Annabelle turned 7 months old this week!  We’re over half way to her first birthday and our first year as parents!

Annabelle surprised us a bit by starting to crawl on the day she turned 7 months old as you might have seen from the video.  When she went in for her 6 month check up the doctor had said that we shouldn’t be surprised if she doesn’t crawl right away because she does such a good job rolling but it looks like he was wrong.  For the first few days this week she looked as though she might crawl, she would get on all fours and move an arm or leg but not much after that.  We didn’t think much of it because Annabelle almost rolled over for weeks and almost sat for weeks.  I kind of had assumed she’d be “almost crawling” for a few more weeks or more.  Then over the weekend I was in the kitchen cleaning some dishes and had brought Annabelle in with some of her toys.  I noticed that if I was on the other side of the kitchen she’d start coming after me and after a closer look, she was CRAWLING!  So I promptly took out my phone and captured it on video!

We celebrated the week by trying some new foods.  I spent the weekend steaming and pureeing fruits, vegetables and even some chicken.  This week Annabelle tried peaches, blueberries and chicken and potatoes.  She loved it all!

For any new mommies making your own food, I’ll put this out there, blueberry puree is weird.  At least for me, I’m not sure if I’ll be making blueberries anytime soon.  First, they stain things.  My fingers were stained purple.  Annabelle’s mouth was purple. Everything the blueberries touched were purple. Second, blueberries need to be mixed with things because they have the consistency of syrup after being pureed. I mixed my blueberries with sweet potatoes and they still ended up having the consistency of gelatin.  I probably needed to use less berries and more sweet potatoes but I did 50/50 as my directions said.  I froze some of it and we’ll use it (Annabelle didn’t mind the consistency or that it turned her mouth blue) but we won’t be making anymore for a while.

Meat! I was a little curious about how Annabelle would like meat but we had an extra piece of chicken breast and because Annabelle is such a great eater I wanted to see how she’d do.  I heard that some kids don’t really like it and it takes a bit of time before they want to eat it but Annabelle had no problem.  She’s our little garbage disposal, eating whatever we give her.

It’s the smallest things that seem so momentous when you have a child. Annabelle is officially standing! I picked her up from daycare and one of her teacher’s mentioned that she woke up from her nap that day and stood up in her crib. It was a bit shocking because she really hasn’t tried to pull herself up or stand at home (and sad that it happened when Dusty and I weren’t around). The next morning when I went into Annabelle’s room to get her ready, there she was, standing up in her crib. And then we promptly moved her crib bed down a few notches. By the end of the week Annabelle was pulling herself up and standing whenever she could. She’s still working on her form. She uses her head a lot. She’s working on holding on tight and sitting a little more gracefully.

Standing in her crib at daycare also means she’s graduated from the crib to what we call the “futon”. It’s a tiny bed with a mattress that lays on the ground.  Our little lady is growing up!  Here’s a picture of her tiny little bed. Isn’t she adorable!

It’s crazy to think that just a few weeks ago I couldn’t wait until Annabelle could sit on her own.  She’s mastered sitting and you would have thought she had been doing it her entire life.  The same with rolling, she’s not even rolling anymore.  No need to.

This week there was another Montessori monthly meeting.  It was about math and how they introduce math concepts to the kids from an infant all the way up to age 5 or 6.  It’s amazing how much “learning” is purposefully integrated into the regular happenings of the infants’ and toddlers’ days.  The presentation asked us to think about how we learned math concepts and I seriously can’t remember.  Even at her young age, she’s learning math just by hearing the teachers and older kids (kids are up to 18 months in her room) count.  They count books, they count how many pieces of food they have left, they count the days of the month, etc.  Hearing about these learning opportunities gets me excited for Annabelle.  Now I find myself counting in front of Annabelle at home.

I loved holidays before Annabelle was here but now with a child in the house I’m truly in love with holidays. St. Patrick’s day was no exception! Annabelle got a new outfit from Grandma Jane that she looked absolutely adorable in. Everyone at daycare was a bit jealous of her green tutu pants.  There’s a parade every year that goes through the Old Market and with it being a tad warmer than it’s been, we decided to take Annabelle to see her first parade. She wasn’t all that excited for the parade, it happened to fall right at the same time as nap time so she took a few peeks and then fell asleep. Things like parades make me excited for when Annabelle gets older.  When she’ll get excited to see the green horse, the candy being thrown, the Irish dancers, men in kilts, and the fire trucks that come at the end.

Annabelle is still our little yogi! She loves downward dog. The notes that are sent home from daycare each day have talked a lot about how much she likes being on her head and how all of her teachers are amazed by all of her acrobatics. Currently it’s her way of getting around and then being able to sit. No more rolling for our little lady, she’s all about sitting and her crazy acrobatics.

Annabelle is becoming a grabber, hair grabber that is.  The other day I picked up Annabelle and watched as she pulled another kid’s hair.  I got to daycare and she was sitting by a younger friend who was laying on his stomach playing with a toy.  Annabelle placed her hand on the little boy’s head, patted it and then grabbed a bit of hair and pulled.  Poor little guy was upset and I don’t blame him.  Her teachers told me she’s done it a few times.  She’s just figuring it all out and testing out her new fangled ability to use those little pinchers of hers.

Oh my goodness, there have been so many changes in our little lady this week.  She could probably start walking and I wouldn’t be surprised.  So, Annabelle can officially sit by herself.  And not only that but by the end of the week she not only was able to sit for a substantial amount of time (and I wasn’t afraid to leave her side) but she was also able to go from sitting to laying down and then back up again.  And now it seems she wants to crawl.  The doctor told Dusty at Annabelle’s 6-month check up to not be alarmed but that she might not start crawling right away because she’s so good at rolling that she’ll just use this form of transportation for longer then she needs to.  It looks like this might not be the case.

My favorite moment this week was picking Annabelle up from daycare and finding her sitting on the floor by herself playing.  My heart melted instantaneously.  It hit me that my little girl is growing up so fast!  And she’s doing things that real human beings do! She was so happy just sitting there by herself, playing with a toy, not paying attention to a darn thing going on around her.

Each day she’s getting stronger and stronger.  It’s amazing to see how much more confident she’s become over just one week.  She does this funny little thing since she’s started sitting.  She’ll be sitting and then at some point gracefully (or not so gracefully) fall to a laying position.  Then she’ll start rolling.  And at some point she’ll put her head on the ground, butt in the air and move her feet so that she’s created a little tent with her body.  She’ll do this for what seems like forever.  I can’t figure out what she’s trying to do.  The teachers at daycare call it her gymnastics.

Annabelle loves her food.  It’s reassuring that she’s a happy little eater.  When she’s home with us during the day, she’s nursing every 2.5 to 3 hours.  When she’s at school she takes 5 oz every 3 hours.  I’m also sending pureed vegetables for lunch and 3-4 times a week we feed her pureed vegetables for dinner.  Up until this week I was just sending 1 oz of pureed food but she loves it so much that she “told” her teachers that she’d like a little more (at least this is what it said on the note that was sent home with her).  It sounds like she was getting a little jealous because her friends that she sits with at lunch were getting more food at lunch and were getting snacks too (what a bad mom not knowing that she was ready for afternoon snacks).  Starting this week I’m sending 2 oz of pureed food (usually 1 oz vegetable and 1 oz fruit) along with some baby puffs for a snack.

Our new food for the week was pureed apples (AKA applesauce).  Of course she loved it and why not, they’re delicious apples.  I was a little hesitant about making applesauce because I thought it would be too difficult but all it includes is steaming peeled and cut up apples and then pureeing them with a bit of milk or water.  So easy!

About a week ago I turned in Annabelle’s daycare re-enrollment forms for next year.  Our daycare doesn’t require Annabelle to go year-round and with me having the summer off (and us going to Paris for an extended stay again this summer) we had to decide how long we’d keep Annabelle out of daycare.  She’s staying at home for two months and then we’re sending her back in July when I start teaching a couple of summer classes.

I mention all of this because I didn’t realize all of the mixed feelings I would have about not sending her for two months.  Most of my apprehension comes from seeing how much she loves going and how much she gains from going.  I really love where she goes.  I worry that she’ll forget all of her teachers and friends.  I worry that while she’s gone she’ll stop amazing us with all off her wonderful new talents, meeting such momentous milestones so fast.  I’m anxious about being at home with her so much and making sure I make the most out of it (I want to be one of those mom’s that plans learning activities everyday but know that it’s not likely to happen).  They do things so purposefully at daycare.  And let’s be truthful, they’re much more educated about what an infant needs than I am.  Sometimes I wonder if I’d be doing some of the things I am doing right now if it weren’t for seeing them being done at daycare.  I know, I know, I’m a good parent, it’s not rocket science, there are great resources online and I can do all of those things that they do at daycare at home but it’s still scary to think about.

I’m leaving you with the picture above and below to show you what a mover and shaker our little lady is.  One moment she’s laying down, eating the shoe she’s pulled off just a moment ago and the next thing I know she’s sitting up, tossing her shoe aside and working on taking her other shoe off.

Almost two weeks ago our little lady turned six months old!  I can’t believe we’ve been parents for half of a year already!  Dusty took Annabelle to her 6-month checkup and came home with all kinds of information for me.  I had written a list of questions for the doctor about food, breast feeding, sleeping, etc. and Dusty was so great about asking all of my (somewhat crazy) questions.  Annabelle is 15 lbs, 6 oz and 27 inches long.  She’s in the 34th percentile for weight and 88th percentile for height.  In the past 2 months she’s gained 7 oz and grown 1.25 inches.  The doctor said she’s just perfect and I must agree with the man!

Our doctor told Dusty this is the best time, 6-months.  And I really have to agree.  She’s so inquisitive, expressive, and just plain fun.  She jabbers to me in the mornings while I’m changing her and smiles such big smiles when she sees her daddy.  She’s making so many developmental changes it’s hard to keep up.

She’s sitting, almost! She sits just a bit longer by herself than she did last week but I can’t, in my heart, officially say she’s sitting yet.  I dropped her off at daycare this week and some of her friends were sitting, playing with a couple of toys.  I sat her down so she was sitting near them and I just couldn’t leave her there, knowing that she would plop right down seconds after I left.  I was a little sad to lay her down on her back but know she’ll start sitting anytime now.  Her teachers say that she is sitting well enough that she sits at the small tables with her friends to eat her yummy lunch though.

This week Annabelle tried bananas.  I had bought some bananas, wanting to give something sweet to Annabelle.  Really, she’s been eating butternut squash and sweet potatoes, which are pretty darn sweet, but this was her first official fruit.  It’s so much fun to watch her eat.  The first spoon full is always the best.  She’s eager to put anything in her mouth but then she has this moment of “What did I just put in my mouth? Am I going to like it?” and then “Yes, please, more, now!”

I really enjoy making baby food for Annabelle.  I didn’t know if I would like doing it and if I would have the time but most of the time I whip some up when we’re cooking on the weekends.  I’ll prep my food, steam it, puree it, and then separate it into small portions to be frozen for the week, right along with the other cooking that we’re doing and it doesn’t end up being a big deal.

Sleep was one of the questions I had for the doctor.  As much reading as I’ve done on sleep, I thought asking the doctor would be a good idea.  He said that a 6-month old should be able to sleep 9-12 hours without being fed.  I think this gave Dusty and I both encouragement that feeding her just once during the night will be okay.  She goes to sleep at 7pm and often times sleeps until 2 or 3am when I feed her.  If she wakes up before then we just rub her on the back and give her a kiss before heading back to our beds.

We have such great parents and siblings! I feel very lucky to have so many of them close to us.  I know each family is different and dynamics can be difficult but to have family calling us, asking, really telling us, “You should go out on a date, I’ll watch Annabelle.”  Or my sister offering to take Annabelle on a Saturday night when she has an otherwise empty house (and all four kids are out).  It means so much.