On March 1st Gerritt turned 5 months old! The first 3 months of his life seemed really long to me, however, time has sped up all of a sudden.
In early March my husband traveled to Dallas, Texas for a work conference for 2.5 days. I was really nervous of taking care of the baby by myself day & night without him, however, I managed really well. It was a good opportunity to bond with Gerritt more since I've been working a lot lately.
We've continued with trying various fruits & vegetables, mostly fruits. Gerritt doesn't like squash at all, however, loves apple sauce, pears, & blueberries. Every time Gerritt sees his special spoon & a cup, he knows it is time for him to eat & he reaches for both. Thankfully, his constipation resolved since getting rid of bananas & rice cereal.
On March 19th I have mailed my application for US citizenship. It is going to be 3 years in June since my husband & I have been married, so I've applied to become a citizen on the basis of marriage. I had to include copies of our tax records for the last 3 years & our marriage certificate as proofs. Thank goodness, due to the Paperwork Reduction Act I didn't have to ask my friends to write letters about my good moral character as was required several years ago. What a joke! Anyone can produce such letter if you ask me. The fees have gone up, so hopefully my $675 will go a long way toward accomplishing the citizenship process quickly & efficiently. I can't wait to vote!
On March 24th I took Gerrit back to the North Seattle Public Health for his 3rd round of immunizations (HIB & PC). The doctor Sears' alternative immunization schedule is definitely more time-consuming, however, I feel strongly about spreading out the shots to minimize the risk of adverse reactions. Gerritt tolerated these imminizations well again, just slept more for the next couple of days.
On March 25th I was rubbing Gerritt's gums as usual & felt a sharp edge of the tooth coming out on the bottom left jaw. I can't believe it Gerritt is going to have his 1st tooth! He has been drooling a lot & putting everything into his mouth lately, however, it was such a wonderful surprise! He has been sleeping & acting well up until now, so I had no clue. I've always thought when Gerritt starts teething, he'd be fussy & sleep poorly.
This month we've also switched to Dr. Brown's glass & BornFree bottles. Since we do heat up Gerritt's formula in hot water during the day & in formula warmer at night, there is potential BPA leaching out of the plastic. Glass/BPA-free plastic eliminates this problem. I wonder what else will be eliminated years from now? What about parents who do not have time & energy to keep up with the latest news on baby products/pediatric health?
Gerritt is starting to roll over, however, can't do it completely on his own yet. He is also able to sit with support. He is reaching for everything he considers interesting. His favorites are TV remote control & phone. He is able to get a hold of his froggie & parrot when standing in his Jumperoo. He has been sleeping better, still waking up once to eat at night, which we don't mind. The good news is that we've moved away from a swaddling/rocking chair/bottle-feeding routine at bedtime in mid-February. Now we just put Gerritt down in his crib, turn off the lights, turn a white noise machine on, give him a blanket & he falls asleep on his own. He loves to cover up his face with a blanket, so usually I have to pull it down once he is asleep. Gerritt also takes many naps during the day, about one nap every 2.5-3 hours. Crying is a late sign of overstimulation, so now we look for his lost interest, tired eyes, yawning & fussiness. Parenting is truly a work in progress!
