A Day of Firsts

Today Shelby had her first taste of solid food - mashed banana in milk to be exact. And it was nothing more than a taste because for whatever reason it's the only thing she hasn't wanted to put in her mouth. Feet, fingers, paper, toys, shirts, spoons, napkins, wrappers etc. have all been subject to some oral exploration over the past few weeks. But not the actual food.... 

This evening, following dinner at beach with friends we dipped Shelby's feet in the ocean for the first time. she wasn't so crazy about the water either. The rushing water or its temperature may have lead to the dissatisfaction. But it's a first nonetheless. And we will be back. 

Doctor Update

Last Friday, Scott took Shelby in for her 5-month Well Child visit. She weighed in at 14 lbs, 10oz and measures 25 in. That puts her in the 45th and 50th percentiles, respectively.

Dr. Ceron gave us a plan for starting solid foods. She told us to forgo the cereal, and chomp right into bananas, sweet potatoes, and peas! We have company the next two weekends, but we're going to muster up our courage to try in 3 weeks.

They sent home a letter with a recap of the visit. We hadn't gotten one of them before. We wondered if the doctor saw Dad bringing the baby by himself and figured he needed some help relaying the meat of the visit. :) Scott stayed "on message" even without referring to the letter!

Bath time!

Shelby has discovered splashing in the tub! First it was just kicking her feet under the water. Now she hold her leg above the water and comes down with a big KERSPLASH!!!!! She gets her arms into the game, but just ends up hitting herself in the tummy. When all four limbs get going, she furrows her brow and has a very concentrated look....there is work to be done here!!!

Shelby developed some pretty yucky dry skin. We lotion-ed her up every night with no improvement. We found out we were giving her a bath wrong. Apparently some of the simplest tasks need to be explained to people.....and we even took the clas!! Instead of putting the soap into the water, we should be adding the soap to the washcloth. It's cleared up pretty well!

Homework

Today, Scott and I had our first set of Parent/Teacher conferences! Yes, at 5 months, her progress is being measured! Ms. Maria, the lead teacher in her room, rated her developmental progress, and came up with some goals:



1. Nap in her bed....not the swing.
2. Hold onto her bottle....better yet, drink a bottle.
3. Sit up unsupported....Gotta get rid of the bald spot somehow.
4. Roll all the way over....tackle tummy time!!

We is smart

I saw this sign on the way to pick up Shelby from school. I don't know what they are, but I understand they are adorable!

It's like Chanukah meets Chihuahua? Multi-ethnic puppies?

Mr. Mom

I stayed home with Shelby today.  Until she's had eye drops for 24 hours, she's still contagious.   So we took the germs to the beach to help pass the day.  For whatever reason Shelby always fights the nap.  But eventually we both caught an afternoon snooze in the glider.  She's so much happier post nap.  

The plan was to get some work in at some point, but that didn't happen.  So I'll be putting in for the day off.  It was a nice change of pace.   It'll be so much fun when she can actually walk around the beach with me.  Dragging the stroller through the sand gets old.  

Tomorrow it's back to work and school for everyone!

Rose Colored Glasses

No wait! That's just the pink eye! Yes, Shelby has pink eye....in both eyes. But, no ear infection and her lungs sound good. So, the doctor is confident we can treat with antibiotics. No school for the baby today or tomorrow. Oh, and FYI: her weight is 13 lbs, 14 oz now! She's putting the weight back on!

I saw an ad today (appropriately enough) for Clorox. They're reminding us that bleach, diluted to the proper proportions, is perfect for sanitizing baby toys and disinfecting our houses. Back to basics, I guess!