The Bell Family Blog: Adalee Rose: 7 Months

Stats:
No pediatrician appointment this month, but I would guess that Miss Adalee weighs around 18 pounds and measures around 26 inches long. She is still wearing her six month clothing, but most of it is getting too small. Sometimes I feel a little bad about trying to squeeze her into her clothes, but it is hard to just box up clothes when she has only worn something once or twice. In the next week or so, we probably need to make the full switch to nine month clothes, but Mommy has to find some time to get a little shopping done. She has also made the transition to size three diapers.

Eating:
There have been a lot of changes for Miss Adalee in the eating department this past month. Not only have we transitioned from breast milk to being completely formula fed, but Adalee has also started eating fruits and meats, as well as "drinking" from a sippy cup!

Schedule wise...Adalee has her first bottle (6oz) in the morning when she wakes up, usually around 6:30am. She then eats cereal (4 tbsps), fruit (2-4 tbsps), and her second bottle (4-6oz) for breakfast around 9:30am. She then eats veggies (2 tbsps), meat (2 tbsps), and her third bottle (4oz) for lunch around 12:30pm. She has her fourth bottle (6oz) as an afternoon snack around 4:00pm. When we get home from work/childcare, Adalee eats some more cereal (4 tbsps) and veggies (2-4 tbsps) for dinner around 6:00pm. She has her fifth and last bottle (6oz-8oz) around 7:00pm, after her bath and before bedtime.

Messy eater! Usually it is not this bad!

Adalee has really taken to the fruits and meats. We started with bananas for her first fruit, but she has also had apples, cinnamon apples, pears, and peaches. She really enjoys all of the fruits, but bananas are probably her favorite! She has also done fairly well with the various proteins. We started with chicken for her first meat, but she has also tried beef, turkey, and ham. The proteins took her a little longer to get used too, becuase of the thicker consistency, but eventually she got the hang of it. The roast beef with gravy is definitely her favorite! In addition, we have also started letting Adalee drink some water from a sippy cup. We only offer it once a day or so, when we remember, and she is currently more interested in throwing it around than actually drinking from it.

The transition from being breastfed with a formula supplement to being completely formula fed was interesting. I say interesting, because it actually went fairly smoothly for Adalee. I, however, was a mess. Michael and I had talked several times about eventually transitioning Adalee to being completely fed by formula, but we never really set a date/plan for it to happen. All of the sudden, it was just happening, and I felt so out of control of the situation. There was a point when I realized that I hadn't breastfed her in 24 hours, then it was 36 hours, and then it was 48 hours, and at that point, I decided that I guess this means it is time to stop. I think the fact that I didn't know at the time that it was going to be my "last time" breastfeeding Adalee made it really hard. It seems silly, even as I type this, but it is what I was feeling at the time. Overall, I am really happy with how things turned out, and I like the freedom/flexibility that comes with have Adalee be completely formula fed. It was just a transition that we all had to get through.

Sleeping:
Miss Adalee is back to sleeping like a rockstar - usually sleeping 10-12 hours through the night. She still goes down between 7:00pm and 8:00pm, and then sleeps until 6:00am-7:00am. She is still taking 3-4 naps during the day that last around 30 minutes - but sometimes she can stretch it out for an hour. If Adalee "wakes up" before she actually wants to be awake, she has started to roll over on to her stomach and fall back asleep. She usually gets an extra hour sleep most mornings by rolling herself on to her stomach. Also, we had a lot of major thunderstorms come through Kansas City over the past month, and Miss Adalee wasn't phased a bit. She must sleep like a rock - just like her mom!

Miss Adalee still likes to suck her thumb all of the time, but it is most prominent when she is trying to go to sleep. All of the thumb sucking has created some chapped red splotches on one of her cheeks. It breaks my heart because her skin looks so raw and cut up, but Adalee doesn't really seem to mind. So if you were wondering why her right cheek looks red in all of the photos...there ya go... :)

During the transition from breastfeeding to formula feeding, it became a challenge for me to put Adalee to sleep at night. I think she was able to smell the milk and associated me with it being time to eat. Thus, Michael and Adalee spent a lot of time walking and rocking, and now they have developed their own bedtime routine! He brags about the fact that Miss Adalee falls asleep in 10 minutes when her puts her down, but it takes me longer because I "play" too much! :)

Playing:
Adalee continues to be really interactive during playtime! She still loves to put everything in her mouth - if it is in reach, she will try to get it into her mouth. Once this girl starts crawling, we are going to have to do some serious work to baby proof the house!

She has started to figure out how to turn the pages of her board books. She loves to knock over blocks, her ring tower, and other things that Mommy and Daddy stack up. Her favorite toys are ones that make scratching noises. She has become very intrigued by the different sounds that her toys make. Miss Adalee also loves to play Peek-A-Boo and sing Wheels on the Bus (and other songs that mommy makes up the words too)! She really enjoys her jumpers - both at school and at home!

Miss Adalee still loves playing with her feet, and has even figure out how to get them into her mouth when she is lying on her back.

She has started to get frustrated when a toy that she wants is just out of reach, but she is figuring out how to scootch around on her back and log roll to get to where she wants to go. Still no signs of interest in crawling, but I am okay with that for now!

Hmm...what is this?

I think I will eat it...

Here are some milestone and memorable moments from this past month:

On June 5th, shortly after turning six months old, Miss Adalee started sitting up on her own. For the previous two months, we had been working with Adalee on being able to sit, but she was never really interested. She preferred to lay on her back, lay on her tummy, or stand with the support of mommy and daddy. Once she started showing some interest in sitting, it took her about two weeks to figure out how to balance herself - and now she loves it! Sitting gives her a whole new perspective on life! :) She still falls over, particularly when she gets really excited and starts shaking whatever toy she is holding, but for the most part, she does really well!

On one of our trips to the zoo this past month, Miss Adalee finally met the elephants! This little girls has more elephant toys than she knows what to do with. I was so excited for her to finally "meet" my favorite animal!

Here are some photos from this past month:

Michael and I had a LOT of yard work to get
done in the month of June. Miss Adalee was
such a trooper - hanging out in the stroller
and watching us work...or sleep!