- Learned to sit up by herself...way to go Lila!
The first time she sat without any help we were i-chatting with my mom and I sat Lila on my knees facing me so she would be our laptop's camera. She sat by herself and I figured the way I had her on my knees was giving her extra support or something. My mom was impressed to see her sitting so as soon as we stopped chatting, I plopped her down on the floor and she still sat up all by herself! I think her sitting record is probably somewhere between 30 seconds and a minute, but I'm so proud of her. I think the first time she did it was last Monday, so I guess that would be February 2nd. I was so excited she reached this milestone by 6 months (I think every mom is very milestone focused for the first baby).
- Discovered her feet and her right ear.
She's constantly playing with her feet and toes (aren't you amazed by babies' flexibility???) and she grabs her right ear a lot (no, she doesn't have an infection). It's fun to see her discover new parts of her body. I'm hoping it takes her a while to discover her hair because I love that I can still put bows in without her pulling them out.
- Learned to jump in her jumperoo.
She LOVES that thing and boy am I grateful that there's a toy that actually entertains her for more than two seconds! She even gets upset sometimes when I take her out of it. The rainforest jumperoo was a great craigslist find (some of the parts still had cardboard and tape on them...brand new but 1/2 the price). She looks so darn cute jumping in that thing.
- Tried banana for the first time.
I gave it to her in one of those little mesh baby food holder things (sort of like a pacifier with a ring to hold and a mesh baggy you can put food in instead of the silicone thing the baby sucks on) . I know I could've mashed it and spoon fed it to her, but I'm not really starting solids until next week (6 months). I'm happy to report that she enjoyed every last suck on that little banana filled mesh bag. She ended up with banana juice/mush all over her pants, shirt, and hair, so I can't imagine what kind of mess food that's not contained in a mesh bag will make. It'll be fun to watch her try new foods in the next few months.
- Started taking semi-regular naps.
Phew! Well that's just been in the last few days, but I am soooooo excited that she seems to be making progress toward a regular sleep schedule. She's never been a good napper and I knew she was sleep deprived, so I finally bought the book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" my cousin recommended months ago. Since devouring the book in one evening, I've been trying to keep Lila on a really strict schedule, follow her sleep cues, and even tried letting her "cry it out" (I was totally against it for months but it's a method of last resort in our case) and it seems to be paying off.
She seems sooooo much happier when she gets good, regular naps and she doesn't even need her binky when she's awake if she's well-rested (if you've noticed from the pictures, she's a total binky addict). Please don't think I'm a bad mother for letting her cry in her crib a few times...I promise I hate it and I wouldn't if I didn't think it was the only way to help her learn to fall asleep and get some much-needed nap time. She now takes a nap around 9, another around 1, and goes to bed a little after 7 (well those are our goals at least). I'm officially a slave to her nap schedule.
(I'll post this now and add pictures later...camera battery is charging for the night)
8 comments :
So, when we were trying to get Lacey to sleep in her crib and to sleep all night, I decided that the "cry it out method" was the only way this could be accomplished. After I had decided that, I was at church and was telling a sister in our ward about Lacey's horrible sleeping habits and she said to me, "Just don't be one of those moms who let their children cry." I obviously didn't tell her my plans after that. I'm one for whatever is best and works for the baby and parents. Letting Lacey cry, while it's the hardest thing I've had to do, was the best thing for the entire family! Good luck on your sleep quest!
No one should think your a bad Mom for letting your child cry it out. She needs to learn how to soothe herself to sleep somehow! Most advice doesn't need to be shared or taken to heart because every baby and situation is different. You need to do what's best for YOUR baby at the time.
I think it's great that you are putting Lila on a schedule! It'll definitely make your life easier! and you are not a bad mom for letting her cry it out.... i would do the same. Even though I imagine it will probably be one of the most heart wrenching things to do. That saying "this will hurt me more than it will hurt you" starts early , doesn't it? :)
YOU ARE A GREAT MOMMY :)
Oh, I think you have to let them cry it out! I did with Ella and although it was hard, it paid off in the end. As long as there are fed, changed, and burped they are perfectly fine. They need to learn how to self-sooth themselves back to bed. Your doing GREAT! Getting them on a regular schedule is tough! Lila will thank you for it later when she is a happy rested baby. Good luck.
Yay for all of Lila's milestones and new discoveries. Every stage is so fun because everything is new for them (and you too). And about letting her cry it out...it is the hardest thing to do. But the end result is so worth it! I hope Lila continues to sleep well. Glad you found the book helpful. Happy Valentine's Day!
Ashley,
I'm so glad you found our (Michael and I's) blog. Small world. I actually ran track with Lindsey at BYU also. Yeah, we were in the LV 1st. Michael was at law school at USD. We're in law school in ID just as visiting students for our last year. I had to laugh when I saw Kristi had commented on your blog. Small, small world. Tell everyone hi for us. Oh, and I'll go ahead and add you to our links if that's fine with you.
Way to go Lila on the milestones!! As exciting as milestones are, isn't it just a little bit sad they are growing up so fast? I just have to keep reminding myself to enjoy EVERY minute of my time with Rog.
It was great talking with you but I have SOOOOO many more questions to ask you. I'll definitely call you this week!
For the record, I STILL hate letting babies cry it out. It is just as hard with Ethan (I thought it would be easier). But sometimes it is the only thing that works. I know that doesn't make it any easier though.
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