6 months and on the move

A lot has changed since the last update and with pressure from all 5 of my fans, here is a new entry.

Isabel first rolled over from front to back in October and Everett did it two months later. Isabel then rolled over from back to front on Christmas Eve and Everett only took a week longer to accomplish that, perfecting it on New Year's Eve. It has now become their favorite thing to do. Once you put them on the floor or in their crib, they immediately roll to their tummy. Isabel is now rolling across rooms, while Everett just stays in one spot. He always has been more laid back. They also do this at night, which worries their mom about SIDS, but I think they are strong enough to roll themselves over if they need to. We had to remove the bumpers from their cribs, which means they are now banging their heads against the crib. I guess they will learn to avoid that after a few collisions.

Sleep has been the major item of discussion around here lately, since no one seemed to get any, but that is slowly changing. We have adopted the Ferber method with the kids. Our doctor said there is no reason for them to feed at night anymore, thus the kids cry and mom and dad are close to tears as well. It hasn't been that bed really. Once the kids go to bed, around 7pm, we let them cry for 5 minutes, then check on them, then wait another 5 minutes, etc. The longest it has taken anyone to fall asleep so far is 45 minutes for Isabel. Isabel is great, sleeping almost 12 hours each night and Everett is getting longer each night. Last night, Isabel woke at 1am, cried for a while, but was back asleep within 20 minutes (seemed a lot longer though). Everett woke up at 3:45am, which is getting better. Soon, they will be out from 7pm-7am....wishful thinking, but hey, why not?

As for other activities, they really enjoy their farm exersaucer, playing with toys in their highchairs, and playing with Molly. Both kids are very close to sitting up on their own and they almost insist on holding their own bottles. Trust me, that is a very big help. They have begun to eat more solid foods. Foods like bananas, cheerios, yogurt, pudding, etc. are all approved munchies for them. They will get used to it, but we are introducing it slowly. They also like to eat Biter Biscuits. It teaches them to hold foods and place them in their mouths. We started them on juice in sippy cups this week too. Everett has a better grasp of that so far.

Their growth continues to be good. On Tuesday, they had a routine check-up and Everett is 17 lbs., 1 ounce and Isabel is 15 lbs., 13 ounces. Both of those numbers are in the 50th percentile, which is great. Everett out stands her by 1 1/4 inches, both standing at 27 1/4 and 26 inches, respectively. Those are in the upper percentiles, which makes dad happy that Everett is still tall! They were troopers with their four shots on Tuesday, including their first flu and H1N1 shots.

It has been so fun these past six months to see their development. They each have started to get real personalities and they both laugh a lot. I used to think they'd never roll over, sleep, or sit-up, but they do. I suppose they will crawl and walk soon. The babyproofing has already begun.

Their next adventures include starting swimming lessons in February, a week with Nana and Papa in February while dad and mom get a needed vacation to the Dominican Republic, and more new foods. I will be better about updates in the future. Enjoy.