Jacob is now five-and-a-half months old and getting bigger by the day. I don't even recognize him in his "old" pictures anymore. He looks like a completely different baby! He's gained so much weight and gotten so chunky. My little almost-a-preemie-sized little guy is just about completely caught up as far as the child development growth charts go. People who "know" babies can correctly guess his age now instead of thinking that he's a month younger than his actual age. He's already almost outgrown all of his "3-6 months" clothes and fits comfortably in the "6-9 months" outfits. It's amazing how fast he's growing.I started feeding him rice cereal about two weeks ago just to see how he'd do. He goes through a 12 oz. container of (powdered) formula in about two days drinking around 30 oz. each day - sometimes a little less, sometimes a little more. I was thinking that food-food might fill him up a little more than just the formula, but that doesn't seem to be the case. At first, he didn't care for it at all. He reached out and grabbed for the spoon each time, but he just wouldn't swallow it. So, I added some Stage 1 organic sweet potatoes to each feeding of rice cereal, and he still didn't seem to care for it or the sweet potatoes. He really didn't seem to even grasp the concept of swallowing substances that were thicker than his formula; he pushed most of the cereal and sweet potatoes back out with his tongue. Each jar of baby food is good for three days, so I prepared it each night and then went on to a second jar. Once we got to the second jar, he started truly opening his mouth... but still
wasn't too keen the whole thing. So I waited a few more days and then added some pears. He loved this and grunted for more in between each bite. I gave him some cereal this morning, and he ate that alright. Not crazy about it... but he ate a little more than half of what I had mixed up. Tonight I tried some peas, and I couldn't load the spoon fast enough! He gobbled up what I had warmed up and wanted more. He probably ate about one-third to half of the jar! I picked up some jars of carrots and squash, so we'll try those after the two jars of peas are gone. My little guy loves his veggies! :) I'm a proud Mama. Well, I already was... but, you know. :PA few days later...
I'm doing my best to keep up with this blog, but it's getting more and more difficult to find the time to sit down and type away. Jacob's still our little Nap Fighter Extraordinaire, and the free time I do get usually goes to taking care of things around the house. Sometimes when I get a chance, though, I just have to take a break from doing anything and just zone out/play around online. :P
Ummm... hmm... what else?
Tummy Time progress is continuing at a snail's pace, but I'm making more of an effort to keep it up twice a day. He's getting his head up a little more and for a little longer each time, but he still hates it. He's figured out how to roll onto his back now - using his heavy little head for a weight to help hoist himself over - and can get off of his tummy pretty quickly when he's positioned just right. If his arms are off to the side (instead of tucked in front beneath his head), he flails around like a fish out of water. One of these days, Jakey... you'll figure it out! We're convinced that when he does start crawling, he'll probably start walking shortly afterward. He loves being held up to stand and even "walks" one step at a time on alternating feet.We went to our first Babygarten session last week - Jacob, Dave,
and I. Babygarten is a story hour at our local library for babies up to a year old. Everyone sits in a circle with their little ones and the children's section librarian leads songs that incorporate "finger plays" (hand motions like clapping, rubbing hands together, "twinkle, twinkle little star" motions, and so on). After the songs, everyone reads a book together and then the kiddos get to play with a boxful of toys dumped out on the floor. Jacob's been enthralled with other babies and kids ever since his last appointment with the pediatrician in May. As soon as we sat down in the circle of babies (all ten to twelve months and ALL boys!), he looked around and got a big smile on his face. I think that he was expecting the other babies to come up to him and play or entertain him, though, (like everyone else in his life does) because his smile faded somewhat when they didn't approach him. 
He seemed to have a good time until the final song and book. He got a little fussy, but Dave and I were able to distract him a little and try to keep his interest. He enjoyed playing with the toys and watching all of the other kids play. He didn't smile much, but he watched the other babies intently and was really focused on the new (new-to-him) toys. Since that day, we've sung the first song we did there ("Choo, Choo" - about a train going up the track, coming back, and then going to each of the boys' houses) just about every day here at home. He loves putting his hands on the backs of ours and moving them back and forth along with the tune. They have Babygarten twice a month during the summer, so it'll be interesting to see if he starts to like it more and more or if he loses interest.And several more days later...
forty minutes (ten minutes until it was over), but he settled down when I put him in his carrier and alternated his position between looking at the other kids and looking at the stage. It's so awesome knowing that I can take him out to different places and events on my own without him having a meltdown. And it's so awesome that the library has a few things to offer on at least a monthly basis... and that's it's only about four blocks from the house!He's been babbling a lot more lately - mainly "Vvvvvuh" and long "O" sounds... but he does a longer babble that truly sounds like, "I love you!" Remember the old video of the dog saying, "I love you."? I guess it's kind of like that but in baby-speak. It's super cute. Most sounds are still only produced when his fingers are in his mouth, though. Unless he's "yelling" to express his frustration or displeasure that we aren't quick enough in preparing his bottle. He's been doing a lot of excited/silly spitting lately, too. Cute but a little messy... especially when I'm trying to feed him some "real" food. :P
Next month... six months old!
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