8 months old

Ava is 8 months old. She weighs 15 lbs, and is 26.5 inches long. She is the happiest baby in the world, and always has a smile on her face. Ava is starting to really become interested in food, she still loves her breast milk, but is also starting to enjoy to her oatmeal and puree fruits and vegetables. She will finally open her mouth for food. Since we started introducing solids at 4 months, we have had to force the spoon through her clinched lips. It's a nice change. Ava doesn't have any teeth yet (which I am most glad). She is sitting really well unassisted and is able to play with toys without falling over. I think she enjoys her new ability. It makes watching Noah much easier.

We have had a busy month of frequent dr calls and appts. And she has been a great trooper through all of it. When she was 7 months old she started on an inhaler, and that has been working from what we can tell...she coughs less and wheezes less. I took Ava up to spokane to see a Pediatric Gastroenterology dr. We were all kind of in the dumps after that appt. The dr put Ava on hypoallergenic formula (thinking maybe she is allergic to milk and soy) that is 24kcal versus the nomal 20kcal of breastmilk and regular formula, in order to help her grow. I also had to go soy free and milk free if I wanted to continue nursing her. Such a pain. It did take Ava a couple days before she would give into the formula. I tasted a drop of the formula...it was NASTY!! No wonder she didn't want to drink it. She also started taking Prevacid for reflux to see if that would stop her puking. The day after the GI dr, we went to Ava's regular dr, because she had green goo oozing from her ear, come to find out she had bilateral ear infections. We were giving Ava 3 different medications twice a day. I felt like a dispensary. I couldn't imagine having a really sick kid and having to do more than that. We are fortunate she only has minor issues.