Six Months Old! :)

Happy Half-Birthday, Sweet Girl!

Your Daddy likes to joke with you that you've lived with us for 6 months and haven't spoken not one word to us! :)

 

My Dearest Lucy,

 

This month you weigh 14 lbs. and 13 oz. and are 25 1/2 in. long!

You snuggly wear 3-6 month size clothes (but some of the cute, monogrammed outfits that your Dewberry cousins gave you for Christmas are 6-9 and even 6-12 and while they fit, they're a little more "roomy").

 

You still wear a size 2 diaper

 

You are eating almost all Stage 2 Gerber baby foods (with 1.5 scoops of rice) and still taking Parents Choice formula with rice cereal.

 

Last month, your thing was blowing out your lips. This month, it's sticking out your tongue! You stick out your tongue almost every time you smile and seem to know that it's going to get a rise out of people. It's like you're telling us a joke to make us laugh!

 

Your laugh is the sweetest sound to my ears, but they are few and far between. You never laugh at the same thing twice. And depending on your mood, no matter how silly we're acting or looking trying to get you to laugh, you look at us with the most mature look on your face like "Just stop. You're embarassing yourself."

 

You had your first stomach virus! :( You brought it home from daycare this past Thursday. At first it was just like spit-up (which you very rarely do anymore, so it was weird), but each time you did it, it increased in volume. You eventually threw up all over yourself and me to where we both needed to change clothes and bathe at least 3 different times. We finally wisened up and just set a towel out in front of you and let you throw up into the towel. Poor Christy Sutton was over here visiting that night and you got her too. We didn't know whether it was a virus or something you ate until the next day when I called Learning Safari and learned that it was going around your classroom. We kept you out of daycare that next day (Friday), and your Daddy stayed home with you. You felt all better by Saturday so Memaw & Big Daddy came to visit and spend Saturday night. But poor Daddy & I both caught it in the wee hours of Sunday morning (3 a.m. & 4 a.m., respectively). We took you in to finish sleeping in Memaw & Big Daddy's room and then CiCi came to pick you up the next morning. You spent the day at her house and apparently had a lot of fun! She said that you LOVED strolling outside! That evening your Daddy & I still weren't feeling 100% (he ended up having to go the hospital because he was dehydrated), and so we let you spend the night! I cried big ol' crocodile tears because for your entire life, I have rocked you to sleep every night. Papa called early Monday morning though to let us know we needed to come pick you up right away though because CiCi had gotten it, too! I had no problem doing so and rocked you and rocked you and rocked you all day long!

 

You have become a CHAMPION at sitting up! It's like you learned to do it over night! One day, your Daddy & I were with you in your room and just set you on the floor to play like normal and you sat, but in a tripod stance (you were sort of leaning on your hands out in front of you) and tipped easily. It wasn't 2 weeks before you were sitting up sturdy for a good 30 seconds-1 minute (of course with pillows around you!). Now, we can leave you there for several minutes (at least!) with no support. It won't be long before you're taking off around this house....

 

.... or will it?? You still despise being on your tummy! My Mommy heart has toughened up and I will let you whine on the floor without it breaking, but as soon as you start crying hard, my heart begins to crack and I cave.

 

You are sleeping in your own room now! You have always slept in your own bed (well, always the snuggle nest in the bassinet in our room), but you got too long to fit in the bassinet anymore! :( Daddy & I LOVED having you in our room and hated for you to be all the way across the house (it's not that far, but still) and be in a room all by yourself when you're still so tiny! We debated taking down the crib and moving it to our room, but finally decided that moving you in there was really the smarter move in the long run. You converted like a champ! You still sleep in your snuggle nest, but are at least in your crib! I'm going to work with you this weekend on moving out of the snuggle nest. You're starting to slide out of it at night and it's freaking me out a bit.

 

You love sitting on your Daddy's shoulders and walking around the house.

 

You love smiling at "that baby in the mirror." Every morning after I change your diaper we look at her and I tell her that she is beautiful, she is smart, she is kind, and she is important in this world -- especially mine!

 

You will give me kisses! Wet, sloppy, open mouth, drooly kisses right on my cheek and I LOVE them! I really do think you know what you're doing, too. I will hold you in my lap and say "Give me kisses. Give Mama kisses" and if you're in the mood you'll grab both sides of my face, pull yourself in (or pull me to you) and plant one on me! I taught you this, because at first I would pull you to me, but now you're pulling me in or pulling yourself to me (that's why I think you legitimately know what you're doing!). You won't give your Daddy kisses, but I think it's because his face is scratchy. That's okay. He's more handsome with a scratchy face and we love a handsome Daddy! :)

 

You love playing in your exersaucer still. We were finally able to raise the seat up a little bit because your feet are able to touch so well. We did buy you a walker, but unfortunately your tiny legs still won't reach so you're not that big of a fan.

 

You have graduated from your infant tub to a bathing chair in the big bathtub! You're not crazy about playing with toys yet, but that's okay. They're all fun to look at!

 

Your favorite toys are the teal green elephant that makes crinkly noises and has rubber feet to chew on, your baby doll that coos (you love that it makes baby noises!), and most definitely your Elmo that MaMa & Pop gave you. He squeaks when you squeeze his belly and you smile so big at it every time in the car!

 

You love "driving" home from daycare when Daddy picks you up (because he doesn't have the carseat in his car).

Miss Lucy, these last 6 months have flown by and I know the next six will too. And before I know it, instead of being 6 months, you will be 6 years and then 16... I just hope that you will always know how proud your Daddy & I are of you, how much joy you bring to our lives, and just how much we LOVE you!!! You are definitely the brightest part of both of our days (and the highlight of our middle of the nights sometimes!). We have loved watching you grow and learn these last six months and can't wait to see how much you grow and what all you learn these next six months! We love you to the moon and back, sweet girl!