More fun with Grandma E & Samantha

I forgot all about these photos from last weekend with Grandma E and Samantha! We had such a nice time. Here is Henry enjoying his exersaucer! He inherited it from Alexa, who got it as a gift. And here is Alexa playing with her cousin Samantha, who she calls "Mantha."

Another fun thing we did with Grandma E and Samantha was hit Bloomingdales for a big store closing sale! Check out this adorable outfit we found! If you see a lot of photos of Alexa posing on our front doorstep, it's because we used to take her monthly photos there. Now, she thinks that's the place you go to take photos! I'm not complaining... As long as she smiles for the camera!

Our first dinner party... with Alexa!

We had a nice dinner with some friends Saturday night... and brought Alexa along! Our friends have a baby boy named Will who is two months younger than Alexa. Baby Will has the same play mat that Alexa has, so... She had no problem crawling over Will in pursuit of the toys!

After she was done with Will, she crawled across the room to practice pulling up on a box. Then she bounced around in Will's super cool exersaucer!

Unfortunately, she didn't go to sleep as easily as Will did once dinner was served. That two months makes a world of difference in how portable babies are. She calmed down and eventually took a nap in my arms, but we now know that sleep is elusive outside of her own crib. Lesson learned!

More exersaucer fun!

Today was great! We went out RUG shopping! Then to Buy Buy Baby to get some more bottles for daycare. Alexa was a good girl and took a long nap! Here she is playing in her exersaucer after dinner while Daddy did the dishes.

Click HERE to watch a video of her jumping! She loves her exersaucer!

Sophie the giraffe = Baby Crack

I caved in. All the moms I know swear by this rubber toy giraffe named "Sophie." One by one, every baby in my mom's group got one. One mom declared that it's now her go-to baby shower gift. Another mom reported that immediately upon receipt, the giraffe went straight into her son's mouth. One mom got FOUR of them as gifts!

Truly, something must be up with this giraffe. Not wanting Alexa to be the ONLY baby without one, I caved in and bought her one. Of course I was not about to pay full retail of $22 for a rubber chew toy! I got it on Amazon for $15. It took her a couple of seconds to warm up to the giraffe...

It actually looks more like a dog chew toy than a baby teether! And it smells like rubber! But "Sophie la garafe" comes in a fancy box from French toy manufacturer VULLI. Enclosed in the box is the story of how this toy came to be.

The little giraffe was born on May 25, 1961... Saint Sophie's day. That's when Monsieur Rampeau came up with the idea of designing a giraffe toy. "Such an exotic wildlife figure would be a first on the market, and its size and shape would be ideal for a baby's small hands to grasp."

According to the manufacturer, the giraffe was an immediate success. "Young mothers straightaway saw that she was a must for their children... When the first signs of teething appear, Sophie the Giraffe helps baby stop crying!"

The giraffe is made in Rumilly in the Haute-Savoie region of France using a "traditional" process that involves more than 14 manual operations. She is made from 100% natural rubber derived from the sap of the Hevea tree.

According to the box, the toy stimulates each of baby' senses!

SIGHT: The dark and contrasting sopts all over Sophie the Giraffe's body provide visual stimulation and make her easily recognizable to baby.

TASTE: Sophie the Giraffe is very flexible and has lots of parts for baby to chew (ears, horns, legs). She is perfect for soothing baby's sore gums when teething and is completely safe. Made of 100% natural rubber and food paint.

TOUCH: Sophie the Giraffe is perfect for baby's small hands. She is very light and her long legs and neck are easy for baby to grip. She is very soft to the touch, just like baby's mummy, stimulating soothing physiological and emotional responses.

SMELL: The singular scent of natural rubber (from the Hevea tree) makes Sophie the Giraffe very special and easy for your child to identify amid all her other toys.

So, um, it looks like Alexa likes her new toy. Click HERE to see just how much she loves her giraffe!

Want to see more? Click HERE to watch another video of Alexa and her giraffe. This video actually shows a developmental milestone that my book said to watch for this month: Baby will start to protest when a certain toy is taken away.

Oh yes, she doth protest the removal of Sophie!

Alexa had a very VOCAL day!

On Tuesday, we met up with my friend Kristin and her daughter Emma for lunch. Afterward, went to Barnes & Noble so Emma, who is nearly 11 months, could walk around. Alexa slept through lunch, then woke up to hang out with Emma in the bookstore!

Since it was such a nice day, after the bookstore, Alexa and I went for a walk on the Capitol Crescent trail. Alexa napped in her stroller and I walked for an hour! She was so rested and happy that upon returning home, she started talking up a storm in her car seat!

Click HERE to hear her talking!

The fun continued at home in the exersaucer, where Alexa played with her rings and kept on talking! Click HERE to hear more of Alexa!

MORE exersaucer fun!

Today was a nice, relaxing day. It was also 50 degrees out! So Alexa and I went for a walk to Starbucks. We used my Moby wrap and she snuggled under Daddy's fleece jacket, which I wore. Once we got home, though, she had more fun in her exersaucer! Here is Alexa in one of her few non-pink outfits! Thanks Aunt Elizabeth for this adorable red onesie!

Mommy Movie & More exersaucer fun!

The Majestic Theater in Silver Spring boasts two Mom's Club movies every Wednesday. With the cold weather, Alexa and I finally got the chance to check it out. We met up with a woman from my mom's group to see "Leap Year."

The movies were supposed to be catered toward mothers and babies with low volume and places for diaper changes. However, we found the movie to be no different than a regular matinee show! There were only a few other people in the theater. But since there was stadium seating with stairs, so we found that we had to sit up close because of our strollers. So the movie was very close and LOUD... We had to ask the manager to turn it down!

Due to the volume and closeness, the babies were very distracted during nursing. The small seats and arm non-moveable armrests also made it hard to nurse. Alexa was quiet for most of the movie and only fussed a couple of times. I had to leave once to change her and stand on the side to rock her to sleep.

It was great to see a movie, but I wasn't really impressed with the theater. I thought calling this show a "Mom's Club" movie was a ploy to get my business and not worth me driving out of my way to Silver Spring. In the future, I might just go to a regular matinee!

After the movie, Alexa enjoyed more exersaucer fun!

Alexa has gained 6 pounds since birth!

Today was a big day! We headed downtown for our weekly music class at the JCC. Alexa is really enjoying this class. We learn songs like "I have three people in my family" and "I have two eyes." Then we practice at home, much to Alexa's delight!

After music class, we picked up Daddy and took Alexa to see the doctor for her 4-month check-up. Guess what? She gained 1 1/2 pounds in the last month! Altogether, Alexa has gained more than six pounds since birth! She also grew an inch in the last two months -- two inches since birth!

I was worried that Alexa was too small because she is still wearing some 0-3 month clothes and not fitting all of her 3-6 month outfits. But since she is gaining steadily and consistently ranking in the 50th percentile, the doctor said she is fine. Here are the stats:

WEIGHT

Birth: 7 lbs, 12 oz

1-month: 9 lbs, 7 oz

2-month: 11 lbs, 5 oz

3-month: 12 lbs, 3 oz

4-month: 13 lbs, 10 oz

LENGTH

Birth: 19 3/4 inches

1-month: 21 3/4 inches

2-month: 23 inches

3-month: n/a

4-month: 24 inches

When we got home, we celebrated (and cheered Alexa up after her shots) by setting up her new exersaucer! At first, she wasn't sure what to make of it. Then, she decided she likes it! Click HERE for a video of her in her new exersaucer! Thanks Mike & Chris for the exersaucer!