Who Are you and What Have You Done with my Son?

I didn’t write a five month entry. There were really no changes in Noah, except in his size- still growing like a weed! But as the sixth month approached, all these changeshave taken place and it’s like Noah
is a different baby! A week and a half of transition has brought my six-month-old’s personality out.

The biggest ‘milestone’ change has been Noah’s sitting up. He’s pretty good at sitting independently now, after many trial runs on mommy and daddy’s bed. His favorite part of the trial runs was getting himself balanced and sitting, and then throwing himself backward into the mound of cushy blankets, arms outstretched, beaming from ear-to-ear. Another move he practiced was getting himself from a sitting position to his belly; this involved launching himself sideways and catching himself on his belly. I was hoping he wouldn’t try these moves on a less friendly surface and hurt himself. Wouldn’t you know, he did. He tried the belly move on my aunt’s love seat patio chair, with iron armrests. I was standing right there beside him, and next thing I know, he launched and smacked his eyebrow on the armrest, getting his first boo boo. He was hysterical, and I was almost as bad…especially when I saw the blood! Now I understand why my dad used to say the infamous “this hurts me worse than it hurts you”. My heart just ached when I saw those little tears! Luckly, Keith was not there—I would’ve had my rear end handed to me. I did call and warn him so that he wouldn’t lose it when he saw Noah’s eye….which is now good-as-new, thank heavens!

Noah laughs all the time now! The more ridiculous you can be, the harder he laughs! I devote hours to the task, and then try to capture it on a cell phone video, which hardly does it justice. I need to buy a video camera. The next day, I can hardly move from all the jumping around I did, but it’s worth it! Speaking of which, I’m now 2 lbs less than my pre-pregnancy weight, which is drawing me near to my pre-accident weight! 3 pounds to go to reach that mark.

Another milestone is that we have finally started- and stayed on- solid foods. I tried to give him cereal at 4 months, but he just couldn’t be bothered, so I paused things and we’re back into it at 5.5 months. About a week into it, he started opening his mouth voluntarily in anticipation of the food, whereas before I had to coax him. He also kindof ‘chews’…to the extent that one can chew without teeth. I guess he just takes his time and tastes the food. His favorites are sweet potatoes and apples. He eats just about everything else, but hates string beans. He eats meat with a grimace on his face. He is nursing a little less because solids fill him up more. Two weeks ago he went on a nursing strike! After researching and racking my brain over why he just quit one day I concluded that it was after he nursed when I had the hiccoughs. Each hiccough would startle him. He would pull away, look up at me, and then start again. I guess it scared him because he stopped. So I had to pump to keep up the supply…all is back to normal now.

We have moved to only one feeding at night:4:00 AM! Nap times are more regular now: one at 9:30, and one at 3:00, each for about 1.5-2 hours. Not bad! It’s been a bit easier to get things done now. Since he is supporting his weight on his legs and has full head and neck support, I’ve been putting him into his exer-saucer a lot. He loves it, and he’s learning a lot from it. When he stands on my lap he rehearses turning his torso, and expects his waist/ legs/feet to automatically turn, like they do in the exer-saucer. I do my best to accommodate. He also rocks back and forth and jumps, but receives much different results from me. As an aside, saying “exer-saucer” always gets a laugh out of the Ciocis (Kristi, Lindsay, and Ash).

Memorial day weekend was a great time! The Ciocis came to the shore with us, and one morning after coffee and sticky buns, we ventured out to the store to find a baby pool and pool toys. We managed to find a really cute one, and they inflated it for us. Noah went for his first swim, all decked out in his sun gear. He loved it! Water is becoming more familiar…now he splashes in the bathtub, and really enjoys it! The next step was taking him in the Evitts’ pool. He wasn’t sure what to make of it at first, because it was cooler than he was used to, but once I eased him into the water, he seemed really relaxed. Relaxed enough to take a nap on Aunt Jos. J I still have to get the pictures from Lindsay of that day.

We just returned home from Noah’s first road trip. We went to Canada to see Dan & Meigan and their new baby, Liam. Noah did really well on the 7.5 hour car rides (both there and back). Slept quite a bit, and during his wakeful times, wasn’t hysterical. He did take 2 days to adjust to the new surroundings. He was a bit cranky and had a hard time napping. Unfortunately by the time he was adjusted, our vacation was half over! Next time we’ll have to make it longer. He thought Liam was the greatest! Tried to play with him once, making the poor boy bleed on his lip. That was the end of that- now we just admire from afar. We had a great time- Liam is a little cutie pie!

So that’s about all! If the rest of the month is anything like the past two weeks, with all the twists and surprises, I’m sure I’ll be writing more. Noah’s personality is coming out more and more- it’s so fun to see!