Dakota weighed 5 lbs. 12 oz and was 18 1/2 inches long when she was born. She had really dry feet that curved in. She also had little frog legs that wouldn't straighten because of the way that she was sitting. Dakota had a strong cry from the beginning even though she was on oxygen. She made so many little grunting and squeaking noises. Dakota liked to be swaddled and hated being cold. She screamed every time she had to get her diaper changed. She had a lot of hair from the very beginning, and it seemed pretty dark right when she was born. Her eyes are bright blue. She has a strong little neck and could hold her head up day one.
1 Month
Dakota weighed 7 lbs. 2 oz. and measured 19 1/2 inches long at her 1 month doctor appointment. She is still drinking from a bottle about 2-3 ounces per feeding. She seems to be a bottomless pit at the end of the day, and I am struggling to keep up with her and pumping. She still doesn't like to get her diaper changed and she still screams during bath time. Our little girl is just modest and hates to be cold like her mom. She is very alert but isn't giving any eye contact yet or tracking. She makes many different faces while she is sleeping and even an occasional smile. She is on a three hour eating cycle and wakes up 3-4 times during the night. Dakota's eyes are still a blue-gray color. They are absolutely beautiful. Dakota is a very noisy baby. She makes many grunting and squealing noises. We call her our little dinosaur. Her favorite thing to do is go to the bathroom while she is being changed which usually results in the use of multiple diapers, a change of clothes for both Dakota and changer (Nanny), and a change of the changing pad.
Dakota was 10 lbs. 1 oz. and measured 22 inches long at her 2 month doctor visit. She was a super star when she had to get her shots. Let's just say thank goodness for Tylenol. She was able to hold herself up for the doctor when placed on her tummy. Dakota responds a little to my voice and seems to be starting to recognize objects and things moving. She still doesn't track, but she sure does love to look at the light. Dakota is starting to enjoy baths and she doesn't cry anymore when she gets her diaper changed. She is starting to nurse rather than use a bottle. This was a big battle but she is getting better at it. She loves laying on her tummy on daddy's chest. Dakota doesn't like to go to sleep until about 12 a.m. She is a little fussy between the hours of 6 and 12 at night. We found out that she is having some acid reflux issues so she is now on medicine and that seems to be helping. She is a sneezer which is so cute. She loves to smash her face into your shoulder when she is tired. Dakota is growing fast and changing every day!!
2 Months
3 months
Dakota now weighs around 12 pounds, but we won't have her exact weight and measurements until her 4 month doctor's appointment which is when she gets her second round of shots. Aghh! Dakota has changed so much this last month. She is making eye contact and following us around the room. She is holding on and grabbing things in front of her. She still doesn't really play yet she is really taking in the world around her. She is smiling all of the time, and she just laughed for the first time. This just melted our hearts. She loves her daddy's low voice and will give him a lot of sweet smiles. She doesn't make her little grunting and squeaking noises any more but the noise that she does make is the filling of her diaper almost every time she eats and unfortunately it doesn't always stay in the diaper. :) Dakota can occasionally be seen crossing her eyes as she tries to focus on something close to her. This can be rather comical. Her favorite thing to look at is her hands which she sucks on all the time. Dakota is a great sleeper. She takes about 4 naps throughout the day ranging from 1 hour to 2 1/2 hours. She is also sleeping through the night which mommy is very happy about. (8-9 hour stretches) After a couple nights of tough love and "crying it out," Dakota now goes down for her naps and for the night with little to no fuss. She loves her paci but will suck on her hands if the paci isn't available. We still swaddle Dakota at night because it helps her to sleep longer yet she usually manages to get out of it by the morning. She is quite the escape artist. She is a rather finicky eater and will occasionally work herself up too much to be able to nurse. She definitely knows what she wants and she lets us know about it. Life with Dakota just gets better and better. We are excited to start to see more of her personality develop over these next couple of months. Right now we are truly enjoying this fun stage.
4 months
Wow, it is hard to believe that our little pumpkin is 4 months old and oh how she has changed this last month. Dakota now weighs 12 lbs. 7 oz. and measures 23 inches. Her little/big noggin is in the 50th percentile. We are so proud. This month she made HUGE improvements in her ability to nurse. It is no longer a battle and it only took us 4 months. Agh! Dakota can be seen smiling and giggling one minute and screaming her head off the next. We just never know what Dakota we are going to get. I guess it just makes things exciting. I think we might have a dramatic, strong willed one on our hands. :) Dakota has found her thumb. She is officially a thumb sucker. She is constantly putting her hands/whole fist and anything she can get her hands on into her mouth. Dakota has successfully rolled from her tummy to her back, and I am confident that she is going to roll from back to tummy very soon. She is so close. Dakota continues to be a great sleeper, and she loves being swaddled. One of these days we are going to make the transition out of the swaddle, and mommy is not looking forward to it. Dakota is making more sounds and she is constantly watching our mouths as we talk. She loves being sung to and rocked to sleep at night, and her mommy loves it too. Dakota is really taking in the world around her, observing everything that is going on. She is grabbing, shaking, looking at, and playing with toys placed in front of her. We love this girl more and more everyday, and we love to see her fun, spunky little personality start to take form.
5 Month
It is amazing how fast the time flies. We have had our sweet Dakota Marie for almost half a year. She continues to change every day. This month she hit the fourteen pound mark and has gone through a couple growth spurts. I am convinced that this girl is getting pure cream from her mommy. I just can't get enough of her chucky legs and rolly-polly arms now that we get to see them more with summer just around the corner. (Hopefully) Dakota is an observer of the world around her taking in everything with those big beautiful blue eyes. This month she finally rolled from her back to her stomach which meant that we had to say goodbye to the beloved swaddle. Sadly this transition has been rough for both mommy and baby as Dakota flaps her arms wildly in her crib. No wonder she isn't sleeping as well. I would wake up too. :) This month Dakota got her first sickness: congestion and then the dreaded hand, foot, mouth disease. As a result, the wonderful 10 hour stretches of sleep during the night have turned into 2 or 3 hour stretches. I am hoping that once she is healthy again that this doesn't become the new normal. Her mommy may start to pull out her hair, which is already coming out on its own these days. Dakota is a super smiley baby and will smile back at anyone smiling at her. She also loves to giggle when we play peak-a-boo but we have to laugh at her slightly delayed response. One too many peak-a-boos and her giggles may turn into a cry. Dakota loves to watch our mouths as we talk, as she copies our movements I almost expect her to talk any minute. When Dakota is healthy, she is a super content baby and a baby that thrives on routine. She has an extremely accurate internal clock that tells her exactly when three hours hit and it is time to eat or if she has been awake for too long and it is time for a nap. Dakota's smiles melt our hearts and her funny facial expressions make us laugh.
6 Months
We are having so much fun with this sweet girl. She is giving us so many smiles and giggles these days. Dakota is a really happy baby....well unless she is hungry or tired, this girl can really turn it on. She has quite the set of lungs on her. She is either happy or extremely sad, there is no in between with Dakota. At her 6 month appointment, she weighed 15.2 lbs (30%) and measured 24.8 inches (9%) with a head circumference of 16.7 inches (57%). She got her big noggin from her mommy. We just think it is because she is so smart. :) It is so much fun to see her advance in her fine motor skills and in taking in the world around her. She loves to touch everything and put it into her mouth. Her favorite thing right now is chewing on the tags on her toys as well as the strap on her pacifier. Dakota can also be heard babbling to herself in the back seat of the car with her cute high pitched voice. I am thinking she is going to be a soprano. We sing to Dakota all of the time, when we are putting her to bed or trying to calm her down in the car. She loves to reach for our mouthes, touch our noses, and pull my hair. Dakota is sporting quite the fohawk as your hair is coming in only in the middle of her head and tends to stick straight up (she got that from her daddy). Her eyes are still a beautiful bright blue and her hair seems to almost be an auburn color. We hope this stays. Dakota isn't sitting on her own just yet but loves to sit up for short stretches of time with mommy's close supervision. Dakota continues to eat more solid foods and wants to eat anything that mom and dad are eating. It won't be long before she is eating regular table food. Her favorites right now are bananas and sweet potatoes. We are excited for the next 6 months as she is going to change even more.
It is fun to see her progression from one month to six months. We thought she was cute at birth but she seems to just get cuter and cuter as she gets chubbier and chubbier. (we are a little biased) :)
Five Weeks to Due Date (1 week to arrival)
