Signed, sealed, delivered

As you can see, Henry's aunt Jess and uncle Tim unsuccessfully attempted to pack up and steal their favorite little nephew in the process of moving-prep this Tuesday. While I'm sure they would take good care of him, it's probably best that Henry and his bumbo seat went home with me instead of boxed up into Jess and Tim's new place.

The packing fun and photo shenanigans took place on Tuesday, when Henry and I enjoyed a very nice visit and lunch with the newlyweds, plus Henry's grandmother and great-grandmother. We spent some time eating out in Northampton after the others packed a bit (let's face it, I'm pretty useless when Henry's around), and then Henry got spoiled by his female relatives. We went into a toy store and Henry picked out his favorite items by responding with lots of smiles and some shrieks of excitement when I held up the ones he liked best. I hadn't tried this with Henry before, since he has plenty of toys; but, I might be tempted to take him toy shopping more, since it was so fun seeing what he reacted to most strongly. He definitely has preferences at this point. On Tuesday his strongest preference was for a little monkey, banana and all. I guess his fruit preferences have transferred to his stuffed toy preferences.

Another fun activity this week was the baby signing class that Henry and I attended today. While he's still a little young to start making the signs himself--this typically begins around the age of eight months--now is a great time for Henry's caregivers (ie. me and Brian) to start reinforcing the hand signs along with verbalizations for specific words. My main interest in the signing is to help Henry be able to communicate when he's hungry, full, or sleepy. And likewise to convey to him when it's time to eat or go to sleep. We learned a bunch of other signs as well, and I hope to be consistent in using them. As our instructor pointed out today, the use of signing in babies is associated with higher IQ scores, more rapid acquisition of verbal language (contrary to what one might assume), and larger vocabulary than non-signing children lasting through age three. Seems worth a shot.

Tonight when Brian and I ate dinner, we placed Henry in his high chair and let him play with a sippy cup. He seemed to really like using the cup, which is interesting since he shows very little desire to use either a bottle or a pacifier. Maybe it was related to the fact that he was in his high chair, and he clearly understands that when he's in the high chair he gets to put tasty things in his mouth (now including pureed pears).

Bananas for Henry

Henry's world of taste is beginning to expand. This weekend, he had bananas for the first time. This was his introduction to the wonders of fruit. Unlike me, Henry loved his bananas. The alternate title of this entry was going to be "Guess how much I love you," because mushing up grossly ripe bananas is pretty high on my banana-hating list of things to do. I only eat them in banana bread form. Henry, on the other hand, gobbled down half of a mushed banana without any problem, and probably would have eaten more had I offered it. I had intended to introduce Henry to avocado this week--after being certain that the bananas weren't causing any sort of allergic reaction--but instead I enjoyed some guacamole from the perfectly ripe fruit tonight. It would have gotten over-ripe if I'd waited to introduce it after the banana phase ends. Maybe I'll buy another avocado to ripen for him later this week. Or maybe I'll plan on sweet potato. Or carrots. Or applesauce. So many possibilities! I love thinking about what I'm going to start feeding Henry, and actually watching him taste things. He clearly gets a lot of enjoyment from eating (like mother, like son). And it's fun to think about what his food experiences will be. For example, I never tasted an avocado until I was in my 20s, and Henry will have eaten some before he can even talk.

I also love the thought of preparing different foods for us as a family, which includes my goal of not buying any formula or baby food for Henry. It feels ambitious right now, but hopefully do-able. My plan is to at least attempt to continue breastfeeding him until he's a year old, and to also prepare my own baby food for him. It seems easy enough to make the food if one has enough time in the day, which I do, since I'm home with him. Almost five months down, seven to go!

On the road again

Henry and I are on the road again-- in the jogging stroller. For those who may be keeping track of us in the "Momma Miles" section, we were forced to take a little more time off lately than we would have liked. First, because it was too darn hot to bring Henry out for runs. Air quality reports kept stating the danger of having young kids outside, so we took a short break for that reason. And just as we were about to return to the track, we were sidelined by a little injury of sorts. Not a running-related injury, but a painful breastfeeding situation called a clogged milk duct. Sounds innocent enough, but I haven't experienced pain like that since the early days of nursing Henry. Oh, and then it rained for days on end. At least that was how it felt earlier this week. Happily, today was gorgeous, so we went out for a nice "long" run in the neighborhood. After taking Henry to the track for our runs thus far, this week I ran twice with him on the roads. It's a nice change from circling the track, but a wake-up call to just how challenging it can be to push a jogging stroller on terrain that is not pancake-flat. A 17-ish pound baby plus a heavy jogging stroller on even the slightest of inclines feels like quite a feat. I think I'll have quads of steel by the time fall rolls around if I keep running with Henry on the roads.

Later today, after a lovely, two-hour long walk with one of our mom/baby friends, Henry and I continued to relish the beautiful afternoon in our backyard. I took lots of photos of the cute little fella. He was very interested in the grass during this time in the yard. He's felt it before, but appears to find it more fascinating now that he's exploring everything more with his hands. Henry seemed a little perplexed, though, that he couldn't further explore by grabbing the grass and putting it in his mouth. He didn't quite realize that he'd need to tug harder to pull the grass out of the ground. Not to mention, he'd need to evade his momma's efforts to keep the grass out of his mouth.

Sleep is for babies

Henry has decided that sleep, and particularly napping, is for babies. Trouble is, he seems to have forgotten that he's a baby. The past few weeks, getting Henry down for a nap has been a particular challenge. And his sleeping through the night has been spotty. What happened to our super sleeper?

The answer may be both literal and figurative--he woke up. Henry has in many ways awoken to the world around him. He's always been curious and aware, but this cognizance of all that surrounds him has grown by leaps and bounds lately. Henry not only wants to check everything out visually, he also wants to touch it and taste it (everything goes in his mouth). Right NOW. Not after a nap.

I love the fact that he's so interested in his world, but the fact is, a non-napping baby is like a silently ticking time bomb. It's only a matter of time before that clock runs out and all hell breaks loose. Sound extreme? Yes, but if you've ever been around an overtired baby, you know what I mean. Prior to having Henry, I would have thought that the more tired a baby is, the more likely he or she is to actually fall asleep and stay asleep. And I would have been wrong, because a tired baby is nothing like that. A tired baby only becomes less and less likely to sleep, and often sleeps restlessly when they finally do go down for a snooze. It's a vicious, vicious cycle. A tired baby does not like being tired though, so a tired baby is also a cranky baby. Therefore, I have spent the better part of today trying desperately to convince Henry that he does want to nap. I pulled out all my tricks--bouncing, nursing, lullaby music, more bouncing, pattting on the back, rocking, reading books, more nursing, cuddling, sitting in the swing, and so on. As that list might suggest, I've had little luck. The boy simply did not want to sleep.

Some things that he did want to do:

Knock over his play mat. Henry's had fun kicking at the supports on the play mat since he first began using it. We figured it was only a matter of time before he finally succeeded in bringing down the house. We were right. For those confused by this picture, let me explain. The mat under which Henry lies is intended to lay flat on the floor. The rainbow and leaf print arches are intended to be located above Henry's head, not around him on the floor. He knocked the whole thing over by kicking on one of the arches repeatedly. Henry's a sweet, gentle child, but he's sure strong.



Jump around. Henry's always loved his Jumperoo, but only recently figured out the fun of bouncing enthusiastically in it.





Henry also wanted to pursue various off-limits items in his explorations today. His new favorite "toys" include the remote controls, the laptop, the sharp corner of the coffee table, and the bricks in front of our fireplace. While he's not crawling, Henry's become very proficient with the rolling, creeping, maneuvering to get where he wants. This makes sense...he's not wasting his time sleeping anymore!

A little loco

There's no doubt that having your first child makes you feel a little crazy. The lack of sleep. The immense change to your life; and change to your lifestyle that results in less style and more life. Sometimes, the craziness is expressed in public. Except suddenly, because of the little baby by your side, you don't look crazy. You just look like a person with a baby. Because everyone knows that people with babies are excused from "normal" behavior.

Take, for example, a recent remark by Brian. We were leaving the mall, and he commented that he was feeling more comfortable and less self-conscious talking to Henry in public. Brian continued to say that talking to a baby is great, because it's like talking to yourself, except no one thinks anything of it..."Look at this pretty skirt! Don't you like it Henry? You think momma should buy it? Even though it's not on sale? Really, it's that pretty? Okay, you're right, I'll buy it." Internal monologue instantly made a public dialogue.

Which leads to a second characteristic of parental baby-talk...Suddenly, one is no longer a "me" or an "I," but a "mom" or "momma." Referring to oneself in the third person seems an important component of speaking to a baby. Again, this would be another odd, attention garnering mannerism if present in someone not talking to a baby. But once you have a baby, it's par for the course.

Talking to babies also becomes an easy vehicle for triangulated conversations. One might want to ask one's husband, for example, to wash the dishes. One could, hypothetically, say aloud to the baby "Oh, Henry, we have so many dirty dishes in the sink. Maybe daddy will do them later?" Clearly, Henry doesn't care if daddy does the dishes, but mommy does. A dangerous habit, especially for those already prone to passive-aggressive behavior.

And then there are the other nonverbal behaviors that are only considered socially appropriate with a babe in arms. Like at the movies. Henry and I went to see "Mama Mia" today at the parents' program at our local theater. I loved the movie. So did Henry, because he got to be danced around the theater by me to keep him occupied while I watched. Normally, I would not get up and sway around, no matter how toe-tapping the movie, but at this movie all the mommas and babies were up out of their seats moving to the music. Maybe we should all bring babies to see musicals like "Mama Mia." It was a lot more fun that way. I guess for me, the craziness is often liberating and enjoyable.

Here's a short video of the crazy baby in the family.

Bye, bye, mad scientist

Anyone who has spent time around Henry knows he has some crazy hair. Or had some crazy hair, that is.

This morning, Brian busted out the hair trimmer and dispensed with Henry's long locks. No more jokes about his mad scientist look when the little wings stuck out from behind his ears. No more comparisons with Bozo the Clown (may he rest in peace). And, no more mullet comments. Yes, Henry had a mullet. But now that he reached the ripe old age of four-and-one-half months, Henry realized the look was out, and wanted an update.

Here are some before and after shots:





























And see how happy he looks with his new makeover?


Henry's feeling cooler not only in terms of style, but also in terms of temperature. It's been pretty steamy here again the past few days. We escaped the heat like countless other parents and young children today, by going to the mall. We're not really mall-going people unless absolutely necessary, so Henry tends to be enthralled by all of the activity, sound, and lights when we do go shopping. He gazes around with a look of wonderment, but also with some concern, like he doesn't quite feel secure being in that environment. Yesterday was another day of wonderment for Henry, as he watched the big kids play at his cousin Evan's birthday party. It appeared to be a mutual feeling, as the four- to six-year olds also found Henry pretty interesting. And as for me and Brian, we got a glimpse into the fun we'll be having with Henry's future birthday parties. Being a March baby, he probably will never have a kiddie pool and slip 'n' slide at his birthday like Evan did, but I'm sure we'll find plenty of other ways to entertain the kiddos as we celebrate the years with Henry. It's hard to believe, but I'm sure it will seem like no time at all has passed before Henry's first birthday.

King size cribs?

It appears that Henry is in need of a more spacious sleeping arrangement. Who would've guessed--given that it wasn't too long ago he was only happy sleeping in the close confines of his car seat. Why the current need for a crib upgrade? Henry is sleep creeping--the infant equivalent of sleep walking. And he creeps his way into the bumper of his crib no matter where we place him. When he manages to find his way into the bumper, Henry awakens himself and his parents, with cries of frustration. So I think if we just found a super-sized crib, maybe the larger creeping area would keep him happy?

Some readers might wonder about the logistics of how Henry is sleep creeping. Afterall, aren't we supposed to be placing him on his back to sleep at night? Well, we were diligently doing so until about two weeks ago. This turn of events coincided with our other dirty little parenting (non) secret of starting him on solids early. On a particularly wakeful night, Brian decided to try placing Henry on his belly to put him back to sleep. The kid rolls back and forth and has excellent head and neck control now, so belly sleeping didn't seem to pose a safety risk for Henry. And it appeared to work at the time, but I'd say results are mixed now. While Henry was settling himself back to sleep more successfully when we first placed him on his belly, he's now taking the opportunity to practice his rolling and creeping/crawling in his sleep at night. Why waste time just practicing new tricks during daylight hours? On one of my many, many trips to his crib last night, I found him rolling around on his back crying to the little animals on his mobile. Other trips to the crib found him scrunched head-first into the corner of the bumper, little butt in the air, desperately pushing off with his legs and trying to break through the barrier. It would be cute, if it weren't 3 am. Or 1 am. Or 5 am. Or all of the above. In one night. So what do you think, would a king size crib work? Or maybe a little baby track around the perimeter of his room, so he could do laps all night long without waking us?

Speaking of laps, Henry and I continue to make our almost daily pilgrimage to the local track, which has become a really nice routine. I definitely appreciate the time outdoors, and I think Henry does, too. It feels great to be exercising again, and to be returning to my pre-pregnancy, pre-baby self in an important way. At a time when there are so many changes to my identity, re-connecting with this part of my self feels especially gratifying. It helps me find my way into this role of a SAHM (stay at home mom) more comfortably. Thank goodness for the innovation of the jogging stroller--a big boost to my quality of life!

Congratulations, Jess and Tim!

This weekend, the little g-unit traveled to Western Massachusetts to celebrate my sister's wedding. It was a weekend of beautiful moments, happiness, and celebration. The bride looked gorgeous, the groom handsome. (Unfortunately, I don't have any pics of the two right now.) And the very personalized, unique ceremony reflected the creative personalities of the couple. As a surprise to all of their guests-- including their parents-- Jess and Tim hired a bagpiper to play as they exited the ceremony. It was quite a stunning moment, one that will surely be remembered fondly by everyone present.

Henry will not remember it, but he too was pretty surprised by the beginning notes of the bagpipe. The little trooper was present for bits and pieces of the ceremony, this being one of them. (He also attended the rehearsal dinner, in his cute Williams t-shirt shown below. Go Ephs!) By the time the wedding reception rolled around, Henry was very tuckered out. He managed to hang in there pretty well, despite the evidence in the picture above. With the help of Brian's parents, Henry was able to chill out intermittently in quiet, which helped a lot. On Sunday night, he erased any doubt of the fact of his exhaustion, when he went to sleep for the night at 6:15! This has never occurred before. He woke up a few times during the night, but didn't awaken for the day until a full 12 hours later.

By this point (Tuesday evening), Henry appears to be fully recovered. Personally, I'm still feeling a little tired out by all of the events, coupled with the fact that Henry hasn't been exhibiting his super-star sleeping skills lately. It hasn't been too bad, but he's waking up at least once a night lately. Oh well, hopefully it's just a phase. A brief phase. Very brief...

Four month report

Henry had his four-month doctor's visit this afternoon. Eagerly anticipated for learning his latest growth stats, yet dreaded for the round of vaccinations. Henry is sleeping off the vaccination trauma at the moment, though he's sure to rouse at any time and need some comforting. He was much more bothered by the shots this time, and actually started crying prior to the event, when the nurse put on the gloves to administer the shots. The good news is, Henry's continuing to grow and develop ahead of the curve. He weighs 16 pounds, 5 ounces, placing him around the 75th percentile for weight; and he measures 27 inches in length, placing him above 95% in height. I'm not sure what the head circumference measurement was, but he was pretty much off the charts as far as percentile is concerned. When I think about the percentiles, I picture my son as a lollipop--long and thin with a big head on top--which is funny since I see him constantly and know this isn't really what he looks like. Is it?!?!

We saw a different pediatrician today, who was wowed by Henry's developmental skills and size, and commented that "one could easily mistake him for a six month old." Of course this thrilled his proud momma. The pediatrician also scored points with me by endorsing my recent decision to begin Henry on solids. She said it sounds and looks like he's definitely ready for them. Henry continues to validate this decision, too. He happily gobbles his rice cereal once a day, even when I think he's already full from nursing.

That's the latest from the little g-unit. Otherwise, we're laying low and trying to beat the heat for the remainder of the day (it's 90 degrees and very humid). Henry's also resting up for his big first wedding this weekend. He can't wait to see his Aunt Jess marry his (nearly official) Uncle Tim!

Good eats for all

After much internal debate and waffling back and forth aloud to anyone who would listen, I broke down and introduced solids to Henry today. All the angst was due to the fact that there are varying opinions about the correct age at which to introduce solids-- as with anything and everything else related to parenting, of course. Henry's pediatrician gave us the go-ahead to introduce rice cereal a little while ago, and many pediatricians do support introducing solids at four months. However, there is also a significant amount of research that advocates for later introduction at 6 months, as a way to reduce the chance of allergies, asthma, and other various conditions like eczema. Weighing everything out, it seemed like maybe if I just tried giving Henry a spoonful or two of solids to gauge his readiness, there wouldn't be much harm. Henry had been showing all the signs that he was ready for solids for several weeks, and honestly, being the sole food source for a large, growing baby has been getting pretty tiresome. He still wants to be nursed every two hours, and has been waking up hungry during the night lately. So, those were my justifications for potentially being a bad mommy and dooming Henry to a lifetime of itchiness, food allergies, and/or wheezing.

This said, I think all of Henry's signs of readiness have been very real. When I whipped out the little plastic spoon, he had a look on his face like "Finally, lady! It's about time I get to try this thing out!" I only mixed a teeny, tiny amount of rice cereal for him, and it disappeared very, very quickly. With only a small amount lost to the bib. Henry couldn't get enough of the stuff. As you can see in the first video below, the smiley boy enjoyed his intro to the world of solids. This video captures his very first spoonful of solid food ever, and the resulting grin. How could you deprive a baby of such happiness?







Later this evening, Brian and I took Henry with us to our favorite Chinese restaurant, where he behaved like an angel. Apparently, the rice cereal had contented him enough to patiently watch us eat while he played with his toys. It always feels like a triumph when we have a successful meal out with our little dining companion.

A relaxing day today followed lots of action for Henry during our trip to Pittsfield on Friday and Saturday. Henry, Brian and I joined a great celebration for my grandfather's 80th birthday, where Henry also met his second cousin (or however you call the formal name for my cousin's son), Quinn. Ever the party animal, Henry missed out on virtually all of his naps for the day, putting him into a tailspin of baby insomnia for Friday and Saturday nights. The almost hourly waking cast us back to the days of early babyhood. Yaaawwnnnnn. I'm hoping that he's down for a good span of several hours tonight, and makes a return to his status as the miracle sleeping baby. Keep your fingers crossed for us...

Stand by me

How long do you think it will be before Henry learns to walk?



In the meantime, he keeps attempting to crawl, as seen below. It's going to take a little (or a lot) more practice to perfect his technique, but Henry's working on it!

Running before he can walk

Henry and I have begun a new phase in our adventures together--running! It's been about a year since I really attempted any regular exercise regimen, and even longer since I was consistent about my running. But now that I'm home with Henry full-time, my opportunities for getting in one run a day are more expansive than ever. Thanks to Brian's boss, Bob, we have a jogging stroller that Henry now fits into. I used the head adapter from one of the other strollers in Henry's fleet, just to ensure that his head doesn't wobble around too much. So far, he's been happy as a clam on our two runs together.

Running with Henry reminds me of the many outdoor adventures that I've had with my father over the years. I think that of the many gifts my father has given me, experiencing the joy of being outdoors is one of the greatest. It's truly been an integral part of my life--from the countless hours spent running on trails in the Berkshires, to skiing, hiking, and simply having the capacity to enjoy a walk or moment in nature. I'm thankful to be passing this gift along to Henry.

In an effort to keep myself motivated in my running, and to track the progress that I make in my quest to get back into shape, I've added a new element to this blog. The "Momma Miles" section in the right-hand column will consist of a record of how many daily miles Henry has "run" in his jogging stroller (walks in the stroller don't count for the tally). We're starting at ground zero here, but I'm hoping that maybe by fall I can run far enough with Henry to enter a race. I think it would be incredibly fun to cross the finish line pushing my little outdoor buddy in front of me.