6 months

Here are some pictures of this months photo shoot:

Shelby is 6 months old. 1/2 a year!

At 6 months, Shelby

• weighs 14 lbs. 14 oz. and is 27 1/4 inches long. 
• nurses 5-6 times a day and I've been having to supplement with formula at night, for now. She eats every 3-3 1/2 hours.
• eats baby food twice a day.
• sleeps from 7:30 - 7:30 with usually 1 feeding between 2:30-5:00a.m. She usually goes right back to sleep or she will play around in her crib until she decides she is still tired. Haha!
• naps 3 times a day. We struggled a lot with naps early on, but now she is taking great naps! Mostly because I stopped worrying about it so much.
• wears 6 month-9 month clothes and size 3 diapers.
• can sit up unassisted.
• is mobile! Not officially a crawler, but the girl can scoot like a champ. She will even scoot to me!
• Does not care to be held for very long. She is always trying to get down.
• loves Gumbo. She is always trying to get him and squeals when he runs by. 
• loves Gumbo's ball more.

5 months

At five months old, Shelby...

• weighs a little over 14 lbs.
• wears 3-6 month and 6 month clothes.
• wears size 2 diapers.
• sleeps without the swaddle and without mittens.
• sleeps with a soft lovie.
• can sit up unassisted for a little bit before she falls over or holds herself up with her hands in front of her.
• can almost pick her paci up and put it in her mouth! I can't wait for this milestone!
• nurses 5-6 times a day every 3-31/2 hours.
• is always on her tummy or wants to stand.
• started solids and has eaten rice and oatmeal cereal, sweet potatoes, bananas, sweet peas, and green beans.
• currently has an ear infection. Between teething, this ear infection, and a flare up of eczema, we have had little sleep, but at least we now know why and we can get baby girl better! She has been hurting pretty bad at night, so hopefully her medicine will kick in soon and she will start sleeping again. 
• is such a smiley baby, even with all those painful things listed above. She doesn't let it get her too down 
• is ticklish!
• did not particularly enjoy this photo session, which I now know was caused by the list above! I was going to try again another day, but decided not to. It will just be a reminder of the past fussy, sleepless days and nights, which I think is just as important as the good days! Not every day with a baby is full of smiles and giggles, and I think it's ok to show and share that.

4 months old

My sweet Shelby is 4 months old and she is exactly that, SWEET!

At four months, Shelby

• weighs 13.3 lbs. and is 25 1/2 inches long.
• sleeps from about 7:30 p.m. - 6:30/7:00 a.m. with one dream feed at 10:00 p.m. (and of course the occasional sleepless night...).
• sleeps without the swaddle for naps and sleeps swaddled with her arms out at night.
• nurses every 2.5-3 hours.
• can roll from her back to her tummy.
• has found her feet and loves to put them in her mouth.
• has laughed for us, but her Aunt B really got her going a few days ago! It was the sweetest thing!
• grabs and holds just about anything you put in front of her.
• wears size 2 diapers and 3 & 3-6 month clothes.
• loves her bath and has started splashes around quite a bit!
• loves her swing and so do we! The motto at our house has become, "When all else fails, put her in the swing!"
• started oatmeal cereal. She doesn't seem to like or dislike this, but it is still fun to watch her learn. She gets better at eating each time I feed her.
• is developing quite the personality. She is very silly and super sweet. I also think she is going to be very stubborn and driven. Her doctor even mentioned this at our appointment while we were discussing the fact that she is a very fast and efficient nurser (under 5 min. now). She knows what she wants and she doesn't waste any time getting it. It will be interesting to see if that translates into other aspects of her development!
• loves to cuddle! I know this probably won't last, so I'm trying to soak it up. It makes everything better on those rough days when I can just hold her and she snuggles right into me.
• responds to us when we talk to her. She will look at us and smile. Love her!

 Happy Valentine's Day

Spending time with her Grandma

 Taking a stroll in the park

 Playing in the Bumbo with Daddy

 My little snuggler

We tried the walker, but her legs don't reach the ground

3 months old

Shelby is 3 months old! I have two words that sum up everything I want to write: Time flies.

At 3 months, Shelby:

• weighs ? and is ? long. We have no idea. I can't wait to find out at her 4 month appointment.
• nurses every 2 1/2 - 3 hours.
• sleeps about 8-10 hours with only 1-2 interruptions (girl wakes up in a panic when she realizes she needs her paci!)
• LOVES to "talk." And I love to listen to her go on and on and on! 
• wants to sit up more during play time. I guess this is due to her becoming more and more aware of her surroundings.
• can roll from her tummy to her back and from her back to her side. 
• sleeps swaddled.
• can almost fit her entire fist in her mouth!
• has the most precious smile
• wears 3-6 month clothes and size 2 diapers
• can hold a toy once I help her get it in her hand...then she tries to put it in her mouth!

2 months old

Shelby is already two months old! I can't believe it! She is becoming such a big girl and today she got her two month shots. It really wasn't that bad to watch. I mean, I hated to hear her cry, but you gotta do what you gotta do! They were really quick about it and Shelby calmed down pretty fast. Other than the shots, her appointment went really well and Shelby is doing great!

At two months old, Shelby:
- weighs 10 lbs. 6 oz. and is 22 1/2 inches long (she gained 2 lbs. in 1 month!!)
- wears size one diapers, new born clothes, and some 0-3 month clothes
- loves bath time
- loves snuggling with anyone who will hold her
- enjoys the swing
- nurses every 2 1/2- 3 hours
- is sleeping longer stretches at night (4-6 hours)
- smiles more, especially when on her play mat
- will focus on your face and even smile
- is making all kinds of noises when she "talks" to us! I'm sure she will laugh soon! She has laughed a few times in her sleep. That has got to be the cutest thing ever! She must be dreaming of her piano play mat.
- sleeps swaddled
- sleeps in her crib in her room
- went on her first road trip and overnight trip to her Grandma and Grandpa's house. She slept most of the drive and slept pretty much the same at night as she does at home. However, she did get pretty fussy after being passed around to all the grandparents and great grandparents. She got a little too stimulated, but was fine once we got in the car and was able to sit quietly. She slept just the same that night at our house. So I'd say the first trip away from home was a success!

Shelby is one month old!

Our sweet girl is already a month old! I can't believe it!

At one month, Shelby:

• Weighs 8lbs 2 oz. and is 21 1/2 inches long.
• Is pretty strong for a 1 month old! She can really hold her head up and keep it there for a long time. She tries to pull her body up when you hold her hands and she has strong legs too.
• Can roll from her belly to her back and from her back to her side. 
• Nurses every 2 1/2-3 hours during the day and will give us 4-5 hour stretches at night. 
• Has dark blue-grayish eyes
• Has light brown hair
• Wears newborn diapers and clothes. She has started wearing some 0-3 month clothes (mostly for length)
• Smiles a little
• Loves to take baths!
• Loves her pacifier!

34-40 weeks

It has been a very long time since my last post! Needless to say, Baby Whitlock was born and is a GIRL! Her name is Shelby Elaine Whitlock and she was born at 12:12pm on October 22, 2013. She weighed 7lbs and was 19in long. I'm not going to share the whole birth story, but I will say that it was  painful and beautiful at the same time. I was induced and everything went fairly smoothly. I had a few complications with the epidural and an unknown tear in the placenta, but all in all, it wasn't too bad...and completely worth it. I will admit that before the epidural I told Dustin repeatedly that I was never having anymore children, but after the drugs finally kicked in and Shelby was born, I changed my mind and was much more pleasant and positive! Dustin was amazing in the delivery room and I'm so glad I had him there to encourage me.

I'll also say that waiting to find out what we were having was such a good decision. It was so awesome to have everyone in the delivery room guess what we were having and then for the doctor to shout out, "It's a girl!" It was such a fun surprise and I'll never forget that moment! I only wish I could have seen our family's faces when Dustin told everyone about her. What an amazing day!

Now to catch everyone up on the weekly chalkboard posts...

Sorry I stopped updating the blog. I just got busy and tired and didn't feel like doing it! Here's weeks 34-40:

 Here are some pictures of our precious Shelby:

I'll post more pictures on her one month post! We are so blessed and love her so much!

Love,

Kelsey