First Official Photoshoot...

Today we went for Alexander's first "official" photoshoot. We went to Kiddie Kandids and had our 6 Month photos taken. Alexander was VERY well behaved (especially for the minuet naps he took all weekend). He gave some great smiling faces and even let the photographer try to pose him in different poses - however he showed off his stubborn side by not keeping his hands or arms crossed when she tried to cross them.

I'm very happy for how the pictures turned out and can't wait for his next shoot! Probably for around the 9 Month timeframe (which will be around Christmas time)...

Here's a peak at his pictures. Please do not copy or print from these as it is illegal! I'm working on getting pictures out to people, so again, please do not copy & print these pictures.

Ode to Moms...

My friend Tammy sent me this and I thought this was soo cool!

How bizarre...

I find it remarkable that the same child can look like one parent one second and then the other parent the following nanosecond. I find it even more remarkable that this happens when the parents look nothing like each other!

Alexander = Daddy

Alexander = Mommy

Week Twenty Six: At a Glance...

Week Twenty Six: Monday, September 17th to Sunday, September 23rd

• Besides the major milestone, it was a very, very quiet week.
• Alexander had his first 1/2 birthday and turned Six Months old!
• Got a cake to celebrate
• A few mornings he would sleep to 6a and then other mornings he would be up at 4:15-4:30am
• Played with his first pumpkin
• Mommy was sick on Tuesday & Wednesday. It was Daddy to the rescue. He was Mr. Mom and put him to bed on Tuesday and dropped him off at school on Wednesday
• Then it was Daddy who was under the weather on Saturday & Sunday so Mommy was on duty for the weekend
• Still has not duplicated an outfit to school - a few teachers at school commented that Alexander is by far the best dressed kid at the entire school and they check his outfits out every day
• Had a good week at school - went outside every day and Miss Linda said he loves it. They put him in first seat in the buggy so he can look around
• Continues to nap well at school for the majority of the week
• Didn't eat solids this week to see if that helps with the diaper rash, so we put a bit more in his bottles to make up for no solids during the day
• Diaper rash is finally gone
• The last two baths, he seems to be testing himself. He'll lower his head very close to the water and will put his mouth in the water and then pull it away to see how bad it was. The first time I had no idea what he was doing, but I figured it out the 2nd time. It's very cute and since I'm in there holding him, he has no chance of doing it for more than a second.
• We tried carrots on Saturday, he loved them and did very well with those. We'll see what the effects are, if any
• Ran errands with Mommy on Saturday while Daddy rested
• Watched Daddy outside on Sunday while he played in his exersaucer. Alexander loves to be outside.
• He was in a super mood all weekend and took great naps. Must have been because he was up at 4:30a!
• Watched the Pats win (nice way to start the season 3-0, hopefully they don't tank out like the Sox are)

Week Twenty Six: Pictures...

Week Twenty Six: Monday, September 17th to Sunday, September 23rd

From Birth to Now...

It's amazing that we can go from this tiny, tiny little bundle of joy...... to the past Six Months which have FLOWN by!

I forgot to take pictures of Alexander in Dan's glove two out of the six months and pretty soon he really won't be able to sit in it. But it's so cool to look at the differences between Months One & Six. His features, personality, development - it's all so cool & surreal to me!

Enjoy - I know I do.

Six Months...

Developmental:

A lot has happened in 2 months
-Such a happy baby! He is always happy and smiling. Daddy can get him to belly laugh quite often

-His eyes changed color and are hazel

-He doesn't have a ton of hair but has a bald spot in the back from where he lays down. Some days the hair is really dark, other days it's as light as peach fuzz

-Babbling constantly and really getting into finding his voice

-Rolls over both front: back and back: front

-When holding someone's hands, he can pull himself up into a sitting position and immediately go into a standing position

-Can wiggle himself around the floor but still doesn't understand the concept of crawling/scooting

-Discovered his feet and but hasn't "discovered" his hands

-Puts everything in his mouth, eats his feet and fingers all the time. He can also pick up and put his binky in his mouth correctly

-Will sleep on his back and then roll onto his tummy where he puts his arms under his belly like Mommy does

-Starting able to sit up by himself in just the past few days, holding himself up and able to reach out for objects

-Mommy & Daddy think he has allergies but we're not sure from what. He wheezes OFTEN and alot of times will have a stuffed up nose. We put a air filter in his room and that definitely helped his congestion

-He can reach out and grab stuff

-He's learning how to reach out and then push things off a table or what's in front of him

-He loves to play with my hair

-Started cuddling (I LOVE THAT)

-Loves to bat things around that are in front or above him

Sleeping:
-Sleeping is going very well
-He sleeps in his crib every night
-Typical wake up time is 5a, but there are some mornings where he'll sleep til 6a. And recently he slept 12 full hours and woke up at 7am

-During the day he will take 2-3 naps, usually one long nap (anywhere from 1-3 hours)

-Bedtime is around 7p and most nights goes down without a problem. He hardly ever wakes up during the night and if he does it's usually an episode of crying, we think he's having a nightmare because he stays asleep and after a big of cuddling will go back down

Clothes:
-Wearing Size 3-6 and almost everything in that size fits him well

-He can still wear size 3 months with onesies, but some 3/ 3-6 month pj's are too tight in the feet
-Still has yet to duplicate an outfit to school

-Haven't looked at his Size 6 months clothes yet
-Diapers: Size 2 Swaddlers

Feeding:

-5-6 bottles a day (24 oz - 32 oz per day)

-Morning bottle before school (4 oz)

-3 bottles at school (6-7 oz) and if he's extra hungry/fussy he'll have a small 4 oz bottle for late afternoon but he doesn't always have that one

-Last bottle (4-6 oz) at bedtime, around 7p

-We started solids of bananas & sweet potatoes. We also did some cereal. He liked them all and ate well but he developed a pretty nasty diaper rash so we took solids away for a bit to see if they caused a reaction. The diaper rash is gone so we started carrots today.

Pumpkin Patch...

For Alexander's 1/2 birthday, we went to get some pumpkins and flowers. Alexander wanted to play with the pumpkin, how could I say no. We sat on our lawn, played for a bit and just enjoyed the Indian Summer. He's just so cute and I've really noticed how bigger his cheeks have gotten this week. He looks like he has a mouthful of pumpkin. I can't wait to bring him to a real pumpkin patch, now that will be fun!

I can't get over how little he looks next to the planters...

Happy 1/2 Birthday...

So today is Alexander's 1/2 "birthday" as he turns Six Months. It's a pretty decent milestone because the next 'birthday' will be the real birthday. We didn't have a party and I didn't bake half a cake like I was thinking about. Instead, we had a very lowkey day. Daddy hurt his back and a wisdom tooth started to bother him, so we decided to stay close to home instead.

After a couple of naps for Alexander, Mommy & Alexander ran some errands. We went to CVS to pick up more stuff for any future diaper rashes, then to Home Depot for flowers for the front steps and and Alexander's first pumpkin. On the way home we stopped and picked up an ice cream cake so we can at least acknowledge the milestone. Unfortunately, Alexander wouldn't be able to enjoy the cake...just yet.

Once we came home, we sat outside because it was a gorgeous afternoon. Then we decided to let Alexander play with his pumpkin - afterall, he did help me get it. He was doing such a great job sitting up by himself on the lawn and even was able to bang and play with the pumpkin.

After we were done with outside, it was time for cake! Well more to just celebrate because Alexander wasn't having the cake and it was too early for Mommy & Daddy. I put on his birthday crown that I bought for him for his first month that was too big for his head that we had to hold there. Now it fit right on top (at least we know his head his growing). Alexander even ended up wearing some of the frosting on his face. Don't worry - no child was hurt in the making of this photo. Nor did he have a drop of cake. It was strictly put there by Mommy's finger and wiped off after the photos.

Then it was bathtime followed by bedtime. Happy Six Months, Alexander!!

Midweek Update...

I thought I would do a mid-week update although there really isn't a lot going on. Actually, I feel the need to do a post because I've been sick the past two days and really feel out of the loop. And to help with the loop, here's a cute picture from Tuesday morning as he chills out in his comfy, cozy outfit!

It must have been something I ate on Sunday because Monday night I started to get quite the sour stomach. And it got progessively worse throughout the night. I was hoping it would go away, but alas it just got worse. I drove in, dropped Alexander off at school and barely made it into work without getting sick. I had to go home, there was no way I'd survive a day at work like that. So I cancelled some meetings and headed home. On the way home I got chills yet had to wipe the sweat away. So I slept from 10a Tuesday until 6a Wednesday. After a few more naps on Wednesday, I was back to normal. Whatever that 36 hr stomach bug was, I'm so glad it's gone.

It killed me not to have the strength to put Alexander to bed! It made it even worse not to be able to drop him off at school this morning.

Alas, all is well in our house again which is good because I *hate* being out of commission like that. And for all of those single parents who get sick the way I did but don't have someone else to help - GOD BLESS YOU! I don't know how you do it, but you are made of something special.

Week Twenty Five: At A Glance

Here's a look back at Week Twenty Five (Monday, September 10th, - Sunday, September 16th 2007)

• A good week at school followed by a very nice weekend filled with all of Alexander's Grandparents
• The first night ever of 12 full hours of sleep on Saturday night!
• Loves babbling - he's getting quite vocal. Even Miss Linda has commented that he talks all day
• Loves bathtime and has mastered making big splashes which he doesn't mind when the water gets on his face
• He loves to stand. He can pull himself up from lying down to a sitting position and rather than staying there, he pulls himself up to stand. He would much rather stand than lie or sit down
• School was good this week - was in a very good mood, spent one whole day laughing, they went outside almost every day, took good naps & had bananas & sweet potatoes
• Still has not duplicated an outfit to school and even started the week off with his stylish outfit/hat which all the teachers loved
• Usually will just babble during car rides but Monday morning he was very upset and screamed 90% of the drive
• On Saturday, went to Newport for the first time - got to visit Grandpa & Grandma who were up for a wedding. We drove around Newport for a bit and then went to lunch. Alexander was extremely well behaved the whole day
• Grandma gave Alexander a 6 month present which is a toy train with the cutest animals... I don't know who was more excited, Mommy or Alexander
• On Sunday, Grammie & Grampie came over. We were going to go to a farm but Alexander needed a nap so we just hung out.
• We went to the playground across the street with Daddy & Grammie. We went on the slide & the swings. Most times didn't seem all that interested
• Hung out with Grammie & Daddy on the grass at home and was able to sit up all by himself - without being propped up or held!
• Diaper rash is much improved even though it's still there, it's not nearly as red. But we're still continuing with the baking soda bath, maalox, etc
• Eczema is also much improved - it's gone from his arms, legs & belly. Just a small mark on his shoulder and some on his back

Week Twenty Five Pictures...

Week Twenty Five (Monday, September 10th, - Sunday, September 16th 2007)