Mostly the Kids: Ellen, 7 months (12/11/2011)

Dear Ellen,

The past month was quiet for the most part but picked up towards the end of November with Thanksgiving. We mostly worked around the house and it was nice to have some down time before things start picking up during Advent. I really enjoy spending time together as a family, and I can’t wait until we can all do activities together.

My Favorite Thing: I love how you are starting to take a more active role in whatever we are doing. The days in which you would lounge passively in the baby carrier watching everyone else are waning - you are ready to be on the floor playing all of the time! This is one of the easiest ages because you are sitting to play on your own but can’t move very far. I am (foolishly?) looking forward to you crawling…

Daily Activities and Playing: You are generally content to sit and play by yourself with whatever toys are nearby, but you are also starting to gain interest in moving around to get new toys or explore. Crawling can’t be far off! On 11/18, you started pushing up into the box position, rocking back and forth and experimenting with movement. You also started playing on the piano this month. I loved the expression you gave when you first (unintentionally) hit the keys. Your eyes got wide as if to say, “I made that noise?!”

Sibling: We are trying to encourage you to crawl by placing toys a little ways off, but Ian doesn’t like it when you protest so he keeps bringing toys to you (“Ellen needs this toy!”). All of your interactions are very sweet, and since you are still not mobile he is very happy to play in the same room as you. He especially likes to go stand on the bottom rail of the crib while you are laying in there so he can talk to you. I even caught him crawling into the crib with you once (he hasn’t repeated that, yet). Sometimes he will also play peek-a-boo with you using the bumper on the crib.

Eating: The daily routine is still for you to nurse in the morning and evening (before dinner) and take two 6-7 oz breastmilk bottles during the day. We served 1 cereal meal per day at dinner with the family, but whether or not you eat it has been hit or miss. I tried roasting and milling some bananas for you to eat. It was a fun experiment, but you preferred the chunkier texture of fresh banana and it was certainly to prepare that way. Just before Thanksgiving, you got very sick with a very high fever, and this definitely curtailed your appetite. Luckily I didn’t have to go to work that week so I could keep you home from school and take you to the doctor with no problems.

Sleeping: You continue to be very easy to put down and a solid sleeper. You have started going to bed a little earlier, consistently close to 8. A couple of times you went to bed around 7:45! Your wake time is generally 6:30 or 7:00, and I have had to go wake you up for breakfast a couple of weekday mornings (I let you sleep as late as you want on the weekends!) You pretty much go to sleep on your tummy now and stay that way for most of the night. You still sleep most mornings and evenings on our drive to and from work and take one long nap around noon while at school. Weekend routines vary depending on what else is going on… if we drive somewhere you will snooze on the drive and then take one long afternoon nap, but if we are at home all day you will take 3 hour long naps. You still only use your pacifier when you are sleepy and can get it in and out of your mouth. If you don’t have access to the pacifier and are upset, you will suck your thumb, but it really doesn’t happen very much anymore.

Special Events: Lots of things happened in the past month – we were constantly on the go! We celebrated Thanksgiving at Gram and Pops’ house, but unfortunately you couldn’t enjoy any of the delicious food yet. Maybe next year! A week and a half later, Mama and Daddy both ran in the White Rock Half Marathon while you and Ian stayed home with Gram and Pops. What a change from last year’s race, when you were 4 months in utero! The next weekend we took family pictures with the Lewickis and then went to cousin Beckett’s first birthday party (which was a mad house… so many people were there!). The next day was our last day at FaithBridge Church before it closed its doors. We were sad to say goodbye to all of our friends there but are looking forward to finding a new church home and meeting more people.