Packing away the pump..

DISCLAIMER: I am pretty sure I don't have any male readers, but if you are a male, you probably won't need to read this post.
Well, I have cleaned and packaged my breast pump, and put it away for the next baby.
I feel kinda empty (haha!) now that I am no longer a nursing mommy. Malia was one of those strange babies that weaned herself. Right around 7 1/2 months she started to only want to nurse in the mornings (which was a total pain because I had to pump ALL the times in between). And then at that time she started viciously biting me as well.
And when you have 2 fresh and very sharp teeth, it doesn't feel very nice.
So, I would pump and feed and did that until she was about 8 months (that seemed like an eternity) and then used up the reserve milk I had in the freezer. I just finished up my last bag, so now Malia is strictly a formula baby.
I always thought I would nurse my baby until she was a year old (that is what they (who "they" are I am not sure) say is ideal). But then my pediatrician assured me that there is really no hard evidence to support needing to go past 8 months.
I will say this. FORMULA IS FREAKIN EXPENSIVE! Gosh! I am glad I got to breastfeed for as long as I did or else I'd be broke!
So bring on the bottles and sippy cups, Malia has moved on.
Another sad realization that my baby is getting bigger by the second.

Ramblings while the baby sleeps..

So, it's 12:40 pm and Malia is still sleeping! She went down for her nap a little late (like 10 or so) but really should be up by now, don't cha think? I am starting to wonder if she is ready to start doing the long 1 nap a day.
What do you think veteran Mommies out there? She's 8 1/2 months old now.
She sometimes fights the afternoon nap anyway (yesterday it was only for 30 min.) and loves sleeping longer mid-morning/day. Who knows. She still goes down around 8:30ish and sleeps in til 7:30 (today it was 8). Maybe we'll do a trial run with that.
Also, should I be worried that Malia still hasn't grasped the sippy cup concept? Any pointers there? Maybe I need to take the suction/leak preventer thing out of the spout. But then she'll spill it everywhere and make a mess.
Really, this post is lame and boring but I am just waiting for the baby to wake up so we can go get on with our day!!!!

The Wild Animal Park!

I learned heaps (that's for my brother in Australia who says that all the time now:) of cool stuff at the Wild Animal Park yesterday. Like how female Rhinos have the bigger horns and hang out with their "girlfriends" so they can protect each other's children. I learned that they usually only live to be around 20 years old in the wild but at the San Diego Zoo there is one that is 48!! We learned that Cheetahs are faster than a Corvette and that Gazelles have had to adapt and become faster to run from them now.
We loved the Animal Park! It is so spread out (perhaps too much for little kids, strollers and a pregnant lady) and beautiful! It was a warm day and Malia and I got to go with Owen and Britt (She's the pregnant lady I speak of, not me;)

Brittany and Owen. We had a great time on the tram.

I think Malia is still just a wee too young to care much, but I do think she had a great time. Pardon her outfit- it was cold in SC when we left and hot at the park so I had to strip her down to her onesie and no shoes and socks

The kids had fun together.. I think at least. Owen it really patient with Malia. She likes to take his goldfish and pull on his hair and clothes and he totally takes it. He'll be such a good big brother.

Resting in the shade with a pickle after looking at the tigers.

Giraffes are my personal favorite. I love them and find their long legs and neck so intriguing.

Malia's favorite animal was the Frog at the kiddie jungle gym

This is how you know you've had a good time!

A Brisk Beach Day with the Schillings

When Jimmy and Jill came into town this last weekend we had so much fun! I wish the weather was warmer, but we were still able to have a fun beach day. The kids- Malik, Jurnie and Jett are getting so good at surfing! And so are Jimmy and Sloan!

The boys went out while the girls played on the beach and tried to stay warm:)

Of course this little one had a good time! She kept herself busy with eating sand and exploring things along the beach.

She especially enjoyed pouring sand all over her head and down her clothes. We had to undress her in the sink when we got home and took her straight to the bath.
Kids are so lucky. They get to make a mess and have a great time and then have someone clean them up, put them in snugglies and tuck them in bed.
That's the life.

Malia's first "Supper"

8 months old and ready to start eating grown up food?! No way!

Malia has always been a really good eater. There are no foods that she doesn't like (gets that from the Weber side of the family- no picky eaters!). She likes everything and has been doing so well that we decided to let her start eating "grown up" food. So for dinner one night, I made pineapple chicken, rice and zucchini and let Missy Miss have some too! Lo and behold- she liked it! Of course I still made sure she got her normal amounts of nutritious baby food, but it was fun letting her feed herself while we enjoyed dinner next to her.

On the menu: chicken, pineapple, rice, zucchini, bananas and avocados- yum!

We worked off the calories after dinner by letting Malia slide all around the floors. She is such a great vacuum;) She has mastered the art of the army crawl/ slide, and while she is not getting up on her knees yet, can get around just fine!

I'm curious Paris France...

Who in Paris France keeps checking this blog? You can tell me. I'm mostly just curious as to why. Is it my eloquent writing abilities or the amazing recipes that I post? Or is it all of the crazy exciting stuff that we do? Just curious- fess up;)

8 Months old today!

Our little bubbas turned 8 months old today! It's crazy and quite sad to me how fast the time is going. I LOVE this age! They are cute and cuddly and still not into everything.

She is still giving us all kinds of funny faces- it's a Malia thing I guess:)

She's still best friends with Hobbs and he loves the attention from her and likes to show off.

She is happy yet serious, calm yet loud, mellow but curious and always fun to be around!

Her favorite thing in the world: Balls and Balloons! She has been guarding this ball with her life since I got it for her the other day. Other things worth noting about this month:

• Still two teeth yet I swear the top ones must be coming soon with the amount of drool she has.
• @20 lbs and noticeably taller. She is about the same height as many 1 year olds.
• She graduated from her infant carrier and is in a "big girl car seat."
• Her favorite foods are still- everything you give her! She's not a picky eater but especially loves her avocados, pureed fruits, water from straws, and anything from mom or dad's plate:)
• She is imitating us now. The other day she was shaking her head like me- super cute
• Malia has started her tantrums and is learning how to manipulate. She knows how to pull our strings and get what she wants.. scary combo.
• Her schedule is still the same as last month: up at 7:30ish, nap between 9:30- 11:30 another nap between 3ish to 5ish and bedtime around 8:30.
  
• She has to have her binkie and her swaddlers to go to sleep. She's such a baby
• not crawling yet but capable of getting around via rolling, slidding and scooting backwards
  

Our little bookworm

I kid you not- this is how I will find Malia sometimes in the mornings! We have managed to get on a pretty strict schedule here at the Schilling household (going against all that I used to know of spontaneity). After we eat breakfast, Malia LOVES to read with me and then we play the piano and sometimes go for a jog or walk before her (and sometimes our) first nap.

So we read in the mornings and then Dad steps in and read with the bubbas at night before bed. We love books. I seriously have to hold back from buying them wherever we go! Luckily, Malia really enjoys reading them too and can now turn the pages when we ask her to. We think she's pretty advanced;)

Malia's not reading here but I just thought she was cute so I wanted to share!

Guess who moved into town!

The awesome Schillings! Kirk's brother Sloan and his familiy- Cara, Malik, Jurnie and Jett- moved down the street from us!! We couldn't be more excited about it!

Malia is so lucky to have cousins that live close by now and I know that they will all be best friends- especially Jurnie:)

I love these kiddos!

Relaxing early morning in jammies-one of life's simple joys!

KADE RESTORATION

Hello! Where have I been! I almost forgot to mention what my wonderful husband has been so immersed in for the last couple of months!
His new business- Disaster and Restoration from KADE RESTORATION!
Him and his partner, Scott Johansson, have created a subsidiary of Schilling and Associates called KADE Restoration. They specialize in all matters of disaster clean-up and repair.
If you have a flood- CALL THEM!
If you have earthquake damage- CALL THEM!
If you have a fire- CALL THEM!
If you have a hurricane or tsunami- (as rare as it might be) CALL THEM!
If you have any other leak, destruction to property or problem that you don't know how to handle- CALL THEM!
They can handle anything from the smallest to largest problem and are licensed, bonded, insured, certified and overly qualified.
Sometimes people don't know what to do when they have a problem like this occur. For this reason alone, it's important that you visit their website just so you know what to do in case something like this happens to you.
Please visit them at:
kaderestoration.com
Please feel free to rate them highly on google maps and other sites like that. Oh, and message me or them if you have any questions!
Thanks!

Once there was One Little Ponytail

There once was a little ponytail. It sat high on top of Malia's head.

It looked more like a spike or horn of sorts and got wild attention from passerby's and friends.
That ponytail was quite silly, really. But it was just so excited not to be fuzz on Malia's head anymore.

That little ponytail went unnoticed by Malia which made her mommy happy. She must have gotten used to all the headbands and flowers (aka brain squeezers) that were on her from day one.
Malia's mommy is excited for these bows and clips and fun hair-dos!
I think the one little ponytail would like to have a buddy and become a pig-tail one day:)

Kirk had a BIRTHDAY on February 18th!

And we were able to celebrate this wonderful and hard working man with lots of friends and treats!
Love you Kirkus Maximus! You are the sunshine on a cloudy day, the whip cream on my cocoa and my bestest friend!
Happy 32nd!!

A Girl and her Dog

If you were Mr. Hobbs, this would be the view you experienced most of the day. Thankfully, Hobbs is a very, very patient dog who has tolerated moderate levels of "loving abuse" his whole life. Kids love him. Dogs love him. We love him. And now of course, Malia loves him.

These two just love to hang out together. I always find it funny how these two peas in a pod migrate towards each other when we are lounging and playing at the house.

Hobbs is a good watch dog for Malia and since she has been born makes it a point to bark when someone is at the door or around the house. He is very protective.

He's also a good supervisor of this wiggle worm who is all over the place these days. What a good big brother you are Mr. Hobbs. We love you:)

We've graduated from the baby carrier

Sniffle sniffle! It's sad to me that our chunky 2o lb baby has grown out of her Peg Perego and is now on to a convertible carseat for bigger kids!
We decided on the Britax Marathon after lots of research and lots of asking around. She does great in it.. sometimes. When she doesn't want to go in her carseat she makes it perfectly clear by stiffening her body, clenching her fists and having a tantrum. Yes, we have been introduced to Malia tantrums. I'm awful but I sometimes just laugh because she's so funny when she's having one! Usually a puff or some other distraction is all she needs to get her happy sitting in her seat again.
Oh, and why are these pictures showing up so small that I got from my phone? I don't know, but I am not a "techie" and don't really have the patience to try and figure it out.
Have a good Wednesday everyone!

Say "aww!"

Malia got her first toothbrush for her two teeth. She uses it upside down as a chew toy right now. Oh well, we're working on it;)