Piggies

Recently Little Man discovered his feet. He seems to love them as much as I do, and I have to say, I am a little thankful that he's playing with them now instead of the other thing he discovered a while back and liked to play with during diaper changing and bathing. :)

The First Bug

Yesterday afternoon Cooper was taking a nap, and I heard him start to stir and cough a little. I went in and checked on him and in the dimness saw that he had spit up a little on his sleep sack. I decided to let him be because he had settled back into a nice sleep. About 5 minutes later, I heard him fuss and then cough again and fuss some more. I went in to get him, and the poor little guy had not spit up; he had thrown up. Apparently he wasn't coughing, he was gagging. His crib was a mess, as were his pajamas, sleep sack, arms, face, paci, everything. As I started trying to change his clothes, he looked up at me with the saddest and most scared eyes and then his whole little body started shaking. My heart ached, and it was all I could do to not start crying at that moment. I got him in the bath as Karl changed his sheets. He seemed okay (not himself though) until I got him out of the tub, and then he got sick again. And again. And again. It happened seven times in a little over an hour. After time #3, I called the pediatrician's office and left a message for the on-call nurse to call me back. I also had Karl pack a bag because I was ready to book it to the emergency room (note to readers: I do NOT handle sickness well. I get really scared really fast about anything out of the ordinary. Anyone remember when I had pink eye several years ago, and I feared it would leave me blind? Or when I had my first ear infection in middle school and didn't tell my parents because I was sure I had a brain tumor? Or when I had poison sumac and thought it was leprosy? I could go on, but I think I've made my point :)). As I waited for the nurse to return my call, I just rocked Little Man, and he fell asleep in my arms. This never happens, which just made me all the more scared. The nurse said we didn't need to go to the ER, told us there's a stomach bug going around, and directed us newbie-parents on what to do. After that one hour passed, Coop didn't get sick again, and when he woke up at 11:00 p.m. and was wanting to eat and only got some Pedialyte, he was not very happy. I slept in the chair in his room so I could be there if he got sick again or just needed to be cuddled. It was nice because I was able to check on him as many times as I wanted last night without having to walk down the hall. Other than being a little tired today, he's been just fine-thankfully.

Before Cooper got sick yesterday, he was crying when I put him down in his crib for his nap. I had decided to let him cry for a little bit, as he normally falls asleep fairly quickly. Nevertheless, it's hard to listen to even though I know he's fine and needs to learn to fall asleep unassisted. I told Karl that the most joyful sound I've ever heard is our little one's laugh, and the most heartbreaking is his cry. You truly do feel their joy and their pain. Last night was a hard example of that.

The Paci

Oh, the paci. In the early days, Cooper wouldn't take a paci, but as the months passed by, he realized that they're not that bad. Now, he actually prefers to have one...or two...or even three. I have moments when I hate myself for pushing the paci (like when he didn't know how to put it in yet and was waking up every hour during the night fussing for it and when we're at the grocery store and I realize I left it in the car and Little Man is upset about it). However, the paci has provided us many laughs lately, and it appears Little Man has learned a lot of lessons from it, such as...

Although they're all made for the same thing, every paci is different. Very different.

And it's very important to have a variety because you never know what you might want from minute to the next.

(Mama note: This is how Cooper prefers to put his paci in. He plays with it, turns it so the sucky part is sticking up and then lowers himself on to it. Very clever, very complicated)

And you have to hold on to all your special belongings because someone (i.e. Sadie) might take it (i.e. chew it up) when you're not paying attention.

This is very important: Lesson #3 applies even in your sleep.

(Mama note: Cooper holds his paci in while he sleeps, and my favorite is when he is on his back, and he holds it in with one finger. It is hilarious, but I haven't been able to get a picture yet!)

6 Months

My little baby is 6 months old! What a fun and sweet age this is!

We went to the doctor yesterday for Cooper's 6 month check up, and he weighed 15 lbs, 3 oz, and was 26 inches long. His weight is in the 25th percentile, and his height is in the 50th. I was really surprised he didn't weigh more than that, but I'm sure he'll be growing like crazy now that he's eating solids. So far, he's sampled oatmeal cereal and sweet potatoes, and both are a major hit with him!

Okay, on to our 6 month photo shoot from this morning! It went something like this...

"Hey Eli. What you been up to this month?"

"You did what?!?!"

"Shut your trunk you crazy elephant!"

"Well listen to what I've been up to. You know that Sadie dog who lives here? Well, I like to lay on the floor and reach up and grab her ears real fast when she walks by. I do it like this. It makes me laugh every time!"

"And look, Eli. I like to be on my tummy now. Remember when I was a little baby, and I cried when I was on my tummy. Not anymore!"

"Oh, and I learned how to play peek-a-boo. It's so fun."

"Mom, could you give us a little privacy? I'm trying to catch up with an old friend!"

"What'd you say? This isn't the time? I'm supposed to be posing for my 6 month picture? Ugh..."

"I got a little secret to tell you, Eli. That mom lady drives me nuts with these monthly photo shoots!"

Today's Special: Oatmeal Cereal

This morning Cooper had his first helping of oatmeal cereal!

(We skipped rice and went straight for oatmeal.)

Although majority of it didn't stay in his mouth,

he always opened wide for the next bite.

He definitely seemed to love it!

Since he was nice and nasty after his first big boy breakfast, it was time for a bath.

An oatmeal bath, nonetheless. This is how he likes to recline in his tub.

(The water is murky because of the oatmeal stuff we put in it that is supposed to help the poor baby's terrible eczema... Thankfully he wasn't that dirty from breakfast!)

And then... and this is big... and I mean B-I-G... he took a 1 1/2 hour nap! Now for you mama's out there with good sleepers, this might not seem like a big deal; however, Cooper has NEVER done this before without me having to rock him back to sleep at some point during his nap. He is a habitual early nap waker, which results in me being a habitual rock-baby-back-to-sleep-out-of-desperation mama. I know what you're thinking..."You're not supposed to do that. They'll never learn to fall back asleep like that." BUT Cooper will not go back to sleep if I don't. We've tried. I lost. Like I said, it's out of desperation! Not today though. Little Man then took a 1 hour and 10 minute after lunch with no early waking. But it keeps getting better. Are you ready for this?! He is currently taking his 3rd nap for the day!!! AMAZING!!!

Do you hear angels singing too or is it just me?

A True Little Man

When Cooper was a very new newborn, Karl came home one day with a little present for Cooper. He had been in a store and saw a baby pair of Carhartt overalls that he couldn't resist buying. He was so proud of his purchase, and I even teared up when he showed me because they were so adorable and I thought it was the perfect first outfit for Karl to buy his son. We talked about how big they looked and how we couldn't imagine Cooper ever being big enough to fit in them. Well, here we are just a few months later, and Little Man is ready for his Carhartts. They still need to be rolled up a little at the bottom, but we couldn't resist waiting any longer.

Here he is, definitely 100% Karl's son and looking like a true little man.

I sure do love my outdoors"men"!

Coop's Scoop

It's time for another miscellaneous post on Little Man!

Coop's Scoop

Cooper LOVES Sadie. He is fascinated by her. He constantly reaches for her and his eyes follow her everywhere. He smiles whenever she comes near. However, Sadie doesn't love him back. Her ears look so long and soft and stretchy to Cooper. But they're not stretchy. When those little hands first discovered those fluffy ears, he immediately went to pulling them. Since then, Sadie normally keeps her distance. Sometimes -briefly- she'll come to him and give him a quick lick. I hate to break it to the poor dog, but this is a problem that will probably be getting worse before it gets better.

Cooper's new favorite thing to do is lay on the floor with Karl or me, just like in the above picture. He talks, laughs, rubs our faces, puts his fingers in our mouths, and puts our fingers in his mouth. This is our favorite thing to do now too.

Another favorite for Little Man is getting his diaper changed. While having him up on his changing table, we like to use this time to tickle him and blow on his tummy. We'll say, "Uh oh, sneak attack!!!" and Cooper immediately starts wiggling and laughing. Then we'll blow on his tummy, and he thinks it is so funny. There is nothing I love to hear more than that sweet laugh!

Speaking of that sweet little voice, Little Man is becoming increasingly vocal. He loves to "talk" and prefers to do it while you are talking and with his fingers or paci in his mouth. If you stop talking and/or take out his paci, he goes silent. We need to work on the rules of conversation! :)

Cooper reaching for the camera when I was trying to take his picture.

He grabs and chews...EVERYTHING!

He is increasingly curious about new things and reaches for everything. Once he gets what he's reaching for, it goes straight to his mouth. Which leads me to another current love of his: chewing. He chews on his fingers, my fingers, his toys, Sadie's toys, his blanket, and absolutely everything else, including his paci.

Cooper's personality continues to become more apparent as he gets older. He loves to laugh and play more than anything. Everything makes him smile, and I've learned that just as there are different cries, there are different smiles. There's the content smile after he eats; the big gummy smile when he thinks something is funny; the mouth wide open smile that often goes with a squeal when he's really happy (like when Daddy comes home); and there's the half-smile you get when something's only a little funny (Karl and I think he gives us that one just to humor us, and we usually feel pretty dumb when we get that smile). He is very curious about new things, but he is hesitant and needs a little reassuring before he opens up to them. It looks like he might be a little shy and reserved at first, but he does warm up fairly quick.

We haven't started solids yet, and I'm planning on holding off until he's 6 months. He's doing great nursing and is growing and thriving, so we're in no hurry. He's wearing a size 2 diaper and is in 6 month clothes.

Little Man is still toothless, even though we've all thought he was teething since he was 3 months old! He chews and drools and shows every sign of cutting a tooth, so maybe soon. (maybe??)

I don't really have any dislikes to report. He seems to like his car seat finally and doesn't pitch a fit anymore when we're in the car (makes traffic much more bearable!). I guess the only dislike for him is naps. For the most part, he either fights going to sleep or he wakes up after a short period of time and fights going back to sleep.

Splish, splash, Coop was taking his bath... Cooper loves his bath time, but not in a splish-splash kind of way. He has ones of those baby tubs that has a newborn side and an infant side. He's still on the newborn side until he can sit on his own. The newborn side is angled, and he likes to slide down it so his head (not face) is in the water and his knees are bent up. His belly pokes out of the water, and it's pretty cute. He could stay like that all day! After I bathe him, I pour water over his belly to keep it warm, and he just smiles and relaxes. It's precious!

Snooze News... I wish I could report that Little Man was napping great and sleeping through the night. He's doing neither. He does take 3 naps a day, but the length of the naps varies from day to day. For the most part, he usually only gets 1 good nap each day, and the other 2 he fights at some point (either in going down or staying down). We're actually getting up with him more than ever at night because of two things: 1. He has decided that he now loves his paci and can't sleep without it. Therefore, Karl and I make several trips to Coop's crib at night to re-insert the darn paci! 2. Now that he's rolling over, we don't swaddle him anymore, and he seems to be waking himself up either by jerking or rolling around a lot more now because of that. When he starts rolling during the night, it either wakes him up and he wants to play or he knocks out his paci and gets mad. Hopefully once he's over the excitement of his new trick, he'll settle down at night. In addition to the trips to retrieve his paci for him, I only feed him once during the night though, and that's consistently around 4:00 a.m. He then gets up at 7:00 to start his day.

One more miscellaneous piece of info on my Little Man: His hair is starting to grow back! It's just coming in much, much lighter (not quite blond, but close). It still sticks up every which way, and I love that!

Cooper's 6 month birthday is next week, and I'm in shock over it! How has it already been almost 1/2 a year?!