Yesterday was a monumental day. Arabella turned half a year old! We couldn't believe how quickly the time had gone by. What a whirlwind of a half a year...
Half a year. It's incredible.
To the outside world, though, Belle is considered a three month old. That's what we'll base her milestones against, too.
What are a typical three month old's milestones, you ask? Well, I'll tell you...
Movement milestones
- Raises head and chest when lying on stomach
- Supports upper body with arms when lying on stomach
- Stretches legs out and kicks when lying on stomach or back
- Opens and shuts hands
- Pushes down on legs when feet are placed on a firm surface
- Brings hand to mouth
- Takes swipes at dangling object with hands
- Grasps and shakes hand toys
Visual and hearing milestones
- Watches faces intently
- Follows moving objects
- Recognizes familiar objects and people at a distance
- Starts using hands and eyes in coordination
- Smiles at the sound of your voice
- Begins to babble
- Begins to imitate some sounds
- Turns head toward direction of sound
Social and emotional milestones
- Begins to develop a social smile
- Enjoys playing with other people and may cry when playing stops
- Becomes more communicative and expressive with face and body
- Imitates some movements and facial expressions
From what we see, Arabella looks to be right on track. And if she does lag behind in anything, it's probably not by very much.
I wonder if our new Pediatrician would agree...
Regardless of what anyone else says, though, mom and dad know from experience that Belle likes to go at her own pace. The best thing we can do is respect her tempo and be there to support her. If it takes her a little bit longer to get the hang of something, so be it.
We've learned that pushing or rushing her in the NICU never seemed to help. New things always had to be encouraged slowly and gradually.
She will usually let us know when she's ready, anyway. Kiera and I are not the least bit concerned. To us it looks like she's keeping up with the pack and we're thrilled with her developmental progress.
Besides, it's not a race, and Bella's not going to school anytime soon, either.
Over the last few days, Arabella managed to finish a few bottles of milk all by herself. The whole bottle! Gone! Just like that!
She's starting to take more and more of her bottle in general, and it's nice to see her back on track. Arabella's getting her groove back 😄
Could it be that she's finally starting to settle in at home? Is it because she's a bit older now?
We've noticed her getting bored of the slow-flowing bottle nipples too, so we're gradually moving on to faster, more regular-flowing nipples.
Again, Arabella is the pace setter. We follow her lead and make sure that she can handle the quicker flow.
The results will vary.
Sometimes she's overwhelmed. Sometimes she gets distracted. Sometimes she's just too tired and only manages to finish a quarter or half the bottle. But other times she's alert and ready, and she cleans it up entirely.
As parents we have to find that middle ground. We can't push them too hard or too fast, but we also can't be indifferent or sit-back for too long, either.
It's a fine balance on this road of parenthood 😃
No comments:
Post a Comment