Happy Seven Months

It's kind of shocking to me to realize that the boy is already seven months old. I'm already experiencing the bitter sweet feeling of watching him enter into new phases. I'm ooohhing and aaahhhing as I pack away clothes that he can no longer wear.

Maybe it's because I never actually had him wear half of the stuff. We were completely inundated with hand-me-downs and gifts. I'm definitely not complaining. Keep them coming! I am a big fan of second hand clothing. But the amount of stuff we collected was enough for the Octa-mom.

I also have every single Baby Einstein product made in the last two years because of a job I had. While this has been a great gift, it's really difficult to hear Mozart or Beethoven played on a xylophone over and over again. You don't think it's possible to hear Bach's Menuet in the key of F coming out of a caterpillar's mouth? Come over to my house. The best is when the batteries start to wear out and the sound is warped, and you don't actually realize that something's wrong with the music. Or... when the toy was never turned off so the music has been playing for the last hour and I have no idea why I have a headache.

I went into a store the other day where I had gone to a breastfeeding support group when the boy was a newborn. I passed the room to see a group meeting and it was almost comical seeing all these first times moms with these panic stricken looks on their faces holding their 4 week old babies. They clearly had no idea what they were doing. I say "comical" because I know I looked like that. So I had to chuckle because I really wanted to point and laugh and say, "I'M SOOOOO GLAD I'M NOT YOU RIGHT NOW!!!!!" But then the more sympathetic side of me caused me to shoot a knowing smile to sleep deprived mom #7.

Speaking of sleep deprived... I have been trying out this reading program called Your Baby Can Read. I am thoroughly impressed and think it's a great program. I completely agree with the philosophy behind it. It comes with books, flashcards and several DVDs, all of which are very interactive. Well, yesterday I put on the DVD for the boy to watch. I put him in his little chair, which is like a little cushioned seat that you can place anywhere. And then I sort of curled my body around it as I layed on my side. This way I could still participate with him and help him do the actions and repeat the words. Brilliant plan, I thought. Well, laying down is generally not a good thing to do if I want to stay alert. Next thing I know, I wake up and the DVD has finished playing. The boy is just sitting in his chair, kicking his little feet, and staring at the tv which now just says "Main Menu. Parent's Guide. Kids' Songs." I'm quite certain that in the "Parent's Guide" it advises that the parent (that would be me) also participates in the interactive portions of the DVD. He is still a bit too young to point to his nose all by himself.

Other things to catch you up on...

We're still sitting on the fence about starting him on solids. Well, okay, it's me really. Dad is all excited to get the food flying through the house. But our pediatrician has told me that we can wait up to a year if we wanted so that is buying me a little more time. He said that there's no real set time that makes it "right". His check up was great. He's definitely a "big" boy. So, I know that exclusively breastfeeding him is not malnourishing him in any way. I know it's for completely selfish reasons, but breastfeeding is just soooooo convenient. There's nothing to prepare, clean up, heat up, and I don't have mashed peas stuck to my floor. Yeah, I know. We'll get to it.

Right now the boy is having lots of floor time. He's moments away from crawling. Well, actually he does crawl. Just not in any kind of straight line. Or forward, for that matter. He's got the backwards scoot down really well. And he's also practicing his Olympic sprinting pose. This is when he has his arms and legs straightened and his butt is pointing straight up into the air. He's like a little pyramid. He's usually on his tiptoes when he does this so his balance is WAY OFF. I think he actually thinks he can be mobile in this position. But instead he's just the Leaning Tower of Butt as he sways his butt left and right to try to gain momentum.

Okay, I've got to cut this one short. I've been asked about my homebirth story many times so I'm trying to edit the letter I wrote to Kien about how he was born. I'll try to get that posted in the next day or so. And the boy is anxiously waiting for someone to play with him. He's adorable I tell you!!!

I have to say the best sound in the entire world is hearing him laugh.