Vegetable Eater

DS is now a vegetable eater. We started with carrots on Thursday, mixing it in with his cereal, which is pretty much just rice mixed with milk. Sounds good, right? Rice and carrots...and milk to wash it down. Well, we did the "4-day rule" before introducing sweet potatoes yesterday. The sweet potatoes definitely seem to go down easier then the carrots. (Like mama, like son, I suppose!!)

I invested in a really great book about making your own baby food called "Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron. It talks about making everything from your own cereals ("Super Porridge") and almost every fruit and vegetable out there and how to make them for babies. I have started doing a little bit of cooking and freezing little bits in ice cube trays for quick meals. I am looking forward to trying all the various forms of vegitation with DS. The greatest part is that it also gives me ideas of different things to try for "us big people" that I would never have thought of. For example, today was the first time I have ever cut open an avocado. I was pretty amazed at the size of the "seed", or "pit" or whatever the "proper" name for it is. Supposedly, it is pretty easy to grow an avocado plant, so I think I might give that a try. Guacamole, here we come! I was a little overwhelmed at first by all of the information, but DH reminded me to make one little change at a time and before we know it we will be a true Oregonian, living off the land!...or something. I thought I was a pretty healthy eater for the most part, but I am realizing there are a lot of ways I can make our diets healthier and more diverse (but still yummy!) and cheaper!

Biker Babe

We have had some awesome weather lately, and we just needed to try out our baby bike seat that was "handed down" to us from some friends here. So, last Sunday afternoon, we strapped on the seat and DS's bike helmet. (All children on a bike under the age of 16 are required to wear helmets here...I didn't know they made helmets this small. Fortunately, it is adjustable so he won't grow out of it right away.) We had a nice ride around the block and down to the river. He seemed to enjoy the ride so much that it put him right to sleep.
Since our first bike-outing, we have had several others including a few trips to pop in and visit some friends around town. I have contemplated riding out to the store to do some grocery shopping, but unfortunately, bikes don't come with trunks to bring the groceries home. I did invest in a pretty nice wire basket for the front of my bike, but that just isn't big enough for a cart-load of food.

The most challenging part when commuting by bike, I have found, is holding the bike up while strapping the baby in. With lots of practice, I'm sure it will get easier.

Rounding Out

I took DS to the Physical Therapist for his follow-up visit on Friday, a week and a half ago. I apologize for the tardiness of this report. The purpose of this visit was to check his progress with the neck stretches we had been assigned to do...in order to stretch out his tight neck muscles...so he can look to the left easier...to help work out the flat spot on the right side of his head...indirectly. We did the stretches faithfully (most days) and she was pleased with the progress. His muscles were much more even this time and the flat spot on his head is even starting to round out a little. She instructed us to continue keeping the weight on the left side of his head by lying him down on his left side to continue helping it to get better, not worse. And, she discharged him from PT and does not need to see him again!! Our next visit to the doctor for his 6-month checkup is on Monday, so we are looking forward to that.

I took some time off to go skiing. I left Noah with some competent babysitters and headed out for a "Mom Date" the other evening. (This is my friend Leslie, striking an adtion pose, who's daughter Lucy is just a few months older than Noah.) We went skiing (well, I skied and she snowboarded) for a few hours at a place on Mount Hood that has discounted tickets on Tuesday nights for "Ladies Night." That's right, only the ladies get discounted tickets!! It was fun to get out to get some fresh air!!

New Tricks

Trick Number 1: Eating with a spoon!!
DS began eating rice cereal last Saturday. Our original plan was to start at 6 months, as 4-6 months is typically recommended. However, as his 5 month mark was upon us, he was showing all the signs of being ready! I'm not sure if any of it was actually swallowed, or if all of it landed on his bib. In any case, he seemed to enjoy it and now is eating like a pro...almost.

Trick Number 2: Sitting!!
DS has begun sitting up. Over the past week or so, his balance was beginning to improve so he could sit for 30 seconds or so, but today when I let go, he stayed up!! Today was the first day he was able to sit up on his own for a 10 minute stretch before losing it and rolling backward. His new favorite activity seems to be sitting up and reaching out to the dogs so they can lick his hands. Every now and then, when they run by, he loses track and starts to teeter, but so far, so good!

Trick Number 3: Being cute.
Actually, this is not at all a new trick, but he has definitely been hamming it up these days. During his play time, he will look up to see if we are watching, then, with a big smile, bury his face in his blanket. He LOVES getting his clothes and/or diaper changed. The changing table is apparently his "happy place". And, of course, there is peek-a-boo. He just laughs when I poke my head around the door and say, "Peek-a-boo!" Then he waits for me to do it again....and when I don't, he definitely lets me know that our game was NOT over! Not to mention, his new amusement with sticking his fingers in my mouth...

Meet Finn. Finn is one of DS's buddies who happens to be just 2 days older...and every bit as big. They have started socializing in their native baby tongue.

We had a blizzard...well, maybe not a blizzard exactly... We had so much snow that it shut down our little town for a couple hours. Apparently this is about as much snow as we will ever get here...but the mountains are about 1 1/2-2 hours away, and they get PLENTY of snow. The children around enjoyed having the schools delayed and made snowmen...or should I say mud-men.