Week 29

It's raining on this Memorial Day morning, so instead of finishing planting the garden I get to spend this nap time on this week's post.

This past week was no exception to the busy May we've been having. Monday we went to a local farm for a picnic with my moms' club. One of the highlights was checking out the animals, although Matt didn't seem overly impressed, even with the 1-day-old lambs.

Tuesday we had our monthly moms' club coffee break in the morning, and that afternoon we surprised Jon at work. He was able to take a half hour to walk over to a little park with us, where Matt played in the sand for the first time. Letting sand run through one's fingers is such an instinctive human reaction even 6 1/2 month olds who've never seen sand automatically do it.

Wednesday we had library story time. I woke up tired and with some sniffles, but we were able to make it after all. Matt does seem to enjoy the mix of books and songs. Happily the librarian has announced that they'll have more baby story times this summer when they can squeeze them into the schedule around activities for the school-aged kids. 

Thursday I helped out with another program at work. I picked up some bubbles, and after a bit Matt decided he found it kind of funny when they popped.

Friday I was able to start returning my friend's favor by watching her son while she met with a client. Her little one wasn't happy to have mom leave, so to distract him I took both boys for a walk. I got in some exercise while the babies napped, and my friend got to run an errand as well, so we were all happier after that.

Saturday we enjoyed a quiet day at home, doing some work outside. I put Matt in my new carrier and then on a blanket in the grass while I did some weeding and preparing the vegetable gardens for planting and Jon worked a little more on the deck. 

On Sunday, while I did some more garden work, Jon took Matt to a local playground. Matt refused to be impressed by the swings or bubbles, despite my assurances that he enjoys both things, and he wasn't even impressed with his first time on the slide. Instead, he preferred to sit in the grass and play with the plants. 

Some more photos:

Matt is still enjoying eating solid foods. This week we added green beans, butternut squash, and prunes. He has gladly eaten all of the fruits and veggies we've given him so far, although he's not as enthusiastic about green beans now that he's had butternut squash and especially prunes.

Matt's sixth tooth emerged early this week. He acts like he still may be teething, but I have no idea if that's the case and, if it is, where the next tooth will appear. You can get a good sense of his increasingly toothy grin in this shot.

Some silly sitting poses

Matt continues to push up onto all fours on his own and to move backwards. He's worked out all sorts of ways to try to get to something just beyond his reach, some pretty creative, not all successful. He's going to be very happy when he figures out how to move deliberately and consistently in the desired direction.

Let's end with a goofy baby. Until next week!

Week 28

May has turned into a month of non-stop action for us. I wouldn't mind if we had less going on in June, but our calendar is already filling up...

Zonked in the car after a busy outing - I wish I could join him!

We started the week by hosting baby play group. I learned that toys with multiple pieces, like the sorting and stacking toys, are best for baby play group because one item quickly becomes many that several mouths and pairs of hands can share. I've decided some baby toys have sounds and lights and multiple moving parts to amuse the other people in the room because honestly the babies overwhelmingly prefer the simple objects - and the containers they come in.

Matt demonstrating that lids can be just as fun as the toys they're supposed to cover

Tuesday we went to a meeting for my moms' club, and Wednesday we had baby story time at the library. Thursday I went into work again, and then Friday we went to a fun local playground with my moms' group. Here's Matt enjoying some time on the swing:

The more he kicks, the more excited he is.

Saturday we enjoyed a quiet day at home before Jon left to attend his sister's graduation. Matt and I weren't able to make the trip this time, but we send her our congratulations for earning her law degree. Sunday we went to pick up some plants and took a walk around a garden before going over to babysit for some friends. And this week's social schedule isn't going to be any less busy!

Matt decided to pop out another tooth, which we didn't find until Friday. He now has three - and it looks like that's soon to be four - on the bottom and two on top. I thought we were going to get a little break from teething, but not yet!

I also switched out Matt's wardrobe to his 12-month clothes. Some are still a little big, but they undoubtedly won't be that way for too long! Stay tuned for the new looks debuting in the next few weeks.

Matt continues to love standing and is doing well when holding onto something. He can take one hand off, at least for a little bit. His balance while both sitting and standing is improving noticeably week to week.

  

Matt now eats avocado, sweet potato, and pear. He seems to be enjoying solid foods, especially because he gets to sit at the table with us while we're eating.

Having a grand old time sitting on his blanket, mouthing, banging, and dumping out the shapes in the box

Playing with stacking toys and talking to the cat (who's moving around behind me as I'm filming)

Banging and throwing toys are fun new tricks! Stay tuned for Matt's final pose; it's a cute one.

Sunday night Matt started pushing himself backwards when we were at a friend's house. We'll see if he does this on carpet, too. We may not have much longer to enjoy a baby who stays in one place...

Whew! No wonder Matt was wiped out this weekend and today.

Week 27

We had a busy start and end to the week, so buckle up for a full post.

My parents were here through Tuesday morning, so we finished off some gardening and other small projects around the house as well as spent some time with them. We were able to get over to the Y for our moms' club's weekly play outing on Tuesday, too. Needless to say Matt took some good naps Tuesday and Wednesday!

Thursday he stayed with one of my friends and her baby in the morning while I helped with a program at work, and then he stayed with another friend and their baby that evening while Jon and I had our first evening out in the city since before Matt was born. Fortunately he mostly behaved for both of them.

Friday we went to a consignment sale and picked up some fun items, including a few Red Sox,  baseball-, and soccer-themed gear, for when Matt is a little bigger. Then Matt had his 6-month check-up. At his check-up, Matt weighed in at 20 lbs. 11 oz. and measured 28.5 inches. He's still in the 90-95th percentile for weight but is creeping up in height: he's now at the 98th percentile. The doctor officially counted four teeth after the fourth one started peeking out that day. Matt did well at his visit, including with his shots; we're pleased with his progress.

Saturday I had a moms' club outing, so Matt got his dad all to himself in the morning. That afternoon we finished our test drives. Matt proved to be popular wherever we went, and he checked out the back of a few cars for us.

Sunday we spent a fairly quiet day at home, watching Jon prepare the deck for its facelift so that we can spent more time outside.

But enough discussion of our activities. Here are a few photos my parents took during their visit:

Matt on my dad's lap

"Who, me?"

My mom and I taking a break from gardening with our supervisor

Yummy stacking cup!

And now some other photos:

Hello!

Mr. Cool

Just a guess, but Matt seems to like our new hiking carrier

Enough, paparazzi!

 

Matt's high chair, which Jon made just for him, getting the Matt seal of approval

First full meal of solid foods, starting with yummy avocado

Trying to stuff a few bites in his mouth, which means inevitably some ended up on the floor

I'll end with a video of one of Matt's giggle sessions:

Happy Mothers' Day!

Thank you to all mothers and mother figures! Matt wants to wish a special Mother's Day to his grandmothers, great-grandmothers, and great-aunts.

Week 26

Sorry for another late post, but we've been busy with a visit from my parents.

Last week was a quiet week for us. We went over to a friend's house to spend some time with her and her baby, and we had baby story time at the library. Matt was hard at work on his top teeth, however, with one finally appearing by his half-birthday and the other one due out any day. Then this weekend our visitors kept us busy with gardening and putting some decorative touches on the room that will be Matt's bedroom. Matt proved to be a good supervisor. He's not so sure about sitting on the sidelines watching us planting, weeding, and mulching, but he does like observing someone using handheld power tools.

I forgot to take more photos when my parents were here, but here are some shots of Matt from last week:

Thoughtful baby

Happy baby looking forward to visiting friends

Matt spends a lot of time standing. He still needs support, but he's excited about taking this new skill to the next level soon...

Sigh. Nothing to play with except all of these toys.

The game of Baby Toy vs. Cat Toy has begun in earnest here; in this shot they're having a showdown over toy balls. So far the cat is winning thanks to her mobility. We'll see how long she has the edge.

Figuring out new ways to get the rings off the stacker as quickly as possible

Happy 6-Month Birthday, Matt!

Today is Matt's half-birthday!

At 6 months old he weighs about 21 pounds and has three (soon to be four) teeth. He has grown and changed so much over the past six months. We'll see what the next six bring!