My daughter's quirks

My daughter has quirks.  Doesn't everyone, though?

Sometimes they're cute and sometimes they're just weird.

Most of the time they are changing.  For example, when she was about 4 months old she would do this weird growling/grunting sound.  It was funny and weird and noisy, but after awhile she stopped doing it.  Now and then it pops back out to visit, but she's upgraded to bubbling gurgle noises and word-like sounds.


Currently, some of her quirks include:

- During bath time, one of the first things that she does is stick a washcloth in her mouth.  Usually she holds on to it, but sometimes she'll just leave it there to hang out of her mouth while her hands do other things.

- When she gets tired she scratches at her head.  She's done this ever since she was around a month old.  Sometimes it drives me crazy, especially when her nails are long because I have yet to trim them.  Sometimes, however, it is incredibly cute.  Especially when she is lying in her crib trying to fall asleep.



- She is enamored with the chickens in our backyard.  She could watch them all day.  Okay, so maybe it's not a quirk...

- She likes to kick with her foot.  All.  The.  Time.  She'll be lying in her crib awake (either trying to sleep or just waking up) and her foot will kick the mattress.  She'll be hanging out on the floor during tummy time and her foot will kick.  It especially kicks when there is something there that she feels on her foot.

I'm always worried that she's going to break her toe from kicking the ground so hard, but she has yet to do so.  Do I foresee a soccer player in our future?!  Yes, please!

- She sticks her tongue out.  A lot.  She definitely has her dad's genes.  And, well, mine too.  I can't deny my crazy side.

Obsessions: Coconut Oil

Do you have that one product or that one thing that you use all the time?

I do.

My friends, I love coconut oil.

I love the fact that it's a natural product, it's safe for my daughter in case she was to ever ingest it, it smells wonderful, it tastes great when used in things, et cetera et cetera.

Here's just a taste of what I use it for:

- Moisturizer.  After I wash my face, shave my legs, or even just to touch up dry skin spots.  It works and smells amazing. 

- Everything baby.  Seriously.  Everytime Ellie takes a bath I lather her up in coconut oil afterwards.  It has been great for cradle cap, diaper rashes, regular rashes, and even when her legs were incredibly dry.  I love that if she were to somehow get it in her mouth, it's okay!  It's a natural product that doesn't contain a million unpronounceable chemicals.

- Butter replacement.  Want to make a recipe healthier?  Replace butter with coconut oil.  Tastes amazing.  It's even great on top of popcorn.  No joke.

- Any oil/fat replacement really.  We've used it to grease pans (instead of olive oil or butter or spray), replace butter in cookies, and sautee veggies (especially when they're going to be in a curry, the coconut oil adds a yummy new flavor to it).

- Eye makeup remover.  It really does remove mascara and eyeliner.  I use it every time I wear mascara.

- Scars.  I'm still a work in progress on this particular subject, but I have heard that it works really well to clear up scars and such.  I was blessed by my daughter with beautiful stretch marks.  I heard that coconut oil can help them fade.  I'll let you know if it's a success (in a few years, probably).


Do you use coconut oil for anything else?  Or do you have that ONE thing you have to use?

Ellie

I have an 8 month old. Say what?! Yes. An 8 month old.  8 months ago Ellie was just a little ball of joy inside my belly. I don't know how time flies that fast.

Here are just a few things that are new with Ellie.

+ She is a professional roller now. The instant you put her to sleep on her back she flips over. And, if she wants something out of her reach she will sometimes roll over to get it (and sometimes just stare at it and wish it would come to her). This includes the bathtub and my arms.  It's pretty amazing. 

+ We've got one tooth out and slowly creepin' its way into the world. Still waiting for number 2, they tend to come in pairs people say. I'm sure it'll be here tomorrow. And then the next day she'll be going to college.  Sigh...

See it?! Just a little glimpse.

+ My her song of choice at bedtime is either Amazing Grace or You Are My Sunshine.  That's more-so our choice of songs. Gotta keep things real on here. I'm sure Ellie could care less if we sang "Poker Face" as a slow ballad...as long as she's being sung to.  Note: We may have done that with various pop songs for our own amusement.

+ The past month she has become pretty mom-clingy.  She's even started to reach out for me.  It's cute and sad all at the same time.  Especially when I just want to put her down to get things done.  If only all moms had four arms.  Thank goodness for our Boba carrier!

 

+ No crawls yet. She can do full 360s in the crib and on the floor. I've even seen her get on her knees in the crib. Any day...


+ She eats a lot more solid foods now. It makes me more weary of the days when we'll be weaning from breastfeeding. Which, by the way, is such a beautiful and relaxing thing when you aren't worrying about life's stresses.