A New Saw, a Little Swimming, and Half a Cake

We had another busy, busy weekend in the Tuna house. If you follow me on Instagram, you saw my teaser about some projects that were started this weekend.

Project #1: A new, larger chalkboard. We'd love to paint a small wall completely in chalkboard paint (The one that our current chalkboard hangs on), but since we're renters, that's not gonna happen. Instead, we bought a big ol' piece of wood, some magnetic paint (so the little one can play when she's a bit older) and some chalkboard paint. This project hasn't officially begun yet, but I can't wait to get it done! So many ideas for new chalkboards!!!

Project #2: An Ikea hack that we've been planning for almost a year. Time to get that shit done! We're taking this boring little fella and making it a little fancier.

Three trips to Home Depot and a new miter saw later, and we still aren't finished. But we're close. A little more cutting, hammering, painting, and staining, and the cabinets will be good to go!

Making the jumpbox function as a workbench

We had foolishly fully intended to finish everything this weekend. Then we remembered that we have a six month old. The two of us are pretty handy, and I love these kinds of projects, but throw in Baby Tuna, and it is impossible to get anything accomplished!

The Hubs set up a pretty sweet play area in the garage. Later, the jumparoo made an appearance. 

The best part of the weekend (remember ours are Sundays and Mondays thanks to the Hubs's work schedule) happened when we decided to bag the projects on Monday and just play outside. Our backyard is super shady and breezy in the later part of afternoons, so it's a nice break from the 100 degree SoFlo temps and zillion percent humidity. We bought Z a little splash pool for her half birthday, so it was time to bust that puppy out and start to splashin'! 

After swimming, we celebrated Baby Tuna's first six months with half a strawberry lemonade cake for us, and pureed carrots for her.

Hard to believe she's six months old already. Although there are a few fussy days that sometimes drag on, most days fly by. It's crazy to think that in another six months, she will be a year old. Eeesh!

Weekend Recap

In our house weekends are Sundays and Mondays, thanks to the Hubs' work schedule. It was a total drag when I was teaching because it meant that we had to cram the whole weekend's worth of laziness, chores, errands, and fun into our Sunday. But now that we have Baby Tuna, and I'm working from home (and making my own schedule) we get to enjoy a "real" weekend.

While our weekends pre-pregnancy used to include fun stuff like kayaking trips and bike rides to the inlet, I'm sad to tell you that now most of our weekends are pretty lame.  Grocery shopping, a trip to the produce market, and catching up with the DVR. That's life when you have a new baby and its just too effing hot out to do anything fun. Even the pool is off limits until we get the A-OK from Z's doc that she can go in the water (and wear sunscreen, which will happen once she hits 6months).

Ahh...the good ol' days! 

This weekend wasn't quite as lame as usual. We hit the mall for a little tax-free shopping, and trekked down to Ikea to test out some sofas. We are desperate to make over our living room on the cheap a budget. The chair and coffee table are ratty hand-me-downs that needed to go five years ago, and our sofa is 13 years old, which is like 30 in sofa-years. Time for an upgrade. Inspired by one of my favorite blogs, Young House Love, we decided on this sexy fella.

IKEA Karlstad Corner Sofa

Not sure when we will actually get it, but now we know what we want, which is huge, cuz we are THE most indecisive couple out there!

Helping daddy make a decision.

But, besides all of that, two major milestones happened... Z is now sitting up on her own!!! She still topples from time to time, and we are never more than a few inches away, but this is a biggie!! 

And in feeding news...Z had her first taste of veggies. Sweet Potatoes, to be exact. And she actually seemed to love them. Hoorah! These were store-bought from Plum Organics, and a wee bit bland in my opinion (yup, had to give them a taste), but Z enjoyed chowing down, even if they needed a little Jane's Krazy Salt. I can't wait to start making some of her food myself!

Month Four and Five Must-Haves

Well, with all that was going on right after Baby Tuna hit her four month birthday, I totally spaced on doing a must-haves posting. Oops! So here are our favorite things for the last two months. They pretty much overlapped anyway, so that really worked out. 

1. Abby Cadabby: The babe and I watch bits and pieces of Sesame Street almost every day. This kid has loved it from very early on. And thank goodness, cuz I love it too! I have to say, it's pretty obvious which character is her fave. Abby Cadabby makes her face light up. It's pretty cute. In fact, the Hubs was completely suckered into buying her an Abby doll a few weeks ago when she went completely bananas for it in Nordstrom. When she sees it sitting on the dining table, she giggles. Adorable!

Love for Abby Cadabby

2. Books: Maybe it's because I was once a teacher, maybe it's just because there are so many great read aloud books out there. We do a lot of reading. These are three of our favorites right now. Giraffes Can't Dance and Fancy Nancy are fun to read aloud, and Z loves the super detailed illustrations in both. If I Were an Owl is one of those books with different textures on each page. And since I love owls, I couldn't pass it up.
3. Original Sophie and Sophie Teether: Teething has begun in our house. Still waiting for the actual teeth to show up, but the drool is unbelievable and Z puts everything in her mouth. I make sure we have both of these nearby at all times. They are soft and cute, and the Original has a very gentle squeak (although ours sounds a little asthmatic from being run through the dishwasher once a week.). A bit pricey, but worth every single penny! If you still aren't convinced, check out this video all about Sophie.
4. Jellycat Soother: I have written many times about Z's Woobie and Woofie, and one of them shows up in the majority of pics we take of the babe. This is Woofie. So soft and snugly and just the right size for a little one. Plus, I can throw it in the washer when it starts to get funky. Bonus!
5. Infantino Jingle: This was a random purchase from Target, and I have to say it was one of the best impulse buys I've made in a long time. This guy's ears are nice and chewable, he hooks onto the car seat with a Velcro strap, and he makes the nicest jingle, hence the name. Plus: elephants and chevrons. What's not to love?
6. Graco Sound Machine: We purchased this little sound machine when Z was in the hospital to take away from the sounds of the PICU. It plays white noise and classical music, but the best part is that it's also an iPod speaker. There is also a blue night light that is perfect for middle of the night diaper changes.
7. F.P. Go Wild Jumperoo: A few weeks before Z's surgery, we thought the babe was ready for a little more activity. She's such a squirt, she had to stand on a dictionary (actually, she still does...it gives her the best jump). But she loves this thing! It's really helped her regain strength in her legs, and its been fun to watch her discover all the things it can do.