You'll never believe this...

On the way home from my mother's tonight, Jack was overtired and throwing a fit. I tried some formula; he sucked it down. This is the only way I have to get him to sleep in the car. So now I'm stuck with a mad baby with a full belly, and I can't give him more formula or he'll be sick. We then move on to toys. His squishy fishy and smiley pepperoni pizza teether only worked for a bit. When Henry the Hippo failed, I knew we were doomed. Out of desperation I took out an old pacifier, blew off the dust, and popped it in his mouth. He just started sucking away like he'd been doing this all his life. Jack never takes a pacifier, and I realistically didn't expect him to start getting the hang of it at five and a half months. What baby does that? I used to drown the thing in Karo syrup to tempt him and it never worked. Now, all of a sudden, he's going to town. This could just be a fluke, but the way he was working the paci makes me think it won't be. The hubby and I decided it could be a special thing for car rides when rocking him and/or breastfeeding aren't an option. This whole situation is so bizarre; I'm still in shock.

Jack's First Tooth

Hooray! Jack's first tooth appeared last week. My sister actually noticed it first. He has had a rough ridge on his bottom front gums for a while now. Finally, a little tooth started to poke through. It still isn't completely out, but it's SHARP! I can tell it's still sore because he doesn't want us touching it. Things are starting to progress so quickly for Jack.

We also bought Jack a space saver high chair. He loves it. He's become obsessed with watching the hubby do things around the house, and the high chair gives him a great vantage point. Jack just stares at him all the time. Watching his daddy change the light bulbs was quite an adventure the other day. In fact, if the hubby turns his back to Jack, he'll start fussing. He's even semi reaching for him, but not for mommy. :( That's okay. I'm old hat-always around making him do stuff he doesn't want to like take naps, get dressed, put powder under his third chin. He probably doesn't want to go to me because he knows he's in for a good scrubbin'. Back to the high chair (jeez I'm random!). I'm excited about it because I can finally cook dinner and keep Jack happy at the same time. I really should have gotten the thing sooner.

One more thing, please think happy thoughts for Jack's best bud Will who's feeling under the weather today.

Vote for Kurt!

My nephew wants to start his own blog. I think it would be great for his reading and writing skills. He's so excited about it. Click the link for Aunt Debbi's Garden on the right for more details. My sister will control everything for those of you concerned for his safety. Vote for Kurt!

Kisses?

Jack has started trying to show some affection this week. I don't really believe he thinks he is giving kisses. Something in me does think that he is trying to be sweet and affectionate. Although it's a slobbery ordeal, I love his intentions. The hubby filmed him in action last night.

Feelin' Froggy

Jack is finally filling out his frog bath towel.

If you don't already know, I'm deathly afraid of frogs;

however, if they all looked like this, I'd have no phobia.

Adventures with Edibles

Jack has been having a lot of fun this week trying new things. We introduced him to sweet potatoes. He loved it, but are we surprised? :) I haven't been giving him as much as he wants yet because he tends to overeat and make himself sick. Last night he would have taken in two bowls of cereal and the whole jar of sweet potatoes if I let him. One of my books said, "Start slow. Your baby will probably only eat a couple of teaspoons of cereal in the beginning." WHATEVER! Let's try five or six tablespoons (and that's with me cutting him off). I need to be careful because I don't want him subbing baby food for breastmilk just yet.

Just for fun a few nights ago, I gave Jack a sippy cup. I know it will be a few months before he masters the technique, but it's fun to watch him try. I figure if he gets it now when he has no clue what's going on, we won't have any struggles later on when he's more set in his ways. The only hiccup is that he likes to whack himself in the head with it. He's been doing that with a lot of things. It looks like it hurts, but he rarely complains. I'm starting to wonder if it's a reaction to teething pain (BTW, no teeth yet but a lot of little buds). He looks so much older holding a sippy cup.

A Visit to the Doctor

Jack went to the doctor today for his second set of shots. I know, he's a little behind. I got preoccupied with his stomach flu and the Holidays shortly after that. Luckily, the nurse said he will only be a couple of weeks off schedule. He was a very good boy when it came time for his shots. That part always makes me upset to my stomach. He is 27 inches long and eighteen and a half pounds (around 90th percentile in both areas). I stopped giving him cereal right after Thanksgiving. He was always grumpy afterwords and quitting the cereal helped. I guess he just wasn't ready yet. I started the cereal up again last week, and he's had no complications this go around. The doctor okayed the cereal, which surprised me a little. Last time she told me he didn't need the extra calories just yet. I really thought she'd want me to wait until he was six months. I know I don't always need to follow her advice in every situation, but I feel like a better mommy if I do (I know-it's my little hang-up). I've posted a picture of poor little Jack with his Bugs Bunny band-aides.

This should make you smile.

Jack was in a very silly mood today.

Where did my newborn go?

The other day I packed away Jack's 0-3 month clothing. I really should pack away his 3-6 month clothes but some still fit him. Jack was watching the whole process in his bouncy chair (not much bouncing is going on with his eighteen pound frame :) I kept showing him his newborn clothes and holding them up to him. It's hard to remember him being that little. I asked Jack if he remembered being that little, and he just smiled at me and chewed on one of the outfits. On one hand I'm glad he's growing so well, but another part of me is saddend by the idea that he will never be a newborn again. The bigger he gets the harder it will be for me to remember those first days.

Then another thought ocurred to me. What if I never have another little boy? What if I'll never use all these precious clothes again? That seemed more depressing than the fact that Jack had outgrown them.

So many people tell me to savor these moments and not spend all my time obsessing over teaching Jack tricks like sitting-up, crawling, etc. I have taken their advice. We practice those things from time to time, but I'm not in a rush. It's hard enough to remember each stage as it is; they go by so quickly. Like pictures and videos, this blog helps me retain these moments. Each one is very precious.

"As if you could kill time without injuring eternity." -Thoreau