C is now 5 months old and growing so very quickly! He still doesn't like to roll (and hasn't done that much of it), but is learning to scoot while on his back. He makes it pretty far too! His sitting skills are improving as well, and he has done the tripod position a couple of times recently. He knows the universal sign for "pick me up" - arms up when someone walks near him. He also looks for his big brother in the carseat every time he gets in the car. He likes to talk and doesn't scream nearly as much now. He has been teething for over a month now, but no sign of those pearly whites except for all the drool. lol. He puts his paci in and out of his mouth by himself, is starting to play with toys (especially the ABC Leap Frog), and LOVES being outside. He's doing great at daycare, though I think he misses Mommy (who wouldn't?!?) because his sleeping has become much more fragmented. At 3.5 months, he would sleep a 5-6 hour stretch, and then another 3-4 hour stretch - I can totally work with that. But then he had a cold, and then a growth spurt, and then we moved, or something. And now that I'm working full time as of this week, he wakes every 1-3 hours all night long. I'm trying the No Cry Sleep Solution, but that requires me to be at least a little awake to comfort him without nursing. And quite frankly, I'm EXHAUSTED! I can barely wake up enough to get upstairs and let him nurse before I fall asleep again. It's just easier. But I know it's not the long-term solution for any of us, so hopefully I can get a little more rest this weekend and start again next week. The other thing that really helped him sleep was being swaddled, but he has out-grown his sleep sack and manages to get his arms out of the swaddle. Hmmmm.... But the biggest new thing happened last night - C had his first rice cereal! We waited a bit longer than with R (an extra month on the cereal), and will not be rushing to other baby food. I'd like to wait until 6 months, but he loved the cereal so much, we may start just shy of the 6 month mark. With each bite, he would open wide just like a baby bird. You'd think he'd done this before. LOL. There's still some tongue thrusting going on, but he's sitting well in the high chair and seems to get it. He likes being with us at the table too and is always grabbing whatever is in my hand. We'll keep playing with it for awhile before it becomes a regular thing.
R is also growing by leaps and bounds too. He's done well with the move, though the day we disassembled all the furniture and the swingset, he had a bit of a meltdown. But after re-assembly, he's been fine. He likes this house better because 1) he has a cool tree to climb, 2) he has boys right across the street to play with, and 3) the drive to and from school is shorter with less traffic. We haven't sold the old house yet, so we'll see what happens when we go to say our final goodbye to the house (which I'm very sad about, though I definitely love our new house). He has finally been allowed to see Star Wars and loves it. He knows the names of the places and characters much better than I do already. He was skipping naps at school so he could do more lessons, but that plus tball has been too much. A sleep-deprived R is not a nice kid. So, we're waiting til next school year to try that again. He has REALLY been enjoying t-ball. He really seems to get it, and tends to pay attention more than he did in soccer. I think some of it is just having had the experience of playing a sport before, but he really seems to like baseball and tries really hard. I'm glad he's enjoying it. We're trying to figure out a new way to motivate him - pebbles just aren't as exciting, and quite frankly there are not enough hours in the day to let him watch any TV when he does earn the pebbles. I would like him to take more personal responsibility (like, knowing where he took off his shoes since he no longer puts them by the door like he's supposed to), but he's really pushing his limits and wanting a lot of extra help. I guess all the time spent taking care of the baby is adding up in his mind. But he's still a super creative kid and has decided he wants to be an artist. I told him I needed his help tonight packing his suitcase for an upcoming trip, and he said, "But I'm not a very good packer. I just want to be an artist!". LOL. He also likes listening to the news in the car, and he's really paying attention. He asks questions far beyond his years. And that's us in a nutshell. Just doing the daily juggle while still trying to find time to enjoy each other. The boys are changing so fast. I wish I could slow them down!
