8 Months!

My baby is looking more and more like a little boy.  Look at him.

I may be a little crossed eyed, but I can raise one eyebrow

He totally knows what a camera is and what he is suppose to do.

Cheese!

He was in a much cuter outfit for birthday, picture day but I didn't act fast enough.  This was probably his 3rd change of the day.  As you can tell I don't believe in pants on babies.  It's hot and the onsie covers the diaper.  That counts as clothed in my book.

Stats:
Weight: holding steady at about 22 lbs
Length: long
Clothes size: 12-18 months - this is one big boy
Favorite game: peek-a-boo, pet the kitty
Teeth: 1!

That's right, we finally have a tooth.  It showed up mid-week and has caused all kinds of havoc over here.  I think the worst of that one is over, but it was an unpleasant couple of days.  I'm not looking forward to welcoming the other 19.

For this 8 month birthday Chris gave him his first guitar lesson and then we took him to a bar.  Hurray Calvin!  (or is that Hurray Beer?  either way...)

Random updates

I went out of town for 4 days and when I came back my little monkey had gone from dragging his little body from room to room to doing a proper crawl.  Belly up  and all 4 limbs moving him across the floor.  Man, does he change fast!

Calvin survived my absence and seems none the worse for wear.  In fact I don't think he missed me at all, but then babies don't have a very good sense of time.  He probably thought a left the room for a minute.  My ego was a bit bruised, but it is more important that he not be in emotional distress.  So all in all I'm happy.  Thanks to Grandma for filling in!

and green food sucks.  Calvin has been eating broccoli and seems to like it as long as it is paired with apples.  But the pea and green bean experience was less to his liking.  I have to say I smelled and tasted it before I gave it to him and it was a rousing thumbs down on both counts.  Despite the mint added as a flavor enhancer, I can only describe it as gross.  But then Calvin doesn't have a very developed palette so who knows, maybe he'd like it.

Nope.  He was hungry enough to be a good sport and give it a try but about halfway through more of it was being spit back out than was going in.  He gets an A for effort and I have decided that the nutritional profile of peas do not warrant either of us suffering through that again.

I'm happy to be back with my little family.  We celebrated with a fun bike ride through downtown Austin and tacos on Saturday and Calvin's first trip to the gym's kid's club on Sunday.  I'm not sure Calvin was impressed with either outing.

Eating

Calvin has always been a good eater.  Nothing has changed since we started solids.  He has happily eaten everything I've given him.  Granted he usually gets a veggies (sweet veggie) and a fruit mixed together, but most things have been greeted with enthusiasm.  Some more than others.  The zucchini and apple wasn't a hit, but mix that zucchini with some banana and watch out.

So far he's had:
sweet potato                    mango                 rice cereal (commercial and homemade)
butternut squash              apple
carrots                             pears
pumpkin                         banana
avocado                          peaches
zucchini
broccoli
and popcicle

Pretty much every vegetable he's eaten is yellow and he loves them.  As mentioned above, green isn't doing so well.  I'm hoping to give spinach a try soon and I expect it to garner the same confused expression that the avocado did the first time around.  If he doesn't like it I'll just bury that flavor in mango.  mmm sweet spinach is my favorite!  :)

But by far, Calvin's favorite part of meal time is dessert.

you've really out done yourself with the rag tonight mama.  It's delicious!

Baby/Pet

I'm being faced with the ways in which having a baby is similar to having a dog.  I find it amusing and a little uncomfortable.

The other day I sat down on the floor at day care.  I had stopped by to drop off diapers and decided to say hello to Calvin.  Every time I'm there during the day, the teachers make small talk.  This time, Ms. Laidy asked me if we had pets.  I told her about the cats and she replied that she thought we had dogs.  When I asked why she gave a vague response and changed the topic.    Then I realized that when I sat down next to Calvin, I tapped my leg and said "Come here, Calvin", very much as you would call a dog.  oops.

Apparently I am not the only one who accidentally treats her baby as a pet.  Since Calvin is extremely mobile and quick I was contemplating getting a play yard so he can still move around, but be in a more contained space (instead of being in a baby containment unit like an exersaucer) for times when I can't keep a constant eye on him.  This is what I found when I searched for "baby pen".  It looks familiar, right?  It's in the pet supply department.

Maybe I'll just get a gate for his bedroom door.

Wednesday Happiness

Peek-a-boo!

This is what happens when you leave a baby alone in his room for too long.  He comes to find you!

I know you are out there.

I think you forgot something in there...
the baby?  duh!

Look what I can do!

I think he may skip crawling with his belly up and go straight to walking...

Standing in front of this foot stool is the only thing Calvin wanted to do this weekend.

and now his crib is on the lowest setting and mama's back may break.

The daycare teacher told me that Calvin is the worst napper in the class on Friday.  He sleeps great at home and not much at all at daycare, which is something that we have known for a while.  But with my first trip out of town right around the corner and the hope that he will improve with daycare napping, we started sleep training (again) on Friday.  No more nursing to sleep for my little monkey.  The tears on Friday broke my heart.  "Why mama, why?  why are you doing this to me?  Please!?"  By Sunday we were good with a book and a song.  No tears.  

It's Chris' turn tomorrow.  Wish him luck.

I still don't hold out too much hope for daycare naps.  Unless there is absolutely nothing to look at, he will probably continue to be the last one down and the first one up.  He's a very curious baby.

7 Months!

Look how much bigger he has gotten.  At 3 months, his head only came up to the pillow when he was sitting down.

Stats:
Weight: 22 lbs
Favorite Games: Parachute and Baby Pendulum
Sleep: He still gets up about once a night.  I blame the breast milk which is metabolized faster than formula, but he can and does occasionally make it to morning.
Food:  He has 2 solid meals a day that are a mix of vegetables, fruit and cereal.
Dislikes: putting on pajamas is still his least favorite activity of the day
Teeth: Not for lack of trying

I can't believe how fast it is going now.  It seemed like forever for him to be 6 months old and I blinked and now he's 7 months big.  This kid is always on the go.  I like to give him a little massage every night, but that task can only be accomplished if I follow him around while he's playing on the floor.  He definitely likes it but not enough to be still for 10 minutes.  If only someone was willing to rub my feet and back every day.  I have no problem staying put.  But Calvin has an agenda.  There is a ducky that needs to be gnawed on right now.

He's still army crawling, but don't discount him because he isn't properly on all 4s.  He can get around.  Especially if there is a dust mop or cat food bowl or garbage can or some other completely disgusting, baby inappropriate item in his sight.  I've found him with all of those items in his grasp when I've turned my back.