Nine months ago I was a brand new Mommy. Overwhelmed, stressed, confused. Now, I've been a Mommy for nine months, and I'm still overwhelmed, stressed and confused. I knew it would be work to raise and take care of a baby, but I had no idea how hard that work would be! At least it is the most enjoyable, fulfilling hard work you could ever ask for. :)
On Monday, Emma was due for her nine month check-up. I was a little upset because this time the doctor seemed rushed. He must have been overbooked or behind. He still spent about 30 minutes with me, but it wasn't the casual, question and answer setting like before. Oh well, we all have bad days.
Emma measured at 29.25" long. Three months ago they measured her at 29". I asked this time why there was barely any growth, and their response was that they probably overstretched her before. I cannot accurately express my disappointment, but to give you an idea, her baby book will now appear that she has not grown at all, when she has grown out of some of her clothes so we know she's stretching out.
She weighted in at 23lbs. 13oz. - that's 99% again. Her doctor seemed very pleased at her height and weight and said that she's growing as she should.
He asked a lot of developmental questions to make sure that her brain is growing as it should too. He mentioned to me that she's ahead of schedule in each area, except... I can't remember the word he used. But, it has to do with interacting. Like, we should be practicing patty-cake, and the fist bump, and giving five, and "so big." He said it's a 12 month milestone really (meaning they learn it after 9mos but before 12mos), but since she's ahead in everything else that's what we should practice. So we are.
He asked if Emma was walking. No. He asked if she was standing on her own. No. He asked if she was letting go for a second or two. No. That's the one thing we were practicing, but she's so scared to let go and try her own balance! Dr. Murphy said that's not a big deal and they walk when they feel comfortable, so not to even bother with practicing and spend our time on the interactive side of things.
She got two shots this time. Her last Hep P, and her last Rotovirus (I think). She didn't cry for either shot!!! The nurse said that these two don't sting as bad, but still, I've never known a baby to not cry for shots. That's my strong little girl. :)
He put his computer away and he said he needed to go over some things with me since she's learning things so quickly. He went over the stairs stuff again and talked about how we shouldn't be using a walker at all (even though we don't have stairs. He wanted to warn me that people will want to treat Emma like she's older, and to be sure to tell them that she's only 9mos old and to treat her gently. Then the last thing he wanted to talk about was her girly part. He said that starting at this age, bath time shouldn't be lasting more than 10 minutes total, and if there's play time it comes first. Once soap gets mixed in the water he said it's time to hurry and get her out. The reason why is because it can cause bacteria issues in girls. He also said that we would know if there were any issues if her diapers had a strong ammonia smell. Well, needless to say I think I smell pee all the time now. Lol.
After all of that he asked if I had any questions. Well I had a list, but I didn't get to ask them all. So, this is what I did ask:
I asked about formula and if the new Similac Go & Grow is any good. He said to just continue to use what I'm using because it's all a gimmick to get people to buy more (it's up to 24mos of age). Little does he know I had good coupons so I have three tubs of it. Lol.
I asked about cups with straws that say 12+ mos on them and he said that if she likes it then use it. He went on to explain that anything with an age on it is really just to get people to buy more because it creates a need to purchase the next level up.
I asked about allergies because I thought Emma was getting some, but he said that babies this young don't get SEASONAL allergies and what she had was more than likely a cold. Well, he was right because she gave it to me, my Mom and Gene. Go figure.
I didn't get to ask about some food examples. But we did talk a bit about carbs. At her 6mos check he said to keep her away from carbs. Well, what does she eat? Cheerios, pancakes, pasta, puffs. Lol. But he clarified that he meant simple carbs. So things like her puffs, and cereal should be in small quantities and not an every day occurrence. This wasn't because it's necessarily bad, it's more because of her size... so he says.
I mentioned to him about how Emma throws a complete hissy still when she has to be laid down... like for diaper changes, after bath, for lotion, etc. He said we shouldn't be using a diaper changing table anymore. I have a hard time with this seeing as we JUST bought one like 2 or 3 months ago for my parents' house and I'd feel like it was a waste of money if we don't use it. Plus, while she may weigh a bit more than most, she doesn't wiggle too much when getting changed. I don't know, I'm torn.
All in all it was a very informative. check-up, and she got a good bill of health. I do sometimes wish I would just go in every month to see Dr. Murphy, only to reassure myself that what I'm doing is okay.
So, that's it for the appointment. But before I'm done I want to mention everything that Emma's doing now that I may not have mentioned before.
We all know that Emma is crawling like crazy (after all, she came in 2nd place for the diaper derby), but did you know that she's climbing?!?! She climbs over anything she can, and she loves it! Here are some shots of her crawling all over her Daddy.
Emma can now wave and clap her hands. I feel like we've practiced both of those for months. She also does both waves; the standard side-to-side and the up-and-down. The clapping was more recent and I owe it all to my Mom who did patty-cake with her all the time for the last few weeks. Emma doesn't do patty-cake, but she claps, which I think is just so cute!
I get kisses all the time. I can hold her on my side and say "kiss" and I get a nice open-mouth kiss on the cheek. I say "aaaaaw" after each one as her reward. Hahaha.
She's better at feeding herself cheerios. She could do the pincher grab and feed herself before, but it's more perfected now. I just pour some on her tray and she goes to town. We don't let her feed herself any real food though because we don't like messes. Lol.
She says Momma and Dadda like a pro now. Sometimes she just babbles them when she's playing, but she does look at us and call us by our names when she wants us for something. Mostly when she's hurt or getting tired.
She finds things by name. We say "where's bunny?" or "where's chick?" and she finds them for us. It's the cutest thing and we are sure to congratulate her each time she's successful. :)
What we've been up to:
We go out to eat pretty much now that Emma can tolerate being in a high chair. She seems to enjoy it, and we like to get out of the house (especially if I don't have to cook).
I started planning Emma's 1st Birthday Party. I'm not full-on planning it, but I've decided the theme and I've started buying some decorations.
I tried to switch her to sippy cup only, and she went half a day without eating. I gave in, and decided to give her until she's a year old. I feel like I failed on that front.
Gene and I still hold her for every nap. For the whole nap! We don't mind since we don't get to see her for naps but two days. She still gets put down at Grandma and Grandpas. :)
We've been buying more books and reading to Emma more. We never really did so far, but lately we try to more.
We took Emma to the Cardinals' Home Opener. While the parking was an issue, and it was more difficult than we thought to take the Metro and carry a bunch of baby stuff around the ballpark, it was a great time. I think that each time the crowd cheered she thought it was for her. It was so cute!
Well, that's all I can think of at the moment. If I think of something else I may pop on here and add it.
I just can't believe we were/are so blessed to get Emma. I thank God every single day for her. She made me whole.
Jenni
