Norah: Seven Months

Size: 20 lbs of gloriously chubby baby goodness. And might I note, she looks smaller in this picture, believe me, this is not the case-- I'm discovering taking pictures of her on our velvety chair, while covered in taffeta and silky material makes our gal slouch. Such is the price to pay for adorable dresses!

Sleep: This last month was a big one when it came to sleep. Which once was a happy, awake twice a night sleep routine, quickly became a two hour battle to get in to bed, followed by a 45 minute nap, then another hour of fussing (continue this battle on for days on end), we decided we needed a change. It was heartbreaking, really. I'm not really sure where this change took place, but it wasn't pretty. Once night, Bryan and I decided that she was crying--not out of pain or need-- but just because she was fussy. Just pissed. Didn't want to be put down. Nothing would stop the beast. (Literally the only thing that would get her to calm down would be to lay with her in our bed... which isn't a routine that works for our family; we sleep in a full sized and we agreed early on that co-sleeping wasn't our thing). This lead to a modified, 'fuss it out' as we call it. I wouldn't say 'cry it out,' because it never hit that nerve in my mom-head that said, 'go to your child! She needs you!' it was more of a 'she needs to learn to help herself a little bit-- let's see where this goes.' The first few nights were rough. I would let her cry-fuss for 5 minutes, go in and comfort her (not pick her up), then would wait another 5 minutes, check, then 10 minutes, etc... most all the time she was asleep by the second break. It's taken a bit to get the hang of, but she seems so much happier now. She now looks at me and smiles if I put her down awake, politely tucks her hands behind her head and closes her eyes. We've come a long way, and not all days are good, but overall? She's happier (and more well-rested), and so are we. Again, the difference a month makes. I vowed early on to never be one of those parents that says, "Oh, that will never be me-- I would NEVER do that-- because who the heck knows what will happen. I figure if I start out with a plan, that's a good start. Where we go from there is a good learning experience.

Social: Our same little social gal! She seems to notice a bit more when we're not around, and new people can scare her sometimes. She is also loving cuddles a lot more (she will cling to you because she's happy, or shy, or just plain silly), and has more opinions on things. If you take something away from her that she's happy with, she will definitely let you know!

Diet: We have good days and bad days, but overall? Solids are going very well! She has expanded her foods every three days (to make sure allergies aren't an issue), and so far we've tried all sorts of things. I'm still trying my best to collect and make what I can, and buying organic what I can't. Only thing she seems to hate so far is my homemade carrots-- can't win them all I guess!

Clothes: Happily in 12-18 month clothes. My little rolly-polly.

Likes: Turning the pages of her books when we read at night, telling us stories (moving to all sorts of strings of consonants and other neat sounds), the water in the bathtub, kicking everything, and drawstrings on hoodies. Oh my, whoever invented the drawstring had no idea how immensely happy they would make my child. 

Milestones: Sitting pretty darn good by herself-- where did the time go? She seems so sturdy these days-- really, really crazy!