Baby Z’s 6 month update!

Whew! Where has the time gone?

Between sleep deficient nights and busy summer days both time and energy to update you all on the cuteness that is Baby Z has eluded me.  He is now halfway between 6 and 7 months, and is so cute I almost can’t handle it.

Eating:

Breastfeeding has been an emotional roller coaster for us.  But, I am happy to say that we have stuck with it.  At 6 months I have officially breastfed Baby Z longer than either of my two other boys.

I have struggled with low milk supply since the very beginning, and after Baby Z’s very low initial weight gain, have been supplementing with formula.  We now have him down to just one formula bottle per day!   He is still on the skinny side, but his doctor, who I’ve mentioned before is very pro breastfeeding doesn’t seem concerned.

This month we also started solid foods!  And when I say solid foods, I mean the real stuff, like you and I eat.  I’m happy to say that we are now those parents who I used to look at in restaurants and think, “What are those parents doing feeding their baby a slice of steak?! The kid doesn’t even have teeth. The kid is going to choke and die! Someone really ought to report them to CPS.”  ….And we are now “those” parents. 🙂

Baby-led weaning is the name of the game!  I’m going to save the “what the heck is baby-led weaning” for another post, but suffice it to say right now baby loves: tilapia, cucumbers, steak, pears, bananas, sweet potatoes, and sautéed red bell peppers.  He is ambivalent about carrots, is allergic–or sensitive to–avocados (like his daddy and one of his brothers), and really dislikes (plain) potatoes.

He is also totally jealous whenever he sees me drinking out of a cup or water bottle.

Weight: around 16 lbs. Mom brain. Can’t remember exactly. 25th percentile. *Update: I learned the other day that according to the WHO infant growth chart for breastfed babies he is actually just under the 50th percentile! Yay!

Height: 27 inches. 75th percentile.

Sleep:

Oh sleep, sleep, how I long for you!  Actually, knock on wood, things are starting to look up in the sleep department.

At 3 months our darling little man learned how to roll over from his back to his belly making swaddling at night (which put baby almost instantly to sleep)…dangerous.

From the first night we stopped swaddling until just two nights ago night time and naptime have been just short of sheer torture.  It is at these times when our happy-go-lucky baby turns into a little gremlin.

Gone were my relaxing evenings, and gone was my time to blog.  Instead, I spent 1 1/2 emotionally exhausting hours doing everything I could possibly think of to help my baby drift off to the Land of Nod.

Development:

This little guy is on the go!  After learning how to roll over, he quickly figured out that he could roll to pretty much wherever he needed to go.  Soon he was not only rolling, but also doing a little backwards scoot on his belly.  I’d put him down on the floor to play, leave the room for 30 seconds and return to find him at the opposite end of the room!

Like his big brothers Baby Z first consistently sat up unassisted at 5 1/2 months.  He’s also been getting up on his hands and knees and rocking back and forth in preparation for crawling for a few weeks.  And, just yesterday he started crawling! Like, all over the place!

Baby Z’s a pretty sneaky little baby.  He likes to practice his new tricks when his mama’s back is turned.  There have been three occasions when he’s been playing on the floor on his belly, I’ve gone to do something, and when I returned he was sitting up!  Sneaky little devil!

He loves to chew on anything he can get his hands on, and loves to play his xylophone!

Personality:

Baby Z is a busy body!  This little man is interested in everything and everyone.  Much like our first child he is very outgoing and loves it when strangers smile and coo at him.

People often remark at what a happy, mellow baby he is.  I thank Heaven for this! LOL We’ll see what the future brings for his personality, but for now this mellow mama really appreciates having a fairly mellow baby.

Baby Z absolutely adores his older brothers.  A frequent smiler, Baby Z smiles at just about everything, but it takes a big brother to really get him to laugh.

He is ever drooling, but don’t think that’s going to stop him from grabbing your ears and giving you a slobbery, open-mouthed kiss right on the nose.  Cute, but Ewww!

He’s also a lover of giving loves!

….and as you can see from all these pictures, Baby Z rarely wears clothes. 🙂