Henry is noticing lots of stuff outside. He cranks his neck to see an airplane in the sky and the contrast of a big tree outlined against the blue of the sky. He also notices cars passing by on our street when he is sitting in the Bumbo on the dining room table (yes, I do that) and will turn his head as it goes by. He bounces/dances and "grooves" all the time now...while he is sitting up playing with toys or when he is on our hip he is constantly moving and babbling at the same time. He also bounces a lot in the jump-a-roo! Henry also makes lots of eye contact and will stare you down-sometimes it's like he is trying his best to figure you out. Several people have commented that they don't see many babies so young doing that. Squealing and talking are a regular occurrence around here; Henry seems to be quite verbal and the nursery workers at school have confirmed this. He knows Steven and lights up when he sees him. Yesterday when Steven walked in from work, Henry saw him from the living room, gave him a big grin, and let out a big squeal as if to say, "Hey, Dad! I'm glad you're home!!"
Henry loves toys, but Maggie is still his favorite entertainment, and he will ALWAYS give her a big grin, even if he is upset or crying (she's a great diversion!). He grabs at EVERYTHING and just in the past few weeks starts to cry if I take away something he was holding (like chew beads). The funny thing is that I can give it right back, but it does not help. He is upset and just has to fuss it out. While driving, I can now smile at him in his mirror while I am sitting in the driver's seat and he smiles back. Henry is still super ticklish...feet, inner legs, ribs, back, armpits, chest. It is pretty funny and always gets a reaction. He will squeal and giggle. He is a big fan of "pee-pie" and "where's Henry?" When the TV is on he is majorly attracted to it, so we have to watch that. He is mesmerized. He does NOT like us to wipe his nose or have clothes pulled over his head. Henry now sits up like a pro and also love to be on his belly. He does pushups all the time and kind of does the "plank" move, too. I know this is precursor to crawling, but I try not to think about that! When he is on his belly or sitting, he somehow moves himself all around to that he can get to what he wants. I always put him on a nice clean blanket, and he somehow always gets OFF the nice clean blanket in no time. Oh, well! I try.
I used to never rock him to sleep, but since I have seen just how very fast these past months have gone, I have broken that policy as of late. I sometimes rock him to sleep for his nap in the sunroom and he is so sweet to snuggle with that I love doing it. It hasn't seemed to ruin him as he can still be laid down to sleep easily for nap or at night and go to sleep on his own. Daytime sleep is still great, but we have regressed a bit in the nights unfortunately. Not sure what his deal is, but he now wakes up around 3 or 4 in the morning. We were patting him back to sleep, but found it was easier for everyone if I just fed him. I am okay with this, but hope it does not last! Maybe it's a growth spurt? He has also started fussing around 12 or 1, but can be easily patted back to sleep that time. I think this has happened due to a lingering cough that woke him up in the night for over a week, so now he is kind of in that routine.
He still nurses every 3-4 hours and has added in some cereal and baby food. As of this post, he is eating cereal with breast milk and banana in the morning and a veggie at night. He has liked peas and bananas, but hasn't loved zucchini. Next month will be an adventure as we add in lots more flavors and textures. Below is a general schedule for him, although it changes a bit daily because my school schedule is a bit different, but this is pretty much it. Sometimes there is an extra feeding thrown in there or he naps longer or shorter...I am not a super rigid Mom and try to be somewhat flexible. He is a super happy guy, so this seems to work for him.
7:00-wakes up (he would have woken and nursed that earlier time...like around 4:00)
8:45-cereal with milk/banana
9:30-nurses and naps for 1.5 to 2.5 hours
1:00ish-nurses
2:30ish-naps for about 1.5 hours, nurses when wakes up
6:00-vegetable baby food
7:00-bath, nurses
7:30-lay him down for the night
Well, that is all the random stuff I can think of off the top of my head about my baby boy! Daddy and I love you, Henry, and love watching you grow and change. Can't wait to see what next month holds for you!
