January 2010 babies - it's been half a year. How are you?

[marinak1977]

Hi Everyone, the old thread sort of died so I figured I start a new one. How is everyone doing? What are your babies up to, are they eating, crawling, sitting, sleeping, teething? How are you mamas?

Sasha is almost 7 months, wow. He is changing every day and I just love the journey. He is very happy and grinny and talkative, he is adorable when he babbles. He seems to like the daycare, so I don't feel too heartbroken when I leave him there. It helps that we cosleep and he is a reverse cycler, so evenings it's nursing nursing nursing. I was terrified of losing my supply when he started daycare but he hardly eats there and makes up for it at home so we don't have a problem.
Sasha is still pretty much EBF. He likes to suck on foods, doesn't try to swallow yet, but he loves flavors. He can sit, but has no teeth yet and his pincer grasp is just developing. So I'm not rushing it, I just offer him safe things he can suck on. We tried cherries in a mesh feeder but he had more fun waving it around and getting juice on everything. He wanted the "real" cherries instead (which were too hard to hold)
He's not crawling yet and I'm enjoying being able to set him on the floor and run to the bathroom without worrying. He does like the bouncer when I'm cooking, but most of the time when he's not held he is on the floor playing with toys with me nearby, in that position he does ok for a little bit so I can get things done. We babywear a lot too, although less around the house.
Sleeping is a hit and miss for us, but overall cosleeping is working well, and I can function during the day. DH takes the night pottying and he is more tired but I don't think he does as well with interrupted sleep. Last night was tough because Sasha seemed constipated and uncomfortable and it took more effort to get him to sleep.
I'm still about 5 pounds over my prepregnancies weight, but I'm not in a rush to lose it because I don't want to hurt my milk supply. My new job is going well and everything seems on track. I can't imagine life as it used to be anymore and I certainly don't miss it. I think the furkids are the only ones that are getting a little less attention, but they love their little brother.

My only concern right now - I think Sasha has hemorroids. is that possible? the area around his anus is red but it's different from the diaper rash in that it seems to have some harder swollen areas. I wonder if the constipation caused him to have these. I may need to start a thread about it to get some adivce.

Well, how is everyone else doing? Please share.

[akat]

Sounds like Sasha is doing great! Glad daycare is working out well.

Ben turned 6 months yesterday. He has two little bottom teeth. He babbles a lot, it sounds like he's saying, "Blah, blah, blah!", it's hilarious. He says Mommom but I don't think he knows what it means, and he says Hi and Hello, same deal. He's just starting to be able to push himself forward in a commando crawl, he's pulled to standing precariously a couple of times, and he ate some tiny pieces of avocado today [first time eating food]. He does love an ice cube in the mesh feeder though. He stays in bed from about 10pm til about 8 or 9am, waking up 3 or 4 times to nurse, and naps 1-3 times through the day. He's relatively easy and cheerful, really curious and alert and active, too, though. He can play the kazoo [a kazoo turns baby complaining from being faintly annoying to fairly amusing ].

[Mawood]

What a great idea to start a new thread!!!

Olivia turned 6 months on Friday. Today we took her to the ocean for the first time and she really enjoyed watching the birds, listening to the sounds and watching the kids play in the sand. She is getting big (27 inches, 19lbs) and seriously teething. To me it seems like her upper teeth will come in first. We haven't started solids yet but she is able to sit up now which she loves. She is pretty happy, sleeps from 7:30pm-7:30am (at her best) with nighttime feedings. I don't know how many cause we co sleep and it is kind of a blur
She did say "mamamamam" for a week or so and then stopped saying it. She is back to vowels but has the funniest intonation when she talks. I love her sleep talk

I enjoy being a Mom but have a hard time with all the opinions out there and those people who give soliciting advice including my family unfortunately. Everybody is asking about solids now, and sleep.

Oh and I read some nice books for Moms: Buddhism for Mothers and Mindful Mothering. I still haven't finished reading them but already got something out of it. I am also reading Feeding the whole family which is very inspiring as it encourages you to eat healthy enough so your baby can eat what you eat (parts of it). We were kind of on the pasta, sandwich, pizza (or any other dinner that is prepared in less than 30 minutes) road and while reading that book I really started to enjoy to take time to prepare a meal again and made a slow cooked a bean soup today - of course it is the weekend too

[devasma]

It's hard to believe so much time has gone by already! Maybe we should all start posting pictures of 'baby's first food experience'. I don't have any pics on my computer right now, but will try to get some posted (strange, I don't have time for much computering these days, ha).
Ethan is almost 7 months now, weighed just under 20lbs at his drs apt last week. He has his 2 bottom middle teeth, and seems to be working on some top teeth. He has 6 tooth buds on the top, and has been acting like he's getting teeth, but no sign of the actual teeth yet. Hopefully some come through soon so the cranky periods go away.
We are more or less doing a blw approach to solids. I usually give Ethan a hunk of something or other, and then give him a piece in a mesh feeder. He really loves melon the best so far. He has tried apples, sweet potatoes, peaches, banana, white potato, avocado, um... I know there's more. I haven't given him any avocados or peaches in a few weeks - the last time he had them he projectile vomited, not fun. I'm not sure which one caused the reaction, so he's cut off from both for a bit.
Ethan sits up super great on his own. This past week he's started getting up on his toes, then down to his knees, then rocking on his knees and then belly flopping in an effort to move forward. Sometimes it works, and sometimes he pushes himself further back. I'm not mentally prepared for a mobile baby, but I don't think it's going to be long before I have to baby proof. He says momomom and bababa, and makes 'f' noises. Pretty cute, although sometimes it sounds like he's saying 'bad mom' (which is one of my 18 month old nieces favourite phrases).
Sleeping is a bit of a hit and miss these days. During the day, he will often have a good nap in the morning (1+ hours) and then a few short naps in the afternoon. The problem is that he wants me to hold him for the naps, and will often wake up as soon as I put him down. It gets pretty frustrating some days. At night, he sleeps in his crib until about midnight and then comes to my bed, usually just nursing once until 6am. My bf works nights, so we get the bed to ourselves most nights.
Ethan is staring at me very intently, I think it's nap time. Hope everyone is doing well!

[akat]

I know what you mean about it sounding like 'bad mom', devasma, my older one would always babble, "Baba mama" [bad mom] so I started calling him "Googoo baba" back [good baby]. Still do call him that sometimes!

Mawood, you made me realize how, since it's my 2nd kid, nobody gives me advice, which is SO NICE! As annoying as it is, I think a lot of times they're just trying to make interesting small talk.

[Catubodua]

hope this link works -

http://s983.photobucket.com/albums/ae314/CatAndrewsMom/

before, during & after of Andrew trying sweet potato



sleep? what's sleep? i think i slept 6 hours one time back in April 2009... sleep continues to be hit & miss for us, but that's ok. he's currently in the bassinet by our bed, but we're thinking he's going to move to his crib next week at his 6 month mark. we'll see how it goes.

other than that, he's a happy, uber talkative big guy who's recently discovered he has a tongue which he likes to stick out at you and blow raspberries at you all the time now. he has two bottom teeth starting to come in.

he's not crawling yet, but will do the backwards hump and really gets around. he LOVES to stand while you hold him under the arms. and, most of the time, you are just balancing him, he's holding himself up.

i am also evil. i immediately respond to him anytime i hear Mum mum mum - meaning i talk back, go get him & pick him up, etc. but i'll sort of ignore him when i hear da da da. his first word *will* be mom. or maybe dog.

[nola79]

Oh, what a cutie Andrew is!

Emma just turned 6 months. She must be a lazy baby, she doesn't sit, try to crawl, try to do anything really. She just likes to be held. It is a very different experience for me, as my son was sitting/semi crawling the day he turned 5 months! She doesn't have any teeth yet, either. I'm starting to wonder if there is something wrong as far as the not sitting...
She does like to eat! She has little bites of whatever we're having (before it's seasoned) and some baby foods.
As far as sleep, she does pretty well. She goes down around 7:30/8 and sleeps until 6/6:30 with one nighttime feeding.
I can't believe it's August already!

[AfricanQueen99]

Griffin is just a scootch over six months and such a little love! He's sitting so nicely and just adores his older sister (even when she's *right* in his face). He plays with a spoon in the high chair - we've tried giving him a few things to eat and he's so-so on all of them. He does the rocking and ends up moving backwards. Weird kid.

It feels like his bottom teeth are ready to pop out. Oddly enough, he doesn't seem concerned about teething.

We're now getting 4-5 hour stretches at night. This is a totally new thing that happened when I moved him to his crib instead of our bed. My daughter did the same thing. Honestly, I think my kids just smelled my milk and would groggily say "hmm, I guess I'll eat since it's here" so they both woke up all.the.time.

We joined our community center this weekend and they have an umbrella with four jumperoos under it for the babies...G looooves it because he's covered in the shade, his feet hit the floor and when he bounces enough his butt goes in. So freaking cute!

I do need to admit that I am really loving mothering the second time around more so much more than the first. No random advice. I have my footing. I'm confident in my decisions. Even more lax about everything (and that's saying a lot since I was uber laid back with my daughter). No PPD!! Overall, it's just an easier experience.

[mamakims]

Yay for a new thread! I was feeling overwhelmed with how much I had missed on the other thread, that this is much easier for me: less guilt! haha

Sophie is doing great: army crawling, sitting up well on her own, starting to pull herself up and is such a ham. She adores her big brother but seems to get the biggest laughs when he's crying. We've introduced solids a few times. I was going to wait until around 9 months like with my oldest dd but Sophie grabbed a handful of my pasta one night and brought it straight to her mouth (then went back for seconds after I took it away from her) so I think she's ready. She doesn't eat everyday but every other day on average whenever she seems to be in the mood.

Sleeping is a struggle around here. I don't know what happened, she used to sleep so well and at two months old was only getting up once. But now she's up about 3 or 4 times per night and has been for almost 4 months. She used to sleep in the bassinet beside my bed but same thing at about 4 months old she refused to sleep in it and needed to be in bed with me. Which I don't mind but I'd prefer if she started the night in her bassinet and then came in with us so I could at least get some alone time with my husband. And she never sleeps more than an hour at a time if Im not right beside her. I love her to bits but am feeling frustrated at times.

[devasma]

Andrew is too cute!
We had a very frustrating day today. Ethan had 2 15 minute naps for the entire day - and he wouldn't let me put him down for either nap. He was so cranky for most of the afternoon, and cried through his bath. Even though he was exhausted, it still took almost an hour before I could put him in his crib at bedtime. He fell asleep pretty quick, but would start to wake up every time I moved. Even though I get more sleep now then I used to, I kind of regret bringing him to bed after he wakes up the first time. Up until a few months ago, I would put him back in his crib until about 6am. Once my bf went onto the night shift, I just started bringing Ethan to bed, and now it is soooo hard to get him into the crib sometimes. I think a lot of the problem is that he has been getting teeth for over a month now.
Sigh. I know this stage will pass, but sometimes it's hard to remember.

[carmen358]

Skylar was 7 months last weekend!! She is a giggly, vocal, active little girl. She is rolling around lots, can sit up from laying down on her own, rocks on her hands and knees, tries to crawl (not quite there yet) and has just started trying to pull herself up on furniture the last couple of days (not successful yet). She loves being around lots of people and is way more content out and about that hanging at home with me all day She got her 2 front bottom teeth when she was 6 months and it really looks like all 4 top teeth are coming in *right now*! Didn't know it was possible for 4 at once! The two middle ones have just started breaking through the gum and the other two look like they're close too.

I have been way too paranoid to try BLW very much unfortunately so we have done some spoon feeding of sweet potato, banana, pear, mango and squash. We just mash up what we're eating. She doesn't seem terribly interested to tell you the truth but I like it!

Napping is challenging - doesn't usually last longer than 30-45 min. unless I nap with her on she naps on me. Night time sleeping has changed too. We're still co-sleeping and she no longer goes 5-6 hour stretches. She usually sleeps about 3 hours and then wakes every hour or so. She's developing so quickly now so I assume she's just going through a lot.

DP is still working long hours and gone from the house 14-15 hours a day. It makes for a long day for me but I try and get out every day and stay connected with other people as much as I can.

[marinak1977]

Love reading everybody's updates! Catubodua, Andrew is adorable!
I think I need to post a picture of the cherry aftermath. Here's one

http://img576.imageshack.us/i/thefea...querorofc.jpg/

Sasha is 7 months tomorrow. I can't believe it. He's a babbler as well but mostly he says dadadadada and blablablabla. Sometimes it sounds like sentences, it's so cute!
He definitely wants my food - everytime I eat he looks straight at the food, smiles and opens his mouth. Sigh... i need to have more baby friendly options on hand, I have not been cooking enough lately.
Today when I picked him up at daycare he kissed me. That was awesome.
He also nursed every 1:30 -2 hours last night. Oh well, that too shall pass...

ETA: sorry can't figure out why the photo is so tiny looking

[geo_girl]

Hello ladies,

it sounds like everyone is doing well.

Margaret is turning out to be an extremely social, easy going little girl. She is putting on some weight (though is still quite tiny), and *LOVES* whatever food we give her.

her sleeping in going well. She has two 1.5/2hr naps a day, goes down around 6:30/7:00pm and (usually) has one feeding around 4am before starting the day around 6:30.

...this is SOOOOO much better than the first couple of months!

With the extra calories, she is starting to get much more active as well. She quite enjoys tummy time when there is an interesting object in front of her. She sits when I'm holding her hips, and she is starting to tuck her knees under her body occasionally...and she does a bit of rolling too!

Her siblings love her. The (almost) 2year old calls her Margaret, but without the "r"s, so it sounds like maggot...we get a kick out of that!

Oh, and she has 4 teeth, with more on the way!

thanks ladies for the new thread....can't believe that time passes so quickly!

cheers,
charlene

[memz]

Hey everyone!!

Melodie is doing great. She's now 6 and a half months. She's siiting pretty much unassisted, she just got her first tooth and likes to test it on my boobs But it doesn't happen too often. She started eating a bit...I wanted to do BLW but she likes eating with a spoon. She actually takes the spoon from my hand and brings it to her mouth while making these excited sounds...soo cute. So I just mash things up for her. So far she's had sweet potato, banana, pears, apples and she sucked cherries, peaches, plums, mangoes.....

As for sleep, she has ever been a great sleeper, but it seems these days it's worse. During the day her naps are 30 minutes at a time and that is if I keep her on me, if I put her down she wakes up instantly and at night she goes down for about 3 hours and then it's every 1-2 hours.....

Needless to say I'm tired:yawning and hoping that things will improve soon.....

[Catubodua]

thanks gals i think he's pretty handsome myself, but i know i am biased!

and, scratch off green beans for food. he literally gagged on them so we'll find other veggies for him to eat for now.

[geo_girl]

Hello ladies,

things are going well over here.

Margaret is now 7 months! How did that happen. I have just started to really enjoy her, and can start to think about the future again.

She had bona fide colic for the first 4 months, and my anxiety levels are beginning to subside.

She is sleeping much better and really likes food. She is rolling from front to back, and *almost* from back to front. She is a happy child, and her siblings love her (as she loves them).

I'm considering flying by myself with the 3 of them in November...kinda crazy, but I really, *REALLY* miss 'back home'. I may be crazy for considering it, but it would be alot of fun once we got there.

anyway, hope everyone is well.

has anyone heard from nummies lately?
cheers,
charlene

[paxye]

Wilhelmina is now nearing 6 1/2 months and is such an active little girl.. she can sit and crawl and cruise and is walking with help... here is a video of her using the radio-flyer to walk...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IvqIx71s6U

No solids here, she grabs things and puts them in her mouth but doesn't swallow... no hurry though, my others started much later and it makes life so much easier when they are EBF...

EC is doing great, she is pretty much diaperfree, or just has training underwear etc... When we are in she has a few accidents because she is so busy but when we are out she is always dry... Nighttimes are dry also which is so much fun especially since she doesn't wake to nurse and only wakes to pee at about 6:30am...

She loves her bath and cries if her brothers are in the bath without her... and she follows her brothers everywhere... she also loves the pool...

Not saying anything yet but she is babbling a lot...

I am having so much fun and cherishing all of these stages as she is most likely our last babe...

Here is the link to her photo album

http://www.flickr.com/photos/paxye/s...7623172667585/

[nola79]

Paxye, Wilhelmina is so adorable! I just can't get over all of these mobile babies. I mean, my ds was mobile at this age, but dd is a whole other ball game. She gets the lazy baby award for sure! Then again, she doesn't spend much time on the floor to be mobile, so maybe it's our fault.

[AfricanQueen99]

Melissa!! I can't believe she is walking so well with the toy. My god, my kid is such a fat lump. A serious, serious lump!

Yesterday we had some friends over and the woman was holding G and went to take a drink of her water - he lurched forward with both hands, pulled the glass back hard and opened his mouth. It took all of her energy to stop him before she got the go-ahead. The second I said yes he took two huge drinks - without choking. And then was ticked when she put the glass back. Guess who's ready for a cup!

[Sharlla]

She'll be 7 months next month. 2 teeth, sits up, starting to cruise, hates tummy time and just like my other 2 I'm sure she will be walking before 9 months and never crawl LOL She still BF's and loves to eat food, she can feed herself finger foods. Just like her brothers she's a skinny minnie and only weighs 14 lbs. sleeps pretty well, she's might take a bottle of EBM once during the nights i'm at work and at home of course she nurses throughout the night.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-...0_280847_n.jpg