Thinking of the Future

Sophie's future has been on my mind a lot lately. As parents, we have to make certain decisions to plan for and protect our child(ren)'s future. Chase and I have done this by creating Wills for both of us, which establish who Sophie's guardian would be if we both happened to tragically pass away, and who would get our assets (Sophie obviously). We have also started a college fund for Sophie. We met with an Edward Jones financial advisor to discuss our options and decide on the best savings plan for our family. We decided to go with a 529 Plan for her.

These are things parents don't like to think or talk about, but they are important steps that need to be taken. We could have said we were going to "save" for Sophie's college for years, but without actually putting a plan into motion, that may have never happened. Now, I know we will follow through.

And all this thinking about college has made me wonder what advice I should give Sophie when she starts college. When I went to college I decided to major in Journalism and minor in English because I love to read and write. Those were my passions. However, even as I was in school studying Journalism I doubted I would actually go into the field. But I didn't want to pick some boring field I wasn't interested in just to be practical. And I remember my Mom encouraged that I study what I enjoyed and not worry about it.

However, I wonder if I will give that same advice to Sophie when its her turn to choose a major. In this tough economy I now know how hard it is to find a job, and how competitive it can be. I sometimes wonder if I should have chosen a Business or Office Administration degree, something that would have been more applicable to the type of career I actually planned to pursue.

I find myself leaning towards the practical side of advice for Sophie. I want her to enjoy college and not study something that she hates. But at the same time, if she decides she wants to major in something like Art History or Philosophy, I may have to steer her towards something more substantial. I want her to have the best future she can, and that may mean giving her a little tough advice about what the job market is really like, and that she may need to suffer through a Business or Accounting degree over those other more "fun" choices.

Of course all of this may be a little presumptuous. She may grow up loving math or science (which I did not) and want to major in something more practical on her own. Which would be great.

Also, I can't help but point out that we will be (hopefully) paying for that degree of hers, so I would like her to actually use it, unlike me. What do you all think? What advice would you/will you give your child when they're entering college? Will you tell them to be practical or go with their heart? Do we have more say as parents if we're paying for the degree, or should we just be happy they're going at all?

So much to think about. Luckily its 17 years away, so I have a little while to ponder it all. :)

What to Feed a Toddler?

Sophie's first time trying rice cereal

What do you feed a toddler? Now that Sophie is almost 13 months old she can eat pretty much anything. She has a very healthy appetite and isn't picky at all, which I know is a blessing. But now that she can eat real food I'm actually finding it more difficult to think of things to feed her.

It was so much easier, less messy, and quicker when she was just eating baby food. But now that I give her real food she wants to feed herself, which is awesome. However, she gets pretty messy, and man does she take her time eating. I normally do other things, like unload the dishwasher or cook dinner, while she's eating because I know she'll be a while. We've actually gotten in a routine this week where when we get home I put her in her highchair and give her a plate of food and she eats while I start dinner. It's been working out pretty well for us. Then by the time Chase gets home, about 20 minutes after me, I have dinner half way done.

I still give her some jarred baby food, but I'm trying to cut it out and give her just the real stuff now. I keep canned carrots, greenbeans, mixed vegetables, chopped peaches, and mandarin oranges on hand for her to eat now.

My child also loves her protein! I'm telling you she'd rather have meat over anthing else. We keep chicken sticks on hand at all times. They look nasty, but she loves them! We also give her vienna sausages, which are basically the same thing, chicken nuggets (the organic kind with no preservatives- my effort to be healthy!), and we buy her those little toddler trays that they sell at WalMart that have different meats like chicken and meatballs in them. Since I'm starting to cook more often I plan to start giving her some of what we eat too. It's just that normally she's hungry as soon as we get home so I go ahead and feed her instead of making her wait for dinner to get done.

For snacks we've given her cheerios, goldfish, and toddler veggie and cheddar sticks. But all of these things are processed, so I'm wanting to look into some new/healthier snacks I can give her. I saw a few things on Pinterest that you can make, like homemade Goldfish, but it seems like a lot of work! lol

My main concern is that I want to make sure she's eating a variety of foods and that she's getting all of her nutrients. Especially after we found out at her last check up that she's slightly anemic, which we are now giving her a vitamin for.

So tell me, if you have a toddler, what kind of foods do you feed him/her? And here's a recent video of Sophie cracking up at meal time. Enjoy!

I May Have a Slight Problem...

Ok confession time: I may have a slight shopping problem when it comes to buying clothes for Sophie. Its just that little girl clothes are soo cute and she looks so adorable in everything! Plus, she grows so fast I have to keep stocked up on larger sizes because you never know when she'll have a growth spurt and outgrow her current wardrobe, which is a problem we're facing right now.

Recently her 12 month clothes have gotten tight. Some shirts are too short and some of her pants won't button. So being the great momma I am I quickly went shopping and got her several 18 month outfits. Unfortunately, they are a little big. But, I want her to be comfortable and I'm sure its much more comfortable for her to wear something that's a little big than something that's a little tight. And I know it won't be a week or two and the new outfits will fit her perfectly.

Not helping my little shopping habit is the fact that I like to get a deal. And when I find things so cheap it's hard to say no! I shop for clothes during out of season times to get deals on things she'll need for upcoming months. I've been shopping a head of time for spring and summer clothes, and have done really well. I've gotten some great deals in stores and online. (I've found I love the convenience of online shopping, plus they run a lot of specials online.) I've scored some awesome stuff from Gymboree, Crazy 8, Old Navy and Zulily.

So far I've lucked out buying her stuff in advance. Everything has fit her that I've purchased early. However, I draw the line at buying her things a year in advance. I was tempted to buy her a coat for next winter because it was super cheap, but I feel like I really won't know for sure what size she'll be wearing a year from now, especially with her unpredictable growth spurts.

With all this being said I really don't let myself get too carried away. I try to keep to a budget, rarely ever buy anything full price, shop mainly sale racks, and always keep in mind what items does she really need/will actually wear when I'm shopping. Also my shopping for her has basically replaced shopping for myself. Momma rarely gets anything new these days, which is fine with me.

After all of my recent shopping all Sophie is going to need for spring and summer is a few pairs of shorts and some jammies, everything else is taken care of. So tell me, does anyone else have a little shopping habit too? I know I can't be the only one!

This is what I've bought so far, minus a few more items I ordered online that I'm still waiting on to arrive. But hey now she's set for spring and summer!
 

 

They Grow So Fast

Sophie a Few Months Old

I know everyone tells you this, but it really is true, they grow so fast! It seems like just yesterday I was at home on maternity leave holding my little baby in my arms on an endless cycle of feedings, diaper changes, and naps. And now here we are living with a toddler. She is so independent now. She plays happily by herself, eats real food, is no longer on formula, only takes one bottle of milk before bed (which we're cutting out next week), and sleeps a blissful 12 hours a night.

I would probably have to say so far this toddler stage is my favorite, partly because her independence makes her so much easier to handle now, but also because she is so much happier. Sophie was not a happy baby. She was fussy, didn't like to be held or rocked, and didn't sleep through the night until she was almost 8 months old. However, now that she is old enough to be more independent she is so much happier! I think she just didn't want to be a baby. She's always been in a hurry to grow up. She got her first tooth at 3 months and has a mouth full now, she only crawled for a few months before she started walking at 9 1/2 months, and it seems like every day she learns something new, showing us she is no longer a baby.

But as happy as I am that she's in this new, easier stage, I do miss her as a baby. I miss holding her, marveling at her tiny little hands and feet, sitting quietly and giving her a bottle. It all just goes by so quickly. I feel like we'll blink and she'll be two. It's bittersweet. But that's why I try to hold on to each little moment and cherish them. I take lots of pictures, I try to make an effort to be present when I'm home with her (both physically and mentally), and I find myself taking mental pictures of her in my head to hold on to. Just the other night I was putting her to bed and she was barely awake. I carried her to her crib, and as I reached her crib I held her for a few extra seconds before laying her down, just enjoying the feeling of her in my arms. She's so big now. I strain a little to pick her up and when I'm holding her her little legs hang past my hips. And I'm brought back to the time when I used to be able to pick her up with no effort and she fit perfectly in my arms. Everyday it is something new and I want to be sure to hold on to all of these memories. It's an amazing thing being a mother, just amazing.

Sophie Today

New Year Means New Resolutions

I've never been that big on New Year's resolutions, but this year I thought I'd give it a go! So here they are, in no particular order:

1. Lose 5 lbs (Typical New Year's Resolution, but I'd still like to accomplish it nonetheless.)
2. Eat better/exercise more (Goes hand-in-hand with #1, but I really do feel better when I do these things.)
3. Read more and watch less TV (This one I'm already actively working on with the creation of my Book Club, which I'm very excited about!)
4. Create new friendships (One can never have too many good friends.)
5. Do something out of my comfort zone (This blog is out of my comfort zone- so one resolution down!)
6. Create a realistic budget and stick to it
7. Save more
8. Be the best Mom I can be (This will be a resolution every year.)
9. Cook more
10. Be a genuinely nicer person

So there it is, my list of resolutions for 2013. What are some of your resolutions for this coming year? Please share!