Approximate height and weight: 21 inches, 11 lbs., 5 oz.
Milestones: Buddy Bear is continuing to astonish us with his rapid development! He's beginning to grab objects such as blankets, my finger, and my hair (ouch) and actively bats the dangling toys on his play mat. He smiles a bunch, sticks out his tongue, and continues building his strength through tummy time. As his vision improves (he can see around 18 in. now), he's becoming more interested in books and toys. His favorite book is a black and white Around the Farm book that features big prints of farm animals with bold patterns. Each day, I talk to him about the animals' features, what they say, and their spellings. He gets really excited about that.
Vocalizing has come a long way, and you may not believe me, but he seems to say "hi" sometimes! There have been a few instances where he'll look Leif and I right in the eye and say "hi" in an eerily low, mature voice. He also makes a lot of the expected "oooh" sounds and little yelps/barks. During weeks 5-6, he went through a "wonder week" where his awareness matured, causing several days of fussiness. I tried to make sure I was being extra attentive since this transition can be scary/unnerving for babies since they're easily overwhelmed. I can tell he's been through a couple growth spurts between wanting to feed and sleep more often and he's gaining approximately 1/2 an oz. per day, leading to some incredibly cute chubby cheeks, a double chin, and rolls on his arms and legs.
As the weeks pass, he's also developing a sleeping schedule (thank goodness). I find that he's the most active in the mid-morning through the early afternoon and the evening until about midnight. He sleeps the rest of the time aside from when he wakes to eat. He's regularly sleeping 4-6 hour stretches now!
Likes: Ehren loves staring at the contrast between light and shadow. If I ever want to buy myself 15-30 minutes, I turn his bassinet toward the window and lamp and he's thoroughly entertained. Any bright lights also bring him joy, but I fear he's going to damage his vision sometimes when he stares are them too long. Tummy time, his play mat, and walking around the apartment are still his favorite activities, but he's also taken a liking to being flown around the room like Superman and being lifted up in the air by Leif.
Dislikes: Even if he's doing his favorite activities, he tends to get bored after about 30 minutes at the most, so I have to keep an eye on his facial expressions to prevent him from getting too mad. Like last month, he's mostly relaxed unless there's a delay in his feeding or he wakes up and no one tends to him quick enough. We had an incident at Michael's where he got hungry suddenly and started screeching at the top of his lungs until I had a chance to feed him, so we try to make sure he's well fed before venturing out lol.
Memory: I'm happy to see Ehren getting more excited about the world. When we play games, he's more engaged and nothing is better than getting him to smile. I received a book with tons of games to play with babies and he really likes the one where I ask him where his tummy/arms/legs/feet/etc. are, pause, and say "there they/it are/is!" as I rub the part. The days are flying by and it's really true that even though the first few months are tough, there are so many little things to cherish like the way his head bobbles when he's holding it up, him snuggling against me, his gummy smile, and the way his eyes widen when you make a crazy face.
Mom and Dad: We've been getting into the swing of things and have been doing our best to take care of each other through all of the stress and sleep deprivation. Leif usually takes a short nap after he gets home from work and lets me sleep from around 8 or 9 p.m. until 12 or 1 a.m. Then, he sleeps until getting up for work in the morning. I grab a few more hours of sleep throughout the night and day, but am at least well-rested enough to get things done around the apartment and take Ehren for the many many walks he requires.
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