autumn sat down on the hard sand, ended up taking a mouth-full of it and wanted nothing to do the with sand anymore. She would shake her arms and start whining until I put her on my lap, then she was happy. Then I took her over to the ocean and let her feel it with her feet. It was so nice and warm! Yeah, Autumn didn't like that much either! I don't blame her... That's one huge bathtub ;-)

Autumn tried a lot of new foods. She loved yogurt, however, yogurt didn't love her... She ended up getting super gassy and waking up several hours in the night. Definitely discontinued that right away. Autumn even stood up for a few seconds by herself! I can't believe how fast she's growing up.

I'm pretty sure I covered everything. That's what I get for waiting to long to make a post! So enjoy some pictures from our wonderful vacation!

Playtime with Leah and Autumn.

Autumn looking at the sharks.

Having fun!

Our girls!!!

Such a goofy face (enjoying yogurt).

So happy in mommy's lap!

Touching the ocean for the first time.

Windy day, silly girls and several pictures later... This is the best we could get!

Matching outfits!

Autumn climbed up here all by herself!!!

Girls enjoying some "play food" together.

She loved these wooden toys!

Distracting Autumn on our way home from Myrtle Beach.

Our view the whole plane ride home.

Reminds me of a song... "How Great is OUR GOD!"

Go, go, go!

It's been a crazy life in the Baldwin family! Autumn is on the move... So watch out! I cannot leave for 2 seconds anymore. I went to put away my bowl from breakfast, I came back to the family room and she was GONE!!! Totally freaked. Where could she have gone!?!?! Started looking around the room, and she was hiding under one of my mom's old fashion desk/end tables that she has next to the couch. Sigh! This is only the beginning, I know it. She's already found her way into the kitchen. Realizing that there's more to life outside of the family room. Opened her first cupboard door and quickly shut it. Quite proud of herself :-) Definitely installing latches on the door ASAP!

It hasn't even been a month since Autumn started crawling and she's pulling herself up on everything. I found her Monday morning, after her first nap, standing up in her crib. Smiling from ear to ear! So glad I had my phone to quick take a picture. Autumn also loves crawling all over her mommy. Just when I thought I was regrowing all that hair I lost from the hormone changes... Autumn comes around and pulls herself up using my hair :-( Ouch! She's really been involving me in her play time. Showing me what she's playing with. Then she'll put it down and quickly crawl over to me.

To add to the craziness in this house, getting ready to visit Jen and Leah in Myrtle Beach is quickly approaching. Autumn and I leave Monday morning! It's hard enough for me to pack for myself, let alone Autumn!!! Her cloth diapers alone could take up a whole suitcase. I'm really praying for safe travel and that she won't make the 2 hour flight the worst flight of my life! I've only ever flown one other time and it wasn't pleasant for me. It was a very smooth flight, but I was super anxious the whole time and never ended up relaxing until we landed. So I pray that God will help me to remain calm and relaxed so that Autumn won't feel me anxiousness and get worried or upset. I'm probably freaking out over nothing, and it'll probably be a lot of fun, but I still worry :-) Because I can... HAHA!

This will also be a test for my parents while Autumn and I are gone! They've seen Autumn almost everyday since the day she was born. And now they won't be able to see her for a week. My mom's already hyperventilating... Tee hee! I told them that it's great practice for when we move out. Because even though I love my parents to death, having them over everyday will be a bit much ;-) My mom expects pictures everyday... So I better bring my battery charger!

Look at me standing up!

Autumn cuddling with her Grandma!

I love her eyebrow expression here!

Trying on her new swimsuit from Grandma!

Trying on her new swimsuit from mommy!

Short story

It's been a very long week. Autumn's still not sleeping very well. Last night I gave her some teething tablets, figured that it didn't hurt. And she slept almost 7 hours! I almost wonder if she is really teething. It's wearing me out pretty bad. She's still not set on her schedule like she was before she starting crawling. She officially dropped her last nap. So she's only down to two naps a day. On a good day, she'll sleep 2 hours. The last nap is always a struggle. If she's the slightest bit over tired or not tired enough, it's a battle to get her to sleep! Oh the joys of motherhood :-) Good thing I love her like crazy!

Speaking of crawling... Autumn is all over the place. She is on the go! Getting into anything and everything. She's pretty smooth at it now. Even crawls to me, Jordan and my mom. One evening, Jordan came home from work, super dirty. Autumn saw him and got super excited. Started crawling towards him and even cried a little bit when he tried to walk away to wash his hands. Just melted his heart! So he picked her up, dirty hands and all :-) How could you say no to that?

Autumn almost pulled herself up today too. She got up on her knees. I told her that she was growing up too fast and that she needed to stop. She didn't listen to me. I am so blessed to have Autumn in my life. She has taught me so much about my heart and God's love for me. The miracle of life is a wonderful thing. I just never thought I would blink and she'd be crawling already. Next walking... Then pre-school... Ok... I need to stop!

Recently started Autumn on cherrio puffs. She's doing a lot better than I expected with them. I still have to break them apart a little bit. Still a little big for her. But she eats them very well. Even used her two bottom teeth to crunch them. I put a few on her high chair table and she went to town. Still not doing so well with the pointer finger and the thumb, but she's learning. She gets them in her mouth. Sometimes. I just love watching her learn and observe. She's such a smart girl.

Autumn and I are going to be flying to Myrtle Beach at the end of this month to visit Jen and her little girl Leah! I'm SO excited and yes, a little nervous. I've only ever flown once in my life, not to mention that I'm bringing Autumn with me :-) Jordan will be fishing in the U.P. with a bunch of guys from church. And so I figured that Autumn and I needed a little vacation of our own. Found some really cheap tickets online. Really looking forward to spending some time with Jen and our girls! Any advice on traveling with a 8 month old would be very appreciated.

Last, but not least, Mother's Day!!! My first official Mother's Day was last Sunday. Autumn surprised me with a beautiful open hearts necklace in her crib when she woke up from her nap. Sneaky girl ;-) Like I said before (and I'll say it again a million times over) I am so blessed to have Autumn. She is such a wonderful surprise. I love watching her grow and learn and watch her personality come to life. Her bond with Jordan is growing so much and just warms my heart when she gets super excited to see him. He loves his little girl so much! I can't wait to expand our little family ;-)

My first Mother's Day!

Playing with Rudy.

How do I get this in my mouth?

Her newest thing... Tipping her head to the side.

Studying those cherrio puffs...

Splish Splash!

Oh geeze. Just when I get Autumn up to sleeping through the night, something happens that brings it back down again. I think I'm destined to sleep only 3 or 4 hours at a time for the rest of my life :-) Autumn is learning how to crawl. I think she's got it down pretty good now. She moves about 4 or 5 crawl/steps (whatever you wanna call it) and then falls down. I think she's getting the hang of it. Definitely time to baby proof the house. I've already had to take away several items from her! However, since she's going through a major milestone, her nap schedule and sleep schedule is all thrown off!!! Yesterday she only got 1 half hour nap and then an hour and a half before bed time. Definitely not enough to function properly. We'll see how she does today.

Bath time is starting to become a fun routine for Autumn. She gets a bath 3 nights a week (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday). She's now way too big to be in the sink. She has a really nice duck tub that sits inside the regular bath tub. That way I don't have to worry about her face planting on the ceramic tub. She loves playing with her toys and splashing mommy!

Speaking of being too big. I have to graduate Autumn to the next size car seat. Her legs are already hanging off the end of her bucket car seat! I've bumped her feet a few times and feel horrible :-( She's already 28 inches long and that's the maximum for her car seat. I'll be sure to post pics of her new car seat when she gets it tomorrow :-D

Rub-a-dub-dub... Autumn's in the tub!

Playing with her toys.

Goofing off with daddy during dinner.

Her favorite... BANANAS!!!

Goofiest face ever :-D