Eleanor at 6 Months

As of this morning, Eleanor now weighs 15 lbs 8.8oz, has a head circumference of 16 3/4"and is 27 3/4" tall. Compare her to William at 6 months.

Starting at the beginning of January, she started another growth spurt and it threw her sleep into chaos once again. Naps were all over the place and she was getting up at many as 7 times a night! I was exhausted! Now that the growth spurt is over (about three weeks ago) she is back to getting up only one time (or sometimes none!) each night, which is much more manageable. Her naps have also significantly improved. Now her schedule is that she wakes for the day between 6:30 and 7:30, her first nap starts around 8:30 or 9 and lasts from 30-60 minutes. Her second nap starts around 1pm (usually I put her down right after I get Will down for his nap), and lasts until somewhere between 3 or 4, and then she goes down for bed at 7pm sharp (she starts rubbing her eyes and getting fussy at 6:30). So this new schedule is SO SO nice! I am just waiting for the next growth spurt or tooth to screw it up!

Even though she just came through a growth spurt, her growth has really slowed down lately. She is still growing taller, but her weight has really plateaued. She has never been the best breast feeder. First she had that choking thing (which she has finally grown out of thank goodness!), then she turned into a snacker, and then her hunger cues went haywire. Shes always been the queen of short feeds. If I can get her to stay on the breast for more than two minutes, its a total victory. But up until recently, even with the short feeds, she would let me know she was hungry, every 2-3 hours reliably. Then she started teething and got a cold (I don't know if these things are actually to blame for her lack of eating, but they did coincide with the start of it), and suddenly she would go 4-5 hours without wanting to eat, and even when I offered some milk to her, she would still only take a 1-2 minute (or less) feed. Its been that way now for the past month or so and I'm sure its the reason behind her lack of weight gain. Of course I don't know WHY exactly she doesn't seem to be hungry, but I've been pushing the milk like crazy lately in hopes that eating more, even when she doesn't seem to want to, will help her to gain. She dropped from the 8-% down to the 25%, so the pediatrician is concerned enough to have us come in for a supplementary weigh in, in a months time. Here is hoping things improve by then!


On a happier note, I have spotted her first ever freckles, one on her thigh and one on her belly. If she is getting them this early, I'm guessing she will be freckly like me! Another big new development is that she has got her first teeth! Her two bottom teeth have broken through the skin and are making their way up. I am SO not ready for her to have teeth! Not that I think she is going to bite me, but its just another sign of her growing up too fast!

She is such a quiet kid. She VERY rarely cries and barely makes any noise at all. When Will was her age he gurgled and babbled and made all kinds of noise constantly. Hes still the same today, you can't shut the kid up! So it will be interesting to see how she is as a toddler. Its hard for me to imagine a calm and quiet toddler since Will is so the opposite, but maybe thats how Nora will be since that is basically how she is now.

When I put the kids into their car seats, I tend to air on the side of caution and tighten the straps pretty snugly against their chests. They have no trouble breathing, but they also have little wiggle room. Nora doesn't appreciate being held down, and so whenever I got to tighten her straps, she arches her back and puffs out chest when being buckled in, so that I cant get the straps too tight against her chest. Shes a smart little cookie!




She is a shedding fool right now. I find her hair EVERYWHERE! Her sheets and clothes are covered with it, as are mine. I find it in my food and all over the kitchen floor when I sweep. Its amazing she has any left. Fine blond hair is starting to grow in its place and her hair is gradually getting lighter and lighter. She still has copious amounts of long brown hair though, and we have been experimenting with ponytails and clips. It will be interesting to see the continued evolution of her hair over the next few months, especially in light of all of this excessive shedding. Shes worse than a cat! I can't wait to see what her hair will look like when shes a little older. The ends are starting to curl and I see that its getting thicker and blonder. I can just imagine a little blond, curly headed toddler running around and that makes me smile.

In parting, I just have to say that she is the sweetest kid! I am so glad that she is in our lives and I  don't know what I'd do without her!