Momma???

Call me crazy...but...

Taylor has been saying "momma" for a while now. "M's" are usually very difficult for most kids and the pediatrician was pretty impressed when I told him that she was saying her vowels and the letters "M" and "K" very well. He asked if she was saying her "D's" or "G's" and I told him no, not yet. He said that was interesting, that these letters usually come much later.

I never thought she knew what momma meant. I just assumed it was baby babble. But today, I was feeding Taylor her breakfast and she reached out for me and said, "Momma."

Granted, this could just be coincidence (and it probably is). But, as far as I am concerned my baby knows I am "Momma!"

Like I said, call me crazy! LOL!

Oh, she is also feeding her self for the first time about 2 weeks ago. I have been giving her Gerber Puffs (aka. Stars) by putting them in her mouth. But, I thought it was time she learned how to do it herself so I started putting them in her hand. After a while she finally figured out that she needs to grab the star with her index finger and thumb and put it in her mouth. When she first started this she thought they were a toy, and still sometimes do. Stars are really awesome, they are a little treat that just melts in their mouth. They remind me of a melting cheerio's.

And, she is developing a little temper too. Which in turn means she is also learning the word, "NO!" LOL!

She is doing so good.

4 Teeth, 7 months

Taylor's second top tooth came all the way through today. She now has 4, two top and two bottom. We have been so blessed that she has not had any problems with them.

I am sleep training her now. She started sleeping through the night at 4months when we got her on the formula but putting her down is now becoming a problem. About 2 weeks before Christmas she started fighting her sleep. She would starting getting sleepy and realize that she was going to sleep. So, to fight it she would start flailing her arms, opening/closing her hands, pulling her hair, babbling, moving her head from side to side, etc.

Since this was only getting worse, I decided it was time she learned how to go to sleep on her own, without falling asleep in mom's arms. It took 5 painful nights but for the last two nights she has gone down with no tears and fallen asleep within a minute of me laying her in her crib. She is doing so good with her nights.

However, days are still a problem. I learned that she wasn't taking longer naps because she was overtired and was unable to transition in to a deeper sleep. I am now trying to get her on a sleep schedule. She is fighting her sleep during the day and sometimes it takes 30 minutes to an hour for me to get her to go to sleep. I have started putting her in our bed for naps and laying with her. I have no idea if I am going to keep this up. I have very fond memories of taking naps with my mom and I kind of want Taylor to have that memory too. However, just being able to put her down in her own crib and have her go to sleep painlessly would be ideal for both of us. I think I am going to give her night training a little longer to see if she has any kind of regression. If that goes well, I'll start on naps.

I cannot begin to tell you how stressful it is having a child with sleep issues. However, I am just so thankful that so far, this is her only issue. She is getting so big and can almost sit on her own for an extended period of time. She is learning so much so fast. You can almost see her soaking everything up like a sponge and it is such a fun and exciting time for us both.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Tomorrow (1-2-10) our baby will be 7 months old. Today I felt her first top tooth. That makes three teeth.

We had a great trip to Chicago for Christmas. We were all sick but Taylor recovered while we were there. I was never really THAT bad, relatively speaking. Dad actually mentioned the ER! We flew home, all feeling much better. However, we are now getting sick AGAIN. I went to Walmart and bought a gallon of bleach, Lysol wipes, a gallon of OJ, a 4pack of Puffs, 2 kinds of NyQuil, and Sudafed pills. I am going to bleach everything in my house. Hopefully that will kill the coodies and we'll get better.

As for our Christmas, Taylor spent her first Christmas with her Great Grandmother, her Granny, and all of her Aunt's, Uncle's, and cousin's on her Dad's maternal side. It snowed while we were there and we got some pics of her touching the snow. I shoveled snow off of the sidewalk for the first time! LOL! We all received lots of a great presents and want to thank everyone for everything.

We are now trying to get back into our routines and get well. Taylor has had a hard time adjusting to the quiet life again. She enjoyed playing so much that she wants to stay up until 10:30 playing! Hopefully her schedule will get back to normal soon. (Please pray for me!!!)

Thanks again for everything everyone.

p.s. And don't worry Mississippians, we'll be headed down south in February.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (Happy 7th month birthday Taylor.)