Baby B: May 2011

So, it's been a loooooong time! I have very little time these days! We moved in March and then transitioned Teddy to the crib via the Ferber Method and are still working on getting him to nap longer than 45 minutes. But here's a survey to cover where he's at and then I'll post a bunch of pics too.

Monthly Survey

1. How old is baby? Today he is 6 months and 6 days old

2. Stats: As of 5/16/2011

a. Weight: 19 lbs, 12 ounces (95th percentile)

b. Height: 27.5 inches (95th percentile)

c. Clothes size: Mostly 6-9 months but those are getting a bit tight in the sleepers. He fits 9-12 just fine too, so I really need to buy more of those (and the next size up!)

d. Diaper size: Still medium for cloth diapers, size 3 for disposables (but haven't used any in a month).

e. Hair color: Still red!!

f. Eye color: Still blue

g. Anything else? His head was 17.5 cm (50th percentile)

3. Milestones:

a. Teething: She has been teething for 2.5 months and still no teeth! Top 2 are poking through, bottom gums are soooo swollen and sore. Poor thing!

b. Talking: Still just Agoo and other vowels. No mama or dada yet!

c. Rolling: All.over.the.place.:) His favorite mode of getting from point A to point B

d. Walking: Nope. Thank you dear Lord!

e. Crawling: Not yet. He sort of scoots backwards. Yesterday after his 6 month appointment he pushed up on his knees a few times. Today he seems to not be interested in that and prefers to roll again.

f. Anything else? He's a sitting pro now!

4. Things he likes:

a. Toys: He loves his excersaucer! It's an old school Graco one but does the job. He favors toys that are easy to get in his mouth.

b. Books: I have Goodnight Moon memorized and we read stories before bed. He's just gotten to the point where he reaches for the book (to eat it) and previously would look at everything else instead. So, it doesn't seem like he's got a favorite.

c. Songs: He likes Skinamrinky dinky dink, Jesus Loves Me and really most other songs he hears.

d. TV Shows: He doesn't really watch but he'll glance up when Ziva is on while I watch NCIS. It's weird. I think he likes her voice and thinks she is pretty.

e. Other activities: When it's nice out I've been going on walks in the stroller (finally bought one) and he seems to really like it!

5. Things she dislikes: The stackable ring toy because the one I bought is actually kind of slippery and he just knocks it over so it frustrates him. He also hates not being able to get things in his mouth.

6. Sleeping: It’s so much better! He puts himself to sleep now in the crib! Generally asleep by 7 pm and will sleep until 7 am, getting up once or twice. He seems to be dropping his 3rd nap but I still can't get him to consistently sleep more than 45 minutes.

7. Eating: He's nursing every 2.5-3 hours still and now gets a late morning meal of rice cereal and bananas and one other flavor. So far he's had sweet potatoes and squash. He's only been on solids for 2 weeks but once I figured out the right time (after his morning nap instead of before) he has been gobbling them up. Bananas are his favorite so far. I'm adding a "dinner" meal today and plan to do that for a few weeks before adding a third.

8. Nicknames: Teddy, Teddy Bear, Chunky, Chunky Monkey, Chunk a Monk, Chunkers, Smiley, Wiggle worm, Silly, Son, The Boy, Honey, Sweetie, Sweetie Pie, Angel, Lovey....I'm sure there's lots of others!

9. Things we’re looking forward to next month: I really want to book portrait photography before 7 months, start planning his first birthday and the professional family photography for that.

10. How I like motherhood: I LOVE it! There were a few times before we tried Ferber, when we were trying something else to sleep train and I just wanted to run away. Not forever, but just really needed a break. I felt inadequate. It's still really hard but I finally feel like I'm able to get some things done while he's asleep and after he's down for the night. I feel like I can co-exist as a person. I think it's really helped that he's sleeping on his own and we are in our own place. Before that we had one big room and he was in our bed and I had to lay next to him for hours and hours before I was sleepy and couldn't do anything!

a. Likes: I love watching him learn and play. I love the hugs, kisses and smiles I get! He's the most important thing I will ever do with my life and so much more important than anything else. I'm still getting my MA in history but I feel like I had a lot of pointless conversations in college that made it seem like politics etc. were so important and they're just not. Nothing is as important as being a good parent.

b. Dislikes: There isn’t much I don’t like. Sometimes I wish I had more “me” time. I wish Doug had more time with us!