Catch up!

We have finally moved in and have gotten everything unpacked! Yay! Piper has transitioned well even though her schedule was completely thrown off track. We were all completely exhausted on Thanksgiving but being with family kept our spirits high. For some reason I didn't take a lot of pictures and I feel horrible about it. I was in a zombie like state all day, but I think The Granny may have taken a few.

Piper is definitely growing fast and I can't help but smile when I think about how beautiful and happy she is. She is a very social baby and loves everybody. People are always amazed by her friendly nature. They repeatedly ask me the same question, "Is she always this happy?". I tell them yes and I like to take credit for her joyous manner! The only thing she seems to disagree with is being put in her carseat; she doesn't like to be restrained. I believe this is because she has become so mobile. She can scoot anywhere and has now started pushing off her knees onto her feet! She will be crawling before we know it!

I am still surprised Piper has no teeth; it seems she has been teething for quite some time. She is constantly chewing on her hands and blankets. I have tried giving her teethers, but she has taken interest in chewing on our red cups.

We ordered her some wooden teethers for Christmas from http://www.tinybirdsorganics.com/. I am very concerned about all the toxic material in most toys produced these days, and I believe we could prevent a lot of illnesses if we would take concern in what we expose ourselves to everyday. I do not think I am overprotective as some have called me. I just want Piper to be as healthy as she can be, and I see myself as a mother who wants nothing but the best for my daughter. Here are some of the Christmas presents Piper will be receiving from Santa!

So the big day finally arrived and I was extremely nervous. All my concerns were tossed right out the window after Piper had her first taste of solid food. I can't explain why I was scared. Maybe it was concern of her disliking the process or maybe it is just the reality of her growing up. I know this may sound comical to some, but she will soon be crawling then comes walking, talking, school, and so on. I actually teared up a little which was entertainment for Leo.

I have decided to make Piper's food using only certified organics and following the Super Baby Food diet. I purchased Happybellies organic whole- grain cereal to feed her first.http://www.happybabyfood.com/ It contains probiotics which I feel are extremely important in maintaining a healthy immune system. I have also decided to feed her a vegetarian diet which some will disagree with. I have been shopping at Rainbow natural grocery which is an excellent place to buy organic whole foods. The Super Baby Food diet is based primarily on being vegetarian. I don't want to go into a nutrition discussion but meat is unhealthy and all vitamins and minerals can be obtained without eating it. I have done my research and if any family member is concerned I will be happy to share what I have learned. No Happy meals for Piper!! HAHA!

Piper is going strong on the potty tee teeing every hour. She goes before and after naps and has even started to poo poo in her potty around the same time every day! I am so excited and plan on having her completely potty trained by her first birthday. I continue to sign to Piper and she has started throwing her hands everywhere! I am trying to figure out if she is signing. She understands when I sign certain things such as milk, eat, bath time, and potty.

Here are a few pictures of our daily adventures! Playing with Aunt Christian

Eating Ava's feet
Piper's elf hat
Getting ready to go to the grocery storeGot a new hatGiggly

Out with Nana

Moving Time!!!

I have been trying to find time to write, but we are moving soon so things have been a little crazy. Piper has been a great sport through all the packing and furniture shopping. We have literally been to Miskellys a dozen times and she didn't fuss not once. She actually had the final say on the living room furniture and might I say she did an excellent job! HaHa! We should be in the new house by the end of the month, and I am hoping the move won't affect her much. We are planning on living there until we move out of Ms; then we will be purchasing or own home.

Piper is doing great with potty training. She has started to become very aware of what is actually happening when I sit her on her potty. I always sign potty before we enter the bathroom and again when I sit her down. She looks down to watch what is going on and looks up at me smiling when she is finished waiting for me to praise her. It is the cutest thing to watch how excited she gets when I clap and tell her good job. She still hasn't had a bowel movement in the potty because they are so irregular I never know when it is coming. I think once she starts eating solids at six months it will be easier to time.

It is amazing how much a baby can change in just a week! Piper has decided everything in reach is a toy. She is a little wiggle worm and refuses to sit still. She climbs over me to try and reach things that she is not allowed to play with such as phones, remotes, keys, and pretty much everything else that shouldn't go in her mouth. She's also very talkative and will carry on a conversation with my as long as she has my attention. She has also taken to sucking here left thumb.

Piper has recently started getting up on all fours. She doesn't stay up for long, but it is definitely a step towards crawling. She is also able to sit up without support for a few minutes and is great at keeping her balance. I put a boppy pillow around her to keep her from falling. She has been able to stand and bear weight on her legs since about three months.

Daddy put me here!!!

We had an exciting weekend! We made a trip with Granny to see her horses!
Piper's horse


Where daddy really came from.

We also made a trip to see great grandma Janice.

P is for Piper

I decided to start a blog so family and friends can stay informed with Piper. Some of her family does not get to see her very often so I thought it would be fun to update them by blogging. She is growing so fast and I feel like she accomplishes something new everyday. Here is how a typical

day goes for Piper...

wake up and nurse 7:00

activity 7:30

read 8:45

nap 9:00

wake up and nurse 11:00

activity 11:30

read 12:45

nap 1:00

wake up 2:30

nurse 3:00

activity 3:30

nap 4:30

wake up 5:30

activity including, bath, massage(yes Leo is jealous), read, and nurse 6:00

bedtime kisses 7:00

We feel it is very important to have her on a structured routine and it makes all of us a lot happier when we know what to expect. I had a little help from, The Baby Whisperer and Baby Wise! The first few months were difficult because I was nursing on demand, but I soon became tired of being a human pacifier and decided to take a different approach. We are all glad I did!

It is so amazing how Piper's personality shines through a little more as each day passes. She loves to have conversations with Leo and I. Lately they come in the form of raspberries; it is quite entertaining for all of us. After she is finished telling us a story, she is completely soaked with drool. We are so glad we received those 60 bibs at the baby shower because we go through them like crazy.

I started signing to Piper a couple of months ago and am still anxious to learn more! I have watched a few videos and read some books, but I can't wait to start taking sign classes with her at St. Dominics. She already shows great interest when I sign which excites me to know she will soon understand and hopefully start responding in a few months.

I know the majority of people think its crazy, but we bought a potty for Piper and have started some training. I am in full agreement with the concept that it is unsanitary to allow babies to sit in their waste. A friend of mine introduced me to a great book about potty training early, Early Start Potty Training by Linda Sonna. Here are a few facts from the book that I think are important to share:

-Diaper rash used to be a sign of parental neglect; before disposable diapers only 7% of babies were affected. Now 94% of children wear disposables and 78% are affected with diaper rash.

-Chemicals from disposable diapers are absorbed through the skin.

-Hundreds of thousands of trees are used to make billions of diapers kids in the us use each year.

-Disposable diapers are the 3rd leading component of the nation's landfills

- Delaying toilet training has been pushed by pediatric spokesmen for disposable diaper industry since the 1960's

-Before disposable diapers 90% of kids were trained by age 2 1/2, in 1998 that dropped to 22%

Contrary to popular belief, babies can control their sphincter muscles; med school students are not taught this information. Americans are the only people who do not think about early potty training. I decided before I was introduced to the early training concept to use cloth diapers. I purchased the bum genius diapers from target by a friend's recommendation. I was really excited to stop using disposable diapers but we started having a few problems. It wasn't the cloth diapers, they work great!! Piper has a case of infantile eczema which is very severe on the region below her belly button; the polyester from the fabric started becoming irritating. We now switch up between the cloth diapers and seventh generation disposable diapers(which contain no chlorine or toxins). She wears the disposables during naps and night, I change the cloth diapers every hour and she uses the potty every hour. Sounds exhausting! Seventh Generation also carries other green products.http://www.seventhgeneration.com/Natural-Baby

Her feet almost touch the ground! HAHA! We ordered a smaller potty!