Aby, the 7 Month Old and Other Ramblins'

So it's been a couple of days since I have put a post up, so here goes after a bit of a break...

Aby turned 7 months old today and it was a day of realizing how far she has come since I brought the tiny little baby home back in January.

Today my daughter is this crawling, babbling little monkey that makes me smile (even after a stressful day of gas or teething!). I watched her today and it's hard to imagine that she was much smaller, didn't know how smile and so fragile-looking. Gone is the baby of 6lbs, 13 oz, replaced with my nearly 18lb little chunker- already we are having to consider putting the money out on her NEXT car seat.

I have also felt that, at the 7 month mark, I have become a more confident mother. I'm not perfect and never will be but I'm learning to trust my gut so much anymore. I used to put so much weight on what the doctor said, worrying if maybe I had rushed her into eating solids or whether she was a healthy weight. Now I look at her and just need her sparkling grey eyes and bright smile as a sign that I'm doing something right.

I have a feeling that she will be walking very soon. The number of times I catch her standing without any help is starting to increase and she seems to practicing her balance, as it takes a few seconds before she flops onto her little bum. She even tries to take a step when you are holding her little hands...don't know if I should be proud or scared that I will be chasing a running child before she reaches the age of one. I was talking to Charle's grandmother and she said his sister was walking by 9 months- well at least I know where Aby got the quick to her feet gene from!

So the situation with my family seems resolved- at least we know that the anger has subsided. Basically, the lesson was that it is time to cut the 'cords' and become our own individual families. Still haven't visited but I've been doing quite well since it all fell apart, so this new change may stick. I will go over eventually....

But there goes another month.. now to start thinking about Halloween, Christmas...Aby's first birthday- wait, wasn't it yesterday that I was in the hospital, writhing in pain?