Tag Archives: dad bloggers

The Best Baby Seat in the House that We Almost Returned

As rookie parents, we bought and/or registered for a lot of unnecessary baby items, or we bought too many of something. Like changing pads for example, yeah they get poop on them, but I don’t think we’ll go through 12 before washing them!

If you’re a parent, you know what I’m talking about, we all have those certain items still in their box collecting dust. Or maybe you simply returned it like we’ve done after “seeing the light” at the end of the nursery tunnel. To avoid losing track of what you’re doing with each item, separate the things to return from the things to keep like anything from Nuna, Premium Car Seats, Pushchairs, and Baby Gear AU so you don’t get rid of something on accident.

Like us, for example, we almost messed up and returned one of the items we now use daily; our Mamas & Papas infant positioner. We tried having Avery sit in it about 2 months ago and she was not a fan!

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We tried maybe only a few times after that with no success, so we gave up. Kelley and I both agreed it was one of the useless items we had and were going to return the seat. Glad we kept that box!

Please, just return this thing.
Please, just return this thing.

Avery’s seat of choice up until recently has been the chair for her swing. We would lug it around and have her sit/lay in it wherever we were and she stayed mostly content.

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Of course she’s a baby, and like all babies I know, she still had her moments…

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But it’s what worked best and that’s what we stuck with. Then we bought a jumper and although it took a while for her to warm up to it, she eventually caught on.

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She started turning full circle to play at each station and kept herself busy while I kept busy.

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But time would pass and she would become aggravated, hungry, or in need of attention and she’d make sure everyone knew! And of course, she would simply be unimpressed with the crazy contraption at times.

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After struggling to keep her happy, Kelley decided to put the Mamas & Papas (M&P) chair on the island one day and try it out. At first, it seemed like another failed attempt….

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Then Avery surprised us and acted as if she were, dare I say, happy!

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Ahhh, she likes to be the center of attention! Silly rookie parents that we are had her off to the side all the time. Sorry, Avery, now we know!

Now Avery will sit in her chair on the island while Kelley eats or just hangs out and she keeps much happier. I try putting her in the jumper some times, but it doesn’t last long, and forget about the swing chair. She starts out in a normal position like so…

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…and a minute later she’s found a way to reposition into this….

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Maybe just to get a better look at her feet?

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Regardless, the M&P chair trumps all other seating arrangements in our house, so it stays! Plus, it’s not as bulky as the swing or jumper, so it can be transported with ease. We even take it to G-ma’s when we visit.

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When I workout in the garage, now the M&P chair goes with. I would always count on the swing to keep her happy, but that’s long gone.

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Or if I workout with a video inside, she’s center stage.

Shhh, I'm learning how to work my core!
Shhh, I’m learning how to work my core!

Well, you get the point, the chair goes anywhere we need a place to let Avery sit and be happy. The key is to try and keep it at a higher level so she’s not struggling to look up at us.

I’m forever grateful that we procrastinated on returning this chair, as it is now a major necessity in keeping our sanity…..kinda. If you’re thinking about returning something you haven’t used or your kid didn’t like, why not try one more time to be sure? You might be glad you did!

Do you have a Mamas and Papas or Bumbo chair like this? Good or bad for you?

What items did you return after realizing they were pointless?

Baby Steps to Baby’s First Steps

So she hasn’t even started to crawl yet, but it’s never too early to start working on “the walk”. Right? Right.

Avery is great at getting her legs up under her, but she’s still not sure what to do with her arms. So when she’s on her stomach, she’s usually like this….

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But she’s figuring things out every day, so it’s only a matter of time. I’m not sure if we should be scared or excited. Both? I guess being a parent pretty much means you’re always scared and excited, huh?

It’s evident that Avery wants to be like Mommy and Daddy and stand on her own legs like us. Every time we stand her on her feet, she cracks a big smile and sometimes lets out a high-pitched bird sound. Not sure what it is, but it’s cute and usually means she’s happy.

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On most nights now, our routine will include Avery doing what we call “the cat walk” on our kitchen island to keep her happy. Since naps are becoming scarce, Avery isn’t always the happiest of campers in the evening, but she really gets focused while on her feet.

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Apparently, I do too! Depending how tired she is, Avery will either let her feet hang as I hold her…

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….or she’ll put on a show and strike a pose as she “walks” back and forth across the island.

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I know she has a while before she actually walks, but this fun for Going Mom and me to see our daughter enjoying herself and it’s great exercise! Sometimes exercise can be tiring though, so we’ll let Avery take a break and sit at the island.

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I guess she’s not too thrilled about sitting on Mommy and Daddy’s head yet. At what age does that happen? Right now she seems unsure of what’s going on. Probably because she is unsure of what’s going on….hmmmm.

Confused on Dad:

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Confused on Mom:

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Hey at least we both look cool! No?

Oh well, I wanted to make sure and note how Avery is showing signs of mobility other than rolling and hope to post on her next “first”.

When did your baby first start to crawl? Walk?

Know anyone whose baby skipped crawling and went right to walking?

5 Month Vaccinations After Easter!

Yep, we’re that mean, we had our daughter get shots the day after Easter.

Pretty cruel, huh?

We are following the alternative vaccine schedule, so it wasn’t a lot of shots, but we’ll be there again in another month. Sorry, Avery.

Going Mom took the day off to go with us for the shots, and I always appreciate her company. I feel kind of guilty sometimes because when she’s home, I tend to do less of the baby tasks. But, Kelley does enjoy soaking up every extra second she can with Avery, so I don’t think she cares too much.

Once in the car, Avery was flashing us smiles unaware of her pending pricks.

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Avery surprised with a hefty poo while waiting in the doctor’s office and we immediately changed once she was in a room. With her diaper off, we put our squirmy baby on the scale to see how much she gained from her 4 month appointment. At 4 months, she was 13 lbs 9oz. and this time she was about 14lbs 13oz. Almost 15lbs!!

I love seeing how much more attentive Avery is with everything and she’ll grab whatever is in reach. We laid her on the patient table and she wasted no time grabbing the paper liner and bringing it to her mouth.

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Poor girl, so ignorant of what’s come.

Well, hello nice lady with blue hands.
Well, hello nice lady with blue hands.

There were 3 shots for the day and one nurse tried to console Avery as the other administered the shots.

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So much for the consoling, Avery lit up in tears within seconds. She made sure to hit the high chords so everyone knew she was NOT happy.

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With all of her squirming, Avery knocked one of the needles off the table requiring the nurse to prep a new one. No worries, Mommy was there to help soothe her.

Oh, okay, that wasn't too bad....
Oh, okay, that wasn’t too bad….

With the last needle ready, Going Mom the now somewhat content Avery back down.

Okay, I'm ready to go back in the car n...hey, wait...
Okay, I’m ready to go back in the car n…hey, wait…

The nurse was quick, but Avery let us know she felt the prick (I like rhymes, what can I say?).

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And once more, Super Mommy was there to calm our distraught daughter as Daddy just took pictures.

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At least she tried to console her. I think Avery lost her trust in us after thinking shots were over the first time. Now that she’s more aware of her surroundings, I wonder if she’ll pick up on the doctor’s office in another month.

Back in the car, I asked Avery if she was looking forward to her 6 month shots, and judging from her look, I’m thinking NO.

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We have been meaning to open a savings account for Avery, and decided to go after the appointment. As we sat in the cubicle with one of the bankers, he asked us for her social and we both turned to look at each other.

Crap! Shots after Easter and we can’t remember our daughter’s social security card! Oops, sorry, Avery.

To try and make it up to her, I offered to let her drive back home.

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She wasn’t impressed.

So I put her back in her car seat and we made a stop at Sprouts and an auto parts store before heading home.

Going Mom took advantage of being with us and she wore Avery in the Ergobaby Ventus that they sent me free of charge to review. Kelley was able to quickly put it on and get Avery secure before we went inside.

I made my usual zig-zag through the store as Kelley picked out some baby and lavender oils to make our own baby wipe solution. The solution will consist of baby oil, lavender oil, and tea tree oil. Hopefully this will aid in clearing Avery’s rash and we’ll feel better knowing the ingredients are pure and simple.

Going Mom’s extra day off was spent mostly with us just running around and doing errands, so hopefully we’ll be able to slow things down next weekend and enjoy playing with Avery together.

Have you ever followed up a fun day with your kids by having something not fun for them? Sayyyyy, like shots?

Do you make your own baby solutions for wipes, bathing, or general cleaning?