Lvl Up: 7 Months

Dear Baby,

Wow. Seven months already. I'm pretty sure just yesterday you were barely four months. That's what sleep deprivation does to you though! Just kidding; but I am actually rather sleep deprived, so this post won't have the same personality I try to inject in my ramblings to you. I apologize, but I promise to spice up the next one! So, here we go:

Achievement Unlocked:

• Roll Over - The physiotherapist came by recently to check on your motor skills. You're only behind in your ability to roll from your back to your tummy and sit unaided. You're making incredibly progress in rolling from your back to your tummy though. You've done it a few times by yourself by accident, but then I see you lying there trying to figure out what just happened and how and why. Good learning!
• Pass - This may seem insignificant, but it's actually a huge milestone in a baby's development: You've figured out how to seamlessly pass a toy from one hand to the other! Sometimes you'll sit there passing the same toy back and forth and back and forth for quite a long time. I love watching your baby-brain analyze and comprehend the new things your body is able to do!
• Daddy - Finally. Your first "real" word. When you first said "Daddy" I was amazed, but I didn't know if you realized what it even meant. You've said "real" words by accident before. However, when you saw Daddy the next morning, sure enough, you recognized him and said loudly, and oh-so-clearly, "Daddy!" Now you love looking at him and going "Dadda, Dadda, Daddy". Also, when you haven't seen him for a while, you look at me and raise your little eyebrows up and say "Dadda". Then I explain that Daddy's at work, and I tell you when you'll see him again. I guess you understand because you'll sigh and go back to whatever you were doing beforehand.
• Nutrition - Congratulations, you're now eating actual (home-made) baby food on a daily basis. We're sticking with half a serving, of one fruit or vegetable, once a day for now. We don't want to push your little preemie tummy! You seem to be tolerating this schedule well, so we're going to keep it up for a bit. So far, you really like bananas; but you just can't deal with the texture of potatoes. I gave you a spoonful of it at the Nans' place, and you spewed everywhere. So we'll be avoiding potatoes for now. I've just made a batch of peas and a batch of carrots, so we'll see what you think of those very soon!
• Favourites - You have a favourite animal now. Guess what it is: Doggies! The first time I've ever heard you laugh a big, deep, belly laugh was when you were listening to Daddy's family's dog barking his head off. You laughed so hard and for so long you actually spat up a little. You want so badly to pet him, but you get too excited right now and just grab a hand full of his hair and hold on tight. Doggies don't really like that, so Momma's helping you practice how to pet nicely with your toys. First Momma pets the toy nicely, then she holds your hand and shows you how. I hope you pick it up soon, so you can pet all the doggies your little eyes see!

I'm sorry this post is so short and straight forward. I like to make my posts to you at least somewhat fun to read, but Momma needs to go to bed! Daddy and I love you so much, and I promise to make a much longer, more involved post next time! Keep on growing and developing as much as you can, Princess!

Lvl Up: 6 Months

Dear Baby,

I've been seriously neglecting my correspondence with you! I have a list of posts I want to make; however I've been very busy...with you! You're so much more interactive now, and you sleep a lot less. This means you're getting more mature; and since you're now 6 months, this makes complete sense!

Achievement Unlocked:

Food - You've been doing great with your rice cereal, and you've made the transition to Stage 2 formula with no issues. Guess what time it is now! Time to start baby food! In a few weeks, I'm going to the Farmer's Market to pick up a yam (aka sweet potatoe) for your first meal! Momma and Daddy have worked out the routine: Momma will cut and steam your foods, then Daddy will puree it in the Baby Bullet the Nans bought for him at your shower. We're all very excited to start this next step in your eating evolution. You're probably the most excited: You love to watch Daddy and me eat!

Vocalization - Daddy got scolded for all the groaning he does, because you've now picked it up too! I understand that you want to practice all your sounds; so I don't stop you when you groan, but after hearing it 348927398473 times Momma gets slightly annoyed. But I'm more than happy to let you groan all day long, because I know that every new sound needs to be practiced to help you develop your language skills.

I Love You - Speaking of, well, speaking: Your Uncle Josh has been trying to teach you "I love you", and you've even started saying it back (in baby-talk of course). When you want to tell someone you love them, you say "Ah-oo" or "Ah-loo". The way we know that's what you're saying, is because you say it with the exact same inflection as Uncle Josh does. One day, you and I were chatting while you dozed off for a nap, and you looked at me and said "Ah-loo, ma ah." Since you were obviously trying to say "I love you, Momma" I excitedly said "I love you too, Baby!"

Mimicing - Also, under the vocalization category, you're starting to do well at mimicing sounds other people are making. Sometimes you like to sing (and by sing I mean yell), so Momma is trying to teach you "La la la" and after I repeat it a couple times, you usually start saying it too. You also like to make funny "brrrrrrt" sounds with your lips that Momma taught you. You're a good little parrot!

Toys/Hands - You have pretty much mastered your hands! You now hold toys, turn wheels on activity sets and have even tossed a couple toys at your feet. You still love to play with Momma's hands as you fall asleep, and you're very good at being gentle but confident when you're handling things. I guess you don't like tags on your toys, because you try very hard to pull them off. Your eye/hand coordination is excellent!

Mobilization - Even though you hate tummy time, Daddy and I still have you do it for a few minutes every once in a while. We don't like making you do things you hate, but tummy time is very important for developing your muscles. Daddy does tummy time the best, though, so Momma lets him do it as often as possible (you don't fuss nearly as much for Daddy's tummy time). Yesterday you even started doing very deliberate crawling motions. You didn't get very far, because your arms still aren't incredibly strong, but you seem to understand the concept now. Now that you have a goal, perhaps tummy time will be more enjoyable to you!

Choices - You're now able to make choices! That's a major mental development! A little while ago, we went shopping to get you a sippy cup (among other things). Momma couldn't decide between three, so you got to pick! I held up all three, but there were only two that you were focusing on. I put down the one you weren't interested in, and held up the remaining two. After a bit of deliberation, where you focused on one then the other, you reached for the green and purple one. That's the one we bought, and you love it. Sometimes Momma and Daddy will hold up two toys, or two pairs of socks and let you choose which one you want. Whichever one you reach for first, or focus on the longest, is your choice. You're actually very quick in your decisions; just like we suspected, you know what you want!

Sleep - You're so close, so close, to sleeping a full 12 hours at night. You sleep from 8pm to 8 or 9 am with only one or two interruptions. Lately it's just been one, at about 5am, for a big feeding. If you wake up twice, the second time is around 1am for a quick feeding. When you wake up in morning, you only stay up for an hour or two. Right around 10am (just as Daddy is leaving for work), you get super cranky and go down for your nap (this is anywhere from 2-5 hours). Then you're up for the rest of the day (with only 1 or 2 quick, 20 minute cat naps thrown in). At 8pm you're ready and willing to go to sleep for the night. Now I just have to make sure I go to bed at 12am at the latest (not the earliest, which is what I have been doing!), and we'll both be well rested for the days!

Those are all the developments I can think of for now. You had your 6 month boosters, and took them like a champ! You are now 15lbs 1.5oz! This means you're caught up to your fullterm counterparts. You're not at the 50th Percentile on the growth charts, but you're very close: This means that you're at a healthy weight for a 6 month baby that was born fullterm. Good growing, Princess!!!