I'm a little late getting this post up, and I'm scrambling to do it today because Hank keeps doing new things and I don't want to get my months mixed up!
New this month - Hank started standing on his own really well, going from sitting to standing with no support, and took 2-3 steps at a time (all ending in a crash landing unless there was something for him to grab on to). I wouldn't officially say that he is walking (although yesterday he took 5 steps in a row) but he is almost there!
I couldn't get a good shot of him standing with no hands, but I chose this one because it also highlights his sweet, old man hair line.
Hank also mastered the art of fake crying this month and showed off some lovely tantrums. All of which usually make me smile still!
I wish I had the video on here. You would see that he was laying on his belly, kicking his legs and screaming. All because I took the dog food away. And how, you may ask, do I know when he's fake crying or real crying? The fake crying he can turn off and on with the snap of a finger. One second he is screaming as hard as he can with the saddest look on his face. The next second he is smiling at me and batting his eyelashes. What a ham.
He is ALL boy. He loves banging stuff, throwing stuff, and climbing on stuff. He loves balls and cars. He loves music and likes to dance by either rocking back and forth, waving his hands, or banging his head against something (what a weirdo).
He love the stairs, this is his favorite place to be during the day. And so far he's only fallen down them once... yikes.
He loves being outside. For a long time I tried to avoid this as much as possible because of the mess and the dangers outside, but I finally just let him be and he was so happy. The days when he gets to go outside are his happiest days.
On this particular day it was rainy and 60 degrees outside, but Hank
kept crying to go out, so I finally let him and he played in the cold
rain for a good 45 minutes. Don't know what he loved about it so much,
but a happy baby makes for a happy momma.
On this day I let him out not realizing there was water left in one of our blow up pools. Of course he went right for it and soaked himself immediately. He loves water - the tub, Ruthie's water dish, or leftover rain water stored up in our pools on the deck.
That brown stuff by his mouth- oh, just a little dirt he was munching on before heading over for his second course of sand. Seriously... all boy.
He still loves his thumb and loves to snuggle. Half the time he is so busy body and wants to be into everything, but the other half of the time he wants me to hold him, lay his head on my chest and suck his thumb. Still so precious.
Words are a little hard to make out, but I sometimes think he says mama,
dada, woof, dog and all done (which he'll sometimes do with the sign
language in his high chair). These are all pretty spotty, but there are
times when he seems he's making the sounds in the right context.
SLEEP: Half of this month Hank slept great, giving me two 1.5-2 hour naps and 12 hours at night. The other half of the month (which is the state we are currently in) he has been giving me two 1hr-1hr 15min naps and has been waking early in the mornings (before 7am). I wouldn't mind this schedule so much except for the fact that he will often go down screaming (not like him at all) and wake up screaming. And when I say screaming, I mean crying as hard as possible. So I know he's not well rested. And when he's awake he's been pretty fussy too. He'll cry in the car seat and not play as well by himself. Not sure why this is happening... guessing it's just a phase, so hoping it passes soon! Naps are usually at 9:30am and 1:30/2pm and Bedtime is still 7pm.
I think this lack of sleep has made him pretty cranky, but he still continues to be a pretty happy baby overall. People still always comment on how happy he is and think it's weird when he fusses. I think part of it is that he's starting to get a little bored/manipulative with me, so he's putting on his best behavior for other people. And he loves playing in new places, so he doesn't think as much about fussing when we are away from home.
EAT: Hank is still nursing 4 times per day and still seems in to it. He also will take a bottle fine, and we actually made it a whole weekend apart with me pumping and Ben giving him a bottle while I was gone. This was pretty exciting for me because I was never able to do this while Lucy was still nursing, but I had pumped enough in advance with Hank to have that freedom. He eats pretty well. Again he seems to have good eating weeks and weeks where it seems he is only eating crackers and bread. I try not to stress too much about it but I find myself caught between not creating a picky eater, but also making sure he's getting enough calories.
Seriously can not believe how much I love this little guy and am loving staying home with the two of them. We have our bad moments, but that is all it is. Moments. My days are full of joy, laughter, purpose, and meaning. I am so thankful I get to be home with Hank and Lucy.
