9 Months

Dear My Boy,

A few days ago you turned 9 months old. It seems you are developing new things and trying them every single day in rapid succession. Yesterday while at Aunt Jessica’s and Uncle Josh’s you discovered how to clap on your own. You don’t bang both hands together, but rather will sort of set one hand stationery and bang the other one on top of it. Then today while in a very whiney phase, you wanted picked up and I had walked off. Well, you lost it and starting wailing, but you started crawling toward me when I heard, “…Ma….Ma….Ma….Mu … Ma….” You were saying MaMa for communication purposes. Big milestone! Of course daddy says “Well, he’s been saying ‘Dada’ for a long time!” My arugement to that was that you just say it to say it … not that you are “calling” for daddy or saying his name. But it appeared this time to be so! You’ll even clap on demand, so that’s very fun to watch.

You love getting into the toilet and that’s become an issue. At first it was just flicking your fingers in the toilet water but now you love to pull the TP down and dip it into the water. Your brother loved the same thing. So when we can’t find you … check the bathrooms!

You love to pull hair. You use it mainly to pull up to stand and you’re very rough when you do it!! But that is what makes you laugh very hard .. the harder you pull the more excited you get J Very funny.

You went to your first football game this month – Creswell High. We sat you back in your stroller and you loved it! You watched the cheerleaders most of the time (already!).

This month we have been trying to get you to sleep longer through the night. You were up 3 times a night and it was getting ridiculous! So, we had to start letting you cry out those periods when you woke up. I hate hate hate listening to you cry and know I can’t just go pick you up. It’s time for you to learn that you can comfort yourself back to sleep and you don’t need us. So, now you’re only getting fed once a night and that is helping the sleep factor.

Your top two teeth were born around September 11th. You ran a fever for 2 days the week prior but nothing poked through. So you now have a matching top and bottom pair and MAN DO THEY HURT when you like to "nibble". You’re getting more independent with eating. You’d rather be eating OUR food versus yours. You like real food like bread, crackers, yogurt, applesauce cottage cheese, cheese, pretzel twists, and I give you smashed things off our plate. I have introduced you to a new soft nipple topped sippie cup so you can have more independence with eating that, but you still kind of make a mess. You blow IN to the sippie cup, and in response milk comes out this little hole in the top and onto your face. So, it’s messy … but I’m hopeful you’ll catch on and I can just let you hold the cup and drink.

You’re getting good at walking with your walk toy. You would just fall down with it, but you do have pretty good control of it now and will walk until you run into something. You have learned to click with your tongue. It’s something I have always done to get your attention and now when you click, I will click. Or if you hear me click, you’ll click back. It’s pretty cute!!

We love you!

Momma

First Cry-Out

Check out the feet ... you're in "gonna stand up and walk" mode but just can't get there. You've been a pill the last few weeks. Your top 2 teeth were born last week (slow movers!) and you have one I-Tooth that is coming through that has caused a bruise but yet no break through. Poor baby. But with your crankiness has come some waking up at night wanting held. I admit, I had given into this, but it was causing no sleep for momma!! You'd be awake at 11p, 2a, 5a. More than when you were born! Finally daddy talked me into letting you cry it out after you were up from 11:00pm until 3:30am one night. So, Sunday night you woke up at 11:00 and cried so daddy slept on the couch (I can't stand to listen to you cry) and let you cry it out until you went back to sleep. It took you until 1:00 to go back to sleep. But you did! And ever since then *knock on wood* you haven't gotten up at night until like 6:00am to eat. Thank you!!

You're standing on your own now. You crawl 100mph to get to where you're going, pull up then you'll let go and stand until you get nervous and fall to your bottom. That's what Maysen did before he started walking so I think that's around the corner!!

ouchie teeth

You just got over your first bad bout with teething. You ran a fever for over 2 days straight. You were mopey, whiney, tired, and looked miserable. Thanks to Tylenol and some extra care, you are feeling much better now. I am still waiting for those babies to poke through but it should be very soon. You still have your lonely 2 in the bottom, but before we know it you'll have all of them poking through.

You're walking with your walker now. Before you would pull up and start to walk but just fall down. Now you're taking steps and can walk with it for a good 10 feet before your legs give out. Who knows, maybe you'll be walking at 9 months like your brother. You need to get a jump on him. He's a pretty good big brother, but he likes to get a little rough with you sometimes. You'll be showing him who the Little Brother Boss is before you know it!

8 months

Dear Pretty Boy,

You will be 8 months this week and I still can’t believe how fast the time has gone. This month you have exploded with new things. You started crawling and have mastered it by now but it still frustrates you to have to crawl to things – you’d much rather just walk or run to them. You started out by crawling with one leg/knee but would keep the other foot flat on the floor and kind of half-walk with that foot. Before long, you had gotten the whole knee/arm movement and are crawling great now.

You got your first 2 teeth at the end of last month and they are big and bright now! They are your bottom front teeth and you jet your jaw out trying to munch on things. You’re now eating Stage III foods and loving every drop! You also are eating solids now, such as cheerios, bits of bread, Club crackers, bits of cheese – really you will go after just about anything!! You slide it to the side and gum it until it breaks up. You like drinking water/milk out of a cup although it still is a bit much for you. You recognize when others are eating/drinking and majorly want part of the action!! Your newest thing are the teething biscuits – which are supposed to not break apart easily. Well, #1 their messy as all get out, but #2 is you break them apart in no time so I have to really watch you!

You still get up in the night once. Its usually around 1:00am, then you get up at 7:00 to eat again but will generally go back to sleep until 8:00 or so. You nap around lunch time and if I’m lucky (and ONLY if I’m lucky) I can get you back to sleep around 4:30. You get a bath still around 7:30 and are in bed at 8:00pm….unless you refuse your pm nap then you’re in bed a bit earlier than that.

You’re also pulling up on things. You will crawl right over to the couch, grab on, and pull right up! You’ll crawl over to me in the kitchen and pull up on my pant legs. That’s less successful, but you try J You get frustrated very easily and will give that half whine/half cry bit when you’ve had it.

For a small while you were doing this fake smile that was hilarious. You’d squint up your eyes/nose/lips in this smile like “yep!” and then you’d just stop …. So we all knew it was a fake one. Another hilarious thing you’re doing right now is you’re doing a very similar thing like your brother’s “hooting”. Whne you laugh/giggle, when you breath back in post laugh you will suck it in loud and drawn out like “Hehehehe ….. HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWW”. It’s hilarious!

You love Bailey. If she’s laying around you’ll crawl over to her and scratch her with your nails … more for the feel for you, but Bailey loves it, until you decide to bite her ear. You are pretty ruthless with those little kitten teeth!! Very sharp blades!

I think that is it. I can’t wait to keep watching you grow and change.
Love,Momma

Seven Months

Dear Griffin,

You are 7 months old today and just this past week, your bottom two front teeth were born. You had been working so hard to get them here!!! You’ve been a drool bucket for the last several months it has seemed. But Finally, they are here!!

You are not officially crawling yet, because you have decided you like to do Mr Inch Worm. You plant your toes, keep your legs straight, and lift up, sort of like an upside down “V”. On your way down, you slide and you’ll move about another inch forward. Of course you roll all over the place, and just today you rolled onto your side and sorta lounge back (like you always have) but you used your ab muscles and actually pulled yourself from that side lounge back into a full sitting position with no help! It was exciting. You are so happy … especially being more mobile.

And you LOVE to eat!! You are eating two of the Stage II Gerber foods. If you don’t eat two it’s because we’ve made one runny one, like green beans, with a half-bowl full of thick oatmeal but even then, the bowl is overly full with thick thick beans. You eat it all up! Then usually you’re asleep after that … hehe.

You are saying “Ta-Ta-Da-Da-Ta”, especially when you’re excited. I think they’re just sounds that you make more than a recognition toward anyone. But we’re working with you on how to understand just WHO “Da-Da” is.

Fourth of July was fun this year, your first one. Anything loud and it was NOT Ok. Luckily the night of the fireworks, you were fast asleep and never woke up once! Good boy!

You LOVE slapping the water. You sit on your little yellow spongie and just slap the crap out of the water. Double fisted most times. You cackle with delight as you do this, not even minding that so much water is in your eyes you can’t see! You’ve also started doing this wiggle, almost dance when he’s on his back naked – doesn’t matter if it’s water or on the carpet. He wiggles his top part one direction, and his bottom the other and it looks more like a dance. And he gets going so far and just smiiiiiiiling. He’s such a happy boy.

We love you, baby boy. Onward HO to Month 8.
Momma

1st Tooth!

Fin,

Your first tooth was born yesterday morning. I'd imagine it popped through during the night of 7/22. Your other one is right there and will pop out today I'm sure. It's already at the surface and you can see it, just needs nudged. You're officially eating crackers now :-)

I call you my inch worm because I just don't think you want to crawl. You get it, I think, but you'd rather just raise your whole body in the air and upon coming down, you push forward, slowly inching along. It's more fun, right?

Love you.

6 months

Hi Fin!!

Boy ...you are six months now. I just posted about the things you did, but wanted to do a blirp about what Dr Pelinka thought about our man at 6mo. She said you are looking so good, and that if she saw you like this at 10 months old she would be just as happy developementally. You sat up good for her, smiled and even talked to her. You got all your shots, and she told me about an anemia screen you'll have to have at either 9 or 12 months. To be honest, I don't think momma's going to have that done. Only because, you aren't at risk for it and for two, your little tiny veins are so hard to get blood from -- at OHSU they had to put you under anesthesia just to get the "important" immunity labs from you. I have a hard time justifying doing that to you and putting you through that for some screen that you're at low risk for. So, momma will talk to Dr Pelinka about that at the next visit. I have your back! :-)

Stats: Weight: 16lb 14oz (50% in weight)
Height: 27 inches (75% in height)

You are eating stage 2 foods now twice a day (trying to slow you down!) and still eating good on formula. You go straight to bed at 7:30-8pm every night without a hitch. You wake up to eat at about 5:30 and sleep again until 8 or so.

You are loving your stand up toys ... like your gymboree thing and Johnny Jump Up. You like to be on your tummy, but will throw up a lot like that. Too much pressure. You sleep on your tummy at night and that makes for a leaky diaper so usually a change at the 5am waking. You are doing the backwards crawl thing, wanting so much to be mobile. You like to watch TV and eat ... or you'll roll over to the TV just to watch. You still have this connection with your brother -- where he does the scariest things to you and you love it ... cackling the whole time. Scary ...

With that I'll close. I love you, Mr Fin.
Momma