Augusta Joy is 8 months old! She has had a huge month! She pulls up and stands all the time and she smiles so big! She loves food and stares us down every time we have food or put anything in our mouths! We feed her oatmeal and baby food, and have been giving her small pieces of soft foods or anything that is mash-able.
Ever since she refused her bottle at daycare, she has been waking often throughout the night to nurse, or it turned into a comforting habit. I sleepily allowed her to nurse until I began to get frustrated and tired, missing my usual sleep. Keane and I fought about it a couple nights when he was sick of being awakened too, and said I needed to just make her cry herself back to sleep. I disagreed, until one or two nights later. I nursed her and then laid her down to cry. She cried for a long time that night, probably an hour. And then we all slept until morning. The next night, she cried again for much less, and then she went back to sleeping better. I still get her to sleep initially by nursing her. She likes our usual routine the best - I hold her or she plays around while I read Farrah books in bed, and then I nurse her to sleep while I pat Farrah's butt.
That is, until she got a double ear infection. She wasn't acting herself, was extremely crabby, and was running a slight fever. She was also teething, trying to get her two top teeth. With a slight cold and the teething, all the drainage created a double ear infection. I got her in to see her doctor on a Thursday, a day before a huge snow storm hit that snowed us in for several days! She got on antibiotics and a week later, she was much more herself again.
Finally her left top tooth broke through (on 1-8-19) and she's working on the other one. On New Year's Eve, she learned to tip her sippy cup all the way up! I was so excited for her. Around this time, she also learned to clap and to climb! She seriously seemed to learn something new each day this month.
On January 2, she started cruising along the furniture and to her favorite end table. On January 6, she waved and it seemed like she said "hi." On January 8, she added "mama" to her vocabulary that was only "dada," and then she quickly added "baba." On January 10, she stood by herself for the very first time. She does it often but for short periods of time.
The day I took her to the doctor for her double ear infection, I picked her up from daycare and I left Farrah there since it was so cold outside and I would be bringing her right back. As I stood at the gate at daycare, I just admired her laying in the swing - my dark haired beauty. She's the perfect size with pretty pale winter baby complexion. And then she smiled a beautiful smile when she saw me. I enjoyed that doctor's visit because I sat in the waiting room with only one baby while a girl near us smiled at her and asked me how old she was and said she was so pretty. I hadn't experienced that calmness in awhile. When I got her antibiotics picked up from the pharmacy, I even admired her full named typed and printed on the label. A special name we chose just for her, our baby girl. I needed that.
I took her for her 6 month appointment nearly a month late, but she weighed 15 lbs 7.8 oz and was 26" long. She's little but with a little chunk! She's in size 4 diapers and 9 month clothes.
She loves to follow Farrah around and play with her toys. However, she is quick to put a.n.y.t.h.i.n.g. in her mouth! We are always on the look-out for "small" things that she could grab and try to eat. Farrah used to be so excited for Augusta to play with her, but it's very often that we hear, "NO Augusta!!! Those are MY toys! Shew!" But when the two of them laugh together, it's beautiful.
One evening, Keane was playing and singing songs on his guitar and he played the song, "That's My Job" by Conway Twitty. I love that song but it hurts me to hear it. It gives me all the feels. That night it actually got me all teary-eyed, thinking about my dad and Keane's dad, and about Kaden as our only son, and how I love that all of our kids have their daddy and I just don't want the day that any of us lose our daddies. Farrah, Augusta, and I all danced together and then I let the girls down and Augusta was crawling between my legs and Farrah was jumping out in front of her to block her and they were both cracking up. It literally brought tears to my eyes. I had been so scared of having a second baby. I was so fearful of how it would make Farrah feel. But in those moments, I was so thankful. Neither of the girls were paying any attention to me at all. They were simply enjoying, loving, and playing with one another. Their laughter, their smiles, and their love was everything I needed right then. I am thankful for all four of our kids. So very thankful.
I took her for a follow-up appointment with her dermatologist and was told that everything looked really well. Her birthmark had gotten a little scaly as the seasons changed and the weather got cold and dry, but she said that was perfectly normal. She prescribed us some hydrocortisone ointment. She was slightly alarmed by the seizure activity that I witnessed, because there are some cases (usually with the larger congenital melanocytic nevus), the pigment can actually be on the brain and can cause seizure-like activity. She just told us to keep an eye on any odd behaviors and to let her know if she experiences any others. She's a kind, young doctor and I really like her. She says birthmarks are beautiful to her. She showed me several photos of other healthy birthmarks to help me realize the different colors and textures are all very normal and healthy.
(When Daddy watches the baby)
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