Max is 7 months old!

Yay Maximoo is 7 months old! Seriously, wasn't I just blogging about him turning 6 months old? where does the time go?! 

• Max has 2 teeth, lower center. we've had no issues with teething! (knock on wood)
• link #13 on the Jolly Jumper
• he sit himself up from tummy position and stay sitting on his own on the floor, actively use his arms to maintain balance as needed, but loves to roll around all over the floor readjusting himself and practicing his new skills. I no longer need "swiffer" the floor as he does this for me haha
• Lots of baby talk! Husband thinks he's saying "daddy" and "dada" which he kind of is, but i think he's just loving the way it sounds and feels in his mouth. he's not exactly looking at husband and saying you-are-my-dada. or am i in denial? I deserve to have mama be the first word! hehe
• definitely crawling backwards. doing planks. but his left leg seems to be getting stuck right now and is preventing him from really moving! he's lifting up each arm at a time to move, but only to rock back and forth or fall flat on his belly. By the end of this month i think we'll have a crawler
• he's a fast one! one minute he'll be within a visible area from the kitchen, the next 30 seconds later he's rolled off somewhere and got back up in a sitting position
• i love that he sees his pacifier amongst a pile of toys and knows he wants it, picks it up, and puts it in his mouth. Is this a precocious child or what? skills!
• he's able to drink from his straw cup! dont worry though, the water is all for fun. i give him about max 15mls a day to practice the straw technique
• separation and stranger anxiety continues, but more varied than just general crying if im not there
• Max loves looking at older kids and kind of talks to them with his prolonged vowel and consonant sounds. the way he stares at them makes me think he wants to be a big kid too right then and there. endearing little man
• bedtime 830pm. 2-3 wakeup at night to feed. awake anytime from 7am-8am. we aren't co-sleeping as much as it's been hot and i think he's quite content not doing so (awww)

As part of our food adventures, i took Max to the Trout Lake Farmer's Market yesterday. I didn't want to forgo freshness and buy a bunch of stuff and freeze it for him. so, i just showed him around, felt some veggies, and got a feel for the ambiance. Besides the carrots in the pic, I was surprised to learn that there is a large number of veggies and fruits aren't really made to be "first foods" so we had to settle for some sweet potato and butternut squash (nasty).

I didn't leave empty handed! We picnic'd at the grassy area and watched a local baseball game (or rather friends large enough to create 2 teams to play baseball). While Max rolled around, i tried to NOT devour the entire loaf  serving of Whole Wheat Pumpkin (and chocolate chips) Loaf that we just bought from Small Pleasures (a yummy baker at the farmers market).  These flavours come together so naturally! 

Month 5 Must Haves

The transition into this month consumer wise was relatively easy as I made do with what I already had. These few things were nice to have, but not all are must haves

1) Fisher Price Rainforest Jumperoo

I bought this on craigslist a month and a half or so ago, but intended on getting it when Max was barely 2 months old. During a playdate, my friends' son who is 3 months older than Max was going c-r-a-z-y on his, crazy as in having the time of his life type of way! When i first put Max into this at the 3.5month mark, i had to put a pillow under his feet as even on the lowest setting he was nowhere near reaching the ground. Plus, he was so unsure of the toys and situation that he would just keep his hands inside the seat and kind of look around at the colours and lights but not interact. NOW, Max jumps like crazy, can reach the ground with his feet without help, plays with the toys, spins around discovering things as if it was all new to him with each turn, and Laughs from enjoyment...PRICELESS! He  spits up on it, he bashes it, he plays with the rolling things and it is SO fun to watch. Yes, another option to be hands free!  The only thing wrong with this thing is that it takes up so much room! Thank goodness the previous owners kept the box so i can disassemble when Max is done with it!

2) HALO Sleep Sac

yep, its made a comeback in the house! However no more swaddle part, so he basically is wrapped like the baby with the white sleeves. It's great for those summer nights when it's so hot in his room as it's all cotton. 

3)  SOPHIE the Giraffe and this silver rattle

When we first bought the silver rattle, max could barely lift it up...now, he can just pick it up from his side and shake it (not sure if it's intentional shakes or jerky arm movements though). He must remember this sound from when he was in utero because it almost instantly snaps him out of his grumpy zone! He sees the shiny thing and he stops, stares, and stretches out his hands for me to give it to him. Once he gets it, it goes straight to his mouth haha. The upside, it's silver and very easy to clean and safe for baby. The downside, it's metal and it's hard and his arm movements aren't smooth enough so he whacks himself in the face at times which results in some crying! awww

On the other side of the elements, is the $21 teething toy that almost every one has. This also snaps him out of his zone. It's fun, the squeak is annoying, but it's easy for him to grab, hold onto, and gnaw on. When he whacks himself in the face with it, there's no crying. It's a keeper!

4) Bibs

At this stage, Max is getting a rash around his neck and chest area from all his drooling, spit up, and or sweat. Bibs are a must, i have lots that came with outfits...and they suck. Why? because they shrink in the wash and the trim gets all warped. The other bib brand i have is the Mally Bib which i bought off of ebay, but that's an eating bib. The one bib brand that i really like is this Honey Bunny brand from who knows where...maybe Walmart? but it's the bomb! It absorbs, it's relatively big, there's no annoying embroidery, it fits around Max's neck, and it maintains its shape and size after multiple multiple washes. I only have 3...i don't know why. You need at least one a day, and this is probably why Max has a rash! I think more bibs are in order as Max's drooling is increasing the demand.

5) Jolly Jumper

Last but not least, the good ol' Jolly Jumper. He spends about 20 minutes on this now non-stop dancing to whatever is on the radio.  He's on link 10! How this happened in a span of 1 month is amazing.

6) @nurturedchild

I follow her on twitter. I love all her tweets, I want to retweet everything! inspiring, empowering, supporting, beautiful!

Little Man is 5 months!

My little man is 5 months old now! Woot!

So many changes in him that it's hard to name each one...hmmm..

• the eczema has i think migrated to his scalp...so he's been drawing blood every now and then when he's scratching his head. he loves doing this when he's very frustrated, really wants to sleep and i haven't clued in, and even in his sleep. it's particularly localized on the left side of his head so he sleeps with a sock on that hand
• eyes are grey brown
• awesome double chin which sadly is pooling a lot of the spit up so he's got a rash under there despite my vigilance in keeping the site dry. i've been putting a lot of cornstarch lately to keep the moisture down
• i don't know how to describe it but he just seems bigger, solid, firmer this month. clothes he wore last week, don't really fit this week...one of those type of changes before my very eyes. i thought it was laundry shrinkage but they've been washed so many times and the collar on some of the clothes are like mid sternum area and the snaps at the bottom of his onesies are kind of hard to connect! still in 3-6 month clothing though, but realistically on the top end of that spectrum
• he loves chewing on his hands, and definitely are now a source of comfort though it doesn't always pull through. when he's crying, i see those fingers go in his mouth instantly. at night, i hear sucking sounds at times
• i think he's in the preliminary stage of becoming a full fledged thumb sucker. i saw that the thumb in his mouth last night. it was cute, i didn't stop him
• he had a stage of doing high pitched squeals which i loved, but that only lasted a couple of weeks
• he finally has taken to the rainforest Jumperoo. he spins around in it discovering all the toys, and jumps like crazy. he no longer needs my nursing textbook under him to reach the ground, but still needs a little height as his toes to mid foot are solidly on the floor. i think it's bad though to jump on tip toes right? can't be good for feet development
• still loving the jolly jumper, still on link 8, and less puking when on it
• not spitting up as much
• hasn't rolled from back to belly but very close. still temperamental when rolling from belly to back
• i think he likes tummy time, he can stay in that position for over 10 minutes playing with his toys
• definitely grasping at stuff (like my hair) and can hold on to his toys 
• so easily distracted while breastfeeding, i have to go into a quiet semi-darkened room when feeding. doesn't feed as well when I'm in the mall using a nursing cover, but enough to last an hour or so
• sleep ....separate post
• giggles are here and it's easier to get them out of him but again, whats funny last hour isn't always funny the next hour
• doesn't stay asleep long in his carseat anymore...once motion stops, he's awake (boo)
• when in crib or bed, he lifts his legs up in the air and slams them on the mattress multiple multiple times
• even though he still turns his head side to side often, his bald spot is improving, flat spot not getting worse
• #3 diapers in the next two weeks!

next month food!

staying alive

Now that max is older, he's not just cute but cute And fun as he is now more interactive with me and other people.

One of the things Max and I love doing together is dancing! multiple times A day, we turn on the local station 103.5 qm/fm and I carry him and we dance along around the house, particularly in front of the mirror. Call me old but this is one of the only radio stations nowadays that play songs I know and can sing along to! the majority of the time I know the lyrics to whatever is playing and though I sing pretty crappily, it is fun to refresh these tunes in my head and is such an easy learning activity for baby via language development!

The second thing we love doing is me whipping him on the jolly jumper and I walk on the spot while he dances...probably thinking that I'm dancing too! Trust me it's more amusing this way than just sitting in front of him watching him. When my feet move around, Max's legs jerk/dance around more. So cute! Sometimes he drops his weight on the jumper and thus bounces like on a swing and other times he uses one leg to anchor himself on the ground as he does an almost 180degree turn (think geometry tool, forgot what it is called). what I do love most of all is him looking up at me and smiling or just observing, and me looking down at him in amusement and just soaking it in at how small he is yet we connect on so many levels.

When he first used the jumper he was on link 7, now he's on link 8!

On a heavier note (pun intended), my period came today after not having it since week 7 (week 18 now)...whomp whomp!

Jolly jumper = hands free

Thanks Brooke and Sarah for the JJ!

Because Max has been so kicky lately (gone are the days when you can lean him against your thighs in a reclining position as he kicks your breasts- OW), I decided to whip out the jolly jumper. he loves it and so do I! More hands free time for me, Max can exercise, and he looks so cute bouncing around!
The cutest part really is how short he is...I'm thinking about knee height when standing? Adorable! As an added bonus, this thing wears him out and he goes to nap without much of a fuss!