Life {R+S}

Friday, May 25, 2018

Parker James: 6 Months

How has it been half a year already?! These past six months have gone by so fast! We're quickly approaching summer vacation, and I am beyond excited to spend my days snuggling and playing with my sweet babies! Parker developmentally changed so much this month and is getting to my favorite "baby" stage! While I'm in no hurry, I am excited to watch him learn to roll over, stand up, crawl, eat, and explore the world this summer!

Parker at SIX months:

Weight: 16 lbs. 1 oz.

Birth: 7 lbs. 7 oz.

Parker had a well visit last Friday, but it was kind of hijacked by his big sister this time, who developed hives earlier in the day. Never a dull moment with these kiddos! Our big boy is growing well and got the green light to start trying different foods! So far, he's tried banana, avocado, and butternut squash. He will eat the banana, did NOT like avocado, and devoured the butternut squash! He seems to be more excited about the spoon than the actual food on it, so we will see if this changes over the next few weeks! We have also been giving him puffs to try, since he needed to develop his fine motor skills a little more. He hasn't quite gotten the hang of picking those babies up by himself, but will eat them if we put them in his mouth!

The doctor also noted that Parker has his top two and bottom two teeth coming in all at the same time, which could account for his fussiness these past few days. Nothing has popped through the gums as of now though!

Parker Loves:

Being Held
His HandsThe Magic Merlin
Bath Time

The Bumbo/High Chair

Walks Outside

Watching Peyton

Peek-a-boo

His Feet

Sitting Up

Parker Hates:
Being Hungry
Being Tired
When Peyton is overly excited/aggressive
Tummy Time (after about 5-10 minutes)

What's New With Parker This Month:

1. Parker has officially gotten the green light to try solid foods! He's getting better and better each time he tries to eat with swallowing, mashing, and picking up puffs with his little fingers! His doctor said that he needs to practice his fine motor skills, so we've been giving him puffs and small things to pick up, which he couldn't do at all a few weeks ago! Baby boy's learning!

2. Parker officially sits up all by himself! By "sit up by himself" I mean that when he's placed in a seated position, he can remain in a seated position. He doesn't know how to sit himself up yet! #clarification He loves sitting and playing with his toys, especially the ones he can chew on!

3. Parker took his first dip in the pool this month! He loves the water, but got a little mad when he was cold. We're so looking forward to swimming the days away this summer though, especially since daddy has the whole summer off with us!

Six Month Photo Dump

Friday, April 20, 2018

Parker James: 5 Months

What a whirlwind these past 5 months have been! I've been back at work for about a month and a half now and I'm finally feeling like we're getting into a routine now. However, pretty much since I returned to work, Parker has been fighting a little cold. I mean, he's pretty much guaranteed to either have a never-ending cold or the best immune system ever since his mama teaches second grade, his daddy teaches first grade, and his sister spends her days with 16 other 2-year olds. That's a LOT of germs.

I did have to take him to Urgent Care for the first time last Sunday for an ear infection and possible upper respiratory infection, so our sweet boy got his first dose of antibiotics. Luckily, he is feeling so much better these days and back to his smiley, sweet self!

Parker at FIVE months:

Weight: I'm guessing about 15-16 lbs?!

Birth: 7 lbs. 7 oz.

Little dude doesn't have a doctor's appointment until next month. Parker is very comfortably in his 6-month wardrobe now, which is crazy. How is my baby in 6-month clothes already?! Time, you thief! He's wearing size 2 diapers still, and all of his baby shoes fall off as quickly as you can put them on. Baby shoes seem like such a waste of money, yet I still buy them! Maybe I'll learn by the third child (HAHA Ryan!)

Parker Loves:

Being Held
His Hands
His Wubbanubs
The Magic Merlin
Bath Time

The Bumbo/High Chair

Walks in the Stroller Outside

Watching Peyton from a distance

Parker Hates:
Waiting for Milk
Extended periods of time not being held
Tummy Time
Being attacked by his big sister

What's New With Parker This Month:

1. Parker went on his first airplane ride this month! We flew to and from Boston over my spring break to visit with friends and meet their new sweet babies! He did so much better than I thought he would on those flights! I was really hoping he would nap, but he has proven time and time again that he just doesn't sleep well any place other than his crib. He was awake and super giggly on the flight up to Boston and awake and slightly fussy on the return flight. All in all, I'd say it was a win for him!

2. Parker is fairly consistently rolling from his tummy to his back and has rolled once from his back to his tummy. This is an exciting milestone, but it also means the days of the Magic Merlin are numbered. Womp Womp!

3. Parker is super interested in watching everyone eat, so I gave in a few days ago and let Parker try bananas for the first time! I mashed them up and mixed them with some breast milk and his reaction on his first taste was priceless! He literally looked befuddled and had no idea what to do with something other than milk! After a couple bites, he got the hang of it though and finished the whole bowl. I haven't given him anything else since but am looking forward to experimenting with food for him in a couple weeks!

4. His sleep is definitely becoming more consistent over these past few weeks. He goes to bed most nights around 7:30 and sleeps until 4:30-5, nurses for about 10 minutes, and then sleeps until 8ish. He takes naps around 10 and 3 during the day! We're so appreciative to his Mimi and Nana for helping keep him on this schedule during the day! I'll be curious to see how he reacts to sleeping without the Merlin!

Parker, you are such a light in our lives! You are so adored by EVERYONE who spends time with you and we all love watching you experience things for the first time. Your smile and giggle are contagious. I thank God every day for giving me you, sweet boy!

Five Month Photo Dump

Parker James: 4 months

Four Months?! I am absolutely baffled by how quickly time is going by with this sweet second child of mine. My maternity leave ended this months and I had to return to work, which was way harder than I thought it was going to be. Parker has turned into the sweetest, snuggliest, happy little baby and all I want to do all day long is play with him and hold him and just soak up these remaining "newborn" days.

Now that I'm back at work, I get two pumping breaks per day and I basically spend all of that time scrolling through pictures and videos of my kiddos. So yeah... I'm that mom now. And I'm proud of it! I love my kids, ya'll!

Anyways, back to Parker's four month update!

Parker grew so much this past month. He has moved up to size 2 diapers (which isn't ideal since we have SO MANY boxes of size 1 diapers left that are not returnable.) and wears size 3 month and 3-6 month clothes comfortably.

Parker at FOUR months:

Weight: 14 lbs. 10 oz.

Birth: 7 lbs. 7 oz.

Height: 24 inches

Birth: 20 inches

Head: 16.25 inches

Birth: 14 inches

Parker's 4-month well visit was this week. The doctor said he's growing like a champ and everything seems to be great. He does have a touch of "flat head" on the side that he sleeps on the most, but he wasn't concerned as long as we keep up the tummy time and sitting up time. Parker has recently started using his jumper, and he could seriously spend an hour in there. So hopefully his head will be perfectly round by his next appointment!