Then and Now

Matthew as a newborn and now, at 6 months old.

26 Weeks - 6 months old!

Yikes, another week!

Your baby boy, Matthew, is 26 weeks (Approximately 6.1 months) old now.
At six months old, babies usually range from 24 inches long and 13.25 pounds (10th percentile) to 27.25 inches long and 18.5 pounds (90th percentile).
Do you realize that this week marks the halfway point to your baby's first birthday? If you think the last six months have flown by, prepare yourself - your baby isn't going to slow down for a minute during the next six months. There's too much to do, see, and learn before his or her first birthday!
Does your baby propel themselves around the floor by rolling front to back and back to front? Many babies develop unique ways of getting around before they start crawling. Your baby may also be getting up on all fours and rocking back and forth. He or she is trying to gain the strength he or she needs to start crawling. Remember, babies develop at their own rate, so don't be alarmed if your baby isn't rocking, rolling, or scooting.
By now your baby is probably too big for his or her infant bath, but may still seem too small for the big bath tub. The bath tub may be hard for you to maneuver your baby in, and it can also be overwhelming for him or her. You now have several options for bath time: you can buy little blow up bathtubs that fit inside your household bathtub, or you can buy a baby seat. Even though your little one is getting bigger, always remember that a baby can drown in as little as one inch of water, so never turn your back on your baby when he or she's in the bath, even for a second.

Well, Matthew had his 6 month doctor's appointment yesterday, and he is now 17lbs 10oz (55th percentile) and 28 inches long (93rd percentile)! He got 4 shots (!) in his legs - the three vaccines he had coming to him and the flu shot that mean 'ol Mommy told the doctor to give him. He has to go in for another flu shot next month - the first time babies get a flu shot they need two doses. After that, though, no more shots until he's over a year old! He'll appreciate it, I'm sure. As for what the newsletter says...Matthew knows how to do a lot, but he is too stubborn to do it! He's rolled many times from front to back, but he doesn't do it with any regularity. I've also caught him *almost* rolling from back to front. He can get up on his hands and knees, but not at the same time. So I think the Christmas tree is safe this year! As for the bathtub, though...Matthew has absolutely no problems and never has (with the exception of hating his sponge baths as a newborn). He loves splashing in the water. In fact, he gets very angry with Mommy when she interrups his playing so that she can wash him. The nerve of Mommy, sometimes! :o)

Lookie at My Sweetie

Gosh I love this little guy...no matter how difficult things are, no matter how tired I am, I see that little face and I know that I would deal with things 100X more difficult and be 100X more tired if I had to for him. I think it's called motherly love :o)

Week 25!

Wow is Matthew growing! I just can't believe how he gets more and more interactive every day. Sometimes it's fun, like when he's in a giggly mood and thinks that Mommy and Daddy are the funniest, most wonderful people on Earth. And sometimes it's not so fun, like when he's tired or frustrated and wants to whine and yell. And hit! Although I don't think it's so much that he hits on purpose. He just gets mad and flings his arms around, which happen to smack you in the face. At least he better not be hitting on purpose :oP

Here is what the newsletter says:

Your baby boy, Matthew, is 25 weeks (Approximately 5.8 months) old now.
Is your baby falling asleep on his or her own yet, or does it still take you a long time to get him or her to sleep each night? Sleep related issues are among the most common reported by parents with a child this age. Many exhausted parents turn to the advice of Dr. Richard Ferber, M.D. Dr. Ferber's method prescribes a regular bedtime routine and stresses the importance of teaching your baby to fall asleep on his or her own.
If your baby isn't crawling yet, he or she may become frustrated and cry when he or she can't get to toys that are out of reach. Although he or she may be able to scoot around on the floor, this movement is somewhat difficult and cumbersome. Try showing him or her how to crawl by positioning him or her on his or her hands and knees. Before you know it, he or she will be crawling all over the house.
Your baby has probably started babbling one syllable sounds that include consonants, such as "ba," "ma," and "da." The next step is combining those syllables into basic words, which he or she may start soon. You may not understand what he or she's saying (and he or she probably doesn't know either) but this is a huge step towards real speech.

Ah yes, sleep related issues. This is by far the most difficult thing that I am facing as a parent now. I feel that I've failed Matthew in some way, because he is not yet sleeping through the night. He got up twice last night, in fact, and refused to go to sleep again until I fed him. I know that babies his age do not need to eat at night. I also know how to break the habit of him eating at night. I just can't seem to bring myself to do it. One, I do not want to make him go hungry if indeed he really is (because I know that I get hungry at night sometimes, so why wouldn't he?) and two, I do not want to have to be kept awake by him crying because I haven't fed him. If I do feed him, it's almost guaranteed that he will be asleep again in 10-15 minutes. And I have to get up early and go to work 5 out of 7 days of the week, so I find it very difficult to do anything other than put him back to sleep as quickly as possible. But it's backfired, I'm afraid, because now he expects a meal whenever he wants one at night. So...do I just realize that I have created a monster and let it go on like this until he either grows out of it or gets old enough to understand "go back to sleep," or do I let him cry for a few nights to break him of the habit? Seems like a no-brainer, but I hate to walk around like a zombie for a week because I can't sleep with him screaming. Not that I'm not already a zombie, getting up at random times of the night, every night for almost 6 months. Geez, who told me that parenting would be easy? Oh, right. No one :oP

Oops, I Forgot a Week!

OK, so I didn't forget, but I got busy and didn't get it posted. So...I'll do week 24 and then week 25 as a separate post...

Newsletter, Week 24:

If you feel like your baby is dropping his or her toys over and over again only to get your attention, remember that this is how he or she tests the world and he or she is fascinated to find that dropping an object, such as a rattle, will have the same result every time. He or she now knows the sound that the rattle makes and can anticipate it. If the rattle hits another toy or surface on the way down, he or she may look to see what happened and why the sound was different that time. He or she is also delighted to discover another predictable result: that you will pick it up for him or her. Have patience. I remember wanting to put everything on little bungee cords so my daughter could retrieve her dropped toys herself.
Your little one's face and body will now start to communicate more subtly and you'll find that you can read his or her moods as they change simply by observing the expression on his or her face and by his or her body language. He or she will give you great big smiles and animated movements when he or she's happy; and a quieter, withdrawn demeanor when he or she's tired, sad or confused.Your baby will love a jumper chair at this age and it's great exercise for his or her leg muscles. However, be sure the chair is properly hung in an appropriate doorway-away from stairways and other dangerous areas (like near the kitchen stove) where he or she could get hurt. Remember to stay nearby and watch for signs that he or she may need a rest - little legs can wear out very quickly.

Now on to Week 25!

Matthew's First Haircut

Before, during and after. What a big boy! :o)

My Silly Boy

A couple days late with the posting, but Matthew is 23 weeks old now! Those pictures are pretty self-explanatory, but that never stopped me before - one is Matthew in his Halloween costume and the other is him eating carrots the other day. He actually likes them, but he's still learning how to keep them in his mouth :o)

Here's what the newsletter says:

Your baby boy, Matthew, is 23 weeks (Approximately 5.4 months) old now.
Your baby is learning to play, and playing to learn. Your baby loves noise at this stage - not just the noises he or she can make themselves, but also the noises he or she can make with objects as he or she learns to manipulate his or her environment. Your baby may shake his or her rattle, and hit it against a hard surface to see if it makes a different sound. He or she will probably be most pleased with the object that produces the loudest noise possible. Just remember, this too shall pass!
Your baby may be finally rolling over from his or her back to his or her tummy. When this new skill is mastered, you may find yourself waking up in the morning to find your baby, who fell asleep on his or her back, sleeping on his or her tummy. Many parents worry about this because of the fear of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Fortunately, experts agree that the risk of SIDS decreases once a baby can roll over because at that point they are better able to protect themselves.
Your baby is probably learning to sit better and longer without your assistance. He or she may sit supported for up to 30 minutes, and unsupported for several moments. He or she may not be able to quite pull themselves into a sitting position, but will be able to support themselves if you seat him or her on the floor. But stay close by. He or she'll be a bit wobbly and may slump forward without warning. The next step: crawling!

Matthew had his first bath in the "big boy tub" last night :o) He has been using one of those little tubs you can buy for babies, but he's really getting too big for it. He seemed to like the big tub - I layed him down and soaped him up, then let him sit up and play for a while. He usually can't sit on his own for more than a few seconds without losing his balance and tipping over, but he's getting there. He also had been sleeping a lot better, but the last 2 days have been rough. For some reason he's decided that he WILL NOT sleep in his crib. We've tried to let him cry it out, but after 30 minutes or so of screaming with no signs of stopping we give in. I have a hard time handling the crying and my husband has a hard time with letting the neighbors suffer (we live in an apartment building). So Matthew has slept in Mommy and Daddy's bed the last couple of nights. This weekend will be fun - last time he pulled this and I got serious about making him sleep in his crib he got up 4 times the first night, 3 times the next and then at least 2 times a night for about a week. He had been down to only getting up once a night (if at all) again before he started being difficult again. Not sure what the problem is, but I'm tired. So poor Matthew might have to do quite a bit of crying Friday night. There's no way I'm going to start tonight...I'm working on 12 hours of sleep in 2 days - maybe a lot or average to some of you but I function best on 8 hours of sleep a night or more. Although 7 would be acceptable. So tonight I will do what I have to do to get some sleep. Oh, and one more thing. Matthew is getting his first haircut on Saturday morning!!! I hate to do it, but the kid looks like a hippy. So hopefully he'll be good and not squirm so much he ends up with a funny haircut :oP