FFF: Karis at 6-7 mos

Here's a condensed update on Karis at 6-7 months.  I'm still working on an update on therapy... these longer ones just take so much more time and thought to write out... and extra time certainly isn't growing on any trees down in Mississippi this time of the year, so I appreciate your patience.  :)

First, a picture of the sweetest little smile/laugh I've seen around...

Although Karis has been smiling for a few months now, only in the past two weeks have her smiles become more social and her laughs more frequent.  And talk about soaking them in, this mama's heart just loves seeing those sweet gummy smiles and hearing those deep belly laughs.  Here's a tickling video:



Based on those sweet smiles I've been getting lately, I've been telling Hugh that I'm pretty sure we have quite the social little girl on our hands.  She loves being held and talked to (even by strangers, which was not true of Enoch), and sometimes when I lay her down and leave the room for just a minute she will yell at me to come back.  haha.  She also loves to give kisses these days... multiple ones at a time with her sweet little hands squishing your cheeks together and her wet little mouth planting big ones all over your face.  :)  

Here are some other basics about our Sweet Karis Girl:


Eating- Sweet Girl is still nursing, usually 5-7 times per day.  At around 6 months my milk supply started dropping (I think), so I stopped block feeding and began nursing her on both sides each time she was hungry.  (I also increased my pumping from once per day to twice per day so that my body will continue making enough milk.)  At around 6 months, I also began introducing solids to Karis' diet.  That didn't go so well due to her tongue thrust (basically spitting everything that entered her mouth back out), so at around 7 months we started seeing a speech therapist.  She has helped us tremendously, and now Sweet Girl is actually eating some basic solids once per day (mainly fruits & veggies).  We are also currently working on introducing a straw cup... again, I'm hoping to most more on this soon!!

Size-  Karis is just about to outgrow her 9 months clothes now and is still long-legged with shorter arms, meaning she typically has her shirt sleeves rolled up at least once.  ;)  She's still in a size 3 diaper and weighed in around 16 pounds and 26 inches at her 6 month check up. 

Sleeping-  Karis typically takes 2-3 naps during the daytime (still not very scheduled though) and sleeps from 6:30 pm until 6:30 am without much fuss.  She hasn't mastered the skill of falling asleep by herself yet, but we continue to work on it, just at a slower pace than we did with Enoch.

playing with Enoch

Playing- Sweet Girl is quite the player these days!  She's quite the wiggle-worm, and she is very determined and adventurous.  Right now her favorite things to do include: putting toys in her mouth, watching Enoch play, sitting in laps and being talked to, getting (that's what we call her grabbing whatever is in front of her, whether a toy, face, table, or whatever), rolling, being worn in a wrap (on mama), pulling hair, being tickled, and reading books (which she also likes to get).

Sitting up

Milestones- Karis is doing great with rolling now, she can chain roll where ever she wants to go.  She's still learning how to pivot on her belly as well as how to sit unassisted and how to crawl.  I am convinced that her PT is really helping with these skills.  As for OT, Karis is definitely showing improvement as well.  She's able to pick up toys from a table and grab them when they're presented to her.  Right now in OT we are working on other skills like transferring objects from one hand to the other, the pincer grasp, and games like peek-a-boo.  Most of these things are challenging for Sweet Girl right now though because she  really only has one goal with anything she can get in her hands: to put it in her mouth.  ;)  Our OT says it's just a phase though, so we are continuing to work with her, trusting that soon she'll move past the teething stage.

Here's a video of us working on sitting up unassisted. I think it's so cute how hard she works at getting her blue mirror (one of her favorite toys right now)!

Schedule-  Surprisingly, Karis' schedule is pretty similar to the one she was on at 3-4 mos only she has dropped out the late afternoon nap (3 per day now) and she goes to bed earlier (between 5:30-6:30).  Her naps are typically still pretty short (45 min each) and irregular, as I mentioned above.  I'm really hoping she gets into a better routine soon though because her therapy happens at the same time twice per week.  Right now the timing works out well because Enoch is napping at home and usually Karis has just finished a nap so she's alert and happy, but man it's a bummer on those days where she's had spotty naps all morning and then when we arrive at therapy she decides she would rather sleep than work.  :(  And so we're working toward a more regular nap schedule... 

Overall, we are still enjoying Karis so much!  It's so fun watching her grow and develop, and we are thankful for everyday we are given with her.  One of my favorite times with her is early in the morning when she first wakes up to nurse and is warm and snuggly in her fleece sleeper.  I love just holding her, nursing her, and rocking her.  :)  And the boys are no less in love.  Enoch loves giving her kisses and hugs (still!), and Hugh is really enjoying playing with her as well as accepting every wet kiss she offers him.  :)

 

swinging outside (another passtime she enjoys)