Feeding Antics

The cereal eating has finally turned a corner. I was trying everything before, but it didn't seem like Nick really wanted to eat well. He liked it when I fed him. We would talk, he would smile, then spit out almost all the food I put in his mouth. I tried switching brands of cereal. No real improvement. I tried putting the cereal in a bottle. He did better with that, but still not great. Then I tried the cereal with bananas. He LOVES it! He opens his mouth for the spoon, swallows his cereal and opens his mouth for more.

The only real problem with feeding time, is if he is really tired. The mornings go great, but the evening is sometimes a challenge. It did occur to me this evening how crazy I must look through our breakfast window to the neighborhood. I will do almost anything to keep Nick distracted from the fact that he is tired and cranky. This evening, just to get him to eat what probably amounted to 2 tablespoons of food, I sang songs, some I made up, some are kids songs. I danced, I played peek-a-boo by bending down below the high chair. I finally had to stop that to keep from getting dizzy.

I am pretty sure he does this on purpose to what other crazy tricks I will do.

Portraits

I am very lucky to work for a great photographer. One of the best perks of the job is being able to have great photographs of Nick. He came to work with me a few days ago, and here is the end results. At first he wasn't to interested in smiling. He really just wanted to look around at all the new interesting things in the studio. He did finally give in to our many antics to get him to smile and gave us some beautiful ones.

Not a smile, but I love this shot of him, especially since he is grabbing his foot ( a new trick)

Good smiles finally!

I love this photo too, he just looks so sweet.

Had to get the Aggie gear. Although at this point we had been at it a while and he was over it.

I realized that Nick and I don't have many photos together. I am always the one behind the camera.

This is one of my favorite things we do at work. Susan actually photographs his hands, feet etc. Then we put it together in the portrait series we call "kissables". I love it! All those tiny little kissable parts of him. They grow and change so quickly, I am glad I will always have this to look back on him at this age.

Full Weekend...Long Post

Nick had a few firsts this weekend. On Sunday, he went swimming for the first time. Well, really, I just held him in the water while he looked in amazement. He wasn't really sure if he liked it or not. He didn't hate it though. Here are a few photos...

(Not sure if he likes it or not)

(Still not sure what to think)

(All that swimming makes him tired)

(Of course after a nap, he is all smiles)

Bigger news, on Sunday night, Nick rolled over for the first time! (This link will take you to the video) I have been trying to put him on his belly and get him to try. I have been helping him roll over, but he really didn't seem all that interested. Then, Sunday night, we tried again. He was really mad about being on his belly. That helped. He just kept kicking those little legs. Luckily, I had the video camera handy. It was so great, I must admit, I cried. With a preemie, you have this constant fear in the back of your mind that developmentally, your child may be slower than other kids. I know him rolling over is a small thing, but it meant the world to me. Those little milestones are so important, for so many reasons. I am just glad I got it on video to watch over and over.

Still Eating... Sort of.

We are still trying to eat twice a day. Nick has gotten the general idea. He opens his mouth when I put the spoon up to his lips, but as far as actually swallowing the food, we aren't so good at that. He usually smiles, then spits out the cereal.

I think at this point I am learning my hand eye coordination. My arm with the spoon has to maneuver around his flailing arms, fists of fury, kicking legs, and turning head. I think he thinks it is fun to see how hard he can make it for me to actually make contact with his mouth.

The cereal goes on his tummy, behind his tummy, around his tummy, but not much of it makes it INTO his tummy. The other thing he loves to do is suck his thumb in between bites. I think if I actually put little bites of cereal on his thumb, he might actually eat more of it.

All in all, it is going well. He seems to like eating. He just has to get the hang of it a little more.

Cereal!

Nick had his 6 month doctor check up today. He is doing really well. The doctor was very pleased with everything. She felt that his development was right on track. He is doing everything he is supposed to be doing. The only thing that concerned her was his weight. He didn't gain much weight between his last appointment and this one. He is growing. He is getting longer, but as far as gaining weight, he isn't really doing that well. Today's measurements were... 10lb 15 ounces, and 22 3/4 inches long. She isn't overly concerned, as this is very common with preemies, but she wanted to see if we could start adding a little weight to him. SOOOO... tonight we had our first bowl of cereal.

Well, really we had just a few spoonfuls. Actually his tummy and hands had more of it that he actually swallowed. He even let me in on wearing some when he sneezed right after I put the cereal in his mouth.

At first he didn't quite know what to do with the stuff in his mouth. He was still getting pretty used to it. We are going to try it twice a day for a while. Once he starts getting the hang of it, we will increase to 3 times a day. Then in about a month or so, we will introduce fruits and veggies... yum!


Here are a few photos from his first attempt at cereal.

(This was the face we started with, so I wasn't sure this was going to go over well)

(He really wasn't sure what to do with that cereal)

(He finally decided that he liked it.)

Nightime rituals

I have always thought that one of the best things you can do for your kids is read to them. My parents read to my brother and I every night, and it developed into a love of reading on my part. I want to pass that along to Nick.

Every night we have the same routine (or at least I try really hard to have the same routine). We have a bath, then a bottle then we read a story.

I know he is too young to understand the words, but he loves being talked to. He will sit and listen and look at the pictures on the page so intently. He is always calm when I read to him. We read a story or two every night before bed.

And just to show you how much he loves being read to, or just so you can see a big smile:

First Boat Ride

Last night Nick had his first boat ride. Of course, he was in an infant life vest the whole time. We went very slow. He LOVED it! He loves being outside, but out on the water, there was so much more to look at. He liked looking at the shimmering water, and he loved watching the birds. Here are a few photos from the night...

Eye Doctor

I don't know if you remember Nick having his eyes checked while he was in the hospital. Preemies that receive a lot of oxygen support while in the hospital are at risk for developing complications including blindness. The pressure from the oxygen can cause their blood vessels in their eyes to grow larger and faster than they should which can cause problems. There are other issues that preemies can develop as well.

We went to the eye doctor this morning. They dilated his eyes. He did really well with it. I thought it might hurt, or be uncomfortable for him, but he never even whimpered. He smiled and "talked" with the doctor.

The doctor gave his eyes a clean bill of health. He said Nick's eyes looked wonderful and he was right on track. He didn't even see the need to have us schedule any follow up appointment.

And just in case you needed a cute photo to brighten your day....

(Nick after his bath... that is his excited face)

Dear Nick,

Today, you are 6 months old. I absolutely can not believe another month has already come and gone. While I hate how fast time seems to be going, I love watching you grow and change.

Over the last month you have made some big changes. You went from waking up twice a night, to not waking up at all during the night. (Please don't change that!) You are eating like a champ. I was thinking back the other day when you were in the hospital and we had to coax you to take an ounce and a half. Now you are taking somewhere between 4-6 ounces almost every 3 hours. You have gained weight, and gotten so long.

We have been working on tummy time, but you really aren't all that interested in it. Right now, you are trying to flip over, but before you can actually accomplish flipping over, you usually just have a melt down. You do love to lay on your back under your play mat. You have started reaching for the toys that hang down. Sometimes, you even succeed in grabbing them.

We have also started spending some more time outside. You LOVE being outside. You can just sit and enjoy your time for hours. Your favorite thing outside is watching the tree blow in the wind.

I can hardly believe that you have been home for 2 1/2 months. On the other hand, so much of your time in the hospital seems like lifetimes ago. You have made my life full. I look forward to every minute I can spend with you. You are such a blessing in my life. I can't wait to see what you will be doing next year.

Love you little man,

Mommy

Nick Video

I am still trying to figure out how to post a video, but for now, here is a link to a video of Nick. I hate my voice, but it is cute of him!