Gourmet Chef!

Well recently I have been deemed a gourmet chef by Sofia. We got into spices and herbs...so here are her favorites so far...

Pears with vanilla
4 Tbs Oatmeal cereal
2 packages Plum Organics Pears
3/8 tsp vanilla
Warm in microwave for 10 seconds to heat vanilla a little.

Carrots with thyme
2/3 cup carrots
3 Tbs brown rice cooked with a little butter
1/2 tsp olive oil
Sprinkle of thyme
Warm oil over low heat and add thyme. Cook until you smell the aroma. Add carrots and rice.

She is so serious about these...both hands go in the bowl. I recently tried to get her to smile and laugh while we were eating and she looked at me like " (A) you are not funny and (B) get to the task at hand woman!(delivering food to her mouth). So I gave up! On to Butternut with sage or rosemary...not sure which one yet.

Motherhood

You know you've officially reached it when your glasses, face, and neck are getting covered in drool because you are holding your kid over your head blowing air on her naked belly (before bathtime) just to hear her laugh!

Awesome!

We had the most awesome day today! We didn't go anywhere, but lots of cool things happened.

1. As you can see Sofia finally got close to Black Cat all by herself (she rolled over to him) and she got to sample his fur...not just the tip of the tail this time! Black Cat was such a trooper...I guess at 112 you just don't give a crap anymore!
2. Sofia and I took a bath together...I would have done this sooner, but I had to clean the tub. Also the tub here is like a foot bath...the water only gets over my thighs....it really sucked when I was pregnant. It is obviously not Japanese style, and I can only think that the military went with a low water level to prevent drowning or lawsuits...or they are extremely cheap! Anyhow I got tired of watching Sofia have a good soak, so I cleaned the tub and that was it! It was so cute...she kept looking backwards up at me like "are you really in here with me?".
3. I think I finally got her back into an 8ish bedtime! Now that means only 2 naps a day.
4. I fit in my size 8 chinos!! It was a victorious moment! Now onto my next goal...my only pair of jeans (size 6). Of course it will most likely be too hot
when I can actually fit in them!

Oh and by the way...here is an example of how long Sofia is..this is a 12 month onsie that Aunt Katie bought (Thanks we loved everything!). You can see it is a little wide, but the length is near perfect...she still has a little room to fill it out...you need the extra fabric to cover the boobies when you are trying to get into crawl position.

Day at the Okinawa Children's Land 沖縄こどもの国

We had a fun, but cold time at the Children's Land today! Sofia fell asleep towards the end. Today we got to see the animals of Okinawa...birds, reptiles, fish and monkeys. I felt kind of bad for the monkey...their cages were a little small, and one was old and not looking so healthy. Other than that the place is very beautiful and has many things to see. I bought a year pass for about $20. Sofia is free. If we go 3 more times we will break even with buying the pass, so I figure we will more than do that!
2 things stand out from today....the bats that I got right next to...and the most colorful ass on the planet!!
I will take more pics when we go next time!

Hail and Farewell

We hailed and farewelled today...in with the Beaba trainer cup from Auntie Katie and out with Tommee Tippee. Sofia seems to like the Beaba one better! As you can see it got a proper induction!

The Emerging Scientist!

These days I just watch Sofia sometimes as she is babbling on and exploring something new, and it amazes me! She is so careful to really investigate each item...she flips it over ever so carefully...rotates it...and of course gums it to death! But I am so amazed at how thorough she is! Meanwhile she is babbling "adada", "dutul lutle", "yay" or "hi". This of course is accompanied with serious eyebrows!! She is such a budding scientist!

6 month check up and trip

Today was our 6 month check up and Sofia is doing great! She is 15 lbs 12 oz and 26.5 inches. Her height is in the 85 percentile and I have had parents remark at how long she is...I wonder how tall she will be? 3 more inches and she will officially be half my height!
Interesting fact that came up at the appt. Kids start to regulate their temp at around 6 months, so you don't have to put that extra layer if it is cold...so now I can dress her at the temp I am dressed at...which today was hot! I still think she is a little hotter than me due to the fluffy polyester diapers!
We treated ourselves after to lunch at the beach. It was great! The pics are of us trying to leave the clinic parking lot. Sofia found the back seat fabric so interesting that I had to wait for 5 min until she was done, so I could strap her in...I got half way and decided to take pictures instead of struggling! The next is us at the beach and our beautiful beach...it was low tide and was really cool! Tom we will have to meet for lunches here some days when you get back....unless you are up at Hansen. Sofia sampled the sand, but was not that excited about the taste...I tried to keep as much of it out of her mouth, but it is the beach...sand gets everywhere....even when your not trying! Notice the cute tropical fish outfit!! Matching hat, too! She loved the feeling though and was elbows deep in it! She pooped herself out and I put her in the carrier and trudged back to the car. Fabulous!

Beach Walk

Today Sofia needed a little cuddle time. I decided to strap her on in the Ergobaby and go to the base beach. It was great we walked 2 times back and forth...it is a smaller beach. Sofia slept most of the time lulled by the waves. I realized how much I missed the ocean, so as long as it is not raining I plan to go down there everyday! It less than 5 min in the car, and then a little stroll. Hopefully after this tour it is Hawaii or San Diego...I will take North Carolina as well.

At our fans request...here it is!

Meat preparation?!

OMG! This is the most nastiest thing I have ever done...only second to sputum samples during the H1N1 outbreak that I had to test! I hope I can make it taste better than it looks!

On another note...I now have to change Sofia while she is on her stomach! She is so busy trying to crawl that when I flip her over to her back she immediately flips back over. Just when I had mastered the diaper change!

First cupcake!

We went to our neighbor's son's birthday party today. Sofia pooped out on me about cupcake time. I tried to see if she would just fall asleep in my arms, but it was way too exciting and she started fussing, so I brought her home. She is conked out in the crib now! We were given this cupcake and I had to open doors with right hand while holding Sofia and cupcake on plate in left hand....bad choice! Sofia decided to stick her hand right in it! She ripped off a piece and was trying to sample it while I am like rushing to get into my apt and to the nearest towel! She dropped the big hunk right outside our door...whew...dodged that bullet, but wait her hand is covered in frosting! Luckily sometimes she misses her mouth, so it ended up on her cheek, and I kept wiping while I explained that she can have this later...like 6 months from now! Note to all parents...don't use those little tiny round sprinkles! Those things were everywhere, get a little sticky, and do not wipe up well!
I can't wait to see her destroy her first birthday cake!

Dada

I know it is just babbling, but I am going to count it! Sofia's favorite phrase right now is "dada"...mama is nowhere in sight, but I am sure eventually it will get there. She also is very excited to explore her feet...taking off socks and trying to figure out what the heck a shoe is as well!
She has been having a tough time napping again...this time it is that she is so busy with exploring and wanting to get into everything that she maybe gets 15 min. Only if I hold her will she take a 45er. So today I was tired as well and we napped in bed with Sofia on my chest. It is really cute to wake up to her staring at me with a big smile. Being blind sort of helps as well cause everything else is blurred out and it is just her! How sweet!
Thanks Auntie Stella for the headband with all the fabulous flowers!

Thank Goodness For Strollers

This is how we are getting by these days without Tom when we have a huge load from the post office.
Thank you Graco!

Sofia's rules to a good meal!

1. Your food tastes better with at least one hand in it!
















2. Sample everything....if you leave it in front of her it is fair game Black Cat!

















3. If you haven't gone through 3 sets of clothes a day you are just not trying!

We are OK

I am sure by now you all heard of the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan. We are OK, and did not feel a thing. Relatives in Tokyo are OK as well. Not sure about any distant relatives in Fukushima. Iwaki city was hit very hard...this is where grandma grew up.
This morning was regular for us...I indulged in "dress up" and Sofia ate the breast pump tubing!