Eleanora | 7 months old

This month was all about quick changes. Over night, her two little bottom teeth popped up. Suddenly she was done with her playmat and on to her walker. Sitting up and floor “scooting” is much more fun with books. She started chewing, drinking from a bottle and all sorts of other “big girl” things.

Development/ Things I want to remember: Her hair is long enough for little clip-in bows this month and her eyelashes are getting long and thick. She learned how to open drawers and cabinets. She likes to drink out of our glasses if we let her and taste thins off our plates. She is so explorative. Being outside is absolutely mesmerizing. I love watching her explore. I think she’d sit and play in the leaves (because, ahem, we haven’t cleaned up our yard in a while) if I let her. Showing her nature, textures, music and so many other things has been such a joy. I love that she reminds me to slow down and take in the moments. Having her has been so good for my soul because it allows me to truly take time off. I’m such a go-getter and am constantly dreaming, implementing new ideas and working on the next project. Those are great things, but having her gives me the freedom to relish each day for what it is. Of course, life with a baby can be very difficult, especially when my job is demanding a lot of me at the time, but most of the time I find my heart can change to rest in the midst of the chaos. She is teaching me margins and the value of prioritizing what is most important and letting the rest go.

Weight: A few weeks ago she weighed 7 lbs 3 oz and measured 28 inches long. She is a chunk for sure! My back tells me every day how heavy she is. Haha!

Clothing: She is still in 3-6 month shoes…and some 0-3. Elle has tiny feet, but that is the only tiny thing about her. We’re in most 6-12 month sizes, although she still wears plenty of her 0-3 dresses as tops. She’s long, so her little 6 month rompers are a little snug, as are her pjs. It’s probably no secret that Spring and Summer clothes are my favorite. Even though it’s still been a little cold, we’re wearing all things Spring. It was pretty warm the other day, so I pulled out her swimsuit and we played “pool” in a plastic storage box. It was so fun. I’m just dreaming of getting her a little kiddie pool and taking many, many trips to the beach this Summer!

Sleep: Thankfully, we are back to sleeping great again. All the sudden she decided she wants a morning nap and generally takes around 10 or 11 for about an hour. She still takes a decent afternoon nap too, which is nice. If we miss the sleepy-window around 7:30 or 8 at night, it gets very difficult to put her down. She goes into this hyper/sleepy/grumpy zone…just like her daddy after midnight. Ha! She is like him in so many ways.

Eating: Little lady loves to eat! She eats just about everything now! Turkey, chopped up veggies, mashed fruit and avocado, yogurt, etc…She even takes her own bottle now and nurses in the morning and at night. That has been so helpful to me, as things are getting busy on the business end of things. It was a little rough switching to the bottle for about a week, but things did get better. She’s still a little clingy as a result, but it has given us so much more freedom.

Personality/ Mood: Elle is a ball of energy. She loves to constantly be moving. I’m not sure if that is a phase or not. It makes her so happy to have the freedom to scoot around the house in her walker. If she’s not tired or cranky, she is smiling. She still isn’t babbling very much, but that may have something to do with the fact that there is always a toy in her mouth. She doesn’t like to be alone…ever. I have to push her walker into whatever room I’m in at the time, which I probably would do anyway seeing as I haven’t baby-proofed the house. She enjoys being out with me running errands. I don’t know what I’d do if she didn’t! She loves to ham it up for company. Everyone always says “Oh, she’s such a happy baby.” And she is…at least when other people are around most of the time! At home…well, that is sometimes a different story! I think she’s starting to understand how to trow mini tantrums. I don’t know how you teach a 7 month old not to do that, but we’ll figure it out!

Loves: She loves touch and being close to people. Attention. Books. Her walker. Food. I can cure almost any fussy time with peekaboo or singing some of her favorite songs. She still LOVES watching Winnie the Pooh. Classical music is always calming and never fails to help her drift off to sleep. Baths in the big tub with rubber ducky are the best. She giggles so much when I rub in her lotion. Thankfully, there are more loves than dislikes this month!

Doesn’t love: Not much besides being hungry and not having me pretty close when she wants to play.

She is (mostly) pure joy. We love having her in our lives.