Sunday, August 19, 2012

Six Months - 7/18/12

 7.18.12
Weight: 
Height: 
Size: 6M or 6-9M

My sweet, sweet Hudson,

These have absolutely been the best and most rewarding six months of my life. I am so thankful that you are my sweet, sweet little boy. You have changed my life, and you have made me change my attitude. I feel more grateful for all of the love in my life, and I feel like my priorities have shifted so that I finally realize what is really important. While I still am working on ignoring what needs to be done around the house and on not stressing about projects at work, I am MUCH more focused on spending quality time with you.

When I first became a new parent, people constantly told me how fast time would fly and how fast you would grow. I have now promised myself not to ever say that to any new parents because it really makes me sad every time someone says it to me. I feel like it is obvious to a new parent that time is going to fly. After a few days home from the hospital, it seemed like you were already a month old! Instead of getting sad about how quickly time passes, I have been trying to live in the moment and take notice of how you are growing and changing each day. I love spending time with you, and every time we are apart, I look forward to seeing your sweet, sweet face until we can be together again. 

In just six short months, I already have so many special memories that I do not want to forget. I do not want to forget:
...how proud Daddy and I feel every time you do something new. I will never forget how excited we got when you first started to hold on to Cliff; ) The pride has only grown as you have learned to smile, roll, sit... 

...your scary wheeze. YIKES!!! We do not like your wheezing noise, but I still don't want to forget it. Ever since you first day of life, you've gone through moments of making a terrible wheezing noise that sounds like you can't breathe. It is the same noise that made us send you to the nursery in the hospital that first night and the same noise that makes it so hard for me to move you out of our bedroom. Now that you're older, you rarely do it while you are sleeping, but I can't help but remember our first night with you every time you do!

...how you hold my shirt or top or hand while nursing - and even grab my nose and mouth! When you were first born, you flailed your arms and legs while nursing, and you would shake your head like crazy! By the time you were about six weeks old, you finally started to calm down a little bit. You started to put one hand behind my back and one hand on my top, and you relaxed. Now you like to put one hand on my back and one hand up in the air for me to kiss.
...your sweet wake-up smiles in the morning. You never wake up crying in the morning. Instead, you blink your eyes a few times and then smile your big, toothless grin: )
...the way you check something over before deciding how you feel about it. You are so inquisitive. You like to wrinkle your brow and examine what is in front of you. You usually end up smiling...or shoving whatever it is - maybe a new toy, a finger, or even a nose - in your mouth!
...the way you climb. One of the nurses at the hospital told us that you were the strongest baby she had ever seen! At just a few days old, you wanted to climb and explore. You would push, push, push your legs so that you could make your way up my chest or Daddy's chest, and you would even try to scoot across the floor! At six months old, you still love to climb! Now you can crawl all the way up my body, and then we roll together from side to side!
...the way you cuddle. Although you are a climber, you are also a cuddler. You like to give little hugs, and you REALLY prefer to sleep in my arms than in your bassinet. You like to be worn in the Moby wrap, and you like to put your head on my shoulder. I love when you fall asleep like that - even though you now weigh close to 20 pounds.
...the way you look at your daddy. You love your daddy. You love his glasses, and you love his "ah boo boo boo" sounds. I hope you will always look at him this way.
...your love of books. I hope this love for books continues for the rest of your life! Right now, your favorite book is about a monkey...and I know all of the words ("Singing, swinging little monkey lives high above the ground. Fast and spunky little monkey makes a happy sound - la la la! Little Monkey eats green leaves and hangs upside down...")
...your love for Moo Moo. Although she isn't wooing you as much as she once was, you still love your Moo Moo. For three months, the sight of Moo Moo caused you to automatically smile: ) You talk with Moo Moo, hold her hand, and sometimes you bite her nose!
...the way you love to watch baseball. It really seems like you like to watch baseball. You stare at the TV with Daddy, and you get fussy when a commercial comes on. Daddy is convinced that you will love the Royals, too!
...the way you say "goooo" after sneezing. The way you surprise yourself always makes me laugh!
...your love of standing. Now that you are bigger, you like to stand and to be able to see what is going on around you. It will be quite a while before you can do it on your own, but you like me to hold you around the waste or to hold your hands.
...your one long hair. I do not think I could ever forget your one long hair, but I must write it down just in case! I keep meaning to have Daddy measure it, but I'm pretty sure it must be over five inches long! When you were just a month or so old, I noticed your long hair...and it has only grown longer! You're getting more and more hair, but your one long hair is still MUCH MUCH MUUUUUCH longer than the rest. I love how it waves in the wind, and I love making up songs about it ("You've got oooooone hair, waving in the wind! Oooooone hair, waving in the wind...").
...your "happy soul." SO many people have commented about how happy you are, and one stranger even told us that you seemed to have such a "happy soul." You have been unbelievably happy, and we feel so blessed that we seem to be able to meet your needs and keep you comforted. Some days you do not cry at all, and on days when you do cry it is usually because you are ready to eat or take a nap. As a parent, I just want you to lead a happy life. I feel like you are pretty happy now, and I hope you will always be happy. You better believe that I will try my hardest to make sure you always feel happy and loved.

I love you my sweet, sweet Hudson Bobarino.

Love, 
Mama


***

Hudson's life sure has not slowed down! He has kept up his busy lifestyle, and his sixth month flew by. This month he...
Cuddled...

 Spent time with Arlo and Uncle Aaron...

Snoozed...


 Stood in his exersaucer...

Went shopping with Mama...

Made a series of ridiculously cute faces while he was supposed to be nursing...

Went for some weekend strolls
(We could only walk in the mornings on the weekend because it was over 100 almost every afternoon and evening!)...

Wore some sunglasses...

Stuck out his tongue...

 Chewed on his teething ring...

Tried rice cereal for the first time...
 

Happily nursed after trying rice cereal for the first time...

Dressed up for daycare...

Chilled in his high chair...

Did some push ups...

Grew some cankles...

Dressed up with Mama and Daddy...

Met Aunt Megan...

Snoozed to and from Parsons...

 Practiced sitting (and tipping over!) in the rocker...
 

Received some kisses from Sis...

Posed for a pic with Sis...

Made another series of ridiculously cute faces while he was supposed to be nursing...

Napped on Mama...

Read about the Jayhawks...

Loved on Cliff...

Made it to six months of breastfeeding...

Made silly faces...

Went to the library with Claire and Arlo...

Ate some cords...

Had fun with Mama while Daddy was away...

Read (and spit up on and chewed on!) some books...

Smiled...

Busted out of his pajamas...

Grew a mustache (Just kidding!! 
Claire has an old photo of him with a mustache magnet on it!)...

Chewed on everything - his hands, his rings, his tag blanket...

Played with his football...


Sat in Great-grandpa's chair...

Went to lunch with the fam...

 Gave Auntie Lisa a goodbye hug...

Woke up happy on his half birthday...

Celebrated his half birthday...

Challenges
- sleep: Hudson nursed less at night, but he woke up quite a bit. He is not much of a self-soother yet, and his mama isn't ready to let him cry!
- exercise: With the RIDICULOUS heat this month, I had trouble getting as much exercise as I would have liked. I did get 3-4 days/week, so I can't complain too much - but I would have liked to have 4-5 days/week. I think it will be easier when we can go for walks after work, but many days were over 100 at 5 pm!
teething: Mama HATES teething. Hudson has been teething since he was about 2.5 months old - BUT he still doesn't have any teeth: ( He wakes up in the night SCREAMING, and it makes my heart hurt. He also drools a TON and gets a rash - poor baby!! 

Successes
- starting solids: We introduced rice cereal at 5.5 months. As shown above, it was not his favorite - but I'm calling it a success since I finally gave him some! For some reason, I was really overwhelmed with starting solids, but it really isn't that hard!
- 6 months of breastfeeding: We proudly made it to six months of breastfeeding! With the way things are going, I imagine we will continue for many more months: )

This Month's Must Have Baby Items
- washable bibs: The plastic bibs that can be rinsed off are awesome! We have this one...
- tablets: We are having some success with the Hyland's teething tablets. Sometimes Hudson goes right to sleep once he has some relief!

Fun Stuff
- library: Hudson and I went to the library with Claire, Arlo, and Cookie! It was a great time! The boys snoozed most of the time. I picked out some sweet books for Hudson, and we picked up packet for the summer reading program; ) I hope we have many more fun times at the library ahead of us!
- Arlo: We spent a lot of time with Claire and Arlo this month! Mom helped me out A LOT, and she picked up Hudson from daycare once or twice a week. She usually took H to Claire's, and then we'd all hang out for a few when I came by after the gym. We LOVE spending time with Claire and her little family! Also, Arlo took some sweet pics this month...
- group: Hudson and I continued to go to the Wednesday breastfeeding group - and Claire (and Mom and Lisa!) joined us some days, too!
- Jenny visit: Auntie Jenny was here for a few days in June - SO good to see her; )
- Betsy's wedding: Nick and I had a great evening together at Nick and Betsy's wedding! My parents hung out with H, and Nick and I headed to Topeka for the ceremony and Baldwin for the reception. Betsy looked BEAUTIFUL, and it was such a special event! I also enjoyed catching up with Malinda, Erin, Megan, and Jane! We had to leave early because we had a busy Sunday planned, but I'm SO glad we got to go for a while...
- trip to Parsons: Although this year wasn't an official reunion year, there was a reunion-like event in Parsons on the last weekend of June. Hudson enjoyed being passed around the group: )

Since Hudson joined the family, the family tree got even bigger...
- July 4: The fourth was a Wednesday this year...lame. We did NOTHING. We stayed inside all day and spent some time together as a family. It may have been my favorite 4th of July ever; )

Milestones
This is some of what Hudson has been up to during his sixth month...
- transferred objects from one hand to the other
- sat up with support
- rolled from his tummy to his back
- ate "solid" foods
- bulldozed (aka tried to crawl) across the floor
- played with his hands and feet
- shook his toys


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