height: 27 inches
weight: 17 lbs 8oz
happy innie-outie birthday, baby! i cant believe that you have been with us just as long as you were in my belly. you are such a joy!
this month has been a rough rough one- mostly because you were sick for the very first time. you caught your first cold and have been sick all this past week. it makes me so sad to see you so stuffed up and miserable and to not be able to help you. you are also Teething.... dun dun dun....we've been hard pressed to work with you on any of your exercises, mostly because you are so tired and crankypants & because you are in pain. momma is hoping that she hasn't indulged you too much, since you've worked so hard to get this far already. but we're just hoping to get you well first, then we will see about sitting up unassisted.
you had an appointment with the Children's neonatal doctor and also your neurologist this month. they are very encouraged by your progress and are hopeful for your continued recovery. they were so happy that they said we didn't have to get another MRI for you! your 9 month wellbaby appointment was great! your doctor said that you are a little behind in your gross motor skills (ie, arm movement, sitting up, raising up off of your belly, etc) and seem to be about on par with a 6 month old. he doesn't seem concerned, mostly because you are still making progress, albeit slow.
this month was so hard. scratch that, IS hard. solomon is still sickly (a whiny pitiful angry sickly at that), so it's been a pretty discouraging week, with no end in sight. something i read said that colds can last up to 14 days?! it's only been seven. and then the teething on top of that. ugh.
i've been getting more apprehensive and discouraged about solomon's slow progression to meet his milestones. i mostly feel anxious about wanting him to be able to sit and play on his own-- and then also to be interested in eating little bits of food. he loves eating his mushed food, but is happy to be fed. he doesn't reach for the spoon much. and while he is Super interested in watching us drink things, he isn't interested in picking things up and putting them in his mouth. i'm sure i'm just borrowing trouble-- but how will i ever get him on solids (so that i can stop pumping, please Lord?) if he won't pick things up off his tray???? ack.
so i am left to navigate the confusing road of how to teach my baby how to do all these things that so many babies do naturally. and i have no idea how to do that or where to start. it's overwhelming. and i feel very ill-equipped. i suppose that's what physical therapy is for?
:::
i've been getting more apprehensive and discouraged about solomon's slow progression to meet his milestones. i mostly feel anxious about wanting him to be able to sit and play on his own-- and then also to be interested in eating little bits of food. he loves eating his mushed food, but is happy to be fed. he doesn't reach for the spoon much. and while he is Super interested in watching us drink things, he isn't interested in picking things up and putting them in his mouth. i'm sure i'm just borrowing trouble-- but how will i ever get him on solids (so that i can stop pumping, please Lord?) if he won't pick things up off his tray???? ack.
so i am left to navigate the confusing road of how to teach my baby how to do all these things that so many babies do naturally. and i have no idea how to do that or where to start. it's overwhelming. and i feel very ill-equipped. i suppose that's what physical therapy is for?
I so understand and relate to all of these feelings. I'm so grateful for your strength in sharing these thoughts with the rest of us. It is the most difficult thing to wait for your baby to meet milestones in a sea of children who don't struggle. It is emotional, and isolating, and lonely, and hard. It is also beautiful and transcendent, because you become something other than just a parent-- you are a therapist, a teacher, and a full-time medical caregiver, on top of the hard work of being a parent. I am praying Solomon makes great strides this year. Meanwhile, I'm praying for him and you.
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