And these are a few of our favorite things...

Ahhh, The Sound of Music...have I got you singing it yet?! So, with the beginning of February being a relatively slow month, I thought I'd post just a few (11) of our favorite baby "things." These items have been lifesavers, loves and personal favorites of mine over these past 19 weeks. Some of these were suggestions from friends and others were just things we stumbled across over the course of baby shopping and having Stafford enter into our lives. Isn't it funny how much stuff we'll buy and try, just to see if it works or not with solving our issues?!! See below for items and descriptions:

Kissy Kissy infant gowns: Super soft, well-made and they convert into rompers if you get tired of the gown look...BEST THINGS EVER and I got mine from Smitten Gift Boutique (here in Ridgeland) and Sweet Dreams (in Madison).

Graco Cool Mist Humidifier: Works wonders on babies (and adults!) with stuffy noses PLUS it has one of those soothing white noise sounds that puts you right to sleep! I bought mine at Babies R' Us...get one!

Fisher Price Newborn Rock and Play Sleeper: This bad boy virtually saved my "sleeping life." It allowed me to get back in the bed (and off of the couch) with my husband and Stafford loves it!! Plus, it's just high enough where all I need to do is lean over in the middle of the night and stick that paci back in if necessary! I bought this one at Babies R' Us.


Nap Nanny Chill: This was Stafford's bed for the first 8 weeks of his life...terrible acid reflux kept him from laying down flat and this little item worked wonders with helping him sleep through the early days! Since this was a little expensive, I used a Cyber-Sale coupon from Babies R' Us and purchased it online for 20% off!

Enfamil Nutramigen Ready-to-Feed Formula: Expensive but worth every penny when you have a child with acid reflux...it smells terrible but who cares when they eat it without spitting up?!! Oh, and just a little fun FYI: You know how I HATE white foods...the whole reason for that is attributed to my sweet little sister and the nasty, stinky formula she drank as an infant...white foods just brought back those memories. Well, naturally, my child is drinking THE SAME FORMULA...ew! Guess that white food aversion won't be changing anytime soon! I tend to buy this in cases, online, from Babies R'Us...they have the cheapest price ($52 for a case) and free, fast shipping!!

A&D ointment: Used often and Stafford has YET to have a diaper rash. I tend to buy the tubes, not the big tubs, because the tubes are easiest to transport. We have these laying all over the house!! I buy A&D at Babies R'Us and stock up when I get those 3 for $5 coupons!

Wubbanub: Best pacifier "holder" EVER MADE. Stafford got addicted to those Soothie pacifiers from the hospital and when they fell out of his mouth, they would bounce all over the place. Enter: the Wubbanub. It keeps the paci in and Stafford loves holding it! I got ours (we have 3) at Smitten Gift Boutique and Belles & Beaus (in Oxford).

Vanilla-scented Soothies: Best smelling pacifiers ever...thanks River Oaks Hospital! I actually restocked on these at Marty's Pharmacy near River Oaks...apparently they are the only place in Jackson that sells the scented ones.

Dr. Brown's Dishwasher Basket: Thank Heavens for this little item. I know it doesn't look like much but we have two of these and literally use them multiple times a day. They are great for holding all of the standard Dr. Brown's bottle parts. My only gripe with this product is that it doesn't hold enough...it only holds 3 bottles worth of parts so that's why we have 2! Overall, it is FABULOUS and very inexpensive!! These were gifts from my baby shower but came from Babies R'Us.

Chicco Key Fit 30 Car Seat: I love this car seat. It is relatively light-weight and very easy to snap and go, whether it be into his car seat base or into the stroller. Since I lug this thing around twice a day, it's nice that it isn't too heavy. I also love the fact that Stafford can use this seat until he weighs 30 pounds vs. the others that make you switch out at around 25 pounds. A baby shower hostess gift...THANK YOU...that came from my registry at Babies R'Us.

Baby Trend Expedition LX Jogging Stroller: PERFECT jogging stroller...literally! Since I'm not a huge exerciser, I was a little hesitant to purchase a jogging stroller but I'm so glad that I did. This stroller has such a smooth ride and it's so easy to plop Stafford in it and cruise around the neighborhood. Plus, it was VERY inexpensive ($140) compared to others out there. I'm running my first 5k (with Stafford) in March so I'll report back then on its "racing" abilities! This item was purchased at Babies R'Us.

Mississippi Blues 2012

So, I'm a little behind in posting this event since it occurred at the beginning of the month but better late than never! A few weeks ago, Reed ran in the Mississippi Blues Half Marathon here in Jackson. This was the 3rd time that he has ran in this event and let me tell you, Reedy did WELL...like, coming in 26th place out of 1,188 runners WELL! Woo Hoo! Reed finished the entire 13.1 miles in 1 hour and 32 minutes....whoa. It would take me that long to run a 10k! This fabulous time had him coming in 4th place in his age group (30-34 male). My sweet man has been training hard at getting faster and I definitely think he's on the right track. For the official race results, go to: http://results.active.com/pages/displayNonGru.jsp?pubID=3&rsID=122758 and you can see the breakdown of the times/splits/etc for the event.

here he comes

coming down the home stretch

WHOA!! Stafford...

ROLLED OVER for the first time this morning! I hate that I didn't get it on video or even a picture but considering he performed this little trick at about 6 AM (I swear it felt earlier!) while he was in the bed with me (we don't do that often, btw) there was no getting it captured. Stafford was a little restless early this morning so once Reed was up, I put him (on his back) in the bed with me, in-between two pillows. All of a sudden, he just flipped over on his tummy!! You would have thought he just scored a 36 on his ACT...I was so excited!!

4 Months...Revisited!!

Ok, so I posted earlier about Stafford turning 4 months old...well, here is the official, updated version since we had his 4 month doctor's appointment today! Sweet thing had to get three shots today: one oral vaccination (those are the best) and one shot in each leg. He took the oral medicine and the first shot like a champ...that second one in his leg was another story...HATED it but only cried for about 10 seconds before falling back asleep. The nurse even commented that it was the shortest cry she's ever heard for that particular shot so I'm going to say he took that one like a champ too...tough guy! His doc said that we can start spoon-feeding him one tablespoon of rice cereal mixed with about 1-2 ounces of formula at night. He suggested not putting the rice cereal in a bottle but spoon-feeding instead...so, we are trying this out tonight! He said to do this for about a week, increase the rice cereal feedings to twice a day (morning and night) after the first week and then on to baby food (veggies first) in addition to his 4 times a day formula feedings! I am so excited to start this next little chapter in feedings...fingers crossed that Stafford gets the hang of a spoon quickly! Sweet boy weighs 11 pounds & 12 ounces and he is 23 inches long!! The doctor said he looks great, is eating well, is sleeping well and is right on track with doing what he's supposed to be doing at this age. He doesn't go back for two more months which I'm sure his little thighs appreciate! My tough guy below:

4 months old...

so serious...

hee hee...little man moustache!!

A New York State of Mind

Last weekend, I took a huge leap and left Stafford (with his very capable daddy) for 3 nights and journeyed to NYC to visit my good friend, Caroline. Since it was MLK weekend and I had that Monday off from work, I decided that was the perfect time for a trip up North. We had SUCH a great time!! Our Saturday consisted of sleeping in, walking around Central Park (in the snow flurries!), visiting the Guggenheim Museum, having drinks at The Mark Hotel, shopping at Saks, dinner at Pipa and "clubbing" at the Gramercy Park Hotel - Rose Bar. Our Sunday consisted of brunch at Barbounia (their french toast was amazing!), shopping at Eataly, walking around Union Square, sipping milkshakes from The Shake Shack, napping, ordering in for dinner and watching the Giants WIN their game. Monday, I was up bright and early to catch my flight back to Jackson and hug on my boys. I missed them SO MUCH but had a blast with Caro...she was a great hostess! Thank you Caroline for inviting me up...much needed girl time and so fun!!

tromping around central park

this exhibit at the guggenheim was suspended from the ceiling

belvedere castle in central park

hanging at rose bar with caroline and liza

Face Time With The Fam

Oh my...I cannot tell you enough how ready I am to see these faces this weekend!! My family is coming for a visit and since I haven't seen them since Christmas...I AM READY! My mom is celebrating a birthday this weekend and they couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than by spending time with Stafford...notice I said Stafford, not me and Reed! HA! I have a small feeling that even though they love seeing us, it's really Stafford-man they want to see and we are totally ok with that! :) I know that 4.5 hours isn't a long way to drive to get "home" but I sure do wish they were closer. Once Sis gets back to school, we will see lots of her smiling face I'm sure!!

me & sis

the stafford/stacy familia

4 Months Old!!!

Look who's 4 months old!! Seriously, the fastest 16 weeks of my life and I'm told they just keep getting faster...nooooooooo! I am not ready for my sweet baby to grow up this quickly! Even though we haven't had our 4 month doctors appointment yet (thus no stats), I thought I'd go ahead and do this post anyway. Unfortunately, Stafford has been sick for the past week (thank you day care and crazy, up and down Mississippi weather) so when we went to the doctor on Monday we were able to just get his weight...10 pounds, 10 ounces!! We have such a tiny little man!

Some Stafford Stats:
1. Feeding: we're on a great schedule with 4 feedings a day at 6-7 ounces per feeding (we haven't added any rice cereal to his bottle yet but I plan on asking the doc about that at his next visit.) Unfortunately, Stafford still has acid reflux and we're still taking the Prevacid for that...it works like a charm, though, so it's worth every penny! I have noticed it getting better recently so fingers crossed that it goes away SOON!!

2. Sleeping: he is taking two good naps during the day and usually going to bed around 9:30 - 10:00 every night. Stafford is still sleeping in his Rock and Play Sleeper in our room but we are hoping to get him in his own room and crib soon!

3. Weight: 10 pounds 10 ounces

4. Clothes: 3 months! Little man is still wearing 0-3 month onesies, 3 month pants, gowns, footie pj's, smocked rompers and sweaters. The 3-6 month stuff is still pretty big and baggy on him right now but I have a feeling he'll be in those before we know it! Of course, this also means that all of my "projections" (for what size he'd be) that were made when buying his clothes are way off thus he'll probably never wear what's in his closet during the appropriate season...OOPS!

5. Personality: Stafford loves chewing his hands, staring at the fan and/or television, riding in the car, strolling, being carted around over our shoulders and being snuggled. He still hates that nose/suction bulb (I don't really blame him) and being burped. He's laughing and smiling so much and it really is the cutest thing to see. He's kind of gotten in to holding hands...sweet thing held mine for a long time earlier this week when he was trying to go to sleep...awwww!

6. Fitness: HA! No, Reed doesn't have our baby training for an Ironman (yet!) but Stafford has started to show some pretty strong muscles lately! He is holding his head up so well, pushing down with his legs a lot, squeezing the mess out of your fingers and trying to grab for things. I call that fitness for a 4 month old! :)

my big (little) boy!!