Easily Amused

Sorry, I missed a day! I've been trying to finish a big essay that's due Monday so I can watch the game on Sunday. Hopefully this will make up for it.

Paul got this from Heather at the baby shower. He plays with it a lot, and it's very versatile. Today he spent about 20 minutes playing with that white tag sticking out of the side. The fish rattle, and play jaunty nautical tunes. There's a mirror shaped like a clam shell. He didn't make a sound or look at anything but that white tag for 20 minutes. I am not exaggerating.

I'm also not complaining... like I said, I've got that essay to finish.

This is further proof that babies' best toys are also the cheapest. He was gnawing on his toes and making that cooing sound he makes when he's chewing. He only stopped because I pulled the camera out and it fascinates him.

A Big Day!

We introduced Paul to his first solid food earlier this month (Sep. 7th), and he's been taking a bite here and a bite there, but generally turns his head and purses his lips if we try to pursue it any further. Last week I was eating some applesauce and he seemed interested, so I put some on my finger and fed it to him that way. He ate more than he usually does, which was encouraging, but the feeding times that followed yielded nothing.

But, today was different. Today Paul ate applesauce from a spoon. A lot. Twice. He did it once for his late morning meal and he ate even more during his evening meal. I was really happy that he seemed as enthusiastic (if not more so) the second time so Ryan could see it too. The pics I got today and the video are from the second feeding. It seemed such a fragile situation that I dared not disturb the first feeding to get the camera. He had eaten from the spoon before, as I said, but this was the first time that he opened his mouth and leaned forward for more after each bite. It was so exciting! I can't even describe it!

The first two are photos and the third one is a video of the feeding. The video is 21M, so it is quite lare and may pose a problem depending on your particular internet service.

This has been a pretty exciting week or so, with him sitting up unassisted for longer periods and really starting to eat solid foods. I'm sure this is common to all babies, but he just goes through these spurts of development where he does a bunch of new things within a few weeks. Anyhow, it's all very amazing and fun, and I'm glad we can share it.

Reeeeaching

Sundays are usually sit at home, watch football and do homework days. Today, with all the rain, was no different.

I tried to remember to get some photos of Paul reaching for everything. I got two, but I would have to have the camera strapped around my neck at all times to get them all, and if I did that he would be reaching for the camera all the time too! We have to keep a watchful eye out all the time. He seems only to want to grab grown-up things; when we try to tempt him with a bib or toy he's not interested. So, I've been trying to find things that he wants and I don't mind giving to him. I let him play with the cardboard packages for some tights I bought and they entertained him for about twenty minutes last night. It's a good learning experience for me, so I'll try to remember to distract him from things he can't have with things that are ok.

He's getting to be such a fun age, and even though we have to watch him vigilantly, he's a joy to be around. He laughs and he can tell when he's made us laugh. He seems to be reaching a resting period with the growth of his teeth. Or, it's possible that he is just more capable of soothing himself since he can hold onto his teething toys now. Anyhow, we seem to have overcome some of the challenges and have hit a stride. We'll try to savor this time before the next challenge comes.

Chewing

Not too much to report today. It has been rainy, but we took a family trip down to Somersworth and Newington, NH to run some errands. We stopped at Boston Market (yum), and while we were there Paul tried to fit his whole pacifier into his mouth. It was scary and funny. I got a picture of it, but really I need to get a picture of him reaching for EVERYTHING, because that's what he does a lot of the day. He's on my lap right now reaching for the camera, some apples, the keyboard, and anything else within about a 3-foot radius. I'll try to get a photo of that pretty soon. He really extends his whole being when he reaches for something.

Anyhow, here he is in one of the various stages of trying to put his whole pacifier into his mouth:

Also: yes, he is wearing the same jumper as yesterday. He's just a baby... he doesn't get that dirty, ok?! Don't judge me!

Sitting

Paul sat unassisted for much longer than ever before! It was awesome. I'd say he's still a couple weeks before he'll be really stable.

This picture was taken just after he tipped over. It is pretty descriptive of his mood all day today.

Laughing

I've been running on non-stroller strides days to get ready for a 5k in October. I like getting out and knowing that I'm getting back in shape (not to mention getting a little time to myself), and Paul likes the sights and fresh air. As you can see, he works just as hard as I do.

I took some photos of the foliage so I can compare it week to week. Many of the trees here are just starting to change.

The cool air outside made me cough a little while I was stretching after my run. It made Paul laugh a lot, so I exaggerated it and it really cracked him up, which made me crack up. So, I got a video of it, and even though the lighting was terrible you can still make out his face. It's awesome.

Wed, 24 Sep

My car is in the shop, so Paul and I took Ryan to work today so I could use the car to go to stroller strides and run errands. Paul started doing this thing yesterday. He chews on something, and while he's teething he makes lots of little noises. It's really cute. The way he wiggles his tongue around cracks me up. He was doing it in the back seat of the car this morning and I got a pretty good video of it.

156 Days Later

So, this is the first day of the blog. Paul (Pea Pod) is now 22 weeks and 1 day old.

Like most days of late, today is a teething day. He vascillates between happy, active, super-hero-baby Paul, shown here at the command center of his baby space station:

and teething, crying, I'm-tired-but-you'd-better-not-try-to-make-me-sleep Paul, shown here moments before falling asleep:

I'll admit that the teething is starting to get frustrating, and I know it's hard for him too. He could at least have a tooth to show for it or something! The hardest part so far is that the teething seems never-ending, but he doesn't even have a tooth yet, so it also feels like it will never begin.

His saving grace is that he is really, really cute. Still and all, he is a good baby, and I'm a lucky mommy.

The Day Before

This is us the day before. Mom kept saying that he would come the next day. The last thing I wanted was more anticipation and more disappointment. I was done being pregnant, I was done working, but mainly I was DONE waiting for our baby. I just wanted him to come. As week 42 loomed on the horizon I started to dread the prospect of artificial induction.

But in the end she was right, as moms usually are, and Paul came later that night. He was waiting for the full moon. He was waiting to be a Taurus.