Eating the Rainbow!

Let me start this post by saying this child of mine is a character.  He is fun to watch as he eats his dinner....I know I've talked about his "style" of eating in other posts.  You know, the delicate pinchers that pick up the food and then the whole hand shovel into his mouth?

Well, I've come to realize that each day is a trial and error when it comes to feeding Max.  Some days he likes chicken or spaghetti or veggies, some days he angrily shakes his head and won't eat it.  In fact, some days he won't eat it and 10 minutes later I'll try it again and he loves it.  He's not angry or even what I would classify as picky....he just likes variety.

With that being said, I literally am prepared every night to try a smorgasboard of foods. I, of course, always have the staples that I KNOW he will eat (i.e. applesauce, bananas, green beans, etc).  The other night, I looked at what my sweet child had eaten and realized he covered almost every color of the rainbow :-)

*Disclaimer....he didn't eat the whole 2 jars of food, but merely the remainder from previous meals. Missing was the grilled chicken he had eaten.

Jake laughs at me because there are nights when there are literally 5, 6 or sometimes 7 things I'll try with him. There is no rhyme or reason because as I mentioned above he will like it the next day, or quite possibly 5 or 10 minutes later.  Oh my child....I am pretty sure you are laughing in your head thinking "ehhh, what else ya got".  LOL.

As he was eating, I noticed he was shove the food in his mouth and then take a bite and sneak it in the corner of his high chair.  It was hyterical!  I couldn't figure out if he was trying to "save it for later" because he was putting it there so neatly....or if he thought he was fooling me because he didn't like what I was giving him. Kind of like what I did on Friday nights (i.e. fish night during lent) in our house....I would (when no one was looking) put the fish in my napkin and politely excuse myself to the bathroom.  I know Mom, the jig is up :-). 

The evidence....

A First Time for E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G

Saturday was a wild day with Max....full of many "firsts" - sitting in the grass, getting his new "big boy" carseat, eating pizza, etc.  I realized today that every day has something new in it...something to experience that he has never done before.  And, I've also realized that I have a picture to capture every moment :-).  Don't judge!  LOL.

Looking back on today....Max got to try many new things, and it made me wonder what this little man of mine will be one day? 

A cowboy....

...maybe. He does have a good grip, LOL. 

And outdoor adventurist....

...probably not. He clearly doesn't even like grass.

Just like dad....



Absolutely!

<3 ...Makes my heart melt... <3

If You're Happy and You Know It....

....eat some chicken!  Max had his first serving of chicken this week, and absolutely loved it!  In fact, his first go at it, he ate nearly half of my (small) chicken breast, a full stage 3 can of squash and some diced pears.  Wooweee....I still don't get how this child is only in the 25th percentile for weight. Ha!  The evening before he enjoyed lots and lots of green beans....

Jake and I continue to be shocked at how fearless our child is....in his playtime, his interaction with people, and in experiencing new foods....it is unreal.  He. Fears. Nothing.

It is so fun to watch him as he tries to be a little more independant each day.  He LOVES feeding himself and he is getting pretty good at it.  His fingers are like little claws...he pinches his food to pick it up with the thumb and pointer finger and then uses his whole hand to shovel the food in. Once the food is in and swallowed....success....and he claps for himself....So cute.  Case in point....watch the short videos below....

At the end of dinner time....which usually lasts about a half hour we have a very HAPPY baby who is now on his secret mission.  His new routine is to get on the floor and cruise around the kitchen. He finds his spot by the kitchen table where he pulls himself up to a standing position and holds on for dear life to the chair grunting away....and you can only guess what he is doing ;-).  He thinks he is so sneaky.....I got a shot of his face after all was said and done....

What can I say....he is definitely his father's child. LOL.

Great Spring Day!

Today was a fantastic spring day in Georgia - 70 degrees, sunny - the perfect day to break out the swing that Nana and Poppy gave Maxers for Christmas!  He LOVED the swing. 

Gammy and Paw Paw were here to play, which made the day extra special!

I. Broke. The. Rules.

I never knew how much I liked rules until I had a baby.  In fact, I actually thought of myself as a pretty "go with the flow", "nothing can box me in" kind of a girl.....ehhhhhhhh, wrong.

Once Max came into this world I craved rules.  A guide that would tell me when to do, what to do and how to do it.  For instance, baby not sleeping?  Oh that's easy, page 145 says to do.....fill in the blank.  Baby won't eat?  Piece of cake, go to page 24.  Instead you get "every baby is different" and "you just need to figure out what works best for you".  Deep sigh. With that being said, I made my own rules :-). 

The Cardinal Rule: When all else fails, call my sister...she. really. knows. everything. (thank goodness). She's like the baby whisperer. LOL.  (side note:  I apologize for the daily questions, Michelle)

One of the things I learned from almost every book I read is to never, ever, everrrrrrrrrr feed your bambino in the middle of the night once they establish a routine where they are sleeping through the night (of course there are exceptions).  Another thing I learned is that once the baby establishes a good sleeping routine in their crib.....the crib it is from then on! 

About that.....

Max has decided that he love sleeping.....from 7 p..m to 4:30 or 5 p.m.  I am thankful for the 10 hours, but I really do NOT like 4:30 a.m.  I tried going in there and changing him, patting him, letting him cry it out, etc. 

Inevitably, I end up with a crying baby...and this has been going on for about 3 weeks now.  So this morning, I pulled him into bed with Jake and I.  Oh. My. Goodness.  This child slept so good - he slept till 8 O'CLOCK.  Can I get an AMEN?

I admit it....I. BROKE. THE RULES., and I love it <3   

Max is NINE months old!

Our sweet Max is 9 months old now, and boy is he anxious to NOT be a baby anymore!  Since his "8 month-a-versary" he is now cruisng everywhere and pulling up on everything.  Too cute!

Max's stats:

• Weighed 18.8 lbs at his 9 month well visit (25th percentile)
• Height was 28 inches (50th percentile)
• Crawling everywhere
• Pulling up on everything
• Pulls toys out of his toy box all by himself
• LOVES to feed himself (with his hands, not a spoon)
• Drinking out of his sippy cup
• Cutting 2 more teeth
• Loves to hear his own voice (his favorite activity at school many days is reported to be "screaming with joy"
• Sleeping has been inconsistent (hopefully just because of the teething)
• Babbling "dadadada" and "babababab" and I think I heard "mamamama" a few times :-(
• Favorite foods: bananas, yogurt, green beans, macaroni
• Nicknames: doodle bug, Maxers, booboo

Max is also a busy busy little guy...he doesn't like sitting still much.  In fact, in trying to get his 9 month picture, he just wanted to move and rock.  And if you turn music on, he will automatically start swaying...precious!

 

Max loves his friends at school and is the only one in his class right now that is mobile...so his teachers tell us that is constantly cruising around and visiting all his friends as they play....that's my boy! 

Max, we love you very much!

Date Night!

Jake and I went out on a much needed date night.....it was so much fun!  It is so funny to think that our "date nights" now are what our everyday used to be like before Max.  WOW!  So crazy....

Luckily, my parents came into town and watched Max. Their charge for babysitting = 100 kisses an hour from Max.  I always know that when Nana calls and says "I miss you...can I come see you" that it really means "I miss Max....can I come see him".  LOL.  Nana and Poppy practically kicked us out to get some Max time!  I don't blame them :-).

We went to dinner and a movie, the typical "date" and enjoyed every minute of it.  We try very hard to focus on us and now be so consumed with conversation around Max...I mean it is really hard, he is so so so cute!  With that being said, conversation flowed and the laughter followed.  I'm so lucky to be with a man that makes me laugh so hard! 

I hope we laugh together forever <3

First Stair Step!

His first stair step......so proud!  One step, then kurplop....he's so tough.  He falls and I worry...but he usually just laughs or doesn't even acknowledge that he just fell.

On top of being pretty tough, I'm pretty sure this child of mine is going to love attention...you can tell as he is about to climb the step he looks back and smiles to make sure we are watching!

Warning: this fall at the end looks hazardous, but we caught him :-)

You can tell he was fine because this next video was shot right after where he is having a very deep converstaion with Bear (our dog).

We're M.O.B.I.L.E

That's right, people....we. are. officially. mobile.  Max is on the go, all the time.  In the past two weeks, he has learned to crawl (and crawl fast), pull up to his knees, pull up to his feet, shuffle his feet holding on to something, and today heeven take a step independantly before he falls to his bum :-).

Now that he is mobile, he is even more curious.  Always following someone (Jake, myself or Bear) to see where they are going or what they are doing.  He's like his mommy that way ;-). 

He is so funny when he gets going....his one leg gets caught under him and it takes him a minute to figure out what to do with it....sometimes it's a half crawl, half walk with one foot on the floor and the other knee on the floor. 

This is the one time in life I wish we had carpet....or perhaps I should just invest in baby knee pads LOL.  His little knees are red after crawling all day on the hardwoods, but he seems okay. 

So, I guess we should put our running shoes on.....there's no stopping Max now!