6 Months

On Wednesday (4/20), the same day that my mom and stepdad arrived in sunny Florida, our Little Missy turned 6 months old!

That's right, half a year old. I know I say this every single month but..."Where in the world has the time gone????"

She was officially deemed a "Butterball" by my mom:) She may have possibly packed on a few vacation pounds. But hey, vacation Rule #1 "Calories Don't Count!" (hence the myriad of ice cream cones that we demolished:)

She has changed a lot in the past couple of weeks, especially since she recovered from her bizarre gastro-rash-mysterious illness.

She has learned/is learning to:

*Sit up! She's getting stronger everyday and learning not to cry when we practice;) We have to "remind" her to prop herself up with her hands but I know soon she'll be a pro!

*New babbling sounds like "Ba, Da, Ga, Eee, Yee"

*To shriek, although it's decreased a bit thankfully. She's got some lungs when she wants to!

*Change toys from hand to hand

*Drop toys. On purpose. An oldie but goodie that every baby seems to delight in!

*Shake rattles:) Started out as a sophisticated wrist move and has progressed to waving the arm and/or banging on nearby surfaces

*Love cereal. We took a little hiatus during vacation but tried again tonight and she still loves it! She has gotten better with the spoon, too and spent many happy minutes grabbing it from me. We played a rousing game of who-has-control-of-the-spoon;)

*Grab her dainty feet! She likes to chew on her socks, too.

*Sleep on her tummy sometimes. She's gotten so good at rolling back-to-stomach that in the past couple of days she has slept on her tummy 3 times. Wasn't so sure about it the first time but she is getting used to it. Of course after 5 hours of it last night, she did wake up crying...Gotta work on her stomach-to-back skills!

*Reach for my face and play with my hair. She also gnaws on my chin occasionally:)

*Earned a new mostly likely temporary but cute nickname: Ellie Belly:)

She had her 6 month check-up today and her official stats are: 15 lbs 4.5 oz and 26 inches long! A.K.A. Short and Fat! Just perfect for a baby:) Her cheeks are often declared kissable by admirers (although we are the only ones with the rights to actual kissing!)

I can definitely tell she has grown, as she finally has grown out of her 0-3 month clothes in the past couple of weeks (sniff). She's got lots of cute dresses to wear now!

Eliana, you are SUCH a joy to us in every way. So sweet and lovable and such a happy, content little girl. You bring a breath of fresh air into our home and we are delighting in watching you grow and change and carve your own little niche into our family. Happy 6 months old!