Oh my goodness, this is what happens every single month - I plan a post in my mind the whole month then she's already older! My baby girl is totally 7 months old is 2 days, but I'm in denial about how fast this past month flew by!
Between 3 and 4 months I starting practicing letting her self-soothe when she was fussy not crying, and at 4 months I would put her in the crib for short periods of time to look at the mobile, or maybe take a short nap, so she would start to get used to it. It was so difficult for me to make that nighttime transition though. It still feels weird that she's down the hall from me. I don't always prefer it, though I could totally tell when it was time, and when the space and the comfort of it was the best for her. And of course I just might have slept in there on the floor that first night! I also make plenty of trips down the hall just to see and feel her breathing. It always reminds me to be thankful for this precious life. She does seem to sleep great in there. Now she is a great self-soother, and almost always gets herself to sleep without getting upset, which I'm so thankful for. (Now if she's over-tired it might take a little more effort.) Selah only has tears if there's a real reason it seems. I will say that while I'm not a follower of Babywise, I did find a book that has been helpful called "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child," and has a lot of good stuff in it that really seemed to also fit with my instincts and desires, while also helping me make wise choices for Selah.
I don't regret one single second of holding my sweet baby girl, or letting her take naps in my lap, which happened a lot those first 3 months. She is growing so fast from a baby to a little girl, and I treasure every moment we've been blessed to spend with her so far. I'm especially thankful for those months because now that I have my energy back it seems like there's so much I want to fit in during nap times. Sometimes I have to remind myself to be still like I was so often then.
Every night I lay my hands on her, praise the Lord for her life, and pray in the name of Jesus for his continued protection of her life. My favorite sight in the whole world is to look in and seek her little chest and belly rise up and down, as the Lord continues to give her each beautiful breath. I would rather stare at the wonder of my baby girl than any great wonder of the world. I am overflowing with gratitude for this life the Lord allows me to live. Kevin and I intensely enjoy our little family, including sweet Chai, who loves our baby girl as well. He was a little nervous at first, but now we can totally tell how protective he is of her, and how much he loves to see her after we've been out of the house for a bit. She also just loves to get her hands on him, and lights up when she sees him.
Selah is not yet sitting up, but she is rolling all across the room and loving her toys. She can also work her feet to propel herself all around in a circle. She loves to shake anything that rattles, and play with anything that crinkles. She also loves banging her toys together so they make noise. She really loves reading books, (and chewing on them), and she still really enjoys bath time. Her favorite part is getting to chew on a washcloth. Kevin and I love singing to her, and making her smile and laugh. She's a great car rider, and extremely flexible in most any situation. She really seems to love people, and each week she enjoys the nursery at church. (We started that at 5 months). She does seem to get a cold from it most every week, which we don't love. Oh, and right around my brother's birthday at the end of March she started waving on her own...so cute! Kevin has been working with her even more on this since then.
(Check out that laundry - totally keeping it real!)
Breastfeeding is still going great, and it is the number one thing I am so thankful I persevered through and worked hard at. It's been a very special experience for me, more than I would have thought. Our pediatrician had told us at 4 weeks that I would always probably have to supplement, but at 6 weeks, with the wonderful help of my lactation consultant and some curl my toes hard work, we never had to supplement again. (and I was able to stop pumping 10 times a day - that was awful.) It's amazing what a different experience the whole thing is by 3 months! Not everyone's preference, I know (and respect!), but it has been something I've loved. I know we are now right on the edge of what it will be like once Selah realizes she can get down from my lap on her own! Though we're not rushing that mobile phase. :)
She makes the cutest, funniest noises, that we call the pterodactyl. It's hilarious. She does this especially when she wants to get your attention or "talk." She also loves to make all kinds of noises with her mouth, and she sticks her tongue out a lot. We just love all her little personality traits.
Besides the Jesus Storybook Bible and her Goodnight Bible, our favorite books to read are "I Love You This Much," "On the Night You Were Born," "God Created Everything," "Pat the Bunny," "Mommy Hugs," "Guess How Much I Love You," "Wherever You Are," and "Ten Tiny Puppies." She also likes all the Eric Carle books. My favorite moments of the day include when I sing to her, dance with her, and greet her super smiling face after a good nap. I also love feeding her and staring into those amazing blue eyes of hers. We also love our walks. She could contentedly go forever in that stroller it seems. Maybe she experiences God through nature much like her mom. :) Hopefully we'll be taking her hiking during this beautiful spring soon.
She is truly fascinating to both Kevin and I. We are constantly commenting on how neat she is, and we just can't tell her enough how much we love her. Kevin always tells her how we love how God made her. We call her Selah girl, Baby girl, Sweet girl, and Baby Love - probaby in that order. We sing the first few lines of the song, "Baby Love" to her what seems like a hundred times a day...sometimes changing the first words to "Selah girl, my Selah girl, I love you oh how I love you girl!" Then I say, 'doo-ta-doo, do do da doo-ooh, do do do' which honestly seems like her favorite line. Ha. :) She also loves the song, "I love you, a bushel and a peck," and my grandma recently taught me the rest of it when she sang it to Selah! It was so sweet. Selah is also fond of bouncing on my knee, or anything you do to try to make her laugh. She really gets a kick out of our craziness.
6 months also brough Selah's first March Madness experience - which was pretty amazing given the fact that we live in Kentucky, her daddy's a crazy UK fan and UK won it all! The whole tournament was fun though - it seemed like there were so many good games this year, and we enjoyed every one! I also made my first quilt and Selah tried solid food. (which so far she's a little indifferent to.) She also was so brave for her shots. Kevin and I on the other hand, well, it was not our favorite thing!
It's just so crazy how much I feel joy in being Selah's mom, and how I have the most unbelievable peace that this is what I was created for. And that must be why I longed for, dreamed about, and desperately prayed that this would be a reality in my life. Which is why I thank the Lord over and over every day that He gives me to enjoy it. He is incredibly gracious and an amazing gift giver, that's for sure!
Well, the sunshine, springtime, and regular nap times have brought with them some extra energy and focus for me, thankfully! Hopefully that means I'm also coming more regularly back to blogging. Though my computer is broken so that doesn't make it much easier, I have to say. But I do feel like I have much to catch up on, and a lot to share about what God is teaching me lately. And I sure do love and miss my bloggy friendships! Thanks for reading!
