A day of firsts!

Yesterday was a big day in the world of Henry.  He has his first swim class and did so well!  It's a 6-week class at our local YMCA, and it basically teaches them the basics, and what to do if they happen to fall into a pool or body of water. The instructor's baby was a little older then Henry, and when her Mom put her in the water she knew to flip on her back and float. It was pretty amazing, and even when she was put into the water face down so flipped right over. Henry just started and has a long way to go, but it makes me so happy that we're starting his early. We spend a lot of time on the water, whether it be in the ocean, on the houseboat, or in the pool, so it's really important to us that he's comfortable.  It was also really fun and I think he really liked the songs and games. I can't wait until next week.
















Henry also tried his first food, and we gave him the Earth's Best brown rice cereal mixed with breast milk. We gave it to him before his last feeding before bed, and he was a little fussy to begin with, so I think tonight if we time it better it should go a little more smoothly. He took about three bites but then wasn't too into it.  This was the very first food he's ever had, and it was pretty adorable to see him try and figure out what the heck it was.  In the video below you'll see that he doesn't really know whether to laugh or cry. Adorable. We are planning on doing the cereal for a couple of weeks, then transitioning into single vegetables. Yay Henry!
 

Henry: 5 months

5 months, almost half a year! I can't believe it. This month has been the biggest month for Henry so far, as far as growth and learning new things!  It seems like his mind grows and grows more and more everyday, and his personality is emerging at the same rate. If what he's like now is any indication of what he'll be like as he gets older, I foresee our little man being quite the ham. But also quiet at times, extremely sweet, and a total mama's boy. Henry is just starting to like to cuddle, and his favorite way to sleep is on his side, facing me, one thumb in his mouth and the other holding on to me. It melts my heart every single day. He's now sleeping in his crib every night and has recently gone back to sleeping through the night. Last month he started waking up 2-3 times, and we couldn't figure out what the problem was. Eventually we realized that he was just too big for the co-sleeper we had him in in our bed, and once we moved him into his crib (and got through the adjustment period), he was back to sleeping almost 12 solid hours. Henry loves to sleep completely stretched out, arms and legs wide open most of the time, and no wonder he kept waking up- every time he went to stretch he found himself confined. Now he is absolutely loving his crib, and although it's a little sad to not wake up and see his smiling face, Hank brings him in every morning for his first feeding and we cuddle for a long time to make up for it!

 

So here's Henry's current schedule:

6:30am wake up, Hank brings him into our bed before he gets in the shower
7-7:30am feed Henry, cuddle in bed, etc.
8am eat breakfast while Henry plays
8:30am get us ready for the day- either the gym/bootcamp, errands, meet a friend for brunch, or hanging out at home
9:00am leave the house or stay at home, but either way H. takes a nap during this time. He'll sleep through my bootcamp class (falls asleep in the car on the way there), or he'll sleep in his crib
10:30/11am wake up, feed Henry, hang out and read, play, etc. for the next couple of hours
2pm nap #2- this nap lasts anywhere from one and a half hours to two hours or so
3:30/4pm wake up, feed Henry, sometimes we'll go on a walk during this time
5:30pm Hank gets home and they have father/son time while we cook dinner
6:30pm start winding H. down for bed, give him a bath
7:00pm (on the dot) bring Henry into his room, read a book, feed him again. He usually falls right asleep around 7:30 or so.

When he wasn't sleeping through the night he would wake up at the same times almost every night- 11pm and 4am! Now that he's back to being a great sleeper I'm counting my lucky stars and enjoying every second. I think they say though that the minute you mention what a "great sleeper" your baby is, you're destined for a sleepless night, so we'll see about that! 

In other Henry news, all he wants to do lately is pull himself up into sitting position, and once he's there he wants to stand. He's such a mover and is on the verge of being able to crawl, once he figures it all out. He loves to flip belly to back, back to belly, and push up with his legs so his butt's in the air.  I'll post a video later this week from the other day and you'll see what I mean! It's just beyond neat because we'll go to bed one night, having just started to attempt something, and then the next day he'll master it! He's so smart and it's amazing seeing all of the connections being made day to day.

Henry is also quite the babbler and lately has taken to screaming and squealing when he's happy. He loves to take walks in his Baby Bjorn, and we've found that he likes that a lot more than his Ergo or Moby wrap because he can comfortably face out and take in so much action. He's so observant so unless he's super tired he prefers to face out.

This month Henry:

went on his second hike- he loves the outdoors
started making more distinct vowel sounds
is teething- I can see a little white bit of a tooth on his lower front/left gum
can almost sit up on his own
can almost push/pull himself into a seated position on his own
loves to stand with assistance as much as possible
started using a jumperoo and loves to bounce
likes to lie on his back and clap his feet together over and over
is highly amused by clapping and likes to "clap" with us by holding our hands
has mastered picking things up/reaching for things
has gotten to the stage where we have to push things away from him when out to dinner- he will lunge and grab at everything
is still breastfeeding
is getting more and more light brown hair
loves to have his head rubbed while falling asleep
still doesn't really live him Bumbo chair- is too active to want to sit still in it
had his first Easter
started to enjoy playing with blocks- he especially likes light blue and yellow
smiles every time Madeline comes near him
laughs very easily/smiles very easily

It's funny because every new stage has been the "best one yet," and I can only imagine how much more fun this is going to get as he gets older and is able to communicate with us more and more. My heart just grows and grows every single day, and I cannot even begin to describe the job that I feel being this little guy's mama.

So here's to you Henry, and here's to 5 months! We love you so much.

Henry: 2 months

So, Henry turned 2 months this past Monday, believe it or not!  That "believe it or not" is aimed mainly at me because I still can't believe it's already been 8 weeks since we brought our little man into the world.  Like I said in my last post about growing up, time flies! I feel like he is different every single day, with new sounds, new movements, and a little more personality shining through.  It's so fun to see all of these milestones and changes happening right before our eyes, and it's both sad and exciting to watch it happen so quickly. Oh, and above you'll see the first two of his monthly photo series, I forgot to post his 1 month in December so today you get two. :)

This month Henry:

has started to reactively smile
will coo and make vowel noises
seems to mimic sounds that we make
is so much more vocal
is starting to realize what his hands can do

Our little guy has been sleeping through the night from about 6 weeks on, and for the past two weeks every night has been really great.  He'll go to sleep at 8pm, wake up anywhere between 2 and 3, then go back to sleep until about 8am.  My friends have told me that I shouldn't share this amazing fact with anyone, because the moment I do he will be up every hour on the hour! haha! So let's hope his good sleeping continues...at least until teething begins.  I do feel very lucky though that he is doing so well in this department, and it even seems like he is on a schedule of his own doing.  I figure I had such a difficult birth that this was the universe's way of saying, here you go!  Here's something a little easier for you. ;)

A few notes on everyday things: Henry hated tummy time until yesterday, when I sent a "help me!" out into Twitter-land, and got back so many great suggestions.  Most of the ones that I got had to do with keeping him distracted while he was on his stomach, so I got out a mirror and wa-la!  It was just the things I needed to keep him happy.  My friend Anita also recommended a little Baby Einstein Take-Along Tunes toy that worked for her, so I think we'll get that too.  As far as pacifiers, he only uses his NUK one at night, but not always.  He's starting to self-soothe with his hand a little and seems to prefer that to a pacifier.

As far as size, Henry is currently in 3 month clothing and is really long. His next doctor's appointment is next week and I'm so curious to see how much he's grown!  It has just been such a fun experience being a Mom. I went from not knowing what the heck I was doing to now, feeling a lot more on top of things and feeling like I am doing a great job.  I was so overwhelmed during that first month, and although I wouldn't classify being a Mom as easy by any means, I'd definitely say it's much easier than it was. As every day passes I learn more about what works for Henry and what doesn't.  I know how to rock him just so, so he will fall right asleep.  I know that after he nurses for a long time he likes a little break, and then he always wants just a little more.  His cries have distinct meanings, almost a language of their own.  I feel like as these two months have gone by being a Mom has become more and more natural.  It's true what they say about the maternal instinct, and it's neat to feel like I can do this after feeling kind of scared in the beginning. Being is a Mom is what I've always wanted to be, and it is the best feeling in the entire world to feel like I'm a good one, and becoming a better one everyday.

Happy 2 months, Henry!

My top newborn must-haves, V.2

It's been awhile since I posted my first newborn must-haves, and it's funny how much Henry has changed over the past two months.  I took this video two days ago and I was so happy that he actually smiled for the camera!  I feel like he will do it all day long, but the second I pull out the Flip Cam or my camera the smile gets put away.  I'm so excited that I finally captured one.

But, back to the list!  Now that we've had our little guy here for two months, I feel like I've learned a LOT more about what works for us, and what doesn't.  So, here's my next group of items (numbers 1-7 can be located here).

8) Summer Infant Rest Assured Sleeper

 

We started out with Henry sleeping exclusively in his pack 'n play, right next to our bed.  At around two weeks Henry started to become very fussy, but only at night.  The only way he would sleep for more than an hour or two was if he slept on my chest, or next me.  I know that a lot of parents co-sleep, and even though this worked SO WELL for us, I was terrified of something happening.  I looked around online, and when I came across this wonderful product I was sold.  It goes right in your bed, and you get to reap all of the benefits of co-sleeping, without the fear of rolling over, blankets suffocating your baby, etc.  Now again, I know that some parents choose to have their baby sleep right next to them, cuddled up, and I WISH I could do this, but I am just too much of a worry wart.  So this sleeper was a great option.  The walls are mesh, so even if Henry pushes his face into the side he is able to breath, and it keeps air circulating.  It also has a metal frame to protect the baby from being rolled onto.  From the first night we got it, Henry has slept so, so well.  He's a lot closer than being in the pack 'n play, which makes middle of the night nursing easier, and overall this just works for us.  So, if you're tight on space, or even tight on money and can't afford a larger sleeper (like a pack 'n play) this would be a great option!  If you're like me and are paranoid but still want to have your baby close by, this is also wonderful.  And, as an added bonus, it folds up to be super small, so it's great for traveling.  We go down to Phoenix a lot and this has been a lifesaver.  Henry loves it, and we love it too!  This is absolutely at the top of my must-haves, right under the Snuza.

9) California Baby products

Henry has sensitive skin, like his mama, so we have to be careful what we use.  The very best product we've tried thus far has been from the California Baby line- the Super Sensitive Shampoo and Bodywash.  You guys, it smells SO GOOD. All caps because if you were next to me I'd be yelling that. ;)  But really, it's amazing.  It's free of toxins, dyes, sulfates, you name it.  Buy it here.

And on the subject of baby products- we recently tried the Baby Balm courtesy of Mountain Girl Soap and Sundries.  This was sent to us by the company to try, and I wouldn't ever recommend it unless we truly liked it...which we definitely do!  It's an all-natural, vegan, and the ingredients are simple and nourishing- no petroleum or synthetics. Awesome.

10) activity mat

I wasn't sure if we would wait awhile to get one of these, but my sister got Henry one for Christmas and he loves it so much.  It's a nice little change of pace for him during the day, and he really loves to look up at all of the fun jungle animals.  Recently he's begun to try and grab the various objects too! We also do tummy time on the mat, so it's kind of double duty.

11) Boppy

In my last list, I was all about the Brest Friend Pillow.   Now that Henry is a bit bigger I've moved into using the Boppy a lot more.  I think the Brest Friend was imperative for me in the beginning- the Boppy just wouldn't have worked post c-section, but now that I am really comfortable with breast feeding, the Boppy is just easier to grab and use (there aren't any clips or straps), and more comfortable too.  When we have our next baby I will still use the Brest Friend again in the beginning, but the Boppy has been my pillow of choice lately.  Plus, I often use it to prop Henry up on the couch or during tummy time so it's more convenient for me to have around.

12) this one isn't an item...but I think a must-have would be the idea of really being gentle on yourself, especially if you are a first-time Mom.  You will be a crazy mess of emotions after you deliver.  I cried at the drop of a hat and I went from being super happy to being sad about all sorts of things- Henry was already growing too fast (keep in mind he was two days old), I didn't think I was a good Mom, the list went on.  But after about three or four days I felt like my "normal" self, and I didn't feel weepy and overly-emotional.  Perhaps it was a touch of postpartum, or maybe it was just my hormone levels regulating, but be prepared to feel a rush of all sorts of things.  Perhaps yours will manifest like mine, or go your own way, but I'm sure most new Moms feel this.  Be easy on yourself. It's normal to feel like you don't know what to do, how to do it, or how on Earth you are going to manage to keep on doing it.  In the beginning there were times when I was getting up every hour, not getting any rest, and at times felt pretty hopeless that I was even doing a good job.  Mix in extreme lack of sleep, recovery from a major surgery in some cases, and trying to do something you've never done before, and it can be a really tough combination.  Just remember that it does get better, and you are not alone in feeling a little lost, or a little down. Just be sure to talk to someone about it.  And remember how amazing you are...and what an amazing thing you've accomplished! :)

So, this is my second list of newborn must-haves.  As Henry grows and as we try new and different products and items I will be sharing them along the way!  Thanks for reading and have the best morning.