everything that shines: 6 months

happy 6 month birthday to our baby girl! sweet caroline is really growing up and certainly has her own little personality. she definitely knows what she wants...and who she wants. and she makes it clear when she's not happy! she's been teething for the past few weeks and is definitely uncomfortable, but with some teething tablets before naptime and an occasional frozen washcloth to chew on she handles it pretty well. as long as she's with mommy or daddy. if she's tired or her mouth is hurting, she does NOT want to be with anyone else. actually, she rarely wants to be with anyone else at all, but especially not if she's tired or hurting. although for us it's sweet to be on the receiving end of the smiles and snuggles from a girl that is so thankful we're there, it can make it somewhat difficult for everyone else. so far we've been called out of church/bible study about half the time because they can't comfort her in the nursery. and we often come home to stories of a screaming baby when other people (even family members that she knows) babysit. of course, as soon as we get there she is all smiles and snuggles! the pediatrician told me it's a sign of "early social maturity" because she's so attached to us and knows when we're gone...so we'll go with that and pretend it's a good thing :).

as for big milestones this month, she got her first tooth, is sitting like a pro, and started solid food the day after her 6 month birthday. her first tooth was her bottom front tooth on the right side and the one on the left side is not far behind. she loves to stand and sit would rather do that all day than lay down. about the only time she spends on her tummy anymore is when she dives forward from sitting to reach a toy and ends up on her tummy. quinn has started asking her to play with him (really sweet story which i will share later) so she enjoys sitting on the floor playing trains with him. she also likes to stand and can hold herself up in standing for about a minute with something to hold onto.

and, just because i like to remember these kinds of things, she is sleeping through the night (from 8-9pm until around 7am) most nights, though some nights she wakes up around 4am and eats before going back to sleep until around 8. we have been weaning her from the swaddle, so she sleeps in the swaddle but with both arms out now. and she's started sleeping with her monkey lovey - the pink version of the monkey quinn's had since he was a baby. for the most part, if you lay her down almost - but not quite - asleep, she will roll over on her side, snuggle her lovey up to her face, and go to sleep. she nurses 4-5 times/day and eats solid food 1-2 times/day.

and as you can see from the pictures below, she loves her big brother with her whole heart. and he loves her right back. he loves to help take care of her and make her laugh. he is often the first one to go in when she wakes up - he just lies down next to her and they make silly noises and crack each other up. they sit and "play" together and she thinks he's absolutely hilarious. he shares his toys in the car, sings to her, and talks to her and she just eats it up. such a sweet relationship they are building.

6 month stats:

weight: 16.3 lbs (58th percentile)

length: 27 inches (90th percentile)

head circumference: 17.2 inches (85th percentile)