Yesterday was my birthday and little R's five month birthday. She is becoming such a big girl! She is much more active and interested in the world around her now: she tries to grab and eat all sorts of things, from my hair to plates on the table (I have to be careful when holding her at the table now; last week she pulled a plate and its contents off the table and onto the floor). She loves being held and playing with me and B, and has definite preferences now, for toys, positions, and locations, and will complain if she doesn't get what she wants. It's so interesting to see her developing into a little independent person.
She smiles at strangers when they smile at her now: she has discovered how to charm others, and will smile at me on purpose to get a certain response. She is starting to discover that she can make things happen, whether it's hurling her toys on the floor or calling me to come play with her. I often see her carefully thinking about things, like how to manipulate her pacifier into her mouth. She is being to discover the outer world, as opposed to just the emotional world of mommy and daddy.
She is developing her physical skills well. Although there's nothing new, she can do everything more consistently and with more control, and has much more confidence in herself. She has started to roll over regularly (and can move herself all over her crib). She even rolled off the bed when I wasn't looking! Luckily she wasn't hurt. She can roll back to front and front to back, although it's still a struggle for her and she will frequently cry when trying to do it. She can hold very tightly onto all objects, and manipulate them with a lot of dexterity.
This month we moved to Singapore, meaning her schedule has been totally thrown off (and she suffered from jet lag). As a result, she is fussier and grumpier than previously, since she is tired and feels out of sorts. I haven't been able to stick to any sort of regular naptime/bedtime schedule since we have so much going on. But even so, little R is generally happy and easy to placate. She laughs and plays, and suffers through tiredness, being hot (now we are in the tropics), strange bedtimes, and every kind of change imaginable with a lot of equanimity. In fact, she is a lot more easy going than I have been. The main change is that she needs her pacifier much of the time (it makes her feel better when upset), and she is not sleeping well at night (she wakes up a lot needing to nurse, I think more for the comfort than anything else).
She is even bigger, stronger and fatter, and now that she has more muscle control can twist herself like a little octopus (when I am trying to dress her, for instance). Her hair is still red, her eyes are greyish blue, and her eyelashes are dark. Her scalp skin is flaky and peeling off (I think she has cradle cap or something similar), but has gotten much better over the last few days. It doesn't seem to bother her at all, so I am not worrying about it. She still looks just like B.
Nicknames: Fur, ZiZi, Furbopkin, Grumpster Rabbit, R_Bunny, R_Fur
Temperament: Happy, curious, active; you love to go out and see new things, and get so excited when you see a new toy; I think you get fussy sometimes when you are bored
Things I Could Do Without: Your sleep habits are not good, especially at night (you have been waking up over and over). During the day, you nap pretty well, even if we can't be at home, but at night the sleep bill becomes due and if you had a bad sleep day, then I hear about it. I hope you start sleeping better soon!
Item/Toy We Love the Most: The stroller is awesome and essential: you spend a lot of time in it as I travel around Singapore trying to get stuff done. You seem to find it quite comfortable, and it maneuvers really well up and down curbs. I am glad that I bought the sun/bug net though: it's come in really handy to protect your little skin from the hot tropical sun.
Item/Toy You Love the Most: Your pacifiers, which almost always help you feel better when you are tired, stressed, or overwhelmed. They have been worth their weight in gold for helping you during this transition.
Things I'm Loving Most Right Now: Your laughs and vocalizations: it's so cute to hear you "talk" to yourself; your increased motor control and watching your little fat hands grab and manipulate things; that you like playing with me; your darling little nose; hugging you and carrying you around as you cling to me
Things You're Loving Most Right Now: Grabbing everything you can reach, and then sticking it in your mouth; being held standing up; eating your feet; riding on your father's head; playing with your toys
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