Sunday, July 28, 2013

7 months old

The two weeks leading up to Charlotte turning 7 months (so, about 3 weeks ago since I'm a total slacker this month!), Charlotte woke up so grown up.




 She decided that she no longer wanted to crawl like a frog.  It started with getting her knees up for 2-3 crawls, then flopping on her belly.  Then, an hour later, it would be 4-5 crawls on her knees, then another hour would pass and she would get halfway across the room.  By July 1st, she was officially crawling.  Everywhere.  Without flopping.  So cute.  So fast.  So not ready for it.  And she's so proud of herself.  She'll be crawling and look behind to give you this shy, sweet little smile.  Of course, now she doesn't like to be held nearly as much.



When Charlotte wants to pick something up on the ground, she rocks on her knees, almost to judge where she should stop, to be in a good place.  Then, she flops herself down to get it.  So stinkin' cute.



The next morning, she had 2 bottom teeth.  She's the youngest of the girls to have had teeth break through, so I was shocked.  And, although it was a couple of days where she fussed a bit, she was actually pretty darn good through them cutting.  She continued sleeping through the night, and would just want to chew on everything.  Really, we were pretty lucky.  Knock on wood.  Hopefully it continues.



Since then, Charlotte has started sitting on her own.  Not just sitting, she goes from crawling, to a sitting position, and from sitting to crawling.  Or to her tummy, or her back.  I remember Kaitlyn and Samantha both having a lot more time crawling under their belt before accomplishing the transitions.  Of course, they both sat on their own earlier too..



She loves pulling herself up.  She can get onto her knees and sit up fully without support, but she likes to use the couch, table, our legs or anything else to get as high as possible.  It'll only be a matter of time before she is standing.  Then walking.  It feels like time is going by so fast.  Someone asked me the other day how old she was and I found myself nearly saying 4 months.  7 months is just so close to 1.  And so close to not being a baby.



Charlotte is a wonderful eater.  She is still nursing every 2 hours through the day, finishing off 2 stage 3 jars of food a day, plus 6 oz of formula before bed every night.  She's still pretty petite though.  Just hitting 16 lbs (26%), but so long.  28 inches (92%).  So far, she loves it all.  Except things tomato based.  Which kinda shocks me.  Especially considering how the girls are. 



Charlotte is a cuddly, loving and nosy little girl.  She loves being in the middle of everything and does not like to be left out of the playing.  She doesn't like Daddy and her sisters rough housing, it makes her lip quiver.  She cracks up at Kaitlyn and Samantha both and is so spoiled by those girls.  She has an amazing personality and squishes up her little nose and does all sorts of funny things with her eyebrows and lips.  She is pretty happy most of the time.  As long as she isn't in the car.  She absolutely despises the car.



Our little red headed, blue eyed little princess is growing before our eyes.  She is loved, adored and treasured beyond measure.


Charlotte's hip ultrasound is tomorrow (Monday, July 29th), so think happy thoughts.  I'm fairly positive it will come back normal, and they ended up cancelling her appointment last week to make it with a specialist, so I'm confident we will have answers tomorrow.

Monday, July 8, 2013

Summer Camp

When I was younger, I went to summer camp once as a camper.  I was 12.  I think.  If I remember correctly.  It was a 4-H camp.  I remember making so many friends and having so much fun.  I also remember being incredibly nervous, excited, homesick and wondering what in the world I was even doing there. 

In the years that followed, I was a camp counselor for the West Sacramento Kiwanis camp.  A week away.  A week with 9 - 11 year old campers who were experiencing a lot of what I was feeling once upon a time.  It was so much fun.  It was also hot, dirty, memorable and a special opportunity.

For as long as I can remember, my grandma has helped run Kiwanis camp.  It's just one of those things that she's done. 50 kids go.  Half boys and half girls.  Teens are counselors and adults are staff.  They are broken down into groups of 5.  They hike, camp, fish, explore, learn important skills, sing silly campfire songs and make life long friends.

This year, Kaitlyn asked to go to camp.  Kiwanis camp.  For an entire week, a 2 hour drive away.  Holy moly.  That's a long time.  And with limited cell service with my grandma, and kids not allowed to bring electronics, it feels like forever since we've talked to her.  Instead, it was Sunday afternoon.  About an hour after she left, I told Dusty that I wish I would have told her no.

For all of her attitude, dramatics and inability to listen, she's also hysterically funny, insanely helpful and one of my most favorite people.

On Sunday, Kaitlyn took her own (huge) duffel bag to the bus and helped her daddy load it on.  She found a friend to sit with after they loaded up, and she waved good-bye as her 2 year old sister cried hysterically for several minutes.  I worry that she's not having fun, that she misses us too much, that she's not making friends, that there are too many mosquitoes, that she isn't eating or brushing her teeth.  I worry that she is just absolutely miserable and wishes we would just come and rescue her.

But, this is Kaitlyn.  She misses us at night I'm sure.  But, just for a little bit before falling asleep.  Kaitlyn is making friends and making memories.  And on Wednesday we will sneak away for a couple hours and surprise her.  And it will be hard for me not to snatch her away and force her to come home with us.


6 month appointment

This morning, Charlotte had her 6 month appointment.  I usually try to do it right on the day they turn that age, but she was late on her 4 month one because of scheduling, which pushed them all back.  I hate it.

At 6 months, they measured Charlotte at 26.75 inches (which I think was off , way too short), 15 lbs and 12 ounces and a 42 cm head circumference.

The appointment was going fairly well.  Samantha kept insisting it was her turn to get a check-up and Charlotte was acting as though she'd be thrilled to switch places.  Her heart murmur is still there, which we expected.  She's showing some growth from her last visit.  She's hitting all of her milestones and then some.  (She's finally sitting up on her own in a steady fashion)  And then it came time for her hips to be checked.

That did not go so well.

Her doctor thinks that Charlotte might have an issue with her hips.  She said there's a possibility that her hip is not properly in the socket and that her left leg appears to be a tiny bit shorter than the right.  There's no way to know for sure without an ultrasound and the earliest we can get in is July 24th.  So, July 24th it is...

The rest of her appointment involved her vaccines, and Samantha still wanting her turn.  If only it were time for flu shots, it would have worked out perfectly!

Since vaccines, we've been nursing away a low grade fever and playing with a baby who goes back and forth between pure joy and pure misery.

Here's hoping tomorrow is a better day and the doctor is beyond wrong about her poor little hips.