In any case, it occurs to me that I haven't really kept this blog updated with Scoops' monthly growth, so I thought I'd share a little timeline recap of the past 6 months. I haven't lined these photos up yet for myself even, so I'm excited to see how much she's grown!
Scoops has been smiling since she was born, but at 1 month the smiles are bigger and more frequent than ever. I live to make her smile, and it's what gets me through the sleeplessness and exhaustion. She's doing lots of tummy time on my tummy (and daddy's, too!) and exercising her strong neck muscles. Her hair is thick, dark, and stick straight (except when it's damp). She is not a fan of baths, so we avoid them as much as possible. She sleeps in her rock-n-play, and I've developed a habit of saying "scoops" when I scoop her out of it. That's where the pet name originated!
By 2 months, Scoops has gained almost complete control of her neck and head. She is practicing rudimentary reaching and grasping. She often sneezes in threes, and the third sneeze often doesn't happen, which is ridiculously cute. Her hair is a teensy bit lighter than when she was born. She loves giving lots of big, wide smiles, but is still mostly pretty quiet. She is learning that she has a voice, and is just barely starting to experiment with it. Her cry is growing and changing as she is, and she's starting to lose that newborn "nnnahhh" sound. I left her with a babysitter (daddy) for the first time, and went to see The Nutcracker Ballet with my mom and sisters. I hardly watched the performance, and cried over how cute Scoops would be as a mouse/angel/toy soldier/etc.
Scoops has developed so much by 3 months! She just figured out how to hold on to her own teething ring, which makes me happy and relieved. Her hair is getting even lighter. She is getting more vocal. She loves to repeat "mama mamamamama," which makes me pretty excited. We have started attending a weekly breastfeeding group and hope to make some new friends. Scoops has just moved out of the rock-n-play in mommy and daddy's room, and is being put to sleep in her crib in the nursery. She's gotten so used to me snatching her hand and kissing it while I nurse her that she now habitually reaches her hand up for kisses while nursing. It's the sweetest thing ever. I've just launched this blog, and am officially staying home with Scoops for the foreseeable future. Hooray! It's a gift I wasn't planning on, and I am beyond grateful to be able to continue spending so much time with my sweet Scoops.
At 4 months, Scoops' hair has started falling out, and what's left is lighter still than last month. Just a few weeks ago, Scoops rolled onto her tummy, and several days later she rolled onto her back. By now, she is rolling front to back and back to front like a boss (it's hard to keep her off her tummy, actually). She has also figured out that she can make fun, loud noises with her little vocal cords, and is practicing by babbling away. She really sounds like she's uttering whole sentences in another language. She also just started giggling, which is the newest reason for my existence. She's doing that falling reflex thing less and less now, which makes me a little sad. She slept through the night for the first time ever (like, for real slept through the night, from 8 p.m. to 6:30 a.m.), two nights in a row (literally, the two nights immediately before she reached 4 months of age, which is apparently when The Four Month Sleep Regression is supposed to happen - I find this ironic, and incredibly effing lucky).
Scoops' hair has stopped falling out (finally) by her 5th month. It's pretty thin and light, to the point where we're certain she's going to grow up blonde. She has discovered her toes, and they are now often in her mouth. When her toes are not in the way, she has long "conversations" with anyone who will engage with her, especially if they let Scoops hold their face so she can make sure they're listening attentively. She really likes to vocalize the "m" consonant, and insistently mumbles all day long, like she has so much to say that the words are just getting backed up in her mouth. She recently started sitting up with her hands supporting herself. She is getting pretty good at playing "Where's Mommy's Nose?" and often gets it right when I ask her that question. She's slept through the night several times this past month, but it's not her regular pattern yet. I get used to it in one night and then when she doesn't do it, I seriously feel it the next day!
Scoops is half a year old! Her hair has started growing back in, and looks lighter every time it gets washed (which, in her case, means every time it gets wet and then toweled off). She is sleeping through the night a small majority of the time. Our longest stretch on record was six consecutive nights! Woohoo! She is sitting up like it ain't no thang, but after a couple minutes she usually worms forward onto her belly to get into a crawling position. She's practicing a lot, but not crawling yet (thank goodness!). She's also practicing standing when daddy and I prop her against a wall or have her hold on to the side of her crib. She recently enjoyed her first trip to the beach, where she started sticking her tongue out to taste the ocean breeze, and didn't put her tongue back in her mouth for about a week. On her half birthday she tried her first solid food: avocado. It seemed to frustrate her (she mostly just wanted to chew on it and mash it in her hands, but not actually eat it). She comes up with new sounds about once a week. I really enjoy her shrill, chirpy-birdie singsong noises. I think I have a soprano on my hands! By now I am certain that when she says "mama" she is actually addressing me, as it usually only happens while she's crying and reaching for me. I'll take it!
These past 6 months have been the best of my life so far. I know it's cliche, but it's absolutely true. I love being this little girl's mommy, and am so excited to watch her grow and learn, and to grow and learn alongside her!
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