Cora, 8 months

Blogging about inconsequential things like baby news and house updates seems...somehow inappropriate right now. So I've been quiet here. (Also busy, but that's nothing new.)

I'm trying really hard to take Jesus's words to heart, and honestly pray for my enemies.
BUT, I promised myself I'd keep doing Cora's pictures and updates every month so that still has to be taken care of. Hey, we all need distractions now and again, right?

So! Cora is 8 months and the months keep flying by faster and faster!

Weight: just over 21 lbs by our home scale.

Height: Same old same old, although she's getting longer I don't have the patience to measure her so who knows?

Firsts this month: successfully sitting up for periods at a time, and figuring out how to crawl around the entirety of the house to find us.

Nicknames: nothing new

Other things to note:
+ We've had some ups and downs with sleep this past month. Probably another sleep regression on top of teething and a growth spurt, so not too much terrible all at once....... ha. ha. ha. But we rode it out and back down to just one wake per night.
+ I'm thinking I'm going to try to cut out that one feed soon, because she's really not eating all that much and the time she wakes up varies SO much that I don't think she's actually hungry. We'll see if I get motivated enough to do it, though.
+ Baby girl is now suddenly noticing when we leave the room, and immediately cries/screams to get us to pay attention to her and come back where she can see us! So that's real fun.
+ She's a huge fan of baby food now and occasional big people food, depending on if I actually want to get some food in her or if I just want to occupy her in the high chair for awhile.
+ So far she hasn't actually disliked anything, although her father (ahem ahem) has a tendency to feed her cold vegetables and then complain that she doesn't like to eat them... Can't say as I blame her, I'm not a huge fan of cold green beans either. Surprisingly when you warm them up she eats them like a champ. ;)
+ Her clothing sizes are all over the map. Mostly 18-24 month onesies, a few 12 month PJ sets still fit because her thighs have thinned out (she fatted out of them at like 6 months because they wouldn't zip over her thighs, hahahaha), 9-12 month pants. We just went through all of our girls clothes to organize them and see what I need for winter, and she's going to fit into a lot of Kate's stuff, so I just need some long-sleeve onesies and a coat or two. Yay!
+ Her naps are pretty good for the most part, still going strong with 2 a day, usually 10-12 and 2:30-4 or so. She is a serious champ to put down too, just nurse her and stick her in the crib and she's out. Napping in the car is not as easy to achieve when we actually want her to, but that's okay.
+ She's on a major hair-and-glasses pulling phase, because she's discovered she can get a reaction out of you when she does it.

She's a blessing and we're so happy to have her around.

HG

a catch-up post

Lots of things going on at Casa Gokie plus a really busy month of work means I effectively haven't blogged consistently in a very long time. Is this what it's like to be a functioning adult? I'm not sure, and I'd prefer not to find out for a few years yet. Anyway, here to give you a rundown of what's been going on lately and to jot down thoughts about this stage of life because why not!

First of all, I have a lovely new theme and some organizing going on behind the scenes lately. I get this itch to change everything on my blog pretty consistently every 6 months or so, and I finally succumbed to this round of editing. You won't notice anything if you read on a reader like I do (Feedly all the way, man) but that's fine. It's mostly for my own benefit anyway. I did edit my About page although it will go further in editing when I get a somewhat current family photo of us (the last ones I have are from Easter when David and I kind of look like death warmed over cause we took the photos too early in the morning).

I'm down 25-ish pounds since the end of May, and while that is awesome and I am very proud of myself, it has not been an easy two months. Admittedly I was eating too much beforehand, but I was also relying on food to lift my mood and to entertain myself probably too much, so this has been a good system to try and negate those not-so-great habits. If you're curious, I've been doing Weight Watchers and working out 5 days a week. I went through Insanity Max 30 and I think I'm going to start Focus T25 in the next few weeks, just for something new. I miss eating whatever I want, and like I've told multiple people by now, I'd better be seeing results for all the food I wish I was eating. ;)

Both of those changes have incredibly lifted my daily mood and overall life outlook, which everyone says is a benefit of working out but is hard to believe until you're actually doing it yourself. I really look forward every day to working out either after the girls nap and are plonked in front of an episode of Clifford on Netflix or after David gets home. And the fact that I'm actually losing weight is a great motivator.

My big reward for the end of all this (my "goal" weight, if you will) is a vacation sometime next year after Cora weans. It'll be a combination 5 year anniversary trip plus the reward, and I'm already excited about it even though it's a long ways in the future. If you've got any suggestions for us when it comes to destinations, hit me up! I'm thinking something adventurous and relaxing at the same time - something maybe like an Alaskan cruise? We'll see.

Cora is crazy on the move now. She's crawling everywhere, although has an affinity for our main rug in the living room which is nice. She's of course attracted to all the cords, dog toys, and outlets around, so I've put back some babyproofing methods in place, and Kate is quickly learning to keep her books out of her reach. 

In other words, I'm appreciating these sleeping photos of her even more the more she grows, because it's the only time she stops moving. 

This one (^^^) is still constantly on the move, and becoming an excellent shopper in her pretend grocery store in the basement. She has recently rediscovered the glories of splashing in rain puddles, coloring, and pretending to put her babies down to sleep. Her tantrums are somewhat spacing out but she has a lot of emotions for a little person and it's overwhelming at times. She's getting braver and braver in the pool (see photo #1) with lots of help from the grandparents, and it's still as fun as ever to see her grow.

What's new with you?
HG

currently [summertime]

drinking: leftover from lunch, a Diet Coke. I haven't had much water yet today though so when it's gone that's next.

eating: well, for lunch I had pizza rolls and an apple...the picture of health, over here. I've not been snacking very much so currently not eating anything.

watching: the background of our Chromecast cycle through photos. I'm going to start my next episode of Silicon Valley in a minute, as soon as I get off Apple Support's chat line.

listening to: the sweet sweet silence of naptime.

reading: (amazon affiliate links ahead!) I just finished Cold Mountain last night - and I stayed up too late doing so. What a hefty book, and not for the faint of heart, but I'm glad I stuck with it. Up next is Thick as Thieves (the newest Megan Whalen Turner) and The Gunslinger by Stephen King. I also have Outlander on loan from the library but I don't think I'm going to get to it before my checkout expires.

wearing: gym shorts and a tee, as every day in the summer.

working on: this blog post, and taking a nice (tiny) break from my job-work. We had a crazy busy month and there's a little window of respite before the next month's books come pouring into my inbox, so just trying to relax while I can and catch up on other internet things.

writing: a screenplay, some other projects, and occasional blog posts.

making: probably chicken wraps & tater tots for dinner, otherwise not much. Gourmet! Once the weather cools down I want to try some of the desserts I've seen on the Great British Baking Show, but it's wayyyy too hot to turn on the oven for anything not completely necessary right now.

thanking: the good Lord that both girls are on a somewhat predictable nap schedule, and they both nap together in the afternoon. Life. Changer.

disliking: the weather. I want fall and the ability to wear jeans without sweating a bucket every time.

wondering: what workout program I should start next. I want to do more weight-lifting but we don't have a pull-up bar or strap set to supplement it in the basement (where I workout). Sooo indecision.

loving: Cora's goofy grin she gets when we put her in the jumper. She is obsessed with it. She'd jump in it for hours if I let her.

What's going on in your corner?
HG