23 Jan Delaney Diaries: 10 month check-in
And just like that. You’re 10 months old! The fact that we have started to plan your first birthday makes the fact that we are closing in on a year all that more real! I cannot believe my BABY girl is going to be one.
The past few months have been pure bliss. Not only have we celebrated the holidays and taken our first family vacation, but I truly feel like you and I have found our sweet spot. You have grown into such an amazing little person with so much energy and personality and I seem to have settled into a more comfortable mommy role. I think that it was a mix of you completely sleeping through the night (yay sleep!), less feedings (which more time for fun!), my body started to feel a bit more normal and things just seemed to jive!
Multiple people have told me between 8-11 months are their favorite and I’d have to say so far, I agree! Not that I don’t TREASURE those first 7 months, but to truly get to see and experience the world through you has been so special.
My hearts bursts each time you flash me that cheesey smile, I totally melt with each giggle and I could sit for hours and watch you play and discover new tricks! It’s amazing how much fun (and how fast time passes) I can have with a 22lb bundle of joy.
Each day you seem to learn or absorb something new. This month you have been all about mimicking and I love how you look at us so intently to try and master what it is we are doing – whether it is doing something with our mouth, making a certain sound or dancing. I can remember one morning the three of us were snuggled in bed and Dada yawned, I yawned and then…you opened your mouth and actually made a “yawn” noise. It was the cutest thing ever. You find clicking your tongue to be super amusing and you’re trying real hard to figure out how to wiggle your nose like a bunny.
You’ve figured out waving hi and saying bye-bye. You had a fleeting moment of signing “more”, but now you prefer to just say “please”. You know that I am Mama and you really like to say it when you are hungry and ya want the boob.
Everyone comments on how expressive your eyes and eyebrows are. You are extremely observant and I love when you get locked in on something and then all of a sudden a smile slowly starts to take over your face. You’ve recently started this new thing where you cheese really hard, shrug your shoulders and tilt your head. It’s like you know you are trying to be super cute.
You love to chit chat and I often find you having full on conversations with yourself or your food. I can’t wait to hear the things that come out of your mouth in the next few years.
You are a master crawler, pretty darn proficient with your walker and are a quick little thing! I wouldn’t be surprised if you started walking pretty soon, but who knows!
As for feeding, you’re a monster. You love it all. We are still avoiding all grains and most dairy, you have six teeth (four on the top and two on the bottom) and you are munching on everything. Your favorites still continue to be any sort of protein, veggies, beans and blueberries. We’ve started to play with flavors and textures to expose you to more and you even ate some pretty spicy buffalo chicken the other day that made me sweat! You are eating “real food” three times a day and we try to steer clear of feeding you unless you’re in your highchair at meal times. {Sometimes I give in and give you some of my food on the floor 🙂 }.
In addition to table food, you are still taking four milk feeds a day and I am just letting you call the shots. Some days I feel like you have even skipped the afternoon feed and others an extra one was added. I have no real plan for how long we will breastfeed. Again, I am letting you call the shots and just going on what works best for the both of us! Right now I cherish that time with you so much and feel that connection is really special, so we will keep on truckin’!
If I am at work when it’s time for you to eat, you’re more than happy to take a bottle and this month we’ve given you the chance to feed yourself – which may have been a little over due. Ha. If this is the case, I will just pump and sometimes I will get in an “extra” pump in the morning around 6am or at night at 10pm to just get some extra to store.
Something we are “struggling” with is getting you to drink water from a sippy cup. I can’t say that we’re really stressed about it, nor do we offer it all that often (I just forget), but your going potty regularly, you’re eating and drinking breast milk, so I’m not too concerned. This too, like everything else will come around!
As for sleep, I cannot complain! There was one weekend we spent in Virginia and you did not sleep the best, but that just meant extra time to visit with everyone. When we are home – you go 7pm-7am and two solid 2-3 hour naps during the day. Hot dog! Luckily, you’re very good at putting yourself to sleep. I actually am not sure how you’d respond if we tried to “put” you to sleep, since you’ve maybe fallen asleep on us 4 times since you were a newborn. We have a nice little routine that we’ve done since the beginning.
-We talk about taking or nap or going to bed as we walk up the steps
-Change your diaper and clothes if bedtime – keep the lights low
-Turn on your sleep sheep and humidifier
-Put you in your sleep sack, by this point you’re sucking your thumb and “ready”
-If it’s bedtime, feed you and read the quote to you that on your wall. Kiss you and put you on your belly.
-If it’s nap time, give you a kiss and lay you on your belly
-Usually you’re out right away or talk yourself to sleep.
I’ve noticed if we’re traveling or in an unfamiliar place, you’ll typically cry for 5-10 minutes before falling to sleep. This is what has worked for us and we’ve tried to take each day at a time. Not following any sort of sleep schedule or training other than our little “routine”. Thanks for being pretty darn easy.
This past month has been pretty freaking exciting! We celebrated your first Christmas
We survived another weekend apart while you stayed home with dad and we took a spontaneous trip to Key West!
Yes, the Thursday before Christmas, on our drive to Virginia, we thought it’d be a good idea to book flights to Key West that left on Tuesday. You did great on your first plane ride – sleeping for about a hour and eating and playing for the remainder of the trip.
We spent the next four days walking all over, eating delicious cuban food, enjoying live music and playing in the pool – which you absolutely LOVED. We loved every second of traveling with you and sharing those memories with you. Multiple times we stopped in tracks and said how much fun it was going to be to look back and talk about this with you.
I always knew that I wanted to travel as much as I could with you and this little trip definitely set things in motion! I cannot wait until our next adventure. baby girl!
I can’t believe next time I write we will be just one month away from your first birthday. I am going to be sure to snuggle you extra hard these next few months. Soaking in every moment. But I just want to make it clear…you’ll always be my baby.
We love you more than you’ll ever know, Delaney. This time last year you were still in my belly and you made 2016 the best year of our lives. We are so excited to see what 2017 has in store for the there of us – everyday seems to be better than the last with you!
Likes:
Smiling! Cheesing real hard
Eating! You love sitting at the table and having conversation with us and your food.
Climbing on us, the stairs, your toys
Live music and just being out and stimulated by all the sites and sounds!
Clapping!
Mimicking us
Sticking out your tongue
Play in all the cabinets and take everything out – especially the plastic forks!
Tub time!
Dislikes:
Not a huge fan of a diaper change, but your getting better. Sometimes. It’s like wrangling a pig!
Being hungry
Getting your face and nose wiped
The Nose Frida. You see that thing coming from a mile away
10 month Favorites:
Hazel Village Stuffed Bunny – she loves chewing on the arms, legs and ears – we found this little company based out of Brooklyn and bought it for her on our trip to NYC. They embroidered a little “D” on the chest for Delaney
Green Toys Stacking Cups – made from recycled milk jugs!
Melissa and Doug Wooden Farm Animal Puzzle
V-Tech Sit and Stand Walker
Goobie Baby Madison Teething Necklace – Was great on the plane and traveling
Banana Training Toothbrush
Hape – Pound and Tap Bench
Safety, Feeding & Travel:
Evenflo Soft and Wide Gate – Easy put up and down. Expands for larger spaces and works on a tension rod. Perfect for moving between rooms
Puj Snug – Ultra soft Spout Cover – Since she keeps trying to stand up in the bath
Safety 1st Cabinet Locks
Safety 1st Finger Guard Cabinet and Drawer Latch
Baby Bjorn Travel Crib Lite – Awesome for traveling, folds up easily, very light & she likes sleeping in it!
Ergo Carrier – Great for traveling! She loves facing out.
Silicone Bibs for feeding – easy to clean, catches food, she doesn’t try to rip it off..yet
Same as months past, IKEA highchair (it’s all you need!), floor mat for easy cleaning, love my dirt devil handheld vacuum)
Disposable Placemats for dining out