Nursery Side Table and Master Bed

The little white side table in Cam's nursery is probably a good ten years old. It was my night stand in college and has been getting good use ever since. As I've been trying to spruce up his room, the plain white table was like an eye sore to me. I was in bed last night thinking about this dilemma and realized I had some extra supplies from this previous project. With a little elbow grease, some spray paint for the knob and a lot of love, here's how it came out:

For anyone who is into crafting, I highly recommend using this product to seal any wood, paper or other surfaces you use to craft with. I sprayed it over the entire table to seal the contact paper, and it left a nice sheen on the exposed white parts. It's non-toxic, too!

I've also finally completed my major summer project: our master bedroom. For our anniversary, Rick and I decided not to exchange gifts, but rather purchase something together that we wanted but had been hesitant to buy in the past because it seemed like an unnecessary item. A bed frame. I had my eye on a particular bed, and it looks perfect in our bedroom.

I also played around with the above-the-bed artwork I had created from an earlier project. I decided there needed to be a larger element to anchor the wall, and I think it looks so much better than the three smaller squares alone.

Finally, I really wanted to tie in the yellow, grey and white from the wall decor into the bed. I could NOT find yellow and white throw pillows, but I came across a pillowcase on sale from West Elm and used our old throw pillows from our bed and recovered them with the regular pillow cases. I used a hot glue gun because I can't sew, so they are definitely not professional looking, but I love the stripes and the color so I don't pay attention to the lack of seams. 

 

I'm moving onto our living room next. We are biting the bullet and purchasing a new couch because Maizey has destroyed ours and it's also incredibly old (from Rick's bachelor days!) I'm scouting out ideas for curtains and have an idea for some DIY pillows, too. If you see anything cute or have any ideas for me... send them my way! 

Food for Thought

*This post probably won't interest many, but for the few moms out there who read this and are curious about the food they're feeding their little munchkins, I think it's important to share this information. When I told a few friends about my discoveries, they were shocked. Hope this helps someone else out, too!*

Baby food should be simple, right?! Mash up some bananas and feed it to baby. So it seems.

I've been a food label reader for a while. My hobby revved up back when Maizey was a puppy and I learned about the dog food industry. If you haven't read your dog's food label recently, you should. Then look up the ingredients and it will probably make you think twice about what you're feeding your best friend.

Anyway, when Cam was five months old and refused to eat my homemade purees that I made for him, I had to resort to packaged baby food because he liked the smooth and creamy texture better. I immediately went for the organic stuff and quickly realized how expensive baby food is! At that point, I was just happy Cam was eating food, so buying jarred fruits and veggies didn't bother me so much. Not until I was in the baby aisle picking out some food for him a few months ago and happened to see a new Gerber baby food label. It looked like this:

It said "Smart", "Organic," and "DHA" so I thought, "great!" DHA is an omega-3 fatty acid that is found in breast milk and helps brain and eye development in babies. It's been regarded as an important nutrient for babies throughout infancy to foster proper development, so I immediately thought it was a brilliant idea to put it in baby food (rather than solely in formula).

Then I read the ingredients list:

Yup, tuna oil. Tuna is source of DHA found in this baby food. If you continue reading, you'd also see there is gelatin listed as an ingredient. At first, I was shocked because I did not want to be feeding Cam tuna -- with my history of allergies, I've been super careful about introducing one food to him at a time to ensure he doesn't have a bad reaction. Giving tuna to a five month old didn't seem smart. There's a reason pregnant women are cautioned about eating too much tuna during their nine month ordeal -- mercury levels. While mercury poisoning is rare, it's still a real problem and I cringe to think about the babies who are eating jar after jar of this baby food and their parents have no idea what's inside.

After about a month of eating jarred foods, I tried giving Cam some of my homemade stuff again and now he'll eat it all up with a smile on his face. It's ridiculously cheaper, relatively easy, and I actually have fun making him food. I use my regular Cuisinart food processor and freeze portioned size amounts of the food to be defrosted as he wants it. I like having the control over what goes into the food and how chunky the consistency is.

Interestingly, I learned after doing some research that not all fruits and vegetables are greatly affected by pesticides. It makes sense if you think about it -- you don't eat the peel of a banana, so the chance of you ingesting harmful pesticides from eating a fruit that has an inedible shell are slimmer. When I told a friend that she didn't need to be buying everything organic, she was so happy she almost couldn't believe it! Here's a website with helpful information about which fruits and veggies you should buy organic all the time (they are also known as The Dirty Dozen so you can Google that any time if you forget)! I always buy my meat and dairy organically, but now I feel like I have a little leeway with my produce, and it has made a huge difference in the pocketbook.

Finally, I want to bring another label to the attention of my mommy friends who are feeding yogurt to their babies. Cam ate his first bites of greek yogurt yesterday and loved it! (He made a sour puss face at first, but then liked it a lot). I decided to go with plain greek yogurt because of this label I read on the Yo Baby Yogurt I was eyeing in the grocery store:

22 grams of sugar!! The second ingredient listed on the Yo Baby label was sugar. Second ingredient! I couldn't even begin to fathom Cam's energy level after a container of this stuff. So I passed it up, went for the plain greek yogurt and when we got home, I mixed in some whole banana and made my own fruit yogurt. Made me feel a lot better about what was going into his mouth.

Hope I've inspired some of you to check out what you're putting on the table or dog food bowl.

More Projects and Almost Crawling

I've been browsing Pinterest and every few days when I muster up the energy, I pick a couple of projects that I want to complete. It's been keeping me busy and everyone is benefiting from it. Check out the latest projects:

First, I saw a couple of posts about making personalized baby board books. Since Cam's family lives all over the country (and world!) I thought it would be a great idea to make him a book of everyone's faces so that he can start to associate their names and faces. So, I got on Shutterfly (they were having a 50% off deal at the time so I got this for a steal!) and made Campbell's Family Face Book:

The pages have pictures of all the people who he loves so much. The book actually just came in the mail today so he hasn't even had a chance to check it out yet, but I know he's going to love it. Because, well it's a book.

I also have been on a kick to fix up this house. There's really nothing wrong with it, but it's been four years and I'm tired of a lot of our decor and stuff. I've been moving things around and changing out pictures. I've been browsing catalogs and window shopping to get inspiration and of course checking out Pinterest to see what others are up to.

Anthropologie has these really cool zinc letters that run from $20-$98 a piece! They look like this:

I've always thought they were really cool, and then when I saw this on Pinterest, I was inspired:

I purchased a cardboard letter M from the craft store ($4.99) and got metallic spray paint on Amazon ($3.99) and came up with this:

It was so simple, and I think they make great housewarming gifts!

Finally, after coming across this website I was inspired to create a sensory bag for Campbell. I'm a big fan of sensory activities and this website has awesome activity ideas for babies. So definitely check it out if you're looking for some cheap and fun new ways to entertain your baby.

Cam and I went to the dollar store and bought a bottle of hair gel, some small plastic fish and turtles and a bag of marbles. If you haven't been to the dollar store lately, you're missing out. Seriously everything is a dollar. It's not just the title of the store!

When we got home, I poured all the materials into a heavy duty ziploc bag and sealed it with duct tape. Three minutes later...

 

While he tried to eat it a couple of times because everything goes in the mouth these days, the tough plastic and duct tape held up to his gumming. If you make one, I would definitely supervise your tot.

And, lastly, I have to document this kid's latest trick. He's been rocking on all fours for about a week now. While he's been doing it most often in his crib, he pulled himself up like this today while playing with the sensory bag and was rocking it out.

After a few seconds of rocking, he gets frustrated and tired and ends up like this:

And then he usually rolls onto his back where he's more comfortable.

Today while he was rolling and rocking, and while I happened to have the camera out anyway, he ended up like this:

No, he wasn't technically stuck, and no I did not help him out. He was having a hoot banging on the chair and I snapped some pictures until I felt like I had officially become the worst mom for taking pictures of him instead of helping him up.

I have a feeling this kid is going to be on the move soon. I am so not ready for that!

Weekend Recap

This past weekend was eventful and fun, and I forgot to blog about it! We had visitors from Toronto -- cousins Liza and Anthony! We got to spend some family time with them and Hart and Izzy (Allie was out of town). And, Cam visited the Children's Museum at Navy Pier for the first time.

Big boy was standing up all by himself! 

 Then, as he was driving this truck, he decided to grab on and pull himself up! Of course, I didn't manage to snap a picture of him in action because I was freaking out that he had just done that, but I wanted to show what he was holding onto in order to do it. Muscle man!

Then we met up with Little Miss Munchkin for dinner. There really aren't any words to describe her other than a character!

This summer is seriously flying!!

Quirks

Campbell is one funny kid. I feel like every month he develops a new funny quirk that I want to document and remember. From sleeping with his lovey over his face to fake coughing, he is always cracking us up.

Recently he has acquired two new quirks that just make me laugh.

#1: The Ankle Cross

He does it when he plays, sits in the car seat, the stroller and the bath. It's just funny because it looks like he's trying to be lady-like and dainty. And this kid is anything but dainty.


#2: The One-Fist Clap

I tried to capture a picture of him in action, but he is so funny when he gets excited now. We think he's trying to clap, but he hasn't quite figured out that clapping involves two open hands. So instead, he bangs one fist into one open hand. Just funny.

Love our little goof.

Busy Busy Busy

I recently read this article discussing how people these days are "crazy busy" all the time. The author's point was that we have created a society where people are "addicted to busyness."

Guilty as charged. I'm pretty sure in my case, it's genetic, but I have a hard time sitting still. Don't get me wrong, when I'm on vacation or I have give myself permission to relax, this chick knows how to de-stress. But, in general, I'm not a fan of hanging around the house doing nothing. Rick couldn't be more opposite, and so I'm convinced Campbell has inherited the Voticky Busy Gene as he does not enjoy staying in one place for too long either. So, we've been busy lately!

We've been cooling off in the pool. I usually plop Cam in our little blow up pool in the late afternoon when we are both so hot from the 100 degree days and we are both a little tired and cranky. Splashing around always cheers this baby up. We have ventured to the public pool with some friends recently, but of course I forgot my camera. (Too busy I guess!)

Cam's also been busy in the eating department! He's pretty much gobbling up anything and everything, and he's getting more and more messy every time he eats. It's almost become a game for him... How Much Food Can I Possibly Get on Myself, My Mom, My Dog, The Floor, etc.!?

Is that not a RICK FACE?!?!

Big boy is loving his Mum Mums!

We've been at My Gym and Bubbles a lot and visiting indoor play places with friends to escape the brutal heat. Again, I seem to be too busy take pictures while we are playing, but I managed to capture Cam riding a teeter-toy yesterday. He was standing up and loving it, and it was the first time he'd done this on his own, so of course I had to document it. Bummer I forgot to take pictures of him playing with his buddies... guess the Mommas were chatting too much. Oops.

Our weekend is full of busyness, too. Cousins Liza and Anthony are here and we are going to meet them at Navy Pier, go to the Children's Museum and meet Izzy and Uncle Hart for dinner tomorrow too! I'll try to remember my camera...

Hope everyone is enjoying their busy summers as well. I can hardly believe it's the middle of July!!

Book Worm

From an early age, Cam took an interest in books. It began with the crinkly ones that had four pages and no story line, but it was clear that books made him happy.

Campbell, 4 months old

 

 

 

I know most babies and kids like books, but he really, truly is engaged in them when he reads. He studies the pages and laughs at his favorite parts ("Some other dogs go BOW! Wow! Wow!"). When we go to meet our friends at open play, he chooses the books instead of the toys.

When the kid is cranky, there a few things I know will calm him down (my keys, my iPhone case, and a book). Even when we go to the park, and I lay him down on a blanket with some toys, he chooses to study his flashcards.

I'm not surprised, really. He comes from a long line of readers. His Mimi and Poppy have an entire library in their bedroom, organized by theme, grouped by author and displayed proudly. His Nanny has taken to the digital age and loves reading on her iPad and Kindle. His Gigi even hides her secret stash of books in her closet when she doesn't want Papa to know what she's reading! Of course, his Mom is a sucker for a good book too.

When I unexpectedly left my teaching position in October, I obviously left without so much as my classroom keys in hand. So when I went back to pick up a few things from my room at the end of the year, the items I had the hardest time deciding on what to purge and what to keep were my books. There were a few I knew I wanted for Campbell, and a couple of sentimental value, but I was sad to say good bye to the classroom library I had spent so many years building. I truly loved picking out books for my students, and now I am so excited to pick out books for my own children!

Campbell and I went to the book store today. Isn't it sad that there's only one book store left in this entire city that I can even think of for us to visit? I remember as a little girl, my dad used to take us to the book store regularly. It was a treat, and every time we went, we left with a handful of books. I remember him telling me the one thing he would always buy me no matter how poor he became was a book. I still think I have the entire collection of The Babysitter's Club in my parent's attic. (You think those are considered vintage yet!?) I remember my dad would send me packages to camp each summer filled with two items only -- a comic book and a packet of gum. Every summer for years. My parents valued reading, and I truly believe that had a huge impact on the way I feel about reading today.

Anyway, today was Cam's first trip to Barnes and Noble and just entering the store made me nostalgic and giddy with excitement for him. As we took the escalator up to the children's section, he was slapping my shoulder and had a huge grin on his face as if he was thinking, "Oh my goodness! I've never seen so many books in my life!" We spent some time sifting through the shelves and he picked out a few books to look at, which of course I then bought because I'm my father's daughter and you can't leave a bookstore without buying a book. Duh!

I really hope his love and enthusiasm for books continues to grow. As a teacher, one of the most challenging parts of my job was instilling an eagerness to read among the boys in my class. Somehow the girls always entered the classroom with questions about what books we would be reading that year, and the boys were simply curious about what time P.E. was.

I have a feeling, though, that Campbell's teachers won't have to worry about getting a book into this kid's hands.

Eight Months!

Dear Campbell,

Another month has flown by, and today you are eight months old. It's so crazy to think that we only have four more months until you turn the big ONE! Time is really flying, and this month was a busy one!

You have made some big changes this month! You are officially taking two naps now instead of three. You have a great schedule, and it is so wonderful to finally be able to predict when you will want to eat, sleep, and wake up. You typically wake up at 6:30 am (with a shout out to Mommy and Daddy at 5:30 am just so we know you're still in your room), and you go to bed around 7:00 pm.

You will still sleep in the car or on me if we are on the road or need to skip a nap, and I love that you are so flexible. What an angel you are.

You have also completely transitioned to regular formula. No more stinky hypoallergenic stuff. We were pretty sure you would tolerate it well, and it seems like you really are! You've also completely turned a corner in the eating department... we now struggle to get you to finish your bottles because you love to eat your solids so much. Who would have thought!? You will really eat anything we give you, but your favorites by far are sweet potatoes, squash and prunes.

You've also enjoyed chewing on daddy's hat!

This month, you discovered that you can scream. Loudly! 

You will stretch your mouth as wide as you can and just make the funniest noise. You really crack me up. You also like making bubbles with your saliva, pulling on your feet, and you almost have clapping down!

You have the BEST laugh. When Daddy or I tickle you, make silly faces at you, or sing silly songs, you crack up. Maizey makes you laugh just by walking by. You laugh so hard you almost can't catch your breath, and it is the sweetest sound ever.

You LOVE your MoJo. If you're ever cranky or sad, I can always count on MoJo to make you feel better. I love that you have attached yourself to something that brings you such comfort.

You also figured out the sippy cup this month. You still like to play with it and chew on it, but you are actually drinking from it, too, which I think makes you look like such a big boy.

Yesterday, you woke up from your nap with a little surprise for Mom and Dad -- your bottom two teeth came through! I haven't gotten a great picture yet, but I will soon. 

Because of those teeth and the beginnings of some separation anxiety, you've become quite clingy and attached. You look around often to see your dad or I are around, and you are becoming a little more hesitant to go to strangers. Though sometimes it can be frustrating and I get flashbacks to your newborn days when I couldn't put you down, I secretly think it's really sweet that you want to be close by. I love that you now reach out for me or Daddy to pick you up, and we never pass up an opportunity to snuggle with you!

Campbell, every month just gets better with you. You have developed the sweetest, funniest personality and there really aren't enough words to tell you how much I love you. It's a lot, that is for sure!!

Love always,
Mommy

The Name Game

Cam has a LOT of nicknames. Some have stuck out more than others, some get used more often by different family members, and some are just silly. But I want to be sure to document all the names he gets called before he gets too old for me to yell these sweet names in public.

We'll begin with Muffin Nugget.  What began as me calling him Muffin, turned into Muffin Nugget when I realized that he was this pudgy, rolly muffin-like angel rolled into a nugget-sized body. Rick has shortened it to LMN (Little Muffin Nugget), and we think it fits Cam just perfectly.

Then there's Bunny, Buddy Bear, Campbelloo, Campbelicious, Mr. Fuss, and of course, Baby "Tam." All of his names have come from various individuals and each one really represents a different part of Cam's personality.

But, come on, if this isn't a muffin nugget, I'm not sure what is: