Did you miss me this morning? I had a dentist appointment and no blog post prepared.
Luckily, in my back pocket here is the cutest, most adorable video of Jameson yet. I’m not kidding.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bu8UyXM6vgs]
By the way, just keeping it real, but that is in fact spit up (well, he’s almost 9 months, so do they call it vomit now?) on his shirt. Spoiler: Later in the video I notice this and wipe it off.
Banging toys on the fireplace makes sound. Oh, I get to see my reflection too.
Oh hai sis, what’s up?
I love your toys sis, they look so fun, these raggedy pieces of fur.
Nothin’ to see here…
Oh… sorry sis!
Just a short time ago (like, just last week), bath time looked a little like this:
After trying to climb out of his bath seat twice looking for a duck (okay, it was more like flinging himself out of the bath seat), we determined it was time for Jameson to get real baths, sitting up and all.
More risky behavior later, and we decided to throw down some anti-slip mats. We have a clear mat that looks like pebbles from Target, and a couple frogs suctioned around the edges. We debated the merits of suction vs. “sticker” style and didn’t want to ruin the tub with stickers. The only caveat to suction is regular lifting and drying to eliminate mold build-up. So far, so good.
Well, assuming he doesn’t decide to eat the frogs. I don’t think he can actually get them up though… we’ll see.
Out of the tub, and we’re still having fun. Not as much crying as before. Instead, the novelty of being able to move around makes the end of bath time much more fun.
Watch out, naked baby! He really doesn’t want a diaper on, and I’m giving in, for a few minutes while I take a ridiculous amount of photos.
Alright. We’re all done now, time for bed.
In addition to the wonderful crawling milestone, Jameson is also testing other boundaries… this week it has been sleeping and napping (oh, and fussing when I took the remote control from him… that’s a new one too).
Perhaps it was because Brian and I slipped up a bit (long weekend you know). He was getting up at 5:30 asking to have his breakfast bottle, and we’d give it to him then send him back to sleep. Then it slowly crept earlier, and we’d give him the bottle at 5 am. That was probably the wrong message.
Yes, most definitely the wrong message.
So this morning, we had to let him cry it out from almost 4 to 5 am. I went in to rock him for a bit, and he was happy for 5 minutes until he realized that no sir, that bottle was not coming. Back in the crib and then he crashed out, butt in the air, until 7.
I had to be the bad guy though. Poor Brian just wanted to give him the bottle and be done with it, but I certain this was the right thing to do. Having him get up in the middle of the night again is not smart. Not unless Brian wants to be the one to get up every night, heh. 😉
He woke up happy, not screaming for food, so I’m validated in my decision not to give him the bottle. Still, it was a little bit of a rough morning for us…
So! On a happier, more fun note: here’s his crawling video, as promised. It’s sort of a series, starting out just before he turned 8 months on 8/15. Most of the video is from this past weekend of him scooting backwards, and it ends on 9/6, yesterday, when I finally got one video of him going forward.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyvOvy3B7SU]
Oh, if you are impatient and want to skip to the triumphant end, the last scene with him crawling starts at 1:56.
Mostly yesterday I got video of him playing with his socks. Like 10 minutes of sock playing. If you really want to see 10 minutes of baby + baby socks, that’ll be up tomorrow.
P.S. This child is sitting up in his crib now. I suppose that means we should probably lower the mattress…
Dear readers, so many exciting things happened yesterday! Jameson made his first “crawls” forward instead of just backward (before falling on his face), and he made his first baby joke!
I am not sure if baby jokes are considered a milestone, and I am pretty sure Brian might have been making fun of me a little but seriously: Jameson laughed for the first time because of something he did, rather than because of something outside him (ex., tickling or chasing the puppy or puppy licks)
He laughed when he was trying to roll away from me while changing, and I know he did it on purpose, because he did it again later. So cute!
Anyway, I need to get this forward crawl on video, and when I do I’ll share his adorable progression of crawling. Since I don’t have that just yet, I thought I’d share some of his favorite things, now that he is actually playing with toys (instead of just chewing… though he still does chew… haha)
We have a lot of toys. In fact, Brian and I are going to break out the *gasp* toy box very soon. He probably doesn’t need this many toys, but I’m not too worried about spoiling him yet. He plays with all of them right now, in different ways.
His all time favorite toy for the past few months and now is his piano. The piano has it all: a rattle, music, lights, moving parts and convenient-to-chew handle.
This just goes to show: the reviews on Amazon don’t mean baby won’t like the toy. This thing only has 3 stars… but there is another piano for $14 that is almost 5 stars. Which would you rather pay? $5 or $14?
We’ve really enjoyed watching his development in playing with toys. It started out as staring, evolving into batting at the toys above his head on the activity mat. Then we had reaching and grasping, and later turning in place in the exersaucer to chew on all sorts of toys.
Finally, he learned how to work some of the toys, first with the spinning rattles like in the piano above. The last one on the exersaucer that he figured out was the penguin that you have to push down to get the balls to move inside.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93EJaESzcMY]
Now that he can sit, he is playing with all the toys, shaking, chewing, rattling. We decided he needed a few toys that stretched his skills. We bought this great toy which took him a day or two to figure out some of it’s parts. He hasn’t gotten the hang of getting it to move and play music, but he is playing with the alligator and spinning bird… soon he’ll be working the rest!
And it won’t be long before he’s figuring out toys like this one, with it’s knobs and levers. He already pushes down on the boppers. (Hey, no batteries in this toy!)
His second favorite toy right now I think is the xylophone piano. It’s a little advanced for him, but he loves to pound on the keys, and to eat the (thankfully one piece) sticks. This is an old toy though, I am not sure if they sell it like this anymore! It is however similar to this one.
Singing? or Eating? ha!
Like most babies, he enjoys the stacking cups. We bought these cute rubbery blocks for him to chew on, but he hasn’t shown much interest– until it also becomes a stacking (or rather, a knocking down) game!
Likewise, the classic ring stacker is fun right now to knock all the rings off, put rings on baby’s head, and to chew on. Later maybe he’ll start to stack the rings back on himself.
Of course, Jameson also loves to play with the parts that aren’t really toys. All his toys are in a low bin right now so he can pull all of them out. He also loves to play with the lid to one of his toys, and yesterday he enjoyed playing with an empty water bottle. Can’t forget the dixie cup in the morning when we’re trying to get ready, too!
A newly semi-mobile baby also enjoys finding new places, like the vent. This will be an accident waiting to happen this winter, but for now, it’s just cute.
Oh, the puppy is a pretty fun toy too. And the puppy’s own toys. Sasha knows which toys are hers, but Jameson hasn’t figured out yet which ones are his. Hmmm…
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pO-GdUEUiQQ]
I hope everyone had a great weekend! I know I did. Friday, Brian and I took off and went to the fair with Jameson and my parents and sister (hence no blog post!)
It was a blast. We were there for almost 5 hours and Jameson didn’t complain at all, despite the heat wave and stroller sitting. He’s even giving us a (random, not on purpose) thumbs up! (P.S., do you see that hat? His head must have grown tremendously this month; it barely fits now)
We’ve always gone to this fair on the weekend since I was little, but going on a Friday was perfect with Jameson. It wasn’t crowded, and we even got shots of him with the traditional pumpkin. (No lines made it so much easier to take pictures with Jameson)
And, non traditional pumpkins.
Of course, it’s not a fair without seeing a few animals.
And, the men waiting for us women in the craft building.
Jameson started holding his own bottle consistently this week, and he was great about drinking it in the stroller. Meanwhile, Brian and I had fries, funnel cake, and I had Italian sausage. New this year is pulled pork on baked potato or nachos, so Brian and my parents tried that concoction. I wasn’t impressed with the BBQ sauce though.
By the end of the day, Jameson finally gave in to sleep. Those rosey cheeks are from the heat! We left soon after, and he napped the way home and after. What a champ!
After a fabulous Friday and Saturday, Jameson is having napping trouble today and yesterday after we went to the zoo, poor thing. What did you do this Labor Day weekend?
It wasn’t giving up, really. I’ve been complaining for a long time now about the travails of daily pumping at work, but I couldn’t pull the trigger.
This was pretty much because Jameson was still nursing in the morning. It was a pleasant wake up, one of the few times he completely relaxed into my arms. He’s very active, and when he’s tired he just wants to be laid down in his crib to fall asleep by himself. Not a lot of rocking or swaying for this guy anymore. You may think that is lucky, but mostly now I just think it’s sad.
Then one day, at my parents house, it was the last day, and we didn’t even know it. That was probably was for the best. On Sunday, August 7 we nursed for the last time.
Monday, he started biting me. He wouldn’t stop, it seemed like he just was going to continue. We tried Tuesday and Wednesday, and he kept biting. Mr. Jameson is a chewer and gnaw-er of all things. He puts everything in his mouth. I suppose it’s only natural that he try to chew me like he can chew his sippy cups and bottles and toys.
So, it seems like he chose it himself, and that was the anti-climatic end of breastfeeding.
I continued to pump at work and once at home. I told Brian I wanted to quit, again and again. Pumping is not particularly a happy experience, and I had finally had enough. I suppose I was looking for validation from him that it was okay to stop, that I had finally done enough. Jameson is healthy, he takes formula without issues, there was no reason other than the ongoing health benefits to continue. And it was making me unhappy and stressed, the less I was able to pump.
As a compromise to myself, I stopped pumping in the evenings. I chose the evenings because then I could wash parts early in the evening rather than when I was exhausted right before bed, and because the mornings were still the best time to get the most milk.
Then I planned the date I was going to quit for a couple weeks out. It was going to be a Thursday. I would pump once more, and that Friday I wouldn’t pump at all. I would be uncomfortable over the weekend, and then all would be well.
I opted to quit on a Monday, suddenly. I don’t know who does that, but I did, because I was impatient. And I didn’t even feel a thing. August 21 was my final pumping session and instead of feeling free, or relieved, or excited, I didn’t really feel anything at all. Just another work day, with an extra half hour in it. Likewise, I didn’t have any pain or discomfort. I must have weaned myself well.
And that was the end. A day or two out, I was appreciating wearing real bras again, but I’m still waiting for my final size, so they fit less than perfect. I haven’t put the pump away yet, maybe then it will seem more final.
Jameson holds his own bottle now.
Tuesday night he did actually nuzzle back into my arms after I burped him at night. And the other day he turned to me, stretched far and reached out his arms to grab at my legs, pulling himself to me. So these little things I can appreciate more now, I think. I guess we are turned to the next chapter.
This post is linked up with Shell’s Pour Your Heart Out at Things I Can’t Say. Visit Things I Can’t Say for more PYHO stories
When I get home, it is anywhere between 5:20 and 5:30. Typically I pick up Jameson from daycare. From that point until bedtime, we try to keep Jameson happy and entertained and focused entirely on him. Seeing my baby just for an hour and a half every day is tough, but it’s better when days are good.
But quite a bit of time, Mr. Jameson hasn’t had enough naps at daycare and is consequently tired and cranky. Oh, and it doesn’t help when he’s teething or going through a growth spurt.
Anyway, I thought I’d share a snapshot of a more typical evening. Actually, a couple evenings, this wasn’t shot all in one day, it was shot on August 21 and 23rd last week.
First I eat dinner, asap while I’m not quite as tired when we get home.
Usually I’m okay with it, sometimes I’m not.
Then, I play with mom and dad for a little bit.
I like to take all my toys out of the bin.
Oh, I’m dressed all ca-ray-zy because I went through two outfits at daycare.
And then I had dinner too, so I’m pretty gross.
Mom usually edits out my drooly chin.
Mom wonders if maybe I’m teething again,
but I just like to put everything in my mouth.
Anytime now I should be crawling. Maybe one day it’ll just click.
Then all of a sudden, I realize how tired I am.
Mom scoops me up and it’s time for a bath.
I love my baths no matter how tired I am! No crying for me. Just yawns.
Mom courteously hid my cash and prizes.
My favorite puppy in the whole world waits upstairs.
I love my puppy, she makes me giggle when she licks my toes.
When I get out of the tub, I always get cranky.
It’s cold out here, mom!
Then I have a bottle. Did you know I hold my own bottle now?
Ms Colleen at daycare taught me.
There aren’t any pictures now because I don’t play in my crib anymore.
I fall asleep as soon as my head hits the mattress.
Mom doesn’t want to wake me up. Shhhh
Brian and I have decided our go-to party theme is all about the fajitas. It was easy, fun, and everyone likes it because you can put whatever you want on them.
One of Brian’s old friends came up to visit from Florida, a perfect excuse for a party. Bonus, we finally got to meet their son Bobby, just turned 6 months old.
He was really mellow (lucky parents!). He loved just laying in the grass.
How could you not love that adorable face and big blue eyes?!
Okay, I should probably back up a bit to tell a better story. I was impatient! Rewind…
Friday night, we cleaned and I washed all of Jameson’s toys in preparation for the party. Brian uncovered some old toys he had collected in the basement so those needed cleaned too (back when we both used to work for a toy company, Brian decided to collect some for the future… he’s such a cutie great dad)
Saturday, Jameson decided to be a sleep monster. What do they say about best laid plans… he slept for a total of 45 minutes all day long. Luckily though he was a champ for the party. He had to go to bed earlier than the other boys but I couldn’t believe how good he was for having little to no sleep.
It was so fun to watch Jameson interact with the other babies like he must at daycare though I never get to see!
I think maybe he’s going to crawl soon? Maybe that’s why his sleep patterns are all funny. Look at this fabulous move, below.
He started doing that this past week, where he spins around in a circle while sitting, getting a leg under himself. AND, he went from the belly position to sitting on Sunday! Perhaps because I had him in the grass, he felt like he couldn’t plop his face down so he did the only other thing he knew.
And finally, a good teeth shot!
Do you like these shots? Dear readers, we finally broke out the new flash we bought for my camera before Jameson was born. I can now get crisp shots indoors without them looking flashed! Just point it at the ceiling and WA-LA! indirect light brightens the room. I love it, I can’t believe I never used it before.
Okay, I am not a pro at it though. This shot straight down flashed at the glass on the fireplace and made it look funny. Some editing made it salvageable, but I was disappointed.
Would you believe that Jameson is the oldest of the bunch? I was going to break out the plaid on him too, to match, but his is dirty. Jameson, Bobby and Jonathan.
Jonathan is becoming so smiley and happy, he’s a cutie too.
Can you believe he started out smaller than Jameson, like this? And now he’s bigger than Jameson!
Bobby was small too: Jonathan was 4 weeks early; Bobby was 3 weeks early; Jameson 1 week early. The boys are getting so big.
But finally, a girl has joined the band! Our friends Jason and Lisa had their baby girl Vivienne Saturday before last (not early). It was a surprise, but Jason said statistically speaking he knew it was going to be a girl, ha. Brian and I can’t wait to go meet her (leaving Jameson behind, you know he’s a daycare-germ-filled-snotty-baby now).
It was a great time with friends. Brian couldn’t remember the last time they had all been able to get together like that. Treasuring these last summer days!
On a good day, on a nice late summer evening if we get home from work early enough, we try to take Jameson on a walk so that he can get outside a little bit.
On a good day, he loves his walks, and it keeps him happy later in the evenings.
On a good day, we usually pass by a stunted tree, which Brian lovingly calls the “Hilary tree”
On a good day, we skirt around the bee hive, and the bees are floating lazily around.
On a good day, we come home and swing a little bit more outside.
On a good day, we come in and even play a little bit before dinner and bed.
On a good day, Jameson stays content until bed time, falling asleep quickly and easily.
Hopefully, today will be a good day.