The 7 month mark

Maya turned 7 months and has several accomplishments under her belt to show for it. Two bottom teeth are now clearly visible when she smiles. She's an expert sitter and has gotten very good at changing direction by standing on her feet, arms on the ground and pivoting to land her tush in another spot so she can turn around. Crawling has shown some significant improvements this week - she'll take 3-4 'steps' before flopping on her belly or landing on her tush with gusto. But she's clearly gotten the idea to lift her hands one at a time to make forward progress. Adorable to watch. She's also graduated to the big girl tub. No little baby chair for me thank you very much. She loves to sit in the tub (in about 3 inches of water) and splash around and grab at those pesky floating toys that always seem to be juuuuust out of reach. She got an A + at her regular checkup - 18lbs and 27th inches long puts her in the 75th percentile for weight and height- so not a wilting flower in the least but better than the 90th percentile trajectory we were on for a while. The pediatrician was impressed with how aware she is of her surroundings and how intently she holds a gaze and studies the situation before her. So grown up!!

A tooth grows in Queens.

Maya sprouted a tooth!! Teeny tiny little sharp point is poking through her lower gums - which explains the rather challenging week and early wakeup calls we've had. She had a rough night on Tuesday and would not go back to sleep. She started calling for room service at around 2am - wide awake and refusing to be left alone. Her flustered father who had gotten up to redirect her into sleep mode came back into our bedroom and exclaimed "she's wide awake", to which I responded "well, it probably her teeth" and the rather comical response that I got back in a defensive tone at 2am in the dark by a sleep deprived and flustered dad was "Well, I don't know what to do with a teething baby!". As if I do. ha! Wednesday nothing and at some point Thursday it poked through. She's ready for Peter Lugar's.

She's still not quite figuring out the forward crawling although she can cross rooms backwards with ease. She's also started doing some yoga poses - hands on the floor and stands into an upside down V, downward dog position. Doesn't really know what to do from their so she usually gracefully comes back down on her knees. We still get lots of daddas and the moment I was waiting for - the occasional 'mama' sounds, but 'dadadadada' is strongly preferred. Our nanny, Lilliana who is also vying for some Maya love claims Maya attempted Lilliana - with a 'nanana' sound that she had to call me at work to share. Too much cuteness.

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee swiiiiiing!

Dada -dada

Maya uttered what sounded like her first word this week and now she's a little obsessed with multiple repetitions of dadadada... much to our delight of course and she finds the positive reinforcement very amusing. I'll try not to be tooo jealous it wasn't momma. I suuuupose 'm' sounds are hard then 'da' sounds when you're just starting out. But still. Doesn't seem exactly fair.

Other developments this week - Maya has become a very good sitter and appears to be on the verge of crawling, getting on all fours and rocking back and forth revving up her engine. She's already crossed rooms backwards, pushing herself with her arms and sliding back ending up under the crib, with her legs stuck under furniture and even in the closet. Not bad for just 6 months. Little girl is on the move and bouncy seats and play yards meant to confine are usually met with complaints. She prefers free reign on the floor. And along with all the moving and babbling her diet has become a whole lot more interesting in recent weeks and can now add avocados, bananas, pears and apples to her food repertoire. Sweet potato still seems to lead the pack as her favorite. She's growing quickly right before our eyes.

The weather in NY has finally started to turn after some unusually cold and snowy weeks which are really a nuisance in a city full of commuters. We've had some nice outings with friends including a trip to the Natural History museum last weekend and took Maya to the live butterfly exhibit which she loved - lots of butterflies all around her and landing near her. She didn't know what to think - she just stared in amazement with her mouth open. We're also looking forward to hosting a few lunches and brunches at our house in the next coming weeks (our new preferred get together times with friends) to catch up. Looking forward to warmer weather and longer days.

30 years and 6 months (6 months!!)

Maya got sort of cheated out of her 6 month birthday because February is a short month with no '30'. So happy 1/2 birthday Maya, I can't believe half a year has passed since your birth, it feels much much shorter. On the other hand the big 30 is for me, that would be 30 years old tomorrow. So we're sort of sharing my birthday on the last day of the shortest month of the year. We're planning to spend part of the day at a museum, late afternoon drinks with my parents (they really want to see Maya) then dinner out with friends. Perfect day - as long as I can stay awake!

I'm excited because 6 months means she can now try yogurt and a lot more fruit - avocado even. Silly I know - but it's so fun to watch her expression as a totally new taste hits her taste buds. You can almost see what she's thinking by the way she contorts her face, considers the new taste and the slowly accepts it (or not) and looks at you and asks for more. She complains loudly when presented with bananas, thinks the baby cereal is some sort of punishment and attacks the spoon for sweet potatoes.

We're really looking forward to the next months as Maya's coordination starts to catch up to her desire to move. I've seen her in 'crawling' position a couple of times, she's scooting backwards on the floor and rocks on her hands and knees, just hasn't figured out to dig in her feet and go forward. Soon though - and then we'll never sit down again. We have to remember to take lots of pictures because the time goes in a flash. Another year - bring it on.

Pass the pureed carrots...

It's my third week back at the office and things are starting to settle down. I got a new issue area thrown at me which had me running from meeting to meeting and trying to catch up with everything going on in the education world - which in the NYC public school system is always a big deal. It was a hectic couple of weeks and I had a splitting headache when I got home for a while - too much adult talk, home life is a different world. With a full time schedule now in full swing I'm feeling more comfortable at work and with things at home. Maya has done well overall with her nanny, I think being at home as opposed to having to go into daycare helps a lot in that adjustment. Out of nowhere Maya started sleeping through the night - an amazing blessing. She'll get up to nurse anywhere between 4-6am and then go back to sleep for about an hour. Blame it on being old enough or the fact that at 5 months we started solid foods in the evenings - either way it's working.

Feeding Maya has become a lot of fun. She has worked her way through carrots, sweet potato and butternut squash and just started greens - spinach and today peas. We'll see how it goes. The baby cereal did not pass muster and we've tried everything - serving it warm, with formula, with water, with breast milk and even apple sauce. She hates it - purses her lips and turns her head away from the spoon. Spinach on the other hand she eats with gusto. Who would have thought.

Back to work

As my maternity leave comes to an end and I prepare to go back to work next Monday it's inevitable not to spend some time reflecting on these past several amazing months of motherhood. As people warned it me, it went by very quickly and I'm amazed how Maya has changed during that time. Babies literally change everyday - their physical appearance, their awareness and their ability to interact and manipulate their environment develops overnight. Imagine how smart the human race would be if we all continued on this steep learning curve! Their brain is a sponge ready to absorb whatever you throw at it. Her latest trick which brings her a lot of joy is banging her fists Bam Bam style- against the table, on her toys, in the water during a bath (hilarious - she looks so serious and startled when she splashes herself in the face). She did it yesterday and now she's obsessed. Just like the first time she figured out how to roll over and now can't stop doing it. Other skills still under construction - she can sit unsupported for short periods of time and is trying desperately to creep along the floor and has been known to cover some distance like an inch worm - butt up in the air, digs her feet in and drags her face across the floor before stopping and looking up at you. She's also very aware of food and eating and stares with her mouth open when people are eating around her as if hoping someone will remember she has a mouth too (and puts everything in it). She's hitting the 5 month mark tomorrow (insane I know) and I think we may try some mashed up carrots this weekend. It's obvious she wants to eat and the booster seat I ordered arrived so it must be a sign. Yellow vegetables here we come!

I'm looking forward to going back to work although I am also not surprisingly somewhat nervous leaving Maya for so many hours during so many consecutive days. It know it will get easier with time and we'll fall into a routine. One of many growing pains to look forward to. So here we go - going to spend the weekend car shopping (yes the car was totaled sadly) and then it's back to work.