Claire's First Bubble Bath

Saturday night, Bryce and I gave Claire her first bubble bath!  She loves taking baths in the big tub, and she was pretty fascinated with all the bubbles.  She squealed and splashed and would have happily spent an hour in there if I would have let her.  She kept trying to grab handfuls of bubbles, it was so funny.  Every little part of motherhood is kind of like magic, but there is something extra special in getting to see your baby experience all these "firsts." 

Claire Olivia Week by Week: 36 Weeks

Claire turned 36 Weeks old today. We're continuing to baby proof around the house, since she is figuring out how to get into everything.  She loves to pull herself on things to stand and she has started walking along the length of the couch.  She also loves to walk when we hold her fingers.  She lifts her legs really high with each step, almost like high knees.  It's pretty adorable.  Anytime she sees me eating she crawls to me as fast as she can and opens her mouth like a little baby bird until I share a taste with her.  She loves real food and will eat pretty much anything I give to her.  Her two top teeth are getting closer at cutting through.  I'm guessing they'll pop through in the next few weeks or so.  Claire is just a dream baby, she makes this mom business so much fun!  

We're Ready for ya October!

I had a photoshoot last night and Bryce had class so I took Claire to my mom and dad's house so they could babysit her for me.  My mom surprised Claire with a new pair of Halloween jammies & a Halloween book.  Both the book and jammies are darling!  It's no secret how much I love Halloween, so I was way excited about the fun surprise.  My mom is the cutest, she loves spoiling her grand babies.  Claire is lucky to have such a fun Nana!Claire's little Halloween surprise got me all excited for October (my favorite month!) so today we went to the store and bought a few mini pumpkins and I pulled out all of my Halloween decorations!

I used basically all the same decorations that I posted last year.

Oh wait!  I do have one new decoration this year.  That cute baby in the Halloween jammies ;).  (And don't worry Bryce is standing just out of the shot so she wouldn't crawl or fall off of the table.)

Our house smells like pumpkin spice from my new candle, there are bats on our walls, and we have a fridge full of apples just waiting to be dipped in caramel.  We're ready for ya October!

Fabric Beach Balls

Claire has become obsessed with our dog Rory's tennis ball.  If it's left out on the floor somewhere, she WILL find it, she will crawl after it as fast as she can, and if she can get to it before I can snatch it away from her she will try her darndest to get it in her mouth.  It seriously grosses me out.  Bryce reminded me about some fabric beach balls I had made a few years ago for a baby shower gift and suggested I make some for her.  I thought it was a great idea, and I hoped they would replace Claire's fascination for Rory's tennis ball. 
During one of Claire's naps last Friday I whipped together these cute fabric beach balls with some extra fabric scraps I had in my stash.  I finished the hand sewing Friday night while Bryce was gone at clinicals.  It was a pretty quick, easy project, and I love how they turned out!  I can't take credit for the idea or pattern I found it here on the Purl Bee's website a few years ago.  It hasn't totally solved the tennis ball dilemma but it buys me a few extra minutes to get the dog toys cleaned up while Claire plays with her little beach balls.

Claire Olivia Week by Week: 35 Weeks

I know I just posted Claire's 8 month pictures a few days ago, but I committed to taking her weekly picture and when I commit to something, I commit.  So here is another post filled with pictures of my darling baby girl :).  She was not feeling like getting her picture taken, which is pretty evident in the pictures above.  I'm pretty sure she is teething.  She has not wanted me to put her down all morning.    
I quickly remedied the situation and grabbed her an apple from our apple tree to play with.  It didn't get me any smiles out of her but at least I got a few shots where she looks somewhat pleasant :).  Claire is now 35 weeks old, so I figured today was as good a day as any to give her her first ponytail. Truthfully, I probably could have given her a ponytail the day she was born since she had so much hair, but it's finally long enough now that it doesn't look quite as silly as it would have. I think she pulls off the ponytail really well, although it makes her look more like a toddler instead of a baby. How did she get so big?! (insert dramatic mom cliches about baby growing up way too quickly). Even if she is grumpy and teething, this little girl is my whole world.

Claire Olivia Week by Week: 8 Months

Dear Claire, 

Today you turned 8 months old.  You have learned so much this past month!  You are officially a full blown crawler and you do it all day long.  You started real crawling about 3 weeks ago and left the army crawling in the dust.  You love exploring the house and getting into everything.  You are fascinated with the dog food & water bowls and you try to crawl to them any chance you get.  You pull yourself up on everything so you are standing.  You pull yourself up and stand next to the entertainment center, couch, dog crate, and you have started pulling yourself up so your standing in your crib.  I think it's time we lower your mattress in the crib so you can't crawl out ;).   You are eating solids a lot better, but you definitely like real food better than baby food.  You are not a big fan of purees but you will eat table food cut up in small pieces really well.  Your favorite foods right now include yogurt, spaghetti, cut up green beans, grapes, string cheese, and little pieces of bread.  You love to clap and play patty cake.  You squeal and get excited when you see other kids and babies.  You've started trying to copy some of the things I do and you always shake your head back and forth and smile when I shake my head at you and say "no, no, no."  You've started to like when I read you books and you'll actually sit really still and look at the pages for a few minutes.  When you get bored you try to grab the pages and eat them, but at least you're making progress ;).    You are a great sleeper still.  You go to bed between 7 & 8 pm and sleep until about 6 am.  You also take 3 naps a day, 2 long ones and one short one in the evening.  You love to play with Rory and you giggle all the time when she licks you or nuzzles you.  It's so fun to watch.  You've also started getting really excited when your dad gets home.  You smile really big and crawl to him as fast as you can.  
You are super mellow and easy going.  You really are just a sweetheart.  You love to cuddle and you smile and giggle at me when I sing your bedtime song.  Even though it's a little bittersweet, I love watching you grow and learn.  I can't wait to see what you'll learn this month, and especially what you'll have learned by the time you are a year old in a few more months!

I love you too much,

Mom      

Full Blown Crawler

Claire has been a full blown crawler for about 3 weeks now, but I finally remembered to get it on video this past Sunday.  Here she is in action going after Bryce's apple.  She's a little goer now!

Peach Crumble Pie

Last Saturday, I finally tackled one of my fears, and baked my first pie.  I don't know why but making pie has always seemed so intimidating to me.  I used up the rest of our peaches and found a recipe from none other then Martha Stewart, for Peach Crumble Pie.  It really wasn't as difficult as I had expected, but I still could use some practice making the crust.  Bryce was a big fan, and declared it as one of his favorite desserts that I've ever made.  Here is the recipe below:

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE CRUST:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for rolling
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

FOR THE FILLING:

• 3 pounds peaches, halved, pitted, and cut into 1/2-inch slices (8 cups)
• 2 tablespoons light-brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

FOR THE CRUMBLE:

• 1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 1/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

DIRECTIONS

1. STEP 1

   Make crust: In a food processor, pulse flour, salt, and granulated sugar until combined. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons ice water. Pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed (if necessary, add up to 2 tablespoons ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time); do not overmix. Form dough into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour (or up to overnight).

2. STEP 2

   Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly flour a rolling pin and work surface and roll out dough to a 12-inch round. Place in a 9-inch pie plate, fold overhang under, and crimp edges. Make filling: In a large bowl, toss together peaches, brown sugar, and flour until combined. Make crumble: In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, flour, and oats; using your hands, work in butter until large clumps form.

3. STEP 3

   Transfer peach filling to pie shell, then sprinkle crumble evenly over top. Place pie on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until juices are bubbling and topping is golden, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack 1 1/2 hours before serving.

Original recipe found here.

Happy Birthday Lydi!

Yesterday we celebrated Claire's best friend (my niece) Lydia's birthday. I can't believe my sweet little niece is 1 year old!  Her actual birthday is tomorrow, but they celebrated a few days early so all of the family could be there.  These two are really becoming little besties.  It is so much fun seeing them together!  I remember when Laci and I were both pregnant and we talked about how we couldn't wait for our girls to be friends...and now it's totally happening :).
My brother, uncle Rhett to Lydia & Claire, bought Lydia this four-wheeler for her birthday.  To say she LOVED it would be an understatement.  She goes on four-wheeler rides at her grandparents houses all the time so she totally had the drill down already.  As soon as she climbed onto it she was waving bye-bye to everyone expecting her little four wheeler to take off!  It was so funny.

Claire was pretty intrigued with the four-wheeler too and kept crawling over and pulling herself up to examine it. We let her and Lydia go for a little "ride" together ;).

I just love this little girl.  She is such a fun, spunky baby.  I think she and Claire will be getting into a lot of trouble together in a few years ;).

Happy Birthday Lydi Bug! 

Claire Olivia Week by Week: 34 Weeks

My sweet little Claire Olivia turned 34 weeks old today. She is really thinking she is ready to be a big kid. She pulls her up on things so she is standing all the time. She crawls really fast now. If I leave the room she thinks its kind of a game. She gets all excited and crawls after me as fast as she can. I've officially entered the stage where I can no longer go to the bathroom alone. She always comes and finds me :). She has also discovered the dog food & water bowls. Any chance she gets she takes off through the kitchen to try to get to them before I get to her. I can't hardly leave her alone in a room now since she gets into everything. She's keeping me extra busy, but it is so much fun! I think she may either be teething or getting a cold because she has had a runny nose the past couple days and has been extra cuddly (cute and sad at the same time).  She has started to love kids and other babies.  She gets so excited and squeals and claps when she sees them.  She was extra noisy during Sacrament Meeting today, squealing at all of the kids in the rows behind us.  She kept Bryce & me and the other families around us very entertained.  I say stuff like this all the time, but really, I love this girl more than words can say!