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Friday, 21 June 2013

Happy Summer Solstice

Firstly, a little admin:

1. Many of you will hopefully notice the "follow by email" gadget on the right (above the list of posts). Simply type your email address in here and check your email inbox. You should get a confirmation email with a link to activate it. Once activated, you should receive an email every time I update the blog.

2. I have managed to figure out why it was impossible to leave a comment on the blog without a username. This has been fixed and you can now comment away to your hearts' content!

http://www.heart.co.uk/wiltshire/news/local/summer-solstice-wiltshire/

So - on with the proper part of the blog...

Emilia is now exactly 6 months old. She was born on the winter solstice, when the days were at their shortest and our days have just got brighter every day since. (Sorry, I was trying to think of something to end that paragraph with but couldn't think of anything)

We have, in all honesty, had an amazing 6 months. We've learned a lot about ourselves, each other and an amazing amount about Emilia.

Near the beginning of this blog, I said I would put up mile-stones that she was due to reach; that she has reached and that she's not reached yet. 
I've been talking to various professionals (child-carers, physio-therapist) and - just as valid - other Mums. The milestones seem fairly vague but www.babycenter.com has a good month-by-month guide however I've taken the following list from the book "What to Expect. The First Year"

Things she should be doing...

Keeping head level with body when pulled to sitting - Check. Been doing that for a while. 

Saying 'ah-goo' or similar vowel-consonant combinations - Check. I think. She's been "talking" since April but I'm not sure I'm hearing the consonant sounds very much. I'll video her tomorrow and upload as an edit. We'll then see if popular opinion is that she's ah-gooing or just ah-oohing.

Things she will probably be doing...

Bearing some weight on her legs when held upright - Not really. There's a split-second before her legs buckle if you lower her onto a surface but I'm not counting it.

Sit without support - Check. She learned that last weekend (when Emma let her face-plant). However only really perfected it today after I let her fall yesterday. No excuses, I dropped my concentration for literally 1 second to rub my eyes and when i opened them she was on her way backwards. There was nothing I could do but give her a big hug and then distract her with a bell in a cage.
Anyway, she can now look round, follow items up and down with her head and even didn't fall over when the dog surprised her by licking her nose! (There was biscuit on it)

Turning in the direction of a voice. Check. And then grin at you like she hasn't seen you in AGES!!

Raspberry noises. Check, check and check again! She loves doing this and she knows it gets our attention because I can't resist having a raspberry-off with her.




It's even more fun in supermarkets.

Things she may be able to do...

Stand holding onto someone or something. Nope.

Object if you take a toy away. Check. She has a little grizzle if it's a toy but a FIT if it's her bottle before she's finished with it. Even if it's just to adjust your position.

Work to get a toy that's out of reach. She's started to reach out to get toys but, to be honest, feet are as much fun and they're easily accessible.

Pass a cube or other object from one hand to another. Check. She's doing it with food, rattles, dummies but we don't have any cubes... I'm going with a yes on that anyway!

Look for a dropped object. Check. If the desire's great enough and there isn't another one to hand. We may be giving her stuff back to her too quickly.

Pick up a tiny object with a fist. Check. Crumbs and bits of food on the highchair tray.

Babble. I think that I heard a Ma-ma once but it hasn't happened again. So, No. Not yet.

Feed herself finger-foods. Check. She loves feeding herself!

Scores at the doors: 10/14. I'm proud of our little girl. As proud as a Dad can be.


3 comments:

  1. What a precious little girl you have. It sounds like you are both learning and teaching at the same time. xx

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  2. Thanks for sorting out the comments issue. Looking forwards to following your journey. I'm a mum of an 11 and 14 year old. Remember when we were at your stage which at the time often seemed slow, endless and exhausting but looking back now my how quickly those precious years whizz by. I'm sure you will never regret these bonding months with your precious daughter

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