Ahh!! I can not believe my kid is 5 months old!
Where has the time gone?
This has been a super fun month for us. After a long 4 months, Blakely has finally exited the colic stage and she is such a joy to be around. Don't get me wrong, I have always loved my child unconditionally but lets be honest a fussy baby is not always enjoyable :)
Height: Unofficial
We didn't have a doctor's appointment this month, well at least not one where they measured this but I can tell she is getting taller because her 0-3 month sleepers are getting to be too short. I am going to need to go buy new sleepers when it starts to get colder and she isn't sleeping in just a onesie!
Weight
We went to the doctor on Wednesday September 11th because little miss had her first cold and since she had a temperature we wanted to make sure it really was just a cold. At this appointment she weight 12lbs 10 oz, so she gained 1 lb, 2.5 oz since her 4 month appointment that was less than three weeks ago, which is AWESOME for her!
Head Circumference
As mentioned in the last post, this was an area I was super concerned about last month. We have been working really hard at increasing her neck flexibility and keeping her off her back to help the flat spot disappear.
Her head control is getting really good and she loves sitting in her bumbo seat. She will sit in this in the evening for about 15 minutes while I get dinner started before her daddy gets home. She will also sit in it in the morning if she gets up before I am done getting ready.
We had a PT friend look at her and she gave us some good exercises to do to help Blakely and also referred us to Johnson County Infant Toddler Service.
I student taught with Infant Toddler Services of Johnson County for my Master's, the summer before we got pregnant. We had an evaluation on Thursday October 26th. They went back and forth but eventually they did decided to go and head and qualify her based on... 1. the fact that she doesn't tolerate tummy time and 2. she has a mild case of tortecollis, as found by Dr. Hilary and myself. However, they aren't as concerned about her ability to turn her head left and right, they said that was good ( we have been working really hard the past month on that!) but more because when she is being held or laying down her head tilts to the left which means her neck muscles aren't strong enough to hold her head up and need to be strengthened. They said we probably won't receive services for long.
I have mixed emotions about it all. Part of me is so glad that there is free and appropriate help out there for us (seriously, I don't think enough people know about ITS and the wonderful work they do) and the other part of me is heartbroken that we are having to receive services. I feel like I have failed my child, I mean for crying out loud I am qualified to be an ITS service provider and I now my kid needs their help.
Some things they told me that were very helpful and put me at ease is 1. her head shape is looking OK and will improve with time if we keep doing a good job of keeping her off her back like we have been doing the past month. 2. Her tortecollis is very mild and easily "fixed." and 3. When it comes to tummy time it isn't about duration but instead frequency. So we just need to be providing her with a ton of opportunities to be on her tummy even if it isn't for long and eventually she will be able to tolerate it longer and longer.
I have mixed emotions about it all. Part of me is so glad that there is free and appropriate help out there for us (seriously, I don't think enough people know about ITS and the wonderful work they do) and the other part of me is heartbroken that we are having to receive services. I feel like I have failed my child, I mean for crying out loud I am qualified to be an ITS service provider and I now my kid needs their help.
Some things they told me that were very helpful and put me at ease is 1. her head shape is looking OK and will improve with time if we keep doing a good job of keeping her off her back like we have been doing the past month. 2. Her tortecollis is very mild and easily "fixed." and 3. When it comes to tummy time it isn't about duration but instead frequency. So we just need to be providing her with a ton of opportunities to be on her tummy even if it isn't for long and eventually she will be able to tolerate it longer and longer.
Sizes
Blakely has grown out of most of her 0-3 month clothes and she can wear some 3-6 month clothes. Clothes that are labeled "3 months" fit just right. Not bad, just two month behind :)
Social
She is quite the social butterfly and is so very talkative, she coos and giggles and smiles at the littlest things. Blakely and Sawyer have lots of good conversations during the week :)
On the Move
We haven't seen her roll much lately but we have been focusing so much on keeping her off her back to help the flat spot on her head that she hasn't really had much time to practice her rolling. She does however love to stand up while you hold her hands or under her arms.
Food
We haven't tried "foods" yet. I think I am going to wait til 6 months. She just doesn't seem big enough, but you can tell on her gums where a few teeth trying to push through!
We are still working hard to make breast feeding work. I am still not producing enough. I pump three times at school during the day and only get a combined 8-9 oz! So I get up in the middle of the night and pump. During the night I was able to get 5-6 oz but I am now getting 7 sometimes, so that is an improvement.
However, it is still only 13-16 oz per day and Beemer is now taking 3, 6 oz bottles during the day, making it impossible for me to produce enough. So we are doing two 6 oz breast milk bottles and one 6 oz formula bottle. Even on the weekends we have been giving her one formula bottle a day.
It isn't ideal, but it is the situation we have been given. I get frustrated that I am working so hard and still not able to fully provide. But I keep telling myself that some is better than none and that I am so thankful I live in a time where supplemental options like formula are available. I mean, what would happen if we lived in pioneer times when there was no formula options?
Sleep
My kid is the sleeping champ! She goes down at 8-8:30 barely making a peep. Unless we try to put her down early, then she will scream and cry til 8-8:30, so now we don't even try to put her down earlier. She will sleep until 6:40 am, and I mean 6:40 on the dot. On Saturdays and Sundays I can feed her and put her back down til 9 am!
She usually wakes up once to eat in the middle of the night, but lately there a have been a couple nights per week when she makes it all night long. I have to admit as much as I like her sleeping through the night that when I wake up and realize she slept all night long and I start to miss her really bad and can't wait for her to wake up!
Likes
She loves to talk, giggle, and coo.
Play with her toys (I mean, put them in her mouth)
Music and being sung too
Sawyer :)
Her Daddy
Her mommy's hair and necklaces
Dislikes
Still not a huge fan of tummy time, getting stronger though!
We love this kid more than we could ever imagine possible and can't believe our next post will be 6 months, that's half a flipping year! YIKES!
My 5 month picture montage is lacking as you can see. My phone broke this week and I lost all my pictures! Note to self, transfer pictures to computer more often! Hopefully I can steal some off my mom's phone soon and add some more for memorie's sake!
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| One of my favorite summer outfits! From a former student and her family. Such Sweetness! |
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| We went to a wedding in Salina, KS and little miss kept herself entertained. Playing Peek-A-Boo all by herself! |
