Outside Play

I can't believe what a mild winter we have had. Snow? What snow?

I'm thankful for the warm weather because Adelyn and I have gotten to spend a lot of time outside. Just a few days ago it was over 60 degrees... in mid-February! Adelyn and I busied ourselves in the backyard with a few projects. Adelyn's primary project was chewing the little balls on the end of her hat.

She also enjoyed watching her mama tackle the backyard garden. This is the before picture. After I got my hands dirty, it got churned up and ready for some planting!

I had to continue to remind Chauncey that Adelyn is STILL not capable of throwing the ball for him. I think her desperate attempts to reach for it give him false hope.

How cute is she in her little bumbo. Happy as a clam.

I also hung a clothesline in our backyard. I LOVE the smell of laundry that has been sun dried. It's also good for cloth diapers. I mentioned before but after a delayed start, we are now successfully using Fuzzibunz cloth diapers. I actually just wrote a thorough post all about it if you want to check it out.

She still has a major issue with firetrucks. In fact the other day Adelyn was playing happily with some blocks so I took the opportunity to go get myself ready for the day. Within a few minutes I heard her crying... it was the type of cry that communicated "help me!" I thought she had fallen over or gotten herself stuck in some way so I hurried back into the playroom to find her sitting up just fine. I then heard the firetruck in the distance and knew what the fuss was about. It gave me a good laugh.

Muffins and More

I have a love affair with scones and muffins combined with coffee in the mornings. I love the tasty combination but am not in love with the unhealthiness of muffins and scones.

I've been on a hunt to find healthy baked goods that I can be ok with to have on a regular basis in the mornings.

I've found two so far that I've given my stamp of approval and made them in mass quantity. Muffins are so easy to freeze too. I love making a double batch and then just freezing them for future feasting.

1) Chocolate Banana Muffins

I made these this morning and am so excited to have leftovers in the freezer. They taste yummy but also have healthy ingredients like flaxseed, pumpkin, yogurt, and banana in them. They also kept me pretty full until lunch time which most muffins won't do.

2) Zucchini Flaxseed Muffins

I am not lying when I tell you I had a continual stash of these in my freezer for over 6 months. I just kept making them and kept eating them. They were tasty, filling, and of course, great with coffee. I dabbled with the recipe a bit, adding blueberries and different amounts of veggies. They always turned out great except for the one time I undercooked them. (I still ate the edges of those).

3) Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

These are such a good fall treat in the mornings. I love their moistness and sweetness but also the fact that they had healthier ingredients than a typical muffin.

Sadly, I have yet to stumble on a healthy scone recipe that I'm crazy about so I don't have any recommendations for that quite yet. I've made some where I substituted white flour with wheat flour, added more fruit, and/or threw some flaxseed in. Found them to be nothing to brag about. If you have one, please send it on to me!

Until then, I'll continue to feast upon the frozen goodness mentioned above.

I'm Hooked

LOVE

THIS

SHOW

I'm sucked in.

I'm addicted.

I want to watch more!

Rollin Rollin Rollin

Our little lady is on the move! She hasn't quite mastered crawling yet but she is exploring her new found ability to roll back and forth. See for yourself!

httpv://youtu.be/vdt2s_rHrfU

Play-date!

My friend Rachel and I are beginning to swap babysitting.

Adelyn and Eleanor are only 3 weeks apart so it works out great for both of us. This week was the first time I had Eleanor at our place. Even though it was way past nap time, Adelyn was having a blast with another baby around.

It's amazing how much personality has developed already. You don't really realize it until you are around another baby that is close to the same age.

Lets see if you can pick up on some of the personalities of Adelyn and Eleanor through these pictures...

Photo Shoot Bloopers

If you follow my other blog, Thriving Home, you'll soon see a post featuring this skirt tutorial. (Since you've continued to follow me on Learn and Go, you get sneak peeks like this!).



I wanted Adelyn to be my model to show how cute the skirt looks on a baby girl. However, trying to get a useable picture of an eight month old is quite the challenge. I ended up with a few usable pictures but overall, most weren't good. I thought I'd share some of the bloopers with you of our photo shoot.

Squirmy

What's up, slow shutter speed?

On the move.

Throwing a toy mid-picture.

Grabbing the camera.

Knees.

"Dress Up Day"

Uh oh, we found the blanket...

A quick roll with blanket in hand gets us here...

I was laughing while taking this picture.

She keeps me on my toes!

Texts to My Husband

As I was looking over my texts today, I found the ones to Austin gave me a chuckle. Here's an insight into my side of our conversations today:

"Flushable liners = awesomeness"

"Her newly found gymnastic ability is driving me nuts. She's flipped over 3 times now."

"Been trying to go down for nap for 30 min."

"I'm just letting her fall asleep on her tummy. This flip flop game is over."

"Mommy wins!"

httpv://youtu.be/BpdVjUxD0q8

"Life is so hard for you."

httpv://youtu.be/SqAHCojxC50

"What time you think you'll be home today?"

"K. We are all going down for naps soon."

I'll Never Do THAT Again...

Adelyn: 8 Months Old

Miss Adelyn, you've almost been outside the womb as long as you were inside it!



You are just getting more fun by the day little lady! You crack us up with your noises and babbles. You are so close to crawling! If only you could figure out how to get those arms working at the same time as your legs. Here's what I mean...

http://youtu.be/62Swjz_zSLQ

It's hard to watch you struggle but I know that is the only way you'll actually learn!



Your food preferences change daily. One day you love bananas and the next you prefer green beans. The next day you'll gag when given a green been but eagerly grasp at the banana. One food that you consistently love is the graham cracker. It's almost like a mute button.

You've got a second tooth coming in and are starting to have a little stranger anxiety. In fact, the last two times I've had you in a childcare of some type, I've gotten called back about 45 minutes later and told that my child is "a bit unconsolable." We'll work through this stage, just like we've worked through all the other ones so far!

Guess what, you're back in cloth diapers! I guess your tush decided it liked them after all. They are so darn cute on you too!





You are loving your feet these days. Especially when we take your socks off and you can explore those toes.



You still haven't said "mama" yet but I think you beginning to register what it means. We are working hard on teaching you the sign for "more" right now. I think you've done it a few times but it's hard to know if you just randomly put your hands together when you wanted more food. We'll keep practicing.



You're pretty darn fun, you little stinker. I know some grandparents who are dying to get their hands on you this weekend. Hope you're up for the socializing!

Update on Thriving Home

I've had some people asking how our new blog, Thriving Home, is going.

Thriving Home is well... thriving!

I've for sure been busy in blogland. Keeping up two blogs has been doable so far but I can tell there will be seasons where Learn and Go will have to take a backseat. Since I'm not necessarily trying to grow Learn and Go anymore, it has been freeing to post about whatever I want! I am treating it more as a yearbook for our family rather than being worried about if people are interested in what I'm posting about.

Thriving Home has already gotten thousands of visitors and we are loving the feedback we are getting. Rachel and I have already made enough revenue off of the blog to cover our initial costs...wahoo!

I feel like I think in terms of blog posts lately. I take pictures of about everything I do or cook just in case I decide to make a post out of it later. I've been inspired to do some more crafting and sewing as of late too.

If you're interested, here are some of my most recent projects over at Thriving Home:

DIY Valentine's Day Decoration

I updated my DIY Maternity Pants Tutorial

Football Blanket Tutorial

The popular Pinterest Mexican Soup post:

We've gotten into a groove and seem to feel like the demands of our blog aren't too overwhelming. We got contacted about doing a product review so that made us feel pretty big time. :) So overall, I only have good things to say about our new blog. Hope you can swing on over there every once in a while and check out what we are up to.

Adelyn Image Overload

Grandparents- this post is for you.

Personality is Being Unveiled

It's so fun seeing Adelyn's personality develop and grow. With that, we are learning more and more about her preferences. We are learning that she is not ashamed to express her feelings- good or bad. Those constant smiles and giggles can quickly turn into a storm of emotion if something is not ok with her. Listed below are 5 guaranteed stimuli for tears.



1) Loud and or unexpected noises

Loud yawns, dogs playing roughly, surprise parties, coffee grinders, overly exuberant peek-a-boos to name a few. It starts with big eyes and a questioning look that if not remedied quickly, turns into an explosion of tears.

2) Firetrucks

For some reason, sirens make this gal cry. I don't know if it's because she's been woken up from too many naps from firetrucks or if she just doesn't like the noise but a passing firetruck is a wail.

3) Attempting to brush her tooth

Adelyn allows very limited access to her one tooth. We've been instructed by our dentist to brush it even if that means giving it a little scrub with a wash cloth. She doesn't like when we do and she lets us know about it.

4) Being left alone

Perhaps a sign that she's an extrovert? If left alone too long, she'll sound off her own alarm.

5) Wiping off her face

Every meal, every time. Doesn't matter if the paper towel is warm or cold. It is almost 100% chance she'll wine, fuss, and shed some tears when we wipe off the nasty on her face.

Overall, Adelyn is a pretty happy baby. She loves to go run errands and usually makes friends with almost any stranger that gives her a second look. She gives us some good laughs when tickled or when thrown up in a the air. She loves to pull glasses off of people's faces wich always results in surprised laughter from the person. She still loves going on walks with mom and watching the doggies play. We are loving this little gal to pieces... mood swings and all!