Today Miss Ava is thirteen months old, and boy have things changed dramatically for us Howland's in the last month. Bug has been talking a lot more since her first birthday. She can say nom nom, yum, and we are working on "Coop" for Ava's fur brother. She understands what we are saying more. If we ask her to bring something to us, or if we ask her to put something down, she does it. Whenever we say good job, she claps for herself and starts laughing so loud! It's the cutest thing ever. She is full blown mobile. She runs, and she knows no limits. Everything has been baby-proofed top to bottom. Just recently Ava had her first fall from our bed, so we won't be actively co-sleeping like we used to. I'm trying to incorporate the crib again, and I'm actually making a conscious effort to get Ava bug comfortable with sleeping on her own.

What else has Ava learned this month? She started stacking, she can drink from a straw, and she wears big girl shoes! She loves Ed Sheeran (totally my fault) and she dances around our house all the time. A lot of my readers know that we did away with the baby foods, and Ava eats table food. So many changes to occur just over thirty days. I'm loving all of the advancements and growth that I see in my daughter. Prior to actually getting to this toddlerhood stage, I really missed my squishy little newborn. I thought the "newborn phase" was going to be my favorite part of motherhood, turns out it's not (you'll see a post on that later). It's so fun being able to take Ava into downtown Seattle, and watch her eyes gaze over skyscrapers. I love taking her to the waterfront, the zoo, basically anything outdoors and watching her mind work. That has been the best part of this entire experience. Watching Ava bug grow.

Like always here is a list of things that we have started using with our sweet bug!

This is the straw starter sippy cup from Playtex. We originally bought this because we weren't sure what type of cup Ava would take to best. Turns out she hates the traditional sippy cups, and she loves using her straw! Straw cups help advance her oral mortal development more than the traditional cups. She still nurses three or four times a day, but we introduced organic cow's milk, and she drinks it from this big girl cup. We are making a slow transition from breast to sippy cup (there will be a trying to conceive post that explains more about this), and I'm glad Ava is setting a pace.

Shoes are another big change we've made for Ava! Since she's walking like crazy, it makes sense that we'd do away with the crib shoes, right? I found a line of shoes for infants/toddlers, that I absolutely love! Lately I've been trying to stay away from more mainstream brands with Ava. This is, See Kai Run. We have purchased three pairs of shoes from this company, and we are just in love. Ava has another pair of sneakers and some of their sandals.

Food is definitely one of the biggest changes. We have Ava on a whole eating, organic, gluten free type of diet. She loves string cheese, she loves fruit, and she loves ezekiel bread with almond butter! We don't give her juice, sweets, or any type of processed food. Whenever we snack, this child picks out some of the healthiest options! I'm glad she's enjoying the whole eating life!

The last thing we started doing is exploring more of the outdoors. I've taken a real leap and stopped treating my kid like she needs to be in a bubble. We explore everything. There are TONS of activities to do here that are geared for kids. I've also upped the amount of play dates Ava has in a week. I figure it's never too early to start socializing! She's gone on picnics, lunch dates, and soon she will be experiencing her first fair! The exploration is truly one of my favorite parts of her toddlerhood.

She's not a little infant anymore, and I'm okay with that. We are working on teaching her words, numbers, and letters as well. We still aren't huge fans of letting Ava sit in front of the television, but the occasional glimpse of Sofia doesn't bother me. Justin and I still baby wear Ava pretty frequently. It doesn't hinder her growth or her walking. I love it! I've pretty much stopped using my moby, and now I stick to our ring slings. Be on the look out for baby wearing photos soon! We have a photo session in the works with the beautiful Jessica Oda!


I know this next month is going to present a whole new set of milestones for my toddler, and I can hardly wait to share them with you! Aside from having a thirteen month old, tomorrow marks one full year of baby wearing for us! There will most definitely be a post on that as well (there will be a to of blogging in my near future). The benefits we've seen due to our parenting styles have been truly phenomenal. Attachment parenting is really the right fit for us, and I'm glad we've stuck to it since day one!

Happy Tuesday all!

♥- Leilani

4 months!

Yes, Baby Ava is 4 months old. Yesterday was a busy day so I didn't have time to put this up! So much has changed since last month, Ava is rolling over from back to tummy, tummy to back, & she is scooting! That has been our biggest development milestone. She babbles and coo's so much more (I hope she is an early talker) and she has hit her four month sleep regression (more about that later) I don't use pacifiers enough to say so. Ava refuses to keep them in, she prefers her hands. I no longer use a breast pump or bottles. I retired them, and I feel great about that decision. Ava outgrew her love for swaddlers. I still baby wear, and I plan to baby wear a lot more when the weather cools down. Baby A has the strongest little grip, If she can hold onto it, she does. A new thing she started is spitting. Well like talking and gurgling which results in spit on mommy's face or daddy's. Things we have used with Princess A over this past month have been:

her Da Vinci glider. I absolutely LOVE it! When baby girl works herself into a frenzy, I rock her and nurse her. We hadn't used this as much before, but now I couldn't imagine not having it! Daddy can use it to soothe her too. It's a great alternative to using a baby swing. She gets the same motion. 

Rattles! Ava can hold on to them, shake them, and she is fascinated by all the colors on her toys. She never had an interest in them before these past few weeks. We keep rattles in the diaper bag, in the car, and of course at home. They help keep her entertained. 

Teething keys with gel are a must. Ava has shown signs of teething for over a month now. I prefer the gel over the actual water teethers. They are perfect because Baby A puts everything in her month at this point. We are avoiding orajel and teething tablets. So I'm praying that teethers, wet wash clothes, and Tylenol are our saving grace.

The latest change has been co-sleeping. Ava hit her four month sleep regression. Basically she sleeps more like an adult now. It takes her longer to get into a deep sleep, and she wakes up from her deep sleep a lot easier. Because she finds comfort sleeping with Justin and I, she sleeps in our bed. We have never co-slept like this before. Ava literally sleeps in bed with us at all times. I do use her bassinet at the beginning of the night, but not all the time. Before I had her, I had planned on having her in my room for six solid months and then switching Ava to a traditional crib. With how much I love being able to interact with my baby, I think this decision is going to be much harder than I anticipated. 

Other than that, everything has been the same. We still cloth diaper and we still use cloth wipes. Ava still uses her bumbo and play mats. We have made a final decision on food, NO RICE CEREAL! We are holding out until Ava is six months old to start foods with her. I'm thinking sweet potatoes as her first food!  Well that's all for now, I have got a sleepy baby to rock to sleep!