Stupendous Six!

(*Editor’s note: I wrote this on Maxwell’s 6 month birthday, August 12. I didn’t post it due to trying to get together some pictures. The pictures I wanted are on an SD card not currently in my possession, so the pictures I wanted to post will be up another time!)

It’s so hard to believe that HALF of my baby’s first year is over! It makes me kind of sad, but then I remember how much wonderfulness we have ahead of us. The day Max was born I wore a shirt that read “The best is yet to come.” I’ve reminded myself of that with each month’s struggles and triumphs. My little boy just keeps getting stronger and smarter every day!

• Maxwell’s typical awake position is left hand in his mouth, right hand in a loose fist in midair, as if gesturing to make a point. He sure does love gnawing on his fingers!
• Maxwell is consistently sleeping through the night, about 8-9 hours. He still greets me with coos and smiles when I pick him up in the morning.
• The little man’s verbal skills are still progressing. We will often have conversations where we take turns “talking.” His language usually a series of vowel sounds, but sometimes includes a “ma,” “yeah,” “gah,” or “huh.”

• Max is learning to grab toys. He grabs the rattle on his playmat often. Last week I showed him how to grab a toy dangling above him. After 2 or 3 assisted attempts, he was able to grab in all on his own. What a quick learner!

• At his last weight check on August 19, Max was 12 pounds, 12 ounces.
• Max still wears 0-3 months clothing, but should be moving up to 3-6 months in the next week or so. He wears size 1-2 diapers in Pampers, size 1 in Luvs, and size 2 in Pampers Sensitive diapers.
• Max is pretty proficient at rolling from belly to back. It’s sort of hit and miss whether he enjoys tummy time or not. Some days he’ll be on his belly, look around and even giggle. Other days he starts yelling and crying pretty quickly.
• We got Max an early half birthday present this week, a jumperoo. Sometimes when John comes home Max kicks his feet enthusiastically and jumps against me, so we thought he’d enjoy jumping on his own. He’s still a little short for the jumperoo so we put a pillow under his feet. He really enjoys the ocean-themed toys and is slowly learning that he can make it move.

• Max has ventured out into the world a few times now. He has been to Sam’s Club, Babies ‘R Us, a few restaurants and stores. We try to keep him close to us to give strangers the nonverbal signal that they do not have permission to touch him. We’ve had pretty good luck so far. It’s just a hard balance to keep Max protected, but still show him what the world is like (and of course get things accomplished on our to do lists!). I’m anxious to take him to the zoo, but we’ll wait until things cool off a lot more!
• Max has a “play room” now. Well, sort of. We were housing a dining room table for Aunt Ashley and Uncle Mike while they lived in a condo. Now that they have a house again, the furniture is out of our dining room. Since we rarely entertain we decided not to get another table. Instead, we use the room for Max. This way his toys and books (usually) don’t clutter our other living spaces and he can play while we clean the kitchen or family room (but we can still hear/see him). It will also be easy to gate off when he goes mobile! The playroom currently contains my rocking chair from school, books, a CD player, a play mat, Max’s car seat, diaper bag, and jumperoo.

• Max still battles with some acid reflux. He used to have some painful gas, but Mylicon and growing seem to have helped that. He does get a little colic-y sometimes, but I have a list of tricks that usually helps. When those tricks fail to work and I feel like I will lose my mind, I just remind myself that I am exceptionally lucky to have him in my life. Someday when he gets fever-y, puke-y sick or gets his driver’s license, I will surely reminisce about the days where a little crying at home was the worst of my worries!
• Max had a developmental follow up at the Children’s Hospital on the 19^th. Things went really well. He is actually doing better than he should be, but that is a post for another time. (He also sees his pediatrician this week for his 6 month check up.) John and I are just so exceptionally proud of our baby. He has had to work so hard and is such a wonderfully strong boy!