further tooth proof

There has been some circumstantial evidence of upper teeth coming in, in the form of slight discoloration and roughness, not to mention the getting up in the middle of the night, but now we have documentation: the top tooth has sprouted. (two, actually, although squirming prevents us from actually seeing both at any one time). They seem to be the second incisor or the cuspid (vampire fang canine) but I can't quite tell. Apparently, I was also freakish in this way, in not having the middle teeth come in first on the top.

Regardless, here is the photo evidence. Please forgive the snotty nose - I tried to photoshop it out but it just looked weird.


The requisite zoom-in:


And finally, proof that the bottom two are coming in nicely:


and are capable of doing damage:

Video in installments, including levitation

So again, I have let my video responsibilities fall behind. Mea Culpa. Here are some more videos through the tubes...


Our Darling takes her first stab at playing her father's guitar.


As you have seen from earlier posts by Tricia, Sophie's swimming lessons have been going well. Here are a few videos of swimming:

our darling's swimming lessons: She takes the plunge.


our darling's swimming lessons: Flat on her back.


our darling's swimming lessons: Where does the water come from?


Now here is a new thing - Sophie is learning to levitate. Well, float really. With the help of the jolly jumper. After jumping for a while, she holds her legs out in front of her and just bobs there for a minute or two. We're not sure why, but it looks relaxing, till the charlie horse kicks in...

Our darling is learning how to levitate.


More levitation, distracted by the puppy. Our darling has good control over that jumper of hers

Diaper woes

Tell me something... why don't the diaper manufacturers get together and make half sizes in diapers? Why? I would buy them in a heartbeat. Half sizes would mean that my laundry costs would drop, and I would spend less time trying to remove poop stains from Sophia's onesies. On a really good day we can go through three outfits!

The size three diapers fit the best but they are just a little short, so when sitting or if the poop event is quite, um, exciting, it ends up her back and all over her outfit. The size four diapers are nice in length but are too loose around the legs. So said exciting event leads to poop down the leg and soiling her outfit. Either way I can't win. So we live in the in between, switching from size to size to see how many outfits we can save in a day.

I remember a time in my life when I could go through a day without bringing poop up in a discussion. That was at the same time when I would go grocery shopping humming Pearl Jam instead of Raffi.

Sophia Growth Stats -Month 7

Today we trekked over to the University to have Sophia's seventh month check-up with her new doctor. Dr. Parwez is a very energetic doctor and seemed thrilled to meet Sophia. Unfortunately the Dr's energy scared Sophie to tears, a couple of times. It's the first time that she really has played shy with a stranger. She recovered fine, but it was a little touch and go for a while.

Everything looks good for Sophie. All her organs are doing organy things, and her joints are all moving just fine. Here's the measurement list:

Weight: 18.5 lbs -the 75th percentile
Height:29 inches -the 98th percentile
Head Circumference:16.5 inches
Chest Circumference:17.5 inches

On the whole she is doing very well.

Sophie has in the last couple of days expanded her consonant repertoire...waaa, and baaa, have been joined by maa, daa, and gaa, plus various screeching and screaming sounds. It certainly isn't a quiet house any more.

Sharp pointy things

No, I am not making a Buffy reference. Those little teeth of Sophie's are sharp. I can personally attest to this as she decided to bite me for the first time yesterday. Ouch! I am sure we will quickly find a way to stop this from becoming a habit, especially if I yelp each time she chomps. Sigh.

On the sleeping front: we are still working out our differences. We had one night of more complete sleep on Saturday. We had spent some time in Wolseley, so I have a feeling that visiting with the church folks wore her out. She slept from 8:30-4:30, nursed and went back to bed. Alas, it was a one time deal so far, as she was up a couple of times last night. Oh well, I am sure it will get better in a couple of years, um... weeks.

On the solid food front: progress is being made. Currently, she is quite enthusiastic to eat her mixed cereal with pineapple, oranges and mango. We've also enjoyed cheddar cheese and squash without too much complaining. Last night's peas and prunes (not together) weren't too popular, but we will keep working on it.

So, that is the current Sophia scoop.

A light bulb moment

So the last two weeks have been a test in patience and functionality for me. Sophia has been sleeping poorly, getting up a minimum of twice a night (that's a good night) and up to four times a night. I am have never been so tired or so lost for things to remedy the problem. We've tried rocking, swinging, talking, singing, nursing (well, only I've tried that), rubbing her back, patting her back, ignoring her and well, breaking down into frustrated and tired tears (both her and I). Sigh. We've even installed heater in her room just in case she is too cold. It's been challenging.

But this morning, we think we have somewhat solved the problem... or, excuse the pun, found the root of the problem. Sophia has more teeth coming. This time it's up top. It actually looks like an incisor is coming in. Oh goodie!

Pass the Baby Tylenol and a bottle of wine....

A picture is worth a thousand words

Okay, if that's the case then several pictures should be worth a full blog.... here goes nothing.




David was having some fun one day while I was away. The shirt really does say it all.


Sophia's taste for things has really branched out in the last little while. To rice and barley cereal and several fruits and vegetables, she has added her very own feet (with or without shoes). It's quite funny to watch her completely doubled over, chomping away at her little toes.


A little drool action! With the coming of teeth is increased saliva production. Ah, life is good (and wet!).


So, most parents could compare their baby's feet as they are now and as they were when the baby was born. David decided to take a new angle on that. Why not compare the Dog and the Baby? It's kind of cute, don't you think?


You know, people were worried that our little princess pup would feel jealous and put out by the addition of Sophia to the family. Although we still get the "oh, you brought that thing back with you" looks, Haley seems to like Sophia pretty well. She'll like Sophie even better when she starts dropping more food from the high chair.


We read in one of the baby books that cool things to chew on are particularly helpful for a teething baby. I am not convinced that they had a can of Alexander Keith's in mind. What ever works eh?


Grandma Diane was here not too many weeks ago. A good time was had by all, but particularly Sophia. She loves having people to spend time with her. This was a quiet moment where Grandma was reading the ever popular "Each Peach Pear Plum" to an attentive Sophia.




These two photos were taken after a fairly successful feeding of carrots. Trying to get Sophia to actually eat solids has been, well, trying. Most of the time she has been giving me this look of "what the heck are you giving me?" and then spitting it out so that more of it ends up on her than in her. Acutally, it ends up on her face, in her ears, in her hair, up her arms and all over the highchair. But it's fun! I read some where that parents are only responsible for where to feed the child and the baby will decide what, when, and how much. It's a tense situation, but I know in the end she'll end up eating something. And she's not expected to survive just on solids right now, we are merely practicing!


Okay, so I lied... Sophia is not discriminate about whose toes she chews on. If it is offered, she will munch. In this case, my toes where the sacrificial falanges of the moment. (Yes, they were clean toes!)


Grandma Gladys made this little blanket for Sophia. It's great because it supports Sophia's habit of label chewing/sucking. A whole blanket of labels is just perfect. We take it everywhere we go!


Thanks Grandma!

Bathing beauty

Anyone who has spent time with Sophia knows how much she loves her bath time. She truly enjoys splashing and playing in the water. And it just keeps getting better... in the last week she has discovered the fun of kicking with both of her legs, ultimately soaking the bathroom (the water can go quite a distance) and the person giving her the bath. This new skill is thanks to Sophia's swimming lessons.

(Another new bather for Sophia. I love consignment stores!)

About three weeks ago, Sophia and I started Mom and Tot swimming (although there are Dads there too). She is in the starfish level. Essentially we hang out with a bunch of other babies and parents in the warm water of the Tot Pool in the Sandra Schmirler Leisure Center. The instructor works on several things with us --singing, playing, floating, splashing, blowing bubbles, and such things. It is more a time to get comfortable with your baby in the water and to have your baby get comfy in the water. The instructor has also given us important safety instructions regarding infant choking and CPR procedures. It is really quite good.



We've been having a great time, and this is definitely a highlight of our week. I get the chance to spend some time with other adults and Sophia gets to check out other babies while splashing around in the water. At first she was a little suspicious of all the other babies in the water, and with the size of the pool, after all her most recent experiences of water all take place in the tub. So suddenly there were all these people in the bath, and she had to wear a bathing suit and a diaper. How strange is that?



She has loosened up though, and has fun floating around. We've taken the plunge (literally) and put her head under water a couple of times. She hasn't come up crying but she doesn't look too impressed. Babies at this age don't know to close their eyes or mouth under water, so she comes up with water streaming down her face. The best way to get her to go under is to puff air in her face which makes her take a big breath in. Then you just swoop her under. David got some film of it, and will post it soon.




The pool has several fun things to play with. We've been down the slide several times (now, when I say "we" I mean: Sophia goes down while I hold her. There is no way that I am going to try getting down that itty bitty slide!) There is a big red rubber rock that has water shooting out of it... Sophia loves to sit up there and swish her hand back and forth in the water jet. And they have a rain bar... it's a gentle shower. Again, this is a thing of great entertainment for Sophie. She loves going under it, and trying to grab at the streams of water. It's quite funny to watch.





Sophia has also had her first shower... It thought that she was going to flip out when I put her under (gotta shower before getting into the pool). But no, she just looked at me and then kind of smiled. Now she's an old pro at it, but she still cleans up in the tub at home!

They sound so cute....

"Baby teeth" -the phrase evokes images of little droolie smiles, with little tiny teeth poking through the mostly toothless gums. The name leads us to believe that these little teeth are nothing but another addition to the already cute and cuddly baby that smiles at all its adoring public.

Someone made a mistake somewhere. The little things sprouting in the mouth of my little girl are not cute and sweet, they are terrible monsters that rear their painful little heads at 1:30 in the morning. They turn a sweetly sleeping (through the night!) baby into a crying, teary, inconsolable mess. Baby! Hah.

Yes, the teething saga continues in the Gerhard household. Generally Sophia has been handling it fairly well. During the day, she is able to do enough chewing, drooling and cooling to keep the pain under control, or at least she can ignore it. She has her moments of fussiness, but that is to be expected. It's just the night times that tend to be more difficult.

As usual, she goes down between 8:00 and 9:00 pm. Recently she has gotten into the habit waking about two hours later for a top up, but generally sleeps from then until 8:00 am. Then the bad thing happened. A couple of nights ago she got up for the top up, fell back to sleep, and woke up twenty minutes later, SCREAMING. It wasn't the "I'm bored" cry, or the "feed now, I'm starving cry". It wasn't even the "Help, I've rolled into the side of the crib and am stuck" cry. No, it was the "Good Lord, I am in pain and someone is going to pay for it" cry. It's much like the "I can't believe you jabbed me three times with that sharp, poky thing" cry.

It took David and I until 1:30 or 2:00 am to get her to sleep, and the only way to do that was by bringing her into our bed. She settled right away, snuggled in between David and I. The only problem is that I tend to be lighter sleeper. Some of my family might call me "sensitive to sound and movement". The problem is that the kid moves around, a lot. Those little legs of hers are always moving, kicking and squirming. So after about an hour of that I put her back in her crib, and crept back into bed, all the time praying that she would stay asleep. After all she did have a dose of Tylenol and Ovol (got to cover all our bases) in her little system. Sigh.

So the last couple of nights have included these crying jags, but David and I have gotten wiser to solving the problem. We tend to be quick learners when it comes to finding ways to get good sleep. At her last feeding of the day, Sophia gets her dose of Tylenol which then kicks in around the time she would wake up crying. We have also purchased Anbesol (a local anesthetics) to use on the bad nights. We know we have to be careful about that, as it can lead to other problems --like numb tongue, which is a little dangerous for babies.

Anyway, as it stands right now Sophia has two little teeth coming up on the bottom jaw. They are cute, don't get me wrong. It's just that we get to see the not so cute side of them.