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| 26 weeks old (6 months!) 3/23/13 My beautiful big girl! |
Height/Weight
17.75 pounds (Gained 4.25 pounds in TWO months) = ~80th
percentile
Birth- 7 pounds 12 oz
27.75 inches (Gained 2.25 in TWO months) = 95th
percentile
Birth- 20 inches
18 inches (head circumference Gained 1 in TWO months) = over
98th percentile (hehe)
Birth- 14 inches
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| 23 weeks (3/1/13)- off to a playdate with Ellasyn and Dr. Lou |
Size:
She is mainly in 9 mos to 9-12 mos clothing and has even
slipped into some 12 mos sizes. It is quite remarkable to see how much bigger
she has gotten in such a short amount of time...and I am proud to say it has
all been from breast milk 100%.
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| 24 weeks 3/9/13- Going resale shopping with mommy & Grandma Dorough |
Favorites:
Food- BREASTMILK!
The time is getting closer and closer for us to introduce
her first food. We’ve let her hold slices of apple or a piece of broccoli to
distract her so that we can eat but she hasn’t actually eaten anything yet.
We will be following a very strict diet with her and
utilizing the technique called “Baby led weaning” which makes it an experience
for all of us! It’s exciting but I am a bit nervous at the same time! I will be
sure to blog about that when the time comes.
Book- She actually loves she book her
daddy bought her for Valentine’s Day “Whooo loves you?!” but she loves any book
where she can flip through the pages. If she’s not into a book, she’ll flip
through it very quickly but if she likes staring at the pictures, she actually
takes her time. I’m really not joking. It’s phenomenal.
Song- I have to say her favorite song is
the “Small potatoes” theme song! It’s so sweet and cute.
Toy- We bought her a new toy- the puppy
Laugh & Learn! (got an awesome deal with some coupons!) She was very scared
of it at first but now she loves it!! She gets so proud of herself when she
pushes the buttons and starts the music or sounds herself. What a big girl! Her
grandma Dorough has brought her a couple toys that Estella is immediately drawn
to...she even figured out how to attach her magnetic toys!
Non-toy toy- She grabs for anything and
everything now! She loves to grab our cups! Beware! She will grab your coffee
cup and spill hot coffee all over you. And No...I have not spilled hot coffee
on my daughter but it’s perfectly ok that you just asked yourself that.
Time of day- She is really happiest when
Ryan gets home...during the day I am lucky if I can pee without having her
scream in the background. She is fine playing by herself but needs to have me
within her field of vision.
TV show- Oh my..she’s obsessed with the TV!
When she’s up from her nap, I turn music as background music while she plays so
that she doesn't turn into a TV zombie. Lately though, even if the TV is on,
she takes a lot more interest in her toys especially now that she’s a crazy
roller!
Thing to giggle at- Ryan has better luck at
making her giggle but I’ve been able to sneak a couple belly laughs in here and
there too! Such a sweet sound!
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| 25 weeks (3/16/13)- About to head out to her Auntie Crystal's birthday party @ Lucky Strikes. I love that little smile! |
Firsts/Milestones:
- words? Yeah...our baby girl is
a babble queen! She has already said the following: ma, na, da, ba, la à and in various combinations. She also says “mum”
quite often. When I ask her to say “mama” she just gives me a big smile like
she knows! Ryan has heard her say MAMA to me many times already though...I
think he’s a tad jealous hehe!
Here is a video that Ryan and I
think is cute (from yesterday):
- We practice “sitting” with her everyday and she’s
starting to become more confident although now her new thing is to do a
complete face plant because she prefers being on her tummy. She’s getting
really good at it.
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Getting the hang of sitting on her own slowly but surely! :)
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- She is definitely very attached to Ryan and I...no
matter how often we take her out, expose her to other babies and people, etc
etc, our little girl prefers us (which makes complete sense) but definitely
makes it a tad more stressful since we don’t know what her mood will be like
everyday. We just aim to respond to her needs and stick to our belief that
there is no such thing as spoiling a baby...even when people like to make their
comments!
- Estella is still teething...and probably will for a very
long time! She started drooling a lot more, chewing on anything and everything,
and biting down on me which is no bueno!
- Estella is FINALLY consistently rolling and back
shuffling! She’s giving us a warning to start “baby proofing” soon! It is
remarkable to see but I will admit I did shed some tears seeing how much she’s
growing. Look at this video:
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3/8/13- First swim class with her daddy- she's so excited!
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- Estella also started SWIM classes at the beginning of
March!! Here she with with her daddy on her first class. Yes she went
underwater and her “Swimming reflex” kicked in! She closed her eyes and held
her breath! It was quite amazing to witness.
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1st swim class with her daddy and she's doing great!
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3/15/13- second swim class in her yellow polka dot bikini courtesy of her Auntie Maria!
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-We finally got a good amount of snow that brought my
husband home two days in a row early (yay!) and we got to take Estella out to
“play”! She didn’t mind it at all!
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Perfect little snow flakes for our snow angle! First time experiencing snow 3/5/13
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-I spent the first longer period of time away from her
because I had a seminar. It was actually harder for me than her although she
didn’t take the bottle so she was a hungry beast by the time I got home. But
here she is as a little demo baby for my pediatrics seminar. She did a great
job!
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3/9/13- She came in to be the baby demo for my pediatrics seminar! She did great!
- My friend, Melissa had her baby the day before us in the
same hospital...well we both decided to throw the girls a HALF BIRTHDAY party!
Celebrating every 6 months is going to be a tradition for us because they
change so much and it gives us a reason to have cake haha
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- I joined a local moms group and joined them for
Storytime @ Barnes & Noble where she met Clifford (she’s giving him the eye
haha) and where she got to participate in her first Easter Egg Hunt (doesn’t
she look like she’s having the time of her life?!). This is a huge thing for me
since I am going out of my comfort zone a lot...many people think I’m an
extrovert but it has just been a learned skill. “Being extrovert”. But whatever
I need to do to give my daughter the most fulfilled life experiences, I’ll do
it. Heck..nothing could be as hard as pushing her out drug free! (haha....which
I still remember by the way!! Eek!)
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Meeting Clifford for story time at Barnes-3/22/13- She's giving him the evil eye haha!
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-We originally planned to spend Easter with my family but
had to cancel since some of my family members were ill...thank goodness we
didn’t go because more people got sick over the weekend too! We were so blessed
to spend it with our church here that we’ve fallen in love with...everyone has
been so welcoming and loving to us. It feels very nice to feel “right” with a
church. We’re both thinking about different ways we can get more plugged in
which is a big step for us.
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Easter Service with mommy & daddy (27 weeks) 3/31/13
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These past 6 months have been the best in my life.
Many parents (I hope) can also echo the same sentiment. She fills this void I never thought would ever be full. Her presence although sparks the best of the best for us, has exposed the areas of myself that I’ve tucked away with lock and key.
Taking a month off facebook wasn’t as difficult as I
thought. Like many feel embarrassed to admit (or some are in denial), I was
addicted. I found myself starting conversations with “Hey did you see that on
facebook, blah blah blah” and it didn’t always contain information that
necessarily brought joy and benefit to my life or to others. I’ve been able to
focus more on cherishing my time with friends and family I communicate with on
a regular basis as well as spend quality time with Estella & Ryan. It’s
also given me time to reflect...oh boy, you know this mama likes to reflect.
The word control and my name often arise as synonyms in
the minds of people around me. I've been told I'm a "control
freak" by people that don't know me well to people that know me the best.
I guess there's something to that then right?
As I look into how much I thrive on controlling situations
and outcomes (cause yeah I do)...it all stems from the lack of control I
experienced in my childhood or what I can remember from it. I'm not making an
excuse for myself or even pushing the blame away...but maybe it can shed
some light to the lack of empathy that comes my way many times.
Just as I ask to be understood...I realize there are many
situations where there are people I refuse to "get"...to "see
from their point of view"..so I know how hard that is. I guess we can
agree that most problems that arise whether trivial or not, come from a lack of
understanding. Whether its not understanding how much hurt you've
projected...not understanding a thought process that could be stemmed from many
insecurities or hurt...not understanding how someone ties physical things such
as alcohol or substances to a past of abuse and destruction...and on & on.
We often forget to surrender. I am guilty of that along
with many others. Even to surrender to the idea that the person you dislike the
most is the most similar to yourself. Or most often to surrender to a life of
sacrifice to the ones you love because you "want" to "have
control".
So where's the balance? Does someone
always lose so that one can win?
The outspoken ones get labeled as control freaks whereas
the passive aggressive folks get labeled as saints. It's not so black and white
really. Both camps are as capable of inflicting their own ideals...even if it
presents in different ways.
This continues to be that "struggle" for me.
Distinguishing between feeding on "control" and really just desiring
something so badly that you would fight with pounding, tears, and even falling
into depths of regret & questioning.
My hope is that my daughter will NOT carry my burdens that still hold strength against me every so often.
She will thrive in the amazing power
from Jesus to lead her in the choices she will make in her life. I pray that my
weaknesses , my past, & my choices will encourage her to not depend on me
but to depend on Him. I pray I will be able to humble myself to let go &
let God for the sake of this beautiful baby who doesn't know hurt yet. I pray
that also for my husband and all the family & friends that have contact
with her. There is such a fine line between accepting someone for who they are
& then loving them so much to push them to their potential. Are we
ourselves to blame for the outcome of someone's life if we stood by and watched
them fall but still claiming that we still LOVED them?
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| 1st Easter Egg Hunt- thrilled obviously :) |
But where does that leave her? Unable to pick herself up when she lands face down? Unable to one day raise her own kids and share her own experiences? Would "enabling" her to be "who she is" rather than who I know she can be...cause her more harm than not?
But the "control freak" screaming inside of me
will have to sit back, be an example to her that I want to teach, and let God
be the center of her life. As hard as it will be for me, I rather her grow to
learn truth even if it hurts her rather than lies presented with a smile.
I know one thing I can ensure...she will know the amazing
God that created her...from Him who all blessings flow. That's one thing I can
say, I will control.
Last night, I saw Ryan's eyes get watery as I told him how well she's doing sitting on her own. She usually sits for a little then ends up just falling over and we're there to catch her.
Last night was different.
She stuck out her hand and caught herself.
We looked at each other and our hearts sank...
She stuck out her hand and caught herself.
We looked at each other and our hearts sank...
This is the beginning. Our baby is slowly and will inevitably not need us anymore...
I totally get it. One day...this 6 months we are celebrating will turn into her 16th birthday...then her graduation from high school to a life on her own in college...to raising her own child one day.
But no matter what, she's still and will always be our baby.
Mommy & Daddy love you more than you can fathom Estella Malisone.
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