Gracie – Graceful Mommy

UPDATE: Month 7

Posted on February 1, 2016March 4, 2016 by Graceful Mommy

01
Feb

Today, Gracie is 7 months old. WHOA. It feels like I just posted the 6 month update. We’ve been having so much fun with our precious daughter. She’s seriously the best. I made a video of her 7 month update here:

Or, if you’d rather read all about what Gracie has been up to, go for it!

Height/Weight

Gracie weighs around 17 pounds. And I’m not sure how tall she is.

Routine

Remember last month how I put Gracie on a strict schedule? Yeah… that lasted 3 days. It just didn’t mesh well with us. I like the flexibility of a routine rather than a schedule. I know it works amazing for some parents to have a time schedule with their babes, but Gracie did not respond very good. We do follow pretty much the same routine each day, which I think works really well. Gracie wakes up around 9:30 (YAY!). We usually do more calm activities in the morning like reading and playing with quiet toys while I drink much needed coffee. After about an hour and a half, Gracie gets tired for her first nap- which is usually like 45 minutes long. I shower + get ready for the day and maybe blog a little or clean. The rest of the day kind of just depends on what we have planned. But usually Gracie takes another nap around 2 ISH. Keyword ISH. She’s usually ready for bed around 7:30 but some nights its more like 10. We’re still working on that whole nighttime routine situation. 😀

Sleeping

Gracie has definitely gotten better at sleeping since last month. I think the probably last month was teething. Her bottom two teeth broke through, so she wasn’t sleeping all that great. Things have gotten better. She normally wakes up around 2 times at night. I nurse her and she falls right back asleep. She wakes up for the day around 8:30-9:30. Which I love. I’m glad she sleeps in a little bit for mommy. I used to have to bounce Gracie to sleep for every nap and bedtime. Now, I can lay next to Gracie and pat her back and she falls asleep. My arms are so happy! It usually takes her less than 5 minutes to fall asleep.

Eating/Feeding

I’m still nursing Gracie about every 2-3 hours. It’s still going great. In addition, we’ve been slowly adding fruits and veggies. So far she’s tried lots of different foods: apples, bananas, peaches, green beans, peas, butternut squash, avocado, sweet potato, oatmeal, carrots, pears… I think that may be all. She pretty much loves everything, but you can tell when she REALLY loves something. Her favorites are bananas, peaches, and green beans. I started feeding her around twice a day. Usually a few bites for lunch, and a little bit for dinner. She’s not overly eager to eat solids, but she does like to taste a little bit. Sometimes, I offer her some and she doesn’t want any. We’ve been pretty laid back about the whole solids thing. She eats when she wants-but we don’t force anything if she turns away.

Sizes

Gracie is wearing size 6 month and 6-9 month clothes. It kind of depends on the brand. She has been wearing size 3 diapers recently!

Milestones

+Sits up on her own!

+2 bottom teeth

+Sits up in shopping cart

+Sits in high chair at restaurants

+Says dada (although doesn’t know that means DAD yet)

+Second trip to disney!

+Loves to jump!

How I feel

I’ve never been happier!!!

Happy 7 months Gracie! We love you!

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UPDATE: Month 6

Posted on January 1, 2016February 17, 2016 by Graceful Mommy

01
Jan

Gracie is half a year old! WOW. That’s just crazy to write. Time is going faster and faster! I’m falling more in love with Gracie each day. She is getting such a little personality and I love it! It’s crazy how much life can change in 6 months. Here’s what Gracie has been up to!

Height/Weight

Gracie’s doctor visit is TOMORROW. So I will update this when we know how tall/heavy she is! I think she has really grown a lot since last month, but we will see!

Routine

Up until this point, Gracie has not been on a strict schedule. I have been kind of carefree and laid back when it comes to a schedule. I sort of just watched Gracie and if she seemed tired, I would rock her to sleep. I fed her when she was hungry. I loved it! However, I think it’s starting to backfire a bit. I think babies crave a schedule, just like adults. Gracie has been getting harder to put to sleep at night and does not stay asleep for long. So, I’ve decided to start putting her on more of a schedule. I just started… so I will keep you posted on how she does! I literally made this schedule, printed it out, and hung it on the wall. Have you ever seen SuperNanny? She tells all of her families to write the schedule out, hang it up, and stick to it. I know it’s just a guideline, but it makes me feel a little better having something to go off of.

Sleeping

Like I mentioned before, Gracie’s sleep has started to change a bit. She still takes 3 naps during the day. Her naps are great. It’s the nighttime sleep that we’ve been working on! She’s not a terrible sleeper, but she does wake up many times at night. Usually, I just nurse her and she falls back asleep. I on the other hand, have a harder time falling back asleep. So, it’s getting a little exhausting for mommy! Also, I want to avoid creating bad habits if possible. Teaching Gracie to fall asleep on her own is a huge skill that I want her to learn! I reached out to my momma friends on Facebook and got some amazing responses. Basically, most people say that a schedule worked for their baby. Lots of people mentioned Babywise. That’s why I started a more strict schedule with Gracie girl. Hopefully this will teach her some good sleep habits and mayyyyyybe she will sleep longer at night! Things were working on: having Gracie fall asleep on her own (without mommy rocking), less nursing at night, + sleeping in the crib the whole night)!

Eating/Feeding

Gracie has started SOLIDS! We started about three weeks ago. Her first food was bananas! At first, she wasn’t too sure. She kept making faces like she was eating a lemon! It was hilarious. After a few days of bananas, I think she started to like them more! We’ve also given her avocados, sweet potatoes, and apples. Every time I give her a new food, I do that food for 2-3 days to make sure she’s not allergic. After she ate avocados she did get a rash on her back… so I stopped feeding her those. But, I am not convinced she is allergic yet. I’m going to try again later! I think Gracie’s favorite food so far is apple + banana mix!

I’ve been making all of Gracie’s baby food! It’s surprisingly easy and takes only a few minutes. We have the Baby Brezza which steams the food then blends it all in one step. It’s actually awesome. I’m loving it so far. I’ll have to do a post about it soon!

As far as breastfeeding goes- we’re still going! I’ve been slowly transitioning Gracie to nurse every three hours instead of two. Sometimes it’s more like two and a half hours. Anyways, it’s going good still! From what I’ve read… baby is supposed to get most of her nutrition from breastmilk, not solids at this point. So, I’m mainly nursing with a tiny bit of solids.

Sizes

Gracie is wearing size 6 month clothes! Gracie got TONS of clothes for Christmas! So many cute outfits!

Milestones

I feel like it’s been a big month! Like I said earlier, Gracie started solids! That’s huge! Gracie also sits up pretty much on her own. She can last now for a while by herself, but then topples over. She’s really getting the hang of it though. This month she also figured out her jumparoo. She loves jumping in that. She also had her FIRST CHRISTMAS! Next month I hope I can say “Gracie sleeps through the night now!” LOL!!!

How I feel

I feel so LUCKY + BLESSED to be Gracie’s mommy. She’s seriously so amazing, fun, cute, special, and adorable. She makes each day so fun. I’m still loving being a stay at home momma. I love seeing her grow, learn, and change every day.

Sure, I may be exhausted from lack of sleep. But would I change anything? NO WAY. I love Gracie so much- even when she wakes up all night. She will never be this little again, so I’m trying to savor each and every moment and take it all in. At times when I feel frustrated or tired, I remind myself that I wanted a baby more than anything and went through SO MUCH to get Gracie. It’s all worth it. Everything.

Happy 6 months Gracie! You are half a year old!!!

Check out Gracie’s 5 month update!

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UPDATE: Month 5

Posted on December 1, 2015February 4, 2016 by Graceful Mommy

01
Dec

Gracie is officially a 5 month old baby! I can’t even believe it! Here is an update on what she’s been doing.

Height/Weight

We haven’t gone to the doctors for an official check up. A couple of weeks ago, though, we went to get something looked at, and she weighed 14 lbs 3 oz!

Routine

For the most part, Gracie follows a routine each day. Exact times do not exist with Gracie. I can not say that she naps from 2pm-4pm. But she does follow the same pattern each day. She wakes up around 7:30am most mornings and eats right away. I put her on her tummy to play while I make coffee (WOO!) and make the bed. We play for a little, and then she is usually ready for a nap around 9am. During this nap- I shower and eat breakfast. Once Gracie wakes up I’ll feed her again, then I play with Gracie either on her tummy or in her Bumbo chair. I also like to take her outside a little to get some fresh air. After a while, she’s ready for another nap! After giving Gracie a million kisses before she falls asleep, I usually blog, watch youTube, sleep, or do housework. During the rest of our day we will either go visit one of the grandmas + grandpas, run errands, take a walk, do laundry, or cook! Daddy comes home from work and gets to spend time with Gracie. Then she takes a mini cat-nap. And around 7-8 she starts getting tired for bed! The day is full of lots of other little things plus a million diaper changes.

Sleeping

Gracie is totally back and forth when it comes to sleeping at night. She is still waking up at least 2 to 3 times to eat. Although she’ll surprise me with a 5 hour stretch of sleep sometimes. During the day she usually takes around 3 naps. I’m kind of looking forward to the day she can sleep through the night… but then again- I cherish these moments with her, even if I am totally sleep deprived when I wake up. I never want to take for granted nursing my baby (even in the middle of the night) I know one day I will totally miss those moments. She’s only this little once.

Eating/Feeding

Still exclusively breastfeeding! Thinking about starting solids soon. I’m trying to stick with the guideline to wait until 6 months, but it’s hard not to! I’m so excited to start feeding her some bananas! Stay tuned.

Sizes

Gracie is now mostly wearing size 3-6 months. Some 3 month clothes still fit, and some 6 month clothes fit too! AH!

Milestones

Gracie is now rolling over! She rolls from her back to her belly, but not yet from her belly to back. It’s so fun to watch her! She’s really starting to move around. She loves being on her tummy! No other big milestones yet – besides being adorable every second of the day.

How I feel

Awesome! I love being Gracie’s mommy. Feeding is easier than ever- it’s like second nature to me. I can’t remember what life was like before Gracie. My husband Dave and I are completely in love with our precious angel.

For Gracie’s 5 month celebration, my mother-in-law made a Christmas tree cake + cupcakes! YUM! Any excuse to eat cake, right??

Happy 5 months Gracie!

Check out Gracie’s 4 month update!