I haven't done much updating on Gracie's solid food intake, so here goes! Around 5 months (she's now 7 months) we began cereal and she took to it like a goldfish to water--she loved it! We have a video posted on the blog of those
first bites. From that I assumed we would have it easy with food, but boy was I wrong! I decided to make my own baby food because of the many health benefits, its cheapness, and relative ease. Around the 6 month mark I made a batch of applesauce--delicious! I must say it was the best tasting apple sauce I had ever eaten. But what did Gracie think? Horrible faces, and jaws clamped shut! I have tried applesauce several times in several different ways--mixed with milk, mixed with water, mixed with cereal--all to clamped jaws, and horrible faces when it actually makes it in her mouth. I tried once more today with her oatmeal, and as I made airplane zooms all around her mouth, she smiled with lips tightly sealed! It was so funny, even though another serving of applesauce went to waste.
Finally I decided to try vegetables. I made acorn and butternut squash. One of each made around 25 serving! All for about $3. Anyway, once Gracie got a taste of the squash, she was a happy camper. She doesn't go for it quite like the cereal, but we are making progress!
Because Gracie cannot live by squash alone, we have moved on to other vegetables (I tried bananas earlier, which was met with the same disdain as the applesauce, and decided to just stick with the veggies for now). Sweet potatoes came next. As you will see in these videos, it takes a lot of patience, but she is getting the hang of it. We're going to try carrots next, and then move on to the green veggies. Wish us luck!
Water has been really fun. I decided to help Gracie get mastery of the cup before we used a sippie cup. She really loves her water! The other day I had her on my hip and was drinking water myself, and she looked interested. So I put a little water in her cup and put it to her lips. For the first time, she took a sip then grabbed the cup herself to get some more! She's learning!
4th place! This year, a newbie has stolen the spotlight.
What a great place to work! An "activity coordinator" schedules fun, short activities for Saturdays during busy season. Now everyone has lots to talk about for the next year, and it's not quite as bad going into work on a Saturday. This year's race was finished off with a partner chili cook off. Yum!
Gracie loves to play in her crib while I clean her room or the hall bath. Oh, and we lowered the crib this week as she began pulling up some on the bumper pad when left to play!
Best of friends for sure!
Water play! 
And yes, when I turned my back for a second, she dumped the pan all over herself and the carpet! Next time, water play will happen on top of a blanket. 
Sabrina thought this quilt was set out for her. 
Cousin dog Jo Jo. 
Gracie loved Jo Jo's tag. She wanted to examine it, and then eat it of course!
She looks so big in her jumper now! I remember when her feet wouldn't touch the floor!
A rare moment for our active little girl--asleep in Mimi's lap. 
Last weekend we had Graeme and Wendy over for dinner and a couple of games of Cranium. Graeme ruled the "creative cat" portion of the game, but Wendy was all over "word worm." 
Can you guess what he made? Check the comment section to see if you're right! Graeme was super confident in his clay-modeling technique. As soon as he looked at the card he's grin and say "Ah, that's so easy!" And I think his teammate (first Clay, then Wendy) always guessed correctly!
Can you guess my creation?
Yesterday I had the privilege of watching Jacob while his mommy and daddy went to find out whether they were having a Lil' Cowboy or a Texas Rose. Go to Rebecca's blog to find out! Here is Jacob enjoying his snack and checking out that big dog outside. 
Exchanging toys. Gracie played with Jacob's phone for at least 20 minutes straight!
It was hard to get good pictures because Jacob is a man on a mission! He is a great crawler and loves checking out his world!
A cute pajama pic. 
Stay posted...sweet potato and water videos coming soon!