Eve at six months!

It's been a full month since we posted, plus another week because a computer ate my post before I could send it up, and I had to start all over. Sorry!

Eve has come a long way in that month. For example, she's now eating solids! Well, we call them solids, but they're really things mashed into paste -- things like banana, avocado, rice, peaches, pears, and yogurt. We'll probably do oatmeal next. In the meantime, she can also hold her own bottle (though she doesn't know to point the end up) and her own sippy cup, which she prefers chewing on to sipping from. Actually, she can hold on to all sorts of things -- toys, her spoon, her feet, other people's hair, and so on.

She has lots of chairs that she can sit in now. One is the "Johnny jump-up," which is suspended from the door frame between the living room and kitchen. It's supposed to be bouncy, but mostly she just turns herself around. There's also a chair that's supposed to turn around -- it's a latter-day walker, where she can't make any progress, but can go in circles around a pivot point. It also has lots of toys she can play with and chew on. Then there's a short chair that props her up so she can sit by herself, which she likes, but she can't reach much from it. And of course, she's in a high chair now. It's a great one, which is highly adjustable, and will be useful for years longer than the usual high chair.

She's not quite crawling yet, but is very, very close. She's been able to raise herself up on her arms since the moment she was born, and she can stick her rear end up in the air, but she can't seem to put them together to lift her body up. She rolls at will, and can turn herself around, and even slide -- except she goes backwards, because she gets the most traction with her hands. We had a very nice baby gate installed at the top of our stairs, as the first and biggest step in baby-proofing the house. (UPDATE: Since I wrote this paragraph, this morning, she's gotten up on her hands and knees several times, and even moved a knee forward. But she collapses or topples over sideways each time... so far.)

The worst thing about this age is teething. It makes her grumpy at times, but we keep her supplied with homeopathic medicine. She actually likes it, because it's kind of sweet. She doesn't know it's medicine, but it can actually distract her from her fussing. Anyway, no teeth yet, but it's just a matter of time.

Eve has lots of friends around her age. The one she sees most is Dora, the daughter of our friends Dan and Shawna. She's seven weeks younger. Here they are together on Eve's play mat.

Probably the most exciting development for me is that I'm taking Eve to swimming lessons! Once a week, we go to a local hotel with a heated pool (not that we need a heated pool these days!), and we play games and sing songs in the water. There are between two and five other kids there at any given class. It's basic things like blowing bubbles and splashing, which are still a bit advanced for Eve -- especially being so distractable! But she likes the water a lot, and even does well going all the way underwater. No pictures of that yet, but we promise, we'll take some!

She's beginning to understand object permanence. If an item falls off her high chair, as they often do, she'll look to see where it went. Happily, the separation anxiety that comes along with object permanence hasn't been too bad. She's happiest when one or both of us are in view, but she can still entertain herself for a while. Also, she's finally started to fall asleep on her own, though not regularly.

She makes more and more noises. The newborn cry is long gone, as is the "neh" sound for hunger. Her cry is much more mature and expressive, not to mention loud. But she also coos and squeals and laughs. Most distinctive is her "sleepy song," which is a long, drawn-out vocalization she makes as she's falling asleep. We're not sure what it means. She also likes to make a raspy, throaty sound, which probably appeals to her because she can feel the vibrations.

Finally, she had her six-month checkup this week. She's doing very well! She weighs 15 pounds, six ounces, which is well over double her birth weight. She is 26 inches long. Her length is the 55th percentile, but her weight is only the 33rd. That came as news to us, because she certainly looks well-fed, and she likes to eat. On the other hand, the pediatrician correctly noted that she's so curious about the world that she gets distracted from eating. When she remembers she's hungry, she eats.