Baby Bargains and other Milestones

This past Friday I didn't have a lot of work to do, so I set out to hit up garage sales in the area to try to find some more baby stuff. Specifically, I've been loking for a high chair and a little arm chair. I didn't find everything I was looking for, but I did manage to come across:

A REALLY nice high chair! These are really expensive and exactly what I was looking for. It's a high chair "rocker". Meaning, it reclines. Talk about luxury while you eat!! It's also raises up to the table level and lowers to floor level. The lady who sold it had a bunch of baby stuff that all looked very well cared for, so I bought this up in a heartbeat. Looking on line, I couldn't find these chairs for under $200. I got ours for $50. BARGAIN!

I also picked up these items:

I got each for $2. I kept my eyes out for little "walking" toys that she can use to help her walk around. They have them at day care and I can see how they are really helpful. This tiny little toy she can ride. And the little cloth bucket with fish? What a find! It's perfect for holding all the toys she plays with. (All the toys also came from a garage sale). If anyone saw all this stuff but didn't know I'd purchased it all from garage sales, they'd think we were buying way too much stuff for our kid and spoiling her! But it's the thrill of the hunt for these items that I enjoy. Plus, if they get destroyed I don't really care. So many people that I talk to at garage sales end up telling me they wish they would have bought a lot of their stuff at garage sales as well. There are a couple of items we purchased brand new that we never used. They were really expensive. For the items I've gotten at a garage sale, I won't be as annoyed if she doesn't use them as I would have been had we paid full price for them. Those couple of expense items we never used....it truly does annoy me that we wasted the money on them.

In other news....this girl has started jumping hurdles. She's just about to his her 6 month "birthday"....(Technically it's an anniversary of her birth, right?) She's now been moved into the "6 month" clothing items. She's about to outgrow her 3-6 month clothes. For probably the next month she'll be in clothes that are sized "6 months". And with all the hand-me-downs and shower presents we were given, she's got some super cute items for summer!

One night this week she was kind of fussy and didn't want to be on her back. She REALLY likes to be upright. The bumbo seats we got her have been a Godsend! But I got her an exersaucer (Craigslist....saved 70%!) and thus far she's not really enjoyed it. Since she's starting to reach her arms and hands out to grab items, I decided to try her in the exersaucer again. See for yourself what she thought:

She loved it! So much to look at, touch, and pull on. Excellent purchase! I can sit her in that for a while and make dinner or watch tv and she likes it. Eventually I think her little feet get too much blood in them from being upright and she'll fuss to get out and try something else.

Right now she gets these tiny little bursts of energy where her arms and legs start flailing. It's adorable. I love it when she does this while I'm holding her. Her arms will flail then she'll put her arms around my neck. It's not a true hug, but it feels like it and I love it!

She's still really talking and laughing. Lots of big smiles. This tells me she's in that "Golden Baby Stage" where she's easily pacified, constantly happy, and a time to cherish. She can't move or make a lot of annoying noises, and it's just wonderful. (I've been told constantly that this is the really fun baby stage. I agree!)

Yesterday we went to mom and dad's to shoot guns and hang out. I took some adorable photos but am having trouble getting them off my phone. If I can get my phone to work, I'll post them here.

As we were getting ready to leave, the idea came to me to ask if she could stay all night. We didn't have anything going on, so we didn't need her to stay all night, but I just thought it would be fun for them. And also something we, as parents, should be doing. Day care has been great for a bit of separation (and a nice break for me). But this is a whole new enviornment for her. Plus, my mom didn't seem to want to put her down. She needs grandparent time! So she spend her first night away from mom and dad at GramE and GrampE's house. Mom send me lots of pictures, which was kind of fun. Normally I'm the one sending them to her!

So this morning while she was gone, we did some "upgrades" on her stuff. Jason had already changed the settings on her car seat to allow for a "taller" baby. We also lowered the mattress in her crib and I hung the camera for her monitor on the wall. Since she's reaching for items now, I didn't feel comfortable having it sit in her bed anymore. I also spent the morning cleaning up everything I purchased from the garage sales (It must be bleached and Lysol'd!)

Mom and dad also went out for breakfast this morning, something we normally don't do. It was lovely!

This morning I'm going to spend some time researching my next "Rachel Project". I'm going to turn our front room (what's supposed to be the dining area) into a "Rachel Room". When she begins crawling, I want to gate that area off to keep her contained while she moves around in case I need to be doing something else. I want to get a bunch of toys to go in there that will keep her entertained. Like the little toy car pictured above. I'm thinking of getting some play mats to put on the floor for her to crawl on. Also, I want to get some "heavier" toys to put in there that she can eventually use to help her stand up and eventually walk. So I'll be hunting for toys, the gates, etc to put in there. I am looking out for a used arm chair. Have you seen them? Here's a picture of one:

Isn't that so cute?! She won't be using it for probably another year, but finding one that's gently used and in good shape can be difficult. So I'm keeping my eyes out for one.

The baby "fencing" that I'm thinking of we can use in the house as well as outside. I do already have some baby gates that I got when we lived in Decatur to keep our dogs in the kitchen. We'll be putting those in soon.

Also - I've been looking for a little kiddy table and chairs. I want to put those here in the front room (eventually) so she has a place to sit and draw, possibly eat, etc. Again, I'm looking now so I have time to find something that works really well.

For now, I think this girl has more than anything she could ever need for a 6 month old. But finding this stuff has been super fun. Very soon we'll be doing her 6 month photos. Nothing has been scheduled yet, but as soon as they are taken I'll be sure to get them posted!