5 Months Old

I know I've said it many times, and I have no doubt I will say it many many many more on this blog -- but I just can't believe how much my baby has grown! I've had several moments of shock lately. For instance, my baby couldn't quite reach the floor with his toes when I put him in his new Jumperoo a few weeks ago. I had to put a little seat cushion underneath him, so he could make it jump. Today, I realized he was flat-footed on the floor and I needed to actually raise the level of the Jumperoo. How the heck did that happen?


Will acts more and more like a little boy and less like a baby every day. And I know he is only 5 months old ... man, this is going to get tough on me as he grows up. Right now, I'm just trying to absorb every minute of being with him. Every single, fun, smiley, moment with him. Here are some of his big accomplishments/changes over the last month:

1) Will can now roll over unto his stomach from his back. One day, he couldn't stand to be on his belly and would just sort of flop over on his side, then all of sudden, there he was on his belly looking up at me. It happened last Sunday when Gampa was visiting. He was talking to me while I was sitting on the floor next to Will who was playing on his mat. All of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye -- there he was on his belly propped up on his hands! I can tell he wants desperately to figure out how to move once he is up there looking around. But he does get tired on his belly quickly. Problem is, he can't roll back over on his back yet - so he'll fuss till we turn him over. And then proceeds to roll right back on his belly and fuss again!

2) I love watching Will observe everything around him. He will just stare and stare at things going by. He recently noticed our cat, Mitzi. He stops whatever he is doing when she is nearby and watches her like a hawk. Today, she sniffed him and he reached out and touched her face. I think she was as surprised as me but, remarkably, she did quite well! Will's classic, "I am absorbed with something important" look is big eyes, mouth gaping open, and little to no other movement:

3) Will still sleeps in his car seat, but I think we are getting closer and closer to nighttime sleeping in the crib. All this past weekend, Will never napped in the swing. He only napped in his crib. YEA! I have to put him on his side and stuff blankets around him to keep him on his side. (yes, the APA is probably out to get me now. But you try to convince him he should sleep flat on his back, on a mattress as hard as a rock, without a lovey or anything to hug. Yea, right.). Will has slept as much as an hour and half that way. He did it at day care last Tuesday too! (No update on his sleeping habits ... he still doesn't sleep through the night and his ear infection got him off track ... but we're working on eliminating that 2-3AM feeding best we can!)

4) SOLIDS! Yes, Will had his first solid food dinner today!! I can't believe it! He started to slowly warm up to solids over the last few days - especially applesauce. The boy LOVES LOVES LOVES applesauce. I'm amazed by how much he will eat. But today we went out and got him a little highchair booster seat, so he would have a more comfortable place to eat. I also fed him his bottle first, so he wouldn't get upset about not having it yet. And it worked! Will ate almost half a little jar of applesauce, two heaping spoonfuls of bananas and I even got him to eat some oatmeal cereal. He would open his mouth wide for more, even making a sound to tell me "give me more Mommy, now!"

5) As Will stares at the world around him, he is getting better and better at playing with toys. He still isn't quite there yet, but tends to do more than just stuff the toy in his mouth. This weekend, I discovered that my little baby fits in his Exersaucer, and he loves it --

6) Will absolutely loves to stand. He almost always smiles when you help him stand up. He will even do it with a straight back, flat-footed. He is just so strong. (Mommy fears he will be an early walker. He even stood for a little bit of time holding on to something a few days ago.) I need to get a good picture of this ...

7) The boy is ticklish! Right at the top of his ribs, on his sides. Daddy gets him to laugh the best --

Sometimes I look at Ellis and ask him, "Can you believe this is OUR boy? That we have a son?" I mean really, how could anyone be so incredibly blessed!! :-)