On this eve of one of the greatest changes in my life time, the inauguration of President Obama, I am thrilled to share some of our own little (and not so little) changes at home.
Reed turned 6 months old last week. Everyone says it but time is truly flying by and it is hard to believe it has been a half a year since he was born. He is incredibly healthy and still the happiest kiddo we know. Since my last update there have been many new developments and learning for him and for us. In fact, so many new things are happening these days that I fear I will not be able to recall them all! But here's my best attempt.....
[Yesterday in Point Reyes with friends, more pictures
here]
- I reported that he was eating brown rice cereal as of a few weeks ago. Now, included in his line up of new tastes are: bananas, sweet potatoes, carrots and avocado. Next, we are looking forward to introducing pears, apples, and peas. Feeding him is so much fun now. Every morning we sit him in his
bumbo seat (he's still a little too small for the high chair) and awaits that days new tasting adventure. After the initial shock of the new texture, taste and cool temperature of the food, he starts to inhale it and let's it be known that he is not happy when he has finished. He sits with his arms back like he's ready to take flight and so far has only attempted to grab at the spoon a few times, which is surprising because he is grabbing for everything else.
[Sunset nursing on Mt. Tam]
- Everything goes in the mouth! It's a little hard to know what to do when he attempts to put yucky but harmless things in his mouth. We are leaning toward allowing as much exposure to safe objects (inside and out) to encourage him to make his own discoveries. The other day we had him at the park on a beautifully warm January day and he discovered grass for the first time. He quickly learned that pulling the ground up to his mouth took strength and effort that he did not yet possess , so instead he leaned down toward his toes and proceeded to mouth the grass. Of course I watched him closely, and seeing as how there were no sharp or chokeable items in his reach, I simply watched him explore. Billy noticed the other day that he is starting to discern by mouth what he likes to chew or taste versus what he is simpling exploring.
leaf = explore, spit out
mama's chin = chew
Samba's furry head - explore, maybe lick a little
plastic musical instrument = chew
sand = explore, spit out
stuffed animals = chew
etc...
[Discovering grass]
[and dirt...]
- One of his latest tricks is to sit up on his own for more than a few seconds. Although he is not able to sit up AND play with an object (too hard to focus on doing both), the other day I watched him sitting. However, this time when he started to tip over like usual, he reached his left arm out and caught himself. He seemed very proud of himself but as soon as he saw me smiling at him he lost his concentration and over he tumbled
[Practicing sitting in his new favorite spot in the house]
Indestructible - Ok, that's a little too strong of a word, but this kid is tough and has been proving it by easily shaking possibly painful or scary things off without a problem. Last night he got a mouth full of water in our family bath. He coughed, teared up, quivered his lip a little then took a deep breath and started immediately smiling again. As I said, he tips over all the time and sometimes he crashes upon impact, but he is yet to say ouch. He has been whopped in the face numerous times by Samba's tail or flailing paw and laughs at that too.
On the move - No, he's not yet crawling, thank God, but he is scooting around in a circle. I can put him down on his stomach in one place facing one direction and within a few minutes he will have turned around 160 degrees or flipped over to his back. He is also not to be trusted on the changing table by himself anymore. On more than one occasion he has nearly flipped from back to front although I have yet to see it completely.
Own room - Until recently he has been sleeping (both naps and night) in a hammock thing next to our bed. A few weeks ago we began napping him in his own room; and last week started putting him in his crib at night too. At the same time, we decided to wean him off his middle of the night feed (usually around 3am). Billy slept in Reed's room one night and then the subsequent nights he took the job of going into his room and comforting him, giving him his pacifier, singing or whatever it took to help him get through the night without eating. I'm happy to say that after a few nights of minimal crying he now sleeps much better and much longer. Last night he slept from 8pm to 5:45am without waking up - definitely a record!
Friends for life - Reed thinks the funniest thing on earth is our dog Samba. He screams in delight when she enters the room or when they share floor time together. He has taken to fake coughing to get her attention and can be entertained for hours. Samba does not seem to get the same amount of joy out of her new friend, but she is patient and kind to him and clearly enjoys the attention she receives from us as a result.
[Typical scene these days]
