Little Climber

Archer is 11 Months

It's been a while since I posted any updates on Archer's use of the Pikler's Triangle.  While he is not walking yet (he isn't all that interested in trying when he can crawl so quickly), he is getting pretty good at climbing. He is also getting much braver.  For a long time he'd only go up to having his feet on the first rung.  Now he climbing pretty high.  

One day last week, he climbed up and then kept doing squats on the rungs.  It was goofy, but he enjoyed it.  Wish I could have gotten a video! 

My husband made our triangle but Amazon has this one that looks cute. I'm hoping he can eventually  make us a ramp to go with it!

Affiliate links used, at no cost to you.

Clapping

I wrote how Xander had learned to wave and that we were working on clapping.  It didn't take long at all!  Last Wednesday he mastered it!  What I love is that any time I say "good job" he claps for himself.  He also claps when we finish flash cards and when he took a few steps on his walking toy.  I guess I hadn't realized that I always clapped for him in those situations.  :)  Now I need to find something new to work on.  Maybe pointing or a high five?

Waving

Last Thursday Xander learned to wave.  Now he does it all the time, even waving to people in the grocery store.  He gets a kick out of his accomplishment, as do I.  Sometimes he gets over excited and waves with both hands. We are also working on clapping, but he isn't nearly as consistent with that.

Mobility Update - 9 Months

I apologize, I have not been doing a good job of keeping up on Xander's mobility!  He has really taken off since he began crawling.  He has no problems crawling across the house to get to where he wants.  He will frequently crawl from the living room to his room to pull out his trays.  However, he much prefers being carried if he is tired.  I have a baby gate and outlet covers so I try to give him as much freedom as possible.  It does result in a lot of messes for Mommy to clean up, though.

Xander has also mastered pulling himself up a lot faster than I would have expected.  He can stand a lot better than he thinks he can.  I can let go of him and he will support himself until he realizes I am no longer holding him.  Once he sees he is on his own, he throws himself forward to try to catch himself, knocking himself down in the process.  

Apparently, climbing isn't a problem either.  We were at my dad's house the other day and he climbed up the stairs like he had been doing it his whole life, even though I don't let him near our basement stairs.  Unfortunately, he doesn't fully understand gravity yet.  While sitting on the third step, he leaned back to look at me and make sure I was watching him accomplishment and started tumbling backwards.  Somehow I made a superhuman dive and saved him from hitting his head, but we both got a good scare out of it!

Getting our all of the dish towels.

His new favorite amusement is playing with the door stops.  He will go into a room and play with them for quite a while.  He also tends to shut the door while back there, trapping himself in the room and making himself rather angry.

If he is too quiet, I frequently find that he has crawled to his room and is looking at his books (I keep board books where he has easy access).  Unfortunately, every time I try to snag a picture of him "reading" while surrounded by books, he notices me with the camera and starts to crawl over.  These are the only pictures I got.

Xander managed to use a canvas bin to pull himself up so he could go through the toys.  He barely needs to hold on, but thinks he needs the support.

Caught Crawling!

Hooray!  I caught Xander on camera!  It took a bit of bribery, I set up some toys he hadn't seen across the living room from him.  Now I just need to find more ways to encourage crawling!

Crawling!

We're getting more mobile and vertical!  Xander is crawling in a cross pattern motion!  I am so excited for him, a little sad to be losing my baby, and a little scared of all the messes and accidents that will come with his new mobile status... Just part of being a mommy I guess.

He has also started pulling himself up.  He gets to one leg, but can't get off that second knee (I blame the thunder thighs).  He got stuck like the last week.

While my back was turned he made it across the living room and into the drawer with his movies.  Probably after his Your Baby Can Read.

Ever since he first started bathing in the tub, Xander has been fascinated with the faucet.  Pouring water from a cup is nice and all, but the faucet is so much better.  As I was warming up his bath water the other day he twisted himself to try to reach the water.  Unfortunately for him, he is longer than the tub is wide, hence the contortion 

First Adjustment

I admit, I am not that great at working on Xander with his physical development.  I really need to dig out my copy of How to Teach Your Baby to be Physically Superb, read it cover to cover, and run with it.  I think I was just a little too overwhelmed at first.  I read it at the same time I learned about teaching him math and reading and it was way too much to try to figure out how to implement everything at once.

That said, I have been a little concerned that Xander is 8 months isn't crawling yet.  I know a lot of babies don't crawl at that age, but he was rolling over back in February for goodness sakes!  He has been turning circles on his tummy and pushing himself backwards for months.  I really felt like he had hit a plateau in his crawling.  Then a couple of weeks ago I noticed that when I would hold his hands up, he would step with his right foot, but not the left.  When I would bicycle his legs, the left was stiff, and while it would bend, it was a lot more difficult.

Well last Thursday I had a chiro appointment and explained my concerns to the chiro (who is the most amazingly fun, eclectic, interesting gentleman and has been treating our family for years).  I explained it was probably me being a paranoid mom, but I wanted him to take a look.  I am SO glad I did.  Turns out a few of Xander's lower vertebrae were locked up and his left hip was twisted, decreasing nerve impulses to his left leg.  My chiro adjusted him in about 30 seconds and showed me how to massage it to keep it loose.

In the week since the appointment I have noticed huge progress in Xander's movements!  I swear he has made more progress in the last week than in the last month!  He can go from sitting to all fours and back.  He also does this funny little bounce while sitting to scoot himself forward (need to get it on video).  He is pretty good at getting objects he wants and he is so much better at pushing up onto his knees.  He still isn't great at staying on them though, tending to flatten them out like a frog.  He also still mainly goes backwards rather than forwards.

This is where he got "stuck" while I was messing with his mattress.

This is where I found him while I was getting ready for work.  He had started in the middle of the room watching his Sight Words.  He definitely didn't mean to get here since he was still trying to see the movie.  So thankful I have a baby gate on the stairs!

Teething

Xander has been acting like he is teething for a while now but this week we finally have progress!  He has two bottom teeth poking through!  I can't wait for them to finish coming in so that he will be a happier little guy, and maybe less of a drool monster!

On the other hand, I am a little scared of him being a biter and having to ween him.  I would love to make that one year mark!  I suppose I have quite a bit of milk in the freezer so we could probably get by that way, but it wouldn't replace the comfort he gets.  We have had a couple of instances where I have had to scold him and flick his cheek for biting.  Breaks my heart but better now than when he can draw blood!

In the meantime Xander has been gnawing on frozen bagels.  I also have one of those mesh feeders, which is been a blessing!  He has used it for months to eat fresh fruits.  He particularly LOVES mango.  To help with the teething, though, I have been freezing apple juice and putting it in the feeder for him to chew on.  It keeps him entertained and soothed for quite a while.  He just yells at me every time I take it away to refill it.

Eating mango, his favorite.

Alternating between frozen bagel and frozen apple juice.

Best Tummy Time Ever!

Tummy time has been a struggle for us, to say the least.  I want Xander to spend as much time on his tummy as possible.  He wants to spend as little as possible, especially since he can sit on his own.  I know it is my fault because I bought into the SIDS fears and always had him on his back as a baby.

Well today I tried a fun way of mixing it up.  I put the baby pool on the front deck and put in just a little water, maybe an inch.  I chose the deck since I don't have any level grass in the yard and didn't want any are to be too deep.  As a bonus, the pool was completely shaded by the house, so no sunscreen for a little boy who seems to think it is torture!

Overall it was a success!  He had a great time splashing and playing.  I think he was actually way more stable than when he is sitting in the pool since he doesn't have to lean over to reach far away toys.  What a wonderful way to enjoy a very hot afternoon together!  I am very glad we tried it and I am sure we will be doing it again soon!

A Crazy Week

Whew.  I have been wanting to write for a while, but had a crazy week.  This week was clinicals for the CNA course I was in, Xander had his first double ear infection, and I was staying at my dad's house every night.  Therefore, no sleep and no time to write.

I feel like in the five days away from my baby, he grew SO much.  We have pretty much done away with the sippy cup.  We have been using an open cup, which I hold.  He does amazing!  He still spills a lot when he tries to talk while drinking, but can drink without spilling a drop if he stays quiet.  Xander now grabs my hands while sitting and pulls himself up to standing, whether I want him to or not.  Today he started taking teeny tiny baby steps while hanging on to my fingers!  There were very few steps and they didn't produce much movement, but I still almost cried with pride.  (However, I still think he needs to learn to crawl first!)

Yesterday I watched Xander for a little bit while he was in his crib.  He was on his tummy and playing with a toy.  I couldn't believe how well he held himself up with one arm while manipulating the toy with the other!  Just last week he would have done many many face plants into the mattress to try to manipulate the toy.  It reminds me that I don't want to miss a minute because who knows what I will be missing!

On a related note, some of the people in my class, including the instructor, were telling me I should go back to med school like I had originally planned (pre Josh).  They couldn't understand why in the world I would ever want to "throw away" the opportunity if I was capable.  My response was that at the end of my life, when I look back, I will not regret not having become a doctor that much.  However, I would regret not spending every minute I could with my child (hopefully children).   I will never be rich, I won't have a huge house, fancy cars, or exotic vacations.  Regardless, I think my life will have much more meaning as a mother, a role I don't think I could play well as a full time single mother and med student.  It may be the "right" choice for some, but not for me.  I have made my peace with letting go of that lifelong dream in favor of the much more powerful dream.

Mother's Day and 6 Month Updates!

I have been meaning to write about a few things, but haven't had much time (or sleep) lately to make it to the computer.

Well my baby is 6 months!  I can't believe it!  Half a year!  He had his 6 month well check today, and is doing great!  17lbs and 25.5 inches, about the 50th, and 25th percentile, respectively.  He is looking less and less like a baby and more like a little boy!  I love this stage, I love seeing him develop, and I love every day with him, but I feel like it is happening too fast!

Today the doctor told us he can start working to three meals a day, which more foods at each meal.  He also told us to go ahead with puffs.  If Xander could have understood I am sure he would have kissed the doctor!  He stares at anyone eating with these huge puppy dog eyes, like he is begging them to share.  He will enjoy having more meals with the adults.  I tried giving him some puffs after lunch, but he was a bit confused.  He ate them if I held them in his mouth, otherwise they would fall out and he would wonder where they went.  I don't think it will take him long to figure out, though.

First time eating puffs.

Sunday was also our first Mother's day.  I was a little nervous about how I would feel.  Mother's day kind of loses its meaning when the father of your infant just doesn't care.  However, thanks to great family and friends, it was great!  Xander made me h is first card at day care!  I don't know if you can tell, but those blue smudges are his fingers.  Definitely one for the memory box.  I was also given some flowers and some balloons on his behalf.  Best of all, I got to spend the whole day with my little guy!  I feel so blessed to get to be his mother.

This weekend Xander also got to use his bath ring for the first time.  For a while now he has been trying to sit upright in his baby bathtub, which reclines him.  I figured he would enjoy getting to sit during his bath.  He LOVED it.  He had been fussy, but calmed right down when I put him in.  We played with some bath toys and practiced splashing.  I am just a bit paranoid about him tipping, so didn't get many pictures.

Book Challenge

A week an a half ago I wrote about the 1500 book challenge.  That weekend I made up a spreadsheet to help us keep tract.  My original goal was 100 unique books for his first year.  Well in the week or so I have been keeping track, we have already read 34 books, in addition to some I am not counting.  I am thinking of increasing our goal.  I think I will go to 250 for now, and possibly bump it up to 500.  It will get more challenging as we go, just because we do not have that many books!  We would have to make frequent library trips.  Anyway, we will see.

In other updates, Xander is sitting better and better everyday.  Yesterday and today I made him sit up to watch his YBCR.  He didn't seem to mind at all.  Soon, hopefully, I will eliminate the bouncer completely.  Probably a good thing, he is approaching the weight limit.

Unfortunately, now that he wants to sit all the time, it is even harder to get him to spend time on his tummy.  He cannot push himself up on all fours yet, but he is getting much better at reaching for things.  He rotates himself as he plays, and he does get some movement in.  Unfortunately, he usually pushes the toys he wants forward, out of his reach, and moves himself backwards, away from the toys.  Needless to say, this causes a lot of frustration.  I also notice the other night, while I had him on his back to dry him off after his bath, he was scooting himself backwards, sliding on his back.  I know it wasn't intentional, but it shows he is getting stronger.

Xander still LOVES his food.  We finally switched him to a bigger bottle.  He likes veggies better than fruits, but now eats about a third of a jar at a time.  It is nice to be able to give him more during each feeding; I have less crying to deal with.  He has tolerated every food well, except apples.  We are not doing them again for a long long time.  They really upset his tummy, and gave him diarrhea for a few days.  I am excited to be able to branch out to a wider variety for him!

Almost a Sitter!

For a while now Xander has enjoyed sitting in my lap.  He has always been pretty strong, but really wobbly.  The last week or two I have set him in front of me and he would sit on his own for 30 seconds to a minute.  Well yesterday I had him sitting on the play mat and he sat alone for long periods of time!  I do put the Boppy around him, or make sure I am there to catch him, because he still has accidents.  He tends to reach for things that are too far away and fall over.  Sometimes he also likes to push back on his legs and throw himself onto his back.  I think in another week or two he will be sitting solidly by himself!  I also don't think we have too long before he is mobile.  He really wants to be.  He wants to be able to grab everything in sight and gets so frustrated when he can't!

The Very Hungry Xander

You know the book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar?  Madelynn always loved it, and now Xander has a copy.  I think he likes the bright pictures.  Anyway, I can't help but think of my little guy every time I read that book.  My kid LOVES to eat.

A lot of the time, particularly in the evening if people are around and I'm using a nursing cover, he screams his hurting cry when I switch him from one breast to the other.  It takes less than a minute to rehook, unhook, and flip him, but gosh you'd think I was torturing him.  Lately, we have been giving him some baby food, just to try out tastes and textures.  I try to feed him either while I am eating breakfast or lunch, just so it feels more like "meal time."  Well, today I had him playing in his high chair (I know, when did he get old enough for that??) while I was making my lunch.  I got out his little bowl, spoon, and the jar of baby food while I was finishing up.  Well the little stinker saw it and apparently made the connection.  When I hadn't started feeding him within a couple of minutes, he started to cry.  Then he made cooing noises the whole time he ate, and cried and cried when he was done.  He was so upset that I wasn't giving him more, I called the nurse to ask if we could start increasing his portions.  He is only supposed to have 2-3 teaspoons a day at this point, so I was very relieved when she said we can slowly increase his portions, as long as we stick to one food at a time still.  I may need to make a trip to the grocery store!

"I got this, Mom.  I'll just feed myself."

I don't remember if I wrote about our play mats or not.  A couple of weeks ago I got a great deal on some floor mats (similar to these).  My carpet is thick, so Xander has trouble moving around on the floor.  If I put a blanket under him, he usually balls it up rather than accomplishing any movement himself.  He'd get frustrated, I'd worry about him developing enough muscles to move his ever increasing weight, and Toby would steal the blankets, so - floor mats.  Now that I have them, I don't know how I got by without them!  They came in 8 big puzzle pieces, so I put half together at my house and half at my parents house.  Since then, I've noticed a big change in his physical ability.  He can rotate around pretty well, particularly if he is mad.  He is getting better and better at holding his chest up, or reaching for a toy while propping himself up.  He still only rolls from front to back, but every once in a while he can scoot himself backward on his tummy.  On his back, he now pushes himself up with his legs, almost into a bridge position (without the arms over his head, of course).  He has a toy that plays music if you spin it, which he has figured out from the sitting position.  I put it in front of him while he was on his tummy to see what he would do.  It took a while, and a couple of face plants into the mat, but he has now mastered spinning the toy with one arm while supporting himself with the other.  Yesterday, he lay there and spun it for a good 20 minutes straight.

Oh, and today is Grandpa's birthday!

Sippy Cups

My baby is getting big!  I decided to try to introduce a sippy cup.  I by no means expect him to drink from one often, but thought every once in a while would be good to make the transition easier when the time came.  Also, I can't get him to drink water from a bottle, so I thought maybe he would drink it from a cup.  Anyway, I bought two different 4 month cups from the same brand.  One has easier handles, but is harder to drink from, having a stiff spout.  The other has no handles, but comes out a little more easily and has a softer silicone style spout.

He liked holding the first, but wouldn't really drink from it.  I tried the one with the softer spout and he seemed to like it.  Granted, most of the water ended up running down his chin, but he thought it was fun to chew/suck.  He made some fantastic faces, I wish I could have gotten on camera.  Hopefully he will be holding it on his own by the time summer comes.

Cute Quirks & Baby School updates

I LOVE this age.  Xander's personality is starting to show.  His smile makes me smile still, every time.  He squeals and giggles a lot.  Lately, he babbles all the time.  Even when he is upset.  He cries less than he "complains."  I can't understand what he is saying, but from the tone and facial expressions you know he is telling you just how unhappy he is about whatever it is.  He still makes his baby raptor noises, but has also started doing this little shriek.  At first it sounds unhappy, but you take a look at his face and he has this huge grin!  He loves trying out his vocal cords.

He also has some funny little habits.  For example, in order to suck his thumb, he first sticks two to three fingers and his thumb in his mouth.  Then he twists his hand until only the thumb is left.  He has also started reaching up behind his head, to either scratch the top of his head or just sit there and hold it.  It just looks funny since just lifting his arm straight up would get his hand to the same spot more comfortably.  Of course, I have tried to get a picture of it, but he quits whenever I try.

This kid also wants to walk so badly!  He wants to stand while I am holding him, not sit.  He also enjoys standing while I just hold under his hands to balance him.  Then he leans forward trying to GO.  Unfortunately, he has quite a while.  He also has no interest in crawling.  I've read that mastering crawling is important for balance and coordination, so I don't want him to skip it, but he just does not want to be on his tummy.  Regardless, I think I am in trouble when he finally is mobile.  I don't think he will ever stop moving.


Baby School

We've made some slight modifications to his early learning curriculum.

Reading:
He still watches YBCR every day.  We are on disc three.  He loves it!  In fact, when he got hurt the other day, all he wanted to do all night was watch it, back to back.  Our set only came with the first three, and I was debating not getting the fourth.  Well, I think I am going to have to now.  Although, I still think I will skip the 5th, since it is supposedly only a review of the first four.

We still do Little Reader twice a day, 5-7 days a week.  I am hoping to be able to customize it more once he gets a bit older and has more experience with things, and once I get some photo software.

We have started doing word flash cards daily now.  We have two sets of 5 words each that we show three times a day.  We add one word and subtract one word from each set every day.  I've chosen words that he has already seen through LR.  At first he wasn't too interested, but lately he has been enjoying these super quick word sessions.  Since each session only takes about 10 seconds, I'm hoping to eventually move this up to three sets a day.

Math
He still gets three sessions of 10 Doman style dot cards.  We retire two and add two every day.  Right now we are on 47-56.  He really enjoys them, usually squealing and "talking" the whole time.  As much as he enjoys them, it will be nice when they are done. I made them on 11x11 sheets of poster board, so they are hard to take along with us on outings.

We also do two Little Math sessions a day, usually 6-7 days a week.  He seems to like it better than reading.  Maybe I've got a little engineer on my hands?

Since he is too young to do any of his own shape sorting or puzzles, I hold him while I do some sort of spacial activity.  We don't have too many yet (like I said, he is too young), but he does like watching me put the rings on his rainbow stacker, do his simple geometric shapes puzzle, or do his beginner pattern blocks.  It isn't something we do every single day, but it is something entertaining for him.

Colors
He has had some exposure to colors through LR.  I made big 11x11 flashcards of the colors that I have been showing him three times a day.  Additionally, I wrote the colors onto corresponding sheets of foam, both in capital and lower case letters.  I show him these and he likes to look at them, grab them, and of course, chew on them.

Music
We haven't started doing that much with music yet.  I do try to have Pandora going often.  I play a wide variety of music for him, so he hears everything from Beethoven to Barney.  He adores music (and dancing).  I sing to him all the time (although any adult would probably cringe at my singing voice).  He also has a mini tambourine, bells, maracas, and a mini rain stick, most of which were found cleaning out my mom's basement closet.  Once we move, I hope to have the piano in a more convenient location so that we can play on that too (it is currently in the storage room in the basement).


Wow, when it is all written out like that, it looks like a lot.  It doesn't seem like it, because most of the "lessons" take less than a minute.  Also, I look at it as a way of entertaining him.  That kid doesn't know what overstimulation is.  He wants to be looking at something or doing something constantly!  I'm sure we could do more each day and he would love it.  I'm the one who can't keep up with him.

4 Months!

Today we had our 4 month checkup.  My tiny baby that was originally in about the 5th percentile, has now made his way to the 50th!  He is 14.6 lbs and 24 inches.  The doctor said he seemed to be doing really well.

Part of the 4 month milestone was getting to eat solid foods!  We started with whole wheat cereal.  I was supposed to start with only a tsp or so the first time to get him used to it.  I think he ended up with almost a tablespoon.  He loved it (have you seen his cheeks?  or maybe his lack of a neck?  The kid likes to eat!).

Afterwards I put some paint into a plastic bag and taped the end.  He liked squishing it, holding it, and, of course, trying to eat it.  Tonight he sat and played with it for at least half an hour while I washed dishes and talked to him.  I think it is an activity we will do often, with various colors.  I might also try giving him a baggie of water to squish around and experiment with.

Still Growing

Xander just keeps getting bigger every day.  After only one (big) box of size two diapers, we've moved on to size three.  With the diaper change we also had to switch to 6-9 month onsies.  He is mostly in 3-6 month clothing now, although just a few 0-3 month outfits still fit.

He still doesn't like tummy time.  The other day he turned himself 90 degrees while on his tummy though.  I'm sure he'll like it much more once he figures out he can move.  He is sleeping in his crib every night, but will nurse himself to sleep if I let him (which I frequently do, just by accident).  Xander coos and squeals often.  I call him my baby raptor, because when he's happy he makes this loud, high pitched squawk.  I've been trying to get it on video, but no luck yet.

I've mentioned that he loves tv.  Well a couple of nights ago he was sitting on the couch at my parents' house while I ate a quick dinner (my meals end up super low on the list of priorities).  Anyway, the television was on.  My aunt Katia came by to see him and sat in front of him talking and playing with him.  He screamed the whole time.  I told her he was just mad that she was blocking the tv, so she moved.  As soon as he could see it again, he was silent.  I am definitely going to have to invest in some infant development DVDs!  I almost bought him March of the Penguins at GoodWill the other day, maybe I should have.

Tummy Time

My child does NOT like tummy time.  I've tried lying on the floor with him, putting toys around him, playing music, etc, and none of it works!  Lately I've started putting his flash cards around him.  He'll study them for a while, until he's looked at them all, at which point he resumes screaming (he LOVES flash cards if I go through them for him).  A couple days ago he was content to watch my dad vacuum, because apparently that is fascinating.  Yesterday, I went so far as to set up my lap top with Sid the Science Kid music videos about simple machines.  It worked for a while, until the internet started acting up.  I swear that child will do anything to watch television.  He even watches Cramer's Mad Money with my dad while I have class.

Watching Sid the Science Kid videos

Milestones!

I realize Xander has had many milestones.  Learning to hold his head up, discovering his hands, focusing his eyes and following moving objects, learning to babble, etc.  However, each of those is rather gradual.  No finite day or time it happened.  Well today, Xander rolled from his tummy to his back, TWICE!  The first time I was so excited and clapped and cheered and told him how proud I was of him, but part of me worried it was just an accident.  I put him back on his belly to see, and he did it again (to the same reaction from me, of course)!  Unfortunately, the little guy really prefers being on his back, so I'm not sure how he'll learn to go from his back to tummy, but one milestone at a time!

I know it sounds downright silly, because in the grand scheme of things, it isn't that big of a deal.  However, I feel so very blessed to get to be there with him when he did it.  I pray I can be by his side through as many of his accomplishments as possible, to cheer him on and encourage him.  On a related note, I also hope to be there by his side through as many of his failed attempts at things as possible, to cheer him on and encourage him.  I swear that beautiful, wonderful, chunky little boy has saved my life many times over.  He's my world.