Solid Foods & Hiking!!

Uh oh! Will she be a thumb sucker?
Or is she just goofing around?

What tastes better: her bib or her baby food?

Open wide for some yummy food!

Playing with Daddy!

Such a little smiler!

Daddy's little snuggle bug!

Kyra officially started solid foods about a week and a half ago, and so far she's doing great! She's currently having squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, and she started green beans today. We'll add more greens, then move on to fruits, then eventually meats. Kyra seems to be enjoying the foods, particularly the sweet potatoes! She's already got me thinking ahead and looking forward to feasting on all the yumminess of Thanksgiving! She hasn't had any allergic reactions to the food, although we did deal with a diaper rash over the weekend. Before solid foods, a typical day might've included one, maybe two poops for Miss Kiki. Well, solid foods has changed that quite a bit! Things seem to be settling down somewhat, but last week there were multiple days averaging 5 poops a day! Her poor little bottom couldn't keep up with the extra load(s)! But the rash is gone and she's doing much better, thanks to frequent applications of "Boudreaux's Butt Paste." It worked like a charm!

In our effort to make her a mobile baby, we got her a portable booster seat so that she can have meals while we're out and about. The photos above are from a spontaneous picnic in Marina del Rey last week. Kyra really enjoys being outside and looking around at all the interesting goings on! She's also been getting some practice with sitting in restaurant high chairs.

When she eats at home in her high chair, she loves to play "peek a boo" with Mommy and Daddy. We hide under her high chair, she leans forward to look for us, then we pop up and surprise her, followed by a stream of her adorable giggles and smiles! I don't know who enjoys this game more - her or her parents! We'll have to get a video of this entertaining exchange!

Hiking up to the top of the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook

Phew! We made it to the top! Now, let's quench that thirst with a bottle!

Great views - nearly a 360 degree view of LA!

Heading back down the hill

Kyra was definitely the youngest person on the trail!

We also recently discovered a new park (Culver City Park) and hiking area (Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook) near our house. We tried out the hike to the top of the park and neighboring scenic overlook, and Kyra did great in her Ergo baby carrier. I have a feeling that Kyra and I will be walking up to that park on a regular basis, since Mommy is getting pretty tired of walking around our neighborhood everyday. I'll have to take some pictures of the trail to the park next time we go, but the above shots are from our hike up to the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook. The roundtrip walk/hike is around 2.5 miles, so it's definitely great exercise, especially when you're carrying a 17 pound baby on your chest!

We hope you're all enjoying your summer! We're definitely making the most of ours!

6-Month Check Up

Kyra got a new starfish baseball hat from her Grandma & Grandpa.

Although she looks a little boyish, it's pretty darn cute :)

Kyra had her 6-month check up this morning, and she's doing great. She was such a good girl at her appointment, and only cried when she was supposed to (right after her shots - poor thing!).

Her new stats are:

Weight: 17 pounds - between the 50th & 75th percentile (up from 14 lbs. 12 oz. at 4 months)

Height: 27 inches - between the 75th & 90th percentile (up from 25 inches at 4 months)

Head Circumference: 42 cm - 25th percentile (up from 40.5 cm at 4 months)

The doctor gave us the go-ahead to start solid foods. So I think we'll head over to Target today to evaluate their yellow and green vegetables (baby foods), then eventually we'll try fruits, and then meats. We'll probably start with some pureed baby food, but also let Kyra "play" with some real foods and get a feel for this whole food thing. We'd like to get her eating mostly real healthy foods, rather than store-bought baby foods, but we'll take it one day at a time.

It should be interesting!

Kyra's 1st Solid Food - Rice Cereal!

Okay, I know I said recently that Kyra wasn't going to be starting solid foods until she reaches 6 months old. But after a few weeks of her waking up really, really early in the morning, crying until we'd give her a bottle, Kyra's pediatrician agreed that she might be ready for rice cereal. So Kyra had her first solid meal of rice cereal a couple of days ago, and she LOVED it! She was crying at first, but instantly changed her tune after I put the first spoonful in her mouth. The rice cereal hasn't really helped Kyra's sleeping yet, but we're hoping she'll get used to it soon and will once again sleep through the night. As you can see from the photos, she's seriously cute when she eats! Her rice cereal dinner has become an exciting addition to our daily routine!