Penny tries some peas

Penny has been doing well with the rice cereal mixed with breast milk so we decided to let her try some other baby food. Peas were first up. Watch to see how it turned out.

 

Shots and daycare

Penny got two shots at her 6-month appointment on Tuesday and she has to go back in a month for more (because the flu shot is divided in two). She cried a lot getting the vaccines and it was hard to watch that big needle sink deep into her chubby little thigh.. But, she bounced back fast and didn't need any Tylenol.
She had her second trial day at daycare on Wednesday. We were told that she did better than the first day. She cried a little, napped a little, and ate a lot. I don't know how her daycare provider watches four babies at once! Three of them are around a year old, but that still seems like a lot of juggling. Penny is the youngest one now, but come October there will be a young baby there...

Penelope turns 6 months today!

Penelope turns 6 months old today! Time is flying. I can't believe it's already been half of a year...

Dawn just started back at work part-time, so I've taken a couple of weeks off to be Mr. Mom. We are hoping this helps with the transition to daycare. Mom has to be gone, but at least dad is home for now. Then, we will both be gone and she will go to daycare :(

It's been relatively smooth doing Daddy Daycare. The first day that I went out with Penny, I pulled a parental brain fart and went all the way to Palo Alto to buy something and ordered my lunch before realizing that I had left my wallet at home. Other than that, it's been going well.

She's just about the age where we can start to introduce solids. We've started her on rice cereal mixed with breast milk. We are still trying to think of what fruit or vegetable to give her first.

Here's a video of Penny trying her best to grab the spoon and then letting the bite dribble out.

 

Penny learning how to eat from the spoon.

Fashion show

We tried on some outfits that were given to Penny as gifts. Yellow knitted onesie from relatives in Japan and embroidered dress from auntie-J's trip to Ecuador (with her new look, scrunchy-face smile)

One week and counting...

The countdown to daddy daycare begins now. Penny will be with dada at home for a couple of weeks and then start daycare full-time on 10/1. It is called "full-time", but she will start by going for about 4 hours a day (10am to 2pm) and then I will increase my work hours to full-time in a few months. Gone will be the days of sweet innocence, and here will be the days of learning bad habits and getting illnesses from daycare... I have a distinct memory of picking up my baby sister from daycare to find another kid force-feeding her a shoe :(
But, Penny does enjoy getting out of the house. Home is the only place, so far, where she screams out of boredom. She also enjoys watching other babies and kids (especially the ones older than her). So, in the long run, I think that daycare will work out well for everyone. Luckily, I will not be the one dropping her off and saying goodbye in the morning (thanks dada).
One mom-friend told me that once you see how much they enjoy daycare, it helps you to feel less guilty. My hope is that we don't have to feel guilty at all.

Clingy at Dolores Park

We went to Dolores Park for a friend's birthday gathering yesterday. Penny was quiet, as she usually is in new environments. It was crowded with lots of indie-hipsters out and about. Our friends came up to say hi and I took Penny out of her carrier and gave her to auntie-J to hold. I want her to get used to being held by others. Auntie-J took her over to visit some other friends and she started crying. They were passing her around and the crying got louder and louder. Minkz and I were standing back and observing at first, but eventually he rescued her and brought her back. She wanted to stay close to mommy for the rest of the time we were there. Whenever someone else held her, she cried within a minute or so..

Santa Cruz

We went on a day trip to Santa Cruz today. We drove down Hwy 1, ate lunch at Saturn Cafe, checked out the beach, and drove home. Penny only got short naps, but she seemed to enjoy being out. There were more things that we wanted to do, like go downtown and to the boardwalk, but we compromised because Penny (and mom) got tired and it was hot.

Trying on sunnies

A little blurry, but we sure had fun making Penny try on sunglasses at Sports Basement!

at the park

Penny loves to be outside!

Penny playing while sitting up