Atticus plays hide and seek. (video)

The video is probably to long but I didn't have a way to edit it.  But if you are looking for a 4 minute Atticus fix this is it.

Atticus hide and seek!

changes

I keep telling everyone how quickly Atticus is changing. Really, in the last three to four weeks or so, I've seen so many changes in him, I'm astounded. Suddenly, he seems so much older than he did a few weeks ago. When I pick him up at daycare lately, he's often sitting in one of those little walkers (I think that's what they're called), up on his feet and playing with the various little gadgets around him (e.g., a plastic book that plays songs as he turns the pages).

Yesterday, he gave me the silent treatment while I was cooking dinner--stuffed flying saucer squash (you can pretty much count on all of our dinners including squash these days). I was trying to keep him from getting bored by chatting with him while I chopped and sauteed and so forth, but he wasn't satisfied. When I bent over to give him kisses and some more focused attention, he refused to look at me. After that (or maybe it was before) I gave him his hug bug to play with, and he threw it. Yes, sometimes he drops toys unintentionally, but this time around, hug bug appeared to have been intentionally cast away. So it looks like Atticus has learned how to punish his mama and how to throw minor tantrums.

Lately, he's taken to arching his back during massages and rocking back and forth so that he lifts half of his body off of the ground. And he seems to be so eager to be on his feet. He kicks like crazy and loves it when I lift him up to a standing position. I have a feeling that despite his heft, he will be walking on schedule, if not earlier.

His caregiver, Lisa, commented today that he's a very serious baby.

Oh, and as far as sleep goes, his intervals are creeping back up again. Eight hours last night!

super baby and his super dad

taking a brief nap before bath time. Day care is wearing Atticus out. It's good for me in that his long post-day care nap allows me to get in most of my at-home-portion of my work day done before too late, but I hope that the overdose of stimulation isn't bad for his health or something. He woke up at 5:30 this morning and fell asleep at 7:15 before we left the house. If I hadn't had to wake him to change him and put him in his car seat, he would have napped for an hour or so. Instead, all he got was a 20-minute nap, and then at daycare a meager 15-minute nap in a 4 1/2 hour time span. As usual, when I picked him up, he fell asleep almost as soon as I put him into the car. I'm just thankful he's there for just half-days. I'd really be worried if he was going for 8 or more hours on nothing but a couple of pathetic cat naps.


tomatoes and squash (zucchini, yellow crookneck, and tons of flying saucers) from the garden

It's been a while

Atticus rolled over!

Okay, granted he did this on the bed, which makes it easier, I think, because it's cushiony and gives nicely when you apply pressure, but nonetheless, it's an accomplishment, and I certainly don't want to take the wind out of his sails. He rolled over twice from belly to back while we played a game in which I roll him back and forth while singing the "Ten in the bed..." song.

Then an hour later he had the biggest blowout I've ever seen--baby poop all over the seat of his swing. And the poop didn't just target the removable/machine-washable padding, but also the unremovable strap and the right foot of his beloved hug bug. This is the sixth or seventh time he's had a blowout in that seat--I'm talking specifically about blowouts that exit his clothing (there have been other more minor ones that require a change of clothing, but no laundering of the seat pad). Interestingly, I don't think he's had a blowout anywhere else but on that seat. And after today's disaster I realize just how lucky we've been that he hasn't done this in his car seat when we're out on the town. How would we ever make it home?

A few more notes: I weighed him again at mom and baby group today, and he's now about 17 1/2 pounds. Sheesh! His growth rate isn't exactly slowing down.

Last night he slept about 5 1/2 hours before then waking up about every 2 hours. It's a little frustrating, but it does help that he falls asleep easily both when I first put him to bed for the night and each time he wakes to nurse. I know they say that just when you think you know your baby's schedule, they change, so I guess this is to be expected. Hopefully his intervals will change back again soon. He does take good long naps during the day--often 2+ hours. He's waking up from one now. I better go.

belated happy three-month birthday

Atticus's three-month birthday was yesterday. I don't have much time or energy to post anything by the end of a work day, so I'm late acknowledging this. And I'm lacking in photos because my photographer is still in Hawaii. As far as stats go, Atticus weighed 16 pounds 12 ounces last Saturday, so I imagine he's about 17 pounds by now, probably a little over. He's SO heavy, but thanks to head control, he's actually easier to lug around now than he was a month ago. No more having to cradle his head when I pick him up or having to block it from knocking into my collar bone.

His latest triumph is that he finally has strong enough neck muscles to lift his head as I pull him by the arms to a seated position. I've been dying to do this with him for months (shows you how exciting my life is), and now I can pull him up again and again and again.

Now I'm trying to teach him how to roll over. I roll him back and forth using a blanket. He doesn't seem too interested in trying it on his own yet, but he mostly enjoys my rolling him, except for the one time I rolled him a little hard and he smacked his noggin a little. That he didn't like so much.

I regret to report that Atticus has regressed this past week when it comes to sleeping at night. The week before he slept 7+ hours about 5 nights out of 7. This week he slept 5 hours straight max. And last night he slept no longer than 3 hours at a time. :( I hope this is a result of the big changes in his life this week--his daddy in Hawaii for over a week, then his grandmother Ginny visiting for several days. Please, please, please, Atticus, get your act together. We had a marathon feeding session this evening, so if he doesn't sleep substantially longer than 3 hours straight, then he must be going through a monstrous growth spurt.

The Baby Whisperer

Before Atticus was born, I couldn't manage to conjure up more than two lines of a lullaby. I am now proud to announce that I have learned all five verses of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and that I sing it to Atticus before bed and before naps. It works magic. In fact, if I want to be sure he fills his belly before going to sleep at night, I have to wait until he's done nursing before commencing into song or that baby will start to nod off even in the face of hunger. "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," a little belly rubbing, and some California Baby calendula cream applied to his face and that sweet baby is on cloud nine.