2 Years-Old

Age: 2 years-old

It's hard to believe that two years ago today, my life would change forever and I am now the mama of an athletic, clever, tender-hearted, spirited, strong-willed, adventurous, and inquisitive little boy. It's so much fun to watch him discover the world and building his skills and knowledge-base. He's definitely got my silliness, compassion, and creativity and Leif''s ever-changing interests, love of play, and affection. He's definitely got a lot of his own personality traits and marches to the beat of his own drum, but is beginning to learn some manners and can be reasoned with to an extent. Life is much easier now that we can easily communicate for the most part. Of course, there are plenty of terrible two tantrums but I try to give BB choices as often as I can and make sure he understands why something is wrong rather that simply telling him no. It's been a wild ride these last two years, but I wouldn't trade it for anything and even though I know each age has its challenges, I am doing my best to cherish these early days since I know these are the times I'm going to miss most someday (I'm getting a little teary just thinking about it!).

Milestones: 

• BB had his 2 year appointment last Monday and he is in the 20th percentile for both weight and height. He is still following his growth curve and is what the doctor calls "well-proportioned." I had to fill out a screening form for developmental delays and he is meeting all of his milestones physically, mentally, and socially - many of them well ahead of time. BB is still scared to death of the doctor, despite our best attempts to explain that it's to keep him healthy and safe. We even watched "Elmo Visits the Doctor" the night before and BB seemed comfortable with the idea at the time, but as soon as he realized he was at the doctor's office the next day, he was inconsolable. He kept yelling "Help me!" and "Go! Go!" while pointing at the door. There was a comical moment when he was heading toward the door and appeared to be pretending to limp... the doctor asked what was wrong with his leg and I had to tell her I had no idea why he was dragging his leg like that. 
• In the last couple months, BB has started using 2-3 word sentences and has gone as far as repeating lyrics for "No More Moneys Jumping on the Bed." A lot of the phrases he says have to do with wresting moves and playing with action figures like "Boston crab" (a wrestling move Leif taught him that he says while performing said move), "trapped in Spiderman's web," "super kick," and popular this week, "happy birthday."
• Now that the playgrounds have opened up, it's fun seeing how much more of the equipment BB can use. He's very fond of any sort of rock climbing wall, dome-shaped climbers that he likes to go under and yell "I'm trapped!", and tube slides. He also really likes the sand box, especially burying things, scooping sand into buckets, and tossing the sand around. Once we get his water table going, I'm guessing he will do similar things with it!
• BB loves chocolate and I pretty much have to hide eating it or risk him taking all of mine! He also still likes most fruit, green beans, broccoli, carrots, fresh sweet corn, corn puffs, sesame chicken, juice, chocolate milk, bread and hummus, ranch dressing, and most Italian foods like spaghetti, pizza, etc. I don't know when he'll ever stop being such a finicky eater but it's getting a little better every month.
• Potty training... is a journey. We've attempted starting the process a couple times without any success so far. He is happy to wear underwear and will sit on the potty every 15-20 minutes but he hasn't made it when he has to go on time. I know he's still pretty young, so we'll just keep trying and when's he'll be ready when he's ready.
• His favorite activities right now include play wrestling, sidewalk chalk, pretending to practice martial arts, playing in the rocks and sand, action figures, learning about trucks and animals, and helping me with household tasks like unloading the dishwasher. He enjoys watching PJ Masks, Virtua Fighter, and Kong: King of the Apes and like Scooby-Doo books, farm animal books, truck books, and his Highlights toddler magazines. He really loves this Japanese wrestling character call Tiger Mask too.

22 Months

Age: 22 months old

At this point, BB is developing more and more personality, imagination, interests, physical abilities, and his ability to communicate has exploded. Our routine of going to the library and other children's programs came to a sudden halt the week of St. Patrick's Day due to COVID-19, but we've been making the most of all of the extra family quality time. Some days are rough but there have been plenty of experiences that make up for it like being forced to be creative with sensory boxes (filled with flour, dry rice and lentils, or Chex cereal for BB to scoop and play around with), creating car tunnels and tubes out of paper, having dance parties to songs like "Animals in Action," and SO much time outside exploring.

BB's favorite outdoor activities are hitting trees with sticks, kicking around and collecting rocks, stomping pine cones, climbing up on tree stumps and jumping off, pointing at sewers and saying "Batman" (because in one of his books, Batman jumps through a manhole), playing football with Da Da, flying a kite, visiting the ducks at Noelridge, and playing with action figures on a blanket on the grass.

We definitely miss going out and about and it's unfortunate that BB's not getting more socialization with other kids, but we're grateful to be healthy and safe. He does have a pen pal named Ezra (another toddler friend we met at the library), I've been in touch with his mom while all of this has been happening and they send each other drawings and little cutesy letters. The hardest thing to explain to BB has been why he can't go on the playground at the park, but we tell him it will be open again someday. We had some "front porch" photos taken for free to document this strange time in history.

Milestones: 

• I've always felt like BB's imagination blossomed at a very young age, but we're really starting to see more of its expression now. BB LOVES playing with action figures and play sets. Like his Da Da, he goes through phases and went from loving Star Wars to Scooby-Doo to WWE in the past few months. He still has an affinity for each of these franchises but he's definitely had periods of intense focus on each one. Our floor is covered with a play set "town" and when he's in the mood, he'll play by himself there for 15-30 minutes at a time, but nowadays (understandably since he doesn't get much social interaction due to the pandemic), he prefers Leif or me to play one of the characters. Often times, the characters are either in a wrestling match, finding a werewolf, or looking for "boo-boos" or ghosts to solve a mystery, but it's usually a combination of the three. While playing by himself, it's amazing to see him create dialogue and story arcs, seeming to understand the basic art of conversation, inflection, and storytelling without even knowing all of the words to fill it all in.
• It's hard to count every single word he can say, but it's probably in the 50-100 word-range. Some of these words include juice, power, kick, play, help, wolf, high tree, why, Bumblebee, Yoda, more, run, bath, cloud, and duck. He also strings some words together like "no way," "oh no," "puppy power," I do," "home run, "mail man," and "all done." He basically understands everything I say and still surprises me with his ability to eavesdrop. For example, I was telling Leif about wanting really chocolaty ice cream when BB was doing his own thing, and while Leif and BB were at the store getting it, BB insisted on getting me a whole bottle of chocolate syrup and kept yelling "Ma Ma! Ma Ma!"
• BB has quite a bit of dexterity and can maneuver his action figures with ease. His gross motor skills are also pretty good, such as running, somersaults, climbing, and jumping. He has a t-ball set but requests that I throw the ball instead and he hits it sometimes. I'm trying to teach him the basics of running around the bases and strikes and he's sort of beginning to understand the concepts. He's still good at shooting hoops but it hasn't been as big of an interest for him lately, he prefers other contact sports like football and wrestling, but it may just be the fun of getting (gently) tackled to the ground by us. He eats with spoons and forks proficiently as long as the food is easy to stab or sticky enough to stay on the spoon if it tips. He's also very good with an open cup.
• I'd say his favorite activities right now are playing with action figures, going outside, luxurious long spa baths with the faucet running so he can fill up cups of water, helping me unload the dishwasher and making Da Da's coffee (BB makes it STRONG), playing video games, watching Scooby-Doo and Power Rangers, reading books (Elmo, the Little Mermaid, Star Wars, Scooby-Doo, Pete the Cat, animals, and big trucks are popular themes), drawing (and getting marker all over himself), playing board games (at least for a little bit of time, we have a few toddler-oriented ones), and squirting a spray bottle filled with water.
• He knows a few colors, his body parts, and generally has a freakishly good memory for details. For instance, while on a walk, we went to a rock-filled area and he remembered that weeks prior we had seen an airplane while standing in that spot and pointed to the sky looking for it.
• His eating habits have improved a lot, but he definitely has a strong preference for spaghetti, ravioli, most fruit, green beans, broccoli, banana oatmeal, cottage cheese, yogurt, chocolate, Triscuits, honey roasted cashews, rice krispy treats, and apple sauce. I still introduce plenty of foods and he tries them sometimes or acclimates to them over time. Earlier today when we were reading a book about a pickle, he asked for one and liked it. He also stole my turkey stick and ate half of it.

15 Months Old

Age: 15 months old

Weight: 20 lbs., 13 oz.

Height: 2'7"

Head circumference: 47.5 cm

It's safe to say that BB has hit full-on toddler mode. From building quite the vocabulary to having early "terrible twos" tantrums, our little guy is experiencing massive growth spurts in both his personality and size. I'd say that his personality has been cumulative, but it's definitely become much more defined within the past few months. He is still extremely strong-willed but he also has the sweetest, most caring nature. For example, he is always looking out for his toys, stuffed animals, us, and other children by offering (sometimes to the point of accidentally forcing) food or drinks into our mouths lol. I'm also proud to see that he's grown into a big helper, whether he's helping Mommy put the books into the return slot at the library or using a rag to wipe down his high chair tray - he's often looking for ways to pitch in. He still has his moments of pure fury but we're trying to not reinforce that this behavior gets him attention or his way. When he's not on the go, he's very affectionate, giving hugs when we ask for them (and sometimes on his own), blowing kisses, and giving big open mouth "kisses" on the cheek once in a while.

Milestones: 

• His understanding of language is going through the roof. I can tell because our little BB LOVES to eavesdrop! For instance, Leif and I were talking about going to the doctor that day and BB got very tense and begin panicking and other times, water or food will get mentioned and he starts pretending to splash or put food in his mouth. His top words right now are mama, dada, "boo-bree" for blueberry, "die-da" for dinosaur (or anything that looks remotely like one), moo, quack, neigh, "ba-ba" for bottle, and "duh" for duck. Mostly, he communicates through real and his own invented sign language. He also points at things he wants or finds interesting, hits the couch or chair to show he wants up, puts his fingers to his mouth and says "mmmmm" when he's hungry, puts his hand up on an imaginary steering wheel for car, and "splashes" with his arms for water or bath. I've always had a pretty good idea of what he wants or am able to anticipate his needs, but his ability to communicate has made many daily processes a lot smoother... that is, unless he doesn't like something that's happening. Since he understands so much, I can reason with him better such as saying things like "we have to get in the car so we can go home and have a snack." This works some of the time, but if he has his mind set on not getting into his car seat, that's another story.
• He's pretty good at using light switches, turning the radio on, using a spoon (or at least dipping it into something to eat), climbing stairs, closing doors, opening drawers, and tinkering with objects until he figures out how they work. His favorite types of toys are giant legos, trains and cars, books, stuffed animals (when he's in a snugly mood), pull-along toys, his airplane that you can dissemble and reassemble, anything that can be used as a trampoline, and wooden puzzles. 
• He's making some progress eating more, but it's still a struggle getting him to eat a balanced diet! There are some foods he can't get enough of like corn, most types of fruit, toddler cookies, crackers, sugar cereal soaked in milk, green veggies, and flavored yogurt but I have to find ways to sneak in or convince him to eat anything else. The other day, I literally had to do a full-blown cheer-leading routine to get him to eat a few big bites of his meal. I've been told that toddlers don't grow very quickly and only really need a couple handfuls of food at each meal but I want to make sure that he's getting what he needs!
• BB is a huge animal lover and gets excited to encounter, read about, and play with figurines of them. He can replicate the sounds of many animals (or at least make a decent best attempt) and enjoys our trips to the Old MacDonald's Farm petting zoo to see all of the farm animals and Noelridge Park for the ducks and geese.
• I'm so grateful that I've been able to take BB to library programs. He's become very social, always observing the other children and only really has issues if another child starts yelling or screeching loudly next to him. I've been reading about secure attachment and I can see that clearly demonstrated by the way BB ventures away from me to play and explore while knowing I'm there when he needs me. I'm happy to see this healthy independence blossoming within him, but at the same time, we're still working on getting him used to me not being around at every moment. Work in progress!

1 Year Old

Age: 1 year old!

It is bittersweet to be writing sweet little Buddy Bear's one year-old post. Parenthood has certainly been a wild ride, but I wouldn't trade a second of it. They say that having a child puts a foot on life's accelerator and that the days are long but the years are short, and neither of these statements could be more true. I've loved seeing BB grow and change, yet maintain so many of his personality quirks and characteristics he's had since the very beginning. I can't wait for the years to come, but at the same time, I'm trying to cherish every day of his infancy. Happy first birthday, my Ehren Gabriel!

Milestones: 

I think it's safe to say that he's hit toddler-hood early, from his daily increasing mobility to the full-blown tantrums, he really doesn't seem much like a baby anymore.

• From steadily walking to attempting running on multiple occasions, bipedal movement has become his preferred method of transportation over crawling. Once in a while when he's struggling getting over something, he'll crawl but he now knows that walking/running are far more efficient modes of travel.
• His comprehension has gone through the roof. I actively try to label things, and I can see that his understanding of language is starting to really blossom. For example, when I ask him where certain animals are on pages of his books, he's typically able to point to them and he responds to basic commands like "let's go outside" and "let's take a bath."
• He tries replicating many sounds and words but can't always quite get there. In one of his books called "Max the Brave," his favorite scene is when a giant monster sneezes (mostly because Leif and I make a big show of it) and now when we get to that part, he tries to say something like "aahhh-ooooo!" At this rate, I know he'll be talking sooner versus later. He already tries to join in on our conversations with his babble, so I have a feeling he's going to be a talker lol.
• BB is much more interested in socializing these days (when he's in the mood) and is considered quite a charmer by some. We went to the "Mother Goose is on the Loose" program at the library for children ages 0-4 and he was one of the most active participants. He was very engaged in the different music activities, went around to most of the children to greet them, and even went so far as to hug one of the other moms there! One of his less popular moves was trying to snag one of the older kid's animal crackers lol. When he encounters other children, especially ones that are 3-6 range, he desperately wants to interact but unfortunately, most of them are at the age where they don't want to share and aren't keen on hanging out with a little guy like him.
• He follows me around like a little duckling, especially when he hears me doing anything that may be of interest to him. He doesn't want to miss a thing and that includes putting away laundry, opening a drawer to get a spoon, and shutting a window.
• I'm so happy he's at the age where we can get involved in more programs and go more places like the trampoline park, splash pad, Play Station, and the playground. The trampoline park was by far the most popular since it possessed so much open space for him to explore and he appreciated the blaring music.
• He eats almost everything we eat now, which is so much easier than having to prepare him separate (usually slimier) food. He LOVES pizza and lasagna the most... and pumpkin pie, just like Daddy. He uses a sippy cup pretty well, but I know it's going to be a challenge weaning him off the bottle and nursing since he still wakes up hungry 1-2 times at night. I'm proud that I was able to nurse in at least some capacity for one year so far. In the beginning, it was more challenging than I could've ever imagined but it has overall been one of the most special ways to bond with BB, so the struggle was worth it. 
• BB has eight teeth (four on top and four on the bottom) and I think he's working on some molars as well!

Likes: Library programs, the splash pad, trampoline parks, running around Target, pizza and lasagna, plastic egg shakers, pumpkin pie, opening drawers and cabinets, reading, and crawling through tunnels.

Dislikes: It's been an ongoing thing, but I'd say BB's two biggest fears are the vacuum and the Magic Bullet blender. Even when he simply sees a vacuum, he starts whimpering, but I've been working on getting him acclimated to it. We've been storing the vacuum in our bedroom, so every time he goes in there, he points at it and makes a noise of concern. I reassure him and after he looks it over for a bit, sometimes he gets brave enough to touch it... progress. We've made huge gains in sleep training, but BB is not a fan of his earlier bedtime. Some nights are easier than others but generally he goes to sleep between 9:30 and 11:30 p.m. He's been getting up for the day much earlier too... sometimes as early as 5:15 a.m.!

Memory: Lately, Leif's been really interested in race car video games and bought BB both indoor and outdoor riding cars. They also like to "race around" by saying "vroom vroom" and running around the room with one hand on a steering wheel. It's adorable.

Mommy and Daddy: The new place has been wonderful. We've had some run-ins with our neighbors due to noise complaints from BB tumbling at all hours of the night... but it was the push we needed to get serious about sleep training. One of the best parts in having Thomas Park so nearby. The playground is a little advanced for BB but the splash pad is becoming one of BB's favorite places to go. He was wary of it the first couple times, but today, he ran right into the water without hesitation.

11 Months Old

Age: 11 months

Milestones: 

• Walking with increasing proficiency. He can take 10-20 steps at a time and if he stumbles, he's getting good at getting back up without pulling himself up on anything. He can also pick things up off the ground from standing position.
• Grasping more and more language, especially in the way of pointing. He wants to know what EVERYTHING is and also points to things he wants. When you say "outside," "da-da," "bathtime," or "cat," he generally points at whatever you're talking about. In addition to pointing, when you say "bathtime," he makes splashing motions with his arms and gets excited. Hope he always stays this enthusiastic about taking a bath lol!
• Enjoying new places and experiences. He's at the point where new places don't scare him as much and he is eager to begin exploring whenever we arrive somewhere. Leif and I have had to let go of some of our germophobia and let BB crawl around public floors. He got to sit in the grass for this first time the other day and didn't mind the pokey texture - his only issue was that the uneven ground made it a little harder to walk!
• Visiting the library, playground, and petting zoo for the first time. At the zoo, I think his mind was blown seeing all of the animals from his farm books come to life. The library is probably one of his all-time favorite hangouts since he gets to roam freely, play with their activity centers, do puzzles, play with their toy kitchen and train set, and look out all of the windows.
• Still babbling a lot and working hard on perfecting "ma-ma," "ba-ba," "da-da," and "cat-cat." Whenever he finds something interesting, he says "oh!"
• Crawling beneath and around chairs/objects with ease. This has made it harder to block off areas since he can bypass so many obstacles now!
• His pincer grasp is really impressive, he can easily pick up the tiniest pieces of food... and anything else he finds on the floor.

Likes: Visiting the library, park, and petting zoo, exploring new environments, trying to run, pointing at EVERYTHING, trying all types of new foods, playing games like giving gifts (toys) to me, hide and seek with toys, rolling balls back and forth, and "delivering" toys over the baby gates.

Dislikes: I'm proud of BB for overcoming some of his fears. He's still unsure of them, but originally, he was sort of scared of his squeaky horse, horse that walks, and Peter Rabbit jack-in-the-box, but when we play with them, I smile a lot and explain that they're safe. It's so cute, he looks at me repeatedly for reassurance! He also warms up to people a little faster, but still gets overwhelmed if people are overly loud.

Memory: One of BB's favorite things to do is give me different toys to wear as hats. He'll try stacking things on my head pretty regularly and does it to himself as well from time to time. He also thinks it's funny to pull off Mommy and Daddy's glasses! He gets super excited when Leif comes home and sometimes he'll stand there and "roar" at him like a dinosaur in hopes that Leif will roar back (which he does lol). Two peas in a pod!

Mommy and Daddy: We will be moved into our new place in a few short weeks, so EXCITED! I want to make the new place as welcoming to BB as possible, so I got him a little toddler table and chairs for his new room as an early birthday gift. Here's to a new beginning!

10 Months Old

Age: 10 months

Milestones: 

• Standing independently for minutes at a time
• Getting new teeth in... he now has 5!
• Walking!! His record is about 5-6 steps at a time. I'm impressed by how steady he is on his feet generally. 
• Lowering himself to the ground as opposed to simply dropping onto his bottom.
• Pointing as of yesterday. He deliberately pointed at Bumblebee to draw my attention to her and pointed out several more things when we were at the store last night.
• Make more sophisticated sounds by combining syllables like "ya-da-ga," etc.
• Regularly saying "da-da," ba-ba," and more and more often, "ma-ma."
• Correctly playing with stacking rings, putting blocks in holes, rolling balls down ramps, and flipping through books with more dexterity.
• Eating more table foods with greater expertise, his favorites so far being eggplant, lentils, rice, and pancakes (he still likes to spit a lot of it out and play with it too, of course...).
• Curiosity about everything and interest in tinkering with objects to understand how they work.

Likes: Eagerly exploring new environments, working on his new walking skills, taking apart (and trying his best to reassemble) his toys, lounging with a book in hand, trying all kinds of table foods, riding in the shopping cart, and playing at the playground. 

Dislikes: He isn't a huge fan of slimy foods, mostly because it's hard for him to feed himself. Sudden, loud noises, the vacuum, having to wait in the car seat too long, and diaper changes are not his favorites either!

Memory: Leif and BB have gotten into the habit of watching an episode of Power Rangers most evenings and it's been a great bonding experience for them. Ehren loves the opening song and Leif got him some Power Rangers action figures for them to play with together. He also got him a little toy plane that can be dissembled with a mini power drill, so they work on "repairing" it together.

Mommy and Daddy: Since BB is getting older and more enthusiastic about going out, it's been fun taking him on longer trips like going to Coralridge Mall. And now that we are set to move into our condo next month, it seems like everything is falling into place. I'm so excited for BB to have his own room and to have a bigger kitchen to bake cookies together and make other memories in.

9 Months Old

Age: 9 months

Approximate height and weight: 26.5 inches, 15 lbs., 15.2 oz.

Milestones:

• Crawling super fast, along with the ability to maneuver through tunnels.
• Cruising alongside the baby fence and anything he can pull himself up on!
• Quickened pace using his push walker and more stability holding onto it while I turn it around (although we've had a few unfortunate incidents where he's fallen backwards and the walker rolled over him...)  
• Using all of his might to try to take his first step. He keeps lifting his foot to do it, but loses his balance before being successful. I predict it will happen within the next month!
• Gaining a deeper understanding of games and humor. One of his favorite things to play is "Jaws/sea monster" in which I'll start humming the "Jaws" theme and he quickly crawls over to his raft (his play mat) to get out of the water before I strike. I swim around the edges and attack his feet over the edge and rock the raft. Sometimes he'll make a run for it and I chase him, grab his feet, and pull him back to the raft and he gets a huge kick out of it.
• Still loving music in any form, whether it's the radio, the music his toys play, or a steady beat. Even if you hold up the radio or his tape player, he'll prematurely start rocking to the music before it even starts playing lol.
• Being a little explorer and investigating everything he encounters... his favorite things being every day objects like the wooden spoon we got him, anything on a shelf he can pull off, and the sock drawer.
• Handling his solids better and eating more and more finger foods. We transitioned from purees to chunkier mixes with little pieces of veggies, rice, meat, etc. and after a couple initial instances of gagging, he is tolerating them pretty well. His favorite finger foods by far are crunchies. One serving size is about 20 and we give a few here and there throughout the day. He loves them so much that if he's standing and you shake the can, he'll plop right down and sit with his mouth open haha.
• Separation anxiety is in full swing. He's fairly independent, but likes to keep me within view. Even if he's completely distracted, he perks up right away when he senses me leaving and gives me the most desperately sad little face.
• Clapping!
• Cutting his top two teeth! He looks so cute, but now has a habit of chewing on his crib like a little beaver. I finally got some rail protectors, but not before he managed to scrape off a good helping of paint from them. It was startling to see paint specs all over his face a couple times, but I've heard the same story from others... and thankfully, the crib paint is non-toxic.

Likes: Exploring the world around him, clapping, waving goodbye dramatically with both hands, climbing everything he possibly can, nearly taking his first step before losing his balance, standing independently like a champ, drinking from cups and feeding himself more and more successfully, and eating CRUNCHIES!

We recently opened up the baby gate so that he can roam around most of the kitchen and hallway and he absolutely LOVES it. He's managed to whack his head on the walls and table but it doesn't even faze him. The cats on the other hand are a little unnerved that they can't find peace outside of the playpen anymore, but I keep working on promoting a good relationship between them and BB as best as I can. It's just hard when BB can't differentiate between petting and slapping!

Dislikes: It can still be hit or miss taking him places, but once he warms up to a place, he's much more adventurous nowadays... but this also means he's much more of a handful where ever we go! 

Memory: Bath time has to be one of the funnest, most heartwarming times with BB. We started giving him a rubber ducky to play with and he love to bat it around in the water and make it "go down the slide (the newborn reclined part of his tub)." I just always want to remember him as the sweet little boy smiling and laughing while he's splashing everywhere without a care in the world.

Mommy and Daddy: I love watching Leif interact with BB, he's such a playful, amazing Daddy. The funniest thing is seeing him trying to reason with BB when he won't stay still enough to get his pants back on and starts crawling away or Leif trying to keep him from throwing the spoon. BB is also becoming more intentionally affectionate, so it's the best feeling having him crawl up on my lap, putting his arms around me, or giving me a little kiss on the cheek (a.k.a. putting his open, slobbering mouth on my face... but I'll take it!).

8 Months Old

Age: 8 months

Approximate height and weight: TBD

Milestones:

• Crawling like a pro, and when he really wants something, extremely fast. Sometimes, he'll take off so suddenly that he can't get traction and almost flops onto his belly.
• Pulling himself up with ease... on everything, his favorite places including Mommy and Daddy, the baby fence, his activity table, his walker, folding chairs, plastic tubs, and occasionally his crib bars.
• Standing independently for a few seconds at a time.
• Taking a few wobbly steps with the aid of his walker and lots of cheering from Mommy and Daddy.
• Understanding more complex ideas like lifting the flaps in his "peek-a-boo" book to see the images underneath and trying to put blocks on top of towers I build (his coordination isn't quite there yet).
• Seeming to understand "mommy," "daddy," "cat," "want to be picked up?," and "nursie/baba."
• Lifting his arms to be picked up. We call it "big arms."
• Eating solids twice a day (the amount he eats at each feeding varies based on his mood and attention span...) and enjoying finger foods! Since the finger foods we give him are fast-dissolving, they break and get all over him. His yogurt bites are round and stick to his fingers and clothes like little buttons lol. Regarding solids, he prefers to have his spoon dipped in the food and putting it in his mouth himself.
• Dancing his little heart out to all music, singing, tapping, etc. He's a big fan of the "Immigrant Song" by Led Zeppelin haha.
• Curiosity about different textures, gravity, and the way objects function.

Likes: Dancing (sometimes headbanging lol) to all types of music, eating finger foods like yogurt bites and rice rusks, flipping through books on his own and "reading" them by babbling, working on standing and walking independently, playing games that involve tickling or loud noises like "KA-BOOOOM," and getting to do things that make him feel more independent like holding a spoon or turning off and on the light switch.

Dislikes: It's still a challenge getting him to enjoy being a other people's homes. It's bizarre since he gets super excited about exploring other areas of our apartment besides his play area. He gets so nervous and overwhelmed by all of the new faces and sights and it takes him at least a good 30 minutes to get acclimated to a new place. A work in progress! He's still not a huge fan of straight veggies, but enjoys them mixed with apples or pears. He's also not a fan of me taking my phone a way when he manages to grab it, the cats running away when he chases them, and crawling on hardwood floors.

Memory: I'll never forget tripping while holding BB! I was stepping over the baby fence and my second foot didn't quite make it over the top. We went crashing down but thankfully the fence, my knee, and my elbow helped break our fall. BB's head flopped a little but I had a good grasp on him... however, we were both scared to death! What's even worse was just over 24 hours later, I fell over the same fence backwards! BB was safe on my chest, but I couldn't help but worry that I might have broken him. He's fine, but the incidents were definitely a sign that I need to slow down, so now I'm working on pacing myself and not letting my mind be in a million places at once.

Mommy and Daddy: Between the falls and our car stalling out, we've had some bad luck lately, but it's showing us the importance of being there for each other during the difficult times. We're having so much fun watching BB learn and grow, slowing taking on more and more of our personality quirks and physical traits.

7 Months Old

Age: 7 months

Approximate height and weight: 16.5 lbs, 27 in. 

Milestones: Where has the time gone?! I feel like my little baby is becoming more and more like a toddler each day. Here are some of the highlights of late:

• CRAWLING the day he officially turned 6 months-old. The first week or so, he was really wobbly and belly flopped a number of times, but after that, he was a pro. Until we expanded the baby fence to encompass the entire play area, I spent half of my time diverting him from going EVERYWHERE he wasn't supposed to be haha.
• Pulling himself up higher and higher, preferring to use the baby fence, his activity cube, US, and his jumper to brace himself. Leif said the first time BB fell from pulling himself up, he looked truly shocked by the impact... before proceeding to cry and getting lots of kisses on the head from Daddy.
• Breaking his first two teeth (the bottom middle ones)
• Enjoying his first solids! He was fairly indifferent about oatmeal but had a strong opinion about the green veggies we tried the following week... he did not find them tasty and went to the length of trying to claw the food off of his tongue with his fingers. However, after trying them several more times and diluting them a little with some oatmeal, he didn't think they were so bad. It was instant love with sweet potatoes and avocados, though! Right from the start, he did an admirable job of trying to feed himself with the spoon, but he still needs some practice lol. The sippy cup wasn't so natural for him. He'll tilt his head back to drink, but doesn't understand how to lift the cup high enough to get the milk, so we help him out with that.
• Consistently saying "ma ma ma ma ma ma" when he's distressed and needs me. I haven't heard it when he's happy yet. I swear I've heard "da da da da" when he wants to play and is looking for Daddy!
• Kneeling and then leaping forward like a pouncing cat.

Likes: Crawling everywhere like a baby on a mission, pulling himself up on everything, splashing in the bath, being read to and helping turn the pages, roaring like a dinosaur, crawling up mountains of blankets and pillows, playing peekaboo, strolling around the store in the big boy seat of the shopping cart, and spilling milk all over himself while practicing using a sippy cup.

Dislikes: He's warming up to going out and about, as long as he gets to sit in the shopping cart or crawl around where ever we're at! As much fun as he has climbing and crawling, it comes at a price when he falls on his face or bonks his head... thankfully, he gets over it quickly. He's not a big fan of bedtime, especially since we've been trying to implement a stricter schedule... it's a work in progress. Now that he can move around so well, it's a struggle getting him dressed, much like wrangling a lion. Half of the time, he gets impatient or I end up having to dress him while he's sitting up.

Memory: BB is appreciating his playtime with Daddy more and more, and he gets super excited whenever he sees him. Whenever Leif makes funny noises, BB goes crazy over it and he loves inspecting Leif's badge picture when he's home from work to "authenticate" that it's really him haha.

Mommy and Daddy: Things are going more smoothly now that BB is falling into a more regular routine. We're still very sleep deprived since the little guy likes to wake up every 1-4 hours to eat, but I'll never complain about holding and comforting him. We're getting more excited about everything we'll get to do as a family when the weather warms up and BB is walking like visiting the zoo and having picnics in the park.

6 Months Old

Age: 6 months

Approximate height and weight: 26.5 in., 15 lbs., 15.5 oz.

Milestones: Where to begin! He is such a little character and his personality continues to evolve every day. These are some of the major things he's been doing/accomplished:

• Becoming EVEN MORE vocal (mostly screaming at the top of his lungs for fun at all hours of the night... we think he might be trying to sing haha). He also babbles a bunch, making 1-2 syllable sounds with his favorite being "uh-uh" when he doesn't like something!
• Pulling himself into a wobbly sitting position, then graduating to being an unsupported sitter over the course of a few days.
• Seeming to understanding his name, along with "cat," "Mommy," "book," and "Daddy."
• Attempting to pull himself up to stand.
• Awkwardly crawling a couple feet here and there.
• Making huge strides in his dexterity being able to pick up and hold most objects that fit in his hands with a good amount of control.
• Gaining a deeper appreciation for books, his favorite still being "Uni the Unicorn," but "Noisy Baby Animals" comes in at a close second!
• Using his crib as a little training dojo where he performs daring gymnastic feats and enjoys throwing himself backwards to bounce on the mattress (with the unfortunate couple of cases of whacking his head on the bars).
• Entertaining himself for longer periods of time since he can move short distances to access the toys he wants and spend time slapping his lap like he's about to play patty-cake.
• Developing a sense of humor... much like my own. He likes to do silly things on purpose like grabbing his pants after I've taken them off to change him and chewing on them all while eyeing me with an excited little grin waiting for my reaction.

Likes: Ehren loves playing with all of his toys (especially the ones that make a lot of noise), sitting up and nearly crawling, listening to upbeat music, attempting to pet the cats (and them running away), using all objects as drumsticks and the world as his drum, and hearing then trying to replicate goofy sounds.

Dislikes: Going out in public (he'd much rather be at home playing with his toys), going to bed early (we're gently trying to sleep train him, but he fights it!), car seats and any other things that limit his movement, being fed by anyone besides Mommy, and this cold weather!

Memory: I hope his relationship with our cats is always so sweet. Whenever he sees them, he gives them the most adoring smile. Desperately, he tries calling them over by yelling and slapping his lap, but they understandably don't go for that... He also gets super excited when looking at pictures of cats - being a cat person must be genetic! Lol

We also got a noise complaint from our neighbors down below due to "pounding on the floor at all hours of the night." Well, it's more incentive to get him to sleep earlier and when he's kicking or tumbling up a storm after 10 p.m., he has to do it in his crib. I explained the situation to the leasing office and they said they will try to work with us... only my Buddy Bear!!

Mommy and Daddy: Leif is always so proud of BB and likes to "play video games" side-by-side with him (Ehren holding his toy controller and Leif on his Gameboy). BB being a six-month-old is bittersweet for me. While I'm so excited to see him grow, I'm already mourning the newborn stage a little (even as difficult as it was). This is all going too fast!

Quirks I don't want to forget: 

• Whenever Ehren starts getting really hungry, he gets the hiccups.
• Sometimes when we lie down to nurse, he gets so excited that he smiles huge and kicks his legs on the ground twice.

5 Months Old

Age: Twenty one weeks

Approximate height and weight: 25.5 inches, 15 lbs.

Milestones: BB continues to make huge strides in his development. Like the little athlete his is, he's been training very hard to crawl and sit up. Each day, he is able to push himself further up into sitting position and has mastered getting up onto his hands and knees. Sometimes he rocks on his hands and knees or digs one of his feet into the ground, but he still can't quite coordinate the movements to crawl. Seeing how much he's progressed since last month, I'm going to predict that we'll have a sitter and possibly a crawler by Christmastime! He seems to go through phases with his other new skills. One week, he was sticking out his tongue every five seconds, the next, he was screeching for fun, and now he has learned that he can communicate that he doesn't like something by saying "uh-uh." His "stranger danger" sense is getting more pronounced and he gets panicky when surrounded by a lot of people or being held too long by someone besides Mommy and Daddy. I know "stranger danger" is natural, but Leif and I are still going to make a point of getting him out more for socialization. It appears that he's responding to his name and has a reaction when I say "daddy" or "cat." When he turns six months, I'm hoping to teach him some sign language. I've already started occasionally using the signs for mommy, daddy, and milk, but he's still a little young to really register what I'm doing.

Likes: Lately, Ehren is fond of compulsively getting into crawling position, trying to push himself up to sit, gazing at mirrors, monitoring what our cats are up to 😺, drooling all over everything, playing with toys that crinkle, being read to, grabbing his feet, and getting tickled.

Dislikes: The little guy hates that he still can't crawl yet, but when he's determined to get somewhere, he does a combination of scooting and rolling to accomplish the task. I set up a few different play stations to switch between throughout the day and he typically doesn't like staying at one for more than 20 minutes tops. It's been easier to predict when he'll want to eat, so thankfully we don't have as many meltdowns over that anymore. He gets pretty bummed whenever we put him in the car seat since he hates being constrained and isn't a huge fan of going out. He ends up looking depressed most of the time and wishes he could be back in his play area moving around.

Memory: BB was chewing on this toy plane we got him and we didn't think much of it since it's a big hunk of plastic, but unfortunately, the slightly rough texture nicked his upper gums and started bleeding a lot. Ehren didn't cry or seem to notice, but it was scary for us seeing blood smeared all over his mouth and the wet rag we used to put pressure on it. It was hard keeping his hands away from the injury and from chewing on anything else, but luckily he was hungry and fell asleep after eating and gave it a chance to heal.

Mom and Dad: Leif and I's love for BB continues to grow every day and it's fun seeing the different personality traits of ours emerge in him. We're starting to get into a groove balancing family time, work, and all of our other obligations but it always feels like there are never enough hours in the day!