Dear Harrison: 14 Weeks…

Dear Harrison,

I can’t believe it has taken me this long to write to you! Time has sped past and you are now 14 weeks. You are perfection – you feel so fresh and new, yet that you have always been here all at the same time. You are a bundle of scrumptiousness and we feel so lucky to have you.

Just 14 weeks ago I held you, a tiny newborn, in my arms. I remember staring at you in wonder – how could I have made and grown such a perfect being? That teeny tiny baby all scrunched and red is a memory as you are now a complete pudding with gorgeous rolls and the sweetest chubby cheeks. You look so much like your older sister but a more masculine version of course.

Sadly, our breastfeeding journey has come to an end at 3 months. You don’t seem to mind and you still favour mummy over anybody else. Sophia was such a Daddy’s girl but you are obsessed with me and your big, blue eyes are always drawn in my direction. I secretly love it!

You are a fantastic sleeper which we are very thankful for as all three of us love our sleep so it looks like you have followed in our footsteps! Since you were two weeks old you have been sleeping so well, only waking once about 4am to be fed then you will sleep some more! At about 9 weeks you began sleeping through completely which was so welcome. I could hardly believe it the first morning I woke to find you still snoozing in your moses basket next to me. We recently began putting you to bed at the same time as your sister as you much prefer to be sleeping in peace upstairs rather than down with us. You go down so well. The only change is that you have began waking at about 4am again for a feed but that’s to be expected since you are sleeping longer stretches. Sometimes after your night feed I’ll keep you in the bed with us and snuggle back down to sleep.

You are usually such a jolly, little man. You give us all the biggest grins! You love people talking to you and babble back as loudly as you can. Your favourite thing in the world is watching your big sister playing. You look up so curiously, I can see in your face that you are desperate for her to talk to you and meet your gaze. You also have a real love of bath time. You happily splash away in the warm water and I think you could stay there all day if I let you! We are planning on taking you swimming for the first time soon which I hope you will really love!

You are starting to change and become more interested in your toys and objects around you. You have began to try to touch toys when they are dangled in front of you and you kick and flail your arms when you are happy and excited. I can’t wait to see what you will do next!

You are such a strong boy too! You really love to ‘stand up’ on your feet and even try to walk up me sometimes. You are getting better at your tummy time and will kick your legs and stick your bum into the air as though you are trying to move along. I wonder if you will be an early walker…

Before you arrived I worried how I could possibly love anyone as much as I love your big sister but the second I held you it felt as though my heart just doubled in size and I loved you just as much. I love you both with every ounce of my being and feel lucky beyond measure to have you both.

As I look at you sleeping next to me as I write this I wish I could freeze time and just enjoy you at this age for a little bit longer than I can. Having done this all with Sophia I know how fleeting this stage is and how before long you will be mobile and eating and growing into the sweet little boy you are. But, for now, I just want to drink you in and enjoy every moment with you.

You will always be my baby.

Love you H,

Mummy.xxx

Dear Sophia: 13 Months Old

Dear Sophia,

You are a 1 year old now! You’re personality is shining through and we are loving watching you change. The pudgy little limbs you used to sport have been replaced by toddling, long legs and busy hands. You’re so aware of everything that’s going on now – you don’t miss a trick! Here’s what you get up to at 13 months old…

Eating

We’ve done it – we’ve finally done it! We’ve found a food you don’t like; green beans. Which is a bit of a blow as I have nearly a whole bag of frozen green beans in the freezer so I’ll have to get creative with disguising them in food! You’ve been trying them, making a face and taking them back out of your mouth. It’s the first food you’ve ever not liked so that’s not too bad going.

Other than that, you’ve been continuing to eat all we give to you. You have 3 meals and usually 2 small snacks a day which seems to suit you well. You are completely off bottles now and have a warm drink of milk in the morning and evening. Overall we’re so happy with how you eat. Baby led weaning was by far the best choice we could’ve made for you!

Development

This month has seen a big change as you can now…

• Walk! You now toddle around and you’re so pleased with yourself and we are so proud of you!
• Four teeth. You have two teeth on the top and two on the bottom. You look ever so grown up when you are smiling now. You still love to brush you’re teeth too.
• Understand speech. You understand hello, goodbye and goodnight and respond by waving. You understand when we are talking about mum, dad or smudge and look in the right direction. If I say ‘Where’s Smudge?’ you look around the room until you see him, then you wave.
• Naps. You are slowly dropping from two naps a day to one which means mummy has to work twice as fast to get everything done. Now you usually go down after lunch and sleep for a few hours.

Five Favourites at 13 Months:

Favourite toy: You love your push along truck at the moment. You go up and down the room like Speedy Gonzales! Though you enjoy walking on your own you seem to really enjoy pushing your little truck along too.

Favourite book: You had a sound book form Uncle Pat for your birthday that you’ve really been enjoying’'. You like to press the buttons to hear the sounds play.

Favourite food: You’re favourite meal is spaghetti bolognaise at the moment (I’m going to do a post soon on an average week in your tummy – showing which foods you eat).

Favourite activity: Opening and closing things or getting objects in and out of boxes, cupboards, baskets etc.

Favourite thing to do or say: Giving things to people. You like to present people with your toys and food and look at them with a big smile when they take whatever you’re offering.

You’re such a jolly and happy little girl and you seem to be growing up before our eyes at the moment – time goes too quickly!

And that’s what you’re doing at 13 months, our beautiful toddling little sweetpea.

Lots of love from Mummy and Daddy.xxx

Dear Sophia: 10 & 11 Months Old

Dear Sophia,

You are now only weeks away from your first birthday and I can’t believe how the time has flown! You are a true joy and I can’t believe our luck that we have you for our daughter. You really are changing into a little girl now and you seem to be understanding more about the world around you.

You’re a cheeky little character and you get into everything, especially all of the things we don’t want you to get into! If there is a little bit of fluff or a wire not quite strapped down, you’re straight there making mischief and we love you for it.

This month saw Mummy finishing working in Birmingham to spend more time with you and so far I’ve been loving it! We have our little routine and enjoy our daily walks, play times and story times. We also have been going to two groups a week – stay and play on a Monday and a library singing group on Friday’s. We always get new library books while we are there as you’re such a bookworm! You love getting out and about and joining in with all the world has to offer.

Your 10th and 11th month has seen you come along so much, both in your development but also in you appearance. Your hair is really growing now and makes you look so much more grown up.

Eating

You still have a fantastic appetite! You eat all the food we give to you and I enjoy finding new, healthy recipes to feed you. Meal times are lovely all together at the table and you love to see that we’re all eating the same. You are gradually weaning yourself off your baby milk and are eating more food during the day. You eat most of what is on your plate and when you’ve had enough you pull your own bib off and push the bowl away (or sometimes start trying to throw the bowl on the floor!). Up until recently I used to load food (like porridge or yogurt) onto the spoon and you’d then put the spoon into your mouth yourself but now you can use the spoon more or less yourself to scoop up the food. You’re trying hard to use your fork too but that’s a little more tricky!

You enjoy having a snack here and there now too, we usually share some fruit or rice cakes in the afternoon to keep you going until dinner time.

(Eating a pear like a big girl)

Development

The last two month have seen more changes.

• Teeth. You now have two teeth on the bottom gums which are completely through and look so cute when you smile.
• Copy sounds. Your speech has come on a lot in the past few weeks. What you say is now starting to sound more like words. You copy the sounds Daddy and I make and you say ‘mud’ for Smudge and ‘bu’ for bye and bubbles as well as ‘mummummum’ for me and ‘dadda’ for daddy.
• Standing unaided. You can stand completely on your own without falling over which is really exciting! You have taken a step on your own and I don’t think it will be too much longer until you are walking.
• Kiss. You kiss us when we say ‘kiss’ which is the sweetest thing!
• Stroke Smudge. You used to be really rough with poor Smudge but gradually we’ve been showing you how to use gentle hands and you now stroke him really nicely. When you stroke him gently you look at us and start clapping, knowing you’re doing the right thing.
• Look at books independently. I’ve noticed that lately you prefer to look at books rather than play with your toys. You sit with them and turn each page carefully. Sometimes you’ll chatter away while your doing it which is a fantastic sign of a budding reader! Although you do this a lot, you’re favourite thing to do is clamber onto our lap to listen to the story.

(Some water play on a quiet afternoon)

Five Favourites at 10 & 11 Months:

Favourite toy: This month it is probably your ball tower which you got for Christmas. You put the balls in the top and they then fall down through the levels to the bottom. Once it reaches the bottom you’ll clap in delight then do it again.

Favourite book: You’re favourite books this month are the book you had for Christmas, ‘Tales from Acorn’ wood which is a lovely rhyming book with flaps in it. You’ve also really been enjoying our nightly bedtime book ‘Goodnight Moon’. It’s a lovely soothing book which we read up on our bed before putting you down for the night.

Favourite food: Cheese! You are like a little mouse! It’s always the first part of the meal you’ll go for. I’m glad you like cheese as much as Daddy and I do!

Favourite activity: Probably still reading. You spend most of the day with a book!

Favourite thing to do or say: You love playing peepo! You like to be the one to hide and then surprise us! When we put you into your cot you pull the blanket up over your head and wait for us to say ‘Where’s Sophia?’ then you’ll pull the blanket down and give us a cheeky smile.

(In this picture Sophia is wearing a little snood that I crocheted myself for her – I love how it turned out and is perfect for this chilly weather!)

We love you so much Sophia, every day you make us laugh and you’re always doing something new and different. Soon you’ll be turning one and a whole new adventure will begin!

Happy 11 month birthday beautiful girl!

Lots of love from Mummy and Daddy.xxx

Dear Sophia: 9 Months Old

Dear Sophia,

You’re 9 months old! It feels like such a milestone as you have now been in the world longer than you were inside my tummy. I can’t believe that this time last year you hadn’t even been born and now you’re a smiling, chattering, crawling, active little girl!

You’ve started to sleep less in the day and longer at nights now. It’s lovely to get a bit extra sleep in the mornings and to spend more time with you in the day. You typically go to bed around 6:30pm now and can sleep up until about 8:30am.

As always you’ve been growing and changing lots this month!

Eating

You are still a very good eater! There is no food you dislike and you’re not fussy one bit. You’re gradually drinking less milk and eating more at meal times which is great.

You are able to pick up and put the food to your mouth very well and you can use a spoon and a fork. You wear a plastic bib to catch all the bits of dropped food but your latest trick is to pull the bib off and spill the food! The carpet under your chair doesn’t look so good!

Development

This month you can:

• Wave. When people say hello or goodbye you now wave at them. I think you learnt it from me because I always stand in front of  the mirrors and wave to you. You’ve began to wave to anyone and everyone when we’re out and about!
• Climb. You can climb up onto the sofa by yourself. I was so shocked when you first did it and a little nervous that you’d do it and then fall off but luckily you turned around and sat down.
• Stand. You’re not fully standing quite yet but you can stand and balance on your own for about 30 seconds. You’re getting stronger and stronger.
• Teeth. You have another little tooth in your mouth making the grand total of 2!
• Recognise your name. You know your name and look around when it is called.
• Pincer grip. You can pick things up with your finger and thumb now instead of a whole hand grab. I think baby led weaning has really helped this as you practise picking up bits of food every meal time.

Five Favourites at 8 Months:

Favourite toy: You love your stacker of family fish this month. It’s always the first toy you take off your shelf and you like taking all the fish off and looking at them.

Favourite book: Still big on lift the flap books! A favourite this month has been Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell. We keep it in the bedroom and usually read it on weekend mornings and on my days off. You’re so independent and you love to pull the flaps open and turn the pages yourself.

Favourite food: You love eggs in every form! Your favourite way is as an omelette. I add a handful of frozen mixed veg and some cheese and put it all in the pan. You think it’s delicious!

Favourite activity: Probably reading. If I sit on the floor with a book you come straight over and climb onto me to listen.

Favourite thing to do or say: Favourite thing to do at the moment is to stand up. You spend hardly any time on your bottom anymore – you just want to be up and cruising around all the time.

 

And that’s what you’ve been doing at 9 months old! You’re personality is coming out more and more now and it just makes me love you even more. You’re such a happy, beautiful little soul and I don’t know what we’ve done to deserve you as our daughter but we’ll be forever grateful.

Happy 9 month birthday beautiful girl!

Lots of love from Mummy and Daddy.xxx

Dear Sophia: 8 Months Old

Dear Sophia,

Yet again I’m sat here wondering how time has sped past so quickly. You are 8 months old! 8 months! How did that happen?

This month feels as though it’s been such a turning point in your development, you have changed so much. You’re eating more and being very active, soon you’ll be  a ‘toddler’ and I’m not sure I’m ready for that! As always, I just savour every moment I have with you.

Eating

You are still loving your food! You are eating more at each meal and are taking in less milk. You really enjoy the social aspect of eating. Every meal we sit at the table with you and show you that we are eating the same thing and you love being a part of everything. You are now using a glass to drink out of and are enjoying being the same as mummy and daddy. I thought you’ spill all your water at first or drop the glass but you are so clever at using it.

You’ve tried pumpkin for the first time this month and seemed to really enjoy it! You’ve tried it as soup, dipping your toast soldiers in and as a pasta sauce. You liked both ways.

Development:

Oh my goodness, this month has been a game changer! You’ve hit lots of different milestones…

• Clap. Granny taught you how to clap and you love to do it all of the time! When you hear music you start clapping or when you do something you are pleased with you do it too.
• Pull yourself up. You pull yourself up anything you can and shuffle along the furniture. Daddy and I got you a push-along truck which you have a go at walking with. You’re not quite there yet but I’m sure it won’t be long.
• Tooth. You have one tooth coming through on your bottom left gum! Finally! Your gums have been bothering you for what feels like months and finally your teeth are starting to make an appearance. It’s about half way through so we’ve started brushing your teeth which you LOVE! I’m not sure if it’s the sensation of the brush you like or the taste of the applemint toothpaste.
• Dance. As well as clap to music you’ve started to move your whole body to it!

Five Favourites at 8 Months:

Favourite toy: This month you have been enjoying playing with your wooden instruments. You have a maraca and a castanet and you love shaking them.

Favourite book: You’re really interested in lift-the-flap books this month. I need to keep a close eye on you otherwise you rip the flaps right out! You love the fairy tale books by Nick Sharrat, in particular the Three Little Pigs Story.

Favourite food: This month you love oranges. I cut a big orange into wedges and you have 1 or 2 wedges at your meal and make ‘mmm’ noises as you eat it. You also love chicken. We had fajitas the other day and you loved the chicken!

Favourite activity: You’re favourite thing to do this month is to knock things over! I use your stacking cups to build a tower and you promptly knock it over and clap in delight. You’d happily do this all day long!

Favourite thing to do or say: You love to make ‘echo’ noises with your mouth. You babble and use your hand to make a funny noise, it’s such a sweet thing to watch you do!

And that’s it for this month! You are so interactive now, we laugh and smile together and when you are tired in the afternoon we cuddle up together. I’m so proud of all that you are and everything you do. I cannot believe my luck that you are mine. My daughter.

Keep shining bright sweet Sophia.

Happy 8 month birthday beautiful girl!

Lots of love from Mummy and Daddy.xxx

Dear Sophia: 6 Months Old

**In all the chaos of moving house I never got around to Sophia’s 5 month update! Luckily I have pictures of her at 5 months though!**

Dear Sophia,

Wow! How you have changed! You’ve gone from being a small baby to being a mobile, active, eating, inquisitive, interactive and bright little girl. We couldn’t be any prouder of you sweet pea!

This month I’m changing the way I do your updates – you’ve been sleeping through the night for months now and nothing has changed with your milk feeds so I don’t want to just keep repeating myself when you are doing so much more nowadays!

Weaning:

As I said in my weaning post you are now having solid foods three times a day, breakfast, lunch and dinner following baby-led weaning. A typical day would probably look like this…

Breakfast: 2 tbsp ready brek and ½ a banana (shared with mummy)

Lunch: maybe one of our recipes or some toast. Usually with one kind of vegetable and either fruit or full fat natural yogurt.

Dinner: You will join in with our evening meal which could be anything! Sometimes it’ll be fish with potatoes and veg, stir fry, spaghetti bolognaise…you are always game for anything!

You are loving your food and enjoy sitting up at the table with us during meal times. You are learning to use a cup with handles (and no lid!) and apart from the occasional spill you are learning to sip from it really well. We can’t believe what a clever girl you are!

Development:

You have learnt so many new skills recently and are always so proud of yourself when you achieve what you want to. This month you can…

• Roll around everywhere and hold your head up with very good control.
• Commando crawl. You use your legs and knees to almost drag yourself to something that you want. You are able to get from one end of the living room to the other with alarming speed – we have to keep a very close eye on you! You are starting to realise that digging your knees in and sticking your bum in the air gets you places faster; I don’t think it’ll be long until you are crawling!
• Sitting up. In the last week you’ve mastered how to sit by yourself and you were very proud of yourself, as were we. You can stay sat up for about 3 or 4 minutes now before toppling over.
• You can focus on tasks for much longer now and will spend about 20-30 minutes at a time on your mat and exploring all of your toys and books before getting bored.

 

Five Favourites at 6 Months:

You are beginning to show clear preference when it comes to things like toys and food so I thought it’d be fun to document them then look back to see how they’ve changed.

Favourite toy: You are showing lots of interest in ordinary household objects at the moment and are more likely to choose a wooden spoon over your plastic links. Seeing this I decided to make you a ‘treasure basket’ of everyday items from our house. I will probably do a post on this soon.

Favourite book: You are really enjoying brightly coloured board books with shiny or fuzzy bits to touch in them. You love ‘That’s Not My Bunny’ by Fiona Watt and the ‘Baby's Very First Touchy-feely Playbook’ from Usborne.

Favourite food: Definitely strawberries! I think you’d eat them at every meal if I let you!

Favourite activity: You love to play ‘row the boat’ and you like to rock back and forth as we sing it.

Favourite thing to do or say: You can now say ‘Dada’! You say it over and over again. You don’t know what it means yet but we’re thrilled that you are now being much more vocal.

We absolutely love watching you grow, change and learn. We can’t believe how lucky we are to have you; you’re our whole world and there’s nothing we wouldn’t do for you. Keeping shining bright sweet, little Sophia!

Happy 6 month birthday beautiful girl!

Lots of love from Mummy and Daddy.xxx