Friday, June 4, 2010
Movin' on over...
To a new blog so that I can have everything under one sign on. I'm sure there's a way to do that without moving everything over, but I've spent way too long trying to figure it out and this is the solution for now! Here's the new blog address where you will find all new things relating to Danny and our family: and baby makes 3 The new url is: http://ludwigfamilygrows.blogspot.com/
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Updates updates!
Danny is just a few days shy of 14 months. I haven't updated until now because it really hasn't felt like there's been a whole lot to update. Although, it just hit me that there is newness to update. It's a good example of how when you see someone everyday and don't notice the little changes until one day, bam! He looks more and more like a little boy and less like the little squishy baby he once was. His hands are hands of little boys, not of a baby. He's got long arms and legs and is using them with more deliberate purpose. And boy is he on the move! He isn't walking just yet, but he sure cruises along furniture and crawls quick. No more army crawling here. He stands on his own for a few seconds at a time and is really perfecting leaning against something with his belly and using his hands to do things other than hold on. He really throws himself around too. No fear! I predict he'll be doing fun things like climbing soon as I've already seen him climbing on top of one of his push toys so that he can lengthen his reach on top of the tables. He stands on his tippie toes to reach up on to higher tables and is so proud of himself when he is able to put a block up on the kitchen table or TV table.
Hands down, his favorite activity has got to be stacking stuff. Anything. Crackers on top of cups, cups on top of bowls, spoons on top of cups on top of blocks. You get the idea. He thinks it's the funniest thing ever. He's also gotten into a habit of putting his food into a bowl or nesting block. The fun never ends around here.
He's still nursing about 2 times per day. He has pretty much dropped the afternoon bottle or nursing session and moved onto whole milk. He is getting better at eating finger foods which has been a slow transition. Favorites at the moment are chicken nuggets and bananas. Oh and peach cups, he loves those too. He's a pro with the sippy cup and loves drinking water, no juice!
He has 5 teeth now; 3 on top and 2 on bottom. His blonde hair is getting longer too, not quite long enough to warrant a hair cut just yet, but he's getting there. Very chatty. No real words yet but loves making sounds. He points, claps and does touchdown. Loves putting things on his head, raising his arms up and we are working on identifying body parts. Does not like being told no or taken away from something he wants to do (like play with the oven drawer) but is pretty easily redirect able.
He has been sick a lot. Seems like a cold every few weeks followed by an ear infection. He had his first episode of pink eye a few weeks ago. Despite this, he is pretty much a happy little guy. He had his first boat ride and went to his first baseball game over Memorial Day Weekend. He had a hard time on the boat but I think it had more to do with not liking his life jacket. He did great at the baseball game although the Giants lost to the Rockies.
So I guess he's a toddler now, huh. Wow, it's gone fast!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
One year old!
He's a big boy now. No longer a baby. A toddler? Well, not yet..he's not walking yet. So maybe I can still call him a baby. In any case, I can't believe how fast this year went by. He has changed so much and it's just amazing how much happiness and joy he has brought to our lives.
We had his party this past weekend and it was perfect. Family and close friends came all the way out to Drakes and we had food, cake and opened presents. Pretty much your standard one year old party I guess. He ate a little cake and got pretty messy. Even had a little ice cream, although initially I think the coldness freaked him out. He got lots of new toys and clothes and didn't seem to get too overwhelmed with it all. I think he did wonder why everyone was looking at him and singing when he was sitting in his high chair.
He's doing lots of new things now. Pulling himself up and cruising around tables, pushing toys around while walking behind them and has even stood without holding on a couple of times. I'm sure he'll be walking soonish. He waves, claps, points, makes noises with his hand over his mouth, smiles all the time to show off his 4 teeth and is overall just a happy little guy. He hasn't completely given up his army crawl yet but does spend more time on all fours when he wants to get somewhere. He still babbles a lot...mamama and his latest babble which sounds like "wee-th-el". He LOVES his little stuffed monkey aka "mookie" and got a supersized monkey from his big cousins, to which he is still trying to figure out. He is wearing mostly 12 month, some 18 month clothes and a size 4 diaper. Naps are pretty consistent (except at day care where he doesn't nap at all). He takes an hour or so in the morning and then when we are home, he sleeps 1-2 hours in the afternoon.
He still nursing 4-6 times a day and eating mostly pureed foods. Although we try to give him finger foods at most meals, he's not so much a fan unless it's a puff or a cheerio. But it took a while for him to get into solids and he eventually got it, so we'll get there. I'm looking forward to the day when he will just eat whatever we are eating.
We went to his one year appointment yesterday. He weighed in at 22 pounds 4.5 ounces, 30 1/4 inches long and his big old head is 19 centimeters (97%). Healthy and developing as he should be. He got a couple of immunizations yesterday which as usual, suck. But he recovered quickly.
We had his party this past weekend and it was perfect. Family and close friends came all the way out to Drakes and we had food, cake and opened presents. Pretty much your standard one year old party I guess. He ate a little cake and got pretty messy. Even had a little ice cream, although initially I think the coldness freaked him out. He got lots of new toys and clothes and didn't seem to get too overwhelmed with it all. I think he did wonder why everyone was looking at him and singing when he was sitting in his high chair.
He's doing lots of new things now. Pulling himself up and cruising around tables, pushing toys around while walking behind them and has even stood without holding on a couple of times. I'm sure he'll be walking soonish. He waves, claps, points, makes noises with his hand over his mouth, smiles all the time to show off his 4 teeth and is overall just a happy little guy. He hasn't completely given up his army crawl yet but does spend more time on all fours when he wants to get somewhere. He still babbles a lot...mamama and his latest babble which sounds like "wee-th-el". He LOVES his little stuffed monkey aka "mookie" and got a supersized monkey from his big cousins, to which he is still trying to figure out. He is wearing mostly 12 month, some 18 month clothes and a size 4 diaper. Naps are pretty consistent (except at day care where he doesn't nap at all). He takes an hour or so in the morning and then when we are home, he sleeps 1-2 hours in the afternoon.
He still nursing 4-6 times a day and eating mostly pureed foods. Although we try to give him finger foods at most meals, he's not so much a fan unless it's a puff or a cheerio. But it took a while for him to get into solids and he eventually got it, so we'll get there. I'm looking forward to the day when he will just eat whatever we are eating.
We went to his one year appointment yesterday. He weighed in at 22 pounds 4.5 ounces, 30 1/4 inches long and his big old head is 19 centimeters (97%). Healthy and developing as he should be. He got a couple of immunizations yesterday which as usual, suck. But he recovered quickly.
Monday, March 15, 2010
i'm pretty sure this counts
Last night after his bath, I was cuddling him up in his towel and he said "mama". Twice. Counts as his first word, right? :)
Friday, March 12, 2010
11 months old
I think I've been in denial about writing this one. His last update before turning one year old. I feel sadness that my little baby is growing up but I'm so so so excited for the very same reason. He is just more and more amazing everyday and there is so much to look forward to.
This past month has been very eventful. He seems to be developing so quickly now. Everyday it seems like there is something new that he's doing. Just a few days before turning 11 months old he pulled himself up to his feet. Now that is all he does. He is so active, just moving and pulling himself up on everything. He does his own version of crawling; army combined with traditional. I think it just depends on the surface he's one and if he has clothes on or not. He seems to enjoy just hanging out in his diaper, and he is also able to do more of a traditional crawl that way. He's take a few good falls but quickly calms down and is right back to it. He's still not really sitting up on his own very often, but he seems like he can do it, just doesn't see a need for it when he could be standing up on the table or something.
He points at everything, all the time. He is making more "ma-ma-ma" and "ba-ba" and "da-da" sounds but doesn't seem to direct them at anything. He likes clapping. Oh and he's learning to make sounds by putting his hand over his mouth repeatedly.
I keep thinking his other tooth is going to come soon, but nothing yet. His top tooth is really starting to show now, so while I don't look forward to the process of the next tooth coming in, I do look forward to him having another tooth up there to balance things out.
Sleeping continues to go pretty well. He sleeps 11-12 hours a night with a 45 minute nap in the morning and a 1-2 hour nap in the afternoon.
Eating has been a little challenging. He still tends to prefer pureed foods but sometimes doesn't want to eat them. We are trying to offer him more finger foods at each meal. He seems only interested in eating puffs and cheerios, everything else, not so much. He's nursing 4-5 times a day or bottling it up when I'm at work.
I think that's it for now!
This past month has been very eventful. He seems to be developing so quickly now. Everyday it seems like there is something new that he's doing. Just a few days before turning 11 months old he pulled himself up to his feet. Now that is all he does. He is so active, just moving and pulling himself up on everything. He does his own version of crawling; army combined with traditional. I think it just depends on the surface he's one and if he has clothes on or not. He seems to enjoy just hanging out in his diaper, and he is also able to do more of a traditional crawl that way. He's take a few good falls but quickly calms down and is right back to it. He's still not really sitting up on his own very often, but he seems like he can do it, just doesn't see a need for it when he could be standing up on the table or something.
He points at everything, all the time. He is making more "ma-ma-ma" and "ba-ba" and "da-da" sounds but doesn't seem to direct them at anything. He likes clapping. Oh and he's learning to make sounds by putting his hand over his mouth repeatedly.
I keep thinking his other tooth is going to come soon, but nothing yet. His top tooth is really starting to show now, so while I don't look forward to the process of the next tooth coming in, I do look forward to him having another tooth up there to balance things out.
Sleeping continues to go pretty well. He sleeps 11-12 hours a night with a 45 minute nap in the morning and a 1-2 hour nap in the afternoon.
Eating has been a little challenging. He still tends to prefer pureed foods but sometimes doesn't want to eat them. We are trying to offer him more finger foods at each meal. He seems only interested in eating puffs and cheerios, everything else, not so much. He's nursing 4-5 times a day or bottling it up when I'm at work.
I think that's it for now!
Monday, February 22, 2010
busy couple of weeks
It's been a busy and eventful few weeks for us! Danny has had a couple bad colds and was just so miserable. He had a really yucky cough and was really only content being held or sleeping off and on in his swing. After a big cough, he projectile vomited all over me, twice. Ugh. I guess I earned my mommy wings. We took him to the doctor and found out he had the early beginnings of two ear infections. After a few days of antibiotics he was feeling better, so he decided to cut a tooth! Top one! Then yesterday, he started crawling on all fours! He isn't quite there all the time, but he's getting there. Oh and he's pulling himself up on his knees. Lots of newness!
Friday, February 12, 2010
10 months old
I've been putting off writing this update for some reason. Maybe because little D has been super sick and not sleeping or maybe it's because I'm a little bit in denial that my little man is 10 months old! Holy crap batman!
He's doing lots of cool stuff now. He's doing what we still call the "advanced army crawl" where he scoots around on his belly. He is spending more and more time on all fours, rocking back and forth but when he wants to move, it's belly to the ground and boy is he quick! He's also getting much better with his fine motor skills like picking up super-tiny-invisible-to-the-adult-eye-random pieces of stuff from the floor. Just in the past couple of days he's spending more time on just his knees and pulling himself up onto things. He's still not a professional sitter yet, but is much more stable. He doesn't seem to like spending much time sitting as he normally just pushes himself forward and takes off crawling.
He's still a good, and much more efficient eater. He nurses 4-5 times a day for about 10-15 minutes and is now eating 3 meals a day. About 3 oz in the morning, 2 oz for lunch and 4 oz for dinner. He's also started eating puffs now and seems to like hanging out in his high chair eating puffs.
Sleeping has continued to go well for the most part. He normally goes to bed between 7 and 7:30 and is up around the same time in the morning. Naps have been better too. Usually 2 in the morning/early afternoon and sometimes a late afternoon one, all usually in his crib.
Unfortunately I feel like he spent most of January with a runny nose or a cold. Poor guy. Just this week has been especially yucky. He got a pretty nasty cough and we caught a ear infections in both ears pretty early. Oh and I officially earned my parent wings when he projectile vomited on me twice. Like real throw up. Ick ick ick! He was so miserable. But after a few days of antibiotics he seems to be getting better finally!
We've also made a decision to transition him into a new daycare center but for the time being, Randy is taking his 6 weeks of Paid Family Leave and will be staying home with him. Love it!
We also left him for the first time overnight and we took a much needed night away. D stayed with grandma and seemed to do great! Glad we overcame that first hurdle of leaving him overnight.
That's all I can think of for now!
Monday, January 11, 2010
9 months old
So I'm a few days late writing this update but D just had his 9 month well baby visit today and I like to include all the stats on our growing little man. Today he weighed 19 lbs 11.8 oz and is 28 inches tall. I was thinking he would weigh more than that but am relieved that he's still going to fit in his infant car seat a little bit longer! I don't remember exact percentiles, but I do remember that his head is in the 98th percentile..whoa!
He has been a pretty busy guy lately and his determined and curious personality is coming through. He isn't crawling on all fours yet, but he does an advanced army crawl to get where he wants to go. Usually he is motivated to get to things like cords, strings, drawers with knobs and outlets. Needless to say, we started looking at items for baby proofing the house. We also lowered his crib and are extra sure to keep a hand on him while on the changing table since he is a rolling machine!
He's clapping and raising his arms to do "Touchdown". Although Randy thinks D can improve this skill a bit more :) He is kinda waving, but not really. He says "da-da" indiscriminately and lots of other babbling sounds. He smiles a ton and is overall a pretty happy little guy. He still just has the bottom 2 teeth but the doctor said that his gums look raised up on top so we should be getting new teeth soon I'm sure. He can sit unsupported but still isn't that stable so someone has to be there with him. He gets upset when something he wants gets taken away. He has been very grabby with the dogs too and they have been VERY patient with him. Hilo is constantly trying to lick him and Kona is constantly trying to keep her paws out of his hands :)
Eating is still going well. He nurses 5 times a day and is eating about 4 oz of breakfast (yogurt/fruit/cereal) and 4-5 oz of dinner (veggie combo). He has started "helping" us feed him by grabbing the spoon. Which of course makes it harder to feed him but I guess it's good developmentally. The doctor suggested giving him some chicken or turkey and also introducing lunch soon.
Sleeping also continues to go well. He's been sleeping for 10-12 hours straight at night! Hope that continues! The only issue that has come up there is he is so mobile now that sometimes he gets himself caught in a corner or something of his crib and gets upset. He still naps in the morning about 45 minutes and on a good day, 2 more naps later in the day.
Monday, December 28, 2009
christmas fun
I was just reading through the last entry and I can't believe how much has happened since then. He seems like such a different kid. He is very close to crawling. In the past couple of weeks he has realized he enjoys spending time on his belly and rolls and pivots across the room. A couple of times he has gotten on his toes in push up position and he's working on getting his knees under himself so I'm sure it won't be long now before he's officially mobile.
Christmas was so much fun. Busy, but fun. We spent the night out at my uncle's house and D opened up some pretty cool toys (including a big CAT dump truck he can ride at some point; he liked honking the horn). Then my mom came down and spent the week. As usual, Christmas eve was spent with family but this year we were at the new Drakes house. Then Christmas morning we opened up gifts at home before heading back over to Drakes for more fun. Danny got quite a pile of new toys and some clothes and it seems like his favorite so far is this $8 Baby Einstein music toy that he can just lay back and hold on to. My dad came over in the afternoon with more presents (we all got the most awesome sweatshirts and they match!). Then it was back out to Randy's family's house for dinner. Whew! Danny did great. He got overwhelmed and overstimulated but seemed to really enjoy seeing all the family. He even showed off his new dance moves and did his best to crawl.
What else? Not much else new really. He is just a moblie-ish guy now moving around on the floor. His personality has really just blossomed. He smiles all the time and makes silly faces. Loves loves loves being scared. Boo! He started clapping earlier this week too. Oh and he's up to eating 3 ice cube servings of veggies at night and enjoying more grains and fruits in the morning. Okay, so I guess there is newness after all.
Christmas was so much fun. Busy, but fun. We spent the night out at my uncle's house and D opened up some pretty cool toys (including a big CAT dump truck he can ride at some point; he liked honking the horn). Then my mom came down and spent the week. As usual, Christmas eve was spent with family but this year we were at the new Drakes house. Then Christmas morning we opened up gifts at home before heading back over to Drakes for more fun. Danny got quite a pile of new toys and some clothes and it seems like his favorite so far is this $8 Baby Einstein music toy that he can just lay back and hold on to. My dad came over in the afternoon with more presents (we all got the most awesome sweatshirts and they match!). Then it was back out to Randy's family's house for dinner. Whew! Danny did great. He got overwhelmed and overstimulated but seemed to really enjoy seeing all the family. He even showed off his new dance moves and did his best to crawl.
What else? Not much else new really. He is just a moblie-ish guy now moving around on the floor. His personality has really just blossomed. He smiles all the time and makes silly faces. Loves loves loves being scared. Boo! He started clapping earlier this week too. Oh and he's up to eating 3 ice cube servings of veggies at night and enjoying more grains and fruits in the morning. Okay, so I guess there is newness after all.
Monday, December 7, 2009
8 months old!
I know I say this every month, but it's true. I can't believe he is 8 months old already?! Where has the time gone? No seriously, where has it gone? It is amazing to see how much he has changed in such a short period of time. This past month was full of new things.
He now has 2 bottom teeth and I'm sure there's another one trying to come through. At least that's what we and everyone else blames on fussiness. I sure hope I haven't lost my laid back baby to the tooth monster. Some nights he just screams for no apparent reason and no matter what we do it seems like he's not happy. So, we blame it on constipation and/or teething. Things we can't see and can't really seem to do much about other than give Tylenol and teething rings (which he isn't a huge fan of).
I should mention the Tylenol thing..sometimes it seems to have a placebo effect. He will be screaming his head off and nothing else is working and then as soon as that dropper comes near his mouth he's all excited and then happy as a clam (what does that even mean?). Anyway, I digress.
He's still practicing sitting up and seems to enjoy this new way to play with the same old toys (thank goodness Christmas is coming..he is just SO bored of his current toys. well, not really, I'm just sayin'). He is not a fan of falling back. When we are in the living room where there is hardwood floor, I usually try to guide his fall so he isn't really falling. But when we are on carpet I've let him lose his balance a few times and he "hits" his head on the carpet. Boy screams louder (after he stops breathing for a few seconds because of how upset he is) than when he gets shots. I think it just scares him. Although, last night he rolled from his belly to his back and his head kinda landed loud on the hardwood floor and he started to get upset but when we didn't react, he was fine!
Eating is going well. He still nurses 5-6x a day. Sometimes on both sides, sometimes just on one, but in either case he has gotten much more efficient. He usually finishes up in 10-15 minutes. And he's really enjoying solids, especially vegetables. He's up to eating 2 ice cube servings of veggies now. Sweet Potatoes and Peas are his favorites.
He is no where near crawling yet. This is most likely because he hates being on his stomach and so doesn't spend much time practicing that development. He does love to stand though. Loves being in his exersaucer and being carried around in the ergo. We recently put him on my back so that it would be easier for me to do stuff around the house and he liked it so much he fell asleep!
He continues to sleep 10-11 hours at night. Naps are going okay. When I'm home he usually (not always, last week was a nightmare) goes down once in the morning and then late morning/early afternoon and sleeps for about 30-40 minutes in his crib. The rest of the day is hit or miss. Sometimes he'll nap in the car if we are out. The late evening is his toughest time though. He wakes from his last nap around 4ish and doesn't go to bed until 8:30ish, so there should be a nap in between there, but instead, he'd rather have us carry him around or cry and fuss which makes dinner time a little stressful.
He doesn't say any words yet but does say a lot of "ooohhh" which is cute. And he babbles a lot, but he's always been pretty chatty. He gets that from his Daddy.
Other than that we are just getting ready for Christmas! We'll be going shopping next weekend and I hope to get things wrapped and done so I'm not out running around at the last minute like I am every year.
He now has 2 bottom teeth and I'm sure there's another one trying to come through. At least that's what we and everyone else blames on fussiness. I sure hope I haven't lost my laid back baby to the tooth monster. Some nights he just screams for no apparent reason and no matter what we do it seems like he's not happy. So, we blame it on constipation and/or teething. Things we can't see and can't really seem to do much about other than give Tylenol and teething rings (which he isn't a huge fan of).
I should mention the Tylenol thing..sometimes it seems to have a placebo effect. He will be screaming his head off and nothing else is working and then as soon as that dropper comes near his mouth he's all excited and then happy as a clam (what does that even mean?). Anyway, I digress.
He's still practicing sitting up and seems to enjoy this new way to play with the same old toys (thank goodness Christmas is coming..he is just SO bored of his current toys. well, not really, I'm just sayin'). He is not a fan of falling back. When we are in the living room where there is hardwood floor, I usually try to guide his fall so he isn't really falling. But when we are on carpet I've let him lose his balance a few times and he "hits" his head on the carpet. Boy screams louder (after he stops breathing for a few seconds because of how upset he is) than when he gets shots. I think it just scares him. Although, last night he rolled from his belly to his back and his head kinda landed loud on the hardwood floor and he started to get upset but when we didn't react, he was fine!
Eating is going well. He still nurses 5-6x a day. Sometimes on both sides, sometimes just on one, but in either case he has gotten much more efficient. He usually finishes up in 10-15 minutes. And he's really enjoying solids, especially vegetables. He's up to eating 2 ice cube servings of veggies now. Sweet Potatoes and Peas are his favorites.
He is no where near crawling yet. This is most likely because he hates being on his stomach and so doesn't spend much time practicing that development. He does love to stand though. Loves being in his exersaucer and being carried around in the ergo. We recently put him on my back so that it would be easier for me to do stuff around the house and he liked it so much he fell asleep!
He continues to sleep 10-11 hours at night. Naps are going okay. When I'm home he usually (not always, last week was a nightmare) goes down once in the morning and then late morning/early afternoon and sleeps for about 30-40 minutes in his crib. The rest of the day is hit or miss. Sometimes he'll nap in the car if we are out. The late evening is his toughest time though. He wakes from his last nap around 4ish and doesn't go to bed until 8:30ish, so there should be a nap in between there, but instead, he'd rather have us carry him around or cry and fuss which makes dinner time a little stressful.
He doesn't say any words yet but does say a lot of "ooohhh" which is cute. And he babbles a lot, but he's always been pretty chatty. He gets that from his Daddy.
Other than that we are just getting ready for Christmas! We'll be going shopping next weekend and I hope to get things wrapped and done so I'm not out running around at the last minute like I am every year.
Monday, November 23, 2009
sitting on a tooth?
I can't believe it's been almost a month since I wrote the last entry! Lots of cool newness this past month.
Danny turned 7 months on 11/7 and just a few days shy of that he sat up on his own! Just all of a sudden..BAM! Look at me! Of course this was about 4 days after we just took family pictures and he couldn't yet sit up for those. Oh well! So anyways, the sitting up. We were hanging in his room and I sat him down to practice and I let go and there he sat, for a good 10 seconds. Kona was right there and D was reaching out to touch her..cute!
For Halloween he was a monkey! So freaking cute! I took some time off that night and we hung out. Nothing exciting, but I enjoy being home on a Saturday night and hanging with my boys.
Then almost a week ago D got his first tooth! He had been super fussy the previous days but it was nothing noteworthy, just normal evening fuss bus. Then the next morning (I think Wednesday) I reached in his mouth and there was a tooth! At least for all that pain he has something to show for it now! Since he cut that tooth, he's been in a more pleasant mood. I was starting to think I was losing my mild mannered child forever since teething goes on forever.
Hmmm..let's see, what else? I'm making D's baby food which I'm pretty proud of. It's way easier than I thought it would be and he really seems to like it (well, except for green beans). He even likes peas! So far he's had applesauce, pears, bananas, peas, sweet potatoes, avocado, butternut squash and green beans. He's only had green beans once and he about gagged himself so I'm guessing he's not so much a fan. We'll keep trying though! He's now eating about 2tsp of oatmeal mixed with about 1-2 tbs of fruit in the morning and then 2 ice cube sized portions of veggie.
Nursing is going okay. I've been having what I thought were supply issues this month. The problem seems to be that my pump had a problem which then led to a supply problem which I'm hopeful is improving. When I'm home he nurses 5-6x a day. Still both sides in the AM and PM and usually just one side for about 5-10 minutes the rest of the time. He has really become more efficient. It used to take me 40-60 minutes sometimes in the morning for one feeding. I'm loving all the extra time I have now!
He continues to sleep about 10-11 hours per night and he handled the time change surprisingly well. Although some nights he is ready to pass out at 7:30 and then other nights, like tonight (it's 8:48) he's chatting up a storm in there. He usually wakes up about 6:30. Naps have gone well this week, although I wish they were longer. The good news is that he's been taking them in his crib! WooHoo!
So that's the latest and greatest. Of course he continues to be the cutest baby in the world and is just doing so many new little things all the time. He talks talks talks all the time. No words or anything that sound like words but boy does he babble and sing. He smiles a TON but makes us work kinda hard for laughs. He loves standing. He can pull himself up while just holding on to our fingers. Not a fan of tummy time so my guess is he may skip the crawling all together. Who knows?!
Danny turned 7 months on 11/7 and just a few days shy of that he sat up on his own! Just all of a sudden..BAM! Look at me! Of course this was about 4 days after we just took family pictures and he couldn't yet sit up for those. Oh well! So anyways, the sitting up. We were hanging in his room and I sat him down to practice and I let go and there he sat, for a good 10 seconds. Kona was right there and D was reaching out to touch her..cute!
For Halloween he was a monkey! So freaking cute! I took some time off that night and we hung out. Nothing exciting, but I enjoy being home on a Saturday night and hanging with my boys.
Then almost a week ago D got his first tooth! He had been super fussy the previous days but it was nothing noteworthy, just normal evening fuss bus. Then the next morning (I think Wednesday) I reached in his mouth and there was a tooth! At least for all that pain he has something to show for it now! Since he cut that tooth, he's been in a more pleasant mood. I was starting to think I was losing my mild mannered child forever since teething goes on forever.
Hmmm..let's see, what else? I'm making D's baby food which I'm pretty proud of. It's way easier than I thought it would be and he really seems to like it (well, except for green beans). He even likes peas! So far he's had applesauce, pears, bananas, peas, sweet potatoes, avocado, butternut squash and green beans. He's only had green beans once and he about gagged himself so I'm guessing he's not so much a fan. We'll keep trying though! He's now eating about 2tsp of oatmeal mixed with about 1-2 tbs of fruit in the morning and then 2 ice cube sized portions of veggie.
Nursing is going okay. I've been having what I thought were supply issues this month. The problem seems to be that my pump had a problem which then led to a supply problem which I'm hopeful is improving. When I'm home he nurses 5-6x a day. Still both sides in the AM and PM and usually just one side for about 5-10 minutes the rest of the time. He has really become more efficient. It used to take me 40-60 minutes sometimes in the morning for one feeding. I'm loving all the extra time I have now!
He continues to sleep about 10-11 hours per night and he handled the time change surprisingly well. Although some nights he is ready to pass out at 7:30 and then other nights, like tonight (it's 8:48) he's chatting up a storm in there. He usually wakes up about 6:30. Naps have gone well this week, although I wish they were longer. The good news is that he's been taking them in his crib! WooHoo!
So that's the latest and greatest. Of course he continues to be the cutest baby in the world and is just doing so many new little things all the time. He talks talks talks all the time. No words or anything that sound like words but boy does he babble and sing. He smiles a TON but makes us work kinda hard for laughs. He loves standing. He can pull himself up while just holding on to our fingers. Not a fan of tummy time so my guess is he may skip the crawling all together. Who knows?!
Monday, October 26, 2009
Solids and other newness
So D has been eating solids now for a few weeks. It's been going okay and he just keeps practicing. We started with applesauce because we were told that would help with constipation. Well..he wasn't constipated but he just wasn't going. We weren't sure if he was or not. This boy used to poop 4-6x a day and then nothing for a week. Unusual, right? This started before we even started solids. So anyway, I digress..we started with applesauce (later to find out that it can be constipating..errrr! So many conflicting opinions/advice). He was cool with it. Moved to peas..not so cool. Then to oatmeal which was 'eh. Then sweet potatoes last night..winner winner chicken dinner! Well, actually winner, winner, sweet potato dinner! I mean he ate it right down with very minimal mess. Then today when he was eating breakfast (oatmeal mixed with applesauce) he even opened his mouth when I put the spoon up there. I think he's getting the hang of it. He is still only eating about a teaspoon, but he's practicing.
Hm. What else? He's working on sitting up, although mostly he just collapses forward into a face plant. He is loving his exersaucer and rolling to his belly, not so much to his back. He's reaching for stuff, holding stuff, putting stuff in his mouth, you know-all the normal stuff babies do. Oh and of course "he's teething". Well that's what everyone keeps saying anyway and has been for the past month or two. What does that even mean really? I tend to think that anytime babies are fussy for some unexplained reason people (myself included) jump to "he's teething". I'm sure he is teething but how long does this last anyway? In any case, he doesn't have any teeth yet.
Sleeping continues to go well. He's been sleeping for 10-11 hours at night and taking 2-4 naps during the day. He's been better at taking some in his crib, although he usually only naps for about 30 minutes at a time.
He still nurses 5-6 times per day although there has been some changes recently with the introduction of solids. He seems to nurse on each side for the first and last feed but during the day he only nurses on one side at a time. Always keeping me on my toes! Currently we are nursing on one side, giving oatmeal & applesauce then nursing on the other side. In the evening he hasn't been eating solids consistently. This is for several random reasons. But the plan is for him to eat a veggie about an hour after his 4pm-ish feeding.
Oh and the talking. He's totally playing with his voice and it's super cute. Just blah blah blah, scream, blah blah blah, scream.
Hm. What else? He's working on sitting up, although mostly he just collapses forward into a face plant. He is loving his exersaucer and rolling to his belly, not so much to his back. He's reaching for stuff, holding stuff, putting stuff in his mouth, you know-all the normal stuff babies do. Oh and of course "he's teething". Well that's what everyone keeps saying anyway and has been for the past month or two. What does that even mean really? I tend to think that anytime babies are fussy for some unexplained reason people (myself included) jump to "he's teething". I'm sure he is teething but how long does this last anyway? In any case, he doesn't have any teeth yet.
Sleeping continues to go well. He's been sleeping for 10-11 hours at night and taking 2-4 naps during the day. He's been better at taking some in his crib, although he usually only naps for about 30 minutes at a time.
He still nurses 5-6 times per day although there has been some changes recently with the introduction of solids. He seems to nurse on each side for the first and last feed but during the day he only nurses on one side at a time. Always keeping me on my toes! Currently we are nursing on one side, giving oatmeal & applesauce then nursing on the other side. In the evening he hasn't been eating solids consistently. This is for several random reasons. But the plan is for him to eat a veggie about an hour after his 4pm-ish feeding.
Oh and the talking. He's totally playing with his voice and it's super cute. Just blah blah blah, scream, blah blah blah, scream.
Working for a living
So I've officially been a working mom now for about 2 months. With as much dread and anticipation I had about it initially, it's not so bad. In fact, sometimes I like working. There I said it. I feel guilty even thinking about how I sometimes enjoy time away from my son, but I think having a balance is what makes life enjoyable. I'm getting into a routine now at work and somewhat feel competent, so that's a nice balance to the times as a new parent where I feel absolutely incompetent. I enjoy being social with my coworkers and doing work that I feel good about. It makes the time with my son just that much sweeter. I absolutely adore that little man.
Now, while I do enjoy the work at times, I would still love to work less. Ideally, 2-3 days a week of work would be perfect. I even wouldn't mind putting in long days (10-12 hours) since I'm already putting in 10 hour days, what's a couple more, really?
It has taken some time to get into the swing of things though and I'm sure now that I've said this, things will change tomorrow and throw me off. So I'm working 4 days a week from 12-10pm. Danny has been sleeping until about 7 or 7:30 which allows me on most mornings to get up before him and eat breakfast. He wakes up and I feed him which takes 45 minutes or so, then we go for a walk, he naps while I shower and get ready. Once he wakes up from his nap we play a little then feed him and get him ready to go and we are out the door by 10:30 or 11, depending on where I am commuting to. Then when I get home from work, he's asleep :( While I hate that I don't get to see him for the rest of the day, it does make focusing on work easier. I take the mommy cap off when I drop him off and then put on the work cap and then when I get home I can put on the Karen cap. All these caps and I don't even look good in hats...
Then there are the 3 days off I have. I LOVE having 3 days off in a row (all mommy cap here!). I feel like I can really spend some quality time with him. It will be even better once Football season is over and we can have more family time on Sundays. Although, I must say how impressed I am with Randy. He has given up quite a bit of his quality football Sundays to hang with me and D.
One of the biggest downers about working is not seeing Randy that often. He often leaves before I get up and I get home after he's gone to bed. But it is absolutely wonderful that D gets to spend so much time with his daddy and he spends so few hours in daycare. I have really seen such an amazing bond happen between father and son.
I'm going to do another entry about D's newest developments...
Now, while I do enjoy the work at times, I would still love to work less. Ideally, 2-3 days a week of work would be perfect. I even wouldn't mind putting in long days (10-12 hours) since I'm already putting in 10 hour days, what's a couple more, really?
It has taken some time to get into the swing of things though and I'm sure now that I've said this, things will change tomorrow and throw me off. So I'm working 4 days a week from 12-10pm. Danny has been sleeping until about 7 or 7:30 which allows me on most mornings to get up before him and eat breakfast. He wakes up and I feed him which takes 45 minutes or so, then we go for a walk, he naps while I shower and get ready. Once he wakes up from his nap we play a little then feed him and get him ready to go and we are out the door by 10:30 or 11, depending on where I am commuting to. Then when I get home from work, he's asleep :( While I hate that I don't get to see him for the rest of the day, it does make focusing on work easier. I take the mommy cap off when I drop him off and then put on the work cap and then when I get home I can put on the Karen cap. All these caps and I don't even look good in hats...
Then there are the 3 days off I have. I LOVE having 3 days off in a row (all mommy cap here!). I feel like I can really spend some quality time with him. It will be even better once Football season is over and we can have more family time on Sundays. Although, I must say how impressed I am with Randy. He has given up quite a bit of his quality football Sundays to hang with me and D.
One of the biggest downers about working is not seeing Randy that often. He often leaves before I get up and I get home after he's gone to bed. But it is absolutely wonderful that D gets to spend so much time with his daddy and he spends so few hours in daycare. I have really seen such an amazing bond happen between father and son.
I'm going to do another entry about D's newest developments...
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
6 months old!
I know I always say this (and I don't see myself stopping anytime soon) but I can't believe how fast time has gone by and that he's already 6 months old. That's like, half a year or something! While I get excited for every monthday, this one seems extra special or something. Like it's more momentous or something. I don't know. But I do know that I'm feeling pretty reflective on the past 6 months as well as the past year when I was pregnant. So I'm going to start big and then later talk about the cool new things D-Man is doing.
It just trips me out to think that at this time a year ago, I wasn't even past the first trimester! He was like the size of a poppy seed or something. Insane how fast they grow in such a short amount of time. I was so full of hope and wonder and anxiety about what the rest of my pregnancy would be like and what my little embryo would be (boy or girl) and what they would look like. So much has happened since then. From the lows of losing my job and our cat passing away to the big, thriving beautiful boy that we now have. I'm now full of hope, wonder and excitement about what type of person he will become. What will his likes and dislikes be? Hobbies? Will he like school?
When he was born he was just this teeny tiny little adorable blob. All he did was sleep, nurse, poop, spit up, repeat. We were so excited once he started sleeping for 5 or 6 hour blocks and even more excited once he finally stopped paying more attention to the blinds and started making eye contact. Then he was holding his head up, smiling and laughing. He is now a big healthy boy who is just so much fun to be around.
Oh and can I just say at how proud I am that I am still nursing him. All the doctors recommend exclusively breastfeeding your children until 6 months of age. Done! He has gained all his weight from just breast milk. Incredible!
Okay, so on to the current stuff since it sounds like he is waking up. We went to his 6 month appointment yesterday. He weighs 16 pounds 13.6 ounces, is 25.5 inches long and his head is 18 cm. He also got another round of immunizations yesterday as well as his first in a series of flu shots. He seems to be developing well and doing what he's supposed to. Doctor wants us to start solids so we have that on the plan for Sunday. Although maybe sooner depending on his poop situation. More about that in a minute.
Big new development in the past couple of weeks is the roll over! He has been a rolling over fool! He finally mastered it a couple of weeks ago and now just does it all the time. Mostly from back to belly but he can get himself from his belly to his back and has rolled over a couple times where I look up and he's in a totally different spot than when I put him down. He's quick too! I look away for a second and bam! He's rolled over.
He still loves grabbing his toes and getting them into his mouth. Both sets, doesn't have a preference. Just loves his toes!
Tons of smiling and laughing now. So freaking cute! Loves laughing at silly Daddy, songs, being tickled and especially the dogs. Although he sometimes seems to get scared when they play fight..they do sound mean!
He's been sleeping from about 8:30 or 9 until around 7 or 7:30. Pretty good! He's also shown his adaptability when he goes to sleep over at Drakes and then gets woken up to be driven home. He goes right back to sleep for the night!
Eating. When I'm home he still nurses 5-6 times a day on both sides. The 4 days I work he nurses twice then eats about 18-20 ounces of breast milk from a bottle when he's with Daddy and daycare.
So he's up now and I'm feeding him as I type so I might not remember everything I was going to say. I did want to mention that yesterday I put all of his NB and 0-3 month clothes up and got out the 6-9 month stuff. He's still wearing 3-6 and now also 6-9 month stuff. Also, he's now wearing size 2-3 diapers. Not because he outgrew size 2, but because the size 2-3 were cheaper.
Oh OH oh! Did I already mention the thumb sucking?If so, then stop reading and skip to the next paragraph. If not, he's now a thumb sucker! He's finally figured out how to use it and it really helps him self soothe. Plus, it's freaking adorable.
Also can't remember if I mentioned that he now uses a big boy car seat with Daddy. In any case, it's worth saying again. He seems to like it.
Oh, the poop. Or lack there of. He hasn't pooped since last Wednesday. This has been going on a couple weeks now. He used to poop several times a day. So not sure what's up. May just be he's learning how to control his muscles better, may be that he's going through a growth spurt and using up all the food to develop, may be constipation or some combination.
Hmm...guess that's about it for now. Oh wait..no teeth yet either. And I bought him a monkey costume for Halloween. Okay, that's it. Going to finish feeding him and hopefully take some pictures.
It just trips me out to think that at this time a year ago, I wasn't even past the first trimester! He was like the size of a poppy seed or something. Insane how fast they grow in such a short amount of time. I was so full of hope and wonder and anxiety about what the rest of my pregnancy would be like and what my little embryo would be (boy or girl) and what they would look like. So much has happened since then. From the lows of losing my job and our cat passing away to the big, thriving beautiful boy that we now have. I'm now full of hope, wonder and excitement about what type of person he will become. What will his likes and dislikes be? Hobbies? Will he like school?
When he was born he was just this teeny tiny little adorable blob. All he did was sleep, nurse, poop, spit up, repeat. We were so excited once he started sleeping for 5 or 6 hour blocks and even more excited once he finally stopped paying more attention to the blinds and started making eye contact. Then he was holding his head up, smiling and laughing. He is now a big healthy boy who is just so much fun to be around.
Oh and can I just say at how proud I am that I am still nursing him. All the doctors recommend exclusively breastfeeding your children until 6 months of age. Done! He has gained all his weight from just breast milk. Incredible!
Okay, so on to the current stuff since it sounds like he is waking up. We went to his 6 month appointment yesterday. He weighs 16 pounds 13.6 ounces, is 25.5 inches long and his head is 18 cm. He also got another round of immunizations yesterday as well as his first in a series of flu shots. He seems to be developing well and doing what he's supposed to. Doctor wants us to start solids so we have that on the plan for Sunday. Although maybe sooner depending on his poop situation. More about that in a minute.
Big new development in the past couple of weeks is the roll over! He has been a rolling over fool! He finally mastered it a couple of weeks ago and now just does it all the time. Mostly from back to belly but he can get himself from his belly to his back and has rolled over a couple times where I look up and he's in a totally different spot than when I put him down. He's quick too! I look away for a second and bam! He's rolled over.
He still loves grabbing his toes and getting them into his mouth. Both sets, doesn't have a preference. Just loves his toes!
Tons of smiling and laughing now. So freaking cute! Loves laughing at silly Daddy, songs, being tickled and especially the dogs. Although he sometimes seems to get scared when they play fight..they do sound mean!
He's been sleeping from about 8:30 or 9 until around 7 or 7:30. Pretty good! He's also shown his adaptability when he goes to sleep over at Drakes and then gets woken up to be driven home. He goes right back to sleep for the night!
Eating. When I'm home he still nurses 5-6 times a day on both sides. The 4 days I work he nurses twice then eats about 18-20 ounces of breast milk from a bottle when he's with Daddy and daycare.
So he's up now and I'm feeding him as I type so I might not remember everything I was going to say. I did want to mention that yesterday I put all of his NB and 0-3 month clothes up and got out the 6-9 month stuff. He's still wearing 3-6 and now also 6-9 month stuff. Also, he's now wearing size 2-3 diapers. Not because he outgrew size 2, but because the size 2-3 were cheaper.
Oh OH oh! Did I already mention the thumb sucking?If so, then stop reading and skip to the next paragraph. If not, he's now a thumb sucker! He's finally figured out how to use it and it really helps him self soothe. Plus, it's freaking adorable.
Also can't remember if I mentioned that he now uses a big boy car seat with Daddy. In any case, it's worth saying again. He seems to like it.
Oh, the poop. Or lack there of. He hasn't pooped since last Wednesday. This has been going on a couple weeks now. He used to poop several times a day. So not sure what's up. May just be he's learning how to control his muscles better, may be that he's going through a growth spurt and using up all the food to develop, may be constipation or some combination.
Hmm...guess that's about it for now. Oh wait..no teeth yet either. And I bought him a monkey costume for Halloween. Okay, that's it. Going to finish feeding him and hopefully take some pictures.
Monday, September 21, 2009
toes and turning
Well, almost turning over. He's been working so diligently on rolling from his back to his belly for the past couple of weeks. Everyday I think "today is going to be the day" but not quite. Although he did roll from his back to his belly while we were laying on the bed today but in all fairness..there was an uneven surface which probably helped his momentum. It's just so stinking cute to watch him so determined and to watch him get closer and closer to being successful.
Toes. Yeah, he's found both sets now. Loves loves loves grabbing them and is working pretty hard at getting them in his mouth. I'm sure he would have rolled over by now if he wasn't splitting his time between working on toes in the mouth and the rolling. He likes to take on big tasks I guess.
He's working on sitting up too. Not doing so well. Usually when I put him in a seated tripod position he collapses forward pretty quickly. But there's time for that.
He still loves standing and seems to want to do it quite a bit. He's been tolerating his exersaucer now too. I think because he can stand in it. He seemed frustrated with it for a while. He keeps going after the stationary toys and seems to get upset when he can't get it in his mouth. Oh yeah. Also, he likes to put stuff in his mouth. Everything.
He's laughing and smiling and just overall super duper adorable. I can barely stand it!
Daddy hangs out with him 4 days a week now while I'm at work (boo!) and he is adjusting great! He is eating from a big boy (8oz) bottle now while with Daddy. I can totally see how bonded D is to his Daddy and it's amazing. I love both those boys so much! The 3 days a week I'm home he eats about 5-6 times, still from both sides. He has also been sleeping from about 9-6:30 or so which is good! Hope it keeps up!
The past couple of weeks I've noticed his head shaking while I'm nursing him. This is the same shaking that was happening which landed us in the ER a few weeks ago. It tends to be for a few seconds, usually when he's nursing on my left side. I talked to the doctor today and she assured me it's probably nothing to worry about but just his nervous system still developing. He isn't exhibiting any of the signs she listed off for seizures, so that's good. I just wish he would work that out already. It freaks me out. You know, nursing your kid and his head is shaking. Not so fun.
Pumping has gotten a little challenging. I'm having a hard time getting into a regular routine while at work due to the ever changing schedule. Consequently, my supply dropped last week. My plan is to add another pumping session and I hope to get the supply back up. I'm still determined to nurse him until a year.
That's all for now!
Toes. Yeah, he's found both sets now. Loves loves loves grabbing them and is working pretty hard at getting them in his mouth. I'm sure he would have rolled over by now if he wasn't splitting his time between working on toes in the mouth and the rolling. He likes to take on big tasks I guess.
He's working on sitting up too. Not doing so well. Usually when I put him in a seated tripod position he collapses forward pretty quickly. But there's time for that.
He still loves standing and seems to want to do it quite a bit. He's been tolerating his exersaucer now too. I think because he can stand in it. He seemed frustrated with it for a while. He keeps going after the stationary toys and seems to get upset when he can't get it in his mouth. Oh yeah. Also, he likes to put stuff in his mouth. Everything.
He's laughing and smiling and just overall super duper adorable. I can barely stand it!
Daddy hangs out with him 4 days a week now while I'm at work (boo!) and he is adjusting great! He is eating from a big boy (8oz) bottle now while with Daddy. I can totally see how bonded D is to his Daddy and it's amazing. I love both those boys so much! The 3 days a week I'm home he eats about 5-6 times, still from both sides. He has also been sleeping from about 9-6:30 or so which is good! Hope it keeps up!
The past couple of weeks I've noticed his head shaking while I'm nursing him. This is the same shaking that was happening which landed us in the ER a few weeks ago. It tends to be for a few seconds, usually when he's nursing on my left side. I talked to the doctor today and she assured me it's probably nothing to worry about but just his nervous system still developing. He isn't exhibiting any of the signs she listed off for seizures, so that's good. I just wish he would work that out already. It freaks me out. You know, nursing your kid and his head is shaking. Not so fun.
Pumping has gotten a little challenging. I'm having a hard time getting into a regular routine while at work due to the ever changing schedule. Consequently, my supply dropped last week. My plan is to add another pumping session and I hope to get the supply back up. I'm still determined to nurse him until a year.
That's all for now!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
5 months old
Little D is 5 months old now! Incredible how fast the time has gone. It's hard to remember when he was so small and first born and now he's probably around 16 pounds.
Tomorrow starts my regular work schedule, Wed-Sat 12-10pm. I finished up training on Friday and am so glad I am done. That commute was draining me and I felt like I never got to see the kid. It was very nice to know that he was home with Daddy all week. It really made the transition easier on me and I'm sure that it was great for father and son to get some bonding time.
I feel at a loss about what to write regarding his development and weekly stuff that I had been writing about. Since I'm obviously not with him as much I'm working with less material here :) But here we go anyway.
Sleeping continues to go well. Because he tends to get fussy around 7, we tried an earlier bedtime but he didn't end up falling asleep until 9:30 or 10 anyway, so I think we are embracing the 9 or 9:30 bedtime for now. He was used to me getting him up at 6:30 all last week so of course him sleeping until 7 or later is out the window. But the past couple of days have been closer to 7 so hopefully he'll get back into waking up a little later. Also Saturday morning he decided to wake up at 4:30 and required a feeding and then again at 6:30. Not sure what that was about. Hm. Glad he so far hasn't made it a habit. Naps are still sporadic. Although he seems to not be sleeping as long in the mornings now. Usually he would go right back to sleep after his morning feeding but lately he's been laying in there for an hour and a half and only sleeping 20-30 minutes. So I think I'm going to start taking him for walks in the morning and keeping him up a little longer and then trying a nap. I'm pretty sure I'm getting the hang of this parenting thing. It's called trial and error.
Anyway. Eating is also going well. When I'm home with him he's eating 5-6 times per day. When I'm gone I feed him in the morning before I leave and before bedtime. He is eating about 18 ounces during the day and I'm pumping about 20-22 ounces so feeling pretty good about my ability to provide food for my child. Getting a little nervous about the thought of starting solids. The doctor said 6 months is when we should start but other places I've read (like the AAP) say the middle of the first year is good..so that could be 7 months. We'll see. I want to just follow his lead. Apparently babies give signs that they are ready to eat. So I figure I should just hide the markers and paper and he'll never be able to tell us and then I can continue to feed him for free.
Developmentally he continues to work on those motor skills. He is grabbing for stuff and doing a better job of holding it now. Of course everything goes in the mouth. He still hasn't shown a preference for sucking his thumb or fingers. He doesn't discriminate and they all go in there. He is spending more time in the exersaucer although I think it frustrates him after a few minutes. It's been interesting to watch him play and see what his temperament is like. I think the gets frustrated when he can't get the toys from the saucer into his mouth. He also seems like he's pretty close to rolling from his back to his stomach. He spends a lot of time on the floor sort of spinning himself around and trying to launch himself. Usually when I go to get him in the morning he has turned himself some way either 90 or 180 degrees in his crib. Saturday when I went to get him he was 180 degrees and scrunched up right under his aquarium. Tummy time is still happening for short periods of time and he's working on his balance. He can shift his balance to one arm and grab stuff with the other. Just today he started to topple over and regained his balance on his tummy. Oh and the laughing. So cute! Not really lots of full on giggles yet but definite laughter. So freaking cute.
And earlier I didn't think I had a lot to write about. Hm.
Tomorrow starts my regular work schedule, Wed-Sat 12-10pm. I finished up training on Friday and am so glad I am done. That commute was draining me and I felt like I never got to see the kid. It was very nice to know that he was home with Daddy all week. It really made the transition easier on me and I'm sure that it was great for father and son to get some bonding time.
I feel at a loss about what to write regarding his development and weekly stuff that I had been writing about. Since I'm obviously not with him as much I'm working with less material here :) But here we go anyway.
Sleeping continues to go well. Because he tends to get fussy around 7, we tried an earlier bedtime but he didn't end up falling asleep until 9:30 or 10 anyway, so I think we are embracing the 9 or 9:30 bedtime for now. He was used to me getting him up at 6:30 all last week so of course him sleeping until 7 or later is out the window. But the past couple of days have been closer to 7 so hopefully he'll get back into waking up a little later. Also Saturday morning he decided to wake up at 4:30 and required a feeding and then again at 6:30. Not sure what that was about. Hm. Glad he so far hasn't made it a habit. Naps are still sporadic. Although he seems to not be sleeping as long in the mornings now. Usually he would go right back to sleep after his morning feeding but lately he's been laying in there for an hour and a half and only sleeping 20-30 minutes. So I think I'm going to start taking him for walks in the morning and keeping him up a little longer and then trying a nap. I'm pretty sure I'm getting the hang of this parenting thing. It's called trial and error.
Anyway. Eating is also going well. When I'm home with him he's eating 5-6 times per day. When I'm gone I feed him in the morning before I leave and before bedtime. He is eating about 18 ounces during the day and I'm pumping about 20-22 ounces so feeling pretty good about my ability to provide food for my child. Getting a little nervous about the thought of starting solids. The doctor said 6 months is when we should start but other places I've read (like the AAP) say the middle of the first year is good..so that could be 7 months. We'll see. I want to just follow his lead. Apparently babies give signs that they are ready to eat. So I figure I should just hide the markers and paper and he'll never be able to tell us and then I can continue to feed him for free.
Developmentally he continues to work on those motor skills. He is grabbing for stuff and doing a better job of holding it now. Of course everything goes in the mouth. He still hasn't shown a preference for sucking his thumb or fingers. He doesn't discriminate and they all go in there. He is spending more time in the exersaucer although I think it frustrates him after a few minutes. It's been interesting to watch him play and see what his temperament is like. I think the gets frustrated when he can't get the toys from the saucer into his mouth. He also seems like he's pretty close to rolling from his back to his stomach. He spends a lot of time on the floor sort of spinning himself around and trying to launch himself. Usually when I go to get him in the morning he has turned himself some way either 90 or 180 degrees in his crib. Saturday when I went to get him he was 180 degrees and scrunched up right under his aquarium. Tummy time is still happening for short periods of time and he's working on his balance. He can shift his balance to one arm and grab stuff with the other. Just today he started to topple over and regained his balance on his tummy. Oh and the laughing. So cute! Not really lots of full on giggles yet but definite laughter. So freaking cute.
And earlier I didn't think I had a lot to write about. Hm.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
back to work
So first week back at work. It was a tough week but we made it through and only 1 more week of training. Life seemed pretty chaotic for both me and D. We planned out a transition for him into daycare but I just don't think it went that well. My mom came down to help and watched him some of the time. I'm not sure if there were just too many different caretakers or he just was out of sorts since I wasn't with him. Who knows.
He spent the first day with Daddy. Then all day Tuesday and Wednesday with Grandma, Thursday was part time with Grandma and with L, the daycare provider and all day Friday with L.
Needless to say, since I wasn't around him much this week I don't really know much about his development either. What I am happy to report is that he did just fine with taking a bottle. Seems like he probably ate more frequently but smaller amounts. I still fed him in the morning before I left for work and before his bedtime. His bedtime routine stayed pretty consistent, although there were a couple nights he didn't go to bed until after 10. I also got him up earlier than he's used to at 6:15 so that I could have enough time to feed him before leaving.
Thankfully he continued to sleep through the night this week so that's good! Naps were another story though. I think the first couple days I was gone he didn't really nap much at all. Poor little guy looked just exhausted when I got home. He apparently did get a couple good naps in with L on Friday and he looked much less tired by the end of the week.
I did notice that he has become a pro at grabbing both feet at the same time. He's laughing out loud a little more and still tons of smiles! He loves to stand and is getting pretty good at hanging out in his exersaucer where he practices standing and grabbing toys.
As for the work thing. I am a little irritated about this 2 week training. It's hard that there is a different schedule for D for just 2 weeks then it changes again. Oh well! Randy took vacation and is staying home with him this second week which I am so happy about. I think it will be easier for both D and myself. The training is going okay. It is kind of nice to be back working in the field I enjoy and having some adult conversation during the day. It is a struggle to balance both work I enjoy and family but I guess this is just a transition period and hopefully it will work itself out sooner rather than later! I was just exhausted this week. Up at 5:45 to leave by 7:30 and I didn't get home until 6:30. That is a long ass time to be away! When I got home D looked bigger and I just felt disjointed. I was used to being around him all day and just knowing what he needs. Now I am relying on others to tell me what he's been doing and trying to anticipate his needs that way is challenging. Thankfully so far the commute has been as good as I can expect it to be and I hope it continues!
He spent the first day with Daddy. Then all day Tuesday and Wednesday with Grandma, Thursday was part time with Grandma and with L, the daycare provider and all day Friday with L.
Needless to say, since I wasn't around him much this week I don't really know much about his development either. What I am happy to report is that he did just fine with taking a bottle. Seems like he probably ate more frequently but smaller amounts. I still fed him in the morning before I left for work and before his bedtime. His bedtime routine stayed pretty consistent, although there were a couple nights he didn't go to bed until after 10. I also got him up earlier than he's used to at 6:15 so that I could have enough time to feed him before leaving.
Thankfully he continued to sleep through the night this week so that's good! Naps were another story though. I think the first couple days I was gone he didn't really nap much at all. Poor little guy looked just exhausted when I got home. He apparently did get a couple good naps in with L on Friday and he looked much less tired by the end of the week.
I did notice that he has become a pro at grabbing both feet at the same time. He's laughing out loud a little more and still tons of smiles! He loves to stand and is getting pretty good at hanging out in his exersaucer where he practices standing and grabbing toys.
As for the work thing. I am a little irritated about this 2 week training. It's hard that there is a different schedule for D for just 2 weeks then it changes again. Oh well! Randy took vacation and is staying home with him this second week which I am so happy about. I think it will be easier for both D and myself. The training is going okay. It is kind of nice to be back working in the field I enjoy and having some adult conversation during the day. It is a struggle to balance both work I enjoy and family but I guess this is just a transition period and hopefully it will work itself out sooner rather than later! I was just exhausted this week. Up at 5:45 to leave by 7:30 and I didn't get home until 6:30. That is a long ass time to be away! When I got home D looked bigger and I just felt disjointed. I was used to being around him all day and just knowing what he needs. Now I am relying on others to tell me what he's been doing and trying to anticipate his needs that way is challenging. Thankfully so far the commute has been as good as I can expect it to be and I hope it continues!
Sunday, August 23, 2009
good times
Today Danny laughed out loud 3 times. First when Daddy was tickling him. Then later just laughing at Hilo. Then when I tickled him.
He smiles a lot when looking at the dogs and when they kiss him.
Earlier today he pooped all over me while in the ergo at Babies R Us and yet somehow managed to not get any on him. Weird.
Yesterday I watched him suck his thumb. He had been sucking his fingers off and on but not really his thumb much. It was cute.
I am going to miss seeing all this stuff when I'm at work. That's all.
He smiles a lot when looking at the dogs and when they kiss him.
Earlier today he pooped all over me while in the ergo at Babies R Us and yet somehow managed to not get any on him. Weird.
Yesterday I watched him suck his thumb. He had been sucking his fingers off and on but not really his thumb much. It was cute.
I am going to miss seeing all this stuff when I'm at work. That's all.
Friday, August 21, 2009
a picture post :)
Just born :) 4/7/09
1 month old
you guessed it..2 months old
the chick magnet is 3 months old here :)
sitting up like a big boy at 4 months
Exersaucer time! 4.5 months
one of mom's favorites..laughing at daddy, 4.5 monthslast days
Today was my last day of maternity leave! I am so so so sad. I have been dreading this day that I would have to go back to work and leave my son with someone else. But time moves on and here we are. Although my leave from the County isn't up until 9/24, I start my new job on Monday. Boo!
I want to make an entry about our last few days off. We spent most of the time just hanging out at home. It was great! We took some naps together, took walks and played a lot. This past week has been so exciting developmentally too and I'm so glad I've been around to see it all. He is more smiley and interactive than ever and just so freaking adorable!
This morning things were a bit off for him. He just did not want to go back to sleep after his morning feeding. He laid in his crib "talking" for 45 minutes then I got him up and put him in the ergo and vacuumed thinking that would lure him to sleep. Nope. So finally after about a half hour in the swing he slept for about 30 minutes. We did some tummy time in his room and he practiced rolling over. He spit up and then face planted in it. Nice. He is more interested in the dogs too. He gave big smiles when Kona kissed him. The rest of the day was pretty routine, although his afternoon nap went a little later than normal. He woke around 5pm. We laid in the bed and I napped a little, read a little and watched him sleep :) Perfect afternoon.
I am sad for obvious reasons. I have to leave my little boy who right now depends on me and his dad for everything all the time. I've watched my little preemie son grow and the changes are just incredible. When we left the hospital he weighed around 5 lbs 14 oz. At his 4 month appointment he weighed over 14 pounds! People went from commenting on how tiny he is to how big he is. He was this scrunchy little squeaky newborn who had some challenges nursing and sleeping. He wanted to be held all the time sometimes and it was (and still is) just simply exhausting. Now he is this big strong, healthy 4.5 month old who loves to stand, play in his exersaucer, eat and interact with his parents. Oh how our lives have changed!
I have been given the gift of 4.5 months off and it's been wonderful. I think that no matter how much time I would have off it would never be enough. I'm pretty sure I want to move to Canada before we have another one so I can have a year off. Anyway, I have enjoyed being a stay at home mom. I didn't know if I would. It was hard getting into a routine and feeling like I was being productive. I struggled especially in the beginning when all I did was sit on the couch and feed him every 1-3 hours. But what a job that is. While it sounds and often felt a little lazy, I was feeding my boy..pretty important job if you ask me! But at the time it's hard to have that perspective. So I got into a routine and I really liked being at home to keep the house clean, cook dinner, make lunch for Randy and be here for all the things Danny did. Oh and not to forget baking Friday! Yes it was challenging at times but totally worth it.
I wonder how this next chapter is going to be. It's hard to imagine doing everything I've been doing plus working 40 hours. But I'm sure we'll make it work. We have to.
I want to make an entry about our last few days off. We spent most of the time just hanging out at home. It was great! We took some naps together, took walks and played a lot. This past week has been so exciting developmentally too and I'm so glad I've been around to see it all. He is more smiley and interactive than ever and just so freaking adorable!
This morning things were a bit off for him. He just did not want to go back to sleep after his morning feeding. He laid in his crib "talking" for 45 minutes then I got him up and put him in the ergo and vacuumed thinking that would lure him to sleep. Nope. So finally after about a half hour in the swing he slept for about 30 minutes. We did some tummy time in his room and he practiced rolling over. He spit up and then face planted in it. Nice. He is more interested in the dogs too. He gave big smiles when Kona kissed him. The rest of the day was pretty routine, although his afternoon nap went a little later than normal. He woke around 5pm. We laid in the bed and I napped a little, read a little and watched him sleep :) Perfect afternoon.
I am sad for obvious reasons. I have to leave my little boy who right now depends on me and his dad for everything all the time. I've watched my little preemie son grow and the changes are just incredible. When we left the hospital he weighed around 5 lbs 14 oz. At his 4 month appointment he weighed over 14 pounds! People went from commenting on how tiny he is to how big he is. He was this scrunchy little squeaky newborn who had some challenges nursing and sleeping. He wanted to be held all the time sometimes and it was (and still is) just simply exhausting. Now he is this big strong, healthy 4.5 month old who loves to stand, play in his exersaucer, eat and interact with his parents. Oh how our lives have changed!
I have been given the gift of 4.5 months off and it's been wonderful. I think that no matter how much time I would have off it would never be enough. I'm pretty sure I want to move to Canada before we have another one so I can have a year off. Anyway, I have enjoyed being a stay at home mom. I didn't know if I would. It was hard getting into a routine and feeling like I was being productive. I struggled especially in the beginning when all I did was sit on the couch and feed him every 1-3 hours. But what a job that is. While it sounds and often felt a little lazy, I was feeding my boy..pretty important job if you ask me! But at the time it's hard to have that perspective. So I got into a routine and I really liked being at home to keep the house clean, cook dinner, make lunch for Randy and be here for all the things Danny did. Oh and not to forget baking Friday! Yes it was challenging at times but totally worth it.
I wonder how this next chapter is going to be. It's hard to imagine doing everything I've been doing plus working 40 hours. But I'm sure we'll make it work. We have to.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
