Fourth of July + Other Overdue Updates

I love the Fourth of July. This year was a little weird though. It was the night before Riley's baby blessing and we had to get everything ready for the big day so we didn't even watch fireworks. We did, however attend the Kaysville parade. I ran into my very good friend, Missy! I didn't take a picture. Meh. 

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!

We look so happy but #realtalk, I was sweaty and being super first-time-mom. First it was the sirens are too loud for Riley, then it was too hot outside for Riley, then it was I don't want Riley to get sprayed by the fire truck, then it was we need to get the car cooling down. That Claire is always a joy.

Little cutie.

 How about some official Riley updates? How about three monthly updates in one post? Because that is where I am at in my life right now, haha.

M O N T H  O N E

She started socially smiling (not just gas or dreaming).

She was still tall and skinny. At her two-month appointment she was 9 lbs 9.5 oz. and 22 and 1/8th inches long. 25th percentile for weight; 75th percentile for height.

She also started sleeping through the night. Riley would go down at 10 PM (shameful), wake up to feed between 4 and 6 AM and go back down until 7:30-9:30 AM. Cannot complain about that.

M O N T H   T W O

She started batting at her toys and interacting MUCH more with us.

Riley really started smiling.

M O N T H  T H R E E

Riley started putting everything in her mouth.

She rolled over from front to back. I am not sure if it was because she was on a soft surface though. Who know? It's cute, though. :)

She can grab her toys most of the time now.

She has a ready smile for everyone. She is a very happy baby.

M O N T H   F O U R 

At Riley's four-month check up she weighed 12 lbs. 2 oz. (11th percentile) and was 24 and 1/4 inches long (40th percentile). Her pediatrician isn't worried. She said that she is just petite. Also at her check up her pediatrician said that she does some six-month-old things like standing really well and pulling her head off the ground while laying on her back. So advanced, haha. Go baby!

Favorite activities include playing with mommy and daddy, talking to her ceiling fan, and chewing on everythang. She also likes getting her gums brushed. She likes a lot of things really. I was telling Jeff the other night that we should have named her Joy because she is such a pleasant, joyful, little baby, pretty much around the clock. 

Also new, she hit the four-month sleep regression. I have been reading as much as I can about baby sleep. I am working on her routine and we will just see how things go. She slept all night last night though and is just finishing up a three hour nap... Who knows. 

Pictures to come. She just turned four months old a few days ago after all. 

Have a great weekend! :)

Birthday and Anniversary Shenanigans

First of all, hey! I have been absent lately for plenty of good reasons but primarily because of this cutie pie:

Yeah, she's precious.

Well, I don't have great pictures today, but I still need to write because this week was my birthday and my anniversary. It's one of those obligatory posts, you know...

So, birthday:

Jeff's birthday was two months ago, but whatever. I like sharing. :)

I have reached one of those arbitrary ages, so it's not too exciting. Yay, birth! Thanks, Mom. :)

Anniversary :

Claire: let's take a three-year-anniversary selfie.

Jeff: okay.

It was too bright for me, but apparently Jeff was unphased, haha. I am a mess. Also, do we look as tired as we feel? Because we are sleep deprived something fierce.

As a matter of fact, I have noticed a serious drop in my brain power since having a baby; the struggle is so real when I try looking at a menu, articulating my thoughts, or playing Bananagrams. It's getting out of hand, but goodness am I grateful for my wee babe. I need a nap, but here I am blogging at midnight while my baby is asleep. It's my life.

Well, here's a little update. Riley is six weeks old! She is really sweet and she gets cuter and more fun each day. She just started smiling voluntarily. 😍

She is still a bitty, little thing. She still fits in all her newborn clothes except for one pj set. She is long and skinny. It is so adorable.

She still has gas and a little acid reflux we think. It's her biggest struggle in life right now. She is fussy about half the time. The other half she stares fascinated at chair legs, walls, and other novel, high-contrast treasures. Haha.

I have been working really hard at eating right to prevent her aforementioned gas and reflux. You. Guys. No dairy, no gluten, no chocolate, no spicy food, no broccoli, no happiness. The list, if you can believe it is longer than that. Think I'm exaggerating? I am not. She has the hardest time if I indulge.

Healthy food. Boo. Just kidding. It is really refreshing and I like getting creative with oatmeal and rice products (feed me normal food!)...

Another update, I bought a great book for my birthday. It's called Permission to Parent. Just good old-fashioned authoritative parenting lit.

Can you believe it? More oatmeal. 

I love this book. I am 65 pages in and highly recommend.

Alright. I am getting my priorities straight and calling it a night.

Have a great week!

Happy Birthday to Jeff Falco!

This guy is awesome.

He is also 25 and 1 day.

I am posting about him [and Austin, Texas] today because we were too busy yesterday. 

Here are some pictures to sum up how we spent his birthday--not featured: catching up with our friends Brett and Julie and co., and a kayaking adventure on Lady Bird Lake.

Texas Sheet Cake ice cream from Lick Honest Ice Cream  (see below)

Austin is really cool. It was full of hipster sodas and purple flowers and sweet restaurants. I like that place. I am so glad that we could spend Jeff's birthday there. Tonight we are continuing the celebration with Texas Roadhouse (Thanks, Michelle). Birthdays are just the best.

Also, can we just take a second to highlight Lick Honest Ice Cream?? I am not an affiliate or anything, but that place was crazy! They have flavors like Roasted Beets + Fresh Mint, Coconut + Avocado Curd, and Fresh Oranges + Fennel... It was really cool.  Check it out if you're ever in the area. We really enjoyed it!

A Shamefully-Late Christmas Post

Hello.

First of all, I apologize for neglecting my blog for my real and non-cyber life. Yes, I missed primo blogging opportunities in December, January, and a week's worth of February, but hey, here I am with a post to blow your mind. Haha.

So, Christmas and New Year's were amazing. We flew back to Utah and had the best time. For one thing, after a week or so of warm-ish weather we woke up Christmas morning to a beautiful fresh-fallen (falling) snow. Some things are just so magical.

On Christmas we talked to not one, but three missionaries! Jeff's sister Skyped  from from Malawi (in the Zambia Lusaka mission), my brother Skyped from Paris, and his best friend/pseudo brother, Arturo Skyped twice from Puebla in Mexico. I am so inspired by the incredible work they are all doing. By the way, if you would like to learn more about Mormon missionaries click here.

Over the break we watched a ton on movies. My favorites were Unbroken and Into the Woods.

We had a whole bunch of family parties and a baby shower hosted by Jeff's mother Michelle. It was really great to see so many people Jeff and I love. My goodness people are generous. We are super grateful (and excited about this baby!).

So... Here are some pictures!

The Piano Guys in concert! Thanks for the great tickets, Grandma!

Making dinner with the family; more specifically, Jeff''s manly hands

I nagged my sweet husband into taking one of those prego pictures...

My MIL is an amazing chef. This is some sort of brie-crushed pineapple-coconut-almond concoction.

Cute things abound at my in-law's.  

One of my favorites...

Christmas Eve Temple Square tradition! 

I don't know what these were for, but they looked pretty cool. :)

There you go. I feel very humble as a blogger and will post waaay more regularly from now on! :)

Week 19 Bumpdate + A Video!

Thanksgiving was amazing! Jeff and I visited Louisiana where he served his two-year mission. I love Louisiana. Here are some quotes from the people we stayed with that just speak for the experience...

"Come out back a pick a lemon."

"Gumbo's like a thumbprint; everyone has their own way of doing it."

"I've got some good squirrel meat in the freezer."

Louisiana is totally unique. I met a legitimate Cajun who speaks old-world French. One of the people we stayed with, Jeff's very close friend, breeds champion labradors and had 19 two-week-old puppies at his house. Wrap your brain around that... They were so sweet. I was born puppy hungry, but playing with those little guys this weekend certainly fanned the flame.

Over the course of four days we went to Marksville, Ponchatoula, Hammond, and New Orleans. We ate at Cafe du Monde (which serves the best beignets I've ever had), and had all the Cajun food I could dream of (Here's a recipe blog from a Louisiana native we hung out with).

Here's a pretty, little film from our incredible trip.

As for a pregnancy update, our baby {GIRL!} is healthy and growing. We had a 45-minute ultrasound a while back and she had her legs up over her head the entire time, which frustrated the technician just a bit... haha, sorry.

Further, my morning sickness is basically gone! Finally. I'm 20 weeks tomorrow. <-- That's halfway! Things are going well:

How far along? 20 weeks tomorrow.
Baby is: About six and a half inches
Total weight gain/loss? About 4 pounds 
Maternity clothes? Yes.
Stretch marks? No.
Sleep? It's great. I have strange dreams though. Last night I dreamt that Jeff made me enroll in high school again. As a 22-year-old. What?
Best moment this week? Decorating my Christmas tree! And feeling my baby kick some more. :)
Miss Anything? Sleeping on my back. 
Movement? Yes!
Food cravings? A Subway sandwich...still. I never go though.
Anything making you queasy or sick? Not really. :)
Have you started to show yet? Yes.
Gender? IT'S A GIRL!
Labor Signs? None.
Belly Button in or out? In, but oh my gosh, I can force it out... I'm a freak, haha
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time? Happy. :)
Looking forward to? Having a baby!

Have a great week!

Babe

 Well, the cat's out of the bag...Or to be less cryptic I just announced to the world that my husband and I are expecting a little human in April next year [Yay! Celebrate!]. We are completely over the moon.

Good news for those with a lot of time of their hands and an interest in our new addition, I have blogged a bumpdate--so to speak--each week since I found out I was pregnant, which was all the way back in August. So feel free to check those out if you feel so inclined. You can start here, or here, or here, or here, or just go crazy. It's your life.

Week 15 Bumpdate:

How far along? 15 weeks - almost finished with month four!
Baby is: Possibly 4 and 1/2 inches from crown to rump, or about the size of an apple.
Total weight gain/loss? Almost two pounds.
Maternity clothes? No.
Stretch marks? No.
Sleep? Great. 
Best moment this week? Telling the rest of the world the fun news!
Miss Anything? Lifting really heavy things. I've finally decided it's time to delegate tasks like moving 30-pound boxes and such.
Movement? Not distinguishably yet.
Food cravings? Nothing this week.
Anything making you queasy or sick? Nope.
Have you started to show yet? Yes.
Gender? We find out soon. 
Labor Signs? None.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time? Happy. :)
Looking forward to? Finding out the gender in about a week and a half.

Ps, Happy Halloween! I love you, all!