Breech of Contract

Here's something not to do. Google pictures of frank breech babies at birth. It's like a bad yoga joke.

 

Her expression says it all. Also, baby chiropractic care is in her future. 

Mountain Munchkin Two, aka Baby Girl C has been frank breech for the last two and a half weeks. I'm 35 weeks along, so there is still time for her to get herself into the head-down position to be born, but the days are ticking by and the bigger she gets, the less room to do a somersault.  Turn, baby, turn.

The interwebs have turned up all kinds of interesting ideas to turn a breech baby. A selection:

 1. Talk to her: "Babies are smart! They know what they need to do, but sometimes they need a little encouragement. Have a conversation with her about why this is important."

2. Self-hypnosis: "Baby or I may be holding on to something deep in our sub-conscious that's holding us back. Time to relax and let go."

 3. Go upside down: Spinning Babies.com, y'all. Because who wouldn't want to lie on an inclined ironing board and give themselves a headache to back that baby up? Alternately:

 4. Excite some molecules with burning mugwort: aka moxibustion. It's an acupuncture/Chinese medicine practice.  I have no idea how this works, but it seems pretty harmless, so why not?

5. Frozen peas: If someone plopped a bag of frozen vegetables on your head, you'd run away, right? The idea here is that cold on baby's head and a heating pad at her feet can encourage her to move towards the heat.

6. Music: Same idea. Babies like music, so play music where you want her head to be.

If Ford has not already taught us that children will do what they want to do, irrespective of their parents' wishes (i.e. my wish to avoid another c-section), then this little hurdle is certainly a good reminder.  Let it go, let it flow. Ommmm.......

The Lord Said to Noah.....

There's going to be a flood! That was the theme of our trip to North Carolina last week. It started raining on Sunday night and didn't stop until Friday morning. Rain pitter-pattering on a tin roof is white noise for sleep. Biblical torrents just keep you awake at night. One morning it was raining so hard, the ground was so wet, and the woods and mist were so thick, it felt like we were walking around under water. It was a strange week in that way, but we still had a wonderful time visiting with family and taking a lot of photos of Ford playing with his cousin, Jack.

Before all the rain started, we stopped off at Green River Preserve to see some old friends and introduce Ford to their son, Phen. The boys played in the sprinkler and enjoyed a sweet toddler bromance:

We spent most of the week inside the screened-in picnic house, Folly Too, with a fire blazing:

And during occasional breaks in the weather, we got out to see some high water:

One family photo and Ford is picking his nose, naturally

This photo make me laugh because I think it totally captures my mom and her sister's dynamic, hah!

Jack's mom took this photo and I think it is the cutest of all. Too bad Ford's pants snaps were undone and it looks like he's in a dress under the rain coat. 

We are home again and mostly dried out and waiting patiently to close on our new house. All the important pieces are in place, so now it's hurry up and wait until August 1st.....

Bon Weekend: A Boy and His Marmot

Take a deep breathe before you totally squeal and then pound the desk and grit your teeth with how incredibly cute this all is. You can read the full story here.  Bon Weekend!

Halloween!

Ford did not trick or treat this year, but he sure did look cute as Kermit de Frog!

Some Pumpkins and Updates

Leather boots seemed like the best option for a mountain munchkin and those little dragon/dinosaur spikes were so punky and cute, so I went with them!

Also, I've had a crush on these Goldsign for J. Crew jeans all summer:

 

At nearly $300, it just wasn't going to happen. But I found these locally yesterday, and they were twice marked down and in my size (if I keep going to Pilates ever week!). Citizens of Humanity Mandy Slim Roll-Ups

I have an older pair of 7's For All Mankind jeans with a blown out knee. Maybe these folks can help?

Finally, instead of a chevron stripe pumpkin, maybe pink, white and gold? Via Chatelaine.

It's finally beautiful and fall-like here. Clear skies, no smoke and changing leaves.  Time to put the garden to bed and hope for one last weekend jaunt to Whitefish and Glacier this weekend.  Bon Weekend!

Toddler Shoes and Winter Gear

With a walker on our hands, I'm glad that I bought a pair of shoes for Ford earlier this summer. I picked out these cute leather sandals (in navy blue) from Robeez, and he's put them to good use already.

 

With October one day away and Montana temperatures about to drop off the proverbial cliff (30F for a low and 55F for a high on Wednesday!), it's time to think about a pair or two to get him through the winter.  A friend mentioned Livie and Luca for well-made, stylish shoes, so here's what I'm choosing between:

Which ones? I can only do one pair for now because mountain munchkins also need snow boots and we are going to have to drop come coin on toddler Sorrels:

 

I've also spent more than my share of time thinking through how to bundle the munchkin for a winter of playing in the snow, not just being carried around in a Bjorn:

(I will always love that Elmer Fudd hat)

We're going full-on Patagucci. I made the decision when I thought we could use the MM's pro-deal for family purchases. Then the Patagoobers reneged on that part of their pro-deal agreement. But I was already in too deep.  Here's the layering plan:

Capilene baselayers. Already have these from a sample sale last winter. 

Fleece vest.  I only just put away his green one from last year. These things are so great.

Fleece Jacket

 And finally, Puffball Jacket. Not sure if he'll actually be able to move his arms, but he'll be warm!

Ford is One Half!

Y'all how did the Mountain Munchkin get to be 6 months old (24 weeks, at least) already? Some may mourn the teeny tiny baby stage, but I have to say, I am loving this giggly, playful interactive baby time.  

In the past few weeks, Ford has cut two teeth, tried some solid food and given the Merry Muscles bouncer a go.  I predict he'll be crawling in another month--he certainly has the will to already!

The way he grabs that spoon and tries to feed himself is too funny.  Clearly he was ready! We've tried rice cereal and banana.  On to green pea puree since I got a tip from another mama that getting them going on green vegetables before sweet potatoes and other fruits is key to them eating their greens in the pickier toddler stage.  Apparently the Mountain Man did not like green vegetables as a child, so we shall see.  Fingers crossed.