Single stroller recommendation

Okay so I'm really just procrastinating (does anyone like packing?), and I can't find the funny sayings list to finish Elise's next post, so I figured I might as well make a stroller recommendation.  In the last few months, I found the need for a new single stroller.  I've been using the Bumbleride Indie Twin 3-4 times a week (Elise still really likes to ride) and a small Chicco Capri umbrella stroller on times when I just had one kid or didn't need the double (like at the park).  Well, I was using the small stroller a lot at the park and I was frustrated because I couldn't push it well and hold her hand at the same time, and I really wanted a big sunshade and snack tray for Jack, so I started looking for another single stroller.  Here were my criteria:

1)  Large sunshade

2) Snack tray option

3) Small fold since I always have my double in the back of the van

4) Can fit a 3 year old and 1 year old comfortably

5) Can be easily steered with one hand

6) Decent basket, at least big enough to store my purse or Jack's diaper tote underneath   

Well, my friends, I ended up with the Britax B Agile and I LOVE it.  Here is the link on amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Britax-USA-U341783-B-Agile-Stroller/dp/B0050GD2AE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338164448&sr=8-1

Here's how it met/exceeded my criteria:

1)  Large sunshade - PERFECT for using outside.  If oriented correctly, Jack's entire body is shielded from the sun 

2) Snack tray option - a little far out for Jack to reach but if I loosen the upper harness straps, he can lean forward and reach the snacks just fine

3) Small fold since I always have my double in the back of the van - I can fold this and put it in the van with one hand (while holding a baby!).  It also locks in place automatically. 

4) Can fit a 3 year old and 1 year old comfortably - Elise fits PERFECTLY in this stroller and is extremely comfortable with room to grow.  The seat is actually wide enough that I could sit in it.  Jack also enjoys riding in it.  He usually ends up leaning to one side, but I think it's by choice :)  The weight limit is 55 lbs.     

5) Can be easily steered with one hand - I can steer with one hand with a 20 lb passenger or a 35 lb passenger.  

6) Decent basket, at least big enough to store my purse or Jack's diaper tote underneath - I can actually store both underneath along with some smaller items.  I also bought the parent console and two Think King stroller hooks since I'm going to travel with it to Texas... this will make it easier to navigate the airport by myself with two kids.  This will also be great to take to Sea World later this month. 

The other stroller I considered was a City Mini by Baby Jogger, which is also a great stroller but the B Agile has it beat in a few key areas (bigger seat and lower foot rest for a bigger child, more user-friendly brake, easier access to basket, has shocks, bigger rear wheels, and a smoother ride).  Happy Stroller Shopping!   

Last day of preschool

Elise really grew to love preschool (and especially playing with other kids her age) this year.  She is definitely going to miss it this summer.  Today was her last day, and we celebrated with a "colorful" party.  The kids and parents wore their favorite color and Elise and I decided to match with purple shirts and denim capris.  Little did we know that we would later be interviewed for a news story at a park on why Baltimore is apparently the worst-dressed city.  What a fashion statement we made :)  

Elise and her classmates patiently waiting for food

Someone was more interested in eating than getting her picture taken....  

Jack had fun playing with the "boy toys"

Jack walking

Jack isn't 100% walking yet, but he's getting really close.  This video was taken about 2 weeks ago and he takes up to 20 steps at a time, but this video was the turning point when he figured out how to pause, catch his balance, and keep walking.  He will initiate walking short distances and will turn from a toy and walk to us if we are close enough.  More videos and pictures coming soon, I hope (my intentions are good)! 

Jack - 12 months

Happy Birthday, little buddy!  We ADORE having you in our family.  We always know that you are happy because you constantly laugh, giggle, and smile.  You bring us so much joy.  You love playing with Elise and Daddy but you are definitely a mama's boy and I love it.  We can't wait to see you continue to grow this year, even though it makes me sad to think that you aren't really a baby anymore.  Thank you God for entrusting us with this precious gift!       


Stats:  Jack is approximately 30 inches tall and weighs about 20 lbs.  His 1 year check up is next week and I'll come back and post his actual stats.  He has 8 teeth now (4 on top, 4 on bottom) and has been a very easy teether.  His size 4.5 shoes fit but his feet have definitely grown since I bought them last month.

Sleeping:  Jack is still a great sleeper.  He sleeps about 12 hours at night (7:30 - 7:30) and takes about 3.5 hours worth of naps per day (1 hour in the morning, 2.5 in the afternoon).

Eating:  We are still nursing 5 times a day but I'm planning to drop the late afternoon feeding pretty soon.  He eats 3 meals a day and his favorite foods are meat, cheese, beans, yogurt, and sweet potatoes.  Jack is still funny about picking up fruits and vegetables to eat.  Occasionally, he will eat a few bites of fruit from a fork, but he usually spits it out.  He is getting a little more adventurous.  He still eats pureed fruits/veggies every day in his Sili Squeeze (as does his sister) and gets super excited when he sees it.  He did love his birthday cupcake (pictures to come).  

Playing:  Jack is still a busy, busy little boy.  He isn't walking on his own yet, but he will take 3-4 steps if we initiate walking practice.  He spends a good portion of his day on his feet, either standing and playing with toys (sometimes holding on with one hand and sometimes standing alone) or cruising around from furniture to the walls to toys, etc.  He is a super fast crawler and loves to be chased around the room.  He ESPECIALLY loves to be chased when he sees a diaper or clothes in my hand.  He automatically crawls as far away from me as fast as possible, giggling the whole way.  He adores his big sister and would be happy playing with just her for a very long time.

For his birthday, he got Elise's old Fisher Price Laugh and Learn Learning Home and he LOVES it.  He is still very interested in musical things and  will press the radio buttons on the house and just dance and dance.  He likes to push his walkers around and push cars on the floor.  Elise picked out a dump truck for his birthday present and he immediately knew what to do with it.  He also loves climbing stairs, playing in the bath tub, closing the baby gates, and playing with the house and kitchen in the play room.  The B Parum Pum drum and instrument set is still a huge hit.          

Learning:  Jack has added several new words this month, bringing the total to around 15.  He started saying "Ma" for me and "Da/Dada/Daddy" for Mike.  Here is an approximate list (and I don't want to give the wrong impression here... he doesn't use all of these all the time, and some he uses more than others):  ma, da (or dada or daddy), eese, keys, chicken, cheese, socks, slide, boss, dog, drink, book, cracker, duck.  I am also pretty sure that he says Jack, outside (si si), ball, car, and probably a few others.  

He signs "please" for certain things, like to get in the bath tub or go on the slide, or occasionally for some food, but he doesn't really use the other signs any more.  I need to be consistent about doing them again.  He understands a lot of basic commands and certainly understands when we don't want him to touch something, but sometimes he does it anyway :)

Cute stories:  Before he started saying "Da/Dada" regularly, we were looking at a family picture on the wall and naming the people.  When I pointed to Mike, Jack signed "please", and then pointed to him and signed it again.  He wanted to see Daddy, who was at school.

A similar thing happened a few days later, when we were naming people and before I could say Elise's name, he said "Eese!"

When I change his diaper, I'm always trying to distract him so that he will stay in one spot.  Sometimes it works to play "Where's Jack?" and when I say that, he gets a big smile on his face, giggles, and hits his chest with his hand.  

Happy Birthday, Jack!

More pictures and a birthday post to come later.  Happy Birthday, Jack!  We love you so much.

Big

I am (like always) way behind on blogging, but here are a few pictures that sum up the last few weeks.

Big bed 

Big van

Big kids

About 3 weeks ago, Elise asked to change her crib to her big girl bed.  We've talked with her about doing this for a long time and were just waiting until she wanted to make the switch.  This transition has been PERFECT and it's like she's still in her crib because she waits for us to get her up in the morning and after her nap.  She is so proud of her bed and we are so proud of her.

We've been talking about getting a van ever since I was pregnant with Jack, and we got an offer that we couldn't pass up.  Here is the Honda Odyssey that we will be driving for the next 10 years!  It is amazing.  The power sliding side doors are more wonderful than I ever imagined.  I will admit that in the past, I declared that I would never drive a minivan.  Well, 2 kids later and I think I'll probably be driving one until the kids are gone.  Don't knock it unless you have 2+ kids and you've tried it :)

I love the last picture that was taken by Michelle in April.  I can't believe Jack is almost one!

Jack is 11 months old

Happy 11 months, Baby Jack!

This has been another fun month with our little buddy.  He is such a delight!  

Stats:  Jack is about 19.5 lbs and 29 inches.  He was very squirmy while I was trying to do the length measurement this morning.  He wears size 6-12 month pants and 12-18 month everything else.  We're still wearing long sleeves in MD and he has finally grown into the sleeve length of his 12-18 month onesies, just in time for summer.  He outgrew the length of the 6-12 month onesies awhile back.  He added one new tooth this month and now has 4 on the bottom and two on the top.  He got his first pair of real shoes this month and wears a size 4.5M at Stride Rite.

Sleeping:  This was another great month for sleeping.  I think he might have woken up once at night (when the 6th tooth came through at the beginning of the month).  He goes to bed around 7:30 and almost always wakes up between 7:20-7:30.  He takes a 60-90 minute morning nap and a 2-3 hour afternoon nap.

Eating:  He still nurses 5 times a day and eats 3 solid meals (and usually a snack of Cheerios in there somewhere).  He has tried many, many, many finger foods but is a little stubborn.  He LOVES meat, whether it be chicken, steak, turkey, ham, pork, roast, etc.  He tried lasagna this month and loved it.  He also likes cheese, beans, toast, and chunks of sweet potato.  And... that's about it.  He refuses all fruits and almost all vegetables.  Thankfully, he still loves pureed anything, so that's how we get in the fruits and vegetables.  He'll eat yogurt from a spoon but usually gets the other purees in the Sili Squeeze (much faster!).

7:30 - wake/nurse
8:30 - breakfast
9:30 - nap
10:30-11 - wake/nurse
12:30ish - lunch
2:00 - nurse/nap
4:45 - wake/nurse
6:15ish - dinner
7:15 - get ready for bed/read books/nurse/go to sleep

Playing:  Jack's favorite toy is still the B. Parum Pum drum/musical instruments.  He will always go for that if it is out.  Other than that, he just likes to explore everything, to include the slide, play house, play kitchen, musical table, any toys that are out, etc.  He'll push the walker and wagon across the room but he doesn't seek it out... he just does it if we stand him up next to it.  He will walk with our fingers across the room, but  I don't expect him to start walking soon, though Elise started just after she turned 11 months.  His balance is really good but he has no desire to take steps on his own.  He also LOVES to climb the stairs and take a bath.  He knows right where to go and will sign "please" to get in the tub.  Haha!  He also loves the magnets on the fridge and has figured out how to put them back on.  He is still an awesome independent player, to the extent that I feel guilty sometimes (but thankful as well).  I often feel guilty about not getting as much one-on-one time with him that I did when Elise was a baby.  Can anyone else relate to this?  :)    

Learning:  Jack added the "please" sign to his repertoire this month, though I've only seen him do it when he wants to get in the bath tub.  He added the words "slide" (sie), "sock/socks" (saw or skuh), and "cracker" (ga-guh) to the vocabulary of things that he will say without just repeating something I've said, which brings the total to 7-8 words.  No "Mama" or "Dada" yet though.  I'm pretty sure he's also saying "Elise", "car", and "ball", but sometimes it is hard to tell.  He chatters away in his own language but when he's trying to say a word, it is much more gutteral.  Too funny!  His favorite book right now is Good Night, Gorilla.


Other random things:
-He loves being chased and will laugh and speed-crawl away from me when he sees clothes or a diaper in my hand.
-He loves having giggle-fests with his sister, who can always entertain him.
-He still loves to smile, wave and clap, even with strangers.  He loves the church nursery.  I was working in his room a few weeks ago and he could have cared less that I was there.
-He doesn't mind playing by himself or with Elise or someone else, but when he's tired or hungry, he wants Mommy. 
-He enjoys riding in the stroller, shopping cart, and Beco.
-He's pretty much over the exersaucer and jumperoo but he doesn't mind being in the playpen.
-We switched him to the Boulevard a few days ago and he's happy as long as the sun isn't in his eyes.  Anyone have any good car sunshade recommendations?

 Here are some more pictures of him that my dear sister-in-law took last week.  Don't let the short sleeves fool you... it is still cold here but we lucked out with one warmish evening for pictures.  There are also some adorable pictures of them together and of Elise, but that's for another post.  Thanks again, Michelle!