The Juppy Walker

Alright, I don't normally buy weird baby products online but when this little item came across my email from babysteals.com (any moms out there who aren't getting emails from them....make sure you sign up!). 

This is the Juppy Walker.  No, it is not a grocery bag with holes in the bottom.  And it is not a restraining device for your child.  It is so when your child is learning to walk you are not leaning over killing your lower back trying to help them.  Ours came in the mail on Monday and I have to say it is awesome.  Taylor loves using it and so do we (especially Walker!).  The straps are adjustable so you can make them fit any height.  The lining on the inside is super soft, it zips up in the back, and it comes in a cute little pouch.  No, Juppy is not paying me to say all these things.  I just felt I needed to share an awesome product with all my parenting friends!
I think it's normally $25-$30 but through babysteals I got it for $15 (plus $3 for shipping).  Definitely worth it!

A Little Bug

Let me tell you a story dating back to late June.....I thought I had a little stomach bug.  It all started innocently enough in that I would eat something and an hour later be famished like I hadn't eaten anything at all.  Then very quickly it would turn into nausea and I would lose my appetite completely.  This went on for a few days and I really had myself convinced that it was just a virus that was going around.  Until one morning I realized....I've had this feeling before.  Last March....shortly before I found out I was pregnant with Taylor.  I laughed it off thinking "surely not- it's impossible!" (Note: if you have sex, pregnancy is possible, no matter what) but deep down I knew I needed to find out for sure.  I ran out to Meijer, came home, and sure enough 3 minutes later.....

Oh that little line of truth.....of course I reacted how any woman reacts to a positive test- I burst into tears and ran to Walker and said "I'm so sorry!"  Oh wait....that's not how most women react (well maybe the crying bit is universal).  Anyhow, after I came to grips with what was clearly God's plan (He never bothers to check with us, does He?) we came up with a fun way to tell my father-in-law the good news:

Pictures are always better than words right?  (even if the picture is a little crooked- yikes!  how did I not notice that before?)

How has this pregnancy been?  Well a lot worse than the first one!  Now I truly understand what morning sickness is.  Or rather all day sickness.  And taking care of a 9 month old when all you want to do is sleep all day is quite the challenge.  Needless to say, Taylor became quite proficient at entertaining herself this summer.

So here is a first look at "Bug" (good nickname, eh?)

overhead shot of a hand, and the face on the right

2 profile shots

Bug is doing extremely well- measuring perfectly and has a nice strong heartbeat of 162.  Naturally I'm inclined to think it's a girl, but I know a high heartbeat doesn't necessarily mean girl.  Walker thinks it's a boy (or maybe he just wants it to be a boy) because this one has been more ornery with all the morning sickness.  I guess come Oct. 21st we'll find out for sure.

Taylor's reaction to all this?  Well it's hard to tell but she did blow raspberries at monitor during the ultrasound so maybe she's already trying to show her dominance to her sibling.

Oh yes, the most important detail: I'm due March 8th.  For those of you who are not good with math, Taylor will be about 16 months.  Are we crazy?  Yes.  But just think, I'll be done a lot faster with the diaper stage than a lot of you who are spacing them out (haha suckers!).  Of course I'll also be half insane by next summer but show me a mom of two young children who isn't? 

9 Months

I promised a 9 month update and I will deliver (with some pictures too!)

First weight and height: 15 1/2 pounds (4th percentile) and 27 inches (37th percentile).  It's official- she's a beanpole!  Either I was wrong when I weighed her last month or she just didn't gain that much weight this month.  Given how much Taylor moves around, the latter is a strong possibility.  That being said, let's get into her physical development....

Remember when I said she'd be crawling soon?  I was wrong!  She still army crawls everywhere.  Honestly, with our wood floors it's a very efficient way for her to get around (as I type she's in the hallway playing with the door stop) so why should she go through the trouble of learning to crawl properly?  That's not to say she hasn't attempted it.  Sometimes she'll do a cross between a crawl on all fours and a butt scoot.  That usually doesn't last very long as she doesn't get anywhere.  Also remember how she was too short to reach things to pull up on?  That is no longer the case!  She pulls up on everything now!!  Even things she shouldn't be pulling up on.  We've had quite a few tumbles (including one at the dr.'s office this morning- you should have seen the look the receptionist gave me when she started crying ::insert eye roll::).  Taylor can be a little over-dramatic when she takes a spill so Walker and I tend not to overreact.  We think that will only fuel the dramatization.  However, if she really gets a good bonk we're very comforting and snuggly- don't worry about that!  Oh yes, and Taylor looooves walking around the room while holding onto our hands.  We bought her one of those push toys hoping to give our lower backs a break, but her balance isn't quite good enough yet and she gets scared when it starts to get too far in front of her so she hasn't used it too much.  And she's developing her pincer grasp nicely although she doesn't really seem to want to feed herself yet.  We're working on it....slowly.

Language skills haven't changed too much- still lots of syllables.  I have noticed that whenever she sees something new and interesting she says "eehhhh!"  I'm guessing that means "look!" or "what's that?"  haha- who knows?  She definitely understands the sign for milk because whenever we make the sign she smiles and starts kicking her legs.

Cognitively, I would say she definitely understands the word "no!"  Or at least she understands she's done something wrong.  Hearing that from us has elicited a few tears and we didn't even raise our voices when we said it!  Like I said, a total drama queen sometimes!  And this past weekend, her grandpa taught her how to wave.  It's more like she flops her arm up and down, than actual waving  but it still works.  I love it when she waves at herself in the mirror!

And now for some pictures!!

Oh yeah, in case you hadn't noticed, her 2 front teeth came in- she has 6 teeth!

Our Little World Traveler

Well okay, Taylor's not a world traveler but is anyone else impressed that she's already been to 4 different states (not including IL), 2 round trip flights,  and she's not even a year old yet?  I am. =)

Earlier this month, we packed up our car (and by packed I mean we crammed everything we could into our tiny vehicle and still had to ask Walker's dad to transport some stuff for us) and drove 9 hours to Gatlinburg, TN for the big Willis family vacation.  Walker's dad rented a huge cabin for all the kids and grandkids to stay in.  There were 5 kids, 4 spouses, and 8 grandkids- I know that doesn't hold a candle to some of my friends' family reunions (you know who you are!!!) but for someone who came from a small family, that's huge in my opinion!  We had a great time in TN, even though it was very touristy.  Taylor got to ride her first amusement park ride- the carousel.  I'm guessing by the few smiles she gave, she liked it. 
After we got home, she and I had barely a week to recover before we set off for Colorado!  Yes I have now traveled by myself with my baby twice and I survived!  Haha!  Walker would have come with us but he had work starting (thank you RCS for delaying the school year!!).  This time around, I was smart and purchased Taylor her own seat on the plane so she could ride comfortably in her carseat and I was able to sneak in a nap.  Oh just for fun sometime, try and go to the bathroom in an airplane potty with your 9 month old in tow.  Mothers who can successfully accomplish this feat deserve their own "mile high" club!  Haha!
While in Colorado, we got to see my brother and sister-in-law show their corgis at a big dog show in Greeley, CO.  Let me say that these dog shows are nothing like the ones they show on TV.  But then again, we didn't watch the group or best of show competitions since my brother's dogs didn't qualify for those.  It was still pretty cool to be at the show and see all the different types of dogs.  Oh yes, have I mentioned how much Taylor loves animals, in particular dogs?  When we first got to my brother's house, I set her down on the floor, and he let all 4 of their dogs out and she just laughed, and laughed, and laughed, and....well you get the idea!  She simply had a ball watching them run around.  And 2 kept running by and giving her kisses.  The great thing was, the dog my brother is sending us in September got along very well with Taylor so there are no worries about that. 
The whole trip was wonderful...until I got off the plane and there was my stroller with 3 pieces snapped off it.  UGH.  I was infuriated with Frontier airlines.  Luckily, I was able to get all 3 pieces back on.  Thank you Chicco for making a durable stroller!  Believe me, Frontier's complaint department heard from me today.  The response was less than satisfactory but it's kind of what I expected so oh well.
I took pictures during both trips of course but I'm too lazy to post them right now.  I will try and get to it tomorrow....or the next day.  =P
And coming soon will be Taylor's 9 month post.  She is 9 months old officially now, but I might not post anything until after her appointment tomorrow and I can get her "official" weight and height.