8 months under my belt & Merry Christmas!

8 months.  2 weeks late (again), yes, but at least I’m trying, right?  Working 5 days a week in the office has really zapped all of my blogging energy, so I do what I can when I can.   

Here’s my little man for his photo session (which was taken right around 8 months). 

 

Temperament:

Happy.  That’s the one word I would use to describe Joseph.   He’s very easy going, very adaptable to new people and new situations, always smiling and laughing, rarely does he get fussy.  He started a new daycare last week, and his teacher put on his daily report that he had the best first day ever and was smiling and laughing the whole day.  Yep, that about sums him up.  They just left out the part where he’s a ball of energy and constantly into everything. 

Feeding:
I’m still nursing, but at this point it’s mainly for comfort.  Since starting work, my supply has dwindled quite a bit.  I don’t even have to pump in the middle of the day anymore.  He prefers the bottle now.  Since I’m not ready to quit nursing just yet, I’ll continue as long as he will let me.  Call me selfish, but I’m just not ready to quit yet. 

He seems to be less fond of solids these past few weeks, and I’m not really sure why.  He honestly doesn’t seem to have a preference for anything at this point.  I’ve been mixing his vitamins and probiotics with his food, so maybe he’s on to me?

Sleeping:
Nightmare.  Total nightmare.  He’s sleeping worse now than he did as a newborn.  The major problem with this?  I have to work now.  How I’m able to function is beyond me.  It’s amazing just how sleep deprived one can be.  He typically goes to bed around 8:30ish (sometimes a bit earlier) and wakes at 12.  Again at 2.  Again at 4.  Again at 6.  Yes.  No matter what I do before bed – feed him solids, formula, nurse, make him stay up longer, make him take more naps during the day, shorter naps during the day – none of it makes any difference.  So, I’m about to start using the Ferber method on him to see if I can get the boy to learn how to self-soothe.  At this point, I know that’s the problem.  He refuses a paci most days, so my options are pretty limited. 

Milestones: 
This month has been HUGE as far as milestones go.  Here’s what he’s working on currently:

- He can sit up all on his own
- He can army crawl super fast
- He’s starting to lift his butt up in the air and his legs straight in an attempt to stand
- He’s starting to rock on his knees and hands in an attempt to crawl
- He can stand with assistance and even walks a few steps
- He can stand while holding on to something
- He’s starting to pull himself up in his pack-n-play to peer over the side

      

Here’s a video of a few of those things:
 


He’s sprouting about 6 teeth (that I’ve been able to count).  It’s crazy how quickly all of his teeth are coming in. 

Health:
He still has a nasty cough, but things seem to be getting better.  Still snotty, but I guess that’s to be expected.  It seems like kids his age are always snotty.  He had a bad diaper rash for a few days, but some extra-strength Butt Paste really helped. 

Size:
He’s wearing 9 – 12 months clothes and size 3 diapers.  Size 2 shoes.  He’s super long and has out grown most of his pants. 

Activities: 
We took the kids to see Santa this year at Bass Pro Shops.  The Santa there is so nice and believable.  Now that they have a ticket system where you make an appointment and only have to wait about 10 minutes, it’s much easier to get a good shot with the kids. 



We were also able to take some family photos this year.  I absolutely LOVE the way they turned out.  Thanks to my friend Sandra at Eau Claire Photographics for doing such a fantastic job! 



From our family to yours, may you have a blessed Christmas and a very happy New Year. 

7 months under my belt.

So, here I am writing the 7 month post two weeks late. Technically JoJo (Joseph, Joe, Little Joe – we’ve yet to figure out what we’re going to call him) is 7 months and 2 weeks as of the date of this post, but I’m going to assume that Joseph at 7 months and 2 weeks is the same Joseph at exactly 7 months. 

Here’s my little man for his photo session (which was taken right around 7 months).

Looks like he’s whispering sweet nothings into the owl’s ear.

 
Temperament:

Now that Joe is becoming more mobile, I can definitely see into my future, and it’s going to be a hectic place.  He’s very strong and wild, and every little boy trait that I see in crazy little boys I’m now starting to see in my own little boy.  I didn’t have to baby proof much with Anna.  I have a feeling that I’ll have to bubble wrap my house once this little man is totally mobile. 

Despite his wildness, he’s still the sweetest baby I’ve ever been around.  He smiles and laughs and has no fear of strangers or new places.  He’s a charmer for sure. 

He rarely fusses or cries, and when he does fuss, it’s usually because he’s tired or hungry.  Even then he quiets very quickly when I pick him up or give him what he needs.  Rarely have we had a total melt-down where a little TLC didn’t fix him.

Feeding:
I started my new job this past month and was a bit worried about if I’d continue nursing.  I’ve made it work thus far and am happy to say that I’m still going strong in this department.  I just have to pump once daily at work, and I nurse Joe the rest of the time when I’m with him.  Since I don’t quite make enough milk, he’s supplemented with formula while he’s at daycare.  He does great with the transition.  My new goal is to make it to 9 months.  And then 1 year.  I’m not going to put any pressure on myself at this point because I’ve made it a lot longer than I ever thought I would.  He’s healthy, happy, and thriving regardless, so I’m content.

He loves the following solids:
Squash
Sweet potatoes

Turkey and carrots (YUCK)
Bananas
Pears
Carrots
Apples

He doesn’t like:
Green beans
Peas
Mixed vegetables

Sleeping:
Well, we’ve finally transitioned him once and for all into the Pack-N-Play.  The Rock-N-Play is not a safe sleeper once the infant can sit up and move.  Even strapped in, the baby can easily wriggle his/her way out and fall out of the sleeper.  If I were to have another child (God no), no way would I use this again.  It’s too hard to transition the baby out of the sleeper into something flat – at least it was in our case. 

So, a few nights of sleeplessness, and here we are with a baby who finally sleeps flat on his back.  However, I’d be lying if I said he sleeps through the night.  If anything, he still sleeps like a new born, and I have to admit that I’m exhausted.  Even in the Rock-N-Play, he was still up every 4 hours.  Now he’ll go to sleep early (around 7:30/8) and wake up at midnight.  Then again at 3 a.m. and every hour after until I wake up for the day.  It’s pretty miserable.  I honestly have no idea how I’m still functioning on such little sleep, but I guess I’ve adapted.  I just fear he’ll never sleep all the way through the night. 

I eventually want to transfer him to his nursery crib, but it’s on the other side of the house, and no way am I trekking across my house every hour in the night just to pop his paci back into his mouth.

Milestones:
Joe is progressing so quickly!  He can sit up on his own for a while, but I’m still not 100% comfortable leaving him since he does still topple over. 

 
While he’s  not quite crawling, he’s definitely kind of pin-wheeling his way around a room.  He’s able to turn himself 360 degrees and roll around to get to where he needs to go.  Last night Anna and I were playing with him in his room, and he lifted his butt up a few times in an effort to scoot himself.  He’s almost there.

His two bottom teeth are almost fully in, and he’s getting a top tooth which makes him look a little like a vampire.  I guess it’s the incisor tooth?  The pointy one. 

Health:
Well, as expected, starting J at a new school invited a new round of germs into our house.  Both Anna and J have a nasty cough that makes our house sound like a TB ward at night. 

We took Joe to the pedi, and she put him on antibiotics because she said he was in the beginning stages of an ear infection.  Two rounds of antibiotics later, and he still has the infection.  He also has a nasty cough and a runny nose.  No fever, though.  

Size:
He’s wearing 9 – 12 months clothes and size 3 diapers.  Size 2 shoes.  He’s super long and has out grown most of his pants. 

Activities: 
We took the kids to a pumpkin patch this past month, and it was a total cluster.  My sister brought her two kids, so trying to corral four kids was nearly impossible.  We spent the majority of the time trying to tame Anna and my nephew Jackson, and the rest of the time trying to appease two crying infants who were hungry and tired.  Never again.  Until next year has erased all of these bad memories and we stupidly bring them all there again.

Siblings:
Anna is still very much mom #2 to Joe.  She loves taking care of him and is even strong enough now to pick him up for a few seconds.