Starting solids

We wanted to wait until he was 6 months before introducing solids. A lot of the research I did said there is no rush, especially if they are nursing successfully, to begin feeding them food. I also figured that it was going to be a lot more work once we do start feeding him so I just wasn't in a hurry.

We started with rice cereal on Saturday afternoon and he was in to it for the first few bites because he didn't know what it was and we were trying to put something in his mouth. And since he loves to put EVERYTHING in his mouth he opened up wide. After a few bites I think he figured out that it really doesn't taste like much and doesn't give him any relief with the teething so it took some coaxing to get him to eat it.

I'm going to keep up with just rice cereal for a few weeks since it is fortified with iron and then introduce an additional meal a day of something fun like sweet potatoes. When we do I'd like him to continue eating rice cereal for breakfast since I know it has the specific amount of iron he needs. Apparently infants start to loose the iron they stored up in the womb at 6 months and if they don't get formula (that has iron supplements) then breast milk isn't enough.

...at first he was more interested in eating his bib...

 ...the first few bites he was totally down...

...then he just got weird...

6 months

 ....and then he got curious...

Holy half a year old already!?!?  I'm cherishing every moment with this little guy because just like everyone tells me, "it goes by so fast".

So what's our little peanut butter doing these days, well....

• The biggest news that everyone already knows is that he has his two bottom teeth. They were a *itch coming in. For a good week he was waking up a few times in the middle of the night screaming and I wasn't really sure what to do...do I go in there and nurse him, do I pat his belly and tell him to go to sleep or do I let him cry it out. I hate to say it, but I pretty much just let him cry it out. I didn't want him to get used to waking up again at midnight or 1am and nursing, so I did what worked for me ;)
• He loves his morning nap. I'll put him in his crib wide awake around 10am and within a few minutes he's sound asleep with minimal to no crying or fussing. He loves his little dog blanket thingy and he'll take it and throw is over his face and fall asleep. He'll sleep anywhere from 2-3 hours. His afternoon nap is not so good. It's never more than 30 minutes and he is usually pretty fussy for about 10 minutes or so until he falls asleep. We've got to keep working on that one.
• We put him down to bed between 6:30-7pm and he sleeps for a solid 9-10 hours. He wakes up between 3:30-5am, I nurse him and he goes back down and wakes up for the day between 7-8am. I really don't mind nursing him at that time because by then I've got a solid block of 4-5 hours of sleep and then get another couple of hours. And I love how sleepy and cozy he gets in my arms at that time and will fall right back asleep, I know those days are numbered.  And oh how crazy it sounds that I feel well rested after 4-5 hours of sleep....However, after we start feeding him solids I'm going to give him a few more weeks to get the hang of it and start getting a full belly before bedtime then he's going to have to start sleeping entirely through the night....we started solids yesterday, pictures to come.
• He's sitting up so well. I can leave him completely alone and he can play with stuff that's right in front of him but when he goes to try and reach for something far away he falls that way. I can see noticeable improvement every day, though. 
• He's trying his darnedest to roll over. He goes from his belly to back no problem but he still needs a little umph to get from his back to his belly. I have walked out of the room or not been paying attention a few times and he ends up on his belly but he was under his little floor gym and I'm pretty sure he grabbed something to help give him that edge. 
• He loves, loves, loves his jumper. He gets crazier and crazier in there every time we put him in it; jumps around like a maniac and squeals with happiness. The cutest thing is that he'll jump, then stop and look at me. Make sure I'm paying attention then laugh and jump again. He'll do this over and over again.

And here are some pictures from the past few weeks:

 ...trying his darnedest to roll over...

Caiden's 6-month check-up

Seriously...more shots. At least we have 3 months until the next round, and he only has to get one next time! It's really the sadist thing you'll ever see. The poor thing has no idea what's even coming and then BAM!, four shots, two in each thigh. The first two he didn't even care about and acted like nothing happened, just kept blabbering and blabbering. Then when she got to the second leg and she did the first one he finally figured out what was happening and the crying started. It didn't last long this time, only for about 10 seconds, then he was over it. Not nearly as bad as the last time.

He was a real peach at the appointment. Talking, making a complete disaster out of the paper liner on the bed and trying to eat Dr. Roberts stethoscope.

He weighed 18 lbs. 10.5 oz. (70th percentile), 26.75 inches long (55th percentile) and his head is still in the 91st percentile. The doc said everything looked great and he'll see us again in 3 months.

Spoiled rotten

There's something to be said about being the first grand baby...on BOTH sides of the family. But when it starts trickling down to the great aunts, then you know your are extra special spoiled.

My Aunt Sue sent another little package in the mail for Caiden, for no reason other than 'because'.

Love you, Aunt Sue!

Not one tooth, but TWO!

That's right-- he's got two teeth popping through. He was being really fussy tonight while I was nursing him right before he goes down for the night and he's usually really chill and half sleeping but tonight was a different story. I stuck my finger in and BAM! there they were. His bottom right is already through and you can feel the jagged edge, the left you can only see it through the gums but it will be here any day. On Tuesday and Wednesday he kinda went on a nursing strike so I figured something was up and they say that can happen when they are teething-- Don't worry grandparents, he was back to normal eating just fine today. These chompers are going to come in real handy when we start feeding him solids in a few weeks!

I took a gazillion pictures trying to show them but unless you know exactly what you're looking for and you can zoom in really, really close you probably won't be able to see it.

UPDATE TODAY, THURSDAY 1/17/2013---
Here's another picture I was able to take today of his teeth. I was in the kitchen and had some good light...and he was crying and I realized that when he cried he showed his bottom gum line really well...haha, so I took my opportunity!

Haircut

We gave Caiden a haircut this weekend. The hair on the sides of his head was just looking ridiculous and the top was so long it just looked stupid. A month or so ago we trimmed the sides but this time we just decided to take it all off. He didn't mind the experience until we put a pretty short guard on the clippers to do the sides then he did not like the feeling against his head...well, just take a look...

...and then it all started going downhill...

The finished product! I think we'll need to trim that top off here soon too, but till then here's what he looks like.

5 months

A few quick updates on Mr. Max:

• He is saying "mamamama" ALL the time. I've been saying it to him for months now and just a few weeks ago he started saying it back. It's really the cutest thing ever. Now Marc is trying to teach him "papa".
• He is sucking on his hands and rubbing his chin a lot. We think his gums could be starting to bother him but there are no signs of teeth in his mouth yet. Sometimes I wonder if he will get his entire fist in his mouth. 
• Over Christmas he did manage to roll from his back to his tummy but he was a guided a bit. He was doing his usual arching of the back trying to roll and I ran my fingers up his back and he totally squirmed because it tickled and he rolled. Everyone was there watching and we all got so excited and were cheering him on then he got scared and started crying...haha. That was the only time he's rolled over besides going from his tummy to his back.
• He his sleeping pretty well at night. He's going down between 6-7 and usually doesn't wake up until between 3-5. Then will sleep for another 3-4 hours. I can't wait until he sleeps until 6 or 7 and I can get a full nights sleep. That probably won't happen until we start feeding him solids, which isn't going to be until 6 months. 
• He's grabbing at everything you put in front of him. He's starting to enjoy all the toys that have a rattle in them and will shake the heck out of it. 
• He loves his jumper, his toes can finally reach the floor and he really gets in to all of the different toys attached to it. This thing will be around for awhile.
• He's starting to read and write...well not really, but you get the picture. ;)