5 Months Old

Our baby turns 5 months old today. Just in this past two weeks, Reed has started doing some pretty amazing things like starting to sit! Unassisted! WOW!!!

People always told me how quickly babies change, but in the past month I've really started to appreciate what that means. I'm constantly amazed when I wake up and he is doing something completely new. He soaks everything up and is constantly growing and learning.

In my unofficial weigh-in with Reed yesterday (which unfortunately meant I had to get on the scale), Reed weighed 22 pounds. He is growing superfast, and it has brought some challenges.

The infant car seat we had for him was only designed to accomodate 22 pounds which meant it was time for a new seat. This time we decided to buy a convertible car seat that would remain rear-facing until Reed turns one but is also designed for heavier weight. Once he hits the 12-month mark, we can convert the seat into a forward facing chair for him.

The new seat is really nice and looks comfortable. The only problem is that it is stationary, and therefore, cannot be removed from the car. This makes carrying Reed in and out of the car more difficult. Whereas before, I could simply lift his whole seat out of the car, carry him into daycare--or the store and put the seat in a shopping cart--I now have to unbuckle him and carry him. I can't say enough what a pain in the tush this is. Especially since the little bugger falls asleep on every car ride. I hate waking him up to get him out, and once he's up, he's up. There's no going back to sleep.

With the new car seat means we have to get a new stroller. The snap 'n' go stroller was great, but it's only a frame that the infant seat snapped into. Once the infant seat is gone, the stroller can no longer be used. So we bought a new stroller on-line. The stroller finally arrived today, which is good news because up until now we were stuck not being able to take Reed with us for errands since he can't sit in a shopping car yet. We would have had to carry him through the store.

Finally, with the infant car seat, I was simply using a car seat cover to wrap over Reed to battle the cold weather. I could dress him in regular clothes and then just throw the polyester bundle over him and put on a hat for the trip into daycare. Now, I have to dress him up in a coat, gloves and hat since I can't use the bundle. I guess this is just the beginning of new hurdles to face as he becomes more and more of a big boy.

Reed started rice cereal this month, and he is now loving it. We are giving it to him in the morning and evening after a bottle. He swallows pretty well now, but still manages to create a good mess. He will bang his arm on the tray, almost as if he is demanding more. It's cute now, but may not be so much in a few months... Reed is doing so well on rice cereal that Daddy is going to introduce him to vegetables in the next few days. First up? Green beans.

His sleeping schedule is not quite perfected. Last night he slept a full 11 1/2 hours, but the past week he has had some difficulty where he wakes up through the night. He doesn't need a feeding--it's usually just a challenging game of pacifier roulette. He'll wake up fussing, mommy/daddy comes and puts the pacifier back in...back to sleep...up 30 minutes later, mommy/daddy put the pacifier back in...repeat until 6 a.m. We're struggling with the pacifier (see my previous post). I think how he sleeps is correlated with how well he naps. For example, yesterday he had 3 great naps all 1 hour or longer. However, at daycare he only sleeps in 20 minute bursts. Those are the nights he tends to have difficulty sleeping. Oh well, I guess he will just have to learn to cope.

We have started using sign language with him this month. I have a couple of books I read that teach you how to sign. This is supposed to encourage communication between you and your baby at an earlier stage. Babies will often learn to sign and put meaning to words before they can actually verbalize. Thus far, we are using the signs for "milk," "eat" (for solid foods), "sleep," "all done," "change diaper," "bath time," and we are just starting to do "book." I also sign the ABCs to him at night before bed. I think he is starting to recognize the sign for milk already.

In the past few days, I've noticed that Reed is pulling his feet up and grabbing his toes. He's loving holding on to his feet and kicking them up in the air. I think that has led to him being able to sit for a few seconds unassisted since he leans over in a seated position to grab his feet. He just started to do this yesterday (at least that we noticed).

I captured this awesome video of him sitting.

I fall more and more in love with this little guy everyday. I leave tomorrow for Los Angeles for work and will be gone for four days. I know how much can change in four days, and I dread being away from him. I will miss not having that "pick me up" at the end of a long work day.

We love you budders!

(Click on any of the photos to see more 5-month moments)