Tales from the Mommy Trenches

Rhea-bae is nine months old today. Cue predictable mommy tears and disbelief.

My sister says I should hire her out for baby therapy, because holding her placid, warm, chubby body is very therapeutic. She might be onto something there. Whether Rhea is on your hip or in your lap, her closeness is very soothing. She is just so sweet and unflappable.

Milestones: She still favors army crawling to crawling up on all fours, but she keeps assuming the crawling position and rocking on all fours like she is considering it. I am 99% certain she is referring to me when she says “mama.” She usually says it plaintively, which is my main indicator. She is babbling up a storm these days. She is finally sleeping through the night every night!!! However, it is in her rock n play. I have given up on the room sharing experiment for now, and am relishing sleeping all night long. She has graduated to group baths with the other three girls. It is a sight to behold, but she can hold her own. She eats her solids like a champ, and eats whatever we eat. The only baby food she receives is in the form of pouches that she can squeeze herself. SHE IS FINALLY DRINKING OUT OF A BOTTLE! I casually offered her one during one evening that she was staying with my parents before Scott and I went on our Valentine’s date and she guzzled the whole thing down like it was NBD. All prior attempts had ended in disaster. Babies mess with your mind, man. She can go from laying down to sitting up by doing an impressive baby sit up. She has abs of steel. She will clap, but one hand is always curled into a little fist and she also waves.

Likes: Putting all the things in her mouth, especially something that we just noticed fell on the floor and might be choke-able, solids, nursing in bed (all other times she gets super distracted), her sisters’ princess castle (she can open and close those doors All. Day. Long.), taking baths, her rock n play, being held, tickles anywhere (she has a ticklish back and a ticklish nose, you guys), her toes, her Grandaddy, and peek-a-boo.

Dislikes: Sleeping in a crib, Wren getting too close (she knows now that Wren likes to ride/sit on her), being buckled into a car seat, nursing when there is interesting stuff going on, chasing Cheerios under the coffee table and then getting stuck under there.

I love how she is at the age where she is acting the part of what you picture in your head when you think of what a baby is like. She is a squirmy, roly poly little thing that babbles and giggles and crawls around. It is irresistible and adorable.

This is officially the longest I have ever gone with a baby on an exclusive nursing journey (other than that one Valentine’s bottle), and I am so proud of myself and of her. With Wren, I had to abruptly wean her after her nine month appointment because she had dropped from the 50th percentile in weight to the 5th. I had been supplementing a good bit anyway since I was pregnant with Rhea and suspected that my supply was dwindling. Turns out it was practically gone. But I have high hopes for Rhea’s nine month appointment and that we can continue exclusively breastfeeding. She is bursting at the seams with her 12 month sized clothing, but I am so averse to putting all that clothing away and hauling out the bigger size. I know, I need to stop being lazy and do it already.

Every day, I kiss those cheeks a thousand times and pinch those thighs a thousand more. Oh, and she giggles when I pinch her thighs because of course they are ticklish. She is too much.