Poor sweet baby Reese. She got to usher in her 8 month birthday with a fever and a cold that she has been fighting off for the past week plus. She is the picture of pathetic. Eyes crusted over when she wakes up from sleeping at night, nose constantly running, screaming when her nose is wiped, breathing like a rhinoceros, VERY low reserve (really crying at anything), and just crabby all around. I wish there was something I could do for her but I think we just have to cross our fingers this cold is going to see it's self out very soon. You are not welcome cold. Our little girl needs a break. On to happier things though...here is the rest of what she has been up to this past month.
Eating: Still breastfeeding, yeay! This is when Donovan stopped so I am pleased we are still going strong. She nurses exclusively from me when I was home and seems satisfied so that is good. I am nervous how my supply will hold up with the new job and the good chance that I might spend some time standing and pumping in a public bathroom during my first week of training so we will see. She is also eating 3 solid meals a day, 1-1.5 hours after she drinks milk. Her morning one she usually gobbles up, her afternoon one she eats about half (1 stage 2 food container with some dry cereal mixed in each meal) and then for dinner cereal and milk and a fruit and cereal and she usually has no problem eating all of that. She also loves finger foods, especially her yogurt melts. She is drinking milk 5 times a day, sometimes 6 on an off day. She usually gets up for a feeding at 5:45-6:30am and then goes back to sleep until somewhere in the 8 o'clock hour. That's gonna change soon with the new job so next month will be totally different I am sure. We haven't tried any stage 3 foods but we will when we have to buy her more food next. On a somewhat eating-related note: she doesn't spit up a fraction of the amount she used to. Thank you cruising stage! Hopefully this means we can cut the Pepcid out, which we have been skipping some nights to test it out. So far so good.
Sleeping: Still going to be in the 8 o'clock hour and sleeping until her first feeding and then going back to bed until the am 8 o'clock hour. She is down to only 2 naps (unless she is sick or it is a weird day) and one is usually 30 min and the other is bigger (anywhere from 1.5-3 hours but usually in the 1.5-2.5 hour range.) Still swaddled, still on her stomach, still nothing else in her crib.
Development: Major developments this month are pulling herself up, cruising, walking when holding on to your fingers, and crawling on all fours (something she started within the past week and a half). She really doesn't crawl much at all anymore, army, all fours or otherwise because she would prefer to walk where she wants to go while holding on to your fingers for guidance. She prefers this above all other forms of travel, even over the lion, which she loves to push and be pushed on. She has an amazing balance for how young she is so I would not be surprised if she is walking by 10 months. In fact, our aching backs are counting on it. She is so steady and sometimes can walk (for short distances when she isn't trying to hurry {read: "catch the dog"}) holding on to only one of our fingers. She definitely has big ideas and plans for where she wants to go. It is really fun because she leads you exactly where she wants to go, and as mentioned before, that is often in hot pursuit of petey. She is so sweet when she is standing holding on to something and wants to walk with you instead. She smiles real big at you and flirts with you, then does this kind of upside down wave with her hand like she is telling you to "come here." Then you give her one hand/finger and she zero's in on that next hand like, "I am still learning, I need that second hand, ok?" It really does make her so happy. That coupled with her crabbiness/neediness/fussiness this past week and come to thing of it, I have barely seen her crawl at all recently. She is ready to be onto bigger and better things.
Believe it or not, this is a smile. And one of the very few from today at that. This was her crawling after me when I walked away from her. All fours baby!
With the mobility and the pulling up, nothing is safe from her now.
This caption is for my LOL cats loving husband. "I can haz food?"
Enjoying the cozy coupe, one of the few places she is happy this past week.
One of the best things about this past month is the change that has taken place in the relationship with Reese and Donovan. She is learning how to play with him and he is learning she isn't just a pest. It really makes all the stress and hard work that two kids are, totally worth it. Donovan loves pushing Reese around in the Cozy Coupe downstairs and she eats it up. He also pushes her very carefully on the lion as well, another thing she loves. Tom and I love it because we get a break and both kids are happy. Donovan also has started giving Reese "horsey" rides, where he crawls around and she rides around on him like a rider on a horse (I hold on to her for stability of course). But by far the best thing they have started doing is playing together in the car. They started it coming home from Tom's parent's house with Tom one day a couple weeks ago and they do it almost every time they are in the car together now. There is this one particular soft, monster rattle that Reese has that we usually give her in the car and she hold it out, as if to offer it to Donovan. Then Donovan reaches for it and sometimes she rips it back out of his reach and they both have giggle fits. Sometimes he takes it and when he gets it he says "Thank you VERY much!" and then they both giggle and giggle and giggle. Then he'll give it back and they continue the game. I love everything about it. Listening to them giggle together, that's my happy place.
Reese testing out the horsey. The horsey is tired though so he is laying down.
And once the rider, now the horsey.
Taking a turn in the tunnel.
We have lots of big changes coming this month, my new job and the kids new daycares. Here is to hoping for all the changes to be good ones and for that dang cold to go kick rocks!
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