Ali’s 6 & 7 month update
Whaaaaaaat?
How in the world is my infant already 7 months old?
You guys.
I thought I had just written an update.
But that was two months ago.
Whaaaaat.
Here’s another. For the record, I’m super thankful I wrote these with Raffi so that when I panic and wonder things about Ali all I have to do is refer back to my kid updates to see she’s normal.
Let’s see. Well. Basically everything’s changed since the last time I wrote. Here goes nothing…
1. Ali’s sitting up unassisted and never tips over.
2. Ali’s crawling on all fours. At this age Raffi preferred the army crawl followed by the bear crawl. Ali has skipped directly to the human crawl.
3. Ali’s pulling to stand. She doesn’t do it all the time, but when the conditions are right (mainly no socks + something sturdy + no toys in reach + no big brother to entertain her) she does it.
4. There are still no teeth to be seen. No white dots in her mouth. No super extra drooling. She’s still gummy and I love it. As an aside, remember that old SNL skit with Molly Shannon where the lady says “I love it I love it I LOVE it!” and she kicks her leg in the air? That skit came out over 13 years ago. Makes you feel old if you remember it, and young if you have no idea what I’m talking about, right?
5. The kids can finally play together! Not super officially, but Raffi will bring her a toy, she’ll take it and eat it, and Raffi will tell himself “good job!” They will also lay or sit together and play with the same puzzle, but they obviously play differently. Ali marks her territory on all the pieces with drool, and Raffi assembles the puzzle.
6. Separation anxiety is here! Some days it means Alessandra will cry if I leave the room. Other days it means she will crawl over to me wherever I am and tug on my pants until I pick her up. It is adorable.
7. After strongly stating that I was NOT going to do baby led weaning this time around, here I am doing it again. I still give Ali some purees here and there, but for the most part she is eating table foods. She is a better eater than Raffi was at this age in that she’s only gagged once so far. And she is HUNGRY. She will eat about 4 oz of whatever veggie or fruit I’ve pureed plus will try anything else I put on her plate. I hate this stage for how messy it is but love it because the kid will actually try the delicious meals I make. At 2 years old, Raffi won’t even let certain foods remain on his plate.
8. Ali’s schedule changed a bit over the last two months.
At 6 months it looked like this:
7 AM Awake
8 AM Nurse
9-10:30 AM Nap
12 PM Nurse
1-3 PM Nap
4 PM Nurse
6 PM Dinner (most nights, some nights we didn’t get to it)
Bedtime (7:30 PM or so) Nurse
8 PM- 7 AM Asleep
At 7 months her schedule looks like this as we added in breakfast:
7 AM Awake and immediately nurses (and panics if she can’t nurse the minute she wakes up)
8 AM Breakfast (most days, some days she is tired too quickly)
9-10:30 AM Nap
12 PM Nurse
1-3 PM Nap
4 PM Nurse
6 PM Dinner
Bedtime (7:30 PM or so) Nurse
8 PM- 7 AM Asleep
I imagine we will add in lunch in another few weeks.
9. If Ali falls asleep in the car or a moving stroller, she will immediately wake up upon arrival. That means I try hard to respect her naps and be at home from 9-11 AM and from 1-3 PM every day. It is HARD. That doesn’t leave a big window for fun things. In the morning I have a task list I must run down every single day that doesn’t end until her nap. It looks like this:
Exercise if I’m not lazy
Shower before the kids get up
Make all beds (our bed, Raffi’s crib, Ali’s crib)
Get Raffi. Give him his milk and water.
Get Ali. Change her diaper and nurse her.
Bring both kids downstairs.
Make breakfast for Raffi, Ali and myself.
Feed Ali while eating my own breakfast.
Clean up Ali’s highchair and bib, clean Raffi’s booster and placemat
Pump the side she didn’t nurse on
Clean pump parts
Get kids changed into real clothes for the day
Start a load of laundry
Put Ali down for her nap
That series happens every single morning and it’s over 2 hours long IF I don’t exercise. What am I doing wrong? I’ve tried filling Raffi’s water cup the night before and laying out my mug, teabag, plate and knife, but it only saves me a few minutes. I even lay the kids’ outfits out the night before! I know there has to be a better way…
10. Ali is such a jumping bean. If she’s happy she will jump aggressively and throw her head around. Sometimes she throws her head too hard, hits the back of the highchair, and then has this bewildered look on her face. It cracks me up every time.
11. We have no issues with getting Ali to take a bottle. I don’t what we did differently, but she loves her bottle and even started feeding it to herself. I drove up alone to RI with the two kids last weekend, and during one particularly long stretch of traffic I handed Ali her bottle and she held it up like a champ. I was so proud.
12. Raffi’s music never gets old for her. Whenever he plays his drum she immediately starts dancing for him. She loves any form of music and will turn her head to the side to listen.
13. She dropped her pacifier on her own. And she sucks her thumb instead. At around 6 months she would play with the pacifier if I gave it to her and wouldn’t sleep. So we just took it away cold turkey and we’ve been fine. Instead, we’ve got the bigger problem of a thumb sucker. It’s cute for now and I’m not yet discouraging it.
14. There’s finally something for Ali to do at the playground! She took her first swingride at 6.5 months and is obsessed. She will ride the swings as long as you’ll let her, and she’ll smile the whole time. It’s lovely.
Click on the photos to enlarge:
Random facts:
Weight: More than 15 lbs, unsure of details
Height: unknown
Sizes: still a size 3 in diapers, 6-12 months in all clothing
Sleep: 11.5 straight hours, 2 naps (9 AM and 1 PM)
Likes: eating, sitting in her highchair, being held, music, funny faces, reading books, touching things, eating her toys, stroller walks, naptime and bedtime, baths, church music, other kids,
Dislikes: being in a stroller in a confined space (like our hallway), when others eat in front of her and she isn’t offered any
Pureed foods she’s tried: peas, prunes, sweet potatoes, applesauce, pears,
Other foods she’s tried: broccoli, puffs, MumMums, breads of all types, sweet potatoes, cooked pear slices, cooked apples, strawberries (although someone told me I’m supposed to delay introduction of these – whoops), meatballs, rice, store-bought rotisserie chicken, pasta,
Favorite toys: B. Parum Pum Pum Drum, her handmade Taggie, blocks, anything with eyes
Read more:
Raffi’s 6 & 7 month update
Previous updates
9 Responses to “Ali’s 6 & 7 month update”
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What a precious babe! You are doing a great job, Mama.
Can’t believe she is 7 months! She has such adorable outfits :). Something I do to streamline the morning routine is to get everyone dressed before coming downstairs. I lay out outfits the night before then put them on during that first diaper change. Also pimp while I eat. Is yours hands free? If so you could pump while you all eat.
I do the same as Molly Light–I pump while we are eating and/or checking email.
I typically pumped on one side while they breastfed on the other.
How do you pump while nursing? You put on a handsfree bra or? Do you sit in a chair or on the couch? Please share!
A must watch video…:)
https://www.facebook.com/KnorrIndia/posts/695561397123224
Raffi and my son are close in age (a month apart I believe) as are Ali and my second son. You seem to have it all together so much better than I!! Luca, my 6 month old refuses to take a bottle, sleep longer than a 2 hours at a time and hates being put down. Roman, my 2 year old, was such an easy baby in comparison!! How were you able to get your babe’s to be such rock star sleepers?? What I wouldn’t give for 3 uninterrupted hours- of anything : )
New reader here! I stumbled onto your blog through Pinterest. I love finding local bloggers.
Your babies look to be almost the same exact age as mine. Mine are also starting to play together and it’s one of the best things about parenting two. I imagine they’ll soon start teaming up on me and then I’ll really be in for it.
Cool! Hi! Where do you live? We live in Center City!