The Tale of the Swaddle

First we swaddled.
Then we didn't.
Then we did.
I don't know how many almost 9 month old babies out there still need a swaddle to go to sleep but that is about the only way I can get you to actually lay down. You did sleep one night without the swaddle but you were already asleep when I put you in the crib. Lately this is what happens:
I swaddle you to get you to sleep and then you break out and sleep just fine with out it. I wonder how I can get you to lay down without it as you really don't need it to sleep anymore.

Who Needs Toys?

Who needs toys when you have dishes?
Ok, I know there are a few toys there but they are mainly dishes. Taevin wandered away from today to go exploring. This was almost unheard of until recently. I watched him crawl down the hallway without interfering to see where he would go. He only had two choices: left to his room or right to the laundry room and bathroom. He chose left. His room is baby proofed pretty well so I let him explore a bit on his own without looking for mommy approval. I walked in a few minutes later to find this.

Bye Bye!

I don't know that it was your first purposeful word, but it was your first mimicking word. And I didn't get to hear it. When I went to pick you up from daycare today, your teachers were gushing about how you said it plain as day several times. Other babies were leaving and one of the teachers said bye bye. You repeated it and repeated it and repeated it. When I came, you wouldn't say it at all. I like to think that's just because you were so excited to see me that you forgot all about it :).

This was a big week. You started babbling on Monday. Yesterday, you stood all by yourself (not holding onto anything) for about 30 seconds. And today, you repeated words. You are growing very quickly.

Green Ears

We decided to make bath time harder by adding ear plugs to the mix. Of course, they are necessary but for some reason an 8 month old doesn't understand that. After much fighting, we got the ear plugs in and got you into the tub. For a few minutes you tried to pull them out of your ears but you got used to them pretty quickly, or perhaps, you were just distracted.
A bonus picture. This is what happens every time I get your hair wet:
You try to get out of the tub. This results in Mommy being soaked by the end of the bath. I'm not sure why you don't like water much (whose kid is this?) but I'm hoping that after a summer involving a lot of swimming we can change that.

Down With Purees!

During lunch today, I was yelled at for serving pureed chicken with squash. I relinquished and offered a few pieces of cubed chicken which led to a very happy baby. And thus, a dinner of only finger foods.
I figured out a method to this madness. I only put a few pieces on the tray at a time and when those are gone, I put more. Otherwise, they all end up down in the high chair. You take pride in being able to feed yourself. Not being able to feed yourself seems to be your only problem with purees. I am a-ok with moving on to finger foods because it means much less work for me :).

Welcome Back!

Surgery. I don't care how minor or common a surgery is. No mother wants to hear that her 8 month old has to have surgery. But, that's exactly what happened. Ear tubes 3 days ago. It was nerve wracking. It was stressful. It was so hard to hand you over to the doctor. And even harder to listen to you cry when you woke up, knowing I made the decision that caused you to be crying like that.

But it was completely worth it. In just a couple days, you have changed so much. My happy little boy is back.
In the weeks and months before the surgery, you spent most of your time following me around and wanting me to hold you. Today, you flat out ignored me to do some exploring. First, you found the bags I didn't put away when we got home.
I promptly put them away which upset you, but only for a minute. You moved on very quickly. You tried to get Tori's picture off the fridge and got pretty angry when you couldn't reach it.
That only lasted a few seconds as well though. You spotted a Tupperware lid I had let you play with a little earlier. You were quite happy chasing it around the floor for a long time.
I couldn't get your attention for anything. When you did look at me, it was just to laugh or say something and then go back to playing.

Welcome back, little boy! I am very happy with the results of the surgery. I am elated that my little boy is no longer in pain. I love seeing that wonderful light back in your face.

Boxes Are Fun

A Few Smiles

Since you haven't been feeling well, I really have to work for your smiles and giggles. I think your 8 month birthday deserves a few great smiles from the past week.
From his excitement in these pictures, you would never know this baby has been sick for over a month, would you?

And for some reason, Taevin is still obsessed with the TV.

Sleep Update!

I have been nervous about posting this too early but here it goes...

Last Friday you surprised me by sleeping all night. It was completely unexpected because you had been having a lot of bad nights. I woke up before you and was scared that the monitor had broken and I was sleeping through your cries, until I heard you cough on the monitor. Relieved, I went back to sleep. You slept from 7pm until 5:30am. I was so very excited. Since then you have slept through the night 4 times (57%). Of the 3 nights you woke up, only one night did you get up more than once.

I find this amazing considering your ears are still infected. Not to mention we have had almost 8 months of really rough nights and to have them just fade away has been wonderful (for this week, at least). I hope you keep up this amazing new talent. Mommy has been enjoying her rest and I think you have been too.