A Very Helmie Graduation

So today is THE day. Helmet Graduation Day! It feels like it has been so long coming, but really the time has flown by. Ella was in the helmet for about 5 months total (from 6.5 to 11.5 months old). Its crazy to think how much development she has undergone in that time. She's a different baby. She was just starting to sit independently when we got the helmet and just starting solid foods. She's now so very close to walking, feeding herself 3 meals a day and 2 snacks (won't let Mama help her!), and talking up a storm. Odd that this helmet graduation is bittersweet in a way. Another milestone achieved with the passing of time.

Ella's last helmet sleep last night. Here she is crumpled at the top of her crib, sucking her thumb. :)

Here is a bit of a review of our helmie wearer over time :)

6 months

Milestones: Sitting up on her own. Eating Purees (loves all fruits and veggies, except peas!) Uses rolling as a means of transportation. First word: Dada. Sigh.

Helmie Day One. Poor Bobo!

Her helmie after paint coat one. Atrocious! I was terrified it wasn't going to work.

Awww, look how chubbo she is! And how big the helmet is on her!

7 months

Milestones: Commando crawling, transitioning lie to sit, able to pick up small objects off the floor.

 I am not very happy about sitting on this push toy.

8 Months

Milestones: Full hands and knees crawling, pulling up. Giggling all the time. :)

Wheeeee!

9 Months

Milestones: Crawling at the speed of light, cruising, beginning to want to feed herself.

10 Months

Milestones: Jumping from object to object when cruising, walking holding parents hands or using walking toys, perfected pincer grip, rejecting all purees (Poor Steve. This broke his heart!)

 Vacuuming is a skill she didn't learn from me.

11 Months

Milestones: Self Feeding, standing up from the ground, standing unaided, thinking about taking that first step! Talking all the time. Vocabulary of about 10 words, 5 or 6 used correctly (Mama!, Dada, Nana, Papa, BuhBye, Baby, Dog).

Oh Mama, I'm so tired I'll just lay down on your legs and suck my thumb.

Now that we are helmet 'graduates' and the cool weather is coming, we are much happier to exchange our helmet heads for adorable winter hats. Thanks to Robynne at Princess C Creations for the awesome hats!

Ella's first duckface. 

So today we had our helmet graduation party. I wanted to wait until Ella was a year to give her her first real taste of sweets. But I thought that this was more important in a way. We 'earned' this! So happy Helmie Graduation to my sassy little pudding pop, Ella! We love you baby girl.

The lady at the store asked me what a 'helmie' was. It was a bit hard to explain.

 Hmmm, what is happening?

 What IS this thing?

 DELICIOUS! MORE PLEASE!

 This is the best thing I've ever eaten. 

 Yumm.

Out of the way MAMA! MORE CAKE!

So that ends this saga of Ella's Melon. :) Because her melon is pretty darn perfect.

All it took was 5 months of sweat (mostly Ella's) and tears (mostly mine). I think I'll keep blogging though. :) So if you interested in following our story as it continues, as I guess life doesn't end at 1 (ha!), feel free to follow us at:

www.candidmothering.blogspot.ca

Ella's excited for a new world of blogging!

To finish this blog off, we take it right from the mouth of babes. This babe, being Ella. And what does Ella have to say to her helmie, after six months of wear?

:)

Thank you to all my lovely readers who were so supportive during the last six months!

A Fortnight of Helmie

So I can't believe that I am going back to work in ONE MONTH?! When did that happen? When Ella was younger, a year seemed so so long. Every day stretched out to feel the length of two (and when you are awake all day and night, it kind of is twice as long?) and it seemed like I'd be home forever. I had never been off work for 2 weeks, let alone a year! And now that is coming to an end, and I am back to work on November first. Sigh. Mixed emotions, ahoy! How I am going to drop that adorable face off at daycare, I have no idea. But a part of me is also happy to go back to being a physiotherapy, which is something I've always felt blessed to be able to practice. I am sure there will be a lot of adjusting in the next few months. You just get comfortable with one thing, and life throws you another curveball. Although, I must say, I am very lucky to live in Canada. The Canadian government has it right. It DOES take a year (for me, maybe not for you 'natural mothers' out there) to become confident with your mothering skills. Then you are thrown back into the work force, wondering where the heck a year has gone.

Anyway, another helmeted mum has contacted me. Hooray! Erin is another Toronto area mum, who has an adorable 6 month old son, named Aiden.

Aiden's mum, Erin, noticed the flat spot from a very young age (2-4ish weeks!). The story is very similar to ours. Aiden had torticollis as well, and this caused the flat spot on the back of his head. At 5.5 months he was referred to Sick Kids and physiotherapy to fix the torticollis. Because he was so young, he had to go back to be fitted as Sick Kids doesn't helmet before 6 months of age.

Aiden is a very easy going chap, and the fitting didn't seem to bother him at all. How awesome is that?

Look at this happy Sock Head!

Hey Mum! This sock doesn't bother me at all! Its keeping my melon warm!

Plaster mold of my head? Okay! Doesn't bother me at all!

(Note: Compared to the DRAMA that Ella's fitting was)

This? TORTURE. PURE TORTURE. 

This is the worst thing that has EVER happened to a baby. EVER.

By the end of the appointment, it was wayyy past Aiden's nap time and he ended up cry sleeping for 10 minutes of the drive home. :(

But he got over it quickly. 

Don't worry about me mum! Just hanging on my playmat, doin' my thing.

Erin and her husband Rob decided on a football helmet for Aiden. But because each parent cheered for a different team, they decided to paint the helmet to represent both teams in an effort to be fair. Haha, now that's compromise. Good work, team!

And Aiden is adjusting well. Hooray! Hopefully you will see some awesome results at your first follow up appointment. Keep us updated!

 Love the onesie!

One helmet journey is beginning and another is coming to an end. Here we are on the final helmet countdown. 4 more sleeps until we are officially a helmet graduate! I can't wait! I am so excited we are going to have a little family party. :) Friday, here we come!

(Note: It is now TWO more sleeps until we are done! It took me two days to get this post off the ground. Heh.)

Booyah Vacation!

So I had this whole post thought out in my head (a crazy place to be) called HELMIES IN THE SKY! or FLAT HEADS ON A PLANE! and it would feature adorable smiling pictures of Ella looking out the window of the airplane, while her parents were relaxed and calm and enjoying their vacation. The reality of it was she was still spiking a fever, she was crabby, and breaking out in a rash. Lovely not only for her parents, who were stressed out travelling with a sick baby, but lovely for our fellow travellers as well.

Travelling with a baby! Easy! Let me just pack up the whole house, struggle with a car seat, stroller, carrier, extra pacifiers, toys, food, carry on, passports and jauntily board the plane!

Taking the ferry across to Toronto Island Airport.

The plane ride there resulted in mostly crying, crabbing, a 30 minute nap on Steve and I, and a lot of squirming while I tried to hold her in my lap because the damn seat beat sign was on and the stewardess shook her finger at me every time I tried to get up and walk around with her. She also kicked us out of the bulkhead seating row (THAT WASN'T BESIDE THE EXIT) because we were "too close to an exit in the case of a crash". So we squashed ourselves back into the steerage seats, while our neighbours gave us sympathetic looks.

Steve loves flying with a baby!

We arrived and I couldn't wait to take Ella to the beach. If ANYTHING IN THE WORLD was to cheer my little crab bucket up, it was going to be her first trip to the beach, Mama's favourite place the in the whole world. I got her all suited up (and sunscreened, and hatt-ed) and off we went to enjoy her first time playing in the sand.

 Hmm. The beach is nice I guess...

 I don't want to appear to love it TOO much.

 This sand is interesting...

Ooooh windy!

Luckily she started feeling better a few days later, with some help from her favourite cousins, aunt and uncle, Nanny and Poppy and Aunt Deb, we managed to relax and enjoy our first family vacation. The rash cleared, we were back to night-time and nap helmet wearing, and we had a blast.

 Hi Auntie Lis!

 Oooh, I'm not sure about this ride? 

(Note: She didn't actually ride this drop zone ride. I just sat here there for a picture to tease my husband, who tends to be a 'tad' overprotective of Ella going on Kiddie Rides. Needless to say, he didn't love the joke as much as my sister and I did!)

 I love stroller rides!

 Oh hi, Hailey.

Our final morning in Myrtle Beach was absolutely stunning. We were sad to go, but know we'll be back next year, travelling with an almost two year old. And we thought this year was challenging? Ha! Lord knows what next year will bring. :) 

T-minus one week, 2 days, and counting!