7 Months Old

My sweet angel baby is 7 whole months old! This last month has been the best yet! He has been so much fun, I truly enjoy every single second I get with him. We've done so much in such a short amount of time. He's started on solids, we went on his first vacation, he went in the pool and the ocean for the first time, he's just a joy to be around!

Our little man is growing so much everyday and we love him more, I swear he learns new things everyday and no two days are the same. Just when I think I have him figured out he changes.

Here are a few highlights of the last month

• He is a pro at sitting up. While he doesn't pull himself up into that position, if you put him in a sitting position, he will stay there for a long time. 
• He still enjoys tummy time, but I think now it's because he's becoming a little more mobile, but he will play on his tummy for almost an hour...allowing me to get more things done!!
• He rolls EVERYWHERE. while he's not crawling he is definitely moving! If placed on his mat, he will inevitably end up at the other side of the room. 
• He is a very vocal child. While I'm not sure if you would call it babbling, he is making noise and screaming and just hilarious 
• He still enjoys his jumperoo but not for as long anymore
• He likes his highchair as an alternative play place. I just give him some toys and he is entertained long enough to let me get dinner on. 
• His tongue is his new favorite toy, he tries to mimic me when I make noises with my tongue...adorable
• He blows raspberries occasionally
• He still loves to stand all the time, but he doesn't take any steps yet
• He will get up on all 4s and rock back and forth...crawling looks like it will come soon!
• He loves his toys and will try with all his might to get them. 
• He studies his toys more, examining each and every part of the toy...thinkin Lincoln...
• He loves peekaboo! I play with a little blanket and he loves it...he giggles all the time
• He started on solids this month and he's not crazy about rice cereal but he likes his veggies. I've made 2 batches of food and there isn't a whole lot he doesn't like. I've only tried fruits a couple times and he's not a big fan of them...but he loves his green veggies and avacados!
• Bath time has become a lot easier...I've discovered he has to be fed and not tired and then I just sit him in the shower with me and he plays with his toy
• I've stopped carrying a pacifier because it just would tick him off if I tried to give it to him
• Sleep is a little bit more of challenge. He doesn't sleep through the night anymore, He usually goes to sleep around 8 and then will wake up around 5 for a feeding then sleep until 8 or 9. But lately he's been getting up at 1 or 2 as well...mommy is TIRED!!
• Naps are getting better. When he wakes up he's usually only up for about an hour, then has been going down for a 2 hour nap. Then is up for about an hour then goes down for another 1-2 hours!!! and sometimes will even take a 30-45 min nap late in the evening. This would be awesome if he slept through the night...but oh well
• He seems to be growing like a weed and is almost in 12-18 month clothing...where did my bebe go??

And here are a few of my favorites from his photoshoot. He was so much fun this time!!!

7 Months Old 

so playful

ADORABLE

"ooo a bear, I think I'll eat it"

Mr. Active did not last long

trying to reach for something

I love those little feet!

and once he found the sticker, it was over.

hes just so darn cute!

I'm sure there are more milestones I've forgotten but oh well. We just love our little man so much and he's growing so much! Every day we get to spend with him is truly a blessing. I know I've said it before but I just can't get enough of him! I miss him every time I'm not holding him. He's truly enriched our lives more than we could have ever imagined. We are so blessed to be his parents! 

Mommy and Daddy love you Linc man!

Rich Dad, Poor Dad

Right before we left for vacation last week, I had my monthly book club. Nikki and I hosted it and the turn out was horrible. I feel a little bummed that only 5 people came when we have almost 14 people in our group but I guess thats life for you.

So we read Rich Dad, Poor Dad as Nikki's pick. And I am a little blasé about it. It wasn't a hard read, but it was a rather boring read. To me it felt like a lot of bragging about how he made his millions and was able to retire at 47, which I wish I was able to do. But he kept talking about how he would borrow thousands from friends to make these amazing investments which is totally cool if you have friends that allow you to do that, but I for sure don't. So it was kind of a null point for me. Maybe someday Adam and I will be able to make a little more with investments that will have a larger financial outcome but for now I didn't find the book helpful at all.  It did have a few helpful pointers but is not worth a full read...
I rate this one as a 4/10

6 months old...a little late

I can’t believe that as I am writing this my baby boy is almost 7 months old.  The month of April went by way too fast. So fast that I never really got a chance to sit down and write about his 5^th into 6^th month.

Lincoln is still changing daily and acquiring new skills each and every day. It is the greatest gift to get to see him learn these new things; it makes me incredibly grateful that I am able to be home with him 4 days a week. I honestly don’t know how people who work 5 days a week do it. I would be so depressed and feel like I’m missing out on my child’s life.  I just wish we were at a point where I only had to work part time which would only be 2 days a week…damn you sallie mae!...

Well at his 6 month appointment Lincoln got rave reviews, he even sat up and laid on his Tummy for his doctor!! He was quite impressed since at his 4 month appointment Lincoln threw a fit when he tried to get him to lay on his stomach.

Here is a list of his highlights, I am going to try to remember what he accomplished at the 6 month mark and not beyond that.

• He sleeps about 8-9 hours regularly at night, only to wake up to eat then sleep another 3-4 ;) He goes down around 8:30-10 and then will sometimes sleep until 9 or 10 am the next day (with the morning feeding) Love having a child on my sleep schedule!!
• He had not started solids yet, and was breastfeeding about every 3 hours consistently while awake.
• Although he hasn’t started solids yet, he is growing increasingly interested in our foods as we eat, in fact if you were to drink anything around him he would GRAB it almost out of your hand!!!
• Everything and I mean EVERYTHING goes into his mouth! Being a nurse this is the most nerve wracking thing ever. I am constantly wondering when I last washed things because of all the germs that I could potentially bring into the house!
• He loves the outdoors! If he’s fussy I just take him outside and he immediately calms down.
• He is all smiles all the time. He is rarely fussy, if he is it’s because he’s tired, hungry or needs a diaper change.
• He is most interested in our drinks, and I’ve been trying to get him to drink from a sippy cup, but haven’t been that successful yet. All I put in it is water, but he still seems most interested in “chewing” on it than anything else.
• Bath time is becoming more of a challenge. He doesn’t love showers anymore and is too big for the infant tub. I tried to put him in the bumbo and that seemed to be a little better…then I just put him directly in the tub with a small amount of water and that seemed to be the best.
• He has finally mastered the rolling over multiple times. Although he has been rolling over for a couple months, it was  usually only once or twice. Now he rolls multiple times on his mat, but its usually just back and forth.
• He does this move that I have termed the superman where he pulls his legs and arms up so he is just on his belly then he will pull himself to a new direction. 
• He actually LIKES tummy time now. For so long I dreaded tummy time and honestly didn’t do it that often, now he will lay on his tummy playing for around a half hour or so!
• He still loves his jumperoo. It’s my no fail, go to when I need to get things done around the house!
• He has started to sit up. It's more of a tripod thing where he has his legs out then his hands in the middle and it doesn't happen for long periods of time, but he still does it for a few minutes at least. 
• I’ve started putting him in his highchair just to get him accustomed to it, so when we would start feedings he will more ready for it. I just put some toys on the tray and let him play.
• He is amazing in the car! He falls asleep almost every time he is in there! Its so nice when I have somewhere to go and I know he is tired, I know he can get at least a 30 minute nap.
• Nap times are the devil. He rarely takes them. I’m lucky if I get a 30 minute nap a couple times a day. He will not sleep longer than that unless we are in the car. Plus putting him down for a nap is like torture and breaks my heart. It’s so obvious he is tired but will scream and cry for like 20 minutes, then when he finally does fall asleep he’s only asleep for 30 minutes. Its exhausting me at times 
• He has started to rub his eyes when he is tired...so freaking cute!
• He had his first non well visit doctor appointment. He had this weird rash on his head and couple places on this neck and body, I called the doc and they wanted me to bring him in. I had to give him a steroid cream to get rid of it. But its gone!
• He is still "babbles" all the time, when reading the books I'm not sure if it's the syllables they say it is but he makes a lot of noise and giggles and "sings" so I'm sure it has to be along the same lines. 
• When you talk to him he will occasionally turn his head when you say his name...

I’m sure I’m missing some milestones especially since I waited so long to write this. Hopefully I’ll get better next month. But it’s so hard to find the time when I have to go back and forth between my house and my parents house (they watch little man while I work and Adam is out of town).

He also had his 6 month check up and did great with it!

• He weight 17 lbs 3 oz
• He is in the 40% for weight.
• He was 27 ½ inches long
• He is in the 75% for length.

**I think she miss-measured him because once she left I got him to be 28 inches…but oh well :) 

Ok and here is his monthly photo shoot. This photo shoot more than ever do I feel like he is a mini me. For those that think he looks like Adam, I'm sorry but no he just doesn't. 

This photo shoot was on Easter sunday and I had worked the night before and we were at my parents house all day so it took place around 9:30 pm and he was beyond tired...this was the reasons for the crankiness. 

Well my baby boy, we love you more and more each day if that is even possible. Thank you for being such a ray of sunshine in this crazy life we have!!!

Sarah's Key

I officially am not very good at doing a monthly post about my bookclub reads. In my defense having a baby made my priorities a little different and I found it hard to have the extra time or desire to sit down and keep up with these posts but its about time I do.

Last night we met and discussed our March book. But I will first give reviews on the other books we've read.

In September we read Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson. I originally didn't get this post done right after book club because I still had 2 or so chapters to read. Then I finished it, and 2 days later baby boy arrived. But this book was interesting. It was an odd story that didn't really go anywhere and wasn't exactly a page turner or anything, but you became invested in the characters and wanted to see where the story went. However I felt the ending was a bit rushed and awkward.
Rating 8/10

October our book was Bossypants by Tina Fey. Being that I had a newborn during this one, I listened to most of it. This was actually a fun book to listen to because it was narrated by Tina Fey herself and it was fun to hear the reflections in her voice and stuff. I honestly didn't love this book. It was my first biography and for me it was a jumbled mess. I liked the overall story of her life, but I felt like she jumped in time a lot, like would talk about teenage years, then snl, then back to early twenties, then talk about 30 rock but then come back to SNL stuff. It was as though she had all these thoughts and just couldn't organize them. However it was very funny at the same time!
Rating 6/10

November was The Persian Pickle Club by Sandra Dallas. I first have to say that I LOVED this book. It's a murder mystery book that takes place in the middle of nowhere in Kansas. This book was very well written and really captivates you and you really begin to love each of the characters and become invested in the story. Once I finally got around to actually reading it, it was a fast and easy read. I really recommend this one!
Rating 8/10

December/January was It Ain't all about the Cooking by Paula Deen. I've been a huge fan of Paula for years! I have all her magazines, and I actually bought her biography years ago, but had just not taken the time to actually sit down and read it. What I loved most about the book was how honest she was, to the point of telling us that she would let her bird just defecate all over her apartment, and then her apartment became infested with cockroaches, and they were even in her bed! EEK! This woman has risen above a lot of obstacles in her life to become such a success! I love her even more. In fact Adam  and I tried to get into her restaurant when we were in savannah last year but we didn't want to sand in line for hours. Hopefully we will get to when we go back next month!! My only complaints about the book was the last 2 chapters, they took forever to get through and I wasn't much a fan of all the stupid details she added. I know why she added them, because I'm sure she was asked the same questions over and over, but it just made for a painful end of the book. So because of the ending my overall satisfaction with the book went down.
Rating 8/10

For February we read The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. For me this was a very interesting story but was also extremely frustrating when it came to the characters. This story is about a couple who in the 60's ended up having twins. The father is a doctor who delivers the twins and while his wife is under anesthesia he tells his nurse to take the daughter to a shelter because she was born with downs syndrome. The nurse tells him at first that she will do that, but then has second thoughts and takes the daughter and moves to another city and raises her as her own. The father tells the mother that the daughter died, and the mother suffers from alcoholism and depression for most of her life because of it. Both of these characters are extremely frustrating in how they handle things and it was almost at times annoying to read. You wanted to just reach in the book and strangle them! But at the same time it kept your interest and kept you wanting to know what was going to happen and if the mom was ever going to find out the truth about her daughter.
Rating 7/10

In March we read Sarah's Key by Tatiana De Rosnay. I absolutely LOVED this book. Not in the way that I loved the story but in the way that you just loved each main character and it kept your interest. Every time you thought you knew where the story would end, it would take another turn. It was extremely well written and a beautiful tale of the the WWII in France and the Vel D Hiv. The roundup of French Jews in WWII. It was heartbreaking, made you want to cry but also made you love many of the characters for their spirit and love. The story is told from the perspective of a child who was part of the round up during 1942 but then also about a woman who discovers the child's story in 2002. Just overall a great book! Highly recommend!!
Rating 9/10!

I am going to try and get better about these book reviews, but it seems like every time I try something gets in the way! Oh well. Enjoy reading!

5 Months Old

Last week my sweet angel baby turned 5 months old! Time is just flying and I fall more and more in love with little man every day if that is at all possible.

This last month has been the best ever. He is so much fun!! He wakes up every morning with a huge smile on his face and laughs and just melts my heart each day. I truly feel fortunate that I am able to be there everyday when he wakes up since I'm usually coming home from work about the time that he will wake up. It's the best part of my day.

He is at such a fun stage right now, really interacting with us and becoming more and more social. The best part is how smiley he is. If someone would have told me I would have such a happy baby after he was first born I would have told them they were crazy! I'm so glad we are past the colic!!! Having him be such a happy baby now, makes all those stressed out, worrisome evenings worth it.

Here are the highlights from the last month:

• He smiles CONSTANTLY! you look at him, say his name, say hi, or just make faces at him he will smile his big toothless grin. It's just precious!
• He also is still a very laughy baby. he laughs at you for no reason sometimes too!
• He loves to stand. He always looks so proud of himself when he does it too! (obviously it's with help from us!) He almost prefers to stand than anything else!
• He's rolled over a few times, though he's really not too interested in it. He likes being on his side. He will roll to his side and just lay there. Several times I've gone to check on him and hes just sleeping on his side!
• He now is able to be placed on your hip and pretty much is content just staying there!
• He LOVES the outside. We've been blessed with several 70+ degree days in February/March (who would have thought) and he just loves it out there! I've taken him on several walks and he is so content!!!
• He LOVES his jumperoo. He gets all excited and it's so fun to watch his little feet move so that he can just jump away. 
• He is still singing. Its music to my ears!
• He's still not a huge fan of tummy time, and I know I need to get better at it, so he's not so good on his tummy. He doesn't really hold himself up yet with his arms while on his belly, but maybe with some practice he will be able to. I just have a hard time putting him on his tummy when I know it makes him so mad! 
• He reaches for things when you put them in front of him. 
• He doesn't really like his pacifier unless he is super tired. but he will reach for it and put it in his mouth. Although its usually just to chew on it. 
• When given a toy of some sort he will immediately bring it to his mouth
• He sometimes will mimic or try to mimic you. 
• Hes liking bath time more and more, and will kick his legs when in the water
• He will sleep about 12 hours a night, sometimes waking up once bc he  needs his pacifier or to just be held for a moment
• He had his first trip to the doctor other than a well visit or for vaccines. He had an infection in his eyes that we had to treat with eye drops...let me tell you how much fun that was...and he had this weird rash on his head, looked almost like ringworm, but turns out it was like eczema that we put a cream on a couple times a day and now its gone!
• He is also VERY congested! We have to use the saline and sucker thing several times a day to get all his snot out! We've actually gone back to him sleeping in the rock n play because he can sleep at a 45˚ angle which allows for better sleeping and less congestion in the morning!
• He is now feeding about every 4 hours, sometimes it's still 2.5-3 but I think thats more based on how much milk I have. My supply can really vary, and I think that it can affect how much he is able to get during a feeding. 
• He now only eats once though after I leave for work and bed time! which is really nice!
• He has started to put himself to bed around 8-9 instead of 11, I'm sure my mom and dad are pleased with this!!!
• He is starting to outgrow his 6 month clothes! Looks like mom is going to have to go shopping soon!!! (its the only kind of shopping I enjoy!)

Lincoln is such a blessing to us. He has shown Adam and I what unconditional love truly is. Best of all he has taught Adam patience. We both feel so very blessed to be his parents. Sometimes it brings me to tears when I think of how God has chosen us to be his parents, like how did we get so lucky?

Yesterday I took him to the doctor for another one of his shots the PVC, I have chosen to split up the vaccines because like i've said before, while I think it's imperative that children are vaccinated, I just think that they are given too many at once. He did really well with this vaccine although I did give him a little tylenol before and twice afterwards. His fever only got up to 99.8 this time and he seemed to handle that a lot better!

I was also able to get his 5 month photo shoot in. Now this was a challenge this month because I worked both the day before and after his 5 month "birthday" and Adam was out of town so he was staying at my mom's house. But no worries crazy mama was in full swing and I got him up at my mom's, fed him, and then drove back to my house to get the pictures, then drove back to mom's house put him down for a nap, and then went to lay down myself. 

I don't know why I am so neurotic about this pictures, but I want them to all be in the same places so we can truly get a good Idea of how much he changes each month. I get made fun of a lot for this but I honestly don't care! I think years down the road I will be happy I did it!

So here are those precious photos!

I love this little man so much!!! Happy 5 months baby!!