Disney with a baby!

If you plan on visiting frequently (i.e. not a once-in-a-lifetime trip), I would definitely recommend bringing your 6 month old to Disney.  It is a great age.  They can sit up independently yet they do not crawl. Your feeding/sleeping schedules are pretty much down. They bounce better when dropped (kidding). But seriously, I think we made a great decision to bring her at this age.  Next trip (age 14 months) is going to be a little dicey.  If you are not planning to go back to Disney then obviously wait until your child is a bit older so they can enjoy the memories of the trip.  But, as a friend recently found out, you may be surprised to find that you want to go back once your vacation is over! ;)

Before I left, I got some great advice from a childhood friend who is now a Disney Vacation Club member herself.  She has 3 kids so she knows what she's talking about.  I also got advice from other Mom friends and fellow DVC members and Disney enthusiasts.  So here is some of their wisdom that I used and want to share:

What to pack?

Baby Carrier (not a Bjorn): I was told to get a baby carrier and that my friend and her sister(s) agree not to use a Bjorn at Disney.  I think I told you I bought a K'Tan carrier.  I ended up really liking it. For one, it is made of fabric and comes in a little pouch so you can squish it into your backpack. Also it is not confusing or intimidating to use. I did pack the Bjorn because Joey rather likes it. But we did not use it during the trip.

Wearing sleeping Abby in the K'Tan

Coverplay: As seen on Shark Tank.  I totally fell into the advertising trap but with all the crazy stuff going around (flu, measles) I didn't want to take any chances.  This is a slip cover that goes over most play yards.  Disney hotels provide a play yard (pack and play) so you don't have to bring your own. Super convenient.  They also provide a sheet but I brought our own sheets in addition to the Coverplay.

Wet Ones: Antibacterial wipes.  These were REALLY useful.  They are gentle enough to use on baby's hands/face but strong enough to kill bacteria.  I used them on the airplane to wipe down the arm rests/tray table (Abby was obsessed with the buttons on the arm rests), at every restaurant to wipe down the table/walls, and in various other scenarios throughout the trip.

Stroller rain cover: Self explanatory.  It's Florida. It rains. You do not want to sit your child in a wet stroller all day.

Bicycle Air Pump for stroller tires: We only used this once but it was nice to have. I'm sure Disney sells them for $700 in the event of an emergency...

Wide brim hat: The sunglasses were a cute idea but Abby was not interested in wearing them.  Even on days when it wasn't that warm, it was still very sunny.  The wide brim hat came in handy (although looked silly).  I also used baby sunblock (the lotion kind) to make sure she didn't get a sunburn.

Portable changing station:  This isn't the one we have, but it's something like it.  It has diapers, a small thing of wipes (buy a bunch of travel size wipes), diaper baggies, and a changing pad all rolled up.  I kept ours in the side pocket of the diaper bag so I could just grab it and not have to schlep the entire diaper bag into the bathroom and root through it looking for things.  Disney is very baby-friendly but airports are not as much (although MCO is right up there with Disney).

Paci Clip and/or Pouch: Normally I do not think twice about these things but once a pacifier has fallen on the ground in a public place it is pretty much trash. I don't like how it looks but I kept the pacifier clipped to her shirt so if/when it fell out it wouldn't land on the floor.  Abby doesn't usually rely on the paci too much at home, but it was soothing for her to have during the over stimulation of the trip and you can see she used it quite a bit from our pictures.

Where to stay?
Quick Disney Vacation Club 101: Each year we get XXX points (the amount we paid for). We can use those points to stay at any Walt Disney World DVC resort.  Depending on how nice the resort is, how big the room is, and how long we want to stay, it costs more points.  Make sense?? Great.  There are more details obvi but that was the basics.

So for this trip we decided to get a 1 bedroom villa.  And we will probably never go back to a studio again.  The villas are great because they include things like a full kitchen (dishwasher to wash bottles), a washer and dryer (multiple loads of laundry) and 2 doors to the bathroom (so you don't have to walk through the bedroom and wake sleeping beauty). It was really nice to be able to do laundry when someone peed on her changing pad. And to be able to wash bottles in the dishwasher. And to close the door when she was napping and still be able to watch TV or sit on the balcony.

Also there is something to be said for choosing a location that will meet your needs.  For example, I hate taking the bus at Disney.  It's crowded, the waits are sometimes long, and with a stroller, diaper bag, and baby it can get complicated.  We stayed at the BoardWalk which was in walking distance to two parks.  There is also access to the monorail and boat system. When choosing a place to stay, try to find one that gives you options!  We enjoyed being able to grab a bus back to Epcot and walk back to the resort instead of taking multiple buses.

What to eat?
This kind of goes with packing and staying but a great thing you can do at Disney is order from a grocery delivery service.  You can also send things to yourself in the mail or via Amazon, but with delivery fees the grocery services usually end up being cheaper. We ordered baby food, formula, diapers and wipes so that we didn't have to pack those things.  We also ordered food for ourselves such as coffee creamer, beer, snacks, bagels/cream cheese, etc. If you stay in a villa with a full kitchen, you can literally eat all of your meals there. It's a great way to save money.  That said, though, we totally ate out several times and Abby did great in the high chair.  I bought a high chair cover that folds into itself which was nice to have but not necessary.

High Chair Cover

What else?
Disney offers infant size mouse ears, however be warned that they are really sized for a toddler's head.  I bought them anyway.  Actually, my sister did. And she had Abby's name embroidered on them and they were waiting for us at the hotel when we arrived.

Etsy.  Just browse around. There are tons of really cute Disney outfits that can be personalized.  I love it.

That's all for now, but maybe later I'll write about the actual trip and how it went.  Til then, Have a Magical Day!

~SG




Please note that none of the products I discussed compensated me in any way for my post!!

6 Months!

I would say I'm shocked that half a year has passed but I'm not. I realized in her first two weeks of life that the days are long and the months are short. We have been blessed with a happy, healthy, easygoing baby. Everything I could have wished for.  I am very thankful for this and I do not take it for granted. I am constantly pushing worries to the back of my mind because if I let them go they will consume me.  I think I can generalize that every mother does this. I worry about things in the future, too, like finger feeding, real solid foods, crawling, walking, etc but I have to remind myself that we have somehow figured out the first 6 months and we will continue to do so and learn as we go.  I knew that babies are a joy but I never understood why until I had one of my own.  She is the light of my life.  I can't wait to see what the next 6 months will bring! Cheers!

How many? Half of a year! (...plus a week....super late this month but hey, that's because we were at DISNEY!)

What happened this month? Really started solid foods, Came down with her first cold, traveled to PA to visit family twice, Started rolling around and hanging out on her tummy more often (I thought it would never happen!), Starting to get super comfy with the dogs, Working really hard on sitting up and not falling over, traveled to DISNEY WORLD!

Recent Stats Her 6 month well baby appointment is on Monday and I will update with those stats afterwards. She had to go to the Dr. to get her cough checked on a few weeks ago and at that time she weighed 15 lbs 9 oz and was 25.75 in long. I suspect that she has gained a bit of weight since then. She feels so heavy!!  Update: We're back from our 6 month appointment! Big girl weighs 17 pounds and is now 26.5 inches long! The Dr. is OK with her weight gain (60th percentile) and said that she will naturally start drinking less formula as she eats more solid food. Overall she had a great visit and the Dr. is happy with her growth and development. Next appointment is at 9 months! OMG.

Clothes size Comfortably in 6 month onesies and most pants although I pulled out the 6-9 month pants because her legs are long (same problem as always).  She does fit in some 9 month size stuff too.  The white onesie in the pics is a 9 month size!

Diaper size Still in size 2 but her chunky legs are making me think it's time to move up a size.  While we were in Disney, we were using Pampers Baby Dry instead of  Pampers Swaddlers, and I don't like the way the Baby Dry diapers fit her.  But it was all the Grocery delivery service offered and I didn't want to have to pack diapers!

Feeding Our daycare told us she still seemed hungry at the end of her 4oz bottles so we bumped them up to 6 oz. No biggie since we give her 6oz bottles at night time.  I feel like this has made her gain a bunch of weight so I'm not so sure about it. I'm looking forward to discussing this with her Doctor. She is still doing sold food 2x per day and 3x per day on the weekends.  Oatmeal mixed with some fruit in the morning and the rest of the fruit for lunch and/or a veggie at dinnertime.  We are having fun expanding her palate and watching her funny reactions every time she tries something new. Foods we have tried so far: Rice cereal, Oatmeal, Sweet Potatoes, Carrots, Bananas, Prunes, Peas, Peaches, Pears, and Green Beans. I also handed her a sippy cup to see what she would do with it.  I was surprised!

Sleeping I mentioned in my post about routine that Abby is sleeping from about 8pm until 5am with minimal interruptions.  Teething has introduced some fun into this routine as well as a little 6 month growth spurt and vacation changing things up. Luckily I had prepared myself for lack of sleep from the beginning because her sleep schedule is always changing and evolving.  A couple weeks ago I went in to check on her one night and for the first time ever, found her asleep on her stomach! I let her sleep like that for a while but my craziness got the better of me and I had to flip her over before I could fall asleep myself. Since then, I have found her on her stomach multiple times.

Personality Still very easy going and happy. It's much easier to get her to laugh now. She hasn't become too clingy or lovey yet- I'm honestly looking forward to it.  At Disney she started laying her head on my chest or nuzzling my neck when she got tired.  Swoon! No separation anxiety yet, although she totally watches me leave every day and I know one of these days it's going to click.

Milestones
-Bottom two teeth are there under the gums and waiting to pop through! (But taking forever.)
-Can sit unsupported for longer periods of time but still topples over if she leans back too far
-Is a rolling MACHINE. Back to front to back. All over the place. She will roll toward a toy she wants that is out of her reach. Funny to watch her mind work this out.
-Strings consonants together, babbles softly and most often when she has her fingers or a toy in her mouth.
-She still doesn't really "get" Peekaboo. Once I disappear, she just finds something else to look at. Although she does sort of play peekaboo with her bottles when they are finished. I have to hide it so she will stop staring at it.  Lately she has started to look for it.
-She seems to have figured out the mirror.  She has a princess mirror and yesterday I walked up behind her, she saw me in the mirror, and then turned around to look at me.  I guess she's officially smarter than the dogs since Chloe will stare at herself all day in that thing...

Mom's Corner
I don't really have anything to add to Mom's Corner this time.  I'm excited that NASCAR is beginning, mostly because it means Spring is coming and that makes me happy since we are currently buried under almost a foot of snow.  Disney with Abby was amazing and I'll probably write a separate post about it but I believe she was at the perfect age to take a baby to Disney. So don't hesitate to DO IT!! Next time she'll be ~14 months and it will be a whole different ballgame... OK I'm off to do something productive while she naps. I'll be back after her appointment tomorrow to update the stats section.

~SG

On Routines

This morning I realized how much I've come to accept and actually *gulp* like routine.  Remember when Abby was first born how I talked about how I've never really been one for routine and I didn't like it?  I guess spending about 6 months with a baby has changed my opinion.

I realized this because today I have an appointment and am at home instead of at work.  So I got Abby up and ready at her normal time and then I figured we'd just go to daycare later this morning since I'd be around.  But after about 15 minutes I couldn't deal with it and I stuck her in the car and off we went!

So, since I haven't done one of these in a while, here is a glimpse into our current routine and schedule.  These are all approximate times and we may be off 20-30 minutes in either direction but overall I think it's pretty impressive how Abby sticks to her schedule every single day.

5AM: Abby wakes up and starts yelling for food so I go downstairs and warm up her first bottle for the day.

5:30: I get her dressed and ready and she hangs out with me in my room while I get ready for work.

6: We go downstairs and she eats some form of solid breakfast.  Rice cereal is totally out, so we eat either oatmeal, solid food, or like today a mixture of both (oatmeal with peaches).

6:30 We head out!

8AM, 11AM, 2PM: Abby's bottles at daycare

Naps: The only thing she doesn't do exactly on schedule is nap. But she does do a really good, long morning nap and then usually a couple shorter mid morning and/or afternoon naps

We pick her up sometime between 4-5

5PM: Bottle, playtime, etc.

6PM: We eat dinner and usually Abby sits in her highchair and watches intently. Then she gets her own solid dinner.

Peas

There is usually a small nap in here around 7.  During that nap I do the dishes and make her last bottle for the day and 5 bottles for the next day.

8PM: Last bottle with 2 extra ounces to help her sleep!  Then we get into our Sleepy Sack, read bedtime stories, sing lullabies and go to sleep. Ever since starting daycare (and growing out of the 4 month stage) she has been sleeping through the night again. Sometimes if she wakes up she just needs her paci stuck back in.  I know that eventually we're going to have to let her learn to put herself back to sleep when she wakes up but for now it's ok :)

On the weekends we are doing 3 meals a day of solid food and I figure when we get back from our trip she'll be 6 months and we'll start doing solids for lunch at daycare too.  I can't wait to do her 6 month update, although it will probably be late. So heads up. But the first year is incredible in terms of development.  It's crazy to watch your baby go from blob to babbling and rolling all over the place and to watch her mind work to understand and process what is going on around her.

Future Disney Princess

OK that's enough for now.... be back soon! Disney is approaching quickly!!!!!

~SG