Gavin 6 months

Ummmmmm.... I have a 6 month old baby. What.the.heck. These past 6 months have been the hardest, most loving, exhausting, confusing, amazing, emotional, indescribable and fastest-yet-longest-at-the-same-time of my life! :)

First off, let's just talk about how my hormones have been a little crazy lately. One of my best friends, Mindy, just recently had a beautiful baby girl named Ella! It's crazy looking at photos of her and realizing how much Gavin has grown in just 6 months. I look at photos of Ella, all tiny and new and snuggly and sweet and I honestly already miss the newborn days! I was reading this blog post the other morning and I couldn't help but relate to how she's feeling. I recently packed away Gavin's newborn & 0-3 month clothes, and of course I cried. He's growing up so fast and I oogled over his newborn clothes, reminiscing of how tiny he was when we brought him home from the hospital.

- Every month just keeps getting better (and I'm starting to feel like a broken record). Gavin's personality just keeps blossoming and he's discovering more things around him. I love it! His recent discovery is pulling his hat off his head while in his carseat. I don't think he likes wearing a hat much, but it's been in the single digits here lately so he's just going to have to deal with it. I watched him pluck it right off his head the other night in the car and he fell asleep shortly after. Such a sweetie pie!

-We visited the pediatrician today and Gavin got 3 shots :( He's such a trooper though and hardly cried. He's 16 lbs, 11 oz (35%) and 28 inches long (can't remember the percentile for that one but it's around 80%!)

- Gavin's bedtime has gotten earlier every month, to the point where he is now getting ready for bed at 6pm! I really hate it, especially on the weeknights because I don't get home with him until 5:30pm so we don't have much time to play and snuggle. All the more reason to cherish the weekends! The good news is, he's sleeping 12-13 hours a night... but waking 1-2 times a night. His sleep is so inconsistent and I really haven't figured out if there is a pattern. We have a bedtime routine and always put him to bed at the first sign of sleepiness - we've even gotten to the point where we can put him to bed fully awake {hooray!!} and he falls asleep on his own. Some nights he'll sleep a 4 hour stretch, some nights he'll sleep a 10 hour stretch... I think he's just a hungry boy (he eats every time he wakes at night and goes right back to sleep) and he will take a bit longer to "sleep through the night". It's okay though, because oddly enough I sometimes enjoy the 4am feedings and snuggles. :)

- We've had lots of visits with the grandparents lately and it makes me so happy! I want Gavin to see his grandparents as often as possible, which isn't easy with them all living 2+hours away.

- Gavin's starting to sit up on his own, but only for a few seconds. We put him sort of like a tripod with his legs out and arms forward and he is able to balance himself pretty well!

- I remember Lauren telling me her and Matt had to move Adalyn's bath from the kitchen sink to the bathtub pretty early on because Matt taught Adalyn how to splash in the tub. Well, Gavin discovered this on his own so we've had to do the same! I can't get mad at him for getting me wet, though, because it's just so darn cute when he kicks his legs and flails his arms in the water. He seems to really enjoy bath time!

- We had some friends over a few weeks ago and my friend Erica brought her son Oliver. Gavin & Oliver were wearing similar outfits so we had to get a photo op :)

- I've started putting Gavin in the high chair to get him used to it and he really enjoys sitting in it and playing with toys.I decided to wait until 6 months to start solids just because I don't think he was ready yet, and it's recommended to wait that long by the AAP anyway. I discussed it with the pediatrician and we're going to start with rice cereal and then move onto vegetables. I'm kind of nervous - such a big step in the little guy's life! Wish us luck!

- I'm giving myself a little pat on the back for making it to 6 months with breastfeeding - it was not easy at first, and pumping 3 times a day at work is difficult. We are supplementing with about 7-9 ounces of formula a day, but I'm still producing enough to want to stick with it for as long as I can. My original goal was 6 months, so now I'd really like to make it a year. I really do enjoy breastfeeding, it's just pumping that I hate. I do not know how some women exclusively pump... I give them tons of credit!

- Gavin's current obsession is his tongue... he is almost always sticking it out! He also LOVES blowing raspberries. He appears to have started to "mimic" me when I do it.. or, maybe it's just a coincidence but either way it's adorable.

- Gavin has 2 bottom teeth coming in. I found them this morning and was so surprised - he has not been fussy at all and I expected some kind of warning that his teeth would be coming in! Fingers crossed he continues to be an "easy" teether with the rest of his teeth :)

The wiggle monster gets harder and harder to photograph each month!

My funny Valentine

Happy Valentine's Day from our little heart-breaker! <3

Gavin 5 months

Gavin is growing up so fast I just cannot handle it. I feel like every week he's doing something new and I just want time to slow down!

Oh don't mind me, I'm just holding my own bottle like a big kid, NBD.

- I wrote his last update before his 4 month checkup with the pediatrician. He did really well at his checkup and was doing everything {developmentally} that he should be doing at this age (holding head up, "standing" when held, following things up/down back/forth with his eyes.) He actually made another visit to the pediatrician 2 weeks ago because he'd been having sleeping problems (waking every 1-2 hours for 3 nights in a row... fun, fun!) and very bad eczema. His eczema is almost completely cleared up now and we are slowly but surely working on his sleeping problems. :)

- Every month, he gets cuter. It's hard to imagine how, but he just does. I was just about to get the hang of the whole working mom thing, then his cuteness level skyrocketed and now it's getting harder to leave in the morning. He's babbling a lot and has started screeching. At this point the screeching is still cute, but I'm sure very soon the screeching will be a tiny bit annoying.

- The kid has found his feet and is obsessed with them. Every chance he gets he is trying to shove them in his mouth! It's easiest for him to do this during diaper changes, which makes them a bit more challenging. On my birthday, our babysitter sent this adorable text and you can just see him enjoying his tasty poodies (poodies are code for feet, in case you didn't know).

nom nom nom

- He's really loving his exersaucer. Now that he knows how to use his hands, he loves to push the buttons to make them light up and make sounds.

- I have to say, registering for this mobile was a clutch decision. Gavin usually wakes up between 6:30-7:30am on the weekdays and that's usually when we're both getting ready for work. I can go in his bedroom, greet him and turn on the mobile and it will buy me an extra 10-15 minutes to finish getting ready for work.

- I think I've mentioned this before, but Gavin is obsessed with Callie. His face lights up whenever he sees her and he'll immediately start laughing at her. It's adorable! I can't wait until Gavin starts crawling and can chase her around the house!

- We're so thankful to have friends and family that are so willing to travel to come and watch Gavin. They actually beg us to leave sometimes! Lynette and Sunny came to watch him a few weeks ago so we could go out and celebrate my friend Erica's birthday. The weekend after that, my parents stayed with Gavin overnight and we went to a beerfest with some friends and actually got a hotel for the night. I was reluctant at first, but it was truly so nice to not only drink and not have to worry about driving home, but to have the entire night to ourselves! It was strange waking up in a hotel by ourselves, but the time away was much needed! We missed him lots and he definitely kept my parents busy - my mom was not used to waking up twice a night! Grandpa also taught him to blow raspberries :)

- Gavin is in love with his dad - I'm starting to realize that he might be his favorite. I keep asking him, "do you realize I'm the one that feeds you, kept you in my belly for 9+ months, and pushed you out of me?!". He doesn't quite understand, but that's ok because watching him give Matt the hugest smile when he gets home from work is totally worth it.

- The pediatrician gave us the "go ahead" to start solids at his 4 month checkup. I'm reluctant to start until 6 months, though, as he doesn't need any nutrition besides breastmilk and he's not showing ALL the signs to be ready for solids (he can't yet sit up on his own). I've increased the amount he's getting in his bottles and he seems much more satisfied so I'm not too concerned about "filling his belly" with solids yet. I've had to start supplementing his bottles at daycare with formula. My pumping production has slowed down and I just can't keep up with what he's eating (20 ounces in 9 hours of daycare - holy chunker!). I tried an assortment of things to up my production (drinking a TON of water, Mother's Milk Tea, fenugreek capsules, oatmeal, lactation cookies....) but those things only helped a little. I've heard from lots of other moms at work that this sort of thing is normal and I'm just going with the flow. I figure if we can make it to 6 months that's pretty darn great, and if we make it any longer that is just fine.

- I recently got a tattoo of Gavin's name on my left wrist. I'd always imagined if I got a tattoo, it would be something with extreme significance - not just some butterfly on my ankle. I finally decided I wanted Gavin's name and on my wrist so Matt and I went together and it was my birthday gift. It hurt quite a bit (not NEARLY as much as childbirth, though!) but it was over in less than 5 minutes!

- Side note - whoever said "There's no use crying over spilled milk" never did this with breast milk. FML.

-Gavin currently weighs 16 lbs 5 oz.

Gavin 4 months

Time is seriously flying. I feel like I just gave birth to Gavin, and here we are only 2 months away to him being 6 months {as in half a year!} old. Holy cow!

- Every month gets easier. His "fussiness" is slowing down which is in turn helping our energy level go back up and helping us enjoy our time with him more. This parenting thing is so confusing at times, though. You think for a second you've got them figured out, then WHAM, they go from sleeping through the night to waking every 3 hours, and from 2 hour naps to 30 minute naps. There are growth spurts, and sleep regressions, and wonder weeks, oh my! We're currently working on a sleep schedule, and so far it's going okay. We're trying to stop putting him to bed asleep and start putting him to bed drowsy, which is sometimes quite difficult. Baby steps!

-The magic sleepsuit wasn't so "magical" for us. :( I will say it helped transition Gavin from the swaddle... but it did not increase his sleep like most parents said it did. Was it worth the $$? I think so, since again it helped him go from swaddle to no swaddle... and, he looks like the stay puff marshmallow man.

- We've been battling all kinds of skin problems with Gavin pretty much since he was 2 weeks old. It started with baby acne (which went away after a few weeks), then he developed cradle cap, and now he's got eczema! The cradle cap will go away after treatment with baby oil and brushing, then it will pop back up. I'm just glad he has some hair to cover it! The eczema started about a month ago and I think I've finally found the solution, Cetaphil and coconut oil. We're just trying our best to keep his sensitive skin moisturized and healthy!

- In addition to his skin problems, the kid has crazy gas. A few times he's woken in the middle of the night SCREAMING bloody murder and pulling his legs to his belly, which is usually from gas problems. After some gas drops, bicycle kicks, eating and soothing, he's usually back to sleep. The poor baby just doesn't know how to deal with the tummy pain! I recently came across this product and it's helped us tremendously with his gas problems. Those Swedes really know what they're doing (also invented this magical baby product), don't they?!

- Gavin has started to learn how to use his hands and is grabbing things when he's interested in them. We keep thinking he's starting to teethe, because he's been drooling like crazy and seems to want to put EVERYTHING in his mouth! Between his interest in grabbing my hair, and my postpartum hair loss, I think I might be going bald soon...

- Gavin visited Santa a few weeks before Christmas. I kind of procrastinated, so we were stuck going on a weeknight since I knew the last few weekends in December would be crazy. We didn't get to the mall until 7pm, and by then he was exhausted. Poor thing was falling asleep in line so he finally woke up about 10 minutes before we saw Santa but was in a daze. The good news is he didn't cry, but the bad news is he looks like he has NO CLUE what is going on. Which he doesn't, but it's just all that more obvious in the picture.

- Gavin's first Christmas was amazing! He was spoiled rotten and told us he looooves all of the gifts he got. :)

- We spent our second year in a row having a relaxing NYE at home. Last year I was pregnant and nobody knew yet, so we just went to dinner and watched the ball drop at home. This year we got takeout from Olive Garden and didn't even make it up until 11pm! Party rockers, I tell ya!

- I told you in my last post that we dealt with Gavin's first illness, a viral infection. It definitely scared the bajezzus out of us, but he was over the fever in a few days and kept his normal happy-go-lucky personality the whole time which was reassuring.

My rosy cheeked sickling!

- Gavin is learning to roll over by accident, but I don't think he's doing it "on purpose yet". Tummy time is getting better and his head is so strong!

Poor guy is losing so much hair!

- Gavin is clocking in at 14 lbs, 15 ounces these days. Can we talk about his thunder theighs? Love.

His 4 month checkup is on Friday, and I have like 43098304 questions for the pediatrician. The other day I was thinking how amazing it would be to be married to a pediatrician... haha. He'll also get another round of shots :( I've never heard him scream as loud as he does when he got his last round so pray for me...

Until next time!