6 Months old

I am finding that each age gets better and better! What a beautiful boy God has blessed me with.
Words that come to mind when I think of my son:
contented
joyful
happy
cheeky
intent
thoughtful
interested
alert
cuddly
placid
quiet
peaceful

He is no trouble and I am so grateful. He has come to a stage in the last few weeks of hardly crying at all... we go days and somethings a whole week before he grizzles about something.

The routine is suddenly starting to really pay off. He is getting near to the 2 up and 2 down for 6 months and it makes life so much better. Until the last few days he has been sleeping at least 2 sleep cycles per nap, even more sometimes. He does wake in the night at times, often when he is learning something, like crawling backwards, which is the latest thing! He woke at 4.30am this morning really hungry so perhaps he is having a growth spurt. It made me question how I have dropped the night feed since he was 5 3/4 months, but he can go without it. I will just up his quantity of solids and see what happens.

Jamison is taking in so much more, reaching for anything close to him, straining to get things just outside his reach and acting like a caterpillar in his sometimes frustrated attempts to crawl. He does mighty push ups on his now much stronger arms and pushes himself backwards gradually, much to his annoyance I think, as he is trying to get something in front of him!!

He giggles and laughs so much, often in response to other people's laughter. He watches me when i laugh at him and will join in. He seems very emotionally cluey at times.

He gives the most beautiful cuddles, especially when he has just got out of bed, twiddling with my hair at the base of my neck as we walk to the other room. Moments like these I will cherish always.

I am so thankful for this privilege to be Jamison's Mum.

Baby Diary: Week um....5.5 months =)

 

Wow, i haven't recorded much about my beautiful boy in a long time, but there is much change. This age is absolutely adorable, the best yet.

NURSING
Jamison is getting quicker while feeding. I thought he was off his food, but i think that he just requires less time. about 7 minutes one side and 5 the other if I am lucky. He has clamped down a couple of times and when I have said no sternly he has even started crying. Sensitivity is definitely developing! 

We are well and truly established on solids now, after starting just before 5 months. We started on rice cereal and introduced pumpkin, then broccoli and zuchinni (yuck Mum) and carrot (yummy but makes me puke). Recently tried beans (yuck Mum) and apple and today rock melon and water melon which he loved to suck on. We have used strained prunes and prune juice (home made) mixed in the rice cereal to help with bowel movements. So far loving solid poohs and how they roll off the nappy into the toilet (yes, gross I know, but when you are a Mum you really appreciate small mercies like this!). It has been satisfying introducing home cooked solids and although it requires more effort, it isn't hard at all.

We have managed to dial back the late night feed to 8.45pm and I am hoping to have it back to much earlier and hopfully dropped by the end of the month in time for a wedding. not sure how successful that will be.

It is cute how when Jamison has clearly finished nursing (pulls away and flops back and looks around and is very stiff if pulled back towards the breast!) and is burped, he starts pursing his lips and making a kissing sound which I think is his way of saying 'solids' time!

NAPS
Naps have been varied lately. They were wonderful for a while with a week or two of at least 2 2hr naps each day, then they went to one if i am lucky, but the main difference has been that it is extremely unusual for Jamison to cry in his bed at any time. Never really when going down, and only sometimes when waking before falling asleep again. He will spend quite a bit of time talking in his cot and recently having fun rolling over. Now that we are back home from visiting Grandmas he is more settled and is having on average 2 1.5hr naps and one 45minutes, but always happily staying in bed until the next feed. Unless it is mummy's work day and that is a whole other story!  He is waking contented most times which is wonderful to see, and the main aim.

WAKETIME LENGTH
Wake time lengths are at 1 hour and 45 minutes. He was managing only 1 hour and 35 for a while but seems better on longer now. The first wake time of the day is still the hardest to work out and often needs to be shorter. I am loving this more now as he doesn't have to spend as long in his bed if he doesn't sleep.

Jamison still doesn't have any time of day that he is unsettled or grumpy, a far cry from his early days. He is so contented and smiles the whole time he is awake.

NIGHTTIME
Jamison still wakes quite early sometimes after a couple of days here and there during his 4th month of waking about 3 or 4am. He doesn't do that anymore but can wake at about 5 or 5.30 and talk etc. most morning he wakes around 6 and is up by 6.30am. I have realised that waking is normal and it is best if I don't hear it so I don't get concerned!

MILESTONES

Jamison is reaching and sucking on his toes lots. He rolls over from his back to side and then to his front a lot now, particularly in bed! 

He talks continually. Interestingly he is shy around lots of others and takes a while to warm up. 

He is super duper alert!

He had his first tooth today (5.5 months). So cute.

WAKING HAPPY
Jamison wakes happy from most of his naps that are longer than one sleep cycle. Will flap hands and kick legs in excitement when he sees me and gets picked up. Will cry if he hasn’t had long enough occasionally, or has taken ages to resettle.

SWADDLING
We are still swaddling, yes back to that. Sleeping bags worked for a while, but then he just wakes and plays now. He is in a bag for night times only. I find he still needs his arms wrapped to get the message to go straight to sleep and he feels very secure in that. I'm not in any rush, although his rolling over is making it challenging as I have to keep checking on him. He normally unwraps his arms until loose and then rolls, but you can never be too careful.

OUR SCHEDULE

6.30am                 feed

8.10                        bed

10.30am               feed

12.15                    bed

2.30pm                 feed

4.15                        bed

6.30                        feed

7.30                       bed

8.45                      dream feed

for a while i was waking him at 6pm for his feed to have an earlier bed time, but have changed this to allow him more wake time and hopefully sleep til later in the morning.