9 Months

Every month gets easier, and a whole lot more fun with this Little Lerma! 

I have learned two things this month: 1.) Bella does well with a schedule and a routine (all those books were right!); 2.) Schedule and routine do not mean doing the the same thing at the same time every single day.  

I love how I feel like this month we truly got into swing with each other, and I am  able to read her cues well (thank goodness, by now, right!?). While she may sleep a little longer one night, or a little shorter the next, her same basic pattern has become similar enough that I now feel like we can flow throughout the day without so much second guessing going on.  And there are a ton more smiles all around!  I don't really look at the clock anymore, but rather look at her.  Kind of like being a nurse; don't look at the monitor, look at your patient!  What a difference that has made!

Ahhh...this is the sweet spot!  

Happy 9 Months Isabella Rae!

Oh, her expressions!

9 Month Highlights:

-We celebrated your first Valentine's Day as a family.  Daddy and I were never big into celebrating it anyways, so it was just a fun day relaxing together. In the evening, Mimi, Pops, Tia, Uncle G, Dani and Brittney (Longbons) Lima came over with her 15 month old daughter Sofia, for a Mexican fiesta.  We had a great time laughing and telling stories! 

After 30 shots these were the best we could get...which clearly doesn't say much!

-Mama was sick for a week and a half, at the same time there were 3 "snow days". Ironically enough, there was little to no snow to speak of.  Just some ice on the roads that quickly melted.  Certainly winters down here in GA are dramatically different than Chicago!  Either way, that meant a whole lotta staying inside, playing on the floor mat, in the pack-n-play, or in the jumperoo while Mama laid on the couch.  

-At 38 weeks you went into the nursery Bible class at church for the first time!  You absolutely loved being in there with other girls that were older!  And you loved dancing and moving to the singing! 

-Daddy had a whole week off for our first ever "Staycation!"  We did a whole lotta relaxing together, and got some things done around the house. For sure, the most different "vacation" your dad and I have ever had!

-You learned how to "give kisses" this month and it seriously is one of the sweetest things ever! You will grab our face, open your mouth wide, and plant a very open mouth on whatever you bring your head to.  Then you giggle, and it is just precious!

-You aren't crawling yet but you really want to be moving. You will push yourself up on your arms, then flail them out with arms and legs in the air like you're doing the Superman exercise move...then flail all around like you are swimming on land. It cracks me up, but just makes you mad b/c you aren't moving anywhere!

Sleeping: Oh happy day...or shall I say night! Finally, FINALLY, you have figured out the whole sleeping through the night thing.  There are nights when you still have your moments, but for the most part, you are placed in your crib around 6pm awake, you put yourself to sleep, and if you do wake up in the middle of the night you put yourself back to sleep! Hallelujah!  You typically sleep from 6pm til 6 or 7 am. There are the *more rare* nights where you wake up for an hour or 2 and just want to be rocked. You are wide awake, but super calm as long as one of us is holding you.  While it is exhausting, I am treasuring these moments as I am realizing more and more how much you don't want to cuddle and lay down during the day.  You are truly so sweet and snuggly in the middle of the night!

*Sidenote: babies DO NOT understand day light savings time! I couldn't figure out why her schedule seemed so "off" the first several days after the time change and then it hit me...she didn't realize we lost an hour! Duh!

Naps are twice a day. The first nap is typically 1.5 to 2 hours after you wake up (which could mean 9, 10 or 11 am), lasting about 1.5 hrs.  The second nap is usually about 2 hours after you woke up from the first, lasting about an hour.  4pm is rough for you because you get very fussy, and really would do better taking a third catnap, but you refuse.  

Breastfeeding: Right as you turned 8 months, you tinkered with the idea of sleeping in a bit more and thus dropping a feed during the day.  It definitely wasn't every day though. So some days you got 4 feeds (usually 7am, 10am, 1:30 pm, 5pm), and some you got 5 (6am, 9am, noon, 3pm, 5pm). Halfway through the month you decided you wanted to keep those 5 feeds, and went back to that routine.  Then after daylight savings and you slept in a bit longer (8am rather than 7am b/c of the time change), you went back to 4 feeds (8am, 11 am, 2 or 3 pm, 5:30 or 6 pm). 

You became VERY easily distracted this month, so getting you to focus and finish eating in a timely manner became a lot harder!  Everything from the fan, to your daddy moving, to dust floating in the air were oh so cool and more important than eating!

Isabella Loves:

-Moo Cow wubanub (though pretty much only at naps and bedtime now)

-Bathtime in pink tub with squirty toys

-Jumperoo

-Musical interactive toys
-Activity musical play table (although you still aren't tall enough to "sit" at it)

-Being rocked and sung to before bedtime
-Putting her feet in her mouth

Food loves this month: BEETS, PEARS, oatmeal, corn, cantaloupe

Isabella Hates:

-Socks, shoes or anything on her feet
-Being on her tummy (although most days you will give me 3-5 minutes)

9 Month Stats:

-Height: 26.5 in (20th percentile)

-Weight: 15 lbs 12 oz (5th percentile)

*You wore size 2 diapers at the beginning of the month, and when we ran out midway through the month, we went to size 3 because we had a bunch of bags friends had given us and while they are a bit big I love them...they catch all that pee from 12 hours overnight!

*You finally got too long for my most favorite jammies from Gap (SO soft, so cuddly, so cute!)...I guess that's ok b/c they were size 0-3 months!

*Wearing mostly 3-6 month or 6 month onesies, and 6 month pants

Isabella's Firsts:

-First foods: Beets, cauliflower, corn, spinach, lima beans, chick peas, oatmeal

-First Valentines Day (February 14, 2015)
-First time in a shopping cart (outside of carseat) and you LOVED it! 
-First time at nursery bible class 3/8/15

This Month in Pictures:

Girlfriend loves flying in the air!

Looking so cute in her crazy hat

This is usually what tummy time looks like!

Oh so many things about this one make me laugh!

Lovin' your bathtime!

Sweet girl...one of my very favorite pictures!

She is certainly her father's daughter!

Girlie will probably walk before she crawls!

Crazy hair, don't care!

8 Months!

Yup, just as I expected...it gets better and better each month with this little one!  She makes us laugh daily, she is so much more expressive, and she just lights up the room whenever she enters it. 

Happy 8 Months Isabella Rae!

8 Month Highlights:

-You have gotten so much better at sitting up this month! You are steady enough to sit on a blanket and play with toys.  Once you get tired you arch your back and fly back, then giggle like it was all a part of your game.

-You still hate being on your tummy, so crawling is no closer than when you were newborn!  You do however, love to stand. Almost all the time! And bounce which is just so cute (and a bit tiring after awhile!). 

-Your love for your jumperoo only grew this month! And you absolutely LOVE it! It is so much fun watching you jump around, and play with all the toys of the side.  Your favorite is grabbing at the hanging bird, and trying to pull it to your mouth. 

-We took a trip to Chicago (your 4th and 5th flights!) and spent a week there, visiting friends while Daddy worked.  Overall you adjusted so quickly and so well to being in an unfamiliar place and certainly quite off your schedule!  You are truly a very adaptable baby!  You did great on both flights, and slept in the Boba wrap pretty much the entire time (after eating on take-off). 

What I called your "baby jail"- AKA hotel crib!

-You finally got interested (a bit!) in eating, and feeding yourself. Up until about 34 weeks you really didn't care if I put finger foods on your high chair tray, and didn't ever grab for the spoon when I was feeding you.  One day you just thought the spoon was super interesting and went for it! Made for a messy feeding, but you actually ate and loved it!

-Favorite foods this month: squash, sweet potatoes (from Tia's garden!), carrots, peas, green beans, and broccoli. You still don't love plain avacado but will eat it when mixed with something else.  Didn't like apples AT ALL!  Still don't love bananas. You were a bit indifferent with cantaloupe. 

Sleeping: Overall, sleep has improved this month, although I still wouldn't say that it is your strong suit!  Most nights you do great and will stay in bed for about 12 hours from 6pm til 6am, waking up multiple times but you are able to console yourself back to sleep.  There are still nights (usually preceded by days with poor naps) where you wake up at 1, 2 or 3 am and won't fall back asleep for about 2-3 hours. Those make for long nights with lots of cuddling and rocking. You usually want to eat around 6 am, it takes about 45 minutes, and then you go back to sleep for an hour or 1.5 hrs! Love that!    

Naps are about an 1.5 hr starting usually at 9:30 or 10 am, and about 45 minutes to an hour at some point in the afternoon (could be 1, 2 or 3 pm).  

Overall, getting about 15 hours of sleep a day (or crib time at least!). 

Breastfeeding: Still eating 5 times a day, spaced generally about 3 hours apart.  We still have to make sure you eat on both sides at least twice, b/c you get so frustrated after let down and don't want to keep working at it to finish eating.  Otherwise breastfeeding is finally feeling like second nature. 

Isabella Loves:

-Bathtime in her pink tub
-Jumperoo!
-Moo Cow pacifier
-Crinkle books, chain links, rattle balls, mirrors, caterpillar toys
-"Flying" in the air
-Being held and cuddling
-Nighttime songs: You are My Sunshine, Don't Shut the Door Tight, Good Night Sweetheart, It's Time to Say Goodnight (Mama's made up song), Daddy's song to Bella, and She's So Beautiful
-Morning Songs: Good Morning Bella Boo, Rise and Shine

Isabella Hates:

-Socks and shoes (or anything on her feet)
-Being on her stomach 

8 Month Stats:

-Height: 26 in (approximately 25th percentile)

-Weight: 14 lb 14 oz (approximately 5th percentile)

-Head Circumference: 16.9 in

-Wearing Size 1 Pampers at the first half of the month, now using size 2 bc we ran out of 1s and had 2s (though size 1 still fit great!). 

-Wearing size 3-6 months clothing for the most part (though still fitting in some 0-3 months outfits or onesies, and some 6-9 month pants depending depending on the brand) 

Isabella's Firsts this Month:

First foods: Cantaloupe, apples (plain, and with a little cinnamon) 

This Month in Pictures:

Happy girl...finally growing into her flowers : )

Mama loves her girl!

Cutest belly rolls ever!

Mmm...broccoli and peas for lunch!

All bundled up for a brisk morning walk

Photo shoots with Dani Leigh...always funny!

Oh boy, we are in trouble in about 15 years!

So happy in the mornings!

Thank you for the onesie Aunti Megan and Uncle Eric...I can finally wear it!!

Buddy Burk, guard dog

Looks like Daddy sung himself to sleep too!

You loved spending time with your Auntie Debora in Chicago!

Chicago winters are no joke...glad to be in the 6 degree weather only for one day!

7 Months!

I have always said that I love the 6 to 9 month age period.  Not only is that SO true with Isabella, it is even FAR better than I thought. She is growing into quite the little lady with such a personality, and she definitely cracks us up on a daily basis. If months 8 and 9 (and beyond) are just as sweet, being a Mama has far surpassed my every dream!  With that...

Happy 7 Months Isabella Rae!

Raspberry blowing, drooly drooly baby!

7 Month Highlights:

-You started the month with a family Christmas party filled with singing along to Christmas carols, sugar cookie decorating, and watching Elf.  Mimi, Pops, Tia, Uncle G, and Dani were all there and we had so much fun!

Oh tired family...can you tell Bella still hasn't gotten the whole sleeping thing down yet!?

-We then had a Christmas lunch at church. Unfortunately daddy was sick so it was just us 2, but we still had fun watching all the kids sing Christmas songs and eating a good meal. Unfortunately Santa must have been sick, because he was a no show. 

-Next up was Mama's 9th Annual Christmas Brunch for the ladies.  Just because we moved to GA doesn't mean the tradition needs to die! Unfortunately we were having such a fun time, we didn't get any pictures.  But there was tons of food, lots of ladies, and just a lot of fun!

-We took a bunch of walks this month which was amazing because we would never have been able to be outside so much in December and January if we still lived in Chicago! Love living in GA!

-You definitely got better at eating solid foods, although some days you just aren't feeling it at all. Weeks 29 and 30 since you were teething so much, you barely ate at all.  This month you tried more avacado, as well as sweet potatoes, carrots, peas, bananas, butternut squash and broccoli, all of which you ended up liking...if I could get you to eat!  Squash is your favorite. I love making food for you, knowing it is all organic and fresh!

YUM...carrots!

-Christmas Eve and Christmas day were fun at our house, spending time with Mimi, Pops, Tia and Uncle G.  Pops read you and Dani "Twas the Night Before Christmas" right before bed to continue a family tradition which was sweet. 

Pops and the girls

Mimi and her girls

-You got your 6 month shots (late, as the whole schedule was started later) and did great. Daddy said you cried harder this time, and you may have, but you stopped crying as soon as you got your moo cow and we picked you up. You are such a good baby!  You also got the first flu shot and this made you MISERABLE the next 2 days...you were achy every time we tried to pick you up or move you, you cried a lot, and had fevers all day. Poor baby...so sad to see you feeling so poopy!

-New Years Eve was really relaxing and chill. We went to Mimi and Pops for dinner and a movie. You decided you wanted in on the festivities and stayed up until 9:30! Hello! But you slept pretty good the rest of the night, so all was good : ) New Years day was full of "clean the garage excitement!" While mama and daddy worked hard, you loved being in the Ergo all day and listening to music!

-You got eczema really bad this month on your cheeks, chin and chest.  Not a highlight, but something Mama wants to remember for timing for later on. 1% hydrocortisone cream twice a day and coconut oil 3-4 times a day really helped it clear up within 4 days or so. Since then, I've been using coconut oil and lavender essential oil which has kept it under control.

-We had a girls day with Mimi, Tia and Dani and you loved it!  While mama got a pedicure you stared at the water, and then took at good 35 minute nap! 

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-You really started sitting better this month, although you would much prefer to stand.  If there is something really interesting in front you of though, you may sit for a few minutes! The day before you turned 7 months you actually sat on your lambie with a few toys for a good ten minutes. Yes, you tend to topple over sometimes, but you actually caught yourself a few times as well! 

Sometimes it takes a little bribing to get her to sit : )

-You have a new found love- your jumperoo!  We have to put a thick blanket underneath your feet because you are still a bit too short to touch the ground, but you absolutely love bouncing up and down!  When we take you out of it, you still try and bounce : )

It is near impossible to get a clear picture of her in this thing b/c she's a jumping maniac!

 Sleeping: Ohhh, sleep has never been her strong suit! But we finally hit a sweet spot when she turned 27 weeks.  She goes down for the night at 6:30 pm, and doesn't wake up til 5:30 or 6am to eat, then goes right back to sleep after eating til 7:30 or 8 am or so!  At 28 weeks most days she would wake up to eat at 7 or 7:30 am, and go back to bed right after eating for about an hour (oh how nice that was!).  Occasionally she would wake up at night, but after a few nights of crying it out towards the beginning of the month, she learned she could easily put her Moo Cow back in, and fall right back asleep. Since she really started teething over the last week, that has also started to interfere with her sleep! If it's not one thing, it's another. But overall her self soothing has improved a ton, and she doesn't wake up near as many times as in the past!

Her morning nap is pretty regular from 10-11:30 and then perhaps there will be a second nap later in the day for about 45 minutes to an hour, but timing on that one is always all over the place. It is amazing how it feels to actually get some consolidated sleep...finally!

Breastfeeding: I thought we hit a bump in the road towards the beginning of the month, but everything has worked out great. At a check up, Bella dropped in weight from the 20th percentile to the 2nd percentile so we had some catching up to do!  The MD wanted her to eat 2 bottles a day of 4-6 oz pumped milk.  No problem I thought b/c I had tons of frozen milk and could additionally pump once before I went to sleep.  However, all my frozen milk smelled and tasted awful, so I thought it had gone bad. Luckily, I didn't have the heart to throw it out and talked with a lactation specialist.  Turns out I have high lipase in my milk so once it's frozen it smells and tastes...well awful. BUT it's not harmful and Bella can drink it.  Only she won't take it straight. So I pump before bedtime and generally get 2 oz which I mix with 2 oz frozen milk.  She gets this bottle right before bed, after being breastfed for the 5th time.   
      So overall, she eats 5 times a day, pretty much every 3 hours from 6 am to 6 pm. It takes about 20 minutes because she eats both sides twice (she gets really frustrated after the initial let down so won't work at it until she has had the let down on both sides).   

Isabella Loves:

-Moo cow paci

-Baths in the pink tub
-Piano play mat
-Caterpillar toy, crinkle book, and tambourine mirror
-Being held and cuddling
-Dancing and singing
-Her jumperoo

Isabella Hates:

-Socks and shoes, or anything on her feet for that matter
-Teething...poor thing has been miserable the last week and a half!
-The last few weeks I would add eating solid food to this list : (
*Yay, we can finally take carseat of this list...she loves going for drives now!*

7 Month Stats:

-Height 25.25 in (21st percentile)
-Weight: 13 lb 8 oz (4th percentile)
-Head circumference 16.25 in (11th percentile)

*Still in size 1 diapers, and using Pampers Swaddlers.  
*Wearing 3-6 month clothes, although still in a few 0-3 mo things (especially long sleeved onesies). Most, if not all, 6 month outfits are way too big still.

Isabella's Firsts this Month:

-First carrots, sweet potatoes, peas, butternut squash, broccoli and bananas
-First Christmas!
-First drink in a sippy cup (water) 12/30/14
-First New Years!
-First time sitting for a prolonged period while playing 1/12/14

This Month in Pictures:

That face!

Looking so pretty in her Christmas Dress #2

Girlfriend is getting so tall, but she still loves her swing!

Note to self- glitter may be girls best friend,but it is not mama's clean up best friend!

"Whoa, that mama is crazy!"

Crazy family bath time!

Zoolander

We love talking!

8 am Saturday morning grocery shopping- oh how a baby changes your life!

Happy girl!

Girlie loves her baths!