Babyproofing

It's time! Benjamin is on the move and it's time to baby proof our house. What are your best tips and things we need to look out for? Any brand suggestions for items would be really helpful!

Benjamin is 7 Months

I'm a little late posting this (as usual), but here's Benjamin's 7 month photo. I can't believe how quickly he's growing, and I love how you can compare his size against the same object every month.

Some fun facts about Benjamin at this age:
Weighs 17 lbs
Wearing 9 month clothes
Sitting up well and playing with toys
Tried 4 vegetables: squash, green peas, green beans, and carrots
Likes the pool, but normally falls asleep in his raft
Loves putting anything in his mouth, especially ice cubes inside his mesh feeder.

Started taking feedings in a sippy cup and can hold the bottle by himself

Has 2 bottom teeth and 0 top teeth

Is on the verge of crawling- he rocks back and forth on his knees

Very entertained by our dogs, always trying to pet them

Very entertained by everything-- smiles and laughs all the time!

7 Months: June 25, 2013

6 Months: May 25, 2013

5 Months: April 25, 2013

4 Months: March 25, 2013

Three Months: February 25, 2013

Two Months: January 25, 2013

One Month- Christmas Day

Benjamin's Nursery

Wow am I ever late on this post! We were pretty much done with Benjamin's nursery before he was done, but put on some of the final touches while he spent two weeks in the NICU. Before we knew whether we were having a boy or a girl, Ryan and I decided that we wanted our child's bedroom to be light blue. Blue is my favorite color, and I don't find it restrictive to either gender.

 This is Ballpark Bob-- I got him on a flash sale at Gilt with a store credit. Love him! You might remember him from one of Benjamin's first pictures...

We stuck with white furniture since we already had the dresser and bookcase from my college bedroom. The knobs were crystal, so we swapped those out for a more masculine navy gingham to match the crib skirt that my mom made. Instead of purchasing a large bedding set, we picked out 5 different sets of sheets.

All of the sheets are some variation of red/blue and coordinate with the room. This was a huge money saver, and you're not supposed to use the bumpers anyways.

For his gallery wall, we picked some fun art prints that matched the room and had meaning to our family. We also chose two empty frames that we filled with images from his newborn shoot. I knew I wanted a large B, which we purchased at JoAnn unfinished and spray painted red to match the red frame. We also spray painted the mat on one of the frames so we'd have 3 red items to tie things together.

The planes were a last minute find that Ryan picked up at a model home sale. They're adorable, and I love how Ryan hung them from the ceiling. This lamp is super cute because its 3 way, so at night we only have on the tiny light inside the cockpit.

Sources: 

Paint: Benjamin Moore
Dresser & Bookcase: Shabby Chic, Target
Gingham Knobs: Etsy
Crib: Lauren by Graco
Crib Skirt: Made by mom
Drapes: Made by mother in law
Glider: Dutalier, purchased secondhand and reupholstered
Planes & Lamp: Purchased at model home sale
Art: Etsy, message be about specifics if you're interested

Benjamin 4 Months

Here's Benjamin's 4 month photo. He had his four month pediatrician appointment today and weighed in at 13.12 lbs.

It's hard to believe he was a preemie and born at 4lbs. I added a picture below from the week we brought him home. Glad we took so many photographs because I already can't remember him being that small!

His milestones lately have been smiling and laughing. He's working on supported sitting up, and still needs a little bit of assistance when in his bumbo. Today we're going to try feeding his first vegetable. Wish us luck!

Favorite Baby Products: 0-3 Months

We've been at this for a few months now, and I thought it could be helpful to outline our favorite products. If you have something to add to the list, leave it in the comments!

Wubbanub

These pacifiers are the best. Our hospital uses the soothie brand of pacifier and Benjamin loves them. The wubbanub is awesome because it takes the pacifier and adds a stuffed animal. They're amazing because the stuffed animal makes them easy to find around the house, and it keeps the pacifier from falling off of his chest if the pacifier falls out of his mouth. We actually need to purchase another one of these, since one was taken and eaten by our dogs.

Snugabunny Rock N Play

Right now Ben is sleeping overnight in this, we haven't transitioned to his crib just yet. This Rock N Play is great because it's space saving, and keeps him at a 30 degree angle which helps prevent reflux. The bottom is like a rocker and it's easy to rock with one arm when you're sleep deprived and just want to lay in bed. Yep, mother of the year right here. It's affordable, and I think this option is way better than an expensive bassinet.

Snugabunny Swing

Same line as the bassinet above, and this swing is fantastic. We have it in our living room and Ben loves swinging in front of the fire place. It's great for allowing him to sleep, while being in our main room while we're close by. The swing can be operated by wall outlet or battery. There's music or animal noises that can be played, and the mobile has a mirror in the center. At two months old, Benjamin is beginning to be entertained by the mirror and the mobile.

Dr. Brown's Bottles

We go through a lot of bottles in this house. Dr. Brown's were recommended by the NICU nurses, and we took their advice. The construction avoids gas and we've been really pleased with them so far. As a side note, we started with Tommee Tippee and these are way more comfortable to hold while feeding.

Dr. Brown's Formula Pitcher

As a formula family, this pitcher is a huge win! We mix our formula for the day at one time, and use this pitcher throughout the day. It was recommended to me by some other formula moms and I'm so happy that we got it!

Aden + Anais Swaddle Blankets

My husband is the world's best swaddler. No matter how hard I try, I still can't swaddle Ben as god as Ryan does. These blankets are large enough that you have plenty of fabric to get a tight wrap. Also, the fabric has a texture to it that makes it grip better and it's less likely to get unraveled. We have the organic ones and I can't speak well enough about them.

Rinsin Fun Tub

This tub is the bomb. We follow the Mom's On call sleep schedule,  and do baths nightly. We're lucky that Benjamin loves bath time, and this tub definitely makes it easy. The fabric sling is great because it holds him well and we don't have to worry about handling a slippery baby the whole time. The tub also comes with some toys and a squirt bottle. The bottle is great for a final rinse before getting your baby into an adorable hooded towel!



Carter's Side Snap Tees
When Benjamin came home from the hospital he was on oxygen. Putting outfits over his head were out of the question. We'd have to slide the onesie down the tubing and it was really more effort than we wanted to put in. These kimono tops are great for wearing under one piece outfits, and having a winter baby the undershirts are a must. Benjamin just grew out of the NB size and now he's into the 3 month.

Benjamin Cawley Is Here!

On November 25th, we welcomed our son into the world. He weighed 4lbs and 5oz, and was born at 2:09pm.

Being born at 34 weeks, Ben required a little attention to learn how to eat and maintain his temperature. He's in the NICU right now, and we expect that he'll be coming home in the next couple weeks. Initially they said he could be there until my due date (12/31), but he's going great so we think it'll be earlier. I've been using our CaringBridge site a lot more than the blog, so for updates on Ben and my cancer treatment, check out www.caringbridge.org/visit/sarahaddison .

28 Weeks

Here's our 28 week picture- only two weeks late again! With life spinning like crazy over here, we haven't been great with taking and posting these pictures on time. At our 28 week ultrasound he weighed in at 2.69 LBS and surpassed our doctor's expectations for growth, given my chemo treatment. It's hard to believe right now we're at 30 weeks, and Baby Addison will be here before we know it!

Nursery Curtains

Our curtains are up! My mother in law is staying with us right now, and was sweet enough to help make curtains for Baby Addison's room. The "look" that we decided on was blue walls, with white furniture, and touches of red and blue around the room. We didn't pick out a bedding set, because I wanted to room to look more curated instead of straight from a bag. We registered for several sets of sheets, with different patterns in blue & red (baseball, stars, whales, etc), and my mom will be making a bed skirt in a navy and white gingham.

I scored this Dutailier glider on Craigslist, and my mom is recovering the cushions in navy with white piping. It's going to be too cute! The crib skirt will be here when my mom comes into town on Thursday, so I'll post more pictures when I have it!

The fabric on the bottom is royal and navy stars, and we accented with a red ric rac. I love how they came together!

24 Weeks

Here's the 24 week picture. This week we were able to have Ryan's mom take a fun one of both of us too! On Monday we had an ultrasound and saw that Baby Addison is growing right on schedule, which is such a relief. The chemo will sort of stunt his growth, so the doctors are shooting for 5 lbs at 37 weeks. Right now he's 1 lb, 6oz. Keep growing, baby!

Ballpark Bob

Yesterday I finally used the Gilt credit that I've had for over a year. I couldn't believe this super cute baseball bear, his name is Ballpark Bob. It's 24" too! We're planning on taking the baby's pictures next to it to see how he's growing. Baby Addison can't get here soon enough!

20 Weeks (two weeks late)

Part of my philosophy for the cancer battle, is to not lose site of the other big change in my life right now. This beautiful, perfect, little boy that's growing inside me. He's not even here yet and I love him so much and want to protect him with everything I can.

Here's our 20 week bump photo, actually taken around 21. I'm 22 weeks today! Time has really flown, and it's hard to believe that I've technically been pregnant since March. It's funny because I don't think my belly is that big when I look in the mirror, but when I see pictures from before I'm like WOAH!

baby updates

I thought it was time for something upbeat on this blog, and a baby nursery definitely fits the bill. Our crib is set to be delivered today and I couldn't be more excited! Ryan painted the nursery over the weekend, and the color is quite similar to the picture below.

Graco "Lauren" crib

Also, we've signed up for birth class at the hospital! It'll be the one day express class, on November 3rd. We had to find a day that was "safe" for me to be around others, and that was the only one that worked. All the other classes were on 2 weekends and one of the weekends I would've been at risk. I'm looking forward to this!

Pink or Blue?

Blue!

Baby Addison: 16 Weeks

Here's a 16 week picture. It's more like 16.5, but the stickers were pre ordered :) Baby Addison is growing like a weed and I can't believe the bump I already have-- definitely didn't expect this for a little bit! Luckily I work from home and haven't needed to purchase too many maternity clothes. This tank top/shorts combo is what I wear most days.

Oh, and I cut 4" off my hair on Thursday. Please excuse the post nap hair.

Blue Or Pink

No gender party happening here, but we are excited to find out the gender of our little Mister or Miss. We're lucky to be having showers in both of my "homes", Nashville and Virginia. Much to the delight of friends and family, we decided to find out the gender of the baby. Originally I was on team "gender surprise", but Ryan was really excited about the idea and said he could imagine the baby better as a boy or girl.

I know (and know of people it's happened to) that the gender can be predicted wrong. Knowing this, we've decided to do a blue and white nursery regardless of the gender and not monogram things. I just love light blue, and think it's such a calming shade for the walls! Check out my nursery board on Pinterest to see where we are with our ideas. Because we decided to share the gender, we'll be keeping the name a secret. We are pretty set on the first & middle names for a boy, and two final first names for a girl. They're very special names to us, and I can't wait to share with our family and friends in January!

And just for fun, I'll add a poll on the top of the blog where you can vote for boy/girl if you're so inclined! I've got my guess and so does Ryan (ps- they're different). We'll all find out the first week in August

Ashley Brooke Designs

Look what we received in the mail! I am over the moon excited about our new Ashley Brooke Designs note cards. She did such a great job drawing our family of four! These will be great for showers, and I'll definitely be getting the carriage version once this little Miss/Mr is here. What do you think?

Ashley is available for custom projects, or you can order pre-made cards from her shop. Visit her site for more information!