5 Months

It seems like it's been awhile since I've posted about our progress. Colin was on vacation for a week and a half so we've been traveling like crazy! It's been wonderful to visit places and see people, but it has been difficult on our routines.

Micah was doing about a three and a half hour feeding schedule with one two hour feeding towards the end of the night to keep up the five feedings and to also keep up the twelve hours of sleep he was getting at night. I also started feeding him baby oatmeal once a day at his 5 o'clock feeding. However, when we were on vacation in the Midwest Micah was not nursing well. He'd eat one side (maybe) and then nurse only a tiny bit on the other side. I attributed it to a flexible routine and him having a cold. There were a few times that he went longer than three and a half hours and he nursed MUCH better (I thought maybe he was getting ready to go on a four hour feeding schedule before we left, but I wanted to wait until we were back from vacation and in a normal routine), so I "sucked it up" and switched him to a four hour feeding schedule and added one more feeding of oatmeal at the end of our trip. I was surprised at how easily he fell into a four hour routine. Now Micah's routine looks like this (knock on wood because as soon as I write this something will change I'm sure):

7:30 nurse
9:30 nap
11:30 nurse and feed solid food
1:30 nap
3:30 nurse and feed solid food (although I'm thinking about doing solids around supper time instead, so that when he's weaned from nursing it'll be an easier transition to our meal time, but I don't want to create a habit of eating every 2 to 3 hours still)
5:30 short nap (this nap can get easily skipped if need be)
7:30 nurse and bed



Micah also started rolling from his tummy to his back pretty consistently this month and he can sit up for a few seconds without assistance. His drool output has definitely increased this month and perhaps we'll be seeing a tooth in the next little while (Jackson didn't get his first tooth until 7 months so we'll see). He's a happy little guy and although he hasn't made any consonant sounds yet he loves to jabber. He's a cuddle bug too. Sometimes if he fusses at the beginning of a nap all I have to do is cuddle with him for a few minutes and then put him back in his crib and he goes right to sleep. (By the way, I'm still swaddling him for his naps and he still takes a pacifier. For bed time, I put socks on his hands (I know it sounds silly)so that he doesn't accidentally scratch himself and to discourage him from sucking his thumb.) He's also very tender hearted when it comes to his brother ... if Jackson is crying Micah will cry too and the minute Jackson stops so does Micah.

I haven't had much Mommy and Jackson time lately due to our traveling, but Jackson has not been deprived at all (time with great-grandparents, grandparents, aunts and uncles and cousins, going to Disneyland, etc.) He's grown up so much these past couple of weeks. I LOVE watching him play with other children ... his personality begins to shine. Despite being sick with a cold at the end of our vacation Jackson has been SUCH a trouper with all of the crazy traveling we've been doing lately. I really am proud of his maturity in that regard.

My boys are growing up WAY too fast, but it's been such an honor and a blessing to watch!!

Weeks 19 & 20

Not much to report these two weeks. I've been starting to work out about two times a week for about 30 minutes of cardio and 15 - 20 mins of weight lifting, but have noticed that I need to start watching what I'm eating ... yeah I'm beginning to wonder if I'm gaining weight. I'm trying not to worry about it, but just change my lifestyle a little.

I gave Micah rice cereal at the end of week 19 because he was waking up an hour or two earlier in the mornings. The cereal helped a little, but I think it made him a little constipated. I stopped feeding the cereal to him and he was still sleeping fine. I took some stool softener to get him to poop a little more comfortably at the end of week 20 and he is doing much better. I think I'll hold off on the cereal for a couple more weeks. I wonder if my milk supply was down a little and that's why he was waking up so I pumped a little extra during week 19 and increased my fluid intake as well and things seem like they're back to normal. Micah is also taking a bottle regularly from Colin on Monday nights. YEAH! The medium flow Nuby Naturals with really warm milk is what he seems to prefer.

I'm in the process of looking for some very simple and flexible curriculum to start with Jackson. He's been in Sunday school for the past three weeks and has started a Bible verse/ Catechism memory chart. I'm impressed with how quickly he is picking up on the verses and questions. I'm even more impressed that he takes time to ask what the verses or answers mean. Anyway, he REALLY likes Mommy and Jackson time and it's obvious that he can handle a little more structured learning now, so if any of you have any suggestions for curriculum for a two year old your input would be greatly appreciated.