happy thanksgiving!

This year, Thanksgiving is extra special because it's Micah's first! We are thankful for too many things to list, but we hope that you are having a wonderful Thanksgiving and reflecting on all of the blessings in your life!

six months.

micah,
the best way to describe you at six months is a ball of energy! if you're awake, you're moving. period. you are so excited to take in all the sights and sounds around you so there's no time for sitting! you do well while leaning forward, but haven't mastered the full sit. Today you are technically 6 months and 4 days and you crawled for the very first time! it was more of a scoot-crawl, but the bottom line is :: you are MOBILE. your dad and i know that we have no idea what we're in for!
you've been eating solids for 2 weeks, and are such a good eater! we haven't quite figured out a schedule for you quite yet but we're trying! you love pretty much everything that we give you but you absolutely hate peas and puffs! i have a pretty funny video of you eating puffs that you will laugh at one day. you love everything else that you have tried...bananas, avocado, pears, sweet potatoes and apples.
at your six month appointment, we found out that you are 28 inches long and 19lbs. 3oz! you are in the 93rd percentile for length, and the 75th percentile for weight. you are a big baby! dr. brown says that you are growing so well and she loves your hair and wild personality. Here are some pictures of how much you've grown over the last 6 months ::


we can't believe that you are already six months old. time seriously flies little man. we love you so much and could not be more happy to be your parents.

love,
mama

if you're a guy, this post won't interest you.

i must clarify, i wouldn't wear this shirt, i just thought it was funny :)

micah's 6 month update is coming, but until i get that post together, i thought i'd write about something that i've been thinking about a lot recently.

when micah was born, i was fully planning to nurse him. he did great the first day. literally needed no help whatsoever through the first night. once the next day hit, we had all sorts of hurdles, but primarily he had a poor latch. then, he got frustrated, and stubborn! we saw multiple lactation consultants, but before we left the hospital, they had me pumping and syringe feeding. to make a long story short, i ended up decided to go the route of exclusively pumping for micah. we just couldn't make nursing work, so i set my sights on pumping.

one thing i found out quickly was that the general assumption is that your milk won't come in if you're pumping or that it won't last past a few weeks. i was told over and over by lactation consultants, doctors and friends that i couldn't do it. i had a few cheerleaders (who i am very thankful for), but mostly i found a lot of negativity.

i found an online forum for "exclusive pumpers" and for those first 12 weeks, I was on that board during almost every pump trying to figure this whole thing out, and those women are AMAZING! i found so much information and support on that online community, and had no supply issues at all...in fact, we had to invest in a deep freeze just to store my milk!

as we hit the 6 month marker of micah's birth, i can proudly say that my baby has been exclusively fed breastmilk for 6 months! He is healthy and growing beautifully! Pumping has not been an easy road...there are bottles to wash, midnight pumping sessions after feeding the baby (only did that for 10 weeks, but still!), pausing life 4-8 times a day for 6 months to make sure that micah has milk, and trying to find outlets (that one is REALLY fun;) ). I have pumped at the orange county fair, disneyland, in nordstrom, and of course in the car. even though the road hasn't been without it's fair share of bumps, the thing i want people to know is that it is possible to pump milk for your baby for an extended amount of time.

i am proud of myself and looking back at the last 6 months makes the next 6 months seem doable!

happy half birthday micah!

six months. half a year. 184 days.

today we are celebrating Micah's half birthday! We are celebrating the fact that we have had him in our home for half a year! We love our little guy SO SO much and are look forward to each new day that we get to spend with him. Happy half birthday little man, we LOVE you!

the happiest place on earth.

alex and i were annual passholders for a couple of years and loved it. we let our passes expire while i was pregnant because, well, it was just a little too much for me. we did however put aside some christmas money from last year for our passes, and on a much needed day off together a couple of weeks ago, we decided to pack up our little man and head over to the happiest place on earth! we are officially passholders again and are excited for the memories we'll make with Micah at disneyland! Here are a few pictures from our day ::

micah very excited to be at disneyland :)

micah taking in "it's a small world"mama and micah on the tram

growing up.

My baby is growing up. I keep trying to slow down time, but it just isn't working! Here's a video of our little man's first taste of solid food...avocado!

we have a winner!

The winner of our first ever giveaway just happens to be my sister in law, Nicole! We used random.org to choose between all 6 of you ;)

Congrats Nicole, let me know if you would like a boy or girl grab bag and I will send your info to BabyLegs!

...and just because he's awesome, here's a pic of Micah rocking his BabyLegs with his great grandpa!

alex has an etsy shop.

My crazy talented hubby has recently opened an etsy shop with some photography prints, Christmas photo cards, and a pretty awesome baby onesie. Here are some samples from his shop::



Check it out here :: http://www.etsy.com/shop/atpavone?ref=seller_info

Our journey to the perfect baby carrier (part 2)

Over the course of the 2 week rental, I used both baby carriers a decent amount, but around the middle of week two I had given up on one...we had found our winner! After a lot of use, I decided to go with the Beco Gemini.

I really wanted to like the Beco Butterfly ll. I wanted to fall in love with it and wear it everyday because it simplifies the back carry. There's a "pocket" that baby goes in, and for a babywearing newbie, it seemed like a dream! Now, I'm sure that the Butterfly ll works for a lot of babies, but Micah just didn't like it. He squirmed and fussed every single time we tried it. One of the times, he did fall asleep, but every other time he just didn't seem comfortable. It also hurt my back, but I can't be 100% sure that it wasn't just the way I'm built.

On the flip side, Micah loves his Gemini. Every single time I wore it he was content if not happy (these days all he seems to want is to roll around on the floor). I like the padding and the crossing straps. I love that I can do 4 carries :: front carry facing out, back carry, front carry facing in, and a hip carry. I haven't tried to put him in the way the directions say, but I can get him in from a sitting position which is working well for us.

At the end of my rental period, I went in to Granola Babies and bought the Beco Gemini in Metro Black. There are a few really cute patterns, but Alex wouldn't go for a pattern :) I am extremely happy with my carrier, and we take it everywhere! I hope you'll check out Granola Babies and maybe recommend the rental feature to a friend!