7 month tidbits

Dear Norah Bird,
Your world has been changing so much lately. You are developing in leaps and bounds and I can hardly keep up. Here are just a few things that have been going on around here over the last month.

One of your most enjoyable feats this month has been starting solid foods. You actually had a false start with some oatmeal that produced a nasty rash when you were just about 6 months old. Nevertheless, you thoroughly enjoyed it.

Video Link: Norah's First Solid Food

Since then you've moved on to more adventurous foods including sweet potato, banana, avocado, peas, and carrots. Avocado is, by far, your favorite. We can't get it in your mouth fast enough and I swear you even get the shakes if we run out before you've had your fill. Peas are a close second. Maybe you like green? Carrots, on the other hand, are not your thing. You'll tolerate them to a point but there's no love there. The first time we gave them to you, you even fell asleep in your high chair!

 

Carrots are a snooze-fest.

In addition to food, your doctors have suggested increasing your fluid intake by giving you water to drink from a sippy cup. So I have been to Babies R Us no less than 6 times in the last month to stare at the display wall of 89 different kinds of sippy cups in an effort to pick out the perfect cup for my little bird who was never fond of a bottle to begin with. I finally found one that I thought would do the job and gave it to you with some water one day. And you took right to it!

I got this, Mom.

Err...maybe not.

Mmm. Water.

It turns out you don't care which end of the cup is in your mouth. If only hydration occurred via osmosis.

On the other end, we continue to have many poop adventures. Most notable of these was the day that Daddy fed you cardboard. While shopping at Target one Saturday afternoon, your father gave you a box of freezer bags in an attempt to keep you entertained while we did our shopping. (I'll have you know that while you were with your dad increasing your fiber intake, I was clear across the store in the baby section selecting all sorts of fun, safe things for you to chew on.) By the time I met your dad at the check out counter, you had slobbered and mushed up a good chunk of the box. I gave him my typical "good thinking, genius" look that you'll learn to recognize, pulled the mashed up box from your grubby paws, and we were soon on our way. The next day your father called me into your nursery as he was changing your diaper to help him identify a quarter-sized blue chunk in your poopy diaper. Apparently the return rate on ingested cardboard is about 24 hours.

 Another milestone reached is sitting in your big girl stroller. Up until recently we used the car seat attachment which you were beginning to despise. Now we sit you up in your stroller and you have a whole new view of your world. You are content to walk for hours with Oakley and I and you even go running with your dad when he gets home from work in the evenings.

First time in the big girl stroller!

For your first adventure in a forward-facing stroller we took you to the Brandywine Park zoo on mother's day. It is a small zoo but I thought you'd like some of the animals being that you are in love with your dog. Unfortunately most of the animals are tiny primate-like things that are in huge cages on hilltops. So we spent some time at the ground-dwelling animal exhibits. I think you were mostly impressed with the overfed goat but the tiger was a close second.

Look! A tiger!

What's up, Goat?

So, okay, you weren't impressed with the zoo. What really gets your attention is your dog. Oakley is the center of your universe. He can dry up tears that even I can't. Your eyes follow him all over the room (not that he moves too much). And, although you can't crawl yet, you've learned to roll and twist your way over to him.

Video Link: Norah and Oakley

Oakley is mostly accommodating of your pokes, jabs, and pulls which is good news for you. I think he's wise to the fact that this is all going to work out for him in the end. He knows that soon enough there will be food that is dropped or conveniently slips from your grip. He's just biding his time. You two are going to be best buds.

Oakley: "Wake me up when you're eating meat."

Another big accomplishment for you is sitting up on your own. You're a little wobbly still but if we sit you up you can handle yourself pretty well. Until you reach for that object or dog that's just out of reach and you tumble over. Unless you're tired and cranky, this doesn't bother you much either.

A whole new view of the world!

The week before your seven-month birthday your top two teeth popped through and they continue to grow. I can't believe how quickly my little baby's look is changing. So far it looks like you're going to have a gap between them like your daddy.

New chompers!

Ever since you were little we've been trying to expose you to the natural world. At 3 weeks old we took you on your first hawk migration count at Ashland Nature Center nearby and then down to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge which we've visited with you a few times since. We also take you to where Daddy works on the weekends to see some birds and every once in a while the train goes through and we wave to everyone. You're very patient with us.

Birding at Mount Cuba.

As a family, we witnessed our first Red Knot migration at Mispillion Harbor on the Delaware Bay a few weeks ago. You were mostly enthralled with the turtle in the Dupont Nature Center. 

Look Dad - a turtle!

That is one big Red Knot!

On a day to day basis you like to take things in from your stroller while on walks or runs with your dad and I. We also sit out on the balcony of our apartment where you like to stare at the leaves in the breeze and listen to the birds.

Enjoying a typical evening out on the balcony.

Of course, just looking isn't enough. You've always been a wiggle-worm and lately we can't take our eyes off you or you'll end up in the next county. And you're not even crawling yet! Gone are the days of laying you on your play mat to take in the brightly-colored dangling animals.

Hey Mom! I flipped my play mat over again!

Sometimes you end up in places so bizarre, I can't even figure out how you got there without help.

Under the coffee table.

And sometimes you just get on a roll, literally, and Daddy and I watch you travel the hallway of our apartment, seemingly in your own little world.

After-dinner rolls. Weeeeee!

Soon enough, you'll be crawling on your own and then we're really in trouble. You're not quite there yet but if we give you a little help you can do some serious rocking. Otherwise, you haven't quite figured out how to get your gut off the ground on your own. Talking with some of my mommy friends, we think this is common for chubby babies. You just have more gravity working against you in the middle.

Video Link: Norah Rocking

You're becoming more animated in other ways, as well. Recently you've developed a stink face that you do when something amuses you but is not quite worthy of a laugh. Your stink face involves scrunching up your nose and squinting your eyes while exhaling heartily through your nose. It's pretty stinking cute, if you ask me.

Grandpa with Norah stink-face.

All in all, day to day life with you is pretty sweet, kiddo. We have our moments, of course, but I hope to remember what an overall good baby you are because time is going so fast. I'm sure every parent thinks that but with you, it's true. Same thing applies to cute. You're just the cutest and bestest baby there is and I hope to capture more of your day to day moments and small accomplishments in blogs to come.

Love,
Mom