End of May

Gerritt is growing up fast! His eyes are definitely brown now. They were blue-grey when he was born & it took a few months for them to turn brown. Gerritt's hair was black right after birth so I assumed he had inherited my hubby's hair, however, it changed its color to light brown. The black hair fell out (Gerritt looked almost bald for a few weeks) & now he has a thick head of hair that is similar to mine in color & texture.
This past week my husband & I have been sleeping together in our bedroom. We are slowly getting our life back. Gerritt has been sleeping for 10-11 hours lately with awakening only once at night to eat (usually around 5 am), so my husband & I don't have to take turns sleeping next to Gerritt's crib anymore.
Gerritt is developing quite a personality. He is very persistent & determined. If he is focused on doing something or on playing with a particular toy, he doesn't like to be disturbed. If the toy happens to be far away, he is going to keep reaching for it until he gets it even though he may fall as a result. Gerritt also likes the predictable, the routine, quiet & slow-paced environment. He gets pretty overwhelmed being in loud & crowded surroundings. Gerritt is a unique & different from me person. I feel like I was a vessel to give him life & now am a guardian angel to help him discover this world, to develop & be the best person he can be. Gerritt is very vocal about his likes & dislikes so I am just going with the flow of things instead of trying to control him. Of course, I will discipline him as he gets older, but I want him to be his own person.
For the past week Gerritt has been doing something different - squinting when he wants something badly. For example, when he sees me nearby & wants to be picked up, he'll make a few upset sounds, extend his arms out & squint. It is the funniest thing to observe! It makes me laugh every time! He uses squinting as a warning to let me know if his need is not met soon, he'll to escalate to crying. Another funny thing Gerritt has been doing for about a month now is shaking his head side to side quickly when he is in a playful happy mood. Usually he will do it while seating in his high chair. Sometimes he shakes his head so fast he has static electricity in his hair from rubbing against the back of the chair. I laugh & shake my head in the same pattern, then Gerritt repeats. We go back & forth until one of us is too dizzy to continue. What a funny baby!
On May 22nd Gerritt received 2 more immunizations - HIB & pneumococcus. He did pretty well afterward, no fever or sleeplessness. He has been fussy for the past week though & I am pretty sure it's due to him teething again. Gerritt puts everything he can get his little hands on in his mouth & rubs it against his gums. The top right tooth is about to come out.
He is eating more at one time as well - about 7 ounces every 3-4 hours. Today (May 23rd) I have cooked & pureed organic yam & squash for him & he just loved eating both! Eating mostly formula since his birth must be pretty boring so I am determined to help Gerritt explore all of the different flavors & textures. I am thinking of mashed peas, kale & spinach next. Yum!

Spring is here!

On May 1st Gerritt has turned 7 months old! On May 2nd I have celebrated my 31st birthday with my hubby, Chris & Gerry. Unfortunately, Gerritt was fussy much of the time due to a cold so I spent most of my birthday holding & consoling him. I received a beautiful bouquet of pink roses from my husband & a spa gift certificate from Chris & Gerry. My husband also bought me a new watch with sparkly crystals around the dial a couple of weeks earlier.
The cold lasted for about a week. My husband & I both got little sleep. Gerritt had a hard time sleeping due to congested nose & post-nasal drip that made him gag & choke. After putting Gerritt on a large pillow & have him roll off it, elevating the crib's mattress & finding Gerritt at the foot of the crib half an hour later, we were at our wit's end. Our jogger ended up being a lifesaver since Gerritt was able to sleep in it for 4 straight nights being propped upright. We've also used a hot mist vaporizer to humidify the air & eucalyptus essential oil to open up the nasal passages. Just like a few months ago, Gerritt would cough so hard, he would vomit. Taking care of a sick baby is the hardest thing I've done. Hopefully, Gerritt is building a healthy immune system & by getting the colds out of the way now, he will be less likely to miss classes in early school years.
At 7 months Gerrritt is able to roll from side to side (although no crawling yet). Sometimes when I put him down for a nap I find him perpendicular to the crib a few minutes later with his feet banging on a wall. He likes to talk & able to say "dada" & "ha" (like a high-pitched exhale) well. He really doesn't like strangers & I have to ask people at the grocery store & at a party not to pay attention to him. As soon as someone asks him "And who is this?" or "Hi, baby!", Gerritt starts bawling. Gerritt has a preference for being held by Mommy, especially when sick. So if he is on Daddy's lap & Mommy is in the vicinity, he starts crying until I pick him up. He is happy as a clam being with Daddy as long as he doesn't see me.
On May 9th (Friday) I did a trial test to see if Gerritt could sit up by himself on the floor. Yes, he could! I was so happy I called my husband at work right away to share the happy news. Of course, I still put pillows around Gerritt in case he falls back, but he does a great job sitting on his own & playing with his many toys for 30-40 minutes at a time. Our little boy is growing up! :-) The same night my husband & I had our 1st date since Gerritt's birth. We dropped him off for 2 hours at his babysitter Anna. As usual, he was very dramatic. Loud yelling & crying when he got dropped off & again when we walked through the door to pick him up. The minute he sees us he cries until we pick him up, then he smiles broadly. Such a happy boy!
On Saturday (May 10th) my husband, Gerritt and I went to our friend's Tae Yon's 40th birthday party. We use every opportunity we can to socialize Gerritt. Two people were brave enough to pick him up & he only lasted about 15 seconds before blasting into a loud cry. :-) That night after putting Gerritt to bed at 8 pm & then checking on him half an hour later I've noticed him sleeping on his left side for the 1st time. I was so excited I called my hubby to take a look. What a relief! He is finally able to turn & sleep on his side! He looked really comfortable. No more propping him with pillows & worrying about bedsores. In a hospital we turn patients every 2 hours so I had a really hard time understanding how Gerritt could sleep only on his back for 8-12 hours in a row.
For the past few days Gerritt has been sleeping for 10-12 hours. Sometimes he sleeps for 7-8 hours straight, once in a while he will wake up once to eat in the middle of the night (usually around 4:30 or 5 am). Also, he is finally on the schedule. We put him to bed at 8 pm every night & now even if I am 10-15 minutes late, he gets pretty cranky. He yells loudly when I first put him down, like he will never see me again. The longer I stand by his crib trying to comfort him, the louder he gets. So usually I just leave after kissing him good night. 10-15 minutes later Gerritt is sound asleep. He loves to play with his blanket right before drifting off to sleep & usually will cover half of his face or his whole head with a blanket while sleeping. I've tried to remove the blanket after he is asleep, however, he always wakes up. He just loves the snug feeling of having something soft next to his face, I guess!
About a month ago Gerritt & I have tried co-sleeping again. I just love the idea of it - having a warm baby snuggled next to me. We slept in the same bed for 3 nights. Gerritt was sick at a time, so I've started co-sleeping to keep his head elevated on a pillow & to be next to him if he woke up crying during the night. It wasn't a good idea. I ended up feeling exhausted again. I just couldn't get good sleep with Gerritt next to me since I was worried about him being too hot or too cold, having enough room, his head being on a pillow in a right spot, etc. Maybe I'll try again in a few months, although by the time Gerritt is old enough to enjoy co-sleeping my husband & I will probably have a little one again sleeping next to our bed. :-)