Sunday School

Noah started going to Bible class this month.  If he looks tired in the picture, it's because he is.  It starts at nine which is nap time.  I was a little nervous about how he was going to do, but he did great- or so they tell me.  He just takes an extra long nap in the afternoon.  He also has been staying in there during worship time as well.  I think Brian finally got tired of wrestling a bear cub during church and collecting the toys that he had thrown all over the auditorium was getting a little old as well.  He's getting so big!

8 Months Old!

Time is flying by way too fast!  Our baby is already 8 months old.  Where has the time gone?!?!  Here is what he has been up to...

-  He rolls everywhere.  He tries to crawl, but ends up moving backwards and getting very mad that the toy he was trying to get is getting farther away.  

-  He is eating baby foods three times a day and breast/bottle feeding four times a day.  We just started meats yesterday which he hated.  It was the first time since first starting solids that he has not liked something.

-  Every night when he eats dinner, he pauses for a minute, turns really red, and poops.  Other than that, he doesn't care for interruptions in his meals.  If you are taking too long getting a bite ready, he will let you know.

-  He is finally napping!!!!  Thanks to the Baby Einstein crib aquarium (greatest invention ever) that we purchased around 7 months, he is now taking pretty regular naps. 

-  He sleeps 11-12 hours at night.  He usually sleeps on his stomach now, but is in a different position pretty much every time we go into the room.  He makes good use of every square inch of his crib. 

-  We finally stopped swaddling him last week.  We were so afraid that he wouldn't sleep if we stopped that we just kept putting it off.  I was beginning to think that we would send him off to college all swaddled up.  He hasn't been swaddled since last week and hasn't really seemed to notice.  Apparently we liked the swaddle more than he did.

-  We have been through many, many different kinds of diapers trying to find one that he cannot manage to leak out of.  We have finally worked out a combination that seems to work... He wears Pampers Cruisers size 3 during the day because he was pooping out the legs of the Huggies and Huggies Overnights size 4 at night because he was peeing out the tops of the Pampers.  I have a wide variety of almost full bags of many different sizes and brands of diapers in the closet in Noah's room that he will never wear.

-  He has two teeth coming in on the bottom which he loves to feel with his tongue and fingers.

-  He still does not seem to have much stranger anxiety.  He goes to pretty much anybody.  I can at least tell now that he seems to prefer Brian and I over complete strangers, but barely.  

-  He loves our dog Rudy and is constantly trying to grab his hair.  I pity Rudy when Noah starts to crawl.

-  He has a horrible cow lick at the crown of his head which is really cute now, but he probably won't think it is so cute when he is 15.

-  He  loves baths- especially when his dad runs them because they have a lot of bubbles in them then.

-  Every night before he goes to sleep, we put him in his PJs and he lays on the floor in his room waving his arms, kicking, and laughing.  It is pretty hilarious to watch.

-  He laughs and smiles a lot.  Even when he is sick or teething, he is still happy most of the time.  He is happy most of the day, but he is definitely happiest when his dad comes home at night.  

I can't believe he is 8 months old.  For the first 4 months, life seemed to be at a standstill.  In the last four months, I feel like I blinked and they were gone.  Before you know it, he will be off to college, but at least he won't be swaddled!

Cutting Teeth

Teething is no fun!  Just when he had started napping well, here come the teeth.  His naps became under an hour a piece which made for a very happy baby at night.  This picture was taken before the real crankiness set in.  It was also the last time he ever used the teething ring.    I would post a picture of the actual teeth, but he's not very big on showing them off yet.  

I HATE CHICKEN!!!!

We started meat for the first time last night.  Not a big fan.

6 Month Stats

I took Noah to the doctor for his 6 month visit last week.  Here are his stats:

Weight: 15lb 8.68oz (20%, Yea!!)

Height: 26.3 inches (50%, I am pretty sure they didn't stretch him all the way out)

Head: 43cm (25%)

He wasn't particularly fond of his shots (who is?!?), but he settled down pretty quickly.  Since then we cut out his night feed since he had gained so well.  The first few nights were a little rough, but now he is generally sleeping from 8:00-8:30 to around 6:30-7:00 in the morning.  Yea!!!

Half a Year- Really!?!?!

Can you believe it's been 6 months already?  Our baby boy is 6 months old today.  I can't believe how time has flown.  Well here's the run-down on what's going on with Noah...

- He is starting to sit.  In the last week, he has gone from not being able to sit at all to sitting up unassisted for minutes at a time.  I can't believe how fast it happens.

- He can roll over both ways, but is not a fan of his stomach so once he gets to his back, he just stays there.  Thankfully he hasn't yet figured out that he can use this as a means to get around.

- The rare times when he stays on his stomach, he tries to crawl (despite the fact that he can't get up on all fours) and just gets mad when he doesn't go anywhere.  

-  He is eating cereal.  He loves it and usually finishes all that we give him.

- We started green beans thinking that he would dislike those the most and he LOVES them.  We usually have to cut him off.  Just wait until you get to the fruit buddy.

-  He is napping better... He is kind of hit or miss.  Somedays like today, he goes down without a problem, others he screams for a while.  All in all, it is an improvement from a month ago.

- He is very happy most of the time.

-  He wakes up once at night to eat.

- He loves to spit.  He will soak the entire front of his onesie just from spitting.

- He loves playing in his exersaucer and playing with toys on the floor, but I think his favorite toy is still the remote control and my cell phone.  

-  He gets really happy when his Dad comes home at night and always seems to be happier on the weekends when Dad's around.

We love you Baby!  I can't believe it's already been half a year!

Apologies From a Pediatrician

This entry is dedicated to all the parents of patients that I saw in residency.  I apologize for making parenthood sound easier than it really is.  

When I told you, "You have to just leave them in bed; they are going to cry, but you have to be strong-"  It is not that easy listening to your five month old cry for almost two hours.  

When I said, "You should try breastfeeding-" It is not always that easy as I have learned.  Never again will I judge someone for not breastfeeding.  People always said, "Breastfeeding is tough, " and I thought, "People have been breastfeeding since the beginning of time.  How could it be that difficult.  I think you are making it harder than it really is."  Well now I know, it is not always that easy.  

When I chided, "You have to sleep when baby sleeps-" I didn't realize that that may be the only time of day you have to take a shower or just sit.

When I thought to myself, "What exactly do stay-at-home Moms do during the day?  How hard can it be?  I work 80 hours in a week.  It's not that big of a deal-"  Boy was I wrong about this one.  I have definitely learned that it is not that easy.  It is a lot of work and you never get to leave you job, but it can also be very isolating when your only social interaction in a day is your slobbering baby and Matt, Meredith, Al, and Ann.  

When I said, "You just need to get out more.  That will make you feel better-"  whereas it may make you feel better, when you are still recovering from your postpartum hormone craziness, and you haven't the slightest idea about what to do with a baby at the grocery store, it is not that easy.

So again I apologize to anyone I may have casually given parenting tips to when I had no idea what I was talking about.  I understand now why you looked at me with the eyes of a frazzled, beaten down soldier losing the battle.  I apologize for sending you out the door without letting you know that it will be difficult, and that at times that you will want to throw the towel in, but not to give up because you can make it through.   Not that any of my patients' parents will ever read this blog (not that anyone ever reads this blog), but if you are out there, know that I am sorry.  I may still give the same advice, but there will be a lot more empathy behind my words now.  And know that while I have a lot more to learn, I am definitely a better, more understanding pediatrician through my experiences thus far.  If I have learned nothing else, I know that it is not always that easy!