Big Boy

Bastian,

We finally took you to the doctor and here are your measurements:

Weight: 19 lbs 1 oz

Height: 28.5 inches

Head: forgot, sorry!

The doctor mentioned that your weight is in the 58th percentile but she didn't say the percentile for your height. All I know is that you feel heavy and you seem to be VERY long. 12-18 month clothing fits you best these days. You aren't very "roly poly" or round necessarily, just a very sturdy boy. It's so strange to think that I birthed you! The doctor also felt that you have a heart murmur that should be further checked out by a cardiologist so we will see what they have to say. Apparently the murmur runs in Dad's family big time so we're not too worried at this point. On to pictures...

We spent Thanksgiving in Brooklyn with your aunts, uncles, and cousins. Your cousin Olivia is really a fast crawler these days so she was moving all around the house while you attempted to keep up with your tummy scoot. You have definitely picked up the pace, but alas, you are no match for Livers (as Dad calls her).

That weekend really marked a change in your eating habits I think- you began loving to munch on finger foods and your ability to move food- purees or solids- to the back of your mouth showed much improvement! Still when you eat purees, quite a bit comes out the front, but I think this has more to do with your excessive drooling, and the fact that you start to get lazy after about 5 bites.

You couldn't wait for dinner so you started snacking on a green bean here:

Clearly a very happy boy, after delving into some sweet potatoes!

Mom got sick with some sort of stomach flu the days leading up to Thanksgiving, but finally felt better just in time for the feast. But we were still pretty worn out that evening:

During the trip we discovered that you could sit up all by yourself!

I had previously been doing a lot of this (hovering behind you):

And this (propping you up with pillows):

But there is no need for propping or hovering anymore, which is very nice! I will say that the two times I have decided to sit you up on a hard surface you have fallen :( Once was at the doctor's office when I had to sit you on the floor while holding Luthien for a finger prick, and the other time was today, when Luthien decided to walk up to you and push you backwards on the hardwood floor. Other than these incidences you really are very steady! The only frustrating thing now is that you have not quite figured out that you can move out of the sitting up position (or maybe I should enjoy this while it lasts!)...You will actually sit in the same position for a long time, but as seems to be true of your personality in general, once you are done you are done, and are very vocal about it! You definitely stay put longer when I'm not around, because you always want me to pick you up and you know I won't make you wait very long :)

You are enjoying the lights and objects on our Christmas tree. It is usually still dark when you wake up in the morning and we always walk out and talk about all the lights/colors. Here are a few crazy pictures Dad took of you while Luthien and I trimmed the tree:

For a few weeks I've been trying to convince Luthien to hand down her beloved fishy hat to you, since your head has grown out of the other one we have that has ear flaps (a must have here). She finally has started "letting" you wear it which we are all very happy about. Here you are in it, looking so much older to me!

Mom's friend Kim lent you a bumbo chair which has been very helpful at the dinner table. The other day I let you have a few tastes of my raw milk- gasp!- and you went crazy for it.

You are always so serious about taking the first few bites- and you always have to be in control of the spoon. We usually end up using two or three spoons each meal so you can always hold on to one and feel like you are feeding yourself. We just fill up a spoon and switch it out as you grab for the newest one.

Here you are going for the milk, very serious (about everything, just like your Dad):

Thoroughly enjoying every taste...

Showing off maybe...?

And finally, the drunk look after you've decided you're all done :)

I mentioned before that you have some very hip new outfits given by a friend. The moose jammies (above) are another favorite, as well as this one:

Dad took this hilarious picture. He knew I wouldn't like it because he purposely accentuated your elvish ears (that your mama gave you), but it's too great to leave out.

You have always loved the vaccum- you loved the sound as a baby, and now you are so interested in the look of it, the fact that it moves, the lights, as well as the sound. This is good for Mom because I am a somewhat obsessive vaccumer. I have lately been plopping you down while I do the job, and you get very serious (again) about following my every move. Below, you started out way back on the rug behind you, crawled under the little yellow table, and made it all the way to grab on to the cord all while doing the tummy scoot maneuver.

And last but not least, one of your very favorite people. She can instantly change your mood from sad/mad to happy, overly excited, giggly- you name it. So sweet, I can't get enough of you two...

Love you my baby Bastian boy,

Mama

New York Trip

Bastian,

Here are a few pictures of you with two of your favorite Aunts while in Brooklyn for a little getaway with Mom/Luthien. Aunt Maria had a way of making you laugh that I had not seen before, and you cuddled with Aunt Shannon for the longest period of time before realizing you weren't with me. It was a fun trip and you were a good boy for most of the bus ride. You also LOVED the broccoli that Uncle Beau made, which was a first since you seem to prefer sweet things thus far.

Love,

Mom

Geared Up

Hi Bastian,

I know I'm biased but you are getting cuter by the day. Your mood, however, has not been as pleasant, and for now I am blaming it on your teething. I try not to use this excuse because it seems like moms always say their babies are teething to account for crankiness, but I think it really is true this time. You have two little teeth now on the bottom and I think two more are about to break through soon! You say "ma ma" a lot right now, and if I wasn't a speech therapist I would think you were actually making the connection, but I'm pretty sure it's babbling at this point :) But you do seem to say it when you are sad and therefore want me, so even others have pointed out that you are saying it. Here are just a few pictures of some of your winter gear.

A sweater knit by your Bobba and Nana. I'd say it definitely brings out the blue in your eyes...
A new good friend of ours gave/lent us a bunch of cute baby boy winter clothes! I have decided to put you in pajama outfits because it is so cold, they are much easier than pants, they work better with cloth diapers, and most importantly they are cuter anyway!
Your new vest, which I was really grateful for because getting things on your arms is impossible; you have always hated getting dressed. So at least this will keep your chest warm.
We love the outfit as well:
And one more, sorry I can't get enough of this vest! The little polar bear on the back is so cute because it's so simple!

Oh, I also wanted to tell you that you are sitting up very well now, with very little support needed. We give you a couple solid food "meals" per day which you get excited about but I still don't think you're quite ready for. You really don't swallow any of it, it all comes back out the front. You still love to gnaw on whole foods though, so I'm going to try cutting up large chunks of more vegetables like sweet potatoes and squash.

More of your new fashions to come...

Love you!

Mama

Dear Shannon

Thank You!!

I love my guitar onesie! It fits me perfectly and I now have 4 long sleeve shirts I can wear in this 30 degree weather we are having (but honestly AZ friends/family- we don't mind it at all!).

Dad/Rome especially loves it and he approves of the colors, and he's a tough one to please :)

Here I am rockin' out in it:

And here I look a little stunned but I wanted to show off my entire outfit:

Bastian: Mom's friend in Pittsburgh made and sent you this onesie, and as you can tell we all love it. Also, here is one more shot before bedtime, reading with Dad (yes, that's a lollipop your sister has...made of fruit if that makes it any better...!):
Love you!

Mama

Happy Birthday

Bastian,

You are officially six months and I wanted to report a couple milestones that have occurred this week! Last night I felt/saw that your first tooth has broken through your bottom gums! Dad and I had just been discussing when this might occur- your sister got her first tooth in her third month so I was thankful you waited a bit (although you had been showing signs of teething since then also).

You also started scooting! You have always done well with "tummy time" and I often put you on your tummy while I'm doing chores, cooking, or playing with Luthien because you like to look up and talk to me while in this position. This past week I noticed you would end up in a totally different spot from where I put you to begin with. Two days ago I finally caught you in action. There were toys that you wanted to play with, so you pushed up using your tippy toes and pushed forward using your forearms and knees....unbelievable (I think, for 6 months)! There was never a period of time where you became frustrated by not being able to reach something in front of you- you just figured out how to do it and did it! You are my determined boy.

I think there is another milestone that I may be missing, but I'll have to report it another day. You're probably going to wake up shortly so I should get some sleep!

Here you are eating some butternut squash we had for dinner. It's hard to tell what you do and don't like yet, you seem to want everything and have the same expression every time:

Don't worry, you're not actually eating the tootsie roll, just chewing on the outside of it, because Luthien gave it to you :)
Wildly excited by carving the pumpkin with Dad:

The quick and simple end result:
An example of your scooting here. You started out on the rug but ended up here!
I love you!

-Mom

A few more, and a sneak peek

Hi Bastian,

Just wanted to add a few more pictures from our visit with Beau/Trisha and families.

We couldn't get a good family shot at the farm that day but at least you look cute:
I love this picture of you and your Auntie Maria! She played with you for quite awhile that evening...
And here is just a shot so you can see some of our apartment. That's Uncle Tom holding Olivia and you're standing on my lap:

And without further ado.....here is the sneak peek! Thanks Aunt Trisha and Aunt Shannon for my costume!!

Love you!

Mama

Fall Family Fun

Bastian,
This past weekend your Uncle Beau/Aunt Maria/cousin Georges and Aunt Trisha/Uncle Tom/cousin Olivia came to visit from Brooklyn! We had such a great time eating delicious local seafood and playing out in the autumn air at a nearby farm. Everyone couldn't believe how good you were and asked if you ever cry... you sure do put on a good show :)

I'm so in love!

-Mama

Carrots and Milestones

Dear Bastian,

You are just shy of 6 months and very interested in what we are eating. So, this past week I started giving you whole raw fruits and vegetables just to hold and gnaw on, which you love. You've always had an intense desire to grasp things, and you used to get really frustrated because you would drop whatever the object was fairly fast. But lately your fine motor coordination has improved so the frustration has decreased thankfully. Just yesterday I let you try our butternut squash and applesauce also, but you were more interested in grabbing at the spoon and getting it to your mouth than the actual food. I've decided this time around I'm not going to push the purees too much, and just let you experiment with whole foods for awhile.


As you can see you have become very smiley in the past few weeks. Also you are very talkative! You are experimenting with alveolar consonant sounds such as in "da da" and "ta ta." You still use your bilabial consonants (/b/, /p/, /m/) but not as much, and you don't vary your vowels very often at this point.

I really feel like this has been a real milestone week for you, in terms of your increased vocalizations, longer periods of contentedness when put down or with different people (Dad included), and general happiness. I would have added sleep to this list but as of last night you are back to old habits. I did have a week straight of waking up only one time during the night, which was nice! In that time, one evening you actually slept the WHOLE night- from 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. I could not believe it! Oh, and also concerning sleep, we moved you to your crib (in our room) this week. You weren't sleeping right up close to me anymore so not a whole lot changed with this transition.

Okay, good night!

Love,

Mama