Mamamama Babababa Aaarrrgghhhhhhh!!

At 6 1/2 months and 15.5 lbs, Riley is officially a personality to be reckoned with! It seems like overnight she has doubled her neurological capabilities...and I'm not bragging because I see it happening in all of the babies her age! It is like overnight she becomes more and more her own little person.

Talking is one of her favorite things to do and we love chiming in...some favorites right now are "mamamama" and "babababa", with the occasional growl still thrown in. Morningtime is the best time to catch Riley chatting, especially when she eats. I usually sit her up in her blue Bumbo seat and put her bib on her, at which point she knows what is coming. She starts swaying back and forth or beating her chest with her arms. Once she takes her first spoonful of food she usually swallows it and then babbles away, spraying leftover remains of the food from her mouth all over the place!

Food in itself has been a new adventure too...we started with bananas, then moved to avocado, sweet potato, and now peas. I use an amazing little machine that steams, purees, and reheats food all in one and I store her little meals in baby food ice tray that has a lid to keep things fresh. At mealtime all I have to do is pop out a cube and defrost it! While at first it was a bit sad for me to give Riley "real" food, I'm more and more excited now because I see how much she enjoys it and she seems to really be satisfied afterwards. It only makes up part of 1 to 2 meals per day for her, but it has been a great start.

As for activities, we've been pretty busy lately...it has been an interesting month because we are transitioning from hanging out with our regular mom's group a few days per week to only seeing them once in awhile. Most of the moms are now returning to work and that leaves Riley and I on our own to find new adventures in the city and take advantage of all of our time together during the day. So, I've gotten back to running with her in our neighborhood, hitting up local playgrounds for those infant swings, walking around to look at flowers and people and places, continuing our swim class with our friends Chantal and Fenn, and participating in a weekly Mom/Baby Dance workout class taught by a mom in our group who is a ball-room dancer. All of the activities provide something new for Riles to look at, feel, hear, and enjoy, and they give me a way to get out with her and feel like I'm teaching her and enjoying our city together in a meaningful way.

Finally, with Fall in full force (kind of), I'm reminded of how much I miss a true fall like people get in so many parts of the country. The colorful leaves, the brisk mornings, and the smell of the breeze each day signal the coming change to winter. These things also tend to keep people indoors more, which is when I realize if I have anything to be thankful for with a baby it is the mild climate here. When I miss the Fall most I remind myself of all of the things Riley and I can do all day long without worrying about rain, cold and wind...so we put on our T-shirts and sunglasses and walk outside to make the most of it!

We've got a lot of new photos of the past few weeks, so check them out.

Click here to see photos.

Happy 6 Month Birthday Riley !

In honor of Riley's upcoming 6 month birthday on the 13th, and because of her constant reaching for squeeling for, and grinning at OUR food lately, we decided to give Rileygirl her first taste of solid food...in a mashed up, pureed form anyways! I think she liked it...

First Solid Food!

Our Elf in her Redwood Forest

I’ve never considered myself an “outdoorsman” (or woman) but I have enjoyed my share of camping trips, hikes in the woods, and outdoor adventures…particularly over the past 8 years in which I’ve called California my home. Ramsey is slightly more enthused about the importance of squeezing backpacking into our family life, so he and I recently took a leap and decided to take Riley on her first overnight camping trip!

For pictures of our trip click here.

We headed down the California coast to a beautiful spot tucked in the enormous redwood trees in Big Basin State Park. Together, with our friends Mike and Brig, we enjoyed a calm afternoon and evening of setting up tents, starting a nice campfire, playing some guitar, and cooking a tasty meal of burgers, dogs, kebobs and corn on the cob. The weather was perfect (brisk but sunny) and Ramsey and I agreed we had made the right choice to take Riley with us. We even made a little “sleeping bag” for her out of her stroller bundler and we dressed her in many layers before putting her down under the open sky…

Surprisingly, she slept like a champ! She went down around her usual time of 6pm and slept perfectly still until around 10pm when we decided to call it a night ourselves. She stirred for awhile after that, finally aware that she was nowhere near her cozy little crib at home, but we eventually got her back down to sleep from midnight to 6am by feeding her and trading her between our sleeping bags to let her know we were right there with her.

Looking back, it was a worthwhile trip and made me consider a few things about parenting. First, sometimes we have to do things for ourselves even when they aren’t necessarily easy or enriching for our children (Riley will not remember this camping trip but we sure will!). Second, having wonderful supportive friends to share such experiences with makes it all the more worthwhile. Third, even though I didn’t sleep due to nursing and checking on Riley, those moments of cuddling with my little 14 pound bundle of gummy grins aren’t going to last forever, so I’m enjoying them while I can :)

Chompers and the Shenandoah Valley

At just 5 and a half months our little girl has two teeth...and I'm not bragging. Seriously, this is one of those developmental milestones I could have had a bit of a delay with, given the aches and pains to be felt by both Riley and myself (still breastfeeding) by those little pearly whites! Plus, I've found myself getting pangs of sadness when I realize that Riley's perfect gummy grin is not something that I'll be able to wake up to in the morning forever...she'll get teeth, start walking, grow out of her crib and our cuddles, and eventually be speaking to me as a teenager with major attitude...whoa.

To see pictures of Riley throughout the past month or so, click here...
Back to reality...we've had a great month or so. On weekends

we've enjoyed family walks to local breakfast spots in Noe Valley and Bernal, checking out the new Whole Foods Market in our neighborhood (yes, finally!!), and listening to music at the free bluegrass festival in Golden Gate Park. During the week Riles and I keep busy with swim class on Mondays (they wore goggles this week to keep the water out of their eyes:)), trips to the gym, an upcoming mom/baby workout class hosted by a Mom's Group buddy, and various walks around the city depending on the day. I've also settled into a nice work routine that allows me to keep in touch with some clients, help kids out 1 on 1, and give Riley a little time alone with Dad to hang out. I cannot express how lucky I feel that I can balance my job and my daughter in my life in such a perfect way.

One big adventure this month was a trip back to the East Coast (Virginia to be exact) to celebrate the retirement of my fantastic Dad. I love my family and it was a lot of fun for Riley to spend time with her Uncle Ryan (who luckily lives right here in SF), Gammy, Pop Pop, and my brother Jake and his wife Andrea and their kiddos (Jaker, Gabs and Joey). In addition to being the last stay for all of us in the house in Virginia as a family, it was a chance for Riley to meet her cousins, watch their wild ways, and spend quality time with my parents. Without going on and on, all I can say is that we celebrated my dad's ability to balance work and personal life in such a way that neither part of his life felt cheated by the other. While his work community knew his family was his priority, they spoke so highly of his drive and his inspiration to so many by example. At the same time, at home we knew that our achievements, follies, bad hair days and after-dinner walks were far more important than anything that had to do with his job. Words can't express how lucky I feel to have had such a model of marriage, fathering, leading, and humility...

Finally, Rileygirl has gone and grown two TEETH! Upon arrival in Virginia she literally sprouted one tooth and started on another. She hasn't really shown many signs of teething, other than some unusually fussy evenings and a hot spell here and there. She has continued to "wow" us with her constant smiles, flexibility with traveling and schedules, and great sleeping habits. I'm sure we are in for it come adolescence.