Natalie Grows Up: Months Eight Through Eleven

Oh, Natalie.  I am so woefully behind on your monthly posts.  I am taking your photo on your birthday each month, but writing up a post just doesn't seem to happen at the end of what is inevitably a busy day.  Hey, one positive is you get to see how much you've grown over the last several months with the monthly photos all in a row!

Let's see, in the last few months:

• You learned to crawl the "right" way!  You spent a few weeks going backwards, but one day when you were seven months old you just began going forwards and the rest is history.  You are speedy and you are determined.
• You began standing on your own for a few seconds at a time at only nine months old.  By ten months old, you did this regularly and had great balance.
• You took your first steps at just ten months old! (Saturday, June 6 to be exact!)  You take a few steps--3 or 4 at a time--several times a day.  My guess is that you will be walking full time before your first birthday.  Need to keep up with Henry somehow!
• You love to "talk" and you even have a first word!  You say "Ro ro" for Rowan and said it for the first time right around your 11 month birthday!  You LOVE Rowan (poor Rowan) and say "ro ro" every time you see her.  You also say "ba" for bottle.  Sometimes you say mama around me, but I'm not positive it's intentional.
• You definitely know and respond to your name.  I think you respond more frequently than Henry did at this age.
• You were toothless until just before your 9 month birthday!  Then, your two bottom teeth came in pretty much overnight (with no real change in your temperament or drooling).  About a week or two later, I noticed your top two teeth coming in.  Those came in much more quickly, and again you didn't seem to notice.  You have a David Letterman smile, so it looks like braces will be in our future!  You still only have those four teeth, but you have been drooling a lot more over the last week than ever before, so I have a feeling you will get some more soon.
• I stopped pumping at work when you were 9 months old.  It was so time-consuming, and I wasn't getting that much milk anyway.  So, we used up the supply of frozen milk and then switched you just to formula during the days that I work.  On the days that I am home, I breastfed you without formula until about three weeks ago.  I still nurse you in the morning, before naps, at bedtime, and in the night if you wake (which you pretty much always do).  I am very happy we have made it so far breastfeeding.  At this point, I have no plans to wean until your first birthday.  That will be a hard process for both of us, I think.
• You love to eat!  You are not picky at all and eat pretty much anything I offer.  You will eat a few baby food pouches, but by and large you just eat pieces of adult food.  You aren't a huge fan of being fed food such as yogurt, because you like to feed yourself.  Your favorites are cheese, turkey pepperoni and turkey sausage, black beans, and bagels with cream cheese.  You are a messy, messy eater, much more than Henry ever was.  You are particularly fond of rubbing your hands in your hair (UGH!) and throwing food on the ground for Rowan when you are full.
• Our sleeping saga: At your nine month checkup, which didn't happen until close to ten months, your pediatrician heard how horrible your sleep habits were and told Mommy that we needed to get you onto a schedule, pronto!  At the time, you were sleeping in our bed at night, but would sometimes wake up and not want to sleep, which was not cool.  You also refused to nap in your crib and only napped in someone's arms or in your carseat.  So, we toughened up and did some crib sleeping bootcamp.  You fought it pretty hard for the first few nights, and Daddy stayed in your room to hold your hand and rub your back.  But after only 3-4 nights, you would go down as long as I nursed you to sleep.  Now, I nurse you and you sleep on average 5 hours before waking to eat.  You wake again around 5:30 and then will sleep until 7:30 or so.  It's not great, but it's much improved.  You also nap in your crib either once or twice a day, depending on our schedule.  It is so, so nice to have a life again and have some time to myself in the afternoons (don't think I don't coordinate Henry's and your naps!) and in the evenings.
• You love, love, love bathtime and love splashing and making a huge mess!
• You generally wear 12-18 month clothes now, with some 18 month smaller-running brands thrown in.  Your feet are super wide and it is hard to get any shoes on you other than soft-soled flexible ones.
• Your eyes seem to be turning more and more to a shade of brown.  They still have some deep blue around the edges, but the middle is brown now.  I think they will end up being hazel or light brown.
• Your hair has a bit of curl to it!  I am holding out hope you will have curly hair.  I love it!

Natalie: Seven Months

Well..Natalie is now eight months old.  I have been busy, busy, busy with work and home obligations, so although I took her photos on her seven month birthday, it has taken me a long time to put this post together.  Poor second child.

In month seven, Natalie:

• Was on the move!  Not only did she get much more stable sitting up, she began to crawl!  But in typical Natalie fashion, she didn't crawl the "regular" way--nope, she crawled backwards!  It was more of a scooting motion where she would propel herself backward using her arms.  She could clear a room in seconds, though, so the backward motion didn't slow her down any.  The biggest issue was that she would get herself stuck under furniture and then need assistance getting out.  That was rather humorous for Mommy, not so much for Natalie.
• Got the hang of sitting and playing with toys and rarely toppled over.  
• In general, her newfound freedom made Natalie a happier baby.  There is a blog I read where the blogger has a baby girl not much older than Natalie.  This baby seems similar in personality to Natalie.  She recently began to walk, and her mom said that she is much happier, and that she is convinced her daughter hated being a baby!  I feel similarly about Natalie.  She sees all of these cool things--standing, walking, talking--she wants to do, and she isn't happy just watching others do them!  She is going to be a go-getter, I can tell.
• In connection with her general disdain for baby-dom, Natalie is not very fond of purees.  She much prefers eating little bites of "adult" food.  I don't think it's the food as much as it is the control and ability to feed herself.  So far, Natalie has sampled and enjoyed biscuits, quiche, scrambled eggs, various fruits, turkey sausage, sweet potatoes, green beans, and black beans.  She will eat anything you put in front of her, which is a refreshing change of pace from her picky older brother!
• Is still pretty much on exclusive breastmilk, with the exception of one bottle of formula on the days I work.  I am still pumping at work, which isn't pleasant but is necessary.  I am not in a huge rush to wean Natalie, because she is fairly attached to nursing, and I am fairly attached to it, too.  I will miss this time together when it's over.  Right now, I will probably pump for another couple of months and wean Natalie around ten or eleven months.
• Remains a horrible sleeper.  Naps still pretty much happen only in her carseat or in the Ergo.  And night sleep?  Let's just say Natalie refused to go back into her crib after spending a few days in our bed during a bad cold.  So, she sleeps between Mark and me.  Ugh--never thought we would be those people!  Plus, she is waking two or three times a night and won't go back to sleep without nursing for a few minutes.  While I'm not up for long each time, the interrupted sleep is for the birds!  We keep saying we will lay down the law and put Natalie in her crib at night, but thus far we have been too afraid of her waking up Henry to do it.  
• Remained toothless, but definitely was teething.  She would gnaw on anything she could get her hands on.
• Wears either 6-12 month or 9 month clothing.  She is still a chunky monkey, but I have no idea how much she weighs.
• Has eyes of an indeterminate color.  They seem to be turning a bit darker, but they aren't brown yet.  They are more of an army green color.  I think they will end up being brown, though.

Last Year At This Time...

One year ago yesterday, we discovered (at a restaurant called Proof, appropriately enough), that our little lady would be a little lady!

And what a wonderful year since with our sweet Natalie. We love you, love bug.

Natalie: Six Months

On January 17, 2015, Natalie turned six months old!  (Gotta get this post up before she turns seven months!)

In month six, Natalie:

• Learned to sit on her own, with no support!  She was very wobbly right around the end of the year, but by a week or so before her six month birthday, she was sitting on her own.  She can sit for long lengths of time now with a bunch of toys to keep her occupied.  She is a little wobbly at times, mostly when she wants to reach something that isn't directly in front of her. Namely Rowan or one of her brother's toys!
• Because she sits on her own, she is a bit less wiggly.  She can entertain herself, so she's not constantly flailing her arms and legs around.  But Natalie still doesn't like to sit still to listen to a book.  I'm hoping that changes soon.
• Ate solids for the first time!  Unfortunately the first thing we tried was bananas because they were what I had already and she seemed really hungry, but they were a little too harsh for her system and caused some bloody stools.  So, we took a couple day break and gave her mashed sweet potatoes a few days after her six month birthday.  I will do a separate post to show off  the photos.  She now has had avocado and pears as well.  Next on the list is carrots.
• Is still on breastmilk, no formula.  I am very proud of making it this far, but I am also ready to slow down the milk factory.  I think we are going to start giving Natalie one bottle of formula on the days I work, and maybe one at night in the hopes that she will sleep better.
• Still is toothless, but she is definitely teething.  She constantly gnaws on her hands or toys.  She also likes to gnaw on carrot sticks.
• At her six month appointment, weighed 17 pounds, 11 ounces (78%) and was 26.5 inches long (85%).  The scale was definitely wrong at Natalie's four month appointment.  She appears to be slimming down some as she moves more.
• Wears a mix of 6-12 month, 6-9 month, and 9 month clothing.
• Is still sleeping horribly.  Naps are the same (happen mostly in her carseat).  Nighttime sleep was better for awhile--sleeping in her crib until about 4:00 am, when she woke to eat.  But then Natalie got a pretty bad cold and things got much worse.  She went back to sleeping in our bed--she won't sleep in her crib at all.  She was waking every three hours like a newborn for about 10 days during the cold.  Luckily she is now back to just the 4:00 am wake-up.  But we need our bed back!  Now that she is six months old, I need to get strict and just do some sleep training.  
• Is back to refusing a pacifier.  Makes nighttime wake-ups super fun.
• Loves her brother and Rowan!  She giggles more for Henry than for anyone else.

Some recent photos:

It's the Holiday Season

One of the fun parts of having two children is getting to dress them in coordinating outfits.  This is something I'll only be able to do for a short time, so I am taking advantage of the opportunity!  And of course, what is better to coordinate than in holiday attire?

Exhibit A: Thanksgiving

Exhibit B; Christmas (We had a TON of Christmas attire!)