Little McKamy is acting like she might start teething soon. When Kamy gets our fingers into her mouth, she’s usually not sucking on them any more. She’s gnawing! She’s already got a lot of strength in her jaws and can bite down relatively hard. It doesn’t hurt yet because she doesn’t have teeth, but I know the day is coming soon. I can even feel little harder spots on her gums. I can’t believe how quickly she’s developing and I certainly didn’t expect to be writing about this quite this early! Lol!
Absolutely everything Kamy gets her hands on goes into her mouth. Toys, spit cloths, clothes, my hair, fingers, and other people’s hands. She’s especially fond of chewing on her dresses. Unlike a onesie, she can pull it up to her mouth and go to town. I’d gotten into a habit of handing her a spit cloth to chew on — instead of using the spit cloth to wipe off everything else, we’re just eliminating a step and she’s chewing on the cloth itself. Much easier to clean and change out as needed! Of course this is very normal and won’t stop for a long time. =)
Not only does this make for damp spots on nearly any cloth she gets a hold of (and my shirt), but her hands are almost always wet from chewing on them. She’s definitely found her fingers and sucks on them relentlessly. She still hasn’t settled in on a favorite finger yet, but she does tend to favor her pointer and middle fingers. Sometimes three end up in her mouth at the same time. She’s so funny about it too, because sometimes she’ll stick her fingers waaaay back in her mouth and choke herself. Next thing I hear is “cough cough cough.” Silly girl – don’t choke on your own fingers!
My newest experiment is adding a bib to her outfit when she gets dressed first thing in the morning. It’s been working pretty well! I’m hoping for the same general results of the spit cloth, without having to continuously pick up cloths as McKamy drops them in her wake. So far so good! She doesn’t seem to mind it hanging around her neck at all. When she goes to suck on her hands, she’ll often pull up the bib in the process and chew on both at the same time. If she does suck on her hand, there’s a bib handy to wipe it off with. If she gnaws on the bib instead, all the better! And bibs are much easier to change throughout the day.
Several of my friends with kids older than McKamy recommended that I register for a bunch of bibs. I’m glad I did! They said bibs were not only good for eating but also for the stage where babies make a lot of saliva and haven’t figured out how to deal with it. While Kamy isn’t much of a drooler, it’s probably because there’s always something in her mouth. I’ve got a great selection of bibs in her closet and can usually find a coordinating bib for whatever she’s wearing.
To be fair, Keller’s not a big fan of the bibs. He says they don’t look cute on her. I agree … but especially when it’s just me and McKamy at home, I’m not nearly as worried about cute. So bibs at home during the day, no bibs once Daddy’s home or while out and about. We want to look cute for everyone we meet!
Out to dinner:
