6 Months ~Amelia~

 

I am not sure why it surprises me… we’ve seen it with Grant but time absolutely flies by.  Amelia is celebrating her half birthday and we are having a blast with our little family.  It’s often very busy but we try to enjoy each and every day as the kids get older.  I wish I could freeze time and bottle them up because we are having so much fun right now!

Growth:
Weight:  15 lbs 12 oz (42nd percentile)

Height:  27 1/4" (93rd percentile)
Head Circumference:  42.5 cm (58th percentile)

As you can see... this little girl is longggg and lean :)

Most 6 month clothing has been retired and Amelia is mainly wearing 6-9 and 9 month items.  She is still in size 3 diapers and if she ever wore shoes she would be wearing a size 2.

      

Mobility/Coordination:  Amelia can now sit completely unsupported.  We still keep the boppy close by for the occasional topple but she does very well balancing.  She loves standing and will stiffen her body if you try to get her to sit.  She can even stand at the table and balance herself for quite some time.  Hand eye coordination has continued to improve and she is reaching for objects very accurately with one hand and switching objects between hands.  While on her tummy, she fully extends her arms and has even gotten up on to her knees at least once.  She doesn’t have the pincher grasp yet but there are a lot of raking motions for objects.

    
Language/Communication:  Amelia is still usually quiet but has definitely learned how to get our attention.  She will whine or fuss when she wants a change of scenery or gets bored.  Her language sounds haven’t changed much and she still leans towards her ooh and aah vowel sounds.    

Personality/Amelia-isms:  Amelia has started to show some signs of separation anxiety especially when she is around people she doesn’t know.  If I walk out of the room, she will fuss or if I walk into a room and don’t go to her she fusses because she wants me.  Also, if a stranger is trying to talk to her sometimes she’ll wind up and poke out her bottom lip then start crying.  She has become a bit more of a cuddle bug this month which I love.  One of my favorite things is when she spots you across the room and you say hi to her she lets out this adorable giggle and lights up with the biggest smile.
 

    

Sleep:  Amelia is still on the same sleep schedule.  She likes her early morning and late afternoon catnaps with at least 1-2 longer naps in the middle.  There have been a couple nights she has woken up coughing but goes right back to sleep.  She also still prefers to sleep on her side or tummy.        

Feeding:  Amelia eats 4-5 times per day and stretches some feedings as much as 4+ hours.  When taking a bottle, she normally drinks about 7-8 oz or nurses for 15-20 minutes. 
 

I am very excited we made it 6 months exclusively breastfeeding without really batting an eye.  I have noticed a slight dip in my supply (I get 12-16 oz at work pumping 3 times a day but Amelia is sometimes eating 16 oz at daycare so some days I don’t break even).  I started taking fenugreek occasionally and drinking a “mother’s milk” tea.  My dip in supply could also be because of some other womanly changes that occurred this month (boo!).   

We began to dabble with solids occasionally and so far Amelia has had broccoli, acorn squash, avocado, apples, and bananas.  She seemed to like them all but it was more licking and squeezing and making a mess than actually being able to pick up pieces and put them in her mouth (the baby led weaning method).  I have used my finger as a spoon occasionally and helped her get a little more in her mouth.  Her tongue thrust still pretty strong and she gags on the some of the bites.  Again, we are still taking it slowly.  She’ll get the hang of it with time. 
 

 

Illnesses:  Amelia has still had a cold/cough/runny nose.  I had been continuing to use some various oils (thieves, melaleuca, and frankincense) to help ward off infection.  However, we took another trip to the doctor about 2 weeks ago because she was coughing up green phlegm occasionally and we were worried about some type of infection settling in.  Her ears were still infection free and everything looked fine.  The doctor and I both agreed that if she wasn’t running a fever we weren’t going to do an antibiotic yet.

Well low and behold, a week later she popped up with a low grade fever (101).  We made a call to the doctor and she said if she still had a fever after 72 hours we would definitely start an antibiotic (we of course were hesitant to start one immediately because of Grant’s C Diff and the doctor’s suggested use of azithromycin… the exact antibiotic that caused Grant’s problems).  I used a little peppermint essential oil on her and she woke up the next morning fever free with no return of the fever.  We have been continuing to monitor and keep an eye on her but we saw some change towards the beginning of this week when her eyes started getting goopy and running.  

We suspected a sinus infection or something along thsoe lines.  I took her in Friday for a sick visit/6 month physical and we found out after 6 weeks of battling this junk she has a double ear infection and bronchitis.  Honestly, she has been the same happy girl she always is.  She's been sleeping well and eating well except for this past Thursday.  We would've never known she had a double ear infection.  We bit the bullet and put her on an antibiotic in hopes of kicking this junk once and for all.  She is on probiotics and we are keeping a close eye.     

Teeth:  Still no teeth… Grant officially beat her on the tooth front.  His first tooth popped through at just over 5 months.  She still obviously loves chewing and is showing signs of teething but who knows when those first teeth will actually pop through. 

Firsts:  Diaper rash (didn’t start until she had her first nibbles of solids) now each time we try something new it flares up and is gone within a day thanks to coconut oil.  It makes me nervous for when we really get going with solid though if she is already having issues.

Likes:  Sucking bottom lip ~ cold teething rings ~ snuggling with a blanket when tired ~ blowing raspberries ~ sucking her thumb ~ sitting in her high chair at the dinner table with us

Dislikes:  Being left alone when she wants to be part of the fun ~ some strangers

Amelia, Autumn, and Grant all at age 6 months