Michaela @ Five Months

Here's our attempt at the usual monthly shot, but Michaela wasn't really interested in sitting up pretty for me. She looks cute anyway!

Letting her do it her way, and we get a darling shot!

My beautiful daughter has just continued to flourish this past month. She reveals more of her personality with each passing day, and she's always learning to do something new. Being with her is so much fun.

Here's the latest:

Growth - We won't see our pediatrician this month, and so I don't have a precise weight and height for her. But I think she's probably close to 16 pounds, and perhaps has grown closer to 27 inches. She's just started wearing a size 3 diaper, and she's transitioning from six month sized clothing to nine months. I took advantage of sales and coupons at Carter's and Gymboree to purchase her cool-weather wardrobe, but we are still enjoying our Indian Summer weather here and probably won't be needing those things for a few more weeks.

Feeding - Michaela is still trying to decide what she thinks about this whole cereal thing. More winds up on her face than in her mouth, that's for sure. We've also added some bananas to her menu. She's not so sure about those either. I have purchased some organic baby foods just to add a spoonful of something new to her cereal mix now and then, but we've only tried bananas so far. I do plan to make my own purees for her eventually, but being that she eats so very little of what I give her right now, I'll wait until she's more enthusiastic about food.

Sleeping - Well, early last week we had several nights where she slept through the night, and it was so wonderful for Mommy! But that was short lived, and we have returned to getting up at least once a night for a bottle and some cuddle time. I attribute this to teething as she also has increased drooling, a desire to chew on everything, a few days of the runs, and fussiness (what happened to my easy-going girl?). The lack of sleep doesn't really seem to affect her, but I'm not doing so well. Also, she used to sleep late enough into the morning that I could get up and get ready for work before she woke up. Not anymore! That means that we are up even before my alarm goes off, or we are getting up at the same time. I can't get up to get ready for work any earlier than five, or I do not make it through my day without a caffeine drip. So getting ready has been a challenge. As for naps, she usually naps for less than two hours total during the day. The average baby (whoever that is) naps for four hours per day. This makes getting things done at home on the weekends very, very challenging. The only person around here who wants a nap during the day is me.


Fun Stuff - Michaela is a good shopper. I put her in the Baby Bjorn when we go to the market, and she likes looking around and smiling at the other shoppers. She just loves dogs! Michaela laughs heartily at our dog (the dog's only saving grace right now), my parents' dog, and my sister's dog. She just thinks they are so funny. I'm ashamed to admit that I let Michaela watch television, but I have found it to be a necessary evil at times. She really enjoys Nick Jr., and that's the only programming I allow her to watch. Some favorites are Olivia!, Peppa Pig, Wonder Pets, and the Backyardigans. If you have any suggestions for other ways I can occupy her when I'm pressed to get something done instead of letting her watch television, please tell me what they are!

I can't believe how quickly these five months have passed by! And sometimes, I can't believe that this child is mine. It just seems like a dream - a wonderful dream.