The Sawyer Family: Five Months

Here we are! Gretchen is now five months old and she is growing up SO fast. I feel like it's getting harder to remember what happens each month, because time is flying by so quickly.

Gretchen still hasn't started solids, but she will next month (6 months). We could start now, but her pediatrician likes to start the children off at 6 months and I feel fine with waiting -- there's no rush. I'm wondering if she will have to start with rice cereal or if we can skip right to vegetables. They say that cereal has no nutritional value for a child, so I'd rather skip to vegetables. They also say that you should start with vegetables, because they are more bitter than fruit, and you don't want your child to only like the sweetness of fruit. Makes sense to me.

She is sitting up on her own quite nicely. She is so strong and can sit up for several minutes at a time. Sometimes she gets wobbly and will fall, but she has such great balance and strength.

She is also extremely vocal and will probably say "mama" or "dada" any week now. She might not know what she's saying when she says it, but there have been many sounds that come close to forming one of those two words, especially, "mama," when she is angry or upset (I assume it's instinct).

She can actually jump in her jumperoo now, too! So cute to watch.

The most exciting thing that Gretchen is doing right now is getting up on all fours and rocking back and forth. She can crawl a little bit, and it is so amazing to watch. It's so neat to see how babies develop and they just know the next step to take. She also puts all of the weight up on her two back legs and lifts her bottom into the air, it's quite hysterical to watch. I'll have to get a picture next time she does it. I know she'll be standing and walking early, because she's just SO strong.

Gretchen still doesn't have any teeth, but she's teething up a storm. She is quite fussy most days, but we have fun in between and at night we have special teething rings that she gnaws on while we lay low. I hate to see her so fussy, but she's still perfect to me.

She stopped liking the car and the stroller, but I'm working on getting her to like both again. We have been walking for 30 minutes for a few days in her stroller and she's doing great, so baby steps. Also, on the weekend Nate and I go for car rides with Gretchen to get her used to it again. Such a stressful whirlwind of ups and downs. I think it takes a harder toll on me than it does her. We've been cooped up for over a month in this house, but I'm lucky that she's healthy and that's all I can ask for, really.

Here are some pictures from Gretchen's 5th month and I hope that they brighten up your day like they do mine. She's amazing and we love her so much. We are truly blessed.

Gretchen was not a happy camper when I tried on her winter gear (early) to see if it would fit. Results: nothing fit.