iSnip: Software - Utility - Clipboard

The more I use it, the more I appreciate iSnip! I never worry about forgetting to paste that important bit of information before copying the next one because it has a clipboard history. I still can not remember the phone number in my new office, but I can paste that snippet any time I need it. It lives in my menu bar with a small icon, and I use it every day.

Seventh Month

Development

All along I've been impressed how strong he is. He tries to sit up when he's reclined in car seat, which shows off his hard abs. I'm impressed with his muscle tone -- as a baby! I never expected that.

Layette

Still wearing onesies under footed rompers. He still wears 3-6 month for some items, but has moved on to 6-9 month for a few others.

Feeding

He eats more food now (more volume, and more variety of fruits and vegetables). He decided that he prefers spoon this month. One day he woke up, he didn't want to nurse (a big change!), and he didn't want a bottle (normal), so we finally offered him cereal with a spoon, and that was it. Spoons used to be weird for food delivery, and then he woke up one day and spoons were it. Just like that.

Sleeping

He still doesn't sleep through the night, but sometimes he's up only once to feed, and I can usually set down awake. Then he had a growth spurt. sigh

Furniture

The Intelli-tainer is an important tool to (allow us to) fix dinner, while his high chair is important for meal times (both his and ours).

Mom

Total weight loss: down 10 pounds.

Sixth Month

The sixth month was a teaser: sometimes he would almost follow a schedule so I would feel like I could have a life, and sometimes he would sleep a long stretch at night. And sometimes he wouldn't do either!

Development

He's raking at toys, and still loves attention from anyone.

Layette

He wears onesies under a terry romper. The onesie is for extra warmth, and the all-in-one romper is just so convenient! Rompers with feet mean he doesn't need socks or slippers (which he pulls off rather quickly anyway), and terry rompers stretch so that they last through more growth.

Feeding

He started to eat rice cereal this month. It's not as good as nursing, but he'll eat it, especially if Daddy feeds him. He loves Daddy time!

Sleeping

Sometimes! Sometimes he sleeps through a fair portion of the night (four hours), and sometimes he doesn't even want to nap.

Furniture

He loves his Intelli-tainer!

Mom

Need ... more ... sleep! Working from home a few days a week is perfect. I like using my brain, but I like being around my child too. It wouldn't work if I didn't have the support of my husband, my mother (child care when I do go in), and my boss.

Total weight change: down 9 pounds.

Fifth Month

He's really the cutest ... I can't wait to come home when I go to work!

Development

He's starting to notice his toys now, and that these arm things can move his toys. He also lifts his head much more. I thought he lifted his head before, but his neck control is more impressive now. He turns his head rapidly when we walk outside, so he can take it all in. When our dog runs around the yard, he watches her! He still wants to fill his brain, and that takes more of our attention.

Layette

Same old 3-6 months size, footed rompers for this weather.

Nursing

Yes, he nurses! He'll take a bottle now. We tried rice cereal a few times, but he thinks spoons are weird.

Sleeping

No luck here. sigh

Furniture

Most of the time he's all about standing in his Intellitainer, and sometimes that's awful and he wants to lie on his back playing with the toys on his Gymini. He has tummy time there too, and it became nap time twice. He lifts and moves his head during those naps (closely monitored since Back to Sleep).

Mom

I don't soak through breast pads anymore, and in fact rarely soak them at all, although I still need to wear them. Now they protect that oh-so-tender area from rubbing and contact. I'm glad I use washable breast pads since they're rarely "used" at the end of the day. I know some swear by disposible breast pads, and I do have those in the diaper bags just in case, but I use washable ones.

Total weight loss: down 8 pounds overall (same as last month, and yes, that's 8 pounds less than my weight at his conception, and no, that's not average).

Fourth Month

The changes continue in the fourth month! His cries have changed again, so sometimes he won't eat when we think he sounds hungry. Keep adapting to the changes!

Development

He started this month with a growth spurt that lasted longer than before and had many days of marathon nursing. We had to use formula few times because I couldn't produce enough breastmilk, but he was hungry enough to try anyway. (Ow. Formula gave me time to recover.) And growth spurts do include extra crying. His maternal grandmother saw him on Friday when the growth spurt started, and again on Monday. She remarked that he was visibly longer with a bigger head just in those three days. He was bigger again in the next three days too. One consequence of this weight gain is that our backs get tired sooner while carrying him. Another is that going back to work is not easy. (He fusses more when I leave, and I can't stand that.) When he's waking up, he does this funny stretch with his arms straight out in front, moving just a little. I call that Baby Frankenstein.

Layette

All of a sudden, with the growth spurt, 0-3 month clothing is too small! Actually, his tee shirts and onesies still fit, but his footed rompers are now too short in the legs. Since he loves to (try to) stand, clothing that keeps him from stretching his legs makes him upset. Footed rompers with non-skid soles are best since he needs help standing. Now that the weather is getting cooler, rompers are handy.

Nursing

He tried upright nursing again, but that's very difficult for me now that he's taller. If he wants to make a habit of it, I'll need to sit on a cushion while he stands on the seat. (Of course he thinks standing to eat is the best. He loves to stand!)

Sleeping

The Amazing Miracle Blanket is still useful for swaddling because it still usually holds his arms so that he doesn't wake up by bonking himself in the face.

Furniture

We got him the Intelli-tainer stationary activity center so that he could enjoy standing while we enjoyed watching but not holding him. Since standing is so fun for him, he loves it. He does move and study the toys on it, but I'm not sure how much he needs the toys yet. The height adjustment isn't the best (he can either reach the toys, or the floor, but not both), so I put a shoebox under his feet. Once I also put weights in there so he couldn't kick his support away, he was happier for longer.

Travel

We went to a Halloween costume party with him this month. At first he was quite scared, and we thought we would have to leave early, but he settled down after he noticed that we weren't scared by that devil costume. He was a hit! He loves being the center of attention, so I'm sure that helped too.

Total weight loss: down 8 pounds overall (up 1 pound from last month).

Diaper Review, size 1-2

We used 204 size 1-2 diapers, a gentle step between size 1 and size 2. Size 1-2 diapers are between size 1 and size 2 diapers, and are rated for 8-18 pounds. The folded height on a Pampers Swaddlers diaper size 1-2 is half an inch shorter than the size 2, but otherwise the same. We used them when he was 12 and 13 pounds, using the last one the day before he turned 3 months old.

Overall, in diapers, we've had the best luck with Huggies and with Pampers. The most effective diapers are soft, so that they curve into baby shape easily. My favorite diaper is the Pampers Swaddler because it's soft, because the stretch waist helps hold it on despite lack of booty, and finally because they support Sesame Street (I like Disney, but Sesame Street rates higher, possibly because I grew up on it).

Since size 2 diapers also run up to 18 pounds and we probably won't see that until around 32 weeks, I can buy size 2 diapers in bulk now. (It's risky in the smaller sizes. I met a 20-week-old baby already in size 3 diapers, and his mom had to exchange size 1 diapers from her shower for size 2 in the first month!) Then again, I've been happier when he's not at the high end of the weight range for his diapers, so I might step up by 16 pounds which should be around 26 weeks of age. Or, if he keeps nursing at this rate, assuming I hold together, maybe next week. He seems quite intent on growing right now at 15 weeks!

Stationary Activity Center

Sunday we went shopping for a stationary activity center (a walker that doesn't move around the room, which would be dangerous with our stairs, and frustrating on our carpet). Mainly we looked at the Intelli-tainer and the ExerSaucer Mega. I know that you're not supposed to use these until after the baby is 4 months old, and that walking is developmentally delayed presumably because the baby can't see his feet. I was trying not to want one of these! However, when I saw such a happy baby face after a store test, I knew we would bring one home.

The questions to answer before buying one (other than, Does he like it when you set him in there?) are:

• What are the maximum ratings for child height and weight?
• Are the toys and batteries (if applicable) replacable? Both replacements combat child boredom.
• For the noise toys, is there a volume switch as well as an off switch? This will save your sanity.
• Is the height adjustable so it can "grow" with the child?
• How well does it pack for travel to Granma's?

We got the Intelli-tainer. It doesn't collapse for travel like the ExerSaucer Mega, and the height doesn't adjust as easily (if you call that an adjustment!) either, but there's a better chance of seeing feet so we got it. Now that we've got it, the report is that the seat moving parts don't glide as well as the store demo, as well as we would like. To deal with the height adjustment simply, I placed a short box under his feet.

The report is that he loved "standing on his own" so I too had 20 minutes to stand on my own (happy back!) in a room with him awake! That's saying something!