Finley at Ten Months

LIKES: 

 - Crawling! 

 - Playing the drums and xylophone

 - Fruit, especially blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, and peaches

 - Toast and pancakes and cheerios

 - Dancing

 - "Chasing" Lou around while we hold her

 - Pool and bath

 - Music

 - Playing with and pulling hair

 - Jumping in your lap

 - Trying to eat every speck she finds on the floor

 - Having yelling matches with Lou

 - Peek-a-boo

DISLIKES:

 - Being hungry

 - Falling over from sitting

 - When mama leaves the room

 - Having toys taken away

FIRSTS/SKILLS:

 - Dancing (shaking her head back and forth)

 - Going from belly to sitting

 - Bike ride

 - Crawling

 - Gives kisses (very open mouthed haha)

 - Pulling to stand (only done it once on the side of the bathtub)

RANDOM NOTES:

 - Clothes: 6 months

 - Diaper Size: 2 (but should be in size 3, I'm just trying to finish up this box haha)

 - Now has four cute teeth! Her teeth on top are sooo spread apart, it kills me! I love it.

 - She has been so snuggly this month, and will just rest her head on my shoulder regularly when I'm holding her. 

 - Still has the most crinkly smile, which is now made even better with front teeth!

 - Plays with her hair/scratches her head while nursing and going to sleep.

I can't believe how close our girl is to turning one!! Her fun loving, energetic, and goofy personality is starting to shine through and it just makes me love her more!

Her schedule is about the same as it has been, just with a little more inconsistencies.

7:30 am - Wake up (ideally), nurse

9:00 am - Breakfast
10:00 am - Nap
11:30 am - Nurse

1:00 pm - Lunch
2:30 pm - Nap
4:00 pm - Nurse, snack if needed
6:00 pm - Dinner
7:15 pm - Nurse, bedtime routine
7:30 pm - Bed

This schedule has mostly been working well for the most part. 7:30 am is the ideal wake up time I would like for Finley (and Eloise), but for some reason she has been waking up by 6:30 or even earlier ever since we got back from our trip to Washington. There was no time change, so I'm not sure what the reason is for suddenly waking up so much earlier. In addition to that, Finley has really been struggling with her afternoon nap and only sleeping for about 30 minutes before waking up upset and refusing to go back to sleep. Overall, she is very suddenly getting hours less sleep than before! Hopefully her sleep will improve, but I'm not sure yet what has happened.

Sadly, Finn has started to get more picky with what she eats. She still eats a shocking amount of food most meals, but is less willing to eat everything. She still eats better than Lou, but she doesn't just eat everything in front of her like she used to haha. 

Finley learned to crawl this month! We looked up some exercises to help her out and learn how, since she was obviously starting to get frustrated when trying to move around. We had her regularly play on her knees, and situated her on knees and hands with toys. Eventually, she started walking her hands forward and we would move the opposite knee up simultaneously. Once we were doing these activities regularly for a few weeks, Finn figured it out! Just a few days before she turned 10 months old. She's still super slow, but she is already so much happier being independent and playing. 

We can't believe our silly Finn is almost one!! We sure do love this girl and having her in our family :)

Finley at Nine Months

LIKES:

 - Watching Lou dance and run around

 - Eating

 - Peek-aboo

 - Playing in water (pool, bath, etc.)

 - Grass

 - Putting literally everything in her mouth

 - Drinking water

 - Sand

 - Sitting up

 - Swings

 - Fruit, especially blackberries, raspberries, and peaches

 - Most carbs

 - Nursing

 - "Chasing" Eloise and dancing with her

 - Playing with hair

 - Being outdoors

DISLIKES:

 - Long car rides

 - When I leave the room/her sight

 - Falling over from sitting

 - Salmon (one of the few foods she spit out and refused)

FIRSTS/SKILLS:
 - Road trip (over 50 hours in just a few weeks!)

 - Visit to states other than Arizona (Utah, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and California)

 - Going to the ocean/beach

 - Giving bonks

 - Purposefully going from sitting to belly

 - Clapping

 - Top tooth

RANDOM NOTES:

 - Weight: 16 pounds 8 ounces (20th percentile)

 - Height: 27 inches (32nd percentile)

 - Clothes: 6 months

 - Diaper Size: 2

 - Now has three cute little teeth! I think the other top tooth will be in very soon. I can't wait until those top teeth grow in more.

 - Definitely a bit of a mama's girl

 - Will occasionally give me some cuddles, especially right before and after sleeping and nursing. I love them!

 - She will often say "mama" while looking at me, but I'm not convinced she actually knows what she is saying haha

SCHEDULE

7:30 am - Wake up, nurse

9:00 am - Breakfast
10:00 am - Nap
11:30 am - Nurse

1:00 pm - Lunch
2:30 pm - Nap
4:00 pm - Nurse, snack if needed
6:00 pm - Dinner
7:15 pm - Nurse, bedtime routine
7:30 pm - Bed

Finley's schedule at the end of this month is pretty much identical to last months. It is working so well for us! We've only had a couple night wakings this month that were easily solved with some nursing or snuggles, though we have had a lot more trouble with getting down for the night and for naps. I rarely have to nurse again, but Dustan and I have often needed to hold Finn and rock her to sleep and gently lay her down. I think she might be having some trouble with her teeth and with separation anxiety (which I know gets more prevalent at this age).

Finn loves to eat! She really enjoys nursing still, though she is very easily distracted. She nurses best first thing in the morning and right before bed. I always nurse her right after she wakes in the morning, after each nap, and before bed. I'll often do a super short nurse before one of both naps if she seems like she needs a little snack. Finley is also a rockstar at eating solids. She never eats any purees and will often eat better and just as much or even more than Eloise. She eats three meals a day and sometimes a snack. Carbs and fruit are her favorites, though she eats almost all foods well. Some of her favorite foods this month (foods that she ate more than I thought would be possible for her in one sitting) were blackberries and blueberries, Panera macaroni and cheese, german pancakes, sweet and sour meatballs, and cheese quesadilla. 

Overall, Finley has been a little more fussy and needy this month, I think mostly due to the fact that her top teeth have been trying to poke through for so long. She doesn't like when I leave the room, but is sometimes okay with it if Lou entertains her a bit. She also seems to be anxious to get moving around more, but hasn't figured it out yet. 

She is a pro at sitting this days and has figured out how to intentionally get from sitting onto her belly, and sometimes she'll even hang out on her hands and knees for a couple seconds. She is sooo wiggly when you are holding her. Finn will spin around so quick on her belly, and can even scoot herself backwards by pushing off on her arms. She just can't seem to figure out that forward movement though, and it is getting frustrating for her. Hopefully she can figure it out in the next month! She also started clapping though and it is just so cute!

We went on our first family road trip this month, and we survived! We drove from Arizona to Washington, which is about a 24 hours drive one way. Beforehand, Dustan and I figured that Eloise would do well during any daylight/wake times on the drive, but would struggle to sleep in the car. And Finley would sleep all right, but would need lots of help to stay happy during her wake time. And we turned out to be right, haha. So, we drove about half the drive overnight and the other half during the day. Finn needed a lot of snacks and entertainment and there was definitely some crying, but that's okay!

We had such a fun time in Washington. This trip will get its own blog post, but just some Finley highlights: she loved being outside so much in the cooler weather and going on hikes, she really enjoyed the sand at her first time at the beach/ocean, and she loved all the extra attention from her grandparents and aunts and uncles.

It's been a busy month and we're just starting to get back in our routine at home. Both girls did so well on our trip and it was a blast! We are so happy to have gotten out and had some fun as a family!

Finley at Eight Months

LIKES:

 - Peek-aboo

 - Playing in water (pool, bath, etc.)

 - Being thrown into the air

 - Drinking water

 - Sitting up

 - Fruit, especially berries and peaches

 - Toast, pancakes, and most carbs

 - Basically all food she has tried so far, haha

 - Nursing

 - "Chasing" Eloise and dancing with her

 - Playing with hair

DISLIKES:

 - Not eating like every two hours

 - Not nursing as soon as she wakes up

 - When I leave the room/her sight

 - Falling over from sitting

 - Eloise screaming

FIRSTS/SKILLS:
 - Fireworks/Fourth of July

 - Time in a swing

RANDOM NOTES:

 - Clothes: 3-6 months

 - Diaper Size: 2

 - Now has her two bottom teeth and they are growing in well! And a little sharp... She bit me a couple times this month while nursing, ouch. 

 - Hair is looking lighter all the time. It's now lighter than Lou's and close to Dustan's color. 

 - Eyes are still blue! And the most wonderful eyebrows are still above them <3

Just at the very end of this month, we got Finley switched over to two naps! This new schedule is so nice, since that evening nap had started to become a fight every day. Same as Eloise, when we first started trying to switch to two naps, those naps became so short and sporadic. But we stayed consistent, and after about a week, then naps were good 90% of the time. And though it's a little late for Lou, we keep her up so that her nap aligns with Finn's second nap.

7:30 am - Wake up, nurse

9:00 am - Breakfast
10:00 am - Nap
11:30 am - Nurse

1:00 pm - Lunch
2:30 pm - Nap
4:00 pm - Nurse, snack if needed
5:30 pm - Dinner
7:15 pm - Nurse, bedtime routine
7:30 pm - Bed

Finley is still sleeping through the night wonderfully, and only woke us up once this whole month! Unfortunately, she has had a little more trouble going to sleep. She has needed to be rocked or nursed to sleep at night a few times, which can take some time. Other than that, she has been napping really well and sleeping until past 7:00 am most mornings.

This month, Finley has become such a good eater! She eats almost everything and is always capable of eating more than I would expect. She loves fruit and carbs the most, though her absolute favorite foods are probably buttered toast, blackberries, banana pancakes, raspberries, and german pancakes. She loves breakfast foods the most--she is definitely a Kraus!

Finn has really mastered the sitting up and is improving on her pincer grasp and leaning forward to reach things from sitting. She falls occasionally but is far more steady than last month. We love how upright she sits, with a straight back and her arms usually raised haha. She doesn't seem inclined to crawl anytime soon, which I'm fine with. She does some rolling around, but not a lot. She's very content to sit and play with all the random toys Lou hands her :)

As always... She is the happiest baby around! Finn had a few grumpy moments in the afternoons, until we realized that she sometimes needs an afternoon snack to tide her over before dinner. As long as she is well fed and her teeth aren't bothering her, Finley is so happy and just loves to smile!

Lou Lately

Eloise is just over 2.5 and is such a hoot! I just needed to write this short blog recording a few of her mannerisms and things she has said lately that just make Dustan and I laugh. I never want to forget these moments!

Whenever Lou gets something abnormal put in her hair (headband, towel head turban, special braid, etc.), she exclaims, "I look so beautiful! I'm getting married!"

Similarly, Lou will gather up an armful of toys--usually stuffed animals or action figures, but I've also seen it done with play food or other random objects--and say, "They're all getting married!" We have Frozen II to thank for that one.

Eloise is very interested in all things Disney princesses lately. She loves the movies and has all the major action figures. She loves to assign songs and sayings to the princesses. So if you ask her what a princess sings, she almost always knows their main song. Like Jasmin sings "A Whole New World", Pocahontas sings "Just Around the River Bend", Moana sings "How Far I'll Go", etc. And she knows these songs pretty well. We have music running most of the day.

When Dustan got home from work the other day, he leaned over and gave me a kiss. The following dialogue ensued:
Lou: "What are you guys doing?"
Dustan: "We're kissing!"
Lou: "....Like true love?!"

Eloise will regularly tell both Finley and I that we look "so beautiful" or look "so pretty", most often when we are wearing dresses. She also to wear a dress almost every day and loves to spin in them.

Recently, Lou has started to add the phrase "a little bit" to the end of many things she says, especially when she's a little upset or concerned. For example:
 - "I'm just sad a little bit."
 - "I just want to snuggle a little bit."
 - "She's being too loud a little bit."
 - "I'm just tired a little bit."

Eloise often asks me to do her hair, and wants either an Elsa braid (one braid) or Anna braids (two braids). The other day, I just did a little braid of her bangs, and Lou called it her "baby Elsa braid" all day long.

Lou has a few little sayings that Dustan like to call "mantras" that she says all the time.
 - When we talk about taking a bath, "Don't poop in the bath!"
 - When we see a cactus or talk about them, "They're pokey! Don't touch!"

Lou has quite a good memory and can recognize quotes from a movie when she has only seen it a couple times. Lou had only seen "The Lion King" once or twice, when Dustan randomly said, "I laugh in the face of danger, ha ha ha!" and Lou responded with, "Oh! Like the lion king!" Since discovering this, Dustan and I sometimes will quiz Lou with movie quotes, which Lou loves and she has quite a good memory for haha.

We've recently been helping Lou learn to say more meaningful prayers, and she is improving. But weirdly, she will almost always end her prayer normally, then almost as an afterthought say, "Oh! And bless mama's milk!" But she'll do this every time. So odd, haha.

Eloise sings all day long, and one of her recent favorites is the "Imperial March" from Star Wars. Not sure how she knows the tune, but she sings it and knows the name and likes us to play it for her.

Finally, one of my favorites, is when Lou comes up and wraps her arms around me and says, "I like warm hugs... like Olaf." This girl is the best!!

Finley at Seven Months

LIKES:
 - Drinking water
 - Exersaucer
 - Fruit, especially berries
 - Toast, pancakes, and oatmeal
 - Cucumbers
 - Watching Eloise run around
 - Pool
 - Buzzing lips
 - Chest, rib, and neck tickles
 - Sitting up
 - Being outside
 - Nursing
 - Standing while being supported
 - Chewing on everything (but especially Lou's Disney princess figures)
 - Sneezing

DISLIKES:
 - Being out of my sight
 - Playing with the same things over and over again
 - Bottles
 - Bananas
 - Extended mat time (back and tummy time)

FIRSTS/SKILLS:
 - Rolling back to belly
 - Sleeping on her belly
 - Tooth
 - Clicking her tongue
 - Sitting up
 - Grabbing things with two fingers (pincer grasp)

RANDOM NOTES:
 - Clothes size: 3-6 months
 - Diaper Size: Two
 - Hair is really starting to thicken up and mine is really starting to fall out a LOT, it's terrifying. I'll be bald in no time.
 - Sleeps on her side or belly a majority of the time.
 - So terribly distracted while nursing, I'm a little worried it's going to mess with my supply. Still never had any formula though! (I was not nursing Lou at all by this point.)
 - Really enjoys sticking her tongue out and spitting and clicking her tongue.

SCHEDULE

7:15 am - Wake up, nurse, breakfast
9:30 am - Nap
11:00 am - Nurse, lunch
1:15 pm - Nap
2:30 pm - Nurse
5:00 pm - Nap
5:30 pm - Nurse, dinner
7:15 pm - Bedtime routine, nurse
7:45 pm - Bed

Our girl is finally sleeping through the night, and no sleep training was involved!! I was getting ready to start sleep training her so I could end that early morning feeding around 5 am. But Finley started sleeping through all on her own! I think it started when she was consistently eating a decent amount of solids for three meals a day, and that helped her not need that middle of the night milk anymore. But who knows. She will still often wake up a little earlier than I would like. Lou is usually up between 7:30 and 8:00, so closer to then is preferred. But Finley is often up around 6:30 ish. I'll take it though.

And as I just mentioned, we have started consistently giving Finley three meals a day. And this girl loves real food! We haven't given her a ton of variety yet. But she likes most things. Not a big fan of plain yogurt (unlike Lou at this age, it was her fave) and purees or eggs, but she loves most carbs and fruit especially. I usually try to feed her about an hour after she nurses. This is generally some things that I give her:

Breakfast (8:30ish) - quick oats mixed with baby oatmeal and applesauce and/or other fruit, toast with butter and/or peanut butter, banana pancakes, german pancakes
Lunch (12:30ish) - plain whole milk yogurt with peanut butter or fruit, bean and cheese quesadilla, lunch meat and cheese, toast (she really loves buttered toast), leftovers, fruit and puffs
Dinner (6:00ish) - small chunks of whatever we're eating with fruit and veggies

This month, Finn really starting hitting those gross motor skill milestones! She began consistently rolling over both directions and will roll often to get the toys that she wants. She doesn't roll across the room to get things, just one little roll. Finley is also sitting up! She isn't totally sturdy yet, so I don't feel comfortable sitting her up without surrounding her with pillows since she still falls over often. But generally, she's pretty good! Especially when she's holding some toys and not reaching for things.

Finley's first little tooth popped through at the end of this month! She was a little fussy for a couple days and didn't go down for naps and bedtime as easily, but she was good other than that. Hopefully she is a good teething baby like Eloise. Her little tooth is so cute!

Finley has also gotten more clingy to me this month. She always wants to have me in her sights and loses it a bit when I leave the room and she can't see me anymore. She is a bit nervous around other people that she doesn't recognize, though that might also be because she hasn't been around others much because of the coronavirus, haha. She's also been a little more easily bored and harder to entertain. The sitting up helps though!

As always, Finley is still just the smiliest, happiest girl usually! She loves making eye contact with people and just giving them her huge, eye crinkly, gummy smiles! She also loves to rest her forehead on yours and give quick little shy snuggles while smiling. Ah I just adore this girl!