7 Months Already?

Well, Greta isn't quite 7 months but an update post is long overdue.

• As of our last doctor's appointment she is 15lbs 10oz and 26 3/4 inches long. The doctor was very pleased with her development and said she is on track and probably a bit advanced. (I bet he tells that to all the parents! :-D )
• We're still sticking with our vaccination routine. This month we get the last dose of PC and HIB and she'll have all vacs for that and DPT and rotavirus. I'm not sure what the next series we start on is but we do get month 8 off. I give her tylenol before we go to the office and thus far she's had no reactions except for a small knot at the injection site. Again, I know this is a controversial subject but it seems to work best for our family.
  
• She is a sitting queen. Every day she gets more steady on her little behind. She still does fall over but not as often and generally only when concentrating REALLY hard on a toy. She hasn't learned to crawl or scoot but can get just about anywhere she wants to by rolling. She does occasionally get stuck and that frustrates her greatly!
• We'll be lowering her crib to the next level as one day I was sitting on the floor singing to her while she was supposed to be calming down for a nap (she was playing) and I see a two little hands come over the side and then she looked over at me. She can't pull herself up yet but better safe than sorry and her surprise us by falling out!
• She's doing better in nursery. She still cries - not when we leave her but after about 20 minutes she realizes we are gone, particularly me. Thankfully, she can make it through the entire service & SS hours with me coming down in between for comfort and a snack. Our church is very BF friendly so they've made it quite nice for the moms. I think most all the moms do BF so sometimes it's hard to get a seat!
• Speaking of realizing we are gone, Greta has definitely reached the stage of separation anxiety. It's not bad everyday but there are some days I cannot leave the room without her screaming. She is particularly attached to me and somewhat to her Daddy. She's OK with being held by strangers as long as she can see us and most family she's OK with being left with while we are gone. Last week she was super clingy but this week has been better.
  
• Sleep - that wonderful topic I have had such angst about. Well let me allay your fears - life on that front is muy bueno! We've been trying a new routine for just under a week and I cannot believe how quickly she has caught on. Last night was our best night yet. She went down around 8:30 and cried for less than 1 minute. She woke up a few times during the night and cried for a very short amount of time and got herself back to sleep. At about a quarter till 5 she woke up again and I could tell by the sound of her cry she was ready to eat. Not too bad compared to a week prior where she was getting up between every 2 and 4 hours to eat! Nap time has been a bit trickier. Up until today I hadn't been able to get her to mimic her night sleeping habits during the day. Even more confusing was that our previous method of getting her to nap (nursing) wasn't working near as well but if I didn't do that, she didn't nap at all. I suspected she was getting mixed signals and was confused AND I think the amount of light in her room kept her up. Her room gets a lot of sun so even with blinds it's very bright and a bit on the warm side. Today I hung a blanket in front of her window. (Temporary measure to see if it works before buying a room darkener). I did our usual evening routine but shortened (and no bath). She went down very agreeably, cried for a short time, and fell asleep. Yea! I am so excited.
  
• My girl is a water baby. We started swimming lessons this week and she has taken to it like a fish. Our instructor was very surprised at how relaxed Greta is in the water. She said most babies that age are much stiffer and a bit on the fearful side. We practice kicking which Greta has no problem with. We also practice reaching by putting a small ball in front of Greta and having her reach for it. She's quite good at this and wants to catch the ball so she can suck on it - yuck! We also put her in a float for a while to get her used to being on her own and not being held. The girl suggested letting her float on her back with me holding her and surprisingly Greta was relaxed and didn't even mind getting her ears wet. She actually doesn't mind her nose and mouth going in. The only thing she really doesn't like is her eyes and although she didn't cry she kind of shut down as far as doing anything but sitting in the float after that. Thankfully class was almost over. We have 2 more lessons but will be going this weekend so Daddy can see how good she is.
• Greta loves to eat - most of the time. Sometimes she can be quite determined not to eat but I think that's usually when she's tired or she's just nursed so she isn't hungry. It's a good thing to not eat when you're not hungry, right? :-) The foods she's tried: Bananas, Avocado, Peaches, Applesauce, Green Beans, Peas, Squash, Sweet Potatoes, & Prunes. We've also done rice and oat cereal. She prefers homemade food to store bought and generally won't eat the runny stuff. She likes it to be thicker and chunkier. I tried making the cereal but I cannot get it fine enough to easily mix up so we'll stick with store bought on that. Veggies & Fruits are super easy to make so one day every few weeks I make up a bunch of cubes of whatever we are low on. The only thing I haven't made is applesauce since I can get unsweetened at the store. Greta is also very interested in feeding herself. She's gotten quite good at it and has fed herself puffs and banana bits. I'm looking for any ideas on other foods finger foods. I plan to try avocado bits once mine ripen up.

She's changing so much and I can't believe how old she is. Graham and I are continually amazed at how different yet wonderful our lives are with her in it.