January 2007 Mommies - Our First Baby Has Arrived!!!

[robyn]

Diapers - We have about 5 size 2's left, and then we will be moving up to size 3! I use Seventh Generation diapers. I really love them. For some reason the scent in the Pampers combined with DS's poop really grossed me out, and the Seven Generations are unscented.

Sleep - I consider myself VERY lucky. For over a week now DS has been going down anywhere between 7-8pm, and sleeping till around 4:30-6am. Now if I could just get myself to go to bed sometime before midnight, I'd be sleeping pretty well too! ;)
He naps pretty well these days too. I thought he was destined to be a cat napper, but I figured out that when he first wakes after about a half hour, I pick him up and pat and sway him for a few seconds and he'll sleep another hour or so.

Question about rolling - DS seems to love rolling from back to front, but when he gets onto his belly, he starts getting cranky. I know he can roll himself back over ... he's been rolling front to back for a few weeks - but he just won't do it now that he's started rolling back to front. (Hopefully you can follow what I'm saying!) So I go flip him back over onto his back, and he'll roll right back to his belly and then cry again. Fun. Any ideas on this???

Gretchen - Gabe is adorable!!

[zhannushka]

Question about rolling - DS seems to love rolling from back to front, but when he gets onto his belly, he starts getting cranky. I know he can roll himself back over ... he's been rolling front to back for a few weeks - but he just won't do it now that he's started rolling back to front. (Hopefully you can follow what I'm saying!) So I go flip him back over onto his back, and he'll roll right back to his belly and then cry again. Fun. Any ideas on this???
Robyn, unfortunately I don't have an answer to this as I have a very similar situation - DS rolls over from his back to tummy (he hasn't rolled over tummy to back yet) all the time, but when he does - his left arm (he only rolls over to his left) always gets stuck underneath his belly and he just can't seem to get it out! I end up fixing him and when I do, he starts making crawling motions and crying after a very short time on his belly... He just really hates being on his tummy (that's why I'm always so surprised to hear that other babies love sleeping/napping on their tummies - DS always seems to be very uncomfortable in that position...) What I'm most concerned about is his arm getting trapped under his belly - does that sound normal? - do you think that he'll learn to get it out on his own or should I be worried? :eek:

[gmooter]

robyn & zhannushka, when DD was little, she did the exact same thing. Eventually she just liked being on her tummy more. It was quite a while before she figured out to go from tummy to back. Gabe is totally different though. He likes being on his tummy and has rolled tummy to back 1st! It's amazing how different each child is!!

[zhannushka]

OMG, I cannot believe that there's a January 2008 thread already!
Sometimes it feels like I just got my BFP yesterday - time sure flies! :eek:

[robyn]

OMG, I cannot believe that there's a January 2008 thread already!
Sometimes it feels like I just got my BFP yesterday - time sure flies! :eek:

Seriously!! I have friend who just found out she is pg and her EDD is almost exactly a year off of mine. It will be so fun to follow along through her pregnancy and know that I was in the same place exactly a year ago.

rolling - sometimes my DS gets his arm stuck under there, but he eventually works it out. I'm sure Joseph will get the hang of it before you know it. Glad to know that I don't have the only kid who gets cranky when he's on his belly! It's just so funny, though, since I KNOW he can get from his belly to his back ... I tell him "don't cry, just roll yourself back over" but of course he can't figure this out. ;)

[mommydearest]

Dipes: We use Fuzzi Bunz in our house. I love them, but am also investing in some bumGenius one size since she won't ever grow out of them. I dump them in the wash every other night and they are so fun! You don't have to dunk them or rinse them or anything like the "traditional" cloth dipes and they go on just like a regular diaper. I wouldn't go back to sposies for the world.

Sleep: Bed between 9:30 and 10, wakes up and eats one side at 4, wakes up for the day at 7:30.

Teething--everything goes in the mouth and she drools everywhere, but I don't see anything in there yet.

Rolling--Abby did front to back a couple weeks ago and now of course she won't do it any more. My mom said she almost getting front to back, but I've never seen it--(I've been at work from 7 am until 9 or 10 every night this week which totally sux when she is already in bed when I get home). Luckily this is the last hellish week and things will slow down.

[wagsgirl]

jmvan74-Don't worry! I'm in the same boat for sleep for the most part. Rogan sleeps for about 4 hours generally, then wakes up every 2 or so. Sometimes he'll surprise me and sleep for 5, then 3, then 2, but not very often. I don't mind though. He's my last one and he'll only be little for so long. I'll get up every 2 hrs to spend more time with my little guy :)

[Elenna]

rolling: DS rolled over from tummy to back a couple of times about a month ago, but it seems he's forgotten how. He hasn't rolled over since, but he is getting close to doing it again. He hasn't rolled over from back to tummy, yet. He has only figured out how to roll from back to his left side.

eye color: DS's eyes are changing color. They're changing from blue-grey to a light brown. Currently his left eye has more brown than his right. We're not sure if he's going to be all brown or hazel (like me), because the brown is very patchy. I was really hoping he'd gotten DH's green eyes, but now that it seems his eyes are taking after me I'm glad. He needs more features from me.:p

[lindzgirl]

Robyn~ I have been curious too know how the Seventh Generation diapers work. I have been using SG wipes because they are chemical free and I love them. I might have to try a box.

Mommydearest~ Will you let me know how the diaper genius ones work? I am either going to switch to Seventh Generation or cloth diapers and I think that cloth diapers might be cheaper in the long run since Daphne is our first baby.

Garage Sales~ I am sooo excited. I went to some garage sales yesterday and found an exersaucer for 3 bucks. It is really clean and practically new. Daphne has outgrown her bouncy seat and so I went looking for one and I am so excited. Also found her a bunch of clothes which are always fun. She is growing so fast I had to get her some 6-12 month jeans. My baby is growing up.

Sounds like everyone is doing pretty well. Have a great weekend!

[GardenGirl]

Speaking of garage sales ... my neighborhood only lets us do garage sales once a year and it was this weekend. Everyone was out putting things up for sale in their front yard. Since it was a beautiful morning we took a walk and said hello to all our neighbors. I didn't buy a thing - we have enough junk in our house and Carter doesn't need one single thing! But it was a great start to the day.

Carter threw me for a loop last night. He slept from 8:30 to 11:30, got up to eat and fell back asleep until 7! Total shocker to me - my boobs were killing me. Lets hope he's back to STTN.

[mommydearest]

Mommydearest~ Will you let me know how the diaper genius ones work? I am either going to switch to Seventh Generation or cloth diapers and I think that cloth diapers might be cheaper in the long run since Daphne is our first baby


I love them. But...they didn't fit until she was 12 weeks old. They claim their "starter pack" or whatever they call it is all you need, but they gapped at the legs before then. Anyway, the 2.0s are far superior to the 1.0s. They are softer, can be washed on hot (though I washed my 1.0s on hot anyway against the instructions), and are much nicer fabric. They are easy to use and I just do a rinse cycle first to dissolve most of the poop, then a hot long wash cycle with an extra rinse to wash them. You can dry them in the dryer, though I hang them on a drying rack to save wear and tear on them. But, my washer is upstairs, so it is easy to put them in, feed and put the baby to bed and by that time, they are done washing. If I put them out on the drying rack before bed, they are usually dry by morning. I dry the inserts in the dryer usually because those are cheap and easy to replace. If you switch and get some, DO NOT USE FABRIC SOFTENER on them, however tempting it may be and use just a little soap. Downey or dryer sheets leave a residue that will cause them to repel and too much soap that isn't rinsed out all the way can do the same thing. There is a great CDing forum here, but I also like www.diaperswappers.com and www.diaperpin.com. People in the CD world love to talk about dipes!

For me, the savings isn't in the first kid, since the pocket and fitted diapers are kind of expensive. It will be in the subsequent kids where I already have the diapers. But, if you also buy some prefolds and cheap covers, you can get by VERY inexpensively--some frugal mommas can diaper their kid for life for less than $100.

[lindzgirl]

Mommydearest~ Thanks for the tips. I will have to do some reading into it it looks like. I appreciate your help!

Garage Sales~ My neighborhood one was this weekend too. That is the only reason I went. I agree, walking around in the sunshine is great!

[la_bride_2004]

chiming in late!

diapers We had horrible problems with the Huggies- I only tried them because someone gave us a box. I love the Swaddlers. He's in the size 2 now and has plenty of room.

sleep I'm so afraid of jinxing it, but our guy is turning into a really good sleeper. He goes down at 7, and usually can make it until at least 4 a.m., but sometimes he's out for a solid 12 hours :o He's got a cute routine- I put him in the bassinet after his bath and reading him a story, and he sucks on his hands and sings to himself for a while before he falls asleep.

teething I don't think he's there yet. He's drooling and gumming his hands (he just figured out he has fingers!) but I'm not seeing any bumps on his gums.

rolling He's not doing this yet! He is definitely adjusted age on this one, so hopefully he starts soon. (He was born almost 6 weeks early).

eye color M's two eyes are markedly different colors! One is blue with a white iris and one is brown with a dark iris. Is this common?

gmooter He is so cute!! And big! :)


lindzgirl Great on the garage sale finds!

zhan sounds like you are happy at home- congrats :)

Gardengirl I hear you on the sore boobs! I get up and pump.

[GardenGirl]

LABride - my DS isn't rolling over yet either. I told the ped at his 4 month visit and she said not to worry. That isn't a milestone she worries about. We are just doing more tummy time and floor play. He no longer hates tummy time and will pick up his legs along with his arms and do "Supermans" and swimming motions but has no interest in rolling over.

I had to pump again this morning because he slept real well last night. My breasts were the fullest they've ever been. I told DH it was like having two cantelopes on my chest. Gosh they hurt so bad. Carter slept until 8:30 this morning and only really got up because I opened his door and let the normal house noise wake him. I really needed him to nurse.

I'm happy he's sleeping well again. Means I won't have to introduce solids in the near future. He only gets up to eat at 11 and then sleeps the rest of the evening/morning. So I guess it was a phase/growth spurt.

I'm going to start looking into some mommy and me type classes. A lady across the street with a 10 month old told me about an indoor pool with infant baby classes that is near by. Sounds good. Now that he is older and can play with things, we should start socializing.

Well off to dry my hair while DS naps. I rarely get to do that :)

[magdesilver]

rolling My DS rolled over from tummy to back exactly 3 times about a month ago. Since then, not once! He gets plenty of tummy time, too. :rolleyes:

[Alegna]

My neighborhood had a sale yesterday too. (Well, it's down he road, but the closest neighborhood we have)

We had a sale. Sold about $150 worth of stuff. I have a ton left over and it's not coming back in the house. My coworker is having a sale next month to benefit the lukemia society. I told her she can have what's left. Otherwise it's all going to the Salvation Army.

Megans sleep schedule is still pretty hit and miss. I'm not sure what's going on with her. She's been fighting sleep HARD lately. To the point where she is crying. And she only cries when she's hungry. Last night I had tried everything. I finally gave her some gas drops and she settled. I guess she had an upset tummy.

Sometimes I really wish she could talk. I feel so helpless not knowing what's wrong or how to fix it.

Oh well. DH is at a conference in Orlando this week. And Friday is our 5 year annaversary. I'm still trying to figure out what to get him for a gift. But until then I'm going to enjoy the nice quiet house while Megan is sleeping :)

[quest]

I'm such a slacker. But all the babies are just oh-so-cute!

Diapers - Okay, so I'm a little embarrassed to say that we're moving to size 4 cruisers. But I'm a little out-of-the-norm when it comes to diapers. As soon as they start to leave little red marks on those chubby thighs, and when it turns into a big struggle to get them on right....meaning you have to 'think' about it or wait for a leg to stop kicking, or whatever...I'm on the hunt for a bigger size or different brand. I did this with DD, and now with DS. At his 4 month WBV they said he was 14' 6", but I think he's bigger...I think I don't put him down on the scale quickly enough (it screwed up his weight last time, but they redid it and he was a pound heavier!). Anyway, he was in size 3's (which start at 16 lbs. I think?) but I bought a pack of size 4's and those just 'go on' nice and easy. They start at 22 lbs., which is not even close to what DS is, so either I'm a lame mommy or he has really chubby thighs because we've had no leaks and I'm much happier at 2 a.m. when putting them on ;).

Sleep - He usually sleeps for anywhere from 5-7 hours for the first stretch of sleep, then usually another 3 or 4 hours, and then if I'm lucky, another chunk of sleep.

Rolling - He's been sleeping on his tummy for a while, and now he officially rolls both ways. But only when it suits him...sometimes I find him on his back in the morning, other times he'll fuss forever on his belly until I come and get him.

Solids - He's been on cereal for close to 2 months now, and I just can't wait to start fruits and veggies. I'm going to start with sweet potatoes, I just have to get to the store to get some!

Again, all the babies are just adorable!

QOTD - Do you get bombarded by the IL's with comments about how much your DC looks like your DH? Honestly, I can't take it anymore. Here's the thing...DH is DS's father. SO IT'S NOT UNHEARD OF for a baby to look like his/her father! But I have to hear this every.single.time from the IL's. It happened with DD, and now with DS. Here's the thing...we have pics of my sister when she was a baby, and both DD and DS are IDENTICAL to her. But it feels like a moot point to say this to them...everytime I see them all I get is: I think he looks like a 'dhlastname'...do you think he looks like a 'dhlastname'?. I want to scream. I mean, how about commenting on how big he's getting or how cute he is or anything except the fact that he share's DH's genes?!?!? And it's not just me...today DH even commented to his mother that DS actually looked a lot like my sister. Okay, that's unhread of for him to contradict his mother, so if he did, she must be out of control. So anyway, do you get a lot of that from your IL's? Or are mine just insanely territorial (for lack of a better word)?

[katmg]

QOTD: I have the same thing but it's my parents who are constantly doing it. :p My mom gets out my baby pictures every other time we are out there. I'm sure it must drive DH up the wall but he never says anything. She really does look a lot like me, I think it's the big cheeks. :D

[jmvan74]

QOTD: Yes and it pisses me off!!! They say both DS's look just like DH and go on and on.... Shut up! Then they comment that the boys look exactly alike... Ummm...have you looked at your grandsons???? They do resemble each other, but ar quite different looking IMO. DS#2 is starting to favor me.... even my mom pointed it out, but the insistance goes on. It is actually one of my pet peeves. Uggh.

[Lucy Van Pelt]

QOTD: I think Katie looks like me. She's got my lips and my round pumpkin head! Other people have commented on it, but no one has been overly insistent. DH's parents haven't seen Katie in person so I don't have to listen to them...ha ha ha!

Rolling - Katie rolled over several times within a few days but lately she seems to have forgotten how!

Solids - I'm not starting solids til Katie is at least 6 months old.

Breastfeeding - Well, I have a feeling the end is near. Katie now absolutely REFUSES to nurse. She just starts screaming every time I try. I have been pumping, but my supply has plummeted even further. I get MAYBE .5-1 ounce 2 times a day. It sucks and I am having such a hard time NOT feeling like a failure.

[katmg]

LVP- Charlotte has been doing that somewhat too with the bfing. She'll nurse for two minutes and then just want to look around. The world is just so much more interesting niow. If I try to force her to eat she just screams! It is so frustrating. The best time for feeding her is when she's sleepy. She's back to waking in the middle of the night to eat and I'm sure it's because these little "snacks" during the day aren't enough. I'm exhausted though. If you want to keep nursing her some, maybe try when she's sleepy - early morning and bedtime? I know you've had such a rough go of it with the nursing though.

[robyn]

LVP & Kat - DS does the same thing when feeding. I too find it's better when he's tired. My other strategy is to just keep flipping him back and forth from one boob to the other. He'll take a few sips, then squawk, then take a few more sips. I do think that they are much, much more efficient at draining a breast now, so perhaps they are finishing quicker than we realize.

QOTD - In the beginning the ILs were so excited because they thought DS looked just like DH. Well now everyone says he looks just like me. But when they say, "He looks just like Robyn" it's with a bit of dismay, I think. ;)

[zhannushka]

QOTD: I guess I'm in the minority here - I actually think that DS looks just like DH, while everyone (including my MIL) swears that he looks just like me! She actually seems to be very excited about her grandson looking like me, but keeps saying that when DH and I have a daughter, she'll look just like DH... :rolleyes:

new QOTD - I've got a dilemma over here. In the last few days DS has become a pro at rolling over from back to tummy. I mean - the moment you put him down on his back, he rolls! - he won't even stay on his back longer then 30 seconds! But, he has not learned to roll from tummy to back as of yet. Well, starting last night - he won't stay on his back (or his side) when I put him down to sleep. Even though he's in a sleepsack, he still flips right over to his tummy and stays that way. I'm very very paranoid about this... I guess all that "back to sleep" talk is making me very worried and I don't know what to do. Last night, after flipping him over more then a dozen times, I gave up and put him in his bouncer, put the straps on him and let him sleep in there all night... :o But I can't keep doing that! Any suggestions or ideas? It's 2 am right now and I'm sitting here, watching him sleep, worried that if I fall asleep, he'll roll over to his tummy again... :(

[GardenGirl]

Zhanna - bless your heart! I know how you feel. I know you don't want him to sleep on his tummy and I do, but I feel the same paranoia. I was drilled in our heads over and over again. I'm finally able to sleep better about it. Last week we gave in and let him sleep on his tummy. He is back to STTN. Maybe Joseph really wants to sleep on his tummy. Maybe he'll learn to roll the other way and you can get some peace of mind :)

ILs - it kills my ILs that DS looks just like my dad (whom I look just like). They comment all the time. What's funny is that he has DH's hairline, DHs chin, DH's eyebrows, and DH's jawline. But when you put it all together - he looks like me (it's the eyes I think). It's hilarious! DH is a little bugged by it, but not much. I just get sick of hearing about it from them.

Solids - we got a bunch of stuff from Gerber in the mail yesterday. We aren't going to start solids until 6 months unless DS starts to show marked interest and hunger. My fear of him being hungry at night, was just a little growth spurt. I won't lie though, I am excited to see him take that first bite from a spoon :)

Nursing - DS has been a little defiant about nursing lately. I have to trick him into eating in the afternoon. The last couple of days he'll scream/cry when I lie him down on my lap to nurse. So I'll let him suck on my pinkie or a paci until he calms down and then I'll stick the breast in. Also, I do agree with Robyn, he's much more efficient at nursing now. But there are times I wonder if he's even eaten 2 ounces!

We are going to a Baby and Mommy gymnastics class on Thursday. They are starting their new semester on 6/4 and told me I could try a class out for free this week. It's for 4mo-10mo. I'm excited about it. I hope it goes well. It's a 12 week course. I'm also looking into some swimming classes near my house. My parents have a pool and they keep stressing to me that they want DS to learn how to swim at an early age. They are very nervous about having a pool and having grandchildren around it. So we'll be starting water activites at a very early age. Of course, he won't learn to swim at 4 months, but I figure the earlier I introduce the water, the more comfortable he'll be when he can learn.

[wagsgirl]

Zhanna-With my first 2, I was uber paranoid about them rolling over and sleeping on their tummies. I talked to my doc about it and most babies, once they can roll over, are ok to sleep on their tummies. By that time, they've had tummy time and can lift their heads up well enough to sleep on their bellies. If your little guy isn't fussing when he's on his belly, I say leave him there. You may have a few nights of restless sleep because you're worried, but in time, you'll be okay with it. We all slept on our bellies, probably from day one, and we're fine :)

[zhannushka]

Zhanna-With my first 2, I was uber paranoid about them rolling over and sleeping on their tummies. I talked to my doc about it and most babies, once they can roll over, are ok to sleep on their tummies. By that time, they've had tummy time and can lift their heads up well enough to sleep on their bellies. If your little guy isn't fussing when he's on his belly, I say leave him there. You may have a few nights of restless sleep because you're worried, but in time, you'll be okay with it. We all slept on our bellies, probably from day one, and we're fine :)
Unfortunately, he does fuss when he is on his belly... :( That's the thing - he really wants to roll over and when he does, he hates it and starts fussing and crying, but - he can't roll back yet, so - that's when I flip him back over, just to find him back on his tummy and fussing 2 minutes later... I am really at a loss here...

[wagsgirl]

Well, all I can say is hopefully he'll start to understand that he can roll back over. Rogan rolled himself back over last night from tummy to back after not being happy that he rolled over in the first place. He surprised himself I think. Do you have one of those wedge things? Maybe that will help?? I'm sorry you're going through this. And at night no less :(

[robyn]

Unfortunately, he does fuss when he is on his belly... That's the thing - he really wants to roll over and when he does, he hates it and starts fussing and crying, but - he can't roll back yet, so - that's when I flip him back over, just to find him back on his tummy and fussing 2 minutes later... I am really at a loss here...

My DS does the SAME thing! And he was rolling belly to back a few weeks ago, but it's like he's totally forgotten how, now. I don't get why they keep rolling to their bellies if they obviously don't want to be there. :confused:

sleep woes - well I should not have posted that DS was a great sleeper because that's all gone to cr@p in the last few days! :mad: I used to be able to put him down drowsy and he would drift off to sleep, but now he starts screaming the second I put him down. And I've even started rocking him longer just to make sure he's asleep, but sure enough his eyes pop open the moment he hits the crib. I know he's exhausted, but he just refuses to sleep!! He's only taken 2 30-minute naps the whole day today. And he's been up since about 6am. HELP ME!!!! Please tell me this is some sort of phase that will pass quickly!

Tera - Are you doing Little Gym? I can't decide between that and Gymboree. Our Little Gym summer session starts tomorrow, and for some reason I'm not feeling motivated to go yet. Although I do want to meet some other moms with babies DS's age. hmmmm

[Lucy Van Pelt]

A question for those of you who are using co-sleepers...when are you going to transition to a crib? We have been using the Arms Reach Mini Co-Sleeper since Katie was born. I just started putting her in her crib for naps last week and she just doesn't sleep well. Her naps are usually 2-3 hours, but I think the longest she has stayed asleep in the crib is 30 minutes.

[wagsgirl]

We aren't using a cosleeper per se, but we do have Rogan in a bassinet. He is QUICKLY growing out of it. I'm thinking in the next couple weeks, he'd have to sleep with knees bent :o His crib is all ready to go, so I'm thinking about putting him in there starting this weekend. It'll probably be a couple exhausting nights, but he'll get used to it, I'm sure, just like my other 2 did.

That's the one nice thing about Rogan being my 3rd child. I'm not worried about every.little.thing. Granted, I don't necessarily have the time either, but I already know that everything is a phase and we'll get through it. And not to say that any of your (general your) concerns aren't important, because they are. Life with a new little person who can't tell you what's wrong is hard, but just remember. You will get through it! Now, I'm jealous of you guys, too. Here I am, with my last little guy, knowing that I'll never have a newborn/infant, etc, again. I'll never see one of my children smile for the first time again, or roll over for the first time. And most of you are on your first. Cherish every moment!! Even the rough times, sleepless nights, endless nursing. It won't last forever! :)

[Lucy Van Pelt]

Oh yeah - thanks for the suggestion on the nursing issues...but the problem isn't that she won't nurse long...she won't nurse AT ALL. She won't even latch on. There's nothing more heart wrenching for me than to have my boob in her mouth and she's screaming like I'm trying to kill her. It makes me cry to the point of not even wanting to try anymore. (I haven't given up yet...but I am so close...but then I know I will feel like even more of a failure for giving up. Yeah - I'm having major issues with this.)

[Winter Biscuit]

Oh yeah - thanks for the suggestion on the nursing issues...but the problem isn't that she won't nurse long...she won't nurse AT ALL. She won't even latch on. There's nothing more heart wrenching for me than to have my boob in her mouth and she's screaming like I'm trying to kill her. It makes me cry to the point of not even wanting to try anymore. (I haven't given up yet...but I am so close...but then I know I will feel like even more of a failure for giving up. Yeah - I'm having major issues with this.)

Lucy - hugs to you. It sounds like a nursing strike to me?? Have you stopped in the Breastfeeding Support group forum? They might have some advice for you?? Either way, you have done a great job so far. I'm sure it kills you, but try not to feel like a failure. You are NOT a failure - you have done awesome so far!

Nursing -- as a PP mentioned, the world is so interesting to babies now, so I have a hard time keeping Allison latched on sometimes too. I have to nurse her in a quiet area (usually her room) or she'll pull off to look around. I'm able to get her to eat - just can't always compete with what's going on in the background!

Sleep woes - no new issues here (knock on wood!) but I wondered if those of you who are struggling with sleep have babies that can roll over? Often times when a baby hits a new milestone like rolling, crawling, walking, etc. it can disrupt their sleep because the baby will wake up in the middle of the night and want to practice his/her new skills. I don't have time to go back and re-read to see who is rolling and who is having sleep troubles, but wanted to throw this out as a possible reason so many January babies are having some issues? I remember when DD#1 started walking, it was a nightmare at night time. She'd wake up, pull herself up in her crib, and want to practice. Just wondered if the same thing could be happening with the babies that are starting to roll over?

4-month WBV -- Allison had her WBV yesterday. She is 14 lbs 5 1/2 oz (60-75%) and 24.5 inches (50-60%). Everything looks good. I have to vent a little...I was slightly annoyed with the nurse because she seemed surprised that Allison is exclusively BF even though I WOH. She asked me 3 times whether we supplement with formula. I kept saying no. She just wouldn't drop it. To be honest, I don't know what is so surprising about Allison being exclusively BF. Maybe they don't see a lot of babies that are exclusively BF even though their mothers work? I dunno. Anyway, Allison had a few shots, and the ped said we could start solids anytime between now and 6 months, but preferred that we not start until closer to 6 months. I don't plan to start until 6 months unless she shows several signs of readiness. Still not rolling over yet - but getting SO close. I'm not worried, and the ped isn't either. She'll roll when she's ready :) She does SEEM to be ready, just hasn't figured it out yet. Every single time I put her down, she immediately flips to her side and tries to roll. She was even trying to roll in her crib last night instead of going to sleep :rolleyes: She will roll about 270-degrees and then gets stuck.

Pictures -- I took Allison in to get professional pictures taken at 1 month and 3 months, and I'm taking her in again today for 4-month pictures. I hope she smiles :) I took DD#1 in all the time too, and we have a collage on my wall that shows her every 3 months from birth to 2 years. I get so many compliments on that collage, and plan to do the same thing with Allison too. So far she looks very similar to DD#1 at the same ages.

[jmvan74]

Nursing: Yup... way too much going on to get a good feeding during the day, so nursing like a maniac at night! GRRRRRR!!!! It is so frustrating. We've been slacking on getting him on the bottle, but need to try again b/c I can't take much more.

4 month WCV: Brady is 18lbs (90%) and 26 1/2 inches (80%) He had some shots and is actually doing well today. A little fussy last night , but doing well.

Solids: We started cereal last week. I can barely get 2 soupy tablespoons down him, but we will continue to work on it. We'll stick to cereal for a few weeks and then move on to purees. We'll also introduce the sippy cup w/ a bit of water in a few more weeks. If he won't take a bottle he will have to take a cup. :rolleyes:

Crib: Brady's been in his crib since he was 9 weeks old.

[GardenGirl]

Zhanna - I didn't realize he didn't like being on his tummy. I thought it was you that was worried. Geez - I see the problem. Maybe one of the wedges the wags mentioned. That will keep him from rolling, if you're comfortable using one.

Crib - we didn't co sleep, per se. But he was in a Moses basket right next to my side of the bed. He outgrew it 3 weeks ago, I waited until he was sleeping with bent knees before I moved him. He STTN in it and I dreaded moving him. It took a few weeks, but he seems to finally sleep well in his crib. I had been putting him down for naps in his crib for a month before I moved him entirely. We really miss him in our room though. Especially DH. He really wants him back in there. But I must confess, I like having our "adult room" back. We can talk/watch tv/etc without worrying about waking him.

Robyn - yes, it's Little Gym. I'll let you know how it goes. He'll be the youngest in class tomorrow because it's a 3 month course for 4-10 month olds and it's the second to last class. Hopefully we'll still have a good time.

Favor - can you ladies do me a quick favor. Would you feel your babies head and see if it's warm? I know it sounds silly, but I can't remember what Carter's head normally feels like. It feels warm to me, but he doesn't have a fever. It's been like that for a couple days and it has be kinda worried. My mom can't remember either. I've checked his temp several times and it's fine, but his forehead feels warm, especially compared to his cheeks.

Pacifier - he loves to take his pacifier out of his mouth and finally figured out how to get it back in, the right way. It's taken him a few weeks, but finally figured it out.

Rolling over - still no rolling over, but we got a huge belly laugh the other night. It was hilarious! I even caught it on video.

Nursing - yeah, I think we'll have to start nursing in a quieter place. I can't keep his attention.

I think that's it for now ...

[zhannushka]

Tera - Joseph's head is ALWAYS warm - the top of his head as well as his forhead. And no fever either. I guess it must be normal...

[GardenGirl]

zhanna - thanks. i just couldn't remember, how silly of me!!

[gmooter]

Crib, Gabe's been in his crib since he was 2 weeks old. I couldn't stand all that grunting in our room!!

Paci, he takes it sometimes but mostly just thinks it really funny to pull it out of his mouth!

Rolling, Gabe's content being on his back when I put him there and he's pretty content on his tummy when I put him here. He's still sleeping good on his back at night. I remember Grace though, as soon as she could roll, she'd do it in her crib and then wake herself up and not be able to go back to sleep on her tummy. So, I'd be flipping her a million times in the night. If I remember correctly, that only lasted 4-7 days and then she found that she liked tummy sleeping and I couldn't keep her on her back any more.

Head Temp, Gabe's head is always warm too. They say your head is your chimmney!!

Solids, We've been doing cereal for almost 3 weeks now. Just switched to oatmeal yesterday though instead of rice. It helps my BIG guy sleep way better at night.

WBV is next week!! Not looking forward to the shots though!

[zhannushka]

Crib - I'm pretty sure that Joseph would sleep in his crib overnight if I put him there (he usually naps there throughout the day without a problem), but I don't think that I'm ready for him to sleep in another room just yet, so - we have him sleeping in the PnP next to our bed. Once he's asleep, he's very quiet, so - it doesn't bother me at all and makes me feel much better knowing that he's right next to me. I don't think that we'll be transitioning him to the crib any time soon...

Paci - He only needs it when he is tired and fussy, but can't fall asleep. Once he's asleep though, he spits it right out and sleeps without it for the rest of the night.

Solids - Joseph just loves his sweet potato and banana purees! He wasn't crazy about the rice cereal, so - after a while I started mixing it with banana puree for him right before he goes down for the night, and he's loving that! He also gets 1/2 jar of sweet potatoes with his afternoon bottle of EBM.

Thanks for all your suggestions on rolling at night - I tried the wedge thingie, but he just rolls right over it. :rolleyes: Last night was better then the one before - he fell into really deep sleep around midnight and slept on his back for about 6 hours. He then woke up, rolled over, started fussing and woke me up, so - I just picked him up and put him in our bed with us where he fell asleep on his back and slept that way for another 3 hours... :)

[GardenGirl]

Zhanna - I used this in DS's crib during the transition from his basket. I didn't use it as a positioner, but you might find it helpful. I doubt he could roll over it :) http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=br_1_6/602-8719856-3331023?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&asin=B000CNR7HO

[zhannushka]

Zhanna - I used this in DS's crib during the transition from his basket. I didn't use it as a positioner, but you might find it helpful. I doubt he could roll over it :) http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=br_1_6/602-8719856-3331023?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&asin=B000CNR7HO
Thank you Tera! You just gave me an idea - we have this Snuggle Nest co-sleeper thingie, which we used to put Joseph in when taking him into our bed... I haven't used it in a while, but - if he still fits in it, I may be able to use it inside the PnP... If that doesn't work, I'll try the one you posted above.

[magdesilver]

Ginger Don't have a lot of time but re: cosleeper transition. With DD, first we moved the cosleeper into our master closet to get her used to sleeping without us right there. Then after a few weeks of that we moved it into her room next to her crib for a week or 2, then finally into her crib. I think it helped make the transition smoother, though there was some crying involved it wasn't horrible. HTH!

[mommydearest]

Crib--We've been in the crib since about 2 months. We all sleep much better that way. She's in bed by 9:30 and I don't go to bed until much later, usually watching TV beforehand.

Solids--We're waiting until 6 months

Paci--Still an addict, but starting to use her thumb instead if it falls out

Photos We went to Portrait Innovations. I was thrilled. You even get the pictures right then!

http://65.26.185.135:8080/albums/photo_shoot/0036_G.sized.jpg
http://65.26.185.135:8080/albums/photo_shoot/0048_G.sized.jpg
http://65.26.185.135:8080/albums/photo_shoot/0078_G.sized.jpg
http://65.26.185.135:8080/albums/photo_shoot/0085_G.sized.jpg
http://65.26.185.135:8080/albums/photo_shoot/0054_G.sized.jpg

[GardenGirl]

Kristin - what a cute family you all are. Abby is precious! I' ve heard good things about Potrait Innovations. A friend just had some shots taken and she was quite happy with all the shots they took.

Little Gym was so much fun today. Carter came home and took a good nap. It wore him out. They showed us lots of streches and ways to encourage muscle strength and gross motor skill development. I loved it. We signed up for the next semester which starts in two weeks. But the owner said we could come next week for free - it's the last day of this semester. I'm looking forward to the classes. The owners/intructor is very friendly and spent some one-on-one time with us.

Now I'm looking into some swimming classes we can do together.

[Elenna]

sleeping: DS's been fighting going to sleep for the night for the past week. Up til then he was great about going to sleep when we put him down for the night.

crib: Like Zhanna, I'm not ready for my DS to leave our room yet. He sleeps in his pnp in our room.

paci: I wish DS would take a pacifier. He sucked and chewed on his right thumb until the knuckle cracked open. He really prefers it. (The crack healed, but it took DH and I pulling the thumb out of his mouth constantly and offering him his other thumb.)

solids: We've been given the go ahead to start solids, but I'm going to try to wait until 6 months.

mommydearest: Nice photos. She's very cute.

gardengirl: I think the YMCA has baby swimming classes that start at 6 months. And of course, the mommies (or daddies) get in the pool with their babies.

DS had his 4 month WBV two days ago. The pediatrician said DS's gums are firm (he can feel the teeth under there), but doesn't expect him to push out a tooth any time soon. He took his shots pretty well. I think because I gave him a dose of baby tylenol before hand. Then he slept the whole rest of the day and pretty much all day yesterday. Yesterday, he would only wake to eat and play for maybe half an hour to an hour and then fall back alseep again for an hour or two. It really threw me for a loop because DS is a horrible napper.

[GardenGirl]

Elenna - yes, the Y does have swimming lessons. But the ones near me offer a two week course where you go 5 days a week. I'm looking for something that is once a week, maybe twice, for the summer. I found a place via the Internet that looks like what I'm looking for, but I need to call and get some info. Thanks for the idea though.

[GardenGirl]

Even though I was the last to post before the holiday, I just wanted to come in and say "hey" and hope you all had a great weekend.

[zhannushka]

Hey Tera! I was wondering where everyone is... :)

[wine_o_girlie]

Hey everyone, how are you? We need some more pics in our thread of all these adorable babies. I love reading along because it's so fun to see what all the other babies are doing that are Griff's age. Here's what we're up to...

Griff was 4 months on 5/20 and he is so much fun now. He loves to touch his feet, "talk", smile, shriek, laugh, roll onto his side, and he loves to play (read: eat) toys. He also really wants to do things for himself (hold a bottle of EBM), grab things (namely my hair, ouch!), reach out for toys/balls, etc. He loves to "roughouse" with us too - he likes it when we "wrestle" with him, roll him him side to side, he loves to kick things, etc. He still is really into music and songs as well - we went to a restaurant the other night where they had strolling mariachis and he was smiling so big when he heard them.

He has started to really chunk up (he was only 5% for weight at his 2 month appointment) and continues to be super long (he was over 50% for height). He is going for his 4 month WBV on Friday and I am so curious to know how much he weighs/how tall he is. He is wearing almost all 6-9 month clothing due to length. I am breastfeeding so I am ridiculously happy to see his little rolls and know that he is doing that on momma's milk. He still eats about every 2 hours and he is like a little crack addict for boob - as soon as he sees me grab the Boppy, he starts shrieking and his hands start shaking until he gets to nurse. He is just the funniest, coolest mellow little guy and still soooooooooo alert of everything that is going on around him.

Milestones - He has been rolling tummy to back for a long time now but still hasn't quite figured out how to get from back to tummy. He loves to roll onto his side so I think it won't be long before he rolls all the way. His favorite thing now is that he wants to sit up, soooooo badly. He picks his head up all the time when he is laying down and whenever you put him in a car seat or that reclines a bit, he pitches himself forward. We put the Boppy around his waist and he will sit there playing with his toes very contently for a long time. He also sits up holding our hands and we can let go for a second or two before he falls over. He gets a huge smile whenever we sit him up.

We also started cereal last week (organic oatmeal). He seemed really hungry and his sleep had gone to crap after being so amazing when he was little. He was always following our forks when we had food too. I talked to the Ped about it and she said we could try cereal so we did. He LOVED it the first time we fed it to him but then for about a week he has merely tolerated it. When he is hungry, he wants milk, not cereal. This morning though he was lapping it up so maybe we have turned the corner. I'm not sure when we will start anything other than cereal but will probably do bananas next. I plan to make his food myself, at least for now.

Sleep - Well, it went to crap about a month or so ago. He started waking up a ton at night. It sucked. At that time he was still swaddled but he was getting so big he wouldn't fit in the blankets and was always busting out of them which woke him up. He was also rapidly becoming a binkie-a-holic. About 2 weeks ago we finally got so sick of the swaddle that we just decided to stop it, cold turkey. We also ditched the crib wedge because I didn't want to have to wean him off that later on. So, he now sleeps in his crib with no wedge, no swaddle and it's actually going really well. I wonder if starting the cereal might have also helped. He was consistently waking up twice a night for food but hopefully we are now back on track with just one waking a night for food. One night feed I can handle, two I cannot. We also are trying to restrict pacifier access to only in the crib and he doesn't seem to mind that.

We had a great Memorial Day weekend - we went to the pool for the first time! Griff loved it. We got a great float with a canopy on it from Target and he loved to be in the water kicking his legs. We also went to a couple BBQ's and he just loves being out and about. He has taken naps at all of our friend's houses and doesn't seem to mind going to sleep on a strange person's bed (we are too lazy to take the PNP places yet since he doesn't yet roll from back to tummy! :o ). As long as his belly's full, he's happy. He's happy to let anyone hold him which we love.

I went back to work on 5/1 and it's been going great. My MIL comes to our house to watch him now until my husband is done with school (he's a teacher). He will watch him this summer. I work from home on Fridays and it's a perfect situation for me - I very much want to work but one day a week at home with him is fabulous. I was having some trouble with pumping but I got a hands free device and started taking Fenugreek and it's gotten so much better. My freezer stash is tiny but I am keeping up for now.

Our 5 year anniversary is coming up in two weeks and we are going away for the night and I am ridiculously excited! I think this makes me horrible, but I am looking so forward to being with my husband at the beach for a whole 2 days/1 night. I cannot wait to spend time with him, go to the beach, out for dinner, s-e-x (:p ), and a whole night of uninterrupted sleep. I cannot wait. My MIL's are keeping Griff at our house.

Hmm, well I guess I better get back to work. I have some pics to post though because I cannot resist.

Trying to get my toe in my mouth -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157589070-M.jpg

First time having cereal -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157590484-M.jpg

Holding his own bottle in his new highchair -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157594821-M.jpg

Mom, why are you making me wear these sunglasses? -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157596143-M.jpg



More pics in next post...

[wine_o_girlie]

I love being in the pool -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157600654-M.jpg

Wow, all that swimming made me sooooooo tired -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157601504-M.jpg

Okay, I will probably edit these out in the next few days but I cannot resist posting these naked bath pictures. We had to get a new tub because he was too long for the infant tub plus he was trying to sit up all the time and it made me scared he was going to flip himself out of that thing. So, we got a ducky tub and tried it out last night - HUGE hit! He was splashing and playing like crazy and he never did that in the infant tub. Here's a few pics -


Momma, I am naked, put the camera away! -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157602482-M.jpg

"Fat man in a little tub" (Chris Farley reference) -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157603054-M.jpg

Hey ducky -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157603927-M.jpg

I can wash myself -
http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157604159-M.jpg

[GardenGirl]

I was recouperating from a VERY long weekend. My cousins were graduating this weekend in a town about 6 hours away. So we drove to my grandparents house which is half way and spent the night to break up the trip. So we drove about 3-4 hours a day every day for 4 days. Carter was awesome, DH and I however are exhausted. DH even has a cold now from being run down and dehydrated. The beds we slept on were small and hard. What is with older peoples guest beds, they like tiny rock hard beds. Must be cheaper ...

Anyhow, trying to get back into our routine. Interestingly, Carter STTN every night we were gone. Anywhere from 8-9 hours and then another 2 or 3 after that. But the last two nights that we've been home, he's only sleeping 3-5 hours. What the heck! I'm sure he's just adjusting and we'll be back to routine soon.

I signed him up for a parent/child swim class that starts next Wednesday. I'm looking forward to it. The goal is to get him acclimated to water and enjoy it by playing games/singing songs/etc. Then as he gets older they have a technique that teaches them to float. That way if he falls in, he'll know what to do to be safe. The instructor says he'll probably be floating by 2.

I looked at the calendar and DS will be 5 months next week. Holy heck! Time is just flying by. He's working on sitting up, but could still care less about rolling over.

[wagsgirl]

Aawww wine-o! Griff's such a cutie!! I love the bathtub pics!! Maybe I'll have to get one of those for Rogan...

GardenGirl-My middle one, Greydon, didn't roll over til he was about 5 1/2 months. Just didn't care about it. Many doc's don't even consider that a major milestone...

[katmg]

as soon as he sees me grab the Boppy, he starts shrieking and his hands start shaking until he gets to nurse.

That's Charlotte too except we don't use a Boppy. She cracks me up with the Eh, Eh, Eh and the hands shaking. She also will lunge her head toward my boob with an open mouth.

Sleep - Sleep has gone to hell for the past, oh, month or so. I hate, hate hate having to wake up with her. She is pretty easy to resettle or nurse but it is still exhausting having to get up with her. I keep wondering if solids would help her sleep more but everything I've read in books says that it doesn't. It sure does seem like it does though from everything I hear anecdotely. One more month and then we'll start. I'm determined to wait until 6 months.

I love all the pictures! I haven't added any in here in awhile...here are two of her recently. Looks like we all got the same sunglasses!

Mom, put away that flashy-thingy.
http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n33/katgalpin/Charlotte/CharlotteMay054.jpg

It looks like she's snapping her fingers here like a little beatnik. Far out man. ;)
http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n33/katgalpin/Charlotte/CharlotteMay074.jpg

[GardenGirl]

Tonya - yeah, my doc is one of those that doesn't consider it a big deal. She said not to worry about it. So I don't. As long as he learns to sit and then crawl at a reasonable rate.

He's finally loving tummy time. I think it's because he's been sleeping on his tummy for 2 weeks. Tonight I had my hands full, DH is sick with a fever so I'm making him soup. DS didn't take a very good afternoon nap, so I skipped the bath and put him in his crib while I could pour DH some soup I made. Well he was having such a good time in their cooing and sucking on his fist, that I just left him there and 10 minutes later he was asleep! 1 month ago he would have screamed if I put him on his tummy for anything longer than 5 minutes.

Carter gets excited but also very impatient when I'm getting ready to feed him. He can tell when I get the pillow, pull up my shirt and unbuckle the clasp. He starts fussing at me like, hey lady hurry it up. That's even if he isn't really hungry. He knows whats coming, and I think that excites him.

I've gotta get me some of those sunglasses y'all have. I've tried several car shades but I have too many spaces where the sun still comes in. So short of getting my windows tinted darker, I can't do anything else. Do your babies tolerate them?

I'm enjoying some peace and quiet in my house right now. DS has been asleep for an hour now and DH is asleep in the bedroom. I started cleaning and thought to myself, hey, just relax. So I am. I tried to watch an orientation video online for our swim class next week, but their website isn't working. I have to watch it before we can go to class, it has all the songs and games they play. If their website isn't up by this weekend, I'll have to go and watch it there, yuck!

Off to surf the net for a shopping cart cover. Carter is getting WAY too heavy to cart around in the Peg Perego car seat - that seat by itself is big and heavy, then you throw in his 15ish pounds, ugh. His poor head wobbles back and forth while I hurl it around. I think he'll be able to use it in 2-3 weeks. That's about how long it takes to get on made and shipped to me. I'm having a hard time deciding what I want.

[GardenGirl]

Oh, I guess I'll post a couple pics too. This one is my grandmother and DS, she gave him this bunny when we went to see her this weekend. I think he looks cute peering over the bunny.
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j99/terashelton/5-29-07009.jpg

And this one is of Carter at bathtime. I let my grandmother give him his bath. It was hilarious. He LOVES to kick his legs and splash, and since we did it in his bathtub on her kitchen counter, he got water everywhere. It was so funny. You have to know that my grandmother is very much the neat freak to truly appreciate the humor.
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j99/terashelton/5-29-07012.jpg

[Lucy Van Pelt]

Is anyone else's baby teething yet? I am in the midst of the day/night from hell with Katie and the advice nurse thinks she might be teething already.

All the pics are so cute. No time for shout outs right now because Miss Katie is MISS CRANKY right now...*sigh*

[jmvan74]

Adorable pics everyone!

Brady has no trouble going to sleep, but he's up a ton at night. I had started cereal w/ him last week and I think that made it worse. We were getting up every hour and a half instead of our usual 3 times a night. The gerber brand cereal has milk proteins in it, so i think that was the culprit. I threw that stuff out and bought the original Beech Nut brand which we'll try this weekend.

Brady enjoys tummy time and will use his legs to push himself forward. If we lay him on his back, he rocks and rolls himself around in circles. Last night he was sleeping on his side! LOL! It was so cute. Well, here's a pic of Brady trying cereal for the first time.

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b44/zoecat52/IMG_0983.jpg

[GardenGirl]

Ginger - Carter isn't cutting any teeth, but I can definitely see white bumps under his gums on his top. He doesn't like it when I pull his lips down to see his lower jaw. I know they can teeth for months before they actually cut teeth. I just assumed all the drooling and chewing was normal. And maybe it is, but he is definitely trying to bite on everything. Sleep is going okay for now, so it doesn't seem to be bothering him ... yet!

[zhannushka]

Awwww, all the babies are so beautiful!!! :D

Joseph is now rolling from back to tummy all.the.time! The second I put him on his back - he rolls over to his tummy. No rolling from tummy to back yet though... He is also trying to sit up and if I help him with that, he can stay put for about 15 seconds or so, but then falls over to his side. :)

We bought a Rainforest Jumperoo by Fisher-Price last week - I was worried that he's spending too much time laying around and I could tell that he wants to be upright sometimes. He didn't like the jumperoo too much, and a good friend whose baby is the same age told me that they just bought an Evenflow Excersaucer and her DS loves it, so - we exchanged the jumperoo for the same excersaucer last night. It's standing in a box right now, waiting for DH to put it together after work tonight. I'm very anxious to see how Joseph reacts to it...

Here are a few recent pics:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v196/zhannushka/Poconos-MemorialDay2007057.jpg

with my mom
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v196/zhannushka/5thmonth023.jpg

taking a bath
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v196/zhannushka/5thmonth020.jpg

[GardenGirl]

Zhanna - Carter has the same hat as Joseph. My brother got it for him when he was born. It was way too big so I put it in a drawer and forgot about it! I'll pull it out today and take a pic for my brother. I'm so glad you posted that pic, which btw J looks adorable!!

We have the Rainforest Jumperoo and DS loves it. It has lots of toys that spin and DS loves spinning things. It took him a couple days to figure out the jumping part, but know he trys to jump even when you hold him. I'm glad we got it. I received a regular jumperoo as a gift, but exchanged it when they came out with this one.

Off to put the little guy down for a nap.

[Alegna]

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h83/baby01_2007/IMG_3791.jpg

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h83/baby01_2007/IMG_3761.jpg

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h83/baby01_2007/IMG_3839.jpg

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h83/baby01_2007/IMG_3928.jpg

[GardenGirl]

Megan looks so cute reading her book. Is that a "quiet book"? I have one from when I was a baby that a family member made for me. I was going to give it to Carter, but we got one as a gift.

I do read to Carter at night - I read Dr. Suess books. Only because I enjoy them! I know things with better pictures or board books are probably geared more towards his age, but I absolutely love the rhyming and silliness that Dr. Suess has.

Side note - any one checked out the Ridiculous Baby Products thread. It is hilarious.

[Alegna]

I don't know what you mean by "quiet book". It's a cloth book "Let's Go Out" by Lamaze. It has a car on the front and if you pull the tab and let go it shakes like the car is driving. I've got another one called "Shakey Monkey" it rattles when you pull the monkeys tail.

Picked them up at a garage sale last month.

[Winter Biscuit]

Adorable pictures, everyone! I will need to upload some new ones and post them soon. I wish we all lived nearby because it would be so fun to get all these beautiful January babies together!

katmg - I absolutely LOVE the beatnik picture - I cannot stop laughing. :D We have those same sunglasses :cool:

Voice - Allison discovered her voice and is having a blast experimenting with it. She will yell, shriek, vocalize, blow raspberries and even growl just for the heck of it. She loves to entertain herself (and us) with all kinds of random vocal sounds. It is absolutely hilarious. I really need to get the videocamera out.

Movin', groovin' and rolling - Well, she officially rolled from back to tummy over Memorial Day weekend when we were all up north at the IL's cottage. Everyone witnessed it except me (go figure). Hasn't rolled since (that I have seen) but she is scooting and squirming ALL over the place. If we lay her down on her play gym, she will scoot and squirm until she ends up a few feet away. And the other night, I put her down for bed. A few hours later I went to check on her, and she was lying in a totally different position, at the opposite end of the crib. The little stinker can't sit still :)

Dinner time -- lately our little social butterfly has insisted on sitting at the table with us when we eat dinner. Before, if she was awake, we'd usually put her in the swing or bouncy, or even lay her on her play gym so we could eat. Nowadays at dinner time, she fusses until she is allowed to sit at the table with the rest of us. She isn't showing any interest in our food or paying particular attention to us when we eat, which just confirms that she isn't ready for cereal or solids yet. She just doesn't want to miss anything :)

Teething -- although she continues to drool up a storm and has started chomping (hard) on my fingers and toys, her gums aren't swollen, and the ped didn't see anything when we were at her WBV last week. It's hard to tell if the drooling and chomping are from teething, or just normal development. DD#1 cut her first teeth when she was 5.5 months old. However, she never showed any of the typical signs of teething like fussiness, low grade fever. She hardly even drooled at all. She just had swollen gums, and then all of a sudden, the teeth were there. I was caught off guard when DD#1's teeth came in because it was a relatively easy, pain-free process. I really hope DD#2 has an easy teething experience too, but only time will tell!

Sleep - Allison naps fine during the day, and I can get her to go down for naps relatively easy. However, I have come to dread bedtime. I used to be able to nurse her until she had that blissfully drunk/drowsy look, and then put her down in her crib and walk away. She would stay asleep for up to 5-6 hours when she'd wake up to eat. Now, when I put her down for bed, she will sleep for a few minutes but then wake up crying. I'll go in, rub her chest to help her calm down and put her paci back in her mouth, and she'll fall back asleep, but then the crying starts all over again in a few minutes. It has been taking up to an hour to get her to fall asleep for the night. She is definitely showing signs and cues that she is tired, so I don't want to keep her up later. And she DOES drift off to sleep - she just doesn't STAY asleep. It's almost like she has separation anxiety. She'll wake up briefly and realize I am not there anymore, and cry until I come back. Ugh.

[robyn]

We have the Rainforest Jumperoo and DS loves it. It has lots of toys that spin and DS loves spinning things. It took him a couple days to figure out the jumping part, but know he trys to jump even when you hold him. I'm glad we got it. I received a regular jumperoo as a gift, but exchanged it when they came out with this one.


Tera- I often think you and I are the same person, just separated by different major Texas cities. ;) I always feel like you are thinking the same thing I am thinking, or have recently done what I intend to do. For instance, I just exchanged our regular Jumperoo for the Rainforest one yesterday. :) There's been way more stuff than that, but I just had to comment.

[GardenGirl]

i've thought the same thing several times - even from the beginning. i remember your u/s couldn't reveal the sex of your dc either!

[GardenGirl]

okay, so floats is more like it ... but he loved it. Here are a couple pictures I took. FYI - you can't tell, but DH is holding his waist because the float is still a little big for him.

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j99/terashelton/6-3-07009.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j99/terashelton/6-3-07010.jpg

[Lucy Van Pelt]

LOL - Look at Carter the swimmer! What cute pictures!

Well, what I *thought* might be teething was just Katie having a rough couple of days. I have no idea what her real issues was but she seems to be back to normal now.

I can't believe how fas time is flying. Katie is getting so vocal and interactive. She watches me walk all around the house and freaks out if I go down the hall out of her sight line.

DH put the exersaucer together a few days ago and Katie is just the happiest baby! We only let her sit in it for about 15-20 minutes at a time. She starts slamming her hands on the animal sound buttons and squealing with delight at the sounds.

I am still having breastfeeding issues, but am determined to not quit. I just ordered some domperidone as my last resort. Hopefully it will be here soon.

I know Katie is almost 4 months old, but I finally got her announcements finished. A friend and I did them all by hand so it was quite the undertaking.

Here are some pics!

The outer part of the announcement...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v476/chellichik/announcement.jpg

The announcements (obviously!)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v476/chellichik/announcement1.jpg

Some recent pics of Katie!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v476/chellichik/katiesmile.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v476/chellichik/katieexersaucer.jpg

[GardenGirl]

Ginger - we have the same exersaucer. Carter loves the animal sounds too! He used to love the spinning toy more, but now that he is almost 5 months old he's moving onto different types of toys. When he was younger, spinning was about the only toy he could manipulate.

Katie is so cute, look how much she's grown up since her announcement! Isn't it amazing how fast they grow.

Sippy cup - so how early can I introduce a sippy cup and be successful? I think most babies are around 7-8 months before they take one but Carter refuses to take a bottle and I'd like for him to be able to drink something if I'm not available. DH and I had a date on Sunday night and my parents watched C. He decided he was hungry earlier than normal, so we skipped desert and came home. I was only gone barely an hour! My mom pretty muched force fed him 2 ounces of BM from a bottle - she'd squeeze some in his mouth and he'd swallow it, but he would not suck it out himself. The rest of the BM went to waste, as usual. I saw that Julie mentioned she was going to try a cup with Brady soon and he's a week or so younger than Carter. I bought a couple kinds at Walmart yesterday just to have on hand. Maybe when we start solids next month he'll learn he can get nutrition from something else but me! :)

[zhannushka]

Sippy cup - we haven't introduced it yet, but I was just talking to a friend over the weekend about it - her DS has been successfully drinking from a sippy cup since he was 5 months old (he also refused the bottle).

Exersaucer - I've got a question about it. We just got an Evenflow exersaucer last week. I try to put Joseph in there for at least 5 minutes every day, but he doesn't seem to love it yet. :( He'll stay in there for a few minutes, looking and grabbing at the toys, but after a short while, he wants out. How long did it take for your DC to LOVE the exersaucer? Also, ours has 3 hight settings - the first two are too low for him (he's tall - 28 inches), but with the 3rd one, his toes are just barely touching the floor. When he's in it, he seems to be leaning forward most of the time, rather then sitting with his back against the back of the seat. Is that OK?

Here are a few most recent pics:

in the exersaucer
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v196/zhannushka/5thmonth033.jpg

bumbo time
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v196/zhannushka/5thmonth034.jpg

hanging out in his stroller
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v196/zhannushka/5thmonth035.jpg

[GardenGirl]

Okay, you all are going to think we are toy hogs here, but Zhanna - Carter has the same BE musical toy that Joseph has in his second picture:) We've had to replace the batteries 3 times already. And we sit him in his Bumbo chair just like you do :)

Re the exersaucer - Carter only lasts 10 minutes max in his. He's laughing and smiling for those 10 minutes but then after that he's done. He likes the toys, but would rather play with us. About the height, hmmm, maybe a blanket rolled up in front of his tummy will make him stand straight. That might prevent the leaning - that worked for us when Carter was a little short for his setting. The seats are big at this age to accomadate older babies, so when you get a younger one they don't fill it up. I can't believe how tall Joseph is. Remind me again how tall he was at birth? Carter is just doing the average one inch per month thing.

Good to hear about your friend's experience with the sippy cup. I'm going to give it to him once every few days and see what happens. I'll just stick water in there as I don't want to waste EBM. But I have some in the freezer that is expiring next month and since he obviously won't take a bottle, I'll use that when I have to. We'll see what happens!

Zhanna, how are solids going?

[zhannushka]

Thanks for the rolled blanket idea Tera! I'll try that today. :) Joseph was 21.5 inches at birth and 28 inches at his last WBV a month ago. I have a feeling that he's even taller now! :eek: (we'll find out at the 5-month WBV next week)

Solids are going great - he's already had both rice and oatmeal cereals (I interchange them, so that he doesn't get bored with just one.) He's also had sweet potato, squash, applesauce, bananas and we tried green peas for the first time yesterday. We're up to 1 jar of vegetable a day, plus some fruit (usually about 1-2 teaspoons) mixed with 2 tablespoons of cereal once a day. I'm not sure whether I should be increasing these quantities just yet, so - I'll be asking that at our visit next week.

Isn't that arch toy the best, Tera? He loves the jumping lights and the music. I think it's great that you can use it in so many different ways - sitting next to it, laying under it and I even put it over his bouncer sometimes, when he gets bored with the bouncer toys.

[wine_o_girlie]

Kat - Charlotte is adorable!

Allegna - Megan is so cute!

Winter - "lately our little social butterfly has insisted on sitting at the table with us when we eat dinner" - this is too cute!

Robyn - your avatar is precious - such a happy baby.

Tera - we have the same float from Target and Griff LOVES it!

Zhanna - thanks for posting which solids you have tried so far, we just started on pears a few days ago and I am already mapping out where I want to go next.

Lucy - cute announcements!

************************************************** *

We went to Griff's 4 month WBV last Friday and my kid has gotten huge! I knew he was really growing based on how heavy he felt and looked and the massive amounts of clothes he seems to outgrow overnight but had no idea of his stats. He was 15 pounds and 27 inches long. He was only 8 pounds, 9 ounces at his 2 month appointment so this was a crazy big jump for him. I am very proud of my itty bitty boobies and their milk. :) We only do 2 shots at a time, so he had those and didn't even cry which was great. The nurses are super quick. He is wearing all 6-9 or 6-12 month and even some 12 month clothing depending upon the brand because of his length.

I talked to the doctor about his crazy appetite (sleep has been crap) and how he didn't love the cereal too much and she suggested we start on some fruits/veggies. It's earlier than I had planned on but he really seems hungry and he had some of the cues that he was ready. I plan to make my own food at least for now, so I started with pears on Saturday morning. He likes the cereal MUCH better with some pear purree mixed in. ;) I just peeled a pear, cored it, cut it into chunks, steamed it for a few minutes until soft, and then Cuisinart'd it. SOOOOOOO easy and I feel really good about doing it myself. One pear is plenty for several servings - I just keep it in a Tupperware container in the fridge for a few days.

I think we will do a mushed up ripe banana next (I may put it through a strainer just to be safe). I am trying to decide what to do for his first veggie - maybe squash since I have one in my garden that is blooming. If the squash is taking too long, I might do peas. I think I will just buy some organic frozen peas and steam them to be Cuisinart'd. I am also thinking about sweet potato. I hope to do all or mostly organic food.

Here's my messy little monkey -

http://thegarnerfamily.smugmug.com/photos/157601746-M.jpg

ETA: It's so funny you guys are talking about the sippy cup - we just started one over the weekend. I have a friend with an 11 month old who refuses the sippy cup so my friend was saying to start getting Griff familiar with it early. I thought "why not", so I bought a Nuby which is great because the spout is soooooo soft. We gave it to him on Saturday with a tiny bit of water in it and I was shocked when he grabbed it and went straight for his mouth. Although at this point, everything goes in his mouth so I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. Anyway, because the spout is similar to a bottle it only took him a minute or two to figure it out and he started drinking the water. I didn't want him to fill up on water so I had to take it away after a few minutes. We plan on giving him the cup for a little bit everytime he's in the highchair to eat. I think getting them familiar with the cup early is key. HTH.

QOTD: Seems like food or thinking about food is a major theme around these parts - Who has started food and/or is close? If you have started what are you giving your child? If you are close, do you know what your plans for food are? Where are you finding your ideas on what to give them? Anyone else making their own food? If so, what are you making and how?

[zhannushka]

wine_o - Griff is adorable! :) We have the same high chair.

I think you may like this site: http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/

[Alegna]

Megan tried cereal for a few nights a couple weeks ago. She didn't really get much down. Honestly I've been too lazy to really try again. It's so much easier to just pop out a boob.

I'm not too worried about it since a lot of people wait till 6 months to start solids. And she doesn't seem overly hungry. She's still nursing the same amount of times in a day and still only takes the two bottles at daycare.

I'll probably try to make some of the food. I've got some attachments for my kitchenaid I've never even taken out of the box. :)

I don't think I have any sippy cups. Lots of silverware, but no sippy cups. I'll have to pick some up sometime.

Q~ Are you guys using bottled water or using tap?

We have a well. The water goes through the softener, then a PUR filter on the sink into a Brita pitcher before it gets put in the fridge. (My husband HATES our water ~ city folk ;)) I've got it on my list of things to ask at her 6 month WBV. (At least I think that's when she goes back. Zhanna- you have a 5 month visit?)

[jmvan74]

sippy cup: I'll be starting soon. I started Collin at 5 months w/ a take and toss sippy cup (they're small and easy to grasp). There's no valve, so they don't really have to suck. Collin was taking it consistently by 7 months or so. Then we moved on to the kind w/ valves. Since Collin never took a bottle he didn't like the nuby and had to have something w/ a hard spout for chomping on. ;)

Food: We've been giving Brady rice or oatmeal for over a week now. Yesterday we bumped it up to 2X's a day. 2T in the morning and 2T in the evening. In a few days I'll bump up the amt. and in about a week I'll probably start adding a fruit or veggie in there. By 6 months I'd like to have him on 3 "meals" a day. I know Collin started sleeping better when he had 3 meals a day, so I'm hoping the same holds true for Brady. *fingers crossed*

water: I usually use bottled water, but I'll use tap if I run out. I won't use the "nursery water" b/c I don't want the added flouride.

[zhannushka]

water - We've been using tap water, but we always boil it. I am thinking of getting a Brita though.

Angela - Our ped recommends monthly visits during the first year. I actually like the visits, so - it's working out well for us.

[katmg]

solids - I was just in Barnes and Noble yesterday looking at baby food books. I already have the book Super Baby Food - which has SO much information. I found a couple of books that are more "recipes" or cookbook style. I may get one that has ideas for kids up to elementary age. I am waiting another month on solids and will start when Charlotte is 6 months old. I can't wait though and I'm already starting to plan what I'll be making for her. I love to cook though, so this is exciting for me. :o

What high chair are you using? - I went and looked at them and then read the latest Baby Bargains review. The Fisher Price one gets great ratings and is a nice price but is so...garish. I'm just not much for bold primary colors, especially since it's not like she's going to be looking at the seat colors while she sitting in the thing. :rolleyes: I guess it is time to suck it up and start kidifying the house.

[zhannushka]

What high chair are you using? - I went and looked at them and then read the latest Baby Bargains review. The Fisher Price one gets great ratings and is a nice price but is so...garish. I'm just not much for bold primary colors, especially since it's not like she's going to be looking at the seat colors while she sitting in the thing. :rolleyes: I guess it is time to suck it up and start kidifying the house.
We have the Chicco Sahara high chair. I love it - it folds so nicely and is very portable (we even took it with us when we went away for the weekend!) It's also super-easy to clean and looks really nice. Joseph seems to be very comfy in it - he smiles when I put him in the chair. :)

[GardenGirl]

High Chair - we have the Graco Contempo in the Heirloom pattern. I bought it because we have black toile chair pads in our kitchen so it matched great. Plus it folds up real skinny next to the refridgerator. The seat reclines, but we don't really need it to since he isn't eating solids at this age. By the time he does (in a month if things go as planned) he'll be sitting up real well anyway.

Sippy Cup - I bought the a Nuby straw and a Nuby regular as well as a Nuk. So far no go, but that is probably just his age. However, I'm going to take Julie's advice and maybe try a hard spout cup and see if he likes that. I know cups are like bottles and each baby has a preference. So I'll do the trial and error test for awhile.

Solids - I'm going to hold out for another month when he's 6 months. He's back to sleeping well and eating good during the day. The 4 month growth spurt killed his eating/sleeping schedule. But when I do my ped suggested starting out with cereal so I'll do that. Though a good friend of mine suggested the same website as Zhanna and they say you don't have too. We'll see. I'll probably go the cereal way because I can water it down with EBM to get him used to a new texture. I have a feeling he's going to be a picky eater, just a gut feeling I have. I hope I'm wrong. After cereal I don't know what I'm going to do. I'll be doing the same planning as katmg over the next month. I'd heard to do green veggies, yellow veggies then fruit so they don't used to the sweet and then not eat veggies. But then I read that that isn't a big deal. So I obviously need to figure out my gameplan. I have a little over 4 weeks to figure it out.

Making/Buying food - in the long run I plan on making his food. But I might just buy some jars in the beginning to see if he likes/eats a certain kind before I go to the trouble of making a large batch and freezing anything. We'll see. That is part of my game plan that I need to figure out.

Zhanna - I wish my ped had monthly visits! Other than the shots, I look forward to our appointments. I get reassurance that my baby is wonderful and I learn a little more.

Water - since I'm only using water to teach him to use a sippy cup, I'm not too worried. However, I do give him the chilled filtered water. I might consider bottled water when he starts to actually drink it, but then again if it isn't too much I might continue with the filtered water. That brings up a good point, when do you start giving water? And why? Isn't BM enough? Guess I'll ask the ped at his 6 month WBV.

[robyn]

All this talk of solids!! Am I the only one who is DREADING starting "real" food?? The boob is just so easy right now. Clean, portable, free! :) I think I'm also struggling with the emotional aspect ... for the last 4 months I alone have been providing him with all of his nutritional needs. It's kind of sad for me to have to realize that he needs more than just me!

[katmg]

I think I'm also struggling with the emotional aspect ... for the last 4 months I alone have been providing him with all of his nutritional needs. It's kind of sad for me to have to realize that he needs more than just me!

Robyn, I definitely have those feelings as well. I'm excited about her trying something new but it makes me sad to think that it won't be too long and we'll be talking about weaning. I'm amazed at how fast the "baby" part is over. :( And I didn't think I would like the infant stage! :D

[GardenGirl]

Katmg & Robyn, you aren't the only ones. I have to admit, I used to be one of those women who didn't quite "get" the BF relationship thing. Now I totally "get" it. I used to say "Well, if he's old enough to ask for it he shouldn't be getting it." What the heck was I thinking. I enjoy BFing him and will really miss it when he decides to wean. That is another reason I'm waiting for solids.

[Winter Biscuit]

High chair -- we're using the same high chair we used for DD#1 so it's 3+ years old but works just fine :) It's the Fisher Price Healthy Care chair. Back then, it was rated very highly by Baby Bargains and I remember several moms on WC had the same chair. I liked it alot. It reclines, has 2 trays that pop off and can go through the dishwasher, has a vinyl pad (which can be wiped down easily) and folds very easily. Right now we keep it in the guest coat closet in our foyer so it's easy to store out of the way.

Sippy cup -- I think we offered DD#1 a sippy right around the time she started solids, so it would've been around 6 months. I just put a little bit of water in it. At first, she just played with it, but she eventually got the hang of it.

Making/buying food -- we'll do both. I have a small food processor so I can easily Cuisinart some food up.

Food plan -- I haven't decided yet. Haven't really thought about it, actually. I'm not even sure if we'll do cereal this time or skip it altogether. I remember the rice cereal really plugged DD#1 up, and IIRC it really didn't have anything in it besides iron. It sorta makes sense to introduce cereal and/or foods with high iron content right around 6 months, especially to an exclusively BF baby, because I've heard that they are born with enough iron stores for the first 6 months. But I'm not sure I want to deal with the constipation from cereal when it really doesn't have anything else in it, ya know? With DD#1, I think we did start with veggies first and then introduced fruits, but she didn't care one way or another. She didn't show a preference for sweeter foods like fruits and start to refuse veggies until she was older and verbal. I'm hoping Allison will be the same way.

Water -- Tera, I think you'll hear mixed reactions about when to start water or if it's even necessary. Many sources will tell you that breastmilk or formula is all a child needs in the first year of life. I do know it's not good to let a baby's tummy fill up on water as they need the nutrients and calories from BM or formula. So babies really don't need water (as they get all the fluids they need from BM or formula) and too much water can actually be dangerous. Having said all that, with DD#1 our ped advised us to offer a little bit of water (just a few ounces) in a sippy cup when we started solids. He felt that a little extra fluid (whether BM or water) might help prevent constipation that can arise when you first introduce solids (esp. cereal). Here's what kellymom has to say: http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/baby-water.html

Tap vs. bottled water -- we have well water too, and it also goes through a softener and filter. There's no flouride in it. Some bottled water can contain flouride even though it's not always listed on the bottle. There was an article/thread about this a while back - I'll see if I can find it and post the link here. I'm going to ask the ped about our water at the 6-month WBV. I'm not sure if he will suggest flouride supplements, if he will say it's fine to use our well water, etc.

Monthly visits -- our ped only does WBV at 2 weeks, 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 9 months, 1 year, 15 months (I think? Maybe they don't see us at 15 months, I'd need to check), 18 months, and then 2 years. Then it's just once a year (3 years, 4 years, etc.) That is all our insurance will cover, as well. Of course we can always schedule an appt if the kids are sick, but that's the "standard" schedule for our WBV.

[lindzgirl]

Robyn~ I am totally hearing you on the breastfeeding thing. My pediatrician said I could start solids but I have loved the breastfeeding times so I am going to wait as long as I can. It is my favorite time of the day especially the first feeding in the morning and the last one at night. I have to admit it helps being able to stay at home full time when you breast feed. When I go to work in August she will be on solids then but I will have her with me anyways. Oh the joys of a family business.

Highchair We are currently in the market for a highchair. I would love to find one second hand but don't know if I will be able too. I like the Fisher Price Space Saver but don't know if I would rather have a full sized one. Anybody have any reccomendations?

Daphne had her 4 month shots yesterday and weighed in at 13 LBS and 12 OZ. She is 24 inches and her head is huge. DH and I say its all them brains. We had to move her out of the bassinet a few weeks ago and she is now in the pack n play in our room. The nursery is on the other side of the house and that is too far away yet even with a monitor.

Am loving all the pictures. Everyone's babies are looking great. Can't believe that 4 months have gone by already. Seems like we were just getting pregnant.

Happy Wednesday!

[katmg]

I like the Fisher Price Space Saver but don't know if I would rather have a full sized one. Anybody have any reccomendations?

I got the FP booster seat handed down from a friend. For me, I'm going to give that to grandma and get a full sized one. 1) I don't want to give up a chair to strapping in the booster. 2) I'd like to be able to have her in the kitchen with me sometimes when I'm cooking and the full-sized chairs are better for that, imo. 3) I like more height adjustment than what is available with the booster. I would really be hunched over while feeding her - my back hurts enough as it is!

[GardenGirl]

Winter Biscuit - thanks for the link. I think I'd read that before because that is exactly what I was thinking. He'll only be getting a little just to learn to use his sippy. I certainly want to keep up our BFing so I shouldn't need to introduce water. Unless of course he gets a little constipated. Thanks!

Ped appts - we have the same WBV schedule as WB. I think his 9 month is the first one he wont have to have any shots. That will be my favorite!!

ETA - I didn't post my reply quick enough to agree with katmg on the highchair issue. We gave my parents a little FP chair for their house so he could sit at the family table when we were over there. And even on the highest setting, he was still lower than I'd like if I have to feed. BTW - he's been sitting in his hair char watching us eat, he just plays with his toys. It's a nice way to have a family dinner and get him used to sitting there

[Lucy Van Pelt]

Katie is four months old TODAY! Wow - I can't believe how fast time is flying by.

Is anyone else thinking about their next baby yet? LOL DH is happy with just Katie but I think I may want another one. I am not planning on getting pregnant in the very near future, but I will be 37 next month and it took us over 2 years to get pregnant the first time so I don't have the luxury of dilly dallying around either.

Today I am taking Katie to Stanford. We are doing an early enrollment....ok, not really. She is participating in an infant study in the learning lab in the psychology department. This is the description of the study she is participating in:

Out of sight. Not out of mind.

Understanding that an object continues to exist even when it temporarily disappears from sight is challenging for young infants. Infants under the age of four months tend to believe that if they cannot see an object, it simply does not exist. We wanted to assess whether the addition of another sensory cue, such as sound, would help infants better track a moving object that temporarily disappears. For instance, if a child is watching a moving car that travels behind a house for a few seconds, would the addition of sound coming from the car help the child realize that the car continues to exist, and would he therefore move this gaze to the other side of the house in anticipation of the car reappearing?

To test this theory, 4 month olds watched a screen on which different shapes passed back and forth behind a wall. (See illustration.) We found that babies were much more likely to anticipate the reappearance of objects (by moving their eyes to the other side of the wall prior to the object reappearing) when sound accompanied the moving object. This behavior confirmed our theory that the addition of sound can significantly help infants track a moving object that temporarily disappears from sight.

It should be pretty interesting!

I don't plan on introducing solids until at least 6 months. I haven't even looked at highchairs yet...:o

[GardenGirl]

Ginger - very interesting study. That's great you are doing that, I always wondered who did those things.

Second child - DH is perfectly happy with just Carter. We always talked about having two, but now that we have one he says life would be grand with just him. Since it took us two years for him, we are going to just leave it in God's hands as to if/when we have another. So if we only have one we'll be perfectly happy. That said, I really do want another one. I came from a house of two (I have a brother) and I would love for DS to have a sister (or brother). So we won't prevent another from coming.

[lindzgirl]

Thanks for the advice on the highchairs ladies!

Next Baby~I am excited to have another one but I think we may have to wait awhile as we have lots of other stuff going on. I think the next one will be easier because I will know what to expect somewhat. I hope I am not throwing up for nine months for the next one like I was with Daphne though. She was so worth it but I couldn't imagine doing it with a toddler running around. I have always wanted lots of kids so we will see what happens.

Talking~ Are all the babies laughing, cooing and talking alot? Daphne has been laughing and cooing but just lately she makes sound non stop all day long. I think I might have a talker on my hands.

[jmvan74]

highchair: We have the FP high chair. It was Collin's and works fine for Brady.

Talking: Brady talks non-stop. He babbles and squeals and loves the sound of his own voice. :p

more children: Brady was #2 for us, so we are pretty sure we're done. However, we won't make a final decision for a few more months. We're too sleep deprived to even talk rationally about it. IF we decide to go for #3, it won't be until Brady is at least 2. 2 under 2 has been so exhausting.

[zhannushka]

talking - Joseph talks and laughs while talking, so cute! :) I noticed that he gets super-talkative with DH, when DH comes home from work. It's like he's telling him how his day was or something... :p

next baby - Ideally, we would like to have 3, so - we've decided to stop preventing after my 30th birthday in November. We won't start actively trying right away, we'll just see what happens first. If a few months go by and we haven't gotten pregnant, we'll start actively TTC.

[katmg]

next baby We are planning to wait until DH is finished with business school. He starts this fall and it will be two years until he is done. We will probably start thinking about it about a semester before he is done. It took us over a year for DD so I don't want to wait too long.

talking - lots of grunts and squeals and giggles. Not a whole lot of consonant sounds yet. I've heard some but not many.

[GardenGirl]

I'm exhausted! A friend of mine has a 7 month old boy and she thought we should go to the zoo today. Good idea in theory. It was 90+ degrees today. Thankfully the Houston Zoo has lots of shade and we had a good breeze, but I'm so worn out. Her DS is bottlefed which makes it much easier, she can just give him a bottle while we walk and look at animals. I on the other hand have to find a place to sit down and discreetly NIP. It was hot so DS wasn't cooperating. We left and on our way home he was sobbing because he was hungry. We were 5 minutes from home, so it wasn't worth pulling over and nursing in the car. However, my friend was hungry and she pulled through a drive through for fast food. The whole time DS was screaming. I asked her if she could drop us off, again we are 5 minutes away - max - and she can get something to eat on her way home. She said "Oh, honey. It's okay, babies cry. Don't worry, he isn't bothering me." Umm, glad to hear my sons sobbing isn't affecting you. But it is me - he's starving and I want to get him home ASAP. I was obviously POed, but she didn't seem to care. Needless to say it will be awhile before we do another outing! I understand that babies cry, but when they cry because of a reason (i.e. hunger, dirty diaper) it's my responsibility as a parent to fix it. Especially at his age. Okay, I'm done venting now.

I too have a noisemaker on my hands. He loves to hear himself make noise. I love hearing him shreak and babble.

[zhannushka]

Tera - I so know what you're talking about! I used to love taking Joseph places a few months ago - he was so easy to please and just slept most of the time. But lately - he developed a temper and now gets annoyed by things, especially when he's hungry or tired - he gets really cranky really fast! As much as I'd love to have an outing with him every day now that the weather is nice, I would much rather spend a quiet day at home, when he's clean, fed, rested and happy... My sister has been begging me to meet her in Manhattan (we've done it a few times before, a few months ago), but - I keep postponing.

[GardenGirl]

I don't mind going out with just DS, DH and I. Or DS and my mom and I, because I'm in control. I get to dictate when/where we go and more importantly when we leave. I'm VERY considerate about a fussy baby in public and I am always on top of what the needs of my son are. But when I'm with other people and their babies, we take a back seat, so to speak. It's just too frustrating for me at this time. Maybe in a few months when he doesn't need to nap every two hours and eat every 3 hours (or less). Plus it's hard to be around other mom's who don't parent the same way you do, or rather, don't respect/understand how you parent. I don't expect anyone to do exactly what I do, but I would appreciate respect, KWIM. I was just so frustrated that she wouldn't let me go home and feed my 5 month old baby! It's not like he was crying because he wanted ice cream or a toy. He wanted lunch!

[magdesilver]

Haven't posted in a while! My DH is finally home Yay!!! It has been so nice having him back. He has been off all week so we have been taking care of a million things- he got a new car, we have had contractors here because we've decided to redo our floors, stuff like that.
Anyhow...
Ethan is going to the ENT next week. I am pretty sure we are going to go with tubes. He is on his 5th ear infection in just over 3 months!! It is insane. I'm so sick of the constant antibiotics. He also has pinkeye right now for the 2nd time, and he gave it to me so now I have freaking pinkeye. Ugh!! To top it off, my DD just got an ear infection and in thinking about that I realized she has also had multiple ear infections in the last 6 months (5-6). So now she is going to the ENT next week too. Not sure what he will suggest for her situation, but all around I am just ready to stop the constant stream of medicines in my house.
sleep Ethan is starting to do better. He generally wakes to feed 2 times/night and sleeps from about 6:30-6 am. At 6 I usually bring him into bed with us and nurse him for 30 minutes or so while I snooze a bit longer. He's still sleeping in the miracle blanket in his bassinett in my closet. I think in a week or so we will try getting rid of the swaddle; we'll see how it goes! He naps in his swing in his room. He has been napping fairly well lately (3 hour nap this morning and 1.5 hours this afternoon!). I am hoping the tubes help his sleep even more.

more kids we definitely want at least one more, maybe 2. However we want more spacing than DD and DS have so I think we will not try TTC again until Ethan is at least 2. I'd like to have a good 3 years in between #2 and #3.

talking Ethan likes to coo and babble. He isn't a huge laugher- he makes you work for it. But it's so easy to get him to smile. I'm still waiting for him to roll over again since he did it 3 times at about 9 weeks or so. And waiting, and waiting...

highchair We have the baby trend highchair and will use that for at least the first 18 months. I use it now as a place to put DS while we are sitting at the table sometimes. DD has a stokke kinderzeat we got her at 18 months and she (and we) love it. We will get DS one when he is older, too.

[zhannushka]

Uggghhhh... I just had the absolute WORST day since Joseph was born! He's been whining and crying and screaming for hours - ever since his last nap at around 5 pm (it is 10:30 pm right now!!!) I tried everything - rocking him, nursing him, bottle-feeding him, giving him water, playing with him, lying down with him, etc. - nothing worked! He kept chewing on his pacifier when I gave it to him and rubbing his eyes (as if he would fall asleep), but he just couldn't. Anyway, I called my mom and she told me to check his gums for teeth - guess what I found there?! - a TOOTH!!! It hasn't come out yet, but you can definitely feel it poking through the gum! I can't believe this - my baby is cutting a tooth already!!! So, I wet a washcloth, kept it in the fridge for a little while and gave it to him - he immediately shoved it into his mouth and fell asleep with it there. :) He's finally sleeping :D and I'm off to research teething... :eek:

[Alegna]

more kids~ I want more. DH is on the fence. I won't start thinking about it more until Megan is 2 years old. I will say that I'm considering more than the 2 I originally wanted. I doubt I'll be able to convince DH to have more than 2.

talking ~ Megan is always talking. She was so loud in the car the other day Mike and I had to wait till she was done to finish OUR conversation! It was pretty funny.

rolling ~ she is always rolling now. We've given up putting her on the blanket. She just rolls off onto the carpet within seconds anyway. I can't leave her alone at all now. Before I felt comfortable leaving her for a minute to use the bathroom but now she's too mobile.

highchair ~ we have a hand me down. I'm not even sure what brand it is. I haven't gotten it out yet. When we tried cereal I just sat her in the bumbo.

teeth ~ none yet. I thought we were getting close last week. But it must have just been a fussy period. She's back to normal and I don't see any teeth.

I would post about her sleep but everytime I talk about how it's going it goes to hell. So I'm going to avoid that topic for a while ;)

[la_bride_2004]

peeking in!

more kids I don't think so. I wasn't on this board all through my pregnancy since M was supposed to be born in Feb, but it was rough! (I had kidney issues, stones, was in and out of the hospital, etc.) Plus it was a bitter 3 year medical journey to get to parenthood- we feel no need to revisit that :) Enjoying parenthood is much more fun!

high chair don't have one yet either! I'm not starting solids until maybe mid-July or August. Not sure what I will get. I like wood ones.

teeth yep, I can feel them coming in- the front upper and lower. He hasn't been too bad-he's just suddenly developed an interest in the pacifier and fusses a bit.

sleep For now he's really good. We moved him into his own room into his crib this week. He sleeps from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. I change his diaper in the middle of the night but he doesn't wake up.

outings I'm having a tough time with this too! It's so much easier to stay at home, especially since I am pumping. Hopefully it gets easier when he's older. He's also a real stickler about bedtime- I have to be doing the "routine" (bath, bottle, book) by 6:30 p.m. or he becomes a screamy mess.

talking M is a big talker too- I love it! He laughs and smiles and babbles- it's just amazing.

rolling Not yet! He's started to be able to get on his side though, so hopefully soon! I think his prematurity and the brace he was in for hip dysplasia have held him back.

[GardenGirl]

Zhanna - a tooth! Wow! That's exciting. Though I'm sure your day was just horrible. I had one of those a week or so ago. Thankfully it was just one and I hope yours is too.

Carter has bumps under his gums that you can definitely see from the front. But I don't think I can feel them from the top. He hates it when I try to look in there. His little tongue just starts going a mile a minute, back and forth.

He didn't sleep too well last night, I think that's because he didn't sleep well during the day. Hopefully he'll take a very good nap this morning. Poor kid needs it.

Still looking for info on solids. Trying to get prepared. I need to read the solids thread in here, but they are so long. Yikes! Right now my main question is how long does he eat just cereal before we do veggies/fruit. Is it just the 4 days it takes to see if he has a reaction. Or do we continue with cereal until he gets the hang of solids?

While Zhanna's researching teething, I'll be researching solids!!

[mommydearest]

more kids--I want 3 years between, but will probably stop preventing when Abby is 18 months, since it took us 12 months last time.

high chair--we have a graco harmony. its ok. nothing special. i found it at big lots for $35 so I bought it. i like that it reclines. abby sits at the table while we eat dinner

teeth--there is one itty white spot poking through the front

outings--Suck. She HATES the stroller, so I usually use the Bjorn or I have an old Hip Hammock--pre-Platex--that I love. But we have to time it with naps and meals out are out of the question any more--she hated the bucket so much we moved to a convertible seat and she can't sit up in a high chair yet, so someone has to hold her the whole time. It just isn't worth it. My mom has watched her a couple Friday nights and I got a small hand pump to keep in the car. Between dinner and the movie, I go and pump in the car and DH keeps me company. It is working so far. My big pump is just too many wires and tubes to be comfortable in the car.

talking--Abby loves to coo and have you put your finger over her mouth and move it

Rolling--still only tummy to back, though she won't do it when I'm in the room

vacation--Anyone going anywhere? I'm scared to do it now since she is becoming so high maintenance. Carnival and Royal Caribbean charge the same for babies as adults, so that ruled out a short cruise. I'm not paying $600 for Abby. I don't have any other ideas. It needs to be something where we stay close to the hotel for naps and doesn't require sunscreen, which is why a New England cruise seemed like so much fun. Boo on the cruiselines.

bf'ing mommas Does anyone else's baby gum your nips? Abby has been doing it all day today and I don't know what to do about it. They are pretty sore, which I haven't had trouble with since she was tiny. She will go to town on my finger or her own, so I think she doesn't know the difference between the finger and the boob. We are having so much trouble with her being distracted when she eats that I hate to stop a feeding when she is actually eating. However, that being said, this has to stop NOW.

[GardenGirl]

Vacation - count us out for vacation, sort of. Since DH's parents live in Indianapolis (and we are in Texas) all of our vacation time (and $$) is spent visiting them (and always has been - we get the guilt poured on). Normally we take a few days and in the middle of the "vacation" to go to Chicago just the two of us. But now with DS that's too much to take on. My MIL told us to go ahead and go to Chicago for a couple days and leave the baby with her. Umm, no way. When they visited last, I came in from taking a shower and she was "watching" Carter. His head/upper body had fallen over in the swing and his head was leaning on the toy tray - he was asleep. I went over and moved him back and said sorry to him. She said, "Oh, I thought you let him sleep like that." Are you crazy! Anyhow, I haven't even left Carter with my mom overnight. He certainly won't be staying the ILs for a couple days. I told her (kindly) that DH hates that DS sleeps in the other room now, he certainly isn't willing to have him sleep in another state. So, we are going up to Indy for a week over Labor Day. And I've decided to buy Carter a seat on the plane. The flight is about 2 1/2 hours and is on a tiny plane and the flights are always full. It would be too stressful with him on my lap the whole way.

I'd love to actually have a little vacation though. So if any one has any ideas for Kristin, maybe I'll follow in her footsteps.

Still not rolling over and I'm still not caring about it :) He sat up by himself for 5 seconds today. Then he fell forward like a bobble head. I was proud.

ETA - I didn't see the last part of Kristin's post until this morning. You mentioned Abby's been real distracted when she eats lately. Carter is doing the same thing. The last couple days I've really had to almost force him to eat. I know he's getting real efficient at nursing, but he pulls off after just a few minutes and then I have to trick him into eating more. I let him suck on my finger and then quickly replace it. Most of the time it works, but sometimes he just keeps turning his head away. It's almost like he doesn't want to eat - that can't be. He truly is only nursing for just a few minutes! Fortunately he doesn't gum me like Abby does you, hopefully someone can help/relate with you.

[magdesilver]

la_bride,
DD (now 2) had DDH at birth and was in the pavlik harness for 8 weeks as a young infant (from 6 weeks old to 14 weeks old). She didn't roll until around 7 months old. Just wanted to let you know our experience with that. She also didn't crawl until 10.5 months or walk until 15.5 months, though they said only the rolling delay was likely related to the DDH/harness. Anyhow, she's normal as can be now, running, jumping, etc.

[Elenna]

rolling: DS is rolling back to tummy. Though, still no tummy to back. It has made my nights harder because I keep waking up to check to make sure he hasn't rolled onto his tummy.

teething: Still no teeth. He's still just drooling and chomping on everything in sight. His gums are getting much much firmer.

bf'ing: DS is also being very easily distracted while nursing lately. He's also chomped down on my nipples a couple of times lately. That really hurts, even without teeth.

solids: I gave DS some rice cereal (Earth's Best organic brown rice cereal) earlier this week. He was really excited about it. He even was grabbing my hand and helping guide the spoon into his mouth. Oddly the rice cereal seemed to make him even hungrier the rest of the day.

high chair: We have a Fisher P