Night Feeding Detox Day 2

Last night was much, much better. Parker woke up right as Paul and I were going to bed around 11 pm and cried for about 15 mins. 15 mins! I couldn't believe my ears. After that, I would occasionally hear a small cry for only a minute and then silence. I don't know if he was fully awake during those short minutes of crying or just transitioning stages of sleep. Keeping my fingers crossed that there will be no bouts of crying tonight.

Night Feeding Detox Day 1

At one point in time, Parker slept through the night (6 -7 hours), but recently, ok actually about a couple of months, Parker would wake a couple times in the night. Instead of fixing the problem to begin with, I was lazy and would just nurse him and put him back down. Now, a couple of months later, I'm ready for a full night's sleep, but I know in order to get that we are going to have to endure a little more nights of hardship. Last night was the first night of night feeding detox. I put Parker down at 7 pm and before long he had drifted off to sleep. I'm so glad that I got Parker used to going to sleep on his own when he was little so at least I don't have to fix that problem. At 2 am Parker woke up crying. I didn't go in there, but I would keep peeking in on him to make sure he wasn't stuck in the rails or something like that. After about an hour I went to lay down in the guest bedroom since there is no clock in there. Around 3:40 am I woke up after having a weird dream that Parker had broke the rails on his crib and was crawling around his bedroom and jumping off his bed. I heard nothing. I peeped in, and there he was asleep. Whew! After about an hour and a half, he surrendered. I wish I could end the story here and tell you that I awoke at 7 am to a smiling, happy baby, but that's not the case. When Paul got up at 5:15 am, the squeak of the bathroom door woke up Parker. I didn't go to him this time either. He would cry a few minutes and drift off back to sleep. Then, he would wake and cry a few minutes. This continued until 6:30 when I got him up and put him in the bed with me while he nursed. I was very ready for naptime today so I could also get a nap. He hasn't napped as long as he usually does, but that is to be expected when you don't get a good nights rest. I'm hoping there will be improvement tonight. I'll let you know how it goes.

7 Months Recap

As of today, Parker is 8 months old, so that means it's time for the 7 month recap. This month Parker hit a huge milestone. He learned to crawl, first backwards and then forwards. This means there is no stopping him now. He is working hard at learning how to pull up. When he stands up with some assistance, it is really obvious why he is in the 97 percentile for height. He is tall! Parker also learned how to transition from laying down to sitting and from sitting into crawling and vice versa. It is so neat to watch a special toy catch his eye because there is nothing to stop him now from getting to it. I think our cat, Isaac, is slowly realizing he better start getting out of his way. It just depends on how desperate Isaac is for attention. I guess having your tail pulled and being beat up is better than no attention at all.

Parker is now enjoying all kinds of food. His favorites are pears, bananas, and green peas, but he detests green beans. When we have green beans (I buy the frozen whole green beans.), he enjoys gnawing and sucking on it though. He is a very messy eater because he puts his hands in his mouth while he's eating. Then the mess gets transfered to his head, ears, tray, you get the picture.

Parker is a mama's boy. When he is tired, no one else will do. Also, when he is tired, he is ready to go to bed. If I don't get him to bed around 7-7:30, he is not a happy camper. Once he gets in his bed, he rolls over, sticks his butt in the air, and goes to sleep. I learned the hard way not to mess with his bed time. As Dr. Marc Weisbluth, author of Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, says, "sleep begets sleep." This is very true for Parker. If he is overtired, he has trouble going to sleep and staying asleep.

Parker is a very happy baby. I get so many comments about this, even from complete strangers. He is just a delight! I could go on as any mother could about their child, but I'm sure you wouldn't want to spend all day reading this.

Trying to look like his Uncle Michael with an orange gotee.

I just couldn't resist!

Spring Has Sprung!

Parker and I spent the day at Swan Lake enjoying the nice weather and beautiful sunshine. I can't wait to go back and take some more pictures. It's hard work to get him to look toward the camera and smile all by myself. Next time we're taking daddy.

Finally, some success!

After 2 months of very little interest in solid food, I was beginning to think that Parker would want to be solely breastfed for the rest of his life. However, after today, there is hope. For the first time, I didn't have to combat flailing arms and a scrunched face, or putting the spoon up to a closed mouth. (When I did get him to eat some bites, he would just kinda suck it in without opening wide.) Finally, Parker enjoyed his supper of pears and rice cereal, which I might add that I have given to him before. When he would see that the spoon was ready to go, he got his mouth ready. It is so much easier to feed a baby that opens his mouth wide, go figure!

Breaking Free

I put Parker down for his evening nap today awake but tired. After hearing silence for a few minutes, I peeped in to make sure he was asleep and found this.....

Here's an even funnier view.

I thought about just leaving him that way until he woke up, but then I worried that his circulation would be cutoff (he does have chubby legs). As I carefully freed him, he awoke. After a little consoling, I put him back down, awake but drowsy. After a few minutes there was silence again. I peeped in, and this time I found this...

I think it is so cute that he sleeps with his butt in the air.

6 Month Recap

• Parker's six month has come to an end. I can't believe he's 7 months old! Here's the recap of February.
• Parker continues to roll and army crawl his way around. He can get to his favorite toy very quicly.
• He has begun to do baby pushups in preparation for crawling. You can tell he is thinking really hard about how to get his body moving.
• His trunk has gotten a lot stronger and he can sit up well on his own to play with his toys.

• He is very curious and of course everything goes into his mouth.
• When he gets tired, he wants his Mama.
• If we are out when its his naptime, he fights sleep like crazy. He goes to sleep much better on his own and in his own bed.

He got to see/experience his first snow! (He was ready for his nap when this picture was taken.)

• He has gained a little interest in solids. Sometimes I can get him to eat a half of a jar.
• He learned how to clap his hands together.
• He loves to watch other children.

• He continues to be the most precious baby boy ever!