Bath Time Fun

On the Move

Recently, our evenings have consisted of following Grayson around the living room floor while preventing any injuries or damaged decor. He finds great enjoyment in clearing off books and magazines from the bottom of our coffee table, as well cuddling up next to the rough bricks that form our fireplace.

He's not crawling in the traditional sense, but as you'll see from this video, he gets where he wants to go just fine.

Two things about this video totally crack me up. First, notice how interested Roxy is in the bottom right corner of the screen. The other is if you listen closely, you can hear the loving response Grayson gives me at the end of the video. Such a boy.

Bump Watch 2009

We are officially in Bump Watch for this upcoming season of babies. The count is now up to seven people due this spring or summer and I can hardly stand all the excitement!

My older sister Amy is ready to pop any day now as is our friend Trisha. They are both due around May 5, but odds are neither one will actually make it that far since they have started dilating and getting more intense Braxton Hicks. I know they are more than ready for the waddling and waiting to be over.

Out of the seven babies there are four boys, one girl and two unknowns. If the lone girl ends up staying that way she's in for some serious spoiling by the rest of us boy parents. Bow headbands and sundresses here I come!

Every time my cell phone rings I immediately think it may be the phone tree activating to spread delivery news. My rotten brother-in-law Ben already pranked us a while back but he was crying wolf. So not cool. Someday I'll pay that twerp back when he least expects it.

I'll keep you posted on names, photos and details as they emerge.

Another co-pay bites the dust

Michael and I are still trying to find the balance between when to take Grayson to the doctor and when to treat him ourselves. Today is the latest example in this ongoing saga. 

Friday night, Grayson developed a cough. It wasn't very deep and was often combined with an obvious fake cough so we didn't think much of it. Then on Saturday his nose started running off his face (literally) and he didn't sleep through the night. He really hasn't had any fever, although he feels warm at times so maybe it's off and on. 

He's also been fussy even inconsolable at times which is not like him and he started letting out a new cry which is more like a little scream and would make any parent want to swoop in and try to console him. 

Last night he woke up crying that terrible cry several times in the night. This morning, Michael got up to suction out Grayson's nose and he had a huge smear of snot stuck across his forehead. So sad. 

After a fussy morning we decided to take him to the doctor before this got much worse even though he didn't have fever. So we're in the pediatrician's office and of course, Grayson is instantly happy as a clam and talking up a storm. He didn't cough once and his nose (which has been a constant leak) somehow ceased to run. Why do symptoms seemingly disappear as soon as you sit down in the doctor's office waiting room? So frustrating. 

The doctor placated me and went through the normal check up motions, but in the end sent us home with the typical saline drops, suction and liquid Motrin routine. I am thankful it's nothing more than a cold, however we probably picked up more germs by just being in the doctor's waiting room than I would have liked. Sigh. 

Photo Gallery Update

Thanks to Popper, there are now some new Grayson pictures posted in the photo gallery. See the left margin for a link. 

Facing Rejection

I have to say, this whole parenting thing isn't as much fun once your child begins developing independence and begins rejecting your help or affection. Lately Grayson has demanded he hold his own bottle and really doesn't let me rock him at night anymore. 

Some nights he placates me for a few minutes in the rocking chair, but you can tell by the look on his face he'd rather be chillin with his giraffe friend and paci in his crib rather than rocking with old mom. Other nights he squirms and arches his back until you lay him in his crib and then he relaxes for bed. 

Right now he still "allows" me to hold him while he drinks his bottle, so I'm enjoying each and every feeding since I know the day will soon come that he doesn't want to cuddle while he eats. 

While these are extremely small signs of rejection compared to what we will inevitably face as he grows older and his parents grow less and less cool, they still are a bit of a buzz kill. 

BaBye

Grayson has become quite the vocalist these days. He's positively delighted by any and every vocalization he makes. Sometimes they are actual letter sounds, while other times laughter or shrill shrieks of glee. 

I'm sure the parents of his classmates are cursing our son right about now because all of the kids are picking up Grayson's ear piercing vocal talents. Even the older kids who can say simple words are enjoying experimenting with shrieking. 

His teachers are not fans of this new class behavior. On several occasions, they've commented on how quiet and relaxed Michael and I seem which makes them surprised that we would have such a boisterous child (Uncle Sam, insert snide comment here because I know I'm setting you up). At least they are being polite about the situation. 

Luckily, his new sounds have also resulted in some progress toward actual words. He's really good at "B" sounds and just started saying ba bye in the last day or so. He can also make an "mmmm" sound, but hasn't quite paired it with the "a" to make mmmammma. 

He's also recently learned that not only does he control his hand, but he can also move his fingers independently. This entertains him for 15-20 minutes as he opens and closes his fingers in very deliberate motions. You can almost see the wheels turning in his head as he concentrates on the motion. 

We're practicing waving along with bye bye, so I hope to capture the milestone on video in the near future. 

Mini-Mikey Likes It

I haven't posted a food update lately and I must say there has been a lot of pureed food introduced and consumed in the last few weeks and months.

Grayson pretty much likes anything and everything that can be pureed and served on a spoon.

I'm making all of his food except for rice cereal, oatmeal and some all natural applesauce that I found. I don't really have the heart to puree meat, so we bought jars of pureed beef and ham. I was nervous about feeding him regular baby food chicken because of Michael's poultry allergy, so I bought some all natural chicken in a can and Michael got up the guts to put it in the food processor.

Luckily, Grayson has had two meals with chicken and he hasn't had an allergic flare up. We'll have to keep a watchful eye because Michael's allergy began as stomach pains and didn't fully turn in to anaphilactic shock until his early teens.

As you can see from the photo above, our freezer has become a rainbow of food cubes. Here's a list of his current culinary repertoire:

Carrots
Squash
Corn
Sweet potato
Cauliflower
Zucchini
Peas
Green beans
Edamame
Avocado
Bananas
Applesauce
Peaches
Strawberries
Pineapple
Pears

Pears are his favorite, but he eats everything really well. Peas and edamame are probably his least favorite, yet tolerable. We did have to cut back on the pineapple because it seemed to cause some acid reflux and spit up.

Fingers crossed, Grayson will continue to be a good eater throughout life. I have a feeling once he can talk and communicate more he may get other ideas.

The Tag Along Debate

One question I seem to think about more now that we're parents is whether or not to take Grayson to certain gatherings and social functions.

It's not always clear if kids are welcomed or invited in certain situations, so we usually opt for the safe side of leaving him with family.

There have been several times recently where I've been somewhere and didn't bring Grayson but then other people had children there. While it can be nice to have a baby-free evening once in a while, I wondered why I didn't think it was okay to bring him.

On the flip side, I was also at a conference where a woman brought her daughter a few months older than Grayson. She sat in a lecture session and quietly played with some toys on the floor(never making a peep), but I must admit I thought it was odd for her to be there. I'm not sure if I was distracted by her presence or the thoughts running through my head about how stressed I would be if it were Grayson in her place and I was trying to keep him from shrieking.

Anyway, I really thought I'd have a mommy sixth sense that would kick in about these things. So far, nothing. How do other parents handle these decisions?

Flexing His Independence

Lately Grayson has been trying to skip his morning nap. On weekdays, he used to take a 20-30 minute nap in the car on our way to OKC, plus another 30-45  minute nap later in the morning at school. 

Now he maybe takes a 10 minute nap in the car and only sometimes takes another morning nap at school. I still think it's too early for him to completely drop this nap, but Grayson doesn't seem to care about that. 

I was able to get him to sleep this morning, but even as I type this I hear him over the monitor talking to himself. His teachers at school have also moved his crib so that it's now located in a darker nook of the classroom. It seemed to help on Friday so we'll see how it goes next week.

In yet another sign of independence, Grayson is also trying to drop his bedtime bottle. I thought this was typically one of the last bottles to go, but instead of eating the usual 8 ounces he's only taken 3-4 the last two nights. Luckily, he's not waking up hungry in the night so I guess he's getting enough food throughout the day to sustain him. 

These new developments are a perfect example of how things seem to change just about the time we get a routine figured out. 

Grayson at 7 Months

These days, our baby boy is displaying signs of independence at every turn. Whether it's an expanded repertoire of vocalizations, holding his own bottle, sitting up unassisted, or moving around the room via rolling, Grayson is getting a mind of his own.

While I know this will bring challenges to our parenting skills very soon, it does have advantages like being able to entertain himself at times. We typically wake up to the sounds of Grayson talking to himself coming over the monitor. He is content entertaining himself for 10-15 minutes, sometimes even going back to sleep.

One morning he rolled to the end of his crib and discovered he could make his aquarium/white noise machine turn on and off if he kicked the button with his heel. This provided endless entertainment and when we went in to get him he turned and gave an ear-to-ear grin. We quickly lowered his crib mattress before he could get any other ideas.

On a sad note, this month Michael and I had to let go of some parenting items that had become like our security blanket. The swing (aka our go-to sleep-inducing device) is now a hazard due to Grayson's size and ability to roll out of it or grab the mobile overhead. Even though there's a strap to keep him in, he's really too big for it to be safe and we had to come to terms with no longer using it.

Grayson has also graduated from his countertop bath tub. Since we have a deep soaking (aka back breaking) bath tub, we procrastinated as long as possible before changing the way we bathe him. He still doesn't need a full-size tub so we've tried a few different models and have settled on using an adorable rubber ducky tub which uses less water and provides Grayson with some cushy support.

In terms of personality, Grayson's disposition can be summed up in one word: happy. He is such a smiley boy and we're so very lucky to have a happy baby. We encounter strangers on a regular basis that ask us, "Is he always this happy?" and our answer is always a resounding yes. From the Target photographer to nurses at the pediatrician's office to checkers at the grocery store, everyone seems to notice his sunny disposition. That's not to say there aren't times of teething and fussiness, but overall we're extremely blessed to have such a ray of sunshine in our lives.

Michael and I are looking forward to the extended evenings and warmer weather so we can enjoy more family bike rides, blooming flowers and eventually swimming in our pool. Plus, the next few months will bring a baby boom to our extended family and circle of friends. We're excited to meet each of the new babies and welcome them into our lives. I can't wait to see Grayson interact and grow with them and watch how we all grow as parents and friends.

On a final note, here's a video we took last night of one of Grayson's new tricks -- pulling himself to a standing position. It will also be clear what we mean about his new vocal range, and you'll notice he's as drooly as ever but still no sign of teeth breaking through any time soon.