I can't believe we have a six month old! Time is really flying by. *cue the tears* I feel like just yesterday we were released from the hospital and now we're closer to toddler years than the newborn phase.
We're really trying to soak in each moment and milestone. I'm excited for her to start crawling, but I'm enjoying this wobble phase. I can't wait to see her chase the dogs, but I love watching her roll around with Poppy. (Side note: Poppy is SO good with Merloe. Poppy will bring her ball over to Merloe waiting for her to throw it. They will be the best of friends pretty soon!)
At Merloe's 6 Month checkup she was 27.5" long (94%), 17 lb. 5 oz. (69%), and 17.2" head circumference (84%). At our previous checkup she was measuring tall too, which is so funny since Seth and I are on the shorter side. Our Pediatrician explained how they estimate the height of each baby and said she'll probably slow down soon. But then when we came back she was still measuring tall. Who would've thought! Remember when you're pregnant and you take the Old Wives Tales test to guess the gender? I feel like it's the same with genetics. "So and so said that if you take the average height of the mom's father, that'll be the height..." Only time will tell! She's currently wearing Size 3 diapers and 6-12m clothing.
She is a roly poly and quick! When she first started rolling, she would only roll from back to front. I think she was afraid to fall on her head. But now she's a professional, rolling from one side of the room to the other. We really have to keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn't roll onto the tile. And as soon as we lay her down to change her clothes, she'll immediately flip over. She doesn't mind hanging out on her tummy either!
Lately she's been extra fussy and if you've met Merloe, you would know her personality is really chill. Very calm and happy. So when she starts fussing I know it's unusual. We think it's teething, her bottom two teeth feel like they're getting close to coming in. Our Pediatrician said it will probably start happening soon and not to worry too much about the pain, she'll be able to handle it. Sometimes we'll give her this teething oil or teether pop to help relieve the pain for a little bit. When we squeeze the oil into her mouth, she sucks it up like a little guppy fish!
She loves to play with toys that light up, play music, and randomly loves chewing on tags. She's really good at entertaining herself while she plays, too. She also loves to "read" her board books. Her favorite toys include her Jellyfish Musical Toy, Banana Teether, Stacking Cups, and of course Sophie the Giraffe. She also loves her pacifiers! We'll give them to her for naps and bedtime. And then occasionally throughout the day if needed, especially lately with the teething. She's really good about putting it back in her mouth all by herself, so we'll leave a few extras in her crib so she can find one in the middle of the night!
When she gets excited, she starts kicking her legs. Her laugh still sounds like "heh" unless you really get her going she'll belly laugh. Her tickle spots include her chest near her shoulders, on her thighs and her belly. When we blow air on her face or her head she gasps, like she's shocked and doesn't know where it's coming from. She giggles at any animal noises. And she recently started tilting her head back and squinting her eyes like she's shy or embarrassed -- so funny! She'll look over if you call her name, you might have to say it a couple of times but she knows. She also loves to look at anything yellow, we think that'll be her favorite color!
We've started introducing foods. I want to try BLW (baby led weaning) but I'm nervous so we're starting with some purees until I feel more comfortable. We've tried Little Spoon purees, which she didn't love. I think because it was her first food and the texture, not necessarily the puree itself. We started BLW with banana, which she loved holding and playing with but not putting in her mouth. Then we tried avocado by slicing it into a long stick length and she kept bringing it back to her mouth! The first food she actually kept wanting to eat. We did some mashed avocado too, she loved it all.
At her past checkup, her Pediatrician said she still had some cradle cap and suggested using a small amount of Head & Shoulders shampoo to clear it up. I had been trying to get those last little bits off, but they were stubborn! We took his advice and also started applying Tubby Todd's AOO -- this helped tremendously! I wish I would've done it sooner. First use the Head & Shoulders shampoo with this scrub brush, then I use this set to brush her hair before applying the Tubby Todd.
She's a great napper, we usually have to wake her up from her naps. But at night, she's waking up at least once. Our Pediatrician gave us the go ahead on letting her cry it out, but we're not ready quite yet! We have her sleeping in the bathroom (LOL) so she can't see us but is still close by. This has really helped with all of the little wakings throughout the night. She'll put herself back to sleep most of the time. She usually wakes up around 1:00 a.m. - 2:00 a.m. for a bottle, then goes right back down until it's morning. I can always tell she's sleeping hard when she tucks her hands behind her head and doesn't budge. Here's a little look at what her schedule has been like lately:
7:00 a.m. - Wake
7:20 a.m. - Bottle
9:10 a.m. - Nap 1 (1.5 hours max.)
10:40 a.m. - Wake
11:00 a.m. - Bottle
Noon - Nap 2 (1.5 hours max.)
1:30 p.m. - Wake
2:00 p.m. - Bottle
4:30 p.m. - Nap 3 (30-45 minutes max.)
5:00 p.m. - Wake
7:30 p.m. - Bedtime Routine (Bath, Lotion, Pajamas, Sleepsack, Bottle, Book, Pacifier)
8:00 p.m. - Bedtime
*Disclaimer: She does not nap exactly to this schedule (other than her first nap and bedtime.) We're flexible with her day depending on how long she naps or based on her sleepy cues.
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